POL 
POU 
cherrima, bright scarlet, and its variety 
alba., having white flowers, are valuable 
aids in the stove through the early and 
late months of the year; rich loamy.soil 
suits them, with frequent applications 
of water both to the roots and foliage. 
POIVREA (Cohmerson.) Nat. Qrd, 
Combretacece. A more handsome object 
for decorating the pillars or roof of the 
stove can scarcely be imagined than the 
P. coccinea; its deep green and ample 
foliage heightening the vivid crimson of _ 
its flowers, borne on numerous large 
panicles from near the ends of the strong 
. shoots, and hanging in a gracefully pen¬ 
dent position, present a degree of beauty 
but rarely seen. Sandy peat and loam 
suits it; plenty of water should be given 
in the growing season, and in the autumn 
the plant should be closely pruned. 
POLLAN THE S (Linn.) Nat. Ord. 
Liliacea. The well-known tuberose 
(P. tuber osa), so justly esteemed for its 
fragrance, is a member of this genus. 
The bulbs are usually imported from 
Italy, and should be potted as. soon 
as they are received into a mixture 
of rich loam, leaf-mould, and silver 
sand, in equal quantities. A mode¬ 
rately brisk hotbed should be employed 
to start them, and the longer time they 
can be accommodated here, the bet¬ 
ter chance of blooming them well aud 
keeping the leaves clear of that dreadful 
pest, the red spider, to which they are 
particularly subject; for this purpose 
plenty of air should be given as they 
advance in growth, or they soon become 
too tall for any common frame., and then, 
unless other accommodation, in which a 
damp atmosphere can be commanded, is 
at hand, but little hopes can be enter¬ 
tained of their escaping the disfiguring 
attacks of these destructive little insects. 
It is a good plan, under any circum¬ 
stances, to forcibly syringe the plants 
all over every day until the blossoms are 
about to expand. A cool place, such as 
the greenhouse or sitting-room, is best 
for them after the flowers open, as it 
preserves their beauty for a longer period. 
POLYGALA (Linn.) Nat. Order 
Polggalacece. The greenhouse, species 
of this genus are universal favorites, and 
well deserve attention; they are chiefly 
from the Cape of Good Hope, and there¬ 
fore require plenty of pure air and light; 
indeed, so strongly do they insist on 
these elements being present, that a 
considerable difficulty is experienced in 
the attempts to grow them near the me¬ 
tropolis. Sandy peat, well drained, is 
the best soil for them; and with respect 
to water, it should be given so that they 
are never dry, or by any means satu¬ 
rated. Alight airy shelf in the greenhouse 
Through the winter, and a sheltered place 
out of doors in summer, will grow them 
well, if the other essentials can be se¬ 
cured. The finest of this division of the 
genus are the following: cord/folia, Dal - 
maisiana, grandiflora, intermedia , oppo- 
sitifolia, and speciosa. The hardy species 
are very ornamental on the peat beds of 
the flower garden, particularly Chamat- 
buxus, fastigiata major, and sanguinea . 
POLYPODIUM (Swartz.) Natural 
Order Polypodiaceee. This, the type of 
an extensive and highly interesting fa¬ 
mily of plants, is in itself varied and 
beautiful. Among its species are found 
a range of subjects from the robust in¬ 
habitant of our own clime to the deli¬ 
cate occupant of the damp stove from 
the sultry regions of the East; they vary 
in stature from a few inches to three or 
four feet, and for furnishing rockwork, 
walls, or shaded borders in any depart¬ 
ment of the garden, something appro¬ 
priate may be selected from the genus 
for every place; they require peat soil 
to grow in, and must have plenty of 
water while growing, with a tempera¬ 
ture proportionate to that country from 
whence each individual is derived. 
PQRTULACA (Linn.) Nat. Order 
Portulacacere. Only one species, grandi- 
jiora, and its varieties, Tliellusonii, and 
splendens , are considered worth cultiva¬ 
tion ; these are half hardy annuals, ex¬ 
tremely beautiful when grown in masses, 
and therefore well suited for their dwarf 
habit, and the number and rich dazzling 
colour of their flowers, to planting in 
beds of the flower garden. The seed 
should be sown in March on a gentle 
hotbed, and when about an inch long 
should be potted singly into small pots, 
