CALENDAR FOR MARCH. 
71 
Schiede found it at a great elevation on tlie eastern slope of the 
Mexican Andes, near Chiconquinaco, and also on the eastern 
slope of Cofre de Perote. Hartweg gathered it in Mexico, and it 
has been described by Bentham from his specimens. With us the 
plant requires to he grown in a cool pit; its tubers are roundish, 
becoming as large as a moderate-sized turnip, brown externally, 
whitish internally, giving rise to numerous rootlets and stems, 
which twine from right to left, and are more or less branched, 
purple-red, extending ten or twelve feet; the leaves are alternate 
cordate or sagitatto-cordate, deeply lobed at the base, glabrous 
on both sides, slightly rugose, dull green above and pale or sub- 
glaucous beneath. Peduncles about two inches long, reddish, 
axillary, twisted, wiry, two or three-flowered (rarely one-flowered); 
corolla shining, glabrous, between funnel and salver-shaped, of 
a purplish-red colour; tube slightly contracted at its juncture 
with the limb, then widening and ultimately tapering downwards, 
about two inches long, purplish-red outside, whitish within, limb, 
expanded, two and a half inches across, somewhat rugose or 
undulated, of five blunt, slightly-notched lobes, and shallow 
sinuosities between them; aestivation contorted ; stamens five, 
colourless, exserted beyond the tube, and towards one side of the 
throat shorter than the limb.— Bot. Mag. 4280. 
CALENDAR OP KITCHEN GARDEN OPERATIONS 
FOR MARCH. 
During this month the greater part of the main kitchen-garden 
crops require to be sown or planted. Preparation should be 
made for at least two full sowings of peas, both of marrows and 
Prussians, as well as of the earlier varieties. Where they are 
sown in rows, from four to six or more feet apart, in the old- 
fashioned way, spinach or other dwarf crops may be sown betw een 
the rows. But the preferable plan is to leave considerable in¬ 
tervals between the rows of peas or other tall crops, so as to allow 
of several row r s of other vegetables between, as, by this arrange¬ 
ment, the tall crops will afford a grateful shade to the others in 
hot or dry w r eather, at the same time that they will grow much 
stronger from the greater freedom of the atmosphere about them. 
