BETWEEN DIANTHUS AND EPILOBIUM 103 



competitors out of the field that no other St. John's Wort 

 has a chance of admiration, except Hypericum Coris. 



Coris and reptans set up claims together on the Merry 

 and Cherry Pecksniff scheme : ' No connection with the 

 establishment over the way, and if the quality of goods 

 there don't please you, you are respectfully requested to 

 favour me with a call.' And hence it is that these two 

 manage not to enter into any rivalry. Reptans lies on the 

 ground, adhaeret pavimento ; Coris makes a little aspir- 

 ing bush about six inches to a foot in height. Reptans 

 has green, ovate leaves ; Coris has wiry, blue-grey ones : 

 reptans has one big flower to a shoot ; Coris has half a 

 dozen smaller, more golden ones, arranged in loose airy 

 clouds. There the dissimilarity ends, for Coris is as 

 happy-tempered and as companionable as reptans in 

 every way, though I hardly think he seeds to the same 

 extent. I collected him years ago in the valleys leading 

 up to St. Martin Vesubie, where you will find him sprout- 

 ing out of almost every shady rock along the roadside, 

 among the broad mats of Saxifraga lingulata. So far as 

 I know, he propagates best from cuttings, and is only 

 unfortunate in having the unsurpassable reptans for a 

 brother. For the first half-dozen Alpines must not 

 include two Hypericums, or where should we put Gentian, 

 Primula, Saxifrage, Viola '^ And Hypericum reptans, what- 

 ever happens, can never be ousted from his place — not 

 even to make room for the only less perfect Coris. 



Of the Mallows not one, I think, has any value for the 

 rock-garden. At least I rack my memory in vain to find 

 one ; for the only lovely Alpine member of the family 

 is the gorgeous little scarlet trailing Malvastrum coc- 

 cineum, which loves .heat and drought to such an extent 

 that it makes no pretence at being hardy here. It won't 

 even go so "far as to flower even once. Ah, I have got 

 hold of another — Callirhoe involiLcrata. The Callirhoes 



