DELPHINIUM. 



91 



DEXDROBIUM. 



Belladonna, a plant of little beauty, 

 and a deadly poison. 



Decaying Leaves, — ]\[any trees 

 and shrubs are very ornamental from 

 the beautiful colours which their 

 leaves assume in autumn ; and among 

 these may be mentioned the Ampel- 

 opsis, or Virginian Creeper, the dif- 

 ferent kinds of Rhus or Sumach, the 

 Liquidambar, the American Oaks 

 and jMaples, the Rhododendrons, 

 Azaleas, kc. JMany large trees, such 

 as the Birch, the Beech, the Oak, 

 and the deciduous Cj-press, are also 

 very ornamental, from the colours of 

 their decaying leaves. 



Deciduous Cypress. — Though 

 these trees, in favourable situations, 

 become too large to be included in a 

 work like the present, yet as they are 

 often introduced in shrubberies when 

 of a small size, it may be here ob- 

 served that they never grow large 

 unless near water. In their native 

 country (North America) they grow 

 in swamps and morasses, and are 

 there from seventy to one hundred 

 feet high. "When growu in dry soil, 

 they become stunted, and rarely ex- 

 ceed ten or fifteen feet high ; but 

 their foliage assumes a beautiful red 

 in djdng off, instead of its natural 

 yellow. Botanists have had some 

 trouble to know where to place this 

 tree, as it was first called Cupressus 

 dlsticha, and the generic name was 

 then changed, first to Schubertia, 

 and afterwards to Taxodium. 



Delphinium. — Ranunculacece. 

 The Larkspur. — Well-known annual, 

 biennial, and perennial plants, with 

 curiously-cut leaves and splendid 

 flowers, which are either pui^ple, 

 pink, blue, or white, and never 

 yellow. The Siberian Larkspurs 

 are remarkable for the metallic 

 lustre of their flowers, the hue of 

 which resembles that of silver which 

 has been tarnished by fire ; and the 

 Bee Larkspu.rs are both remarkable 



and interesting for the curious 

 manner in which their petals are 

 folded up in the centre of the flower, 

 so as to resemble a bee, or a large 

 blue-bottle fly. Several very showy 

 species of Delphinium were intro- 

 duced in 1855 and 1S56, and par- 

 ticularly one from California, with 

 bright scarlet flowei-s, D. cardinale. 

 It is a hardy annual, and a most 

 valuable addition to our flower- 

 gardens. The Larkspurs will grow 

 in any soil or situation ; but a rich 

 friable loam, and a situation open to 

 the sun, suit them best. They are 

 improved by the addition of a good 

 deal of thoroughly rotten manure to 

 the soil in which they grow, instead 

 of being injured by it, as is the case 

 with most other flowering plants. 

 The seeds keep good a long time ; 

 and those of the annual kinds do 

 best sown in autumn, as, when 

 sown in spring, they are a long time 

 before they flower. The perennials 

 are propagated by division of the 

 root. 



>< Dendro'bium. — OrcMdacea'. — 

 Splendid orchideous Epiphytes, which 

 may be grown on the branches of 

 ti-ees, or in pots suspended from the 

 rafters of the damp stove. They are 

 generally propagated by taking off a 

 joint of the pseudo-bulb or stem, and 

 planting it in turfy loam, well drained. 

 No water should be given till the plant 

 begins to shoot from below ; but in a 

 short time, the green tips of its roots 

 will be seen protruding through the 

 loose soil in the pot, and hanging 

 down over the rim. It is now in a 

 growing state, and if well supplied 

 with water, and kept in a damp at- 

 mosphere, it will increase rapidly ; 

 but care should be taken that its 

 long roots are not injured, as those 

 that are will wither away, and never 

 recover. The pots should be hung 

 obliquely, so that the flowers may 

 hang down in long spikes, when they 



