THE LADIES’ FLORAL CABINET. 
65 
pie, the Amaranthus. We see these in old-fashioned 
gardens, represented by Amaranthus candatus, “ Love 
lies bleeding,” usually crowded in such close masses 
that all its beauty of form is lost. It is looked upon as 
rather a coarse thing, but give it room to develop, with 
harmonious surroundings, and, like the misunderstood 
and slightly appreciated Hollyhock, what appeared coarse¬ 
ness when contrasted with smaller plants, is a stately and 
massive beauty. It may be planted in large vases, or 
dotted among low-growing plants. Its drooping spikes 
of dark-red flowers last from July to September. A. 
sanguineus is noticeable from the dark-red leaves. It 
grows about three feet high, and bears quantities of 
purple flowers. A. speciosus is a very large kind, often 
growing to a height of five feet. It is most effective in 
the autumn. A. tricolor is distinguished by the color of 
the leaves, which are remarkably variegated. The lower 
half, to the centre is dark red ; above this is a large spot 
of light yellow, while the point of the leaf is green. The 
variegation often varies somewhat, though retaining 
these colors. These plants may be sown in April and 
pricked out in May, then finally planted out after the 
frost is over. They do well in seaside localities. The 
foliage in all of these varieties is very fine, and is very 
effective when planted with large subjects, such as Ri- 
cinus or Cannas. The Aralias offer a diversity of appear¬ 
ance and character varying in habitat from the temperate 
regions to the tropics, but they are all, without exception, 
most graceful foliage plants. Some are merely herba¬ 
ceous annuals or perennials, others are tree-like in their 
growth. Aralia spinosa, the Angelica Tree, has hand¬ 
some pinnate leaves, the leaflets deeply serrated. The 
stem is covered with formidable spines. It grows in an 
umbrella-like head, and is very striking when in an iso¬ 
lated position. It bears numerous umbels of small 
white flowers in the autumn. It is a native of Virginia, 
but would no doubt stand the winter in the latitude 
of New York if slightly protected. Aralia racemosa. 
American Spikenard, is a native herbaceous species, with 
large pinnate leaves, and umbels of white flowers, simi¬ 
lar to the foregoing. Aralia japonica is an herbaceous 
plant, with large undivided leaves. It is useful for group¬ 
ing, and grows remarkably well in the dwelling-house. 
There are other very fine Aralias requiring shelter 
through the winter ; this class of subtropical plants may 
be treated in a future paper. E. L. Taplin. 
SPRING FLOWERS—MARCH. 
O NLY a very few garden plants come into blossom out 
of doors in March, in the Northern States, but in 
April we have many. Among the March flowers are 
Crocuses and Snowdrops on warm and sunny slopes ; 
the winter Aconite with parsley-like leaves and buttercup 
flowers in some warm, cosey corner near the bushes ; blue 
and white Hepaticas, so bright and pretty, where shaded 
from the warm sunshine of summer, but unshaded in 
spring; blue Siberian Squills that grow anywhere, in 
sunshine or shade, and multiply exceedingly .by seed ; 
the Christmas Rose, like some large white Anemone, and 
others of its genus with homelier and more sombre 
flowers, and that love a moist and faintly shady spot 
where they are sheltered from the winds ; Iris reticulata, 
a little bulbous beauty from the Caucasus with gold and 
purple fragrant flowers, and another pretty little Iris with 
a horrid name from Turkistan, namely, J. Kolpakow- 
skiana; the spring Meadow Saffron not unlike a purple 
Crocus; and on warm dry sunny banks we may expect 
to find fragrant Violets and blue Periwinkle. The Me- 
zereon is the showiest among shrubs ; it must have open 
sunny quarters. We also have Andromeda japonica, 
whose white flowers open before the snowy season is 
past; A. floribunda of our Alleghanies, not unlike the 
last but later, and which does not open well till April; 
Erica carnea, profuse and pretty, but is a little tender; 
the evergreen Siberian Rhododendrons; the Cornelian 
Cherry and Buffalo-berry. And it all depends on the 
season and situation whether the Zanthorhiza, Spicebush, 
and Leather-wood begin to bloom in March, or wait till 
April. 
In the flower garden in March, we cannot do much, 
unless the ground is free from .frost and the weather 
favorable. It is dangerous to uncover plants that have 
been protected by a mulching, except in the case of 
March-blooming plants, and even then, only remove part 
of the mulching. The searing winds of March are often 
more destructive to plants than the zero frosts of January. 
While it is all very well to mulch late-starting plants 
with a coating of litter or leaves, you can now perceive 
how much better it is to mulch bulb-beds and early- 
growing plants with short manure, half rotted leaves or 
similar light material that we need not remove at all in 
spring, but, instead, allow the plants to grow up through 
it. Over evergreen plants, as prostrate Veronica, Erysi¬ 
mum and Pentstemons, a light sprinkling of tree leaves 
or sedge grass is good enough, and may rest undisturbed 
till into April; but such a slight mulching over Lilies 
would be of little account. 
I dislike digging in the borders in March, no matter 
how fine the weather may be; it is all very well to dig 
open patches in the garden, but among the flowers, I 
want to let the plants get a good start before disturbing 
them; then seedlings are apt to spring up over the 
borders, and they may be wanted. 
But now is the time for improvements. Whenever 
the ground is in good working order, attend to repairing 
the lawn, re-sodding the bare spots on the banks and 
mending the grass verges in the garden. Sods laid in 
March grow away as if nothing had happened, and do 
not need the amount of watering and care they would if 
laid later. Often where trees or large stones have been 
