m, 1 jjiHi: ^#iif^. ^ II-J4 i I ■'^ i ll Vt ^■fsF '^ a ii Ml ! j rili'' I ^m*^ ■■■M .L61i V. 10 1367 I THE FLORAL WORLD GARDEN GUIDE. EDITED BY SHIRLEY HIBBERD, ESQ., F.R.H.S. 180?. l^^ ^^ tht > NEW YO^ ?t londo:n': GROOMBRIDGE AND SONS, 5, PATEENOSTE-R ROW. HAEEItr, P^_^fB, L05E02r. INDEX. PAGE Acacia 43 Achimenes 126 Adiantums, greenhouse and hardy 169 AdiantTuns for cases 173 Adiantams of the stove 195 Adiantom pedatum 37 AilantM-cultare 287 Alpine strawberry 63 Altemanthera paronychioides 50 Amarantlms melancholicos 51, 107 American mode of growing black- berries 122 Anaectocbilus setacens, rival to 46 Angular prickly shield fern 273 Annuals for the greenliouse in early spring 250 Antennaria tomentosa 50 Arab'a papyrifera 167 Arcanum of perpetual beauty 97 Areca. Bauerii 69 Artemisia annua 107 Artemisia argentea 7. 51 Artichoke 291 Artificial stone for gardens 193 Art of increasing plants by cuttings 73 Arundinaria falcata 166 Arundo conspicua 51,107,165 Asparagus 292 Asplenium angustifolium 37 Asplenium ebeneum 38 Aspidistra luriJa variegata 216 Aster for exhibition and decoration 116 Athyrium asplenoides 3S Aucuba berries 159 Aucuba Hinialaica 192 Aucuba Japonica 134 Aucubas 235 Auricula 10, 47, 102, 294 Azalea suckers 126 Bambusa Fortunei 237 Barberry hedge 54 Beans 331 Bedders, a few select 209 Bedders, few of the most effective flowering 71 Bedders, superb variegated-leaved 49 Bedding combination 152 Beet-root 132 Berberidopsis coraUina 236 Berberis 190 PAGB Berberis Japonica, concinna, For- tunei, etc 345 Biennial lifting of miniature finait- trees 87 Bit of gossip on herbaceous plants 26 Bocconia 107 Border for roses 351 Borecole or kale 332 Boronias 273 Bourbon roses 81 Braheadulcis 70 Briers for budding • 321 British Queen strawberry, cultiva- tion of ' 40 Bulbous flowers in the garden, squares, and puMic walks of large towns 313 Btilbs for windows and greenhouses 21 Burrs used for rockery 4 Cacti, on the cultivation of the ... 366 Caladiums 67, 127 Calceolarias 71, 2S1 Camellia house 64 Camellias, six foot 353 Cannas 16 Caraganas 8 Carnations « 155 Caryotaurens 70 Cassia 43 Caught napping 55 Chamaedorea atrovirens 70 Chamadorea elatior 70 Chamaepuce diacantha _ 109 Chamaerops excelsa 69 Chamserops Fortunei 69 Chamaerops himiilis 69 Chapter for ladies on gathering and arranging flowers 185 Charcoal in pots 64 Charlock 288 Cherry and plum-tree grafts failing 357 Choice garden, notes for 14 Chorozema 272 Chrysanthemum Sensation 49 Chrysanthemums 63 Chrysanthemums in pots, eidtivated for exhibition 21 Chrysanthemums, selection of 93 Chrysanthemum in 1867, the 353 Cineraria 122 IV INDEX. FA6B Clematis lanuginosa 7 Cocoa-nut fibre refuse for orchids 215 Cocos australis 70 Coleus Verscbatielti 51 Collectinsr and selecting 65 Colours of trees in autumn 299 Conifers for the flower-garden, and its immediate surroundings . . . 308 Constitution, soil, and general treat- ment of the auricula 10 Convolvulus mauritanicus 72 Cooking sea-kale 96 Cosmelia rubra 272 Crambe cordifoUa 166 Crinum capense 167 Cuttings, art of increasing plants by 73 Cuttings in cocoa-nut fibre 63 Cyperus 4A Cyrtoraium caryotideum 38 Cyrtomium falcatum 38 DactyKs glomerata 50 Dahlia cultivation 141 Dahlia Imperialis 210 Dahlias 71 Dahlias, selection of fifty 125 Daisy, the 78 Datura 42 Daubentonia 44 Davaliias 191 Delphinium formosum 167 Dendrobium moniliforme 62 Designs for select beds of hardy pknts 280 Diosma capitata 272 Double Clitoria tematea 288 Double white sweet pea 127 Dracaena australis 167 Early-flowering plants for the greenhouse 271 Effects of the past winter 164 Eleagnus reflexus 236 Elymus glauca 168 English fruit-growing 289 Epacris 272 Equisetum 204 Eranthemum pulcheUum 278 Erythrina 42 Eucharis amazonica 159 Euonjrmus latif olia aurea 236 Enonymus radicans variegata 236 Eurya latif olia variegat a 236 Eutaxia myrtif oHa 272 Evergreen for windows 61 Evergreen shrubs for a border 350 Extenso grape vines 302 Fabiana imbricata 272 Failures in small gardens 257 Ferdinandia emicus 110 Ferns and fern cases 83, 96 Ferns from spores 61 Ferns, hardy exotic 35 Ferula commimis 109 Few of the most effective flowering bedders 71 Fifty spring flowers 127 FA.OS Finger-post f orpurchasers of plants, seeds, etc., 92, 125, 154, 283, 315, 348. Flowering of the yucca for the pur- pose of display 85 Forcing sea-kale 19 Forcing strawberries 350 Fourcrova longaeva 251 Fruit crop of 1867 161 Fruit-growing in England 289 Fruit-trees on poor soils 69 Fruit prospects 325 Fuchsia cultivation 181 Fuchsia Golden Fleece 328 Fuchsias, selection of 92 Garden designs, picturesque 321 Garden Guide. 31, 95, 125, 157, i87> 218, 252, 285, 319,1349, 374. Garden Oracle for 1867 58 Garden walks 256 Gathering a fern 287 Gatherings from exhibitions ... 219,253 Grazania splendens 72 Genetyllis and hedaroma 127 Generic distinction between cala- dium and alocasia 126 Genista 273 Geranium Brilliantissima 209 Geraniums 71, 154 Gesnera zebrina 52 Gladioli ■. 233 Gladioli, hints on the cultivation of 86 Gladioli, selection of 94 Glance at the rosery 296 Globe amaranthus, culture of 77 Golden Balm 50 Golden Feather pyrethrum 209 Goldfinch geranium 209 Grafting the grape vine 213 Grafting vines 376 Grr; 'J vines 302 Gre.i -edged auricula 104 Greenhouse construction 158 Greenhouse and hardy adiantums 169 Greenhouse spring-flowers 24 Greenhouse plants in winter, pre- servation of 363 Grevillea 45 Grev-edged auricula 104 Ground vinery 120, 158,190 Gymnogrammas 216 Hsemony ,., 376 Hardiness of salsify 192 Hard- wooded plants 159 Hardy adiantums 172 Hardy and nearly hardy plants 68 Hardy deciduous trees 53 Hardy exotic ferns 35 Hardy flowers of the year 333 Hardy herbaceous plants 27, 56, 64, 191 Hardy plants for the flower-garden 165 Heating a small plant-house 126 Heating with a flue 160 Hedera Algeriensis 7 Hedge plant, barberry 54 Heliotropes .'. 72 INDEX. PAGE Heracleum ^ganteum 168 Herbaceous hardy plants 27 Herbaceous plants, a bit of gossip on 26 Herbaceous plants easy of culture in all parts of the British, isles 111 Herbaceous plants for rockeries ... 8 Hints on plant-growing in living rooms 174 Home-grown briers for budding ... 321 Horticultural affairs 88 Hortus fenestralis 129 How to obtain cuttings 73 Hyacinths 315 Hybrid perpetuals 80 Iberis, or candytuft 335 Impataens jerdonise 147 Ilex Fortunei 236 Inarching vines 176 Iresine herbstii 50 Ivies, variegated 50 Ivy-leaved geranium, L' elegante ... 209 Ivy, some uses of 146 Ixias and tritomas 233 Japanese plants suitable for Eng- lish gardens 235 Jasminum nudiilorum 7 Kennedia monophylla 273 Lantana,s 72 Lapageria rosea 352 Large-flowering pelargoniums 233 Lastrea semula 237 Lastrea f. m., var. grandiceps 277 Lastrea Goldieana 38 Lastrea marginahs 38 Lastrea noveboracensis 38 Lastrea Sieboldii 38 Latania Bourbonica 69 Leaf impressions, how to take 208 Lechenaultia formosa 273 Leicester garden vase 350 Ligularia gigantea 168 LiHum auratum 166 Lilium eximium 320 Lilium giganteura 166 List of hardy deciduous trees 53 LobeHa erinus, Miss Murphy 210 Lobelia erinus spectabilis 210 Lobelia, Indigo Blue 328 Lobelias 233 Lomaria Chilensis 39 Lomaria MageUanica 39 Lonicera brachypoda reticulata ... 7 Loudon's Hortus Brittanicus 96 Love-lies-bleeding 107 Luculia gratissima 342 Management of wiadow plants . . . 239 Maxims on propagating 70 Mignonette 250 ilildewed vines 350 Moss on gravel walks 95 Mushrooms under the greenhouse stage 207 PAGB Mushroom cultivation 148 Myosotis sylvatica 32 Xemophila insignis 250 New plants, 29, 61, 90, 123, 156, 187, 217 252, 284, 317, 346, 372. New roses of this and last year ... 177 Xicotiana 16 Xierembergia .gracilis 73 Noble hardy plants for the flower garden 105 Nosegay geraniums 327 Notes on Messrs. F. and A. Smith's tricolor and bronze zonale ge- raniums 267 Notes on new bedding plants 327 CEnothera prostrata 72 On some nearly hardy exotic ferns 35 Orange culture 278 Osmanthus ihcifoHa 236 Osmunda cinnamomea 39 Oxylobium retusum 273 Pampas grass 126,165 Pansy cultivation 144 Pansy, Imperial Blue 329 Pansies 154 Papaver pulcherrimum 168 Paris Exhibition 157 Paul's rose garden 221 Peach-houses and peach-trees that have fruited 344 Peaches and nectarines without walls or glass 329 Pelargonium culture 150 Pelargoniums 155 Perennial cucumber 109 Petunias 73 Phlox 267 Phlox as a bedding plant 331 Phoenix dactylifera 70 Phormium tenax 167 Phytolacca decandra 167 Picotees 155 Picotees, carnations, etc 128 Picturesque ia garden designs 321 Pimelea 272 Pinching and pruning 375. Pinks 156 Plant-growing in living-room 174 Planting ground vineries 95 Planting on a bank 287 Planting pincushion-beds 63 Plants adapted for the plunging system 230 Plants destroyed mysteriously 64 Plants for rockeries 7 Pleopeltis lycopodioides 83 Pleopeltis membranacea 83 Pleopeltis pustulata 83 Pleopeltis terminalis 83 Plunging system 97, 158 Poa trivialis 50 Poa trivialis argentea 210 Polystichum angulare 113, 275 Polystichum pungens 39 Potatoes 128 INDEX. FAGB Potting the cuttings 75 Pot vines, raising and fruiting 58 Preser^^ng fruit, advice on 369 Prince's Feather 107 Propagating, maxims on 76 Propagation and preservation of bedding plants 218 Pruning 'ijo Pruning nut-trees 62 Pruning vines 63 Pultcnia stricta 272 Pyrethritm, Golden Feather 328 Eaising and fruiting pot vines, as practised in England 58 Eambling thoughts 279 Raspberry and blackberry, the 359 Retinospora lycopodioides 236 Retinospora obtusa 236 Rheum emodi 168 Rhododendrons 191 Rhododendrons, propagating 352 Rhubarb cultivation from early sup- plies 79 Rhus cotinus 7 Rhyncospermum jasminoides 159 Ricinus 46 Rival to Ansectochilus setaceus ... 46 Rockery at Stoke NeTvington 3 Rockeries, plants for 7 Rose in a tub 319 Rosery, glance at 296 Rosmarinus officinalis 7 Roses in 1867 80,226 Roses, new, of this and last year . . . 177 Roses on Manetti stocks 351 Roses, three groups of good 338 Roses, winter propagation of 25 Sabal Adamsonii 70 Salading during the summer 133 Salsafy, cultivation of 110 Santolina incana 50 Schizanthus pinnata 251 Scorzonera 159 Scotch thistle 109 Seaf orthia elegans 70 Sea-kale, its culture, with remarks onforcingit 19 Sedum spectabile 234 Seedling roses 62 Seeds and seedHngs of auricula ... 47 Seeds to be grown in month of July 211 Select bedders 209 Select bedding combination 152 Selection of vegetables for 1867 ... 89 Selection of first-class herbaceous plants of easy culture in all parts of the British isles Ill Selfs, auricula 103 Sensitive plant 307 September work in the flower garden 264 Shadyborder 320 Shrubs and flowers which thrive under the drip of trees 308 Skimmias and their cultivation 199 Snowdrops on grass lawns 307 PAGB s manure 94 Soil for the auricula 10 Solanmns 15 Spring flowers for -windows, green- houses, and choice flower-beds 24 Standard wallflowers 288 Stove for plant-house 158 Strawberry, British Queen 40 Strawberries, jjlanting 17 Strawberries, the best 304 Striking plants to be grown from seed for the choice garden 106 Striped-leaved maize 110 Struthiopteris Germanica 39 Sub-tropical plants 159 Sub-tropical plants for the choice garden 67 Sub-tropical plants that may be grown from seed 14 Sub-tropicals that may be ^own. from seed 42 Succulents for rockeries 9 Summer salading 13^ Superb variegated-leaved bedders 49 TaUlobelias 234 Tansy 233 Tea- scented roses 60 Tender pahns 70 Three groups of good roses 338 Thrip on greenhouse ferns 351 Thinning the crop of fruits in the orchard-house 118 Thrinas parviflora 70 Thujopsis dolabrata 236 Todea hymenophylloides 8S Transplanting trees 310 Treatment of Luculia gratissima ... 342 Tricolor and bronze zonule ge- raniums 267 Tricolor geraniums 283 Tricolor-leaved pelargoniums 245 Tritoma uvaria 165 Tropseolum Advancer 209 Tropseolums 72 TropaBolums, King of Scarlets and Scarlet Gem 190 Uses of the ivy 146 Value of cocoa-nut fibre refuse in the cultivation of orchids 215 Variegated conifers 158 Variegated Cyperus alternifoHus, cultivation of 266 Variegated geraniums 327 Variegated ivies 50 Variegated ivy 61 Variegated leaves 256 Variegated-leaved geraniums 72 Variegated-leaved plants for rock- eries 9 Variegated willow herb 233 Vegetables for 1867 89 Villa kitchen garden, 199, 242, 261, 291, 331, 356. Vine, a fine .., 69 Vine disease 64 INDEX. PAG8 Tine leaves from Norfolk 2.^3 Vines, inarchins^ 176 Vines in ground \'in8ry ^ 3l9 Viola cornuta 256, 329 Verbenas --•72, 155 Verbesina verbascifolia 110 Virginian creeper 351 Vitis hederacea 7 Weeping trees 339 White-edged auricula 105 Wigandia 45 Window boxes 24 PA. OB Window plants 239 Window spring flowers 24 Winter propagation of roses 25 Winter treatment of kitchen- gardens 318 Wood war dia orientalis 40 Woodwardia radicans 39 Worms on lawns 350 Yucca flowering for display 85 Zonale geraniums 230 NEW PLiJ^TS. Acer (Polymorphum) palmatum ... 318 Acer (Polymorphum) palmatum sanguuieum 318 Adiantum scutum 187 ^chmea glomerata 374 Aerides Vandarum 373 Amp elopsis serj anise folinus .... Asperula azurea setosa 372 Aerides Thibautianum 29 Agave Schidigera 317 Agave xylonacantha 285 AmaryUis 91 Amaryllis pardina 217 Angrtecum citratum 91 Anthuriuiii pedatifidum 347 Anthurium reflexum 372 Aquilegia Pyreniaca 346 Aristolochia tricaudata 317 Athyrium latitblium 30 Aucuba Japoniea grandidentata maculat a 346 Azalea, Her Majesty 346 Azalea Indica Francois Devos 187 Barleria Gibsoni 91 Begonia Veitchii 317 Begonia BoKviensis 284 Billbergia sphacelata 218 Bletia hvacinthiaa albo-striata 34:7 Bletia Sherratdana 217 Bolbophyllum Siamenso 373 Bossiae Hendersoni 372 Boweia volubilis 90 Cselogj^e biflora 29 CaelogjTie lagenaria 157 Camellia Angelo Cocchi 252 Camellia Carlotta Polosa 318 Camellia Constantin Tretiakoff. ' 156 Camellia Japoniea SteUa Polare ... 91 Castronema sanguineum 156 Catakidozamia Ilopei 29 Cattleva amethystoglossa 30 CattleyaDowiana 61, 318 Cattleya quadricolor 187 Cirrhopetalum Papudii 347 Cistrum elegans 285 Clavija fulgens 91 Colax jugosus 317 Cotonea.ster Fontanesi 347 Corysanthes picta 346 Curcuma xlustralasica Cymbidium Hookerianum . Cypella cterulea Cypripedium Schlimii Cyrtodeira Montalensis ... Dalechampia Roezliana . . . . 372 i^aphne Genkwa Delphinium Triomphe de Pontoise Dendi'obium Bullerianum Dendrobium capiUipes Dendrobium C harltonii Dendrobium macrophyllum Dendrobium pycuostach>-um Desmodium penduliflorum Dodecatheon JelFreji : Draba violacea Dombeya angulata Dracaena surculosa Epidendi-u.m amethystiuum Epidendrum brassavolae Epideudrum Cooperianum Epidendrum cremidophoram Epideudrum dichromum Epidendrum eburneum 157, Erodium macradenium Eupatoi-ium riparium Epidendrum sophronites Epimedium alpinum, var. rubrum . E ucodonia na^gelioides Ficus Sm-ingarii Fittoni a argyroneui-a Gladiolus, garden varieties Gloxinia hypocry tiflora Glyphfea Monteiroi Goodyera maerantha Goodyera velutina Gomphia theophrasta Gonatostemon Borcheanum Grias cauliflora _^ Griftinia Blumena\'ia 3173 Grirtinia hyacmthina maxima Helianthemum ocymoides Heliconia humilis Heliotropium convolvulaceum Hemerocallis f ulva k wanso Hemerocallis Middendorfi Hydrangea paniculala floribunda . . . Hydrangea pamculata grandiflora Hydrangea Japoniea macrosepala- . • 91 29 123 90 373 317 372 34G 234 373 61 218 30 346 372 252 372 316 372 317 252 284 29 372 317 347 373 374 373 372 373 126 252 29 373 373 157 372 123 347 372 123 156 156 347 347 347 373 347 VUl INDEX. PAGE Impatiens latifolia 91 Ipomaea Gerrardi 252 Iris Ksempferi 347 Lselia majalis 374 Lamprococcus Weilbacliii 347, 373 Larix Kaempferi 124 -Lilium hnematocliroum 126 Lomaria ciliata 30 Lomaria dura 30 Lomaria Leclileri 30 •Magnolia Lenuei 373 Maranta rosea picta 373 Maranta illustris 187, 373 Maranta roseo-picta 15G Miltonia rosea 318 My osotis semperflorens 91 Myrtus Cheken 187 Nanones medusse 346 Nasonia cinnabarina 372 Nidularium Laurentii 372 Notylia bicolor 29 Odontoglossum astranthuni 346 Odontoglossum crocatum 372 Odontoglossum Dawsonianum 29 Odontoglossvun nebulosnm 373 Odontoglossum nebulosum can- didum 373 0 dontoglossum roseum 372 Odontoglossum Scliileperianum ... 29 Odontoglossum triumphans 346 Oncidium holochrysum 30 Oncidium nubigenum 372 Oncidium serratum 124 Opbiopogon Japonicus argenteo- striatus 347 Osbeckia rubicunda 30 Palaver flexuosa 30 -Passiflora fulgens 346 Passiflora Banksii 373 Pavetta Hookeri 372 Pear, Beurre de Pr omental 91 PAGS Peperomia arifolia 124 Pliajus inquilinus 346 Phajus irroratus 347 Platycrater arguta 372 Pleroma sarmentosa 124 • Pleurotballis Saundersiana 29 Prostantliera nivea 284 Lselia Pilclieri 373 E-baphia tsedigera 61 /Rhododendron marginato-puncta- tum 124 Rondeletia Purdiei 374 Rudgea macropliylla 252 Saccolabium curvif olium 91 Saccolabium giganteum 346 Sarcanthus erinaceus 124 Sedum Maximowiczii 372 S edum maximum versicolor 373 Sedum Japonicum 372 Sipliocampylus fulgens 346 Sipbocampylus Humboldtianus .... 124 Smilax longifolia variegata 284 Spirantkes margaritifera 29 Stanhopea saccata 29 Stemonacanthus Pearcei 217 Strawberry, Perpetual Pine 91 Synadenium Grantii 124 Tacsonia Buclianani 284 Tapeinotes Carolinse 91 Thunbergia fragrans 187 Thapsia decipiens 374 Tricbocentrum albo-purpureum ... 