246 



Garden and Forest. 



[May 22, 1889. 



Plants for Bedding. 



TT is now time to thiiii< about the arraiigeiiient ot l)eds and 

 •*- of tlic [>iants with wiiich to fill them. As Coicus, Gera- 

 niums, Alternantheras, Echeverias and other plants found in 

 the usual bedding' lists are almost invaluable imder proper 

 conditions, but their exclusive use, especially when arranged 

 in the form of national emblems, mottoes, medallions and 

 otiier set patterns, cannot be considered elevating in their in- 

 fluence upon popular taste. A great variety of plants with 

 ornamental foliage can be employed for bedding-out in our 

 climate, and with fine effect, particularly when tastefully 

 comi)ined in sub-tropical beds. 



Prominent among these are the finer varieties of Canna Iii- 

 dica, such, for instance, as Imperator, a grand variety where 

 space is allowed for its full development, the strong shoots 

 with their Musa-like foliage frequently attaining a height of 

 seven to eight feet. And where a more dwarf variety is 

 needed, Aclele Levallois will be foimd most satisfactory, its 

 bright green leaves rarely reaching a greater height than four 

 feet. The free-Howering character of this variety is also a 

 point in its favor. 



Of lironze-leaved Cannas, Adrien Robine is one of the most 

 beautiful, and makes an average growth of five to six feet in 

 the season. Canna metallica is also good, and C. Bihorelli, 

 thougii quite dwarf in habit, is very noticeable with its dark 

 reddish-l>ronze foliage and bright crimson fiovvers. C. Ehe- 

 manni, now becoming well-known, should find a place in 

 every garden, not only on account of its handsome growth, 

 but also for its large and beautiful flowers. 



Another excellent plant for our purpose, either in a mass by 

 itself, or in combination with other tall-growing plants, is 

 Aru7ido donax and its variegated form. These are free-grow- 

 ing and very graceful, and although hardy enough to stand 

 the winter in favorable seasons, at least in the latitude of 

 Philadelphia, yet they can be made to do better service by 

 lifting them in the fall, and placing them in the green-house, 

 where the variegated form, besides its pleasing effect, will 

 prove useful for cutting. 



Some of the strong-growing Aralias, for instance, the Rice 

 Paper plant, A. papyrifera, and also A. Sieboldii, are very ef- 

 fective plants for summer bedding, their large, bold leaves 

 making a pleasing contrast with the smaller foliaged plants. 

 A few of the Dracaenas may also be added to the list, notably 

 Dracana aitstralis, D. indivisa and D. Draco, all of which 

 thrive admirably out-of-doors. The so-called New Zealand Flax, 

 Phormiuin tenax, and its variegated form, and also P. Colensoi 

 variegata, the latter having the leaves broadly margined 

 with white, are all good plants for outside work, their strong, 

 tough leaves being seldom injured by storms. Grevillea 

 robusta is another good plant not so often seen as its merits 

 deserve, being of easy growth, and presenting a most grace- 

 ful appearance with its finely divided foliage. That charming 

 Japanese grass, the striped Eulalia, must not be omitted, this 

 being one of the most valuable additions to the list of hardy, 

 ornamental grasses that has been made in recent years. 



If favorably situated, some Codiaeums or Crotons may be 

 used to advantage, as may also Aucuba Japonica, the latter 

 being capable of enduring much more hardship than the Cro- 

 tons, and the female plants' of the Aucuba, when nicely 

 fruited, are very attractive as an edging for some of the beds. 

 Peristrophe angustifolia is usually most successfully grown in 

 a light soil, though this is not absolutely essential to its wel- 

 fare. 



Some varieties of Musa, especially M. ensete and M. Caven- 

 dishii do well in certain locations, but should be planted in 

 somewhat sheltered positions, as otherwise their immense 

 leaves will be damaged by the wind. 



Many of the hardier Palms can be successfully used in out- 

 door arrangement, and the following species will be found 

 among the most satisfactory for this purpose : Chamcerops 

 kumilis, Corypha aiistralis, Latania Borbonica, Areca lute- 

 scens and Sabal Adansonii. W. H. TapHn. 



Holmesburg;, Pa. 



Isopyrum biternatum. — This pretty native plant is well worthy 

 of culfivation on account of its finely-cut foliage and pure 

 white flowers, which are produced in early spring and have a 

 charming effect when planted in the front row of the flower- 

 border among other low-growing plants. This species is a 

 native of the western States, and is perfectly hardy. .Another 

 interesting plant is Synthyris renifonnis, which was flowering 

 early in March, its blue flowers arresting attenfion by their 

 intense color. Although this plant is found only on the Pacific 

 Coast, it is quite hardy in the eastern States, and even when 

 not in bloom is worth having for its large, shining, reniform 



leaves. Phlox bifida has generally proved impatient of culti- 

 vation, and the more care bestowed upon it the more slender 

 was the hope of success. Last spring we were induced to 

 plant it in a gravelly soil, and, to oursiu-prise, the plants are now 

 in a vigorous condition and flowering freely. The petals are 

 so deeply cleft as to remind one of the spokes of a wheel. 



