112 
The Garden Magazine, April, 1923 
Primroses. Our native Primrose carpets the cool woods, 
but avoids dry soils. We are very lucky in cool spots; and it is 
really a beautiful plant. The late Henry Moon—the best flower 
painter of our day— drew most of the new Primulas which 
come from China and near regions, and he said that in spite of 
all their charms the most beautiful one was the native—(P. 
veris). I wish very much it could be introduced and established 
is some of the cool woods in America. [It is successfully estab¬ 
lished in a few favored gardens in the North and East.— Ed.] 
The Purple Rock Cress (Aubrietia). Among all the blues 
and purples, the first place should be given to the Rock Cress 
from the mountains of Greece. It is as happy in our land as on 
its native mountains. The accompanying photograph is of a 
wall—an old stone terrace wall in my garden—where the Rock 
Cress has sown itself. When I first came I found a few little 
gaps in the wall and I put in a few small plants, and the seed from 
these fell over and grew with the result shown. We got three 
months of spring beauty from this fine plant, commencing early 
in February. There is very little mortar in the old wall, which 
is three hundred years old—built at the same time as the house. 
The ground slopes and the builders rightly terraced the ground. 
Erinus. After three months braving storm and frost on the 
old garden wall and as the purple Rock-cress began to show 
signs of going to seed, another charmer came to aid on the same 
wall, the Erinus of the Pyrenean mountains. This pretty rock- 
flower dies if planted on the level ground, but in September stick 
a few seeds in an old stone or brick wall and it may be as 
welcome for generations as any flower of May. Like the purple 
Rock-cress, it has no food save what it gets in the old wall or 
heap of stones. There is a white form and one a brighter rose 
color than the wild plant which is a mauve-purple. 
The Kingcups (Caltha). Among our native plants, there 
is the glorious Kingcup, growing in marshy land and by the 
brookside. It does not trouble us, but spreads naturally along 
the banks of any stream or pond. Of late years a handsome 
companion has come in from the regions of the Black Sea, the 
Pontic Kingcup, and this is a very noble plant. It is hardy 
with us, but may not be so in your climate. It is happy here in 
pond or ditch. 
Snakehead (Fritillaria). This is a native of England, grow¬ 
ing in marshy meadows and is very welcome in the late spring. 
There are graceful white forms in addition to the colored and 
spotted ones which add much to the beauty of the wild garden. 
We have no marshy land near by so we have it at the foot of a 
sloping meadow near a pond and there it grows in myriads. 
Snowdrop and Snowflake. A few days after Christmas the 
Snowdrops appear with all their usual grace. In the shade, 
north of the old terrace wall, we get nearly three months’ beauty 
from the Snowdrops, and to me they are almost as welcome as the 
Daffodils. During the War the supply of some new forms from 
Asia Minor was cut off, but we hope they will come again. 
Following them come the Snowflakes (Leucojum), very 
handsome plants wild in England, but in only one county— 
Dorset. The best for the spring is L. vernum, a fine thing, 
thriving in any soil, but growing best in a peaty soil. 
The Heaths. One of the most precious little shrubs that 
ever came across the seas to our Island is the Alpine Forest 
Heath (Erica carnea). In its own land it lies deep in snow in the 
mountains, coming into bloom as the snow departs, but in our 
green England which it seems to fancy, the spring has come 
earlier so it flowers in mid-winter and goes on to the end of 
spring. We have other Heaths which keep on 
flowering through the winter. The Portuguese 
Heath, with a little pink blush in its face, and other 
South European Heaths are hardy, and all beau¬ 
tiful through all the spring days. All these Heaths 
grow on a piece of rough ground and give us a very 
charming result. 
Camellias. In years past, and even in our own 
time, the Camellia was a plant for the hothouse, but 
little by little we have come to realize it is hardy. 
On coming here I put a few plants on a rough spot 
in a copse, not very hopeful of the result; but they 
have stood there for thirty years and never gone 
back or given way in any cold or storm. The 
most precious for the open air are not the double 
ones, but the single, fine in color and form. 
The Japan Quince (Cydonia japonica). One 
fine shrub we must mention is the Japanese Quince 
—splendid in color and hardy on the farmhouse 
wall or in the open shrubbery, varying in color 
from deep red; some are white. The plants are 
better left severely alone, without the usual close 
pruning. 
Dog’s-Tooth Violet (Erythronium dens-canis). 
1 had almost forgotten this, but it comes very early, 
as a wild garden plant, under shrubs, or in a copse 
anywhere, and there is much variety in color. 
Furze. A precious native which flowers through 
all the winter. Where I planted it as a cover I used 
to carry about with me a pocket full of seeds and 
scatter them, not sure they would grow, but after 
two or three years they arose freely. A fine show 
the plant makes and it is useful in every way. 
Double forms of hardy plants are rarely so good as 
the single ones, but there is one very good double 
A VERY OLD WALL ENCLOSING THE GARDEN AT GRAVETYE 
Built about the same date as the manor itself, a wing of which is here shown 
and which was erected in the year 1596 by Richard and Catherine Infield. 
Purple Rock Cress, self-sown in the crevices, clings in soft patches 
against the stone and creeps over the trellis of native Oak. (This wall 
runs along the extreme right of the garden pictured on the opposite page) 
