where the soil is well drained, and positions somewhat sheltered are selected for them. The best time to plant lilies of all kinds is when the flowering is over and the leaves are turning yellow, as the growth of a lily is like the movement of a pendulum—when the energies are expended above, new growth begins below, and when the season of fresh root-action returns, the bulbs may be transplanted with safety.

The second selection which it is proposed to plant in peat constitutes a suitable selection for pot culture. Firstclass lilies are valuable pot plants, and if only a few sorts can be grown in pots for the conservatory, the best, beyond doubt, amongst the cheaper kinds are Auratum, Speciosum, and Longiflorum, for their flowers are exquisitely beautiful, richly scented, and last as long as any lilies known to us. To succeed with these as pot plants it is necessary to keep in mind that they should never be distressed at the root, and should never suffer through drought, or be excessively stimulated by liquid manure. Liberal treatment they should have, and a certain amount of fresh soil every year. To supply this the ball of roots should be turned out carefully, and a lot of the old soil removed, without denuding the bulbs completely; then they should be replaced in the same (or larger) pots, and filled in with fresh soil, into which they will soon strike roots and grow with renewed vigour.

All lilies may be forced, but it should be done gently. The last-named three are the best for forcing, and perhaps Longiflorum, because of the pure ivory-white of its elegant flowers, is most to be desired as a forced plant. A fine companion plant to force with it is the Trumpet Lily, Calla (or Richardia) Æthiopica, which is not a lily but an arum.

These two charming plants are of about equal value for decorative purposes. Of the two the Calla is the easier

to force.

The Japanese cook and eat the bulbs of lilies, those of the Common White being much esteemed when served with white sauce. Tastes differ, as do sentiments; to us the eating of lily bulbs seems as foolish a proceeding as the eating of nightingale's tongues or the dissolving of pearls in vinegar to make sauce for a leg of mutton.

The place of the lily in literature would make a charming study for a lover of books, and the botanist might help sometimes to determine the meaning of delicate similes and comparisons. We cannot even touch the fringe of the subject here, but the thought has brought to our remembrance the heart-moving story of the "Lily Maid of Astolat," whom Lancelot rudely slighted

"The dead,

Steer'd by the dumb, went upward with the flood

In her right hand the lily, in her left

The letter-all her bright hair streaming down."

Lathyrus odoratus.

T is a singular circumstance that the sweet pea has been commonly regarded as a half-hardy annual, whereas it is as hardy as any pea in cultivation, and the seed may not only be sown in February in the open ground, but in November, and if the mice do not eat it the winter will not kill it, and in due time the plants will appear with the sunshine of the early spring. But this fine plant deserves extra care, and should never be grown in a careless manner.

It is the custom with many gardeners to sow the seed in pots and nurse the young plants in frames, but we prefer to sow them

where they are to remain, and to defer doing this until the middle of March, for if the plants come up with a flush of warm weather before the frosts are over, they are apt to be nipped, and transplanting puts them back, so that to raise them in pots for the purpose is decidedly objectionable. Thus we simplify the