THE WHITE ROCKERY 103 



Lemoine section. The former a flower of purple 

 and gold is very handsome, but far more delicate 

 of constitution and dainty of habit than most of its 

 children. Why do people object to the hooded 

 gladiolus ? Some most exquisite tropical species are 

 hooded. 



G. Purpureo auratus I dig up in the winter, but I 

 doubt if this is necessary. Milled is very early a 

 fragrant, white, scented thing, but tender. Trimacu- 

 latus has the usual three blotches in light crimson on 

 a rose ground. Ringens is blue so they say; but I 

 have not succeeded with it. Tristis has a pale yellow 

 petal touched with brown ; communis roseus is a very 

 fine colour and an early flowerer. Of ramosus varie- 

 ties, formosissimus is essential, and other superb things 

 are "Ne Plus Ultra," Queen Victoria," and "Van 

 Speyk." 



Hybrids of Nanus are all more or less lovely, and 

 among my little group of these most delicate and 

 brilliant flowers I find the names of " Poniatowski," 

 scarlet ; " Rembrandt," white and lilac rose ; " The 

 Queen," white and pure rose; "W. M'Intosh," 

 orange-scarlet ; " Delicata," white and maroon ; and 

 " Lucretia," white with cream-coloured blotch out- 

 lined in pink a most beautiful gladiolus. All these 

 at the end of June are a very splendid spectacle. 



Of other hybrids many are, of course, magnificent, 

 but my taste turns to the Lemoine sorts. The form 

 is not so popular as the great and grand gandavensis 

 hybrids ; but none of the latter can compare with 

 some of the choicer Lemoines in splendour of colour- 



