408 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
February 25, 1888. 
young roots springing from the main tuber should be 
taken off and potted singly in small pots, keeping them 
close until established. 
After the tubers are potted, place them where they 
will receive a slight bottom-heat, to incite active growth, 
taking care not to give them too much water, as that 
will sodden the soil before root action commences. If 
large specimens are required, pot on when sufficiently 
rooted. The Caladium revels in a high temperature, 
a humid atmosphere, and plenty of light. Shading is 
necessary from strong sunshine ; hut if it he permanent 
and too dense, the leaf-stalks become drawn and the 
leaves weak and flimsy, so that should it become neces¬ 
sary to remove the plants into a lower temperature they 
will droop, and lose that erect and fresh appearance 
that a well-grown Caladium should possess. 
In the autumn, when the plants cease to throw up 
more young leaves, and what foliage they possess 
begins to fade, water should be gradually withheld. 
After the leaves have died down, lay the pots on their 
sides under the stove stage. For the sake of tidiness, 
some growers err in wintering them in a temperature 
too low to safely tide them over their season of rest, 
and find, when potting time again arrives, that the 
tubers have decayed—although the soil may be dust 
dry—from what is known as dry rot. Some cultivators 
advocate syringing Caladiums overhead—a practice that 
may answer if clean rain-water can be applied ; for 
though water on a Caladium leaf is akin to the veritable 
“water on a duck’s back,” if continually persevered in 
it will cause the leaves to lose their lustre. Therefore, 
in order to secure the brightest and cleanest foliage, I 
prefer to maintain a somewhat humid atmosphere, and 
so dispense with overhead applications from the syringe, 
as sponging is an operation that cannot well be 
practised in the case of the Caladium. 
The following are good varieties :—Argyrites, Bel- 
leymei, Brogniartii, Candidum, Cardinale, Chantinii, 
Chelsoni, Meyerbeer, Ornatum, Prince Albert Edward, 
Princess of "Wales, and Verdi .—George Potts, Junr. 
-- 
DOUBLE-FLOWERED ZONAL 
PELARGONIUMS. 
"Without doubt this class of flowering plants is one of 
the most useful for winter blooming, both for the 
amateur and professional gardener, and with a little 
forethought in their management can he had in flower 
all the year round. But it is more especially to the 
present dull season of the year that I will confine my 
few remarks on the mode of culture practised by us 
with a fair share of success. 
Commencing with cuttings, we take them some time 
in February, being careful to select the short-jointed 
well-ripened shoots about 4 ins. long. We then insert 
them in thumb-pots in a compost of friable loam, 
leaf-soil, and a liberal addition of sharp silver-sand, 
and place them in an intermediate temperature, such 
as that of a Peach-house or vinery at work, on a shelf 
close under the glass—treatment which will be found 
very suitable. With a little necessary attention in the 
shape of light, and occasional waterings in bright 
weather, root-action soon ensues. Eventually they are 
removed to a somewhat drier and more airy atmosphere, 
and a shift into a size larger pots is then needed, using 
the same compost as previously stated. They are next 
transferred to cool pits or frames in some exposed 
quarter. After a few days they are found sufficiently 
advanced to need their first stopping by pinching out 
the joint of each plant, to encourage dwarf bushy 
habit. 
About the middle of June they will be in good 
condition for another shift, using 5-in. or 6-in. pots. 
If wanted for late autumn or early winter flowering 
this potting and once stopping will be found quite 
sufficient, adding to the' eompostj one-sixth of old 
Mushroom-bed or some other well-decomposed manure 
and potting firmly. Should the plants, or part of 
them, be wanted for early spring flowering they should 
be stopped again at the fourth joint from the preceding 
stopping, and shifted into 8-in. pots by the end of 
August or early in September, in which they will 
make splendid plants. 
