JUNE. 173 



tion ; it grows six feet high, and is covered throughout with a farino&e 

 powder ; the flowers are hght coloured, and are enclosed by large 

 conspicuous red bracts. A new species of Cymbidium (C. iridifolium), 

 is at present in flower here ; it has a pendulous raceme near two feet 

 long, of greenish yellow flowers. Amongst greenhouse plants there are 

 plenty of things tlow^ering at this season, such as Cinerarias, Acacias, 

 abundance of New Holland plants, and Azaleas, which form a very 

 prominent feature ; one of the best of the red flowering kinds is Apollo, 

 and should be in every collection, also alba magna, which is one of the 

 best of the whites. Several half hardy herbaceous things are kept here 

 in pots in frames until the commencement of their flowering, when they 

 are removed to fill up various places in the greenhouses, thus producing 

 a pretty effect ; one of the most striking is Arctotis grandiflora : it grows 

 about a foot high, has flowers much resembling those of a Gazania, they 

 are four inches across, and are of a deep bright orange colour. Another 

 new plant, introduced from Berlin some time back, is Anexetum 

 asperum ; it is a low branching shrub belonging to Compositse, having 

 dark green woolly leaves, white on the under side, and woolly branches ; 

 the flowers are in corymbs, white and pink, and much resemble those 

 of an Achillea. Cantua buxifolia is here, flowering freely in one of 

 the small greenhouses ; the habit of this shrub is rather against its being 

 formed into a good specimen, as it flowers on or near the extreme points 

 of long slender pendulous branches ; the flowers are large, very showy, 

 2^ — 3 inches long, pendulous, tubular, which part is of a bright orange 

 red ; inside the limb is tinged with purple. The specimen now 

 flowering is five feet high, and has been kept during the past winter in 

 a cool house with the Sikkim Rhododendrons ; it is flow^ering from 21 

 branchlets, varying from one to five flowers each, and would no doubt 

 have flowered from many more if they had not previously been taken 

 off for cuttings. 



J. HOULSTON. 



ROYAL BOTANIC SOCIETY, REGENT'S PARK. 



The first grand floral fete of this Society for the season was 

 held on the 9th ult., and was well attended, considering the cold- 

 ness of the day, which, however, kept dry. The Queen, H.R H. 

 Prince Albert, and other members of the Royal Family, inspected the 

 exhibition before it was opened to the public. As a whole the display 

 was an average one ; fewer plants were, however, brought together on 

 this occasion than is usual in May, and in some of the classes what 

 were produced were scarcely in such good condition as we have been 

 accustomed to see them. Ttiis may doubtless in a great measure be 

 attributed to the unfavourable season we have just passed over. Stove 

 and greenhouse plants, large and well flowered, were, however, furnished 

 in abundance by the usual exhibitors, and the same may be said of 

 Orchids, among which, however, there was a paucity of fine specimens. 

 Azaleas, Rhododendrons, and Tall Cacti made a less display than usual, 

 and Roses, with the exception of a fine group from Mr. Frajicis, of 



