160 OENAMBNTAL FOLUGB PLANTS. 



the most exquisitely coloured variegated plant we have 

 in cultivation, and no stove should lack it. For training 

 up pillars and rafters, or to cover a bare wall, this plant 

 is invaluable, either in a stove or the warm Fern house, 

 and it also makes an elegant specimen when trained upon 

 a balloon-shaped trellis. If the old plants are kept through 

 winter, just sufficient water should be g^ven to keep the 

 shoots from shrivelling, but young plants struck in autumn 

 are far preferable, as they grow more freely and produce 

 finer leaves. Native of Java. 



G. Idndenii. — A very fine and distinct plant, producing 

 large cordate leaves, the ground colour of which is bright 

 light green, the spaces between the primary veins being 

 blotched with a metallic white, giving it a striking and 

 distinct appearance. This species, which is of recent intro- 

 duction, bids feir to become a very ornamental stove 

 climber. Native of Columbia. 



Cocos. 



An elegant genus of a noble order, many species of 

 which grow to majestic proportions, and one yields that 

 well-known fruit — the Cocoa Nut of commerce — which ' 

 may be called one of the chief necessaries of life to 

 the inhabitants of the tropics. Goaos are all graceful 

 plants, most of them being shade-loving ; they form 

 very ornamental objects in the stove, and some species 

 may even be employed with advantage in the sub- 

 tropical garden, if a well-drained and sheltered spot 

 be selected for their reception. They should be grown 

 in a compost consisting of two parts rich loam, one 

 part peat, and one part sand ; and during the growing 

 season a liberal supply of water must be administered, 

 gradually diminishing the quantity as winter approaches. ■ 



