August  14,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
157 
Gardening  Literature. 
The  horticultural  literature  that  has  served  as  the  source 
from  which  I  have  drawn  here  is  that  dating  between  the 
years  1826  and  1840.  From  the  advertisements  and  notes  of 
the  editors,  or  concluctoi's,  as  they  termed  themselves,  there 
seems  to  have  been  plenty  of  gardening  publications  at  that 
time.  A  few  of  them  I  may  mention,  namely,  “  The  Flori- 
cultural  Cabinet  and  Florists’  Magazine,”  “  Gardeners’  Maga¬ 
zine,”  “  Botanical  Register,”  “  Botanical  Cabinet,”  and  the 
“  Transactions  of  the  Horticultural  Society  ”  (which  was  not 
termed  Royal  in  those  days).  Among  these  my  notes  are 
principally  taken  from  the  Horticultural  Society’s  Transac¬ 
tions,  the  “  Gardeners’  Magazine,”  and  the  “  Floricultural 
Cabinet  and  Florists’  Magazine.”  The  title  of  the  last- 
named  did  not  give  entire  satisfaction  to  its  subscribers. 
One  correspondent  says:  “I  do  not  like  your  first  title. 
What  has  a  cabinet  to  do  with  a  flower  garden  1  The  second 
title  (the  “  Florists’  Magazine  ”)  is  preferable.  I  do  hope 
you  will  confine  it  to  the  latter  title.”  Also  he  adds:  “If 
your  correspondents  are  too  luxuriant,  you  can  easily  apply 
the  pruning  knife.”  It  would  appear  that  the  conductors  did 
not  find  it  necessary  to  apply  the  pruning  knife  very  often, 
as  the  articles  sent  in  were  evidently  very  short,  and  if  they 
had  pruned  them  to  any  extent  there  would  have  been  very 
little  to  print. 
The  number  of  subjects  dealt  with  seems  to  have  been 
limited.  Month  after  month  I  find  the  same  subjects  treated 
upon.  Dahlias,  or  Georginias,  as  they  were  called,  was  a 
favoui'ite  subject,  and  the  long  lists  advertised  in  the  various 
publications  must  have  been  a  source  of  profit  to  the  pub¬ 
lishers,  and  also  to  the  growers,  judging  by  the  prices  asked 
for  some  of  them.  Carnations,  Pinks,  Ranunculus,  and 
Pansies,  &c.,  were  favourite  subjects.  Also  tours  through 
France  and  Belgium,  and  visits  to  some  of  the  notable 
gardens  in  England  and  Scotland,  occupy  a  large  space,  and, 
judging  by  the  remarks  made  by  the  tourists  and  printed 
and  spread  abroad,  must  have  caused  a  good  deal  of  heart¬ 
burning  amongst  the  gardeners,  and  also  the  owners,  of  these 
various  gardens  visited.  A  spade  was  called  a  spade  in 
those  days.  In  all  the  notices  of  visit  to  different  gardens 
(private)  that  have  appeared  in  recent  years,  I  have  never 
seen  anything  so  outspoken.  I  have  no  doubt  some  of  us 
have  been  astonished  at  the  reports  of  places  with  which  we 
are  acquainted ;  but  when  it  comes  to  public  places  or 
gardens  visited,  then  criticism  is  more  freely  indulged  in, 
and  some  of  us  get  a  good  mauling  at  times,  as  perhaps  we 
deserve. 
Dahlias  wTere  in  those  days  great  favourites.  A  note  says 
that  they  were  named  after  a  Swedish  botanist  (Professor 
Dahl),  and  must  therefore  be  pronounced  dal-ya.  The  result 
of  one  man’s  observations  is  that  it  thrives  best  in  soil  of  a 
sandy  nature  (good  news  for  us).  Another  says  a  stiff 
clayey  loam  will,  to  a  certainty,  produce  the  finest  flowers, 
though  probably  not  in  such  abundance.  Its  propagation  is 
freely  discussed,  and  one  point  worthy  of  notice  is  in  striking 
cuttings,  not  to  cut  out  the  eyes,  or  buds,  in  cutting  off  the 
leaves  at  the  base  of  the  cuttings,  although  it  will  grow  and 
flower  equally  as  well  if  they  are  cut  out.  It  has  been  found 
that  they  failed  to  start  into  growth  the  following  year. 
