SOLOMONS SEAL. 



301 



in autumn. Tliey are too tall for 

 any small garden, and they are only 

 suitable for the back row of a flower- 

 border. They will grow in any 

 common garden soil, and they are 

 increased by di^dding the root. 



So'lly A. — Pittosporacece. — This 

 beautiful little shrub, though only 

 introduced in 1830, is already as 

 common as the Fuchsia, and it is a 

 favourite everywhere. The leaves 

 are evergreen, and the bright blue 

 bell-shaped flowers, which are pro- 

 duced in tufts near the ends of the 

 branches, are so elegant that no 

 one can see them without admiring 

 them. The plant is a native of 

 New Holland ; and it is so nearly 

 hardy, that it v.dll stand in the open 

 air if trained against a wall, and 

 slightly protected during winter. It 

 is, however, generally grown in pots, 

 in which the only objection to its 

 culture is the circumstance of its 

 having the tips of its shoots fre- 

 quently covered with aphides, the 

 only cure for which is constant 

 syringing. In the open air it is 

 liable to the attacks of a black in- 

 sect similar in its nature to the 

 aphis, but still more disagreeable. 

 It should be grown in peat and 

 loam, or in heath-mould, and it is 

 propagated by seeds or cuttings. 

 The fruit, which is a berry full of 

 seeds, ripens freely ; but the cuttings 

 are very difficult to strike, and in- 

 deed will rarely succeed without 

 bottom-heat. Besides SoUya hete- 

 rophylla, which is the common 

 kind, two or thi-ee other kinds have 

 been introduced by Captain Mangles 

 from the Swan River. 

 7<^ Solo:\io>''s Seal. — Polygonatum 

 vulgar e, and P. muUifldrum. — A 

 hardy perennial, which will grow 

 freely in any common garden soil. 

 The English name alludes to the 

 roots, which, when cut through, have 

 the appearance of Hebrew characters. 



So'xcHUS. — Compositce. — The 

 Sow Thistle. — The common herba- 

 ceous species is a British weed ; but 

 there are two or three shrubby kinds 

 from j\Iadeira and the Canary Isles, 

 with yellow flowers, which are very 

 ornamental. They should be kept 

 in a greenhouse, and grown in light 

 rich soil. 



Sopho'ra. — Leguminusce. — The 

 common Sophbra japonica is a large 

 tree which grows freely in the neigh- 

 bourhood of London, and produces 

 its large bunches of cream-coloured 

 flowers in August and September. 

 The drooping Sophora, however, 

 though only considered a variety of 

 this tree, is very distinct. It is a 

 trailing shrub, sending out shoots 

 six feet or eight feet long in a single 

 season ; and when it is grafted on a 

 stock of S. japonica, ten feet or 

 twelve feet high, these long sweep- 

 ing shoots, the bark of which is a 

 bright green, have a peculiarly 

 graceful appearance. The Sophora 

 will grow in any soil, but a poor 

 one suits it better than a rich one ; 

 and its leaves seldom droop even in 

 the driest seasons. 



Southernwood. — See Arte- 



MI'SIA. 



SoVkiNG. — The operation of com- 

 mitting seeds to the soil in flower- 

 gardening, is commonly done in 

 patches ; but sometimes flowers are 

 sown broadcast or in drills, and 

 occasionally singly. "When annuals 

 are to be grown in borders contain- 

 ing a miscellaneous assemblage of 

 flowers, they are commonly sown in 

 small circular patches, in intervals 

 left on purpose among the peren- 

 nials, or among the Roses and other 

 low shrubs. Each patch is prepared 

 by digging up a spadeful of the soil 

 and returning it to its place with 

 the surface downwards ; then break- 

 ing it finely, and levelling and 

 smoothing the surface ; and lastly 



