W. C. Townsend, Esq., of Bay Ridge, has just placed on our table a noble stalk of this superb flower. The stalk is over four .feet high, the flowers occupying a foot of it. This variety is much finer than Tritoma uvaria. We think it was raised by Mr. Veitoh, of Exeter. The top most or unexpanded flowers are of a deep red, tinged with bluish purple; those next below, just opening, are of a brilliant orange red; while those fully expanded and just passing off are of a delicate straw color, all the colors passing gently from one to the other, and being beautifully harmonized. It is a charming flower, and we are much delighted with it Mr. Townsend will please accept our thanks.

A stately and brilliant herbaceous plant.

Tritonia (Kniphofia) Uvaria

Being somewhat acquainted with bulbous roots, many inquiries have been made of me respecting the "new Kniphofia Uvaria, shown 1858, for the first time," etc., and seeing no more minute description of that plant in your valuable Horticulturist, I thought it proper to tell its history, as far as I know it.

I am sorry to say, that instead of being new, it is one of our oldest plants we know about, as already Theophrast (born 371 years before Christ) gives a glorious description of it under the name Iris Uvaria. It is quite natural that such an old plant should change its name often, as the science of botany progresses; we therefore find it called by Theophrastus, Iris Uvaria; Linnee, as Aletris Uvaria, or Aloe Uvaria; Wildenow, as Yeltheimia Uvaria; Curtis, Gawber, Alton, and Redoute, as Tritoma Uvaria; Both, as Veltheimia speciosa; Lamark, as Aloe longifolia; Link, Romer and Shultes, as Thritomanthe Uvaria; Mench dedicated it to his friend Kniphoff as Kniphofia aloeides, while Hooker changed aloeides into the more significant name Uvaria, which name it bears now in the catalogues. When the Dutch had possession of Cape Hope, they brought some plants home from there;- it came to England in 1707, but was not much distributed.

There are seven more varieties known, seme of which are even finer than Uvaria, but are not quite as hardy, as they did notetand the winter in 1855. K. Uvaria was killed in the hard winter of 1856.

But even if they were very tender, they would repay the little extra attention, as few plants make such a magnificent display, and have such an ornamental appearance, particularly when well established, it is then not rare to have the same plant in flower for four months. It has the most effect when planted in masses. P. Raabe.

Philadelphia.