254 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 383. 



happy, flowering in September. Tliis year, however, some 

 of the bulbs have come into tlower in June, possibly be- 

 cause they went to rest earlier than usual last autumn. 

 There can be no doubt of the necessity of a decided 

 period of rest for many tropical bulbs to induce them to 

 flower. 



LiLiuM Henkyi. — This fine Lily has not suffered in the 

 slightest from the excessive cold experienced here in Feb- 

 ruary last ; on the contrary, it has proved itself to be one 

 of the hardiest of all, neither small bulbs nor large having 

 been injured ; whereas the Burmese species, that is, Lilium 

 sulphureum, L. Wallichianum and L. Nepalense, were 

 killed outright by the frost. Any plant which stood the cold 

 of last winter here may be accepted as perfectly hardy, the 

 cold having been so intense that our native Ling and Gorse 

 were in many places killed to the ground. Lilium Henryi is 

 now in splendid health, the stems being a yard high and 

 nearly an inch in diameter. Seedlings raised from seeds 

 ripened in the garden here are now sturdy plants and 

 promise to flower this year. Too much cannot be said in 

 favor of this plant as a distinct, hardy, handsome, easily 

 sjrown Lily. ,„ ,„ 



^London. ^ W. WaiSOfl. 



Plant Notes. 



Philadelphus Zeyheri. — -Under this name a shrub was 

 sent out several years ago by the Messrs. Parsons, of 

 Flushing, Long Island, which is quite different in appear- 

 ance from the numerous Mock Oranges in ordinary culti- 

 vation. It is just passing out of bloom, being considerably 

 later in flower than the well-known Philadelphus corona- 

 rius. P. Zeyheri, or, as it is sometimes called, P. Falconer), 

 is a vigorous, rather upright, shrub with arching branches, 

 and grows to a height of six or eight feet. The leaves are 

 narrower, rather smaller, and usually more sparse than 

 those of P. coronarius or P. grandiflora. The narrow petals 

 do not open horizontally, so as to make a flat flower, but 

 one rather bell-shaped in general contour, although when 

 looked at directly in front the separate, boat-shaped and 

 pointed petals give it the appearance of a star. The flowers 

 are but slightly fragrant. The branchlets, each of which 

 bears four or Ave flowers, are arranged closely on the main 

 stem, and when in flower the shrub has a distinct and 

 pleasing appearance. Most of the Mock Oranges are de- 

 sirable free-flowering shrubs, and as they hybridize easily 

 they assume a variety of forms, which makes a satisfactory 

 classification of them extremely difficult, if not impos- 

 sible. 



Bkschorneria yuccoides. — This is a member of a genus 

 of the Amaryllis family, natives of Mexico. Mr. Baker 

 gives five species as well known, and five others as imper- 

 fectly known. In his arrangement of the family Beschor- 

 neria follows Bravoa, and is followed by Doryanthes, but, 

 horticulturally considered, it is very unlike either. B. 

 yuccoides forms a cluster of blue-green, sharp-pointed 

 leaves about two feet long and an inch and a half wide. 

 The plant has a very Yucca-like appearance, except in 

 color, and is exceedingly ornamental. It will stand a tem- 

 perature of fifteen or twenty degrees, Fahrenheit, for a 

 time without injury, or, perhaps, even less ; but that is as 

 low as it has been tested here. Mr. Baker, in his Aniaryllideir, 

 gives two instances of its flowering in cultivation — once 

 with Mr. Wilson Saunders, at Reigate, in i860, and once at 

 Kew in 1875. We can assume, therefore, that its flowering 

 is a rare occurrence, and it is gratifying to learn that this 

 spring one of two plants, raised from seed planted about 

 ten years ago, has been flowered by Mr. W. E. Endicott, of 

 Canton, Massachusetts. Mr. Endicott writes that its in- 

 florescence is not of a showy character, but, like that of 

 the nearly allied Agaves, is very interesting. The flower- 

 stalk was of a beautiful bright pink from base to summit, 

 and it attained a height of four feet. It came from the 

 centre of the plant, and was set with bright pink bracts 

 three inches long, placed about four inches apart ; it made 

 an abrupt, though not very divergent, angle at each bract. 



