146 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
August  IS,  189S. 
rockeries  attractive.  Liuaria  macedonica  is  pretty  also,  and  some 
of  the  Michaelmas  Daisies  have  begun  to  flower.  Carnations, 
too,  in  gardens  where  they  are  much  grown  charm  everyone'  by 
their  exquisite  colour,  perfume,  and  elegance  of  form.  They  are 
very  fascinating,  and  I  can  only  regret  that  the  task  of  looking 
after  so  many  bulbous,  alpine,  and  other  border  flowers  pre¬ 
vents  me  from  growing  more  of  these  delightful  Carnations 
and  Picotees,  over  which  one  could  linger  for  many  hours. 
Monardas  are  still  gay  as  I  write,  and  with  Sunflowers,  Scabiouses, 
Aconites,  G-ypsophila  paniculata.  Lychnises,  Verbascums,  and  other 
flowers  make  the  beds  and  borders  attractive. 
Many  Alpines  are  out  of  bloom,  but  there  are  some  bits  of 
colour  showing  conspicuously  among  the  varied  shades  of  green 
presented  by  the  foliage  of  the  occupants  of  the  rockeries.  With 
these  many  hues  of  green  the  rock  garden  is  never  desolate  or 
uninteresting,  but  there  is  much  besides  to  greet  the  eye.  The 
bright  yellow  Linum  flavum  is  very  pretty  on  the  ledges  of  some  of 
the  rockeries,  and  multiplies  so  exceedingly  by  sowing  itself  that  it 
has  to  be  “  weeded  ”  (save  the  mark)  out  with  remorseless  hand. 
The  charming  little  Linaria  anticaria  is  still  profusely  in  flower, 
and  a  dark  coloured  species,  which  seems  to  be  closely  akin  to 
L.  origanifolia,  is  very  pleasing  with  its  dark  green  leaves  and  small 
purple-and-white  flowers  with  a  tinge  of  yellow  at  the  throat.  It 
does  not  seem  very  hardy,  but  comes  up  freely  from  self-sown 
seed.  Hypericum  napaulense  has  again  begun  to  flower,  and  one 
must  admit  its  inferiority  in  some  respects  to  the  hybrid  H.  Moseri- 
anum.  The  flowers  of  the  latter  are  finer,  and  in  addition  they 
are  held  more  erect,  so  that  their  beauty  is  at  once  exposed  to 
view. 
Sedum  dasyphyllum,  which  is  very  pretty  even  when  out  of 
flower,  has  covered  itself  with  its  white  flowers.  S.  Ewersi 
is  opening  its  purple  blooms,  and  the  variegatsd-leaved  form  of 
S.  Sieboldi  will  soon  be  in  flower  also.  Others  there  are  of  the 
genus  still  in  bloom,  and  they  help  to  give  colour  to  many  spots 
where  some  brightness  is  desirable  at  this  time.  Androsace 
lanuginosa  forms  a  mass  of  silvery  or  silky  foliage  trailing  over  the 
stones,  and  bearing  a  number  of  its  beautiful  soft  rose  flowers  with 
a  yellow  eye.  At  the  base  of  one  of  the  rockeries  the  exquisite 
Autumn  Snowflake  (Leucoium  autumnale)  is  beautifully  in  flower, 
and  in  other  places  the  charming  Neapolitan  Sowbread  (Cyclamen 
neapolitanum)  is  coming  into  bloom.  Looking  round,  too,  one 
sees  more  in  flower  than  at  first  appears,  and  more  than  enough 
remain  for  notice  at  present. 
There  are  so  many  pleasing  plants  among  the  Alliums,  that  it 
seems  to  be  particularly  unfortunate  that  their  odour  is  so  disagree¬ 
able.  This  is  more  noticeable  in  some  species  than  others,  and  we 
must  pardon  this  unpleasant  feature  on  account  of  the  undoubted 
merits  of  some  of  these  Garlics.  Some  of  the  drooping  white- 
flowered  species,  such  as  A.  triquetrum,  are  very  pleasing,  and  the 
common  A.  Moly  gives  a  touch  of  gold  when  it  comes  in  June,  to 
add  to  the  many  flowers  then  in  bloom.  One  received  as  A.  pul- 
chellum  var.  flavum,  although  hardly  so  bright  yellow  as  A.  Moly, 
being,  indeed,  almost  canary-yellow,  has  been  noteworthy  for  two 
or  three  weeks,  and  as  I  write  looks  as  if  it  would  be  in  flower  for 
a  few  weeks  still.  It  grows  about  a  foot  high,  and  produces  small 
drooping  flowers  in  loose  heads.  These  flowers  are  small,  but  are 
very  numerous,  one  head  having  more  than  forty  blooms.  These 
are  produced  in  succession.  It  is  quite  hardy,  but  I  am  rather 
doubtful  as  to  its  name,  my  only  authority  for  the  one  I  have 
being  that  of  a  leading  London  firm,  which  is  generally  very 
careful  as  to  nomenclature.  In  any  case  it  is  a  useful  thing  to 
have  some  of  these  dwarf  bulbs  coming  into  flower  in  the  end  of 
July  and  beginning  of  August,  before  the  autumn  Croci  and 
Colchicums  come  into  bloom. 
