DENTARIA. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



DESMODIUM 



523 



are three colours viz. dark blue, tri- 

 coloured, and red-striped. In D. tricolor 

 elegans the flowers are rose-coloured, 

 streaked with blue or purple, and about 



3 ft. high. 



CULTURE. Annual Larkspurs should 

 be sown where they are to remain at any 

 time after February when the weather 

 permits usually in March and April. 

 They may also be sown in September 

 and October, and even later when the 

 ground is not frozen, but the produce of 

 winter sowing is liable to be devoured 

 by slugs and grubs. The sowing may be 

 made either broadcast or in rows 4 in. to 

 8 in. apart, and the plants should stand 



4 in. or 5 in. asunder. The branching 

 varieties may be sown in reserve beds, 

 and in March when about 12 in. or 16 in. 

 high should be transferred to the flower 

 beds, lifted carefully with balls of earth 

 round the roots, so that they may not 

 suffer. These branching varieties are 

 well suited for the garden, either in 

 masses of one colour or of various 

 colours. They may be planted in borders 

 or among shrubs thinly planted. One 

 great advantage of this class is that 

 it flowers earlier and longer than the 

 dwarf Larkspur that is to say, it flowers 

 throughout the summer, and, according 

 to the period of sowing, from the end of 

 June or July to September, and even to 

 October if the flower-stems that have shed 

 their blossoms be cut off. They succeed, 

 moreover, in the driest calcareous soils, 

 and even upon the declivities" of hills. 

 By pinching, dwarf plants useful under 

 certain circumstances may be obtained, 

 Seed should be taken only from flowers 

 perfectly double ; and for this purpose 

 single-flowered plants should be carefully 

 weeded out. Larkspurs are at their best 

 in June and July ; they bloom almost 

 anywhere, especially in dry localities, and 

 do not require much attention. They look 

 well whether they are all of one colour, or 

 of all the colours mixed, and, by separ- 

 ately using varieties possessing different 

 colours, striking contrasts may be pro- 

 duced. 



DENTARIA (Toothworf). Interest- 

 ing spring-flowering plants of the Crucifer 

 Order, of which there are in cultivation 

 some half a dozen species all worth grow- 

 ing in half-shaded positions in peat beds, 

 among shrubs, on the margins of borders, 

 or in the cool shrubbery. They grow 

 best in a light sandy or peaty soil en- 

 riched by decayed leaf-mould. Their 

 flowers are welcome in early spring, and 

 remain some time in beauty, and they are 

 easily increased from the small tuber-like 



roots. Some, like D. bulbifera, bear 

 bulblets on the stem, and from these 

 the plant may be increased. None of 

 them ripen seed freely. The species 

 are D. bulbifera, I to 2 ft. high, flower- 

 ing in spring ; purple, sometimes nearly 

 white, rather large, and borne in a 

 raceme at the top of the stem. D. digi- 

 tata, a handsome dwarf kind, about 12 in. 

 high, flowers in April ; rich purple, in flat 

 racemes at the top of the stem. A 

 native of Europe. D. diphylla is a pretty 

 plant, from 6 to 12 in. high, bearing but 

 two leaves, the flowers purple (some- 

 times white) and yellowish. N. America. 

 D. enneaphylla is about I ft. high ; has 

 in April and June clusters of creamy- white 

 flowers, and is a pretty plant for a shady 

 border. Mountain woods in Central 

 Europe. D. maxima is the largest of 

 the species, being 2 ft. high, with many 

 pale-purple flowers, and is a native of N. 

 America. D. pinnata is a stout species at 

 once distinguished by its pinnate leaves ; 

 it is from 14 to 20 in. high, flowering from 

 April to June, bearing large pale-purple, 

 lilac, or white flowers, in a cluster. It 

 is a native of mountain and sub-alpine 

 woods in Switzerland. D. polyphylla, 

 similar to D. enneaphylla, is about I ft. 

 high, with cream-coloured flowers in 

 clusters. It is a handsome plant ; from 

 woods in Hungary. Syn. Cardamine. 



DESFONTAINEA. In favoured gar- 

 dens along the southern coast and in other 

 mild parts D. spinosa, a very beautiful 

 evergreen shrub from Chili, can be grown 

 and flowered out-of-doors. It is of moderate 

 growth, having foliage very much like the 

 Holly, and handsome flowers in the form 

 of a tube of bright scarlet tipped with 

 yellow. It usually flowers about the end 

 of summer, and in some parts of Devon- 

 shire it blooms profusely, thriving in a 

 light loamy soil, and even round the 

 coasts as far as the north of Ireland, but 

 once a few miles from the protection of 

 the sea air it ceases to thrive and perishes, 

 and is therefore only of value in very 

 favoured places. 



DESMODIUM (Tick^ Trefoil}. A 

 few of the North American species are 

 cultivated, but their weedy appearance 

 prevents their general culture. These are 

 D. canadense, marilandicum, and Dilleni, 

 all from 2 to 4 ft. high, with slender stems, 

 terminated by dense racemes of small 

 purplish flowers. D. penduliflorum is a 

 really pretty shrub, and hardy if the stems 

 are annually cut down, with graceful 

 shoots, bearing along their upper portions 

 numerous rich violet-purple blossoms in 

 September. It is the name by which the 



