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PRACTICAL GUIDE TO GARDEN PLANTS zaldzianskia 



A packet of mixed seeds will probably 

 yield all these varieties. 



Culture dc. as above. 



C. grandiflora. — A pretty Columbian 

 species, about 1 ft. high, having the lower 

 leaves spoon-shaped, and the upper ones 

 oblong linear. Flowers from May to July, 

 pale purple, the upper lip being blue, the 

 tube being washed with rose. There is 

 a white-flowered form not particularly 

 attractive. Notwithstanding its name, 

 the flowers of C. grandiflora are sensibly 

 smaller than those of C. bicolor and its 

 varieties. It may be used in the Same 

 way and is somewhat hardier, so that it 

 may be sown in autumn, and left unpro- 

 tected in winter in most parts of the 

 country. 



Culture dc. as above. 



C. verna. — A distinct species, about 

 1 ft. high, with slightly branched erect 

 stems and lance-shaped leaves. Flowers 

 in spring, white, lower lip of a beautiful 

 clear blue. 



Culture and, Propagation. — This 

 species is particularly valuable on account 

 of its early-flowering propensities. It 

 does not succeed well from spring-sown 

 seeds. To obtain good flowering plants, 

 seeds are best sown about September and 

 October in light, well-drained soil, cover- 

 ing them only very slightly, and thinning 

 them out if they come up too thicldy. In 

 severe winters they may require the pro- 

 tection of old lights, but scarcely other- 

 wise. 



There are a few other species, such as 

 corymbosa, with white and pale blue 

 flowers ; parviflora, purphsh-blue ; sparsi- 

 flora, violet ; tinctoria, pale pink ; and 

 violacea, bright violet, all of which may 

 be treated like bicolor and grandiflora. 



ZALUZIANSKIA. — A genus, per- 

 haps better Imown as Nycterinia, contain- 

 ing about 16 species of more or less clam- 

 my herbs or undershrubs, often becoming 

 black when dry. Lowest leaves opposite, 

 the upper ones alternate often few-toothed, 

 the uppermost ones smaller, bract-lilie, 

 entire, appressed or adnate to the calyx. 

 Flowers sessile in dense or interrupted 

 terminal spikes. Calyx ovate-tubular, 

 shortly 5-toothed, 2-lipped or parted. 

 Corolla persistent, with an elongated tube 

 at length cleft to the base, the throat 

 often hairy inside; lobes 5, spreading, 

 entire or 2-cleft. Stamens often 4, the 2 

 upper ones enclosed by the corolla tube. 



Capsule oblong, leathery or membranous, 

 many-seeded. 



Culture and Propagation. — These 

 pretty plants are grown as tender annuals, 

 and flourish in a mixture of sandy loam 

 and peat. Seeds are raised in beat in 

 early spring, the seedlings being planted 

 out at the end of May, at a distance of 

 about 1 ft. apart. Seeds may also be 

 sown in September in cold frames or in 

 pots in light soil. The plants must be 

 protected in the greenhouse or cold frame 

 during the winter months, diuring which 

 period it is essential to keep the atmo- 

 sphere as dry as possible, and also well 

 ventilated on all favourable occasions. 

 By the middle or end of May plants 

 grown in this way wiU be strong and 

 sturdy, and fit for the flower border. 

 Grown in pots for the conservatory they 

 often flower as early as April, especially 

 in the case of Z. capensis. All the species 

 are natives of S. Africa. 



Z. capensis. — A beautiful annual, 6- 

 12 in. high, with hairy stems, and linear, 

 few-toothed or quite entire leaves, the 

 edges and main nerve being usually cili- 

 ated. Flowers in spring, whitish, nearly Ij 

 in. long, in short and few-flowered spikes, 

 the middle one usually growing much 

 longer than the others. 



Culture d-c. as above. 



Z. lychnidea (Erinus lycJinidea ; Nyc- 

 terinia lychnidea). — A tender shrubby 

 perennial, 6-12 in. high, with hairy 

 branches, and oblong linear few-toothed 

 or entire leaves, 1 -nerved and nearly 

 smooth ; the uppermost ones (bracts) 

 stem-clasping, broadly lance-shaped or 

 oblong, with edges and nerve ciliated. 

 Flowers from May to July, yellowish- 

 white, about Ij in. long, in elongated 



Culture and Propagation. — This 

 species differs from the others in being 

 a perennial. It may be increased by cut- 

 tings inserted in light sandy soil in cold 

 frames in September, or by seeds sown in 

 heat in spring and transplanted in May. 



Z. selaginoides [Erinus selagi- 

 noides). — A pretty half-hardy annual 

 6-9 in. high, forming dense compact tufts 

 of slender stems. Leaves spoon-shaped, 

 the lower ones long-stallied, the upper- 

 most ones attached to the calyx, and 

 dilated at the base. Flowers in May and 

 June, white with an orange centre, 

 fragrant at night, the throat covered with 



