140 
TIIE AMATEUR’S FLOWER GARDEN. 
exquisitely beautiful little plant, witb brilliant violet and orange- 
tinted flowers, that may be likened to violet velvet richly 
embroidered with gold lace ; I. tuberosa , the snake iris, is a 
curiosity not wanting in beauty ; I. xijohioides, the “English” 
iris, and I. xiphium , the “ Spanish” iris, are charming things 
that increase rapidly by seeds, and vary in a delightful manner, 
the prevailing colour in both cases being what is called a 
“ porcelain blue.” 
Lathyrus (Everlasting Pea).—The showy plants of this 
family are well known for their rapid growth and splendid 
flowers. To cover low trellises, arbours, and the sunny parts 
of rockeries they are invaluable, and any good soil will suit 
them. They must have sun, or they can scarcely live. They 
make splendid displays if allowed to spread over a mound on 
the lawn, and indeed may be employed as bedding plants in 
any odd peculiar spots where colour is of more importance 
than neatness. The following are fine plants :— L. grandiflorus 
grows 5 feet high, flowers purple ; L. latifolius , 8 feet, purple ; 
L. latifolius albus, 8 feet, white, one of the very best for 
covering a mound ; L. mutabilis , purple, changing to red. 
The best mode of propagating is by division, but they produce 
plenty of seeds, which may be sovra in pots, and the plants 
put out where they are to remain when large enough. We 
have never known the white everlasting pea come true from 
seeds, but it may be multiplied ad infinitum by cuttings. 
Lilium (The Lily).—The common white lily is, without 
question, the queen of the herbaceous border, and the very 
type of the interesting, handsome, hardy herbaceous plants 
we are searching for to arrange in this section. Amateurs 
who love collecting have here a grand field of operations, for 
the species and varieties are numerous, and, for the most part, 
equally beautiful and interesting. But for this selection, a 
few of the most distinct and showy kinds will suffice, and it 
will not be proper to multiply words in proportion to the 
importance of the subject, for those we shall select require 
but little cultivating, and are above the need of description 
and eulogy. All the liliums thrive in peat, and may, there¬ 
fore, be planted in beds of American plants, to show their 
fine flowers amongst the dense leafage of rhododendrons and 
azaleas. But they also thrive in deep, rich, mellow, moist 
loam, and in no case is it necessary to provide peat beds 
for them, or even to use peat when they are grown in pots. 
