48 



FLORA AND SYLVA. 



seedlings often reproduce these poor forms. 

 At its best it is a beautiful plant, distinct from 

 C. argenteum, with long leaves of deeper green 

 and a graceful sweep,smoother also at the edges 

 and so less dangerous to handle. The flower- 

 spikes of silky texture are larger and more 

 graceful than in theWhite kind,with drooping 

 feathery plumes hung soloosely that they trem- 

 ble in the wind, and when newly expanded shine 

 with a silvery lustre. Their colour varies from 

 a pale purplish grey to a decided rose,which is 

 quite pronounced in some of the newer forms. 

 These kinds mostly bloom a few weeks earlier 

 than the common kind, their flowers appearing 

 towards the end of summer and keeping their 

 beauty longer than the sorts which hardly open 

 before the storms of autumn are upon them. In 

 fine seasons they willsometimes bloom a second 

 time, but this is exceptional. Beautiful, whether 

 for its own merit or in contrast with the pale- 

 flowered kinds, the rosy form of Pampas Grass 

 is worth a place in gardens which its older form 

 has now so long adorned. 



Young plants are mostly grown from divi- 

 sions; seedlings, though moregracefulinhabit, 

 cannot be relied upon for beauty of flower. 

 When it is desired to gather the Pampas plumes 

 for decoration, they should be cut when quite 

 dry, just as they are about to expand, and then 

 gently shaken out of their protecting sheaths 

 before an ardent fire. If this is done slowly and 

 carefully they lose none of their beauty, and last 

 far longer than when left to open in the usual 

 way. Both the white and rosy forms are grown 

 in many garden varieties, the best of which are 

 as follows : — 



White Plumed Kinds. — These vary great- 

 ly in size and beauty, from dwarf forms of 4 to 

 5 feet,tothosereachingaheightof i4or 1 5 feet 

 when in rich soil. Many of the finest forms 

 exist in private gardens as unnamed seedlings, 

 but amongst named kinds elegans is a tall, free- 

 growing plant, coming to bloom in advance 

 of most, its plumes falling apart, as they expand, 

 in a very pretty way. Bertini is quite a dwarf 

 variety, with a graceful habit and free in flower. 

 One of the finest hMarabout, a medium grower 

 with rather close club-shaped plumes of great 

 length, falling slightly apart when mature. 

 Soyeux is a French seedling, rather like the last 

 but taller, and with dense silky plumes. Mon- 

 struosus is not very tall, but a vigorous kind, 



bearing plumes of the largest size and of a good 

 clear white. 



Rosy Plumed Forms. — These are mainly 

 French seedlings, and include carmineum Ren- 

 datlerii, a neat grower, the earliest to flower, 

 and free with its pretty plumes of pale pink, 

 sometimes coming a little one-sided. One of 

 the brightest in colour is G/oire de Museum, a 

 taller grower, with drooping feathery plumes. 

 Louise Garriere bears very large spikes and is 

 the deepest in colour,combined with free robust 

 growth. Rot de Rose s is a smaller form, not very 

 distinct. The one fault of these red forms is 

 that they tarnish quickly in bad weather, and 

 lose much of their interest. 



There are several kinds the leaves of which 

 are ribboned with white or yellow, of which 

 W isserlingii is the most robust, and aureo-lineata 

 the most graceful ; but being tender and lack- 

 ! ing in vigour, they are of small interest for gar- 

 dens. There are, however, distinct forms to be 

 met with in gardens, bearing plumes coloured 

 with green or yellow, and in respect to one of 

 these Mr. Smith of Newry (who grows a fine 

 collection of these plants) writes us : — "The 

 most distinct form I have seen recently is a 

 green-plumed kind with long tapering spikes, 

 of which there are several large clumps in the 

 gardens of Belvoir Park near Belfast ; though 

 not showy, it attracts." These green and golden- 

 plumed kinds may also be seen here and there 

 upon the Continent, but so far do not seem to 

 have come to the notice of the trade. 



The White Agapanthus. — I notice that in the 

 article on the Agapanthus, which appeared in the No- 

 vember number of Flora and Sylva, all the forms 

 are treated as varieties of A. umbellatus. Nicholson, 

 in his " Dictionary of Gardening," also recognises 

 only one species; but, surely, the deciduous white- 

 flowered Agapanthus may be considered a species 

 distinct from the evergreen type. Here both do well 

 in the open, growing on a steep, grassy slope of light 

 soil, dust-dry in hot summers. The clumps of the 

 common blue are over 4 feet across, and flower splen- 

 didly, and, although the more lately-planted white 

 has not as yet reached equal size, it is quite as satisfac- 

 tory. The leaves of the white are shorter than those 



1 of the blue and less than half their width, while the 



' whiteflowers are produced much earlier. The flower- 

 spikes of the white are also considerably taller and 



: the individual blooms less densely clustered. There 

 is another white form that is evidently only a variety 

 of A. umbellatus, as it is identical with this in all points 



I and is evergreen. — S. W. Fitzherbert. 



