ST A TUEMANIA, 



22 3 



As to Kinds. 



Encouraged by the open winters, now 

 so frequent, more use might be made 

 of the Bell-flower in this way, vigorous 

 plants being raised from seed and the 

 best grown on. Itwould also be a pretty 

 variationfrom theusualplan of growing 

 them on walls to try them ramblingfree- 

 ly as in their native wilds, where the 

 trailing spray s hangas rich garlands from 

 the lower branches of the trees and peep 

 out from every thicket. The flame- 

 flower {Tropceolum speciosum), its com- 

 panion in Chili, does so well in thisway 

 that in mild districts near the coast the 

 Lapageria should be tried under the 

 same conditions. 



Therearewhiteandrosy 

 forms of the Bell-flower 

 and varieties of both kinds. That known 

 as Lapageria alba is grown in two forms , 

 one far superior to the other in size and 

 beauty of flower, and broader in the leaf. 

 Though usually freer and more vigorous 

 in growth than the red kind, its flowers 

 are more delicate ; and it is scarcer in 

 gardens, because rarely coming true 

 from seed it has to be raised from layers 

 and is more costly as a result. Its flowers 

 are beautiful, especially when in clusters, 

 and are much grown for cutting. When 

 out of flower it may be known from the 

 red kind by its rounder leaves of lighter 

 green. 



The red kind, L. rosea, varies much 

 in its seedling forms, and only plants of 

 the best kinds should be grown, those 

 of rich colour and open mouth being 

 preferred to the many pale and inferior 

 kinds to be had cheaply. There are 

 several named varieties, the best being 

 superba, or the Nash Court variety, a 



plant of great vigour and almost con- 

 stantly in flower, with leaves like a fine 

 Ivy and large flowers 4 inches long, often 

 in clusters and of deep colour, mottled 

 with paler blotches on the inside. The 

 Warnham Court variety is also good, 

 with flowers of great substance, short in 

 the tube and of deep rose-red, thickly 

 scattered with points of greyish-white 

 within. The K710II variety, again, has 

 large and long flowers, good in texture 

 and widely reflexed, flowering freely 

 even upon small twigs ; other old kinds 

 are rubra , with good deep flowers, and 

 FisherHolmes, good in shape and colour. 

 Double flowers of many plants some- 

 times occur in both colours, but their 

 form is far from beautiful. 



STATUEMANIA. 

 By common consent the British statue 

 is nothing to be proud of, and the spread 

 of the statue mania to gardens — public 

 orprivate — is tobedeplored. Theplace 

 for a good statue is within the protec- 

 tion of some public or other building; 

 a bad one is better out of sight altogether. 

 A witty French writer, M. Harduin, has 

 lately been protesting against this statuo- 

 manie as he calls it, and says, quite j ustly , 

 that a bronze or stone statue that fixes 

 the eye in a garden-square is no good 

 substitute for the effect of tree, or grass, 

 or flower. Further.that we have already 

 too many statues in cities. Assuming, 

 however, that people are satisfied with 

 statues as they are, it is surely unneces- 

 sary to spot them over the parks and 

 grass plots in towns while there is such 

 an immense choice of sites for these 

 or similar monuments in embankments 

 and bridges, where they could be seen 



