NAT. ORDER. SPIRjEACEiE. 
147 
Propagation and Culture. In all the shrubby sorts, this may be 
performed by suckers and layers, aud cuttings. The suckers should 
be taken off in the autumn, and planted out where they are to remain, 
or in nursery-rows, to attain a fuller growth. The first sort requires 
to be cleared of these suckers every two years at most. 
The layers should be put down in the autumn or in the spring', 
and may be taken off and planted as above, in the autumn or spring 
following' : all the sorts may be raised in this way ; but it is most pro- 
per for such sorts as do not send off suckers. The cuttings may be 
made from the shoots of the preceding summer, and be planted in a 
shady border early in autumn : when they have become well rooted 
they may be removed and managed as others ; they succeed in this 
way with less difficulty than in either of the others. 
All the herbaceous sorts may be increased by seeds, or parting 
the roots. The seeds may be sown in autumn or early in the spring ; 
but the first is the better mode, on a bed of fine mould ; when the 
plants appear they should be kept clear from weeds till the autumn, 
when they may be planted where they are to remain, or in the nur- 
sery for a year or two. The roots should be parted in the autumn or 
spring, when the stems decay, before they shoot out new ones, being 
planted immediately where they are to grow. The double-flowered 
and striped varieties can only be preserved in this way. They all 
afford variety and ornament in the shrubbery and other parts. 
Medical Properties and Uses. The roots and leaves of this plant 
possess astringent properties, and have been used as a vulnerary, with 
considerable success : it has also been highly recommended for stone 
and gravel. By some writers it is recommended in leucorrhoea and 
hernia : they act also as a sudorific, and are sometimes given in erup- 
tions and skin diseases. 
