May  7,  1896. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
425 
tried.  They  are  delightful  seen  near  at  hand,  and  also  effective  in  the 
picture. 
The  leaves  ripen,  disappear  before  mowing  time,  and  do  not  in  any 
way  interfere  with  the  farming.  The  harrowing  and  rolling  of  the 
fields  in  the  spring  hurt  the  leaves  a  little,  but  the  plants  are  free  from 
this  near  wood  walks,  by  grass  walks,  and  open  copses  and  lawns  which 
abound  in  so  many  English  country  places.  The  great  groap  of  forms 
of  our  large  native  Daffodils  gave  good  results  ;  they  thrive  better  and 
the  fiowers  are  handsomer  than  those  of  the  wild  plant.  The  little 
Tenby  Daffodil  is  very  sturdy,  pretty,  and  never  fails.  A  delightful 
feature  of  Narcissus  meadow  gardening  is  the  way  great  groups  follow 
each  other  in  the  fields.  When  the  Star  Narcissi  begin  to  fade  a  little 
in  their  beauty,  the  Poet’s  follow. 
As  to  the  kinds  we  may  naturalise  with  advantage,  they  are  almost 
without  limit,  but  generally  it  is  better  to  take  the  great  groups  of  the 
Star  Narcissi,  the  Poet’s  and  the  wild  Daffodil,  of  which  there  are  so 
many  handsome  varieties.  We  can  be  sure  that  these  are  hardy  in  our 
soils  ;  and,  moreover,  as  we  have  to  do  this  kind  of  work  in  a  bold  and 
rather  unsparing  way,  we  must  deal  with  kinds  that  are  easiest  to 
purchase.  There  is  hardly  any  limit  except  the  one  of  rarity,  and  we 
must  for  the  most  part  put  our  rare  kinds  in  good  garden  ground  till 
they  increase,  though  we  have  to  count  with  the  fact  that  in  some  cases 
Narcissi  that  will  not  thrive  in  the  garden  will  do  so  in  the  grass  of  a 
meadow  or  orchard. 
The  fine  distant  effect  of  Narcissi  in  groups  in  the  grass  should  not 
be  forgotten.  It  is  distinct  from  their  effect  in  gardens,  and  it  is  most 
charming  to  see  them  reflect,  as  it  were,  the  glory  of  the  spring  sun.  It 
is  not  only  their  effect  near  at  hand  that  charms  us,  but  as  we  walk 
about  we  may  see  them  in  the  distance  in  varying  lights,  sometimes 
through  and  beyond  the  leafless  woods  or  copses.  There  is  nothing 
we  have  to  fear  in  this  charming  work  save  the  common  sin — overdoing. 
To  scatter  Narcissi  equally  over  the  grass  everywhere  i3  to  destroy 
all  chance  of  repose,  of  relief,  and  of  seeing  them  in  the  charming  ways 
in  which  they  often  arrange  themselves.  It  is  almost  as  easy  to  plant 
in  pretty  ways  as  in  ugly  ways  if  we  take  the  trouble  to  think  of  it. 
There  are  hints  to  be  gathered  in  the  way  wild  plants  arrange  them¬ 
selves,  and  even  in  the  sky.  Often  a  small  cloud  passing  in  the  sky  will 
give  a  very  good  form  for  a  group,  and  be  instructive  even  in  being 
closer  and  more  solid  towards  its  centre,  as  groups  of  Narcissi  in  the 
grass  should  often  be.  The  regular  garden  way  of  setting  things  out  is 
very  necessary  in  the  garden,  but  it  will  not  do  at  all  if  we  are  to  get 
the  pictures  we  can  get  from  Narcissi  in  the  turf. 
Whatever  we  do,  it  is  always  necessary  to  keep  an  open  turf  here 
and  there  among  the  groups,  and  in  dealing  with  a  wide  lawn  or  a 
meadow  we  should  leave  a  large  breadth  quite  free  of  flowers. 
Bearing  all  these  things  in  mind,  it  may  be  said  with  confidence  that 
no  one  who  has  not  seen  it  well  grown  and  happily  placed  in  the  wild 
garden  knows  what  the  Narcissus  may  do  tor  our  lawns  and  home 
landscapes. 
SALVIA  PATENS. 
Both  as  a  pot  plant  and  as  a  border  flower  this  well-known  Salvia 
unquestionably  possesses  high  merit.  Many  years  ago  it  was  more 
commonly  met  with  than  at  the  present  day,  yet  in  beauty  it  is  not 
superseded  by  any  other  species  of  the  same  genus,  or  surpassed  in 
colour  by  any  flower  that  is  grown  in  hothouse  or  garden. 
As  a  conservatory  plant  it  is  deserving  of  more  general  attention 
than  it  receives,  as  contributing  a  colour  that  is  not  common  to  indoor 
plants,  and  which  is  fine  by  contrast  with  other  flowers  of  the  same 
period,  and,  more  than  this,  one  that  is  certain  to  be  admired  for  its 
intrinsic  richness  and  undoubted  beauty. 