30 Tricbocentrum cornucopise 30 ^Ulmus campestris 187 -Ulmus campestris aurea 347 Vanda Bensonii 29, 347 Viola pedata 284 Vriesia gigantea 252 Vriesia bracbystachys 347 ^ Weigelia Middendorffiana 91 ,/ Zea Japonica albo-vittata 37S ENGEAYINGS. Adiantum cuneatum 171 Adiantum Cunninghami 196 Agave Schidigera 317 Bocconia Japonica 108 Cypella cserulea 123 Daiechampia RoezKana 318 Diagrams of Japonica 137 Equisetum sylvaticum 203 Figures of Cuttings 73, 74, 75 Fruits of Aucuba 138 Garden design 323 Grias cauliflora 123 Ground plan of rockery, Stoke Newington 5 Helianthemum 124 Heliconia bumilis 156 Heliotropium convolvulaceum 156 Hortus fenestralis 130,131 Lastrea aemula 238 Lastrea filix mas., var. grandiceps 276 Mushrooms under greenhouse stage 208 Plan of a villa kitchen-garden 200 Pleopeltis membranacea 82 Polystichum angulare, var. gran- diceps 114 Polystichum angulare 274 Rockery, summer-house, and bee- shed at Stoke Newington 4 Todea hymenophylloides 2S Woodwardia radicans 34 THE FLORAL WORLD GARDEN GUIDE. JANUARY, 186 7. DESCEIPTION OF A EOCKERY AT STOKE NEWINGTON. TIE casual notice of my rockery which occurred in an article on the Bracken in the Flosal Woeld of October last, has brought many inquiries for detailed information as to its appearance, structure, and uses. In order to comply in a way likely to be useful, I have had a perspective view and a ground plan prepared, and herewith present them to our readers. Though a distinct and pleasing feature of my very small garden, it is but proper to state that it was originally constructed solely as a screen, to shut out from view the lower part of the garden, where experimental operations render privacy desirable, and where, moreover, there is nothing tor people to see. The primary object of the proceeding has been fully secured. The frame ground and plunging beds are screened from inquisitive eyes, and there is less interruption of the work than was the case once upon a time. But the ruin is a real embellishment, and it aifords sites for a large number of interesting and beautiful plants. One effect it produces, w4ii<;h is doubtless worth mention. It gives to the garden at the point where it is seen in its full extent, an appearance of expanding out to a great breadth, though it is no^ wider here than anywhere else. This is owing to the number of separate objects which present themselves in nearly an unbroken line right across the garden, and as they are all connected and in perfect harmony as parts of a rustic scene, the eye is pleased with the variety and the expansion which are secured by the arrangement. This rockery consists partly of banks faced with burrs, and partly of artificial ruins. The entrance to the scene, at a, is by a walk which divides right and left, leading one way to a summer- house at c, another way to raised banks at d, and the principal walk is also carried through the rockery, and then leads the way, u, to the lower part of the ground, which this construction hides from view. At E and r are parts of two large semicircles which abut upon the front of the rockery ; at G is the bee-3hed„ the thatched roof of which is a pleasing feature in the perspective view. It will be observed that the principal part of the rockery is a sort of bastion with arches. The walk down passes through the bastion, THE FLOEAL WOKLD AND GAEDEN GUIDE. and the design of the whole is perhaps a little fanciful, and would puzzle both military and civil architects, though there is really nothing at all extravagant in any of the details. The bastion was constructed with the largest burrs that could be obtained. By the term " burrs" is meant the great blocks of half vitrified brick which are thrown out of the kiln as useless to the builder. The demand for these has become so great that they are expensive articles, though but a few years since the cost of carriage was about all that was of necessity incurred in obtaining them. The walls of the bastion are filled in with earth, and for the guidance of any reader who should wish to adopt a similar contrivance, I will remark that such walls should be at least three to four feet thick, so as to enclose a large body of earth, for plants growing on such walls will occasion very much trouble in watering, etc., to keep them alive during hot weather if there is but a scanty body of soil in the walls. Of course, in the process of building, openings were left, and numerous irregularities were produced intentionally, so as to form receptacles, basket-like recesses, and chinks and hollows for plants. In order that the whole body of earth in the walls should be moistened by rain, the summits of the walls were not covered in, but were planted with various shrubs, succulents, and other plants of kinds suit- able for such a position, the relative dispositions of the materials of these walls may be understood by the aid of a printer's diagram : — Jbi 5 M o ^^ o o eS o P3 w f^ in which the word " rock" stands in this case for a facing of btirrs. A few " butts," as the gardeners here term the stumps of trees, have been worked in with good effect, and one of the prettiest eff"ects is produced by a tuft of that noble grass Mpmis arenarkis, planted in a large butt on the left, near the summer-house. The banks on either side of the walls are raised from two to five feet high, and the walks are planted with Sagina iwocumbens in the bays and recesses, because gravel does not long preserve a sightly appearance in such places, and the Sagina forms a green moss-like growth. In a peaty or sandy .soil, mosses would grow freely in such spots ; but in our heavy clay land, mosses have no beauty. All the walks necessarily used are, of course, gravelled and well kept. The summer-house is as much benefited by the rockery as the experimental ground. Fov as this retreat is chiefly used by myself all the summer long as a sanctum for literary work, its separation from the working department is a matter of great importance, and I enjoy the immense advantage of writing in the garden, and being at hand to direct the work, and also to see the subjects it may be my business to describe. I might speak also of the service rendered by the rockery in screening the bee-shed from the upper end of the garden; the bees always sail high up over the arches and trees, and *> THE FLOEAL WORLD AND GARDEN GtJTDE. a stranger would scarcely discover that there were bees in the place, especially if liot admitted beyond the front of the rockery. And I shall now say a word as to its beauty. As I sit in the sanctum in the midst of heaps of papers, I derive immense and untiring pleasure by occasionally looking out at the ferns, and grasses, and succulent plants with which the walls and banks are studded. I cannot imagine a prettier bijou picture than is the bank d, which I have in full view as I sit at my desk. There is a great tuft of the varie- gated-leaved willow herb, EpUohium angustifoliiim, fol. var., which is exquisitely beautiful, with creamy leaves and rosy purple blossoms ; several tufts of variegated grasses, the bold orbicular leaves of Saxifraga crassifoUum, the grandly-striped leaves of the variegated variety of Aspidistra lurida, the silvery Artemisia argentea, and many more of such strikingly charactered plants, the boundary be- yond being a fifteen-feet wall of rich green privet, which brings out the elegant lines of the grasses and the silvery and creamy lines of the variegated plants superbly. In the nook on the left there are numerous fine examples of hardy ferns that have grown to great dimensions. This nook is quite shaded, which is not the case with the banks d, and the soil is made for ferns, and consists of "Wanstead peat and loam, chopped up together. Here of course are great tufts of Lastrea Filix mas and the lovely lady-fern, AtligriumFiUxfcemina, and the crested and tasselled varieties of both. Also fine patches of common polypody, Folypodiiim vidgare, the hart's-tongue in several forms, the beautiful Onoclea sensihilis, which is quite hardy here; and a good selection of British ferns of smaller growth. The horse-tails, such as Fquisetum sylvaticum, JE. arvense, and others, add a rare and exquisite charm to the nooks in which they grow, and, as already recorded, the back- ground of this nook consists of bracken, which has attained to a remarkable degree of luxuriance, and has a grand appearance, towering up in front of the dark ruin. Though on so small a scale, I might with perfect justice describe this rockery as constituting a series of three distinct gardens. First, we have on the summit and sides of the walls of the bastion numerous succulents, and a few alpines. The position is not well adapted for ferns, though we could keep them there by regular watering. It is much better, however, to plant a position so that the least possible care will be required ; at all events, our rule is never to make work, there is too much of that already ; so we plant things in such a way that they will, generally speaking, take care of themselves. The mesembryanthemums are invaluable for such work, and their free and abundant flowering give them a first claim to consideration for positions much exposed to sun and scantily supplied with moisture. The sunny banks on the right serve for herbaceous plants, and a few choice trees and shrubs ; and on the left of the bastion is the fernery. It would be wearisome to the reader, and perhaps of but little practical service, were I to enter into any particulars as to the details of the planting, or the various failures and successes that haA'e occurred during the seven years that have elapsed since the scheme was carried out. Several choice THE FLOEAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 7 ferns, such as Jllosonis crispus, Aspleniiun onda muraria, and others that ought to have thriven on the face of the bastion, have perished, which I attribute to their being dried up during long continued hot weather, when, probably, regular watering would have saved them. But I imagine it of the utmost importance to render this brief description u:r:eful, that I should present as complete a list as possible of the plants that have succeeded, and that are really worth the attention of persons possessing similar structures, or desir- ing to form collections of plants. TEEES AND SHEIBS. Bhus cotinus. — This very distinct and beautiful shrub has a fine appearance on a bank when smothered with its brown smoke or foam-like flowers. It should be found in every belt of mixed shrubs. Artemisia arcjentea, A. glacial is, A. maritima, A. siberica, A. vul- garis.— All the species of wormwoods are more or less glaucous or silvery. The first named of these forms an elegant tree, and, as it needs but little soil, is well adapted for the top of a wall, or any other elevated position. Heclera Algeriensis, H, Begneriensis, H. Canariensisfol. var., H. digitata, H. chri/socarjia, and H. helix elegantissima, are the most striking half dozen varieties of ivy to train over ruins ; but there are at least fifty more varieties of ivy worthy of places in rockeries and ruins. When planted so as to form distinct sheets of verdure they are much more eff"ective than when allowed to riot over the walls and arches. But in some parts of a ruin a luxurious growth of ivy is desirable ; it is the one plant in all the world that can best crown a buttress with befitting glory. Common Irish and common English are the t^^o best sorts wherewith to form extensive sheets and bold bosses where there is plenty of room for them. Lonicera hrar.hypoda reticidaia. — This charming honeysuckle is well adapted to train over rough walls, but it will not train itself as ivy does, and the best way to help it is to place stout galvanized iron wire where the creeper is required and it will twine round it. When it reaches the summit of a rum and falls over in trailing wreaths, it flowers freely, but, like ivy, is reluctant to flower while it has oppor- tunities for extending itself. Jasminum nudiflorum. — An old plant of this jasmine clothing a wall or scrambling over a rocky ledge is a fine object in winter when it is covered with yellow flowers, Uosmariiius officinalis fol. var., Ruta graveolens fol. var., Santolina rosmarini folia. — Here are three British plants that are admirably adapted tor planting high up on exposed dry ledges and other places where moisture-loving shrubs would soon perish. On the summit of the bastion these are both ornamental and interesting. Vitis hederacea fol. var. — This exquisitely beautiful vine was planted in a pocket about five feet from the ground, and it grew freely and made long pendant garlands, which were full of grace and beauty ; the stems reddish and the leaves prettily mottled green and grey. Clematis lanuginosa^ G. ccerulea^ C. Florida^ C. vitalba. — There is 8 THE FLOEAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. no limit to the use of clematises wherever walls are to be clothed, whether such rough walls as these or the smooth walls of a mausion. A few of them planted in a rich mellow soil at the foot of the bastion have grown and flow ered finely. I find the only way to train them neatly is to nail them as required. (7«r\ feet to the corners of the diamond ? I am obliged to do so much of the gardening in my little place myself, having only occasionally the assistance of a man, that I should be much obliged for a hint as to filling my beds with hardy things which would keep the garden tolerably bright without constant change. — A Lady Subscriber. [The problem proposed by " A Lady Subscriber" is well worth whatever trouble may attend its solution. 1. The yellow pansies are admirable, but we should expect them to look very weedy towards the end of the summer. They appear, however, to give satisfaction, but suppose them to fail, what should we plant in their place to maintain a display of yellow. Calceolarias would scarcely do, for they decline in beauty towards autumn, and would be too tall for the place. If the colour were not too strong, Gazania splendens would do, provided they were spring-struck plants, or they would be fast coming 32 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. into bloom when the pansies acquired a weed}' look. (Enothera riparia would be just the thing, and the way to manage it would be to plant it alternately, and rather close with the pansy, and when the pansy had done its duty, to cut it back quite close, and allow the (Enothera space for its performances. That pretty gem, AcliilUa tomentosa, would probably come in well for work of this sort, but we can speak with confidence only of the (Enothera, because its habit is the same as that of the pansy. 2. The soft blue of the Nemophila could be very well replaced by the green-leaved form of Agathea celestis, which flowers very freely in the autumn. This is the plant long known iu gardens as Aster capensis and Cineraria amel- loides. Unfortunately this is a tender plant, but it needs no more care than blue lobelia. But no need for tender plants after all, for have we not half-a-dozen lovely Campanulas that will serve the purpose admirably? Our correspondent may take her choice of Campamda alpina, 6 inches, dark blue ; C. carpatica, 3 inches, a beautiful shade of blue ; C. fragilis hirsuta, 3 inches, blue. We recommend C. carpatica, and that it be planted in tufts with intervals between for sowing the seed of Nemophila. Another suitable plant is Viola cornuta, of which there are several forms, but probably the one oflfered by Mr. B, S. Williams, of Paradise Nurseries, Holloway, under the name of " Purple Queen" is the best. At any rate Viola cor- nuta is one of the best plants in the world for belts and lines, and is as hardy as chickweed. 3. Fuchsias are certainly quite unsuited to follow white pinks, but the dwarf variety of JDov.hle wliite pyreihrtim is just the thing for the purpose, for it flowers freely till frost puts a stop to its career, and is scarcely anything taller than the white pink. To prevent mistakes as to the plant meant, we give the catalogue name of it, Pyrethriim Partheniiim flore pleno. Probably P. saxatile, growing 4 inches high, and with Avhite flowers in autumn, might be useful in this system. A line of Venus's Navelwort, Omplialodes linlfoUa, or tufts of it sown between the pinks about the end of April, would be very beautiful to succeed them. Then again we have the white variety of Campanula carpatica, which would be a capital match as to height and habit to the blue kind, if that were used in place of Nemophila. 4. The Saponaria difficulty may be got over provided the bed is riot exposed to the ravages of slugs and snails, by planting in it Saponaria ocymoides, which spreads fast, and flowers most beautifully from the early part of May to the middle of July. "We suppose the species of our correspondent is S. calahrica, a most beautiful annual. But this may be had in bloom early by sowing the seed in September, But sup- pose them combined, S. ocymoides in tufts, with space between to sow S. calahrica in April, then there would be pink flowers to the end of the season. Possibly JErythrcea centav.i'ium, a charming little plant with pink flowers in autumn, would work into this scheme admirably. The Saxifrages and houseleeks mentioned in the November number of the Floral World are adapted for beds of any size from two or three feet to two or three hundi-ed yards. — S. H] Myostis stlvatica.— Conimelina. — This beautiful plant prefers shade, but it will thrive in a sunny situation, if in a cool, moist soil. The way they do some of these things at Cliveden is to allow them to grow wild amongst grass, aud the spots so treated are not mown until the flowering of the most attractive plants is over for the season. Books. — C. I). — The following monthlies are all we are acquainted with: — The Botanical Magazine, edited by Dr. J. D. Hooker, 3s, 6d. ; the Floral Maga- zine, edited by Rev. H, Dombrain, 2s. 6d, ; V Ilustration Sorticole, edited by Pro- fessor Ch. Lemaire, 14=, Gd, per annum. The first two can be obtained through any bookseller ; the last is distributed through the post, and the London agent is Mr. Silberrad, Harp Lane, Tower Street. Your geranium must not be repotted till the end of March. Lady Stihscriber. — There is no good book devoted exclusively to stove ferns, Tou would find Smith's " British and Foreign Ferns," published by Hardwicke, Piccadilly, useful ; Sweet's " Hot-house Cultivator" furnishes good instructions for all the best known older kinds of stove plants. "WOCDWAEDIA P.ADICA>-S. THE FLORAL WORLD GARDEN GUIDE. FEBRUARY, 186 7. 