LANTERN LECTURE ON KEW GARDENS

Chronicle (Levin), 6 December 1946, Page 4

LANTERN LECTURE ON KEW GARDENS

FLDItA GLUB'S EVENING A't the laSt mohthly meeting of the Levin Native Flora Club, mehibers and some friends enjoyed^ a laritern lecture delivered b'y Mr. Lannie, whose subject was "The Royal Botanic G'ardens at Kew." These gardens, fenown by name to all who love plants, are only eig-ht miles from the heart of London, and cover an area of nea'rly U 0 acres. One boundary is the river Thames, on which pleasure boats o'f all kinds travel to and fro. 'Extensive lawns . and noble treesf, many of the latter being very old, give the gardens a characteristic appearanc'e of space, and where'ver one looks there is a carefullyplanned scene ih which the artistic gro'uping of the "trees plays a prominent part. Vistas seen through the trees take such rorms as a peep of "the Thames, ari ornamental pagoda, or a giimpse of another part of the gardens, the whole giving the impression ■ that no planting has rteen done haphazardly. Impressive amohgst the coloured slides were ohose showing massed bedding of oulips, and colourful shrubberies of rhododendrons, or . o'f ffowering cherry trees. One picture of pink cherry blossom against a cloudless blue sky was introduced with the remark that the Lohdon climate, in spite of its reputation, was much iike any other, and by no means always foggy, though when thick togs did occur they had a very noxious effect, and caused many tender plants in "the glasshouses to lose their leaves. As Kew Gardens "have been planted on ground which was naturally quite flat, any mounds and lakes have been made artificially, and several scenes were shown of quite a large lake, with wliite swans in residence. •It is possible to grow plants from all over the world at Kew, because many differing climatic conditions are produced artificially In special glasshouses. One such house is the 'South African .House, where plants from "the Cape are flourishing in a suitable atmosphere, and even the stones amongst which they are growing are brought from their native land. Stone-plants (related to. Mesembrianthemums) are one of the curiosities in this ho'use. They look exactly like pebbles, as the coloured slide showed. - A specially fine "inhabitant" of another tropical house is the Victoria regia, a. water-plant from the Amazon. Normally a per•ennial, it has been found to be more satisfactory at Kew when grown as an annual, its latter stages being untidy. These plants require a ho't and s'teamy atmosphere. The flat leaves, are six feet across, and have an up'turned rim. Their beautiful veining is said to have msp'ired the design of the Crystal Palace. The trials of those tending this outsize in water lllies include preventing the visitors from toucliing the leaves, and the goldfish from nibbling at them. Particular interest; attached to the .removal for transplanting of quite large trees. The entire root system and all the soil surrounding it is balled up in canvas, supported in position by wooden slats. The tree is then skidded on boards to its new position and replanted. As all the roots are undisturbed, the tree suffers no setback. In addition to the Kew pictures, Mr. Lannie showed other garden scenes throughout the British T.sles, including pictures of the Chelsea flower show (the Royal Chelsea), which Mr. Lannie described as the greatest horticultural fekst one could experience. No trouble Is spared in the preparation of this show, whole rock gardens being transported, complete for exhibition, including rocks weighing-many tons., Other scenesshown "were some in the Bavarian Tyrol,. where, in- the Inn Valley, It is possible to* have a kind of continuous springtime. As the snow melts up the valley, plants come into bloom, such as gentian and crocus, which have already flowered further down, making in all a very much prolonged flowering time. The audience found this lantern lecture particularly interesting, and are grateful to Mr. Lannie for the op.portunity to learn something of Ihe gardens at Kew and elsewhere