August  6,  1896. 
JOURNAL  OF  EORTIGULTTJRF  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
131 
-  Fbuit  Cultueb  in  Scotland. — IJhave  of  late  years  been 
renewing  the  youth  of  several  venerable  Apple  trees,  some  of  them  fifty 
years  old,  with  strong  applications  in  winter  of  liquid  manure,  and  the 
consequence  is  that  this  season  they  have  enormous  crops,  one  tree 
bearing  for  the  first  time  for  thirty  years  1  I  much  regret  to  say  that 
large  numbers  of  my  pyramid  Plums  have  been  cracking  and  gumming 
with  the  recent  excessive  and  altogether  superfluous  rains.  The  Apple 
trees  are  bearing  enormous  crops,  many  of  the  branches  being  weighed 
down  to  the  ground.  Several  of  my  finest  Pears,  such  as  Pitmaston 
Duchess  and  Doyenne  du  Comice,  are  not  yet  sufficiently  established  to 
bear  very  much  ;  but  older  varieties,  like  the  Early  Crawford,  have  done 
much  better  than  in  former  years.  It  may  interest  my  Scottish  readers 
to  learn  that  an  Almond  tree,  now  15  feet  high,  transplanted  from  Hert- 
firdshire  in  March  last,  suffered  no  retrogression  ;  bloomed  exquisitely 
in  April,  and  has  developed  fruit  as  large  as  an  ordinary  Plum.  It  has 
manifestly  not  taken  long  to  get  into  perfect  harmony  with  Its  environ¬ 
ments. — D.  Pi.  Williamson. 
-  Wakefield  Paxton  Society.— On  Saturday,  25th  ult.,  the 
lecture  was  on  “  Pelargoniums,”  and  was  given  by  Mr.  Corden.  Mr. 
Herbert  Chapman  was  in  the  chair,  and  Mr.  J.  Swire  in  the  vice-chair. 
There  was  an  excellent  attendance.  The  essayist  treated  his  subject  in 
a  lucid  and  interesting  manner.  He  exhibited  some  fine  specimens  of 
bloom  which  adorned  the  table.  Pelargoniums,  said  Mr.  Corden,  were 
generally  known  as  Geraniums — scarlet  Geraniums  was  the  common  name 
— but  they  were  not  really  so.  He  handed  round  the  room  a  specimen 
of  the  real  Geranium — a  wild  flower.  The  true  Geranium  belonged  to 
the  flora  of  the  northern  hemisphere,  while  the  Pelargonium  was  a 
native  of  the  southern .  The  name  was  derived  from  the  woiA  pelagos, 
a  stork.  The  history  of  1  he  flower  was  touched  on,  the  lecturer  saying 
that  when  Lamone,  the  Frenchman,  introduced  the  ‘‘double  Geranium” 
it  was  accounted  a  great  wonder,  and  instantly  became  the  fashionable 
flower  for  buttonholes.  Mr.  Corden  gave  the  result  of  his  experi¬ 
ence  in  rearing  the  plant,  giving  some  good  practical  advice  to  intend¬ 
ing  growers  as  to  manure.  The  single  varieties  of  the  plant  grew 
best  in  this  district,  double  ones  not  seeming  to  open  well.  An  interest¬ 
ing  discussion  followed. 
-  Campanula  rotundifolia.— Harebells  swinging  to  and  fro 
from  invisible  seams  in  rocky  cliffs  always  cbarm  the  eye  with  theis 
airy  grace  and  exquisite  colour,  and  they  are  highly  satisfactory  for 
indoor  decoration  as  cut  flowers.  No  matter  how  withered  they  may  be 
they  quickly  revive  in  warm  water,  and  every  bud  develops  with 
conscientious  fidelity,  lasting  for  weeks  with  increased  delicacy  of  colour, 
For  cultural  use,  however,  as  a  house  plant,  Campanula  rotundifolia  is  a 
failure  ;  all  its  growth  is  twisted,  distorted,  and  abortive.  When  planted 
in  a  pot  and  set  on  a  bracket  for  verandah  use  it  is  unsurpassed,  for  it 
will  bloom  there  from  the  last  of  June,  through  the  entire  season,  if  the 
seed  pods  are  not  allowed  to  mature.  The  marvellous  strength  and 
elasticity  of  the  slender  stems  render  them  proof  against  summer  gales, 
heat,  and  neglect,  In  selecting  plants  for  this  use  look  around  the 
sloping  base  of  ledges  where  stray  specimens  have  well  developed  roots, 
and  where  their  natural  soil  can  be  secured  for  potting.  Harebells, 
says  Mr.  G,  A.  Woolson,  in  the  “  Garden  and  Forest,”  take  kindly  to 
artificial  rockwork  and  will  grow  in  any  soil,  but  will  not  succeed  with 
level  culture.  A  certain  freedom  from  the  ground  must  be  given,  for 
the  lovely  plant  revels  in  movement,  and  it  needs  the  opportunity  to 
sway  “  just  as  the  breezes  come  and  go.” 
