BLANDFORDIA 



BLECHNUM 



513 



Baker (Jour. Linn. Soc. 11:364) between Kniphofia 

 and Funkia; adapted to culture in greenhouses. Bland- 

 fordia of .Vndrews is a synonym of Galax. 



Roots thickly fibrous: Ivs. in two vertical ranks, 

 narrowly linear, hard, persistent : fls. large, 1 Ji-3 in. 

 long, showy, noflding, in short racemes, usually orange- 

 red to crimson, with yellow tips. — The authorities 

 recognize only 4 botanical species, but those below are 

 horticulturally distinct from one another. 



Being tenderer than the poker plant, and of more 

 difficult culture, blandfordias are rarely grown in Amer- 

 ica. B.flammen var. princeps is the best kind. In New 

 South Wales they grow in peat bogs and on shady 

 mountain sides. During the growing season they must 

 be shaded from bright sunshine, and during the resting 

 season they may be placed in a light pit, in which they 

 are not crowded or shaded by taller plants. They like 

 a moist atmosphere and plenty of air, but. not draughts. 

 The chief element of the potting soil should be peat; 

 if the peat is heavy, use freely; if light, use some loam, 

 and pack firmly; if sjjongy, add some charcoal. Pot 

 after flowering, in early spring, being careful not to 

 overpot, and plan to leave roots undisturbed for two 

 years at least. A top-dressing each year and liquid 

 manure during growing season, is necessary to produce 

 a good flowering. Perfectly hardy in central Florida 

 when grown in lath-houses. — Propagation is by seeds 

 sown in sandy peat with mild bottom heat, or usually by 

 careful and not too frequent divisions of the root, made 

 in early spring, after flowering, at the time of repotting, 

 and preferably when strong ofTsets are formed. 



A. Margin of h's. not roughish. 



Cunninghamii, Lindl. Lvs. 18-24 in. long, 3-4 lines 

 wide, broader than in B. flammea: fls. 10-15, or even 20. 

 Blue Mts. of Austral. B.M. 5734. Gn. 24:366.— This 

 has been held to be synonymous with B. grandi- 

 flora, but it is horticulturally distinct, and the pedicels 

 are shorter. Considered by Bentham the same as B. 

 grandiflora. 



A.\. Margin of lvs. roughish. 

 B. Fls. golden yellow, without any red. 



a&rea, Hook. f. Lvs. 8-12 in. long, 1 J2-2 lines wide: 

 fls, 3-6, the only ones in the genus not touched with 

 red; perianth wide-swelling, sometimes nearly as wide 

 as long, more beO-shaped than any other species. New 

 S. Wales. B.M. 5809. — By some considered a mere 

 variety of B. flammea. 



BB. Fls. red-tubed and yellow-lipped. 

 c. Perianth long, 3-4 times as long as wide. 



nobilis, Smith. Lvs. 12-18 in. long, H-/€ lines wide, 

 dark green, shaqily 3-angied: fls. 4-9, smallest of the 

 genus, and narrowest. Near Port .Jackson. B.M. 2003. 

 B.R. 286. Var. imperialis, Hort. Fls. bright orange- 

 red, margined with yellow or gold; larger than the tj-pe. 



flammea, Lindl. Lvs, 12-18 in. long, 2-2} 2 lines wide: 

 fls. 4-12, typically constricted near the ba.se of the tube 

 and much lower down than in B. Cunninghamii. E. 

 Austral B.M. 4819. P.M. 16:3.53. F.S. 6:.585; 18: 1829 

 (as B. Cunninghamii) . Var. princeps, Baker (S. prin- 

 ceps, W.G.Smith), hws larger and brighter-colored fls. 

 and is the best of the genus. The perianth is longer 

 and less spreading than in the t\'pe, and swells very 

 graduallv from the base, instead of being constricted 

 near the base. B.M. 6209. F.M. 1.875:170. F.S. 

 22:2314. Gn. 47:324. 



cc. Tube short, scarcely twice as long as wide. 



grandifldra, R. Br. Lvs. 12-18 in, long, 3-4'^ fines 

 wide: fls. 10-30. Distinguished from all others by hav- 

 ing the filaments inserted instead of at the middle, but 

 in var. intermedia, Baker, which connects B. grandiflora 

 and B. nobilis, the filaments are inserted at the middle 

 of the tube, the lvs. are narrower, and the fls. smaller. 



33 



Tasmania. B.R. 924. — The name B. grandiflora is now 

 a misnomer, as the fls. are smaller than in any other 

 species except B. nobilis. 



B. cordita, Andr.=GaU.v aphylla. WilheLM MilLBR. 



BLANKET FLOWER: OaiUardia. ^- TAYLOB.f 



BLAZING STAR: Liatris ; a.\so Menl^elia. 



BLECHNUM (Greek name for some fern). Poly- 

 podiacex. Rather coarse greenhouse ferns, with pin- 

 natifid or pinnate lvs., and rows of almost continuous 

 sori parallel to the midvein and close to it, covered with 

 a membranous indusium. Blechnum is here recognized 

 as including the species sometimes classified under the 

 generic name Lomaria in addition to those speciea 

 which all writers agree to put in Blechnum. The dif- 

 ferences on which Lomaria has been based are very 

 slight and are not recognized by leading European fern 

 students. Besides, if the species included in Lomaria 

 are kept separate, it is practically certain that they 

 must be classified under the older name Struthiopteris. 



In Blechnum occurs a singular knot in nomen- 

 clature. Linnseus described two species in 1753, and to 

 the West Indian 

 one he gave the 

 name B. orientate, 

 citing figures, etc., 

 showing that it is 

 the plant that re- 

 cent writers call B. 

 occidenlale. His 

 East Indian plant 

 he similarly called 

 B. occidentale. The 

 normal or ordinary 

 usage has been fol- 

 lowed below, the 

 name B. orientate 

 being given to the 

 eastern plant. 



Blechnums will 

 thrive in almost 

 any compost, but 

 their leaves quickly 

 turn brown and 

 then black if 

 watered overhead. 

 Propagation of Blechnum is effected by spores. 



Blechnums are very useful to florists for jardinieres, 

 and for specimen ferns. To attain best results, it is 

 necessary to maintain an abundance of moisture at the 

 roots, with a drier atmosphere than most other ferns 

 require, to prevent leaves from turning brown during 

 winter months. Average temp. 60° to 6.5° F. Soil, equal 

 parts of rich loam and leaf-mold or peat. The spores of 

 most blechnums germinate very freely if sown on a 

 compost of loam and leaf-mokl or peat in equal parts, 

 and placed in a moderately moist and shady position in 

 a temperature of 60° to 65° F. Some of the .species send 

 out creeping rhizomes, which develop young plants at 

 the ends. When of sufficient size these may be detached 

 and potted, and in a short time they will develop into 

 good specimens. Some very attractive species are found 

 among the hardy British blechnums. (N. N. Bruckner.) 



582. Blechnum brasiliense. 



brasiliense, 1. lanceolatum, 7. platyptera, 9. 



corcovadeose, 3. Moorei, 6. serrulatum, 5. 



crispura, .3. nitidum, 2, spicant, 11. 



discolor, S. occideutale, 4, tabulare, 10. 

 gibbum, 9. 



A. Fertile lvs. not strongly different from the sterile lvs. 



B. Finns strongly decurrent at the base, joining with the 



one next })elow. 



1. brasiliense, Desv. Fig. 582. Growing from a 

 stout, slightly arborescent trunk 1 ft. or more long: lvs. 



