AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HORTICULTURE. 



131 



Heliotropitun continued. 



of ornamental, strigose, greenhouse or hardy annual 

 herbs or sub-shrubs, rarely shrubs, widely dispersed 

 throughout the tropical and sub-tropical regions, with 

 eight species reaching to Europe. Flowers blue or 

 white, small, in circinate, secnnd spikes ; corolla salver- 

 shaped. Leaves alternate, rarely sub-opposite. H. peru- 

 vianum and its varieties are amongst the most popular 

 of cultivated plants, on account of the fragrant smell 

 emitted by their flowers. The plants do not require any 

 great amount of heat, but none are more quickly injured 

 by cold, especially when this reaches the freezing point. 

 They may be grown as dwarf decorative subjects, in 

 small pots, or treated as large pyramid and standard 

 specimens. Some of the varieties are very dwarf, and 

 are useful for summer bedding. Old specimens of taller- 

 growing ones are frequently found trained on the back 

 wall of a warm greenhouse. 



Cultivation. Heliotropiums, or Heliotropes, as they 

 are more popularly called, may be readily increased from 

 seeds or cuttings; the latter method being adopted 

 with named varieties. Young growing points make the 

 best cuttings ; and early spring, or the month of August, 

 is a good time for inserting them. If old plants are 

 grown in heat, cuttings from them root quickly in a 

 close frame, and their points may afterwards be used 

 for increasing stock in preference to others not growing 

 so vigorously. The young plants should be potted off 

 singly, and grown on in a temperature of about 60deg., 

 repotting in larger sizes as becomes requisite, and ac- 

 cording to the shape or size of plant required. Cuttings 

 intended for standards should be inserted in the autumn, 

 and kept growing all the winter, with a single stem, 

 until they reach the desired height, when the points 

 may be stopped, and the side branches will soon form a 

 head. Old plants may be grown as standards several 

 years in comparatively small pots, by reducing and pot- 

 ting up again in new soil each year. The heads may 

 be trained on trellises, or the branches merely tied in 

 to each other. Large pyramids can be grown in one 

 year by an autumn insertion of cuttings, and due atten- 

 tion. They should be transferred to the full-sized pots 

 as soon as possible, in proportion to their growth, and 

 each trained to a pyramid trellis of any ordinary size. 

 Small decorative plants may be grown to flower in Sin. 

 or 6in. pots, by keeping them pinched when young. Cut- 

 tings of varieties used for bedding, should be taken about 

 the middle of August, inserted rather thickly in pots 

 or pans, and placed in a close frame. These should be 

 kept as a stock for spring propagating, and may then 

 be thrown away, as young plants are preferable. Being 

 extremely tender, none should be planted out until June, 

 when the bedding season is nearly over. Standards or 

 others, intended for winter flowering, are best placed 

 outside in a warm position, in summer, to thoroughly ripen 

 them. They should be housed by September, and kept 

 in a temperature of about 55deg. in winter. 



H. convolvulaceum (Convolvulus-flowered) * fl. white, sweet- 

 scented, opening at night, generally opposite the leaves and 

 terminal, short-peduncled ; corolla limb ample, angulate-lobed. 



times linear, short-petioled. h. 2ft. New Mexico, 1867. An 

 extremely showy hardy annual plant. (B. M. 5615.) 

 H. corymbosum (corymbose).* fl. lilac ; spikes terminal, aggre- 



rte, corymbose ; sepals long, subulate. May to September. 

 oblong -lanceolate, h. 4ft. Peru, 1808. Greenhouse shrub. 

 (B. M. 1609.) 



(CuraQoa). /., corolla limb ample, five-lobed ; 

 throat white, with a yellow eye, open ; spikes mostly in pairs or 

 twice-forked, densely flowered. June and July. I. linear-lanceo- 

 late, glaucous, smooth, opposite and alternate, h. 9in. West 

 Indies, 1731. Stove sub-shrub. (B. M. 2669.) 

 I. indicum (Indian).* /. bluish ; spikes mostly single, dense- 

 flowered, becoming 9in. to 1ft. long. June to August. I. ovate 

 or oval, rather cordate, on margined petioles, obscurely ser- 

 rate or undulate, h. 1ft. West Indies, 1713. .Stove annual. 

