1150 ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM. PART III. 



shining, clothed with appresscd bristles. Flowers pcntandrous. Calycine segments 

 lanceolate, acute, deeply toothed, bristlv. Filaments glabrous. Stems .several, rismg 

 from the rootstock, 2— 4 ft. long, procumbent, naked. Branches fascicled, leafy at the 

 tips, beset with appressed silvery bristles, which change to brown as well as the calyxes. 

 Flowers solitary, or in pairs, nearly sessile, involucrated bybracteas. Corollas large, ol a 

 brilliant salmon colour, glabrous outside ; the limb spreading, with oblong blunt lobes ; 

 the upper lobes markrd with deeper-coloure<l spots. l^Dcm's Mi//.,m. p. S4<S.l There is a 

 subvariety ofthis kind, having the flowers pale pink and striped. A procumbent shrub, 

 from 2 ft. to 3 ft. high, a native of Japan, flowering in May and June. Introduced in 

 1833, but, at present, extremely rare in British gardens, 

 n. R. rcliciilatum D. Don's MSS., Don's Mill, 3. p. 846. ; A. rcticul&ta Hort. Leaves broadly ovate, 



acute, rather coriaceous, sparingly hairy, glaucous, and reticulatelv veine" beneath. Stems erect, 1 ft. 



or 2 ft. high, stiff Leaves stift', 1^ in. long, rounded at the base, bright gree", and shining above, beset 



with a few appressed bristles, as well as the young shoots. This is a shruh. a native ot Japan, on t le 



mountains, where it grows from 1 ft. to 2 ft. high, which was introduced i" 



is.'54, by Mr. Knight of King's Road, Chelsea ; but, as it has not yet flow- 

 ered in F.ngland, verv little is known about it. 

 jt R. Fdnirx Tate, Swt. FI..Gard.,iA ser., t. a?., Don's Mil/., 3. p. 8-lG. ; 



A. K;irrer<r Hort. ; and our./i/j. !>.")8. ; ha.s the branches stiff, villous while 



young, but glabrous in the adult state. Ix>aves stiff, coriaceous, ovate, obtuse, 



ending in a short cartilaginous mucro, attenuated at the base, nerved, 



and reticulately veined, hairy on l)oth surfaces, with somewhat recurved 



ciliated edges. Petioles ciliated at the ba.se. Flowers terminal, solitary. 



Calyx pilose, .'j.lobed. Corolla spreading, with undulated segments, lilac,or 



pale purple-red. It is a dwarf deciduous shrub, with decandrous flowers. 



A native of China, whence it was brought by Captain Farrcr, in 1829. 



It flowers in March, but verv little is knou^i of its habit. 

 Jk R. dfciitnhcns D. Don MSS., Don's Mill., .3. p. 84<i. ; A. decumbens 



Hort. ; has the stem decumbent; leaves ovate, acute; flowers pentandrous ; 



segments of the calyx ovate, acute, ciliatc<l ; flowers crimson {Don's Mill., 



3. p. 8'K).) It Is a native of China, whence it was introduced by Knight and Tate in 182.5. It flowers 



in April and May. 



B. Indian Azaleaa not yet introduced. 



il R. tc&hrum Don's Mill., 3. p. 846.; A. scabra; 11. maximum TV/wnA. fY. Jrto., p. 181. ; has 

 the leaves ovate, mucronulate, and acute at the base, coriaceous, and from I J in. to 3 in. long. The 

 flowers are of a deep rose colour, and bell-shaped, with the corolla 3 in. in diameter. It is a shrub, 

 a native of Japan, in woods on mountains. 



Ik R. mucnmiiltim fJ. Don ; A. mucronftta Blnm. Bijilr., p. 8.W. ; is a shrub, a native of China ; and, 

 according to (i. Don, " perhaps the same as H. /edifblium" (A. i. Slba I.indl.). 



