INTEODUCTION. O 



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and higHy decorative qualities of such, as these, until at 

 last the barrier was broken down, and witb most bene- 

 ficial results. 



The cultivation of Ornamental-leaved Plants is much 

 easier than that of plants grown entirely for the beauty 

 of their flowers. This will be readily understood on a 

 moment's reflection. To produce plants profusely adorned 

 with flowers, close attention is required in resting, in 

 shifting, and starting into growth at the proper season, 

 and other matters of importance, all which is fully ex- 

 plained in the volume devoted entirely to the Ornamental- 

 flowering Plants; but the plants now under consider- 

 ation have to be treated upon quite a diflerent principle, 

 for as their beauty is to be sought in their foliage, the 

 object should be to make them grow as vigorous as 

 possible from the earliest stages, so that their characters 

 may be seen at an early period of their existence, and 

 those kinds which are not deciduous require to be kept 

 in a growing state nearly the' whole year, which differs 

 materially from the treatment necessary for most plants 

 required to produce a large crop of flowers. The deciduous 

 or annual-leaved kiads, such as Caladiums, give very little 

 trouble, but yield an abundance of their charming leaves 

 provided an ample supply of water and moderate heat 

 be maintained. The details of cultivation will, however, 

 follow in its proper sequence, and therefore need not be 

 further referred to here. Let us rather address our- 

 selves to dispel the too prevalent idea, that the class of 

 plants to which these pages are devoted require a great 

 amount of heat. This may indeed be true in regard to 

 most of the plants from the low grounds of the islands 

 in the Indian Archipelago, and also from most other low 

 countries within the tropics, and that a great many plants 

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