Hardy Perennials and Old Fashioned Flowers Part 19

Nearly 100 years ago this charming little plant was imported from North America; still, it is rarely seen, notwithstanding that rock-gardens have long been popular. On rockwork it not only thrives well, but appears to great advantage. No rock-garden should be without it. It is a rare and beautiful subject, remarkably distinct and pleasing; it is perfectly hardy, also perennial and herbaceous; but its last-named characteristic should be qualified, inasmuch as the old leaves remain in good form and colour until long after the new ones are fully grown, so that there are always two sets of foliage. Viewed in this light, it may be called an evergreen plant; moreover, it is one of those plants which the artist can scarcely do justice to, for though the ill.u.s.tration (Fig.

42) depicts faithfully its neat habit and handsome foliage, the living plant makes a better impression. I said it was rare, but this is less in the sense of scarcity than because it is little known and seldom seen; it is also quite distinct from any other plant, and the only species of the genus.

Its milk-white flowers, which, though very simple, are richly effective, are produced on tall, nude stems, 18in. high, round, wiry, and nearly amber-coloured. They are arranged in a dense spike, 6in. to 8in. long; the corolla is in. across, and composed of five petals; the calyx has a short tube and five sepals; the leaves are heart-shaped, nearly round, evenly toothed, and sometimes glandular; of leathery substance, and somewhat stiff, smooth, shining, and richly veined or nerved. The leaves of various ages differ in colour; the old ones are dark green, conspicuously reticulated; the new, but perfectly-developed ones, are pale green, with a ray of yellowish-green next the edges; the growing ones are nearly red, and all the serrated edges are hemmed with a nearly scarlet line, always brightest at the points of the teeth. This finely-tinted foliage is elegantly disposed by means of the stalks, which bend in various ways; they vary in length from 4in. to 8in., and are all radical; they are round, wiry, and once grooved. The bloom lasts for several weeks in good form, and the foliage is always beautiful, more especially in the autumn, when it glows like polished mahogany.

Such a plant can hardly fail to please when well grown, but it must be so developed.

This lovely plant certainly requires a little special treatment, but that is easy and simple; in fact, it scarcely can be called special. It may be put in a few words--damp, but not sour vegetable soil, and very slight shade. My specimen, from which the drawing was taken, is growing in a little dip at the base of a small rockery, below the level of the walk, which acts as a watershed; the soil is nearly all leaf mould--a small portion of loam, and I ought to add that there is a moderate quant.i.ty of small charcoal incorporated with it, which will doubtless a.s.sist in keeping the soil sweet. There cannot, therefore, be much difficulty in setting up these conditions; the charcoal may not be necessary, but an annual top-dressing with it will meet the case of such plants as grow in low damp situations. The propagation of this species is very easy in the case of well-grown clumps, which, when dug up in the autumn and thoroughly shaken, will come asunder into many small and well-rooted crowns; these only require to be replanted separately, under similar conditions to those by which they were produced. No attempt should be made to divide other than perfectly healthy clumps.

Flowering period, July and August.

Galega Officinalis.

OFFICINAL GOAT'S-RUE; _Nat. Ord._ LEGUMINOSae.

A grand "old-fashioned" flower. It is 314 years since this plant was brought from Spain; it is perfectly hardy and herbaceous. Both it and its varieties are among the most useful subjects of the flower garden; they grow to shrub-like bushes, have elegant foliage, and an abundance of bloom, which continues until late autumn. Specimens have a clean and healthy appearance, and though they grow to the height of 4ft., they give no trouble, requiring neither tying nor supports. From their large quant.i.ties of flowers they are exceedingly gay; but it is for the handsome stems in a cut state that they should be most prized. These, cut 18in. long, and placed singly in pots or vases, are truly n.o.ble, more especially by gaslight.

