Genus Hippeastrum. I always read with much pleasure the various contributions on Amaryllis in your interesting and entertaining paper, especially Mr. Oberwetter's in the July number. I am an enthusiastic lover of this class of plants, and collect all I can get for a reasonable price. Since eight or nine years they are my favorite house plants. I made the acquaintance of a few hybrid forms in the gardens of Houston, Texas, and New Orleans, and was struck with their great beauty and noble form. I tried to learn the name, but I was told they were " red lilies." At last I obtained a bulb and brought it with me to Missouri. It commenced to bloom in March in my window, and now I ascertained myself that it was Amaryllis Johnsoni, a hybrid of Hippeastrum vittatum. I then bought every year a collection, at first as many species as I could get, and later hybrids. The species I received from Haage & Schmidt (Erfurt, Germany), and the hybrids from the same firm and also from France, Belgium, Holland and England. It is a great drawback to the culture of these magnificent plants to call all without distinction Amaryllises. They certainly all bear this name, but this family comprises many different genera.

The most magnificent genus is Hippeastrum (the Germans call them " Knight Stars"), commonly called Amaryllis, but Amaryllis proper, of which Amaryllis Belladonna is the type, differs from this genus. Next in beauty comes the genus Vallota, then Crinum, Nerine, Brunsvigia, Amocharis, Buphone, Cyrtanthus, Haemanthus, Pancratium, Zephyranthes and others. We at present usually understand the various hybrids of Hippeastrum under that name; but it occurs in many catalogues that inferior things are enumerated under the name of Amaryllis. So I received under the name of "Amaryllis grandis" and "Amaryllis Olga" two Crinums; but plants of this genus as a rule are not to be compared with the glorious splendor of the Hippeastrum tribe. The true Amaryllis is a native of South Africa, whereas all Hippeastrums belong to our own continent, to tropical America. I have at present the following species in my collection :

1. (A) Hippeastrum Aulicum, Herbert

(b) Hippeastrum aulicum platypetalum, Herb Beautiful red flowers, glittering in the sunshine as if covered with gold dust; commonly three or four flowers on a flower scape. This species is evergreen and somewhat difficult to manage.

2. (A) Hippeastrum Equestre, Herb

West Indies and South America. Smaller than the other species. Very beautiful red, with greenish yellow star in the throat.

(b) Hippeastrum equestre, fl. pl., - has double flowers. Introduced to cultivation from the West Indies, where it is grown in gardens.

3. Hippeastrum Bulbulosum Fulgidum, Herb

Brazil. Flowers four on a scape, beautiful vermilion, throat yellowish within, greenish on the outside.

Of this species there are many varieties, such as Hippeastrum bulbulosum rutilum, orange with yellow throat. Of this variety I obtained in Florida a few bulbs for my collection. Others are : Hippeastrum bulb, pulveru-lentum, crocatum, ignescens; all in cultivation and easy to grow.

4. Hippeastrum Pardinum, Hook

Collected 1866 in Peru by Mr. Pearce for J. Veitch & Son. The ground color is creamy white or yellow and the whole flower is spotted with red. There are various distinct varieties. A very beautiful one was figured in "Flore des Terres" (pl. 634), under the name of "Reverend Dombrain;" another kind in Revue Horticole under the name of Hippeastrum pardinum tricolor. All the hybrids of Hippeastrum pardinum are very beautiful.

5. Hippeastrum Psittacinum, Herb

Brazil. Commonly two flowers on a scape; white, striped carmine; throat green, striped purple. Not so showy as others.

6. Hippeastrum Reginoe, Herb

Mexico and South. One of the first known species in European gardens. Ground color cherry-red, throat green. Very fine and easy to grow.

7. Hippeastrum Reticulatum, Herb

Brazil. Leaves short and with a white stripe in the centre, therefore easy to distinguish from other species. Flowers rosy or violet colored, with darker veins and reticulations. Not very easy to manage. From this species Mr. B. S. Williams (Upper Halloway, London) raised some of the finest Amaryllises in cultivation. They are in form, color and growth far superior to the mother plant, and indeed glorious. All are easy to grow and usually flower in autumn. One of these hybrids is Amaryllis, Mrs. Garfield, of which a fine plate was given in the London Garden (vol. xxii, April 7, 1883). Similar but rather more beautiful is A. Mrs. William Lee, and A. Comte de Germiny, with flowers from 6 to 8 inches in diameter.

8. Hippeastrum Solandroeflorum, Herb

South America. Flowers long tubed, greenish-white with a little red; very fragrant. Much finer is the following variety : Hippeastrum solandraeflorum conspicuum, Herb. Flower scape 3 feet high with six to eight large white, red striped flowers; very fragrant. In Dr. Regel's "Gartenflora" (1878, pl. 949) a beautiful plate of this fine variety is given.

9. Hippeastrum Robustum, Koch (A. Tettani S. A. Rou-Gieri)

Native of the German colony Santa Cath-arina, in Brazil, from whence this Amaryllis was sent to Berlin by Dr. Blumenan, 1848. It is an evergreen, strong growing, exceedingly beautiful species; has showy leaves. Flowers deep carmine. Blooms generally in the last week of December, and is called in Germany the Christmas Amaryllis.

10. Hippeastrum Vittatum, Herb

Brazil. One of the best, and has proven very fruitful in raising hybrids. There are now thousands of named and unnamed Amaryllises, all raised from this species.

The flowers are white, with a red stripe through the centre of each petal; slightly fragrant. I have also a very fine variety, Hippeastrum vittatum Harrisoni-anum, Herb., native of Lima. Flowers white with two red stripes. This species and all the hybrids are easily managed. The cheapest of these are those with a red ground color, as they are apt to produce more offsets than the light-colored forms. There are other Hippeastrums, such as Hippeastrum Leo-poldi, Hippeastrum pyrochroma, Hippeastrum calyptratum, which are scarce in cultivation. Other species like Hippeastrum am-biguum, Herb., Hippeastrum breviflorum, Herb., Hippeastrum barba-tum, Herb., Hippeastrum stylosum, Herb., Hippeastrum miniatum, Herb., and Hippeastrum glaucescens. Herb., appear to be lost to cultivation.