Chapter 8

Fig. 104.—Flower of Magnolia conspicua opened to show the stamens and pistil.

The latter may be illustrated byMagnolia conspicua, sometimes calledM. Yulan. The flower-buds are inclosed in a brown hairy case formed of two short bracts which become loose at the base, and are pushed off by the expanding flower. The flower itself (seefig.104) is cup-shaped, and it is divided into six white fleshyFig. 105.—The flower-bud of the Evergreen Magnolia.petals. The calyx consists of three sepals,—which fall off soon after the petals expand. In the centre of the flower is the receptacle, drawn up into a fleshy cone, with a great number of carpels attached to it, each of which has one cell containing two ovules, and a curved stigma. Around this cone grow the stamens, with very long anthers standing up like palisades, and very short thick filaments. The fruit is oval, with the ovaries somewhat distant from each other. The flowers appear before the leaves. The other Asiatic species areM. gracilisorKobus,M. discolor,obovata, orpurpurea, andM. fuscata; the former two forming handsome shrubs in the open ground, and having cup-shaped flowers which are white within and purplish on the outside, and the latter being a greenhouse plant, with brown very fragrant flowers.

The American species of Magnolia differ in having their flower-buds enveloped in one long spathe-like bract, as shown infig.105. The ovaries grow close together; and, when ripe, the carpels, which look like the scales of a fir-cone (seefig.106), burst by a slit down the back; and the seeds, which are covered with a red juicy pulp, burst out, and hang down by a long white thread, which in the course of a few days withers away. The principal species of American Magnolias are the evergreen Magnolia, or Big Laurel (M. grandiflora); the Umbrella Tree (M.Fig. 106.—The ripe fruit and seeds of the Evergreen Magnolia.tripetala), which grows like a shrub with several stems rising from the ground; the Cucumber-tree (M. acuminata), the flowers of which are bluish and the leaves pointed; Beaver wood (M. glauca), the flowers of which are small, and the leaves covered with a glaucous bloom;M. auriculata,M. pyramidataandM. macrophylla, which are nearly allied to the Cucumber-tree; andM. cordata, the flowers of which are yellowish. All these Magnolias produce their leaves before their flowers; and in this also theydiffer fromM. conspicua, the flowers of which appear before the leaves.

The genus Liriodendron contains only two species differing slightly in the leaves. Both are lofty trees, with cup-shaped flowers of six petals curiously stained with red and yellow, and bent back at the tip. The calyx consists of three sepals, which remain on as long as the petals. The fruit is cone-shaped, but the carpels, which are each furnished with a kind of wing, instead of opening when ripe, fall with the seed enclosed.

The genus Talauma differs from Magnolia principally in the carpels, which open irregularly by valves; and in the number of petals, which vary from six to twelve. Only two species are common in British hothouses,T. Candolli, commonly calledMagnolia odoratissima; andT. pumila, sometimes calledM. pumilaand sometimesLiriodendron lilifera: both are natives of Java, and both have cream-coloured, or yellowish flowers, which are remarkably fragrant at night.

ORDER IV. ANONACEÆ.—THE CUSTARD-APPLE TRIBE.

Thehardy plants belonging to this order, that are well known in Britain, were formerly included in the genus Anona; but now the onlyspecies retained in that genus are stove plants, natives of the West Indies, with yellowish brown or dark purple flowers, the calyx of which is in three sepals, and the corolla in three or six thick fleshy petals, and which have numerous stamens with large angular anthers, and very short filaments. The carpels are numerous, but they grow altogether into a fleshy eatable fruit, divided into many cells, each containing one seed. This fruit is called the custard apple or sour sop in the West Indies; and it differs in flavour in the different species, but the most delicious kind is produced byA. Cherimolia, a native of Peru. The hardy species included in Anona by Linnæus have been separated from that genus, and formed into another under the name ofAsimina, the principal distinction between them being in the fruit; which in the genus Asimina consists of two or three berry-like carpels growing together, not eatable, and each containing many seeds.A. triloba, the hardiest species, is a large shrub, with dark brownish purple flowers. The plants in this order are all aromatic.

ORDER V.—MENISPERMACEÆ.—THE COCCULUS TRIBE.

Allthe plants contained in this order are climbing exotic shrubs, generally with drooping racemes of small delicate flowers, the male andfemale flowers being on different plants. The number of sepals and petals varies in the different genera, and sometimes the petals are wanting. The stamens frequently grow together into a central column; and the fruit is a drupe or one-seeded berry, generally scarlet, but sometimes black. The principal plants in this order which are known in England, are,Menispermum canadensis(the Canadian Moon Seed), a very ornamental hardy, climbing, shrub;Cocculus palmatus, the root of which is a tonic drug, called Columba root;Anamirta Cocculus, which produces the berries calledCocculus indicusin the shops, which are said to be used in porter to give it an intoxicating property;Schizandra coccinea, a greenhouse climber with scarlet flowers; andKadsura japonica, a climbing shrub with white flowers and red berries, which proves quite hardy in the open air.Kadsura,Schizandra, and three other genera, little known in this country, have been formed into a new order under the name of Schizandriaceæ. The qualities of all these plants are tonic.

ORDER VI. BERBERIDEÆ.—THE BERBERRY TRIBE.

Fig. 107.—Details of the flower and fruit of the common Berberry, partly magnified.

