216 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
September  2,  1897. 
even  to  ramming  the  compost  hard  at  the  final  potting,  and  well  firming 
the  soil  about  the  roots  in  the  planting-out  system  should  be  adopted. 
This  is  a  very  important  means  of  inducing  the  roots  to  be  fibrous  and 
abundant  instead  of  coarse  and  few.  ^ 
I  trust  I  have  made  the  matter  sufficiently  clear  to  ‘‘  S.  S.,  ’  but  if 
any  point  requires  further  explanation  I  shall  be  glad  to  enlarge  upon  it 
again  with  the  Editor’s  permission. — hb  D.  S. 
Tomatoes  at  Malshangee. 
Because  so  many  diversely  named  Tomatoes  are  sent  to  the  Drill 
Hall  for  the  notice  of  the  Emit  Committee,  and  these,  as  a  rule,  are  so 
much  alike  to  others  already  well  known,  1  always  make  it  a  rule  when 
visiting  gardens  to  see  the  Tomato  house,  and  there  gather  ideas  as  to 
the  general  quality  of  the  stock  grown.  Without  doubt,  nearly  every¬ 
body  has  good  stocks.  Nothing  is  easier  than  to  either  purchase  seeds  of 
the  best  or  to  save  one’s  own  from  the  very  best  fruits  and  plants.  Mr. 
Kneller  does  this  at  Malshanger,  and  his  span  house  of  plants  the  other 
day  showed  not  only  as  heavy  a  crop  as  could  be  consistent  with  the  fact 
that  the  fruits  were  gathered  as  fast  as  they  ripened,  but  the  sample  was 
of  the  very  best  form  that  can  be  furnished  anywhere.  The  stock  is  of 
the  Perfection  type,  and  being  specially  selected  to  improve  it  was  put 
into  commerce  as  Plentiful,  and  it  is  both  perfect  and  plentiful. 
The  plants  were  placed  in  3  feet  long  boxes  in  the  house  early  in 
April,  and  beyond  having  produced  as  heavy  a  crop  as  any  similar  plant 
could  do,  would  carry  yet  an  abundant  one  until  the  houses  had  to  be 
filled  with  other  things  late  in  the  autumn.  Nothing  well  could  be  better, 
and  therefore  it  is  hard  to  see  in  what  direction  new  varieties  can  excel 
it.  We  do  not  want  big  or  ungainly  fruit.  ISIerely  prolific  varieties 
are  practically  out  of  the  question.  We  could  do  generally  with  richer 
flavour,  and  that  seems  to  be  about  all  the  room  there  is  for  improvement. 
In  this  case  the  boxes,  3  feet  long,  were  13  inches  wide  inside,  and  beyond 
rubble  and  moss  at  the  bottom  had  but  6  inches  of  soil  in  them.  The 
plants  in  each  box  were  three.  No  doubt  at  all,  restricted  root  area, 
good  drainage,  and  good  sweet  loam  give  the  best  crop  results  and  least 
disease. — A.  D. 
ANNUALS  FOR  AUTUMN  SOWING. 
Many  hardy  annuals  that  are  seen  to  comparatively  indifferent 
advantage  when  sown  in  spring  are  very  effective,  and  in  some  cases, 
valuable  for  cutting  in  the  early  summer  months,  from  seed  sown  in  Sep¬ 
tember.  The  spring  weather,  with  its  accompanying  array  of  slugs  and 
other  pests,  does  not  always  favour  the  germination  of  the  seeds,  and  if  it 
do  the  gentry  lurking  in  the  ground  make  the  most  of  the  opportunities 
and  eat  off  crop  after  crop  of  tender  seedlings. 
Everybody  knows  that  most  of  our  so-called  annual  wild  flowers  or 
weeds  are  biennials— that  is,  the  seeds  germinate  during  the  first  moist 
weather  after  they  are  scattered  and  the  seedlings  survive  the  winter 
under  favouring  conditions,  producing  the  finest  flowers  and  the  most 
plentiful  amount  of  seeds  in  the  early  part  of  the  summer  following.  The 
plants  get  a  good  grip  of  the  soil  during  the  late  summer  and  autumn 
months,  and  in  spring,  after  the  snow  that  has  protected  them  from  the 
wintry  blast  has  gone,  have  nothing  to  do  but  develop  the  leafage  in 
gleams  of  sunshine  and  soft  glowing  moisture,  the  roots  supplying 
abundance  of  nutritive  elements,  and  the  plants  themselves  sturdy,  hard 
in  tissue,  and  unpalatable  to  newly  hatched  slugs  and  even  older  molluscs. 
Thus  the  self-sown  late  summer  annual  has  the  whole  spring  and 
summer  before  it,  being  in  fact  the  sturdiest  and  most  vigorous  of  the 
race,  and  as  such  most  prolific  of  flowers  and  seed.  This  means  a  selec¬ 
tion  of  subject  suited  to  environal  conditions  and  an  accordance  with 
natural  adaptation  to  circumstances.  That  in  two  ways  — (1)  The  plants 
themselves,  and  (2)  the  individual  having  recourse  to  them.  The  latter 
implies  an  ardent  lover  of  flowers,  bent  on  having  a  display  from  an 
early  part  of  summer  right  along  by  sowing  more  up  to  frost  without 
any  expenditure  in  anything  but  a  few  seeds.  How  is  it  done  ?  Well, 
there  is  always  something  to  learn,  and  the  longer  one  lives  the  more 
seen  of  it — in  gardening.  An  instance  may  profitably  be  referred  to. 
