THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



11 



"Plantain Lily" was the name that won the prize. This oc- 

 curred over thirty years ago, and the name has since become 

 well established. The resemblance of the leaves of the lily to the 

 wild plantains is so decided that the name is very appropriate. 



Fiinkia grandiflora, the species, has pure white funnel 

 shaped lilies as sweet as orange flowers, fifteen toi eighteen in 

 number, borne on tall scapes, each flower in the axil of a bract. 

 It blooms steadily from July till autumn frosts. The foliage 

 is of a lighter shade of green than that of its varieties. This 

 plant will not fail to give satisfaction. Among gardeners it is 

 sometimes known as F. subcordata. 



Funkia lanceolata has the~ narrowest leaves of any ; they 

 are bright green, about five inches long and three inches broad, 

 lanceolate, tapering at both ends. The lilies are pale lilac, each 

 flower in the axil of a bract. 



Funkia albo'-marginata is a vaHety of F. lanceolata. The 

 leaves are fully seven inches long' and proportionately broad. 

 Each leaf is edged with a silvery white line, constant through- 

 out the season. It blooms earlier than the other varieties. 



Funkia ^Ludulata has beautiful rich green foliage distinctly 

 blotched with white. It blooms early. Funkia ovata, the blue 

 plantain lily, has violet-blue flowers. Like other herbaceous 

 plants, the Funkias are easily propagated by root divisions. 

 Either in autumn after they cease to flower or in early spring 

 before growth begins, the roots may be divided and the plants 

 reset. 



THE TRAILING ARBUTUS 



By Adella Prescott. 



JUST why the trailing arbutus (Epigaea repens) should be 

 so commonly known as the Mayflower is hard to tell, for 

 it often blooms in April and at best is only one of many to 

 bloom in May; but one thing, at least, is sure: it is one of the 

 few things for which the good ship Mayflower is in no way 

 responsible, for it is a native of the New World and is so difli- 



