June 2 1 "*, 1903. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
529 
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS IN THIS ISSUE. * 
Agapanthus insignis, 
We LaYe pleasure in laying before our readers a new form 
of African Lily now in bloom in the nurseries 1 of Messrs. W il- 
liam Bull and Sons, King’s Hoad, Chelsea, London. Like all 
the other forms of Agapanthus, it has been imported from 
South Africa. The strap-shaped, arching leaves; vary from 
1 ft. to 2 ft. in length, and are of a bright apple^green, the 
sheathing portion being of a pale yellowish-green hue. It 
bears on stiff, erect scapes immense heads of flowers, probably 
about 100, for we counted to ninety flowers and buds and then 
left olf. These are of a pleasing lilac hue finely shaded with 
lavender, the segments spreading out widely from near the base 
upwards in a funnel-shaped manner, and spathulate. It may 
easily be taken for granted that these umbels of blossom havei 
a magnificent appearance;, and are productive of a fine; effect 
when in full bloom. Each flower is carried on a long stalk, 
which is necessary in order to give room for the great mass 
produced. Messrs. Bull may well be proud of it, as they are, 
and consider it a new species. 
A. umbellatus in its many forms is an extremely useful 
subject for standing on balconies, door-steps, and similar posi¬ 
tions near the mansion during the summer months while it 
remains in bloom. The value of these plants is greatly in¬ 
creased by the length of time' during which they remain in 
bloom. The outer flowers of the umbel expand first and hang 
downwards, while the others assume every intermediate posi¬ 
tion until perfectly erect. 
That the new one will fulfil all these conditions we have no 
manner of doubt', considering the immense number of blooms 
which it produces. While the flowers are advancing, it is 
highly advantageous to ; supply the' plants copiously with weak 
liquid manure on every alternate watering, although it would 
do the plants no harm to give weak liquid at every watering. 
Tiie great mass of fleshy, fibrous roots seems capable of absorb¬ 
ing a great amount of rich feeding material without in the; 
least being endangered. Indeed, the vigorous constitution of 
tlie plant is such as to ensure its extended cultivation if gar¬ 
deners would give it the treatment necessary to> flower pro^ 
fusely. Being nearly hardy, all it require® is to stand it in 
some out-of-the-way position in the greenhouse during winter, 
or any house or pit from which the frost is merely excluded, 
giving it just sufficient water to keep the roots from drying 
up. In a cool place very little indeed is necessary. 
As soon as growth commences in spring, however, copious 
supplies must be given in order to encourage vigorous growth, 
and likewise an abundance of flowers. From this; it will be 
seen that the culture of Agapanthus is of the easiest, while 
the plant is most accommodating when in bloom. Many look 
upon it as a bulb, but it scarcely comes under that category, 
being merely a herbaceous plant with fleshy, fibrous roots and 
sheathing bases to the leaves, forming a neck somewhat' like 
that of a Leek. 
Viburnum tomentosum plicatum. 
The above plant is better known in gardens under the name 
simply of V. plicatum. Those who! take the trouble, however, 
to examine the flowers will sea that they are very much en¬ 
larged and barren, in the same way as the snowball tree, V ■ 
Opulus sterile. It follows, therefore, that it must be a variety 
of some more normal form. It is, moreover, merely a variety 
of V. tomentosum not often seen, except in botanic gardens. 
The plant has finely tomentose leaves with cymes of flowers, 
only the outer of which are enlarged. 
Both the type and this fine variety under notice have been 
brought from Japan, and prove more hardy in this country 
than many are inclined to give them credit for. For some 
years the plant was chiefly grown against a wall, and because 
it grew slowly it was regarded as 1 being somewhat tender. It 
grows as well, however, planted in beds in the open, and seems 
quite as happy under those conditions, having been flowering 
more or less freely for the last month. Our illustration shows 
three plants grown in the form of standards, the photograph 
of which was taken in the nursery of Messrs. J. Cheat and Sons, 
Crawley, Sussex. 
Well-furnished standards are certainly very handsome, and 
Agapanthus insignis. 
may be used as centres for small beds on the lawn by potting 
them up in the autumn and bringing them into bloom in spring. 
They may be brought into the conservatory, where their snow- 
white heads of bloom will add another feature to> the house. 
The value of growing them as standards is that dwarf plants 
may be grown under them, so that the Viburnums may be 
enjoyed without taking up any more 1 space. After they have 
finished flowering they may be transferred to the open air to 
complete and ripen their growth. 
The chief value of the shrub, however, is for open-air plant¬ 
ing. Owing to- its slow growth it may be planted on con¬ 
venient situations on the rockery, or beds upon the lawn may 
be planted with it. It is a handsome; adjunct to any place. 