It  was  in  this  wise  : — A  tradesman  or  mechanic  bought  a  piece  of 
land,  built  a  house,  and  reserved  a  large  plot  of  ground  on  the  south  side. 
This  land  was  bastard  trenched  and  manured.  The  owner  was  a  gardener 
we  opined,  and  was  going  to  grow  Cabbages  and  Potatoes.  But  spring 
came  ;  no  such  thing  took  place  as  setting  the  plants  or  seed.  Bare  land 
up  to  Old  May  Day,  yet  it  was  turned  over  more  than  once,  and  at  the 
last  turning  some  fertiliser  spread  on,  and  mixed  very  carefully  with  the 
soil  by  taking  small  spits.  Something  was  going  to  be  done.  There 
were  two  or  three  frames  (evidently  home-made),  and  they  were  seen  to 
be  full  of  young  plants — Asters,  Stocks,  Chinese  Dianthus,  Scabious, 
Zinnias,  and  others.  These  were  put  out,  and  a  finer  sight  was  never 
beheld  by  any  person  in  August.  I  do  not  know  what  there  was  not,  but 
it  seemed  to  me  that  everything  worth  growing  for  cutting  that  could  be 
got  out  of  half-hardy  annuals,  and  some  hardy — such  as  Cornflower, 
Calliopsis,  Com  Chrysanthemums,  and  Mignonette— were  there.  The 
sight  by  day  was  delightful,  and  the  smell  at  night  delicious. 
There  did  not  appear  anything  but  the  useful,  nothing  that  was  not 
bright,  and  manifestly  intended  to  bring  grist  to  the  mill,  for  the  flowers 
only  shone  once  and  disappeared.  Roses  have  got  there  since  then,  with 
Pyrethrums,  Pinks,  Carnations,  single  Sunflowers,  Cactus  and  other 
Dahlias,  all  things  the  knife  can  cut  and  the  hand  turn  to  profit.  No 
glass  or  any  show,  but  a  man,  sometimes  two,  in  shirt-sleeves  at  night  or 
evening,  and  working  like  a  “  brick.”  Potatoes  have  got  there,  but  only 
earlies  for  a  change,  as  out  they  go  in  time  for  a  flower  crop.  Evidently 
flowers  sell  better  than  Cabbages  or  “  taties  at  least,  these  are  a  drug 
from  the  allotments,  and  from  repeated  cropping  with  the  similar  subjects 
not  infrequently  very  indifferent. 
But  the  foregoing  has  no  connection  with  our  subject  only  in  so  far 
as  it  shows  what  way  an  individual  without  the  means  of  a  Croesus  may 
work  and  do  by  the  expenditure  of  a  few  shillings  in  seeds  of  the  kinds 
most  likely  to  give  a  return  quickly  for  the  outlay,  and  thus  enable  him 
or  her  to  creep  before  attempting  to  run. 
Well,  some  of  the  half-hardy  annuals  were  off  in  time  for  sowing 
hardy  annual  seeds.  The  land  had  no  weeds,  and  beyond  pointing  in 
very  lightly  a  dressing  of  thoroughly  decayed  manure,  the  seeds  were 
sown  on  a  comparatively  hard  and  dry  ground  during  the  early  part  of 
September.  “  The  seeds  germinate  better  then,  and  are  less  liable  to 
mildew  or  damping  than  at  any  other  time.”  That  also  looked  like  a 
wrinkle  culled  from  the  stoi’es  of  Nature,  but  only  holds  good  where  the 
seeding  is  thin,  for  moulds  delight  in  the  continual  moisture  of  late 
summer  and  autumn.  Not  a  great  array  of  sorts  were  sown,  and  all  in 
rows  corresponding  in  distance  between  to  the  height  of  the  plants, 
except  the  first  to  be  named,  which  were  sown  in  a  somewhat  sheltered 
spot,  and  the  seedlings  thinned  to  about  3  inches  apart  and  put  out  in 
the  final  quarters  in  April  in  rows  2  feet  apart,  and  the  plants  18  inches 
asunder. 
Coreopsis  tinctoria,  yellow  and  brown  flowers,  2  feet  or  more.  The 
flowers  have  good  stalks  and  stand  out  well  among  Grasses. 
Candytufts,  carmine,  flowers  bright  carmine  ;  lilac,  soft  lilac  flowers  ; 
sweet  scented,  white,  rather  small  flowers,  but  very  floriferous  ;  and 
White  Rocket,  large  trusses  of  white.  All  grow  a  foot  high,  or  rather 
more. 
