150 



The Dictionary of Gardening, 



Azalea — continued. 



ends. Branches hairy. /(. 3ft. to 4ft. North America. The 

 varieties of above are several, varying in the shape of tlie leaves 

 and the colour of the flowers. (L. B. f. 1255 ) 



A. viscosa (clammy).* Jl. white, sweet-scented, in terminal 

 clusters, downy, clammy, leafy ; tube of corolla as long as the seg- 

 ments. July. /. oblong-ovate, acute, smooth, and green on both 

 surfaces, ciliated on the margins, having the midrib bristly, h, 2ft. 

 to 4ft. North America, 1734. Like nearly all species belonging 

 to this genus, the varieties are many, varying in the colour of the 

 flowers and otherwise. (T. S. M. 438.) 



A. V. nltida (shining).* ,/?. white, tinged with red, clammy, leafy ; 

 tube of corolla a little longer than the segments. April. /. ob- 

 lanceolate, rather mucronate, leathery, smooth on both surfaces, 

 shining above, having the nerve Inistly beneath, with revolute, 

 ciliated margins. A. 2ft. to 4ft. New' York, 1812. Hardy ; de- 

 ciduous. (B. E. 5, 414.) 



Indian or Chinese Azaleas. This is a section of green- 

 house evergreen Tarieties obtained from A. indica (which 

 see), blooming continuoirsly from November to June, or 

 even later, and of the greatest value for all purposes, 

 ■whether for decoration, cutting, or exhibition. Cultiva- 

 tion : Thorough drainage is essential, and a compost of 

 half peat, the other half made up of fibrous loam, leaf 

 soil, and sand, in equal quantities. They cannot have 

 too much light and air, and may be grown to almost 

 any size by shifting from one pot to a size larger. In 

 repotting, the whole of the crocks should be taken away 

 from the base of the ball of soil and roots, and the top 

 should also be removed till the fine roots are reached. 

 The plant should then be put in the new pot, and the 

 additional soil rammed firm, in order to prevent the water 

 running through it, and thus depriving the plant of any 

 benefit therefrom. In all cases, the roots near the stem 

 must be above the soil, so that the water may not sink in 

 next the stem, or death will most certainly ensue. After 

 potting, tor a few days the plants should be kept close and 

 freely syringed, and as the growth is completed, they 

 may be well hardened off. The best time tor potting 

 is after flowering, before the new growth has been made. 

 Prom October to June the plants should be in the green- 

 house, and during the other months in a cold frame, or 

 plunged in pots in the open .: or, what is preferable in 

 favoured localities, planted out in prepared beds ; they will 

 thus be kept cleaner, and the growth will be much 

 superior. In autumn they may be lifted and repotted, 

 placing in a shady position for a few days. Water in 

 abundance must be given throughout the blooming and 

 growing season; and the plants must, on no account, be 

 allowed to become dry. At the same time, a proper amount 

 of care is most essential, as an excessive amount of 

 moisture is equally as fatal as drought. Cuttings should 

 be placed in sand under a bell glass mth moderate bottom 

 heat; half-ripened ones are preferable. They must be 

 cut up to a joint — the base of a leaf — the lower leaves 

 for an inch stripped off, and the stem stuck into the 

 sand, which should lay, about an inch thick, on the top of 

 sandy peat soil ; the bottom of the cuttings should reach, 

 but not go quite into, the soil. The whole should be 

 covered with a bell glass, which must be wiped dry 

 every morning. Soon after the cuttings have commenced 

 growing, place them in small pots. They are also very 

 largely and easily increased by grafting ; indeed, this is the 

 only satisfactory method of securing standards. Seeds 

 may be sown similar to the last section, but in the 

 greenhouse, and, when well up, pricked out into little 

 pots lin. apart. Azaleas are liable to the attacks of 

 thrips and red spider, the latter being especially trouble- 

 some if the plants are in a dry position; frequent 

 syringing will materially help to eradicate both pests. 

 If insufficient, syringe with a solution of Gishurst's Com- 

 pound. 



A. amoena (pleasing). Jl. almost campanulate, rich crimson, 

 about Uin. across, hose-in-hose conformation, produced in great 

 profusion. April. I. small, size of the common Box, hairy, k. 1ft. 

 China. This is an elegant little neat and compact growing shrub, 

 which has proved to be quite hardy in England. (B. M. 4728.) 

