FEBRUARY. 39 



from three to four feet high. Flowers yellow suffused with pink. It should be 

 treated as a tender annual. 



Tanacetum-leaved Mach^raxthera {MachcBranthera tanaceti folia). A 

 pretty Mexican Composite, with flowers nearly as large as a China Aster. They 

 are purple with a yellow centre. Although a tender biennial, planted in the open 

 border at Kew it continued blooming during the summer months. 



CoRTUSA-LEAVED Bltterclp {Ranuuciilus cor tuscef alius). This is stated to 

 be the handsomest of all the Buttercups yet known to botanists. The flowers 

 are two inches across, and of a singularly glossy yellow. It comes from the 

 Canary Islands and Madeira, and is all but quite hardy, i. e. it will require some 

 protection during severe frosts. 



Eugenia Ugm. A charming myrtle-like shrub from the south of Chili. It 

 has proved quite hardy in the Exeter Nursery, to which it has been introduced by 

 Messrs. Veitch. The flowers form little white bells tinged with rose. 



Baccharis-leaved Pentstemox (p. baccharifoliiis) . A handsome scarlet 

 species, raised from Texian seeds. It is not quite hardy. 



Large-flowered Grixdelia {G. grandi flora). A showy biennial resem- 

 bling a Marigold. Flowers orange yellow. It will succeed in summer in the open 

 air. 



The above are figured in Curtis's Botanical Magazine for January. 

 LoxG-FLOWEKED Cextraxth (Centranthiis macrosiphon). A hardy annual, 

 from the south of Spain, belonging to Valerianworts. It makes a gay autumnal 

 plant, bearing masses of rich ruby flowers. 



The Blaxd Amaryllis {A. blanda). A stove bulbous plant from the Cape. 

 The flowers are delicate French white, changing to pink. It is an old variety, 

 but it has been so long lost sight of, that it may now be termed a novelty. 



The Showy Grammatophyl {GrammatophyUum speciosum). A stove 

 Orchid, from the Malay Archipelago. Flowers yellow, thickly covered with 

 brown spots. 



The last three plants have been figured in Paxton's Floioer-Garden. 

 LjElia axceps. To those who cultivate Orchids, this species is one of the 

 most desirable of the tribe, as it flowers freely, and at a season M-hen blossoms are 

 most valuable ; in addition to which, they have the property of remaining a long 

 time in perfection. It is not a very expensive plant to purchase, and is best 

 adapted for cultivating in the coolest department of the Orchid house, where 

 the thermometer ranges in winter from 60° to C5°, and in summer from 70° to In' 

 Fahrenheit. The whole of the species belonging to the genus are " good," and 

 Avell worthy of the attention of those who cultivate this most lovely tribe of 

 plants. A concise description will suffice to distinguish this from its congeners ; 

 pseudo-bulbs ovate or oblong-lanceolate, somewhat quadrangular, with a solitary 

 leaf on each ; from the apex of the pseudo-bulb rises a scape, about two and a 

 half feet high, bearing near its summit from three to six large very showy 

 flowers; sepals and petals of a pale rose-colour, lip of a deeper rose with the 

 inside tinged with yellow. It is a native of Oaxaca in Mexico, and has been 

 long known in cultivation, being introduced to Messrs. Loddiges in 1828. Fine 

 specimens of it are at present (January) in flower at Kew. 



Maxillaria leptosepala. This is a very pretty flowering species, one of 

 the best of the genus. The pseudo-bulbs are roundish-ovate, compressed, and 

 furnished with a solitary bright green leaf, about a foot long ; from the base of each 

 pseudo-bulb rise several flower-stems, each about six inches high, bearing a large 

 and very fragrant flower on the apex ; petals and sepals of a light creamy white, 

 slender (hence the name), more than two inches long, with the lower sepals once 

 twisted and recurved at the extremity ; lip white, yellow, and brown. It is a 

 scarce plant in collections ; was introduced to Kew a few years ago, from New 

 Grenada. This plant succeeds well when cultivated on a log of wood; but it is 

 more preferable to keep it on a shallow pot raised above the rim, where it forms 

 a more compact tuft; the light-coloured flowers contrasting well with the bright 

 green leaves, give it a very lively appearance: it requires to be kept in the 

 warmest division of the Orchid-house, especially while making its growth. It is 

 at present in flower at Kew. 



Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. J. IIoulstgn. 



