386 
JOURNAL  OR  HORTICULTURE  AXD  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
April  30,  1903. 
Springtime  in  Flower  Gardens. 
I  think  the  most  charming  flower  garden  I  have  seen 
this  spring  is  not  a  garden  at  all  in  the  accepted  sense  of 
the  word,  but  a  stretch  of  woodland  near  the  South  coast, 
which  was  carpeted  from  end  to  end  with  clumps  of  dainty 
Primroses.  Two  years  ago  the  timber  in  the  woodland  was 
felled,  and,  of  course,  this  made  it  all  the  better  for  the 
Primroses,  which  took  advantage  of  the  opportunity 
afforded  them  by  producing  millions  of  flow’ers.  But  why 
go  to  a  woodland  to  illustrate  flower  gardening  ?  perhaps 
some  will  say.  Now,  this  is  just  the  point,  for,  according  to 
my  way  of  thinking,  w’e  want  to  go  to  Nature  for  our 
lessons,  and  then  put  them  into  practice  within  the  pre¬ 
cincts  of  the  gardens. 
As  I  write  it  is  the  season  of  the  nodding  Daffodil,  and 
of  all  the  places  where  this  chastely  beautiful  flower  is 
making  its  presence  felt  nowhere  does  it  look  so  charming 
as  where  it  is  naturalised  in  grass  on  the  lawns  and  under 
trees.  Why  is  this  1  Simply  because  the  Daffodil  grows  in 
grass  as  Nature  intended  it  to  grow,  and  the  lesson  w-as 
first  learned  by  the  pictures  presented  of  the  old  double 
Daffodil  Van  Sion  as  it  grows  and  flowers  in  the  fields  and 
orchards  of  some  districts,  uncared  for,  imattended,  and 
yet  so  beautiful. 
If  more  ideas  are  w^anted  of  Nature’s  flow’er  gardens  we 
must  remember  that  she  taught  us  the  art  of  massing. 
Think  of  a  sea  of  Bluebells  gracing  a  wooded  hillside  or 
great  clumps  of  yellow  Mayflowers,  like  sheets  of  gold  when 
flowering  in  boggy  places.  Or,  again,  the  dainty  Forget- 
me-not,  which  would  not  seem  much  if  they  were  simply 
dotted  about  here  and  there  in  odd  plants.  But  that  is 
not  Nature’s  way  ;  she  presents  them  in  masses,  where  the 
effect  is  telling,  and  it  is  worthy  also  of  notice  that  when 
flowers  grow  wild  they  generally  do  so  in  positions  where 
the  surroundings  lend  something  to  enhance  their  charms. 
And  what  would  I  gather  from  these  deductions  ?  Simply 
that  we  should  take  Nature  with  us  into  the  garden,  and  in 
our  plannings  and  our  plantings  set  her  ways  up  as  the 
example  to  follow.  Some  may  charge  me  with  having  pecu¬ 
liar  ideas  about  spring  flower  gardening,  but  I  cannot  say 
that  I  have  any  great  affection  for  the  general  run  of 
bulbous  flowers.  Daffodils  I  adore,  but  I  have  wandered 
through  Regent’s  Park,  Hyde  Park,  and  other  lungs  of 
London,  at  times  when  the  beds  have  been  resplendent 
with  gaudy  Hyacinths,  but  somehow  they  have  failed  to 
appeal  to  me.  By  the  way  they  are  planted  and  must  be 
grown  there  is  something  so  artificial  about  them,  their 
time  of  beauty  is  so  fleeting,  and  at  their  best  they  seem  to 
suggest  so  many  bulbs  with  their  equivalent  value  in 
pounds,  shillings,  and  pence.  You  cannot  centre  any  affec¬ 
tion  on  a  Hyacinth  or  a  Tulip.  It  comes  to  you  in  a  paper 
bag,  and  is  planted ;  then  it  blooms,  and  is  admired  for  a 
few  days,  and  after  that  everything  is  uncertain.  It  may 
flower  again  the  next  year,  or  it  may  not,  and  on  account 
of  its  uncertainty  it  is  given  a  place  somewhere  away  in  a 
shrubbery  border,  there  to  live  or  die,  just  as  it  pleases. 
