FLOWERS OF GARDEN AND GREENHOUSE 
E. crista-galli (Cock’s-comb). At home in Brazil this is a tree 40 
feet in height, but the yearly shoots put up from the rootstock in this 
country, out of doors, do not exceed 6 or 8 feet. The slightly glaucous 
leaflets are egg-shaped or lance-shaped, of a leathery texture; the leaf¬ 
stalk prickly. Flowers large, bright deep scarlet, appearing from May 
to July. Almost hardy in the South of England. 
E. herbacea (herbaceous). Rootstock woody; stems herbaceous, 
annual, unarmed; 2 to 3 feet. Leaflets egg-shaped, inclined towards 
halbert-shaped. Flowers deep scarlet; racemes long, flowers distant; 
June to September. The garden hybrid E. Bidwitti is the result of a 
cross between this species and the preceding one. 
E. indica (Indian). Stems woody, spiny, 20 to 30 feet high. 
Leaflets broad-ovate, smooth. Flowers brilliant scarlet. Introduced 
from the East Indies (1814). There are several varieties; one with white 
flowers; another (var. vnarmorata) with white spots and blotches on the 
leaves; a third (var. Parcdli ) with woody stem, and a white branching 
stripe along the centre of the leaf. 
culture A 1 , corallodendron, E. caffra, and E. indica are best 
grown in the stove, in a humid atmosphere, supplied with 
abundant water at the roots during the growing period, the amount 
gradually lessened towards autumn, and entirely withheld when they 
have entered the resting condition. In spring they should be re-potted 
in rich loam, and the temperature raised to start them into growth. 
E. crista-galli and E. herbacea may be grown outside in a sunny spot 
and loamy soil. In autumn they must be cut back, and the rootstock 
covered with some protective material, such as dry fern, dead leaves, or 
cocoa-nut fibre. Except in the warmer parts of the country, however, 
they are best lifted and stored under a greenhouse stage, or in a dry shed 
together with the roots of Dahlias, Cannas, etc. Of course, these species 
may be grown as pot-plants equally well with the woody-stemmed. In 
that case it is well to turn them out of doors into full sunshine for the 
summer, taking them in again before the frosts begin. They should be 
wintered dry in a cool house. 
Propagation is effected by taking cuttings in spring. For this 
purpose the young shoots should be selected, and they should be taken 
off with a heel. If these are inserted in pots or pans of sandy soil, they 
will root readily on a little bottom heat, or if covered with a bell-glass 
and placed in a frame. 
A portion of a flowering branch of Erythrina crista- 
K O^tti is shown, together with a separate figure (1) of a 
section. 
