261 



are propagated by cuttings ; the foliage is very varied, being in 

 some instances variegated with creamy white, and in others 

 reddish crimson ; the leaves also assume many irregular shapes, 

 some being very minute in size while others are the reverse ; as 

 these plants are easily grown, they are worthy the attention of 

 Amateurs. 



DRACAENAS. 



These plants belong to a very elegant showy family, and 

 are now so numerous that leaves of almost any shade of creamy 

 white, green or red, can be obtained, mixed or unmixed, with 

 other tints; most of them propagate themselves by suckers, but 

 by a division of the bulbs, like those of Authuriums, they can be 

 very easily increased; in six or seven months the bulb of a 

 Dracsana can be divided if the weather is cool enough, the pieces 

 cut from that portion of the bulb removed must be put into seed 

 pans with fine river sand to grow. 



Draccena Goldieana is considered the Queen of this group ; 

 it comes from Western Tropical Africa ; the leaf-stalks are of a 

 greyish colour, with a furrow along the upper side ; the leaf- 

 blade is cordate-ovate with a yellowish green rib marbled and 

 branded with alternate silver grey and dark green bands, the 

 reverse of the leaf having a reddish purple colour. 



MARANTAS. 



This is a group of very ornamental foliage plants easily propa- 

 gated by division of the bulbs, or by the suckers thrown out by 

 the parent tree. 



The Arrowroot plant belongs to this family, and is known as 

 "Maranta Ariindinacea." 



PANAX. 



These are ever-green plants with remarkably varied leaflets ; 

 some of them are of a dense bushy habit, the leaves being as 

 numerous as they are minute ; a few of them are plumelike in 

 character, and these are unsurpassed for table decoration ; can 

 be propagated without any trouble from cuttings during any 

 time of the year. 



