146 ORNAMENTAL GARDENING 



severely and well fertilized, as the soil must be very rich for them 

 to do their best. Muck worked in around the roots is excellent. 

 These cuttings, taken off in March or April, will root readily if 

 kept rather dry. They may be put in the ground nearly to their 

 tops or into pots. There is a double and a white variety. If 

 cut down by frost it comes up quickly. 



Fatsia papyrifera is a native of Formosa, with large cordate, 

 somewhat lobed leaves, a most striking plant. The pith in the 

 main stem is an inch in diameter and by a sharp instrument is 

 cut into sheets as it is unrolled, forming the beautiful rice paper. 

 Reasoner reports that this does splendidly with him but it fails 

 with me; perhaps it dislikes the lime in the soil. 



Fuchsia. These well-known and charming plants fail with me, 

 and several others in various parts of the state report a like ex- 

 perience. Sometimes they do well in pots but they are short 

 lived. Whenever I see beautiful pictures of them in the cata- 

 logues I get soft and send for some of them and then go through 

 the same experience again. It only shows that w r e can't have 

 everything in Florida, though we can come pretty near it. 



Gardenia florida and its variety fortuniana are natives of China, 

 too well known to need comment. They are hardy all through 

 this state and do well generally except perhaps in the extreme 

 southern portion. Here they fail, probably because of lime in 

 the soil. 



Graptophyllum hortense is a handsome shrub from the hotter 

 parts of the Old World. It has bright green elliptical ler es 

 having a sort of oak leaf pattern of white laid on over the middle 

 part with most striking effect. I think it prefers partial shade 

 and it should be planted in a place protected from frost. 



Grevillea thelemanniana is a most charming shrub, having hand- 

 some red flowers. I have repeatedly had this sent from Cali- 

 fornia but it seems to suffer greatly in transportation, for al- 

 though it has sometimes arrived in apparently good condition 

 it has invariably turned yellow and died in a short time. Pos- 

 sibly if it was defoliated before being shipped it might survive. 

 It ought to be tried thoroughly here. 



Hamelia sphaerocarpa is much like our H. patens but the flowers 

 have more of an orange tint. It is excessively tender. 



