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of injury. For general use none are better than 

 the old " Century Plant " [Agave americana), 

 but when they are to be had any of the other 

 big kinds are good. In buying such for garden 

 use it is well to get three or five plants of a 

 sort and in different sizes, so as to form good 

 groups rather than the dotted specimens often 

 seen. These other big kinds are rare in Eng- 

 land so that young plants for grouping are 

 best imported without soil from the south of 

 Europe ; they soon recover and make good 

 specimens at small cost, and in the same way 



African Euphorbias are too tender there are 

 several hardy Milkworts very useful for our 

 purpose, forming fine masses in contrast to the 

 more rigid growers. E. myrsinites is a pretty 

 prostrate kind and worth a place in any rock- 

 garden ; biglandulosa, a large plant of fine habit 

 and grey, almost bluish foliage and yellow 

 flower-bracts, soon makes an attractive tuft ; 

 pi/osa is also good, and several other spreading 

 forms from the south of Europe give variety 

 and interest at all seasons. Of Mesembryan- 

 themums there are many kinds which come 



such of the larger Aloes as are of value tor the 

 garden may be had in quantity. Big clumps 

 of the Ram's Horn Aloe (arborescens), the 

 finely marked umbellata, the bright green soco- 

 trina, or the bluish g/auca, are very striking in 

 appearance ; those previously named and the 

 fine hybrids of Monsieur Deleuil are grander, 

 but scarcer. The smaller Aloes, the Apicras, 

 Haworthias, and Gasterias, though many of 

 them beautiful, have no value for gardens. 

 Having settled the salient points of the group 

 with bold clumps it suffices to fill in the 

 groundwork with smaller plants. Though the 



in well, grown from cuttings laid on moist 

 sand in full sunshine. The Hottentots' Fig 

 (M. edule) with its quaint seed-vessels is one 

 of the best, a rapid grower, and nearly hardy 

 on our southern coasts. Almost any of the 

 trailing or shrubby sorts can be turned to good 

 account in clothing the stones used around the 

 larger plants. Charming little nooks may be 

 so made, responding to sunshine by a brilliant 

 show of flowers either white, rose, purple, 

 crimson, orange, or yellow. Of these nearly 

 all can be well used except the stemless sorts, 

 which are apt to damp off" and are better under 



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