One  man  found  that  peat  mould  such  as  Heaths  grow  in 
materially  tends  to  the  development  of  stripes  or  spots  in 
such  flowers  as  possess  these  properties,  mixed  with  the  soil 
in  the  bottom  of  the  hole.  Great  care  was  taken  of  the  roots 
at  lifting  time,  leaving  plenty  of  soil  on  them,  and  even 
putting  them  in  sheds  on  shelves  where  there  are  fires  to  dry 
them  gradually. 
The  blue  Hydrangea  exercised  the  minds  of  many  in¬ 
quirers,  and  various  recipes  are  given  to  change  the  rose 
colour  to  a  blue.  A  twenty-fifth  part  of  iron  filing  in  loamy 
soil  would  change  the  colour,  but  the  flowers  would  not  be 
so  large.  Another  way :  In  autumn  shake  off  all  soil  in 
which  they  were  growing  and  pot  in  bog  earth,  and  if  a  little 
well  decomposed  night  soil  is  mixed  in  the  bog  earth,  is  more 
certain  of  producing  the  blue  flowers'.  And  even  one  corre¬ 
spondent  said  that  his  late  father  had  a  method  of  producing 
yellow  flowers  by  using  strong  sulphur  water,  or  some  other 
chemical  process,  but  which  is  not  stated. 
The  decay  of  Mignonette  plants  in  full  flower  was  the 
cause  of  much  complaint  and  also  inquiry.  But  I  did  not 
find  any  satisfactory  solution  in  subsequent  notes.  They 
seemed  to  be  successful  in  growing  it  in  pots,  to  flower  during 
the  months  of  winter  and  spring.  Here  is  an  original  article 
in  full.  “  Sow  the  seeds  in  48  sized  pots,  with  their  bottoms 
well  drained,  in  a  compost  of  leaf  mould,  mellow  loam,  and 
river  sand.  Plunge  in  a  frame  having  them  near  the  glass, 
and  when  the  plants  are  about  lin  high,  thin  them  out  to  six 
or  seven  in  a  pot.  Give  air  when  not  frosty,  but  keep  the 
lights  closed  in  severe  weather.  At  all  times  (except  when 
the  plants  are  in  bloom)  water  them  with  caution.  To 
flower  in  November  and  December  sow  August  12  ;  to  flower 
in  January  and  February  sow  August  26  ;  to  flower  in  March 
and  April  sow  September  6.”  Had  the  pruning  knife  been 
applied  to  this  article,  there  would  certainly  not  be  much  of 
it  left. 
Chrysanthemums  were  certainly  not.  so  well  known  and 
grown  by  our  great  grandfathers  as  now.  The  following  is 
an  article  published  in  June,  1833,  by  A.  H.  Haworth,  Esq., 
F.L.S.,  &c.,  author  of  “  Synopsis  Plantarum  Succulentarum, 
Narcissinearum  Monographia,”  &c.  It  was  first  published  in 
the  “  Gardeners’  Magazine,”  and  by  permission  afterwards 
copied  in  the  “  Floricultux-al  Cabinet.” 
Tune  and  space  will  only  allow  a  few  jottings  of  this 
article.  He  was  a  prophet,  was  Mr.  Haworth,  for  he  says 
they  are  well  worthy  of  all  the  care  and  attention  we  can 
bestow  upon  them.  And  they  will  hereafter,  through  the 
medium  of  their  very  sportive  seeds,  become  far  more 
numerous,  more  various,  more  beautiful,  and  more  attrac¬ 
tive.  (This  is  good.)  He  says  :  “  I  possess  (alive)  several 
other  reputed  varieties,  but  these  I  refrain  from  mentioning. 
