SEARCH FOR NEW FLOWERS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20290, 24 December 1927, Page 3

SEARCH FOR NEW FLOWERS.

EXPEDITION TO HILLS OF ASSAM. PLANT PARADISE. Captain Kingdom Ward, 8.A., F.R.G.S., the famous plant hunter, will leave England shortly in charge of the Percy Sladen horticultural expedition for the hills ’f Assam. He expects to be away about 18 months. The expedition, in which Kew and Edinburgh are interested, has been organised ai l financed by a syndicate of famous private English gardeners, headed by Mr Lionel de Rothschild, and is going in search of new hardy plants and rar c flowers. The hills of Assam,” said Captain Kingdon-Ward to a Daily Express representative, “ are the richest horticultural hunting grounds in tho world, and as far as I know, they are absolutely untouched. The climate of the district is marvellous — a perfect paradise for flowers. SKY-BLUE POPPY.

‘‘l have brought back in 25 years of world travel 300 or 400 first-class plants, and almost without exception they are doing extremely well. The sky-blue poppy is a recent example that will be remembered by those who attended L he Chelsea flower show this year. A future success will be the orange-coloured rhododendron which I brought home from Tibet last year. When it flowers it will be tho first of its colour ever seen in this part of the world.