AUTJJMN BEAUTY 139 



with the festooning Nepeta, and little mists of Gyp- 

 sophila muralis gleam at the wall foot. 



But it is to the "bitter-sweet Chrysanthemum" that 

 we turn in these last days of the garden's life with a feel- 

 ing of grateful love. Even the esthetic Anemone ja- 

 ponica must give way before the affection we feel for this 

 hardy child, born of the sun and frost. Not the splen- 

 did creatures one sees upon the show bench, or in the 

 florist's windows, but those small, spirited fellows, in 

 brown and old gold, russet, garnet, old pink, and smoky 

 rose, which linger to the very end in the garden, the 

 biting cold of November nights seeming merely to tone 

 them up and impart a defiant quality to the audacious 

 little tufts of colour. Often it is difficult to find these 

 really old-fashioned hardy Chrysanthemums in the 

 nurseries, but frequently, in driving, or walking about 

 the country in the autumn, we come upon them in the 

 gardens of village or country people. Some of the best I 

 have were found in this way, and the owners are 

 glad to give a root or two which will quickly spread into 

 a fine clump. I cannot give a list of named sorts, for 

 my own all came as gifts. They love a warm, sunny sit- 

 uation and a rich, deep soil, and if once or twice during 

 the summer a little well-rotted manure is dug about the 

 roots the response will be whole hearted and generous. 

 Every year, in spring, the plants are best divided and 

 the soil enriched before they are replanted. 



