84 EFFECT OF A TROPICAL CLIMATE UPON PLANTS. 



Tom Thumb blossomed several times from young shoots, but, 

 like the rest, it became ultimately yellow, and perished. Of 

 Roses, the White and Red Chinese, R. Bouguera, Devoniensis, 

 Provins Moss, Paul Joseph, and La Birch arrived in good order. 

 Provins Moss produced some new shoots, but soon took a sickly 

 appearance and died. I have never seen, during my wanderings 

 among the West India Islands, a Moss-rose, and my numerous 

 friends all concur that the endeavours to bring it into blossom, 

 or to keep it for more than two or three years, have proved in 

 vain. 



The Red and White China, the latter for the first time intro- 

 duced here, thrive lustily, and are never without flowers. In the 

 commencement the White China was very delicate, but by trans- 

 planting it into a more sunny spot, it soon recovered, and seldom 

 a morning passes now without my finding a bud opened. The 

 flower possesses, when opening and before the sun has touched it, 

 a slight agreeable scent. Paul Joseph perished without producing 

 flowers ; Bouguere likewise ; and La Birch thrives so much in 

 the wood, that it has no strength to produce flowers. The usual 

 measures here resorted to to check the growth of a rose-plant and 

 to make it bloom, as ringing, cutting down the shoots, depriving 

 it of its leaves, &c, have not produced the desired result. As 

 already observed, the climate agrees very well with Tea-roses ; 

 they produce a succession of flowers. 



The above came here in Wardian cases ; of others I brought 

 safely to Santo Domingo, I may mention Ixora Bandhucca, which 

 is constantly in flower, presenting a mass of handsome scarlet 

 blossoms. My endeavours to propagate it by cuttings have hitherto 

 failed. Ixora alba looked for two years sickly, the leaves yellow ; 

 it commences now to recover, but it has not flowered as yet, 

 although it is a large-sized shrub. Gardenia Fortuni, after just 

 vegetating for two years, is hastening to decay. Dilleuia speciosa, 

 from a small plant about 6 inches high in 1849, is now 10 feet, 

 but it has not blossomed as yet. Ardisia Wallichii is just alive ; 

 it has regularly shed its leaves twice a year, and every time after 

 that period it has looked sicklier than before, and the shoots became 

 less in size. I have not much hope that I can preserve it. Coelo- 

 bogyne ilicifolia seemed to thrive very well for the first eighteen 

 months ;. the leaves then became yellow, fell off, and the plant 

 died since. Combretum comosum seems to recover, although for 

 the past three years its life was doubtful ; it has not blossomed as 

 yet. Eranthemum coccineum has become a large plant, and is easily 



