90 OUR ROCK-GARDEN 



charming plant. We have it fully in flower in May 

 and June ; its stems, some two to three feet long, 

 carrying a mass of brilliant blossoms. As the 

 flowers are of a rich, pure blue, a somewhat unusual 

 colour, it is a very desirable plant to have in one's 

 rock-garden. It is one of our rarer plants, but once 

 established it spreads freely, and springs up sturdily, 

 year after year, without need of any attention. The 

 evergreen character of its broad, ovate foliage is 

 another feature in its favour. It appears to be 

 truly wild in the south-western counties, but we 

 have met with it in Sussex and elsewhere. Our 

 particular plant came years ago from a kindly 

 friend who dug it up for our benefit in a wood near 

 Clifton, but it has increased mightily, and we in turn 

 have had the pleasure of sending offshoots of it far 

 and wide. 



One may occasionally see in cultivation an allied 

 species, the Anchusa tinctoria a plant much grown 

 on the Continent for the value of its root as a dyeing 

 material. Many tons are imported into Britain 

 each year for various trade purposes, one of the 

 least legitimate being its use as a colouring 

 material in the fabrication of so-called port wine. 



