PHY 
POI 
pearance of a network of silver on a 
ground of bright green velvet. It re¬ 
quires the same management as Antec- 
tochilus, to which it offers a pleasing 
contrast in its own peculiar beauty. 
PHYTEUMA (Linn.) Nat. Order 
Campanulaceae. An extensive genus of 
hardy herbaceous plants, the majority of 
which are interesting aids in the embel¬ 
lishment of rockwork or other similar 
places; they grow well in any good rich 
soil, and speedily extend themselves. 
PIMELEA (Banks.) Nat. Order 
Thymelacece . These handsome green¬ 
house shrubs deserve the utmost atten¬ 
tion at the hands of the cultivator, for 
the freedom with which their lovely 
blossoms are produced is almost un¬ 
equalled. They should be grown in a 
mixture of three parts sandy peat, and 
one part rich li brous loam; the pots 
should be well drained, and in potting, 
the base of the stem should be kept 
slightly elevated. Their general ma¬ 
nagement is that of ordinary greenhouse 
plants, observing always to keep the 
points of the shoots which are made 
after the blooming season frequently 
stopped, in order to form handsome 
bushy specimens:— decussata, Hender- 
soni, incana, linifolia, rosea , and speda- 
bilis , are among the best. 
PINGUICULA (Linn.) Nat. Ord. 
Lentibulacece. Curious and beautiful lit¬ 
tle plants, very difficult to keep in an 
artificial state, although some of them are 
indigenous; they are marsh plants, and 
refuse to exist out of their native posi¬ 
tion; but when seen in health, their 
lovely white, yellow, lilac, or violet co¬ 
loured flowers are the admiration of 
every beholder. 
PLATYLOBIUM (Smith). Natural 
Order Leguminosee . Like other New 
Holland plants, these require fight sandy 
peat, well drained, to be carefully wa¬ 
tered, and to have plenty of fresh air 
whenever it can be admitted. A shelf 
near to the glass in the most airy part 
of the greenhouse in winter, and a shad¬ 
ed situation out of doors in summer, is 
best for them. The slender branches of 
all the species require some support, 
though they do not look well when 
trained to a regular trellis; it is, there¬ 
fore, better to use slight sticks where 
most wanted, allowing the points of the 
shoots to hang in a graceful pendent 
manner. The prevailing colour of the 
large pea-shaped flowers is orange, and 
an occasional full red. 
PLATYSTEMON (Bentham.) Nat. 
Ord. Panunculacece. Yery handsome 
yellow flowering annuals, quite hardy, 
of creeping habit, and free to flower ; 
the seed should be sown in March, on a 
warm border, where the plants are re¬ 
quired to bloom. 
PLEBOMA (Don.) Nat. Ord. Melas- 
tomacece. Showy stove plants, very free 
to flower, and of easy management; rich 
peat suits them; they should have plenty 
of water through the summer, that the 
new growths may be strong, and the 
flowers will then be plentifully produced 
through the autumn. P. JBerdhamiamm 
is perhaps the finest. 
PLUMBAGO (Linn.) _ Nat. Order 
Plimbaginacere. Two species, P. capen- 
sis, a greenhouse plant with blue flowers, 
and P. rosea, a plant with handsome 
deep rose-coloured flowers, requiring a 
rather elevated temperature to grow 
well in, are the only kinds worth notice 
in this genus; each will' grow well in 
heath soil, and the former is a valuable 
plant through the winter, as it produces 
its panicles of azure blossoms quite 
freely, with ordinary treatment. 
PODOLOBIUM (R. Brown.) Nat. 
Ord. Leguminosee. New Holland shrubs, 
with handsome red and yellow flowers ; 
ordinary greenhouse treatment will grow 
them successfully. The true P. stauro- 
pliyllum is the best. 
POINCIANA (De Candolle.) Nat. 
Ord. Leguminosce. P. pulcherrima, the 
Barbadoes flower-fence, is a really beau¬ 
tiful object when well-grown, as also is 
P. regia, the former having large red 
and yellow flowers, and the latter rich 
crimson. They should be grown in rich 
soil, and have a strong stove heat, and 
high treatment through the growing sea¬ 
son to cause them-to bloom freely. 
POINSETTIA (Graham.) Natural 
Order Euphorbiaceee . Another equally 
beautiful stove genus; the species pul- 
