GARDEN NOTES

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 122, 24 May 1941, Page 9

GARDEN NOTES

(By “Ngaio.”) Rhododendrons. These shrubs are among the best knoYvu and most popular of all the varieties there are to choose from; they vary so much in size and type that some can be found to suit'most gardens. Rhododendrons will thrive in a semishady position and as the natural home of some species is on the slopes of the IJimalavnn Mountains they can quite safely be planted on banks or hillsides. Several of the botanical gardens in the Dominion have formed rhododendron dells where the shrubs aro planted in the most natural way possible and many other spring flowering plants and bulbs are used as carpeting with wonderfully satisfying results. Although these effects are impossible to obtain in a small garden, it is as well to remember that they can be reproduced in j miniature by the successful grouping of just a few shrubs and plants. Obviously rhododendrons do not mind the cold—they are much more likely to be injured by hot and dry conditions, and are one of the first things in the garden to suffer from drought. If you are thinking of planting any, choose a cool, semi-shady spot which will not get dry in Jlio summer time. A large ball of fibrous roots very near the surface will eventually be formed by your rhododendrons so supplies of food aud moisture must be kept near the top. Leaf mould is the best manure to use, but spent hops aro a good substitute and frequent mulchings can be given of this useful by-product. Remember that lime is anathema to azaleas and rhododendrons and should never be used near the plants, particularly when they aro young. Some of the older varieties are very attractive and are worth a place because of their early flowering habits. Ambroseum, a lovely slioll pink of rather dwarf, bushy habit, is good to associate with flowering cherries. Sir Robert Peel is another old favourite and its cherry red blooms are among the earliest of the shrubs to come out. Pink pearl with its large trusses of deep pink flowers is very popular. Try carpeting it with blue violas. White perle is pven more highly esteemed by some gardeners; it is really not white at all, but a soft, light pink of a very attractive shade. Even the smallest garden should find room somewhere if a suitable spot is available for the deliciously scented fragrantissima. This is a Himalayan hybrid and the flowers are in light clusters of *trumpet-like blooms and not the solid truss of the others mentioned, the spicy scent, somewhat resembling nutmeg, permeating tho gardens when , the plant is in bloom. The colour is white with the outside of the trumpets a rosy purple. The Countess of Haddington is another of the same type—■ the trumpet-shaped blossoms are a rosv‘ pink and it is also fragrant though not to the same extent as fragrantissima. The newer hybrids cover a very wide range of colours and are very tempting indeed—some are fairly high priced, but are really worth it as the grower is well rewarded when they attain a fair size. Some good ones are Alice, a very good shade of rich pink with a large conical truss of well-expanded trumpets; Britannia is a brilliant crimson scarlet and is a second dwarf compact grower; Korry Koster is a beautiful light pink spotted with red and frilled at- the edges; Earl of Athlonc is a gorgeous shade of rich blood red; Edith Carey is a new and more expensive variety but its lovely shock of rich strawberry pink makes it. very desirable; C. B. Van Ness is a very fine scarlet and Dr. Endtz is a light rosy red. It should be remembered that these plants do not have a particularly long flowering season so it is not. advisable to put too many in a small garden; the new hybrids and the sweet scented Himalayan are the most suitable for this type of garden; varieties such as Sir R. Peel and Pink Pear will eventually grow very large though their growth is slow, aud plenty of room should be allowed them; in planting groups of rhododendrons allow ton feet apart each way.