PART II.] 



ALPINE FLOWERS FOR GARDENS 



153 



is remarkable for its short dense fruiting 

 heads of boat-shaped seed-vessels with 

 entire wings ; the flowers are small and 

 inconspicuous. Alpine region of Cap- 

 padocia. 



^Ithionema speciosum. A densely- 

 tufted species with ovate-oblong leaves, 

 and rather large rose-pink flowers ; seed- 

 vessel elegantly toothed, and tinged with 

 purple. It is described as one of the 

 prettiest of the genus, growing in dense 

 tufts 3 to 4 inches high, and producing 

 a profusion of large flowers. JE. lignosum, 

 sublulatum, stylosum, lacerum, and fim- 

 briatum belong to the same group. They 

 have rather small flowers, but in all of 

 them the seed-vessel is very elegant. 

 Armenia. 



JE. cordiophyllum. Stems, few, 

 rigid, densely leafy ; leaves, rigid, quite 

 sessile, deltoid - cordate, the lobes em- 

 bracing the stem, the lower ones oppo- 

 site ; flowers, rose-pink, of medium size ; 

 boat-shaped seed-vessel, toothed. This 

 plant grows from 6 to 12 inches high. 

 Armenia. 



JE. cordatum. Stems, few, rigid, 

 densely-leafy ; leaves, sessile, deltoid- 

 cordate, acute ; flowers, rather large, 

 sulphur-yellow. A native of dry, rocky 

 places in the alpine region of Armenia 

 and Syria. It is similar to the last, but 

 differs in its larger yellow flowers, and 

 less distinctly toothed seed-vessel. 



&. moricandianum. Stems, few, short, 

 and leafy ; leaves all opposite, nearly 

 sessile, ovate, obtuse, the upper ones some- 

 times cordate at the base ; flowers, large, 

 yellow. A native of Mount Caira, where 

 it was discovered by Cinard in 1843. 

 This species comes very near to JE. 

 cordatum, differing in its obtuse leaves, 

 which are all opposite and scarcely cer- 

 date, and in its flowers, which are twice 

 as large. 



IE. graecum. Stems, numerous, short ; 

 leaves, crowded, very small, ovate-oblong ; 

 flowers, rather large, similar to those of 

 the European A$. saxatile, but twice as 

 large. A native of the chalky mountains 

 of Greece. 



AJUGA (Bugle). Dwarf sage-like 

 perennials of easy culture and increase ; 



and though not of first value among 

 rock-plants, useful, from their freedom 

 and good colour. 



Ajuga genevensis (Geneva Bugle). 

 This has violet-blue flowers, the stem being 

 a cone of flowers for a length of 4 or 5 

 inches or more. Suitable for rock-garden, 

 it will hardly be well to give it a place 

 there, except by the margins of walks. 

 The true plant, widely distributed on the 

 continent, is not found in Britain, but the 

 variety with the floral leaves large and 

 longer than the flowers, and having a dense 

 leafy spike (A. pyramidalis), is found in 

 Scotland, and is sometimes grown in 

 gardens. 



The British Creeping Bugle (A. reptans) 

 is grown in gardens under various names, 

 for the sake of its dark browny-purple 

 leaves, and a variegated variety of it is 

 sometimes grown. 



ALLIUM. These plants are often 

 given in large numbers in Dutch and 

 other lists, and with slight reason, as 

 their beauty is little, from the garden 

 point of view. Beyond a few, they are 

 hardly worth cultivation, and though 

 some kinds are often seen among rock- 

 plants, they are out of place with them, 

 and the kinds worth growing are easily 

 grown without the aid of the rock- 

 garden. 



ALLOSORUS CRISPUS (Parsley 

 Fern). A beautiful Fern, found in 

 some mountainous districts, where it 

 grows out of the crevices of the rocks ; 

 the fronds grow in dense tufts. It re- 

 quires light, and should only be shaded 

 from the hot sun. On the rock-garden it 

 thrives, planted between stones, with 

 broken stones about its roots, and just 

 its fronds peeping out of the crevices. 

 Growing in this way, it seems to be quite 

 at home. It is well suited for plant- 

 ing in chinks on the rock-garden, and 

 associates well with alpine plants. 

 Careful division. 



ALSINE (see ARENARIA). 



