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PIMELIA SPECTABILIS. 
THE CULTURE OF PIMELIA SPECTABILIS. 
' The beauty and useful character of this genus for ornamental 
purposes requires no encomium, being fully established by its 
frequent occurrence in collections of every degree. The species 
which is the subject of this paper is, however, one which has 
caused not a little dismay by its apparently precarious existence, 
several fine specimens having, to the writer’s knowledge, died 
suddenly in a most inexplicable manner, after having grown 
luxuriantly for three or four years, and exhibiting indisputable 
health up to a very short period of its entire dissolution ; in some 
cases no observable difference was to be seen in the plants till 
within a day or two of their death, and the occasion of it all was 
a seeming mystery. But experience has taught us something of 
the cause, or, at least, a means of obviating it is now pretty well 
known, and, so far as we have gone, appears to be worthy of re¬ 
liance. When the plant was first made known, those who grew 
it for sale found it was not possible to strike it in the ordinary 
way, from cuttings, fast enough to supply the demand; and, in 
addition to the seed obtained, recourse was had to grafting it. 
The plants produced by the latter mode were rejected by most 
purchasers, who in preference selected the seedlings, believing 
the plant to be safer on its roots than on those of another species. 
The result proved them to be wrong in this instance ; for, of all 
that died in the manner described, it was remarked that each 
individual had been originated from seed. This aroused atten¬ 
tion, and an inquiry into the state of the “ worked” or grafted 
plants found them to be, at the same age or older, in a thriving 
luxuriant state, since which no dependance has been placed on 
seedlings, as few have been found to survive the fourth year. 
Why this should be I will not undertake to explain. It may 
arise from the excessive vigour with which a plant of the kind 
will grow in the first years of its existence, loading itself with 
unassimilated matter to the inducement of a plethoric habit, which 
must ultimately terminate in death ; or it may be that the species 
is naturally short lived. The solving of this problem would be 
interesting matter to the pliytologist, in doing which he would 
render good service to the science, if the cause was correctly de- 