Centaureas  cyanus  (Cornflower),  blue,  and  always  in  demand,  as  the 
stalks  are  long  and  the  flowers  anything  but  stiff.  A  great  breadth 
of  this,  and  another  of  the  mixed,  all  colours,  mostly  white,  pink,  and 
parti-coloured,  very  pretty  ;  2  feet  or  more. 
Clarkias  pulchella,  dark  rose,  18  inches  ;  and  pulchella  alba,  pure 
white,  18  inches  ;  sprays  useful  for  cutting,  hut  not  many  grown. 
Collinsias  bicolor,  lilac  and  white  flowers,  1  foot  ;  and  candidissima, 
white,  very  free  ;  1  foot. 
Erysimum  arkansanum,  bright  yellow.  Wallflower-like  ;  2  feet. 
Eschscholtzias  californica,  yellow,  orange  centre  ;  crocea,  orange  or 
deep  yellow  ;  and  crocea  alba,  white  flowers  ;  all  1  foot.  Slugs  set  ver^ 
little  store  by  these  plants,  and  they  have  good  stalked  flowers,  which,  if 
cut  early,  last  some  time  in  water,  and  are  very  pretty  in  bud, 
Geum  atrosanguineum  flore  -  pleno,  scarlet,  semi  -  double  flowers. 
Sown  in  sheltered  place,  and  transplanted  in  the  spring  ;  2  feet  or  more. 
Godetias  rosea  alba,  white,  with  rosy  centre  ;  rubicunda,  rosy 
crimson  ;  and  The  Bride,  white,  rosy  carmine  centre.  Very  pretty,  and, 
cut  in  sprays,  very  beautiful  ;  all  18  inches.  Sown  in  sheltered  spot, 
and  transplanted  in  spring. 
Gypsophilas  elegans,  light,  graceful,  elegant  spikes  of  small  white  and 
pink  flowers,  flne  amongst  grasses  as  over-tops  in  vases  ;  2  feet  or  more  ; 
and  rosea,  like  the  preceding,  with  pink  flowers.  Give  sheltered  place, 
and  transplant  in  spring. 
Kaulfussia  amelloides,  blue  flowers ;  12  inches  ;  requires  sheltered  place 
and  dry  soil, 
Lasthenia  californica,  bright  golden  yellow  flowers,  requires  shelter 
and  light  soil ;  9  inches. 
Leptosiphons  densiflorus,  lilac,  and  densiflorus  albus,  pure  white  ; 
18  inches  ;  must  have  shelter  and  well-drained  soil,  then  give  fine  trusses 
of  flowers. 
Linum  azureum,  pale  blue  flowers  ;  18  inches.  This  also  requires  a  dry 
soil  and  sheltered  situation. 
Lupinus  nanus,  blue  and  white  flowers,  and  nanus  albus,  pure  white, 
both  18  inches  ;  the  spikes  of  these  are  very  handsome  without  the 
coarseness  of  the  perennial  species.  A  large  breadth  of  these  Impins 
proved  very  useful, 
Nemophilas  atomaria,  white,  chocolate  spots  ;  discoidalis,  black, 
white  margin ;  insignis,  blue,  white  centre  ;  insignis  alba,  white  ;  and 
maculata,  white,  veined  and  spotted  with  purple.  All  6  inches,  and  for 
beds  or  edging  excellent  where  there  are  not  cats.  These  animals 
sometimes  fawn  the  plants  out  of  existence,  often  leaving  the  plants  alone 
until  coming  in  bloom.  Very  beautiful  in  pots. 
Nolana  atriplicifolia,  blue,  white,  and  jyellow  flowered  trailer.  Sow  in 
sheltered  place,  and  transplant  seedlingk  in  spring.  Makes  a  fine  bed. 
Platystemon  californicus,  pale  yellow  ;  1  foot.  Must  have  shelter  and 
dry  soil. 
Saponarias  calabrica,  little  pink  star-like  flowers,  compact  growing  ; 
good  in  beds  or  borders  ;  and  calabrica  alba,  white  ;  both  good  for  beds 
or  edgings. 
Silenes  pendula,  bright  pink,  1  foot  or  more ;  alba,  white,  1  foot  or 
more  ;  compacta,  rose  pink,  6  inches  ;  and  pendula  compacta  alba, 
white  ;  6  inches.  Well  known  plants  for  spring  bedding,  being  sown 
earlier  for  that  purpose,  but  fine  when  sown  in  September  for  early 
summer  flowering. 
Venus’  Looking  Glass,  blue  and  white  ;  dwarf  plants  for  edgings  or 
beds,  very  beautiful  in  early  summer. 
Virginian  Stock,  red  and  white,  6  inches.  Both  do  well  in  any  soil, 
and  very  floriferous. 
Viscaria  oculata,  rose  colour  with  crimson  eye.  In  sheltered  place 
and  light  soil  this  plant  is  very  beautiful ;  18  inches. 
Wnitlavia  grandiflora,  bell-shaped  violet  blue  flowers;  18  inches. 
Requires  sheltered  place,  transplanting  in  spring. 
The  seeds  should  be  sown  during  the  first  fortnight  of  September,  and 
in  weU- drained  soil,  as  it  is  damp  that  ruins  most  of  them  in  the  seedling 
