PECULIARITIES OF PURSLANE 



165 



and more sap. The jungles, the forests, immense areas of alluvial 

 soil in the regions of the Orinoco and Amazon, the West Indies, 

 tropical Asia and Africa, are rank with vegetation. Great families, 

 like the Spurge, known to us by small and comparatively insignificant 

 plants. 



[ To be Continued. ] 



PECULIARITIES OF PURSLANE. 

 By Byron D. Halsted. 



THERE are some things that are peculiar concerning Portidaca 

 oleracea L. , commonly known as purslane or in contempt by the 

 gardeners as "pusley." 



In the first place its appearance is striking, and were it not 

 so common, would attract much attention. Growing prostrate upon 

 the soil, it forms a carpet of succulent herbage with its brittle stems 

 and plump, ovate, spatulate leaves. 



A second point of special interest is its fondness for the sun. 

 Shade acts almost as poison to this obese herb. In my experiments 

 with half -shade made by using lath and shutting off one-half of the 



