74 Subtropical Gardening. 



species from Japan, of which I have not seen the green 

 form in cultivation, with very dwarf, slender, branching, 

 hollow, half-shrubby stems, seldom growing more than 

 1 8 ins. high, and with very short internodes. The leaves 

 are 3^ ins. to 8 ins. long, linear-lance-shaped, abruptly 

 pointed, somewhat rounded at the base, serrated and 

 often fringed with long hairs on the margin, downy on 

 both sides ; they are distinctly variegated, the transverse 

 veins being often of a bottle-green colour ; stalks very 

 short and hairy. This kind has proved hardy in our 

 gardens, but it has not the charm of grace possessed by 

 the other kinds, and is chiefly desirable in collections of 

 variegated and edging plants. 



*Bambusa japonica (B. Metake). A large-leaved 

 and rather dwarf species from Japan, growing from 4 ft. 

 to 7 ft. high, with erect thickly-tufted stems, which are 

 entirely covered by the sheaths of the leaves ; the 

 branches are also erect. The leaves are lance-shaped, 

 with a very sharp point, dark green, persistent, narrowed 

 into a short leaf-stalk, and nearly a foot long. This 

 species sometimes flowers with extraordinary profusion 

 at the expense of a portion of the foliage, which withers 

 away and leaves the naked stems exposed. This may, 

 however, be prevented to some extent, by placing the 

 plants on mounds somewhat above the level of the sur- 

 rounding soil. I have seen it thrive very freely in the 

 late Mr. Borrer's garden in Sussex, and in one or two 

 other places. It loves a peat soil, or a very free moist 

 and deep loam, and runs a good deal at the root. 



Bambusa mitis. A fine and vigorous kind from 

 Cochin China, somewhat tenderer than most of the other 



