THE CINERARIA. 



PROF. WILLIAM K. HIGLEY, 

 Secretary Chicago Academy of Sciences. 



IN THE early days of the Colum- 

 bian Exposition, before people had 

 ceased to wonder at the unex- 

 pected and unusual sights, there 

 were beautiful displays of plants in 

 flower, on a scale never before at- 

 tempted, at least in this part of the 

 world. 



Those wise enough to respond to 

 the invitation to visit the long, low 

 green houses in Jackson Park, before 

 the more pretentious Horticultural 

 Building was ready for use, will never 

 forget the royal mass of blossoms 

 which greeted their eyes as they passed 

 through long aisles of bloom. 



The announcement that the cineraria 

 was on exhibition meant little to many, 

 but to those who found their way to the 

 park during the chilly spring days and 

 patiently trudged over unfinished paths, 

 and through rubbish and incomplete- 

 ness, the announcement opened the 

 door to a sight so wonderfully fine and 

 complete, so astonishing, and so de- 

 lightful, that to look was to exclaim 

 and admire, and to admire was to re- 

 member, and, months after, to long for 

 another sight of that billowy mass of 

 pinky-purplish bloom. 



The Compositae, the family of plants 

 to which the cinerarias belong, con- 

 tains about seven hundred and sixty 

 genera and over ten thousand species, 

 embracing approximately one-tenth of 

 all the flowering forms. This is the 

 largest family of plants and includes 

 the goldenrod, the sunflower, the aster, 

 the chrysanthemum, the thistle, the 

 lettuce, the dandelion, and many others. 

 The species are widely distributed, 

 though more common in temperate or 



hot regions, the largest [number being 

 found in the Americas. 



Though a family of herbs, there are a 

 few shrubs and in the tropics a small 

 number of trees. The cultivated forms 

 are numerous, and some are among our 

 most beautiful fall plants. 



The flowers are collected together in 

 heads, and sometimes are of two kinds 

 (composite). Using the sunflower for 

 an example we find a disk of tubular 

 flowers in the center and, growing 

 around it, a row of strap-shaped flow- 

 ers, while in the dandelion they are all 

 strap-shaped, and in some other species 

 all are tubular. 



The cineraria is an excellent illus- 

 tration of the composite form, which 

 bears both kinds of flowers. 



The name cineraria (Latin, cmerarius, 

 from cinis, ashes) was given to these 

 plants because of the gra)ish down that 

 covers the surface of the leaves. 



The cinerarias form a large genus 

 of practically herbaceous plants, and 

 are chiefly natives of southern Africa 

 and southern and eastern Europe. 

 The varieties vary greatly from white 

 to pinkish-purple and through various 

 shades to dark, bluish-purple. 



They are quite easily cultivated, but 

 are house plants in temperate lati- 

 tudes. They are peculiarly liable to 

 attacks of insects, plant-lice {Aphides) 

 being especially an enemy. 



The florist's varieties are chiefly pro- 

 duced from the species Cineraria ctu- 

 enta. Beautiful hybrids have been de- 

 veloped from this and other species, 

 and the flower certainly deserves the 

 popularity it has attained through ster- 

 ling merit. 



236 