As will be inferred from the order to which _Galega_ belongs, the flowers are pea-flower-shaped, about in. or more long, and the same broad. They are of a pleasing, but undecided blue colour, arranged in long conical racemes, on stout, round stalks, as long as the leaves, which are pinnate, having a terminal odd one. The leaflets are evenly arranged in pairs, mostly in six pairs; they are each about 2in. long, lance-shaped, mucronate, entire, smooth, and glaucous. The floriferous character of the plant may be inferred from the fact that, after the raceme fades, there pushes from the axil a peduncle, which, in a short time, produces many other racemes.

_G. o. alba_, a variety of the above, grows 4ft. high, and is an abundant bloomer; flowers superb for cutting purposes. For culture, see _G. Persica lilacina_.

Flowering period, July to September.

Galega Persica Lilacina.

_Nat. Ord._ LEGUMINOSae.

This is a lovely species of _Galega_ imported little more than fifty years ago from Persia. Perfectly hardy; in general form it corresponds with _G. officinalis_. The following are its distinctions: More dense racemes of lilac flowers, a foot less tall, leaflets shorter and broader--in fact, oval, oblong, somewhat twisted or edged up in the arrangement, and often without the terminal leaflet.

The above Goat's-rues are of the simplest culture; they will do in any soil, but if they are liberally treated they will repay it. A fat loam and sunny situation are what they delight in. They may remain year after year in one position, but I find them to do better in every way if they are divided the second year; it should be done in summer, so that they can make a little growth in their new quarters before winter sets in. In order to carry out this, the older plants (I divide half my stock one year, the other half the year following) should be cut over near the ground, though they may be in full bloom. Divide the roots into several strong pieces, and replant them in soil deeply dug and where they are intended to flower; they will bloom finely the following season.

Flowering period, July to September.

Gentiana Acaulis.

GENTIANELLA; _Nat. Ord._ GENTIANACEae.

A hardy, evergreen creeper, its creeping stems running immediately under the surface. This is a remarkably beautiful plant, and the wonder is that it is not grown in every garden. The most attractive features, when in flower, of this dwarf Gentian are its immensely large blooms and neat shining green foliage (see Fig. 43). It is easily identified, there being not another species like it, and certainly very few to equal it for beauty and service; it forms one of the best edgings for beds and borders. Many report that it is difficult to grow, which may be the case in some gardens from one cause or other, whilst in many places it runs like quick-gra.s.s.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 43. GENTIANA ACAULIS.

(One-fourth natural size.)]

Flowers, dark bright blue, large, long bell-shaped, but not drooping; tube, five-angular, nearly 3in. long; corolla, five-limbed, and an inch or more wide; the stems are seldom more than 3in. long, square, furnished with small opposite leaves, and terminated with one flower on each. That part of the foliage which sends up the flower is arranged in rosette form, the leaves being stout, flat, and acutely lance-shaped.

Anywhere or everywhere may this subject be planted; it is always bright, even in winter, and when there are no flowers upon it it forms a rich covering for the otherwise bare ground; its blooms will each keep good a week. They are rarely produced in great numbers at one time, but the plants will continue for a long while to yield them sparingly.

I find _G. acaulis_ to thrive well at the base of rockwork, as an edging to a flat bed, and in the gutters of the garden walks--it likes moisture. To me this is clearly proved by other plants, which, in all respects but one, are treated the same, the exceptional condition being that they are planted on the sloping face of rockwork, where they scarcely grow and never bloom. With reference to soil, rich or silky loam is best for it, but any kind, if sweet and retentive, will do. Its propagation may be effected by division of the rooted creeping stems after they have made four leaves. Very early in spring is a good time to do this, but neither these nor the old plant, if it has been much disturbed, will flower the same season after being so mutilated.

Flowering period, May to July.

Gentiana Asclepiadea.

SWALLOW-WORT-LEAVED GENTIAN; _Nat. Ord._ GENTIANACEae.

