CRYPTOMERIA. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. CUPHEA. 



423 



nearly all the purple, white, and striped 

 Crocuses grown in Holland. 



C. VERSICOLOR. A species long been in 

 cultivation. The flowers present a great 

 variety of colouring, from purple to white, 

 and are variously striped and feathered. 

 It differs from the two preceding species 

 in having the whole of the perianth seg- 

 ments similarly coloured, and the external 

 buff coating of C. Tmperati and C. suaveo- 

 lens is absent. Its flowering time is March. 



C. ZONATUS. Mountains of Cilicia. 

 Bright vinous-lilac flowers, golden at the 

 base, abundant about the middle of 

 September. It is highly ornamental and 

 free-flowering, and easy of culture. The 

 flowers come before the leaves, which do 

 not appear till spring. It has been in 

 cultivation about fourteen years. 



CRYPTOMERIA. C. japonica is a 

 graceful and famous Japanese and 

 Chinese tree much planted in Britain, 

 but rarely thriving except under the 

 genial influence of the sea, and even 

 there never getting to half the noble 

 dimensions it does in Japan. The finest 

 tree I have seen is at Fota. 



CUCURBITA (Gourd}. There is no 

 order more wonderful in the variety 

 and shape of its fruit than that to 

 which the Melon and Cucumber belong. 

 From the writhing Snake Cucumber, 

 which hangs down 4 or 5 feet long 

 from its stem, to the enormous Giant 

 Pumpkin, their variation in colour, 

 shape, and size is marvellous. Those 

 who have seen a good collection will 

 understand Nathaniel Hawthorne's 

 enthusiasm when he says : "A hun- 

 dred Gourds in my garden were worthy, 

 in my eyes at least, of being rendered 

 indestructible in marble. If ever Pro- 

 vidence (but I know it never will) 

 should assign me a superfluity of gold, 

 part of it should be expended for a 

 service of plate, or most delicate por- 

 celain, to be wrought into the shape of 

 Gourds gathered in my garden." They 

 may be readily grown in this country, 

 and there are many ways in which they 

 may be grown with great advantage 

 on low trellises ; depending from the 

 edges of raised beds ; the smaller and 

 medium-sized trained over arches or 

 arched trellis-work, covering banks, or 

 growing on the level earth. A bold 

 and effective use may now and then 

 be made of them on walls and on the 

 roofs of sheds or outhouses, as the 

 roofs "carry" the large leaves and 

 showy fruit so well. 



A SELECTION OF GOURDS. Amongst 

 the most beautiful are the Turk's-cap 



varieties, such as Grand Mogul, Pasha 

 of Egypt, Viceroy, Empress, Bishop's 

 Hat, etc. ; the Serpent Gourd, Goose- 

 berry Gourd, Hercules' Club, Gorilla, 

 St Aignan, M. Fould, Siphon, Half- 

 moon, Giant's Punchbowl, and the 

 Mammoth, weighing from 170 Ibs. to 

 upwards of 200 Ibs. ; while amongst the 

 miniature varieties the Fig, Cricket- 

 ball, Thumb, Cherry, Striped Custard, 

 Hen's-egg, Pear, Bottle, Orange, 

 Plover' s-egg are pretty examples, and 

 useful for ornament. All these are 

 well suited to our climate. Sowing in 

 a frame at the end of April, and expos- 

 ing the plants to the air during the day 

 to prevent their being drawn, and then 

 removing the frame altogether to har- 

 den them off before planting out, is the 

 best way to secure an early growth. 

 Sowing in the open ground under hand- 

 lights would do, but not so well. 

 Where there are waste heaps of rub- 

 bish or manure it is a good plan to 

 cover them with Gourds. Although 

 they grow under the conditions de- 

 scribed above, they do best with plenty 

 of manure, and should be mulched or 

 well watered if the soil be not deep and 

 rich. 



CUNNINGHAMIA SINENSIS. A 



tree of the Pine tribe, and perhaps the 

 most miserable-looking ever intro- 

 duced. Something like an Arancaria, 

 it is usually full of tiny twigs. In its 

 own country, at high elevations, it is' 

 said to form good forests. The original 

 tree in our gardens was found in the 

 island of Shusan, and may be of a 

 tender race. 



CUPHEA. Pretty plants, of which 

 C. platycentra (Cigar-plant) is useful 

 for the summer flower garden. It is a 

 dwarf plant, about 12 inches high, 

 with vermilion tube-shaped blossoms. 

 Easily propagated by cuttings taken 

 in September or April, and put in 

 slight heat, and also raised from seed 

 sown in heat in spring. C. strigulosa 

 is a pretty variety, useful for planting 

 out as single plants in the mixed 

 border for cutting from, but chiefly 

 used as a pot plant for the autumn 

 greenhouse. C. Zimapani is a most 

 useful annual, growing about i^ feet 

 high, with flowers of a rich deep purple 

 bordered with a lighter hue, resembling 

 those of a Sweet Pea, and of about the 

 same size. They are well fitted for 

 cutting, as the branches lengthen and 

 the flowers expand a long time in 

 w r ater. Other kinds are C, eminens, 