0]Sr SOME NEARLY HAEDY EXOTIC EEENS. ANY very laudable efforts have been made of late years to enlarge the selection of plants adapted for opeu-air ferneries, but the results are by no means of an encou- raging nature. It may be said with some truth that the cliaiate of Britain is everywhere unfavourable to ferns, and that, consequently, such as do inhabit our woods must be in a less degree of perfection than is possible for them, and must be some degrees hardier than their nearest allies that are foreign to our soil. Of course I cannot ignore the beauty of our native ferns, and I bear in miud the luxuriant growth of such species as the common Lastrea, common Athyrium, and common Scolopendrium in the " feruy coombes " of Devon. Yet when I compare the best home- grown specimens with examples of the same species from warmer climates, I see plainly enough that none of our native ferns attain with us the highest degree of beauty of which they are capable. It will be remembered by some of our readers that some years ago I directed attention, by means of distinct examples, to the superior beauty of nearly all the British ferns, when carefully cultivated, to the best wild specimens that could be found. There are many reasons why ferns should not be quite at home in Britain; the winters are too severe and prolonged, the springs too cold, the summers too dry. The south-western parts of England are noted for the superior beauty and abundance of ferns, and indeed they are the principal attractions for persons devoted to horticulture and botany to visit Devonshire and Cornwall. The comparatively high state of perfection of all south-western ferns proves the truth of the general remark above made on the general insufficiency of the climatic conditions in this country for the growth of ferns. But compare the ferns of Devonshire with the ferns of the so^th of Europe and the Canary islands ; that is to say, compare examples of the same species respectively grown here and there, and in many instances the difference will be such, that it will require more than a superficial knowledge of the subject to enable an observer to deter- mine their identity. These remarks are not intended to discourage fern- flowers. So far as ferns do attain to perfection in this country, 36 THE FLOEAL WORLD AND GAEDEN GUIDE. tbey are the most elegant forms of vegetation known to us. The common Lastrea in a half-starved state in a common garden border is a glorious object ; but it is far more glorious when unfolding its graceful fronds in a damp, shady wood, or in a well-kept garden rocker3^ Let the cultivation of ferns be pursued, therefore, by those who love it, without respect to the broad question we now raise as to the comparative unfitness of the British climate for ferns of all kindn. But the question does bear directly on the compara- tively small results attained by oft-repeated experiments in the planting of exotic ferns in English out-door ferneries. More than this, it bears upon the experiments, and may be made the founda- tion of a warning to all our readers not to be led away by certain statements that have been made public, as to the adaptation of numerous exotic ferns of noble proportions for permanent occupa- tion of our gardens. We shall never be suspected of opposing experiments in the acclimatizing of fine plants, for we have laboured too long and too ardently in such endeavours to be open to doubt upon the subject ; but experience has taught us some degree of caution, and we are most anxious just now to guard our readers against being led away by some rash assertions that have been made as to the hardiness of several species of exotic ferns. The public have been assured, on what is commonly termed a high " authority," that the tree-ferns of New Zealand, and many of the Lomarias of Brazil, may be made permanent residents of English gardens. This we do not believe, and we hope none of our readers will be so rash as to plant out valuable exotic ferns of any kind until assured on what they consider sufficient authority, or convinced by personal observation, that the species to be planted is really entitled to be regarded as '' hardy." During the discussion of this question, it has certainly met with the most sensible treatment in the Irish Farmer's Gazette, the editor of which believes that some of the most favoured spots in the " Emerald Isle " might be found warm enough for DicTcsonia antarctica, and a few other of the noblest nearly hardy exotic ferns. So possibly some of the most snug retreats of Devon might be suitable for them ; yet there must always be a risk, for the recent severe frost did not greatly spare those luxuriant parts of our isle which the gulf stream warms with its tepid waves. That it would be very delightful to see the glorious tree-ferns of New Zealand towering up in the midst of British Osmundas, Lastreas, and Scolopendriums, no one can question; nor will the writer of this cast even the minutest pebble at the enthusiast who looks forward with hope to the day when such a thing shall be. Let the enthu- siast hope, and while hoping, let him labour to bring about the result (if it be possible) to which his hopes are directed. " Hope springs eternal in the human breast, Man never is, but always to be blest." Now let US go, as is our wont, to the region of the practical. There are plenty of subjective books on gardening, but the Eloral "World is mostly objective, and we have before us a few objects on which we wish to expatiate. There are some noble ferns of exotic THE PLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 37 origin that are nearly hardy in tliis counbry, and all of whicli can be used in the open-air fernery, or to decorate the lawn or terrace, without any risk of losinp^ them. To speak of them in a general Tvay, we may sa}^ that they require a cool house to keep them through the winter ; but if kept in pots and tubs, they may be placed out of doors all the sui^mer, and may even be plunged to give them the appearance of being rooted in the ground, and to render the pots and tubs invisible. There is scarcely any limit to the use of ferns in this way, for at Battersea Park last summer costly stove ferns, such as Cijathea Smithii, Ci/athea dealhata, and Alsophila mtsiraJis, were plunged out and did well. But in this paper we are to keep to those that are nearly hardy ; and I repeat, that to make a good use of them, without incurring any risk of losing the plants, is just a question of house room to keep them through the winter. It has been my lot to discover means of increasing house room without increasing the extent of glass, by tying up the fronds to stakes, so that when these ferns acquire a great size they shall occupy no more room than the exact measure of the pots. I give as an illustration to this paper a portrait of a particularly favourite plant of mine, a fine 77 'bot?ir«n/^arrtc?ica;i5, which is represented as it stood on the grass turf here last summer, mounted on an old stump of a tree. That plant is now so large that we cannot afford house room for it while the fronds hang down in the way they are represented ; and when it is taken in for the winter, the great i'ronds are gathered up, and tied upright to stakes, just as if the plant were to be packed for a journey ; and then the Avidth of the pot is the exact measure of the space it requires. I find that if the fronds of this, and any other spreading ferns of a hard texture, are tied up with care, they suffer nothing ; and when untied in the spring soon fall into natural positions, and are as good as if they iiad never been touched ; and even if one or two are damaged, nature soon repairs the mischief, and before the summer has advanced very far there are new fronds to take the place of those damaged. This is a wrinkle of some value, I know, but I shall charge no more thau the usual price for the number — a sixpence franks it as before. SELECT HARDY EXOTIC FERNS. Tliese ferns are usually catalogued as hardy, and I shall proceed to state what I know about them both as to hardiness, beauty, and general^adaptation for the English garden. ADiANTUii PEDATUM. — A lovcly fom, quite equal in beauty to A. formosum and a dozen other Adiantums. AVhen planted iu a warm sheltered nook, in a deep bed of gritty peat, it is quite hardy in the climate of London. The hardiness of this lovely fern is a grand fact for lovers of choice hardy plants. In case of any fear of its safety during winter, cover the crown with a cone of cocoa-nut fibre or clean-sifted coal-ashes. It must have a shady, moist position, and if planted so as to peep out from a pocket in a rockery, it has a charming appearance. AsPLENiUM ANGUSTTFOLiUM. — A stroug-grovriug, rigid fern, with once-divided leathery fronds. It is quite hardy in a sheltered, 38 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. well-drained position; but if exposed, or in a spot that is very wet in wiater, is pretty sure to perish. As it is a cheap fern, it is well for every possessor of a good fernery to give it a trial. AsPLENiuM EBENEUM. — Less in stature than the preceding, this is still worth a place in the hardy fernery. In favoured spots it will last until an extra severe winter occurs, and probably would outlast the keenest frosts we have if protected. AxHYRiUM ASPLENioiDEs. — A fiue fcm, rising two to three feet high, the fronds elegantly divided and a rich colour, purplish-black mingled with dark green. It is deciduous, grows freely, and appears to be quite hardy. For the rockery under glass this is one of the choicest ferns known ; when seen against a dark background, it has a beauty not surpassed by that of Pteris scaberula. I very strongly recommend this for the sheltered parts of a rockery ; it needs shade, and will bear a considerable degree of moisture without injury. Ctrtomium falcatum. — This is the "laurel fern," so called on account of its dark-green leaf-like divisions of a hard leathery texture. It is a most noble object in the fernery, being as distinct in its way as a Scolopendrium, but far more majestic. It will grow in almost any soil, will bear more sun, more drought, and more moisture than almost any other fern we have, but it is not quite hardy. Therefore it must either be protected by heaping a cone of coal-ashes over the crown, or, better still, it must be taken up and potted for the winter. CYETOiiiUii CAEYOTiDETJM. — This grows to ouly half the height of the preceding ; it is an interesting species, and requires protection in the same manner. Lastrea Goldiea^^a. — This fine fern (which by the w^ay is not very distinct in character) has been very fairly tried, again and again, as a hardy fern, and here has always failed. Moreover, its growth is unsatisfactory if it is left in any respect to shift for itself; so, while admitting that it is a noble species, I am quite prepared to strike it out of the list of desirable species for those who cannot bestow pains upon it, and give it the shelter of glass. Lastrea MARaiT^ALis. — This is one of the most beautiful of this great family, very distinct, robust, and cheerful. The fronds are twice-divided, with entire pinnules, the colour bluish-green, the fructification light orange-yellow. When strong it rises two feet high, and forms a noble tuft. This is quite hardy if in a sheltered spot, and is one of the most useful exotic ferns known. Lastrea yovEBORACENSis. — This is by no means eminent for beauty, though it would be a gross libel to say it has no beauty. It grows fifteen inches at the utmost, and is as hardy as any British Lastrea. Lastrea Sieboldii {Pycnopteris Sieholdii). — A glorious fern is this, and very " tropical looking" ; we must surely have a picture of it in these pages some day. The fronds are divided into three primary divisions of great size; these are more or less lobed, some- times nearly to the extent of being petiolated, though never quite so. The texture is stiff and stout like parchment, and the colour a fine dark rich green. It is not quite hardy, therefore should either THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. oU be taken up or protected. A good plan is to shift it into as large a pot as it is likely to fill in the month of April, and in May plunge it in a shady bank or some sheltered nook of the rockery. Its tine form and character entitle it to the higliest consideration. LoMAKiA Chilenscs. — A bold, once-divided, leathery-fronded fern ; a fine companion to Cyrtomium falcatum. Not quite hardy, but lives out a mild winter. When strong, the fronds acquire a length of four feet. LoMARiA MagellaisIca. — Fine and distinct ; not quite hardy, but nearly so. OSMUNDA CIXNAMOMEA, 0. ClATTOXIA^^A, O. GRACILIS. — All hardy as our own 0. regalis, and lovely ferns for the shady and damp parts of a rockery. PoLYSTiCHu:\i ACROSTOCHOiDES. — A fine companion to Lomaria Chilensis ; the fronds bold, dark green and glossy, and of a leathery texture. It is evergreen under glass, but deciduous when planted out, as the first frost destroys the fronds, but the crown may be kept by covering it. PoLYSTiCHUM PUKGENS. — A Ycry fine species, rising two feet high, quite a Polystichum in style. Not quite hardy, but nearly so. iStruthiopteeis G-ermanica. — This is the glorious "ostrich- feather fern." The fronds form a correct shuttlecock-like series round the crown, and the fruit rises on a separate stalk in the centre. It is reputed to be quite hardy, and perhaps is so ; but it is not at all adapted for an out-door fern, and I have never seen it looking well in an open-air rockery. If exposed to wind the fronds get torn, and if they escape being torn, they are sure to turn brown by Midsummer-day. Therefore I advise that it never be planted out until the cultivator has a few plants to spare, and is prepared to see them all spoilt, with the chance of a better result than others have attained with it. Wood WARD lA radicals. — What a grand fern is this, and how badly is it treated ! Because it will live on almost nothing, very few cultivators treat it liberally. I know about fifty plants that have been kept in the small pots and baskets for years without any change of soil, with their roots cramped so much that their living is like a miracle. I beg tlie readers of the Ploral World to treat this majestic fern in a liberal manner, to give it plenty of pot room, and a soil consisting of at least three parts mellow hazel loam, the remainder peat and sharp grit. To get up fine specimens, they should have a shift every spring to a larger-size pot, and from the largest pots to tubs, and so on for ever, the end of the shifting to be at that point where the lifting of the plant becomes a matter of difficulty. The roots may be pruned back as freely as the roots of a geranium, if they have gone down among the crocks, and have become unmanageable for the next shift. AVheu in a twelve-inch pot, with good soil rammed in firm, the plant will produce fronds six feet in length. To propagate, the best way is to peg down three or four of the bulbs which form at the end of the fronds in a pot filled with sandy peat, and when they are well rooted, cut through the frond that holds them, and separate- them. Keep them one year in the 40 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. pots, and tlien pot tliem separately. . It has never lived through a severe winter in any case to my knowledge, and I have a fine one now left out from last season, which I expect will be dead when spring comes, though while writing this (January 15) I have examined it, and the crown appears to be fresh and unhurt. Woodward lA oeientalis. — This is of smaller growth than the last, but very much like it in general appearance. The young fronds are of a bright cinnamon colour, and the young plants are produced in scale-like tufts on the upper surface of the fronds. It is rather less hardy than radicans, and is more in need of shade and shelter. As this list includes a few that in some districts it may be a diffi- culty to procure, I shall advise any of our readers who cannot obtain them of their own nurserymen, to apply to Mr. E. Sim, of the Nurseiies, Toots Cray, Kent, S.E., who can meet their requirements without difficulty, even if they want to buy ferns by thousands. Shielet Hibbeed. CULTIYATION or BEITISH QUEEJSr STEAWBEERY. BY J. CALTEET CLAEKE. T may not be generally known that bean-chaiF is a very useful material to the cultivator of stiff soils, especially for the growing of the British Queen strawberry. But for the benefit of the reader I will tell him how it came under my notice, and how I was led to believe in its virtue. I was then (eight years ago) working upon one of those badly-drained, cold, and clayey soils so plentiful in some places on the south coast, and where every attempt to grow the British Queen strawberry had failed. This was a fact made known to me by my then new employer, accompanied with a wish that were it in my power I was to devise some means to secure the well-doing of this favourite variety. Every plan that had been adopted was carefully detailed to me by the proprietor ; and he added, " I had given up in despair till a few days since, when a trifling circumstance revived again my hopes. Come with me," says my employer, " and I will show you what I think you will value as a dressing for strawberries, if not for the production of this desired variety." A walk of a few minutes brought us to the back of some farm buildings, where had been, through near eighteen months, the refuse of two large stacks of beans, or in other words the chaff from the winnowing machine. It had been put into a heap on this spot with the intention of re- moving it at some convenient time ; but still it remained there. Kow it so happened that all the refuse and trimmings from the garden were taken to another spot close by, and from these trim- mings one of the farm labourers selected a few runners of straw- berries, and laid them by the heels in this chaft^ with the intention, I suppose, of carrying them home to his own garden; but this he THE FLOEAL WOKLD AND GAEDEN GUIDE. 41 did not do, as tliey were left there, and the spot being sliady, they soon made fresh roots ; and at the time I first saw them they had made a most vigorous growth, and had sent out runners near two yards round. Here then was the result of an accident, and at the same time a proof that the material would be valuable for straw- berry cidture. Acting upon the hint thus thrown in my way, I set to work, and had the whole of the heap brought into the garden ; it was then almost like a black mould ; and as a piece of strawberries had just been planted, I gave the whole surface a covering of three inches, reserving a good quantity for a trial with the British Queen. Its effect upon the newly-planted beds was something like magic, for as soon as they began to make new roots (for I had very care- fully forked it in round them) they grew in a most luxuriant man- ner, and at the end of one summer had made an extraordinary growth. Kow I know this sort of material by very many is not able to be got, but still in country places it is accessible to some ; I have therefore stated what I know about it for the benefit of those few. This occurred, as I before stated, upon a cold, undrained soil where the British Queen had previously failed to thrive. My plan of proceeding was this. I had three rows marked out, two feet apart, across a good wide quarter. I then dug out a trench the width of the spade, fifteen inches deep ; the top soil was thrown out separately, and the bottom stuff wheeled away. I then put into the trenci, four or five inches thick, a lot of rough spray wood, w^hich in some country places is very cheap. This was trod in as close as it would go ; the soil was then put back, and with two rows was put the remainder of the decayed bean-chaff I have before referred to ; with the other row a good supply of well-rotted dung was incor- porated. After this, as labour was plentiful, I had the plot fre- quently forked over on fine days during a period of three weeks, so that it was brought to a nice friable condition previous to planting. AVhen the plants were put out, and got well hold of the soil, they made a rapid growth in those two rows where bean-chaff was used ; its lijjht and kindly nature caused the roots to work vigo- rously, so that at the end of twelve months they vrere well esta- blished ; while the other row, although evidently benefited by the drainage underneath, was less vigorous and healthy. Erom these facts one very important piece of information was obtained, that special drainage was necessary in this instance, and when applied in conjunction with this decayed matter, a still better result attended it. The ordinary mode of draining a garden may do in some cases for the welfare of this variety, but there are others in which extra attention is necessary in this particular, and when so applied it should be placed immediately under the rows, that they may receive the full benefit of it. But 'even this will not insure the well-doing of British Queen in some places, for there are hundreds of gardens in England where it is a complete failure, the true cause of which remaius to this day a perfect mystery. Some, it is true, have made the attempt to explain the why and the wherefore, but their efforts to satisfy the minds of practical men have, for the want of sound reasoninij, been futile. 