RIBESIACEyE 



75 



growing in rocky or stony places. The Orpine 

 (Sedum telephium) throws up annual stalks a foot 

 high, with large oblong dentated leaves, largest at 

 the base ; and with a cluster of purple flowers at the 

 summit. The White Sedum (Sedum album), with 

 white, sometimes rose-tinted flowers, and purplish 

 leaves, only grows to the height of 6 inches ; and 

 the Wall Pepper (Sedum acre) has yellow flowers, 

 and rarely exceeds 3 inches in height. The last 

 species has a sharp flavour when chewed, like 

 pepper. 



The House-leek (Sempervivum tectorum), an 

 introduced plant, common especially on the roofs 

 of old houses in the country, has a rosette of very 

 thick leaves, from which the flower-stem rises to 

 the height of a foot, bearing rose-coloured flowers, 

 with more numerous sepals, petals, and stamens 

 than in Sedum. 



The most interesting insect that feeds on these 

 plants is the black, red-spotted caterpillar of the 

 beautiful Alpine butterfly Parnassius Apollo. It 

 will eat Saxifrages too, but its favourite food is 

 Sedum telephium. The butterfly is white, from 2 



to 4 inches across the wings, and has several black 

 spots on the forewings, and two large red spots, 

 ringed with black and centred with white, on the 

 hindwings. It is common in most of the moun- 

 tainous parts of Europe, but is not British. 



Order XXXV. Ribesiacece (1 genus) 



This Order is included by some botanists in the 

 Saxifrages, with which it agrees in its principal 

 characters ; but it is now usually considered to be 

 distinct, on account of the fruit, which is a juicy, 

 many-seeded berry, in a tough skin, and surmounted 

 by the " fluff," or the remains of the withered calyx. 

 The only British genus is Ribes, including the 

 Gooseberry and Currants. 



Smooth Gooseberry — Ribes Grossularia, 

 var. Uva-crispa 



(Plate XLI) 



The Gooseberry is known as a garden plant; 

 but a variety with small yellowish fruit grows 



