SILVER-LEAVED PLANTS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 109, 9 May 1936, Page 13

SILVER-LEAVED PLANTS

USEFUL DECORATIVE EFFECTS IN WINTER I _.-',\ gr ?, at mcr , n of ma " y hi - r,J v plants with Silvery foliage is that they arc almost as decorative in winter as dur™m j luer months. It is not difficult to find silver-leaved plants for almost any purpose, and in these notes . is intended to deal only with those mat are perfectly hardv. lerhaps one of the daintiest of all silver-leaved perennials is our own natne plant, known as I.'aoulia Ausfor in h 'n makeS a pertcet cu'ering for the smallest rock garden bulbs sm-h as the Crocus Sibirica, Narcissus cycl'tmmcus and Tecophilia cyanocrocus. In the right soil and place it is one of the easiest plants to grow, but it will soon sicken it planted in an ill-diained posilon or beneath the drip of overhanglot rt i er '‘ a Pl a co on an open edge, in well drained, rather grittv soil that yet contains sufficient humus to prevent excessive drying out m summer. Equally suitable for this position, or other well drained parts of the garden, are the small silver-leaved saxifrages t'pified by S. cochlearis. flic best 1 of this group is S. valdensis, which unfortunately is rather scarce in gardens and is difficult to procure. This plant Will make close hummocks of si Ivery rosettes, each leaflet slightly thickened towards the tip. The large saxirages with silvery foliage such as S. long,folia, 8. cotyledon, and S lingulata are also valuable, though their plumes o white or pink flowers aie so magnificent that we are apt to th.nk of them only with regard to their floral beauty. ~ , , nglfoila has frequently oeen called the ‘Queen of the Saxifrages,” a name justified by its noble appearance and need for special treatment. Not that it is particularly hard to grow, but the troub.e lies m the fact that it frequenty takes several years to summon up sufficient strength to flower, and then, as it is a monocarpi” genus, it withers away and dies. The grower must rely on a succession of seedlings to keep up t c display, fn this class of saxifrages are many hybrids, which are in many cases better garden plant.-, than the species from which they have originated. One of the best is known by the name of Tumbling Waters, which well describes the effect of the cascades of snowy flowers. A sturdier alpine which will meet the needs of those whose rock gardens are not contnicted for the benefit of the choicer mountain plants, is Antcnnaria dioica. This is an easy-going carpotcr, which will soon cover several square feet and though it keeps quite flat and close to the ground, is sturdy enough to thrive at the front of the herbaceous border. Closely allied to the Antennarias are the Helichrysums. of which thire are two hardy perennial species worth growing for their silvery foliage. The better known is our native 11. belli* dioides, a charming little everlasting, which does not exceed four inches in height, and produces in summer, nodding heads of hoary flowers. It is perfectly hardy, and easy to grow in anv

soil that docs not become sodden and sour in winter and baked to a bricklike •conisistency in summer. Both the flower heads and undersides of the leaves are silvery. A better plant if judged soley from the standpoint of its silvery effect is H. frigidum, a species so small as to suggest the growth of moss. It is, however, by no means so easy a plant to grow, for it has a great dislike of excessive moisture, and even in the morraine must he covered with a sh-et of glass in winter.