NAT. ORDER. BEGONIACE^. 
25 
base, where they are inonadelphous ; anthers spathulate ; female 
flowers with five subeqnal petals, expanding later than the males ; 
stigmas pale rose colored ; germeii with three subequal wings. In 
the hot-house it flowers in April. 
This plant is more remarkable for the color and texture of its 
leaves, than for its elegant form. It has been attended with some 
pains to ascertain the relative position of the male and female flow- 
ers when only these two were found at the extremity of the ultimate 
branch. It seems to me that the normal form is the conversion of 
the last dichotomous ramification of the cyme into the pedicels of 
two female flowers, and that the male flowers here, as elswhere, is 
placed in the cleft; the loss of the inner female flower being an 
illustration of the opinion, that internal parts, from pressure, more 
frequently abort than those which are external. As the common 
support of these two flowers generally turns half round on its axis, 
their true position may not be obvious unless examined wijen they 
are very young. It is a native Df Jamaica, and flowers from May 
until December, 
Propagation and CaUu7-e. These plants may be raised either 
by seed, layers, or cuttings. The seeds should be sown in pots of 
light earth, in the early part of the spring season, and brouglit for- 
ward by being plunged in a moderate bark hot-bed. When the 
plants have attained sufficient strength, they may be removed into 
separate pots, and placed in the stove. 
In the second method the layers may be laid down in the early 
part of spring, and be taken ofif in the autumn, and planted in sepa- 
rate pots. The cuttings may likewise be planted out in the spring 
months, being transplanted into separate pots after they have become 
well rooted, and then placed again in the stove. The plants succeed 
best when kept in the bark stove, or even over the flue of the dry 
stove, being very ornamental both in their flowers and leaves, which 
sometimes continue nearly all summer. This plant has never been 
considered as possessing properties worthy to bring it into use. 
