272 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[January 30. 
rendering the plant useful as well as ornamental. The 
leaves are three-lobed. The flowers are involucrated, 
and the involucres are three-leaved. 3s. Od. 
P. lauri folia (Laurel-leaved P.); West Indies.—The 
flowers of this species are green and purple, and are 
ratlier pretty, though small. The fruit is eatable, about 
the size of P. ediilis , and of a fine lemon colour. It is 
of a much slower growth than the preceding species, 
being of a more shrubby habit. Worth cultivating on 
account of its fine fruit. 3s. 6d. 
i P. kermisina (Crimson P.); S. America.—A beautiful 
fine-leaved, weak-growiug species, suitable for pot-culture 
and training round a balloon-shaped wire trellis. The 
flowers are of a medium size, and the petals on the 
upper side are of a bright reddish crimson. A very 
desirable species. 2s. Cd. 
P. onychina (Deep blue P.); S. America.—This is also 
a weak-growing, small-leaved species, remarkable for its 
pretty flowers, which are entirely of a pleasing blue 
colour. We saw it beautifully in bloom last summer in 
the Royal Gardens at Kew. 3s. fid. 
P. quadrangular] s (Square-stalked P.); Jamaica.— 
This is the most noble of all the Passion flowers. It is 
called in the West Indies the Grauadilla. The leaves are 
entire, and larger than those of the common laurel. The 
flowers are also very large, when fully expanded mea¬ 
suring five inches across ; their colours are green, blue, 
and red, beautifully varied; the fragrance is very power¬ 
ful, but not unpleasant; and the flowers are succeeded 
by large fruit, which hang down from the roof like as 
many melons. Their pulp is of an agreeable acid sweet 
ness. It does not set its fruit readily in our stoves with¬ 
out help. The method of impregnating the germ of the 
fruit requires considerable dexterity. The whole of the 
calyx, corolla, and crown must be cut off with a sharp 
pair of pointed scissors, and this must be done without 
injuring the flower-stem. When all these are cut away, 
there only remains the essential parts of the flower: the 
stamens, five in number, and the three stigmas. Then 
cut off one or more of the stamens bearing the anthers, 
and do this without shaking the dust or pollen out of the 
anthers; then gently touch each stigma with the anther, 
covering,them with the fertilizing powder. Take the 
opportunity of performing this operation early in the 
morning at the very time when the anthers are observed 
to be bursting. In a very few days the little germ under 
the flower will be seen to swell, which shows that the 
business has been properly performed. The swelling 
will take place sometimes without cutting away the orna¬ 
mental parts of the flower: but it is not so safe or so 
certain, because those parts are very fleshy, and when 
they decay are apt to cause the whole to decay, and the 
fruit to drop off immaturely. 3s. fid. 
This plant is used in the West Indies to form arbours, 
for which its rapid growth and large leaves admirably 
adapt it. We ought to have mentioned that when the 
fruit is ripe it is soft to the touch, and of a pale yellowish 
green colour. 
I 5 , racemosa var. princeps (The Princely racemed P.); 
Brazil.—'As the P. quadrangulans is the most noble, 
this is the most handsome of the genus. The leaves are 
three-lobed, smooth, fleshy, and of a bright green. The 
flowers are of a fine red, approaching to a scarlet, pro¬ 
duced in racemes at the end of the shoots, and are of 
the same beautiful colour in the bud before they open. 
A finer sight in floriculture cannot be conceived than a 
rafter, or festooned chain, from which these splendid 
racemes of scarlet Passion flowers are hanging down 
profusely. We remember, some ten or fifteen years ago, 
witnessing a splendid specimen of this species in a 
circular conservatory at that noble place, Alton Towers, 
the seat of the Earl of Shrewsbury. It covered the roof 
entirely, and the racemes of flowers hung down in the 
greatest abundance. Even on a much smaller scale it 
is very handsome. And again, the length of its bloom¬ 
ing season is not its least recommendation. It flowers 
from March to November. The leaves make a beautiful 
garnish to dishes of fruit; for if, when gathered, they 
are rubbed with a piece of leather pretty bard, they ; 
appear of the finest polish, like green marble; and on 
account of their substance they do not flag so soon as 
the generality of leaves used lor that purpose. Every | 
one that has a stove ought to grow this charming plant. 
It will even live and thrive well in a greenhouse con¬ 
servatory, though in such a house, owing to a want of 
heat in spring and autumn, the blooming season will be 
considerably shortened. 3s. Cd. 
There is no doubt but Passion flowers will hybridise. 
Some little has already been done in this way; but the 
great difficulty is to find room to grow any considerable 
number of hybrids on trial till they flower. In such 
houses as the large ones at Kew and C'hatsworth there is 
space enough for such a purpose; and if the Crystal 
Palace in Hyde Park should be given by our government 
for the purposes of floriculture, there would be room 
enough for such experiments, which there cannot be any 
doubt would be attended with the happiest results. 
Culture : Soil .—Passifloras require a light, rich soil to 
enable them to grow and flower finely. The surface of 
an upland pasture four inches deep, taken off and laid 
up to mellow for twelve months or more, and frequently 
turned to ameliorate, two parts; lieath-mould from a 
moor where the wild heath thrives, one part; decayed 
leaves, half a part; and rotten cow-dung, half apart; 
with a due addition of sand, will form an excellent 
compost. 
Situation .—The finest plant of P. quadrangularis we 
ever saw was one we had under our care in a large pine 
stove belonging then to the Rev. James Armituge Rhodes, 
at Horsforth Hall, near Leeds, in Yorkshire. This 
plant flourished so well, flowered so finely, and bore fruit 
so profusely, that we cannot do better than describe the 
method by which it was managed. A corner of the 
bark-pit in which the pines were grown was built round 
with bricks, the space enclosed being two feet square; 
the bricks were laid with spaces left, or, as is commonly 
called, pigeon-holed; three or four courses from the 
bottom being solid. The wall was brought up to the 
level of the curb-stone round the pit. At the bottom of 
this small pit nine inches of drainage, of brick-ends and 
large broken potsherds, were placed, and upon them a 
layer of green grass turf, with grass side downwards, w r as 
laid. The remaining space, about three feet deep, was 
filled with a compost, unsifted, of the same materials 
as we have just described under the head “ soil.” A good 
watering was given, and it was allowed to remain for a 
mouth unoccupied, that the soil might settle ; a little 
more soil was then added, and the plant, a pretty large j 
stout one, five feet high, was planted. It bore one or 
two fruits the second year, ami continued to produce 
more and more as long as it remained in that situation. 
We frequently found, whenever the bark was renewed, 
that abundance of roots had penetrated through the 
pigeon-holes, running freely amongst the bark, but more 
especially close to the sides of the bark-pit itself. These 
roots, at least the strong ones, were carefully preserved, and 
placed amongst the new bark, and the fresh heat thereby 
engendered always stimulated a fresh, vigorous growth. 
The same plan would, no doubt, answer well for all the 
fruit-bearing Passion flowers, and all those grow r n merely 
for their beautiful flowers. Where there is not the con¬ 
venience of a bark-pit, they may be very successfully 
grown in a border at the back or front of the house. 
The rest of the points of culture of these charming plants 
must be deferred, as our allotted space is filled. 
(To be continued.) 
T. Appleby. 
