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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
April  18,  1901. 
Now  Nancy  is  not  so  warm  as  many  parts  of  the  soii'h  of  England, 
and  hence  when  Lemoine  said  that  they  would  grow  there  with  but 
little  protection,  it  seemed  that  they  would  not  want  any  here,  and 
this  I  have  proved  to  be  correct,  for  I  have  planted  them  in  an 
ordinary  garden  border,  where  they  have  flourished  and  increased 
considerably.  My  friend  Mr.  Burrell  says  that  he  believes  that  the 
Gandavensis  would  do  the  same,  but  1  have  never  ventured  to  try 
them. 
There  are  few  nurserymen  who  grow  Gladioli  for  sale ;  I  believe 
there  is  only  one  in  France,  M.  Souchet’s  successors.  You  may  write 
to  any  other  firm,  but  I  believe  that  it  is  only  the  Fontainbleau  firm 
that  can  supply  the  corms.  Then  at  home  we  have  two  firms,  Messrp. 
Kelway  and  Messrs.  Burrell.  The  former  of  these  has  for  a  number  of 
years  grown  them  very  extensively,  having,  I  believe,  more  than 
20  acres  of  them  ;  while  the  latter  has  made  such  good  use  of  his 
time  that,  though  late  in  the  field,  he  introduced  some  varieties  which 
far  exceed,  in  the  size  of  their  spike  and  the  regularity  of  their  form, 
those  flowers  which  we  have  of  late  years  received  from  France.  I 
have,  unfortunately,  for  some  time  not  been  able  to  see  anything  of 
the  Somersetshire  flowers,  but  I  can  testify  to  the  fact  that  Messrs. 
Burrell’s  flowers  far  surpass  anything  that  was  dreamt  of  a  few 
years  ago. 
The  size  of  the  individual  blooms  is  twice  as  large  as  those  which 
a  few  years  ago  we  used  to  consider  quite  up  to  the  mark.  In  the 
same  way  the  size  and  form  of  the  spike  has  been  wonderfully 
improved.  We  have  sixteen,  eighteen,  and  sometimes  twenty  flowers 
on  the  spike  in  bloom  at  the  same  time,  these  fitting  so  closely  into 
one  another  that  the  spike  presents  a  most  massive  appearance.  Mr. 
Kelway  used  to  be  fond  of  saying,  when  criticising  some  of  the  loos-e 
spikes  which  were  frequently  exhibited,  “  that  a  fox  could  run  his  way 
up  through  them,”  and  what  we  used  to  call  “  wind  spikes  ”  were  not 
uncommon  in  bygone  days.  They  were  so  called  because,  instead  of 
facing  the  person  who  was  looking  at  them,  they  stood  at  right  angles, 
and  I  think  those  who  do  not  recollect  the  Gladiolus  of  thirty 
years  ago  will  fail  to  have  a  correct  idea  of  the  change  which  has 
taken  place  in  them. 
Cultural  Opinions. 
With  regard  to  its  cultivation  there  have  been,  of  course,  as  in  all 
things  horticultural,  differences  of  opinion.  First,  then,  as  to  soil. 
The  French  growers  used  to  state  ordinary  market  garden  soil  was 
more  suited  for  them.  On  this  side  of  the  Channel  growers  differed 
much  in  opinion,  some  declaring  that  the  soil  could  not  be  too  light  or 
poor  for  them,  even  going  so  far  as  to  declare  that,  instead  of  adding 
anything  to  enrich  the  soil,  it  would  be  better  to  burn  it,  and  so 
deprive  it  of  some  of  the  richness  that  it  had  ;  while  others  contended 
that  all  this  was  wrong,  and  that  a  good  strong  loamy  soil  was  what 
suited  them  best. 
The  first  of  these  I  have  never  tried,  and  the  second,  owing  to  the 
character  of  my  garden  soil,  I  was  never  able  to  attempt;  but  from 
extensive  observation  I  believe  that  this  latter  is  correct,  and  that  a 
soil  which  is  suitable  for  Boses  and  Strawberries  is  well  adapted  for 
the  cultivation  of  Gladioli  ;  and  I  am  afraid  that  gardens  into  which 
a  quantity  of  manure  has  been  dug  every  year  for  other  crops,  is  too 
full  of  humus  to  thoroughly  suit  them.  This  is  Mr.  Burrell’s  opinion, 
and  the  success  which  has  attended  his  efforts  of  growing  them  well  in 
the  Cambridgeshire  soil  bears  out  this  contention. 
