284 



FLORA AND SYLVA. 



November. Most of the twining kinds 

 are best left to ramble over shrubs, or to 

 find their way upon an evergreen hedge 

 or light trellis of woodwork, doing bet- | 

 ter thus than against walls with risk of ! 

 drought and dry heat. T. pentaphyllum 

 grows very well in a warm spot, stand- 

 ing heat better than most, and such 

 kinds as tuberosum — which blooms late 

 in the year — are best against a wall, 

 often failing to flower if much exposed. 

 When no suitable support is at hand, a 

 spread of fine twine netting is a good 

 help for the slender rambling shoots, 

 giving strength without rigidity, and 

 allowing free passage of air to all parts 

 in a way not found upon a wall surface. 

 Similarly, the greenhouse kinds are best 

 trained over light twine, which allows of 

 the syringing so necessary to keep down 

 red-spider (their worst enemy) without 

 risk of strain or root disturbance, which 

 is much against them when in full 

 growth. The ease with which many 

 kinds may be lifted and stored away 

 during winter is also a great gain. 



The White Tropjeolum {T.albiflorum). — 

 A scarce plant in its own country, and perhaps 

 only a colour variety of T. polyphyllum, and 

 known from it by the whiteness of its flowers, 

 passing into deep yellow in the claw and tinged 

 with pink on the outside. It was at one time 

 grown in the Brussels Botanic Gardens, but 

 possibly never reached this country. 



The Blue Trop^olum (T. azureum). — In 

 spite of the beauty of this plant when well 

 flowered it is rarely seen in vigour and fine 

 condition. Here and there a grower succeeds 

 in flowering it fairly well, and in the South of 

 France it may be coaxed along in the open 

 with some trouble, but it never seems to grow S 

 with the freedom of other kinds, and in a feeble 

 state its flowers are of a pale and disappoint- 

 ing blue, though their colour is naturally rich. 

 Coming from the central provinces of Chili I 



it is less hardy than most other species, and 

 is always a slender, delicate plant. It grows 

 4 or 5 feet high in its native country, with 

 small long-stalked leaves divided deeply into 

 four or five variously shaped but narrow lobes. 

 The solitary blue flowers are about an inch 

 wide, borne upon thread-like stalks a little 

 longer than the leaves, and composed of five 

 equal spreading petals. The plant should be 

 potted in September in very light open soil 

 with abundant drainage, and allowed to start 

 at its own time in a cool house or frame, water 

 being increased very gradually with growth. 

 The roots must never be disturbed while active, 

 and the plant goes to rest again in May after 

 flowering. At no time will it bear much heat, 

 but needs water while infull growth, and a little 

 weak manure. The roots should be kept quite 

 dry from June till the growing season. 



Beuth's Trop^eolum (T. Beuthit). — A 

 tuberous-rooted trailer from Bolivia, bearing 

 conspicuous yellow flowers and rounded but 

 deeply-cut pale green leaves. 1850. A green- 

 house plant flowering in June. 



The Short-spurred Trop^olum (T. bra- 

 chyceras). — A slender climber with the habit 

 and foliage of the Tricolor Tropaeolum, and 

 yellow flowers streaked with red and something 

 less than an inch wide. The petals are almost 

 equal in size and regularly rounded except for 

 a notch at the top. The spur is very short, 

 and hidden when the flowers are held erect at 

 maturity. A native of Chili, introduced in 

 1 840. It is one of the commonest plants about 

 Santiago, climbing over shrubs many feet high 

 and called by the natives the Partridge Flower. 

 A tender, tuberous-rooted greenhouse twiner, 

 flowering in June. 



Planchon's Golden Tropjeolum ( T. chrys- 

 anthwn). — -A fine yellow-flowered climbing 

 plant with small, oval,hairy leaves and medium- 

 sized flowers of a uniform golden yellow with 

 a short spur. It is a very pretty plant from the 

 temperate parts of New Granada, flowering 

 freely in the greenhouse during summer, but 

 now scarce in gardens, and perhaps not in 

 cultivation. 



The Notch-petalled Trop^olum ( T. cre- 

 natiflorum). — This has pretty bright yellow 

 flowers about an inch wide, with crimson veins 

 in the two upper petals, and semi- circular 

 leaves with rounded lobes. The habit of the 



