JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
January 5, 1882. ] 
7 
the roots as a nut, of which it is suggestive in form and brownish 
colour. It was known to the old writers Gerarde and Parkinson, 
and has therefore been in cultivation in this country nearly three 
hundred years. The flowers are very handsome though fugitive, 
the larger perianth segments being bright deep blue marked with 
white and yellow in the centre, the other divisions of the perianth 
also being blue but of a lighter tint. The woodcut (fig. 1) pour- 
trays the chief floral characters, w r ell showing the general form. 
The flowers are usually produced in spring, about May. 
M. Tenoreana .—This also is a European species, but was not 
introduced to England until 1824. It is scarcely less beautiful 
than M. Sisyrinchium, though the flowers are smaller, but the 
colour is very rich. The divisions of the perianth are narrow, 
the upper half being deep blue, and the lower towards the centre 
yellow and white with a few dark spots. It flowers fully a month 
later than the preceding, and forms a welcome succession. 
M. edvlis .—One of Loddige’s introductions from the Cape of 
Good Hope to England, but it is said to have been known in 
Holland for many years. It was originally found by Thunberg 
abundantly in the neighbourhood of Cape Town, chiefly in low 
positions and in sandy soil. The flowers vary in colour, but are 
mostly of pinkish hue marked with blue and white, the divisions 
of the perianth being neatly rounded. One very pleasing cha¬ 
racter the flowers possess—namely, a most agreeable though 
delicate fragrance. Fig. 2 faithfully represents a flower and 
leaves. 
Three other species that deserve growing are M. ramosa, with 
comparatively large flowers, bright yellow with a dark blotch at 
the base of the petals; M. ciliata, with small bright red flowers, 
rounded petals, and a yellow centre blotch ; and M. papilionacea, 
with bright orange-coloured fragrant flowers, which are produced 
a little later than M. Sisyrinchium. These with the preceding 
form a good half dozen, and fairly represent the genus. 
With regard to the extent and geographical distribution of the 
genus Morma as it is now constituted, it may be remarked that 
about thirty-five species are known, twenty-five of which are 
found at the Cape of Good Hope, thus forming the head quarters ; 
nine are natives of tropical Africa, and one—viz., M. Sisyrinchium 
—ranges through South Europe, North Africa, and temperate Asia. 
Mr. J. B. Baker considers M. Tenoreana as a variety of the last- 
named species, and refers to it under the name M. fugax. A 
small proportion of the species are in general cultivation, and in 
few collections are more than half the total number represented. 
At Kew they have over a dozen forms.—L. Castle. 
(To be continued.) 
IS POTATO CULTURE PROFITABLE ? 
Under this heading a short paragraph appears in your last 
issue. “ An Amateur ” asks, Why sell Potatoes at 4rZ. per stone 1 
and concludes that the dealer who gives that price will not sell 
at less than double. Were he situated in this locality (South 
Yorkshire) he could at the present time buy good Potatoes at 
even less money, and would have to be satisfied with a much less 
profit than above quoted. During the past week one well-known 
agriculturist has sold the produce of ten acres of Champion and 
Regents (at a rough estimate they will average nearly 5 tons per 
acre) at 6.?. per load of 18 stones, or £2 14*’. 3d. per ton, the same to 
be delivered freeat therailway station, which in this case is upwards 
of seven miles distant. They were grown on good limestone soil, 
were a first-Class sample and of splendid quality. The dealer 
who bought them said they were the best sample he had bought 
this year, and he gave the highest price, as on the previous day 
he bought a thousand loads at 5s. 3d. per load. Taking the above 
figures into consideration, and the necessary outlay in labour, 
manure, &c., which under the most favourable conditions must be 
considerable, the margin for profit must be very small. Some 
growers take their Potatoes by road to market, a distance of 
fifteen miles, and are their own salesmen, and of course get the 
benefit of doing so, but the extra expense is considerable. Potatoes 
are extensively grown in this district, and this year the crops have 
been good with but very few diseased tubers. Until within the 
past two years the Scotch Regent was the favourite variety, but 
it has now to make room for Champions and Magnum Bonums 
owing to their disease-resisting qualities.—G. Summers. 
RICIIARDIA iETHIOPICA. 
I noticed recently a writer stated that to have the beautiful 
Lily of the Nile (Richardia) in bloom by Christmas it is necessary 
to grow them entirely in pots. I have grown Richardias for ten 
years or more, and have never had the plants remain in pots 
through the summer. Until this year I have not required blooms 
of these until Chrysanthemums were over ; but in the last week of 
October I found they* would be wanted as quickly as possible, and 
on the 18th of November the first three spathes were cut, and we 
have continued cutting weekly ever since, and shall do so until 
after Easter, when the demand will cease. 
The culture of the plants is very simple. After they have been 
started keep them growing healthily without check. As a rule 
they will finish growth by June, when the plants may be divided 
and planted out in the kitchen garden, and left there until re¬ 
quired in autumn. When planted out they take some w r eeks’ rest, 
and then the plants commence making fresh growth, and many 
of them will have spathes^ either showing or well forward at the 
Pig. 2.—Morrea edulis. 
time they are lifted. When lifted they must not be checked. If 
kept in a cool shed for a while and watered they will form fresh 
roots, and are then ready for bringing into flower at any time. A 
pan kept filled with liquid manure under each plant is a great 
help to them.—A. N. E. 
Successful Tree Transplanting. —During the building opera¬ 
tions at Earnock House, Hamilton, it was found necessary to cut 
down or endeavour to transplant a large specimen of Turkey Oak— 
a very handsome tree—measuring some GO feet in height, the bole 
8 feet from the ground being G feet in circumference. Owing to the 
beauty of the tree it was considered worth the trouble to attempt 
the transplanting. A site was selected some 30 feet from its former 
position, and carefully prepared for its reception. A large trench 
7 feet from the bole of the tree was cut all round, care being taken 
to trace out and preserve the whole of the roots. This was no easy 
matter, more particularly as Oaks, as is well known, are often devoid 
of fibrous roots. However, a ball weighing 5 or 6 tons was kept 
together, and with the assistance of two jib cranes to raise it from 
its bed and a crab winch to draw it to its new home, it was safely 
