288 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 386. 



species is found growing wild in the mountains of Colorado 

 and New Mexico, and the above variety is found on the west- 

 ern border of Texas to Colorado and New Mexico. P. ovatus 

 q-rows nicely here, and has open panicles of pretty blue flow- 

 ers. It is about two feet high and has ovate toothed leaves. 

 P. laevigatus, var. digitalis, makes a desirable plant for the 

 garden. In the third row from the front of the mixed border 

 it grows vigorously. We have also a large bed in the rock- 

 garden, where the plants are pretty well shaded during the 

 hottest part of the day. In such a position the flowers have 

 lasted longer and the plants look as healthy as if they stood in 

 a sunny situation. This is a strong plant with an upright habit 

 and large lanceolate leaves. The compact panicles of whitish 

 tiowers are showy, and last for several weeks in good condi- 

 tion on the plants. P. diffusus is a half-shrubby species, with 

 a constitution able to stand our severest winters. The color 

 of its flowers is violet-purple, and they are produced annually 

 in great abundance. Its height is two or three feet, and it 

 makes a good border-plant in an open position and rich soil. 

 P. pubescens, though not as showy as some of the species, 

 thrives here, and when well grown it makes a neat small bush 

 a foot or more high, with dull violet flowers. P. conferlus is a 

 low-growing plant with sulphur-colored flowers, which does 

 well in the front row of the herbaceous border. 



Last year I gave some testimony as to the hardiness of Al- 

 stromeria aurantiaca, but this year I have been disappointed 

 with it. Plants that had been established in the rock-garden 

 for two years, and which 1 thought were perfectly hardy, were 

 all winter-killed, and not even one stem appeared above the 

 ground last spring. The question which now suggests itself is, 

 when can we call a plant hardy ? The lovely Anemone Japon- 

 ica and its white variety have been grown here successfully 

 for the last seven or eightyears, but last winter was very severe 

 upon them and very few of tliem were alive in the spring. 

 Although the plants "were killed last winter, yet we must not 

 say they are not hardy, because many of our native plants 

 were hurt with the severeness of the weather. The experi- 

 ence of last winter has taught us a lesson to be always care- 

 ful with plants that are of doulitful hardiness, and to give them 

 the very best position that can be obtained for them. Perhaps 

 the reason why the Alstromeria died was because it was 

 planted where the water atone time last winter lodged around 

 its tuberous roots. It must be remembered that this plant 

 likes a deep, rich sandy soil and a position where its roots will 

 be dry in the winter. We have a large plant in bloom now 

 that has not been disturbed for the last six years. It measures 

 four feet across, but it would have covered much more space 

 if it had been allowed to grow. It has to be checked or it 

 would smother its nearest neighbors which are of a less ag- 

 gressive character. The plant grows on the north side of a 

 hedge, where it is covered heavily with leaves in the winter, 

 and a shutter is laid upon the leaves. Perhaps the reason why 

 this plant survived the winter is because the shutter helped to 

 keep the moisture away from the roots when they were dor- 

 mant. This Alstromeria is a herbaceous, tuberous-rooted 

 perennial from Chili. It has erect stems clothed with linear- 

 lanceolate, glaucous green leaves, which are curiously twisted 

 at the base. The showy flowers are of a bright orange color 

 and are produced in the form of a terminal umbel. The 

 plants blossom for several weeks, and well-established speci- 

 mens produce large heads of flowers, which are greatly 

 admired. 



Harvard Botanic Garden. A. Lamer OH. 



Three Good Plants. 



Clerodendron squamatum.— A plantof this semi-shrubby Clero- 

 dendron, recently obtained from Japan, proves to be valua- 

 ble tor pot culture. It is not commonly seen in cultivation 

 and is a native of China. The foliage is large and handsome, 

 resembling very much that of the Catalpa, the growth being 

 perfectly erect, with terminal heads of brilliant scarlet flowers. 

 The flowers and the calyx are alike in color, so that the flower- 

 cluster is attractive before any of the flowers have expanded. 

 The plant is fond o£ sunlight. It was grown in an unshaded 

 house during all the hot weather we had early in the season. 

 It would be likely to make a fine subject for planting outdoors 

 in the extreme south and also in California. When the speci- 

 men was obtained we were under the impression that it was 

 the plant known under this name some fifteen years ago, 

 which was a climber requiring a warm house and bearing 

 bright red llower-heads in the middle of winter, with rich dark 

 green shining foliage. That plant was evidently misnamed. 