Eachflower of the common Berberry (Berberis vulgaris) has on the outside three little bracteal scales, which are reddish on the back, and soonfall off. The flower itself consists of a corolla of six petals, and a calyx of six sepals, though as these divisions are all of the same size and shape, and of the same colour and texture, it is not very easy to distinguish the calyx from the corolla. The petals will however be found on examination to have each two little glands at the base, as shown atainfig.107, which the sepals are without. The sepals are placed exactly behind the petals, so that the one appears a lining of the other; and, being concave, thepetals serve as a kind of cradle to the stamens, as shown atb. There are six stamens, which have broad filaments; and instead of anthers the filaments are widened at the tip, and each contains two cases for the pollen (c); these cases are each furnished with a valve-like lid (d), which opens and curls back when the pollen is ripe. The pistil (e) is pitcher-shaped, with a very thick style, and a flat stigma. It stands erect, while the stamens are spread out so as to be a long way from it, but they are so irritable that the slightest touch makes them spring forward and discharge their pollen on the stigma, afterwards falling back into their former places. The flowers are yellow, and they are produced in long drooping racemes; and they are succeeded by red oblong berries (f), each of which contains two seeds (g). The receptacle, with the stamens growing out of it from beneath the pistil, is shown ati. The common Berberries are all deciduous shrubs, with simple leaves, which are produced in tufts, as shown infig.108, each leaf being delicately fringed with hair-like teeth. Each tuft of leaves has two or three sharply-pointed stipules, which are easily distinguished from the leaves, by their margins being without teeth; and below these are three spines, which, when young, are soft and look like folded leaves, but which, when older, become hard, and sharply pointed. These spines are considered by some botanists to be abortive branches. There are many different kinds ofBerberry, which differ principally in the size of the flowers and in the colour of the fruit; but which also vary in the size and shape of the leaves, and in the manner in which they are toothed.

Fig. 108.—Flowers of the Berberry, natural size.

The Ash-leaved Berberries were formed into a separate genus called Mahonia by Nuttall; and this genus has been adopted by Professor de Candolle, and other botanists. Dr. Lindley, however, includes all the species in the genus Berberis, and he has been followed by Mr. George Don in his new edition of Sweet’sHortus Britannicus. Whether the genus Mahonia be a good one or not, the plants composing it are very distinct from the true Berberries. The leaves of the Mahonias are evergreen, and pinnate; and the leaflets instead of being fringed with fine hairs, are broadly serrated, the points being tipped by a sharp prickle or mucro (seeainfig.109); and the petiole is articulated, and somewhat stem-clasping at the base (b). The flowers are in erect racemes, and smaller than those of the Berberry; they are also more globular, being less widely opened, and the petals are without any glands. The filaments of the stamens have two hair-like teeth just below the lobes of the anthers; and the fruit has from three to nine seeds in each berry; while the Berberries haveonly one or two. There are many kinds of Magnolia, but the handsomest isM. Aquifolium, a hardy shrub, with dark green shining leaves, like the holly. All the species both of Berberisand Mahonia have yellow flowers; and the Mahonias all flower very abundantly, and very early in spring.

Fig. 109.—A compound leaf, being that of Mahonia aquifolium.

The principal other plants belonging to this order are,Nandina domestica, a very pretty shrub with white flowers, from China, which requires a greenhouse in England; several species of Epimedium, some of which are from Japan, with purple and white flowers; a few species of Leontice, pretty plants with yellow flowers; and a plant calledDiphylleia cymosa, with white flowers and blue berries, a native of North America. All these plants are easily recognised by their broad stamens, and the curling back of the valves of their anthers.

ORDER VII. PODOPHYLLACEÆ.—THE MAY-APPLE TRIBE.

Thisorder contains only two genera; viz., Podophyllum and Jeffersonia; both of which have a calyx of three or four sepals, and a white corolla of from six to nine petals. Podophyllum has numerous stamens, and a fleshy berry with only one cell, which does not open when ripe; and Jeffersonia has eight or nine stamens, and a capsule which opens all round the apex.Podophyllum peltatumis the May-apple, and its fruit is eatable when ripe, though very acid; theleaves are very large, and peltate, that is, with the footstalk attached to the centre; andJeffersonia diphyllais a little plant, without any stem but that which supports the flower. Both are natives of America, where they are found in moist shady places.

ORDER VIII. HYDROPELTIDEÆ.

Thisorder, which many botanists combine with the preceding one, also consists of only two genera; viz.,CabombaandHydropeltis; and of theseCabomba aquaticais a stove aquatic, andHydropeltis purpureais a hardy water plant, with peltate leaves, and dull purple flowers.

ORDER IX. NYMPHÆACEÆ.—THE WATER-LILY TRIBE.

Fig. 110.—The flower, leaf, and seed-vessel of the White Water-lily, greatly reduced in size.

Theprincipal genera in this order are Nymphæa, Euryale, Victoria, Nuphar, and Nelumbium. The flowers of the common White Water-lily (Nymphæa alba) consist of numerous sepals, petals, and stamens, all of which might be mistaken for petals, being principally distinguished by their colour. The sepals, (ainfig. 110,) are green on the outside, but they are white within, and of the same fleshy substance as the petals (b). The stamens (c) look like narrow yellow petals; they are pointed,and bear the pollen in two lobes near the point, which open longitudinally when ripe. The inner row of stamens are without anthers, and form a kind of vandyke edging to the pistil, as shown ate. The pistil consists generally of sixteen carpels, growing together into a vase-like, many-celled berry, as shown atd; the spreading stigmas, which have also grown together, forming a kind of lid. The carpels are completely enclosed by the receptacle which rises up round them, and forms a thick fleshy covering, as shown atf. The seeds are numerous, and they are covered with a thick leathery skin. The embryo is small, and it is surrounded by a great mass of floury albumen. Theleaves (g) are large and nearly round; and the main root, which is called a rhizoma, is thick and fleshy, and is, indeed, an underground stem. There are several kinds of Nymphæa, the most remarkable of which is the Egyptian Lotos (N. Lotos), the flowers of which are white tinged with pink; and both the roots and seeds of which are eaten.Euryaleis a genus of South American Water-lilies, generally with small flowers, and large rough leaves; andVictoria regina, also a native of South America, is perhaps the most magnificent Water-lily in the world; the leaf, which is peltate and turned up at the brim, being of a deep crimson on its lower surface, is upwards of six feet in diameter; and the flowers are more than a foot in diameter, with a corolla of more than a hundred large white petals tinged with pink.

