270 HAUDY PERENNIALS AND 



the foliage has a lax appearance, and the flowers are very pale. 

 Concurrently 8. spectabile has grown its stems and glaucous 

 leaves to stouter proportions, and crowned them with more 

 massive heads of bright rose-coloured flowers, at the height of 

 15in. It is larger in all its parts, with the exception of length 

 -of stem, and by September it is nearly twice the size of S. 

 Fdbarium; it also stands erect, so that then the two species 

 suggest a contrast rather than a comparison, S. spectabile being 

 by far the more desirable. 



I find, however, that it is much slower in increasing itself ; 

 the best way to propagate it is by cuttings- dibbled into sand in 

 early summer. The commoner one increases rapidly and often 

 bears the wrong name ; care should therefore be taken to obtain 

 the true species, after which it will not give much further 

 trouble, thriving in any kind of soil, but it should be planted 

 in the full sunshine, when its habit and flowers will be greatly 

 improved. It will bear any amount of drought indeed, it 

 seems to enjoy it. My finest clump is on a very dry part 

 of rockwork, where it has always flowered well. These two 

 Stonecrops and a variegated variety are some of the very few 

 hardy plants which slugs do not graze; at any rate, it is so 

 with me ; neither do other pests attack them, but the humble 

 bees literally cover their flowers the whole day long at times. 



Flowering period, August to October. 



Sempervivum Laggeri. 

 LAGGER'S HOTJSELEEK ; Nat. Ord. CRASSULACEJS. 

 OF the numerous species and varieties of Houseleek, this is at 

 once the most curious, interesting, and beautiful. It is by far 

 the finest of the webbed forms. It has, however, the repu- 

 tation of not being quite hardy, but that it will endure our 

 severest winters is without doubt, and if we recall its habitats, 

 which are in alpine regions, its hardiness in a low temperature 

 need not be further questioned. Still, partly from its downy 

 nature, and partly from the dampness of our winters, this 

 climate causes it to rot. There are, however, simple and most 

 -efficient remedies, which shall be mentioned shortlv. 



The illustration (Fig. 95) gives some idea of its form and 

 habit. The flowering rosettes send up stems Gin. high ; they are 

 well furnished with leaves in fact, they are the rosettes 

 elongated ; they terminate with a cluster of buds and flowers, 

 which remain several weeks in perfection, however unfavourable 

 the weather may be. 



The flowers are more than an inch across, of a bright rose 

 colour, and very beautiful ; the central flower is invariably the 

 largest, and the number of petals varies from six to twelve. The 

 leaves are in rosette form, the rosettes being sometimes 2in. 