Situation. — This  ought  to  be  as  open  as  possible,  fully  exposed  to 
the  sun,  and  not  shaded  by  trees;  at  the  same  time,  it  is  well,  if 
possible,  to  have  some  shelter,  so  as  to  prevent  the  spikes  being  blown 
about  too  much. 
Season  for  Planting. — This,  I  think,  may  safely  be  said  to  be 
any  time  after  the  beginning  of  April  ;  indeed,  where  a  large  quantity 
is  grown,  especially  of  seedlings,  the  smaller  bulbs  may  be  planted  in 
March.  In  order  to  secure  a  succession  of  bloom,  they  should  be 
successively  planted  ten  days  or  a  fortnight  after  each  other. 
Method  of  Growing  Them.— This  may  be  said  to  be  twofold, 
whether  you  grow  them  ior  exhibition,  or  for  the  ornamentation  of 
the  garden.  If  grown  for  exhibition,  they  should  be  planted  in  a 
4  foot  bed,  each  containing  five  rows  ;  the  bulbs  should  be  planted 
about  9  inches  from  one  another,  so  as  to  give  plenty  of  room  to 
move  among  them.  When  the  plants  are  about  a  foot  high  stakes 
should  be  placed  to  each  bulb,  and  the  spike,  as  it  advances,  be  tied 
to  it  with  bast. 
But  there  is  still  another  method  of  using  them  in  the  garden, 
that  is,  by  growing  them  in  clumps  of  six  to  a  dozen  bulbs; 
it  may  not  be  necessary  to  use  so  many  stakes  here,  but  some 
must  be  used  to  prevent  the  tall  spikes  from  falling  about.  When 
they  are  grown  in  this  fashion,  I  think  it  would  be  well  that  one 
variety  only  be  used  for  each  clump.  Such  varieties  as  Meyerbeer, 
Grande  Eouge,  and  Dr.  Baily  make  conspicuous  and  striking  groups ; 
some  of  the  more  delicate  tinted  ones,  and  the  pure  white  varieties, 
make  a  pleasing  contrast. 
Planting. — In  planting  it  is  well  to  have  some  coarse  white  sand 
and  powdered  charcoal  to  place  round  each  bulb  when  it  is  put  into 
the  soil  ;  this  will  prevent  damp  from  accumulating  round  the  bulb, 
and  give  the  young  rootlets  something  easy  for  them  to  push  through. 
The  corms,  of  course,  are  left  in  the  ground  until  autumn,  and  very 
much  of  the  future  prosperity  of  them  depends  upon  whether  the 
autumn  is  wet  or  dry. 
My  long  experience  convinces  me  that  a  wet  time  is  injurious  to 
them.  Last  autumn  we  had  a  good  deal  of  wet,  and  I  for  one  had  to 
pay  the  penalty.  When  I  lifted  mine  the  bulbs  appeared  large  and 
fat,  and  they  were  stored  in  apparently  good  condition,  but  a  great 
many  of  them  went  off  in  e.  sort  of  dry  rot  during  the  winter,  and 
this  is  the  one  trying  thing  about  their  growth.  It  is  true  that  most 
garden  plants  are  liable  to  troubles  of  one  kind  or  another,  add  the 
Gladiolus  but  shares  the  common  lot.  Still,  while  upon  the  one  hand 
it  is  painful  to  see  your  cherished  corms  dying  off  without  any 
apparent  reason,  it  is  on  the  other  satisfactory  to  know  that  your 
losses  may  be  repaired  at  small  cost.  This  may  be  done  by  purchasing 
some  of  the  named  varieties,  or  by  getting  some  of  the  best  unnamed 
seedlings,  which  can  be  had  at  a  very  low  rate,  and  I  think  flowers  to 
be  obtained  from  either  of  these  sources  will  satisfy  the  growers. 
— D ,  Deal. 
- -  ■ 
Gardeners’  Freemasonry. 