No further stopping will be necessary, but all 
flower-spikes showing before the desired date should be 
at once removed, diverting all the strength to the 
growths. During the summer all the plants can be 
placed fully in the open without frame protection on a 
thoroughly hard bottom, free from the ingress of 
worms. When the pots are well filled with roots, 
occasional waterings with liquid manure will be found 
beneficial, hut should heavy rains set in, they must be 
protected from such, as overhead waterings mean soft, 
gross growth, which must from beginning to end be 
strictly avoided, short-jointed, well-ripened wood being 
the great essentials in forming a strong constitution to 
endure the strain of being forced into flowering during 
the dull winter months. 
Immediately after the first frosts have made sad 
havoc with all outside bloom is the time when we find 
a good batch of the above come in most useful. To 
that end we place them on some good light shelves 
or in pits, where the temperature can be kept at about 
60°, with a rather dry atmosphere towards the end of 
September, when most liberally will they respond for 
all past favours by supplying the cultivator with an 
abundance of flower for the embellishment of the 
conservatory or for cut bloom, their lasting qualities 
being well adapted for that purpose. 
With the stock of plants for spring work, their 
winter requirements will not entail much labour, 
keeping them on the dry side in cool houses, to be 
brought forward into warmth as required. Should the 
stock of plants be somewhat limited, we have found it 
answer well to take the batch that flowered in the 
autumn, and rest them through January by keeping 
them cool and rather dry at the roots till February. 
Then by bringing them into warmer quarters, giving 
a good soaking with tepid water, assisted by lengthening 
days and more sun heat, and stimulated with liberal 
top-dressings of some reliable artificial manure, 
another useful lot of flowers will be obtained, showing 
how profitably, and yet with what comparative ease 
they can be accommodated. The following six 
varieties we find most useful in colour and floriferous 
in character, namely, Guillon Mangelli, Madame 
Thibaut, Wonderful, C. F. Raspail, Heroine, and La 
Cygne. — J. F., Dorset. 
-- 
WILD AND DOMESTICATED 
PLANTS. 
The subject is a wide one, and, in fact, includes the 
whole vegetable kingdom ; but in the limited space at 
command it would be out of the question to deal with 
a tithe even of the plants of the utmost importance 
and of direct benefit to the human family. It will be 
germane to my purpose to deal with a few of the general 
features and phenomena of plant life in a state of 
nature, in order to compare them with those which 
man has taken under his care, and for his own especial 
benefit. This may seem a one-sided view of the subject 
to take, not to say selfish ; but the same idea underlies 
the whole system of horticulture, agriculture, and 
arboriculture. 
In a wild state, plants are left to their own resources 
in the struggle for existence, which means a continuous 
war against the elements and with one another for a 
share of the earth’s surface. Their multifarious habits, 
constitutions, and co-adaptations prevents conflict 
between specially-modified groups, and that affords 
room for an immense amount of variety ; but there is 
a tendency on the part of all organic nature to increase 
at a greater rate than provision is made or accommo¬ 
dation can be found for the progeny ; consequently, 
there is a continuous struggle for the mastery, not only 
between members of the same species, but between 
widely distinct subjects having the same likings. In 
order to illustrate the terrible competition to which 
plants in a wild state are subjected, let us suppose a 
plant of Verbascum Thapsus (which is biennial) growing 
in rich soil and under favourable conditions, computing 
the number of capsules at 200, each containing 150 
seeds. The seeds in the first year of produce would 
number 30,000, and at the end of the sixth year the 
seeds of the third generation, or great-grandchildren, 
would number 810,000,000,000,000,000, or eight 
hundred and ten thousand million millions. At the 
end of this time the whole might be represented by 
half a dozen plants, all the rest being sacrificed. 
The prevalence of certain plants in particular 
localities may be due to original possession of the soil, 
or more often to the suitability of the surroundings, 
the soil, the highly efficient nature of the root-system, 
as in the case of grasses, or the size and leafage of 
certain subjects, such as that of trees, which often 
monopolise vast tracts of the earth’s surface, sometimes 
to the exclusion of other kinds of vegetation. The 
unsocial nature, so to speak, of some kinds of trees, 
such as that of the Beech, is often very conspicuous, 
where the paucity or absence of the soil is popularly 
attributed to the evil influence of drip, whereas the 
barren nature of the soil in such position is due rather 
to the absence of moisture, and more especially to 
the deficiency of light. The ability of saprophytes, 
such as the Bird’s Nest Orchis, to grow and flourish 
under such conditions is indicative of the latter state¬ 
ment. 