The  plant  is  of  the  easiest  possible  culture.  It  may  be  had  in  bloom 
over  a  long  period  of  the  year,  and  may  be  grown  and  flowered  small 
in  a  48-sized  pot,  or  be  increased  to  the  size  of  a  large  bush  carrying 
twenty  or  more  spikes  of  bloom.  It  is  thus  adaptable  to  small  or  large 
houses,  and  to  various  purposes  of  decoration.  It  is  a  plant  which, 
with  gentle  forcing,  will  fill  an  important  place  after  the  Cinerarias  are 
over,  and  provide  the  colour  which  those  plants  have,  in  a  measure,  been 
wont  to  give,  and  which  is  too  often  absent  in  Pelargonium,  Calceolaria, 
and  Azalea  time.  For  associating  with  those  plants  in  June  the  Salvia 
patens  is  extremely  well  adapted,  and  cannot  be  too  strongly  recom¬ 
mended. 
For  this  purpose  Btools,  established  in  pots,  have  only  to  be  intro¬ 
duced  into  gentle  heat  in  February,  and  placed  in  a  light  position, 
and  by  shifting-on  they  can  be  grown  to  any  Bize  required.  If  small 
blooming  plants  are  preferred  the  young  shoots  can  be  rooted  in  a  brisk 
heat,  when,  by  liberal  culture  and  without  any  pinching  or  stopping, 
they  will  be  in  bloom  in  two  or  three  months  from  the  time  of  inserting 
the  cuttings.  Rich  soil  with  an  abundance  of  water  are  the  main  points 
leading  to  success.  It  should  be  stated  that  on  breaking  into  growth 
the  old  plants  should  be  carefully  shaken  out  of  the  pots  and  repotted 
in  fresh  soil.  When  full  of  roots  and  in  active  growth  they  will  require 
as  much  support  as  the  Chrysanthemum.  If  this  is  denied  them  they 
will  not  only  cease  blooming,  but  will  become  infested  by  the  red  spider. 
As  summer  and  autumn-blooming  garden  plants,  rows,  clumps,  or  indi¬ 
vidual  plants  in  the  mixed  borders  are  very  effective. 
If  required  in  a  dwarf  state  the  plants  can  be  pegged  down,  but  they 
are  not  suitable  for  filling-in  a  panel — not  only  because  the  growth  is 
not  close,  but  because  during  very  hot  weather,  when  other  plants  are 
in  beauty,  these  are  apt  to  drop  their  flowers,  and  would  spoil  the 
aggregate  effect.  It  is  for  the  conservatory,  for  lines  in  shrubberies,  or 
clumps  in  mixed  borders,  that  these  plants  are  mainly  suitable,  and  for 
such  purposes  they  should  be  universally  cultivated. 
Their  rich  spikes  are  always  in  request  as  cut  blooms,  and  they  last 
a  considerable  time — in  fact  quite  long  enough — in  water.  For  this 
purpose  alone  this  beautiful  blue  Salvia  should  be  provided.  A  stock 
is  easy  to  be  had,  for  cuttings  root  quite  freely  at  thi3  season,  and  it  is 
also  easily  raised  from  seeds.  It  is  not  a  free-seeding  plant,  and  not 
many  can  be  expected  from  a  small  packet.  What  there  are,  however, 
are  fairly  certain  in  germination  if  afforded  a  genial  heat  and  a 
sufficiency  of  moisture.  Plants  from  seeds  flower  the  same  season. 
Its  tuberous  roots  will,  in  dry  soil,  and  if  covered  with  ashes,  survive 
the  winter  in  the  open  ground  ;  but  it  is  altogether  preferable  to  take 
them  up  and  store  in  pots  or  boxes  quite  free  from  frost.  The  soil 
should  never  become  dust-dry,  or  the  roots  will  shrivel  at  the  neck  and 
the  eyes  will  refuse  to  start  in  the  spring.  This  good  old  plant  is  com¬ 
mended  to  gardeners  generally,  and  to  admirers  of  blue  flowers 
particularly,  as  worthy  of  extended  cultivation. — A  Gardener. 
GARDENS  ABOUT  LONDON. 
Spring  Grove  House. 
