THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 209 



three-incli pots, and place them in a snug corner of the stove, and 

 where they can be kept rather close and shaded. Under these con- 

 ditions, and the customary syringing overhead, they will quickly 

 become established, and should then have the point of the leading 

 shoot nipped out. As they commence to break freely, they will be 

 advanced sufficiently to render a shift into pots one or two sizes 

 larger needful to maintain them in full vigour. They should not, 

 however, be shifted after the end of September, as it is better to 

 winter them in small pots well filled with roots than in those of a 

 larger size and only partly filled. To insure the production of 

 bushy specimens, it will be necessary to stop the principal shoots 

 two or three times when the plants are small, but severe stopping is 

 not required. Excepting when they are newly potted from the 

 cutting-pot or otherwise, they should have a light and open position 

 in the stove. A compost of loam, peat, and leaf-mould in equal 

 quantities, with a dash of sand, will be found suitable for the E-hyn- 

 chanthera and other melastomads. For the figure of this fine 

 plant we are indebted to the " Botanical Magazine," t. 6011. 



TEEE FEENS. 



BY JOUN BUELET, F.E.H.S., ETC. 

 Hereford Road Nursery, Bayswater, W. 



|N continuation of my papers on plants of noble aspect 

 suitable for the embellishment of the conservatory and 

 winter garden, I will proceed to make a few remarks on 

 tree ferns. These, as many readers of this are aware, 

 are remarkably beautiful ; in fact, quite unsurpassed in 

 their way, and alike suitable for all classes of houses that will afford 

 them sufficient head room. They are not more difficult to cultivate 

 than the average of conservatory plants, and in some respects they 

 require less attention ; for when properly potted, supplying them 

 with water constitutes the chief labour incurred in keeping them 

 in good health. 



Tree ferns are mostly common to the temperate zone, being 

 found in abundance in Tasmania, the continent of Australia, and 

 New Zealand^ consequently they are well adapted for cultivation in 

 structures fi'om which the frost is excluded in winter. Some, as 

 demonstrated in the sub-tropical garden in Battersea Park, are 

 capable of producing a good elfect out of doors during the summer 

 season, provided they can enjoy the advantage of a sheltered and 

 rather shady position. One of the most beautiful of the whole 

 family, Cijathea dealhafa, commonly known as the Silver Tree-fern, 

 is said to have withstood the effects of the severe winter of 1SG6-G7 

 in the gardens of Lady Lucy Tenison, Kilronan Castle, Carrick-ou- 

 Shannon, although placed in an open position without protection. 

 This might be so, but I would advise those who cultivate arborescent 

 ferns to keep them under cover during the winter, for there is a va&t 

 J11J7. 14 



