5 20 



ISOPYRUM. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



IXIOLIRION. 



painted their bodies. I satis glauca is a 

 handsome perennial of 3 feet, with grey- 

 green furrowed stems and long narrow 

 leaves with a white mid-rib. The tiny 

 bright yellow flowers come during July 

 in large feathery heads. The plant 

 thrives in ordinary soil if given a moist 

 and well-drained position, with full 

 sunlight. Seeds or division. Asia 

 Minor. 



ISOPYRUM. A graceful little plant 

 allied to the Meadow Rues, /. 

 thalictroides has prettier white flowers, 

 and is valuable for its Maiden-hair 

 Fern-like foliage. It is well suited 

 for the rock garden, is hardy, and 

 prefers a soil mixture of peat and loam. 

 Division or seed. Europe. Ranun- 

 culaceae. 



ISOTOMA. /. axillaris is a showy 

 half-hardy plant, resembling some of 

 the dwarf er Lobelias, its growth dense 

 and compact, the flowers J inch across, 

 star-shaped, and of a pale blue, con- 

 tinuing a long time, even till cut off 

 by frosts. If preserved in a frame 

 during winter, after the manner of 

 bedding Lobelias, it is perennial, and 

 may be propagated in spring by 

 cuttings. New Holland. 



ITEA. Graceful and distinct shrubs> 

 evergreen and deciduous, Chinese or 

 N. American, the species ilicifolia 

 being quite a choice evergreen, Holly- 

 like shrub, but smoother and thinner, 

 it bearing weeping racemes nearly a 

 foot long. It is not likely to be hardy 

 except in warm valleys and seashore 

 places. I. virginica is moisture- 

 loving, hardy, and deciduous. N. 

 America. 



I XI A. Charming S. African bulbs, 

 slender and elegant in growth, and 

 brilliant in flower, but not much grown, 

 because some are tender and require 

 glass protection. For culture out- 

 doors, choose a light loamy soil, 

 thoroughly drained, and with a due 

 south aspect ; if backed by a wall or 

 a greenhouse, so much the better. In 

 favoured gardens near the coast they 

 are perfectly hardy in the open, and 

 increase rapidly. Plant from Sep- 

 tember to January, 3 to 4 inches 

 deep, and i to 3 inches apart. As the 

 early plantings make foliage during 

 the autumn, it is necessary to give 

 protection during severe frost, and 

 this may be best accomplished by 

 hooping the beds over and covering 

 when necessary with mats ; or if 

 tiffany is used, it may be allowed 



to remain till the danger of severe 

 frosts has ceased. The December and 

 January plantings require no protec- 

 tion in winter, but as they will flower 

 later in the summer than the early 

 plantings, an aspect where the sun's 

 rays are somewhat broken will prolong 

 the blooming period. On stiff soil, or 

 on soils that lie rather wet in winter, 

 the beds should be raised, and the 

 bulbs should be surrounded with 

 sand, care being taken that they are 

 planted i or 2 inches above the level 

 of the path ; and, where protection 

 cannot conveniently be given, plant- 

 ing should not take place till Decem- 

 ber or January. A large number of 

 varieties are in cultivation, and the 

 chief species from which they appear 

 to be derived are /. crateroides, patens, 

 maculata, fusco-citrina, ochroleuca, colu- 

 mellaris, speciosa, and viridiflora, which 

 last is of a beautiful sea - green, a 

 colour quite unique among cultivated 

 plants, and in no case to be omitted. 

 A collection of varieties might include 

 the following : Achievement, Amanda, 

 aurantiaca, Cleopatra, Conqueror, 

 Duchess of Edinburgh, Gracchus, 

 Hercules, Hypatia, Isabelle, Lady of 

 the Lake, Lesbia, Loela, Miralba, Nose- 

 gay, Pallas, Pearl, Princess Alexandra, 

 Sunbeam, Surprise, Titian, and Vulcan. 



IXIOLIRION (Ixia Lily}. Beautiful 

 plants of the Amaryllis order somewhat 

 resembling each other, and about i to 

 1 1 feet high, with grassy foliage, and 

 bearing large trumpet-shaped flowers 

 in a loose, elegant manner. /. Pallasi 

 has flowers of the deepest shade, and 

 /. tataricum of the palest, the inter- 

 mediate shades being /. montanum and 

 /. Ledebouri. They should be grown 

 in an open and dry position in a 

 sunny border, for example, which is 

 all the better with a wall at the back, 

 so as to catch all the sun-heat possible 

 in early spring, when the bulbs are 

 pushing up their young leaves. The 

 border should be well drained and a 

 bed of light, rich, loamy soil, about 

 i foot in depth, placed upon the 

 drainage. When the young growth 

 appears, place a common handlight 

 over the plants even two panes of 

 glass will be beneficial and if similar 

 protection is afforded at the latter 

 part of summer, it will tend to keep 

 the soil dry and warm, and so ripen the 

 bulbs. A handful of dry sharp sand 

 placed in a layer under and around 

 the bulbs is conducive to the formation 

 of roots. W. Asia. 



