For Jul), 1921 



639 



Cimicifuga — Snake-Root 



RICHARD ROTHE 



BELONGING to tlie order Ranuiicnhicccr. all the 

 hardy herbaceous species of the genus Cimicifuga 

 are more or less conspicuous by a stately orna- 

 mentality. For choice effects within moderately moist 

 sections of bog-gardens, as well as for naturalizing along 

 the waterlines of brook, creek and pond, snake-roots are 

 valuable subjects. Citiiicifitga amcricana, syn. Actea 



Cimicifuga Raceniosa 



prodocarpa, abounding amid the Allegheny and Blue 

 Mountain regions, attains a height of from two to three 

 feet. Its large leaves are very handsome, tripinnate in 

 shape, and its white racemes appear during August and 

 September. Cimicifuga cordifolia, with white or pale 

 pink racemes in July and August, is easily distinguish- 

 able by its large heart-shaped foliage. Cimicifuga ja- 

 ponica of a height rarely exceeding three feet, in flower 

 during the later part of Fall up to frost, and its double 

 pinnate leaved form from Kamtschatka, Cimicifuga sim- 

 plex, in bloom during September and October, are pro- 

 ducing extraordinary long spikes, those of the last named 

 species gracefully bending over. 



Cimicifuga simplex, also listed as fwtida var. simplex, 

 deserves more study and consideration by our advanced 

 amateurs desirous of enjoying variety in foliage and 

 flowers of late Fall displays. 



European plantsmen and garden owners unanimously 

 agree on our native species, Cimicifuga racemosa, syn. 

 C. serpcntaria. being the showiest representative of the 

 whole genus. We see it time and again in wooded sec- 

 tions in the light shade of tall-trunked tree-growth 

 throughout our iVIiddle Atlantic States, but rarely in 

 masses. Cultivated in moderately moist section of gar- 

 den and park in dense, clump-like formation, the effect 

 during July and .August is indeed a striking one. 



Cimicifuga dahurica, broad leaved, of medium height, 

 is an attractive feature when adorned by while, slender, 

 erect spikes in .August. As very closely allied to the 

 snake roots I mention, the False Hugbane, Trautvettcria 

 palmata, syn. Cimicifuga palmata, with flowers during 

 mid-Summer resembling those of thalictrums. 



Seeds of snake roots, sown right after ripening, in 

 light, sandy, peat soil in cold frames will readily sprout 



and produce plants the following Spring. Seedlings 

 cultivated in rich and deeply dug ground will bloom the 

 third year. Plantations fully established as those de- 

 picted by our cuts, are of a remarkable longevity, both in 

 semi-shade and the open sun — providing they are not 

 suffering from prolonged periods of drought. As old 

 plants very easily divide, propagation by division is 

 mostly adhered to. 



Ciinicifuga Siiiil<!c.v 



EDUCATING WILD PLANTS 



Those who attempt to introduce wild plants into their 

 i^ardens by means of seeds, often find it difficult to get the 

 [jlants established in this way. .Although they seem to 

 grow well enough in their native haimts, they are slow 

 to germinate in cultivation or fail to come up at all. It 

 is likely that we unconsciously contribute to this failure 

 by treating the seeds differently than they are treated in 

 nature. For instance, we are likely to keep them in a dry 

 room over winter when they are accustomed to lie in the 

 cold and sodden ground through that season. It appears, 

 however, that when wildflowers are introduced into culti- 

 vation and propagated by means of their seeds, the slow- 

 ness to sprout wears off and thereafter they grow readily. 

 .A scientific explanation of the facts seems to be 

 that only those seeds which can grow at all in such situ- 

 ations are likelv to leave descendants and since children 

 are like their parents, there is soon bred up from these a 

 race of plants that is amenable to garden cultivation by 

 the elimination of those less able to survive in such situa- 

 tions. — America)! Rota>:isl. 



