JULY 28, 1910. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



jr^ aSa.<^^'^^<•^'<^'»^'»=a<^^<•^'»^'fef»>•^y^»>^fe^^>•fe^»>^'^ 



THE FLOWERS 



SUMMER 



HEBBACEOUS BOBDEBS. 



rsss:^sj^os^:j^jmj^ij^[j^ 



Seasonable Plants for the Purpose. 



This is not the best season of the 

 yo;<r for display in the hardy flower 

 giiflen. "We miss the masses of aquile- 

 gias, lupines, peonies, oriental poppies, 

 German irises, pyrethrums, dictamnus 

 and other June flowers, but there is al- 

 ways a good variety of subjects in 

 flower where anything like a collection 

 is :^rown. 



The delphiniums or larkspurs have 

 ben unusually fine, but afe now on 

 the wane. It is good policy to save 

 seeds from extra good varieties and 

 sow in a coldframe as soon as ripe. As 

 flue forms will be had as from the 

 choicest imported seed. As soon as the 

 flowers have passed, the delphiniums 

 should be cut down and they will then 

 give a nice second crop of flowers in 

 late August or early September. The 

 Chinese larkspurs, D. Chinense, with 

 open spikes of deep blue flowers, and 

 others pure white in color, are now at 

 their best. They are valuable florists' 

 flowers, blooming quickly from seed and 

 lasting well for several years. There 

 is still ample time to sow a batch of 

 those. 



Gypsophilas and Day Lilies. 



Gypsophila paniculata is one of the 

 must useful of July flowering peren- 

 nials. Its cloud-like beads of minute 

 white flowers are valuable in floral 

 work of all kinds. The double form, 

 G. paniculata fl. pi., is not so well 

 known. It should be much more widely 

 grown. Even in a dried state the pan- 

 ic!, s look well for many weeks. Propa- 

 gjiiion of this variety is by root divi- 

 sion. Euphorbia coroUata is a charm- 

 ifi;.: native plant, with umbels of small, 

 1" white flowers, desirable for cut- 

 ti ;,', and forms a useful companion to 

 th gypsophilas. 



lie hemerocallis or day lilies are ■ 

 ''•'' isfactory hardy perennials, all being 

 "' 1 adapted for cutting. H. Thun- 

 1^" gii has been in flower for some time. 

 ^^ Js lasting and will remain in. good 

 •^^ .dition for several weeks longer. Its 

 1* on-yellow flowers possess an agree- 

 "'«' ' odor. H. aurantiaca major is less 

 ■I'i (ly than some other varieties and 



'lid be protected in winter, or lifted 

 stored in a coldframe. However, 



vinters all right in sandy soil on a 



tie slope. Its scented, deep orange 

 "f' vers are four to six inches across 

 a'' splendid for cutting. The old H. 

 ^'' a has run wild in many sections. 

 ^f loss easy of culture, it would be more 

 ^1 ireciated. It spreads rapidly and is 

 H' cially useful in the wild garden or in 

 sli ubberies, where bold masses of it 

 ^' now quite effective. 



Hollyhocks and Phloxes. 



^0 hardy plants can surpass the 

 "'^Hyhocks when well grown. This sea- 

 ^^"^ the plants are unusually free from 



rust, which for many years has done 

 much to discourage the extended cul- 

 ture of these showy and stately border 

 plants. Scattered in clumps in the 

 shrubberies or at the backs of herba- 

 ceous beds, these are effective. The 

 Chater strain is still the best, but the 

 fringed Alleghenies are pretty. The 

 present is an excellent time to sow seed 

 for flowering another season. The plants 

 like a little winter protection in our 

 colder states. 



The perennial phlox is the most prom- 

 inent feature in the hardy garden now 

 and will be until late October. It is 

 really the most valuable of all hardy 

 perennials, when its long flowering sea- 

 son, hardiness, floriferousness, ease of 

 culture and wide range of colors are 

 considered. The cuttings rooted in 



suffruticosa section, that finest of all 

 phloxes. Miss Lingard, blooms by the 

 middle of June and continues all sum- 

 mer. Among a large number of varie- 

 ties of the paniculata section, these 

 are extra good: E. P. Struthers, rosy 

 carmine, crimson eye; Pantheon, car- 

 mine rose; F. G. Von Lassburg, superb 

 pure white; Coquelicot, pure scarlet; 

 Le Cygne, pure white; Eclaireur, bright 

 magenta; Le Mahdi, reddish violet; 

 Beranger, white, suffused rosy pink; 

 Henry Murger, white, carmine center; 

 Esperance, mauve, white center; Pyra- 

 mide, splendid dwarf, pure white; G. A. 

 Strohlein, fine scarlet, holds its color 

 well. 



Platycodons, Tritomas and Lobelias. 



The platycodons, or Japanese bell 

 flowers, closely allied to the campanulas, 

 are excellent late July subjects. P. 

 Mariesi, with its deep blue, bell-shaped 

 blooms, is perhaps the best, but P. gran- 

 diflorum, with violet blue flowers car- 

 ried on strong spikes three feet in 

 height, is well worth growing. There 

 are pure white varieties of each of 

 these platycodons. 



The tritomas, or kniphofias, better 

 known as torch lilies, are now in flower 

 and will last for many weeks. Their 

 stiff flowers are not pleasing to every- 



Phlox in a Stoneware Pitcher. 



spring give the finest spikes of all and 

 come in season in late August and Sep- 

 tember, when the older clumps are on 

 the wane. By cutting back the flower 

 heads as they pass, a nice second crop 

 will be had. Like the bulk of peren- 

 nials, they require deep, rich soil for 

 the best results. Cojnmoncing with the 



one, but they do so well under adverse 

 climatic conditions that they deserve 

 more attention. Large vases of them 

 are quite effective for store window 

 decoration during the summer months. 

 T. Pfitzerii, with its rich orange scarlet 

 flowers, was in bloom this season the 

 first week in .Tuly. It is probably the 



