118 LITTLE GARDENS 
Irises, English and Spanish.—The Spanish Iris, with its 
charming flowers in yellow, white, aud blue, on stems some 12 to 18 
inches high, is, or should be, one of the sights of the garden in June. 
It is best to plant the bulbs in October, although they may be put in 
in March. Like all buibous plants, they look best in small clumps. 
A fairly light soil suits them well; they are rarely so happy in heavy 
soil. ‘he English Iris which blooms in July has larger flowers than 
the Spanish Iris, and they are even more showy, chiefly of shades of 
purple and crimson. Some of the varieties are unsurpassed for rich 
and brilliant colouring. The bulbs are planted in autumn. They 
are larger than those of the Spanish fris, and need to be put out 
6 inches apart, while the latter will do 4 inches apart. The Japanese 
Tris is the most beautiful of all, although not so suitable for little 
gardens as those just mentioned. They love a moist soil, preferably 
one containing peat ; this is not absolutely necessary, but it is suit- 
able chiefly because it remains moist a long time in hot summer 
weather. A bed made up of loamy soil and peat, on the fringe of a 
stream or pond in a sunny spot, forms an ideal place for the Japanese 
Tris. 
Irises, Flag.—F lag or German Irises (I. Germanica varieties) are 
splendid plants for the little garden. They grow as well in the shade 
as in the sun, are almost indifferent to the quality of the soil, and are 
attractive all the year round. Even in winter the greyish green sword 
shaped leaves afford most welcome relief from the barren monotony 
around. The common purple kind so largely grown, although hand- 
some enough, is far less beautiful than many others. One may have 
Flag Irises in many shades of colour, and even a little garden should 
have some of the named varietics. If one wishes to increase the 
stock, all that is necessary is to divide the old clumps in October, 
replanting the pieces. Then they will have time to become estab- 
lished before winter sets in, and will bloom the following spring if 
the clumps are broken up into fairly large pieces. Her Majesty, 
rosy pink; Purple King, purple; Sir Walter Scott, bronze ; pallida 
praecox, purple and white, and the Florentine Iris are all very 
beautiful. 
Lilies,—Some of the best Liliums for the small garden are the 
Madonna Lily, L. candidum, white; the Orange Lily, L. crocéum, 
orange yellow; the Tiger Lily, L. tigrinum, yellow with black 
spots; the Showy Lily, L. speciosum Kraetzeri, white, and L. s. 
Melpoméne, white and crimson, two beautiful sorts; the Martagon 
Lily, L. Martagon, purplish ; White Martagon Lily; the Scarlet 
Turk’s Cap Lily, L. Chalcedonicum., These Lilies are very beautiful 
flowers, and in a fairly light soil, if undisturbed, are not difficult to 
grow. When planting (which may be done in autumn or early 
spring) leaf soil and sand should be mixed with the soil immediately 
around them. Ina wet, clayey soil the bulbs are liable to disappear 
during the winter. 
