34 The Japan Lilies ; 



West, as an article of fodder for stock. The leaves and young 

 plant may probably answer very well, where better cannot be 

 had ; but any one who will examine the coarse culms of the 

 mature plant may soon satisfy himself that it can never su- 

 persede the good hay of this region, nor be as valuable in any 

 respects as the common Indian corn fodder," — a remark 

 which, with all deference to higher authority and trials on 

 the Means grass, 1 am at present inclined to apply to the 

 Sorghum halepense, as the grass is scientifically called. 



The beauty of its panicles or flower heads induces me to 

 recommend it to the favorable notice of those who are fond of 

 horticultural pursuits, whether they tend to the cultivation of 

 a gorgeous plant, or to a tuft of grass. As it has never oc- 

 curred in my experience in gardens before, I presume it will 

 prove a novelty with us in the vicinity of Boston ; and Dr. 

 Ward is to be thanked for sending to the North so splendid 

 a foreign production, which, though a native of Syria, has 

 been long known as a garden ornament in Great Britain. 



South Hing-ham, Dec, 2d, 1847. 



Art. VIII. The Japan Lilies ; their History, Cultivation, 

 Propagation, &fc. By the Editor. 



We have so often, during the last eight years, since their 

 first introduction into our gardens, spoken of the beauty of 

 the Japan lilies, that it is quite unnecessary that we should 

 enter into a longeulogium of them at this time. The lily, in 

 some of its varieties, has been the theme of the poet, the sub- 

 ject of the painter, and the admired object of every lover of 

 plants from the earliest ages to the present time. The White 

 lily, {L. candidum,) with its snowy petals and sweet odor, — 

 the Tiger lily, {L. tigrinum,) with its leopard-like spotting, — 

 the Martagon lily, (L. martagon,) in its numerous varieties, — 

 and our own Superb lily, {L. superbum,) are each and all of 

 them among the showiest ornaments of our gardens : many 

 other species possess great beauty ; among which may be named 

 the canadense, philadelphicum, japonicum, eximium, chal- 

 cedonicum, &c. ; but the lilies, par excellence, are those which 

 form the subject of our article,— the Japan lilies of M. Siebold. 



