244 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[January 16 . 
C. latifolium (Broad-leaved C.); Sierra Leone, 1824.— 
Though not so elegant a plant as the preceding, yet this 
species is a very line one. The foliage is much larger, 
and the racemes of flowers much more dense, and of a 
deeper colour, approaching to crimson, hut not nume¬ 
rous like those of G.purpureum. 5s. 
C. elegans (Elegant C.) ; Brazil, 1820.—This is 
described as a very fine plant, but it is very rare, if it be 
at all in cultivation. 
There are also several new Combretums, introduced 
from Africa by Mr. Whitfield, named C. accuminatum , 
G. Pinceanum, G. volubile, and some others. They are 
cultivated at Pine Apple Place, but they have not yet 
flowered. They have all handsome foliage, and we hope 
will soon produce blooms, when we shall report upon 
their merits. We are not aware they have flowered 
elsewhere. Should that have taken place anywhere, we 
should be obliged by any information as to their quali¬ 
ties, mode of flowering, colour, &c. 
Culture. —The best way to cultivate these fine climbers 
is to plant them out in a border in the stove, or, if there 
is a bark pit in it, to build a square pigeon-holed pit in 
a corner of the large one; two feet square, or even 
eighteen inches, will be a suitable size. Train them up 
an upright pillar, and then either up the rafters or on 
chains hung up in festoons lengthwise of the house. 
They may be grown in pots and trained to a trellis, but 
they do not then thrive or flower at all satisfactorily. 
Soil. —The compost should not be too rich. Three 
parts peat, one part loam, and one part leaf-mould, will 
form a compost that will cause them to grow moderately 
and flower abundantly. 
Summer Culture. —The only care they require in the 
warm days of summer is to give them a proper supply 
of water at the roots, taking care, whenever it is given, 
to bestow a sufficient quantity to moisten the soil quite 
to the bottom. When notin flower in the early part of 
the season, a free use of the syringe will be useful, both 
to clear the dust and dirt from the leaves and to prevent 
the attacks of the red spider. Tie in the rambling 
shoots occasionally, but not so tight or close as to give a 
bundled appearance. The training of climbers, either 
in the stove, greenhouse, or the open air, is a work that 
requires considerable taste and skill. They should not 
appear wild and uncultivated, neither should they appear 
dipt and shorn like a well-kept box-edging: the medium 
between the two extremes must be constantly kept in view. 
The habit of each species should also be considered. If 
the flowers are terminal—that is, appearing at the ends 
of the young shoots—they should not be shortened in ; 
but if they spring from the axils of the leaves, all the 
weak shoots may be pruned away, and the strung ones 
will produce the finest flowers, and have more room to 
display them. 
Winter Culture. —As soon as the blooming season is 
over, the climbers ought to be considerably pruned in 
and thinned. This operation serves two purposes—it 
strengthens the plants, enabling them to grow stronger 
the following season, and so produce more and finer 
flowers; and, also, this priming by thinning the branches 
allows a greater quantity of light to reach the plants 
below, and that at a season when light is most needed. 
Whilst the climbers are loose and being pruned, the 
branches and leaves that are left should be thoroughly 
washed with a sponge, and every cranny and joint 
cleansed out, so that all eggs of insects, as well as any 
living ones, may be completely destroyed. When this 
is well done the branches may be pretty closely tied in 
again, and will then require little more attention till the 
spring. 
Propagation by Grafting. —The first species does not 
easily strike from cuttings, but is usually grafted upon 
some other freely-rooting species. For stocks to graft 
on, we have used the G. Pinceanum, and it answers well. 
The best month for grafting is March. The stocks 
should be the same thickness as the scions, and the 
mode of grafting suitable for them is what is known as 
the whip grafting. It may be described thus': the stock 
is cut down near to the soil, a side piece is cut off sloping 
upwards, the scion is cut in a sloping manner down¬ 
wards, the two are fitted together, especially the two 
barks, which should exactly fit each other, then with 
the very sharpest knife make a slit downwards in the 
stock, and one upwards in the scion (this is called 
tongueing); fit the tongue of the scion into the slit of 
the stock, fitting the two barks together, then imme¬ 
diately tie them pretty tightly together, either with bass 
mat moistened, thick cotton, or worsted thread; a small 
ball of clay well wrought may be then neatly fitted 
round the graft; but this is not absolutely necessary, 
because the grafts will take without it in the situation 
where they should be placed, namely, under a hand 
glass upon a heated bed either of sand or ashes. 
By Cuttings .—The rest of the above species strike 
easily by cuttings, managed in the usual way, in sand 
under a bell-glass in heat. 
Insects .—These plants have the usual number of 
plagues in tbe shape of insects. Perhaps the most 
troublesome is the White mealy bug, at least it is tire 
most difficult to get rid off We were assured by a 
gentleman a few weeks ago, that he had got rid of it by 
washing the plants thoroughly all over, wood, buds, and 
leaves, with a sponge dipt in spirits of wine. If any of 
our readers are troubled with this disagreeable pest, this 
remedy is worth atrial. The gentleman said it had not 
injured his plants in the least The white scale some¬ 
times prevails also where the plants have been neglected. 
We have found a strong lather of soap laid all over the 
plant with a shoft shaving-brush, a safe application, and 
effectual destruction to them. The brown scale may be 
destroyed with tobacco water. For the red spider, 
washing the leaves and buds with a sponge dipt in tepid 
water is the most certain, though rather tedious appli¬ 
cation ; a great preventive is the frequent and copious 
application of water through the garden-engine and 
syringe, and keeping up in warm weather a moist 
atmosphere in the house. The tlirip and greenfly may 
be got rid oft’ by frequent smokings with tobacco. 
Ipoalea.—T his is a splendid genus of climbers with 
large crimson, rose, blue, and white flowers. The roots 
of some of the species are eatable. The sweet potato of 
America is the Ipomaa batatas. The genus is a very 
extensive one, comprising more than a hundred species. 
Of course amongst such a large number there are a few 
that may be considered the princes of the family. To 
these we shall direct our readers at this time. 
Ipoji.ea candicans (Whitish I.); N. America.—This 
is a very fine species, and though a native of N. 
America requires a moderate stove to bloom it to per¬ 
fection. The flower is large, of a milky white colour, 
with a deep crimson blotch at the bottom of the cup. It 
is a very desirable species. 3s. Gd. 
I. Horsfallee (Mr. Horsfall’s I.); S. America.—The 
finest of the genus. The flowers appear in terminal 
bunches in considerable numbers, opening in succession. 
The flower-buds are beautiful, being of a shining dark 
colour, almost black. The flowers are of a brilliant 
crimson, and the season of blooming is of considerable 
duration, extending from February to October. The 
foliage, too, is exceedingly handsome. We have seen 
the original plant in Mr. Horsfall’s stove at Everton, 
near Liveiqtool. It was much esteemed there, and the 
roof of one house was entirely devoted to it, which it 
completely covered, and a more splendid object of flori¬ 
culture we never bebeld. It is a fact, that of all its 
progeny there is not one that has, as yet, come up to the 
original one for size and beauty. 5s. 
I. insignis (Noble I.); N. America.—This is a truly 
