924 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



catalogued, but the following are good 

 sorts : — Violelta^ white with yellowish 

 centre ; Gold Crest^ rich deep golden 

 yellow ; Picotee, white with picotee edg- 

 ing ; Blanche, clear silvery white ; Queen 

 of the Year, china blue, spotted white ; 

 Pigmy, rosy-purple, very free ; White 

 Dot, pure white ; Quail, white, broadly 

 margined liluish-laxender ; Minnie War- 

 7'en, pale lilac, very dainty ; Connnodore 

 Hutt, good rayless yellow ; Rock Yellow, 

 dense yellow ; Rock Blue, a charming 

 little deep-blue flower with a yellow eye. 



Virgilia. See Cladrastis. 



VISCARIA. — K oculata, a showy and 

 beautiful hardy annual from South Europe, 



Mistletoe in various pai 



a, Male blossnm. *, Female ditto, d, 

 embryos, g. tmbryo magnified. 

 minating. i. Single radicle, k. Si 

 the single radicle. 



well suited for a border. Seed should 

 be sown in spring or autumn, and the 

 seedlings thinned out when large enough. 

 The plant is 6 or 8 in. high, and bears a 

 profusion of rose-coloured blossoms with 

 a dark centre. The varieties cardinalis 

 (bright crimson-purple), ccerulea (bluish), 

 nlba (white), Dtmnetti (rose), splendens 

 (scarlet), picta elegnns (crimson purple, 

 edged with white), and a dwarf variety, 

 nana, about 9 in. high, are desirable. 



VISCUM ALBUM {Mistletoe).— 1\{\^ 

 half-shrubby |)arasite on trees is often 

 welcome in the pleasure ground or 

 orchard, and is not without beauty of 

 colour, but where abundant it is injurious, 

 being a true parasite which thrives at the 



expense of its victim. It grows on many 

 trees, both evergreen and summer-leafing 

 — orchard trees, limes, poplars, elms, 

 willows, hornbeam, beech, acacia, horse- 

 chestnut, firs — rarely on the oak in Britain. 

 Where the plant is wild, the thrushes 

 spread it about by wiping the seeds off 

 their bills on the bark, and where plentiful 

 it is very injurious to fruit trees and 

 timber. As to the best way of increasing 

 this plant, Mr. F. \V. Burbidge writes :— 

 " I find growth of the seeds certain if 

 they are placed on clean, fresh, smooth 

 bark in April or May, and then covered 

 with one thickness of black muslin or 

 lawn, so that birds do not peck them 

 away, as they do if unprotected. 

 Many make the mistake of putting 

 on the seeds at or about Christmas- 

 time before they have ripened 

 enough to grow. Do not cut slits 

 in the bark ; the best way is simply 

 to apply it to the clean bark only. 



"Apart from its botanical interest 

 or its antiquarian lore, the mistle- 

 toe, when well grown in dense 

 masses on either apple or pear, 

 really becomes an effective plant in 

 the winter landscape. The warm 

 yellowish olive-green leaf masses 

 dangling from bare and leafless 

 trunks or branches are distinct and 

 effective, thickly set with the clus- 

 tered berries that glisten in the 

 sunshine." 



VITEX {Chaste Tree).- V. Agnus- 

 castus is a very old S. European 

 shrub, with divided leaves, and in 

 late summer, clusters of small pale 

 lilac flowers. It grows 6 to 10 ft. 

 high against a wall, but even thus 

 protected is liable to be killed dur- 

 ing a severe winter. 

 VITIS ( f^z>/^).— Woody climbing 

 Section of shrubs of much interest and garden 

 value, owing to their luxuriant habit, 

 grace, and handsome foliage, which in 

 several instances affords the richest of 

 colours — yellows, purples, and crimsons. 



Whilst some are valuable for the walls 

 of houses, others may be used for covering 

 arbours, pergolas, the pillars of verandahs, 

 old tree stumps or sloping banks. In the 

 case of the stronger, taller-growing species 

 they may be made to clamber over living 

 trees. They are moisture-loving plants, 

 and require liberal treatment. Where 

 space is limited they can be kept small 

 by pruning, but the best effects are ob- 

 tained where they can ramble without 

 hindrance. Where they are intended to 

 spread over living trees, they should al- 

 ways be planted sufficiently far away from 



