July 9, 1890.] 



Garden and Forest. 



335 



our common I. versicolor, nor so valuable a plant. It does 

 fairly well in a light soil and sun. 



Brodicza graitdiflora is one of the finest of the Brodiseas, 

 growing from eight to twelve inches high, and bearing an 

 umbel of five to ten large blue Mowers an inch wide, with 

 darker stripes. They not only come in succession, but each 

 endures for a long time. The plant shows much more thrift in 

 this climate than most of this genus. The leaves, at the time of 

 flowering, when they are dried up in some species, are as fresh 

 and green as at any season. We suppose it is not hardy with- 

 out protection in winter. A light loamy soil in the sun should 

 be selected. This species is one of the last to bloom. 

 Southwick, Mass. F. H. Horsford. 



firm perhaps fifteen years ago. The best system to follow 

 in the cultivation of these plants is that of planting them out, 

 the shoots being trained along wires stretched across the 

 rafters, and as the flowers are pendent and usually produced 

 on long, slender stems, a very pleasing effect may be thus 

 procured. 



As regards soil the Tacsonias are not very fastidious, and a 

 good sandy loam, well drained, is sufficient for their needs, 

 though the judgment of the cultivator should always be used 

 in deciding this question of soil, as in some localities the loam 

 may be found too heavy for plants of this character, and the 

 addition of about one-third of peat may prove very beneficial 

 under such circumstances. 



A Japanese Pot Plant. — See page 330. 



Greenhouse Climbers. 



"PHE genus Tacsonia of the Passion Flower family in- 

 ■*• eludes some of the most beautiful and graceful climbing 

 plants in cultivation, and being mostly of easy growth, they 

 deserve more general use in the furnishing of conservatories 

 than has been accorded them, at least on this side of the 

 ocean. The Tacsonias are natives of Central and South 

 America in most instances, though one fine variety, T. Ex- 

 oniensis, is of garden origin, being a hybrid between T. Van 

 Volxemi and T. mollis sima, and was introduced by a London 



An intermediate temperature (that is, about fifty-five degrees) 

 is quite warm enough, and thorough syringing is necessary to 

 prevent the inroads of red spider, this pest being very partial 

 to the Tacsonias. Probably the oldest and certainly one of 

 the best examples of this family is one of those already re- 

 ferred to, T. Van Volxemi, a native of New Grenada, which 

 has large, bright crimson ilowers, very freely produced on a 

 well-established plant, and hanging down on slender foot- 

 stalks from one foot to eighteen inches in length. These 

 flowers are frequently followed by fruit, which has some slight 

 resemblance to an elongated Green Gage Plum, though without 



