Fringe-flower

Fringe-flower (Sohizanthus) - Pretty annuals of elegant growth, which bear in summer many showy and curiously-shaped blossoms. There are in cultivation a few species, and these have yielded numerous varieties. The hardy kinds are S. pinnatus, 1 1/2 to 3 feet high, its rosy-purple and yellow blossoms copiously spotted. Its chief varieties are—papilionaceus (purple spotted), Priesti (white), atro-purpureus (deep purple with dark eye), and Tom Thumb (a dwarf compact variety). S. porrigens is similar to S. pinnatus, but has larger flowers. The half-hardy kinds are S. retusus (deep rose and orange flowers with crimson tips), Grahami (lilac and orange), and Hookeri (pale rose and yellow). These are also beautiful, and worthy of being grown well. One of the best for growing in pots is Wisetonensis, a compact pyramidal form of S. retusus, with large flowers blending in white, pink, and yellow. This should be grown cool, just like a greenhouse Cineraria. Garaways is a good strain of large-flowered forms, very useful for cutting or decoration. If treated as half-hardy annuals, the seed should be sown in heat in spring, but if treated as biennials, the seed should be sown in August, the plants preserved in the greenhouse till May, and then planted out in rich, sandy loam. Chili.