WOODSIA. THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. XEROPHYLLUM. 783 



Var. alba has been spoken highly of in 

 the United States, but I have never seen 

 it. 



W. CHINENSIS. The oldest kind intro- 

 duced, and the most beautiful. Its single 

 and double white forms are beautiful, 

 although neither of them have the freedom 

 of the true plant. The double variety is 

 a poor thing. 



In the VAR. MACROBOTRYS. Flowers a 

 paler shade of blue-purple, and the racemes 

 longer, the flowers being farther apart. A 

 variegated form is not worth a place. 



W. FRUTESCENS. The only species 

 found wild in the New World. It is a 

 climber, but not a strong grower, the 

 flowers pale blue-purple, arranged densely 

 in racemes 3 to 8 inches long in June. 

 There are two varieties in cultivation, one, 

 magnifica, has racemes over i foot in 

 length ; the second is a white form. 



W. MULTIJUGA (Japanese Glycine). A 

 very beautiful plant with racemes often 

 between 2 and 3 feet long, flowering a 

 fortnight later than the Chinese Glycine, 

 the blossoms much less closely packed on 

 the spikes. The colour varies in different 

 plants, but it is always a variation of 

 delicate lilac and white. The variety 

 alba has flowers wholly white, and there 

 are two forms of the plant in cultivation, 

 one with shorter racemes. The newest 

 form is one called rosea, with flowers of 

 a delicate shade of rosy-lilac. Variety 

 Russelliana has dark flowers with a pale 

 central blotch. W. J. B. 



WOODSIA. These pretty deciduous 

 hardy Ferns are admirably suited for 

 a northern position in the alpine or 

 rock garden. They are impatient of 

 sunshine, and drainage should receive 

 special attention. They should have a 

 mixture of fibry peat and loam, which 

 has some broken-up sandstone mixed 

 with it. It is a good plan to place 

 Woodsias between little blocks of 

 sandstone which just peep out of the 

 soil. These blocks of stone could be 

 covered with Sedums and other flower- 

 ing rock plants. The best hardy 

 species are W. ilvensis and W. alpina ; 

 there is also a very beautiful N. 

 American kind named W. obtusa. 



WOODWARDIA. Noble ferns, of 

 which a few are hardy. All are hand- 

 some, with broad beautifully arching 

 fronds, which are especially ornamental 

 if seen a little above the level of the 

 eye. Woodwardias thrive under the 

 ordinary conditions of the hardy 

 fernery, and succeed in a shady position 

 if they have a light peaty soil that is 

 moist in summer. The principal hardy 

 kinds are W. areolata (angustifolid) and 

 W, virginica, both from N. America; 



W '. japonica and W. orientalis, from 

 Japan ; and W. radicans from Madeira. 

 W. radicans is the tenderest, and 

 requires a sheltered position, and 

 perhaps protection in severe cold. 



WULFENIA. W. carinthiaca is a 

 dwarf, almost stemless evergreen herb, 

 bearing in summer showy spikes, 12 to 

 1 8 inches high, of drooping purplish- 

 blue flowers. Found only on one or 

 two mountains in Carinthia. W. 

 Amherstiana, from the Himalayas, 

 similar but more showy, is rare. For 

 rock gardens, in ordinary soil. 



XANTHOCERAS (Chinese Chestnut}. 

 X. sorbifolia is a beautiful dwarf 

 hardy tree, but not a rapid grower ; 

 its leaves are elegant, and its flowers 

 white marked with red, borne in erect 

 clusters. After having been for many 

 years a rare plant in English gardens it 

 is becoming more widely known and 

 cultivated, and among the gardens 

 where it succeeds well is that at 

 Omngton, Worthing, where it has 

 ripened its fruits, which recall in form 

 and size the fruits of the Horse Chest- 

 nut. The seedlings raised from 

 English ripened fruits may give us 

 fine varieties, as seedlings vary greatly 

 in size and colour of flower. China. 



XERANTHEMUM. X. annuum^ is 

 a hardy annual, one of the prettiest 

 of everlasting flowers, growing about 

 2 feet high, with abundant white, 

 purple, and yellow double, single, and 

 semi-double blossoms. A packet of 

 mixed seed sown in any ordinary gar- 

 den soil in March will give a variety 

 of colours. The principal kinds are- 

 Album, white ; imperiale, dark violet- 

 purple ; plenissimum, dark purple, 

 double ; superbissimum, double, globe- 

 flowered ; and Tom Thumb, a compact 

 dwarf variety. The flowers are excel- 

 lent for cutting, and if dried are use- 

 ful for winter decoration. S. Europe. 

 Compositae. 



XEROPHYLLUM (Turkey's Beard). 

 X. asphodeloides is a beautiful 

 tuberous-rooted plant with the aspect 

 of an Asphodel, forming a spreading 

 tuft of grassy leaves, its tall flower- 

 stem terminated by a raceme of 

 numerous white blossoms. It grows 

 well in a moist, sandy, peaty border, 

 and in the drier parts of boggy ground. 

 Pine barrens in N. America. 



X. TENAX. This very beautiful species 

 is found wild in various parts of N. 

 America, especially in Pine barrens on 

 the west side of the Continent. The 



