Stove and Greenhouse Plants and Flowers 169 



restricted. The cuttings root in sandy peat and loam in bottom heat, and 

 the young plants are grown on as rapidly as possible in a warm moist 

 atmosphere, and are frequently syringed to keep the foliage clean and 

 bright. When hardened off they stand well in cool places. 



Exacum macranthum. Lovely stove Gentianworts, mostly from 

 Ceylon, are raised from seeds or cuttings, and flourish in a mixture of 

 sandy peat and loam. The best kinds are affine, bluish lilac; Forbesi, 

 deep blue; macranthum, rich violet purple; and zeylanicum, violet all 

 about 9 in. high. 



Fieus elastica (!NDIARUBBER PLANT). This is still largely grown for 

 market. The large elliptic glossy -green leathery leaves constitute the 

 chief ornamental feature, and when coupled with the fact that the plants 

 will stand almost as rough treatment as the Aspidistras one need not 

 wonder at its popularity. It is easily raised in the same way as Dracaenas 

 by taking off the tops of the plants, and also by cutting the stems up into 

 one-eyed pieces with a leaf, and plunging them in bottom heat in coconut 

 fibre, or leaf mould. The overhead temperature at this time is kept up 

 to 75 or 80 F., and a very humid atmosphere is maintained. Single 

 leaves root readily, but will not throw new shoots. Once rooted the young 

 plants are potted up in 3 -in. and afterwards into 5 -in. pots and grown 

 on quickly for sale. They are gradually given more air and light and a 

 lower temperature, to enable them to stand the rough usage of transit. 

 The prices realized now are lower than in former years, being 9s. to 12s. 

 per dozen for plants in 5-in. pots. 



Another species of Ficus, namely F. pandurata, with large fiddle-shaped 

 leathery leaves, has attracted the attention of one or two large market 

 growers of late years on account of its ornamental appearance. It is a 

 stove plant and requires abundance of moisture and heat to bring it along 

 quickly. Quite nice plants can be obtained in 5-in. and 6-in. pots, and 

 their culture pays at 2s. 6cZ. to 5s. per plant. Other ornamental -leaved 

 Ficuses are macrophylla, with larger but narrower leaves than F. elastica\ 

 and nymphcecefolia, with large heart-shaped leaves, but they are not yet 

 known amongst market growers. Another species, F. Canoni, also known 

 as Artocarpus Canoni, is often met with in nurseries, and is remarkable for 

 its beautiful bronzy-purple leaves. 



There are a few popular climbing species, amongst the best being the 

 well-known F. repens and its variety minima, so useful for clinging to 

 walls in warm greenhouses and stoves, covering them with a dense mass 

 of small green leaves. F. radicans and its variegated form is another 

 scandent Ficus in which a fair trade is done by nurserymen; and the 

 same may be said of F. Parcelli, from Polynesia, an ornamental species 

 having the bright-green leaves irregularly blotched with ivory white and 

 deep green. 



Freesia. The most generally useful kind for market work is F. re- 

 fracta alba, which has almost pure-white tubular blossoms borne in 

 graceful trusses during the winter season. The cut flowers are largely 



