Copyright, 1899, by 

 FUORISTS' PUBLISHING CO., 520-535 Caxton Bulldlnft. CniCAGO. 



VoL m. 



CHICAGO AND NEW YORK, JANUARY 5, 1899. 



No. 58. 



ARECA BAUERI. 



The palm so well known under the 

 name of Areca Baueri, and of which 

 we illustrate a young plant in the 

 present issue, is another of those un- 

 fortunate plants that has been chris- 

 tened and rechristened by the botan- 

 ical experts, and though many of us 

 first knew and appreciated it under 



the short and easy title of areca yet 

 we now find that our knowledge was 

 of a mistaken kind and that the palm 

 in question is correctly to be called 

 Rhopalostylis Baueri. 



But laying aside the question of 

 nomenclature, this palm is one that 

 has been very largely used by com- 

 mercial growers in Europe especially 

 tor many years past, and is really 



Aresa B«tu<ri, 



quite a serviceable plant for decorat- 

 ing, and also one that may be kept in 

 a cool house without injury, a night 

 temperature of 50 degrees doing it no 

 harm during the winter. Under such 

 conditions a rapid growth cannot be 

 expected and will not occur, but this 

 temperature will answer very well for 

 a storage house for the hardier deco- 

 rative plants. 



As may be seen from the engraving 

 A. Baueri in a young state bears some 

 resemblance to a Kentia, but the leaf- 

 lets are usually wider and less shiny 

 and the stems more or less covered 

 with furfuraceous scales, the whole 

 plant having a coarser look than the 

 kentias. In its native country, Nor- 

 folk Island, to which we are also in- 

 debted for Araucaria excelsa, this 

 palm is said to make a trunk 20 feet 

 high and about 4 inches in diameter 

 and to produce leaves 9 feet long, but 

 as it does not appear to throw out any 

 suckers or branches from the base, 

 such a specimen would seem to be 

 rather more odd than beautiful. 



Seeds are produced freely and are 

 frequently offered by the large dealers 

 at quite moderate prices, and when 

 treated similarly to those of Areca lu- 

 tescens by sowing in light soil, keep- 

 ing moist, and giving strong bottom 

 heat, there is but little diflSculty in 

 germinating them. 



The after treatment of the seed- 

 lings should be the same as for 

 kentias, namely, a night temperature 

 of 60 degrees during the winter, and 

 plenty of water. Too high a tempera- 

 ture will encourage the spread of in- 

 sects, and result in little gain in 

 growth. ■ W. H. TAPLIN. 



BONNAFFON TURNING BLACK. 



What is the probable cause of the 

 blooms of Major Bonnaffon turning 

 black at the ends of the petals? We 

 bad some fifty plants of above variety, 