The genus Nuphar consists of only three or four species, the most common of which isN. lutea, the common yellow Water-lily, a native of Britain. The flower has a cup-shaped calyx of five large yellow sepals, the tips of which curve inwards. The petals are small, truncate, and flat, with a small pore on the back of each; and the stamens, which are very numerous, have broad petal-like filaments. They differ, however, very much in appearance from those of the genus Nymphæa, and they are differentlyplaced, springing from the base of the vase-like pistil, and not from the upper part. There are from sixteen to twenty carpels enclosed in the dilated receptacle, to which the stigmas form a ray-like cover; and each carpel contains several seeds. The leaves are somewhat cordate, and rise rather above the surface of the water, and the rhizoma, or root-stem, is very thick. The common yellow Water-lily, or Brandy-bottle, as it is sometimes called from the smell of its flowers, is common in every part of England, and it is generally found in small ponds or ditches. The other species are mostly natives of North America.

The Indian Lotos (Nelumbium speciosum) differs so much from both the preceding genera, as to be considered by some botanists to form a different natural order. The sepals and petals are so intermingled in the flower as to be scarcely distinguishable; but the filaments of the stamens are less broad and petal-like. The disk is still elevated, but it has lost the vase-like form, and it appears as though the top had been abruptly cut off; while the carpels are no longer joined together, but are plunged each separately in the fleshy receptacle, or torus, with their stigmas quite distinct. As the carpels are only half immersed in the torus, and thus show their styles and stigmas, they have a very singularand bottle-like appearance; and the torus, when they are taken out of it, looks like a piece of honey-comb. The rhizoma is white and fleshy. The stalks of the flowers and leaves rise considerably above the water; and thus the flowers have not the graceful appearance of those of the Nymphæa, which seem to repose on the surface. The leaf is very large, being sometimes one or two feet in diameter; and it is always peltate, with the stalk exactly in the centre. There is only one seed in each carpel of the Nelumbium; and this seed, which has no thick leathery skin, is of about the size and shape of an acorn. It is very good to eat, having a sweet milky flavour, and in botanical construction it resembles the common bean, having no albumen, but a very large embryo. This is probably the reason why it has been supposed to be the bean of Pythagoras, and why it is called the Sacred Bean of India. One of the Hindoo fables represents the god Bramah as first appearing in the form of a child, cradled on a Lotos leaf, and floating on the waste of waters.

There are several kinds of Nelumbium, one of which, a native of America, has double yellow flowers; and they all require a stove in England.

ORDER X. SARRACENIEÆ.—THE SIDE-SADDLE PLANT.

Thereis only one genus in this order, which can never be mistaken for any other, from the pitcher-shaped petioles of its leaves, and its singular flowers. It is a native of Canada, but it rarely flowers without a stove in England. It is a dwarf plant, and it is thus easily distinguished from the Chinese Pitcher plant, which grows eight or ten feet high, and which belongs to quite a different order.

ORDER XI. PAPAVERACEÆ.—THE POPPY TRIBE.

Thistribe contains several genera, all of which have a thick glutinous juice when broken, which poisons by stupifying. The genera most common in British gardens are Papaver, the Poppy; Argemone, the Prickly Poppy; Meconopsis, the Welsh Poppy; Sanguinaria, Blood-root; Eschscholtzia; Hunnemania; Rœmeria; Glaucium, Horned Poppy; Chelidonium, Greater Celandine or Swallow-wort; Hypecoum; Platystemon, and Platystigma. Most of these plants are either annual, or last only two or three years, and they have all very handsome flowers, which are generally large and of showy colours.

The common Corn Poppy (Papaver Rhœas) has a showy flower, the corolla of which consists ofFig. 111.—Flower, leaf, and seed-vessel of the common Poppy.four very large scarlet petals, the outer two much exceeding the others in size (seeainfig.111). The calyx is green, and it is divided into only two sepals, (seeb,) which fall off soon after the expansion of the flower. The petals are all curiously crumpled in the bud, and they present quite a wrinkled appearance when the flowers are first opened. The stamens are very numerous, and the anthers, which are black, are of the kind calledinnate; that is, the filament is only attached to them at the lower part (c). The seed-vessel of the CornPoppy is, when ripe, a dry leathery capsule (d) with numerous angles, each angle indicating a carpel; for the capsule of the Poppy, though one-celled when ripe, consists, in fact, of a number of carpels grown together. The remains of these imperfect carpels are perceptible in the little valves shown atf, which open at the top of each to discharge the seed when it is ripe; and in the slightly-peaked cover (e), which consists of as many stigmas grown together as there appear to have been carpels. When the capsule is cut open (as shown in the capsule atg, from which the fourth part has been removed), remains of the carpels will be found in several projections from the sides, which partially divide the inside of the capsule into several imperfect cells, in which the young seeds are formed; though none of these portions reach the centre. The ovules, when first formed in the ovary, are attached to these projections, which are called parietal placentæ; but as the seeds ripen they become loose, and if a dry Poppy-head be shaken, they will be found to rattle. The leaves of the Corn Poppy are what is called pinnatifid, (seehinfig.111,) that is, they are so deeply cut as to appear almost in separate leaflets; and the whole plant (except the petals and the capsule) is covered with short bristly hairs (i), which stand out horizontally.

The Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum) differs from the Corn Poppy in several respects. First, the whole plant is glabrous, that is, devoid of either hairs or bristles; the capsule also is much larger and more fleshy in an unripe state, and the crown-like lid is smoother, and curved over like a plume of feathers, (seeainfig.112.)

Fig. 112.—The flower, bud, leaves, and capsule of the Opium Poppy, much smaller than the natural size.

The fleshiness of the unripe seed-vessel of the Poppy puzzled me extremely at first, as I knew that the ripe capsule of this Poppy is always dry and leathery; but it was soon explained to me, that this fleshy substance is, in fact, an elongation of the receptacle or disk, which rises up round the carpels, and envelops them, in the same way as the disk of the Water-lily grows round the pistil and carpels of that plant,but which dries up as the fruit ripens. The leaves of the Opium Poppy (b) differ from those of the Corn Poppy, in being much broader, and only slightly cut or notched; they are also glaucous, that is, of a bluish or sea-green, and they are clasped round the stem at their base (as shown atc). All the Papaveraceæ abound in a thick glutinous juice, which in the Poppies has the colour and appearance of milk, and which possesses stupifying properties; but in the Opium Poppy this juice is particularly abundant. Opium is, in fact, procured by wounding the fleshy capsule with a sharp knife, and suffering the milky juice which exudes to dry in the sun; after which it is scraped off with a blunt instrument, and pressed into cakes for sale. The opium of commerce is produced in hot countries; but even in England, any one who chooses may procure a small quantity of opium, by wounding the fleshy capsule of the common White Poppy when it is about half ripe. A milky juice will issue from the wound, which when dry becomes opium, and would be poisonous if taken in excess. The capsule of the White or Opium Poppy has, when ripe, a little window-like opening under each stigma for the discharge of the seeds, which contain abundance of oil, and may be safely eaten, though the rest of the plant is poisonous.

There are many different kinds of Poppy; but they all agree in the corolla of their flowers being in four petals, or in some number divisible by four; and in the calyx, which is generally in two sepals, dropping off as soon as the flowers expand. All the species abound in a milky juice, which poisons by stupifying; and they all agree in the general construction of the capsule, with its fleshy envelop and its stigma-formed lid. The petals are always crumpled in the bud, and they fall very soon, so that the beauty of the flowers is very short-lived. The flower-buds droop; but when the flowers expand, the stalk becomes erect, and remains so while the capsule containing the seeds is ripening; a wise provision, common to many plants, to prevent the seeds from falling too soon. The calyx of most of the Poppies is in only two sepals; but in the two showy perennial species, calledP. orientaleandP. bracteatum, the calyx is in three sepals.

Among the other plants belonging to the order Papaveraceæ, may be mentioned the Horned Poppy (Glaucium luteum), which, instead of an obovate capsule, has a long horn-like pod, divided into two cells, the valves opening from the top to the bottom. The whole plant is glaucous; and the leaves, which are broad and notched, clasp the stem at their base, like those of the Opium Poppy. ThePrickly Poppy (Argemone mexicana) has the whole plant covered with strong prickles; the leaves are wrinkled and curved up at the margin; the calyx has three sepals; and the capsules are in four or five valves, the stigmas forming a kind of cross at the top. The stem and leaves when bruised give out a thick glutinous juice, which, instead of being white like that of the Poppy, is yellow.

The Eschscholtzia is the last genus of the order Papaveraceæ that I shall mention here, and it deserves a particular description, both from its popularity and the beauty of its flowers, and from the singularity of its botanical construction. The bud when it first appears is enfolded in a calyx, which is pointed at its upper extremity, and appears to have a kind of rim near its base. When the flower is ready to expand, the calyx detaches itself all round from the projecting rim, and rises gradually without opening, till the flower actually pushes it off. The detached calyx resembles an extinguisher, and hence it is called calyptrate, which has that signification. The flower is cup-shaped; there are four petals and four stigmas, two of which are much longer than the others. The capsules are elongated like those of the Horned Poppy, but they are distinguished by the projection of the flat fleshy disk at theirbase; they are two-valved and two-celled. The leaves are glaucous, and finely cut. There are three species, or perhaps varieties, which differ principally in the degree of enlargement of the receptacle or disk. They have all large fleshy roots, which bleed copiously if wounded, and for this reason the plants are difficult to remove unless when quite young.

ORDER XII. FUMARIACEÆ.—THE FUMITORY TRIBE.

Theflowers of plants of this order are so peculiar in their shape, as when once seen to be easily remembered. There are two small sepals, which soon fall off, and four petals of an irregular shape, two of them being drawn out into a kind of spur. There are six stamens, and the fruit is silique-formed. The plants have somewhat of a smoky smell, and when broken yield a watery juice. The principal genera are Fumaria, Corydalis, and Diclytra.

ORDER XIII. CRUCIFERÆ.—CRUCIFEROUS PLANTS.

