HYDRANGEA 



HYDRANGEA 



785 



them sterile. The greenhouse Hydrangea. June, July, 

 but blooming in winter under glass. A large number of 

 varieties have been introduced from Japan and China, 

 where this species has been extensively cultivated for 

 many centuries, and where it is native. The following 

 are some of the best known. They may be divided into 

 3 groups : 



(1) Japonica group: cymes flat, ivith sterile and fertile 



flowers. 



Var. acuminata, A. Gray (H. acuminata, Sieb. & 

 Zucc. H. Bnergeri. Sieb. & Zucc.). Lvs. ovate-lanceo- 

 late, acuminate, sparingly appressed-pubescent: sterile 

 fls. with elliptic entire sepals, usually blue. S.Z. 56-57. 

 Var. Azisai, Maxim. (H. Azisai, Sieb.). Lvs. elliptic- 

 ovate, glabrous : sterile fls. with obovate sepals, long- 

 pedicelled, overtopping the fertile ones. S.Z. 51. Var. 

 Belzdni, Maxim. (H. Belzonii, Sieb. & Zucc. H. Japon- 

 ica, var. ccerulea, Hook. H. Japonica, var. cozrules- 

 cens, Regl.). Of dwarfer and stouter habit : Ivs. ovate 

 or obovate, short-acuminate, glabrous, somewhat thick: 

 sterile fls.. whitish, pinkish or bluish, with rhombic, usu- 

 ally entire sepals. S.Z. 55. B.M. 4253. Here belongs 

 also var. Imperatrice Eugenie with pink fls. R H. 

 1868:471. Var. Jap6nica, Maxim. (H. Japonica, Sieb.). 

 Lvs. ovate to elliptic, acuminate, glabrous : sepals 

 broadly ovate, toothed, pink. S.Z. 53. B.R. 30:61. R.H. 

 1874:90 (as H. acuminata). Var. macrosepala, Rgl. Dif- 

 fers from the former only by its larger sepals. Gt. 

 15:520. Var. Mariesi, Hort., seems also not much differ- 

 ent, but has somewhat broader Ivs., and the pink sterile 

 fls. are very large, 3-3% in. across. Gn. 54:1196. G.C. 

 III. 23, suppl. 5-28. Var. rosalba, Van Houtte (H. Lind- 

 leyi, Hort.). Lvs. ovate or elliptic -ovate, acuminate, 

 sparingly hairy: sepals dentate, ovate or broadly ovate, 

 white and pink or white changing to pink. S.S. 16: 1649- 

 50. R.H. 1866:430. Gn. 46:990. Var. serrata, Rehd. 

 (H. serrata, DC. H. Thunbergi, Sieb. & Zucc. H.cya- 

 nea, Hort.). Lvs. elliptic or ovate, narrowed at both 

 ends, serrate, sparingly appressed-hairy, l%-3 in. long: 

 cymes small, 3-4 in. broad: fls. pinkish or bluish; sepals 

 roundish, obtuse or emarginate. S.Z. 58. G.C. 1870:1699. 



(2) ITortensia group: cymes globose, with almost all 



fls. sterile. 



Var. nigra, Arb. Kew. (H. Mandshurica, Koehne. 

 H. opuloldes, var. cyan6clada, Dipp. H. nigra, Carr. 

 H. ramulis coccineis and ram., pictis, Hort.). Branches 

 dark purple or vio' at, often almost black : Ivs. ovate- 

 elliptic, acute: cyr.es large, with purple peduncles: se- 

 pals pink or bluish, obovate. A. P. 5:360. Var. Horten- 

 sia, Maxim. Lvs. large, elliptic, glabrous : sepals 

 broadly ovate, entire, usually pink. This is the form 

 which first came into cultivation outside of Japan and 

 China, and is said to have been introduced from China to 

 England in 1790, by Joseph Banks. B.M. 438. G.C. III. 

 24:45. Gn. 45, p. 12; 50, pp. 123, 256, 367; 52:281. Var. 

 Otaksa, Maxim. (H. Otaksa, Sieb. & Zucc.). Fig. 1113. 

 Dwarfer, but of vigorous growth: Ivs. obovate, short- 



acuminate, rather thick, glabrous: sepals obovate, en- 

 tire, pink or blue. S.Z. 52. F. 8.17:17:32-33. Gn. 50:1079. 

 R.H. 1868:450. Mn.5,p. 105. A.G. 11:415. A. F. 10:1015. 

 F.E. 9:52 and 401. Gng. 5:161. Var. plena, Rgl. Similar 



1112. Hydrangea paniculata, var. grandiflora. 



1113. Hydrangea hortensis, var. Otaksa. 



to var. Hortensia, but sepals toothed. Var. Thomas 

 Hogg, Hort. Lvs. elliptic or ovate, rather small: heads 

 large, pure white. This variety is somewhat dwarfer 

 than the common Hydrangea and is, besides Otaksa, 

 the best as a pot-plant. It is also to be recommended 

 for outdoor cultivation, as it is one of the hardiest. 



(3) Stellata group: fls. with many narrow sepals. 



Var. stellata, Maxim. (H. stellata, Sieb. & Zucc.). 

 Lvs. ovate or ovate-oblong, sparingly pubescent: cymes 

 with larger sterile and smaller fertile fls., both with 

 many narrow-elliptic sepals. S.Z. 59. Var. fimbriata, 

 Dipp. Cymes rather dense, with almost all the fls. 

 sterile: sepals flmbriate, white, pink toward the base. 

 G.C. III. 23, suppl. 5:28. Var. prolifera, Hort. (H. stel- 

 lata, var. prolifera, Rgl.). The fertile fls. bearing 1 or 

 few smaller ones in the center. Var. rubro-plena, Dipp. 

 Cymes rather dense, with almost all fls. sterile, chang- 

 ing from pink or pale lilac to dark red. 



There are also some varieties with variegated Ivs., as 

 var. variegata, Regel, a form of var. Belzoni, with the 

 Ivs. edged white (F.S. 7:696) ; var. tricolor, Hort., with 

 the Ivs. variegated with white and edged yellow; var. 

 ros^o-marginata, Hort., with the Ivs. spotted white and 

 edged pink. 



CO. Cyme enclosed before expanding by 6-8 

 large, deciduous bracts. 



8. involucrata, Sieb. Low shrub, to 5 ft. : 

 Ivs. oblong, acuminate, densely and sharply ser- 

 rate, appressed, pubescent on both sides, rough 

 to the touch, 4-8 in. long: bracts at the base of 

 the cyme large, orbicular; smaller bracts none: 

 fertile fls. blue or pinkish, sterile ones whitish: 

 capsule with the calyx at the apex; styles usu- 

 ally 2. Aug. Jap. S.Z. 63. J.H. III. 32:103. 

 H. Sapphire, introduced 1890 by Lovett, seems 

 to belong here. Var. hortensis, Maxim. Fls. 

 double, usually pink and often proliferous. 

 S.Z. 64. F.S. 3:187. 



AA. Climbing by aerial rootlets: stamens 15; 

 petals cap-like, cohering, falling off as 

 a whole. 



9. petiolaris, Sieb. & Zucc. (H. scdndens, 

 Maxim., not DC. H. volubilis, Hort.). Climb- 



