TO THE FLOWER GARDEN. 155 



IPOMOPSIS. [Polemoiiiaceae.] Splendid-flowered bien- 

 nials of rather difficult culture. The seeds should be sown 

 in July thinly in small pots, set into a cold dry frame ; the 

 plants are to be thinned to three or four, and removed to 

 a shelf in the greenhouse near the glass, where they remain 

 during winter, being very moderately and carefully watered. 

 In spring they are shifted into five-inch pots with as little 

 disturbance to their roots as possible ; but one or two of tlie 

 plants should be cut away, leaving the strongest. They 

 require throughout very careful watering, being very im- 

 patient of moisture. A compost of equal proportions of 

 sand\' peat and sandy loam, mixed with lumps of charcoal 

 to keep it oj^en and porous, suits them ; and they are mul- 

 tiplied by seeds only. 



IRIS. Flower-de-Luce. [Iridaceae.] Beautiful hardy 

 perennials of very simple culture. They prefer a loamy soil, 

 somewhat moist, and thrive best when not too frequently 

 disturbed, as they then spread into good-sized patches, and 

 produce a greater abundance of flowers. They are propa- 

 gated without the least difficulty by dividing the plants. 

 There are one or two bulbous rooted species — I. xlpliium and 

 I. xiphioides, the latter commonly called English, and the 

 former Spanish Iris — the varieties of which are extensively 

 cultivated as florists' flowers. The varieties of colour among 

 these bulbous kinds are very great, including white, yellow, 

 blue, purple, and many indescribable tints. These should be 

 planted a foot apart in a rich bed of loam, dung, and stwid, 

 and should be removed only once in two years, the trans- 

 plantation taking place in September. They increase by 

 offsets, and their varieties are beyond calculation. 



ISMENE. Peruvian Daffodil. [x\mar3ilidaceae.] Stove 

 bulbs. Deep sandy soil. Increased by ofl"sets. The best 

 way to manage them is to treat them as half-hardy bulbs, 

 planting them deeply in a warm border in April, taking them 

 up as soon as frost destroys the leaves, and keeping them 

 quite diy and from frost during winter. 



ISOPLEXIS. [Scrophulariacese.] Shrubby Foxgloves. 

 They are showy greenhouse evergreen shrubs. Light loamy 

 compost. Increased by seeds or cuttings of the half-ripened 

 shoots. 



