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JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



with it. Several good forms seem to range between A. lavis, 

 A. Novi-Belgii, and A. Curtisii. Two or three of cordi- 

 folius are not surpassed in abundance of flowers and elegance 

 of growth, the best of all being one hitherto known in my 

 garden as Photograph, a name justly objected to by my 

 friends, and which I have proposed to change to Diana. 

 Other good flowers for this row are A. polyphyllus and its 

 allies, perhaps the nearest approach to pure white ; two or 

 three good Boltonias, one generally called in nurseries 

 A. japonicus, now to be called B. incisa ; two or three corning 

 under B. asteroides of Asa Gray, a species including, as many 

 do, both good and bad, the best forms having large pink flowers 

 and being formerly known as B. glastifolia ; A. amctliystinus, 

 with dense little bright flowers, should not be omitted, nor 

 should the best forms of A. versicolor, known hitherto in 

 gardens as A. discolor major, plants of high merit. Of those 

 below three feet, by far the best belong to the Amellus group. 

 As these are often raised from seed, and vary a little, the selection 

 of them should be carefully made. Another, A. dumosus, is very 1 

 distinct in habit. A. ericoides (fig. 6) varies, but contains neat 

 and elegant varieties. A. Shortii, in the heart-leaved class, has 

 good qualities. There is a good and floriferous pink Aster, 

 long wrongly called in catalogues A. longifolius formosus, and 

 A. liorizonlalis, very persistent in late autumn. Last to be men- 

 tioned as late flowers are two excellent dwarfs which compete for 

 the name of A. hybridus nanus. One belongs to A. versicolor, 

 and is quite prostrate in habit ; the other, with pale rosy-purple 

 flowers, is of very doubtful parentage, but both deserve to be in 

 every garden, and must have names assigned which are no longer 

 ambiguous, as the two plants are very distinct. This enumera- 

 tion must be taken as indicating the direction in which good 

 Asters are to be looked for rather than as laying down any rule. 

 Above all, I repeat, let the selection be made by sight, and do 

 not trust names. 



As for cultivation, every Michaelmas Daisy should be 

 grown by reference to its ascertained habit. As far as my 

 experience goes, good and rich soil suits them all. I am 

 shy of any which run at the base ; but if such are grown,' they 

 must be replanted annually, and replanting is far better than 

 cutting round them. This annual division suits a good many 



