98 ALPINES AND BOG-PLANTS 



or two very valuable species. Arenaria montana, for a 

 sunny rock-face, is a splendid hanging plant, forming a 

 perfect curtain covered all over with its shilling-large, 

 snow-white flowers. Ciliata and norvegica are small 

 forms, one decumbent, the other tending to be erect, 

 very near gothica, and not quite so pretty. Huteri is a 

 high-Alpine with big white blossoms, that seems to be 

 thriving in the moraine-garden. Purpurascens is a very 

 charming, free-flowering person of easy culture — a pro- 

 strate mass with glossy leaves, and pale lilac stars. There 

 is another plant, a weird, ugly thing, sent me once as 

 norvegica, with grassy leaves, and bunchy heads of 

 rather dingy-white blooms; this is probably Arenaria 

 grammifolia. As for Arenaria balearica, that delightful 

 little Corsican is a perfect weed here, in this moist 

 climate, sowing itself all over the place; and the only 

 attention it requires is the negative one of weeding it up 

 when necessary. For let no one be so deceived by the 

 apparent frailness of those brittle little stems, as to use 

 it as a carpet for choice plants. Arenaria balearica 

 forms a dense, strangling mat, in which, before long, 

 everything else, however vigorous, gives up the ghost 

 and expires. But oh ! it is a joy when the whole 

 emerald sheet of it is covered with its wee brilliant white 

 stars. Even here it doesn't like being sunburnt ; so that 

 elsewhere it may prefer shady treatment; but in this 

 climate, as I say, the plant is a very weed of weeds. 



Speaking horti culturally, nothing separates Alsine 

 from Arenaria — and the Alsines laricifolia, pinifolia, and 

 Rosani are all valuable, thrifty, easy-going plants for 

 sunny rock-work, making mats of emerald fur, and then 

 sending up big snowy blossoms on frail stems. Ledebouri- 

 ana I have only just got ; but there is a very strong 

 family likeness among these plants, and I find a prefer- 

 ence very hard to arrive at. 