 I should be glad if "Mr. Watson could tell me if there is still 

 such a plant in cultivation in England or elsewliere. It would be 



a valuable winter-flowering climber for a warm house could it 

 be obtained. 



Haemanthus Kalbreyerii.— Though not a new plant, this seems 

 to have been reintroduced into cultivation during recent years 

 in quantity, and it has been possible to obtain this, the best 

 of the Blood-flowers, at a reasonable price. We find that there 

 is no difficulty in growing and flowering it if treated the same 

 as other summer bulbs that are grown in the greenhouse. 

 Ours were obtained last fall and placed in dry soil until spring, 

 when signs of growth commenced. We were soon rewarded 

 with flower-spikes, not so strong as they will be after good cul- 

 tivation for a year or two, but the plants are growing vigor- 

 ously in a warm, half-shaded position in the greenhouse, and 

 we hope to have good strong spikes next year. We used to 

 have Haemanthus puniceus, and flowered it several times, but 

 it is not worth the space it occupied in the greenhouse. The 

 flower-stem was short, and the head of flowers not spherical 

 like that of H. Kalbreyerii, which is the best of the genus, and 

 worthy a place in any greenhouse where things a little out of 

 the common are appreciated. In Nicholson's Dictionary the 

 height of the plant is given as six inches; this is misleading, 

 for our plants are now about three times that height and still 

 growing. The flower-stems are produced when the plant is 

 about a foot high, and the stems are equal in height to the 

 foliage. This species is a native of tropical Africa. 



Crinum Kircape.— Through the kindness of Mr. T. L. Mead, of 

 Oveido, Florida, I have a fine plant of his new hybrid Crinum 

 now in bloom. It is a cross between C. Kirkii, a species from 

 Zanzibar, and C. Capense, from south Africa. This is one of 

 the interesting results of the work of this careful hybridist. 

 From the bulb sent me last winter we have already had three 

 strong flower-spikes, each bearing about a dozen sweet- 

 scented white flowers with a decided rose-colored stripe down 

 the outside of each petal. The plant has been in continual 

 bloom from the time the first flower opened, one flower- 

 stem coming after the other in quick succession, and the plant 

 has been in the dwelling-house for some time. I am notaware 

 that any attempt has been made before to hyliridize with these 

 Crinums. I have raised seedlings myself from C. Capense, 

 and flowered them, but in Florida, where they are hardy and 

 need no special care in winter, they must be beautiful in sum- 

 mer. Mr. Mead has given the plant a compound name, in 

 accordance with the custom now often adopted with the hy- 

 brid progeny of Orchids. If, as I believe, the cross has not 

 been made before, there seems no reason why the name is 

 not a good one. In general appearance the plant resembles 

 C. Kirkii more than C. Capense (C. longifolium). The latter 

 parent should, however, give the plant hardiness. The spe- 

 cies is commonly grown out-of-doors in Great Britain, and is 

 generally hardy in favorable locations. It would doubtless be 

 hardy in many states besides Florida with a little winter pro- 

 tection. 



South Lancaster, Mass. E. O. Orpet. 



Strawberries.— Some novices in Strawberry-growing, who are 

 investigating the value of different varieties, should be advised 

 that some of the very best are the poorest unless they are 

 highly cultivated. Among the recent varieties, Beverly and 

 Barton are about worthless if they are grown like Cumber- 

 land, which, as is well known, will endure neglect better than 

 most sorts. Yale is worse than a weed if it does not have par- 

 ticularly good culture, but is a fine variety if highly fed and 

 well worked. In selecting varieties look for those which 

 make a strong plant-growth, as those which give inferior foli- 

 age must, in the long run, be discarded. Marshall and Bran- 

 dywine are strong growers among the native kinds. Haver- 

 land, also a heavy producer on mediumly strong soil, has 

 weak stems and does not lift its berries off the ground. 



Clinton, N. Y. E. P. P. 



Correspondence. 



Stones, as a Source of Fertility. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest: 



Sir, — Our soils, at least in north-eastern America, are the 

 product of glacial action. I am myself living upon a great 

 moraine, where once was a vast glacier, which dug out and 

 formed the bed of Lake Memphremagog and its tributary 

 valleys. The marks of glacial action are all about me upon 

 my farm, two miles from the lake, and about five hundred 

 feet above its surface — that surface being itself eight hundred 

 feet above sea-level. After the great glacier disappeared, or 

 while it was in the course of dissolution, vegetation sprang 

 up, and soils were gradually formed by the conjoined influ- 



