THE HEATH AND RHODODENDRON FAMILY. 285 



veneer, splice-grafting, or inarching are the best methods to 

 adopt. There are several South American species, and the 

 hybridist might do worse than improve A. unedo. It might pos- 

 sibly cross with the Andromedas, and its habit be so improved. 

 In a dwarf state, covered with waxy flowers and orange-red 

 fruit at the same time, a dwarf seedling or other form of this 

 would be invaluable as a decorative plant. 



Andromeda. A genus of ornamental flowering shrubs from 

 North America, South America, and China. They are repre- 

 sented in our gardens by A. floribunda, a well-known white- 

 flowered species, and others. They are all propagated by 

 layering like Arbutus, the old stems being headed off, and then 

 the bases of the young shoots are covered with soil (see " Hil- 

 lock Layering"). Seeds, when obtainable, germinate readily 

 in pots or pans of moist earth, and this is facilitated if the 

 pots are placed on a genial bottom-heat. Hybridising would 

 doubtless produce improved varieties from such parents as A. 

 floribunda, A.formosa, A. polifolia, A. racemosa, and others. 



Azalea. A well-known and deservedly popular genus of 

 hardy or greenhouse shrubs, partly deciduous, and in some 

 cases evergreen, A. indica, A. sinensis, A. amcena, A. pontica, 

 and A. viscosa being well - known examples in cultivation. 

 Azalea indica (see ' Bot. Mag.,' t. 1420) appears to have been 

 grown in England since about 1812, but had been brought to 

 Holland twelve years earlier. It is a native of China, where it 

 has long been cultivated. The tender varieties of A. indica 

 and A. amcena are readily propagated from cuttings of the 

 young shoots in the spring. Some prefer shoots about two 

 inches in length, having a heel of the old wood. The 

 hardy kinds are easily multiplied by layering. All the 

 greenhouse varieties of A. indica are multiplied by grafting 

 new or rare kinds on a robust-growing variety as a stock, 

 and in this way saleable plants are obtained quickly. A. 

 phcenicea, A. rosea elegans, A. Sir C. Napier, or A. alba, 

 form good stocks, and strike freely from cuttings. They 

 are fit for working when as thick as oaten straw. Graft- 

 ing may be performed throughout the autumn, winter, and 

 spring months, either side, cleft, or splice grafting being the 

 methods adopted, the stocks being grown in small pots ; and 

 these are plunged in a moist genial bottom-heat, in a close 

 case, after the grafts are inserted and tied in, the end of a 

 young shoot with four or five leaves being selected as a scion. 

 Many of the new varieties have originated from sports, which 

 are readily perpetuated by grafting ; and Mr Fortune informs 

 me that in China and Japan the gardeners have many varieties 



