38o Notes and Gleanings. 



The question as to zonale pelargoniums is concisely stated and settled in 

 the following article from "The Cottage Gardener: " — 



What is a Zoxale Pelargonium? — Will you say in your next journal 

 what is a zonale pelargonium, and thus settle some dispute which has taken 

 place in this quarter ? — J. McD. 



[The whole of the pelargoniums known as "scarlets," though their flowers are 

 often pink, and even white, owe their productions to three species, — P. zonale., 

 P. inquinans, and P. FotJiergillii j and, inasmuch as the earliest of them were 

 the progeny of P. zonale, they have been comprehensively termed zonales, 

 though no zone is on the leaves of some of them ; and, though the name is mis- 

 leading, it is no more so than calling those " scarlets " which include plants with 

 flowers of other colors. In short, the term " zonale " is intended to include a 

 section of pelargoniums well known as bedders, without any reference to their 

 being zone-leaved. Wishing to know if our opinion coincided with that of a 

 well-known authority, but not a cultivator of these flowers, we wrote to him to 

 ask his opinion. This is his reply : " I regret that this zonale question has 

 been again mooted. I believe it arose from the disappointment received by an 

 exhibiter, who would not allow that his competitor's plants were all zonales ; he 

 taking it for granted that a zonale must have a zone fully defined in t!ie several 

 leaves of the plant. The term 'zonale' has been taken from the original plant, 

 Pelargoiihiin zonale, the old horseshoe, from which the present race are all 

 descendants. This is one view of the question. But when some of the seed- 

 lings produce plain leaves, without any sign of a zone, we are told these are not 

 zonales. In one sense of the word, they certainly are not so ; but these plain- 

 leaved plants vary in no other way from those in whose leaves the zone is fixed : 

 habit, color, growth, are all the same. But the florist chooses to subdivide these 

 varieties into golden-edored, variesrated, silver-edged, golden-leaved, bronze, and 

 gold zonales, bicolors, or simply green leaves margined with white. It was one 

 of these latter plants that caused this question to arise. 



" I think myself it is absurd to quibble on this point. They are all doubtless 

 in character true zonales : but some varieties are minus the zone ; at least, it is 

 not developed. Whether the coloring-matter of the zone is absent, or why it is 

 not visible, I think no man can venture to say. I can but feel that all are truly 

 zonales, though not developing a defined zone." 



We are thus sustained in our opinion, as we also are by the facts, that some 

 of the zonales which usually have no zone on their leaves, will, under a change 

 of culture, develop zones on them ; whilst, on the other hand, those usually with 

 zoned leaves will, under different treatment, produce leaves not zoned. — 

 Eds.'X 



