KOMULEA 



ROOT-PRUNING 



R. Cou'lttri (Coulter's). 3-5. White. California. 1875. 

 tricho' calyx (hairy-calyxed). 3-5. White. Cali- 

 fornia. 1902. 



ROMU'LEA. (Commemorative of Romulus, the founder 

 of Rome. Nat. ord. Iridaceae. Allied to Cipura.) 



Half-bardy or greenhouse bulbs, many of which can be 

 grown in cold frames. Offsets. Light, rich, sandy soil. 

 R. buibocodioi'des (Bulbocodium-like). |-i. Bright 



yellow, not striped. S. Africa. 1810. 

 Bulboco'dium (Bulbocodium). $-1. Lilac, with 



S'llow throat. Mediterranean region. 1739. 

 ardy. 



py'lia (gate). \. Large, white, with yellow throat. 

 subpalu'stre (submarshy). \. White at base, 



lilac upwards. 



ca'ndida (white). White. S. Africa, 

 Ce"lsii (Cels's). See R. ROSE A. 

 chloroleu'ca (green-white). J. Whitish, with yellow 



throat. June. S. Africa. 1825. 

 ,, clttsia'na (Clusian). J-i. Bright yellow, tipped with 



lilac. Spain. 

 Colu'mna (Columna's). J. Pale lilac, with yellow 



throat. England ; S. Europe ; Azores. Hardy. 

 crucia'ta (cross-like). See R. ROSEA. 

 ftlifo'lia (thread-leaved), j. Yellow. May. S. 



Africa. 1822. 

 graci'llima (very-slender). J-J. Pale red-h'lac. 



Namaqualand. 

 hirsu'ta (hairy). J-J. Red-purple, with bright yellow 



base. S. Africa. 



Leichtli'ni (Leichtlin's). Gardens. 

 ligu'stica (Ligustian). i~J. Bright lilac, with yellow 



throat. Northern Italy. 

 Linare'sii (Linares's). *. Wholly bright lilac. Italy ; 



Greece ; Asia Minor. 

 longifo'lia. (long-leaved). $. Rose. May. S. Africa. 



1758. 



Maco'ifani (Macowan's). J. Bright yellow, paler 

 . 1887. Th 



The finest. 

 Coppery, with yellow 



upwards. S. Africa. 

 monade'lpha (one-bundled). 



throat. S. Africa. 1825. 

 pu'dica (modest). See R. ROSEA PUDICA. 

 pulche'lla (pretty). See R. BULBOCODIUM. 

 ramiflo'ra (branch-flowering), i. Bright lilac, with 



yellow throat. Mediterranean region. 1825. 

 Parlato'rei (Parlatore's). 

 Requie'nii (Requien's). i. Wholly deep violet. 



Corsica. 

 ro'sea (rosy). \. Red-lilac, with yellow throat. S. 



Africa. 1818. 

 pu'dica, (modest). J. Red-lilac, with white throat. 



S. Africa. 1808. 

 specio'sa (showy). \. Outer segments with 3-5 



dark purple stripes. S. Africa. 1808. 

 specio'sa (showy). See R. ROSEA SPECIOSA. 

 sublu'tea (somewhat-yellow). J-J. Bright yellow, 



not striped. S. Africa. 1825. 

 tortuo'sa (tortuous), i. Bright yellow, not striped. 



May. S. Africa. 1822. 



RONDELE'TIA. (Named after W. Rondelet, a French- 

 man. Nat. ord. Rubiads [Rubiacea?]. Linn. $-Pentan- 

 dria, i-Monogynia..} 



Stove evergreen shrubs. Cuttings of the points of the 

 shoots, getting slightly firm, in sand, under a bell-glass, 

 and in bottom-heat ; the glass being raised at night, 

 and in dull weather, to prevent damping ; fibrous peat 

 and fibrous loam, with enough of sand, broken pots, 

 and charcoal to insure openness in the soil. Winter 

 temp., 48 to 55 ; summer, 60 to 85. 

 R. america'na (American). 10. White. August. W. 

 Ind. 1752. 



amce'na (lovely). 3-4. Pink. March* Mexico. 1838. 



ano'mala (anomalous). See R. STRIGOSA. 



Backhou'sei (Backhouse's). Trop. Amer. 



corda'ta (heart-shaped). White. Guatemala. 1852. 



discolor (two-coloured). 6. Red. New Grenada. 



erioca'rpa (woolly-fruited). Yellow Colombia. 1867. 



erythroneu'r a (red-nerved). Pink. Trop. Amer. 1850. 



grati'ssima (most-grateful). Pink. Mexico. 1866. 



hirsu'ta (hairy). 5. Yellow. July. Jamaica. 1820. 



hi'rta (hairy), to. Pink. July. Jamaica. 1776. 



l&viga'ta (smooth-leaved). 12. White. July. W. 