A tall and beautiful alpine species from Austria, very hardy and herbaceous. It has long had a place in English gardens--fully 250 years--and is described by Parkinson in his "Paradise of Flowers." The tall stems are very showy, having an abundance of shining dark green foliage, amongst which nestle the large and bright purple-blue flowers; it is a subject that looks well at a distance, and, as a rule, flowers with that quality are of the greatest value for borders and cutting purposes.

It grows nearly 2ft. high; the stems are round, erect, short-jointed, and very leafy; the flowers are produced on a third of their length, they are stalkless, and spring from the axils of the leaves in pairs; the calyx is in. long, tubular, angled, and having fang-shaped segments; the corolla is also tubular and angled, somewhat bellied, the divisions being deeply cut and reflexed; the whole flower will be fully 1in. long. The inside of the corolla is striped with white and various shades of blue and purple. The leaves are 2in. long, oval, lance-shaped, distinctly ribbed, somewhat lobed at the base, and stem-clasping, which gives the pair of leaves a joined or perfoliate appearance; the nodes are short, or near together, the lower ones being the more distant, where also the leaves are much smaller; the foliage is a glossy dark green colour, the whole plant having a sombre but rich effect.

From the fact that the long stems are top-heavy and of a brittle character, a sheltered position should be given to this plant, or the wind will snap them off. It ought not to have stakes, as they would mar its good form. A fat loam and a moist situation will suit this Gentian to perfection, and it may be planted with other strong herbaceous things in the borders, where it should be allowed to grow to large specimens.

It is one of the quickest growers of its genus, few species of which can be grown in too large quant.i.ties. When it is needful to increase this subject, it maybe done more readily than the propagation of some Gentians--the roots are more easily separated. It should, however, be carefully done, and early spring is the best time; or if the autumn should be a dry season and the tops die off early, it may be done then.

Flowering period, July and August.

Gentiana Burseri.

BURSER'S GENTIAN; _Nat. Ord._ GENTIANACEae.

A hardy perennial species, of a bold but neat habit, while the flowers and foliage combine in rendering it a first-cla.s.s decorative subject. It is a recent introduction, having been brought from the Pyrenees in 1820; it is seldom seen in flower gardens, where it certainly deserves to be.

Its flowers are not brilliant, but they are effective from their size, number, and persistency; they are produced in whorls on stout round stems 18in. high, but only on the three or four upper joints. Each flower is 1in. long, lemon-yellow, tubular, angular, having four to six segments, widely separated, and furnished with a membrane at each separation. The segments, and also the tube, are dotted with dark brown spots; each flower is tightly folded in a somewhat one-sided membranous calyx and borne erect. They occur in pairs mostly, but with several pairs in a whorl. They have very short pedicels, and the whorl is supported by a bract of stem-clasping leaves, cupped, and variously shaped, as ovate and beaked; there are also supplementary bracteoles.

The leaves of the root very much resemble the plantain leaf, also that of _G. lutea_, having longish ribbed and grooved petioles or stalks; they are 5in. to 6in. long, and over 3in. broad, egg-shaped, entire, veined longitudinally, and slightly wrinkled; they are of a dark green colour, shining, and of good substance. The leaves of the stems, as already stated, are stem-clasping, and differ in shape. The flowers keep in good form for two or three weeks, and otherwise this rigid bright-foliaged Gentian proves very ornamental.

I find it to do well in vegetable soil in a moist quarter. Most of the members of this genus enjoy plenty of moisture at their roots, and this specimen is no exception. A flat stone will form a good subst.i.tute for a damp situation if placed over the roots; besides, such a method of growing this and others of the tall Gentians will allow of their being planted on rockwork, or otherwise, near the more frequented walks, where they must always prove pleasing from their bold and shining foliage, to say nothing of their striking flowers. The propagation of this species should be effected by division of the roots, which are very strong. Each crown should have as much of the more fibrous roots retained as possible, and the parts to be severed should be cut with a very sharp knife; it also ripens seed plentifully.

Flowering period, June to August.

Gentiana Cruciata.