HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 1851, 17 August 1893, Page 4

HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

By J. Gebbie, Jun.

CrCLAMEN.

As winter and spring flowering decorative plants this genus stands unrivalled. They last a long time in flower, and are well adapted for greenhouse, window, and table decoration, And are also very useful for cutting for bouquets, and for these are invaluable at this season when outdoor flowers are scarce. No garden furnished with a greenhouse or frame should be without a stock of these beautiful tuberousrooted plants, which are well suited for every amateur grower or lover of plants, who, if he has no other convenience, may grow them in his window. I have seen good specimens in many places about Dunedin, but nothing to equal the display at Awamoa, the residence of Mr J. Holmes. The vinery is filled with a collection of well-grown plants, which are at the present time very attractive. I counted on some of the plants which were in 8-inch pots 140 open flowers, and among the leaves were hundreds of buds, promising a floral display for a long time to come. A large number in 4in and sin pots are carrying from 25 to 40 flowers, although it is only 12 months since the seeds were sown. The beautiful marbled leaves are the picture of health, and speak well for the cultural care bestowed upon them by Mr Boss, the gardener. ' These plants can only be increased by seed, which should be sown as soon as possible ; and if carefully attended to by being grown in heat and kept shifted whenever the pots became filled with roots, they will bloom freely when a year old. Under cool treatment two or three years are required to bloom them. After flowering, they must be attended to with water until the leaves decay, then gradually withholding it until none is required. They should then be put into a frame or some such place until the time for re-potting comes round. This should be done, or the surface soil renewed, just before they start into growth! A mixture of fibrous loam, leaf mould, and well-rotted manure in equal parts, with an addition of sand, is a good mixture in which to grow them.

ACACIA DEALBATA.

The finest Bight in this neighbourhood is an avenue of these acaoias (silver wattle) bordering the drive leading to the residence of Mr John M'Leaa, Redcastle. The drive is about threequaiters of a mile in length, and the wattles (which average 60ft in height, with a girth of from 3ft to sft) are just now a dense mass of beautiful lemon-coloured flowers. I was told by the gardener that these trees are not yet 20 years old, a fact which goes to show that wattles thrive well in this district. Seeds which I put in two years ago are now 7ft high. They do not take kindly to transplanting, or having their roots disturbed in anyway, so that the best plan to adopt is to sow the seed where wish the tree to grow. By soaking the seed until it feels a little soft, and then sowing, it will come up in a few days ; otherwise it may lie in the ground 12 months before it germinates. September is the, best month in which to sow.

HABBINGEKS OF SPUING.

There are not many plants in flower at the present time, but there is every prospect of an early spring. I notice that the buds are plumping up, and the spring-flowering plants look promising. In our public gardens we have the following plants in flower :— Heleborus St. Bridget, Chimonanthus fragrans, Pyrus japonica, Jasminum nudifiorum, Daphne mtzereuui, Laurustina, violets, crocus, and snowdrops, while a few early varieties of narcissus and anemones are just opening. Iberis gibraltarica, an excellent perennial candytuft, is flowering freely. Omphalodes verna is very

pretty, with its azure blue flow ere resembling a fprget-to'e-not, and the curious green-flowered Heleborus is sending up immense spikes of bloom, which will be an attraction to many in a few days. PHYSIANTHUS ALBENS (THE MOTH- CATCHING PIuiNT OF THE COLON?). A deal has been said about this plant during the past two or three years in connection with the codlin moth. It was first collected in the woods of Ypenama, in the province of St. Paul's, Brazil, by Van Martiuu, a botanitt, who describes it in his work on Brazilian plants* Seeds were, sent to England from Buenos Aytesin 1830, and the plants produced flowered freely in 1831. Its cultivation has been confined mostly to botanic gardens, this is perhaps due to the fact that it is not what can be called a showy plant, though the white flowers are somewhat fragrant, and when bearing its large fruits it is very remarkable. It is of twining babit, producing white flowers in small stalked clusters near the axils of the leaves. Before expanding they have a curious inflated appearance, and to this it owes the name in some localities of bladder»bloom. In this district it grows and flowers very freely, and in some instances produces fruits, from which many plants have been raised and distributed. Oamaru Public Gardens, August 11.