As an example of plant life in a state of nature, let us 
imagine an old field or piece of meadow-land, protected 
from cattle and animals generally that live on herbage, 
and that has been completely overrun by a large and 
miscellaneous assemblage of flowers of low growth for a 
great many years, entirely left to its own resources— 
that is, unassisted artificially by manures of any 
kind. 
The herbage is of a pale green colour, and from spring 
onwards is gay with flowers of all hues, which are at 
once the delight of the botanist and plant lovers in 
general. They, the individual members of the as¬ 
semblage, appear perfectly happy, and if there is no 
external evidence of conflict, it is because they are all 
living on equable terms—a mutual confraternity, as it 
were, in which no one kind is specially favoured. 
Even here there must be an immense sacrifice of the 
progeny in a soil that is already completely occupied. 
But apply some fertilising manure, whereby some 
species, or group of species, is benefited more than 
another, and the real battle of life commences forth¬ 
with. 
Should the manure applied be a nitrogenous 
one, the shallow-rooted grasses, or a large proportion 
of them, with their highly-efficient, densely-fibrous and 
matted root-system, immediately become the aggressors, 
to the extermination of a large proportion of the 
miscellaneous herbage. The foliage assumes a bright 
green colour, while the growth is rank and coarse, and 
there is a paucity of flowers. Agricultural science 
and skill have effected a radical change, which is the 
more complete the longer the application of the manure 
is continued.— F. 
(To be cordinued .) 
-- 
GROTON EVANSIANUM. 
The Croton leaves I send you are from a plant of the 
bove name, introduced some eight or nine years ago 
from some of the Polynesian Islands. It is not, there¬ 
fore, one of the numerous sorts that have originated in 
gardens, but proves both distinct and an extremely 
useful subject for table decoration. As the plant gets 
strong the leaves are more or less inclined to get three- 
lobed. 
The young leaves are of a deep green, beautifully 
variegated with golden yellow midribs and the principal 
veins ; hut if well exposed to light they assume a deep 
bronzy colour, with the original variegated parts 
changing to orange and scarlet. The markings, 
however, are very variable, and I would strongly 
recommend it for table work, not only on account of 
the beautiful colours of the foliage, but because when 
plants become leggy, the whole, top leaves included, 
may be taken off and rooted afresh as a cutting, when 
after being re-potted into a 48-sized pot, and hardened 
off, it is fit for use again in a comparatively short 
space of time.— Foreman. 
-- 
SELF-COLOURED CAMELLIAS. 
At the present time, where Camellias are at all sought 
after, it is generally that either good distinct colours 
are in demand, or else the very cream of the best 
imbricated flowers are the only ones wanted. I have 
described to your readers a number of single, semi¬ 
doubles and sportive kinds, and I think I cannot do 
better than follow up with some of the best varieties 
that are considered to be valuable either for cut flower 
purposes, or are in demand by the trade for sale as 
young plants to customers. 
The long lists of sorts that are published by some of 
the Belgian growers are at first glance sufficient to take 
one’s breath away. There is variety enough in all 
conscience, but out of all these numbers how many of 
them come to the front as first-class varieties ? In one 
list about 350 sorts are named, and if we took away the 
300 and left the 50, we might then consider we had 
the cream of the collection if it had been well selected. 
The English trade firms that give lists of Camellias 
generally confine them to a little over 100, but this is 
more done for variety than anything else. In all cases 
the greatest stock is kept up of just the leading sorts 
that are most in demand, the other kinds being confined 
to a few. 
If we take a list of kinds in alphabetical order the 
first one on the list of most importance is Alba plena, 