WALK  EDGINGS. 
Whatever  may  be  the  merits  of  the  various  articles  used  as  edgings 
to  walks,  it  seems  agreed  on,  by  usage,  that  one  of  Box  stands  pre¬ 
eminent  ;  and  whether  we  take  it  for  its  hardihood,  durability,  or  general 
appearance,  as  a  live  edging  it  would  seem  the  first  in  its  class.  Never¬ 
theless,  there  are  places  where  it  is  inexpedient  to  have  Box  ;  places 
where  neither  that  nor  anything  else  will  grow,  and  places  where  it 
almost  refuses  to  grow,  from  a  dislike  to  the  soil.  Now,  though  we 
profess  to  advocate  the  use  of  Box  in  all  cases  where  it  will  thrive, 
unless  other  circumstances  render  another  edging  necessary,  we  will, 
nevertheless,  advert  to  other  kinds  for  the  special  purposes  for  which 
they  may  be  wanted. 
From  time  immemorial  edgings  for  paths  have  been  deemed  requisiee 
for  appearance,  and  in  some  respects  for  stability.  The  various  Roman 
causeways,  which  intersected  the  cultivated  parts  of  this  country  during 
the  time  that  wonderful  people  held  possession  of  it,  have  all  a  row  of 
larger  stones  at  the  edge  than  in  the  centre,  showing  that  “  an  edging” 
was  not  unknown  at  that  early  period ;  and  from  them,  down  to  the 
present  period,  some  sort  of  margin  seems  to  be  considered  necessary  to 
all  sorts  of  pathways,  be  that  a  turnpike  foot  road,  a  street  pavement,  or 
the  more  humble  crossing  that  carries  the  cottager  from  his  backdoor  to 
some  outhouse. 
Like  many  other  plants,  more  noticed  perhaps,  the  Box  has  divided 
itself  into  varieties,  differing  in  their  dwarfness  or  robustness  of  habit,  the 
extremes  being  denominated  “  tree,”  and  “  edging  Box  but,  indepen¬ 
dent  of  these  extremes,  there  are  (as  in  most  other  things)  intermediate 
kinds,  too  coarse  for  edging  purposes  in  many  places,  though  not  in  all ; 
and  in  those  situations  where  the  very  dwarfest  kind  refuses  to  grow, 
this  stronger  growing  one  may  be  introduced  to  advantage.  Whichever 
may  be  used,  be  sure  that  all  the  edging  planted  in  one  place  be  all  of  a 
kind;  for  though  we  advocated  cutting  and  trimming,  yet  the  jagged 
and  very  uneven  growth  that  takes  place  when  the  dwarf  and  robust  are 
intermixed,  or,  what  is  equally  bad,  half  one  and  half  the  other  in  the 
same  line,  renders  it  necessary  to  be  very  exact  in  having  it  true.  We 
will  not  here  go  into  the  details  of  planting,  which  are  well  known,  but 
merely  say  that  we  cut  but  little  (seldom  any)  of  the  top  at  the  time  of 
planting. 
It  is  likewise  necessary  to  be  careful  that  the  ground  on  which  it  is 
planted  be  all  alike  in  quality,  and  not  to  have  the  roots  of  one  piece 
luxuriating  in  the  rich  soil  of  the  kitchen  garden  squares,  and  another 
struggling  for  existence  amongst  the  hungry  gravel  and  other  substances 
the  walk  may  be  made  of.  These  matters  are  often  neglected,  and  the 
edging  presents  afterwards  a  diversity  of  growth  not  to  be  wondered  at 
when  we  consider  the  circumstances  in  which  it  was  placed.  It  is  scarcely 
necessary  here  to  point  out  the  best  season  for  this  duty,  for  it  rarely 
happens  that  any  regard  can  be  had  to  that ;  we  have  planted  it  at 
all  seasons,  but  prefer  the  month  of  April .  Whenever  it  is  planted  in 
dry  weather  it  should  have  the  advantage  of  water  for  some  time  after¬ 
wards,  and  it  will  seldom  fail  to  grow,  even  when  its  roots  have  been 
much  curtailed.  In  moist,  cool  districts,  large  quantities  are  often  put 
in  without  any  root  at  all.  The  middle  of  the  growing  season  is  the 
worst  for  planting,  but  we  have  done  that  in  a  case  of  necessity,  and 
been  tolerably  successful. 
