WANING SUMMER 117 



liant, easy to manage, self-supporting, quickly in- 

 creased, fragrant, and beautiful. No plant, known to 

 me, makes such solid colour masses or is more orderly and 

 upright in its habit. It usually enjoys the best of 

 health, and I know of only one disease which attacks it 

 and this is not usual; it is fungous in character and is 

 more apt to attack the plants in low, damp situations. 

 The old purple parent of the gorgeous modern Phloxes 

 will grow and thrive in any situation, but the modern 

 beauties need good rich food and water in dry weather if 

 they are to develop their huge flower heads to anything 

 like the size we are encouraged to expect. A dry poor 

 soil is no place for them, but they do very well in partial 

 shade. Bone meal and superphosphate may be used to 

 strengthen the plants and round out the great flower 

 heads. They may be planted either in spring or fall, 

 but I have had the best results from early fall planting 

 as this allows the plant to become established before 

 summer droughts which are very hard upon newly 

 planted stock. Old plants need to be broken up and re- 

 planted about every third year and the faded blossoms 

 should be cut off before seed forms, as seedlings become 

 a real pest, seldom coming true to the colour of the 

 parent and usually exhibiting strong magenta traits 

 which prevent their living in amity with their blood re- 

 lations. Phloxes, nowadays, show many fine colours: 

 all shades of pink, scarlet, cerise, lavender and purple, 

 and white, with or without a pink eye. If more than 



