124 WORCESTER COUNTY HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. [1898. 



flowers open late in the afternoon and close in the morning, 

 although when the weather is cloudy they will remain open 

 longer. The flowers of both species last three days. 



As the season for the tender varieties is not of long duration, 

 it is very important that good sized plants should be used when 

 planting ; but remember that they are natives of the tropics, and 

 do not plant in the pond before June tenth, and quite frequently 

 it is better to wait a week later. This is imperative. It is as 

 important to have the nights warm as well as the days. If, in 

 parks, electric lights are placed near the pond so that visitors 

 can examine the night-blooming varieties in the evening, the 

 pond will present as beautiful a picture as by day, with even a 

 more fairy like appearance. 



The following is a list of the most satisfactory varieties : — 



DAY-BLOOMING. NIGHT-BLOOMING. 



Nympha^a Gracilis. Nymphaa Dentata. 



Nymphffia Zanzibarensis. Nymphasa Devoniensis. 



Nymph?ea Zanzibarensis Azurea. Nympha^a Columbiana. 

 Nympha3a Zanzibarensis Rosea. 

 Nymphaea Pulcherrima. 



The Nymphsea Gracilis is a Mexican variety of great merit, 

 being the only white day-blooming tropical variety in cultiva- 

 tion. The white flowers have stamens of rich golden yellow 

 and are borne on stems ten or twelve inches above the water. 

 Its fragrance is like the lily of the valley. 



The family of Nympha^a Zanzibarensis is among the most 

 easily cultivated of lilies, producing blooming plants in one 

 hundred days from the planting of the seed. The purple 

 variety has very large flowers and is one of the most beautiful 

 and free flowering of all the water lilies. The other Zanzibar 

 varieties, Azurea, of a lighter color than the preceding, and 

 Rosea, which varies from a light to a deep rose, are easily 

 grown and admirably adapted for tub culture. These two are 

 perhaps the best tender varieties for the amateur to begin with 

 and are inexpensive. 



The Nymphaja Pulcherrima is said to surpass in vigor and 