42 SUB-TROPICALS THAT MAY BE GEOWN FROM SEED. BY ZAEL PEOSPEE. I RUSTING that the practical notes offered last month have been found of some use, 1 will again direct atten- tion to plants adapted for *' The Choice Garden," in the class usually denominated " sub-tropicals," and that may be grown from seed. I should say that those who have not yet sown seeds of any of the kinds recommended last month, but who wish to do so, may still proceed, for there is good time yet to grow the plants to a fair size before planting them out. But there must be no more time lost, for the days are lengthening, and spring is near at hand, and all seedling plants that require a good long season of in-door nursing, as most sub-tropicals do, should now be started to take every possible advantage of the increasing daylight. DATUEA. D.fastuosa Huberiana. — This is an annual or a perennial, at the choice of the cultivator. If sown early and grown liberally, it attains to a height of five or six feet, and producing branches freely, it will measure as much through. The flowers are nearly as large as those of D. arlorea, and of various colours, violet and white pre- dominating. There are several varieties, all worth having if there is room for them. If kept in greenhouse temperature and rather dry all winter, the plants may be put out eveiy year, and if in a sheltered position will have a grand effect, D. gigantea. — A very grand species, with white flowers, most superb when well grown. D. ceratocaulon.—A pretty robust habited plant, with immense trumpet-shaped flowers, white striped with pink, deliciously scented. D. Kni^htii.^This grows to a height of four to six feet, with superb white flowers. For the sub-tropical garden, D. arhorea, D. frutescens, and D. suaveolens are remarkable for beauty, but it is not advisable to grow them from seed, as they can be with certainty and rapidity raised from cuttings. When planted out in rich well-drained soil, and supplied with abundance of water, they grow to gigantic dimen- sions, and produce their noble odoriferous flowers freely. EEXTHEINA. The beds of Erythrinas at Battersea Park last year were amongst the most interesting and beautiful of all the sub-tropical displays. Yet I should prefer to see in a small garden half a dozen only of these plants far apart, standing separately in front of evergreen shrubs, or in that imaginary mixed border for which the O'Shane and Mr. "Williams have been waging war so good temperedly. It is worth the while of any amateur to grow a few Erythrinas from seed, both for the amusement and the intrinsic value of the plants. At THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 43 page 146 of last year's volume is an excellent'practical essay on the cultivation of this plant for exhibition. To what is there said I only need add, that to raise the plant from seed, and to plant it out in the garden, are feats attended with no difficulty. The soil of the bed should be rich and substantial, the plant should have abundance of water all through June, July, and August, and be taken up for the winter, and kept rather dry in the greenhouse. To start the seeds a good heat is needed. E. crista-gcdli- — This plant branches freely, attaining a height of six to ten feet ; the branches and leaf-stalks are armed with spines ; the flowers are scarlet, and produced in plenty. There are several varieties, one of the best of which is Marie Bellanger, which does well in the open ground. E. Jaurifolia. — This grows very freely, but does not flower so abundantly as the last. CASSIA. All the species of Cassia may be raised from seed with facility, and there are very many in cultivation. I shall name only two, because the object of these papers is to select from amongst thou- sands of plants those few very best that will be sure to delight the amateur, and will be pretty sure also not to perplex him. The readers of the Floral World, I presume, would rather have their attention directed to the most select and useful plants for private gardens, than be bewildered with mere lists of names. Therefore I trust to be excused naming only two species of Cassia ; those who want more will find their wish gratified by referring to any good seed catalogue. C. coryinbosa. — A freely-brancliing, neat-lookiug shrub, which grows five to eight feet high, and flowers freely in the latter part of the summer. The flowers are yellow. If planted in a sheltered border, it will live through a mild winter, being very nearly hardy. C.Jlorihunda. — Very handsome, with elegant pinnated leaves and coronals of orange-yellow flowers. The soil requisite for these should be light and rich, consisting chiefly of turfy loam and leaf-mould. AVhen taken up for the winter, they may be freely cut back. Common greenhouse pro- tection is all they require. To raise them from cuttings is a very easy task. acacia. A. lopTiantha is of great use in the sub- tropical garden, on account of its most elegant foliage; but, generally speaking, Acacias are not of much account for the purpose w'e are considering. When only a few plants of this species are required, they may be purchased at a low price at any good nursery ; but if any of our readers should design to plant out a considerable number, the plants for the purpose may be raised from seed without difficulty. I have found it advisable to steep the seeds in water at 150' to 200' for twelve hours previous to sowing them ; I place them in a pan, and put the pan on a flue or tank. The plants should be grown in a sandy soil, in which there is some proportion of peat, until planted out, and then any good 44 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. garden soil will do for them. The extreme beauty of this plant entitles it to the most favourable consideration for the decoration of the garden in summer time. DAUBENTOXIA. This is a fine leguminous shrub, growing six feet high, with pinnated leaves and pea-shaped flowers of a scarlet, vermilion, or orange colour. All the species may be raised from seed without difficulty, but the plants do not flower freely till they acquire some age ; therefore much must not be expected from the first season when raised from seeds. They are usually classed in catalogues as stove shrubs, but it is one more proof of the small j-eliance we cau place upon those would-be authoritative documents, that all the species grow freely in the open ground if planted out at the end of May, and all may be wintered in ordinary greenhouse temperature with perfect safety ; then, of course, they must be kept rather dry. -D. iripetiana, D. puniced, I), magnifica. aud D. versicolor are the best for the purpose of planting out ; and if only one is wanted, the last- named is the handsomest and hardiest. « CTPEEUS. The paper plant of the Egyptians is one of the most distinct and beautiful plants that can be introduced to the English garden. I find that at page 8 of the sixth volume of the Eloeal Woeld there is a capital paper on its cultivation. I have to do with it as suitable for the amateur to raise from seed for the decoration of the garden. Eirst, then, I would say, sow the seeds quickly in a mixture of two parts peat torn, or chopped up to the size of hazel nuts, and mixed with one part of silver sand. Place the pans or pots containing the seeds in larger pans filled with water, and cover the seeds with bell- glasses. Then place on a heat of 70' or 80^', and as soon as the seedling plants spear through, take the bell-glasses off". When the plants are large enough to handle, lift them out with a pointed stick, and pot separately in the same sort of mixture as used for the seed pans, and put them in a heat of 70^ to grow, but gradually cool them as they advance to 60', but not lower. The best way to use any of the species of Cyperus in a private garden is to plunge the plants in pots about one inch deep in the basin of a fountain, or any ornamental water. They must not be put out till the middle oi June, and must be housed again by the middle of JSeptember. Eor so choice, so rare, so lovely a plant, this is surely not too much trouble, except it be for those who can see no beauty in any garden plant except it be a geranium or verbena. • C. papyrus grows to nine or ten feet high, but is handsome and effective in a small state. Its exquisite tint of emerald green, and its light form, resembling a head of human hair, are distinguishing points in its character. G. alternifoliiis. — The variegated form of this plant is accounted one of the grandest of all the stove plants in cultivation. I shall never forget Mr. Tanton's specimen at the last Guildhall show ; it was worth a crown to see that alone. But the variegated form is too THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 45 tender to be planted out, or even placed in tlie open air. It is of small dimensions, reaching three feet high at the utmost, and usually less. C virens. — A very elegant and intensely green species, rising eighteen inches high. "Well worth having. C Killingioides. — Yery elegant, dwarf and tufted. A very pretty plant for indoor fountains, also to put out in July, August, and ISeptember. WIGAKDIA. We have now to deal "with a plant which has acquired immense renown for its noble character and ready ^adaptation to the system of planting out in summer in English gardens. I first saw this used as a bedding plant in Paris, and in common with many other folks was astonished at its beauty. Conceive as you may of the beauty of leaves, it will be difficult to imagine the effect of this plant even with the most vivid description. I shall be content to say that the leaves are of a sombre green, boldly veined and undulated, and mea- sure two to three feet in length and breadth. When planted out in beds it has a superb appearance, but in a small garden I do not think beds of this plant would be in good taste — a few plants here and there would be far better. It is useless to keep old specimens, as they become unhealthy, and it is difficult to keep them. Therefore, only a few should be kept to furnish cuttings, or they must be raised from seeds, a matter of no difficulty. Sow the seeds in shallow pans at the end of Februarj', place the pans on a heat of 70^, and as soon as the plants are large enough to handle, remove them into small pots. Any light rich soil suits them when in pots, and when planted out the soil should be deep, rich, and well drained. If planted in a mass they must be three feet apart. W, caracasana is the best, but some seedsmen supply seed of IV. urens, an inferior kind, for it. I cannot say who supplies it true and who false ; all I can do is to state the fact that many amateurs have been deceived by spurious seed and have concluded (erroneously) that the plant was not worth growing. Of course a certain remedy for this is to obtain old plants, and propagate from cuttings. GEEVILLEA. This noble shrub has a fine effect when planted to stand alone on a grass plot, or in the centre of a raised bed. It has the grace of a fern and the character of a tree, and will attain any height, ac- cording to its age and the care bestowed upon it. Nothini^ could be more proper than to place it in this list, for it is most difficult to increase it by cuttings, and hence it has hitherto been scarce. But seeds are now sent from Algiers, and there ought to be no difficulty in obtainiog them. G. rohusta is the best for planting out. But better than planting is to plunge the plant in its pot in a shady, sheltered place, taking care to place an inverted empty pot beneath it to preserve perfect drainage, for much damp at the root is most injurious to this beautiful subject. 46 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. HICTNUS. With these I shall wind up, though I still omit many good sub- jects. But to pass over the castor oil plants would be to leave the part of Hamlet out of the play which bears that name (a favourite expression with the English people). To grow the Eicinus is as easy as the growing of balsams and asters, but it is very advisable to set about sowing the seeds early, in order to have the plants a good size before planting them out, for size is everything. The seeds may be sown any time during February or March, and if extra large plants are required, the sowing should be made the first week in February. This, however, depends on the amount of glass at com- mand. Where glass is limited, the cultivator had best not sow till the middle of March ; then, as the plants require more room, some of the ordinary inhabitants of the house will be- removed in their favour. Sow thinly in shallow pans, use a light, rich, leafy soil, plunge in a heat of 60' to 70% keep close in a humid atmosphere, and as soon as large enough to handle, prick off into 60-sized pots singly. Thumb pots are not large enough for them, even at the first start!^ Shift on as required, and by the end of May you will have fine plants. The soil of the bed for them must be rich, friable, and substantial, and the position should be sheltered. B. sanguinea, a grand variety, attaining a gigantic size, the stems and young leaves crimson. Fi. Olermanni, superb habit, and growing full six feet high. M. communis. — The common variety is not to be despised. B. africanus alhidus. — Yery striking in character, the leaves and stems marked with white lines. B. viridis. — This has green fruit and red stems, fine. Those who can obtain seed (true) of B. Bourhonensis arhoreiis, and B. lividus, will find them remarkably beautiful. But probably seed of these are not in the trade. To finish up, I will state a fact which will perhaps startle some of the readers. It is this (and it is a fact), that if seeds of castor oil are sown in a rich, light, sunny border on the l(tth of May (or thereabout), and left alone, the plants will be ten feet high before the summer is over, I dare say I shall not obtain a testimonial in silver for that startling revelation (the result of experiment), but I shall be quite content to have aided so far in promoting the beauty of the English garden. A PavAL TO Ax^ECTOCHiLus SETACEUS.— The only hardy plant I have yet seen M-hich approaches the tracery of this exquisitely marked plant — whose leaves have not unaptly been compared to veins of gold flowing over a textm-e of green velvet — is the golden-striped variety of the greater Periwinkle {Vhica major), whose dark green leaves during the early spring and summer months, are very finely marked ^ith golden veins extending over their entire surface. The plant being perfectly Lardy, thriving in ordinary soil, and vegetating early, will be found valuable for picturesque effect amongst''early-forced plants in the conservatory and greenhouse, or as portable specimens in pots for the open borders, either singly or otherwise. Its varieo^ation is, in many instances, so beautifully distinct as to be adapted for the earlie'st bouquets of spring flowers. I find it entered in ]Mr. Salter's catalogue as Vmca major fol. reticulata. — W. W. 47 THE AUEICULA. BY JOHN WALSn. Ckaptee II. — Seeds and Seedlings. WISH I could begin this chapter by a faithful descrip- tion or indication of the pleasure I have derived from the raising of florists' flowers from seeds. It is a recreation that thrills a florist with delight ; it fills the mind with anticipations ; usually many of those antici- pations are realized, and rarely, very rarely, are they wholly disap- pointed. The more experience that is gained, the greater certainty attends the pursuit ; but I banish at once and for ever from my own mind, and I hope the reader will banish the thought, that we are invariably to judge such a pursuit by its results. Suppose after raising and flowering one hundred seedling auriculas, I have not one worth a high place and an honourable name, it is very certain that I have been amused; I have seen something of ]N"ature's ways, and am possibly instructed ; and I have one hundred plants, that are more or less beautiful, that have been bred up by my own hands. In any hundred auriculas grown from cjood seed, there will be a large proportion of exquisitely beautiful flowers, and there may be a few remarkable for perfection, and every cultivator ha? a chance. But I repeat that it is not fair to judge the case by tangible results ; there is, perhaps, nothing to sliow as the result of a ramble in the country. Yet none of us wou^M condemn rambling, because in our own last ramble we neither found a rare fossil, nor dicovered a gold-mine. It is too much the custom of thousands of persons who practise gardening as a recreation to buy plants instead of seeds. I do not wish to raise the question whether an auricula is better thaii a geranium, because I think it wrong to find fault with the recrea- tions of any one provided they are harmless, but I will say that irequently the amateur gardener would consult his or her own interest in entering boldly upon the growing of plants from seeds. Look, for example, at a great bed of Sweet Williams, what a gorgeous mass of colour it presents. To have such a bed, we must sow seeds in the first instance. Or look at a frame filled \\ii\\ poly- anthuses in bloom, and how exquisite are their lacings of gold and jet. Here, again, to fill the frame one packet of seed will suffice, though if named sorts are preferred plants must be purchased. Even common border annuals appear to me much more interesting than the best of bedding plants, because we must grow them from seed; they thus become our children; they seem to be dependent upon us ; we have an interest in their life history, and these thoughts and feelings make in the mind and heart an aggregate of delight. But I say no more on the general subject, for the theme particularly specified in the heading to this chapter demands attention. Eespecting seeds, all the first-class seedsmen supply good auricula seed. The seed is carefully saved by cultivators who possess col- lections, and if it is good it commands a high price. Those who 48 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. intend to raise auriculas from seed, therefore, may buy with safety, provided they go to the most respectable seedsmen, and pay the most respectable price. Cheap seed of any florists' flowers is not worth sowing. If cheap seed were given me, I would only burn it. When the collector has a good collection, seed may be saved at home, and every cultivator prefers seed that has grown under his own inspec- tion ; to say nothing of the additional interest that is created by the process of hybridizing. I conclude that you have the seed, and now for the disposal of it. In the essay on the Auricula in " Grarden Favourites" — the only essay on the subject in any modern work that is worth reading — Mr. Hibberd recommends sowing one part of the seed as soon as it is ripe, and the remainder in the month of February following. This is excellent advice, and indeed it would be better for the veteran cultivator to sow all his seed as soon as dead ripe. But for beginners, and those amateurs who wish to reduce to the least possible amount of labour their several gardening pursuits, sowing in February or March answers very well. To sow in the open border is almost as bad as throwing the seed away. Procure some large shallow pans or wooden boxes — they must he sJialloiv — cover the bottoms of these receptacles with an inch or two of small crocks, and over that lay a mixture of three parts mellow hazel loam, one part turfy peat, one part leaf-mould, and one part sharp sand. Fill nearly to the edge of the box or pan, and then press the soil quite firm with a flat piece of wood ; sprinkle the seed thinly all over, and cover with an eighth of an inch of the sand soil, and press down again with a piece of