JUNE. 



81 



MUTISIA DECURRENS. 



WITH IEEUSTKAT10N. 



We are indebted to Messrs. Veitch &, Son, of Exeter and. Chelsea, for the 

 opportunity of figuring this very remarkable plant which had been sent to them 

 from the Andes of Chili by their collector Mr. Pcarcc, and which bloomed in 

 splendid style last summer in their Exeter Nursery — so finely, indeed, that 

 when exhibited at South Kensington it gained a first- class certificate. 



The Mutisias form a very curious set of sub-shrubby plants inhabiting 

 South America, and belonging to the Composite family. They are mostly 

 climbers with ten drilled leaves, which are sometimes simple and sometimes 

 pinnated, and many of them have large showy " flowers." Among these latter 

 may be ranked the subject of our plate, which has the capitules or flower-heads 

 as large, if not larger, and quite as specious as those of the finest Gazanias, 

 with which they may very well be compared. 



Mutisia clecurrens is one of the climber species, and is of moderate size, 

 reaching 6 or 8 feet in height, having slightly-branched stems, and bearing its 

 large flower-heads at the ends of the branches. Its leaves are oblong-lanceo- 

 late, entire, produced at the apex into a forked tendril, and at the base into a 

 leafy wing, which is continued some distance down the stem. The flower- 

 heads are large and solitary, with a subcylindrical involucre of imbricated 

 scales, and a spreading ray of broad strap-shaped florets of an intense orange 

 colour, surrounding a central tuft of disk florets, which have long prominent 

 styles and anthers. The ray spreads out to a diameter of between 4 and 5 

 inches, and is quite uniform in colour. 



As a hardy climbing evergreen this plant is a welcome addition to our 

 gardens, irrespective of the interest attaching to its curious structure. Its 

 hardiness seems to be well established, inasmuch as it had withstood without 

 the least injury the severe winter of 1860-61 at Exeter, where it had been 

 subjected to 26° of frost ; and at Messrs. Veitch & Son's, Combe Wood Nursery, 

 Surrey, it has since stood unharmed through the last winter. It is stated to 

 be a plant of easy cultivation. The specimen from which the flowers were 

 obtained having been merely planted out in good soil against a north-west 

 wall, where it had made vigorous growth, and had perfected many of its brilliant 

 flowers. 



HOW TO GET A SPEEDY RETURN FROM YOUNG VINES. 

 As a sort of sequel to Mr. Melville's method, as detailed in your March issue, 

 of renewing Vine-borders without losing a crop of Grapes, permit me to offer 

 a few remarks on the most speedy way of obtaining a crop in cases where the 

 retaining of old Vines is not considered advisable. But, before proceeding, 

 I would, however, avow that I am not an advocate for getting rid of old Vines 

 simply on account of their age, and when all that is required to restore them 

 to fruitfulness and vigour is a more congenial root medium. Under such 

 circumstances, it is most undesirable to discard them to make way for young 

 Vines. _ Much better is it to lift their roots and replace a cold retentive or 

 otherwise disordered or exhausted border with one more suitable to the con- 

 stitution of the Vine. 



At the same time, instances are not tinfreqnently met with where Vines — 

 both aged and young— have been so far mismanaged in many ways, that the 

 surest and shortest way to accomplish the end in view is to root them up, 

 make new borders, and plant young Vines. 



TOE. I. a 



