324 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
and bluish white above, with markings of a vermiculate appearance, . 
drawn horizontally. It is nearly round, and is therefore quite distinct in 
character from the types ‘ Rothschildianum.’ It may be said that the 
Anthurium ‘ La France’ is absolutely a special type. 
But now let us enter more into the question of fertilisation, and see 
what are the chances of being able to cross-fertilise Anthurium Scher- 
zerianum.. They are of various natures, for it is quite obvious that it is 
not a question of selecting a grand flower, and placing on the female 
organ the pollen of a selected anther. It is necessary to proceed very 
differently, since we have to deal with a spadix bearing a large number of 
perfect flowers. However, by proceeding with precaution and examining 
with a strong lens the state of the flowers on the spadix, and ascertaining 
that if the female organs are ready to receive the pollen the male organs 
are not yet in a state to mix their pollen with what one desires to intro- 
duce, one can then, with the aid of a fine-pointed camel’s-hair brush, take 
some pollen from the spadix of the chosen male plant and convey it 
gently to that of the female plant. 
This operation must be performed in fine weather and out of tlre 
damp; but it is certain that it only gives a comparatively small chance 
and that nine times out of ten the pollens will get mixed. It is there- 
fore difficult, if one does not know the genealogy of his plants well, 
to assert that one variety has had an influence on another. It is only on 
the flowering (to use the horticultural expression) that one will be able to 
ascertain if there has been any intervention of the selected male, or to 
what extent it has taken place. 
A very curious fact | have observed in the Anthurium Scher- 
zerianums, obtained by crossing white-spathed varieties with red-spathed 
ones, is that should the result produce some plants having spathes of — 
salmon or reddish tints, others having very dark red spathes are 
dotted with pure white, principally on the upper surface, and, examined 
through a lens, appear to be altogether flecked with myriads of little - 
white spots. 
There are still many interesting things to be noticed concerning the 
process of fertilisation in Anthuriums. Certain plants owe the colour of 
their spathes to a sort of dimorphism ; the colour is not constant, and 
may vary very much. A plant may one year produce spathes streaked 
or dotted with salmon, and another have them nearly all of one colour. . 
[t is therefore advisable not to fertilise plants with similar varieties, as 
considerable risk is run of not getting anything of any stability. It is 
also essential to take account of the substance of the spadix, its length, 
&c., and also of the substance of the spathe, which will be much finer if 
it is thick, and does not show any tendency to lose its colour quickly. 
Some varieties, such as Parisiense Madame Daliére, have bright 
pink spathes. It is curious to notice that their intervention in the fertili- 
sation of red-spathed varieties acts exactly like mixing colours «in 
painting, as carmine lake mixed with white and vermilion produces 
salmon. ‘The reverse operation gives, on the contrary, a large proportion 
of red-spathed plants, always, in my opinion, owing to the preponderating 
influence of the more intense colour. 
A great deal still remains to be said about Anthurium Scherzerianum, . 
