H' INDFA LLS. 



i8i 



from seed will after the second year produce seed freely^ 

 which is very weakening to the plants ; and when pro- 

 ducing seed, leaf production ceases. Why not grow 

 the mammoth sage from cuttings ? It roots as easily as 

 a coleus ; it rarely flowers and I have never seen it seed . 

 It produces a wealth of foliage. Plants of it are offered 

 by several florists. I know of no rhubarb better than 

 Paragon, which never seeds, but must be grown from 

 division of the roots. It has less acidity than other 

 varieties. I had a field of twelve hundred roots and 

 only twelve flowered, and these were "rogues." — E. S. 

 Miller, Long Island. 



A Green Rose. — While this natural curiosity is not 

 unfamiliar to students yet the floricultural world in 



A Green Rose. One-half Natural Size. 



general looks wise upon its being mentioned and gently 

 murmurs "humbug." 



Although I had frequently heard of this variety of rose 

 yet, until this past summer, it had never been my good 

 fortune to see a specimen. This past season, however, 

 the Hon. T. V. Welch, of Niagara Falls, had a fine 

 plant growing in his rose bed, it having been received 

 among a mixed lot of tea roses he had purchased. 



The soil having been well prepared, this, as well as 

 the other roses, made a fine growth, and bloomed freely 

 all summer. As well shown in the engraving, it is a 

 slender long-jointed grower, the foliage being delicate 



and of a light green color, the leaves being sharply set" 

 rated ; the young wood has no thorns, while on the older 

 portions they are not at all numerous. 



The plant is exceedingly floriferous, as suggested by 

 the many buds to be seen in the illustration. The full- 

 bloom blossom is in size equal to the La France or Bon 

 Silene, but it is very double, being a rosette of fine leaf- 

 lets, which if of a bright hue, would be considered very 

 desirable : but the color is a faintly pinkish-green, thus 

 being rather inconspicuous in appearance. 



The flower, however, when expanded, has a very 

 pleasant delicate fragrance, which, while not so pro- 

 nounced as in the teas generally, yet is quite noticeable. 

 Of course, among so large and brilliantly colored a 

 family as the rose, this green member is hardly to 

 be considered worthy of cultivation, yet it is very 

 interesting as a botanical specimen, for it is an ex- 

 cellent example of [the fact that our most prized 

 flowers all depend upon their colors, in being more 

 than a mere mass of leaves, as this, besides a slight 

 variation in shape and size, is the most that distin- 

 guishes the petals of flowers. — Elmer E, Summey. 



The Water Hyacinth. — On page 55 of January 

 American' Garden is a faithful picture of the water 

 hyacinth [Foiitederia crnssipes, major), which in- 

 terested me. Four years ago I placed a small plant 

 of the above in one of my lily ponds, and it attrac- 

 ted so much attention that I will give your readers 

 my experience of this curious water plant. 

 ^ It is not the flower alone that arrests attention, 

 — *- but the whole behavior of the plant. The water 

 '-^ hyacinth is, to a certain extent, independent of the 

 soil above which it floats. I presented a beautiful 

 plant of the above to a friend who placed it in a 

 common candy jar. There was no soil in the jar, 

 and yet, throughout autumn and winter, the plant 

 grew and flourished, and blossomed for a long time. 

 Its fine silky flowers, with its balloon-like balls, 

 make a carp pond a grand sight to see. The leaves 

 of this plant are borne on curious, swollen stems, 

 which, at first sight, appear like those of a pitcher- 

 plant. These stems are filled with delicate spongy 

 air cells. The plant floats around on the water. 

 The flowers are a beautiful lilac-rose color There 

 is a great upright spike which produces flowers in 

 abundance the whole summer, A small plant 

 spread itself over a large surface in our ponds, covering 

 at least 100 square feet. The wind seems to drive the 

 plant around as if it has not taken hold of the soil below. 



There are several kinds of pontederia, and all thrive 

 well in warm shallow water. The black, delicate and lace- 

 like roots are very attractive. They are useful to carp 

 as a spawning place. This plant can be kept in a green- 

 house or on a window all winter. An armful taken from a 

 pond and placed in a fountain during a fair will attract 

 thousands of visitors. The flower stalks will stand erect 

 all the time ; they are, therefore, preferable to our fine 

 lilies as plants for exhibition. — S. H. Fegelv, Fa. 



