BEUNSVIGIA 



THE BULB BOOK 



BRYONIA 



It was at one time thought that the 

 Kew variety of Amaryllis Belladonna 

 (see p. 71) was a hybrid between that 

 species and Brunsvigia JosephincB, 

 Mr C. Gr. van Tubergen, of Haarlem, 

 however, is of another opinion. 

 Writing in the Gard. Chron. in 

 January 1909, p. 57, he says : — 

 " Principally with a view of ascertain- 

 ing the parentage of the Kew variety 

 of Amaryllis Belladonna (see Gard., 

 November 19, 1898, and notes in the 

 Gard. Chron., February 9, 1901, etc.), 

 in the autumn of 1892, I artificially 

 impregnated Brunsvigia Josephinse 

 with pollen of Amaryllis Belladonna. 

 Seeds formed freely, as the two 

 genera, Brunsvigia and Amaryllis, 

 are very nearly related. As could be 

 foreseen, with the slow-growing B. 

 Josephinee as the female plant, a long 

 time had to elapse before the seedling 

 plants would be strong enough to 

 reach flowering size. After sixteen 

 years of patient waiting, two of the 

 strongest bulbs produced flower-spikes 

 in September of last year (1908). 

 When the hybrid plants had been 

 growing for a few seasons it became 

 evident that they differed in habit 

 from the Kewvariety of Amaryllis Bel- 

 ladonna, which produces a leaf -stem 

 about 4 ins. high, whereas my hybrids 

 all bear the character of Brunsvigia 

 Josephinse in the foliage, leaves being 

 formed directly above the neck of the 

 bulbs. The infusion of the Belladonna 

 blood is clearly shown in the bulbs, as 

 these resemble those of the Bella- 

 donna and produce offsets freely, 

 whilst Brunsvigia never produces 

 offsets. A comparison of the supple- 

 mentary illustration in the Gard. 

 Chron., January 23, 1909, with that 

 of The Garden, November 1898, leads 

 to the conclusion that the Kew plant 

 can no longer be regarded as a hybrid 

 between these species, unless it was a 

 cross effected in the reverse way, 



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taking Amaryllis Belladonna as the 

 female parent. In that case the 

 variety hlanda must have been used, 

 it being the only variety of A. Bella- 

 donna known which produces a leaf- 

 stem. The colour of the flowers of 

 my hybrid was a clear deep rose, 

 suffused with carmine. A single spike 

 produced twenty-two flowers." The 

 parentage of the Kew variety of A. 

 Belladonna is therefore still in doubt. 

 It is a pity Mr van Tubergen did not 

 make the reverse cross eighteen years 

 ago, making A. Belladonna the seed 

 parent. 



B. minor {B. ^Mmi'Ks).— Bulbs ovoid, 

 2 to 3 ins. through; leaves strap- 

 shaped, 6 ins. long, 1 in. broad; 

 flowers pale red, 1 to Ij ins. long, 

 twelve to forty in an umbel, on stout 

 scapes 6 to 9 ins. high {Bot. Eeg. t. 

 954). 



B. Radula {Amaryllis Radvla ; Co- 

 hurgia Radvla). — Bulb globose, larger 

 than a hazel-nut; leaves 2 to 3 ins. 

 long, 1 to Ij ins. broad, covered all 

 over with rough papillae; flowers 

 red, three to five in an umbel, on 

 scapes 2 to 3 ins. high. 



B. Slateriana {Ammiocharis Slater- 

 iana ; Amaryllis Banksiana). — Bulb 

 globose, 4 to 5 ins. through; leaves 

 grey-green ; flowers bright rose-red, 

 1^ ins. long, flfteen to twenty in an 

 umbel, on stout compressed stalks 6 

 ins. high. 



BRYONIA {hryo, to sprout; in 

 allusion to the annual shoots from 

 the tubers). Nat. Ord. Cucurbitacese. 

 — A genus of slender climbing herbs 

 with three- to five-lobed leaves ; small 

 whitish or yellow-green flowers, the 

 males and females of which are 

 usually borne on separate plants. 



B. dioica. — This is a native peren- 

 nial plant having large, fleshy, tuber- 

 ous roots, often 2 to 3 ft. long, five- 

 lobed leaves, and clusters of greenish 

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