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AN ENCYCLOPÆDIA OF HORTICULTURË 89 
Antirrhinum—continued. A Ants—continued. ad 
A. majus (large).* Greater, or Common Snapdragon. fl. racemose, 
approximate ; corolla lin. to 2in. long, shades infinite; palate 
yellow at top, very prominent; tube downy outside. Spring, 
summer, and autumn. J. oblong-lanceolate, lin. to 3in. long; 
upper ones narrower, attenuated at both ends, glabrous. Branches 
erect, usually branched again. h. 2ft. England, naturalised. The 
named varieties are numerous, but it is unnecessary to enumerate 4 
any, as an equal amount of variation can be obtained from seed. 
See Fig. 115. 
A. molle (soft).*, jl. few, at the tops of the branchlets; corolla lin. 
long, whitish, with a yellow palate; the upper lip stri with 
purple, July. 1. opposite, petiolate, clothed with glandular and 
clammy hairs, about jin. long, and little: more than jin. broad ; 
branches procumbent, slender, clothed with woolly hairs. Pyrenees, 
1752. A very pretty plant, requiring a warm position on the 
‘rockery. A. sempervirens comes close to this species. 
ae i 
FIG. 116. FLOWER OF ANTIRRHINUM ORONTIUM. 
A. Orontium (Orontinm axillary, distant; corolla rose- 
coloured or white, striped with purple ; tube furnished with a few 
glandular hairs ; palate veined with purple; sepals linear-lanceo- 
late, large. June. J. oblong-lanceolate, acutish, attenuated at 
both ends, glabrous, 2in. long. Annual, A. 6in. to 12in. British 
cornfields. See Fig. 116. 
A. O. grandifiorum, A variety with larger, paler, and more 
approximate flowers, and broader leaves. British cornfields. 
A. siculum (Sicilian). jl. in loose racemes; corolla hardly lin. 
long, white or yellowish, rarely purple ; tube rather hairy; lobes 
of the upper lip and the middle lobe of the lower lip emarginate. 
July. l. lin. to 1jin. long, linear-lanceolate, opposite, alternate or 
three in a whorl, narrowed into petioles at the base. Branches 
erect. h. lft. to 2ft. Sicily, 1804. Syn. A. angustifolium. 
A. tortuosum (twisted).* jj. racemosely spicate, approximating 
by threes and fours; corolla (the largest of the genus), purple ; 
tube short; aop lip large. June. 1. linear, acute, opposite, or 
three in a whorl, 2in. long, attenuated at both ends; upper ones 
very narrow. Branches erect. h. lft. to 1ljft. Italy. 
ANTROPHYUM (from antron, a cavern, and phuc, 
to grow; referring to its place of growth). Orp. Filices, 
Sori carried along the veins, imperfectly reticulated. A 
small genus of stove ferns, very rarely seen in cultivation, 
all with simple fronds, of firm but fleshy texture, and 
a uniform, hexagonal areole. For culture, &c., see 
erns. 
A. cayennense (Cayenne). sti. lin. to 4in. long. fronds 6in. to 
9in. long, lin, to 1din, broad, lanceolate-oblong, narrowed at both 
ends ; edge thickened, entire ; areolm half as broad as long. sori 
sub-supertficial, often for Guiana, &c. 
A. coriaceum (leathery). Fronds 6in, to 8in. lon 
broad, narrowed very gradually from the centre to the base, half 
acute at the apex; texture very thick; areolæ very long an 
narrow, distinctly raised on th 
immersed, sometimes confluent. Himalayas, &c. ; 
A. lanceolatum (lance-leaved).* fronds lft. or more long, jin. to” 
žin. broad, point acute, edge entire, the lower half narro tg? 
gradually to the base; areole two to three times as long as broad, 
AETS cas between the midrib and the edge. sori slender, 
alley 1793, m joining. West Indies, southwar 
_ ANTS (¥ormicide). Well-known pests, easily distin- 
guished from all other insects. There are a great number 
of sp ies, differing more or less in habits; but, as a 
they dwell underground in communities, and con- 
extensive ant cities, which are occupied by three 
classes — the neuters or workers (by far the most 
numerous), the males, and the females. There are often, 
addition to these, larger and stronger neuters, known 
as the “soldiers,” or defenders of the community. Ants 
have a long slender body, supported on long and slender 
legs. The head bears a pair of elbowed horns or an- 
tenn, constantly waving about and touching everything 
the insect comes across. They have powerful mandibles 
a. 
