IN A DUNEDIN GARDEN

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14926, 31 August 1910, Page 10

IN A DUNEDIN GARDEN

By MabARKKAMKA.

TJioso plants which hale from climes whore winter reigns with rigour, and where "spring lunjooke the. flowers to paint tho laughing soil," must find our more genial climate "somewhat trying.' .At least those "flowers,which bloom,in, tho:fiprin'g" must do so, for all through the. winter there are .Br/ring days whioh tempt' them into bloom, too often, succeeded iby .spells -of- winter which carry ds-stniotion to their'.too early, flowers.... In :tlie Old : Country..the .snowdrop is tho first of flowers, often pushing its way through tho snow, and it is.followed by the crocus, Hero tho crocus precedes the snowdrop, not perhaps with its full glory of bloom, but with, stragglers hero and there, which open their golden chalices on a sunny winter day long before the snowdroji hangs out its snowy bolls with their lips dyed green. Such, at least, has been my experience, hut then I jicvcr got snowdrops to succeed well. Instead of increasing they . pradually diminish and disappear. In Scotland I have scon them carpeting a deciduous wood, aiid in growing them havo Irbd to give them a similar; situation by planting' thorn, under a decidiioiw • uhrub growing on the shady side of come taller M'orgreens, but I cannot cay that the experiment has proved as successful as I had ilioped Their comparative fnilurA cannot bo duo to tho .sun bein» .too strong for them, as when tho shrub referred lo is in .full leaf they can get but lit lln sunshiny. Possibly they may get too little sun when tho shrub is leafless, but I think, the reason lies deeper. At one time, V understand, they did well in Invercargill, but have not dono so of lato years owing, according to my informant, to the ravages of a mite which attacks tho bulbs. Whilst many would prize them for old association's sako their absence is not so much fell, bore no if, woidd lio wore other flowws not so early. Hero the primrose is amongst the earliest of our spring flower*, and .iniirht bo designated as a winter flowcrcr were it not that, when the swing rcaly comes the profuseness of the blossoms i* multiplied a thousandfold. Still, even at midwinter a fair bunch of yellow primroses can be gathered m tho garden. They arid.tho while arc theso whioh yield to the blandishments of tho midwinter spring days T have i«forr?i! to, tho coloured varieties flowering at tho normal season. They arc among the earliest of tlio flowers of spring in the Old Country, though they do not attempt, thorp to proccdo the snowdrop and crocus, anil as euch tiro often referred lo by tho poets—., "Primroie,-first-born child of Ver, McTry spring-time's harbinger." Other spring bloomers are also deluded into the belief that spring has come in such a winter as this, in, which the. ahvenco of any lengthened period of frost} weather has been .most marked.' The other ''day 1 gathered four or five flowers from tho bed containing the hardy eyclamcn, and a solitary grape hycijith boro its rope of blue pearls '.clustering along tho summit of its slender stem Seeing flowers like theso,; alld listening ,to tho low warbling song ■ of ,tho .■ hedge sparrow, ono was almost beguiled into thinking that spring had'really come, but & south wester,'with sleety showers, dispelled tho illusion. It is a pity that that little songster mentioned has been, dubbed " sparrow," oven with tho qualifying "hedge" bofone it, for ho has nothing in common with the familiar pugnatious sparrow except '.that his plumago bears some slight nesomblahco to that of the hen spam>w. It is, however, of a brighter and more prettily-marked brown, and instead of tho obtrusivo mannara of his godfather, be is ratlior of u dry, retiring disposition You may, however,' see; him'any day. moving, about amongst' the low,branches in the shrubbery in, search of his food, whioh consists entirely 'of insects, and ia'very different from tho diet of tho omnivorous sparrow. Instead of the irritating chirp, cliirn, of tho latter, hissong is a sweet, if short, warble. An English provincial name for this useful and altogether delightful little bird J9 du'iuisclc, not a very pretty name in itself, lwt much to bo preferred to tho misleading liouso sparrow. It is a bird which overy gardener should love and cherish.' Most birds useful to tho gardener are. at times t.ransgressorG, but tha dunnock does no evil at any time. Some timo ago I promised to rotum to the subject of our native trees and shrub, and tho timo is probably appropriate when the floral objects of interest arc but few Of trees for growing in