100 



THE DICTIONARY OF GARDENING, 



Plilomis continued. 

 base ; floral ones oblong-lanceolate. Stem herbaceous, purplish. 



Roots tuberous. 

 (B. M. 1555.) 



h. 3ft. to 5ft. East of Europe to Siberia, 1759. 



P. viscosa (clammy), fl. yellow, tomentose outside ; whorls large, 

 from forty to fifty-flowered ; bracts linear, very acute. June. 

 L, radical ones very ample, ovate, deeply cordate at the base, all 

 wrinkled, green above, and tomentose beneath. Branches tall, 

 almost simple, tomentose. h. 3ft. to 5ft. Syria, 1821. (B. M. 

 2542, under name of P. lunarifolia liusselliana.) 



PHLOX (from phlox, flame; alluding to the general 

 brilliancy of the flowers). OBD. Polemoniacece. A genus 

 comprising twenty-seven species of hardy, erect or dif- 

 fuse, tall or tufted, perennial, or rarely half-hardy 

 annual herbs, natives of North America and Russian 

 Asia. Flowers red, violet, or white, usually showy, 

 sometimes solitary, sessile or stalked, sometimes oymose, 

 the cymes disposed in terminal, corymbose or thyrsoid 

 panicles ; calyx tubular-campanulate, with five acute or 

 acuminate lobes ; corolla salver-shaped, with equal ob- 

 ovoid, orbiculate, or obcordate lobes. Leaves entire; 

 canline ones opposite, or the uppermost ones alternate. 



The perennial species and varieties of Phlox may fairly 

 be designated some of the best and most popular of 

 garden plants. They are all very easily cultivated, and a 

 selection from the genus is practically within the reach 

 of everybody. Some of the species are dwarf, creeping 

 plants, well adapted for the rockery, or front line of a 

 mixed border. Where they can be obtained in sufficient 

 quantity, they are sometimes employed with success for 

 spring bedding. P. subulata and its varieties are the 

 best known of the dwarf, creeping kinds ; they may, 

 therefore, be referred to as examples. None of these 

 dwarf species seed freely ; they are propagated chiefly 

 by means of cuttings or divisions. Cuttings should be 

 inserted in a cold frame about July, and kept shaded 

 from bright sunshine. They will form good plants by 

 the following spring, when they may be placed in per- 

 manent quarters outside for flowering. Large plants may 

 bo easily converted into numerous small ones by shaking 

 some light soil: amongst them in summer, and then dividing 

 in autumn, when the trailing branches will be found to 

 have rooted. Any well-drained ordinary soil will suit, 

 but a sunny exposure is most desirable. Dwarf tufted 

 species of Phlox are rarely injured by frost; but it is 

 not unusual for large patches to die away in winter 

 when the weather is very mild and damp. 



Other distinct groups or sections which are much 

 more generally cultivated than those already referred to, 

 are the early or summer-flowering, and the autumn or 

 late- flowering, tall-growing varieties. These are highly 

 attractive, and, as they succeed each other in flowering, 

 it is a good arrangement to plant some of both alter- 

 nately. They may be propagated from seed ; by cuttings of 

 the young stems, shoots, or roots ; and by division. Seeds 

 preserved with a view to raising new varieties should 

 only be gathered from extra good plants. They should be 

 sown, when collected, in pans filled with sandy loam, and 

 be kept in a warm greenhouse or pit until spring, when 

 the young plants will appear. These should be grown 

 on, and eventually hardened, to plant out in April or 

 May, if strong enough. Many will flower the first season, 

 but not so strongly as in the second. Oftentimes, the 

 seeds germinate irregularly, especially if they are kept 

 long before being sown. Cuttings root very readily at 

 almost any season, in a little warmth ; they may be pro- 

 cured at the end of March, in large quantities, from the 

 base of old plants. For increasing new or scarce varieties, 

 cuttings may be made of pieces of root. These may be 

 cut into short lengths and treated somewhat like seeds. 

 Propagating by division simply consists in lifting the 

 plants in early spring, cutting them at the base into small 

 pieces, and replanting. These tall-growing perennials 

 succeed best in rather heavy soil, and where it is of a 

 good depth ; they will, however, thrive fairly well in 



Phlox continued. 



any good border or bed. A thick top-dressing of manure, 

 in summer, is of great help, both by preventing evapo- 

 ration and affording nutriment. If the weather is dry, 

 a heavy drenching of water occasionally is also recom- 

 mended, as it tends to considerably prolong the flowering 

 season. The plants are very attractive in beds by 

 themselves, or in mixed borders along with other 

 perennials. They are also well adapted for culture in 

 pots, if provided with a rich soil, and grown in a cool, 

 slightly-shaded frame, through the summer. 



P. Drummondii is one of the most beautiful and useful 

 half-hardy annuals in cultivation. It may readily be 

 raised from seeds, which should be sown in a little heat, 

 during March, in pans, boxes, or on a partially-spent 

 hotbed. As soon as the seedlings become large enough to 

 handle, they should be pricked off in other boxes, and 

 grown on in frames until May, when they may be gra- 

 dually inured to the open air. When about 3in. high, 

 the points should be pinched out, with a view to inducing 

 a more compact habit. This species, and its varieties, in 

 numerous colours, are fine for planting in flower-garden 

 beds, amongst other tall-growing subjects that, maybe, 

 are partially naked near the bottom. The plants re- 

 quire a rich soil and plenty of water ; like the others, a 

 mulching of manure, in summer, is of great help. Seed- 

 lings may also be grown, in pots, for greenhouse 

 decoration ; and cuttings may readily be struck for a 

 similar purpose. They will thrive in any ordinary frame 

 after the middle of April. 



The most important species, from a garden stand- 

 point, are described below. They are perennials, except 

 where otherwise stated. 



FIG. 112. INFLORESCENCE OF PHLOX DRUMMONDII. 



P. amcena (pleasing).* fl. purple or pink, seldom white, disposed 

 in a compact corymb ; corolla lobes obovate, entire, rarely emar- 

 ginate. June. I. slightly erect, oblong, lanceolate, or linear- 

 lanceolate, slightly acute or obtuse. Stem ascendent, simple, 

 6in to 15in high. Virginia to Florida, 1809. Plant softly hairy 

 or villous. SYN. P. pilosa amcena. (B. M. 1308.) 



P. aristata (awned), of Michaux. A form of P. subulata. 



P. canadcusis (Canadian). A synonym of P. divaricata. 



P. Candida (white). A form of P. maculata. 



P. carnca (tieah-colour). A form of P. glaberrima su/ruticosa. 



