MYRTVS — NERINE. 



glass, will produce roots in an ordinary greenhouse temperature. It is also possible to 

 root ' small branches in bottles of water. Treat plants propagated by cuttings similarly 

 to seedlings, unless standards are required, in which case there should be no topping 

 till the required height is reached, but all side-shoots ought to be removed as fast as 

 they form. When a good head or bush is formed, cease topping and allow the shoots to 

 develop and branch freely. Myrtles should be arranged on a bed of ashes in the open 

 during the summer, and a cool greenhouse or conservatory is the best place for them in 

 the winter. In February trim the heads into the desired form, and soon afterwards those 

 in want of larger pots should have them. They suffer if allowed to become dry at the 

 roots at any time, and that is the reason why myrtles succeed better in small tubs than 

 in pots. Any plants or shrubs which cannot well be shifted into larger pots or tubs, may 

 have the old soil and roots freely reduced, this admitting of their being returned to the 

 same-sized receptacles they were in before. In each and every instance the soil used 

 may consist of two parts sandy loam to one of leaf soil, potting firmly as a preventive 

 of rank non-flowering growth. For similar reasons neither liquid manure nor manurial 

 top-dressings should be applied to plants other than those giving signs of requiring extra 

 assistance. Syringe them frequently to keep the foliage clean, and if thrips show on the 

 bushes after they are housed in October, either syringe with a solution of soft soap and 

 tobacco water, or subject them to tobacco or nicotine fumes. 



NERINE. 



This genus of South African bulbous-rooted plants is very nearly allied to the 

 Amaryllis family, and the best of the species are well worthy of inclusion in quite a 

 limited collection of greenhouse plants. N. curvifolia, better known as N. Fothergilli, 

 is remarkably showy, producing large umbels of bright scarlet flowers, on scapes about 10 

 inches long, at various seasons. There is an improved form of this, generally catalogued 

 as N. Fothergilli major (Fig. 99, next page). K flexuosa bears some resemblance to it, 

 but the flowers are a vivid crimson-scarlet. N. sarniensis, or The Guernsey Lily, produces 

 bright orange-scarlet flowers, on a scape 2 feet high, in the autumn. An improved 

 form, known as N. s. corusca major, produces larger flowers, as many as thirty of these 

 forming on a scape. N. undulata is more floriferous than the rest. The flowers are 

 flesh colour, or light pink, and borne on a scape 1 foot high, usually in May. 



Nerines may be raised from seeds, similarly to Amaryllises (p. 287, Vol. I.), and are 



