1880 . ] 
STACHYS GRANDIFLORA.-WINTER WATER-CRESSES. 
167 
whenever the earth is moderately dry, it is a 
good plan to give a good watering during the 
operation, say when about two-thirds of the 
soil has been replaced over the roots. The 
object is to settle the earth closely about the 
ball and the roots, the final treading-up and 
levelling being effected after the water has 
thoroughly soaked in. For plantations, and 
also for shrubberies, the ground should be 
trenched or broken up two or three feet deep, 
or as deep as the soil will permit, but the good 
soil should not be buried under a mass of crude 
subsoil, but retained nearer the surface, the 
subsoil in this case being merely broken up 
and left in the bottom of the trench. In 
staking newly-planted trees, some protection 
should be afforded to prevent the tie from 
cutting into the bark. For trees of moderate 
size we have found nothing better, or neater, 
than portions of old india-rubber hose, of suf¬ 
ficient length, split open so as to wrap readily 
around the stem of the tree.—T. Moore. 
STACHYS GEANDIFLORA. 
URINGf the months of June and July, 
this hardy perennial herb is a great 
ornament of the herbaceous border. 
It forms, at the base, a compact tuft of its 
well-marked ovate crenated leaves, and produces 
flowering stems a foot high, erect and hairy, the 
floral leaves being sessile and clasping the 
stem, and very much like the root leaves, only 
smaller. The latter, that is, the root-leaves, 
are broadly ovate, obtuse at the apex, crenated 
at the margin, cordate at the base, and at¬ 
tached by longish foot-stalks. The flowers 
form several whorls at the upper part of the 
stem, the whorls each containing from ten to 
twenty flowers, the individual flowers being 
large and of a purplish colour, with a longish 
tube, and a three-lobed lower lip. 
The plant is sometimes called Betonica 
grandijiora , since it belongs to the group 
Betonica , which some botanists adopt as a 
genus. It is a thoroughly hardy plant, being 
a native of the Caucasus, and also of Siberia, 
where it is found near the river Terek. It 
has something the aspect of our wild Betony, 
Staclujs Betonica , but is altogether larger and 
finer. As a dwarf plant of considerable at¬ 
tractions, it should find a place near the front 
of the select herbaceous border, where it will 
grow well enough in any good garden soil, 
thriving best in a sandy loam. It is readily 
increased by dividing the roots.—T. Moore. 
WINTER WATER-CRESSES. 
S OME pans of Water-Cresses shown at 
South Kensington in January last, 
afforded a good illustration of the value 
of this mode of culture for the supply of the 
table during winter; for a very slight touch of 
frost destroys the out-door crop, and there is 
then no more production outside until the 
spring returns. These Cresses were shown by 
Mr. Hibberd, and from his account of the mode 
of cultivating them, we abstract the leading 
particulars which are given below :— 
The pan system is the best for the supply of 
winter Cresses for home use, but is unsuitable 
for commercial purposes. The crop should be 
grown for the purpose by the insertion of cut¬ 
tings, in August or early in September. The 
Cresses shown at South Kensington (January 
13 th) w'ere six weeks old from the cuttings. 
They were sufficiently grown to be cut from 
for the table at four weeks from the cuttings ; 
but they should not be cut until the plant is 
quite strong and able to bear it, and a small 
quantity only should be taken from one pan at 
a time ; hence half a dozen pans—much better 
a dozen—should be grown; and even better 
than pans are large troughs and boxes, that 
afford abundant root-room. Mere protection 
from frost is quite enough in the way of house 
accommodation, for while the plant is soon 
killed down by frost, it fares almost as badly 
under artificial heat. A good brick pit, with a 
slight service of hot-water piping, answers 
admirably as a winter Water-cress garden. The 
pans in question were grown in a light airy 