I  recommend  their  voracious  and  very  fibrous  roots  to  be 
parted  in  autumn  or  early  spring,  and  planted  in  very  rich 
manured  light  soil,  at  the  foot  of  a  south  or  west  aspected 
wall,  with  not  more  than  one,  two,  or  three  branches  from 
each  root,  trained  to  the  wall  as  regularly  and  as  thinly  as  a 
Peach  tree,  cutting  off  all  superfluous  shoots  and  weak 
lateral  flower  buds.  Thus  treated  these  conspicuous  plants 
will  reach  the  height  of  3ft  or  4ft  in  the  smaller  sorts,  and  7 ft 
or  8ft  at  least  in  the  taller  kinds,  terminating  in  abundant 
and  most  beautiful  flowers,  many  of  which  will  far  surpass 
5in  in  expansion,  and  with  almost  every  colour,  except  deep 
scarlet  and  the  tints  of  blue.” 
Mr.  Haworth  is  uot  allowed  to  have  all  his  own  way,  and  is 
criticised  by  “  Iris  ”  in  a  subsequent  article,  who  gives  his 
views  on  growing  them  in  pots,  and  who  evidently  knows  a 
thing  or  two,  for  his  last  words  are,  as  for  the  plants  in  pots, 
top-dressing  is  very  beneficial. 
Another  correspondent  gives  his  views  on  the  way  he 
obtains  fine  dwarf  plants  from  12in  to  18in  high.  This  ought 
to  be  a  good  hint  to  exhibitors,  who  often  find  it  difficult  to 
find  plants  dwarf  enough  to  finish  off  their  groups.  His 
modus  operandi  is,  early  in  May  plants  are  plunged  out  in 
the  open  border,  fully  exposed  to  the  sun,  and  well  supplied 
with  liquid  manure,  so  as  to  get  strong  shoots  by  the  middle 
of  September.  These  shoots  are  bent  down  and  laid  into 
pots  called  small  48’s.  They  very  soon  emit  roots,  and 
when  established,  disengaged  from  the  parent  plant,  and 
placed  in  pits  or  frames. 
“  J.  K.”  says:  “In  September  tie  some  moss  and  mould 
round  the  stalk  tight  at  the  height  you  require,  and  in  a  fort¬ 
night  roots  'will  strike  to  the  moss,  and  may  be  severed  and 
potted  in  the  usual  way. 
Double  flowering  Stocks.  Many  of  us  have  erroneous 
ideas  how  such  a  large  percentage  of  double  flowers  are  pro¬ 
cured  from  the  single  varieties  from  which  the  seed  is  saved. 
But  “  Paul  Pry  ”  lets  us  into  the  secret  how  it  is  done. 
Select  those  plants  for  seed  that  have  more  than  four  petals 
to  each  flower,  and  destroy  those  having  only  four.  Some¬ 
times  plants  will  have  flowers  with  six  petals,  or  even  more, 
and  his  views  are  confirmed  by  another  contributor  in  a  sub¬ 
sequent  number.  Noticing  the  word  Wiseton  reminded  me 
of  the  Schizanthus  Wisetonensis  (twelve  seeds,  2s.  6d.) ;  but 
it  proved  to  be  an  article  on  the  Gentiana  acaulis,  by  J .  C . 
Hall,  jun.,  Wiseton.  I  had  always  an  idea  that  a  strong  soil 
was  necessary  for  this  plant,  but  Mr.  Hall  says  different. 
They  flourish  with  us  in  almost  any  soil  (but  prefer  peat), 
so  that  is  good  news  for  us  in  this  locality. — J.  B.  S. 
(To  be  continued.) 
