ANNUALS 229 



planting out. It sometimes stands the Winters in tlie District of 

 Columbia, but oftener it gets killed outright, and is, therefore, 

 treated as an annual. 



Propagation. Seeds of the earliest flowers will have ripened 

 by the end of September. They should be gathered and laid away 

 in a cool, dry place for sowing in early Spring, taking care not to 

 burst the seed vessels. The only difficulty attending the cultivation 

 of this Poppy is in the seedling stage. The young plants are difficult 

 to transfer from the seed pan to small pots, but this can be avoided 

 if the seeds are sown in small pots, with the soil firmly pressed be- 

 fore sowing and shifted on as the plants require it. 



KOCHIA (Summer Cypress). K. trichophylla is an annual 

 plant which has jumped into popularity suddenly, having only been 

 grown for ten or twelve years. It does not mix well with other 

 things. It is often used as a temporary border or hedge plant. 

 The growing plants develop a surprisingly large number of branches 

 in a comparatively short time after germination, and some plants 

 perfect enough seed which if they all grew would cover half an acre 

 of ground. The plants turn to a bad purplish red in Autumn. 



LI>fUM (Flax). L. grandiflorum has several scarlet and crim- 

 son varieties which do well from seeds. L. perenne is quite hardy 

 and well worth growing in rock gardens or in the border; there are 

 two colors, white and blue. 



Propagation. Both are raised from seeds and by division. 



LOBELIA. L. Erinus is a very popular bedding plant in 

 Europe, but short-lived here, owing principally to the high tem- 

 perature during mid-Summer. 



Propagation. A few old plants kept on a bench along with 

 such things as Heliotrope and Ageratum will give fine cuttings, 

 which are rooted beginning of March and transferred to a hotbed, 

 to make growth. The plants when grown from seed are not uniform 

 in color or habit of growth. 



MATTHIOLA (Stocks). The Ten- Weeks' Stock, M. incana, 

 is a comparatively easy plant to manage. The varieties are nu- 

 merous and there are strains obtainable with surprisingly few 

 singles among a batch of plants. 



Propagation and Culture. It is raised from seed at intervals 

 from June to November. The seedlings should be put in small pots 

 when of sufficient size and repotted into larger ones before planting 

 in beds. Clean pots should be used, as the roots are then less liable 



