AZA 



C 95] 



BAB 



drain it thoroughly, or to raise the bed 

 completely above the general level of the 

 ground. 



Varieties may be raised by crossing the 

 kinds in such a way as is likely to effeci 

 a pleasing change. Choose the best 

 forms and brightest colours ; let the 

 plants with flowers of the best form be 

 the seed-bearing mother, and rely for the 

 colour upon the pollen of the male. Sow 

 the seed in April, in pans, placed under a 

 cold frame ; prick the seedlings out the 

 year following in beds, four inches apart, 

 to remain till they flower. 

 AZALEAS (INDIAN or CHINESE). 

 Baisiny varieties. The best and most 

 certain way to obtain new varieties is by 

 impregnating the best-shaped flowers with 

 the pollen of some fine, high-coloured 

 variety. Remove the anthers before they 

 burst from the one intended to seed ; 

 cover with fine gauze the flower impreg- 

 nated, to prevent impregnation by insects. 

 When the seed is ripe, gather it, and sow 

 it the February following in shallow pans, 

 in a gentle heat. As soon as the seedlings 

 have two or three leaves, transplant them 

 into fresh, sandy peat, in deeper pans. 

 They may remain in these pans till the 

 spring following: then pot them singly 

 into 2^-inch pots, and grow them on, re- 

 potting them as they require it, till they 

 flower. 



Propagation by cuttings. Take the 

 young tops, three inches long; dress them 

 by cutting off the bottom leaves. Fill a pot, 

 to within an inch of the top, with sandy 

 peat; fill up the rest with silver sand; 

 put in the cuttings thickly ; water gently, 

 and fit a bell-glass just within the rim of 

 the pot ; place them in a temperature of 

 ft5 to GO , and shade from the sun. 

 They should thus remain till rooted ; 

 then place them in a greenhouse for a 

 week or two; and remove the bell-glass 

 every night, replacing it during the day. 

 They may then be potted off singly into 

 small pots, and placed in a close frame 

 till fresh roots are made; then, gradually 

 inure them to bear the full sun and air; 

 re-pot, and grow on to any size required. 

 Propagation by grafting. See GRAFT- 

 ING. The bestmode is that called side-graft- 

 ing. The grafts must be very small, 

 not more than 1 to 1^-inch long; tie them 

 with worsted, or thick cotton thread, to 

 the stock. The best time is early spring. 

 Place the grafted plants in a close frame, 

 in gentle heat, or under hand-glasses, 



upon sand, in a propagating house. The 

 stock most suitable is the Aza'lea Tndica 

 a'lba, or A.phceni'cca,\)olh easy to strike. 

 Soil. Sandy peat three-fourths, light 

 loam one-fourth. 



Summer culture. Azaleas require the 

 same treatment as Camellias. After the 

 bloom is over give them a moderate de 

 gree of artificial heat, 55 to 60. Syringe 

 them freely during that period. As soon 

 as they have made their growth, give 

 plenty of air for a fortnight, and then set 

 them behind a low, north wall till autumn. 

 Winter culture.- As soon as there is any 

 fear of frost, remove them into an airy 

 greenhouse, and keep them just from 

 frost, and give very moderate supplies of 

 water. When they begin to show flower, 

 give more heat, and a more liberal supply 

 of water. 



Insects. The Thrlps is the great pest 

 of Azaleas ; but the Green-fly is also apt 

 to trouble them when growing. Both in- 

 sects may be destroyed by tobacco-smoke 

 frequently applied. 



Diseases. These plants are often at- 

 tacked by a disease which causes them to 

 die off just at the crown of the roots. 

 The small-leaved varieties, such as A. 

 I'ndica, var. Gledstane'sii, lateri'tia, and 

 variega'ta, are especially subject to die off 

 :hus prematurely. To prevent this, they 

 should be all grafted upon the free-grow- 

 ng stocks. 



AZA'RA. (Named after J. N. Azara, 

 a Spanish patron of botany. Nat. ord., 

 Bixads [Flancortiaceae]. Linn., 1'3-Poly- 

 andria \-Monogynia.) 



Greenhouse evergreens. Cuttings in sand, 

 under glass, in slight heat. Sandy loam. Sutn- 

 ner temp., 60 to 75; winter, 55 to 60. 



A. denta'ta ( toothed- leaved). 10. Yellow. Chili. 



1830. 



integrifo'lia (entire-leaved). 18. Conception. 



1832. 



serra'ta (saw-edged). 12. Chili. 1832. 



B 



BABIA'NA. (From babiancr, the Dutch 

 'or baboon ; in reference to the bulbs be- 

 ng eaten by the baboons. Nat. ord., Irids 

 'Iridacese]. Linn., 3-Triandria 1-Mono- 

 /j/nia.) 



All greenhouse bulbs, from the Cape of Good 

 Hope. Offsets ; sandy peat and loam ; water 

 freely when growing. Keep dry when at rest. 

 Those potted in autumn must be kept in a cold 

 pit or greenhouse during winter. Those planted 

 in spring, in a warm border, should he taken up 

 before winter, and kept secure from frost. 



B. angustifo'lia (narrow-leaved). 1. Variegated. 



May. 175;. 



