34 



THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



yellow center surrounded by a fringe of fine white hairs. 

 Another interesting feature is the fact that the terminal flower 

 is largest and has five petals while the others have but four. — 

 Nell McMurray. 



Irises for Winter Blooming. — The irises with bulbous 

 underground parts, such as the Spanish and English irises, 

 have become in recent years part of the florist's stock in trade. 

 Like other bulbs, they may be induced to bloom in the green- 

 house, and the flowers may usually be had in the markets 

 shortly after Christmas. The species with rootstocks instead 

 of bulbs, however, are seldom if ever forced, probably because 

 the plants make considerable leaf growth before the flowers 

 appear and the grower cannot afford the time necessary for 

 these purely vegetative processes. Some of the earlier irises, 

 however, such as Iris puinila, I. chamaciris, I. cristata, and 

 /. vcrna, which produce their -flowers almost as soon as the 

 leaves begin to grow, may readily be brought into flower; in 

 fact, there are few plants that will bloom with less attention. 

 Apparently all the}^ need is to be subjected to freezing tem- 

 peratures for some time, and if they are then removed to a 

 moderately warm place they soon produce their flowers. Plants 

 may be dug up after the middle of December, and if watered 

 and set in a cellar window will come into bloom in less than 

 a month. They need not be brought into the living rooms until 

 in full bloom. Certain strains of Iris pumila are strongly 

 fragrant which gives them an added charm. The early irises 

 multiply so rapidly that one always has a surplus that may be 

 forced in this way. After flowering, the leaves do not become 

 ''drawn" and flaccid as with so many plants, and their cheerful 

 green continues for a long time to give a semblance of spring 

 to the window garden. 



A New^ Phlox for the Garden. — For more than a 

 generation, a silvery-lavender phlox has been known to bot- 

 anists from the sand dune region south of Lake Michigan, but 



