22 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



The different varieties of Tropseolum divide themselves into three dis- 

 tinct classes. First — Those with bulbous, or rather tuberous roots, such as 

 Tropseolum azureum and others. Second — Those with large, round leaves 

 and large showy, often coarse, flowers, as the various varieties of Tro[)seo- 

 lum majus. Third — Those with sniall, delicate, regularly formed flowers, 

 with smaller leaves, and of more climbing rather than trailing habit, such as 

 T. Lobbianum, &c. We are aware that this division is imperfect ; that some 

 varieties partake of the characteristics of more than one class, and that 

 others are with difficulty included in any of the three; and to any one 

 acquainted with all the different varieties the difficulty of classification will 

 be at once apparent. We shall, therefore, only attempt this general divis- 

 ion; leaving a particular description to be given when we treat of each 

 variety. The soil to be used in the culture of the Tropseolum is, for the 

 bulbous varieties, leaf-mould and peat, with an admixture of fine sand ; for 

 the other classes, an addition of more sand is to be advised, as care must 

 be taken not to enrich the soil too highly, for in a rich soil with plenty of 

 room to develop the roots, the plants are apt to run all to leaves. This may 

 be prevented in two ways, either by giving a poor soil, or by allowing the 

 roots to become " pot-bound," and nourishing the plant by slight waterings 

 of liquid manure ; they generally fail to give satisfaction if the soil is 

 close, heavy, and binding. All the varieties, we believe, are readily pro- 

 pagated by cuttings, and nmny produce seed in abundance. Some succeed 

 better if allowed to trail on the ground, others are so delicate as to need 

 constant attention and careful training. Some are hardy in England, 

 though to our knowledge none have ever been able to survive our severe 

 winters in the open ground, or protected in frames. All the varieties are 

 of the most rapid growth, and most are free flowerers ; none are destitute 

 of some beauty, while the greater number are remarkable for the combina- 

 tions of dazzling colors which they afford. The prevailing color is yellow 

 in its different shades ; next, red ; then dark ; and lastly, a most extraordinary 

 fact which puzzled the botanists, a beautiful blue. It had been asserted and 

 argued, with great show of reason, that a flower, of which all the known 

 varieties, or the general types, were of red, yellow, or cognate colors, 

 could, by no possibility, be found related to a plant with blue flowers, or 

 could there be a blue flowering plant in the same class. The discovery of 

 a blue Tropjeolum, in 1844, completely refuted this theory. In the treat- 

 ment of the Tropseolum it is essential for the good health of the plants 

 that they should enjoy plenty of light and air; without this they cannot fail 

 to become sickly or unsightly from faded leaves and small flowers. A 

 supply of water should be given with the syringe, over head, occasionally, 

 which will conduce to the vigor of the plant, and destroy the red spider 

 which sometimes attacks the leaves. The plant, in all its varieties, is 

 remarkably free from disease or insects ; we have occasionally had the 

 more delicate varieties troubled by green fly, and by mealy bug, but very 

 little care will prevent this. The chief danger seems to lie in the decay- 

 ing of the roots by over watering when in growth, or by not withholding 

 water when they are in a state of rest; these remarks, of course, apply only 



