IRISH GARDENING. 



55 



Stonecrops. 



EVERYONP2 must be familiar with our 

 common wild stonecrop {Sedum acre). 

 Its creeping stems, covered with short, 

 stout, fleshy leaves, and bearing- masses of 

 star-like, yellow flowers, are found almost every- 

 where throughout the country growing upon 

 rocks and walls, clothing them with a rich 

 drapery of green and gold. They may also 

 form part of the carpet of vegetation covering 

 sandy tracts (especially near our coasts) and 

 other situations subject to intermittent spells of 

 water famine. The stonecrops are great 

 favourites in the rock garden, converting as 

 they do things bare and unattractive in them- 

 selves into 



objects that 

 arrest and 

 fix the atten- 

 tion because 

 of their 

 simple and 

 becoming 

 beauty. 



Why can 

 these thrifty 

 little plants 

 succeed so 

 well in dry 

 places ? If 

 3'ou c a r e - 

 fully exam- 

 ine the root 

 yovi will find 

 that it shows 

 three very 

 distinct cha- 

 racters. It 

 is very slender, very much branched, and very 

 long. The root, in fact, can enter any crack 

 or fissure, and run along it to a great distance. 

 These narrow spaces hold moisture for a long 

 time, and the roots find in them a congenial 

 home. 



But that is not all. The amount of water 

 required by a plant is regulated by the amount 

 of water it loses by transpiration from the 

 leaves. If the leaves transpire quickly the root 

 must absorb quickly, and it will, too, if the 

 water is at all obtainable. If transpiration 

 slows down, absorption by the root slows down 

 at the same time. Root and leaf work together. 

 Now, the foliage of the little stonecrop is so 

 constructed that it loses comparatively little 

 water. You know that if one of these plants 

 be plucked it can remain plump and fresh for a 

 long time without any water at all. It can do 

 this because it loses water so slowly. Why 

 can a stonecrop resist drying up better than, say, 

 a pansy ? The reason is that its leaves are 



The Stonecrop (Seduni. acre) at Home 

 (Dublin Mountains) 



thick and full of sap, and that they are covered 

 over with a glossy, waterproof covering of cork 

 which eftectually checks rapid transpiration. 

 The plants can fill their cells with water when 

 water is plenty and conserve it well when the 

 water is scarce. 



In growing stonecrops in gardens these 

 peculiarities of the plant should be studied and 

 remembered. Its fragile roots love to roam 

 through a deep, open medium in which water 

 can nev'er remain stagnant. They sicken and 

 die if the opposite condition prevails. Our 

 success in the cultivation of any plant depends 

 upon our ability to suit the artificial conditions 

 to the natural needs of the plant. 



Stonecrops have a common habit of growth, 



but they 

 off'er some 

 va r i e ty in 

 details of 

 general ef- 

 fect, especi- 

 ally in the 

 colour of the 

 flowers. 

 There are 

 over I GO 

 species of 

 sedums. The 

 following 

 short list 

 may be use- 

 ful :— 



Sedtim acre, 

 so named be- 

 cause of the 

 pung-ent taste 

 of its shoots. 

 (The generic 

 name Sedum is 

 a Latin word, the meaning of which may be ex- 

 pressed by the English word " squatting," in evident 

 reference to its prostrate habit.) It forms when in 

 flower, during June and July, very gay cushions in the 

 rockery, and is especially effective when mixed with 

 dwarf alpines. 



Sedum album. — The flowering stems, carrying white 

 or pinkish white flowers, rise erect from the barren, 

 prostrate shoots. It may be used to cover old walls 

 or to form a decorative edging to flower borders, if the 

 drainage is good. 



Sedum rejiexum. — So called because of its reflexed 

 leaves. The flowers are yellow. 



Sedum Sieboldii. — A Japanese form, and very dis- 

 tinct. The leaves are flat, instead of cylindrical 

 and oval, and arranged in pairs or in threes on the 

 slender stems. Flowers, pink or red in close flat 

 heads. There is a variegated variety with a creamy 

 white blotch on each leaf. This species can be 

 grown in pots, and is often seen in the windows 

 of cottagers in England. It looks well in hanging 

 baskets. 



Sedum spectahile (5. fabaria) is another Japanese 

 species and a vigorous grower, flowering in Septem- 

 ber. The flowers are nearly half an inch across, pink 

 and abundant. It will grow in sun or shade, and 

 is excellent as a window plant or for hanging baskets, 