It R /}u7-miinn'\ (i. Dun ; A. rosmariiiifblia liiirm. ri Blum, liijdr., p. 8.")3., but not of Roth ; has the 

 leaves linear.lanceolate, long-acuminated, with recnrve<l margins, clothed with silky down on both 

 surfaces. Flowers pentandrous. It is a shrub, a native of Japan. 



41 R. truiUisG. Don; A. miiWis Blum. Jiijiir., p. 8.'>.3. ; has the branches pilose; the leaves oblong-lance, 

 oliitc, acute, narrowed at the base, ciliated, verv soil beneath ; the flowers in fascicles. Calyx very 

 short. Tube clothe<l with silky tomentum. It is a shrub, a native of China. 



A R. LourcirSinh O. Don ; A. punctJlta Lour. Coch., p. 113. ; has the leaves lanceolate, quite entire, 

 rugose about the edges, smooth. Corolla white, dotted with red, as also the calyx, anthers, and germs. 

 Flowers tenninal. (Don's Mill., J. p. 844i.) It is a shrub, a native of Cochin.Cliina, where it grows to 

 the height of 4 ft. or 5 ft 



§ iv. Propagation and Culture of the half-hardy Species of Wiododendron and 



Azalea. 



The soil best suited for these plants is heath mould, or peat as it is commonly calle<l, mixed with 

 fine loam and vegetable mould. For rearing plants from seed, .ind simply growing the species, such 

 a compost, or even peat alone, or sandy loam, will suffice ; but, for producing large plants, which shall 

 flower profusely, the essence of rotted dung, or of some other manure in which animal matter is in- 

 cluded, requires to be added. The splendid specimens of Azilea and /fhod(Kiciidron which annually 

 attr.nct so much attention in the April and May exhibitions of our Horticultural Societies have, in 

 general, all been grown in very rich .soil, and often watered with liquid manure. The Indian azale.ts 

 more particularly require a rich soil, in order to flower freely and abundantly, and produce those 

 splendid pyramids of blossoms which are so much admired at our shows. On the other hand, when 

 the Indian speciesof /^hododt'ndronand Aziilea are to be treated as half-hardy, they ought to be grown 

 in soil which is poor rather than rich, and kept dry, more especially in autumn, in order to insure 

 the ))roduction of no more wood than can be ripened. 



The situation most suitable for half-hardy rhododemlrons and azaleas would appear to be a border 

 in front of a wall facing the east ; because almost all the species of the order, and more especially all 

 the Indian species of the genera /fhododrndron and Azilea, are natives of womls on mountains, and 

 thrive best when somewhat shade<l. The best mode, where it is intended to have a good collection, 

 and to display the plants to the greatest advantage, would be to plant them in a conservatory, with a 

 movable roof and sides, both of which could be taken away in summer : or in an open space between 

 two walls, built in the direction of north and south ; and on which walls a temporary roof might be 

 placed in the winter season, such as is recommended for the half-hardy I^egiiminacea? (p. Hf)7.), and 

 the half-hardy heaths (p. 1103.). If the Indian, or tree, rhododendrons were grown by themselves in 

 the o|>en ground, being evergreens, they might be covered, during winter, with a roof of boards or 

 thatched hurdles, with only a few windows here and there, as is practised with orange trees in the 

 north of Italy, and sometimes about Paris. 



Propagation. The Indian tree rhododendrons are propagated by layers, or by grafting on H. 

 ponticum or R. catawbi^nse ; and they may also, though with difficulty, lie increasecl by cuttings of 

 the growing wood, planted in sand, and then closely covered with a bell-glass, and put into heat. All 

 the Indian azaleas are very readily propagated by cuttings of the young wood. Both rhododendrons 

 and azaleas ripen seeds in our green.houses ; and these should be sown immediately after being 

 gathered, or very early in the spring, in flat pans or pots tilled with sandy peat, or peat mixed with 

 a little loam and sand. The see<ls should be covered as slightly as possible, and then placed in a very 



