50 VARIETY IN THE LITTLE GARDEN 



Lilies are not now offered in this coimtry in such variety as 

 once they were. It then behooves us to save the offshoots of 

 our dormant bulbs, to grow the glorious things from seed. Lilium 

 regale will flower the second season from seed; and it is one of 

 the wonders of all gardens to-day, both for beauty and fragrance. 

 The difficulty with us seems to be the sufficient — or efficient — 

 labeling of the little grass-like leaves which mark the first ap- 

 pearance of life from a lily seed. These are easily mistaken for 

 grass strayed from out its bounds, and treated accordingly, 

 with the result that a year is lost and a certain discouragement 

 might result — but in reality, never should, or does. A memo- 

 randum should be made in the garden notebook of the acci- 

 dent, as well as of the intention of another trial. 



Thinking again of the matter of companion flowers for lilies, 

 especially for the Madonna, Regal lily and the Nankeen lily — 

 with the last-named Delphinium belladonna is perfection; the 

 Regal lily is delightful with good heliotrope growing about it, 

 or with lavender phloxes near and a low-growing Thalidrum, 

 such as adiantifolium, to mask its stems a little. A phlox both 

 suitable and beautiful for growing before Lilium regale is W. C. 

 Egan: suitable because of its rather dwarf habit, beautiful for 

 its delightful cool pink color and the extraordinary masses of 

 large flowers which it invariably shows in July or August. And 

 Rhinelander, a magnificent garden-subject among phloxes, may 

 properly follow Lilium regale and phlox Egan on approximately 

 the same spot. As for the Madonna lily, I should never grow 

 any flower to neighbor it except the mauve Salvia sclarea, whose 

 pinkish lavender bracts create so beautiful a contrast in number, 

 form, and color to the more solitary splendor of that lily, be- 

 loved of all who garden. 



Just before the time for phloxes, however, come gypsophilas. 

 A fine array of these plants is shown in the picture of Mrs. 



