STEPHA NOTIS — £77 GMA PHYLL ON — STRELITZIA . 



33 



considerable progress. Hard-pruned plants usually produce the finest flowers, and are 

 not infrequently cleaner than are those lightly pruned. The other plan is to merely 

 thin out the growths where crowded, removing the weaker. Late autumn-formed 

 flower buds often remain stationary till the spring, and these, if the growths are 

 not shortened, develop early in the season, or by Easter, when they are the most 

 valuable. Long lengths of well-matured stems will, if reserved, push shoots from 

 many of the joints, and these frequently commence flowering at once, presenting a 

 beautiful appearance when trailing in large numbers from the roof. What may be 

 termed a combination of the two systems is likely to prove the most profitable in 

 the end. 



Stephanotises should be shaded during the hottest part of the day from April to 

 August inclusive, and ought to be syringed every morning, and again when the house 

 is closed during those months. The water must be applied forcibly if the growths are 

 infested with mealy bug. The plants ought never to flag through want of water, but 

 should have abundance, with clear soot water or other weak liquid manure, when the 

 soil is crowded with roots. Apply only enough water during the winter to keep the 

 wood plump and the leaves fresh, further resting the plants in a temperature of 55 c to 

 65°. The best time to clean plants is when they are resting, or directly after pruning, 

 by washing them thoroughly, yet carefully, with the petroleum solution advised on 

 page 263, Vol. II. 



stigmaphyllon. — S. ciliatum, popularly termed the Golden Vine, is a native of 

 Brazil, and one of the most beautiful climbers we have. Unfortunately it requires more 

 space to ramble in than can be afforded in the average plant stove, and rather more heat 

 than is usually maintained in conservatories. The growth is somewhat slender, the 

 leaves small and elegant, and the charming yellow flowers produced abundantly on 

 branchlets in the summer and autumn. It is propagated by cuttings of firm shoots, 

 inserted singly in small pots of sandy soil, covering with glass in a temperature of 65° 

 to 75° in spring or summer. Plant or pot in a mixture of equal parts of loam, peat, leaf 

 soil and sand, pressing down firmly. Train the plants up pillars and rafters, or over 

 archways and trellises, and keep the roots moist. January is the month to prune 

 away all weak growths, and shorten the strong ones moderately, giving those plants 

 which require it more root-room a month later. 



strelitzia. — A small genus of cool stove or warm greenhouse perennials, from South 

 Africa. They produce handsome leaves and showy flowers in a spathe. S. augusta is 



VOL. III. p 



