1312 PHCENIX 



8. pilmila, Hort. Stem slender, graceful. 6-10 ft. : Ivs. 

 10-16 ft. long, recurved, drooping; Ifts. 8-12 in. long. 

 4-ranked. Gt. 20, p. 173 (description). Fla. Farm. & 

 Fr. Gr. 1898:67. 



9. Canari^nsiB, Hort. {P. tenuis, Versch. P. Jtiba, 

 Webb). Resembling P. dactylifera, but more slender 

 and graceful in all its parts: Ivs. more numerous. Ca- 

 nary Islands. R.H. 1888:181. G.C. HI. 15:405. V. 

 19:51. Gng. 5:215. Gn. 57, p. 255. K.H. 1893, pp. 126, 

 127. -Var. macroc&rpa is cult, in Florida. 



10. sylv^stris, Roxb. Stem solitary, stout, 25-40 ft. 

 high, clothed with persistent petiole bases: Iva. 10-15 

 ft., glabrous; petiole spiny ; segments 1-2 ft., fascicled, 

 2-4-ranked, rigid, light green. Very close to P. dacti/l- 

 ifera and perhaps the origin of that plant. India. I.H. 

 10:351. V. 16:101. P. 1872, p. 29. Gn. 54, p. 117. G.C. 

 III. 10:105.-A hybrid of P. sylrestris and Canarien- 

 sis secured by E. H. Hart is highly praised by Ameri- 

 can connoisseurs. 



11. dactylifera, Linn. (P. cycadifdlia. Hort.). Date- 

 palm. Pig. 1764. Stem tall, erect : Ivs. glaucous, 

 arcuate-ascending ; Ifts. linear-lanceolate acuminate, 

 strongly complicate, the lower 4-ranked, the upper 2- 

 ranked, irregularly and remotely aggregate: fr. evlin- 

 drical-elliptical, 1-2 in. long. Arabia, N. Afr. R.H. 1893, 

 p. 127.— Var. ezc61sa is cult, in Florida. See Date. 



P. dumdsa. Hort. Saul. 1893. Of "dwarf h.ibit." .Seems 

 unknown to botanists.— P. glauca, cult, by H. Nehrling, is a 

 name not in the texts.— i*. Natalensis and vur. variegata jire 

 offered by Reasoner, but no description is available. — P. San- 

 deridna. Presumably introduced within recent years by San- 

 der & Co., St. Albans, Eng.-P. spinuldsa. Hort. Siiul, 1S93. is 

 ).— P. tomenthsa. cult, by H. Nehrling, is an 

 obscure name. .Jared G. Smith. 



PHOLIDUTA (Greek, scale and ear; the scales of the 

 unopened raceme are said to recall the rattle of a 

 snake). OrchidAceie. A small genus containing about 

 20 species, natives of In.lia. S. rliin.i and the Malay 

 Archipelago. Mostly nf th, li.ii.n .it I'n-logyne, with 

 creeping rhizomes and psrud.iiiuii.s , -isting of a sin- 

 gle internode. Fls. small, sh.iit |HHicrlli-d, in slender 

 racemes, each with a large bract ; sepals and petals short, 

 broad; labellum excavated or sac-like : column very 

 short, winged around the top. For cultivation, use 

 strong, light, rich potting material, broken pots, old dry 

 cow manure, plenty of drainage. Do not allow to be- 

 come very dry. Temperature, 55-65°. 



imbricita, Lindl. Pseudobulbs oblong sulcate: Ivs. 

 oblong-lanceolate, plicate, 6-12 in. long: raceme long- 



peduncled, 3-8 in. long: Hs. small, rather crowded on 

 the raceme, white or yellowish, with a shade of violet 

 Feb. -May. India. B.R. 14:1213; 21:1777. L.B.C. 

 20:1934. 



Cbin^nsis, Lindl. A small creeping epiphyte. Pseu- 

 dobulbs cespitose, 1-2-lvd.: Ivs. oblong-unilulate, acu- 

 minate, fls greenish white, in drooping racemes not 

 more than 2-3 in. long; sepals ovate; petals Imear; la- 

 bellum oblong, recurved.- This plant has long been 

 known from Chinese drawings. 



Wm. Mathews and Heinrich Hasselbrino. 



