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brio-ht coloured stipules, but with a little trouble most of the species 

 can be o-rown as pot or tub plants, on trellis or baloon for the smaller 

 species, in pots or tubs for the larger ones with a duplicate pot or 

 tub ready as the host becomes too large for the reception of the 

 climbino offspring, a large rosette of leaves with the decorative 

 species. In this way, P. giganteum, P. Mamei and another similar 

 aroid, Monstera dtliciosa, as well as some of the Rhaphidophoras, are 

 regularly grown in the Singapore Gardens. 



Anthuriums are beautiful plants; some have velvet-looking leaves 

 with a fine metallic lustre, others are equally striking for their highly 

 coloured flower bracts, perhaps the best known example of this 

 genus in the Straits is A. crystallinum. The Singapore collection 

 includes one or two fairly good hybrids raised in the Gardens. Nearly 

 all the species are of easy culture and are easy to propagate, a few 

 from seeds, others from joints of the stem. Ordinary soil without 

 any manure and plenty of gritty matter with pieces of charcoal, 

 bricks, and abundant drainage is all that is necessary ; in fact, if kept 

 well watered and sufficiently shaded, our climate will do the rest. 

 A few species, A. Scherzerianum, A. Andreanum, A. Veitchii re- 

 quire more careful treatment. 



DJefienbachias, Aglaonemas and Homalomenas of some kinds 

 are grown in all gardens in the tropics, either as pot plants or 

 in the shrubberies ; all are very easy of culture and grow fast in rich 

 soil. In most of these three genera, the plant eventually produces 

 an erect or more or less erect stem, by which it can be easily pro- 

 pagated, the stem being cut into joints and planted in a pan of sandy 

 soil when the segments will soon send up fresh shoots. Aglaonema 

 costatum and siamense have creeping rhizomes, which can be broken 

 up, and some of the Homalomenas bud off laterally so as to be easily 

 propagated. 



The Dieffenbachias with their noble green leaves often mottled 

 with lighter green or white are natives of South America. The 

 Aglaonemas are Malayan. These plants are very suitable for house 

 decoration as they stand the dryness of the air and dust better than 

 most plants. Aglaonema costatum, a low growing form with deep 

 black green leaves spotted with white, or with a central white bar, 

 was discovered by Mr. Curtis, in the Lankawi Islands, and is a very 

 popular plant, as it grows with great rapidity, soon filling a good 

 sized pan and standing the discomforts of house-life and even of 

 ship-life very well, and always looking handsome. 



Aglaonema commutatum, Haenkei and oblongifolium especially the 

 finely white-striped variety, Curtisii, from Penang Hill, are taller 

 plants, of easy culture, either in pots or on rockeries or in shady- 

 parts of the garden. 



Among cultivated aroids in the Straits, the great desideratum is 

 the so-called Arum lily (Richavdia africana). On the plains, these 

 fine decorative plants are a failure and indeed at 5,000 feet merely 

 exist, although the yellow-spathed R. Elliotiana might do better ; 

 their loss, however, is compensated for in the handsome leaves, 



