THE GLADIOLUS. 



Gladiolus gandavensis. 



T is a mere compliance with 

 custom to label this flower 

 Gladiolus gandavensis, for that 

 is the name of an early hybrid 

 between G. cardinalis and G. psit- 

 tacinus, raised many years ago 

 in a Belgian garden. Eut it is 

 scarcely worth while to discuss 

 technicalities or draw fine lines, 

 and we prefer to talk about the 

 gladiolus as a beauty to be wooed 

 in the pleasant days of the after- 

 summer. 



The florist's varieties consti- 

 tute a large and separate class, 

 and are usually designated "hy- 

 bi'ids of gandavensis/' although 

 they owe their ^origin to several 

 species and to many and repeated 

 crossings. To grow these well 

 requires some care; but they are 

 worthy of all attention, so various and splendid are 

 their flowers. In the first place, then, it must be said 

 that they are not hardy, and therefore it will not do to 

 leave them in the ground all the winter. We have 



