210 
Rustic Adornments 
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quantity of slaked lime or old mortar. Without a fair amount of lime 
in some form or other in the soil, it is next to impossible to get 
mignonette to succeed. 
A word must now be said in favour of hardy perennials for growing in 
beds. These, of course, have long been favourite border plants, but until 
within the last few years their value for bedding purposes has not been fully 
appreciated. The pink, sweet william, carnation, auricula, primrose, poly¬ 
anthus, pansy, and viola, cannot well be surpassed for brilliancy, long 
duration of flowering period, and general adaptability for small beds. With 
even this small selection of plants it is possible to have a display of bloom 
from March to October, and with the exception of the carnation, which 
requires to be propagated annually by layering, they only require replanting 
every three or four years—a consideration for those with limited purses. To 
these may be added taller kinds, as the Japanese Wind-flower ( Anemone 
japonica ), Canterbury bell, Michaelmas daisies, hybrid pyrethrums, lilies of 
sorts, perennial larkspurs, potentillas, aquilegias, early-flowering chrysanthe¬ 
mums, campanulas, perennial cornflowers, and lychnises, all specially suitable 
for beds, &c. Early-flowering chrysanthemums, Lilium e/egans, and Aster 
amellus bessarabicus , make a showy trio for a large bed. The lilies flower in 
June, the chrysanthemums in July and August, and the asters in September. 
If such a bed be edged with primroses or polyanthuses the flowering season 
will then extend from March to October. Hybrid pyrethrums and Anenione 
iaponica do well together, the former flowering in June and July, and the 
latter in August and September. Violas may be used as an edging to such 
a bed. 
In fact, no end of pretty combinations of hardy plants may be 
obtained in small or large beds ; and while they are quite as showy, they are 
really less expensive than the ordinary bedding plants, because they will last for 
several years in the same position. Violas are becoming very popular bedding 
plants, and do well either in masses or as an edging to taller plants. They 
are wonderfully showy, free flowering, and continuous blooming, so that we 
feel we cannot speak too highly of their many good qualities. Pansies, again, 
are remarkably fine bedding plants, their season of flowering extending from 
spring until autumn. 
In planting hardy perennials in beds, it is most important that the ground 
be properly prepared beforehand by deep trenching and liberal manuring, as 
the supply of food is required to last for at least three years. It is of little use 
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