644 



THE BOOK OF GARDENING. 



the flowering season, when growth is completed, gradually with- 

 hold water, and give the bulbs a period of rest. 



Where bottom-heat is not available, it is advisable to 

 prevent the bulbs from rotting, to repot soon after flowering. 

 Remove only a portion of the old soil, and stand the pots 

 on shelves or stages, and when the flower-stems show, water 

 with weak liquid manure. Propagate by offsets from the old 

 bulbs or by seeds sown in March in gentle heat. The seedlings, 

 with careful treatment, flower in three years from time of sowing. 

 The following selection are excellent for shape and substance, 

 and contains a nice variety of colours : Beethoven, light orange, 

 with white veins ; Conqueror, bright crimson-scarlet, very large ; 

 Eclipse, white, striped with crimson-scarlet ; Eldorado, orange- 

 scarlet, with darker veins ; Empress of India, scarlet, with white 

 rays ; Figaro, crimson, with small grey eye ; Meteor, white, 

 striped with reddish-crimson ; Southey, scarlet, with while and 

 green rays ; The A^igil, white, with red markings. 



Amasonia. — Dwarf shrubs frcm Tropical x^merica, well deserving 

 of cultivation. A. calycina {piniicea) is a most striking and beautiful 

 species, well adapted for pot culture, and of comparatively recent 

 introduction. Its racemes of creamy-white flowers are highly 



enhanced by rich vermilion 

 crimson bracts arranged in 

 pairs. A compost of peat 

 and loam with a little silver- 

 sand suits it best, and it 

 may be propagated from 

 cuttings in heat under a 

 bell-glass or in a propa- 

 gating-case. 



Anthurium. — A genus 

 of Aroids, many of the 

 species and varieties being 

 of great beauty, and, owing 

 to their novel character, 

 peculiarly fascinating. They 

 thrive best in very fibrous 

 peat, from which a portion 

 of the dusty matter has 

 been removed, and with 

 a little fresh sphagnum 

 and a few clean crocks 

 and lumps of charcoal interspersed. In potting keep the crown 

 of the plant raised on a mound above the level of the pot, 

 and ensure thorough drainage. A. Andreanum (Fig. 414) is a 

 beautiful species of neat habit, with oval heart-shaped spathes, 

 5 in. long, of a glowing orange-scarlet, the surface being irregularly 



Fig, 414. — Anthurium Andreanum. 



