GARDENS NEAR THE SEA 



ing them from seed by the production of many new 

 forms. 



In the water garden they would open the season 

 were it not for the precocity of Iris pumila and its 

 hybrids, which are the earliest of all to show their 

 flowers. Even in late March, if the season is friendly, 

 the dwarf purple varieties open, while April greets 

 those of lilac and yellow. At several places I have 

 heard that these irises grow well on rocky ledges. 



I. cristata is a charming dwarf iris of notable crest 

 and a native of the southern states. It never grows 

 more than six inches high, yet it has a perceptible 

 air of nobility and exquisite shades of blue and gold. 



These small irises pave, as it were, the way for the 

 more conspicuous and large German varieties, which 

 in May begin to show an inclination to bloom. 

 Suddenly from the swordlike leaf the sheathed buds 

 appear. A shower and a visit of sunshine then unbar 

 their fetters with surprising rapidity. The finest and 

 the greatest number of flowers are seen on clumps that 

 have been long established. In fact, by dividing 

 them every few years and replanting their rhizomes 

 in deep, rich soil, they are saved from deterioration. 



Among the German irises, which indeed are a bearded 

 company, Iris pumila and its intimates, as has already 

 been noted, are the first to open. The silver king 

 shows its flower fairly early in the season. This beauti- 

 ful iris, which is almost identical with the far-famed 

 Florentine, occurs in the softest, palest shade of blue, 

 turning at maturity to white with a silver sheen. 

 There is about it, besides, a delicate fragrance. 



[196] 



