SEMPERVf VOL 



266 



SENECIO. 



she can tie the packets of each genus 

 by themselves, and put them in the 

 appropriate drawer. Where so much 

 trouble cannot be taken, a large 

 brown paper bag, or a canvas bag, for 

 each letter of the alphabet, may be 

 substituted. 



The period during which seeds will 

 retain their vegetative powers differs 

 in different families, genera, and even 

 species. Seeds of the Ranunculaceae 

 and the Crucifera?, will, in general, 

 retain their vitality for several years, 

 in whatever manner they may be . 

 kept ; provided the situation be not 

 such as will cause them to germinate. 

 On the other hand, seeds of the Cap- 

 sicum will keep for several years if 

 retained in the berry, but will seldom 

 grow the second year when removed 

 from it. As a safe general guide, it 

 may be adopted as a rule, that all 

 seeds will keep three years, and grow, 

 provided they are retained in the 

 unopened seed-vessel ; that most 

 seeds, if maturely ripened, and kept 

 in a dry place in close paper packets, 

 will grow the second year ; and that 

 all seeds whatever, whether kept in 

 the seed-vessel or exposed in open 

 drawers like those of the seedsmen, 

 will grow the first year after being 

 gathered. Mignionette seed will keep 

 seven years ; but that of stocks and 

 wall-flowers will not remain good more 

 than two years, unless kept in the 

 pod. Sweet peas and lupines will, 

 with difficulty, keep two years, while 

 the seeds of Prince's feather and of 

 poppies will keep several years. 

 Larkspur seed will seldom grow after 

 the second or third year. Notwith- 

 standing the length of time which 

 some seeds will keep, it is generally 

 advisable to sow them as soon after 

 they are ripe as practicable, as fresh 

 seeds always vegetate much sooner 

 than old ones. 



Selfheal. — See Prune'lla. 



SemperviVum. — Crassulacece. — 



House Leek. Succulent plants, the 

 most beautiful of which are natives of 

 the Canary Islands, and require to be 

 kept in the greenhouse. They should 

 be grown in sandy loam, mixed with 

 lime rubbish, and the pots should be 

 well drained. They require very 

 little water, except when about to 

 flower; and they are propagated by 

 cuttings, which must be laid to dry 

 for some days before they are planted. 

 When potted they should neither 

 have any water, nor be covered with 

 a glass ; but they may be plunged 

 into a bed of tan or dead leaves. The 

 hardy kinds are very suitable for 

 rock-work, and are increased by 

 suckers from the roots. 



Sene^cio. — Compositce. — A very 

 extensive genus, including many 

 plants which are quite worthless, such 

 as the common British weed called 

 Groundsel (S. vulgaris) ; many 

 showy garden flowers, such as the 

 Jacobaea, or purple ragwort (S. ele- 

 gans) ; and even some hothouse and 

 greenhouse shrubs. Of these one of 

 the handsomest garden-flowers is the 

 double purple Jacobese, which is a 

 native of the Cape of Good Hope. 

 It differs from the common British 

 ragwort (S. Jacobece), the flowers 

 of which are yellow, not only in 

 its flowers but in its habit of 

 growth. The seeds of the purple 

 Jacobea? should be sown on a slight 

 hotbed, and the young plants re- 

 moved to the open borders in May ; 

 if kept during the winter in a green- 

 house they will become shrubby like 

 the Mignionette. All the species of 

 Senecio like a rather rich loamy soil, 

 kept open by a mixture of sand or 

 peat, and most of them are hardy. 

 There are, however, a few Cape 

 shrubs belonging to the genus, which 

 require a greenhouse. According to 

 the new arrangement of the Com- 

 posite by Professor De Candolle, 

 nearly the whole of the genus Cine- 



