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Fourteen Favorites Among the Perennials: Delphiniums

Delphiniums may be raised very easily from seed. One of the best ways in which to obtain unusually choice plants for one's garden is to purchase a generous quantity of the finest seed obtainable and to let the seedlings flower in the nursery rows the first season. One is then able to select those that are most desirable in form and coloring. Seeds that are started indoors in February or March will usually come into bloom by mid-July. These young plants should not be allowed to bloom too heavily the first season or to mature seed. They have not had time to lay up any store of reserve strength, and if they are neglected they may exhaust themselves to such an extent that they will not be able to pull through the winter.

Delphinium seed should always be fresh as it loses its vitality very quickly after it is a year old. It germinates rather slowly but when fresh seed is sown the percentage of germination usually runs fairly high. The small seedlings are thrifty and vigorous and are not subject to any particular ailments. They should, however, never be allowed to suffer from overcrowding in the seed boxes. If seed has been started indoors in February or March the young seedlings will be ready to set out in the nursery rows late in May or early in June. They deserve one's best efforts in the way of care and cultivation during their first season of growth and will more than repay one for any extra labor expended upon them.

For best results delphiniums should be transplanted to their permanent position in the garden in late September. Early spring planting is possible and very often practised, but the plants undoubtedly receive more of a check than when planted in the early autumn.

Delphiniums prefer a sunny exposure and a fertile, deeply prepared soil, and they are fond of lime. A soil with a tendency toward heaviness is better than a soil of sandy texture as the plants are dependent upon a generous supply of moisture throughout their flowering season. The flower stalks should be cut down to within a few inches of the crown immediately after bloom in order to encourage a second period of flowering.

Delphiniums may be propagated not only by seed, but also by cuttings and by division. Named varieties are usually propagated by cuttings or by division, as they do not come true from seed unless elaborate devices have been to prevent cross-pollination.

Wonderful progress has been made within the last decade both in England and in America, and many new types and varieties have been introduced. We now have rare and lovely hybrids from California and some unusually fine named varieties from Oregon and from New Jersey; and from England have come real triumphs of the hybridizer's art. The Wrexham or hollyhock delphiniums were introduced several years ago by Mr. Watkins Samuel of Wales and they swept the boards at some of the large English shows. Both seed and seedling Wrexham plants are now procurable in this country and every lover of delphiniums will want a few of this new, unusual type.

What colorings we have to-day in some of these new delphiniums-pale blue overlaid with delicate lilac, deep purple and soft tints of lavender and mauve in wonderful combinations! No words can describe the beauty of some of these new hybrids.

It is to be hoped that delphinium enthusiasts will be sensible enough not to overrate the importance of size. In a final analysis size is certainly one of the least appealing attributes of a flower, while color and form are of infinitely greater importance.

Delphinium Blight or Leaf-spot. It seems almost unbelievable that any bacteria could be so base as to attack a larkspur. Yet delphinium blight is a bacterial disease, insidious and difficult to control. Investigations made in the laboratory of plant pathology at Washington show that the bacteria gain entrance to the plant, not through injured surfaces, but directly through the stomata and the water pores. The bacteria winter over in the soil and the infection usually appears first on the lower leaves of the plant, caused, it is thought, by the spattering of infected soil by heavy rains. Irregular black spots appear, first on the lower side of the leaves and later showing through on the upper surface.

Delphinium blight has caused tragic losses in many gardens and lucky is the gardener who has escaped its ravages. There is no absolute cure, but several measures of control are recommended. All diseased material should be systematically burned. Where there is any danger of the disease being present, the soil about the plants and the plants themselves should be sprayed frequently with Bordeaux. Particular care should be taken to reach the under sides of the leaves. Remember that you are dealing with germs of disease which are as dangerous for your delphiniums as are typhoid germs for your child; it pays to take all possible precautions.