POTTING 



PREXAXTHES 



2781 



center for such plants will not be too much if stocky 

 plants well set with good flowers are wanted; and in 

 these days such plants will bring enough in the best 

 markets "to pay for the space and trouble. For 2- and 

 3-inch pots use sifted soil, but for 4-inch and over, sou 

 well broken, but having plenty of fiber from sod in it, 

 should be used. Always water plants thoroughly after 



- . 



3171. Pot too full. 



3172. Good. 



shifting so as to soak the soil to the bottom, and do not 

 water again until they show dryness half way down the 

 pot on the outside. PATRICK O'MABA. 



POURRTIA: 



POURTHL& A: Photinia. 



POUTERIA (native name). Sapotacex. Trees or 

 shrubs with small often short-peduncled fls. in clusters: 

 corolla with 4 rounded lobes and a tube about twice as 

 long ; staminodes free, petal-like, borne at the edge of the 

 tube; stamens borne at the base or middle of the tube, 

 becoming free; ovary swollen at base, hairy, 2-4-celled, 

 gradually produced into the long style: fr. a 1-4-seeded 

 berry, hairy or glabrous, occasionally pointed. About 

 30 species m Trop. Amer. P. suaris, Hemsl. Tree with 

 rather slender flowering branches: Ivs. crowded at the 

 ends of the branches, narrow-oblong to lanceolate, 

 about 4 in. long, coriaceous: fls. very small in fascicles 

 borne in the axils of the fallen lys. : fr. pear-shaped with 

 a thin edible pericarp possessing a delicate perfume. 

 Uruguay. Intro, into gardens abroad. 



PRATIA (named after Prat-Bernon, withFreycinet's 

 voyage). Campanulaceae. Slender prostrate or creeping 

 herbs, rarely ascending or erect, sometimes grown for 

 ornament. 



Leaves alternate, toothed: infl. axillary, in 1-fld. 

 peduncles; fls. rather small, often unisexual; calyx-tube 

 adnate to the ovary, 5-parted; corolla oblique, split to 

 the base at the back, 2-lipped, upper lip 2-parted. lower 

 lip 3-lobed; stamens 5, 2 lower tipped with short bris- 

 tles, 3 upper naked; ovary 2-ceued: fr. a globose or 

 obovoid berry. About 30 species, mostly from Austral. 

 and New Zeal., but also in S. E. Asia and S. Amer. 

 Several species seem to be more or less extensively cult. 

 abroad. The genus is very closely related to Lobelia and 

 similarly cult., differing from it in the indehiscent more 

 or less succulent fr. They are used both as greenhouse 

 and hardy herbaceous rockwork plants, depending on 

 the species. 



angulata, Hook. (Lobelia littoralis, Cunn.). Fig. 

 3173. Perennial herb, very variable, slender, creeping 

 or prostrate, glabrous or sometimes slightly pubescent : 

 sts. 2-12 in. long: Ivs. short-petiolate, orbicular or 

 ovate-oblong to obovate: fls. white with purple streaks: 

 berry globose or broadly ovoid, purplish red. New Zeal. 

 G. 34:757. G.M. 53:897. G.C. III. 47:98. J.H. III. 

 71:57. Hardy in England and used as a creeper for 



rockwork. Var. arenaria, Hook, f . (P. arenaria, Hook, f .). 

 Lvs. larger, obscurely toothed: peduncles very short. 

 Auckland Isls. Well adapted for shady localities; a 

 quick-growing creeper with many white, star-like fls. 



begonifdlia, Lindl. Small, creeping, rooting, and 

 pubescent: Ivs. cordate-ovate, denticulate: fls. green, 

 marked pink: berry short-ellipsoid, finally smooth, 

 black. India, Malaya. B.R. 1373. Sometimes grown 

 in the greenhouse. 



repens, Gaud. Creeping: Ivs. petiolate, rather reni- 

 form, undulately subcrenate: peduncles rather long, 

 axillary, 1-fld.; fls. white with a violet tint. June- 

 Oct. Falkland Isls. Hardy in England; well adapted 

 for a sunny position on rockwork. 



P. ilicifdlia, Hort., listed abroad as a charming little creeping 

 plant with evergreen foliage studded through all the summer 

 months with large pure white fls. followed by large lilac-colored 

 berries, and loving a damp spot, is unknown botanically. 



F. TRACY HUBBARD. 



PREMNA (Greek, stump of a tree in allusion to the 

 low sts. of most species). Verbenacex. Shrubs, sub- 

 shrubs or trees, sometimes climbing: Ivs. opposite, 

 entire or dentate: cymes panicled or corymbose; fls. 

 often polygamous; calyx small, cup-shaped, subequal or 

 2-lipped; corolla tubular, throat hairy, limb 2-lipped, 

 5-lobed or subequally 4-lobed; stamens 4, didynamous; 

 ovary 2- or 4-celled, 4-ovuled: drupe small, surrounded 

 below by the calyx, globose or oblong-obovoid. 

 About 80 species, inhabitants of the warmer regions 

 of the Old World. P. Gaudichaiidii, Schau. Branches 

 puberulent: Ivs. long-petiolate, broad-ovate, short- 

 acuminate, entire: infl. terminal, corymbose pani- 

 cles, many-fld.; fls. small; calyx short cup-shaped, 

 subbilabiate; corolla subequally 4-lobed. Marianne 

 Isls. This is known as "ahgao" and is said to be exten- 

 sively used in Guam for the construction of buildings. 

 The following E. Indian species have occasionally been 

 cult, in hothouses abroad: P. esculenta, Roxbg., has 

 vellowish white fls. in May and purple fr.: st. grows 

 about 6-8 ft. high; P. integrifolia, Linn., with greenish 

 white fls. in July, about 10-12 ft. high, and P. lati- 

 folia, Roxbg., with dirty white fls. in June, growing 

 about 15 ft. high. 



PRENANTHES (Greek words, meaning drooping 

 blossom). Composite. RATTLESNAKE ROOT. Tall peren- 

 nial herbs, a few species of which are offered by col- 

 lectors for use in wild-gardens. 



Leafy-stemmed, with dull-colored heads borne in 

 spike-like terminal panicles: Ivs. alternate, lower ones 



3173. Pratia angulata. (XJi) 



petiolate, sagittate, cordate, often much divided; 

 upper ones auriculate and much narrower and smaller: 

 heads 5-30-fld.: achenes terete, 4-5-angled, usually 

 striate. About 16 species, of which 10 are native of N. 

 Amer. (The N. American forms are by some botanists 

 separated as Nabalus.) The species are extremely 

 variable. They are of easy cult, in any good soil, but 

 are very weedy and of little importance horticulturally. 