 A very beautiful series of hybrids liave been obtained by cross- 

 ing this species with A. indica, which are most serviceable and 



Azalea — continued. 



free. The following are most desirable : Ladv MrscjiuvE, light 

 cjirmine; Miss BuiST, pure white; Mks. Cakmiciiael, rich 

 magenta, shaded crimson ; Pkime Minister, soft pink, deep 

 shaded, very free ; Princess Beatrice, light mauve, very distinct 

 and free ; Princess Maude, rich magenta, rose shaded. 



Fig. 198. Flower of Azalea indica. 



A. indica (Indian).* Jt. campanulate, terminal, solitary or twin; 

 calycine teeth long-lanceolate, obtuse, ciliated, spreading. (. 

 cuneate-lanceolate, finely crenulated, covered with sharp, close- 

 pressed rigid hairs, attenuated at both ends. Branches also 

 covered with sharp, close-pressed, rigid hairs, h. 3ft. to 6ft. 

 China, 1808. See Fig. 198. There are a great number of garden 

 seedlings of the Indian Azalea, including every shade and 

 colour. A selection to any extent may be made from the 

 nurserymen's catalogues, but, for the guidance of the amateur, 

 we have made a rigid selection of the best double and single 

 varieties. 



Double-Flowered: A. BORSIG, pure white; Alice, rich deep 

 rose, blotched with vermilion, very fine ; Bernard Andre, dark 

 violet-purple, large, semi-double ; Charles Leirens, dark salmon, 

 good form and substance; Cobitesse Eugenie de Kerchove, 

 white, flaked with red-carmine, semi-double ; Dominique Ver- 

 vaene, bright orange, very fine ; Dr. Moore, deep rose, with 

 white and violet shading, very tine ; Empereur de Bresil, rich 

 rose, banded white, the upper petals marked red : Francis Devos, 

 deep crimson ; Imbricata, pui-e white, sometimes flaked with 

 rose; Madame Iris Lefebvre, dark orange, shaded with bright 

 violet, and blotched with chocolate ; President Ghellinck de 

 Walle, intense rose, upper petals blotched w ithlake, and crimson- 

 rayed; Souvenir de Prince Albert, rich rose peach, broadly 

 margined with pure white, very free and beautiful. 



Single-Floivered : Charmer, rich amaranth, very large ; Comtesse 

 DE Beaufort, rich rose, the upper petals blotched with crimson; 

 Criterion, rich salmon pink, white-margined ; Due de Nassau, 

 rich rosy-purple, very free and large ; Eciatante, deep crimson, 

 rose shaded; Fanny Ivery, deep sahuon-scarlet, blotched 

 magenta, very fine ; Flambeau, rich glowing crimson, extremely 

 showy ; John Gould Veitch, lilac-rose, netted and bordered 

 white, and blotched with saffron, very showy ; La Superbe, rich 

 lake, bordered orange, and black spotted, a very tine variety ; La 

 Victoire, centre reddish, white towards the edge, the upper 

 petals spotted with maroon-crimson ; Louis Von Baden, pure 

 white, a grand variety ; Madame Charles Van Eckhaute, pure 

 white, with beautifully crisped edges, of excellent form and sub- 

 stance ; Madame Van Houtte, richly flaked with carmine 

 and rose, very large and free ; Marijuis of Lorne, brilliant 

 scarlet, of the finest form and substance; Mrs. Turner, bright 

 pink, white-margined, and spotted with crimson; President 

 Van Den Hecke, white, striped and speckled with crimson, with 

 a yellow centre ; Princess Alice, pure white, one of the best ; 

 Heine des Pays-Bas, rich violet-pink, margined with white ; 

 Roi D'HuLLANDE, dark blood-red, spotted with black; SiGis- 

 MUND RucKER, lich rose, white bordered, with crimson blotches ; 

 Wilson Saunders, pure white, striped and blotched with vivid 

 red, very tine. 



A. mollis (soft). Synonymous with A. sinensis. 



A* sinensis (Chinese), ji. campanulate, downy, flame coloured ; ' 

 stamens equal in length to the petals. May. t. slowly deciduous, 

 elliptic, acutish, pilosely pubescent, feather-nerved, with ciliated 

 margins, greyish beneath. /). 3ft. to 4ft. China and Japan. A 

 large number of seedlings and hybrids from this species are in 

 cultivation, known under the name of Japanese Azaleas, and all 

 are valuable for the decoration of the cool conservatory, or for 

 outdoor work. SYN. A. mollis. (L. B. C. 885.) 



AZABiA (in honour of J. N. Azara, a Spanish promoter 

 of science, but of botany in particular). Okd. Bixinew. 

 Showy evergreen, hardy and half-hardy shrubs, with alter- 

 nate, simple, stalked stipulate leaves, and fragrant flowers. 