, about jin.” 
e upper surface. sori nig. 
. water. 
water for about ten minu 
for cutting, sawing, and biting, and i is with these in- 
struments that Ants do mischief in gardens. The winged 
males and females become mature in summer, and on a 
warm day they ascend in a body into the air; after a 
short time,.they fall to the ground, the females at once 
free themselves from the henceforth useless wings, and 
begin to form new colonies. Vast numbers of eggs are 
laid, from which issue larvae, and these soon become 
pups, and then perfeet Ants. Some kinds are injurious 
from their habit (in some species) of collecting aphides 
together, and farming them for the sake of the honey 
secreted by the aphides, and that passes out from their 
honey-tubes (thus helping to perpetuate the stock of 
-~ these most injurious insects); and also from the mecha- 
nical damage they do in pots, and other receptacles for 
. plants. They likewise cause unsightly hills on lawns 
and paths, and the large black species that live in decayed 
wood often injure the framing of greenhouses, &c., when 
the woodwork has become somewhat decayed. ere 
frnit, such as peaches or wall pears, are grown, Ants will 
at times inflict damage, and, therefore, they should be 
kept away; but this is a comparatively easy matter, as 
the placing of an obnoxious substance along the base of 
the walls and around the stems of the trees will deter 
them. For the extirpation of Ants from indoors, the 
Arsenical solution described below is most efficacious, 
but it is extremely dangerous, 
Lime. Air-slaked lime plentifully dusted, in warm, dry, 
weather, over and around the hills and other places infested, 
will cause the Ants to vacate them in a short time. A 
thick chalk line drawn round a smooth tree, or across an 
upright board or post, will render it impassable. 
Arsenic. This must be used with the utmost caution, as 
it is a poison most fatal to animal life. Recipe: loz. of 
ordinary arsenic is placed in an old iron pot with a quart of 
water, and then boiled until reduced to a pint or a little 
more of liquid, to which is added 4lb. of coarse sugar. 
This mixture can either be dropped about the runs and 
around the nests, or placed in saucers in the Ants’ haunts. 
Ferrocyanide of Potassium. This is also very dangerous: 
Ferrocyanide of potassium, ldr.; raspings of quassia, 1dr. ; 
and enough sugar to form a syrup. Use in the same way as 
the preceding. 
Calomel and Sugar. Mix together one part of calomel 
and ten parts of finely-powdered loaf sugar, and lay it 
in little heaps about their nests and runs; the Ants will 
eat it and die. Spring is the best season for this method. 
Guano, when fresh, if sprinkled on and around their 
quarters, is said to be efficacious in driving them away. 
Camphor. If a piece of camphor, about the size of a 
filbert, be placed.in two quarts of hot water, and this, 
when cool enough, applied to pot or other plants infested 
with Ants, the insects will be driven off without injury 
to the plants. 
Bones. Lay a quantity of partially-picked boiled bones 
in the haunts, and they will be quickly covered with 
insects. As soon as this occurs, throw the bones into hot 
Before laying them down again, let all super- 
fluous moisture drain off. This is a cheap remedy, and, 
if persisted in, is very effectual. , 
Carbolic Acid. This, if of good strength, diluted with 
about ten or twelve times its bulk of water, and well 
sprinkled over paths or other places where there is 
vegetation, will keep the Ants away. It has, however, 
an objectionable smell. ag ee 
Parafin Oil. Paraffin, mixed with six times its bulk of 
water, and sprinkled over the nests every few days, will 
kill and drive away Ants; but bors smell is e ve arara cs 
assia.  40z. of quassi ips, boiled in a on. 
a : ts, od ee of soap added to 
the liquor as it cools, if used like the preceding, is fairly 
effectual; but this, like the other remedies, must be 
persisted in for some tim es 
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