PHOBADENDEON ilav^scens, Nutt., is the Mistletoe 

 of eastern North America. Fig. 1766. It is parasitic on 

 deciduous trees, as far north as New Jersey and south- 

 ern Indiana and extending southwards to Florida and 

 Texas. P.R. 3:590. It makes dense bunches 1-3 ft. 

 across, with thick oval or obovate yellowish green ever- 

 green Ivs. The forkinir twiir'i are ti-rfte. "and break 



easily at the base. TIm- ti-. arc .|i i.Mi-., Ii..rne in very 



short spikes or catkin^: ln-rnc^ amln i u Int.-. nlohular, 

 small. The plant is ■•,,||,.,-t, ,1 tMi- ciin^tma- -i-eens (see 

 Greens, Christmas]. Tlj.- (M.I W.n-l.l .Mistletoe is Vis- 



PH6BMIUM (Greek, phormos, basket; referring to 

 one use to which this fiber plant is put). Lilidcea. New 

 Zealand Flax. The New Zealand Fla.v, Phormiitm 

 tenax, is a tender herbaceous plant, 3-6 ft. high, with a 

 tuft of 2-ranked, sword-shaped Ivs. and panicles of 6- 

 lobed fls. varying from red to orange. It is a choice 

 plant for conservatory decoration and f.ir siil>fr.>i>icMl 

 bedding. It is a very formal plant, its linrs L.-inj^ 



strong, stately and rather stiff, — perhaps t ii.li s,, in 



immature specimens. The genus is east I \ .listin-uislM .1 

 by its fls., which are erect, numenms. pani.-l.-.i, the 

 perianth with a top-shaped tube, and the somewhat 

 incurved segments loosely connivent above. Phormium 

 belongs to the tribe of which the day-lilies (Hemero- 

 callis and Punkia) are representatives in the northern 

 hemisphere and the poker plants (Kniphotta) in the 

 southern, its nearest ally being the Australian Bland- 

 fordia with fls. of similar colors but pendulous and with 

 stamens affixed at the middle of the tube instead of at 

 the apex, as in Phormium. Phoniiiiinis Ivive a short, 



thick rhizome and cliist.rs ..f tlii.'k.' I lilirous roots. 



There are three sp.-.-i.s. all tf.iiii N.w /.., aland. The 

 common species, P. I' mix, is th.' tall.st plant and gen- 

 erally has redder fls. than /'. C.inkiaiiinn . The rarest 

 species, P. Hookeri (not in trade), differs in having 

 Ivs. which bend back until they reach the ground. 



Phormiums are perhaps too slow of propagation to be 

 ranked among the few most popular plants for subtropi- 

 cal bedding, but they are esteemed choice subjects by con- 

 noisseurs. They arc a prominent feature of many fine 

 establishments in California. When Phormiums are to 

 be prop, by division G. W. Oliver recommends that they 

 be planted outdoors in very sandy soil during May ami 

 divided during September. ^ jj 



For certain combinations and in places where it can 

 have plenty of moisture Phormium tenax is a valuable 

 plant, having a very distinct and unusual character all 

 its own. The type is easier of cultivation than the 

 variegated kinds. Much better results can be obtained 

 by raising the typical form from seeds than by division. 

 Seed sown in Feb. and grown on rapi.11^" "ill ttrtlrc L.-....d 

 plants for bedding purposes the spri II L' I ti" i. ii ..mil' 

 year. The seedlings may be either ].l.n \\i 



in pots; in the latter case give a ii .'..i 



plenty of water after the plants have 1. 1 L' II ImiI.L Willi 

 good treatment one may expect at the eii.l of a year and 

 a half a well-furnished specimen 3-3/^ ft. high in a 

 6-in. pot. If one can afford room in a warm house, so 

 much the better. The variegated forms require partial 

 shade and even moisture; they do not come true from 

 s*'<^<i. J. p. Cowell. 



a. Lvs. 2-S in. wide, split at apex. 



Unaz, Linn. New Zealand Flax. Fig. 1767. Ro- 

 bust: lvs. attaining 4 ft. or more, 2-3 in. wide, dark 

 green, margin and keel bricht red or brownish : scape 

 5-7 ft. high, much overtopping the lvs.: fls. typically 



