CAMPANULAS 



Campanula ^T^HIS effect of Campanula, Alstrcemeria, Anthemis sulphur ea 

 lactiflora an d Salvia Horminum was quite accidental, the Campanula 



lacttflora having been placed in a border of the kitchen 

 garden to grow for stock. It is one of the most decorative of all 

 the Campanulas, so that it is rather a mystery why it is not more 

 frequently seen. It grows about five feet high with us, but in 

 Scotland I saw plants seven and eight feet the stems branch 

 at the top and produce hundreds of tiny bell shaped flowers of 

 an exquisite pale mauve. In that Scotch garden it seeded 

 itself profusely, but it never does so here and we find the 

 best way to increase it is to take root cuttings in the spring. 

 The colour is so delicate that it will blend with almost any 

 flower, but it should not be placed in competition with Delphi- 

 niums or much of its beauty will disappear. I like to see it 

 against white Cluster Roses, or with Crambe Cordifolia against 

 the purple Prunus, and best of all with the gold and orange 

 tones of Alstroemeria, against a background of Bamboo or the 

 dark tones of some of the Echinops. It is sometimes forgotten 

 how invaluable a clump of green may be to rest the eye and 

 detach one brilliant group from another, and how many hand- 

 some plants there are, either purely foliage or flowering at a 

 later time, which could be used for this purpose in the borders. 



These Alstroemerias are difficult plants to introduce as 



part of some colour scheme, as they resent being disturbed, and 



gardeners need to make up their minds once for all where they 



are to grow. They like a warm dry soil, good drainage, and 



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