Gentiana acaulis. — What can equal in intensity the rich deep 

 blue of the Gentianella ? We have a number of strong plants 

 covered with their lovely blue flowers. Many species of this 

 genus are hard to cultivate, G. verna being one which we 

 have tried and failed with miserably, and there are others of 

 which the same might be said; but it is not so with G. acaulis, 

 which is, perhaps, the finest species in cultivation. If planted 

 in a rich, moist soil, where the roots may penetrate deeply and 

 be in no danger of drouth, G. acaulis may be grown and flow- 

 ered successfully year after year. Ours have received no pro- 

 tection from hot sim in summer and have passed through a 

 winter which, on the whole, has not been a good one for alpine 

 plants, which are usually at their best after a winter covering 

 of snow, and yet the plants under note are now a sight to glad- 

 den the dullest eye. Those who wish to grow the Gentian- 

 ella are advised to get strong plants to start with. Our expe- 

 rience with weak ones has taught us this lesson. 



Polemoniums. — There appears to be some confusion about 

 the species of this beautiful family of hardy perennials. In 

 the Dictionary of Gardening P. Richardso7iii is given as a 

 synonym of P. humile. Now we have P. humile in bloom side 

 by side with P. Richardsonii, and the two plants are quite dis- 

 tinct — P. Richardsonii has blue flowers nearly an inch in diam- 

 eter and grows nearly two feet high. This we obtained from 

 a reliable firm in Englan,d. P. humile is a much dwarfer 

 plant, with a somewhat creeping habit, and the flowers corre- 

 spondingly small. This we received direct from the Rocky 

 Moimtains. Also, the two (being synonyms) are given as flow- 

 ering in July ; here they are at their best in April. I should 

 like to have the experience of other growers of these plants. 



Passaic, N.J. ■ E. O. Orpct. 



Notes from a Spring-Garden. 



'X'HE Poet's Narcissus (A^./^^//(r2<.r) is an old-fashioned flower, 

 -^ so very old-fashioned that it has been an inhabitant of gar- 

 dens probably as long as gardens have existed. Everybody who 

 has ever been in an old-fashioned garden knows it and loves 

 it, and for many persons it is the most charming of all flowers; 

 and it has other qualities besides beauty; for of all the different 

 species and varieties of Narcissus it is here the hardiest, the 

 least particular about the treatment it receives, and the most 

 prolific in the production of new bulbs ; so that once estab- 

 lished in the garden, it soon spreads and multiplies rapidly, 

 and from a single bulb planted in rich soil a hundred can be 

 obtained at the end of a few years. The Poet's Narcissus, 

 too, of all the bulbous plants which will grow in this climate, 

 is the best to naturalize in the woods and even in hay-fields. 

 It always looks perfectly in place in such positions, and a field 

 of young grass with the flowers of Narcissus open among the 

 leaves is one of the most delightful objects imaginable. The 

 bulbs planted in this way last for years, and gradually spread, 

 as the leaves have ripened and died down before it is tinie to 

 mow. It is, moreover, an excellent border plant ; it makes a 

 graceful spring edging to the shrubbery, and, of course, is 

 not out of place in the rock-garden. It is the latest of the 

 family to bloom here, the flowers appearing immediately 

 after those of N. biflorus, a character which adds to its value, 

 as the flowers are open after the coming of pleasant weather, 

 and contemporarily with those of many shrubs and herbaceous 

 plants. No better piece of advice can be given to a beginner 

 in gardening than to plant the Poet's Narcissus. Plant a few 

 every year and so gradually extend the plantation. Where- 

 ever there is an unoccupied corner or a vacant place in the 

 border, wherever the lawn-mower does not run, put in some 

 of the bulbs. They cost a trifle ; a hundred thousand can be 

 bought for less than is often paid for a single small plant of 

 some peculiar Orchid. There are several varieties of this' 

 plant in cultivation, but none of them are really better than 

 the type, and are not worth cuUivating except by persons par- 

 ticularly curious in such things. 



Several species of Phlox are in flower. There is really none 

 handsomer than the dwarf P. subulata, the Moss Pink, and it 

 is none the less l)eautiful because it covers hundreds of acres 

 of sandy and of rocky ground in New Jersey; and because the 

 early settlers in this country saw and appreciated its beauty 

 and took it into their gardens, where their descendants of the 



