286 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 334. 



sorriest of all, being an abundant bloomer — so much so, that it 

 often flowers itself to death. These and many more can be 

 used along rocky paths, and always attract attention. Saxi- 

 frages are also useful in similar situations, but we are some- 

 what restricted with these ; none of the crustaceous section 

 apparently are able to endure either our bright sunshine in 

 summer or cold in winter. 



Among Cranesbills, the showy, but generally despised native, 

 Geranium maculatum is the first to bloom in spring, and is 

 long ago past. Now we have C. Ibericum platytoenium, a 

 handsome blue-purple ; C. Endressi, rose-pink ; C. san- 

 guineum, deep rose, and C. pratense, white and blue — all 

 bright showy kinds with handsome foliage. The Giant Herons- 

 bill, Erodium Manescavi, holds out well ; once we thought it 

 was lost, being reputed tender in England, but we have made 

 the discovery in this case, as with others, that the succulent 

 roots decay from excessive moisture rather than cold. E. 

 macradenium is a gem among them, with finely cut foliage 

 and delicately veined rosy flowers. Achillea aurea, yellow, 

 and A. Mongolica, white, are both good Yarrows, and the best 

 of the low-growing kinds. The majestic Delphinium Przewal- 

 skianum is just opening, and although not a particularly bright 

 yellow, is unique among perennial Larkspurs. Armeria mari- 

 tima, the Sea Pink, and Astragalus Monspessulanus, theMontpe- 

 lier Milk Vetch, continue, and so do the Alpine and Iceland 

 Poppies. A considerable proportion of these are becoming 

 double, which seems to be the case with all Poppies undercul- 

 tivation. They are not as handsome as the single kinds. 

 Lotus corniculatus occupies crevices along the paths, threat- 

 ening in some places to take possession altogether. Along 

 the edge of a wild shrubbery bordering the rock-garden, we 

 planted a few years ago a lot of the perennial Peas, white and 

 pink, and here they climb and make a very effective setting. 



Wellesley, Mass. T. D. H. 



Hardy Plants which Flower in Early July. 



THE nettle-leaved Mullein (Verbascum Chaixii), a biennial 

 from southern and central Europe, is a very pretty plant. 

 The word Mullein seems to carry with it a prejudice, since it is 

 the name of one of our com monest weeds, but there are several 

 beautiful species of Verbascum perfectly hardy and not diffi- 

 cult to grow. The subject of this note, which came into flower 

 about July 1st, grows nearly three feet high, bearing its bright 

 yellow or sometimes white flowers in a racemed panicle. The 

 flowers are best in the first half of the day. Toward night they 

 partly close or seem withered, although they open again as 

 bright as ever the next morning. 



Among the most attractive of the California bulbous plants 

 now in bloom isCalochortus macrocarpus, with its erect stems 

 nearly two feet high and large handsome light blue flowers. 

 C. venustus, in several varieties, is also in bloom, and I cannot 

 think of a more attractive group of flowering plants at this sea- 

 son than a clump of this species, with each variety represented. 

 I believe this species more than any other must have suggested 

 the common name Butterfly Tulips, which is applied to many 

 of the Calochorti. Two other species now in bloom are 

 C. longibarbatus and C. splendens, both very pretty and free- 

 flowering. 



Brodiasa capitata has two forms, a white and a blue one, 

 which flower simultaneously, and it seems to me should be 

 grouped together. I am greatly pleased with B. pedunculata, 

 which I have in flower for the first time. The flowers are 

 borne in a large spreading umbel which rests on a stem six 

 inches high. Each individual flower has a stem of its own 

 about as long as that of the umbel. The flowers, ten to twenty 

 in each umbel, are nearly white, striped with blue outside and 

 nearly an inch wide. They open in long succession and are 

 quite durable. 



Cephalaria Tartarica is another interesting plant at this sea- 

 son, when it bears heads of creamy yellow flowers two inches 

 wide on ample stems for cutting. The plants are about six 

 feet high. 



Coronilla varia, with its pink and white flowers in drooping 

 umbels, is also making a pretty show. It is surprising to see 

 how much of a spread a very few of these plants will make, 

 and the flowers may be used to great advantage for cutting. 

 Very useful, too, at this time is Gaillardia grandiflora. Its 

 large red and yellow daisy-shaped flowers are so durable, 

 either when left on the plants or when cut and placed in water, 

 that one can hardly afford to be without it. A good companion 

 to Gaillardia, flowering about the same time, is the Chamo- 

 mile (Anthemis tinctoria), a plant which produces, in great 

 abundance, pretty bright yellow flowers, a little smaller than 



those of the common field Daisy. It is also good for cutting. 

