270 Floriculiwal ajid Botanical Notices. 



Dr. Lindley, in a notice of these Rhododendrons, makes 

 the following remarks : — 



" Dr. Hooker, whose beautiful book on Indian Rhododen- 

 drons has led us to make this remark, describes the climate 

 which they affect as being warm and damp, with mild win- 

 ters. " A certain degree of winter-cold and perpetual humid- 

 ity is necessary ; but the summer heat is quite tropical where 

 some of the genus prevail, and snow rarely falls, and never 

 rests, on several of those peculiar to Sikkim." This will 

 serve to guide the cultivator who may be inclined to try the 

 experiment. We, however, anticipate that these epiphytes 

 will grow better in earth, treated in the usual manner, than 

 when struggling with the difficulties of an vmeasy position 

 on the bark of trees ; for other epiphytes evidently prefer a 

 more agreeable residence, and appear to confirm the justice of 

 the opinion expressed by the late Dean Herbert, that the nat- 

 ural habitats of plants do not necessarily prove that they pre- 

 fer them; natural locahties only show that plants will grow 

 there, although others may not be able. In other words, he 

 did not believe that a plant which shoots from an old wall 

 does so because it prefers old walls, but because it is capable 

 of existing in such places ; therefore it would be healthier and 

 better if placed upon the ground. 



The book which has led us to this question is a most beau- 

 tiful example of fine drawing and skilful coloring, and the 

 letter-press furnished by its talented author possesses very 

 high interest. Of the species of rhododendron which he has 

 found in his adventurous journey beyond the mountains of 

 northern India, some are quite unrivalled in magnificence of 

 appearance. R. Dalhousica has huge white flowers tinged 

 with pink, each blossom forming a bell as much as four and 

 a half inches long, and not less across the mouth ; they are, 

 moreover, sweet-scented, having the perfume of the lemon. 

 R. Falconeri has close heads of pure white flowers, and enor- 

 mous leaves netted on the underside with coarse green veins 

 on a brown ground. R. Argenteum is only inferior to Dal- 

 housics, in its flowers, which are pure white, and seems to be 

 far handsomer in its foliage, which is that of the broad-leaved 

 laurel, but much larger, and silvery white beneath ; they are 

 described as being from six inches to a foot long, and three 



