120 MY GARDEN 



plants belong to the natural order Compositae -that is, 

 having a mass of tiny florets crowded together in the 

 centre and surrounded by an involucre, as in the field 

 daisy, and as these flowers are all very similar in form, in 

 spite of variations in colour, the garden is apt to be less 

 varied and interesting at this season unless we are 

 careful not to let the composites predominate. Their 

 flowers lack the charm and suggestion which we find in 

 those of more irregular design, and many of the plants 

 are weedy and gawky in habit, so that intelligent 

 selection should be made from the long lists of Rud- 

 beckias, Heleniums, Helianthuses, Pyrethrums, Asters, 

 Boltonias, and Chrysanthemums offered us in the cata- 

 logues. 



Of the Rudbeckias I think R. Newmani is perhaps the 

 most useful. It grows about two feet tall and bears in 

 great profusion throughout the summer and fall large 

 daisylike flowers, like Black-eyed Susans, with a dark 

 cone in the centre. This plant suffers in dry weather 

 and likes a retentive soil or shade for part of the day. 

 R. laciniata, fl. pi., better known as Golden Glow, has 

 long been banished from our garden enclosure, though 

 the blossoms are pretty and good for cutting. The 

 plant is long-legged, gawky, and weak-kneed, and it 

 spreads rapidly without encouragement and frequently 

 quite swallows up its neighbours. The purple Cone 

 flower, Rudbeckia purpurea, or Echinacea purpurea as it 

 is correctly called, is also a very good plant and much 



