676 THE BOOK OF GARDENING. 



They are easily propagated by division just as growth is com- 

 mencing in spring, and thrive in a mixture of loam, peat, leaf- 

 mould, and sand, with a liberal supply of water when in 

 full vigour, gradually reducing it as the growth matures. 

 H. aureo-striata, from the Solomon Islands, is a plant that 

 well repays the little trouble required to grow it successfully. 

 The stems are streaked with green and yellow, and the deep 

 green leaves are handsomely veined with golden-yellow. 

 H. illustris rubricaulis is another handsome species, with leaves 

 i2in. to i8in. long and 5m. to 7in. broad, having reddish foot- 

 stalks, pink midribs, and pink veins, with some paler streaks 

 and markings. 



IsoLEPia gracilis. — A favourite grassy-looking plant, native 

 of India. It is extensively cultivated, and much used for deco- 

 rative purposes, being of elegant habit and a bright green. It 

 has a very pleasing effect when arranged along the front row on 

 stages, where it can droop and form a sort of edging to taller 

 subjects, especially when intermixed with such plants as Thunbergia 

 alata and Panicum variegatum. It will grow freely in peat and 

 loam with an abundant supply of water, and is readily increased 

 by division in spring. 



Jacaranda mimoSjEFOLIA. — This is a very elegant foliage 

 plant, having bipinnate leaves with numerous pairs of opposite 

 leaflets. Cuttings of half-ripened shoots will strike in heat in 

 the beginning of summer, and the plants delight in fibrous peat 

 and loam mixed with silver-sand. When grown with single stems 

 they make very useful decorative subjects. The species is a 

 native of Brazil, where, as a moderate-sized tree, it is extremely 

 handsome with its profusion of lovely blue flowers. It, however, 

 does not flower freely in a young state, and is chiefly prized as 

 a foliage plant in our hothouses and conservatories. 



Leea amabilis splendens. — A handsome fine foliage shrub 

 from Borneo. The leaves are pinnate, with two pairs of leaflets 

 and an odd one, which are from 4in. to 6in. long and 2m. 

 broad. The young leaflets, when first expanded, are bright 

 crimson, tinged with brown, and develop into a rich glossy green, 

 with a silver band running down the midrib, from which silvery 

 veins spread out to the margin. It is propagated from cuttings, 

 and thrives in peat, loam, and sand, with partial shade. 



Maranta. — The various shades and often bright colourings in 

 the leaves of this handsome genus, with their peculiar blotches 

 and feather-like markings, constitute interesting attractions of a 

 high order. They are easily increased by division in spring, 

 and grow freely in two parts fibrous peat and one part turfy loam, 

 with a liberal addition of silver-sand, in thoroughly well-drained 

 pots. A moist and shady part of the stove is best suited to 

 their growth, and plunging the pots in a bottom-heat of about 



