56 A GARDEN DIARY 
increasing as rapidly as any weed ; above all con- 
tinually in flower, even, so I noticed last winter, 
in the middle of frost and snow, and when its 
leaves were so brittle that they snapped when 
they were touched, like any icicle. 
My list seems to be already stretching to a 
tolerable length, yet there are plenty of things 
that have not yet found their way into it. Here 
is Bocconia cordata, for instance, impossible to 
do without in such a spot. Here are the spider- 
worts, both blue and white. Here are various 
spireeas, chiefly low-growing ones, such as 
“ Anthony Waterer” and palmata, the latter only 
happy in a more or less damp place. In the 
peat-filled hollow beyond quite a little crowd of 
claimants rise up for notice. A good many of 
these are now only satisfactory in the retrospect. 
Of such are Primula japonica, and Primula rosea, 
sorry-looking tufts of brown shreds, with no new 
leaves as yet showing. Cypripedium spectabile 
is in the same plight, but Hellonias bullata is 
still green, Gentiana asclepiadea has a flower or 
two showing, Lobelia cardinalis, both the older 
and newer varieties, look red and happy, and 
Schizostylis coccinea promises fairly, though it 
never behaves with us quite as it ought to do, 
and as I have known it behave in kindlier soils. 
Turning to the region of mere dryness, three 
or four rough stone steps, and a ridiculous 
little ridge, lead towards the azalea corner. 
