1930 



VICTORIA 



VICTORIA 



British Guiana, but they soon died. In 1840 Bridges 

 obtained seed in the Bolivia locality, province of Moxos, 

 and scut them in a jar of wet clay to England. Out of 

 22 seeds obtained at Kew, three germinated and grew 

 vigorously as small seedlings until October, but died in 

 December. In 1848 dry seeds were sent to England 

 from the Essequibo river, alongwith rhizomes, the latter 

 in Wardian cases; the rhizomes rotted, and the seeds 

 refused to germinate. In 1849 an expedition from 

 Demerara succeeded in bringing back to that town 

 thirty-five living plants, but these all died. Finally 

 some seeds were sent to Kew from British Guiana in 

 bottles of fresh water by two English physicians, Rodie 

 and Luckie. The first sending arrived Feb. 28, 1849, 

 and on Nov. 8 a plant flowered at Chats worth; the 

 blossom was appropriately presented to Queen Victoria. 

 From this stock Victoria regia was distributed to gar- 

 dens in Europe, Asia and America. Van Houtte, of 

 Ghent, first flowered it on the continent, and Caleb Cope, 

 of Philadelphia, was the earliest successful cultivator 

 in this country. His gardener was the late Thomas 

 Meehan. The first flower opened Aug. 21, 1851. 



The next notable importation of seed from South 

 America was sent by Edward S. Rand, Jr., from Para, 

 Brazil, to Mr. Sturtevant, then at Bordentown, N. J. 

 The resulting plants proved to be slightly different from 

 the former type, and were called V. regia, var. Randii. 

 It is doubtless the same form that was described by 

 Planchon as V. Amazonica, and retained with grave 

 doubts byCaspary; subsequent cultivation has shown it 

 not even varietally distinct from V. regia of British 

 Guiana. In 1894, however, Mr. Tricker received seed of 

 quite another species, which was provisionally named V. 

 regia, var. Trickeri; it is much more amenable to out-of- 

 door culture than the older type, and has received a well- 

 deserved popularity. Specimens grown from seeds sent 

 by Mr. Tricker to Kew were regarded simply as garden 

 forms of V. regia, but recent investigation by Mr. Tricker 

 and the writer shows that it is truly the V. Cruziana of 

 d'Orbigny, dried specimens of which (including seeds) 

 had been sent to Paris over GO years before. Its far south- 

 ern habitat (27° S.) explains its hardiness. The large 

 starchy seeds of this species are used as food in Para- 

 guay under the name of Ma is del Agua, "water-corn." 

 For much interesting information on Victoria, see 

 Hooker, B.M. 4275-78; Planchon, in F.S. 6:193-224, etc.; 

 Caspary in Flora Brasiliensis 4, part 2, p. 143 et seq. 

 In 1854 John Fisk Allen published in Boston a quarto 

 work (pages 21 x 27 in.) with colored plates, entitled: 

 "Victoria regia; or the great water lily of America. 

 With a brief account of its discovery and introduc- 

 tion into cultivation : with illustrations by William 

 Sharp, from specimens grown at Salem, Massachusetts, 

 U. S. A." 



regia, Lindl. (including V. regia, var. Rdndii) . Fig. 

 2668. Lvs. sparingly pubescent beneath, upturned mar- 

 gins reddish, 3-8 in. high : fls. becoming dull crimson the 

 second evening; sepals prickly almost or quite to the 

 tips: prickles of the ovary about two-fifths in. (10-11 

 mm.) long: seed elliptic-globose, nearly % in. long, less 

 in diam. (7-8 mm. long, 5%-6 mm. diam.) : raphe indis- 

 tinct; operculum elliptic-orbicular, with the micropyle 

 at its center and hilum at the margin. British Guiana, 

 Amazon and tributaries. B.M. 4275 (poor); 4276-78 

 (incorrect in some details). F.S. 6:595-602. Kerner, 

 Natural History of Plants, pi. XI. Tricker, Water Gar- 

 den pi. 1 and 2; p. 21, 35. Caspary, Fl. Brasil. 4, part 

 2, pi. 38, fig. 15 (seed). 



Cruziana, d Orbigny (known in cultivation as I". 

 regia, var. Trickeri, and V. Trickeri). Lvs. densely 

 villous beneath, upturned margins green, 6-8 in. high: 

 fls. becoming deep red-pink the second evening; sepals 

 prickly only at base, smooth above: prickles of ovary 

 over X A in. (15-16 mm.) long, crowded: seed subglobose, 

 about % in. (7K-9nim. (indiam. ; raphestout; operculum 

 elongate-ovate, with hilum and micropyle equidistant 

 from the margin. Parana river and tributaries, Para- 

 guav. Tricker, Water Garden, pi. 1; pp. 51, 55. Caspary, 

 Fl. Brasil. 4, part 2, pi. 38, fig. 16 (seed).-Introd. by 

 Wm. Tricker in 1894. Henry S. Conahd. 