TheCruciferous plants form so natural an order, that when one of them has been described the others may be easily recognised. They have all a separate calyx and corolla, eachin four divisions; the four sepals being placedFig. 113.—The flower and stamens and pistil of the Sea-kale, to illustrate the Cruciferæ.alternately with the four petals, the latter forming a cross (as shown atainfig.113), whence the name of Cruciferous, which signifies cross-bearing. There are six stamens (b), two of which are much shorter than the others; and two carpels with one style, and a capitate or divided stigma. The seed-vessel is a kind of pod, either short and broad, like that of the Shepherd’s Purse (fig.114), where it is called a sillicle; or long and narrow,Fig. 114.—A Sillicle.like that of the Cabbage, which is called a silique. The two valves of the silique open naturally when ripe, from the bottom curving upwards, (seefig.115,) and the seeds are deposited on a thin membrane between the cells, which is the dissepiment. All the Cruciferæ, from abounding in nitrogen, have an unpleasant smell when decaying, like putrid flesh; and when cultivated, they even in a wild state require abundance of animal manure; hence, they are generally found near human habitations, or where cattle are kept. When wild, they have generally acrid properties; andthough these are in most cases softened by cultivation, yet they are still perceptible in theFig. 115.—A Silique.roots of the Horse-Radish, and the common Radish, and in the leaves and seeds of Mustard, and the different kinds of Cress, &c. This acridity, however, is never so great as to be injurious; and Cruciferous plants, particularly if their texture be succulent and watery, may always be eaten with perfect safety. Even those which, in a wild state, are tough and stringy, such as the wild Cabbage and the root of the wild Turnip, become excellent by cultivation; and all Cruciferous plants are so extremely nourishing as to be considered next in this quality to animal food.

Among the many garden flowers which belong to this order, few are more popular than the common Wallflower (Cheiranthus Cheiri). Its hardiness, and the facility with which it is raised and cultivated—the gaiety of its flowers, their profusion, and their delightful fragrance, combine to make it a general favourite; and I think I cannot take a flower to illustrate the order which is more generally known and liked. The flowers of the Wallflower (seefig.116,a) consist of four petals, each of whichis furnished with a long tapering point, called the claw (b), and a broad flat part called the limb (c). The claws of the petals are buried in a calyx of four sepals, placed alternately to the petals, and somewhat swelled out at the base, (seed). The stigma (e) is two-lobed, and forms a kind of notched head. There are six stamens, which appear at first to be all nearly of the same height, but on examination it will be found that two are somewhat shorter than the others. The seed-vessel is of course the lower part of the pistil; which, after the petals drop, becomeselongated into a somewhat cylindrical silique, which contains several flattish seeds.

Fig. 116.—Flowers of the Wallflower.

The Brompton Stock (Mathiola incana), and the Ten-week Stock (M. annua), differ from theFig. 117.—Flower of the Brompton Stock.Wallflower principally in the shape of the stigma (seefig.117,a). The petals have also rather longer claws, and hang looser, as shown atb. The Virginian Stock (Malcomia maritima) has a roundish silique, and only one stigma, which ends in a long tapering point. The Candytuft (Iberis umbellata) has a short pod or sillicle, which has the appearance of being cut off at the point, and which contains only one seed in each cell; and the outer two petals of the flower are somewhat larger than the inner ones. Many other Cruciferous plants might be described, but I think my readers will have pleasure in seeking them out themselves, and examining them, to discover their points of agreement and of difference; particularly as, though the order is such a very large one, the flowers of all the plants are so much alike, that no one can be in doubt respecting their alliance.

ORDER XIV.—RESEDACEÆ.—THE MIGNONETTE.

Thecommon Mignonette (Reseda odorata) was once included in the order Capparideæ; but it is now made into a little order by itself, called Resedaceæ. The flower, as is well known, is by no means remarkable for its beauty, though it is for its fragrance; but when examined botanically, it will be found well deserving of attention, from the singularity of its construction. It has a green calyx of six sepals, which are only remarkable for being what botanists call linear; that is, long and narrow, and of equal width throughout—a very unusual form for sepals. Within the calyx are the petals, six fleshy, green, heart-shaped bodies; with a hair-like fringe round the lower part, and with the upper part cut into a tuft of segments so different in colour and texture from the lower part, that it is scarcely possible to believe that they are one. This upper part of the petal is called the crest, and it is pure white; the segments into which it is divided appearing to be a great number of delicate little petals growing out of a fleshy heart-shaped disk.

It is worth gathering a flower of Mignonette, and taking off one of the petals to look at it in a microscope; and one of moderatesize, which may be bought for 12s.at the Bazaars, will be quite sufficient for the purpose. It will then be found that the fleshy part of the petal is as easily detached from the rest of the flower as petals usually are, but that it is so firmly fixed to the crest as to be inseparable without cutting. The disk is, however, dilated and curiously drawn out between the stamens which are inserted in its base, and the petals, as though to form a barrier between them. It will be quite visible when the petals are removed, as it is as firmly attached to the stalk of the flower as the petals are to their crests. Between this elevated part of the disk and the calyx is a green substance which looks like a part of the stalk, but which belongs to the disk. There are twelve stamens, with large orange-coloured anthers, which are at first erect, but afterwards bend forward horizontally; and in the middle of the stamens is the ovary, an oblong hollow cell, with a three-lobed stigma, forming three erect points. Inside the ovary from each stigma runs the kind of nerve called the placenta, and to each nerve are attached three rows of seeds. The substance of the ovary is always soft and leaf-like, even when it becomes a ripe capsule; and though it is greatly swelled out and bladdery, it retains the same leaf-like and somewhat wrinkled appearance tothe last. When the capsule is ripe, each of the pointed lobes, which formed its upper extremity, opens down the middle, thus forming a curious three-cornered mouth for the discharge of the seed. The flowers form what is called an upright raceme, springing from a succulent main stem, which is, however, somewhat woody at the base. The plant indeed, though treated in England as an annual, is a shrub in the plains of Barbary, of which it is a native; and even in this country it may be made to assume the character of a small tree, by keeping it during winter in a hothouse or greenhouse. I was very much surprised to find that Mignonette has been introduced barely a century; and it seems difficult to imagine how those of our ancestors who were fond of flower-gardens contrived to do without it. I have only to add that there are several species of Reseda, one of which (R. luteola) is a British plant used in dyeing, and is called Dyer’s Weed, or Weld.

