November 3, 1894. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
153 
assume a dwarfed and stunted appearance that has 
caused it to be considered a distinct species by some 
authorities. Other forms of M. fraxinea often met 
with are M. f. elegans and M. f. salicifolia. The 
last-named variety has pinnules very much narrower 
than those of the other kinds, and they are sharply 
toothed throughout. 
M. Kaulfussii. —This is, without doubt, one of 
the handsomest ferns of the whole genus : one pretty 
plant of it is one of the most distinguished members 
in the Tropical Fernery at Kew—although it has not 
yet reached a large size—the length of the fronds, 
stipe included, being certainly not more than three 
feet; but even in this comparatively small state it 
Nepenthes Burkei excellens. 
presents a very graceful appearance. It hails from 
the East Indies, and was at one time known as 
Eupodium Kaulfussii. 
M. alata is a much smaller growing subject 
than the rest of its congeners ; it is of a very orna¬ 
mental character, and although it will grow in a 
cool Fernery, it requires a stove temperature to 
develop its full beauty, as indeed do the whole of 
the forementioned species.— Filices. 
PITCHER PLANTS AT 
CHELSEA. 
November may not be considered the best time to 
see Nepenthes at their best, yet we do not remember 
seeing them better in the nursery of Messrs. J. 
Veitch & Sons, Chelsea. The number of pitchers 
on every plant is great, and the colour excellent, so 
that the effect of the collection as a whole is very 
striking. A very large proportion of them are 
suspended from the roof, so that the pitchers have a 
full play of air about them, and are seen to advan¬ 
tage because they are mostly on a level with the eye. 
Nepenthes Masteriana is grown in quantity, and 
is very highly coloured. The dwarf stems, the 
number of pitchers produced, their size and rich 
colour, all combine to make this hybrid one of the 
most popular of Pitcher plants in cultivation. No 
collection, however small, should be without it. 
The pitchers of N. Morganiae are moderate in size 
even at their best, and wholly of a bright crimson- 
red ; they are wide at the 
base, then suddenly con¬ 
tracted to a narrow neck, 
and always distinct from 
everything else. Com¬ 
pared with the latter, N. 
mixta is a giant, with 
pitchers 6in. to i2in. long 
exclusive of the lid; the 
ground colour is a soft 
green, variously suffused 
with red, and marked 
with long crimson stripes 
and blotches. The collar 
is reflexed, wavy, of a 
glossy, crimson-brown. 
We noted five of these 
huge pitchers on a single 
stem, and other plants 
bear nine of them. In 
any case it is a most 
imposing kind to have in 
a collection. 
Another large pitcher 
is that of N. Curtisii 
superba; but here the 
crimson markings occupy 
so much of the surface 
that the pitcher may be 
described as dark crimson 
with straw-yellow mark¬ 
ings. Here, again, the 
annulus or collar is crim¬ 
son-brown, shining, and 
very conspicuous, and the 
lid is also heavily spotted. 
There are four large 
pitchers on a stem. As a 
con trast to the last-named, 
the pitcher of N Dicksoni- 
ana is light green heavily 
splashed or blotched with 
soft crimson-red, and 
attains such a size as to 
be fit for classing with 
the biggest of the kinds. 
N. Burkei is strikingly 
different in shape from 
either of the above, the 
pitcher being much in¬ 
flated at the base and top, 
and constricted in the 
middle, as if it had been 
tightly tied round with 
something in the early 
stages of its growth. The 
type is not very highly 
coloured, but there are 
two grand varieties of 
it, including N. Burkei 
superba, the pitcher of 
which is pale green thinly spotted with red on the lower 
half, and blotched and splashed with crimson-red on 
the upper. The other variety is N. Burkei excellens, 
the finest of the three, as may be seen by reference 
to the accompanying illustration, for which we are 
indebted to Messrs. Veitch & Sons. The blotches 
are distributed all over the pitcher. The wavy and 
shining crimson-brown collar is here very con¬ 
spicuous, as may be seen by the figure. N. 
Northiana is another very fine thing we must not 
omit to mention. The pitchers are soft red, and 
thinly blotched with crimson Crimson-brown 
bands alternate with yellow ones on the collar, and 
beneath this, on the inner face, crimson or nearly 
black blotches almost cover the surface, and a 
glaucous bloom overspreads the whole of this 
portion. Other varieties are extremely numerous 
and fine. 
up in bundles, kept through the winter in a shed, 
and planted out in rows outside after the passage of 
winter. Some cultivators, on the other hand, are of 
opinion that the removal of these roots from crowns 
about to be forced seriously affects the size and 
quality of the produce, and advocate the leaving of 
them on the crowns until after forcing. It may be 
urged against this system of propagation that the 
plants produced from cuttings taken from crowns 
which have undergone the strain of forcing are never 
so strong or of such good quality as those which 
result from cuttings taken before plants have been 
subjected tothis necessarily weakening operation.— G. 
-- 
MARATTIAS. 
Here we have a good 
instance in which the 
owner of small glasshouses 
is handicapped with regard 
to the kind of plants he is 
enabled to grow. Although 
Marattiasare amongst the 
most ornamental of stove 
Ferns, their vigorously 
growing habit, and the 
large size they attain, 
hinder many people from 
attempting to grow them. 
A compost of loam and 
leaf soil with sand and 
charcoal will suit them 
very well. The latter 
ingredient is very neces¬ 
sary to the well-being of 
the plant, for Marattias 
are never happy unless 
their roots are in a con¬ 
tinual state of saturation. 
It is the best plan to stand 
the pots in water to a 
depth of 4 in. or 5 in., but 
if this is not possible, 
copious supplies of water 
must be given them twice 
or thrice a day in summer; 
for if the allowance of 
water be in any way 
limited the plants will very 
scon suffer. I have known 
large fine plants to flag 
down over the pots in a 
most lamentable manner, 
only as the result of a 
single hour's inattention ; 
and plants submitted to 
such treatment never 
wholly recover for a very 
long time the injury 
sustained even during 
such a brief period of 
neglect. 
The genus is compara¬ 
tively a small one with 
regard to the number of 
species it contains. There 
are only about eight dis¬ 
tinct species, and they are 
most of them natives of 
tropical or sub-tropical 
regions, where they are 
usually to be found 
in marshy districts, 
often veritable giants in 
size. 
M. attenuata is one of the largest members of the 
genus, and a good specimen of it in a roomy stove 
presents an imposing and a truly magnificent 
appearance. The fronds often attain to enormous 
sizes, and it is on that account only suitable for 
growing in large houses. The stout and vigorous 
stipes are 3 ft. or 4 ft. in length, and of great 
strength, as indeed they had need to be, having 
regard to the large spread and great weight of the 
fronds they have to carry. Native of Australia. 
M fraxinea.— This is a plant of even larger size 
than the preceding species. The fronds often 
grow to a length of twelve and occasionally of 
fifteen feet. Several varieties of it are in cultivation 
which are by some considered to be distinct species. 
Thus M. purpurascens will, if grown in an exposed 
situation, and less generous treatment accorded it, 
