118 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



is very effective. The Golden Fleece, which is a sport from the 

 other, is dwarfer and rather richer iu colour. They are both readily 

 increased by cuttings, or by dividing the old plants, and are the most 

 highly coloured when they have the advantage of a warm, sunny 

 situation. 



Sedum acre elegans. — This form of the common stone-crop is of 

 a creamy colour, and as it forms a dense band of any desired width, 

 about two inches in height, it will, in many cases, be found very 

 useful. It can be multiplied by division, and is quite hardy, except- 

 ing on cold, wet soils. 



NOTES ON ABUTILONS, 



FOR THE GEEENHOTJSE AND FLOWER GARDEN. 



BY GEOEGE GOKDON. 



|BUTILONS, of which several species have long been 

 known in English gardens as robust -growing green- 

 house plants, have, of late years, acquired increased 

 importance because of the decorative value of the 

 recently introduced kinds. The species with which 

 gardeners of the old school are best acquainted are A. striatum and 

 A. venosum, which produce lai'ge, bell-shaped flowers of a reddish- 

 orange, veined with yellow, and have large, handsome foliage. But 

 these grow so rapidly and produce such long-jointed shoots, that 

 they soon reach the top of a lofty conservatory, and are practically 

 worthless for small houses, and consequently they are seldom seen, 

 excepting it be in large structures. The new kinds difler from these 

 in the character of the growth, as well as in the leaf-colouring, and 

 in the more plentiful production of flowers. 



One of the first of these which may be characterized as of recent 

 introduction is, A. Thompsani, which has acquired a certain degree 

 of fame as a golden bedder. Its large leaves are profusely blotched 

 and marked with bright yellow when fully exposed to the sun,. and 

 masses of it enclosed with a band of some dark-leaved plant, the 

 coleus, for example, produce a striking efi'ect, and form a charming 

 relief from the yellow-leaved geraniums and other golden bedders 

 now so common. In Hyde Park, for several years past, some of the 

 largest beds of coleus have had plants of this Abutilon dotted over 

 them at a distance of fifteen inches apart, and the effect has been 

 wonderfully good. The plants have had abundant space for the de- 

 velopment of the foliage, and the rich golden variegation, in 

 combination with a groundwork of dark foliage, has been very 

 effective. The best results are obtained by putting out spring- 

 struck plants, strong and well established in five-inch pots, and 

 about eight inches^in height. 



The variegated* variety of A. vexillarium, known to those well 

 acquainted with greenhouse plants, is very dwarf and slender in 