Still,  there  are  features  of  spring  flower  gardening  that 
appeal  to  everyone  in  this  way  or  that.  I  sometimes  wish 
I  had  our  esteemed  friend,  Mr.  Arnott’s,  taste  for  hardy 
flowers,  with  the  facilities  to  grow  them  as  they  should  be 
grown,  but  can  realise  what  a  time  spring  must  be  to  him 
and  others  of  kindred  spirit  when,  one  after  another,  his 
favourites  unfurl  their  flowers.  I  have  seen  spring  garden¬ 
ing,  such  as  it  is,  carried  out  at  Belvoir  ancl  a  few  other 
places,  and  this  is  the  kind  of  thing  that  appeals  to  me. 
I  have  stood  on  the  terraces  at  quaint  old  Haddon  Hall 
in  the  springtime  when  not  a  cultivated  flower  could  be 
seen,  and  yet  the  slopes  and  banks  that  seem  hallowed  to 
the  memory  of  Dorothy  Vernon  w^ere  a  veritable  flower 
garden  formed  only  of  Nature’s  productions. 
Spring  gardening,  again,  belongs  to  the  wayside  habita¬ 
tions  and  cottages  that  are  spread  over  the  length  and 
breadth  of  the  land,  where  Cowslips,  Oxlips,  Primroses, 
Gilliflowers,  Daffodils,  Polyanthuses,  and  the  like,  follow 
the  Snowdrops  and  the  Crocuses  that  have  gone  before 
them.  I  think,  after  all,  for  a  spring  garden  to  be  really 
beautiful  we  must  fall  back  on  simple  flowers.  In  the  hands 
of  the  hybridist  the  dear  old  Wallflower,  the  joy  of  our 
grandmothers  in  the  spring,  has  been  ver;^'  much  irnproved, 
and  now  we  have  a  variety  of  colours,  in  conjunction  w’ith 
large  flowers,  sweet  scent,  and  early  blooming  propensities. 
The  Wallflower,  then,  is  indispensa’ole  in  the  spring  flower 
garden,  but  its  somewhat  dark  shades  want  lighting  up  a 
little,  and  I  know  of  nothing  better  for  the  purpose  than 
the  simple  Arabis  alpina.  The  two  planted  in  conjunction 
make  a  charming  effect. 
I  have  mentioned  Polyanthuses  in  the  spring  garden, 
and  what  could  be  more  beautiful  than  a  display  of  these 
flowers  of  a  good  strain?  I  think  of  Hampton  Court  ancl 
its  Polyanthuses,  and  wonder  why  people  do  not  grow 
them  more.  Simplest  of  flowers,  they  are  readily  raised 
from  seed,  and  the  work  of  selection  in  order  to  improve  the 
strain  is  a  most  interesting  occupation.  In  fact,  you  can 
take  a  pride  in  your  Polyanthuses,  just  as  you  do  with 
your  Carnations,  Dahlias,  Roses,  and  the  like,  picking  out 
a  good  flower  here  and  another  there,  marking  it  for  seed 
saving,  and  all  with  the  object  of  the  survival  of  the  best. 
I  have  striking  recollections  of  a  visit  paid  long  years  ago 
to  a  quaint  old  Derbyshire  vicarage,  where  the  vicar  had 
two  great  hobbies ;  one  was  terrier  dogs  and  the  other 
Polyanthuses.  I  am  not  much  of  a  dog  fancier,  but  I  have 
never  forgotten  the  Polyanthuses,  and  I  wonder 
sometimes  if  the  vicar’s  collection  is  still  in¬ 
tact.  And  if  Polyanthuses  are  not  enough  for 
the  spring  display  let  the  planter  intersperse  them  with 
Forget-me-nots,  here  again  copying  Nature,  only  growing  a 
cultivated  variety.  Polyanthuses  and  Forget-me-nots  make 
a  delightful  combination,  and  these,  along  with  other  spring 
garden  flowers  which  I  have  not  space  enough  to  enlarge 
upon  here,  continue  bright  and  effective  till  spring  is  lost 
in  early  summer,  when  the  orthodox  bedding  plants  of  the 
latter  season,  the  Pelargoniums,  Begonias,  Lobelias,  and  the 
rest,  are  given  full  sway. — G.  H.  H. 
Societies. 
Croydoii  Horticultural. 