board. I suppose the soil to be in a moderate state of moisture, so that it will not require watering. It is well to manage so that there will be no need to water till the plants are up. This cannot always be done. There are just two advices suitable in reference to this matter. The first is, lay a sheet of common window glass over the seed-boxes or pans to check evaporation, and as soon as there is a lair sprinkling of green upon the soil, owing to the sprouting of the seed, take the glasses ofi. The second is, if the seed-pans want water, fill some large vessel with water, and gently lower the seed-pans into it. The water will flow over the soil, and wet it through, without disturbing a particle of soil or seed. This is a golden rule for watering seed- pans. The last point to be considered is, whether w^e shall submit the seeds to heat or not. My advice is, be content to keep the seed-pans in a frame or pit, safe from frost, wind, and sunshine, and wait. If the seed is good it will all germinate in time. Still, a gentle heat may be used, and the result will be a more uniform and quicker sprouting of the seed. The danger is that now and then the heat may be too much, and to avoid that danger I have always pre- ferred to wait till the increasing warmth of the season causes the seed to germinate without artificial help. Some time between the sowing of the seed and the first appear- ance of the plants, make up a bed to receive them. The best way is to make up this bed in a frame, so that a light can be put on for the winter. But this may be dispensed with. In any case, the THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 49 bed must be well drained, and must consist of light sandy loam, enriched with about a third part of quite rotten manure. Into this bed transplant the seedlings, as soon as they have five leaves each, and plant them in the bed five inches apart every way. Water as needful, shade from the hottest sun ; if blooms appear in autumn, nip them out ; when winter comes, protect from storms by means of a few hurdles put aslant, or by means of frames laid flat over them, with flower-pots to keep them at a proper height. If you take no notice of them at all, you will probably not lose one, but they will look better in the spring if sheltered, than if left to all the injurious efi*ects of rain, wind, and frost. When they flower, mark the best with numbers, and enter in a book the numbers, with accompanying descriptions ; and in July take up such as are worth special atten- tion, and pot them. As for the rest, plant them in the borders, or give them away, or destroy them. Alpine auriculas are of less value than the show varieties, but they are exquisitely beautiful. Mr. Charles Turner, of Slough, has of late years shown alpines in such splendour, that many auricula- growers, who would a few years ago have shuddered to have such things, are now collecting the best and raising seedlings. The depth of the body-colour, the purity of the gold or sulphur- coloured paste, and the matchless form of some of the alpine auriculas are — " Tilings to dream of with more ardency Than the death-day of empires." The raising of alpines from seed is an amusement particularly well adapted for ladies, indeed I wonder every lady gardener has not a little collection of these gems, so refined and lustrous are they, yet so simple in their beauty. As to the raising of alpines, there is no better process than that described above for the show kinds, therefore to recommend them is the best I can do. I have given above the mixture of soils I have long used for the seed-pans, and I am satisfied no better mixture can be made. But I have seen some good seedlings raised by an amateur w^bo had nothing better than common garden loam and some cocoa-nut fibre. He Diixed a fifth part of the fibre with sifted loam, and having sown the seeds, covered it with a quarter of an inch of the finest of the fibre, carefully sifted out from the mass. A PEW SUPERB YAEIEGATED-LEAYED BEDDERS. pRTSANTHEMUM SENSATION has acquired un- usual importance in consequence of its beautiful creamy variegation and its perfect hardness. It will be a valuable auxiliary to the variegated geraniums, and in many cases supersede them. The stock for bedding may be struck in March or April, and the plants can be trained and VOL. II. — NO. II. 4 50 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. pinched so as to make a close mass of creamy yegetation, or may be allowed to grow to full height. Alternanthera parois'tchioides is the best of the new series of amaranths lately introduced from Brazil. It is of rather diminu- tive growth as compared with Coleus and Amaranthus melancholicus, and quite distinct in character. The prevailing colours are olive, crimson, and orange red. It requires the same treatment as Coleus, and must be planted four inches apart every way for a rich efiect. Iresixe Uerbstii has been much abused, but we have so fre- quently seen it in beautiful condition, and making a fine effect with its heavy mixture of bronze, purple, and crimson, that we do not hesitate to recommend it. It is very bold and distinct, very hardy, and lasts far into the autumn, when other foliage bedders are fading away. It needs to be contrasted with brighter objects to have the richness proper to it, and it makes a fine dividing line between silvery or golden leaves. Antennaeia tomentosa is the most perfect silvery-leaved edging-plant ever seen. It grows as close as moss, and is as bril- liant as the whitest of the Centaureas. Every amateur who prac- tises bedding should obtain this plant, and practise patience in getting up a stock of it for margins of beds. Messrs. E. Gr. Hen- derson possess it, but whether it is generally distributed we do not know. Golden Balm. — This was first made known in the Floral World, and has become deservedly popular. But many amateurs forget what was said about it in the first instance, that it should be planted where it is to remain, and should not be disturbed for several years. Then the older it is the richer are its colours, and it really rivals Golden Chain geranium in its splendid appearance. Dactylis glomerata roLiTs YARiEGATis. — The varicgatcd Dactylis is invaluable for edgings, forming neat tufts of grassy foliage, very brilliantly variegated. In all good gardens it has become a leading member of the group of plants used for edging. To increase the stock, it is only necessary to tear up the plants in August, and plant at once where they are to remain. It is quite hardy. PoA TEiviALis, in a variegated form, has been introduced to public notice by Messrs. E. G. Henderson and !Son. It is remarkable for grace- fulness of form and exquisite purity of creamy variegation, verging towards pure white. It is a grass of tender leafage, growing natu- rally in a thick lawn-like mass, and adapted either for edging beds or actually to make close plots of silvery herbage. Possibly this very plant may lead to quite new modes of displaying bedding plants, for if we lay down a white instead of a green ground for a pai'terre, the colouring of the beds will have to be altered very much from the styles that prevail. As an edging plant it is invaluable, and for growing in pots and in tufts on the rockery, worth a place in every garden. Sa:n'tolina ixcan-a. — A thoroughly hardy plant, growing four inches high, the branches closely set with minute silvery grey leaves, making a neat edging when regularly pinched back. Yariegated Iyies. — We have yet to see justice done to these THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 51 beautiful plants. If employed for edgiugs, we should see the out- lines of the beds marked as plainly and as brishtly all the winter as in summer. Many of them, such as the Cuilisii variety of the silvery-edged ivy, acquire beautiful red tintings in winter, and are almost equal to tricolour geraniums. Messrs. Lucombe, Piuce, and Co., of Exeter, have long since adapted variegated ivies to their proper use, and have some margins formed of ivies in their flower garden. Artemisia argentea. — This lovely plant may be grown as a close line, and then makes a lustrous silvery edging ; or it may be formed into a perfect little tree, in which case it is very elegant, and well adapted for decorative purposes. It is as hardy as chickweed, and, in the form of a miniature tree, well adapted for the embellish- ment of the winter garden. CoLEus Veeschaffelti is not superseded by any of the newly- discovered plants that compete with it, by a display of richly- coloured leaves. It is as valuable as ever, and when effectively contrasted, presents a glorious mass of the richest crimson, deep- ening to chocolate shades. It is a most easy task to propagate this fine plant ; all that is needful is a steady moist heat. The cuttings may be taken off as fast as suitable shoots are produced on the old plants, and they root well in about ten days. From the present time to the end of March is most suitable for propagating this plant, to have a nice stock for planting at the end of May. Amaeanthus mela:n'Cholicxjs. — This splendid plant is, like the Coleus, still unique in its way ; none of the newer Amaranths sur- passing it in colour. Any quantity may be grown with as much ease as growing stocks or balsams. A pinch of seed sown now, or in the course of three or four weeks, in light soil, and placed in a steady heat of 60°, will in due time furnish plants that will be strong for planting out in May. S. H. AEUJSTDO CONSPICUA. T is important that every amateur gardener should be acquainted with this noble hardy grass, for though it does not eclipse or supersede the glorious Pampas grass (^Gynerium arcjenteuiii) it will be valued wherever the pampas is regarded as an embellishment of the garden. It is of robust growth, with broader leaves than the pampas, but the leaves are considerably less in length, and the plant makes a flatter mass ; or at all events we cannot compare it to a fountain, which is the favourite figure when the pampas is described. Arundo conspicua is not only bold and distinct as a grass, but it flowers most abundantly from the middle of June to the end of November. This is one of its best features, for throughout the greater part of the summer, and long before the lovely Gynerium shows a single spike, this is covered with silvery panicles, that render it at once a conspicuous and a beautiful adornment of the garden. Any good soil will suit it, but in a rich soil with plenty of water all the sum- mer, it becomes a grander plant than if starved. S. H. CULTUEE OF GESNEEA ZEBRINA. BY J. SAUNDEES. [HE general management of this fine gesnera does not materially differ from that of others, except that I would recommend a rather stronger soil. A compost of turfy loam of a free texture, well rotted leaf-mould, and light fibry peat, in equal quantities, with sufficient sand to keep the whole open, that the roots and water may freely precolate through it, is most proper. In potting these plants, it is too frequently the practice to retain a considerable portion of the old earth in which the plant has been kept through the winter, merely rubbing off the outside of the ball ; this is decidedly wrong, because the earth, after having supported the plant for six months, and after that been thoroughly dried, in order to preserve the roots while resting, cannot reasonably be supposed to retain any nourish- ment. Yet it is into this the first-formed roots of the season will have to make way, and on it depend for their first supply of food, before they can reach the outer stratum of new earth ; mean- while they are starving. I would therefore advise that the whole of the old earth in which the plant has been kept through the winter be removed when it is repotted for starting; and it is always preferable to put them into the pots they are intended to bloom in at the first shifting, as the roots are frequently injured by removal from one pot to another. This should be done about the middle of March, and the pots plunged in a bark-bed or forcing-frame with a gentle bottom-heat ; the bulbs soon begin to grow, when plenty of water should be given, and by the end of April when the sun usually attains great power, it will be advisable to shade them slightly, which should be continued through the summer. If they are grown in a stove, a back shelf, rather shaded, will be the best situation for them during the hot weather, though I greatly prefer either a plant or a frame, as the pit then assumes a more healthy habit ; and thus naturally induces an abundant bloom, though on this head little danger can be incurred from either method, as the plant is by nature so exceedingly prolific of flowers ; still, by the management in frames, the quantity and closeness of the foliage is increased, and therefore I think it most desirable. With the simple attention to watering, the plant will begin to flower in September, and continue to do so for the following three months ; after which it should be allowed to become dry, lessening the supply of water gradually and regularly. While the plant is bloom- ing, the lightest aiid warmest part of the house should be allotted it, and at this season of the year it is worth}^ of the best situation that can be found. I may observe that though this plant, and, indeed, nearly the whole of the genus, are natives of margins of woods, yet they require, when under artificial treatment, a free and full supply of air, or they become attenuated. THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 53 Another matter of some moment is to observe in watering to avoid wetting the foliage, if it is ever necessary to give it them while the sun is shining, for the water will accumulate upon the leaves, and then, acting as a focus to the rays of the sun, will be the means of burning the foliage. By attention to these simple directions, the happiest results will occur, and one of the finest of stove plants will be produced. Most of the bulbous-rooted species of gesnera thrive exceedingly wdth this treatment, only that in forming the compost for them a smaller portion of loam should be given, and the proportion of peat in- creased. LIST OF HAEDY DECIDUOUS TEEES WITH OEIJ^AMENTAL FOLIAGE. Acer Lohelii, a beautiful fastigiate tree, beset from top to toe with short twigs and rosettes of crenated foliage. Acer negundo variegata, a free-growing tree of diffuse habit, the leaves almost white, and probably the whitest-leaved hardy tree known. 'Acer pseudo platamis foliis argenteis, the well-known silver-leaved sycamore, a lovely sight in early spring when the new foliage is expanding, Acer purpureum, the well-known purple sycamore ; under side of the -^aves deep purple. Ailanthtis glandulosa has grand pinnated leaves, and when the tree attains to a good stature is a very noble object. It will grow in the poorest and dry est soil ; iu fact, a rich soil does not suit it. Berberis vulgaris foliis purpureis, a very distinct variety of the common Ber- beris, the leaves deep brownish-purple, and very striking when judiciously placed in the shrubbery. The best specimens we have yet seen of this are in the plantations at Sydenham. It is there a very remarkable object. In many other places it gi'ows poorly, and has very little colour. Climate seems to have more to do with the dif- ference than soil. Fagus heterophgUa, the elegant and well-known fern-leaved beech. Fagus pendula, the weeping beech, a most elegant object. Fagus purpurea glabra, the smooth-leaved purple beech, fine for lawns and walks. Fagus sylvatica cristata^ the crested-leaved beech ; curious. Fagus sylvatica citprea, the noble copper-leaved beech, one of the grandest deci- duous trees known. Fagus sylvatica foliis variegatis argeateis, the silver-leaved beech, a free grower, and very beautiful in the early part of the season. Fraxinus asplenifoUa, the fern-leaved ash. Fraxinus excelsior argentea, the silver-striped leaved ash. Fraxinus excelsior argentea pendula^ a weeping variety of the last-named. Gymnocladus canadense, the Kentucky coffee-tree, is a curiosity well worth a place in a collection of choice trees. During the summer its large green pinnated leaves have a fine efi'ect, but in winter it has a deader look than any other tree we know. Halimodendron argenteum, a Siberian shrub, formerly known as Caragana Halimodendron. It belongs to the Fabaceous section of Leguminous plants, and is usually grafted on the laburnum. It is one of the most elegant trees that can be planted on a lawn, having silvery foliage and pink flowers. Juglans regia pendula^ the weeping walnut, a handsome tree on a large lawn or on a mound. Kerria Japonica foliis argenteo variegatis, a very elegantly variegated form of one of our most useful cUmbing shrubs, the leaves broadly margined with creamy-white. 