A. amœna (pleasing). fl. almost campanulate, rich crimson, about 1½in. across, hose-in-hose conformation, produced in great profusion. April. l. small, size of the common Box, hairy. h. 1ft. China. This is an elegant little neat and compact growing shrub, which has proved to be quite hardy in England. (B. M. 4728.) A very beautiful series of hybrids have been obtained by crossing this species with A. indica, which are most serviceable and free. The following are most desirable: LADY MUSGRAVE, light carmine; MISS BUIST, pure white; MRS. CARMICHAEL, rich magenta, shaded crimson; PRIME MINISTER, soft pink, deep shaded, very free; PRINCESS BEATRICE, light mauve, very distinct and free; PRINCESS MAUDE, rich magenta, rose shaded.
FIG. 198. FLOWER OF AZALEA INDICA.
A. indica (Indian).* fl. campanulate, terminal, solitary or twin; calycine teeth long-lanceolate, obtuse, ciliated, spreading. l. cuneate-lanceolate, finely crenelated, covered with sharp, close-pressed rigid hairs, attenuated at both ends. Branches also covered with sharp, close-pressed, rigid hairs. h. 3ft. to 6ft. China, 1808. See Fig. 198. There are a great number of garden seedlings of the Indian Azalea, including every shade and colour. A selection to any extent may be made from the nurserymen's catalogues, but, for the guidance of the amateur, we have made a rigid selection of the best double and single varieties.
Double-Flowered: A. BORSIG, pure white; ALICE, rich deep rose, blotched with vermilion, very fine; BERNARD ANDRé, dark violet-purple, large, semi-double; CHARLES LEIRENS, dark salmon, good form and substance; COMTESSE EUGENIE DE KERCHOVE, white, flaked with red-carmine, semi-double; DOMINIQUE VERVAENE, bright orange, very fine; DR. MOORE, deep rose, with white and violet shading, very fine; EMPEREUR DE BRéSIL, rich rose, banded white, the upper petals marked red; FRANCIS DEVOS, deep crimson; IMBRICATA, pure white, sometimes flaked with rose; MADAME IRIS LEFEBVRE, dark orange, shaded with bright violet, and blotched with chocolate; PRESIDENT GHELLINCK DE WALLE, intense rose, upper petals blotched with lake, and crimson-rayed; SOUVENIR DE PRINCE ALBERT, rich rose peach, broadly margined with pure white, very free and beautiful.
Single-Flowered: CHARMER, rich amaranth, very large; COMTESSE DE BEAUFORT, rich rose, the upper petals blotched with crimson; CRITERION, rich salmon pink, white-margined; DUC DE NASSAU, rich rosy-purple, very free and large; ECLATANTE, deep crimson, rose shaded; FANNY IVERY, deep salmon-scarlet, blotched magenta, very fine; FLAMBEAU, rich glowing crimson, extremely showy; JOHN GOULD VEITCH, lilac-rose, netted and bordered white, and blotched with saffron, very showy; LA SUPERBE, rich lake, bordered orange, and black spotted, a very fine variety; LA VICTOIRE, centre reddish, white towards the edge, the upper petals spotted with maroon-crimson; LOUIS VON BADEN, pure white, a grand variety; MADAME CHARLES VAN ECKHAUTE, pure white, with beautifully crisped edges, of excellent form and substance; MADAME VAN HOUTTE, richly flaked with carmine and rose, very large and free; MARQUIS OF LORNE, brilliant scarlet, of the finest form and substance; MRS. TURNER, bright pink, white-margined, and spotted with crimson; PRESIDENT VAN DEN HECKE, white, striped and speckled with crimson, with a yellow centre; PRINCESS ALICE, pure white, one of the best; REINE DES PAYS-BAS, rich violet-pink, margined with white; ROI D'HOLLANDE, dark blood-red, spotted with black; SIGISMUND RUCKER, rich rose, white bordered, with crimson blotches; WILSON SAUNDERS, pure white, striped and blotched with vivid red, very fine.
A. mollis (soft). Synonymous with A. sinensis.
A. sinensis (Chinese). fl. campanulate, downy, flame coloured; stamens equal in length to the petals. May. l. slowly deciduous, elliptic, acutish, pilosely pubescent, feather-nerved, with ciliated margins, greyish beneath. h. 3ft. to 4ft. China and Japan. A large number of seedlings and hybrids from this species are in cultivation, known under the name of Japanese Azaleas, and all are valuable for the decoration of the cool conservatory, or for outdoor work. SYN. A. mollis. (L. B. C. 885.)
AZARA (in honour of J. N. Azara, a Spanish promoter of science, but of botany in particular). ORD. Bixineæ. Showy evergreen, hardy and half-hardy shrubs, with alternate, simple, stalked stipulate leaves, and fragrant flowers. They thrive well in a compost of loam, leaf soil, and sand. Ripened cuttings root readily if placed in sand, under glass, in slight heat. It is believed that all the species enumerated will prove hardy if a slight winter protection in midland and northern counties be afforded. This precaution will be unnecessary in more southern parts.
A. dentata (toothed). fl. yellow; corymbs sessile, few-flowered. June. l. ovate, serrated, scabrous, tomentose beneath; stipules leafy, unequal in size. h. 12ft. Chili, 1830. (B. R. 1728.)
A. Gillesii (Gilles').* fl. bright yellow; panicles axillary, densely packed. Spring. l. large, Holly-like, ovate, coarsely toothed, smooth. h. 15ft. Chili, 1859. (B. M. 5178.)
FIG. 199. AZARA MICROPHYLLA, showing Habit, and Foliage (half natural size).
A. integrifolia (entire-leaved).* fl. yellow, on numerous short axillary spikes, of an aromatic fragrance. Autumn. l. obovate or oblong, entire, smooth; stipules equal, permanent. h. 18ft. Chili (about Conception), 1832. The variegated-leaved form, although rare, is very ornamental. The variegation consists of greenish-yellow, with a blotch of dark green, and in a young state edged with deep pink.
A. microphylla (small-leaved).* fl. greenish, corymbose, succeeded by numerous small orange-coloured berries. Autumn. l. small, distichous, obovate, obtuse, dark-shining green. h. 12ft. Chiloe and Valdavia, 1873. This shrub is very ornamental as a standard, and also excellent for covering walls. Quite hardy. See Fig. 199, for which we are indebted to Messrs. Veitch and Sons.