816 



THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE. 



October 26, I912. 



small, spiny leaves, three sharp spines, each 

 half an inch long, and solitary flowers, each 

 composed of six sepals and six petals, all 

 bright yellow. The flowers are followed by 

 purplish-blue berries. "Bot. Mag.," t. 8,454. 



CHIEONIA LAXA. 



The most popular species of chironia in 

 gardens is C. linoides (C. ixifera), but this 

 has a more erect and bushy habit than C. 

 laxa. The latter has slender laxly-branched 

 stems, and linear lanceolate leaves. The 

 bright magenta flowers are borne on stiff 

 peduncles an inch or more long- ' 

 Mag./' t. 8.455. 



PRIMULA WATTI. 



Bot. 



FLOWERING SHRUBS FOR 

 THE ROCK GARDEN. 



Flo- ering shrubs take a prominent part 

 in the schemes of rock garden plantings 

 and when provided with sutable positions, 

 they produce a pleasing effect. Due con- 

 sideration must be paid to the selection of 

 the various kinds, avoiding^ to a great ex- 

 tent^ those having gross feeding tendencies. 

 These latter, if planted in close proximity 

 to the small-growing alpine plants, will 

 quickly starve them out. Another point to 

 bear in mind is the size the slirub^ attain 

 before showing their full beauty. 



There are numbers of shrubs of dwarf 

 growth that are useful for limited spaces 

 among the rocks, and quite suitable for as- 

 sociatmg witJi the smaller plants, without 

 any fear of encroachment. Positions in the 

 background may be found to accommodate 

 those of taller habits^ and many may be 

 used to great advantage as specunen plants 

 within the environments of the rock garden. 

 Additional interest is afforded by a good 

 collection of flowering shrubs, and a more 

 natural effect obtained ^by their use. For- 

 tunately, there are many excellent shrubs 

 quite suitable for the purpose, and generally 

 the greatest trouble is to decide which not 

 to plant, especially when the dimensions of 

 the rock garden are rather small. When 

 the garden is on a large scale, flowering 

 shrubs may be made a fine feature, planted 

 amongst the rocks, and growing over large 

 boulders. Those enumerated -below do not 

 form an exhaustive list, yet they include 

 first-rate subjects in their proper positions. 



There are few shrubs that excel the aza- 

 leas for producing colour effects during the 

 early part of the summer, and both the 

 Ghent and 'Mollis types should be planted. 

 Many of the aqiiilegia species have be- f ' anioena and A. procumbens are also par- 

 come neglected owing to the great favour mf"^^^"^^ 



A small-growing species found in Eastern 

 Sikkim, where, however, it is somewhat rare. 

 It belongs to the Soldanelloid group, and 

 will probably have to be treated as an annual 

 under cultivation in this country. From the 

 centre of a little cluster of membranous, 

 hairy leaves, the spike rises about 4in. high, 

 bearing at its apex a number of drooping, 

 violet, white-eyed flowers. "Bot. Mae./' 

 t. 8,456. ^ 



CHAM^DOREA GLAUCIFOLIA. 



An elegant species belonging to the Areca 

 group of palms. Jt hails from South 

 America. Though not common in cultiva- 

 tion it was in some request as a table plant 

 when first introduced to cultivation. A 15ft.- 

 high specimen in the Aroid House at Kew, 

 has a fine crown of graceful leafage, but the 

 slender stem is not strong enough to carij 

 this head of foliage without support. The 

 larger leaves have often a^ many as forty 

 leaflets on each side. "Bot. Mag.," t. 8 457 



should be given a place among the smaUer 

 plants Daboicia pohfolia is a pretty liti 

 heath-like shruh, with rosy-pui-ple, bell 

 shaped blossoms. It rarely exceeds a height 

 o eighteen inches, and is ,a most continiiou 

 bloomer. Ihere is also a white form 



Daphne alpina, D. Blagayana, and D 

 cneorum may ibe numbered among the most 

 select of the rock garden shrubs. A par 

 tially shaded situation suits them, and thev 

 thrive in a mixture of peat, limestone ami 

 sand. The old D. Mezereum and its white 

 form are well-known, and they are both 

 beautiful subjects for the early part of the 

 — Dryas octopetala is a dwarf, creep- 

 ing evergreen, hearing white flowed 

 Bardy heaths are of great value, and 

 should be liberally planted, the tall kinds 

 in the rough-r parts of the garden and 

 the dwarfs in the limited spaces among 

 the small-growing alpine plants. Erica 

 arborea, E. australis, E. carnea, E. codo- 

 nodes, E. mediterranea, and many others 

 will he found most useful. Genista his- 

 panica, G. sagittalis, and G. tinctoria 

 plena should have a place, the former being 

 tJie yhowy Spanish Furze. G. pilosa and 

 Si, plena have a prostrate habit. 



represented by K. 

 K. erlauca. and K. 



yea i' 



angustifolia rubra, 

 latifolia. A 



glauca, 

 soil suits 



these 



THE MEADOW RUE -LEAVED 



COLUMBINE. 



cool, peaty ^ 



plants^ and they may be associated with 

 the ericas to great advantage. Ledum 

 palustre is another peat-loving subject, de- 

 lighting in a- cool, partially shaded situa- 

 tion. 



Broom (Noto- 



shrub 

 small 

 This 



The New Zealand Pink 



spartium 

 with 



Carmichseliae) is a lovely 



rshoots, which bear 



blossoms. 



spurred hybrid columbines, which are so 

 delightful in their time, and we do not so 

 frequently see the other species in onr gar- 

 dens as we did >nnie years ago. One of 

 these little-known spucies is Aquilegia 

 thalictrifolia, or the meadow rue-leaved 

 columbine, a plant which has, as the name 

 would suggest, <a good deal of the appear- 

 ance of the thalictrums, or meadow rues in 

 its foliage, just as, on the other hand, one 

 of the thalictrums, T. aquilegifolium, par- 

 takes of the leafage of the meadow rue. 



