August  6,  1897. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
121 
Chester,  and  it  is  generally  an  admired  plant  by  all  garden  visitors 
Its  colour  is  a  light  porcelain  blue,  and  the  habit  is  stiff  and  erect — 
stiff  in  the  sense  of  firmness,  but  without  inelegance.  It  is  a  little  later 
this  year  than  usual,  and  did  not  begin  to  bloom  until  the  end  of  June. 
It  will  continue  to  flower  for  a  long  time  still.  This  variety  is  increased 
by  division.  Another,  and,  in  my  opinion,  less  beautiful  variety  has 
smaller,  darker,  and  more  cupped  flowers  tWn  this,  but  has  the  same 
upright  habit. 
A  very  distinct  variety  of  more  trailing  habit  has  for  some  time 
been  a  mass  of  bloom.  It  is  also  darker,  rather  more  so,  indeed,  lhan 
C,  c.  turbinata,  and  is  very  effective  where  it  grows  close  to  a  narrow 
gravel  path  at  the  base  of  one  of  the  rockeries.  It  is  one  of  the  most 
profuse  bloomers  among  the  Campanulas,  a  statement  which  means 
msch,  as  those  well  acquainted  with  the  beautiful  Bellflowers  well 
know.  There  is  no  difficulty  in  growing  these  varieties  of  C.  carpatica, 
a  light  but  fairly  moist  soil  suiting  them  well.  A  slight  shade  from  the 
height  of  the  mid-day  sun  will  prolong  the  flowering  period. — Alpintjs. 
(To  be  continued.) 
ABUTILON  CULTURE. 
{Continued  from  pfge  06.) 
For  general  decorative  purposes  Abutilons  may  be  grown  in  almost  any 
shape.  Pyramids  can  be  formed  by  stopping  the  lead  at  about  every  foot 
of  growth,  and  the  side  growths  to  G  inches,  keeping  them  from  flowering 
each  year  until  a  good  well-furnished  habit  is  attained,  and  then  allow 
them  to  flower.  It  is  of  great  importance  that  an  equalisation  of 
growth  be  attained,  therefore  gross  irregularities  mast  be  cut  away 
unflinchingly,  seeking  to  apportion  the  vigour  as  far  as  practicable 
throughout  all  parts,  having  the  plants  as  well  furnished  at  the  base  as 
at  the  summit.  Well  grown  specimens  rival,  if  they  do  not  excel. 
Fuchsias  in  picturesque  loveliness. 
Useful  decorative  plants  are  raised  from  cuttings  of  the  growing 
points,  choosing  vigorous  examples  early  in  spring.  The  cuttings  root 
readily  in  a  close  frame  stood  in  a  Cucumber  pit,  if  a  gentle  bottom  heat 
is  afforded.  They  may  either  be  inserted  singly  in  thumb  pots  or  be 
placed  just  clear  of  each  other  around  the  side  of  a  6-inch  pot,  repotting 
them  in  the  latter  case  so  soon  as  they  are  rooted,  and  keep  them 
rather  close  until  established.  I  prefer  the  single  pot,  and  so  soon  as 
the  cuttings  are  rooted  remove  them  to  shelves  where  they  will  be  just 
clear  of  the  glass.  When  inured  to  the  air.  of  the  house  and  the  pots 
full  of  roots  shift  into  f  inch  pots,  continuing  in  a  gentle  warmth  and 
a  light  position  until  established,  when  they  may  be  moved  to  a  cooler 
house,  but  keeping  rather  close  so  as  not  to  give  a  severe  check.  A 
•pan-roofed  house  or  pit  is  best,  in  which  the  plant  can  have  a  cool  moist 
base  to  stand  on,  ancl  where  they  can  be  near  the  glass  without  touching 
it.  Thu  plants  must  also  have  plenty  of  space  sideways,  and  as  these 
make  very  handsome  decorative  plants  they  must  be  given  every 
encouragement  in  the  shape  of  a  littU  artificial  manure  mixed  with  the 
first  and  all  potting  compost,  and  a  sprinkling  on  the  surface  of  the  pots 
about  every  ten  days,  just  a  pinch  between  the  finger  and  thumb, 
evenly  disposing  it  on  the  surface  for  the  waterings  to  carry  down  to  the 
roots.  Shift  from  4  to  6 -inch  pots,  and  if  all  has  gone  well  the  plants 
will  be  ready  for  transferring  to  8-inch  pots  early  in  June,  always 
allowing  them  to  fill  the  pots  with  roots,  but  before  they  become  matted 
shift  into  larger  pots.  These — viz  ,  8-inch  pots — are  the  size  they  are  set 
to  bloom  in,  and  the  plants  being  grown  in  a  cool  house  in  plenty 
of  light  they  will  branch  from  the  base,  the  plants  being  trained  with 
a  single  stem,  and  so  be  furnished  to  the  pot,  affording  a  fine  head  of 
bloom  from  at  least  early  August  right  away  through  the  autumn  and 
winter.  These  plants  are  fine  for  greenhouse  or  conservatory  decoration 
in  late  summer  and  autumn,  and  in  a  light  properly  ventilated  house, 
with  a  minimum  temperature  of  60°,  flowers  will  be  borne  successionally 
through  the  winter  into  the  spring  months. 
