1076 



NEPHEOLEPIS 



3. acilta, Presl. (iV. ^uilsfj, Hort. ). Lvs. 2-4 ft. long, 

 8-12 in. wide, on short slightly scaly stalks; pinnae %-l 

 in. wide, acute, with entire or slightly crenate margins, 

 the lower basal angle rounded, the upper auricled : in- 

 dusia suborbicular. Fla. to Brazil and in the tropics of 

 the Old World. -jy.riif^scens, Presl., is awooUy variety. 

 If. iripinnatifida is said to be a variety of this species. 



BB. Margitis pinnatifid. 



4, davallioides. Kunze. Lvs. drooping, 2-3 ft. long, 

 1 ft. or more wide ; lower pinnse inciso-crenate, the upper 

 narrower, with deeper lobes. In cultivation the pinnse 

 are forked often several times and are sometimes irregu- 

 larly crested: their form resembles the horticultural va- 

 riety fiircans. Java. - Var. furoans multiceps is also 

 advertised. 



A', serrulata cristata. once advertised by John Saul, seems un- 

 known to the botanies.— A'. Wlttboldii, P.R. 5:247 (1900) ; 6:52n. 

 is a variety of Boston Fern with fronds thrice as wide as the 

 type. The pinnae are said to have characteristic convolutions. 

 Underwood. 



NEBINE 



be procured at little cost aud is easily grown. It is prop- 

 agated by division or by the creeping rhizomes. This is 

 best done in early spring. The rhizomes msy be pegged 

 down in small pots and when well rooted may be de 

 tached from the parent plant. A good compost for pot- 

 ting consists of soil and leaf -mold, with some well-rotted 

 manure added. Shift into larger pots or pans as the 



plants requiir. s.<urc i; 1 drainage and give plenty 



of water, es].. .-ially (luriiis.' the summer months. This 

 treatment will iiKikc spi-.-imen plants of 3-5 ft. in diam- 

 eter by October, with graceful fronds drooping in such 

 a manner as to hide the pot or pan. A well-grown speci- 

 men suspended in a bay-window is a sight long to be re- 

 membered. There are many plants in good condition 

 that have been in use for several years during the sum- 

 mer on the veranda and in the house during the winter 

 months. James Dean. 



NEPHTHtTIS (name borrowed from Egvptian my- 

 thology; Nephthys, mother of Amibis, wife oit' Typhon'). 

 About half a dozen species of tropical African 

 creepers, 2 of which are cult, in hothouses for their va- 

 riegated foliage. The lvs. are all more or less halberd - 

 shaped or arrow-shaped, with scarcely any sheath on 

 the petiole Inflorescence terminal: spathe concave-ex- 

 panded ovary 1 celled; ovule solitary, pendulous, 

 picturita, N E. Br. The white markings form a pat- 

 cembling the tips of fern fronds laid between the 

 T\es with their points all directed towards the base 

 the midrib Plant stemless, spreading bv runners: 

 tioles 10-12 in long: blade G-12 in. long, 5-9 in. broad, 

 >ngo \ ar angustita, N. E. Br., has smaller and nar- 

 rower lvs. Figured in catalogue of 



u. •■ 



curvifolia 



Fothereilli (> 



The Boston Fern 7\ephiolepis exaHata, var Bostoni- 

 ensiSf is without doubt the most valuable ornamental 

 foliage plant for hou e and t n ervatory decoration that 

 the trade has put tl \i i n nn ni'arkft for years. 

 Its many good i« I vil.-um. M.liliiion to 



covered that it w; | n f.ir tli.- |. alms, en- 



during with them t j II 11 tl hy atmu-sphLTc of the 



house. Thriving un ici indifferent care, it has proved 

 itself a very valua! le plant It grows where many of our 

 best house plants had been failures. It is a plant that can 



triph^Ua, Hort. "A pretty stove 

 cree]>er with dark green thrice-di- 

 vided lvs. marked with greenish 

 white in the exact shape of the leaf." 



NEPTtTNIA plSna is a rare sensi- 

 tive plant of aquatic habit found in 

 the East and West Indies and S. 

 Amer. It has foliage much like that 

 of the common sensitive plant, Ali- 

 mnxa piidica. The fls. are so odd 

 that no one at first sight would 

 imagine that they belong to the 

 legume family. They are more or 

 less egg-shaped in outline, VA x I 

 in., and borne singly on stalks 6 in. 

 long. They are drooping and have 

 numerous stamens. The singular 

 feature of these fls. is a mass of yel- 

 low petalage composed of 6 or more tiers of reflexed, 

 narrowly lanceolate strips, which are really transformed 

 and sterile stamens. The plant floats on the water and 

 has grooved stems, the portion underwater being white, 

 spongy and full of air-cells. It is of difficult culture 

 and can probably not be secured in Europe at present, 

 but would make an interesting addition to our northern 

 botanic gardens. B.M. 4695. Legiiminosw. 



NEKlNE (a nereid of Greek mythology). AmaryUi- 

 ditcuv. A remarkable genus of tender bulbous plants, 

 of which the commonest species is N. Samiensis. long 

 known as the Guernsey Lily from the island where 

 these bulbs are grown to perfection. They will never 

 become popular with florists, because the winter is their 

 ■ tead of flowering time. They belong 

 to the very small class of autumn-blooming bulbs. The 

 common kinds flower from Sept. to Nov. without any 

 foliage, and the lvs. are developed all winter. About 

 May the lvs. die down and the bulbs rest from May to 

 Aug. The fls. range from scarlet through salmon and 

 pink shades to white, and are bnrrie in umbels of 4-20 

 fls., on scapes varvingfmm i:; ft. 1.. tig and averaging IK 

 ft. The fls. are Opart. .1. th, -. -ments more or less 

 rolled back and somitimr- iiimii. ,1 .ir fluted. 



There are 10 species, all fr..iu ,-south Africa. A com- 

 mon trade name is JVerine ./apnniea, which is really a 

 Lycoris since it has black seeds, while all the true 

 Nerines have green seeds. It, however, has the au- 



