-LeTUNIA comes from the Bra¬ 
zilian word petun , which means tobacco. 
It is a small tropical American herb, 
growing as a garden flower, with a fun¬ 
nel shaped corolla. Of the dozen or more 
species of the petunia, nearly all of them 
originate in the southern part of South 
America; a few other species are native 
of Mexico; and one kind is acclimated or 
naturalized in the southern part of the 
United States. . . . The common garden 
petunia is not very large. It is a tender 
sprawling plant, bearing rather large 
showy flowers ranging in colors from 
white to a deep red-purple. Because it 
blooms so profusely and requires so little 
care, the petunia is very useful for mass¬ 
ing against shrubbery to form an attrac¬ 
tive flowery undergrowth. . . . There are 
many improved varieties found in the 
present day gardens, all of which are 
modifications of the white and rose-vio¬ 
let types. Some of the flowers are small 
and others are broad and open; some va¬ 
rieties have deeply fringed flowers and 
others have interesting markings; some 
varieties have rich,.deep, velvety colored 
double flowers that are fringed, fluted, 
or modified in other ways. . . . The 
petunia grows from a seed, but many 
of the finest ones are grown from cut¬ 
tings. When the petunia starts to grow, 
it is erect; then it begins to straggle and 
sprawl. The small varieties are most suit¬ 
able for bedding and massing, while the 
large showy blooms are best for win¬ 
dow boxes and hanging baskets. 
