296 
.inunKAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
April  3,  1902 
reason  of  a  rvaxy  bloom  which  covers  them,  especially  when 
yonng ;  the  leaves  are  Gin  or  7in  long,  upwards  of  ^in  wide,  and 
very  dark  green  in  colour.  A  variety  knoAvn  as  graminea  is  in 
cultivation.  It  is  of  the  two  the  most  ornamental,  the  habit 
being  better  and  the  leaves  as  long  and  narrower. 
A.  japonica. — Perhaps  the  best  known  of  all  hardy  Bamboos. 
It  has  been  known  in  gardens  for  upwards  of  fifty  years,  and  is 
variously  known  under  this  name  and  Bambusa  Metake.  It  grows 
lift  or  i2ft  high,  and  makes  a  dense  mass. 
A.  nitida. — An  Indian  species  of  very  effective  appearance, 
and  sijoken  of  by  many  people  as  one  of  the  most  elegant  of  all 
hardy  Bamboos.  It  makes  long,  thin,  arching  branches,  clothed 
with  dainty,  narroAV  leaves.  From  the  .slimness  of  the  purple 
stems  the  least  breath  of  air  puts  the  Avhole  of  the  leaves  in 
motion,  and  it  is  rare  to  catch  the  leaves  in  any  AA-ay  still. 
A.  Simoni.. — A  stately  plant,  rising  AAuth  straight  stems  to  a 
height  of  18ft  or  20ft.  Like  anceps,  this  has  a  habit  of  spreading 
quickly  and  making  picturesque  colonies  of  young  plants. 
Grouped  Avith  others  it  is  an  invaluable  plant. 
Bambusa  and  Phyllostachys. 
B.  palmata.. — In  this  species  Ave  have  a  very  distinct  and 
ornamental  plant.  It  groAvs  from  7ft  to  8ft  high,  making  a 
dense  mass  of  shoots  clothed  Avith  handsome  bright  green  leaves 
7in  to  8in  long  by  2in  in  Avidth.  Its  distinctness  Avarrants  its 
inclusion  in  ev'ery  collection. 
B.  pygnnea. — Of  the  dwarf  set  this  is  possibly  the  most 
useful.  It  groAvs  from  12in  to  18in  in  height,  and  quickly  makes 
a  dense  carpet.  It  is  a  very  useful  plant  for  undergrowth. 
The  Phyllostachys  stand  conspicuous  among  hardy  Bamboos 
by  reason  of  their  glossy  green  stems  and  graceful  arching  habit. 
For  specimen  plants  they  are  peculiarly  adapted,  the  branches 
rising  in  a  dense  mass  Avithout  giving  any  appearance'  of  stiffness. 
By  far  the  greater  number  of  hardy  Bamboos  belong  to  this 
genus,  and  of  the  number  the  folloAA’ing  call  for  special  attention  : 
P.  aurea. — A  sturdy  species  Avith  upright  branches.  Castil- 
lonis,  an  elegant  species  with  variegated  stems  and  often  varie¬ 
gated  leaves.  The  variegation  of  the  stems  is  curious,  the 
whole  of  the  stem,  Avith  the  exception  of  the  flattened  part 
betAveen  the  nodes,  being  yelloAv,  the  flattened  part  bright  green. 
P.  flexuosa  is  another  elegant  habited  species.  Henonis  is 
one  of  the  very  best,  growing  18ft  to  20fb  in  height,  and  having 
a  light,  graceful  appearance.  Mitis  and  Quilioi  are  both  worth 
groAving.  They  resemble  aurea  to  a  great  extent,  and  are 
strong  growers.  Nigra  is  distinct  by  reason  of  its  purplish 
black  stems,  and  rusoifolia  by  its  dAvarf  habit  and  short,  wide 
leaves.  This  rarely  exceeds  2ft  or  2^ft  in  height. 
P.  viridi-glaucescens  brings  up  the  rear,  and  is  one  of  the 
very  best,  especially  for  a  specimen  plant.  The  branches  are 
long  and  arching.  They  groAv  in  a  dense  mass,  but  by  their 
arching  nature  are  relieved  from  any  appearance  of'  stiffness. 
Single  plants*  of  this  are  to  be  seen  upwards  of  15ft  high  and  30ft 
or  more  across. 
In  addition  to  those  mentioned,  there  are  very  many  more 
species,  each  of  which  has  its  OAvn  peculiar  merit,  and  in  places 
where  Bamboos  are  in  favour  no  species  should  be  missing. — 
W.  Dallimore. 
- - 
Gadding  and  Gathering. 
