392 



THE GARDENEK'S ASSISTANT. 



shaped blossoms, which, when cut, retain their beauty 

 for a considerable time. Duchess of Albany, Duchess 

 of Fife, General Gordon, Lady Albemarle, La Belle, The 

 Bride, and Gloriosa, rich orange-crimson, are all delight- 

 ful varieties. They do well in any good garden soil, 

 either when sown in the open, or when raised under glass 



Fig. 492 —Camellia-flowered Balsam. 



and -transplanted to the open ground. Height 12 to 18 

 inches. 



Gypsophila elegans is a useful annual IS inches high, 

 bearing feathery lilac blossoms, useful for bouquets. It 

 does best in a light and fairly dry soil. 



Heliaxthus (Sunflower). — A very large genus which 

 includes some remarkably fine annuals, double and single, 

 large and small flowered ; some very tall in growth, others 

 quite dwarf. The giant single, H. animus, with its 

 enormous heads, will reach a height of 8 to 10 feet, while 

 the dwarf sorts scarcely exceed a yard in height. They 

 are admirably adapted for massing in shrubberies and 

 the mixed border. Seeds are best sown in April, in 

 a little warmth, the young plants to be placed out in 

 the open when 6 inches high, after being hardened off. 

 Or the seeds may be dibbled in the open ground in good 

 rich soil in May. There are now miniature forms (fig. 

 491), which grow into dense bushes and produce their 

 flowers in great abundance. 



Helichrysum moastromm. — One of the most popular of 



Everlasting Flowers. It grows to a height of from 2 to 3 

 feet, and flowers prof usely if planted in a sunny position. 

 Colour, chiefly reddish -bronze and yellow. If cut with 

 a good length of stem when about half - expanded, and 

 tied in bunches and hung up head-downwards in a cool 

 dry place, they dry and retain their form and colour and 

 are useful for winter decoration. 



Helipterum. — The Australian Acro- 

 clinium roseum and its varieties, together 

 with Rhodanthe, are now included in this 

 genus, and may be classed among hardy 

 summer annuals. H. Sandfordii of gar- 

 dens is H. Humboldtianum, a species from 

 Western Australia producing bright-yel- 

 low flowers ; and, like those of Acroclinium 

 and Rhodanthe, everlasting. Seeds are 

 generally sown in March in a gentle heat, 

 and transplanted to the open ground when 

 it is safe to do so. 



Hibiscus africanus major is a hand- 

 some hardy annual, 2 feet or so high, 

 with numerous large rounded blossoms, 

 their colour a delicate primrose with a 

 deep-violet centre. 



Humulus japonicus and its variety 

 variegatus are annual Japanese Hops, and 

 are most useful summer creepers for cover- 

 ing fences and walls quickly with their 

 ample and handsome foliage. The varie- 

 gated form comes true from seeds. 



Iberis. — The Candytufts are popular 

 by reason of their hardihood, and crimson, 

 lilac, and white flowers. Dobbie's New 

 Spiral has elongated large white heads. 

 Empress is similar to if not identical with 

 it. Carmine, of French origin, is very fine 

 also. The seeds should be sown in fine 

 soil, and the plants well thinned to allow 

 room for development, then they branch 

 freely and flower for a considerable time. 

 Impatiens Balsamina (The Balsam). 

 —The fine strains of this useful annual 

 seem to have disappeared from cultivation, 

 but they are worth recovering. The 

 seeds germinate quickly if sown on a 

 brisk bottom heat, when they should be 

 removed to a cooler temperature. They 

 may be sown in pots, pans, or boxes of light 

 soil, and if strong plants are wanted the seeds should be 

 pricked singly into the soil, sufficiently wide apart to 

 admit of the plants being lifted with soil attaching to 

 their roots and potted. They require rich soil, and if to 

 bloom as pot specimens they should be grown cool with 

 ample ventilation and moisture. Liquid manure may be 

 given as they come into bloom. Balsams do remarkably 

 well in an open border, in a sunny position and good 

 soil. The Camellia-flowered (fig. 492) and the Rose- 

 flowered are the finest strains. I. glandulifera and I. 

 Roylei, both sturdy Himalayan annuals, 3 to 5 feet high, 

 are useful for covering unsightly places or for the stream 

 side, but they sometimes become weeds and are not easily 

 kept within bounds. 



Ipom(ea.— The best of the species available for out-of- 

 door culture is I. purpurea in its numerous forms, popu- 

 larly known as Convolvulus major, C. minor, &c. Others 

 that may be grown in the warmer parts of this country 

 are I. coccinea, I. Learii, and 7. rubro-coerulea. It is 

 usual to give these greenhouse culture, but if planted out 