For  winter  flowering  I  find  cuttings  rooted  early  in  April,  grown 
similar  to  those  rooted  earlier,  and  transferred  to  the  largest  pots  not 
later  than  mid- July,  the  most  suitable,  as  they  will  be  about  15  or 
18  inches  in  height,  and  coming  into  flower  by  mid- September  or  its 
close,  and  then  placed  in  a  house  with  a  temperature  of  about  50°,  they 
will  be  at  their  best  during  the  early  autumn  and  winter  months.  In 
winter  they  must  not  be  overwatered,  and  the  air  of  the  house  must  be 
buoyant,  damp,  especially  when  accompanied  by  cold,  being  fatal  to  the 
flowers. 
I  have  tried  placing  the  plants  intended  for  winter  flowering  out¬ 
doors  in  summer,  with  the  result  that  though  a  fine  full  habit  was 
secured,  the  plants  did  not  flower  so  satisfactorily  as  those  that  were 
grown  from  first  to  last  under  glass.  The  moisture  of  late  summer  1 
apprehend  made  the  growth  too  soft,  and  not  unfrequently  the  soil  was 
soaked,  and  the  roots  were  killed.  Some,  however,  manage  the  plants 
very  well  stood  on  and  partially  plunged  in  ashes  during  the  summer 
months,  housing  at  the  close  of  September  ;  therefore  my  lack  of 
success  with  plants  so  treated  may  be  due  to  inadaptibility  of  location. 
There  are,  perhaps,  no  finer  plants  for  bedding  than  Abutilons. 
They  may  be  raised  for  this  purpose  by  inserting  cuttings  early  in 
spring,  February  or  March,  and  growing  them  on  so  as  to  have  sturdy 
well-established  plants  in  4  or  6-inch  pots,  well  hardened  by  the  close 
of  May  or  early  June.  For  bedding  purposes,  however,  it  is  best  to 
root  the  cuttings  in  gentle  heat  during  the  early  part  of  September, 
repotting  singly  when  rooted,  keeping  them  in  a  house  from  which  frost 
is  excluded  and  rather  dry  during  the  winter.  They  may  be  left  in  the 
store  pots  over  the  winter,  repotting  in  spring,  but  the  single-pot  system 
of  wintering  is  a  long  way  ahead  of  the  poverty  huddling  method. 
Transfer  to  5-iach  pots  in  spring,  and  if  the  plants  have  become  tall  cut 
them  back  to  about  4  inches  from  the  soil.  This  should  be  done  and 
the  plants  allowed  to  start  again  before  they  are  potted.  Encourage 
growth  by  liberal  treatment,  hardening  them  well  before  planting  out. 
Outdoors  give  them  a  sheltered  situation,  as  their  flowers  are  liable 
to  be  damaged  by  strong  winds.  They  look  best  on  a  gentle  elevation, 
yet  are  highly  effective  when  viewed  on  a  level  or  even  from  a  height. 
They  require  a  bed  of  good  rich  light  soil,  deeply  stirred,  to  grow  in, 
and  made  moderately  firm  so  as  to  induce  flowers  as  well  as  foliage,  and 
plant  them  about  a  foot,  and  not  more  than  18  inches,  apart.  It  is 
better  to  raise  a  fresh  stock  of  plants  annually  than  to  lift  and  store  the 
old  ones. — A. 
PEAS  AT  MAIDSTONE. 
A  SHORT  time  since,  when  examining  the  Peas  growing  at  Chiswick, 
where  true  character  is,  because  of  the  porous  nature  of  the  soil  and  the 
exceedingly  superheated  condition  of  the  atmosphere,  not  always  correct, 
Mr.  George  Bunyard  invited  me  to  run  down  to  his  seed  farm  at  Maid¬ 
stone,  and  see  how  Peas  and  Beani  did  with  him.  I  could  not  spare 
time  until  the  22ad,  by  which  date  all  the  earlier  varieties  were  ripe, 
and  the  greater  portion  of  the  main  crop  section  were  a  little  past 
tenderness. 
None  the  less,  I  had  an  interesting  visit.  The  seed  farm  is  very 
extensive,  comprising  over  200  acres,  and  lies  on  the  high  land  two  miles 
out  of  the  town  towards  Sittingbourne.  The  soil  is  fairly  good,  on  a  dense 
chalk  base,  and,  of  course,  the  air  is  of  the  freest— indeed,  it  is  in 
relation  to  soil  and  atmosphere  the  very  converse  of  Chiswick.  I  found 
not  short  rows,  but  rows  extending  to  hundreds  of  yards  in  length,  all 
properly  staked,  and  the  seed  sown  thinly.  I  often  think  that  to  see 
Pea  plants  in  true  character  we  still  sow  far  too  thickly,  I  have  sown 
at  the  rate  of  one  pint  per  100  feet,  and  found  from  good  seed  that  to 
be  rather  thick.  I  should  say,  judging  from  appearances,  that  Mr. 