 (B. M. 1837.) 



Heliotropitun continued. 



H. luteum (yellow). fl. green, yellow, hypocrateriform. June to 

 October. 1. stalked. Stem shrubby, h. 6ft. North Africa, &c., 

 1779. Greenhouse. (B. R. 464, under name of Tournefortia 

 fruticosa.) 



FIG. 209. HELIOTROPIUM PERUVIANOM, showing Habit and 

 detached Inflorescence. 



H. peruvianum (Peruvian).* Common Heliotrope ; Cherry Pie. 

 fl. very fragrant ; spikes terminal, branched, by threes and fours, 

 rarely compound. I. petiolate, oblong-lanceolate, wrinkled, repand, 

 hairy. Stem shrubby. Peru, 1757. Greenhouse. See Fig. 209. 

 (B. M. 141.) 



H. Voltaireanum (Voltaire's), fl. violet. A fine dwarf-growing 

 hybrid. Greenhouse. 



Varieties. Of the numerous varieties in cultivation, the 

 subjoined list is a good selection, most of them being of 

 continental origin. For reference and selection, the list 

 is further divided into classes, according to the colour 

 of the flowers and foliage. Those marked with an aste- 

 risk are recommended either for their general floriferous 

 habit or for their highly-perfumed flowers. 



ADELE, flowers dark lilac, trusses very large ; leaves light green, 

 rough ; vigorous, free-flowering habit. BOUQUET PERFUME, 

 flowers dark, trusses medium size ; very dwarf floriferous habit ; 

 an excellent variety. BUFFON, flowers pale lilac, trusses medium 

 size ; tall free-growing habit. FLEUR D'ETi, flowers lilac, trusses 

 medium ; foliage dark green ; rather shy-flowering. MADAME 

 BARBEY, flowers pale-coloured, trusses small ; foliage pale green. 

 MADAME DE BLOUAY, flowers pale lilac, trusses large ; foliage 

 pale green. MADAME E. SCHILLER, flowers dark - coloured, 

 trusses small; leaves long, narrow. MADAME JUBBINGER, 

 flowers and leaves very dark ; floriferous habit; good. MADAME 

 M. KOPFF, flowers whitish-lilac, trusses medium ; leaves rough. 

 MADAME P. ATIILES, flowers dark-coloured, trusses large, very 

 freely produced ; foliage very dark ; good. Miss NIGHTINGALE, 

 flowers dark lilac ; dwarf floriferous habit ; one of the best for 

 bedding. M. VILGRAIN, flowers pale lilac, trusses immense; 

 very free. ROSE CLAIR, flowers dark, trusses rather small but 

 very plentiful ; foliage intensely dark. WHITE LADY, flowers 

 whitish-lilac, becoming nearly white under glass, trusses very 

 large, free ; fine variety for winter flowering. 

 Class I. Foliage and Flowers dark-coloured. *MADAME 



JUBBINGER, *Miss NIGHTINGALE, *ROSE CLAIR. 

 Class II. Foliage and Flowers pale-coloured. *BUFFON, 

 MADAME BARBEY, MADAME DE BLOUAY, MADAME M. KOPFF, 

 *M. VILGRAIN, *WHITE LADY. 



Class III. Foliage green, Flowers dark-coloured. 

 *ADELE, *BOUQUKT PERFUME, FLEUR D'ETE, MADAME E. 

 SCHILLER, *MADAME P. ATHLES. 



HELIPTERUM (from helios, the sun. and pteron, 

 awing; referring to plumed pappus). Including Astel/ma 

 and Rhodanthe. ORD. Composite^. A genus comprising 

 forty-two species of half-hardy annual or perennial herbs, 

 rarely small shrubs, of which twelve are from South 

 Africa, and the rest from Australia. The genus is 

 closely allied to Helichrysum, but is distinguished from 

 it by having the hairs of the pappus plumose or feathery, 

 instead of pilose (rough). Helipterums may be raised 

 from seeds, sown rather thickly in the open ground, 

 about the end of March. A rather rich soil and warm 

 position should be selected. H. Manglesii is a pretty 