ORDER XV.—DATISCEÆ.

Thereis only one genus of three species, which are coarse hardy perennials, having the appearance of hemp; and only grown in England in botanic gardens.

ORDER XVI.—CAPPARIDEÆ.—THE CAPER TRIBE.

Thisorder is divided into two sections, viz., the true Capers, and the Cleomes; both of which have very long and conspicuous stamens. The common Caper (Capparis spinosa) has a large and handsome flower, with a distinct calyx and corolla, both in four parts. The petals are white, and so delicate in their texture as to fade in a few hours if exposed to the sun; and the stamens, which are very numerous, have rich purple filaments. In the centre is the pistil, with a very long stalk, and the ovary at the point, instead of at the base, with no style, and a very small stigma. In consequence of this curious construction, the seed-pod, which is fleshy, and hangs downwards, appears to be on a much longer stalk than the flower. The shrub is spiny, and in its natural habitat it grows among stones and rocks. It is the unopened flower-buds that are pickled. The genus Cleome consists principally of annuals, with very handsome flowers, which have very long stamens, and a pistil of the same construction as in Capparis, but the fruit is a dry capsule. The anthers of the stamens are often enfolded in the flowers before they are fully expanded, so that the filaments appear bent, till at last they open fully and hang down.There are a few other genera in the order, but they are little known in England.

ORDER XVII.—FLACOURTIANEÆ.

Theplants belonging to this order are mostly Indian plants, little known in Europe.

ORDER XVIII.—BIXINEÆ.—THE ARNOTTA TRIBE.

Bixa Orellanais a shrub, a native of South America, which requires a bark stove in England. It has pink flowers with five petals, and a green calyx of as many sepals. The stamens are numerous; but they are on rather short filaments. The leaves are very large and heart-shaped. The fruit is a berry, and the pulp in which the seeds are immersed, when dry, is the Arnotta used in colouring cheese.

ORDER XIX.—CISTINEÆ.—THE CISTUS TRIBE.

Thereare only four genera in this order, viz., Cistus, Helianthemum, Hudsonia, and Lechea; and though there are almost innumerable plants comprised in it, they nearly all belong to the first two.

All the plants belonging to the genera Cistus, the Rock-rose, and Helianthemum, the Sun-rose,have showy flowers, each having five petals, which are crumpled in the bud like those of the Poppy; they also resemble the petals of the Poppy tribe in falling almost as soon as they have expanded, as every one must have observed who has noticed the flowers of a Gum-Cistus. The calyx in both Cistus and Helianthemum generally consists of five sepals, two of which are larger and of a paler green than the others, and grow a little below them; and this calyx remains on after the petals have fallen, and, indeed, till the seed is ripe. In the Gum-Cistus, however, and some other species, the two outer sepals are wanting. There are a great many stamens, which are rather short, and form a tuft in the centre of the flower, surrounding the pistil, which has a round flat-headed stigma, a rather long style, and an ovary divided into five cells. The seeds are numerous, and each has a separate footstalk, by which it is attached to the placentas, which, in the Cistus tribe, are in the centre of the ovary, and not proceeding from its sides, as in the Mignonette. The capsule, which remains covered with the calyx till it is quite ripe, divides into five or ten concave valves, each having a placenta, to which the seeds were attached, in its centre. The seed of any plant belonging to the order Cistaceæ, is remarkable when cut open for the greatsize of the embryo enclosed in it, and the curious manner in which it is curled up. The embryo is the germ of the future plant, and it is usually buried in a great mass of albumen, or floury matter intended for the nourishment of the young plant, till its roots are in a fit state to supply it with nourishment. In the seed of the Cistus, there is scarcely any albumen; but in its stead a long narrow embryo, coiled up like a sleeping snake.

The Gum-Cistus is generally called, in the nurseries, Cistus ladaniferus; but it differs materially from the plant so named by Linnæus, as that has a ten-celled capsule, while the capsule of the common Gum-Cistus (which botanists callC. Cyperius) has only five cells. The leaves also differ, the under surface of those of the one kind being woolly, and of the other smooth; the one is also a native of Spain and Portugal, and the other, as the specific name imports, of Cyprus. Both species, and alsoC. Ledon, exude from their stems and leaves, a kind of gum or resin called Ladanum or Labdanum, which is used in medicine. It is from this gum having been formerly always mixed with opium when that drug was dissolved in spirits of wine, that the name of laudanum is given to the tincture of opium.

The two genera, Cistus and Helianthemum,differ chiefly in the capsule, which in the latter genus is triangular and one-celled, opening into three valves, each of which has a narrow dissepiment down its centre. To prevent any confusion arising from the use of these terms, I may here observe that when a capsule is divided into several cells, having no communication with each other, the membranes that separate them are called dissepiments; while the nerve-like part of it to which the seeds are attached is named the placenta. Sometimes the placenta is merely a nerve running down the side of the capsule, when the capsule is one-celled, without any dissepiment or division; and sometimes the dissepiment does not spread across the capsule so as to divide it into different cells, but only projects a little way from the side towards the centre, as in the one-celled capsule of the Poppy, (see p.260,) and in that of the Helianthemum, when the seed-vessel opens naturally into different parts, as in the Gum Cistus, these parts are called valves, as are also the parts of pods, as shown in the curled-up valves of the silique,fig.115, in p. 268.