Very  pretty  in  the  border  and  of  much  value  for  cut  flowers  is 
Galega  orientalis  of  Lamarck,  a  native  of  the  Caucasus  and  intro¬ 
duced  in  1810.  It  grows  here  to  about  4  feet  in  height,  and  as  it 
lasts  for  a  long  time  is  a  valuable  border  plant.  The  flowers  are 
light  purple  and  arranged  in  racemes,  which  are  produced  from  the 
axils  of  the  leaves  as  well  as  at  the  tops  of  the  flower  stems.  The 
leaves  are  what  are  known  as  impari-pinnate — /.e.,  having  a  ter¬ 
minal  or  odd  leaflet.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  the 
Qalegas  belong  to  the  Natural  Order  Legnminosm,  and  that  the 
flowers  are  thus  pea-shaped.  The  general  appearance  of  G.  orien¬ 
talis  will  be  understood  by  those  acquainted  with  G.  oflflcinalis  or 
its  white  variety.  It  may  be  distinguished  from  these  by  its 
creeping  habit  and  its  flexuous  stems,  these  growing  in  an  undulat¬ 
ing  direction.  G.  orientalis  grows  well  in  light  soil,  and  may  be 
increased  by  division  or  by  seeds. 
It  is  a  great  drawback  to  the  varieties  of  Agrostemma  coronaria 
that  they  are  only  of  biennial  duration.  This  fault  is  greatly 
modified,  however,  by  the  freedom  with  which  self-sown  plants  are 
produced  in  many  gardens.  Familiarity  has,  no  doubt,  made  us 
careless  of  the  ordinary  A,  coronaria  and  its  varieties  alba  and 
bicolor,  but  the  double  form  is  prized  by  the  few  who  possess  it, 
and  who  are  at  the  trouble  to  propagate  it  by  division  of  the  roots . 
It  is  a  long  time  since  I  saw  this  double  Rose  Campion,  and  I  fear 
those  who  think  it  worth  while  to  preserve  it  are  becoming  fewer 
still.  There  is  in  my  garden  a  very  deep-coloured  form  which  has 
been  sent  out  as  Agrostemma  Walkeri,  but  appears  also  under 
various  names,  of  which  hybrida  is  one  of  the  most  inapplicable,  so 
far  as  can  be  judged  from  the  appearance  of  the  plant  and  its 
flowers.  The  colour  is  very  fine  and  difficult  to  describe,  although 
it  may  perhaps  be  most  satisfactorily  called  deep  crimson.  It  is 
not  only  very  deep  in  colour,  but  has  also  a  most  attractive  velvety 
look,  and  as  a  further  attempt  to  make  its  appearance  plain,  one 
might  say  the  flowers  are  like  “  ruby  velvet.”  The  white  woolly¬ 
looking  leaves  and  stems  add  considerably  to  the  attractions  of  the 
Rose  Campions,  which  were  favourites  with  flower-lovers  long  years 
ago. — S.  Arnott. 
LETTUCES  IN  WINTER. 
It  usually  happens  that  the  article  produced  in  the  greatest 
abundance  during  the  season  is  the  one  most  in  request ;  and  in 
general  Nature  so  ably  balances  the  supply  to  the  demand  of 
everything  more  immediately  depending  on  her,  that  the  oldest  and 
most  illiterate  inhabitant  of  rural  districts  foretells  with  more 
certainty  than  an  astro-meteorologist  that  a  severe  winter  is  likely 
to  follow  a  good  crop  of  haws  on  our  hedges.  This  wise  provision 
for  the  wants  of  the  feathered  creation  is  exemplified  in  many 
other  ways  not  necessary  here  to  mention  ;  but  as  luxury  and 
refinement  have  added  considerably  to  the  number  of  articles  we 
are  accustomed  to  regard  as  necessaries,  we  must  not  be  surprised 
if  Nature  leaves  the  providing  of  them  more  to  our  own  manage¬ 
ment  than  she  does  the  wild  fruits  set  aside  for  the  other  members 
of  the  animated  creation.  Nevertheless,  in  a  certain  sense  each 
country  produces  the  articles  of  most  use  to  its  inhabitants. 
Fruits  are  most  plentiful  in  dry,  hot  climates,  where  by  their 
delicious  juiciness  they  contribute  to  the  enjoyment  as  well  as  the 
wants  of  the  native  population  ;  while  in  cooler  and  more  moist 
districts  cereals  and  vegetables  are  produced  in  greater  abundance, 
and  form  an  agreeable  article  in  the  bill  of  fare  of  everyday  life. 
Habits  and  modes  of  living  have  given  certain  classes  a  preference 
to  special  articles,  and  it  would  be  wrong  to  find  fault  with  this 
arrangement ;  but  in  the  general  advancement  of  society  the  wants 
of  the  community  become  multiplied  to  an  extent  little  dreamt  of 
by  the  more  primitive  settler  in  an  unexplored  district.  It  is  one  of 
the  features  of  that  very  luxury  which  has  augmented  to  such  an 
extent  the  number  of  useful  articles  our  gardens  possess  (vegetable 
as  well  as  floral) — and  the  ardent  admirers  of  good,  useful  things  at 
table  have  no  right  to  despise  the  floral  beauties  as  being  less  useful, 
for,  excepting  the  very  commonest  of  all  articles  of  food,  rigid 
adherents  to  the  maxims  of  some  of  the  doctrines  propounded  by 
certain  of  the  strict  sect,  whose  cognomen  is  a  long  unpronounce¬ 
able,  and,  therefore,  unnecessary  name,  insist  that  every  article  not 
absolutely  wanted  to  support  life  in  the  most  frugal  way  is  a  luxury, 
and  must  therefore  be  eschewed  as  such  in  favour  of  this  doctrine. 
I  have  nothing  to  say  on  the  contrary,  so  long  as  a  temperate  course 
be  adhered  to,  the  number  of  such  gratifications  as  witnessing  and 
admiring  the  growth  of  good  vegetables,  fine  trees,  and  gay  fiowers, 
cannot  be  too  much  increased,  as  they  all  tend  to  develop  that 
grand  lesson  which  points  to  their  original  existence. 
Useful,  good  articles,  therefore,  being  admissible  to  any  extent, 
