My New Zealand Garden 99 



a shoot ii inches in circumference and 20 feet 

 long in about eighteen months. 



Brachychiton asserifolia, one of the Sterculias 

 (Australian Flame-tree), is, indeed, a blaze when 

 it flowers. It divests itself of its leaves for the 

 occasion, in order, it is said, to make room for the 

 flowers, with which it becomes packed. I saw one, 

 in Auckland, long past its best, and in places there 

 could have been no room for leaves. It was about 

 40 feet high. The owner told me that their best 

 specimen was taking a rest after an overflow of 

 inflorescence the previous summer. Mine is about 

 20 feet high, with dense foliage of leaves, which 

 are rather like fig-leaves in size and shape. If 

 these are all to come off, which seems a great 

 undertaking, there will be no opportunity of 

 judging how the foliage suits the flower. When- 

 ever a good leaf is discarded now, I hope the tree 

 is going to undress and don its smart robes, 

 and I have long prepared for the great event by 

 planting white flowering subjects next, to prevent 

 clashing of colour. 



A loe arboreum makes a beautiful large plant here, 

 often over 4 feet high, and as much across, with 

 a spike of glowing red flowers coming out of 

 every whorl of its fleshy recurved leaves. The 

 edges are rather too prickly to dive one's hands 

 into to capture snails, so on wet days I intercept 

 them in their walks. I used to keep ducks for 



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