302 
THE FLOWER GARDEN. 
stems 3 to 4ft. high, furnished with graceful arching leaves 
and chestnut-coloured inflorescence. Is a suitable plant to 
grow on the margins of ponds or lakes. Plant in autumn 
or spring. Increased by division of the creeping root-stocks. 
Equisetum (Horse-tail). — Very graceful and elegant 
native plants, which grow wild in damp spots or in woods. 
Nat. Ord. Equisetaceae. There are two species worth growing 
in gardens, viz., E. maximum (Giant Horse-tail) and E. sylva- 
ticum (Wood Horse-tail). Both are leafless herbs with hollow 
furrowed stems. They have two distinct forms of growth. 
The first or fruiting growths consist of simple stems with 
sheaths. These soon die and are followed by much stronger 
stems, with slender graceful branches arranged in whorls. 
E. maximum has such growths 3 to 5ft. high, and E. sylvati- 
cum stems 1 to 2ft. high. The former should be grown in rich 
vegetable mould near waterfalls, or in the fernery, or other 
damp spot. E. sylvaticum may also be grown in moist shady 
corners in similar soil. E. Telmatei is a synonym of E. 
maximum. Increased by division of the creeping roots in 
March. 
Hottonia (Water Violet). — The only species worthy of 
note here is H. palustris, a native water plant, belonging to the 
Primrose order (Primulaceae). It has a mass of elegantly cut, 
fern-like foliage, which is usually submerged in the water, and 
beautiful lilac-tinted flowers borne in heads well above the 
water in May and June. An exceedingly pretty plant. It will 
grow in water 2ft. deep, or on the muddy margins of a pond 
just covered with water. Plant in spring. Increased by divi- 
sion of the plants in April. 
Hydrocharis (Frog-bit). — The only species is H. 
Morsus-ranae, a native water plant, belonging to the Nat. Ord. 
Hydrocharidaceae. It has kidney-shaped leaves which float on 
the water, and white flowers borne in summer. The plant is 
fairly common in ponds and the margins of streams. Plants 
should be procured and placed in shallow water in spring. 
Juncus (Rush). — This is a genus of native waterside 
perennials, familiarly known as Rushes. They belong to a 
special order of their own, the Juncaceae. The only two kinds 
worth growing are J. effusus aureo-striatus (Golden Candle 
Rush), with sturdy green shoots variegated with golden-yellow, 
and J. spiralis, with leaves twisted into corkscrew-like spirals. 
These two are valuable for planting on the margins of ponds 
and water-courses. Plant in autumn or spring. Increased 
by division in autumn. 
