GERBERA. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



591 



met with in the roadside in New Jersey, 

 growing abundantly here and there, like 

 a little tree inhabit, 15 in. to 18 in. high, 

 bearing most graceful miniature Pent- 

 stemon-like flowers, but far more refined 

 in colour and distinct in form than any 

 Pentstemon. Naturally I asked why 

 such a plant was not in cultivation, and 

 learnt that the Gerardias are mostly 

 parasites on the roots of other plants. In 

 spite of this, I brought home some seed 

 of one or two kinds and sowed it where I 

 thought it would have some chance, but 

 nothing ever came of it. There are a 

 number of kinds in America, and some of 

 the plants are pretty, but hitherto they 

 seem to have resisted all attempts at 

 cultivation. Gerardia is a genus called 

 after John Gerard, who wrote the famous 

 Herbal in the time of Queen Elizabeth, 

 and is, as a group, of the highest interest. 

 I hope that some of them may be intro- 

 duced. G. tenuifolia is a species long 

 known, which thrives in the open, and 

 forms charming tufts covered with pretty 

 flowers in summer. It is dwarf and bushy 

 in habit, light and graceful in effect with 

 its numerous pale blue flowers. 



GERBERA (Transvaal Daisy}. Pe- 

 rennials from South Africa, of which few 

 are yet in cultivation. G. Jamesoni is a 

 handsome plant, nearly hardy in the 

 southern counties, but too tender for the 

 midlands and the north. Its leathery 

 dark-green leaves are shaped like those of 

 a Dandelion and arranged in a rosette, 

 and the flowers are glowing scarlet, four 

 inches across, borne singly on tall bare 

 stems. Where the plant cannot be grown 

 in the border it will bloom in a sunny, 

 airy greenhouse, potted in a mixture of 

 loam, peat, and sand, and treated as one 

 would a Cineraria. In some gardens it is 

 well grown upon such parts of the rock- 

 garden as are devoted to hardy Cacti, 

 where it can be sheltered by a glass roof 

 in winter and kept dry while freely ex- 

 posed to the air on all sides. G. viridi- 

 folia, a dwarfer plant with smaller flowers, 

 white flushed with lilac, is also grown, 

 and between this and G. Jamesoni beauti- 

 ful hybrids have been raised in which the 

 flowers vary in colour from nearly white 

 to salmon-pink, coral-red, orange, and 

 yellow. 



GEUM. Dwarf handsome perennial 

 herbs, G. montanum being one of the 

 best of the dwarf kinds for the rock-gar- 

 den, and very beautiful when well estab- 

 lished in early spring. It has a compact 

 habit, the leaves lying close on the ground, 

 the erect stems of solitary clear yellow 

 flowers being abundant. It likes plenty of 



moisture. G. reptans is also a pretty rock- 

 plant, differing from G. montanum in its 

 finely cut leaves, large flowers, and in pro- 

 ducing stolons, which are absent in G. mon- 

 tanum. There is a variety, however, of the 

 latter which is by far the most ornamental 

 plant of the European kinds. It is of a very 

 vigorous habit, with large, fine leaves, and 

 bears freely deep yellow flowers on each 

 stem. This form has been cultivated in 

 the Liverpool Botanic Garden for over 

 twenty years, and is said to be of garden 

 origin. 



G. chiloense. A double-flowered form 

 of this was figured in The Garden, 

 December 2 ist, 1878, under the name of 

 G. coccineum fl.-pl., an erroneous name, 

 under which it is known m many gardens. 

 A very large-flowered variety, under the 

 name of G. chiloense grandiflorum, was 

 figured in the Botanical Register, vol. xvi., 

 t. 1348. This I think is one of the best 

 single-flowered forms in the genus, and does 

 not seem to have altered much since the 

 above-mentioned plate was drawn. At 

 t. 1088 of the same work another plant is 

 figured as G. coccineum, but this does not 

 at all agree with the original figure in 

 Sibthorp's Flora Grceca, t. 485, and may 

 be taken to represent as nearly as possible 

 the typical G. chiloense. A native of 

 Chiloe, introduced to cultivation some- 

 where about 1826. 



G. chiloense var. grandiflorum (syn., 

 coccineum grandiflorunt) is a magnificent 

 border plant, its dazzling scarlet flowers 

 and bold habit making it a favourite with 

 all who love brilliant patches in their 

 mixed borders. The double-flowered form 

 of this, however, seems to be a more 

 general favourite, the blooms lasting 

 longer, though I think they lack the 

 elegance of those of the simpler form. 

 They begin to expand soon after May and 

 continue until October. 



G. chiloense var. miniatum. This 

 plant, figured in The Garden in 1890, is 

 said to have originated in the nursery 

 of Robert Parker at Tooting, and was 

 named by him G. miniatum. Another 

 plant known as the Altrincham variety, 

 or G. hybridum, was raised about the 

 same time, but, unless in the flowers being 

 brighter, I see no difference. But there 

 can be no question as to the value of this 

 plant, its robust constitution standing it in 

 good stead in almost every kind of soil, 

 and enabling it to be propagated with the 

 greatest facility by cutting the tufts in 

 pieces. It flowers from April until the 

 end of July, and when doing well often 

 attains a height of from 2 ft. to 3 ft. 



G. coccineum is a rare and entirely 