To return to the Helianthemum, the species of this genus are generally used for rockwork, as they are all dwarf plants, though many of the genus Cistus are large shrubs four or five feet high. The English name of the Helianthemum, Sun-rose, is very appropriate, as the flowers will only expand in sunshine, and will even decay in the bud without opening at all, when gloomy weather lasts for several days.

ORDER XX. VIOLACEÆ—THE VIOLET TRIBE.

Theorder Violaceæ, though not a large one, contains several genera, but the most interesting is the genus Viola, which includes among many other species the Sweet Violet (Viola odorata), and the Heartsease (V. tricolor). The flowers of both species have many claims to admiration, but they do not add the charm of regularity in construction to their other attractions, as, in fact, few flowers are less symmetrical. The flowers of both are nearly alike in their details; but to avoid confusion, I will describe them separately. The calyx of the Heartsease consists of five pointed distinct sepals, two of them rather smaller than the others. These sepals are not attached, as in most other plants, at their base; but so as to leave nearly a quarter of their length standing up, far beyond the place where they are fixed to the receptacle, so as to form a sort of border or cup round the stem, and between it and the flower. The sepals are green, but they are edged with a delicate whitish membrane at the margin, scarcely to be seen without a microscope.There are five petals which are also irregular in their construction, two of them being much larger than the others, and generally of a different colour; and one even of the other three being quite different in form to its companions. The two large petals at the back of the flower, which in the common Heartsease are generally dark purple, are laid over each other, and behind the two below them. These two side-petals, which form the centre of the flower, are both furred at the base; and the lower petal, which is placed between them, has its claw drawn out behind into a spur, which passes between two of the sepals; and which, when the flower is looked at from behind, appears to be part of the calyx. The furred part of the two side-petals forms a triangular, roof-like opening, peeping out of which, is seen a small pale-green ball-like substance, which a fanciful imagination might liken to a head looking through a dormer window; and this is all that is to be seen in place of the usual apparatus of stamens and pistils. As all seed-producing flowers must have stamens and pistils, and as it is well known that Heartseases and Violets do produce seed in abundance, it is clear that these important organs are not wanting; but where are they? It is easy to guess, after being so far initiated in the mysteries of botany, that the little globular body is a part of the pistil; butwhere are the stamens? It is necessary to pull the flower to pieces to discover them. Commencing this work of destruction, which I always feel remorse at perpetrating, for I love flowers too well not to feel pain at destroying them; commencing this work, I repeat, the petals and the sepals must be carefully removed from the stem; a task of some little difficulty, as both sepals and petals are firmly attached to the receptacle, and the lower petal must have its spur opened with a pin to avoid hurting the delicate organs it contains. When the outer coverings of calyx and corolla are thus both removed, the seed-producing organs will be discovered, and it will be found that they consist of five very curiously-formed stamens, with as singular a pistil, in their centre. The stamens have no apparent filaments, and the anthers, which seem to be inserted in the receptacle, look like seeds, each tipped with a bit of brown skin, and having what appears to be a white rib in front. This rib is the anther; and the broader part is the dilated filament, which is drawn out beyond it, on both sides, and above, so as to form the brown tip above the anther already mentioned. Two of the anthers have each, in addition to these peculiarities, a long tail, which the spur of the lower petal concealed, when the flower was in a perfect state. Thepistil consists of a large ovary, full of ovules, with a narrow style, which is drawn out into the hollow globular termination which is seen through the triangular opening in the flower. The globe has an opening in front, under which is a kind of lip, which looks like a shutter let down to show the opening; and though, from its thick fleshy nature, it looks like a stigma, it is only the outer covering of that organ, for the stigma lies within the opening. In this manner the stigma and anthers are completely concealed; and thus it will be seen, that nothing can be more complex and intricate than the construction of the flowers of the Heartsease.

Who could suppose that all these elaborate details would be necessary to illustrate so simple a flower as that of the Violet? And yet the construction of the flowers of the Violet and those of the Heartsease are essentially the same. The sepals of the Violet are extended at the base, like those of the Heartsease, and the corolla consists of the same number of petals, which are equally irregular in their form, though not in their colour; the lower petal is drawn out, in the same manner, into a spur, which is much longer than that of the Heartsease, though the rest of the flower is smaller. The stamens are formed with the same regular irregularity, only the tails of the two irregularones are larger and stronger, in the same proportion as the spur is larger which is intended to conceal them. The pistil is of the same shape, with the same curiously constructed and perforated style, which is bent in its narrow part and swelled out into a hollow globe at the tip; and in both species, the ovary is one-celled with three parietal placentas, that is, with three nerve-like projections from the sides of the capsule, having four rows of seeds attached to each. The capsule looks like a smooth shining berry, and it remains partially shrouded by the calyx, till the seeds are ripe; when it bursts open with an elastic spring, and divides into three valves, each of which has the placenta bearing the seeds in its centre.

In all these points the Heartsease and the Violet are alike; but they differ materially in the leaves, which in the Violet are broad and heart-shaped, without stipules; but in the Heartsease are small and ovate, with such very large and deeply-cut stipules, that they are by most persons mistaken for the leaves. I may here be asked what are stipules, and in what do they differ from leaves? In answer to the first question, I can only inform my readers that stipules are generally little leaf-like bodies, which seem to act as attendants upon leaves, as bracts seem to wait upon flowers; but in whatthey differ from leaves, except in size and shape, I have not been able to learn. Even Dr. Lindley in the last edition of his Introduction to Botany, says, “What stipules really are is not well made out.”