54 THE FLOEiX TVOELD A^"D GARDEN GUIDE. KoelretUeria paniculata^ a hardy Chinese tree, with beantiful leaves, flowers, and firuit, and an interesting habit of growth. Liquidamler imlerhe, a maple-like tree of moderate growth, the leaves of which die off in autumn a fine purplish-red. Flatanv.g acerifolia dijitaia, a fastigiate plane, very cnrious in its habit, JPlcUantis acerifolia jpyramiO.alit, the finest of the hardy planes for London gardens, and for dry hot soils where such trees as elm, oak, and othere requiring a deep moist loam do not thrive. FojjuluK canescenfs jiendula^ an exquisitely beautiful weeping tree. Populv^ iremula pendv.la, if possible more beautiful than the last. Flerocarya Caucasica, a low tree with glossy pinnated foliage. Very distinct and fine for fchrubbery borders. Quercv^ cerrii pendula, a beautiful pendulous oak, and indispensable where there are any pretensions made to ornamental arboriculture. Ehui jlalra, the sumach, is one of the most ornamental trees we possess, and unequalled for its vivid scarlet colouring just before the leaves fall. Robinia pnetid-acacia, a well-known tree, remarkable for its elegant growth. Un- fortunately, it makes more litter than any oti^er tree in our gardens. Saliihuria adiantifoUa, the elegant maiden-hair tree, a noble object for a wil- derness walk or mound. Salix Americana pendula, remarkably graceful. Sallx caprea pendida, the Kilmarnock weeping willow ; a beautiful tree for water scenes. Sophora Japonica penduluy the very perfection cf a weeping tree ; does not grow to any great size. Tdia alba peniula, makes a bold weeping tree, sweeping the ground with its ample foliage and gracefully pendant branches, Tilia Eurpectaole, and one that gave thorn almost us great a chill as the plants. It is difficult to know, when overtaken with such a misfortune, the best thing to do ; but the plan I adopted myself, and whicli was attended with considerable success, was to remove them at cnce into a dark cellar, belore the sun had time to get round upon the house, and shtd its fatal rays upon tliL-m. This, of course, is a troublesome operation, and when the cold is so intense that j-ou can scarcely feel the pots iu your hands, it is anything but agreeable, but the constant exercise ol running up and down stairs, with all the help you can muster (for what has to be done must be done quickly), soon gets your blood into circulation, and the work is done almost as soon as it is thouglit of. Iu this dark abode they were kept for some days, without admitting a particle of light, the temperature being about 3o\ Some of them were immersed in cold water, whilst others were not, and I am not quit^ sure whether it is not better to let them alone, as several of those that were immersed looked in a very pitiable condition, ispecially a large pot o'[ Francoa ramosa, which, singular to sav, is sup- posed to be nearly haidy. Muny Lycopoainms were quite restored by watering, and Camellias and Azaleas appeared very little the worse the following day, the Camellisis especially ; but it is not surprising t! at they should not be hurt, as most of them are perfectly hardy ; in fact, one tree that I had planted against a west wall in the uutuiuu looks as well as possible, whilst a shrubby Veronica near to it looks as black as if it had been boiled. Many of the hardiest plants have been caught severely where the tops came out above the snow and were exposed to the sun, whereas the lower parts are as fre-h and green as they are in May. It is this that gives us such comfort when we think of our tea roSvS. the tops of which are killed outright, but are not the least the worse for that. I did not think it well to te>t the hardiness of Marcchal Neil, about which theie has been some little ditVerence of opinion of late; on the contrary, I took the precaution just in time of covering it well with dry fern, 56 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. upon which fell some inches of snow, but lest there should not be sufficient to keep out the frost, I threw a wheel-barrow full more upon it, burying the Mar^chal in an avalanche, the result of which was that not a leaf was injured by frost ; and, only to show what a great protection snow is, I gathered both Violets and Primroses imme- diately after the thaw that were quite uninjured. The Roses that appear to have suffered most are the Noisettes, for they cover such a large space upon walls, that it is almost impossible to protect more than the roots and lower parts ; but it is much better to do thus much than not at all, as they cover the place a^jain in a year or so if cut down. Celine Forestier, Triuraphe de Rennes, and Lamarque look rather de- plorable at present, but a large tree of Solfaterre, which was moved to a west wall in November, I have more hope of, as the sap had gone down so much that the branches were shrivelled, and in that state much less susceptible of frost. Tiie old Gloire seems little the worse for the pinch, and Madame Falcothas stood it tolerably, but it is impossible to tell the extent of damage among roses until May. There are many things that have received a wholesome check, if it has not been too much for them, such as Clematis Jackmani, C. rubro-violacea, and C. lamigenosa, all of which push out their young shoots too early in the spring, and consequently get cut down in March by early frosts. There is this knowledge to be gained by the severity of the winter, — the comparative hardiness of many things that have hitherto been con- sidered tender, and, on the otlier hand, the protection required by some that are supposed to be hardy. It is earnestly to be hoped that we shall not have a repetition of the intense cold, but should it again visit us, we shall have derived some know- ledge from the lesson it has taught us, and that, however we may be in the habit of regarding one winter as being like another, we shall not be so easy, I think, in the matter as again to be " caught napping." Shrewsbury, January 11th. R. T. E. HAEDT HERBACEOUS PLANTS. A WOHD WITH THE o'SHANE ON HIS SELECTION AND CEITICISM. TRUST the Editor of the Floral World will not consider the space devoted to a discussion on our old-fashioned plants misapplied, when I can assure him, from personal knowledge, tliat they are far more acceptable to the public than the everlasting harping on bedding plants, such as Viola cornuta, and stuff; our glorious old plants have too long been in the position of " Little Jack Horner," and it is time they should come out of the corner. When I had the boldness to criticise the O'Shane's list of fifty herbaceous plants, 1 well remembered the lines in Hudibras — " Of the dangers that environ The man that meddles with sharp iron,'' and well knew the consequence of playing with edged tools and all that; but I really was not aware that I was placing myself in antagonism with a person who had "seen more plants growing than any other horticulturist in existence." Well, be it so ; but " When you talk of what you -view. Think others see as well as yon ;" and the O'Shane having publicly written to me, and invited me to reply, there is nothing left for me but to "gird up my loins" and do it. My putting the word " cultivator" was not to cast any insinuations, but simply to imply that their culti- vation was with me a matter of necessity ; and while with some they were mere matters of pleasure, they are to me both my pleasure and my bread. Let me assure the gentleman that my data are not derived from passing a liie-time in Ormskirk; I have been a little farther north than that. And now, as to my ideas of mixed borders, I had no ideas at all about horders, and gave the public a list of 100 plants that would look well and do well anywhere — plants that aie worthy of any position and would disgrace none — plants as individualities and not as associations or con- THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 57 nections — plants that need not propping up behind their neighbour's back, nor to peep over their fellow's shoulder. There is a place for all the tall things you mention— Phloxes, Campanulas, Delphiniums, etc., and I had prepared a list of tall plants suitable for such places. And as regards the allusion to the seven-feet high Tritoma, it has certainly very lofty pretensions ; but I am heretical enough to con- sider it a very untidy plant, with no foliage at all commensurate with its "rake handle" of a spike. I must pass by your notice on Campanulas. Many of these are truly beautiful, but the reflexing of the outer corolla of C. coronata and its milky whiteness are matters of special interest. I feel certain that much confusion exists in this and other tribes of plants; thus, in the number of the Floral World for January, the Editor speaks of C. carpatica, three inches. This certainly cannot be what is known about here as C. carpatica. Granted that Narcissus triandnis is not so capable of roughing it as poeticus, odorus, and others, simply because it is too rare and expensive ; but it is hardy anywhere, and is of matchless beauty. N. hulbocodium does excellently in our damp sandy soil. Papaver involucra maxima, which I see is creeping into many catalogues, if not a species, must have originated from *' bracteata," which its brncteated stem seems to indicate. I shall not descend to individual criticism on the O'Sliane's list, as he has done with mine ; but, in the Brst place, I have not agood plant nor anysortofaplant at all of Z>racocei?fea?«w^mnrf«^orM772. I never had but two plantsof it, which I was forced topartwith. Ifound it in a garden of a small road-side inn some distance from here, and I should be glad to beg, buy, or borrow a plant of it myself. Saw it in a London catalogue the other day, and sent for it; of course they had not got it. I cannot see how you can call Lobelia siphi- litica second rate; all that I know is it is much in demand. My Ranunculus, I find, is not R. montana I had years ago under the name of the "Mountain Ranun- culus." It has a very pubescent leaf, habit of plant like Ranunctdus ceris phno, but far more handsome. As to the prize offered by the Editor of the " Gardeners' Magazine" for a selection of Alpines, if you will oblige me with particulars, whether the list must comprise truly Alpine plants, or plants suitable for rockeries, I will certainly have a try. I consider AspTiodelus ramosus, the " King's Spear," fit for the hand of any king or even queen, and am sorry you appear so [much out of humour with the pretty yellow foxglove. You ask what is Digitalis speciosa. Don't know; never heard of it; never mentioned it! The reason 1 mentioned the worst Yucca {fitamentosa) is because it is the best to flower. When well looked after it flowers freely, and is always a sensation plant, and a well-flowered large mass of it is before all the Tritomas in the world. Y. gloriosa, Y. reciirva, and Y. glaucesens are not often seen in flower. Gloriosa was in flower a summer or two ago in a garden near Beaumaris, and all the people went on pilgrimage to see the '* wonderful aloe," as it was called in the papers. Cheiranthiis Marshallii is a hardy perennial plant, and a most beautiful thing it is. I have grown it for fifteen years ; it is even quite shrubby. I feel sorry for your positiveness as regards this fine plant, and feel certain that my assertions will be borne out by all who know the plant. I know C. alpina very well, and shall not confound it with Marshallii. I do not know whether Stachys aurantiaca is a proper species. I had it above twenty years ago, from a nurseryman at St. Leonards; it is a curious shade of brown- orange, a pretty companion for S. coccinea. Perhaps it is one of those things that you have not seen, and is no more a Phlomis than a duett is a fiddle. Statice lati- folia is a noble thing. I see you have withdrawn Trillium grandijlorum, more curious than useful. What has become of I. sessilis 1 I am sorry you cannot deteimine your Iberis Gibraliarica. If /. sempervirens is distinct from /. saxatilisy I do not know one from the other. I have a fine variety of 7. garrexiana, but the best of all tliese fine things is what is known as I. corifolia (not correafolia). I shall have a word to say on these plants some day. I am glad of your deter- mination to rescue these old things from oblivion. I had intended the same thing myself, but will gladly yield up ; but I believe there is work for more than one in this line; and as for your promise of calling on me, come and welcome. J. Williams. 58 THE GAEDEN ORACLE EOE 1867. HIS, the ninth issue of the " Garden Oracle," will, I trust, be found as useful and original as any of its predecessors. I have bestowed the usual pains on the descriptions of new plants, new flowers, and new fruits. The descriptions of plants are taken from the accepted authori- ties, the descriptions of flowers and fruits are, with very few exceptions, the result of personal observation and comparison. This is the only garden almanack which gives iudependent descriptions and criticisms ; in other works such (so-called) descriptions are merely professional pufl^s. The " selections for 1867 " have cost me an immensity of labour, for I have not only gone through all the classes carefully, but have distinguished in each the best 100, best 50, best 12, best 6, etc., as ap- peared most likely to meet the wants of amateurs whose desire it is to grow the best varieties only, and who have neither the means nor the time to buy at random and discover tor tiiemselves which are the best. Persons in need of a J'eic camellias, or auriculas, or roses, or others in need of a large collection of any particular class of flowers, will be equally assisted by reference to the Oracle, to the saving of their pockets, and perhaps also of their time, their temper, and their available space of ground and glass. The principal feature of the new issue of the Oracle is the list of fruits. On this I have bestowed great pains. It has. in fact, been in hand some months, and I preferred to publish late and risk the loss of some part of the sale rather than a single page should pass without thoughtful revision. It must be remembered that the 500 (or thereabout) varieties enumerated in the list were selected from some 5000 or more, the object bemg to place before the reader the best 6, 12, 20, 50, etc., in anj' particular class, and thus make the selection at once adapted for the possessor of a few rods of ground, and needing only half a dozen fruit-trees, and the manager of extensive vineries, graperies, peacheries, and orchards. All I claim for my work is, that it is original, independent, and consci- entious ; and I feel compelled by these tokens to dibiinguish it from other works to which it might happen to be compared. As to its merits or demerits in other respects, I leave the public to judge, and I am not in the least nervous as to the ultimate decision. S. H. RAISING AND FRUITING POT VINES AS PRACTISED IN ENGLAND. BY M. A. PAVARD, (Member of the Imperial and Central Horticultural Society of Paris). SOURING- the course of ISTovember, when the wood of the vines from which cuttings are to be taken is sufficiently ripe, they are cut so that each shall contain an eye. They are planted in pots of about two inches in diameter, care being taken that the pots are well drained, and filled with good field earth rather light tljan strong. These slips are planted at such a depth that the top of the eye or knot is almost level with the earth in the pot. Some persons proceed as for ordinary slips — that is to say, they plant slips that are furnished with two buds. After this the pots are buried in a tan-bed formed in a greenhouse, heated little by little up to 70' or 75^ Fahrenheit. The humidity of the atmosphere is maintained by frequently watering the flues, the walls, and the paths. As soon as the young plants begin to develope themselves, air is admitted on fine days ; the humid heat is at the same time kept up, that they may receive no check. When the roots touch the sides of the pots, the slips are placed in new ones about nine inches in diameter, care being taken, as in the first instance, that the pots are well drained. In the repotting, a more substantial soil is employed than before ; this is often mixed with fine sand of a white pulverized kind, which, by faci- litating the passage of the water, prevents its remaining to stagnate about the roots. After the repotting, the pots are buried in a bed of tan placed in a greenhouse of sufficient height to prevent jts being necessary to bend the young stems, which must be allowed to grow up without the least obstacle to their straightness. To avoid THE rLOHAL WOELD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 59 placing a prop to each plant, -which, besides being liable to hurt the roots, is a some- what tedious operation, iron rods are placed about nine inclies above each row of pots the whole length of the greenhouse, and as the stems attain the requisite height they are fastened to them. Their leaves and the flues are constantly wetted; they are watered when they require it, and nioi-e and more air is admitted as the season advances. Only a humidity agreeing with the elevation of tbe temperature must be cai-efully kept up — this being most essential to the thorough well-doinjr of tbe plant. Towards the end of August the young plants will be about fmm one yard and a half to two yards in height, their diameter varying according to the .species. Their Tegetation now becomes slower, and the quantity of air is increased even during the night; then, when the leaves begin to fall, all the plants are buried to a depth covering the pots, in beds prepared for them. Latlis are fixed to stakes burieii in the beds, to which the branches are attached, so that the wind can neither agitate nor break them. On this plan the wood becomes completely ripened, and the plants are then ready for sale. They are usually sold to persons who force them during the following winter in such a manner that these slips bear fruit eighteen months after having been planted. A few words upon the method most generally employed in forcing these young plants will support what I advanced above— that the slips produce fruit at the period mentioned. The greenhouses commonly used for the purpose are of such a slope — the back wall so much higher than the front one— that the frame presents its incline to the full power of the sun. These kinds of greeenhouses are so much beneath the level of the ground that the higher wall does not rise above it more than from twenty-four inches to about a yard. The flues circulate in front of these houses. A shelf placed about six inches above the principal flue serves to support the pots. These preparations finished, the place is gradually heated up to about 60' or 70' Fahrenheit. The pots and flues are frequently wetted, and the upper flue is also often provided with a gutter kept con- stantly full of water, so as to disengage a vapour which, applied to tiie tides of the pots, excites vegetation. When the plants begin to bud, a little air is admitted in suitable weather. Openings made in the back and front walls, and closed by shutters, permit the entrance of air, while cold winds are excluded. When the shoots become long enough, they are trained upon the iron rods running along the sides of the frame. The remaining cares consist in nipping ofi" buds, if required, and the necessary waterings, using water as much as possible of the temperature of the forcing house, which must be kept some de;;rees higher iu the day than at night. After five or six months of this culture well carried out_, the grapes, according to the variety and the period at which their forcing commenced, begin to ripen. The wetting of the flues, etc., is then diminished, and more air given up to the time of gathering the fruit. Once this :s over, many persons do not retain the vines, which, to their ideas, are then entirely exhausted. Vines thus reared frequently produce, notwithstanding the smallness of the pots, grapes of good size, bunches weighing a pound or moie being not uncommon. It is true that liquid manures, which need so much care in their successful employment, are much used in this culture. These facts explain why this mode of cultivation is in such great repute among our neighbours, for it is not rare to meet in England with establi-hmeats that each year obtain from two to three thousand plants for the purpose of forcing. Frl-it Trees on Pook Soils. — On a barren and sh'dlo^ soil, pears crack, and come hard and rough ; apples the same, more especially in dry seasons. Where such is the case, the trees should be treated liberally. Dg up with a fork the ground above the roots, and give at intervals during the spring several dressings of fowls,' pigeons,' or pigs' dung, so that it may be washed in by the rains; and as soon as the sun becomes powerful in May or June, mulch over the ground so manured with short stable litter, seaweed, or something of the kind, and in dry weather see that the trees are well watered, not by a can or two of water, but by bringing the water-cart under the tree and there emptying it. If this treatment were applied to trees on the quince, paradise, and other dwarfing stocks, when they happen to be planted on shallow and dry soils, there would be no room for the complainis which we sometimes hear that " the fruit cracks." 