In 



Aquilegia thalictrifolia, the 



, ^- - . prettv 



leaves have their three-stalked segments 



cut into very deep, oblong lobes, hence the 



resemblance accounting for 



the fi 



pecific 



name. 



From this ris<^ stems of a:bout three 

 flowers on each, these being of a kind of 

 Jilac^blue, the sepals being about half an 

 inch long and the linib of the petals about 

 the same size, the spurs (being rather 

 shorter than these. It does not rank as 

 one of the finest of the alpine aquilegias, 

 but IS, withal, a pretty plant, whose attrac- 

 tions are rather heightened by the j.^bes- 

 eence with which its stems and leaves are 

 covered. 



The cultivation of A. thalictrifo'ia is 

 easy, and I find that it can be cultivated 

 successfully in the border or the laro-e 

 rockery. It iik.s partial shade and a soil 

 vviiK-li IS not to.'> dry, but otherwise it is 

 accommo<Iating, and will withstand more 

 drought than it really likes, although it is 

 not so fine under such conditions as those 

 It prefers. A native of the Tyrol, if: was 

 mtrodnced in 1879. It is propag.-ited by 

 seeds, whicli are .sometimes offered by spe- 

 cialists in enrli plants. 



S. Arnott. 



suited . g,^x^v,ix. 



The andromedas form a splendid groiip of 

 plants, A. floribunda, A. paniculata, and A 

 speciosa (being good subjects for peaty beds, 

 borne of th© barberries are very effective ■ 

 B. Darwmi, B. stenophylla, and B. Thun- 

 bergi are most useful, the latter giving fine 

 foliage effects in the autumn. Choisya ter- 

 nata should be planted in a sheltered spot 

 and treated as a specimen plant. It is a 

 beautiful subject, and grows into a good- 

 sized busli. The cistuses or rock roses are 

 indispenable for clothing dry sunny banks, 

 and in favoured districts, where they will 

 stand the winter, should be liberally 

 pfanted. They thrive exceedingly well near 

 the sea, and produce an abundance of blos- 

 som throughout the summer. C. algarven- 

 sis has yellow flowers, and is somewhat pros- 

 trate 111 growth; C. albidus, rose; C. cris- 

 pus, reddish-purple; C. ladaniferu« (Gum 

 <^istus), white ; €. purpureus, purple with a 

 maroon blotch; and C. villosus, reddish- 



ight in warm, 

 sandy soil in sunny positions. 



Cotoneaster horizontalis and C. micro- 

 phylla are good plants for the rougher parts 

 of the rockery, where their growths ma v 

 ramble over and among large stones. Thev 

 are by no means showy subjects when in 

 flower, yet they well deserve a place for 

 their berries, foliage, and good habit 



C ^- nigricans, C. pra^^ox 



^. Schipka?nsis, and C. sconarius An' 



posit ons, and great care must be exercised 



ing. Some, such as C. Andreanus and C 

 pr^ox, do not show their full beautv nnt^i 



good 



graceful 

 bunches of pea-shaped 

 plant does not appear to be so well known 

 as it deserves, -and it is a most beautiful 

 subject when in flower. It is of slow 

 growth^ but will reach the height of from 

 four to six feet. Rhododendron ferriigi- 

 neum and R. hirsutum are capital 

 plants, and besides these two there are E. 

 racemosum, R. odoratum, R. Wilsoni, and 

 R. praecox to choose from. Rosa rugosa 

 and its varieties are excellent subjects for 

 the wilder parts of the rock garden, where 



they are allowed to- gvovs 



Coulteri (Californian Poppy) is a 



handsome plant, with large 



with yellow 



neya 



strikingly 



poppy-like 

 centres. 



flowers, white. 



arffuta 



S. 



kind with 



Among the spiraeas we have 



multiflora, a very free-flowering ... 



white flowers ; S. crispifolia, of small sta- 

 ture and with miniature foliage clothing 

 stiff, wiry stems. This is essentially a rock 

 garden plant, with dwarf, compact habits 

 of growth. There are also S. Bumaldix 

 Anthony Waterer, g. Thunbergi, and 

 others quite suitajble for the rock garden. 



The double-flowering fuize (Ulex europ?ea 

 fl . ^^^^^ ^^^^jj^^ 



To prevent it 

 with age 



a 



^ ^^v* KJi^~MJ.yf\\^l Hi 



flore-pleno) creates 

 grouped in .suitable places. - 



becoming leggy and unsightly ^ . 



hard pruning is necessary after flowering. 

 This operation should only be performed to 

 prevent untidiness, and must not be done 

 annually, as in the case of many other 

 flowering subjects. The veronicas are 

 host in themselves for the rock 



a 



1 w 1 ^ therefore it would 



be a mistake to plant them in the fore- 

 ground. Others, such as C. kewensis 



garden, 



the JNew Zealand species being especially 

 suitable. 



It is rather a diflBcult matter to know 

 where to leave off when selecting flower- 

 ing shrubs, but no large rock garden would 

 be complete without a few magnolias. Spe- 

 cimen plants dotted about are vei*y effective 

 in the earlv narf of +Via year. Mention may 



.... Lennei, M- 

 parviflora, M. Soulangeana, and M. str- 

 iata. The St. John's Worts, also, are beau- 

 tiful subjects. 



Gnaton Gardens. E. C. Pooley. 



