]50 NICOTIANE^. [parti. 



amining it in a very powerful microscope, the 

 embryo or germ of the future plant was found 

 to be curved like that of most of the other 

 Solanacese ; whereas when the seed of the 

 purple Petunia (P. phcenicea or violaced) was ex- 

 amined in the same manner, the embryo w^as 

 discovered to be straight. This purple Petunia 

 has consequently puzzled botanists as much as 

 some of the other plants I have had occasion 

 to mention ; and it has been called successively 

 Petunia violacea, Salpiglossis integrifolia^ Nierem- 

 hergia phcenicea, and Petunia phoenicea, 



Nieremhej^gia is a genus of ornamental green- 

 house plants, easily distinguished from the 

 Petunias by the great length of the tube of the 

 corolla, and by the equal segments of the limb. 

 The stamens also project beyond the flower, 

 being inserted in the throat of the corolla, and 

 the filaments grow together at the base ; the 

 stigma, is, likewise, curiously dilated into a kind 

 of crescent shape, and it is folded in a very sin- 

 gular manner round the filaments, as if to sup- 

 port the anthers. The most common species of 

 this genus are N. Jilicaulis^ N. calycina^ and N. 

 gracilis. 



The genus Salpiglossis is now confined to one 

 species, S. sinuata^ so called from its notched or 

 scolloped leaves ; all the different kinds being 

 now considered only varieties. The calyx in 



