PLANTING for summer

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 132, 25 August 1927, Page 1

PLANTING for summer

Although skies are grey the spring . V-prs are making patches o£ brilliant l"our in Albert Park. The heavy perfume of the magnolia i ready drifts across the lawns on “Iry breeze, and great spikes of crimen and orange are forerunners of future seas of blossom. Two Japanese magnolias are heav■l v laden with bloom, and in a day or rifo their brilliant pink will be noticeable from a distance. Even if tiie , re es are hidden they can be traced their perfume. This is one of the earliest and most beautiful of the soring flowering trees. Nearby is a big photina tree. Soon it will be covered with a mass of small -reyish-white flowers. * yite fiery sentinels two crimson aloes throw spikes of rich blossom in the air. Their natural home is South America, but they grow beautifully In Auckland. .... , . The strelitzia will repay close inspection. It is a member of the oanna family, and Is commonly known as the "Bird of Paradise" plant. The first flowers are out. They consist cf two large petals of a rich orange shade and a tongue of deep purple. Planting in readiness for the summer show Is going ahead, though the unseasonable weather has held the gardeners back to some extent. The canna beds will be planted next week. Two beds of the familiar and colourful “snap-dragon” have been planted, and round the fountain there are four beds of stocks. The anemones and the cinerarias are forging ahead, and will soon splash the gardens with their rainbow colours. Two attractive Greek urns, from the Boyd collection, have been placed on the lawn. They were removed sometime ago because they were continually being pushed over, but now have been placed on small concrete beds for safety.