BOOK REVIEWS. 



" Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture." Ed. by L. H. Bailey, 

 la. 8vo. vol. i. A-B, xx -f 602 pp. ; vol. ii. C-E, 603-1200 pp. 

 (Macmillan, New York, 1914.) 25s. each net. 



Fourteen years ago the editor of the present encyclopaedia compiled 

 the " Cyclopedia of American Horticulture." That work was com- 

 prised in four volumes, and represented the state of North American 

 horticulture at the close of the nineteenth century. It found many 

 on this side of the Atlantic to appreciate its excellencies, and this 

 new work will likewise be warmly welcomed. 



The number of plants to be included is considerably greater than 

 in the earlier work, owing to a larger area covered (for the present 

 work is not wholly American in intention), to the continuing growth 

 of horticulture in America, especially perhaps in appreciation of 

 the value of trees and shrubs, and to other causes which have 

 operated on perhaps a smaller scale. So greatly has the number 

 increased, however, that six volumes, each as large as these, will be 

 required to contain them. 



After a number of miscellaneous paragraphs, a synopsis of the plant 

 kingdom, written by K. M. Wiegand, and extending to 78 pages of 

 notes on the families of plants, and a key to the families and genera 

 occupying a further 79 pages, precede the systematic treatment of the 

 various genera &c. For some not very obvious reason, the sequence in 

 the synopsis of families is quite different from that in the key. 

 Lists of meanings of specific names and a glossary of botanic terms 

 also fulfil a very useful purpose. 



The systematic treatment of subjects is arranged alphabetically, 

 the first treated of being Abaca or Manila hemp, the next Ahelia, 

 and so on (a useful feature is the indication of the pronunciation 

 of plant names) . The treatment of A belia will illustrate the general 

 plan of the work. The derivation of the name of the genus is given, 

 the family to which it belongs, and a general note on the use of the 

 species ; then follows a description of the genus, a paragraph on its 

 hardiness, another on cultivation, and another on propagation. 

 A key enables one to " run down " quite readily, by means of re- 

 ference to obvious characters, the various species in cultivation, and 

 a note refers to Rehder's synopsis of the genus in Sargent's " Plantae 

 Wilsonianae," i. pp. 122-129. Full descriptions are then given of 

 the cultivated species, Graebneriana, Engleriana, grandiflora, chinensis, 

 tfiflora, and floribunda. A note on the flowering period, country of 

 origin, references to reliable figures, synonyms, and cultural value 

 follow. Briefer descriptions and notes on less known species bring the 

 account of the genus to a close. Each of the genera in American 

 cultivation is treated in this comprehensive fashion, and the infor- 

 mation is made more readily available by the excellent keys to each 

 of the genera dealt with. Numerous figures and many plates (some 

 of them coloured) greatly increase the value of the work, though 

 unfortunately many of the blocks from which the figures are printed 

 are much worn. 



VOL. XL. 



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