USEFUL GREENHOUSE PLANTS 309 



from small tubers. The flowers of some of them are very pretty. 

 0. cernua, with yellow flowers about the size of a shilling, is called the 

 Bermuda Butter-cup, from the fact that it is extensively grown in 

 Bermuda and sent to this country in early autumn. It is popular for 

 the greenhouse. 0. Bowieana, rose ; 0. enneaphylla, white ; O.floribunda y 

 rose ; 0. Deppei, reddish-purple ; and 0. variabilis, white and red, are 

 among the best forms. Soil : sandy loam and peat or leaf-soil. 



Palms. Of late years Palms have greatly advanced in popularity, 

 being now largely used for the stove and the greenhouse as well as for 

 the dwelling-house, where some of them will keep in health for years, 

 provided they get a reasonable amount of attention. Good loam, 

 lightened by a little leaf-mould and sand, is suitable for the different 

 Palms. Care should be taken not to give too much soil, for good speci- 

 mens may be grown in comparatively small pots. They must never be 

 allowed to suffer from drought, though stagnant water is very injurious. 

 It is important to keep the leaves sponged with tepid water regularly. 

 The best greenhouse Palms are : Areca Baueri, Areca sapida, Chama- 

 rops excelsa, Fortunei, and humilis ; Corypha australis, Kentia belmoreana, 

 and K. fosteriana, Latania borbonica, Phoenix canariensis, P. Roebeliniij 

 and Rhapis flabelliformis. 



Passiflora (Passion Flower). Well-known climbers, flowering 

 principally during the summer months. Passiflora carulea, blue ; 

 P. Constance Elliot, white ; P. Lawsoni, light purple ; and P. Impera- 

 trice Eugenie are all good. These strike from cuttings in the spring. 

 Soil : loam and peat. 



Pelargonium. Owing to the many sections of Pelargonium now 

 in cultivation they form a most extensive class, and the uses to which 

 they can be put are varied. At one time the name of Pelargonium was, 

 at least from a popular standpoint, applied only to the large-flowered 

 show section, the term Geranium being generally used to indicate the 

 Zonal, Ivy-leaved, and others of this class. The Zonal Pelargonium 

 or " Geranium," as it is popularly called, is represented by numerous 

 varieties with flowers varying from pure white to crimson. This plant 

 can be put to many uses. It is admirably adapted for the greenhouse 

 or conservatory, and if the structure be kept at a temperature of 50 

 degrees to 60 degrees the plant will flower throughout the winter. It is 

 largely used for bedding out during the summer months, while large, 

 old plants will yield a wealth of blossom if planted out of doors at that 

 period, as one may see from the noble specimens put out for the summer 

 in the London parks. There are now a great number of double-flowered 

 varieties belonging to this Zonal section. These are valuable for flower- 

 ing in pots, but as a rule they do not bloom with the same freedom as 

 the single kinds if bedded out. 



luy-leaued Pelargoniums. The members of this section have 

 become very popular within the last few years, and the double-flowered 

 forms are now universally grown. Some of them are valuable for 

 clothing the pillars or back wall of the greenhouse, while for hanging 

 baskets they are largely used. Their drooping habit fits them for 