 Ind. 1790. 



latifo'lia (broad-leaved). See R. AMOENA. 



5. White. July. Jamaica. 



R. laurifo'lia (laurel-leaved). 5. White. July. Jamaica. 



.1824. 



/ongi/Zo'ra(long-flowered). See HINDSIA LONGIFLORA. 

 odora'ta (scented). 3. Red. July. W. Ind. 1836. 

 ma'jor (longer). 3. Scarlet. April. Havannah. 

 panicvla'ta (panicled). See WENDLANDIA PANICU- 



LATA. 



racemo'sa (racemed). 6. White. July. Jamaica. 

 1820. 



Rce'zlii (Roezl's). Rose. Guatemala. 1849. 



ro'sea (rosy). Pink. Colombia. 1859. 



specio'sa (showy). See R. ODORATA. 



ma'jor (larger). See R. ODORATA MAJOR. 



strigo'sa (stiffly hairy). Red, yellow. Autumn. 

 Guatemala. 



thyrsoi'dea (thyrsed). 

 1819. 



tomento'sa (downy). 6. White. July. Jamaica. 1819. 



versi'color (changeable-coloured). See R. AMO-NA. 



RONNBERGIA. (Commemorative of M. Ronnberg, 

 a director of agriculture, Belgium. Nat. ord. Brome- 

 1 liaceae.) 



Stove evergreen perennial. Off sets or suckers. Fibrous 

 loam, lumpy peat, bits of charcoal, and sand. 

 R. columbia'na (Columbian), i. Dark blue, with white 

 tube. Colombia. 1885. 



morrenia'na (Morrenian). Blue. Colombia. 1874. 



ROOTS are either annual, biennial, or perennial ; but 

 in all roots, and under any mode of management, the 

 fibrous parts (radiculae) are strictly annual ; they decay 

 as winter approaches, and are produced with the return- 

 ing vigour of their parent in the spring. Hence the 

 reason that plants are transplanted with most success 

 during the season of their decay ; for, as the root almost 

 exclusively imbibes nourishment by the points of these 

 fibres, in proportion as they are injured by the removal 

 so is the plant deprived of the means of support : that 

 sap which is employed in the formation of new fibres 

 would have served to increase the size of other parts. 



Roots always travel in the direction where most food 

 is to be obtained ; therefore, for carrots and parsnips, 

 let a little manure be turned in with the bottom spit 

 when the ground is trenched for them. So, if it be 

 desirable to prevent the roots of any plant travelling 

 in a certain direction, the soil on that side should be 

 excavated, and the cavity refilled with sand, or some 

 other unfertile earth, whilst the soil on those sides of 

 the plant whither the roots are desired to tend should 

 be made as fertile as is permissible with its habits. 



Whatever causes an excessive development of root 

 prevents the production of seed ; and vice versa, the 

 production of seed, especially in tuberous-rooted plants, 

 reduces the amount of root developed. Thus, frequent 

 transplanting the young plants of the lettuce, broccoli, 

 and cauliflower causes the production of numerous, 

 fibrous roots, and is found effective in preventing the 

 mature plants advancing early to seed. 



The early varieties of the potato do not naturally 

 produce seed ; but if their tubers are removed as soon as 

 they are formed, these early varieties blossom and bear 

 seed as freely as the later kinds, a fact suggesting many 

 experiments to the cultivator of shy-blooming tuberous- 

 rooted flowers. Again, if the blossoms of these later 

 varieties are plucked off as they appear, the weight of 

 tubers produced will be very materially increased. 



ROOT-PRUNING, first adopted as a systematic prac- 

 tice by Mr. Errington, has for its object a check to over- 

 luxuriance. This it does effectually, for such excess of 

 growth arises from the roots imbibing too much food. 

 By pruning, and thus reducing their number, therefore 

 we reduce their imbibing power ; and it is found that 

 such pruning checks the production of leaf-buds, and 

 will cause any kind of fruit-tree to produce blossom-buds, 

 ,provided the tree is healthy, and that its barrenness 

 * arises from over-luxuriance. To know what proportion 

 of the roots to cut away, we may suppose the trees thrown 

 into three classes. First, trees of moderate luxuriance ; 

 second, those which may be termed robust ; third, those 

 of gross habit. To give a further idea, we would say that 

 the first class will make young shoots, on an average, 

 a foot in length ; those of the second 2 feet ; and the third 

 nearly, or quite, 3 feet : the latter, indeed, frequently 

 burst into lateral or side-shoots from the young shoots 

 of the same season. 



