November  4, 1897.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER.  435 
Hedysarum,  or  Desmodium  multijuguin,  which  has  long  spikes  of  bright 
purple  flowers,  very  distinct  and  effective.  Near  this  is  the  blue-flowered 
type  of  Campanula  isophylla,  a  charming  little  plant  well  adapted  for 
culture  in  pots  suspended  from  the  roof  of  a  greenhouse  or  in  a  window. 
The  white  variety  is,  perhaps,  even  a  greater  favourite— in  fact,  few  plants 
are  more  popular  in  cottagers’  windows.  Mr.  Lynch  claims  having  first 
brought  this  plant  into  general  notice,  and  he  certainly  did  a  service  to 
many  thousands  of  humble  admirers  of  flowers  who  can  only  indulge  their 
tastes  in  a  very  moderate  way  ;  and  this  Campanula  being  of  easy 
growth,  readily  increased,  and  free-flowering,  rendering  it  suitable  for  all, 
it  might  be  as  appropriately  named  the  “Window  Campanula’’  as 
C.  pyramidalis  is  termed  the  “  Chimney  Campanula.” 
The  Cambridge  collection  of  hardy  herbaceous  plants  is  a  good  one, 
and  includes  large  numbers  of  distinct,  effective,  or  interesting  plants. 
The  various  late  flowering 
members  of  the  family 
Compositfe  were  chiefly  in 
evidence  at  the  time  of  my 
visit,  and  amongst  these 
were  a  trio  of  Sunflowers 
that  possess  more  than 
ordinary  value  as  garden 
plants.  Helianthus  mollis 
is  one  of  these,  a  North 
American  prairie  species, 
with  medium  size  flowers 
freely  produced,  and  soft 
silky  leaves.  H.  argyro- 
phyllus  is  another  elegant 
plant,  with  abundant  flowers 
and  silvery  leaves  ;  and  the 
third  is  H.  cucumerifolius, 
extremely  free  and  graceful, 
though  the  flowers  are  small. 
The  small  plants  of  Todea  barbara,  occasionally  seen  in  collections  of 
Ferns,  are  not  particularly  attractive  ;  but  in  huge  specimens  like  that  in 
the  temperate  house  at  Cambridge  (or  in  the  corresponding  house  at 
Kew),  the  characters  of  the  plant  are  fully  developed,  and  it  appears  to 
much  better  advantage.  It  is  like  a  dwarf  Tree  Fern,  and  produces  peculiar 
stump-like  stems  of  enormous  size.  The  specimen  at  Kew  is  said  to  have 
weighed  15  cwt.  when  imported  in  a  dry  state,  and  the  Cambridge  [ilant 
looks  even  larger  than  that ;  while  we  have  heard  of  one  sent  to  the 
Continent  which  weighed  23  cwt.  We  are  so  accustomed  to  regard  the 
Todeas  as  choice  Filmy  Ferns  to  be  preserved  with  the  utmost  care  under 
glass  cases,  that  it  seems  difficult  to  imagine  the  gigantic  T.  barbara 
(fig.  05)  as  a  relative  of  the  justly  named  T.  superba.  T.  barbara  is  a 
native  of  Australia,  where  it  is  often  found  on  banks  in  gorges  where 
moisture  and  shade  provide  the  plant’s  chief  requirements. 
Wreathing  one  of  the  pillars  in  the  same  house  with  an  abundance  of 
bright  green  foliage  and  a  profusion  of  purplish  blue  flowers  was  an  old 
favourite  — namely,  fMaurandya  Barclayana,  which  is  sometimes  seen 
formally  trained  over  a  small  trellis  in  a  greenhouse  or  conservatory,  but 
rarely  in  the  free  style  now  noted,  which  suits  it  admirably.  To  many 
present-day  amateurs  this  graceful  plant  is  quite  unknown,  yet_  it 
is  of  such  easy  growth  that  it  might  be  included  in  any  collection. 
It  is  a  native  of  Mexico, 
and  a  member  of  the 
family  Scrophulariacete,  and 
though  too  tender  to  stand 
an  average  British  winter 
out  of  doors,  yet  it  will 
thrive  in  sheltered  positions 
during  the  summer  months 
as  well  as  many  other 
Mexican  plants.  Any  ordi¬ 
nary  light  compost  suits  it, 
and  it  can  be  increased 
readily  by  seeds  or  cuttings. 
As])aragus  retrofractus, 
which  covers  a  neighbour- 
ing  pillar  in  the  same  house, 
is  a  distinct  and  graceful 
plant,  the  needle-like  leaves 
being  produced  in  a  regular 
radiating  manner  from  the 
stems.  Datura  Knighti, 
with  its  enormous  trumpet¬ 
shaped  double  pendulous 
flowers,  has  an  imposing 
appearance.  Where  there 
is  plenty  of  space,  this 
Datura,  with  the  powerfully 
fragrant  single  flowered 
D.  suaveolens,  and  the 
scarlet  D.  sanguinea,  can 
be  grown  with  satisfaction 
either  in  pots  or  planted 
out ;  but  they  require  liberal 
treatment  in  respect  to 
manorial  supplies,  with  hard 
pruning  and  a  period  of 
rest. 
