CAMPTOSORUS. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



CANNA. 477 



charming plant for border or rock culture. 

 Transylvania. 



CAMPTOSORUS ( Walking Leaf}.C. 

 rhizophyllus is a curious N. American 

 Fern, remarkable for its narrow fronds, 

 which taper into slender prolongations, 

 and take root at the tips like runners, giv- 

 ing rise to young plants. Thrives in gritty 

 loamy soil in a somewhat shaded position 

 in the rock-garden or hardy fernery. 



CANNA (Indian Shot}. Handsome 

 tropical plants of the Ginger Order with 

 fine foliage. The ten- 

 dency of most half- 

 hardy flower-garden 

 plants is to flatness, 

 and the grace of the 

 Cannas makes them 

 valuable, though our 

 country in many parts 

 is too cool for their 

 fair development ; in 

 the warmer south and 

 in sheltered gardens 

 they may be grown 

 with profit. Another 

 good quality is their 

 power of withstand- 

 ing the storms of 

 autumn. Sheltered 

 situations, places 

 near warm walls, and 

 sheltered dells are 

 the best places for 

 them. As to culture 

 and propagation, no- 

 thing can be more 

 simple ; they may be 

 stored in winter un- 

 der shelves in the 

 houses, in the root- 

 room in -fact, any- 

 where, if covered up 

 to protect them from 

 frost, in spring pull- 

 ing the roots in pieces 

 and potting them se- 

 parately. Afterwards 

 it is usual to bring 



them on in heat, and finally to harden 

 them off previous to planting out in 

 the middle of May. The soil should 

 be deep, rich, and light. Cannas, pro- 

 tected by a coating of litter, have been 

 left out in Battersea Park through severe 

 winters, and attained a height of nearly 

 12 ft. ; but this was on raised beds in a 

 very warm and sheltered place. Wherever 

 they are grown as isolated tufts, in small 

 groups, or in small beds, it will be best not 

 to take them up oftener than every second or 

 third year, if the ground be warm and well 

 drained. 



LARGE-FLOWERED CANNAS. This is 

 a race of Cannas for which we are 

 mainly indebted to M. Crozy, of Lyons, 

 France, who crossed the Iris-flowered 

 Canna with the older kind. Here, how- 

 ever, they are more valuable for the green- 

 house than the open air. The plants as a 

 rule are dwarfer than the old type of 

 Canna, the newer French varieties rang- 

 ing between i| ft. to 4 ft. in height, the 

 leaves of many shades of colour. 



In commencing the cultivation of these 



Canna iridiflora Ehemanni. 



Cannas, by far the best time to get them 

 is during the winter (say soon after 

 Christmas), when the rhizomes, then in a 

 dormant and well-ripened state, can be 

 sent by post. The list of varieties is now 

 a considerable one, so that a careful 

 selection is absolutely necessary, other- 

 wise some of them will be found to 

 greatly resemble each other, A few of 

 the finer ones are Paul Bert, Louise 

 Chretien, Geoffrey Saint-Hilaire, Capri- 

 cieux, Revol Massot, Lutea splendens, 

 Ulrich Brunner, Francois Crozy, Antonin 

 Crozy, Admiral Courbet, Felix Crousse, 