60 A FINE VINE. fNE of the most remarkable vines we have ever seen is now in full bearing in Kaye's Nursery at Finculey. It is not so large as either the Hampton Court or Cumberl md Lodge vines, much smaller, in fact ; but in point of size of bunch neither of these, nor any other vines we are acquainted with, approach it. The Cumberland Lodge vine is considerably finer than the Hampton Court, and bears about 2000 bunches, looking meanwhile as if cribbed and confined for room, as the shoots reach the ex- tremity of the great house, and are there cut off, just as we are obliged to do in small vineries ; but one of the Fmchley bunches is as large as three of those we have seen at Hampton C )urt and Cumberland Lodge. Tiie fact is, the vine may be grown to a fabulous size If supplied with all the root room it can occupy, and a suit- able soil, and with house-room, so that there is not so much of the remarkable about those two famous vines ; but the Finchley vine, while extraordinary as regards size, is still more so, as we have said, for the size of its bunches. The curioiK part of the matter is that no unusual pains were spent upon the making of the border in which this fine vine grows. It is made on a hard clay bottom, a considerable quantity of brick rubbish being placed on that part, with a slope to a drain at the front of the border, which is about 15 feet wide. It is not quite raised above the level of the surrounding ground, as most borders are with our great growers. The soil of the border is not that epicurean kind of loam recom- mended by most writers on the vine, but just the top spit which had been cleared off^ building ground in various parts of the district — now and then very sandy, occa- sionally of a stiff and unctuous clayey texture, with here and there a lot of brick rubbish ; in short, a mixture of the better kinds of earth and rubbish which are so easily obtained in a suburban or other district where much building is going on. The border is about four feet in depth. No manure is mixed with its ingredients, except what little may descend from the remains of the annual wmter covering of stable manure with which it is protected during the winter and early spring months. The house is 89 ft. long by 18 ft. wide, spun roofed, and heated with hot- water pipts. The vine enters at the middle of one side, and goes across the roof, making five equal breaks, or, in other words, sending five fine opposite bi*anches to each end of the house, the base of the main stem being of gi'eat thickness for a vine vrhich has not been planted ten years. It quite fills the house, and would no doubt furnish three times the superfices it now does if the house and border were suffi- ciently extended. At the time of our visit it bore about 300 magnificent bunches of grapes, running from 2 lb. to 5 lb. weight each. What struck us as most remark- able was that the bunches were equally fine all over the house, the lowest and farthest extremities of the building exlii biting bunches as heavy and as fine as the highest and most favourable parts. Usually, with ordinary vines, much discre- pancy occurs between the bunches on the same rod. It is doubtful if such a crop of heavy bunches was ever before shown by one plant, as however large we may grow the poor Syrian and other grapes, of large bunch but inferior quality, to obiaia such bunches as these of the Black Hamburgh, even on a vine of the ordinary size, is considered very good work. The attainment of the result we have mentioned by simple means is well worthy of record. It surely proves that vine culture of the highest character is a much more simple afi'air than amateu.rs and many practical horticulturists believe it to be. There are many glass arcade roofs that might be highly embellished and rendered profitable by such a plant as this. If the amateur instead of building a few distinct small houses, would erect a good roomy one, and cover the roof with vines, it would give much more satisfaction than is often attained hy those who have not much time or attention to devote to glass-houses. A large span-roofed vinery of the sort might be made to aff'ord a very agreeable promenade in winter, a home for considerable qv^antities of greenhouse and bedding plants, shelves for early-potted strawberries on each side, room for a fine bloom of chry- santhemums in autumn, and not a few other things for which special structures are often provided. In summer, when, the fruit would be ripening, and the foliage occu- pying the roof, we cars very little for the indoor garden, and are usually too glad to leave it, while the plants we have named must, for the most part, be out of doors or in frames.— TAe Field. 61 iSTEW PLANTS. I ATTLEYA DOWIANA, Captain Bow's Cattleya {Botanical Magazine, • t. 5618). — Orchidacese. This superb Cattleya was. discovered by Wiirs- zewicz in Costa Bica, but in the course of time was lost. It has been rediscovered by M. Arce, and has flowered in the establishment of Messrs. Yeitch and Son at Chelsea. The pseudo bulbs are eight inches to a foot high, much swollen and furrowed. Leaves one on each pseudo bulb, rather broad for tlie genus, from a span to a foot long. Peduncle two to six flowered, very stout ; flowers very large and gorgeously coloured, the huge sepals and petals being clear nankeen, and the lip purple and velvety, with golden threads radiating from its centre. This superb plant is easily grown, but requires the warmest end of the Cattleya house. Rhaphia t^digera, the Torch Palm {IJ Illustration Eorticole^i. 499) . — Palmace^e. This is an elegant palm, a native of Brazil, where it inhabits the sides of rivers and lagoons, but is rarely found in the forests of the interior. It attains a noble stature, and throws out from the summit of a slender stem a graceful head of plume-like leaves. Dendrobium Charltonii {Hihherd) — This beautiful"species has been forwarded to us fi-om Colonel Charlton, of Farm Hill, Braddon, Isle of Man. It bears some resemblance to D. primulinum, but is scarcely so attractive, owing to its less bril- liant colour. It is of very free habitj the leaves are about a span long, lanceolate, distinctly ribbed, dull dark green. The flowers are produced in large diffuse racemes, sepals and petals neai'Iy equal in size, their colour pale buff yellow. The lip Jbas a tinge of purplish brown at the base, but is otherwise the same colour as the other parts of the flower. Its free habit is a great recommendation to the cultivator. Unfortunately it is quite destitute of odour. The plant has been named in honour of a nephew of Colonel Charlton, who, like himself, is an enthusiastic cultivator of orchids. TO COEEESPONDENTS. Variegated Ivy. — H. T. ^., Shreioshury. — Your ivy is the common variegated Irish, the garden name for it is Hedera Canariensis variegata. The maculata variety is spotted and mottled with greyish amber, and has redder leaf-stalks than the one you send, and it is also more uniform in variegation. H. C. variegata is one of the most inconstant and variable of all variegated plants known. Ferns from Spores. — JF". .7. Mann. — All the ferns in your list are likely to come from spores, provided the spores are good. The simplest and safest way to proceed is to procure a few shallow pans, with bell-gla-ses to fit. Xext, fill the pans to half their depth with broken pots or bricks, and then fill up to the rim with stone or brick, pounded to the size of peas, with all the dust, or with a mixture of peat in nodules and stone broken to the size of peas. Having raised many thousands of ferns from spores, we have learnt to value pounded brick and stone as far superior to peat. Sprinkle the sp^es thinly, put on the bell-glasses, and place every pan in a larger pan filled with water, and then shut all up in a warm and rather dark part of the stove. If you have no stove, put them in the warmest part of the green- house. We have used with great success a large copper trough, three inches deep, to stand the pans in, and to keep all together snug. The trough stands on a flue under a stage, and the heat of the water in tlie trough is usually 80\ that of the top crust of soil in the pans being about 70'. We find this plan suit stove and greenhouse ferns equally well. When the little plants are large enough to handle, we pot them separately, a considerable number requiring only to be lifted on the fragment of stone tliey are attached to without any actual disturbance of the roots. Evergreens fob Window — JFatton. — You do not state distinctly what you wish for in the way of information. You say : *' I have a window with an eastern 62 THE FLORAL WORLD AKD GARDEN GUIDE. aspect, in which I intend to place places. Would you kindly name a few evergreens that would do there ?" Tliese are the very words, and we are puzzled to know what to make of them. If the evertrreens are to be out of doors, the best will be Biixus rotundifolla, TImja Ja-ponica, small plants of Cedrus deodara, and a few neat varie- gated Hollies. If iniloors, the following are suitable — Coronilla glaucay Cytisus racemosa, Oleafragrans. For a nice weeping tree for the position you describe, plant either Sophora Japonica pendula, or SaUx Americana pendula. If you want a third name to choose from, Ulmus viminalis is suitable. For a town garden, S, neat half-pendulous L iburnnm is not to be despised. P. B. — We really cannot undertake to provide the index you propose. It would probably be purchased by only half a dozen persons, and if so would entail a heavy loss. Crito. — Your first letter contained a number of queries relating solely to matters of law. It cost us much time to read that letter, and it was set aside with the intention of submitting it to a person skilled in the law for reply. In due time it was discovered that to furnish a categorical reply would be to play the part of legal adviser, at expense to ourselves, for the benefit of a single individual. We respect- fully decline to consider the case any further, and refer you to your oivn lawyer. Your second communication was accompanied with a parcel of leaves of trees. These certainly are in our way, and would have had attention long since if circum- stances had permitted. But here again we do not hold ourselves responsible, because we have said again and again that we will not name plants from mere leaves, for the simple reason that it is impossible. We have hundreds of imperfect specimens sent ; if we were to labour over them as the senders desire, we shotdd be dead in a (q\v months. We profess to know something about plants, but we avow that we are not conjurors. However, your leaves shall be examined with care as soon as health and lime permit, and as far as we can make them out you shall have their names. But we plainly repudiate all responsibility respecting them. In the same parcel was one flower, — the name of that is Carlina acaulis, the " stemless thistle." Tliis is a scarce, curious, and most interesting plant, spreading over the ground a mass of bold leaves like a throne, on which sits a large yellow flower with parchment-like ray.s. It may be likened to a star on a cushion. Dendrobium moniliforme. — J. P. Haslam. — The colours are usually light blue I and white, but there are varieties with pink and white fl.owers. Pruning Nut Trees— ^. P. — The reason your trees are barren is probably owing to nt^giect of pruning. When trees have been thus neglected it requires some years to restore them to fruitfulness. The proper system of pruning nut trees is that which gardeners call "spurring." To restore old trees to bearing, the Kentish method is to select a sufficient number of main branches, sufficiently far apart to admit light to all parts of the tree, and removing all other principal branches by a clean cut at the base. Then tbe side-shoots are cut ofi" nearly close, leaving only two or three buds to each. But a few side-shoots maybe left their full length if they are situated in any part of the head that wants filling up. The next season all the young shoots must be cut off nearly close to the point they spring from, and all strong leaders must be shortened. In the third year of the process several small shoots will arise at the base of the side branches which were cut off the preced- ing year, and Piom these shoots the next year's fruit may be expected. The usual time for pruning is February. Books. — R. B. — Any bookseller can obtain what you want. The Editor of the Floral Would does not trade in books or seeds. On the subject of vine culture nothing better than Mr. W. Thomson's book, published by Blackwood, price ds. On Pines, Mr. D. Thomson's book, same publisher, same price. On roses, nothing to equal the " Rose Book," price Ss. On Biitish Ferns, Moore's Handbook, 5s. Ou management of small gardens, the " Town Garden," 3s. Qd. S. J. Bullenhead. — l, Cystopteris fragilis ; 2, Pteris arguta ; 3, Lastrea dila- tata, perhaps ; but being immature specimens, cannot say for certain. Seedling Roses. — Henry Lamb. — The usual way of dealing with rose seed is to put the hips (berries) in sand all winter and spring, to clean the seed from the rubbish, and st)w it. But a much simpler way is to beat the seed out, or separate it from the fibrous matter in which it is imbedded, and sow it in the same way as any other seed. As the ordinary method is not the best, we propose to say a few words more on the subject. Suppose the seed left on the bushes till the end of the year, THE FLOEAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 63 then let it be gathered and separated, and sowed in pans or boxes, and be placed in a cool frame or pit. The soil should be light and sandy, consisting partly of friable loam, leaf-mould, and quite rotten manure. The seed will germinate in any sort of soil, but it is proper to afford the young plants such sustenance as is adapted for them, that they may be strong from the first. "When the plants have three leaves in addition to the seed-leaves, carefully lift them out and pot tliem separately in the smallest sized pots, and grow them in frames or cool greenhouse with care, shifting them to larger and larger pots as they require it, till they are in 7-inch or 9-inch pots, and keep tliem in those pots till they flower. The seed pans, or boxes, will afford a succession of plants for months together, as some of the seeds will be much slower in germinating than others, Ti:e piactice of sowing in the open ground is adapted cnly for those who grow seedling roses on a large scale. One important matter must be borne in mind, and that is, not to allow them to flower until they have attained some size. We have had seedling roses flower when only four iiiches high, and in 60-size pots, which of course is an injury to them, and the flowers are no use. Plantesg PixcrsHiON Beds. — Stmrise. — Single plants such as Bijou geranium, Cineraria maritima, and other striking subjects, may be put in the centres of small pincushion bs-ds without violating good taste, for indeed such a method of using them is usually very efi'ective. In describing the bedding at great gardens you wiU find that we frequently speak of such beds as having " a dot " of so-and-so. It is good taste to make the dot harmonize with the edging of the bed, that is, if the bed has an edging. Thus, if the edging is yellowish, such as Arabis lucida variegata, a dot of Cloth of Gold, or Mis. Pollock, is good ; if grey, such as Arabis afbida variegata, then a grey dot such as Alma or Flower of Spring is good ; if silvery edge, such as Cerastlum tomentosum, then a silvery centre such as Cineraria maritima (large old plants are intensely silvery as compared with young plants), or Artemisia argentea. Your query is not at all " insignificant : " it is rarely that an insignifi- cant query reaches us. Pruxixg Vixes — Alpine Stkawbeery. — A. B. — You have pruned yours right enough. There are many ways of pruning vines, but for ground vineries they must be kept to single rods, and there are at the very base of the laterals dormant buds that will make fruit even when the last visible bud is cut away. In any future case you may remember a golden rule to keep vines to close rods, and that is, to leave one bud only of each lateral ; no matter how long or how strong the lateral, cut all away but one bud. Probably Schsenia oppositifolia may be obtained of Mr. Thompson, Tavern Street, Ipswich ; he imports many good things from Swan River. The Alpine Strawberry is a variety of the English wild strawberry, and the best way to enjoy the fruit of it is to raise plants from seed every year, and destroy them as soon as the fruit is gathered. Cuttings in Cocoa-nut Fibre. — A. I?.— Yes, the cuttings of verbenas, petunias, geraniums, and indeed cuttings of almost any kind, will make roots very quickly in this material. It is one of its peculiarities that it induces the formation of roots more quickly than any other substance in which cuttings can be rooted. Chbtsanthemums. — Miss A. — You will find at page 376 of the December number a list of the varieties that w^ere in the best collections at the London exhibitions. The following are the very best in cultivation : Large I-ncu7'ved—Ahhe Passaglia, AntonelH, Bella Donna, Beverley, Golden Beverley, Cherub, Dr. Brock, Duchess of Buckingham, Florence Nightingale, General Bainbrigge, General Harding, General Slade, Golden Ball, Gloria Mundi, Hereward, Her Majesty, lona, Jardin des Plantes, John Salter, Lady Harding, Lady Carey, Lady Slade, Mr. Brunlees, Prince Alfred, Prince^ of Wales, Robert James, St. Patrick. Large rejlexed — Alma, Atro Rubens, Beaute du Nord, Chevalier Domage, Christine, White Christine, Golden Christine, Garibaldi, Jewess, Julia Grisi, Julia Lagravere, Little Harry, Madame Poggi, Pelagia, Progne, Titania. Large Anemotie-Jlowered — Empress, Fleur de Marie, Gluck, King of Anemones, Lady Margaret, Louis Bouamy, Prince of Anemones, Queen Margaret, Handel. Pompones— General Canrobert,' Bob, Aurora Boreahs, Driu Drin, Fairest of the Fair, Helene, Madame Fould, Miss Talfourd, Mrs. Dix, Mrs. Turner, Rose Trevenna, White Trevenna, Solomon, St. Thais, Riqniqui. Pompone Anemones— Antonins, Astrea, Boule de Ncige, Firefly, Cedo NuUi, Lilac Cedo Nulli, Madame Montcls, Mr. Shirley Hibberd, Mr. Astie, Reine des Anemones. There are 64 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. larger selections of these in the " Garden Oracle," but those named above will be suffi- cient for most of our readers, and in quality they cannot be beaten. Plants Destroyed Mysteriously. — " In a small suburban garden, much ex- posed to smoke, all young fresh leaves are eateu away as fast as they grow. Thus the new growth of Canterbury bells, and of most bedding plants, such as Calceo- larias, were entirely destroyed, without being able to discover the cause. Can you tell us what is the cause of this ? — A., Liverpool." [All town gardens are infested with vermin to ten times the extent of gardens in the open country ; this is owing to the numerous walls, hedges, fences, rockeries, etc., which afford harbour for them. Probably A's. plants are destroyed by wood-lice. One safe method of dealing with the garden will be to occasionally sprinkle fresh lime lightly on the plants and the ground between them. Another plan will be to adopt a systematic method of trap- ping the destroyers. Clean dry pieces of bark, just as removed from trees recently felled, are good traps, as wood-lice soon collect beneath them, and can be destroyed wholesale. Another good plan is to take a number of small flower-pots and open holes for thern, and plunge them to the rim amongst the plants. Into these pots throw a few slices of apple, or potato, or fresh leaves of lettuce, and cover the baits with dry moss. Take up the pots every mornin<2; and turn out the contents into a pail of boiling water, and put in fresh baits, and cover with moss as before. If snails and slugs abound, a capital system of trapping is to provide some common roof tiles, and with them to cover little heaps of fresh brewers' grains. Take up the tiles every morning, and the snails and slugs will be found rioting in a most happy manner in the treat provided for them. Chabcoal in Pots. — W. M. W. — It is a very good plan to use charcoal in place of potsherds as drainage for pots, and you may use them again and again, any number of times. It would be well, perhaps, to strew them on a clean pavement, or wherever they can be fully exposed to the weather for a week or so after they have been in use some time. Charcoal never becomes thoroughly corrupted, for it has the property of decomposing the gases it absorbs. We cannot say which is best for hedging, Baron Hugel, Harry Hieover, or Indispensable, because we are not acquainted with the last named, and the other two are so different that one would be best in one case, and vice versa. Baron Hugel has a very black zone and bright scarlet flowers, with white eye ; Harry Hieover has green leaves, a wiry habit, and orange-red flowers. Vine Disease. — J. A. C. Sarleston. — Yor grapes did reach us, and we remem- ber them well. But did any letter accompany them ? We incline to think not. But our remembrance of the case prompts us to suggest that your jSIuscat vines are too cold at the root to do any good. We should regard all sulphur dustings, and all other applications of nostrums to the leaves, or any other part of the upper growth, as useless. Probably this is a good time to consider the state of the roots, and if you will let us know what sort of border the vines are planted in, we may be able to advise you advantageously. As an a priori judgment, we would say that if the roots are in an outside border, it is but rarely you can have a crop of ripe gi'apes, for Muscat of Alexandria requires as much heat as any grape grown. Camellia House.