THE EARLY WINDOW-BOX ii 



flowers of early spring will peep up at us even during the 

 frosts of January. The golden Aconite cares nothing for 

 the cold of a London winter ; he is used to Himalayan 

 snows, and shows his schoolboy shining face and frilled 

 green collar so early that he invariably takes us by sur- 

 prise, though we have been looking for him. Next come 

 the flake-white Snowdrops, "offering their frail cup of 

 three leaves to the cold sun ; " lastly the Scillas, brightly, 

 beautifully blue. 



To set these flowers off to the best advantage one must 

 have given them a dainty bed on which to lie. When 

 the Bulbs are planted some tufts of hardy, free-growing, 

 flowering Moss should be put in at the same time. The 

 common Iceland Moss does very well ; it stands any 

 amount of cold, and spreads out thickly as the days grow 

 light. Every scrap of soil is hidden, and the flower- 

 spikes look doubly pretty pushing through the green. If 

 Ivy-trails are wanted, this is easily managed, but great 

 care has to be taken with Ivy. Once started, it grows so 

 strongly, and may injure other things. Crocuses of every 

 hue blend well with any of the flowers just mentioned, 

 and bloom about the same time. Another window- 

 scheme is charming, but will be at its best a little later, 

 through the months of April and of May. Instead of 

 Moss (or as well as Moss, if we like both) we can make 

 our carpet this time of Forget-me-not, through which 

 white Cottage Tulips grow delightfully, and so do white 

 or pale pink Hyacinths. Thus grown the Hyacinth 

 loses the look of stiffness, which is its only fault. White 

 Arabis is another grounding flower, which sets off scarlet 

 Tulips (Van Thol's we choose by preference) to perfection. 

 The double Arabis is even prettier than the single, and 

 very nearly as hardy. Either with or without the 

 addition of bulbs, a very inexpensive yet pleasing com- 

 bination for the window-box, that will be a joy through 

 the most inclement May, is London Pride and Forget- 