The fnids appeared from all but the four lower bracts, 

 emerging in pairs, and were bright yellow at first. They 

 rapidly assumed a paler tint, and when open were of a 

 faint greenish white. The entire length of each flower was 

 two and a half inches. Mr. Endicott considers the plant 

 valuable for its foliage rather than for its flowers. This 

 species has been figured in the Bola?ncal Magazine, 

 t. 5203. 



Iris Nepalensis, var. Letha. — The Nepaul Iris is an in- 

 teresting one, being distinct in that at the resting period 

 the plant is reduced to a mere bud, protected by the fibrous 

 remains of the sheath, and furnished with thin, fleshy, per- 

 sistent roots. Professor Forster, in Bulbous Irises, thinks 

 it nearly related to the Juno Irises, though it is classed by 

 Baker in the subgenus Evansea. I. Nepalensis is supposed 

 to be not hardy, and Mr. Gerard, after cultivating it several 

 years in rich moist soil and drying oft" the bulbs in winter, 

 has failed to flower it, so that it justifies its reputation as a 

 shy bloomer. While enthusiastic gardeners usually have 

 the patience to work at plants which offer difficult problems, 

 it is fortunate that in the variety Letha, which comes from 

 Upper Burma, we have a plant hardier and more apt to 

 flower than the type. The plants have not been tested here 

 for hardiness, but it flowered with Mr. Gerard last week 

 before the narrow leaves have made more than a few inches 

 of growth. The flowers are very beautiful, of a light lav- 

 ender shade, with the faintest reddish flush and a yellowish 

 ridge. More exactly, the color is a dense lining on a white 

 ground. The flower, delicately perfumed, is of fine form, 

 the standards spreading, and the crests rather abnormally 

 developed. The flowers are very fugacious, opening late 

 in the morning and lasting scarcely six hours. The plants 

 flower at a height of about six inches. The habit is dif- 

 ferent from that of the typical species, which has longer 

 leaves. 



DicTAMNUs ALBUS (Fraxinella). — This plant, the common 

 name of which is Dittany or Fraxinella, has been in culti- 

 vation since 1596. It is a native of eastern Europe and 

 Asia and belongs to the Rue family, Rutaceae. It is a hardy 

 herbaceous plant, some eighteen inches or more in height, 

 with dark green pinnate foliage and strongly aromatic. 

 The flowers appear in large terminal spikes in early June ; 

 in the type they are white, but a variety with pale purple 

 flowers is more common. The plant is vigorous and easily 

 grown ; it succeeds in almost any good soil, preferring a 

 well-drained and sunny situation. The propagation is by 

 division or by seeds ; the latter should be sowed as soon as 

 gathered. This plant is not only desirable for the beauty 

 of its flowers and foliage, but the peculiarity which gives it 

 the common name of Gas Plant adds much interest to its 

 cultivation. If a lighted match is applied to the flower- 

 spike when the plant is in full bloom a flame will be pro- 

 duced sometimes eight or ten inches in length ; this experi- 

 ment succeeds best at the close of the day and in calm 

 weather. This phenomenon is due to the inflammability 

 of a very volatile oil secreted by numerous glands on the 

 flowers and flower-stalks. Although much more marked 

 at the culmination of the inflorescence, it is quite possible 

 to obtain the flame at any time after the flower-buds are 

 well developed until the fruit begins to ripen. 



Papaver involucratum maximum. — This is one of the best 

 of the perennial Poppies, and superior in many respects to 

 the well-known Papaver orientale and P. bracteatum. Al- 

 though it evidently belongs to this section of the genus, it 

 does not appear to be described by the common authorities 

 on garden plants. It is probably a true species, as there 

 is no difficulty in obtaining the plants from seeds, which 

 are easily procured and are offered by many of the German 

 dealers. This plant is remarkable, not only for its large 

 flower, but also for its deep color, which is rather a crim- 

 son than a scarlet. It has the big black blotch at the base 

 of the petals, and, in general, its foliage, habits of growth, 

 etc., resemble the Oriental Poppies, but the leaves are, per- 

 haps, a trifle darker and less hairy ; the flower-stalks are 

 less numerous, much taller and stifter. It is very difficult 



