Isaac Hicks &- Son, Westbury Station, N. Y. Hardy Garden Tlolvers 91 



Phlox subulata, continued 



and they have been permanently satisfactory. 

 They need only to be planted about i foot apart, 

 more or less, and they will spread and cover 

 the ground completely, excluding weeds, especially 

 in dry situations. People are so accustomed to 

 think of grass, Privet hedge, Norway Maples and 

 Geraniums as the principal plant materials of 

 landscape gardening that the introduction of 

 cover planting makes slow headway. Has no bad 

 habits, stays where it is put and does not make 

 a weed by spreading where it is not wanted. 



We are occasionally asked if there is not some 

 plant that will make a lawn and not require 

 cutting. This is the best for dry, sunny situations, 

 and Myrtle for shady, moist situations. In the 

 Italian garden on the estate of Mr. Stanley 

 Mortimer, Roslyn, L. I., there are several acres 

 of cover planting and no grass. The Phlox subu- 

 lata is used on the sloping terraces. No top soil 

 was used to prepare them for planting. In May 

 the broad sheets of white and red and pink can 

 be seen from Meadow Brook, a distance of 5 miles. 

 In September it blooms again, but not so pro- 

 fusely. The first cost need not deter any one 

 from planting it because every little piece will 

 grow and a little patch this year will supply 

 twenty times the area next year. It can be planted 

 at any time of the year, even when in full bloom, 

 or in the dry season of August and September. 

 Besides the species which is purplish pink in 

 color, there are several varieties: 



Alba. Pure white. Useful for edging garden 

 beds and mixing with the other varieties. 

 Lilacina. A lilac-blue in color. 

 Dark Red. A beautiful variety, of a distinctly 



different shade. . 

 Pink. An excellent pink variety. 



PHYSOSTEGIA Virginica. False Dragon Head. 

 A rare and beautiful flower which compels ad- 

 miration both in the garden and as a cut-flower., 

 It blooms during July, August and September. 

 It grows about 2% feet high. The color is a deli- 

 cate shade of pink as sometimes seen in heather 

 blossoms. We advise its general use. 



P. Virginica, var. alba. Flowers pure white, of a 

 very delicate beauty. 



PLATYCODOX grandiflorum. Chinese Bell 

 flower. It has big blue and white flowers like 

 the Canterbury Bell all summer. The balloon- 

 shaped buds are also interesting. 



POLYGON ATUM giganteum. Solomon's Seal. 

 Some call this a giant Lily-of-the- Valley. It has 

 graceful, arching stems about 2% feet high, bear- 

 ing pairs of leaves and drooping bells at each axil. 

 It makes graceful clumps in a flower-garden and 

 is still more harmonious with tall ferns. 



PRIMULA veris. English Cowslip. These are 

 beautiful early spring-blooming plants, with 

 yellow, orange and maroon flowers. They are 

 welcome additions to any garden, and may be 

 planted in nooks between the grass and shrubs 

 where they will give a smiling response to the 

 spring sunshine. 



P. vulgaris. .English Primrose. Low-growing, 

 tufted plants, with bright yellow, fragrant flow- 

 ers early in spring. About 6 inches high. 



PYRETHRUM rpseum. These have flowers like 

 the annual China Asters, but they appear in 

 May and early June and continue throughout 

 the summer. The foliage is low, neat and fern- 

 like, and the flowers are on long, slender stems, 

 about I foot high. The colors are white, pink 

 and deep red, single, semi-double and double. 



RANUNCULUS acris flore pleno. Double But- 

 tercup. This is the same as the weed growing in 

 damp pastures, only its weedy character is elimi- 

 nated, as it produces no seed, and the very double, 

 shining, golden yellow flowers are so numerous as 

 to make a solid bed of color in May and June. It 

 grows about 2% feet high and is worthy of place 

 in the flower-garden, the wild garden and the 

 children's garden. 



RUDBECEIA laciniata, " Golden Glow." This 

 almost rivaled the Privet in its sudden distribu- 

 tion after its discovery among some wild plants 

 in the West. However, some dislike it because it 

 looks ragged when going out of bloom. Cut it 

 off and a new growth comes on with a later set of 

 flowers. It may be used among shrubbery, which 

 helps hold up its tall stems. It forms a quick 

 hedge that can enclose a flower-garden or screen 

 unsightly objects and is, therefore, to be com- 

 mended for rented property, where the garden 

 is for one or two seasons only. 



R. triloba. One of the best yellow Daisies or 

 "Black-eyed Susans" which does not have a 

 weedy appearance. It makes a compact, round 

 bush, about 2 feet high, evenly covered with 

 yellow flowers of moderate size, which continue 

 in bloom for over a month. 



R. purpurea. Giant Purple Cone-Flower. A large 

 sturdy flower of peculiar reddish purple color, 

 suitable for the background in flower-gardens or 

 the wild garden. 



SALVIA azurea, var. grandiflora. Meadow Sage. 

 Like the Gentian, this has the shade of blue that 

 is all too rare in gardens, and every opportunity 

 should be taken to keep up a continuous supplv 

 of the blue flowers. This blooms in August and 

 September until hard frost. It is about 2 feet 

 high, with a slender open panicle. 



SAGINA. This makes a sheet of emerald moss, 

 carpeting the ground like a deep-piled velvet. 

 It always calls out admiration but it is amusing 

 to know that few buy it. There has not yet de- 

 veloped in this country as in England, a taste for 

 alpine gardens, where small plants are admired. 



SEDUM acre. On rock ledges or walls this thrives 

 perfectly and delights in the drought. It will run 

 through the grass on gravelly banks, and make 

 a thicker bottom to prevent washing, and yet 

 it will not make a weed. The starry yellow flowers 

 make a brilliant show in early summer. 



S. album. A white-flowered species, growing about 

 6 inches high, which makes a solid mat of foliage 

 like the Moss Pink, and can be used in the same 

 positions. 



S. spectabile. Brilliant Stonecrop. Japanese Live- 

 forever. This is a sturdy plant, with thick, fleshy 

 leaves, covered with broad clusters of rose-colored 

 flowers in late summer. 



SILPHIUM perfoliatum. Cup Plant. A plant as 

 tall and showy as the Golden Glow, with single 

 lemon-yellow flowers. It finds a proper place at 

 the back of wild-flower borders, among shrubs, 

 or bordering a pond. July and August. 



STOKESIA Cyanea. Cornflower, or Stokes' Aster 

 This is a new plant, which receives admiration 

 from every one who makes its acquaintance, both 

 in the garden and in the house. The flowers 

 resemble the China Aster, but they are semi- 

 double, about 3 or 4 inches across and of a pure 

 blue in several shades. It grows about I foot high 

 and makes a neat rosette of foliage under the 

 wide-branching flower-stem. It continues in 

 bloom from July until frost. It is of the easiest 

 culture and we recommend it highly. 



