10 4 BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS 



form of orientale, can be increased by seeds or division. The 

 fine Poppy called Papaver umbrosum, and often offered in seeds- 

 men's catalogues under that name, is scarlet, with black internal 

 blotches. It is easily raised from seed, and is a good deal 

 grown. A wise plan of dealing with it is to sow it at the end 

 of May with Wallflowers and Sweet Williams for flowering the 

 following year. 



We must not forget the Iceland Poppies, which are as beautiful 

 and valuable as any of the genus, although much smaller in growth. 

 They are delightful little plants for border groups, and also for 

 rockwork, and they come freely from seed. Orange, yellow, and 

 white all alike are bright, cheerful, graceful, free-blooming plants. 

 The botanist calls them Papaver nudicaule. 



Pentstemons. A few years ago the Pentstemon (or Penstemon, 

 it is often called, even professional horticulturists often omitting 

 the first "t") was almost an unknown plant. It occupied a cor- 

 responding position in the flower garden to what the Streptocarpus 

 did under glass. There were several species in the case of both 

 plants, which were mildly admired, and spoken of in a casual way as 

 " well worth improving." But for a time nobody made any particu- 

 lar attempt to improve them, and so they languished in obscurity. 

 However, the inevitable hybridist appeared at last, and we began to 

 get larger forms, with flowers of brighter colours. Once started, the 

 work of improvement went rapidly on, because other florists, scent- 

 ing profit, began to operate. Now we have a magnificent collection 

 of beautiful varieties. Any one who is interested in comparisons 

 might get seed of one of the old species, such as glaber, and grow it 

 in a bed with some of the best of the modern forms, as sold under 

 varietal names by florists. 



He will then see what wonders expert cross-fertilisers are 

 capable of accomplishing. It is, perhaps, to the Scottish florists that 

 we owe the greatest debt of gratitude. They now have splendid 

 strains. The bells are larger than the largest Foxgloves in fact 



