DESCRIPTIVE AND SELECTIVE. 213 



They are admittedly not plants for sunny rockeries, 

 because they love shelter and shade, nor are they 

 suitable for marshy ground, as they do not care for 

 wet soil ; but it often happens that a sheltered spot, 

 not exposed to the fierce heat of the midday sun, 

 exists in or near a rock garden, and here Cyclamens 

 could be grown. One sometimes sees them thriving 

 on a raised rock bed on the north side of a hedge, or 

 under a tree. Cold winds and heavy hailstorms are 

 Hable to injure the foliage, which should be in full 

 beauty, in the case of several species, in winter. 

 There is, too, the bloom to consider, and most of them 

 flower in autumn or winter. In mild places one may 

 see them full of flower at the end of September, and 

 remaining in beauty for several months. In other 

 localities they will begin to bloom in winter and give 

 flowers till spring. 



It will be seen that the Sowbreads are different in 

 their habits from most rock plants, and call for special 

 treatment, of which they are well worthy. The flower- 

 lover would be wise to prepare a little rockbed for their 

 particular accommodation, choosing the site with care, 

 and setting the stones in a bed of good loam well 

 lightened and enriched with leaf-mould, dried cow 

 manure and sand. Mortar rubbish may be added to 

 supply lime. The tubers may be obtained with the 

 earliest bulbs. The florists often grow them in pots, 

 so that they can be planted at almost any period, but 

 August is a good time. The tubers should be covered 

 with about an inch of soil. In no case should they be 

 left about to get dry, for they will be a long time 