The Heartsease and the Violet differ also in their habit of growth. The Violet is a creeping plant with no stalks but those supporting the flowers, while the Heartsease stands erect, with a thick square stem, so strong, that, notwithstanding its succulent nature, it may be trained like a little tree.

ORDER XXI. DROSERACEÆ—THE SUN-DEW TRIBE.

Thereare three genera in this tribe that are well known:Drosera, the Sun-dew;Dionæa muscipula, Venus’s Fly-trap; andParnassia palustris, the Grass of Parnassus; all bog plants. The species of the genus Drosera are remarkable for the curious manner in which the leaves and peduncles are coiled up when they first appear, and in which they slowly unroll themselves as they grow. They are also beautifully edged with a sort of fringe of glandular red hairs, and a fluid exudes from these glands which makes them always appear as though covered with dew. The common Sun-dew (D. rotundifolia) is a British plant, with short roundish leaves;but other species are natives of New Holland and North America; and several of them have long slender leaves like threads. Venus’s Fly-trap (Dionæa muscipula) is a native of Carolina, in North America; the leaves are curiously formed of two lobes, which close and open as if hinged, and they are furnished with glandular hairs, which are so extremely irritable as to make the leaves close at the slightest touch, and thus to imprison any unfortunate insect that may be within the lobes. The petiole is so much dilated as to look like a leaf, but the real leaf consists of only the two roundish lobes edged with teeth that form the Fly-trap. The flowers are white, and they are produced in corymbs. The corolla has five petals, which do not fall off when they wither, but roll up so as to look like the cocoon of an insect.

ORDER XXII. POLYGALEÆ—THE MILKWORT TRIBE.

Thegenus Polygala is well known from the very handsome greenhouse plants which it contains. The flowers at first sight appear to resemble those of the Sweet Pea, having two wings like a standard, and a sort of keel; their construction is, however, very curious, and so complicated, as to be very difficult either todescribe or to understand. The calyx is said by modern botanists to consist of five sepals, three of which are green and two lilac, these last being the part that resembles the standard of the Sweet Pea. The corolla is also said to consist of five petals, two of which stand erect, and the other three grow together to form the keel. The latter have their upper part cut into a kind of crest, like that of the Mignonette. Below the crest, the united petals form a kind of hood, under which are arranged the eight stamens, four on each side. The stamens themselves are as remarkable as the other parts of the flower; the filaments grow together into a thin kind of leaf, and each anther has but one cell, and opens by a pore at the apex. The pistil is also very curiously formed, as the style and stigma have the appearance of a gaping monopetalous corolla. The fruit is a flat two-celled capsule, which, when ripe, opens by two lips, separating from each other, and showing a seed within each cell. Even the seeds are not like other seeds, for each has a large white protuberance at one end, called a corancula.

ORDER XXIII. TREMANDREÆ.

SlenderNew Holland shrubs, with the habit of Heaths, rarely met with in British gardens.

ORDER XXIV. PITTOSPOREÆ.—THE PITTOSPORUM TRIBE.

Theprincipal genera included in this order are Pittosporum, Billardiera and Sollya, all resinous shrubs, with alternate leaves without stipules, and the sepals and petals, each five in number, and laid over each other like scales in the bud. The seeds are numerous, and immersed in fibrous pulp. The commonest species of Pittosporum isP. Tobira, a native of China, easily known by its thick leathery leaves, the midribs of which are strongly marked, and whitish. The flowers are erect, and produced in cymes or heads; and the petals are united into a tube with a spreading limb. The capsule is one-celled, and two or three valved, with an imperfect dissepiment in the centre of each valve; and the seeds are numerous, and buried in a resinous fibrous pulp. The Billardieras are generally climbing shrubs, with pale greenish bell-shaped, and almost erect flowers, which are produced singly or in pairs, and which have the tips of their petals turned back. The fruit is a fleshy berry, with a shining skin of a deep blue, and it is called the Apple Berry in Australia, of which country the species are natives. This fruit is said to be eaten in Australia, but it seems difficult to imagine howthis can be the case; as though the outer part of the berry is of a soft spongy nature, it is dry and insipid; and there is no internal pulp, for the seeds lie loose in the cells. InSollya heterophyllathe flowers are drooping, on long and very slender pedicels, and they are produced in cymes. The corolla is campanulate, with the tips of the petals not recurved, and the anthers are much shorter than in Billardiera. The fruit is a soft fleshy berry, divided into two cells, each containing two rows of seeds immersed in pulp, and when cut open, it smells strongly of turpentine. The plant generally calledSollya linearishas a dry and leathery pericardium; and for this reason and on account of the spreading of its anthers, it was placed by Mr. Cunningham in a new genus, which he calledCheiranthera.

ORDER XXV. FRANKENIACEÆ.—THE FRANKENIA TRIBE.

Thegenus Frankenia consists principally of the British weeds called Sea Heath; and the other genera included in the order are seldom seen in British gardens, from the seeds which have been imported seldom arriving in a state fit for vegetation.

ORDER XXVI.—CARYOPHYLLACEÆ—THE CARNATION TRIBE.

Theplants belonging to this order have so strong a family likeness to each other as to be easily recognised; and they are all distinguished botanically by the swollen joints of their stems, and their opposite undivided leaves, which are generally connate, that is united, and sheathing the stem. The order is divided into two sections, viz.: Sileneæ, in which the sepals are united into a tube, and which section includes the genera Silene, Dianthus, Saponaria, Lychnis, and Agrostemma; and Alsineæ, in which the sepals are either quite distinct, or only slightly cohering at the base, and which includes Stellaria, Arenaria, Cerastium, Spergula, and several other British weeds. The Chickweed was called by LinnæusAlsine media, but the genus Alsine is now united to Stellaria.

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