230 THE MAGAZINE OF HORTICULTURE. 



measuring only three by four inches on its surface, and two 

 inches thick, with masses of fibre all partially decayed, were 

 all that remained of this plant, which so recently presented 

 such gigantic leaves and flowers. Mr. Cope, of Philadelphia, 

 on removing his, the original plant, found an astonishingly 

 small quantity of roots, and a rhizoma of only three inches 

 surface, and very thin ; he compares its growth to that of the 

 asparagus root. This plant of Mr. Cope's was the first grown 

 in this country. It first flowered August 21st, 1851, and 

 continued flowering till its removal in February, 1855, hav- 

 ing borne tivo hundred and twelve flowers, and lived nearly 

 four years. The roots were in perfect health, with flower 

 buds then visible. It must have been hard to part with a 

 plant that had aff'orded so much pleasure, and continued 

 through so many winters. The difficulty of removing the 

 old soil in the tank and of substituting new, made it necessa- 

 ry, in order to retain a plant in its full beauty. This being 

 done, a young one was placed in its stead. 



The plant from the seed grown in England was less affect- 

 ed by the short days of winter ; it will be remembered that 

 this v/as near the surface, where it couJd receive all the ben- 

 efit possible from the rays of the sun. The leaves diminish- 

 ed but slowly, and continued in health during the winter. 

 The black spots appearing only on a limited number of the 

 young leaves in February, the least diameter of any being 

 three and a half feet. In March they began to increase in 

 size again. The most marked change was in the up-turned 

 edge, which gradually disappeared until it was retained on 

 the youngest, and on this only for a few days, depriving it of 

 the chief beauty, and causing such a change as to make it 

 difficult to realize that it was the same plant. With the ad- 

 vance of spring this is gradually re-appearing. This seems to 

 me evidence of the superiority of our summer climate over 

 that of a more cloudy one. for the full development of the 

 singular beauties of this remarkable aquatic. 



Europeans, as also many Americans, who have seen the 

 Victoria growing in England, have exclaimed, on viewing 

 those at Salem, how beautiful ! how unlike the English ! 