Travellers  on  the  main  road  from  London  to  Hounslow  cannot 
but  have  noticed  the  handsome  mansion  standing  on  the  side  of  the 
rising  ground  to  the  right,  immediately  after  passing  Isleworth  Station 
on  the  South-Western  Railway,  and  doubtless  many  will  have  been  so 
much  impressed  a3  to  take  the  earliest  opportunity  of  asking  to  whom  it 
belongs.  They  will  not  have  had  far  to  seek,  as  everyone  in  the  district 
knows  it  as  the  home  of  Andrew  Pears,  Esq.,  than  which  no  name  is 
more  familiar.  Not  that  the  estate  is  confined  to  the  right-hand  side  of 
the  road,  as  on  the  left  is  a  space  of  some  14  acres,  comprising  paddocks 
and  kitchen  gardens.  Though  the  present  house  is  of  recent  erection, 
the  estate  dates  back  to  a  remote  period,  as  is  evidenced  by  the  magni¬ 
ficent  Cedar  of  Lebanon,  which  rises  in  stately  grandeur  on  the  left  of 
the  lawn.  With  the  history  of  the  place,  however,  it  is  not  proposed  to 
deal  here,  interesting  though  it  is ;  but  to  say  a  few  words  about  it  from 
a  gardening  point  of  view.  _ 
Like  many  estates  throughout  the  country  Spring  Grove  House  is 
enclosed  by  a  ring  fence,  inside  of  which  runs  a  belt  of  trees,  and  a 
broad  border  for  the  culture  of  hardy  plants.  The  trees  are  not  yet 
large,  and  as  a  consequence  the  lawns  and  mansion  are  open  to  the  gaze 
of  passers-by,  but  later,  when  they  have  become  established  and  filled 
out,  privacy  will  be  insured.  It  was  noticed  that  a  few  Conifers  had 
been  planted,  but  they  have  not  proved  a  success,  and  so  none  will  be 
utilised  in  future  planting.  Several  flowering  trees  and  shrubs  were  in 
beauty  at  the  time  of  the  visit,  and  of  them  all,  the  common  double 
white  Cherry  was  the  most  beautiful.  The  plants  in  the  border  have 
not  yet  attained  to  their  full  dimensions,  for  the  simple  reason  that 
many  have  only  been  inserted  for  a  comparatively  short  space  of  time, 
but  several  were  already  throwing  up  their  flowers,  while  others  again 
were  just  peeping  through  the  ground.  In  the  course  of  a  few  years 
this  border,  which  is  of  varying  width,  will  become  one  of  the  most 
charming  features,  and  will  afford  flowers  literally  by  the  bushel. 
Turning  from  this  walk  we  take  another,  leading  more  into  the  centre 
and  towards  the  gardens.  Uuder  the  shade  of  a  fine  tree  here  has  been 
built  a  small  summer-house  flanked  and  faced  by  a  rockery,  which  is 
beautiful  with  many  of  the  more  generally  known  hardy  Primulas,  with 
Polyanthuses  and  Primroses  in  abundance.  Guided  by  the  capable  and 
genial  gardener,  Mr.  W.  Farr,  the  terrace,  on  which  is  the  lawn,  is 
quickly  mounted,  and  looking  back  across  the  road  and  railway  a 
magnificent  panorama  is  opened  to  the  view.  Away  over  trees,  meadows 
and  houses,  is  plainly  seen  the  well-known  Star  and  Garter  at  Richmond, 
with  the  park  in  close  proximity.  It  is  a  magnificent  sight,  such  as  all 
lovers  of  landscape  admire  and  appreciate,  but  to  which  no  more  words 
must  be  devoted  here,  so  let  us  get  back  at  once  to  the  gardens.  Delight¬ 
fully  fragrant  and  beautiful  in  its  simplicity  is  a  broad  border  in  front 
of  the  lawn.  It  is  well  stocked  with  Blood  Red  and  Belvoir  Castle 
Wallflowers,  double  Daisies,  Violas  in  great  variety,  with  Polyanthuses, 
and  other  suitable  plants.  _ 
Looking  at  and  walking  on  the  springy  turf  one  would  not  suppose 
that  it  was  only  three  years  old  ;  but  such  is  indeed  the  case,  and  the 
condition  in  which  we  found  it  speaks  well  for  the  thoroughness  of  the 
attention  that  has  been  bestowed  upon  it.  A  few  steps  more  and  we  are 
on  what  is  known  as  the  marble  terrace,  on  which  is  one  long  bed  occu¬ 
pied  by  the  same  plants  as  those  in  the  border  previously  mentioned, 
though  some  plants  of  a  superb  dark  Polyanthus  are  here  more  particu¬ 
larly  noticed,  and  in  which  will  later  be  done  a  little  specimen  of  carpet 
bedding.  The  rockeries  on  and  adjacent  to  this  beautiful  terrace  have 
been  built  with  care,  judgment,  and  forethought,  and  even  at  this  early 
date  after  their  formation,  present  an  appearance  of  age  that  is  a  credit 
to  Messrs.  Jas.  Veitch  &  Sons,  the  constructors.  The  plants  appear  to 
be,  by  their  thriving  condition,  perfectly  at  home,  while  the  selection 
leaves  little  or  nothing  to  be  desired.  It  is  from  here  that  the  previously 
mentioned  Cedar  is  seen  to  the  best  possible  advantage,  as,  indeed,  are 
the  lawns  and  borders. 
From  the  marble  terrace  we  step  immediately  into  the  conservatory, 
which  is  built  in  entire  keeping  with  the  mansion  to  which  it  is  attached. 
The  style  of  the  structure  is  elegant,  but  it  is  fully  lofty  for  the  plants 
