THE PASSION-FLOWER FAMILY. 437 



the spring, each having a heel of the old bark. These root 

 readily in sandy soil under a bell-glass, or in a heated case, 

 which must be well ventilated, otherwise they are liable to 

 damp off. Layers, if tongued below a joint, and the part 

 buried beneath any light rich soil, root freely in a few weeks. 

 Seeds are by many species freely produced, and germinate 

 readily if sown in a gentle bottom-heat as soon as ripe. If the 

 seeds are to be preserved, they should be cleaned as recom- 

 mended for Melons, and sown in the spring. Seedling plants 

 generally bloom the second year. Several species bear eatable 

 fruit not unlike small Melons in shape and flavour, and known 

 by the general name of " Granadillas." One of the best is P. 

 edulis, a West Indian species, bearing purple fruits the size of 

 a hen's egg; P. macrocarpa, a large-fruited kind, resembling 

 P. quqdrangularis, and, like the last, bearing large olive-green 

 fruits the size of small oblong Melons. P. maliformis, " Sweet 

 Calabash," and P. lanrifolia, or " Water - lemon," also bear 

 edible fruits. The species of this genus interbreed with 



Passiflora Loudoniana, Hort., entire flcrwer. d d, Numerous coralline filaments ', 

 e e, Stamens ; p, Pistils. 



tolerable precision ; and the hybridiser should bear in 

 mind the fact that some species, of which P. . racemosa (P. 

 princeps, Hort., ' Bot. Mag.,' t. 2001) may be cited as an ex- 

 ample, never fruit unless artificially fertilised, owing to their 



