456 



THE BOOK OF GARDENING. 



purple on the exterior. Y. g. acuminata bears some resemblance 

 to the type, but differs in its leaves being narrower and of a 

 deeper green. Y. g. Ellacombei is another beautiful variety, free 



in growth, with broad leaves. 

 Y. g. superba is distinct from 

 the foregoing, on account of its 

 dwarfer habit, and flowering in 

 quite a small state; the greenish- 

 white flowers are borne in branch- 

 ing panicles. Y. g. variegata is 

 a pretty variegated form and quite 

 constant. Y. glauca, a stemless 

 species, deserves a sheltered 

 nook ) its leaves are broad and 

 glaucous green. Y. filamentosa 

 (Silk Grass), a beautiful North 

 American species, has been culti- 

 vated in this country since 1675. 

 It is almost stemless, and along 

 the edges of the arching leaves 

 are numerous thread - like fila- 

 ments, which give the plant a 

 characteristic appearance. The 

 spikes carry an abundance 

 of pure white flowers. Y. f. 

 flaccida, also nearly stemless, is a 

 distinct variety, with leaves nearly 

 2oin. long, with short thread- 

 like appendages along 

 the leaf-margins. Y. f. 

 glaucescens is a lovely 

 glaucous - leaved form. 

 Y. f. variegata is 

 a lovely variety, 

 with cream-white 

 variegation. Al- 

 though it suc- 

 ceeds out of 

 doors, it grows 

 more freely, and 

 the leaf colour is 

 more beautiful 

 when grown 

 under glass. 

 Y. angustifolia 

 (Fig. . 288) is a dwarf sort, with long, narrow, recurving leaves, 

 supplied with narrow threads. All points ' considered, Y. re- 

 curvifolia (Y. pendula, Y. recurva), a native of the Southern 



Fig. 288.— Yucca angustifolia. 



