HARDY HERBACEOUS PLANTS 71 



be wise to sow thinly, to cover lightly, to prick the plants off (if 

 raised under glass) about three inches apart into boxes before they 

 become crowded in the seed pans, to avoid letting the soil get quite 

 dry, and to give abundance of air in fine weather. The only 

 remaining source of anxiety is the black fly, which attacks the 

 plants in late spring, and will spoil them if it is not attacked in 

 turn. Tobacco powder, or very hot water with an ounce of soda 

 to the gallon, will kill it if used promptly. If the plants begin to 

 get crowded in the boxes before the ground is ready for them 

 they may be planted out nine inches apart in a reserve bed, from 

 which they can be shifted at any time. The perennial Asters are 

 magnificent for autumn blooming, and are the easiest of plants 

 to grow, thriving in most soils, and being readily propagated by 

 dividing the clumps, preferably when growth is starting in spring. 

 There are many varieties, of which Bessarabicus, Framfieldii, and 

 Riverslea (forms of the species Amellus), Mrs. Rayner and Wm. 

 Bowman (forms of the species Novi-Angliae) and ericoides are a 

 few of the best. Alpinus and Novi-Belgii are also good. 



Begonias. The most popular class of Begonia at the present day 

 is the tuberous rooted, of which the flowers fade and the stems 

 wither in autumn, but the tubers pass the winter in a dry store, in 

 a dormant state, and start growing again in spring. It is not hardy, 

 and is used extensively for greenhouse and conservatory decoration, 

 but that is no reason why so brilliant and beautiful a flower should 

 not be used for the summer decoration of the flower garden. The 

 tubers may be started in a box containing leaf mould or cocoa-nut 

 fibre refuse, and the young plants put out early in June. The 

 modern strains are very fine, alike in the size of the flowers, the 

 habit of the plants, and the brilliancy and diversity of the colours. 

 The plants make gay beds and clumps in borders. Begonias are 

 more fully referred to in the section devoted to bulbs and green- 

 house plants. 



Campanulas. The fact that the Canterbury Bell is a Campanula 



