HORTICULTURAL JOURNAL. 241 
ON THE CULTIVATION OF THE GENUS IXORA. 
Eew plants present, even in the hot-house, a more magnificent appear- 
ance than does the family, or at least a portion of that now under notice, 
when under first rate treatment. As an exhibition plant, it stands out in 
bold character, and any one who neglects to prepare his Ixoras, loses one 
of his best and most striking objects. The huge proportions of the most 
perfect culture, to which they are grown and shown in England, can only 
be done where abundance of room can at all times be given, and a tempera- 
ture not over 55° given it in the early winter months. 
With us, in our ordinary stoves, it is more inclined to be perpetually in 
flower, which prevents that concentration of strength at a particular season, 
so necessary to insure a dense mass of bloom. Where the main feature con- 
sists in keeping up a uniform showy house, this will hardly be recognized 
as an evil, but if the contrary is the case, and the plant or plants are 
required for exhibition, a season of rest is indispensable during the first 
winter months. 
Not the least interesting feature is, that some of the kinds, especially 
javanica, will flower extremely small if the cuttings are taken at the right 
time, so much so, that a three-inch pot may have a flower three times as 
large as the plant itself. This quality, it will be readily recognized, is of 
great importance for decorative purposes, as a half dozen such plants scat- 
tered about, give a very eflective appearance. All that is necessary, is to 
take off the cuttings from pretty well ripened wood, or just about the time 
they begin to show their flower bud. 
It is hardly necessary to say the Ixoras are a compact, evergreen shrub, 
"with bright, shining, deep-green leaves, and dense heads of flowers. The 
best are I. coccinia, I. javanica and crocata. They are principally natives 
of the East Indies and China. 
PROPAGATION AND CULTURE. 
Cuttings strike readily in sand, in the stove, under a bell-glass or small 
frame, any time during the summer. If wood is plenty, put in a good large 
cutting, as it is sure to root, and will sooner form a nice plant. To secure 
a specimen, after the cuttings are potted ofi" and left a little while to get 
established, cut ofi" the top to two or three eyes. In summer, the best place 
to grow them is a frame or pit, with a foot or two of dung as fermenting 
material, in the early part of the season ; plunge the pots to the rim, about 
one foot from the glass. Give them one or two good shifts, previous to 
midsummer, stop the growth, if free, and keep the atmosphere as moist as 
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