Notwithstanding  the  reputed  hardihood  of  Box,  we  have  seen  it  show 
more  signs  of  suffering  from  spring  frosts  than  many  things  supposed  to 
be  more  tender.  Some  frosts  we  had  in  the  early  part  of  one  spring, 
followed  by  a  bright  sun,  “  cut  up  ”  the  tender  growth  of  Box  edging  on 
the  east  sides  of  those  lines  which  run  north  and  south,  and  were  exposed 
to  the  morning  sun.  This  we  suppose  to  be  owing  to  the  cold  air  floating 
nearest  the  ground,  and  the  sadden  exposure  to  unclouded  sunshine  after, 
Nevertheless,  we  need  not  be  afraid  to  plant  it  in  exposed  situations, 
for,  though  it  suffered  severely,  and  for  some  days  was  quite  black,  still 
it  recovered  itself  without  any  portion  falling  a  victim  to  the  ordeal  to 
which  it  had  been  subjected. 
We  have  heard  it  said,  “  There  cannot  be  any  good  gardening  where 
Box  edging  will  not  grow.”  From  this  we  entirely  dissent,  as  we  have 
seen  an  excellent  and  well-kept  garden  where,  after  repeated  trials,  in 
which  the  Box  perished  piecemeal,  its  use  was  given  up,  and  a  dead 
edging,  we  believe  of  timber,  substituted  in  its  place.  This  proves  that 
there  are  some  soils  which  do  not  possess  in  sufficient  quantities  the 
necessary  ingredients  on  which  Box  lives,  or  some  which  it  dislikes  ; 
consequently,  after  dragging  out  a  miserable  existence,  it  dies,  piece 
after  piece,. until  the  edging  becomes  no  edging.  It  would  be  difficult 
to  describe  the  precise  kind  of  soil  the  Box  dislikes,  but  we  may  say  that 
where  Sorrel  is  found  very  abundantly  it  is  often  a  proof  that  the 
Box  will  not  be  at  home  ;  while  we  have  seen  it  thrive  on  a  sandy 
soil  that  would  almost  drift  before  the  wind,  and  it  thrives  equally  on  a 
retentive  loam. 
Though  it  cannot  be  planted  at  this  season,  yet  it  may  be  success¬ 
fully  trimmed  into  order,  which  is  a  point  equally  necessary  to  its 
general  appearance.  For  this  purpose  damp,  dull  weather  is  the  most 
suitable  time.  Its  mutilated  leaves  are  not  then  subjected  to  the 
scorching  influence  of  the  sun  until  a  partial  recovery  takes  place  ; 
and  the  same  may  be  said  of  those  interior  leaves  which,  having  been 
Icng  concealed,  are  not  able  to  bear  exposure  to  hot  sunshine  with 
impunity.  By  cutting  Box  at  this  season  a  part  of  its  summer’s 
growth  also  will  be  retained,  which  will  look  well  the  remainder  of 
the  year. 
As  we  have  before  said,  every  walk  ought  to  have  some  visible 
edging,  or  margin,  whereby  its  outline  is  distinguished  from  the  ground 
which  adjoins  it.  Even  the  back  paths,  or  thoroughfares,  ought  to 
have  boundary  marks  to  denote  how  far  they  ought  legitimately  to 
extend  ;  these,  however,  had  better  be  either  brick,  or  stone  of  some 
sort  sunk  in  the  ground.  Common  bricks  make  a  very  good  edging, 
laid  either  edge  or  endways  up,  where  traffic  is  supposed  to  pass  over 
them  ;  but  they  look  best  when  laid  angle-ways  up,  like  the  ridge  of  a 
house,  and,  if  done  carefully,  they  look  remarkably  neat.  Rough  stones 
or  flints  will  do  in  certain  situations  where  there  is  not  much  traffic  to 
displace  them  ;  but  in  a  wilderness  or  other  romantic  situation  they  are 
the  most  proper ;  while  in  the  precincts  of  the  mansion,  or  dressed 
grounds,  a  prepared  kerb-stone,  or  something  that  represents  .t  in  the 
terra  cotta  or  plaster  way,  will  doubtless  be  preferred.  Slate  may  be 
used  in  some  places,  and  so  likewise  may  cast  iron  ;  but  the  first  is  too 
thin  to  look  well,  and  the  last  liable  to  many  objections— not  the  least 
being  its  expense,  where  perhaps  a  mile  of  it  is  wanted. 
We  are  awafe  that  in  a  kitchen  garden  many  live  edgings  are 
turned  to  profit,  or  intended  to  be  so,  but  their  disorderly  appearance 
more  than  counterbalances  any  good  likely  to  be  derived  from  them. 
We  have  seen  Thyme,  Hyssop,  Pennyroyal,  Strawberries,  Parsley,  and 
many  other  things,  all  employed  for  that  purpose ;  but,  excepting  the 
last,  it  is  seldom  that  any  good  is  derived  from  them.  —  Practice. 