Victoria regia at first was cultivated at a great ex- 

 pense in conservatories and tanks built especially for 



the purpose. Then it was grown in artificially heated 

 ponds in the open air. The Victoria is largely grown in 

 private and public gardens throughout the United 

 States at the present time, together with tropical nym- 

 pha?as, and in some cases without artificial heat, but this 

 method of culture is uncertain and often unsatisfactory. 



For many years but one type of Victoria was known, 

 but in 1886 Mr. E. D. Sturtevant, of Bordentown, N. J., 

 introduced another form that produced a deep crim- 

 son flower; it also possessed darker foliage and the 

 upturned rim was deeper. It was known as Victoria 

 Randii. Having grown this variety and the original for 

 several seasons in the open air, the writer is unable to 

 discern any difference, and two seasons ago be decided 

 to drop V. Randii. In 1894 the undersigned received 

 seed of what is now known to the trade as V. Trickeri. 

 This is by far the best kind for out-of-door culture. 

 Moreover, it can be grown where V. regia fails to grow, 

 as it revels in a temperature of only 75°-80°. 



Victoria regia is now considered of easy culture. Its 

 requirements are heat, light and a rich, mellow loam in 

 abundance. The seed should be sown during February 

 and March. The temperature of the water should range 

 between 85° to 90° F. The seed may be planted in pots 

 <>r seed-pans and placed in shallow water. A tank 8-12 

 in. deep, having a metal lining, copper preferred, is 

 very serviceable for seedlings and young plants. Where 

 sufficient heat is not attained from the heating pipes, an 

 addition can be made by the use of an oil-lamp. It is 

 altogether unnecessary and unnatural to tile or chip the 

 seed to assist or hasten germination. The seedlings will 

 appear in about twenty days, though occasionally a few 

 may appear in ten days. These should be potted off 

 singly into 2%-in. pots, using fine, loamy soil. The 

 water temperature for the young plants should be the 

 same as directed for the seed pots. As soon as the 

 young plants acquire their first floating leaf they will 

 doubtless be benefited by repotting. From the very be- 

 ginning, as sprouted seeds, they should be kept steadily 

 growing, repotting at intervals, until they are planted 

 out in their summer quarters. As the young plants ad- 

 vance they will require more space, so that the leaves 

 are not crowded and overlap each other. 



To raise plants of 1". Trickeri is altogether a different 

 matter. The seed will not germinate in a high tempera- 

 ture; 65° to 70° is sufficient. The seed may be sown in 

 February, but there is a great uncertainty as to how 

 long one must wait for the seedlings to appear, and also 

 as to what percentage of seeds will germinate. As soon 

 as the seedlings appear they should be treated like seed- 

 lings of V. regia, except as to temperature, which should 

 be kept as above stated for seedlings and small plants, 

 and as the season advances may be raised to 75° and 

 80°. The rationality of the cool treatment here advo- 

 cated is borne out by the fact that early in June quanti- 

 ties of seedlings appear in the pond in the open where 

 a plant has grown the preceding season, the seed hav- 

 ing remained in the pond during the winter. Planting 

 in summer quarters may be done early in June or when- 

 ever it is safe to plant out tender nympha?as, that is, 

 when the pond is not artificially heated. Where it is 

 desired to plant out in indicated ponds it is not safe to 

 plant before the middle or latter end of June. The con- 

 ditions of the weather, earliness or lateness of the sea- 

 son, locality, etc., must all be taken into account. 



The best results are to be obtained from an artificially 

 heated pond, or pits in the pond specially constructed 

 to start the Victorias, these pits to be heated by hot 

 water or steam and covered with frames and sashes. 

 By this method plants may be set in their summer 

 quarters early in May and heat applied until the middle 

 of June, or rather a temperature of 85° maintained until 

 the advent of summer weather. 



Very gratifying results are obtained when the Vic- 

 toria is grown under glass, as it is thus grown in sev- 

 eral places in the United States, notably at Schenley 

 Park. Pittsburg, and Allegheny Park; also at "Grey- 

 stone," the estate of Samuel Untermyer, Esq., Yonkers, 

 N. Y. ; also at many notable gardens in Europe. Plants 

 grown under glass usually attain to larger dimensions, 

 as they are protected against climatic changes and the 

 elements, besides enjoying more of a tropical atmos- 

 phere. There is. however, more than one disadvantage. 



