A YEAR'S GARDENING 



should not be thrown away. It needs plenty of sunshine to bring 

 its blossoms out properly, and its crown should be kept dry though 

 its roots love moisture. 



LIATRIS. A perennial which may be considered hardy and 

 which becomes very effective under good cultivation. L. elegans, 

 when grown in rich light soil, will attain a height of about 2 ieet and 

 bear large spikes of flower a foot or more in length, of a delicate Mac 

 or pale purple colour; while L. spicafa, a somewhat smaller plant, 

 has beautiful spikes of a carmine tint and preserves its bloom for 

 a long time. L. pycnostachya is the tallest of its tribe, growing as 

 much as 4 feet high, and bears handsome flower-spikes of deep purple. 

 All may be raised from seed sown in spring or propagated by division. 



LILIUM. All Lilies are beautiful but all are not adapted to the 

 same kind of culture, and among the manifold varieties it must 

 suffice for these notes to mention a few names representative of both 

 outdoor and indoor culture. As a stately and graceful inhabitant 

 of the garden none is better than L. candidum, the Madonna LUy of 

 the cottage garden, where its snow-white blooms and exuberant 

 foliage may often be seen to perfection. Capricious it may be in 

 finding a spot to its liking, but when once established it requires 

 no attention beyond an occasional mulching of ordinary manure, 

 and it thrives best when left undisturbed, as many an old garden can 

 testify. The nature of the soil in which it is placed seems of second- 

 ary importance so long as it has a sunny aspect and is sheltered from 

 the wind. Other kinds which wUl do well in the garden and will 

 thrive in ordinary soil are the Bulbiferum, about 2 feet high, with 

 flowers of orange-red; Chalcedonicum (Scarlet Turk's Cap), about 

 3 feet high; Testaceum, some 5 feet high, with buff-coloured flowers; 

 Humholdti, also about 5 feet high, with flowers of pinky-yellow spotted 

 with dark red; and the well-known Tiger LUy, especially its variety 

 called Splendens, which is of fine growth, often 7 feet high, and bears 

 magnificent flowers, though blooming rather late. Among those that 

 are suited for indoor culture in pots are WalUchianum, Lowi 

 primuUwum, Auratum and Longiflorum. For soil, good turfy loam 

 mixed with sand (sea-sand, if possible, as it retains moisture) make 

 an excellent compost, and the bulbs should be planted in pots about 

 two and a half times their diameter, and covered with some 2 inches 

 of sou. They may be left in a cold frame until weU rooted, but when 

 brought into the house they should be carefuUy watered, for to allow 

 a full-rooted pot to get dry would seriously endanger the plant. 



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