PENTSTEMON. THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. PERNETTYA. 617 



but more largely from the pretty P. 

 Hartwegi. P. Cobcea, too, has prob- 

 ably come in somewhere, for some 

 varieties bear a strong resemblance to 

 it. Whatever their parentage, they 

 are beautiful plants, and much use 

 should be made of them, as they are 

 valuable in autumn and carry their 

 beauty into winter ; at least, in wes- 

 tern and seaside gardens. 



They succeed in any good soil, such 

 as a good loam enriched with manure 

 and leaf-soil. They can be planted 

 out as groups in beds, or in the mixed 

 border, where their various colours 

 blend charmingly, ranging from white 

 to scarlet, with intermediate shades of 

 pink, rose, purple, carmine, and pur- 



Elish-lilac. If good plants be put out 

 y the end of April, they will bloom 

 about the middle of June, and yield 

 flowers until winter. They are in- 

 creased both by cuttings and by seeds. 

 The Pentstemon is a free seeder, 

 and there is no difficulty in obtaining 

 seed. It should be taken from only 

 the finest varieties showing distinct 

 or novel character and such varieties 

 can scarcely fail to yield something 

 worthy of cultivation. The seed 

 should be sown in February or early 

 in March in a gentle heat : it will 

 quickly germinate, and when the 

 plants are large enough to handle, they 

 should be pricked off into shallow 

 boxes, and after a time hardened off 

 in a cold frame. Here they can 

 remain till the end of May or later, 

 according to size, and they should 

 then be planted out in well-prepared 

 beds. When they flower, which they 

 will do by August and September, 

 any especially good varieties should 

 be marked for increase. If the bed 

 of seedlings be allowed to stand for 

 another season (and this is often a 

 good plan), the seed-stalks should be 

 cut away as soon as ripe, and the bed 

 cleaned, top-dressed with leaf-soil and 

 short manure in spring, and there will 

 be a plentiful harvest of flowers the 

 following summer. Seedlings should 

 be protected by a cold frame during 

 winter, and planted out in April in 

 good soil in a sunny spot. 



Good garden forms of Pentstemons 

 are : Arthur J. Ward, Countess of 

 Tweeddale, Dr Baine, Dr Barrie, 

 Edwin Beckett, Emile Rodigas, 

 George Home, James Robertson, Jane 

 Dieulafoy, John A. Elliot, John Forbes, 

 John Jennings, Joseph Chamberlain, 

 Joseph Kent, Lady Arthur, Lord 

 Lister, Lord Rothschild, Marconi, Miss 



Stewart Peter, Miss Talbot, Mrs Forbes, 

 Mrs J. Chamberlain, Mrs Oliver, Mrs 

 Jennings, Mrs Younger, M. Deherain, 

 Peter Readman, Simon Campbell, and 

 Walter Thomson. The above are 

 remarkable for the large size and 

 brilliant colour of their flowers, but a 

 variety that for massing is as good as 

 any is Newberry Gem. In this the 

 blooms are small and graceful, very 

 freely carried during many weeks on a 

 plant of neat compact habit, their 

 glowing crimson colour rendering great 

 effect in the border or in massed beds. 

 It is hardier, too, than the others, 

 and in many gardens quite a good 

 perennial. 



PERAPHYLLUM RAMOSISSIMUM. 



A shrub of the Rose family, summer- 

 leafing, inhabiting dry hillsides in 

 California and other parts of the 

 western United States. Its blossoms, 

 pure white and each about three- 

 quarters of an inch wide, are followed 

 by round, yellowish edible berries 

 about half an inch in diameter. The 

 foliage is a greyish-green. The chief 

 thing to remember in its cultivation is 

 that it needs as sunny a position as 

 possible. 



PERILLA. P. nankinensis is a half- 

 hardy annual, with dark vinous-purple 

 foliage. Seed should be sown about 

 the middle of February in pans or 

 boxes in heat ; the seedlings should 

 be transplanted into boxes in soil not 

 over-rich, and after being gradually 

 hardened off they should be planted 

 out about the end of May. To those 

 who cannot give it artificial heat in 

 spring it is worth little, as it needs 

 heat to reach a fair size for planting. 

 It has never had a place in my garden. 

 Much used in bedding-out, and often 

 with the worst effect. 



PERIPLOCA (Silk Vine).P.graca 

 is a hardy shrubby climber of the 

 Stephanotis order, excellent for walls, 

 arbours, trellises, and the like, but 

 owing to the somewhat unpleasant 

 odour of its flowers should not be 

 planted against a dwelling-house. Its 

 long slender stems and branches 

 form a dense mass, and at midsummer 

 are covered with brownish-red velvety 

 flowers. Seeds or layers. S. Europe. 



PERNETTYA (Prickly Heath). 

 Evergreen shrubs of the Heath family, 

 from S. America. At one time 

 several of the wild kinds were grown, 

 but none proved satisfactory until by 

 crossing and selection a race of seed- 



