242 
CUPHEA STRIGULOSA. 
may be kept near the surface ; and the soil should not be too rich, lest the plant i 
be induced to grow exuberantly. 
The beauty of the species is essentially dependent on the bushiness of the plant, 
for where there is only one or two long weak shoots, the flowers are too far 
removed from each other to produce any striking effect ; as it is in the aggregate 
and not individually, that their greatest interest is vested. Pruning back the 
growing shoots must then be early, and often practised It is necessary, too, that 
the flowers be exposed to all the light that can be commanded ; otherwise they 
will not acquire a good colour. 
The points of the young shoots an inch or two long, taken off below a joint, 
and subjected to the ordinary treatment of cuttings, rarely fail to strike root in a 
short time. 
The curved form of the capsule supplied the hint for a generic name, which is 
altered from the Greek word cuphos , curved. The specific name is suggested by 
the numerous stiff appressed hairs, which cover most parts of the plant, especially 
the leaves, stem, and calyx. 
Our drawing was obtained at Mr. Knight’s Nursery last July. 
