iii'g ^iie. Titf -sirr ^f t r iirr ^ n r '- sl l 



19 



Vol. V. 



82.00 a Year. 

 24 Numbers. 



CHICAGO, AUGUST i, 1897. 



Single Copy 

 10 Cents. 



No. 118. 



CORONILLA VARIA. 



The Flower Garden. 



GORONILLfl VflRlfl. 



[Crown vetch.~\ 



The illustration shows a plant in a 

 rather trying situation; being in a dry 

 hole within two feet of the edge of a deep 

 ravine, and receiving but little direct sun. 



Three years ago it was planted in good 

 soil in the perennial border, but it soon 

 developed a disposition to monopolize all 

 space within sight, so it was moved to 

 where it has to fight for an existence. 

 Being a good fighter it has shown itself 

 master of the situation and is now a 

 pleasing feature ot the ravine edge. It is 

 a free bloomer, and with me is constantly 

 in flower from June until September, but 

 at its best in July. 



The generic term coronilla is derived 

 from corono, a crown, in reference to the 

 flowers being disposed in umbels at the 

 tops of the peduncles. Being a member 

 of the leguminosa: family its flowers are 

 pea-shaped, pink and white in color. It 

 is a native of Europe and was discovered 

 in 1640. 



While too rampant for the border it is 

 most excellent for rockeries, ledges or dry 

 and semi-shady banks. W. C. Egan. 



PLANTS IN BLOOM JULY 15. 



The month of June and the first half of 

 July have been very hot and dry, with no 

 rain for over five weeks. The garden 

 plants have suffered a good deal, but the 

 other day rain came, which lasted for 

 two days and today the garden looks 

 fresh and green and flowers are plentiful. 

 I may note here that this spring we 

 mulched most everything in and around 

 the garden with old manure, and it was 

 a great help to the plants during the dry 

 weather. They kept their foliage well 

 and the ground retained the water given 

 while the plants left unmulched dried up 

 and were almost dead. Next year we 

 will give everything a good mulch, as it 

 pays in our hot dry summers. 



Among plants that have come into 

 flower since the first of the month are 

 Achillea The Pearl. This is a free flower- 

 ing and rapid growing plant with small 

 white button-shaped flowers, much the 

 same as the feverfew. It lasts for some 

 time in flower and is fine for cutting, last- 

 ing well in water. If it is cut back after 

 through flowering it will come up again 

 and give a few flowers in the fall months. 

 A. ptarmica ti. pi. grows much the same 

 as The Pearl, but the flowers are a little 

 smaller. Both are choice border plants 

 and will grow most anywhere. Platyco- 



don grandiflora and P. Mariesii are two 

 showy and free flowering plants. The 

 first named grows about three feet high 

 and has large bell-shaped blue flowers. 

 The variety alba grows the same but has 

 white flowers. P. Mariesii grows only 

 about a foot high and makes a nice bor- 

 der plant; it lasts the most of the season, 

 like the first named. The flowers are 

 blue and white. Achillea millefolium has 

 finely cut foliage with bright pink flow- 

 ers in dense heads. It makes a nice bor- 

 der plant and is always attractive. A. 

 mongolica has large heads of pure white 

 flowers and like the other should be in 

 every collection of hardy plants. Most 

 all the achilleas are excellent, and all good 

 to cut from. 



Monarda didyma with its showy heads 

 of scarlet flowers is quite conspicuous. It 

 lasts a long time in flower and is in every 

 way a good border plant. M. hybrida 

 has pinkish white flowers but is not so 

 showy as the first named one. Gypso- 

 phila paniculata forms a broad branching 

 bush and is one of our most graceful 

 hardy flowers for cutting purposes. It 

 has minute white flowers in immense 

 open panicles with stiff" wiry stems. To 

 associate with stiffer flowers for vase 

 work too much of it cannot be grown. 

 It is easily raised from seed and this is 



