AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
QC>9 
1864. j 
The Coral Tree. 
(Erythrina Crista-galU) 
This showy Brazilian plant is a fine orna- 
i»n8nt to the green-house; it is sometimes seen 
in gardens, but not nearly so often as it ought 
to be; it is managed with the same ease as a 
dahlia. It makes a thick, woody, short trunk, or 
bulb, which throws up numerous stems four to 
six feet high, each one terminated by a long 
spike of blood-red flowers. The engraving 
shows a short spike reduced in size. The leaves 
are on long petioles, three-parted, and like the 
stem have strong hooked prickles. The plant 
belongs to the Tea-family, and the flowers ap¬ 
pear somewhat like those of a pea with the parts 
very much distorted. The flower is very thick 
and leathery, and is nearly as showy before 
it opens as it is afterward. The name Coral 
tree was probabiy given on account of the col¬ 
or of the flowers. Planted out in the lawn, or 
set in the grounds in a large pot or tub, it is a 
most conspicuous object, and it is equally valu¬ 
able for the decoration ol conservatories. 
Plants may be obtained at the florists in the 
spring, and they may be grown in good sized 
pots, or set in the open ground as soon as the 
soil gets warmed. Each plant will throw up 
several stems, the number and size increasing 
with the age of the root. When the leaves are 
killed by the frost, cut off the stems within two 
or three inches of their base, take up the root 
and keep it in the cellar or green-house in a box 
of sand or dry Garth until the next spring. If 
the plants are in pots, the roots need not be 
taken up, but they should be kept quite dry un- 
»il it is time to start them again. This is the 
routine for out-of- 
door culture. When 
grown in the green¬ 
house, they may be 
started at any time, 
taking care to give 
them two or three 
months rest after 
flowering. New plants 
are obtained by tak¬ 
ing off the young 
shoots which start 
from the root in 
spring, and rooting 
them in sand, or cut¬ 
tings of the old flow¬ 
ering stems will soon 
strike root, if they 
have bottom heat. 
The Cultivation of 
Ferns. 
In the July Agricul¬ 
turist of last year, an 
illustration was given 
of some of our native 
ferns. Their beauti¬ 
ful form and graceful 
habit always attract 
attention when they 
are found growing in 
the wild state, and it 
takes but little labor 
to prepare a suitable 
place for them, and 
plant them, when 
they will be a con¬ 
stant source of enjoy¬ 
ment. They general¬ 
ly need shade, and 
the north side of the house is an appropriate 
place for a fernery. A few large stones built 
into a rock-work, with the spaces filled in with 
earth from the woods, will afford a congenial 
home for most of our native species. Those 
coming from a limestone region will do all the 
better if a little mortar-rubbish is added. The 
■woodlands, swamps, and rocky hills 
will all afford material to stock the fern¬ 
ery. Give each species a situation as 
near as possible like that from which it 
was taken. Those from the low lands 
may be put in the earth at the base of the 
rock-worlc and be watered as needed, and 
those from arid hills may be placed at the 
top of the rock-work where they will be 
kept comparatively dry. When once 
planted and established, they will re¬ 
quire but very little attention afterward. 
The Japanese Variegated Honeysuckle. 
(Lonicera brachypoda, var. aureo-reticulata.) 
The prevailing taste just now is for plants 
wdth variegated leaves, or “ foliage plants,” as 
they are sometimes called in the gardens. The 
number of these has of late greatly increased, 
and among those recently introduced are many 
which are noticeable for their oddity rather than 
their beauty, and such will never become pop¬ 
ular. We can see no beauty in a Horse-chest¬ 
nut or an Ash which has its leaves marked with 
irregular white spots, which give the tree the 
appearance of being in an unhealthy condition. 
On the other hand there are some of these va¬ 
riegated things which are quite ornamental, 
such as the Wcigela, Vinca, Snowbcrry, etc., 
and which make a pleasing contrast wilh plants 
with green foliage. One, the prettiest of all the 
recent introductions, is the variegated Iloney 
suckle. This was sent to Europe from Japan 
in 1801, soon found its way to this country, and 
has been multiplied to such an extent that 
small plants were this year sold at 50c. each, 
and probably next year will find them in all 
well established nurseries. The engraving rep¬ 
resents a small branch, and gives the size ana 
shape of the leaves and the manner in which 
they arc marked, but it can not convey any idea 
of their beauty. The leaves are of a bright 
green, beautifully veined with golden j'ellow, in 
a manner that makes the term aureo-rdiculata 
(golden-veined), appropriate as applied to the 
plant. Its showiness is increased by the young 
stems, which are often of a bright red color. 
This honeysuckle climbs readily and is perfect¬ 
ly hardy near New York, and will doubtless 
soon become very popular. We have seen only 
young plants which were six feet high, and 
can not say to what higlit it will reach. The 
species of which this is a variety has pretty 
JAPANESE VARIEGATED HONEYSUCKLE. 
flowers and probably this will flower when the 
plants are old enough. Propagated by cuttings. 
It is a very singular fact that both native and 
foreign plants, in Japan, are subject to this va¬ 
riegation in the foliage. The matter has not yet 
been sufficiently investigated to enable us to say 
whether it is due to any peculiarity of soil or of 
treatment. It may be simply the fact that the 
peculiar taste of the people leads them to foster 
all plants with curiously discolored foliage. 
