270 
THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 
Pulverulenta self -sow themselves freely and are apt to 
be troublesome to keep in bounds. Pulverulenta some- 
times dies out in winter. Most of these plants require 
renewing- once in three years. They can be divided early 
in spring or after blooming. I like to raise the new stock 
from seed because the seedlings give the finest blooms. 
Adonis vernalis, Adonis amurensis having Anemone- 
like yellow flowers and Eranthis hyemalis with yellow 
flowers surrounded by a whorl of shining green leaves 
are both pretty spring flowers and easy to grow. 
Bloodroot, Sanguinaria Canadensis, is also a pretty 
plant when set in good size clumps. They are seen to 
best advantage when planted among deciduous shrubs. 
The Virginia Cowslip, Mertensia Yirginica, is a strik- 
ingly beautiful plant sending up graceful pannicles of 
blue flowers. It will seed itself very freely and grow 
vigorously in any place. 
Mertensia ciliata flowers later and is not as fine as 
Yirginica but is worthy of a place in the rockery. 
The Trilliums are grand when in bloom, especially the 
White Wood Lily, T. grandiflorum. They show to good 
advantage when planted among hardy ferns. They are 
also one of the best plants to associate with the earli- 
est flowering bulbs to screen from view the withering 
foliage of Crocus and other bulbs. If planted about a 
foot apart they make a complete mat of green dotted 
with white flowers as pure as any lily. Trillium sessile 
and sessile Californicum and Trillium undulatum while 
interesting cannot be compared to grandiflorum for 
beauty. They will thrive in any moist position or even 
in a bog but to have the foliage fully developed they 
must be in the shade. 
Orobr.s vermis, (Spring Bitter vetch) has pretty blue 
pea-like flowers, grows well in dry positions and is a 
very attractive plant about a foot tall. The white flow- 
ered form of this plant should also be grown. 
Where they can be given a very moist situation the 
Trollius are easily grown plants of compact habit send- 
ing the fine yellow flowers well above the leaves. The 
Orange globe has proved to be the best of the several 
kinds I have tried. 
There are no plants superior to the Phlox for rock- 
gardening. Of the erect growing kinds Phlox divaricata 
and divaricata alba, are the best, the first named has 
lilac purple flowers and the latter white or whitish blos- 
soms. They do well in all situations where they are in 
sunlight part of the day and have good drainage. Divar- 
icata Laphami is worth having, it is later in blooming 
and much taller growing than the first named varieties. 
The lasting qualities of the flowers are not equalled by 
anv plant I am acquainted with. 
Phlox subulata when seen in large masses creeping 
among or over half burried stones is a gorgeous sight. 
They are fine plants for covering dry or stony banks 
or to hide from view any artificial effect caused by the 
way stones are set. 
A place in full sunlight is necessary. While they 
will grow in shaded situations they are sure to give few 
flowers poor in color. There are a number of varieties 
of this plant differing only in the color of the blossoms, 
which varv from white to magenta with a deeper shade 
in the centre. 
The worst trouble with these prostrate evergreen plants 
is to keep the foliage in good condition through the 
winter. If protected with a covering the foliage rots 
and they sunburn badly if left without protection. How- 
ever, as they quickly produce new leaves the unslightli- 
ness is soon removed. The new Phlox Arendsi is worth 
considering as a subject for the rockery if put in a suit- 
able position. 
The Rock-Cress, Arabis albida, is a fine plant of trail- 
ing habit and in rich soil is rampant growing. The flow- 
ers are white and very showy. The double flowered 
form is also a fine plant and blooms later than the single 
variety. The variegated form is also very useful and 
can be be used for the same purpose as the other kinds. 
They flower before the trailing I'hl"X and are just as 
good as cover plants or to droop over stones. They do 
best in full sunlight. 
Arenaria balearica is a trailing plant which when 
planted near rocks or stones will soon cover them with 
small green leaves and white starry flowers. Arenaria 
montana flowers in summer and in other characteristics 
is similar to the first named. The)' both grow and flower 
well in partial shade. 
The well known \ inca minor is a useful trailing plant 
for sunny or shade positions. The white flowered vari- 
ety Vinca minor alba is the same as in leaf ami growth 
as the type. 
Pachy sandra terminalis is a dwarf evergreen herbace- 
ous plant having short spikes of small white flowers. 
Wild (jinger, Asarum Canadense, and Asarum Yirgini- 
cum are good cover plants for the rough parts of a rock- 
ery. 
The Partridge-Berry is a neat trailing evergreen and 
has white flowers. It flowers in summer and bears red 
berries and grows best in shady positions. 
The Yiolas or tufted pansies are useful to give bright- 
ness to a rockery. I like to have them in fair sized 
colonies in separate colors. > 
Viola gracilis is a very fine plant, and bears fine pur- 
ple flowers in dense tufts early in spring. It will not 
live through the winter unless planted in a well drained 
bed. 
Viola cornuta and its varieties are eas) to establish. 
They require frequent division to have them flower freely. 
The native wild violets will need to be kept in check 
or they will become a pest and choke out weaker grow- 
ing subjects. 
Forget-me-nots are too well known to require any re- 
marks and they are welcome additions in a rocker)'. 
The Aquilegias flower late in May and are very beau- 
tiful in habit of plant and color and form of flower. I 
treat them as annuals as many plants perish during the 
fall and winter months. They require a well drained 
position in partial shade. There are so many varieties 
all beautiful that it is impossible to single out the best. 
A few good kinds are A. chrysantha, yellow, A. caerulea. 
blue and white, A. alpina. blue ; there are also numer- 
ous strains of hybrids. 
The Hairbells or I'.ellflowers, Campanulas, have 
not been a success. Of the many tried only Campanula 
Carpatica. blue, and carpatica alba, C. persicifolia and 
its white variety have lived and flourished. Cam- 
panula rotundifolia has done very well. It is a large 
bloomer and the small drooping blue flowers are very 
pretty. I am inclined to the opinion that lack of sun- 
shine is the main cause of failure with these beautiful 
rock plants, our rock garden having considerable 
shade. 
The mossy evergreen Saxifragas has not been a suc- 
cess. They did well until about mid August when 
they turned black and perished. I attribute the trouble 
to the dews and the early morning sun striking them 
before the foliage was quite dried. Given a northern or 
western exposure I think better results would be ob- 
tained. Saxifraga peltata does best in wet positions 
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