41 6 THE ALPINE FLORA 



They require shelter from winter winds and liberal 

 dressings of leaf mould ; peat and sand should be added 

 to heavy soil. Mezereumznd alpina, at least, come readily 

 from seed, but striata, Cneorum and the rare little 

 Tyrolean rupestris are very difficult to increase in this 

 way and are perhaps best grown when grafted on some 

 commoner, sturdier kind as Laureola or by cuttings, as 

 we do freely at Floraire. 



Unfortunately the better and choicer the variety, the 

 more capricious does it show itself under cultivation, 

 nor can it be said that the correct method of treatment 

 has yet been discovered ; if they succeed, they do, and 

 seem fairly indifferent as to soil; if not they quickly 

 give up the attempt. No collection is complete without 

 the Carniolic D. Blagayana, an exquisite prostrate 

 species ; and, as might be expected from the native 

 land of exquisite flowering shrubs, Japan sends two of 

 the very best, D. Genfoua and T>. odora, the latter, 

 however, of doubtful hardiness. 



