CULTURE OF FAVORITE PLANTS. 
of frost, being often seen piercing through the late-lying snow. They like a good, rich 
soil, but will not disdain to grow in even a poor one, though of course with some preju- 
dice to the strength and beauty of leaf and flower. The more moisture the better, pro- 
vided only that it be not stagnant. In outdoor growth they may be left undisturbed for 
years; and such annuals as Mignonettes, Petunias and the like, may he sown in the same 
beds while the Scillas are having their season of rest throughout the whole summer. 
They are self-propagating by the outgrowth of their tubers, or by their ripened seeds, if 
the soil be not too much disturbed; and can of course be propagated hy the cultivator in 
the same way. The effect of a mass of their flowers blooming in the early spring amidst 
the belated snow is picturesquely beautiful; they will bloom all the earlier for having been 
planted in some quiet, sheltered nook. The bulbs can be taken up and cared for as in the 
Crocus, but it is really of no advantage, as they will take care of themselves and do better 
if left undisturbed. 
SHDUM. 
OMMONLY known by the name of Wall-pepper, or Pepper-moss, 
the Sedum acre is a low-growing, thick-leaved plant of the Orpine 
family. The Sedum Sieboldii is another species of a higher growth, 
brought from Japan by the eminent traveler and Japanese explorer, 
Dr. P. F. Von Siebold. Both are favorite rock plants, and extensively 
cultivated in windows as well as for rock work, being of a hardy 
“habit and requiring but little care. The S. acre is much used for edgings or 
borders, and withstands the frost of even our northern latitudes. Spreading 
broadly along the ground, and rising to a height of from one to two inches, it 
resembles a carpeting of moss, but surpasses these plants in bearing a very con- 
siderable number of bright-ycllow flowers during the season of bloom. Some 
rocky, barren districts in Europe are rendered quite picturesque by the large 
masses of the Sedum that grow in the fissures and on the ledges. The S. Sieboldii is a 
prettier as well as a larger plant than the S. acre, and its peculiar growth in pot culture ren- 
ders it a more universal favorite. Its stems gracefully droop over the edge of the pot to 
a length of from nine to fifteen inches, sending out a cluster of three roundish leaves at 
intervals about an inch apart along the whole length, and producing a terminal cluster of 
greenish-white flowers to each stem. There are some varieties with very prettily varic- 
gated leaves, and some with the leaves almost entirely white and having a purplish fringe 
along the outer edge. Being thick and fleshy, they present an appearance of wax leaves. 
Any sandy soil will grow the Sedums well, and they require no manure, liquid or otherwise. 
The S. Sieboldii will be the better for a season of rest for two or three months; and 
can be propagated from cuttings of about two inches in length, after the manner of the 
Cactus; while the S. acre is generally best propagated by divisions of the old plant. A 
laterand more hardy variety is the S. macrophyllum, or large-leaved, which is rapidly 
rising into favor. Being easy of cultivation, and generally of a variegated foliage, it 
commends itself asa special favorite for indoor or outdoor ornamentation. 
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