76 



IRISH GARDENING 



■Jefjcrsouia dii'lnilld is an iiitiTi'stiiig aiitl piittv 

 North American plant of the Jk-rberis faniilv. and 

 thrives in a (.-ool, moist pocket at the liasf of tlir 

 rockwork. Tlio leaves aro deeply cleft into U\" 

 lobes, and the solitary long-stalked flowers liave 

 numerous white petals with a central boss of yellow 

 stamens. 



Lathijnis is an important genus in the garden, in- 

 eluding tlui Sweet Pea and the Edible Peas, but fiw 

 of the species are suitable for the rock garden. In 

 catalogues they will mostly be found listed under 

 Orobua 



L. cyauciis grows about a foot high, and bears blue 

 flowers in early spring, L. lufeus with yellow Howers, 

 and L. luicus aureus, orange yellow, will reach IH 

 inches in height and are showy plants, flowering in 

 spring and early summer. L. pdnuotucus Suiitliii, 

 with hoary leaves and sulphur-yellow flowers, is 

 quite one of the best, growing 18 inches high and 

 flowering freely in June and July. //. vcruun forms 

 little bushes a foot high, and bears in spring numer- 

 ous blue and jiurple flowers of considerable beauty. 

 There is also a inne-white variety. Lcontopodiinn 

 includes the far-famed " Edelweiss," and is easily 

 raised from seeds. It flourishes on a sunny, well- 

 drained ledge and likes to spread over rocks. L. 

 alpinum of the Swiss -Alps is the form properly called 

 Edelweiss, and is too well known in its hoary leaves 

 and flannel-like flower heads to need any descrip- 

 tion. When flourishing in a hot, sunny place it 

 becomes nearly white, and is then quite pretty. 

 Eorms of L. alpinum occur iu the Himalaya and 

 Japan, as well as in other parts of Europe, and there 

 is now a L. Farrcri with narrow leaves, presumably 

 from China. 



{To be coniinuech) 



Notes from Rostrevor. 



A FEW years ago a Judas-tree, Ccrci.-i .^Hiqua-^iruu}, 

 was a sheet of red-purple colour in June, and was a 

 very striking object indeed. I have jiot seen this 

 happen since then; for although the plant flowers 

 freely and regularly every season, yet the foliage — 

 induced, I suppose, by the moisture of our climate 

 — ^nearly always pushes too soon and hides the 

 bloom, so that the fine effect which I noticed 

 on the occasion mentioned is often unfortunately 

 destroyed. I fancy that to get the full value 

 of this beautiful tree we require more sun 

 than we usually enjoy in Ireland. But we have 

 many compensations, and large bushes of Tricus- 

 jiidaria laiiceolata from 20 to 25 feet high, now 

 covered with long pendulous red inflorescence, grow 

 very luxuriantly iu this country. Fremontia Cali- 

 fornica is just beginning to open its large, clear 

 yellow flowers, nearly three inches in diameter. It 

 is hardy here, but seems to require a wall to show 

 itself off to the best advantage, and it is well worthy 

 of every attention, as it is one of the most desirable 

 plants in cultivation. Leptospernnmi huUutum, and 

 its varieties Chapmanni and Nicholsii are also coming 

 into good bloom; they are quite hardy in favoured 

 localities and should be extensively planted wherever 

 they will grow, for they add colour and effect to the 

 shrubbery. Corohia macrocarpa deserves notice, as 

 it produces very numerous small, yellow, star-like 

 blossoms with a conspicuous orange centre. So also 



Lueatera niariliiuu, one uf the best of tlie Mallow 

 Order, but not hardy everywhere. Some of . the 

 IJroom family are now over; tjn- hyi)rids recently 

 introduced, as well as CiiUhuh nicciiuiHUx, C- Ilihh- 

 liramlii, C, aJbus var, incartuituH (white splashed with 

 mauve), Licmnla runielica (I . ijennauicu. (['mht grwn 

 foliage), a. rii(j(tt(i and Adruviarpun fninkniioidrK, 

 are all of them handsome plants, .\llivd to theni is 

 Onoiiia ariujiiueuHix, which forms here u small 

 round ijush covert'd with golden, pea-like bl<x>m ; O. 

 fiudcosa, .somewhat larger, and of a different habit, 

 .'s i)ink; both are suited to rock w<^)rk. During the 

 month of June many of the IMiododendrons are at 

 their best. It. ledifoJium (the type, and somewhat 

 Inter tlmii its variety y/r;rr plruo or uurritn.ijiorum,. li. 

 Edjeu-orthii , some of its hybrids, and II. Maddrni, 

 are all of them white and vory fragrant; IL cinita- 

 liariiium, orange; li. Kumjyferi, red-orange; //. 

 liiujlei, led; i\. ///n(/i«»(r»ixr.. white, fluslied with l)in]< 

 and crimson markings, and others, also flowered pro- 

 fusely. 7^ lioijlei, which is held by some to Ix; a 

 variety of ciniut'iitriiiui)) , is not luilike a Lapageria 

 in colour and shape, and the little shade-loviuf,' 

 and charming Philesia buxifolia rather resembles it 

 in flower, though very different in every other 

 i-espect. 1 (Might also to ;nentioM Anoplrriix 

 ilhniduloaun from Tasmania, an evergreen with large, 

 (lark, shining leaves and panicles of white flowers; 

 its only defect seems to be that the handsome in- 

 florescence is sometimes obscured by the ioliagc aud 

 does not always stand out above it. 



Iris fjracilipeH, I. chnjsographes, I. liuUeijcuui, I. 

 Wihoni and others are now in bloom. 1. Wuttii 

 promised well, but the late fro.st in April destroyed 

 many of the buds and only a few of them develoiwd 

 and showed the dainty white flowers picked out in 

 gold. Ixiolirion Pallasii, blue, and Sparaxis " Fire- 

 King," orange and dark brown, were very good, and 

 .so also arc Ornithogalum arabicum, white with a 

 glistening black-green centre; Allium cOTuleum, 

 blue; .1. u>iirou->ikianu»i, red; some liabianas, blue 

 and red, and a.Romulea, red and yellow with long 

 fine foliage, whose specific name I do not know. 

 Perhaps, however, the most interesting and showy- 

 bulbs at the present moment are to be found among 

 the Ixias, which seem quite hardy here; one sent me 

 as /. crateroidcH viajor has been out for some years 

 and forms a clump of brilliant red in June, very 

 conspicuous even at a distance. /. viridiflora is a 

 metallic green-like sulphate of copper with a dark 

 centre, a remarkable shade of colour for a flower. 

 Among other j^lants there are Pentstcmon gentinn- 

 (>idrn, i)lue; ('(dceohiriii phniiiujiueu : Viola hoKuiucu, 

 and many Oxalis, most of which are all well known: 

 one of them, valdiviana, yellow, grows freely in 

 any fairly sunny situation. Some of the ordinary 

 Columbines of various colours found their way into 

 the Wild Garden here, and they spread ra,pidly in 

 the grass; I encouraged them there and they add 

 much to the adornment of rough corners. 



J. R. (,f 1',. 



Later Flowering Rhododendrons. 



KnoOODENDliOX .\ZALE0IDES. 



Tms cliarmingly fragrant hybrid is very welcome in 

 the middle of June, when some of the more brilliant 

 species have passed over. True, a good many of the 



