6ESCHORNERIA. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



BETA. 



365 



Berkheya. See STOB^A. 



BE SCHORNERIA. Mexican plants 

 allied to the Agaves, but hardier and 

 more easily grown. They perish in- 

 land, but in warm shore-gardens several 

 kinds thrive in the open air, their fine 

 bluish-green leaves, like those of a 



crimson as to make a striking picture. 

 They need all the sun they can have, a 

 light rich soil, and a dry place such as 

 the crest of a sheltered bank or the foot 

 of a warm wall. Several kinds have 

 been tried successfully, such as B. 

 yuccoides, B. bvacteata, and B. tonelii, 

 but all are similar in effect, though 



Weeping Birch. 



Yucca but more fleshy, without spines, 

 and often a yard long and several 

 inches wide, create an effect unlike any 

 other hardy plant. When well estab- 

 lished they bloom freely, and though 

 the flowers are only small and mostly 

 green in colour, the large leafy bracts, 

 the flower-stalks, and the great arching 

 stems themselves, are of so vivid a 



seldom seen except in the shore-gardens 

 of the south and west. 



BETA (Cilian Beet}. B.cicla varie- 

 gata is a variety of common Beet, the 

 leaves being more than 3 feet long, 

 vivid in colour, their midribs varying 

 from dark waxy orange to vivid crim- 

 son. The plant should be sown in a 