 It needs a good deal of room. 



Pentstemon Rcezlii, from California, grows well here. It 

 has a great abundance of pretty bluish-purple flowers about 

 an inch long. It is a low plant, scarcely a foot high. The 

 ordinary collected plants are rather troublesome subjects to 

 establish, but I think the young seedlings can be transplanted 

 with little loss. 



Few hardy plants afford more or prettier blooms than 

 Linum flavum, and its stems are of fairly good length for 

 cutting. It resents imperfect drainage. Lychnis Haageana 

 and L. grandiflora, both having large showy red flowers, bloom 

 about this time. They are quite showy in the border, but not 

 so well suited for cutting. L. Chalcedonica, just going by, is 

 also very fine when at its best, but is shorter-lived than some 

 others of the genus. 



GEnothera fruticosa major andCE. riparia are both very fine 

 species, with good rigid, bright yellow flowers. 



Of the Lilies, L. Grayi is just passing out of bloom. The 

 various forms of L. elegans are nearly past, while L. concolor, 

 with its small and bright scarlet flowers, is just at its best. I 

 find that this species and its apparently closely allied relative, 

 L. Coridion, do very well in this climate and soil. A sandy or 

 slaty soil suits them, and I never have succeeded in persuad- 

 ing them to bloom in a heavy soil. The largest Japan-grown 

 bulbs I have been able to secure will nearly double in size 

 here in a single season, and the second season the stalks are 

 fully a third taller. L. concolor I think the more attractive of 

 the two, and when established in the right soil yields a good 

 supply of choice flowers. L. bulbiferum, from Europe, isjust 

 in bloom. It is a very pretty species, with light red flowers. 

 L. Canadense is now at its best, and the variety of shades this 

 plant gives, from light yellow to dark red, is very pleasing. 

 L. tennifolium has already bloomed, though there is occasion- 

 ally a late flower still to be seen. L. Krameri, which is just com- 

 ing into bloom, has a very delicately tinted flower, a reddish- 

 white. It is a species that, with me, will not bloom every year. 

 Whether the bulbs require a season's rest every other year, or 

 whether this soil is not suited to it, I am not able to say. 

 L. Humboldtii, one of the finest of the California group, isjust 

 in bloom. It requires two or three years to establish this plant. 

 L. Hansoni never blooms the first season with me. In- 

 deed, those which flowered this year did not come up at all 

 last season, and I supposed them dead. They seem to have 

 been growing, however, and came up very strong the second 

 season after planting. _ ,, „ , , 



Charlotte, vt. F. H. Horsford. 



Carnations and Pinks. 



IN spite, or perhaps because, of the great popularity of Car- 

 nations as trade flowers we find little or no improvement 

 among them as garden-plants. Until the advent of the Mar- 

 guerite Carnations, a few years since, we were practically with- 

 out a race of free-flowering garden varieties, and are yet 

 without any remontant Carnations which are perfectly hardy, in 

 an old stage, in this latitude. The old border kinds we have, 

 such as Crimson Clove and Gloire de Nancy, with beautiful, 

 fragrant flowers of the largest size, but their thick woody stems 

 are split by frosts, and they require constant renewal if they 

 are to be retained, and they furnish only one crop of flowers. 

 Of even stronger habit, the Souvenir de la Malmaison, while 

 hardy as the Cloves, is rather a plant for the glass house, 

 under which shelter it is easily the largest and handsomest of 

 the Carnations. Besides the exqus'ite old blush, there are now 

 to be had pink and crimson Malmaisons. These are plants 

 for private growers, as they are not free enough in flower for 

 trade purposes. 



Treated as biennials, ordinary Carnations are fairly satisfac- 

 tory in giving a profusion of bloom the second year, and from 

 good seed one has a fair lot of double, though seldom first- 

 rate, flowers, and many single ones. Seed may be planted 

 now, and in this latitude the young plants will winter out 

 without protection. They sometimes linger over the second, 

 or even the third year, but usually are scarcely worth saving. 

 The seed one secures at the florists' indicates that the Carna- 

 tions considered worth saving must primarily have the long- 

 stemmed habit, which, while perhaps important, if their flow- 

 ers are to be cut, is fatal to their effectiveness in the garden, as 

 the plants must be staked or brushed so that flowers can be 

 enjoyed — if flowers can ever be enjoyed among a lot of stakes. 

 Of course, by retarding the florists' Carnations and wintering 

 them in frames, one can have all the fashionable varieties for 

 summer flowering, but they are all bred to long stems and are 

 not what we wish for gardens. 



