i88i.] NOTES. 295 



plants. My object in writing my " Consider the Lilies " note (at p. 

 145) was not to make a ''grim joke," but to show that Lilies being 

 fashionable, were also expensive in some markets. Nor has Dr 

 Wallace shown us the contrary. No : he offers us three species of 

 Lilium at £3 to £6, 6s. " per dozen ; " or a " fairly good " — not a " first- 

 rate" or "select" collection, mind, but a "fairly good" — collection of 

 Lilies for £3, 3s. I speak from experience, and the only good and 

 cheap Lilies I ever procured were from public auction-rooms. By 

 judicious purchase of Lily bulbs at auction sales, amateurs near 

 London might make <£3, 3s. go a very long way, — indeed I could thus 

 secure a first-rate representative collection in that way. 



I quite agree with Dr Wallace that Lilies may be considered at a 

 reasonable rate — at auction sales. 



Amongst seasonable flowers there are few of the more distinct and 

 showy sort which attract the eye more than the now numerous and 

 beautiful new forms of Pyrethrum roseum. Pure white, rose -pink, 

 rose-purple, rose-crimson, and magenta are well represented, and in 

 form and size the individual flowers remind one of the finest of Asters 

 or Chrysanthemums ; and the finely cut foliage is fresh, and of a vivid 

 green tint, which enhances the beauty of the flowers. Either for open- 

 air or conservatory decoration these plants are useful, and as cut- 

 flowers they are worthy of especial notice, as, in addition to their 

 bright shapeliness, they endure for many days in vases or glasses 

 indoors. 



The old Double White Kocket is worth all attention from lovers of 

 white and fragrant blossoms. It blooms in June, and is very eff'ective 

 in sheltered beds or borders, and its tall spikes of pure rosettes con- 

 tinue fresh and fragrant for a long time in vases. This is one of the 

 old-fashioned herbaceous plants that well repays one for a little extra 

 attention in the way of propagation and culture. 



Those who have no hothouses, and to whom Cattleyas and Laelias 

 are therefore an impossibility, should get up a collection of Iris of 

 various kinds. The forms of I. germanica are now numerous and 

 variable, and to these may well be added the finer of the English and 

 Spanish bulbous-rooted kinds. The man who plants these well can 

 aff'ord to smile at the fate which forbids his indulging in Orchids or 

 rare stove-plants. 



By the same token, Caladiums may well be replaced by the hardy 

 and altogether lovely kinds of Funkias. Mr Barr sent me a 

 splendid collection of twenty -four distinct kinds of these last 

 January, and they are now quite a feature here. In addition to 

 their ample and shapely leaves, they produce long spikes of drooping 