“Here  a-w'a’.  There  awa’.” 
A  considerable  amount  of  planting  has  been  undertaken 
again  during  the  past  season  by  the  Earl  of  IIchesteFs  head 
gardener  at  Holland  House,  Kensington.  It  is  well  known  that 
the  Rose  Conference  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  will 
be  held  there  on  June  24  and  25  next,  when  the  noble  Earl  has, 
with  his  usual  generosity,  kindly  consented  to  open  his  beautiful 
gardens  to  the  Ausitors  on  that  occasion.  Besides  the  improve¬ 
ments  by  liberal  planting  of  trees  and  shrubs,  Mr.  Charles  Dixon 
is  propagating  5,000  extra  bedding  Pelargoniums  with  which  to 
bed-out  the  splendid  old  Dutch  garden  on  the  west  side  of  the 
house.  With  a  dry  season  one  can  prophesy  a  gorgeous  glare 
and.  rich  effect  in  this,  the  formal  flower  garden.  A  neAv  bridge, 
similar  to  the  one  already  existing,  is  to  be  erected  in  the 
present  Japanese  garden,  and  extensive  alterations  are  being 
made  in  the  lower  grounds  of  this  feature  of  the  Holland  House 
estate.  It  will  be  remembered  that  these  gardens  were  described 
and  illustrated  in  our  Spring  Number  a  year  agO'  (March  14,  1901). 
When  on  a  visit  there  about  three  weeks  ago,  I  was  surprised 
to  see  both  pheasants  and  a  wild  hare  coursing  in  and  out 
among  the  great  luxuriance  of  shrubs,  hedges,  and  plant  groups. 
1^  ^'ist  be  borne  in  mind  that  Holland  House  is  well  Avithin 
the  bounds  of  London  county. 
Regent’s  Park  Gardens 
While  referring  to  the  rural-like  scenic  aspects  of  Holland 
House  in  Kensington,  the  mind  of  the  London  horticulturist 
reverts  to  the  gardens  around  Regent’s  Park.  I  do  not  mean 
the  Royal  Botanic  Society’s  grounds,  but  the  residences  of  the 
Earl  of  Bute'  at  St.  John’s  Lodge,  Miss  Adamson  at  South  Villa, 
and  at  The  Holme.  Of  these  three  places,  that  of  South  Villa, 
Avhere  Mr.  Geo.  Keif  is  in  command  of  the  gardens,  is  the  most 
interesting  from  the  garden-lover’s  point  of  vieAv.  This  estate 
of  eleven  acres  lies  only  four  miles  from  Charing  Cross.  It  is 
open,  and  receives  a  large  share  of  London  sunshine,  but,  stand¬ 
ing  high,  and  having  an  ornamental  lake  (belonging  to  the  public 
part  of  the  park)  on  the  outer  slopes  of  the  Avestern  boundary, 
the  drought  of  the  brakes  and  borders  during  summer  is  usually 
severe.  In  order  to  screen  the  interior  of  the  kitchen  garden 
from  the  public  gaze  on  the  Inner  Circle  (one  of  the  cycling  roads 
of  the  park),  a  moderately  high  bank  has  been  throAvn  up,  and 
planted  at  the  top  Avith  a  hedge.  A  low  retaining  Avail  being 
built  at  the  edge  of  the  gravel  Avalk  on  the  inside,  part  of  the 
bank  slopes  evenly  backward  at  a  conAmnient  angle,  and  affords 
a  useful  border  for  early  supplies  of  vegetables  in  spring.  Within 
doors  the  Peaches  and  Vines  at  this  season  are  breaking  well,  and 
floAvering  most  satisfactorily,  and  during  the  coming  season  Ave 
may  again  expect  to  see  Mr.  Keif’s  handsome  productions  on 
view  at  the  Drill  Hall  in  James  Street.  There  are  some  splendid 
fruit  and  plant  houses.  The  lawns  are  extensive  and  well  kept. 
Within  recent  times  Mr.  Keif  has  begun  to  cover  the  ground 
beneath  the  specimen  laAvn  trees  Avith  Ivy,  a  practice  that  always 
tends  to  improve  the  appearance  of  the  garden.  That  London 
is  a  sooty,  smoky  place,  however,  is  undeniable,  even  though 
there  are  thousands  of  acres  of  open  spaces.  On  the  surface  of 
the  “  lake,”  or  ornamental,  Avinding  sheet  of  water,  skirting 
three  sides  of  the  garden  at  South  Villa,  on  the  occasion  of 
my  call,  just  after  the  recent  frost  had  given  way,  there  was 
a  thick,  dark  scum  of  soot  over  a  very  large  area  of  the  water. 