It  is  doubtful  whether  among  the  many  and  varied  sections, 
professions,  trades,  &c.,  of  which  the  community  at  large  is  composed, 
there  exist  such  unanimity  or  friendly  feeling  one  towaid  another  as 
is  found  in  gardening.  As  time  goes  on  there  are  tendencies  toward-s 
even  a  closer  relation,  brought  about  mainly  by  the  many  and 
increasing  number  of  associations  in  provincial  and  suburban  ci  ies 
and  townships.  Unfortunately  many  country  seats  are  so  situated 
that  the  privileges  of  these  social  gatherings  are  denied  many  would-be 
members,  simply  because  of  the  necessary  long  journeys  involved. 
There  are  lew  places,  however,  that  do  not  permit  of  an  exchange 
of  visits  between  neighbouring  residences,  and  this  existing  cordiality 
and  co-operation  is  quite,  if  not  more,  marked  among  those  whose  work 
entails  isolation,  more  or  less  ungenerous.  Unless  the  bothy  occupants 
are  sufficiently  numerous  to  form  among  themselves  a  debating  society', 
the  alternative  is  taken  most  frequently  of  calling  on  their  nearest 
neighbours,  to  have  what  in  gardening  parlance  is  described  as  a  “  look 
round,”  and  comparisons  drawn  between  growing  crops  and  displays 
of  floral  favourites  of  the  particular  season. 
This  interchange  of  thought  is  existent,  quite  as  strongly  marked, 
between  head  gardeners  as  among  younger  hands,  and  social  meetings 
such  as  these  tend  to  relieve  the  monotony  of%x>untry  life,  and  help  to 
advance  the  object  aimed  at — life’s  qualifications.  There  is  nothing 
that  so  well  preserves  a  healthy  tone  of  mind  as  these  periodical  visits  ; 
the  man  who  habitually  stays  at  home,  and  reviews  none  but  his  own 
work  aDd  practices,  must  of  necessity  increase  yearly  in  narrowness  of 
conception.  There  is  a  tendency  in  some  to  place  a  large  estimate  of 
superiority  on  the  results  of  their  own  labour,  and  the  more  they  confine 
themselves  to  this  small  area  the  more  deeply  does  this  “conceit” 
become  embedded  in  the  mind. 
Nothing  so  soon  explodes  such  fallacies,  generated  in  this  way,  as 
the  making  of  a  survey  round  somebody  else’s  domain — that  is,  a. 
garden  worthy  of  the  name.  If  your  own  bear  comparison  with  your 
neighbour’s  in  all-round  excellence  well  and  good,  but  my  experience 
is,  you  very  often  find  in  some  important  crop  you  are  behind,  or,  at 
any  rate,  inferior  in  some  respect.  This  is  inevitable,  and  is  as  it  should 
be,  and  not  the  most  experienced  of  gardeners  can  claim  an  exemption 
from  this  rule. 
As  previously  remat  ked,  freemasonry  among  gardeners  is  a  quality* 
practically  unknown  in  other  sections  of  the  working  community; 
thus  it  happens  that  one  gardener  calls  on  another,  and  no  matter 
how  great  a  stranger,  there  is  in  one  meeting  the  possibility  of 
sociality  springing  into  an  almost  spontaneous  activity;  an  exchange 
of  opinions  on  this  or  that  theme,  and  experiences  related,  and  an 
offer  probably  of  help  in  surplus  cuttings  of  plants  of  any  striking 
favourite.  This  inborn  mutual  confidence  cannot  but  be  advantageous 
both  to  gardeners  and  their  employers.  The  collection  of  plants  in 
many  gardens  are  enriched  by  the  interchange  of  stock  from  near  or 
distant  friends. 
Failure  of  seeds  to  grow  sometimes  happen  from  unexpected  and 
unexplainable  causes,  and  it  may  be  an  important  one.  The  gardener 
then  is  driven  by  sheer  necessity  to  solicit  help  from  a  generous 
neighbour.  This  touches  the  outdoor  as  well  as  the  indoor  garden 
equally.  Much  may  be  learnt  by  old  and  young  in  the  periodical 
exchange  of  visits,  and  is  particularly  helpful  to  young  men  anxious 
for  self-improvement.  All  head  gardeners  admit  this,  and  encourage 
the  use  of  such  means  towards  that  end,  because  an  all-round, 
advantage  is  thus  gained. — W.  S. 