Bunyard’s  drill  made  a  quart  reach  300  feet,  which  gives  very  different 
results  from  what  is  commonly  seen  in  the  thickly  studded  plants  in 
gardens. 
But  apart  from  getting  a  good  crop  of  fine  pods,  everyone  familiar 
with  Peas  knows  how  they  tend  to  sport,  and  how  needful  it  is  to  preserve 
stocks  pure  that  they  should  be  well  rogued.  Thin  sowing  and  sticking 
greatly  facilitate  this,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  in  this 
case  it  is  thoroughly  well  done.  That  Peas  do  not  intercross,  grown  side 
by  side,  is  a  blessing.  Did  they  do  so,  as  many  other  things  will,  to  keep 
them  pure  would  be  a  task  indeed.  Now  I  give  the  diverse  varieties 
still  standing,  when  I  saw  them,  just  as  they  came,  and  they  serve  to 
show  that  Maidstone  and  all  that  portion  of  the  beautiful  county  of  Kent 
around  it  can  get  a  fine  selection  of  Peas,  as,  indeed,  the  gardeners  and 
c 'ttagers  of  the  county  will  have  them.  Between  Maidstone  and 
Swanley.  the  county  is  indeed  fortunate  in  its  seed  growers  and  seedsmen. 
The  first  batch  of  Peas  included  that  fir^t-^ate  long  seasoii  and  most 
useful  variety.  Walker’s  Perpetual,  one  in  great  request.  This  is  3  feet 
in  height,  carries  a  great  crop,  and  the  peas,  even  when  the  pods  seem 
old,  are  still  tender  and  sugary.  Bckford  Critic  is  less  widely  known. 
This  grows  to  a  height  of  4  feet,  and  closely  resembles  Ne  Plus  Ultra, 
the  pods  long  and  full.  The  true  Ne  Plus  Ultra  is  also  largely  grown  ; 
but  that  needs  no  description.  The  Duchess  has  become  almost  as  well 
known  as  the  Duke  of  Albany,  which  it  closely  resembles,  but  its  pods 
are  rather  straighter  and  are  well  filled.  Epicure  reaches  5  feet  in 
height ;  the  pods  are  long  and  slightly  curved.  It  is  a  great  cropper 
and  of  much  excellence ;  most  certainly  one  of  the  finest  of  Peas, 
Sutton’s  Dwarf  Defiance  is  20  inches  in  length,  and  a  very  fine  bodied 
dwarf  variety,  cropping  heavily.  It  is  a  keen  competitor  in  this  class 
with  Carter’s  Daisy,  which  is  here  also  in  quantity,  and  cropping  well 
too. 
Another  capital  Pea  from  Reading  is  Sutton’s  Windsor  Castle,  3  feet 
in  height,  a  great  cropper,  and  has  fine  pods.  A  good  Pea  of  Laxton  s 
raising  is  Alfred  the  Great,  which  is  a  very  fine  form  of  Ne  Plus  Ultra, 
having  rather  longer  p  ds  than  the  type  carries.  It  is  5  feet  in  height, 
and  has  a  heavy  crop.  Fairbeard  also  some  years  ago  gave  us  the 
famous  Champion  of  England,  as  represented  by  Marvel,  4  feet  high, 
a  capital  cropper,  and  of  excellent  quality.  Of  course  Autocrat^not 
badly  named,  for  it  is  of  Peas  almost  the  autocrat  of  the  dinner-table— 
is  here  in  a  big  breadth.  The  entire  plant  is,  in  spite  of  the  long 
drought  experienced,  literally  green  as  grass.  It  is,  indeed,  a 
splen  lid  variety,  cropping  heavily.  Another  good  Pea,  but  one  that 
seems  not  to  have  been  fully  appreciated,  is  Sharpe’s  Triumph,  3  feet 
high,  a  splendid  cropper,  and,  apart  from  its  garden  merits,  is  one  of  the 
finest  market  field  Peas  ever  sent  out.  That  fine  new  Pea,  Boston 
Unrivalled,  has  pods  of  great  length  and  profusely  borne,  is  here  in 
quantity  also.  A  grand  podding  Pea  is  this,  and,  with  Alderman,  can 
hardly  be.  excelled.  A  good  stock  of  Veitch’s  Perfection  is  also  grown. 
Altogether,  including  such  first  early  varieties  as  Bunyard  a  Early 
Dwarf,  Chelsea  Gem,  Gradus,  and  William  the  First,  it  will  be  seen  that 
an  abundant  selection  of-  Peas  is  offered  in  Maidstone.  Whence 
improvements  are  to  come  it  is  hard  to  tell.  Pods  and  crops  are  now 
large  enough  for  anything.  _ 
There  is  here  a  fine  stock  of  Bunyard’s  Exhibition  Longpod  Beans, 
which  seems  to  be  a  capital  development  of  the  Johnsons  Wonderful 
type,  the  pods  being  not  only  vefy  long,  but  tightly  filled,  seven  and  eight 
beans  constantly  occur  in  the  pods.  The  early  erect  Longpod,  a  good 
stock  of  Taylor’s  Broad  Windsor,  and  the  large  Mammoth  Windsor  are 
also  in  great  abundance. — A.  D. 
