A YEAR'S GARDENING 



SOLANUM. Of this large family there are two or three varieties 

 which should be mentioned here — S. capsicastrum, for instance, 

 its bright orange-red berries rendering it a favourite plant for table 

 or greenhouse decoration during the winter months. It can easily 

 be raised from seed, and by sowing in heat in February and harden- 

 ing the seedlings in the open during the summer good bushy pot- 

 plants may be obtained for bearing berries during the winter in the 

 greenhouse. S. jasminoides, with its pretty sprays of white flowers, 

 is useful as a greenhouse climber, blooming throughout the greater 

 part of the year under such protection, and in the mild climate of our 

 southern counties thriving and blooming in the open, especially 

 when trained against a wall with a southern aspect. But 5. Wend- 

 landi is, perhaps, the finest of the Solanum climbers, and planted 

 in the greenhouse in a bed of moist, rich soil it makes a noble plant, 

 blooming profusely, through most of the summer, in large drooping 

 clusters of soft lUac-blue. 



SOLID AGO {Golden Rod). A hardy perennial of too coarsely 

 vigorous a growth to be suitable for the garden border, but useful 

 for the Wild Garden and waste places. There are many varieties 

 of which S. odora, with comparatively delicate growth and fragrant 

 flowers, of deep yeUow, is one of the best; whUe S. Buckleyi, with 

 leaves of bluish-green and flowers of orange colour, is of value from 

 its dwarf habit. 



SOLOMON'S SEAL. See Polygonatum. 



SPARAXIS. A very useful bulb for early summer flowering, 

 and hardy enough for open-air culture in warm districts and sheltered 

 positions. The best-known varieties are S. grandiflora and S. 

 tricolor, growing about i foot high and bearing showy flowers in 

 colours varying from white to several shades of red. S. pulcherrima, 

 though a member of this family, has distinctive features — tall, 

 slender stems several feet high, graced with pendulous bell-shaped 

 flowers of reddish-purple, which in some strains are finely striped 

 and verge into white. It requires a particularly sheltered position, 

 and when once planted should not be moved. 



SPECULARIA {Venus' s Looking-glass). A hardy free-flowering 

 annual, resembling a Campanula, with open bell-shaped flowers in 

 various colours — white, blue, lilac and purple. There are some 

 pretty dwarf forms, with both white and violet-blue flowers, well 

 suited for the Rock Garden. Although an annual it often becomes 

 practically a perennial by self-sown seed. 



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