u. garden largo enough, to admit trees of any size tlio palm roust bo given to tho native beeches, of birches, as they aro usually called, and of theso tho jincst is what is known in Otago as tho red birch—for tho popular nomenclature varies in different parts of tho Dominion. For example, our red birch (Nothofagus fusca) is the' black birch of Nelson, and the names of the others aro similarly mixed' up This is an instohco which dhows tho advantage- of, nay tho necessity tot, «, universal scientific nomenclature.' Whilst I have advocated tlio use of popular names, and think thev aro greatly to bo desired, I do not think that the triro botanical names should bo lost sight of. Many would never learn , them, and for tlieso the popular names would t» of use, but ethers would be. led to inquire further and add the scientific names also to' their store of knowledge Of tlio birches tho handsomest is the red birch, and it, as.do tho ether species, grows rapidly for a Now Zealand trco. Olio of theso in tho garden which I brought from its nativo forest as a tiny specimen amoul 6in high, in IGBO, is now a lofty tree, with a bolo .measuring 47in in circumference at about a foot from the ground. It is, I 'think', ouo of the mo s |, beautiful, 'A not actually tho most beautiful, of our nativo trees, A stately young riiiiu growing in a glado in tho bush where it has room to develop' symmetrically with ito long drooping tresses, forms a lovely picture, hut as Jho Ireo gains in age, like mankind, it loses in beauty. Not so tho red birch, for a' forest of thoso trees, whore tho massive trunks uphold a roof of tlio lightest green, through whioh permeates a softened ■ light, presents a scene of ra.ro sylvan, loveliness, flujn, in tho spring lima of tho year, how beautiful they arc! Autumn dees not scar their leaves; but the old leaves fall in _' spring, and.before doing so assumo tins .bright"reds mid golds of autumn. Ouco I visited tlio rices Valley, at the head of Lake Wnkatipuv nt tho timo of tho change of leafage, and was rewarded by n glorious sight On many of the birches the old Jeavos bad turned a bright red on others they had assumed! a golden hue, and tho young sprays eiothed with leaves of a bright yet delicate green stood out from amidst the brighter colours It formed a. sight to linger in the memory. Why the leaves on Eomo of tho trees should turn yellow and on others red, sometimes bright, at others of a more russet tone, I cunnut tell. It is sufficient, to. accept ond admire the phenomenon. The garden contains 'well-grown specimens of birches, such as Solmidri, Monziesii,'. and Blairi.i all of which are beautiful, but none equal to the fusca. Nativo pines havo been tried in tho garden, but, excepting the totara, of which there is a fair-siml tree,' with but little success A solitary rimu struggles along bravely, but after many years has only attained a height, of sonic six or teveti. feet. No doubt, had'it been grown under more favour.iblo conditions, it would have done better, for hi another Duuodiu garden I know of » lino young tree, where tho soil and shclfer were probably better suited lo ils : requirements I used to watch it, with Interest, but some few years ago tho. Harden changed hands,, and Jo my sorroiv tho now owner " improved " the shrubbery where it grow, and tho rimu out of existonto. iVcry satisfactory trees to grow aro llto ribbomvoods, especially those known to botanists as lloheria populace and Plagiant.lros (now Gaya), Lyalli. . Of the former, tho variety known as Angustifolia has proved the best -with me, amf flowers frcoly e\ory autumn. The other form, which is tho handsomer tree, for some unknownr reason is a shy Howerer. Botanicdly. tho trees may bo the same, but the leaves aro totally diffdfrent, as well as the time of flowering, for tlio narrow-leaved variety llowors much earlier, and its (lowers, though, more numerous, are smaller. The gaya, commonly called the cherry flowered ribbouwood, is deservedly popular, as it is tlio most boauL'ful of our (lowering trees, not oven, excepting the rata, or iromvood, as it used to bo called. Of course, the latter is the more conspicuous, and its blaze of crimson scarlet brightens up many a coastal bush to tlio south. Tho garden contains a veil-grown trco which flowers freely'. Tlieso are all tliat can be considered flowering tioos, but there aro other* worth growing for their fediugo, such as the Nortii IsLind' Akcake (Dodonea viscosa), whjch has leaves not unliko theso of the willow, but uut.so pointed". It does not attain a largo size, and is suitable for the back of a shrubbery border oven in a garden of limited area.

