1076 



3. acdta, Prcsl. ( 

 8-12 in. wide, on si 

 in. wide, acute, wit 

 the lower basal iiii 

 dusia suborbicnhir 

 the Old World. -.V 

 If.tripinnalifitUi i 



4. davallioides. Kun 

 1 ft. or more wide ; lowi 

 narrower, with deeper 

 are forked often sever:i 

 larly crested ; their for 

 riety fiiroanB. Javn. - 

 advertised. 



JV. serrulCtta crisint,i.nu 

 known to the hotiiiiits — . 

 is a variety of Boston !'■■ 

 type. The piuna? are said 



NEPHROLEPIS 



-\;ii, luicauB muluccps is i 



■,. ,mIv, rtisfd by John Saul, seems 

 V. \V,ltl..^l,lii. P.R. 5:247 (1900); 6: 

 [11 ivitli t'nmds thrice as wide as 

 to luive eharaeteristic convoluti) 

 L. M. I'NDERWOOi 



1476. Nerin 



FothereiUi (X %). 



The Boston Fern, JVephrohpis exaltata, var Bostoni- 

 ensis, is without doubt the most valuable ornamental 

 foliage plant for house and conservatory decoration that 

 the trade has put on the American market for years. 

 Its many good points made it a welcome addition to 

 our list of plants, and the flower-lovine public soon dis- 

 covered that it was a tit ,-„i,i,, anion for the palms, en- 

 during with them f.|U:,llN V, , II ,1m ,l,^ :,liiM.s|,lM'rc of the 

 house. Thriviiiir iiihl-i ' i ' ■ " . "t lia^ j. roved 



itself averyvaliial.l.' |, In ■ l' i ■ - Imi,' many of our 

 best house plants litid 1.. . n lului. -. li isaiilaiit that can 



NERINE 



be procured at little cost and is easily grown. It is prop- 

 agated by division or by the creeping rhizomes. This is 

 best done in early spring. The rhizomes may be jicgged 

 down in small pots and when well rooted may In- de- 

 tached from the parent plant. A good compost for pot- 

 ting consists of soil and leaf -mold, with some well-rotted 

 maiiiin.' tiddrd. sliift into larger pots or pans as the 

 plaiiiN r.^iiiir, . S. cuir :.'.i..d drainage and give plenty 

 of wall r. , v|„ liallv during' the summer months. This 



months. 



NEPHTH'?TIS (name borrowed from Egyptian my- 

 thology; Nephthys, mother of Amibis, wife of Typhon). 

 Ar&cea. About half a dozen species of tropical African 

 creepers, 2 of which are cult, in hothouses for their va- 

 riegated foliage. The Ivs. are all more or less halberd- 

 shaped or arrow-shaped, with scarcely any sheath on 

 the petiole. Inflorescence terminal : spathe concave-ex- 

 panded ovary 1-celled; ovule solitary, pendulous. 



picturita, N. E. Br. The white markings form a pat- 

 tern resembling the tips of fern fronds laid between the 

 nerves, with their points all directed towards the base 

 of the midrib. Plant stemless, spreading by runners: 

 petioles 10-12 in. long: blade 6-12 in. long. .'5-9 in. broad. 

 Congo Var. angiistata, X. E. Br., has smaller and nar- 

 rowi-r Ivs. Figured in catalogue of 

 U. .S. nurseries 1895. 



triphylla, Hort. "A pretty stove 

 creeper with dark green thrice-di- 

 vided Ivs. marked with greenish 

 white in the exact shape of the leaf." 



NEPTtTNIA plena is a rare sensi- 

 tive plant of aquatic liabit found in 

 tlie East and West Indies and S. 

 Anier. It has foliage much like that 

 of the common sensitive plant, Jli- 

 mosa piidica. The fls. are so odd 

 that no one at first sight would 

 imagine that they belong to the 

 legume family. They are more or 

 less egg-shaped in outline, IH x 1 

 in., and borne singly on stalks fi in. 

 long. They are drooping and have 

 numerous stamens. The singular 

 feature of these fls. is a mass of yel- 

 low petalage composed of 6 or more tiers of riHcxed, 

 narrowly lanceolate strips, which are really transfornud 

 and sterile stamens. The plant floats on the water and 

 has grooved stems, the portion under water being white, 

 spongy and full of air-cells. It is of difBcult culture 

 and can probably not be secured in Europe at present, 

 but would make an interesting addition to our northern 

 botanic gardens. B.M. 4695. 



NERlNE (anereid of Greek mythology). AmaryUi- 

 d&cea. A remarkable genus of tender bulbous plants, 

 of which the commonest species is iV. Sariiieviiis, long 

 known as the Guernsey Lily from the island where 

 these bulbs are grown to perfection. They will never 

 become popular with florists, because the winter is their 

 growing season instead of flowering time. They belong 

 to the very small i-lass iif autumn-blooming bulbs. The 

 (•i.iiiiiiwn kinds il.,\v.r fniin Sept. to Nov. without any 

 f,,h:iL.'i'. an. I tin U^, arr developed all winter. About 

 Ma\ tin- 1\ s. dir d.nvn and the bulbs rest from May to 

 Aiif;. Tin- lis. ratiKr ffnin scarlet through salmon and 

 pink shades to white, and are home in umbels of 4-20 

 fls. , on scapes varving from 1-3 ft. long and averaging 1 % 

 ft. The fls. are 6-parted, the segments more or less 

 rolled back and sometimes crimped or fluted. 



There are 10 species, all from South Africa. A com- 

 mon trade name is Nerine Japonica, which is really a 

 Lycoris since it has black seeds, while all the trne 

 Nerines have green seeds. It, however, has the au- 



