June 8, 1912. 



THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE. 



427 



SILVERY SAXIFRAGES. 



With tile star of the alpines stiU in the 

 ascendant, and the ever-increasing love of 

 rock o-ardening and its associations, among 

 the garden-making section of the commu- 

 uity a more vivid light is thrown upon 

 the 'various groups of the alpine flora. 

 Plants that were but little esteemed a few 

 years back are rapidly winning their way 

 into public favour, and novelties are so 

 frequent nowadays that one ofttimes feels 

 the difficulty of keeping in close touch with 

 both new and old. 



The glorious range 

 the alpine flowers 



of heauty which 

 afford, and the 

 'haunting iVterest that enshrouds them, 

 reaches a oulniinating point in the silvery 

 saxifrages. Here both the amateur and 

 professional gardener can find a field for en- 

 thusiastic study. The exquisite beauty, the 

 varying forms, and the deep enthusing in- 

 terest, stands up as a visiion that wili re- 

 main ever dominant in one's mind. Silvery 

 saxifrages, with the hoary colouring of the 

 frost aglint on the rosettes of folia <^e, a 

 study in quiet beauty, from the tiny minia- 

 tures which barely rise above the surface 

 of the soil to the magnificent pyramids and 

 clouds of blossom produced by the grander 



species. 



Easy of cultivation, revelling in a fairly 

 sunny position, and a soil that is open ami 

 gritty (with a distinct preference for lime 

 rubble), the silver-leaved saxifrages are in- 

 valuable in the rock garden. Adaptable to 

 many positions, you w^U find the " frosty 

 rosettes peeping from rifts and fissures, or 

 creeping like an ever-spreading carpet in the 

 breaks between, and over the face of the 

 boulders, out on the sun-lit ledges, or in the 

 nooke below, w^hile often in half-shady 

 places you will meet with good specimens. 

 But it is in the exposed sunny positions that 

 you w^ill obtain the deep silvery hues to 

 perfection, and there you will note the 

 ripening of growth which makes for a 



superb blossoming. 



The potential wealth of varieties which 

 S. aizoon affords us is certainly worthy of 

 note^ and probably no group of saxifrages 

 has given the same confusion in nomencla- 



ture as these. 



rather deeper 



But the whole group is 



gradually emerging from this cloud of con- 

 fusion, and many forms now stand out in 

 their distinctive characteristics. E-pec:ally 

 interesting are balcana, a fine, binght 

 variety, with good-sized white blossoms, 

 heavily spotted with pink; carinthiaca, a 

 dainty white, with heavily-silvered foliage; 

 flavescens, a lovely rarity from the Southern 

 Alps, with pure lemon-coloured blossoms; 

 lutea. another rare and beautiful yellow, 



in hue; and rosea, a very 

 pretty novelty with br'ght pink flo^yers 

 upon purple stems. Paradoxa is charming, 

 its heavy silvery margins contracting wnth 

 the deep green of the rest of the foliage ; 

 atropurpurea is very rare, but is worthy of 

 acquisition, if only for it^ bright rosy blos- 

 soms ; La Graveana is distinctly pleasing, 

 with its coral-red stems, carrying profuse 

 sprays of wdiite flowers, and Malyi 

 very compact form with greenii-h rosettes 

 and clase spikes of white flow^ers. 



The two forms of S. cpesia are quaintly 

 pretty. The minute form, which may l>e 

 regarded as the true species, is noteworthy 

 by reason of the tiny rosettes spotted with 

 silver, and the little wiry stems which sup- 

 port the solitarv, or nearly so, flowers. 

 The larger form,' known sometimes by the 

 varietal name of major, is useful with 

 a marked habit of creeping over the rocks. 

 A sterling rarity is represented by S. calyci- 

 flora, a species revelling in a limestone 

 formation, its spikes of crimson flowers 

 are very pleasing; S. cartilageana is a 



fnvr,ii».; + ^ c — »^^«/ln/*;no- GnrAndinff masses 



IS a 



of narrow-leaved rosettes, surmounted by 

 slender arching panicles of white flowers ; 

 S. catalaunica is somewhat rarer, dwarf er 

 in growth than the preceding, very free, 



and effective. 



A very useful group is formed by S. ooch- 

 learis and its varieties. The type is note- 

 worthy by reason of its dense hillocks of 

 tiny glaucous rosettes, and its graceful 

 panicles of white flowers, producer! upon 



the giant of the section, and compacta, a 

 dwarf, floriferous form rarely exceeding a 

 foot in height. S. crustata is a plant one 

 can recommend, its pleasing wealth of silvery 

 rosettes and erect panicles of snowy blossoms 

 will ensure it a place for many years. The 

 hybrid form raised as the result of crossing 

 S. crustata with S. Hosti is equally pretty. 



S. Engleri is a free grower, with nar 

 silver-margined leaves, and arching sprays 



C.M.2IS 



L J- 



( i:i;i;rs a.mki akn.-js. 



Flower, ot larg. size, and "l^^^- 



A.M., R.H.S., May 

 House, Isleworth. 



14. A. Worsley, Esq., 



rosy-purplo stems. The principal varieties 

 are major and minor, the former a fine 

 vigorous gem, and the latter a m.niature in 



all but blovssom. 



That general favourite, S. ^^.»tyle<lon >s 



seldom omitted from any coUet^tion, ^ts^^^> 

 unrestrained vigour, it« P^"-^^/^^ 

 blossom, and the handsome ^o^^^J' 

 bine to make it of great va ue. I ^Tst-<;lass 

 varieties are represented by pyramidalis. 

 well-known to all rock planter.; Ic^-landun. 



ied on red 



It 



needs a warm situation to flower well. 



It is a question as to which of the two 

 saxifrages that are known as S. Forsten is 

 correct, but the natural Tyrolese hybrid 

 between S. ccesia and S. mutata, ;s un- 

 doubtedly the better of the two, and worthy 

 of acquisition. Of S. (iriesebachi one has 

 nothing but praise ; it is a sterling novelty, 

 with handsome glaucous loaves margined 

 w th silver. It is early to blossom, and its 