Our flowering shrubs aro moro numerous mid ouch of thoni as aro hardy enough to stand ti:o English oKmatc are prized there. Ckaria Haastii, with its tiny (lowers and dull foliage, I consider ono of tho least dcimble of our daisy flowered shrubs, yet in tho last voluino of the Journal of tho Uoyal Horticultural Society 1 find in ait article entitled "Somo Hcautiful Shrubs," t&o following passago:—"Generally speakin" the Oloarias cannot bo recommended for'other than sheltered gardens,, as they tome from Australia and New Zealand, but, ono which diould bo iuoludcd on account . ~f its Jjajdinefs is 0. Haastii. This makes

an excellent subject for grouping, and is grateful alike to tho eye when in flower and when carrying its profusion of feathery soeds." If tho author, who is a V.M.H., call' write so enthusiastically of this Olcaria, which I consider rather a poor thing, what would ho say of Olcaria nitida, which grows wild on our Town Belt? The gardon contains one or two of them, but it is not frequently met with in gardens. I sup. poSo if it, were c rare exotic people would bo anxious to possess it

"How lightly often do wo prize Tho beauty of some common, thing— Tho loving light in woman's eyes, Tho tender hue of grass in. spring, Tho oft seen; landscape, or tho sky • Of unstained blue, or flecked with cloud l ,. The common ilowcrs which round us lie; AVore they but rare, how men; would vio To sound their praise aloud." So with our common Oiearia nitida; jet tluv botanist who named it must have .appreciated the brilliance of its dark green' glossy leaves, as the specific name means "shining," or "brilliant." When in flower it is equally pleasing, for its many bundles of daisy flowers emit a delightful perfume, Our Oleariiis are all worthy of a. place in tho garden, but my favourite is nitida. The grey, foliage of 0. huiflora is. pleasing to the eyo amongst the* greens, of other shrubs, especially when, as now, the garden is sombre. Amongst other natives the garden, though in a. dry sunny situation, holds a few ferns. Tho last dry summer ww particularly trying for them, yet along the liklos of it narrow path underneath a. trellis covered with climbing plants a. fewhardy ferns, chiefly Asplcniums and* Aspidiums, hold their own; whilst in more open, yet shaded, situations a few tree ferns grow, but at a very much slower rate than in their homes in the bush One of the beautiful silver tree ferns that I have had ifor many years has hardly increased in stature, yol it puts forth every year a fresh crown of its long and graoctul fronds. In a little pond formed by digging a hole in the ground and cemonting • the sides and bottom tho native ratipo grows, though at present the leaves are dead. It is of such a wandering habit that it has to be confined to its own corner by a brick wall to prevent its overrunning the water lilies .for which the pond was made As tho pond is dependent for its water supply on the surplus water from tho roof, the inmates do not, always have full justice dono to them. Notwithstanding this tho raupo flourishes so well that it has occasionally to bo taken up and reduced in size. Thou the rock garden, of' which more anon, affords a, homo for many denizens of our mountains, so.that between tho shrubberies with their native trees and shrubs, interspersed with oiitlandors, the fern walk, tho l«nd and the rock garden, different pharos of our native, flora are presented, ana give variety to tho garden.