458 



TJlc Country Gcntianan's Magazine 



NEW AND RARE PLANTS. 



DURING recent years there have been 

 many important additions made to the 

 plants that people take to, from their orna- 

 mental foliage. No race has been more 

 prolific in varieties- than Codiseum and Dra- 

 caena, and no firm has been more energetic 

 in getting novelties than the Messrs Veitch, 

 whose illustrations of subjoined novelties we 

 are at this time permitted to copy. Those 

 who have had the pleasure of an inspection 

 into the house set apart specially for novelties 

 at Chelsea, will not readily forget the striking 

 character of many of the individuals. They 

 are remarkable either for elegance of form, 

 like the lovely Maidenhair (Adiantum ama- 

 bile) or are of commanding mien like either 

 the Milk-white or the Weismann Crotons. 

 We need not dwell, however, in generalizing 

 upon the group, as we intend to illustrate each 

 individually. Taking 



CROTON (cODI.'EUm) WEISMANNI, 



We find it not only to be of superlative 

 order as a decorative plant, from its variety 

 and clearness of colouring, but of free habit, 

 growing tall, but not loose and lanky, and 

 having a crowd of leaves arranged up its stem. 

 In this particular, it reminds us of the crowd- 

 ing of leaves up the stem of C. Veitchii. The 

 leaves differ from most of the group in being 

 long and linear, not so narrow, certainly, as 

 C. angustifolium, to which it has been likened, 

 but of decidedly marked character. The 

 golden hue on the dark green is very prominent 

 and seems to increase in body as the plant 

 grows older. The introducers of the plant 

 thus speak of it : 



"The plant is of very graceful habit, and of 

 free growth. The leaves attain a length of 

 from lo to 12 inches, and a width of three- 

 quarters of an inch. They are very acute at 

 the apex, the upper surface dark-shining green 

 with gold blotches, the mid-rib and margins 

 golden yellow; under surface similar in 

 olouring, but paler green." In 1868 it re- 



ceived a silver medal as the best new foliage 

 plant exhibited See page 459. 



ADIANTUM AiMABILE. 



This fine Peruvian Maidenhair Fern 

 (Adiantum amabile) promises to be one that 

 will keep the reputation which its appearance 

 at first won for it. Independent altogether 

 of its elegance of frond, it enjoys life in an 

 intermediate temperature ; and for all practical 

 purposes may therefore be set down as one 

 that will thrive in every Fern-house in the 

 kingdom when it is introduced. Ferns differ 

 from most other plants in enjoying a dripping 

 home — it may be of a temperature a little in 

 advance of what it has been accustomed to 

 live, there it will grow, if its wants as to 

 water are attended to, and if it be kept clean. 

 We do not wish, however, our readers to 

 understand that we recommend a hotter 

 climate than what Ferns are indigenous to as 

 a rule; we only intimate that a little extra 

 heat and closeness will do no harm at the 

 growing season of the year. To keep up high 

 temperatures when Ferns should be at com- 

 parative rest is death 10 them. Mr. Moore's 

 description 'oi Adiantum ^amabile, fig. 2, is as 

 follows : — 



" The fronds are of a beautiful light green 

 colour, thin and membranous in texture, and 

 small and elegant in regard to the size and 

 form of their ultimate divisions. These 

 peculiarities, together with the gracefully 

 curving lines assumed by the fronds and the 

 pinnae, render it one of the most lovely of 

 the Maidenhairs, and one which cannot fail 

 to become a favourite in all choice ferneries. 

 The lobing of its fronds alone gives it a 

 character perfectly distinct from that of any 

 other similar species at present known in our 

 gardens or herbaria. It was obtained from 

 Peru, and is a free-growing, cool-stove Fern, 

 attaining from 15 to 18 inches in height." 

 The Messrs Veitch add that the fronds 



