January 24, 1903. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
69 
and early summer, though they may be brought into bloom 
at other times. 
The plant is propagated by cuttings of the side shoots, taken 
off with a heel of the older wood and inserted in pots of very 
sandy soil. A cold frame will be sufficient for housing them 
in summer, but it 'will be necessary to cover them with hand- 
lights or bell-glasses to' maintain a moist and equable atmo¬ 
sphere about them until roots are developed. To avoid con¬ 
densation and drip upon the cuttings, the. hand-lights or bell- 
glasses must be taken off and wiped dr y every morning. When 
rooted pot them off separately in small pots, and pinch the 
tops as soon as the young plants have taken to the fresh soil. 
They must be shifted on as they grow, never giving them too 
large a size pot. Pinching off the shoots will have to be re¬ 
peated 'Several times to lay the foundation of a bushy plant. 
Diming winter they should be housed in a greenhouse, re¬ 
potted in early spring, 'and kept growing in a genial warmth. 
About the end of July the plants may be stood on a bed of 
ashes in the open air in some position, sheltered from the 
north and east, but fully exposed to sunshine. Here they will 
complete their growth, ripen up their wood, and be in much 
better condition to set their flower buds than if kept con¬ 
tinually under glass. About the end of September, or a little 
earlier if there is any danger of frost, they should be returned 
to the greenhouse for the winter. If required to flower early a 
sufficient number should he placed in a well-ventilated green¬ 
house, with a temperature of 45deg., to .stimulate them into 
earlier growth. 
In the matter of soil or compost the' Boronias may be treated 
somewhat similarly to Heaths, or Epacris, and other plants of 
that, class, which have slender, fibrous roots. Fibrous loam 
and peat, in equal proportions, with a good proportion of sharp 
sand, Hvill meet their requirements in the matter of soil. In 
the way of stimulants, weak liquid cow manure may be given 
twice a week during the growing season, when the plant's are 
fairly in growth. A hag of soot may also be immersed in 
the tank from which the plants are watered. The small 
amount of ammonia contained in the ®oot will act as a stimu¬ 
lant., and also, help to intensify the green colour of the foliage. 
The cultivator must never allow his plants to get dry, but at 
the same time he must make sure that the drainage is good, so 
as to avoid getting the root® into a sodden condition. Their 
culture is, indeed, very similar toj that .of soft-wooded Heaths. 
Three Mid-Winter Decorative Plants 
Of plants which have been introduced within the last few 
years, three belonging to the order Labiatae are conspicuous as 
being exceedingly useful subjects for conservatory decoration in 
mid-winter, a period which is, perhaps, the worst the decorator 
has to contend with, and a space of several weeks having to 
be bridged between the end of the Chrysanthemum season and 
the time when forced plants can be had in quantity. 
Two of the three have been exhibited on several occasions, 
so are now fairly well known; the other is, however, very 
scarce. All three have been introduced by Kew, and all three 
are natives of Africa. The first of the three to appeal- was 
Moscliosma riparium, a. South African plant, with a. sub- 
shrubby Salvia-like habit and aromatic ovate leaves, with 
regularly dented margins. The flowers are small and white 
with purplish stamens, and are produced in loose, upright pan- 
nicies, sometimes upwards of 2 ft. in height. Plants may he 
had in flower early in December, and will last for quite two 
months. 
The other two plants are species of Coleus, a genus which, up 
to the time that, these plants appeared, had been popular by 
reason of the ornamental character of the foliage forms 
of some species, but was not considered as of any value as a 
producer of good flowering plants. The two. species C. thyr- 
soideus and C. Mahoni were sent to Kew by Mr. Mahon from 
British Central Africa. 
The former of the two was the first to arrive, and it flowered 
Stove and Greenhouse Plants. 
Boronia heterophylla. 
About fifty species or more of Boronia are known to science 
all of them natives of Australia, hut the bulk of them are 
mostly confined to the south-east of the. island continent. A 
good few of them have found their way into- cultivation at one 
time or other-, and, while most of them can be described as 
pretty, a large proportion of them share the neglect to which 
hard-'vvooded plants in general are subjected. B. isemilata is 
one of the plants which used' to be grown to large size and 
trained as an exhibition specimen in the olden times, when 
large plants were the glory of London and provincial shows. 
L’okonia heterophylla. 
Three of them have attained the rank of commercial plants in 
modern times, and are more or less, extensively cultivated for 
that purpose. These iare B. megastigma, B. eilatior, and B. 
heterophylla. The two former have scented flowers, and the 
two latter are notable for the beauty of their flowers. The 
Boronias belong to the Orange family, though so dissimilar 
in general features. 
B. heterophylla, the subject of this note, has acquired a con¬ 
siderable notoriety for the beauty of its flowers, graceful habit, 
the light character of its foliage, and the ease with which it 
may be cultivated. It is a small- growing shrub that easily 
attains the height of 3ft., but the necessities of the present 
day require specimens varying from lft. to.2ft., so that an 
average height of the plant would be 18 in. The drooping, 
rosy-carmine flowers are freely borne all along the upper 
part of the upright .shoots, and are in season during late spring 
