SOME GOOD HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS.— II. 



( Coiitini(£d from page 6S.) 



Asckpias tuberosa — Butterfly Weed. — 

 There is nothing about this plant to 

 recommend it except the flower, the 

 stem and leaves are hairy and coarse 

 looking, and it is not at all ornamental 

 in habit, but it is well worthy a place 

 in the border for the splendid and 

 unique color of the flowers. 



It is closely related to the common 

 milkweed, the flower is about the same 

 size and grows in the same style, but 

 the color is a most intense and brilliant 

 orange. It grows about i^ to 2 feet 

 high and is perfectly hardy, in bloom 

 June and July. Thrives best in a dry 

 and sunny place, grows wild in western 

 Ontario in dry sandy or stoney fields. 



Valeriana officinalis — Garden Helio- 

 trope. — Gets its common name from 

 the great similarity in perfume and out- 

 ward appearance of the flower to the 

 heliotrope, though not related to it in 

 any way, and not at all like it in habit 

 of growth. 



A perfectly hardy perennial, not par 

 ticular as to soil or location, will thrive 

 anywhere, common in Old Country gar- 

 dens, and well worth growing if only for 

 the delicious perfume. Spreads rapidly, 

 and easily is propagated by division in 

 spring or fall ; the root leaves about a 

 foot long, are very much divided — botan- 

 ically, pinnatisect — the flower stems 

 about 3 feet high, sparingly leafy, term- 

 inated by a large flat cluster of small 

 flowers, pale lavender pink outside and 

 white inside, in season from first half of 

 June to middle of July. 



Campanula carpathica — Bellflower. — 

 Of the many species of campanula in 

 cultivation, one of the most satisfactory 

 is C. carpathica, especially suitable for 

 the front of the border, as it forms com- 

 pact mats of very pretty foliage about 

 7 inches high, the leaves about i J^ inch 

 long are ovate heart-shaped on long 

 petioles ; the flowering steins, leafy be- 

 low, are numerous and branching, each 

 branch terminated by a large broadly 

 bell-shaped blue flower on naked ped- 

 uncles, very convenient for cutting ; 

 flowers about i yi inch across, in bloom 

 from June to September. 



C. c. pallida is a very pale blue va- 

 riety. 



C. c. alba is pure white. 



Aguilegias — Columbines. — Of this 

 very variable and beautiful genus we 

 have a fine representative in our wild 

 columbine, A. Canadensis — often called 

 honeysuckle by children — which is well 

 worthy of a place in the garden border ; 

 it succeeds best if not too much exposed 

 to the sun. On its native hillsides, the 

 finest clumps are found in partially 

 shaded situations and in rather light soil. 

 The handsome scarlet and yellow flowers 

 are freely produced in May and June. 



A. Vulgaris, the columbine of Old 

 Country gardens, is a very variable spe- 

 cies. A strong robust grower, with 

 flowers in all shades of blue, purple, 

 red and white, single and double. Thrives 

 in any situation or soil. It is so very 

 susceptible to cross fertilization, that i 

 is almost impossible to get it to come 



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