S ON THE CULTURE OF ERVTHRINA CRISTA OALLI, 



off all the old soil from tliem, being careful not to twist or break the 

 tubers near to the trunk of the root. 



I have found the plan of retaining soil to the roots when taken up, to 

 be very serviceable in the case of late seedlings, such often having but 

 ]ong and small tubers, but with such my plan has never failed to pre- 

 serve them well. You shall bear from me again. 



A Nottinghamshire Florist. 



Feb. 6th, 1833. 



[We shall be glad to hear from our respected Correspondent at his own 

 convenience. — Condictor.] 



ARTICLE II. — On the Culture and Propagation of the 

 Erythrina Crista Ga'lli. By Saint Patrick. 



Sir, — I frequently find during my routes, very large plants of that 

 beautiful exotic, Erythri'na Cri'sta Ga'lli, with scarcely a single blossom 

 upon them ; should you consider these few practical Hints worth no- 

 ticing, they are quite at your service. In propagating this exotic, I 

 take off young shoots from the mother plant when they are about four 

 inches long, I pull them off with a little of the old bark attached to 

 each ; this is done any time from January until May. I plant the 

 young shoots each one in a small pot, with a mixture of loam and sand' 

 and afterwards plunge them into a good brisk heat. Shading and 

 watering is particularly attended to. In three or four weeks the plants 

 will have filled the small pots with roots, when they are shifted into 

 32 sized pots with their balls entire, using rich strong loam. A good 

 heat, plenty of air and manure water is necessary until the beginning 

 of October, when I find a lesser quantity wanted. As soon as the 

 foliage has decayed, I cut the plants down to within six inches of tho 

 roots, turn them out of the pots, clean the roots, and preserve them 

 in sand kept in boxes. Early in January I pot the roots into 32 sized 

 pots, with the compost as named before, and then plunge them into a 

 liotbed frame or pine pit. The roots soon push out a quantity of shoots, 

 when I allow only four to remain on for flowering, (the others may be 

 put into pots as before stated ;) about the middle of March the plants 

 require re-potting into 24 sized pots, and kept in a good bottom and 

 top heat. These plants will flower very fine in April. Early in Ja- 

 nuai", 1831, I potted a two-year old cutting, in April it was six feet 

 high, and profusely covered with blossoms. In May last I cut it down 

 close to the original stem, and in July it was equally as splendid as it 

 was in April. In August I cut it down again, and flowered it for the 

 third time in October; the plant each time was six feet high, and was 