Concerning  the  plants 
in  the  handsome  range  of 
houses  a  long  chapter  might 
be  written,  but  a  few  notes 
must  suffice.  One  fact  strikes 
a  horticultural  visitor,  and 
that  is  the  great  advantage, 
where  a  large  collection  of 
valuable  plants  is  grown,  in 
having  the  houses  connected 
by  a  corridor.  In  many 
large  establishments  on  the 
Continent  this  is  the  rule, 
but  in  British  gardens  it  is 
more  customary  to  build  the 
ranges  of  glass  in  such  a 
way  that  any  particular 
house  is  only  reached  by 
passing  through  the  others, 
or,  what  is  worse  still, 
houses  are  isolated  singly  or 
in  blocks.  When  a  series 
of  houses  are  arranged  at 
right  angles  to  a  corridor 
which  connects  their  ends, 
the  advantage  in  regard  to 
the  working  routine,  the 
transference  of  plants  from 
one  house  to  another  in 
severe  weather,  and  in  other 
ways,  are  so  obvious  that  it 
is  surprising  this  system  is 
not  more  generally  adopted. 
At  Cambridge  the  corridor  FlGr.  65, — TODEA  BARBARA, 
is  about  100  yards  long,  and 
is  rendered  very  ornamental 
by  a  collection  of  climbing  plants  trained  up  the  wall  and  over  the  roof, 
narrow  borders  at  the  sides  being  occupied  with  various  dwarfer  flowering 
plants.  Amongst  the  climbers  the  most  notable  at  the  time  of  my  visit 
were  Solanum  jasminoides,  which  was  flowering  profusely,  its  trusses  of 
white  flowers  forming  graceful  festoons  from  the  roof;  and  Ipomsea  Bona- 
Nox,  a  most  beautiful  and  interesting  plant ;  the  pure  white  corollas  are 
nearly  6  inches  in  diameter,  round,  and  flat,  with  a  long  slender  tube.  For 
a  warm  conservatory  or  the  cool  end  of  a  stove  this  beautiful  climber  is 
admirably  suited,  and  in  common  with  many  of  its  relatives  it  succeeds  in 
a  compost  of  light  turfy  loam  and  peat  with  sufficient  sand  to  keep  the 
soil  sweet  and  free  from  stagnation. 
ji'ogress,  many  being  great  rarities,  and 
i^eeetative  symmetry  like  crystallised  plants 
But  we  must  hasten  on, 
noting  by  the  way  the 
choice  collection  of  healthy 
Ferns  which  All  one  house, 
■  the  Palms  and  larger  grow¬ 
ing  tropical  plants  in  the 
lofty  stove,  the  charming 
Ny  mphaeas  and  othetaquatic 
plants  in  a  tropical  tank. 
To  the  collection  of  succu¬ 
lent  plants  a  long  time  could 
be  devoted,  for  this  is  a 
department  to  which  the 
Curator  has  given  close  at¬ 
tention  for  years.  Both  at 
Cambridge  and  Kew  large 
numbers  of  seedlings  have 
been  raised,  and  the  minia¬ 
ture  plants  are  making  good 
some  exquisite  examples  of 
To  conclude  these  notes  reference  must  be  made  to  a  most  interesting 
plant,  which  is  shown  in  the  house  devoted  to  Mosses  and  Liverworts,  a 
collection  of  the  minute  forms  of  plant  life  that  is  seldom  seen  in  culti¬ 
vation,  even  in  botanic  gardens.  The  plant  in  question  is  the  so-called 
“  Luminous  Moss,”  Schistostega  osmundacea,  that  in  an  early  stage  of  its 
existence  produces  a  tiny  green  film-like  growth  near  the  surface  of  the 
substance  upon  which  it  is  growing,  generally  on  moist  banks,  rocks,  or -in 
caverns.  From  some  strange  arrangement  of  the  cells  this  reflects  the  light 
falling  upon  it  when  seen  at  the  proper  angle,  and  the  reflected  light  has 
a  phosphorescent  apiiearance,  the  Moss  itself  seeming  to  be  emitting  light, 
as  if  it  were  a  kind  of  vegetable  glow-worm.  The  eflect  is  very  peculiar, 
the  little  greenish  fragments  glittering  with  a  weirdness  rather  suggestive 
of  the  electric  X-rays.  What  can  be  the  purpose  of  this  peculiarity  is 
beyond  my  imagination  to  conceive,  but  it  is  only  one  of  the  singularities 
the  student  of  plant  life  is  constantly  observing,  and  Shakespeare  might  well 
have  been  a  naturalist  when  he  wrote  “  There  are  more  things  in  heaven 
and  earth,  Horatio,  than  are  dreamt  of  in  your  philosophy.” — L.  Castle. 
