THE ROCK AND WATER GARDEN 151 



the following spring. Saponaria calabrica is an annual of rose 

 colour, and there is also a white form. Both are old favourites 

 with many. They are both very dwarf, and may be used in 

 the front portion of the rockery in any good soil. 



BULBS FOR THE ROCK-GARDEN 



These subjects are worth the attention of all lovers of rock 

 and alpine gardens, as their presence during winter and spring, 

 peeping up here and there, forms a nice feature of colour, and 

 there are many that are extremely interesting. The little 

 Narcissus minimus ought to be planted and grouped in 

 clumps of about a dozen in different spots ; one gets a very 

 charming effect. Sternbergia lutea is a splendid mass of 

 colour in autumn ; then there are Colchicums in variety and 

 Cyclamen, all in splendid flower and all from bulbs. The 

 Crocus species are exceedingly interesting, and these should 

 be planted early, say in September. Snowdrops should also 

 be planted early to be successful. All of these are better in 

 small clumps. Ixias are hardy in sheltered plots near the 

 base of rocks, and are very pretty. Iris cristata and /. persica 

 should likewise be planted as soon as posible. These are 

 gems, and, dotted about, take but little room and afford end- 

 less pleasure. The slugs are very fond of these, and must 

 be trapped as soon as the growths are beginning to push 

 through. The Mariposa Lily (Calochortus) does very well in 

 sheltered nooks in fine soil. There are some very brilliant 

 colours among these, and the flowers are large for such small 

 bulbs. Then we have the Jonquils, both double and single. 

 These are very striking and delightfully fragrant. There are 

 several Narcissi in addition to the early one mentioned at the 

 commencement of these notes, and a good one is Pallidus 

 prcecox, which looks very charming popping up under a 

 shrub or from behind a boulder. A few clumps of such 

 varieties as N. maximus of the Pyrenees, Victoria and King 

 Alfred, should be planted ; but these large varieties must 

 have some good food, or they fail to give good results. 

 Ordinary alpine soil will not be good enough. Narcissus 

 cyclamineus is very pretty, and should be planted in several 

 positions to ensure succession. There are some interesting 

 hybrids between this and N. minimus which are very pretty. 

 N. triandrus and N. t. alba are both pleasing, well adapted 

 for conspicuous positions, and last a considerable time in 

 flower. 



