186 FLORA DOMKSTICA. 



towards the end of September, and placed abroad again 

 towards the middle or end of May. It must be sparingly 

 watered ; once a week in winter, but in dry summer weather 

 three times. 



HOUSELEEK. 



SEMPERVIVUM. 



CRASSULACEjE. dodecanuria dodecagynia. 



French, joubarbe des toits [roof Jove's beard] ; la grande joubarde 

 [great Jove's beard] ; jombarde ; artichaut sauvage [wild artichoke]. 

 — Itnlian, sempervivo. — English, Houseleek; Jupiter's-beard ; Ju- 

 piter's-eye ; BuUock's-eye ; Sengreen ; Aygreen ; Live-ever ; in the 

 northern parts, Cyphel; perhaps from the Anglo-Saxon, Sinfulle. 



These plants appear like a collection of large, glossy, 

 green roses, of a heavy, leathery substance. Some per- 

 sons admire and are very curious in them ; others despise 

 them as clumsy weeds. Linnaeus informs us, that in Smo- 

 land, Houseleek is a preservative to the roofs of houses. 

 The Common Houseleek may easily be made to cover the 

 roof of a building, whether tile, thatch, or wood, by stick- 

 ing the offsets upon it with a little earth. 



The species vary in the colour of their flowers, and 

 time of flowering ; but they are most commonly red or 

 yellow, appearing from June to August. The juice of 

 the Houseleek, either alone or mixed with cream, affords 

 immediate relief in burns and other external inflamma- 

 tions ; and is considered an excellent remedy for the heat 

 and roughness of the skin, sometimes attendant upon the 

 changes of the seasons. 



The most hardy kinds are the Common Houseleek, 

 which is a native of most parts of Europe ; the Globular, 

 the Starry, the Cobweb, the Rough, the Mountain, and 



