8l6 SKIMMIA. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



SMILACINA. 



should be without them. They are charm- 

 ing for the rock-garden or borders, but 

 like best a light peaty soil or sandy loam. 

 Division. 



SKIMMIA. Beautiful dwarf evergreen 

 shrubs from Japan, distinct, compact, and 

 charming for peat beds or large rock- 

 gardens. 



The only ones worth cultivating are S. 

 japonica and S. Fortunei. There lias been 

 much confusion between these two species, 

 the plant universally known in gardens as 

 S. japonica not being Japanese at all, but 

 a native of China, its proper name being 

 Skimmia Fortunei. The true S. japon- 

 ica is a Japanese plant, introduced by 

 Fortune. Unlike S. Fortunei, it is 



berried species, plant specimens of the 

 two sexes near to each other. Of S. 

 Fortunei (the S. japonica of gardens) S. 

 rubella is a seedling form. S. japonica 

 argentea is a seedling or sport, only 

 differing from the type in having the 

 leaves bordered with white. S. Fortunei 

 is much dwarfer than S. japonica, and does 

 well as a pot-plant for window decoration. 

 SMILACINA (Wild Spikenard). 

 Graceful but not showy hardy perennials, 

 somewhat resembling Solomon's Seal. 

 They are easily managed plants, and the 

 North American species will be found 

 useful for mixed herbaceous borders, 

 having rich green foliage and white 

 feathery flower-heads in May and June. 



Skimmia fragrans. 



dioecious. Both sexes have received 

 specific names. S. fragrans, for instance, 

 is simply the male of the true S. japonica. 

 The first plant of S. japonica which 

 flowered in this country was named S. 

 oblata, but has been proved to be identical 

 with the one named S. japonica by 

 Thunberg. That name has been trans- 

 ferred to it, and the one called S. japonica 

 in gardens is now called S. Fortunei. 

 The Skimmias thrive as well in strong 

 clay as in poor sandy soil and peat. S. 

 japonica is one of the very best town 

 Evergreens we possess. Other forms of 

 S. japonica are S. Foremani, S. Rogersi, 

 S. oblata ovata, S. o. Veitchi, and S. 

 fragrantissima. To produce beautiful 



S. oleracea is a native of temperate 

 Sikkim, and has been in cultivation for 

 many years at Kew. It is somewhat 

 difficult to manage where the plants are 

 disturbed periodically, and is a slow 

 grower, slow to increase, and a shy 

 seeder. It is the most striking of the few 

 species of this genus in cultivation, and 

 in the south at any rate it will be found 

 hardy, succeeding best in a rich peaty soil 

 with a northern exposure. It is called 

 Chokli-bi by the natives of Sikkim, where 

 the young flower-heads, -sheathed in their 

 tender green covering, form an excellent 

 vegetable. 



S. racemosa and S. stellata are natives 

 of North America, both white-flowered 