Seeing’s  believing ;  yet  it  is  hard  to  imagine  that  six  tons  of  soot 
to  the  square  mile  are  deposited  on  London  during  one  foggy 
Aveek ! 
Messrs.  Wood  and  Son,  Wood  Green. 
Possibly,  in  many  cases  the  local  seedsman  is  able  to  supply 
the  gardens  of  the  neighbourhood  Avith  the  majority  of  horti¬ 
cultural  sundries  that  are  constantly  required  in  gardens,  great 
and  small.  But  while  this  is  true,  there  ai’e  times  and  again  Avhen 
certain  needful  articles  not  stocked  by  the  ordinary  nursep^mau 
have  to  be  got  direct  from  the  sundriesman,  and  as  specialists  in 
this  branch  of  the  horticultural  trade,  the  name  of  Wood  and  Son 
is  noAv  a  household  one.  It  is  not  so  many  years  since  this  firm 
started  at  Wood  Green  in  the  north  of  London,  but  as  our 
readers  know,  they  haAm  consistently  brought  fonv'ard  various 
inventions,  either  improvements  on  garden  tools  and  instruments, 
or  entirely  new  productions  of  a  totally  different  nature,  such  as 
their  “  Veltha,”  to  enable  the  gardener  to  combat  plant  diseases, 
and  these  articles,  being  patented,  are  only  to  be  obtained  direct 
from  them,  as  the  manufacturers.  On  a  recent  visit  to  the  esta¬ 
blishment  I  was  shoAvn  a  number  of  new  introductions  for  a  he 
present  season,  and  of  these  the  folloAving  lines  principally  deal. 
First  on  view  was  a  new  spiked  turf  maul,  which  is  intended  to  be 
used  on  ground,  and  laAvns  especially,  that  have  become  hard  and 
caked  on  the  surface.  Tliis  turf-maul  is  used  like  a  turf-beater. 
It  is  strongly  constructed  of  Avell-seasoned  oak,  perhaps  18in 
square  and  5in  to  Gin  deep,  the  galvanised  spikes  being  Sin  or  4in 
long,  and  about  as  thick  as  a  pencil  and  pointed.  These  spikes,  of 
course,  are  on  the  under  surface  of  the  oak-wood  block  and  stick 
out  like  the  spikes  on  a  sprinter’s  racing  shoes.  By  beating  or 
clamping  the  surface  of  lawns  or  ground  Avith  the  maul,  the  spikes 
pierce  the  hard  surface,  whence  the  top-dressings  of  soil  or  fer¬ 
tilisers  that  may  be  applied  fill  up  these  holes  and  so  ensure  the 
better  renovation  of  worn-out  ground.  More  than  this,  the  maul 
can  be  used  to  pierce  holes  on  hardened  lawns  previous  to  water¬ 
ing  them  Avith  a  sprinkler  or  hose.  Hoav  many  gallons  of  precious 
water  is  lost  every  summer  in  scores  of  gardens,  through  its 
running  off  the  surface  without  even  thoroughly  Avetting  the  top 
half-inch?  Messrs.  Wood’s  turf  maul  in  this  respect  has  yery 
decided  advantages,  Avhich  even  the  least  thoughtful  will  at  once 
admit.  We  trust  the  patent  will  be  largely  put  to  the  test. 
Then  there  is  an  improved  hand-barroAV  for  conveying  plants, 
grass,  leaves,  or  rubbish.  The  ordinary  hand-barrow  is  never 
used,  .so  far  as  I  am  aware,  for  grass  or  leaves,  and  it  may  be 
accepted  as  one  of  the  merits  of  the  improved  form,  that  it  can 
be  put  into  use  for  this  puiqAose  by  the  addition  of  side-boards. 
During  one  of  the  frosty  days  in  the  AA’inter  now’  past,  it  chanced 
that  a  load  of  forced  plants  had  to  be  conveyed  from  the  pits  to 
the  shoAv-house  included  in  a  large  public  garden  within  the 
environs  of  London.  There  was  no  protection  afforded  to  the 
plants  during  their  short  transit  (about  400yds),  and  they  were 
conveyed  on  an  ordinary  hand-barroAV.  What  was  the  result? 
What  that  was  became  apparent  in  two  days’  time,  in  the  un¬ 
desirable  shrivelled  and  blackened  tips-  and  edges  of  the  petals 
and  tender  leaves.  The  beauty  of  the  plants  was  greatly  depre- 
