18 



require any water or any other attention during the summer, 

 with the exception of hoeing and weeding. 



Some persons may prefer raising the plants from seeds ; 

 this was always practised here previous to 1 894, but I do 

 not consider it satisfactory, because none of the varieties will 

 come true ; all shades from white to purple appear, no 

 matter how carefully the seed is saved, it is therefore much 

 better to practice division of the clumps, and have true 

 colours according to the variety. 



Jlrabh alpina flore pleno. This is a very useful plant 

 for the spring garden, but differs largely from the single 

 variety in the matter of propagation ; the common kind may 

 be moved and broken to pieces successfully at almost any 

 time of the year, but the double variety fails largely, unless 

 divided in March or early in April, and some pieces will 

 even then refuse to grow. It is a good plan to bed in some 

 of the old plants when the beds are cleared, for propagating 

 the following spring, as these give more growing points than 

 strong young plants ; sometimes when divided up the pieces 

 will be rather long between the roots and the leaves, but 

 each piece ought to have some portion of root attached to it, 

 and the bare stem can be curled round if planted with a 

 trowel, burying it up to the commencement of the leaves, 

 this plant usually requires watering occasionally, until it 

 commences to grow ; the distances for planting are about the 

 same as given for Aubrietias. It may also be raised from 

 cuttings ; this is explained on page 37. 



Erica carnea and E. c. alba. These are especially useful 

 because they flower so early ; like other peat-loving plants 



