DRACANA. 
Greenhouse and Stove Plants. 
153 
tinct and handsome kind. 
Islands. 
D. Frederict. A hybrid variety; dark 
bronzy-green leaves, edged and veined with 
crimson. 
D. Goldieana. A most remarkable and 
distinct species; the leaves are broad 
and pointed, greyish-green ground colour, 
banded across with broad irregular mark- 
ings of whitish grey alternating with dark 
green. Tropical Africa. 
D. gracilis. A small-growing kind with 
slender narrow leaves. A useful decorative 
plant. 
D. Guilfoylei. Another very distinct 
and handsome kind; ground colour light 
green, striped with white, pink, and red. 
South Sea Islands. 
D. Mrs. Bausé. A stout short-leaved 
variety, ground colour deep green, margined 
with bright crimson. 
D. Princess Margaret. Different in ap- 
pearance from most others, medium in 
growth, midrib crimson, most of the leaf- 
blade white, striped with pale green suf- 
fused with pink. South Sea Islands. 
D. -pulcherrima. A medium - growing 
kind, with-narrow leaves; very graceful 
in appearance ; colour green, with red 
and white markings. South Sea Islands. 
D. Rex. A hybrid variety of distinct 
character ; stout in habit ; leaves bronzy- 
green, streaked and edged with carmine- 
red. 
D. Shepherdit. One of the largest and 
strongest growers of the family ; the leaves 
are very long and broad, and of different 
shades of green, tinged with bronzy-red. 
South Sea Islands. 
D. superba. A small-leaved hybrid 
variety ; leaves 12 inches long by 1 inch 
broad, bronzy-green, edged with red. 
D. terminalis. One of the oldest, but 
still one of the very best for general de- 
corative purposes, grown more than all 
others put together for market, as 1t will 
stand much hard usage. Leaves bronzy- 
green, edged and suffused with pale trans- 
parent red. East Indies. 
D. terminalis alba. A form of the above 
with a good deal of white in the leaf 
marking. 
Insecrs.—Thrips, red spider, and aphides 
can be easily kept under by syringing. 
Should brown scale or mealy bug attack 
them, sponging is the best remedy. 
South Sea 
DRACANA. 
(Greenhouse. ) 
The greenhouse kinds of Draczna are 
elegant in habit, and are well adapted for 
conservatory decoration as also for standing 
in rooms, corridors, and similar places 
where their stately appearance is seen to 
the best advantage. 
Such kinds as D. australis—one of the 
best and most generally useful—can be 
raised from seed, which should be sown in 
spring in pans filled with finely-sifted 
peat with a little sand added; cover the 
seeds lightly and stand in a temperature of 
55° or 60°, keeping the soil slightly moist 
and shaded from the sun until the seeds 
vegetate, after which keep them near the 
glass, give more air and shade a little from 
the sun. They should remain in the seed 
pan until each plant has got several leaves 
5 or 6 inches long, when move singly into 
3-inch pots, now using good loam broken 
fine, mixed with a moderate amount of 
sand. As soon as the roots are fairly 
moving in the new soil subject the plants 
to greenhouse treatment, giving air freely 
during the day, a little shade, and water to 
the soil so as to keep it moderately moist ; 
syringe overhead in the afternoons, but 
discontinue this in the autumn. Keep 
through the winter in a night temperature 
of 40°, regulating it in the day according to 
the weather. In the spring about April 
move them into pots from 4 to 6 inches in 
diameter, according to the amount of roots 
each plant is found to have when turned 
out of the old ones. After potting treat 
through the summer as in the previous 
season, again giving a little shade in the 
brightest weather ; this summer a low pit, 
where they will be near the glass and can 
have plenty of air, will answer best. 
Syringe each afternoon—this is essential 
with this plant through the growing 
season in all its stages to keep down red 
spider, which if allowed to get established 
on the leaves does irreparable mischief by 
causing them to turn yellow and die off 
prematurely. All that is subsequently 
required is to give more pot-room as 1t 1s 
wanted, and to continue other matters as 
already advised, being careful that the 
roots never want moisture. Want of 
moisture tends to injure the lower leaves, 
and thus to detract much from the appear- 
ance of the plants. If well cared for this 
Dracena will:attain a height of 6 feet or 
more before the bottom leaves begin to go 
off. Other sorts like D. congesta, D. rubra, 
and D. lineata, are increased by cuttings 
made from both the thick extremities of the 
roots, and from shoots such as are pro- 
duced from the old stems of plants that 
have had their heads removed ; the young 
growths should be taken off when they 
have grown to a length of 6 or 8 inches, 
securing the firm woody portion of the 
bottom. Strip off three or four of the 
