908 VALERIANA. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



VERATRUM. 



V. MYRTILLUS (Bilberry}. A native shrub 

 growing on our moors and in shady woods. 

 Its rigid stems, often only a few inches high, 

 rise from a creeping rootstock, bearing neat 

 leaves (red while young), small rosy flowers, 

 and juicy blue berries of excellent flavour. 



V. OVATUM. An evergreen shrub of 3 to 8 

 ft., from the Pacific coast of N. America, 

 with thick glossy leaves, bright pink flowers, 

 and handsome red fruits, ripening black and 

 of good flavour. This makes a choice hedge 

 plant, and is one of the most useful kinds of 

 the genus. 



V. OXYCOCCUS (Cranberry) is a trailing 

 evergreen shrub found in our peat bogs, from 

 Sussex to Shetland. It has downy stems, 

 scattered leaves, tiny red flowers, and dark red 

 acid fruits. Syn. Oxycoccus palustris. 



V. PENNSYLVANICUM (Dwarf Bhieberry}. 

 A low shrub of 6 to 12 ins., with oblong 

 shining leaves, white or rosy flowers, and 

 sweet bluish-black fruits, ripening early and 

 much esteemed. The plant grows well in 

 drier places than most whortleberries, and the 

 autumn leaf-tints are rich. There are many 

 forms of this little plant, including angusti- 

 folium, which is very dwarf ; and ntgrum, 

 with smaller black fruits ripening even earlier 

 than in the parent. 



V. STAMINEUM (Deerberry} is a dense shrub 

 of 2 ft., growing in dry woods of New 

 England, with grey-green leaves, showy 

 greenish-white or purple flowers, and pale 

 green, round or pear-shaped fruits of no value. 

 It is a graceful garden shrub, thriving in shady 

 places, and easily grown. The flowers are 

 peculiar in having no bud-stage, coming wide 

 open from the first. 



V. ULIGINOSUM (Great Bilberry). A native 

 trailing shrub, found in mountain bogs and 

 woody places of Scotland and the north of 

 England. The flowers are small, pale pink, 

 and the berries dark blue. A useful rock- 

 plant for cold wet soils. 



V. VACILLANS (Pale Bhieberry} is an erect- 

 growing little shrub well adapted for dry and 

 sandy places, with showy bell-shaped flowers 

 contracted at the mouth, and borne in loose 

 clusters ; large blue berries, with a dense bloom 

 and good flavour, ripening after the first 

 earlies. A pretty plant, and worth growing 

 for its fruit alone. 



V. Vms-lD>EA (Cowberry}. A native ever- 

 green shrub with trailing stems, growing in 

 the west from Devon and S. Wales, into 

 Scotland, but absent from the S. E. of Britain. 

 The box-like leaves are dark and shining, and 

 the pretty pink flowers give place to crimson 

 berries the size of red currants and equally 

 useful, but only abundant on well-grown 

 plants. The leaves turn a pretty bronze-tint 

 in autumn. It is a good rock plant doing 

 well in dry soils and even in towns. 



J. H. B. 



VALERIANA ( Valerian). Hardy 

 perennial and mountain plants, of which the 

 only one worth cultivating in a general way 

 is the golden-leaved variety of V. Phua.n 



effective plant in spring, when its foliage 

 is young ; it is of neat tufted habit, and 

 grows freely in any soil. A few dwarf 

 alpine Valerians are sometimes grown, 

 but they are not attractive. The flowers, 

 too, are unpleasantly scented. Some of 

 the larger species are pretty in rough 

 places in moist land. 



VALLOTA (Scarborough Lily). V. 

 purpitrea is a handsome Amaryllis-like 

 plant, with bright crimson scarlet flowers, 

 hardy in mild spots. It requires a warm 

 situation in light soil, such as the foot 

 of a south wall, and in such positions it 

 often thrives better than in pots under 

 glass, but the bulbs must be protected 

 during severe frosts. The outdoor culture 

 of this plant deserves more attention than 

 it has hitherto had. Some flowers sent us 

 by Mr. Kingsmill, grown in his garden, 

 were superb. Increase by offsets. Cape 

 of Good Hope. There is a scarce and 

 beautiful variety in which the flowers are 

 white. 



VANCOUVERIA. V. hexandra is a 

 most graceful and distinct plant, 10 to 

 1 8 in. high, with light fern-like leaves and 

 slender spikes of pale flowers, and is a 

 charming plant for the fernery and rock- 

 garden, best in peaty soil. It is distinct 

 from any other plant, and grown in broad 

 tufts and groups it is charming. It is apt 

 to perish in some heavy soils, and thrives 

 best in peaty soils. Vancouver. Division. 



VENIDIUM. V. calendulaceum is a 

 beautiful half-hardy plant of dwarf spread- 

 ing growth, with in summer showy yellow 

 Marigold-like blossoms, 2 in. across and 

 good for cutting. A good effect is gained 

 by putting out several plants on a warm 

 sunny border, or even on the top of a 

 wall or a raised stone edging. Cuttings 

 inserted in August root freely, and may 

 be wintered in the greenhouse if kept 

 fairly dry, otherwise they will damp off. 

 Seeds germinate freely in a hot-bed in 

 early spring ; both should be planted out 

 in May, in friable soil. S. Africa. 



VERATRUM (White Hellebore). V. 

 album is a handsome erect pyramidal 

 perennial, 3^ to 5 ft. high, with large 

 plaited leaves and yellowish-white flowers 

 in dense spikes on the top of the stem, 

 forming a large panicle. The leaves are 

 handsome, and most effective when the 

 plant is in small groups, either in the 

 rougher parts of the pleasure ground or 

 by wood walks, thriving in peaty soil. 

 The root is exceedingly poisonous. V. 

 nigrum has more slender stems, narrower 

 leaves, and blackish-purple flowers. V. 

 viride resembles V. album, except that its 

 flowers are green. S. californicum has 



