AN OLD-FASHIONED ENGLISH GARDEN.

Press, Volume XLVIII, Issue 7772, 28 January 1891, Page 3

AN OLD-FASHIONED ENGLISH GARDEN.

There were many things that were past and gone for this season. The choice bulbs were asleep beneath the soil; the Christmas Roses, large old clumps growin a shady border, were busy making growth; Michaelmas Daisies, Rudbeckias, Anemones, and other autumn flowers were in broad masses, but their day was not yet come. To my mind, a plant in the midst of its growth is as pleasant an object to look upon as is the plant in blossom. To those accustomed to look beyond the present, and whose life is so full of work that the seasons revolve year after year with increasing rapidity, there does not seem to be any long waiting period for anything. But there is plenty of things in blossom to attract attention without reference to those which are past, or others that will come in the future. Beds of the perennial Centaureas, of which the red and white are the most useful, are not only effective in the garden, but they are useful for cutting. Anchusa hispida is a very pretty blue-flowered plant, very showy and lasting. A group several feet over of Alstrcemeria a urea was particularly charming, and another mass of almost equal size of Achillea ptarmlca plena was also pleasing ; Veronica italica, a pale rose-coloured species, was very pretty; Stenatics speciosa, a large lavender-coloured Daisy-flowered plant, is nice for cutting and makes a telling group in the border. In happy contrast is a dwarf mass of Polygonum amphibium ; Helenium pumilum is a dwarf, yellowbloomed Daisy-looking flower; Spiraea filipendula plena is a very chaste species, dwarf, and gleasant to look upon; whilst for grandeur of aspect, Spiraea Aruncus and S, palmata were near enough for the eye to pass from one set to the other. Away in the background could be seen flimoses. between the shrubs, of the ivening Primrose (CE not her a biennis) and and the white and purple Foxgloves. A step or two further displays a bright mass of the old scarlet Lychnis. Chrysanthemum (Leucanthemum) speciosum is growing near. iGaillardia graudiflora is one of the most useful subjects for cutting from either exhibition or for the rooms, and requires no particular skill in its culture. Some hardy plants are not so easily managed; some people, for instance, find a difficulty in working up a stock of the old double white Rocket; others, again, can grow the double white, but fail with thepurple. I am told by an old cultivator of Rockets that the secret of getting up a stock of these plants is to divide and re-plant as soon as they have done flowering. Cuttings of the young shoots which often break out from the flowering stems will root freely then. Alchemilla Eupatoria has a large, bright yellow flower, with foliage not unlike that of the Tansy. Geraniums of several species, including G. pratense; and its double form, Catananche, white and blue, are graceful and pretty and nice for cutting. Crucianella stylosa, a pretty dwarf spreading elegant plant, is in a large mass. Delphiniums in variety are for* the most pare tall and stately, the very picture of what background plants should be, or at least some of them. Sweet Williams and Canterbury Bells were numerous enough to give tone to particular spots and add to the variety, which is always so charming. Many other things there were in blossom which were not jotted down, but I must not omit to notice the show of hardy annuals, which formed the most conspicuous features of the garden. It is rare to And such masses of Clarkia alba, Candytufts of various shades, Godetias in variety, and I do not think I ever before saw such brilliant masses of the scarlet Linum. Larkspurs, boch tall and dwarf, added their quota of beauty. Annual Chrysanthemums, mostly of the brilliant single-flowered forms, were very showy and attractive, .as were likewise Collinsia bicolor, an old, but very pretty | annual, and Convolvulus minor. The large patches of annuals were dropped here and there wherever there was room; but all i thing? were kept distinct, so that whilst there was no confusion, there was no great amount of bare earth visible, not sufficient anywhere to suggest poverty of material. Annuals in small patches are pretty of course, but if we want to bring out all their effectiveness there must be quantity. The white Clarkia in a mass four feet or five feet over has no counterpart among white-flowed bedding plants for purity of tint and general elegance. Again,.among blues, nothing in the flower garden can match a large mass of Phacelia campanularia, a dwarf plant bearing bell-shaped flowers of the deepest blue. Nemophila insignis Is a well-known annual, its flowers of light blue being very effective. The flowers of Whitiavia grandiflora have another dis-. tinct shade of blue; the plant is somewhat straggling, but this is less noticeable in a large mass, as the shoots can be pinched back. I have said nothing about the Roses, but they were in numbers sufficient to be seen and to scatter their perfume upon the atmosphere, blending with the fragrance of Mignonette, Musk, and other subtle odours which always seem to float about one of these oldfashioned gardens.— Garden.