— J". R. C, Taunton. — The plan you propose will answer ad- mirably. Caraelias do not want much heat, and at the time they are growing freely the season is advancing to help them. You could see good collections at Messrs. A. Henderson and Co., Edgware Road ; Messrs. Veitch and Son, Chelsea ; Mr. Fraser, Lea Bridge Road ; Mr. B. S. Williams, Hollo way. Hakdy Hebbaceous Plants. — C. C. — The O'Shane's boast was a mere burst of jocularity, and by no means inappropriate, in reply to a certain observation made by Mr. Williams. It is true, however, that the O'J^hane (who has another name), has had the management of one of the best collections of hardy plants ever formed in this country, and has studied them with an earnestness and success scarcely to be paralleled. He is now on the Continent, and we shall probably not hear from him for some time to come. We think it well that the discussion between him and Mr. WiUiams should now close, but we shall always be glad to hear from Mr. Williams, and have much enjoyed his communications. *^* An Admirer of the Flokal Woeld will be glad if any of its readers can introduce him to a copy of the Editor's work, "Rustic Adornments," fourteen shilling edition. [The inquirer is Mr. J. S. Smith, of High Street, Huntingdon,] THE FLORAL WORLD AND GAEDEN GUIDE MARCH, 186T. COLLECTING AND SELECTING. pIATEUR cultivators who are not bound hand and foot to the delusions of the bedding system, find exhaustless amusement in collecting representatives of various families of plants adapted to the means at their com- mand for keeping and cultivating them. Where the bedding system reigns in its full severity, this is impossible, for greenhouses, frames, and nursery beds are all filled to overflowing with the monotonous round of subjects that are to be planted in May, that are to bloom in July, that are to be ragged in September, and that are to be housed in October, leaving the places they occu- pied empty and cold till May returns again. Collecting allies hor- ticultural recreation with botanical science, afl:brds scope for the exercise of thought, and occasionally quickens inquiry and research ; it instils into the mind a larger knowledge, and into the heart a warmer love of plants than is possible where the garden is kept as a place for a mere display of colour during three or four months of the whole year. It is next to impossible to avoid collecting when an interest has been created for certain forms of vegetation. The lover of ferns is always in want of certain species and varieties ; the cul- tivator of succulents, of bulbs, of hardy herbaceous plants, of choice trees and shrubs, finds that his possessions are so many keys to the vegetable kingdom, and at every advance of knowledge accomplished by their aid, he learns how many more interesting and beautiful plants there are in the world which he has not yet obtained, and which he would rejoice to possess. Collecting is, in fact, an exciting pursuit, and we could sooner forgive a man for wasting his substance in riotous gardening, when this passion had seized him, than if he were under a geranium or verbena spell, revolving only amid half-a- dozen species of plants, and deriving no higher pleasure from his garden than repeating upon its surface the designs he is already tired of in carpets, chintzes, and wall-papers. Eor the public promenade, as for the great garden, where there is room for everything, and ample means to boot, good bedding is one of the necessities of the decorative part of horticulture ; but in the small garden, which is VOL. II. — NO. III. 5 66 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. like an extecsion of the drawing-room, or a sort of outdoor parlour, something more is wanted than daubs of yellow and red, which, '* Like the borealis race, Flit ere you can point their place." We want entertainment the whole year round, beauty for the eye, and witli it fragrance, agreeable associations, variety, and something to engan:e and interest the mental faculty. In place of the scrubby evergreens tliat are tolerated — because the bedding, like the Dragon of Wantley, swallows up everything but itself — v.e ought to see in private gardens a considerable variety of the most beautiful shrubs and trees, deciduous and evergreen; the first so various in form and leafage, and many of them so magnificent w^ hen in flower ; the second warm and rich in the depth of winter, making the place look like home, so that a glance from the windows neither chills nor repels, as must be tlie case when a person of any taste looks out upon a dreary parterre that is known tc be of use only in the height of summer, •when mere colour is least wanted, and when, in many cases, the family are away, and see nothing of it. And in the borders in advance of the trees and shrubs we should see mixtures of all kinds, spring flowers in abundance, and in all the deliglitful variety in which they niay be obtained, the gems of the vegetable creation that appeal to the pleasantest memories, and in their subdued and refined colourings seem to be almost musical in their speaking prettiness. And for sumu'er and autumn, and even for winter, the hardy plants ccmprise myriads of fine subjects, some showy enough even for a vulgar taste, but many more beautiful in the true sense of the word, with grace of form and delicate harmonies of tintings, and characters so individual, that every one deserves to have a history, and to have that history told to all admirers. And when winter comes again, the variegated-leaved and berry-bearins: shrubs that are within the reach of English cultivators would suffice to effect an apparent change of climate. It is enough for us to be frozen to- day and roar^ted to-morrow in this wayward, cliangeable, ungenial, unfriendly clime; we need not make our gardens lugubrious to increase the horror ; yet this we do, and only at rare intervals do we meet with examples of what Eugiibh gardens might be in warmth, cheerfulness, richness, and variety, even in the very depth of such winters as make havoc of human lives. Our ten years' repetitioris of such arguments as these may, for all we know, have somewhere produced an eflect by this time ; but whether there be results or not, we shall probably continue, as occasions offer, to direct the attention of our readers to the undeveloped resources of ornamental gardening in this country, and do our best to point out the several subjects that are best fitted to make our gardens worthy of the spirit and the means and intelligence of the English people. We begun with remarks for collecting, yet we should hope that very few ot our readers are devoted to the profitless task of indis- criminate gathering together of the members of any family of plants. It is not every member ot the vegetable kingdom that -s adapted for cultivation in gaidens, and amongst the most beautiful and THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 67 useful species and varieties some are better than oj;hers, and the wise mnn will, if possible, select the best and leave the rest to nature. As for ugly plants — and there are such — they are generally rele- gated to the botanists, which is a form of sarcasm founded on the too often professed admiration of would-be botanists for things that persons of taste find nothing in to admire. Far better than collecting is selecting, and in this amusement we are constantly endeavouring to assist our readers, by directing attention to the best species and varieties in the several classes of plants that are adanted for the embellishment of our gardens. Hardy plants would never perhaps have been at a discount, as they have been for many vears past, if cultivators of them had taken care to sift out the best and toss the rest to limbo. No one, for example, amongst the unini- tiated, would care to grow Michaelmas daisies, after having seen an ordinary mixture of them in an old-fashioned border, for a con- siderable proportion of the immense number of species entered in the books are rubbish, their ragged weedy look is completely matched by their miserable flowers ; so of many other families, yet the true collector can pick out a few that perhaps are unparalleled for beauty, and if amateurs would grow only what is good, they might serve the cause of art in this direction ; for good herbaceous plants, and indeed good shrubs, good bedders, recommend themselves when seen, and bring into good repute the classes they belong to. Those who grow ugly plants do harm to horticulture, and the very many ugly things that have been tolerated and that are tolerated in English gardens, make it appear to the passing crowd that in geraniums, calceolarias, and verbenas alone are beauty and interest to be Ibund. S. H. SUB-TEOPICAL PLANTS FOR THE CHOICE GAEDEN. BY KAEL PKOSPEE. AYINGr brought under the notice of the reader selections of noble habited plants that may be safely and expe- ditiously raised from seed, I shall now direct attention to a few others that cannot be so produced, or that it is not desirable to seek or obtain seeds of. caladiu:m:. From this genus we obtain a selection of plants of most distinct and noble aspect for the English gardens. In warm sheltered districts in the south of England there can be no doubt that our exhibition caladiums, those gorgeously-coloured plants that elicit the astonishment of the spectator unused to beholding the wonders of the vegetable kingdom — there can be no doubt that these might be planted out and would thrive well. But let our test for all the southern parts of England be the results obtained at Battersea Park, where last summer CalacUum esculentum was largely planted, and made some of the most remarkable beds ever seen. One bed, 45 feet long by 6 feet wide, was a mass of these noble leaves, some €8 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. of tbem measuring 2h to 3 feet iu length. It is perhaps only as isolated specimens that they will be planted in private gardens ; I confess I am not at all anxious to see great beds of them in small places. The bed selected for any of these plants should consist of light rich earth, if containing a considerable proportion of turf all the better. It should also be deep and moist. The <:nd of May, or even the second week of June, will be early enough to plant, but this must depend on the weather ; in a forward season they might be put out in the middle of May. It must be remembered that they produce an effect at once, so they may well be kept under cover until all the ordinary bedding is finished, as they will all the time be increasing in size. C. escidentum. — The most robust of all ; it produces huge cordate leaves a yard long, and of a fine sombre green colour. Planted singly or in small groups, it is a most noble subject. The roots must be taken up in the autumn and placed in dry sand, and kept dry and safe from frost till March ; then to be started to grow in a light rich soil in a moist heat of 70\ C. cuchlorum. — This is a very fine species, with large leaves of a .-deep green colour. Four or five plants put a yard apart make a beautiful group. Take up the roots in autumn, keep them in sand all winter, and start in heat in March. 0. cueullatum. — The grandest and most fast growing of all, but a trifle more tender than C. esculentam, and therefore not likely to do so well if the season should not be favourable. C. violaceum. — A pretty stuall-growing kind, with purplish leaves, well adapted to make an edging to large beds of caladiums, or to mix with other plants in flower beds. HARDY AND XEAELT HAEDY PALMS. It is not exactly a, new discovery that many palms may be placed out of doors for the embellishment of the English flower garden, but attention has only lately been seriously drawn to the subject, and I venture to believe that my humble pen'has contributed somewhat to this happy result. It should be known far and wide that one of the noblest palms in the world, Chammrojjs Fortmici, is quite hardy in the southern districts of England, and that there is a superb specimen of it five feet high planted out on a bank in the Eoyal Botanic Gardens, Regent's Park, and which has braved the winters unpro- tected for seven years past. Of all the sub-tropical plants adapted for English gardens, Chama^rops Fortunei, or Fortune's hardy Chinese Palm, is perhaps the most truly valuable, because it may be planted out like a Yucca — and what a grand companion for winter effect to Yucca recurva ! — and remain a permanent ornament and one of the most dignified forms of vegetation it is possible to imagine. "With the exception of this species, which may be planted out in a sheltered spot in any garden south of Nottingham, the palms must he used as temporary occupants of the parterre, and the safest way to deal with tliem is to plunge them in their pots. To grow a 'eollection for the purpose does not demand a great outlay, or long THE FLORAL WORLD AXD GARDEN GUIDE. 6^^' tried skill. The selection should be confined to such as are nearly hardy, and of wliich a list is given below. All these plants thrive m a good loamy soil, containing plenty of fibre and siliceous grit, and they are gratefid for tlie addition of a small proportion of quite rotten manure. It is necessary to repot them every year, but they need not always be put into larger pots ; in many cases the same pot will do several seasons in succesjdon, but the process of repotting is intended to provide them with a change of soil. When this repotting is performed, they should be turned out of their pots and a good deal of the old soil should be removed from their roots ,- they should then be placed again in the same pots, or in pots a size larger. If the old pots are used let them be well scrubbed, or, if they can be baked for an hour — a thing convenient enough in some gardens — it will render them quite sweet fur the use of the plants again. The potting must be done with care, and a few nodules of charcoal should be placed over the crocks. This is one part of the treatment about which there is no mystery. Another part is to give them abundance of water while growing ; that is easily done, but if it is not done the growth will be poor, and the plants will decline in beauty. The third and last point is to house them in October in a light airy house, where there is heat enough to keep out frost, and there treat them as other greenhouse plants are treated, especially in respect of giving water, for the colder the weather the less they must have. During the recent severe weather some plants of -Latania Boicrhonica and Chamcerojjs humilis have been subjected to 8' of frost, but are quite unhurt. At the same time, I would defend the greenhouse palms from frost if possible. Charnosrojjs Fortunei. — A grand palm, quite hardy in the southern and western parts of England. It should be planted in a sheltered spot, to protect its leaves from damage by winds ; and, if possible, on* a slope, to prevent injury by lodgments of water during winter. Any good soil will suit it ; the fine plant at Regent's Park is in a very bad sample of London mould. Chamcerops liumilis. — This very handsome "fan palm" is in- valuable for the conservatory and for plant cases. In cultivation it needs only one care, and that is the most perfect drainage, for if for any length of time soddeued with water it will die. It is so • abundant in some parts of xllgeria as to prevent the cultivation of the land, for the rude ploughs of the Arabs are unable to cut through this "weed." The Algerian farmers have lately discovered how to remove it, and that is by flooding the land with water ; so irrigation, which is needed for the rice and other crops proper to the climate, will efi:ect a clearance of this weed from the soil. Chaiiwrops e.vccha, C. Ghieshreighfii, C, sinensis, and C. tomcn- tosa, are also good palms for the flower garden, and to keep through winter in a greenhouse. Latania Bourhonica. — This magnificent palm is so nearly hardy that it is one of the first that an amateur in love witli such things should purchase. It is very cheap, and grows sufiiciently fast to make a specimen in a few years. Areca Bauerii and A. sapida are two species of " cabbage palm," 70 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE.: well adapted for the summer garden, and needing a warm (jreenJiouse in winter. Brahea dulcis and B. nohiUs are fine palms from Mexico, nearly hardy. Ghamcedorca atrovirens^ C. eJegans, and C. Vemcliajfeltiana need the warm greenhouse, yet are pretty hardy. Give them a rich soil, say one-fourth, or even one-third well-rotted manure, and abundance of water all the summer. Cocos australis and C. campestris are two of the cocoa-nut palms, extraordinarily beautiful, and easy to keep in a cool house all winter. Coryplia australis^ a pretty fan palm, and a good companion to €]iam