BEGONIA 27 



BEGO'NIA continued. 



altogether be relied upon to come true, but the 

 following may be mentioned : 



B. Bau'manni hy'brida is dwarf with rose-coloured 

 flowers. 



B. Erford is 1 ft. high, has dark foliage and rose- 

 carmine flowers. A very good plant for beds. 



B. hy'brida marmora'ta, The Butterfly. White 

 blotched on crimson ground. 



B. semplerflo'rens. Fibrous rooted. There are 

 many garden varieties. Vernon, red, bronze 

 foliage. Vernon compac'ta, 5 ins. Zulu King, 

 scarlet, foliage black-red. Vulcan, dark 

 bronzed foliage, flowers orange-carmine. 

 Height, 1 ft. Crimson Gem, Fairy Queen, 

 Duchess of York, etc. 



B. Worthi'ana. The orange-scarlet flowers have 



a tendency to hang their heads, but for all 



that, it is an excellent bedder. 



Sow the seed, which is very minute, in January, 



on the surface of fine sifted sandy soil in pans, in 



a temp, of 70. A second sowing may be made in 



February also. Moisten the soil before sowing, 



and afterwards put a sheet of glass over all. In 



about two weeks the seedlings should be ready to 



prick off, and this may be done in pots or shallow 



boxes, with a small pointed stick, a few inches 



apart. When they commence to crowd together, 



pot up singly into 3-in. pots. Gradually harden 



these off in a cool frame in May, and plant out 12 



