582 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



GAILLARDIA. 



able for grouping, and few plants thrive 

 better in open places in shrubberies. 

 The bold striking foliage of some of the 

 strongest plain-leaved section renders 

 them very effective for edging large beds, 

 while the kinds with variegated foliage, 

 such as F. undulata varicgata, make 

 good groups, or are suitable for edgings. 

 They are best seen in well-drained 

 deep soil. All are easily multiplied by 

 division in spring or autumn. The best 

 are — 



F. Fortune!. — This strong species has 

 smaller and more leathery leaves than F. 

 Steboldi, and they are of a much more 

 bluish or glaucous tint. The flowers are 

 pure white or pale mauve. 



F. grandiflora {Corfu Lily) is 12 to 

 18 in. high, producing in August and 

 September numerous large, pure white, 

 sweet-scented flowers. It is best in 

 groups, beds, or borders, in a well-drained 

 sandy loam. About Paris it is grown 

 as a flower-garden plant, but with us 

 it does not flower regularly unless in 

 sunny spots and warm, well-drained, 

 and very sandy loam. The young 

 leaves are a favourite prey of slugs 

 and snails. Syn. F. siibcordata. 



F. lancifolia is a small species, with 

 tufts of lance-shaped leaves, narrowing 

 from the middle towards both ends. 

 There are some interesting varieties, 

 chief among which are the white-flowered 

 variety, a beautiful plant, spathuhita^ and 

 plantagitiifolia^ with long narrow leaves. 

 There are some varieties with leaves of 

 different variegation, all well worth grow- 

 ing ; ViOVahXy albo-margmata^ with a narrow 

 white line along the margin of the leaf ; 

 undulata varicgata^ in which the leaves 

 are undulated on the margin and varie- 

 gated on the greater part of the surface ; 

 and univittaia^ with a broad white midrib 

 to the leaf. 



F. ovata has large tufts of broad, deep, 

 shining green leaves. Flower-stems 12 or 

 18 in. high, terminating in a short raceme 

 of lilac-blue flowers, which appear in late 

 summer and autumn. One of the strongest 

 species, and when in flower is very hand- 

 some. There is a variegated-leaved form. 



F. Sieboldi is the finest for foliage. 

 It is 1 8 in. to 3 ft. high, and has large 

 glaucous leaves, somewhat heart-shaped. 

 The flowers are in tall one-sided racemes 

 well above the foliage, and are a creamy- 

 lilac. There is a variety with yellow- 

 margined foliage. Admirable plants for 

 picturesque groups, very hardy, easy of 

 increase by division, thriving in any soil, 

 but the foliage effect is finer on deep rich 

 soil. 



GAILLARDIA {Blanket Flower).— 

 Handsome perennial and biennial herbs 

 including some of the showiest flowers, 

 valuable for their long duration both 

 on the plants and in a cut state. The 

 genus numbers some half-a-dozen species 

 from N. America, and many garden varie- 

 ties. The numerous kinds now in gardens 

 appear to fall under three species, but 

 there is a strong family likeness through- 

 out the series. The kinds are 



G. aristata, a perennial, i to \\ ft. 

 high, with narrow leaves, sometimes 

 deeply cut. The flowers are i| to 4 in. 

 across, the ray florets having an outer 

 zone of orange-yellow and an inner one of 

 brownish-red, while the centre is deep 

 bluish-purple. It is the commonest kind, 

 and having been raised largely from 

 seed, has many varieties, differing more or 

 less widely from the type, with various 

 names. G. picta somewhat resembles G. 

 aristata^ but has smaller flowers, and is a 

 biennial. It is dwarfer, and its flowers are 

 brighter. G. amhlyodon is a beautiful 

 Texan annual, introduced a few years ago. 

 Its flowers are even smaller than those of 

 G. pitta, and are of a deep cinnabar red. 

 On strong plants they are borne plenti- 

 fully towards the close of the summer for 

 several weeks. G. pulchella is the oldest 

 form cultivated, and was introduced about 

 a century ago. It is i to ij ft. high, and 

 bears bright yellow and purplish-red 

 flowers, 2 in. across. An annual. G. bi- 

 color and pinnatijida are seldom seen in 

 gardens, probably owing to their being 

 somewhat tender. The garden varieties, 

 as has been stated, are numerous, but the 

 most distinct of those named are — 



G. grandiflora, said to be a hybrid, 

 presumably between G. picta and G. 

 aristata. It is a beautiful and vigorous 

 plant with large brightly-coloured flowers, 

 which are only surpassed by its variety 

 maxima. It is by far the finest of all. 



G. hybrida is another garden cross, 

 much resembling G. grandiflora; the 

 variety splendens has brighter flowers. 

 G. TeleviacJii, Drujnmo7idi, Loiselti, 

 and Bosselari appear to be synonymous 

 with some of the preceding, and G. 

 Richardsoni scarcely differs from them. 



All thrive in good friable garden soil, 

 but not on a cold stiff soil or on one that is 

 too light or dry. Where possible they 

 should be grown in bold groups, for they 

 thrive better if so placed than as solitary 

 plants in a parched border, and no plants 

 have a finer effect in a bed by themselves. 

 Where apt to die in winter, they may be 

 used in mixed borders, if treated as half- 

 hardy annuals ; for if sown in a mild hotbed 



