NINE IRON-CLAD PALMS 1 75 



alike, Belmoreana can readily be told from 

 Fosteriana by the more upright leaflets, 

 those of Forsteriana have a decidedly, droop- 

 ing tendency. Moreover, Belmoreana has a 

 dwarfer, more spreading habit than Forster- 

 iana, while the latter is a stronger grower 

 qnd has broader foliage. As ordinarily 

 seen in the florists* shops, a kentia in a six- 

 inch pot is two to two and one-half feet high 

 and has half a dozen leaves, two-thirds of 

 the leaf consisting of a long, slender gradually 

 tapering, arching stem surmounted by many 

 broad, dark green leaflets set in two rows. 

 Both these palms will succeed where no 

 other palms can be grown. 



THE POPULAR FAVOURITE 



Probably the Chinese fan palm (Livistona 

 Chinensis, but usually spoken of in the 

 trade as Latania Borhonicd) is the most 

 popular of house palms, and, to my eye, 

 certainly the most beautiful. It does not 

 grow nearly as tall as the kentia, but is 

 much broader. In this palm the leaf stem is 

 as long as the leaf, and for more than half the 

 length of the leaf. Its edges are covered with 

 short, stout, sharp spines. The leaf is a foot or 