The  above  society  has  every  reason  to  be  pleased  with  its 
third  annual  exhibition  of  spring  flowers  and  plants,  which  was 
held  in  the  Art  Galleries,  Park  Lane,  Croydon,  on  Wednesday 
afternoon.  The  objects  of  the  society  are  not  for  the  purpose  of 
enabling  its  members  to  obtain  monetary  or  other  rewards  for 
the  particular  branch  of  horticulture  in  wRich,  they  may  be 
engaged  or  take  up  as  a  hobby,  but  to  create  and  encourage  a 
love  of  horticulture  amongst  the  masses,  and  this  is  certainly 
brought  about  by  exhibitions  such  as  this.  Purely  for  the  love 
of  horticulture  professional  and  amateur  gardeners  enter  into 
friendly  rivalry,  and  certainly  Avith  the  result  that  year  by  year 
one  sees  an  advance  on  the  exhibitions  of  previous  years.  There 
were  on  this  occasion  more  entries  than  previously,  and  the 
quality  throughout  was  of  a  higher  standard.  The  exhibition 
consistecl  of  collections  of  plants  and  Ferns,  which  were  grouped 
round  the  Avails  and  in  the  centre  of  the  room. 
Amongst  some  of  the  most  prominent  groups  visitors  could 
not  fail  to  be  struck  Avitli  those  of  Mr.  M.  E.  Mills,  gardener  to 
Mr.  F.  Lloyd,  of  Coombe  House,  who  had  a  collection  of  herbaceous 
plants,  including  some  fine  specimens  of  the  Narcissus  Emperor 
and  Empress  blooms.  Vermilion  and  other  Tulips,  and  also  showed 
a  splendid  collection  of  pink  Primula  obconica.  Mr.  J.  Dingwall, 
gardener  to  Mr.  F.  Stanley,  J.P.,  of  CumberloAv,  South  Norwood, 
in  a  tastefully-arranged  group  of  flowers  and  plants,  exhibited  a 
splendid  .specimen  of  the  Amaryllis.  Mr.  A.  May,  gardener  to 
Mr.  Wickham  Noakes,  of  Selsdon  Park,  had  a  collection  of 
Cinerarias  of  delicate  tints  and  shades,  and  other  collections  of 
floAvers,  Ferns,  Ac.,  Avere  sent  by  Mr.  F.  Oxtoby  (gardener  to  Mr. 
J.  J.  Reid,  of  Coombe  Lodge),  Mr.  E.  Perrett  (gardener  to  Mrs. 
Fuller,  of  HollyAvood,  Duppas  Hill),  Mr.  W.  Bentley  (gardener  to 
Mr.  George  Curling,  of  Elgin  House,  Addiscombe),  and  Mr. 
J.  R.  Ball  (gardener  to  Mr.  A.  D.  Klaber,  of  Norhyrst,  South 
NorAvood),  Avho  also  shoAved  some  forced  French  Beans.  Amongst 
the  nurserymen  Mr.  Butcher,  of  South  Norwood,  in  the  centre 
of  the  gallery  grouped  a  first-rate  collection  of  Palms,  plants,' 
Ferns,  Ac.,  the  effect  of  Avhich  Avas  inuch  enhanced  by  the  mag¬ 
nificent  bouquets  of  Roses  of  the  Gloire  de  Dijon  and  La  France' 
Amrieties,  Avhich  occupied  prominent  positions  at  each  end  of  the 
group.  Messrs.  J.  R.  Box  and  Co.,  of  Derby  Road,  Croydon,  had 
some  excellent  spring  flowers,  including  the  finest  A-ariety  of  the 
Barri  section,  the  Dorothy  E.  Wemj'ss.  An  interesting  collection 
of  Alpine  plants,  shoAA’ing  how’  these  can  be  lAtilised  in  Japanese 
art  pots  for  table  decorations,  Avas  shoAvn  by  Mr.  J.  R.  Box,  West 
Wickham.  Messrs.  J.  Peed  and  Sons,  of  West  Norwood,  had  a 
similar  exhibition  of  Alpine  plants.  A  feature  of  the  show  was 
the  group  of  Orchids  sent  by  Mr.  E.  Kromer,  F.R.H.S.,  of 
Bandon  Hill,  the  exquisite  blooms,  dainty  coloui'ing,  and  quaint 
forms  of  these  most  interesting  and  valuable  of  all  plants  being 
much  admired. 
