ACACIA. 



species of this genus, some of which 

 are generally found in the nurseries, 

 under the name of Sida, One of the 

 handsomest kinds is called Abut Hon 

 vitifdlium, or Sida vitifolia, from 

 its vine-shaped leaves. It is a noble- 

 looking shiTib, growing about six feet 

 high, with a mass of large pui-plish or 

 lilac flowers. It is a native of Chili, 

 and maybe grown in the open ground, 

 with a slight protection ; or in a con- 

 servatory. The flowers are much 

 darker under glass, and sometimes 

 become nearly white when the plant 

 is grown in the open air. A . pceonice- 

 flora, which has been only lately in- 

 troduced fi-om Brazil, has its flowers 

 of a deep rose colour. The best soil 

 for it is a mixture of heath-mould and 

 silver sand. Another new species, 

 called Ahidilon inslgne, has white 

 flowers veined with crimson. All 

 the Abutilons are subject to attacks 

 from the red spider, and require 

 frequent syringing to keep them in 

 health. 



Aca'cia. — Leguminosce. — Most 

 persons understand by the word 

 Acacia, tall trees with pea-flowers, 

 which are natives of Xorth America, 

 and quite hardy in the open air of 

 England. These trees, however, are 

 the Locust trees, or false Acacias, and 

 belong to the genus Robinia. The 

 true Acacias (which were placed in 

 the genus Mimosa by Linnseus) are 

 what are called Wattle trees in 

 Australia, with flowers like balls or 

 spikes of down ; and, as they require 

 protection from the frost in England, 

 they are generally treated, in this 

 country, as greenhouse sha-ubs. Above 

 three hundred species have been in- 

 troduced, but only about thii'ty are 

 in cultivation in British nui'series, 

 and nearly all these have been figured 

 in the botanical periodicals. By far 

 the greater part of the Acacias grown 

 in England are natives of New Hol- 

 land, and most of these are nearly 



I hardy ; but some are from the East 

 Indies and Arabia, and most of them 

 require a stove. Xearly all the 

 kinds are evergreen ; and the Aus- 

 tralian species are very valuable in 

 greenhouses, because they are in 

 I flower during winter. In the oj^en 

 ' gi-ound they flower in March, April, 

 May, and June. The following kinds 



are the most common of the Austra- 



lian Acacias in British nui-series : — 

 A. armata, a most useful plant for 

 windows and balconies, from its har- 

 diness, its compact, simple, dark- 

 green leaves, or phyllodia, and the 

 great abundance of its yellow baU- 

 like flowers; it requires, however, 

 frequent syringing of the leaves, as 

 it is very apt to be infested with in- 

 sects ; A. aldta, a curious species, 

 ydih winged stems; A. decqnens, 

 with small angular leaves ; A . diffusa, 

 a dwarf plant with small flowers ; 

 A. hyhrida, very fragrant ; A. lon- 

 gifblia, with very long leaves, and 

 the flowers not in balls, but in long 

 close spikes; J..^i(6esce??s, a very ele- 

 gant species vvith drooping branches, 

 bipinnate leaves, and the ball-like 

 flowers disposed in racemes ; A. ni- 

 gricans, with blackish -gi'een foliage; 

 A. verticillata, with the leaves like 

 spines, and disposed in whorls; A. 

 lopfidntha, with bipinnate leaves, 

 and long spike -like whitish flowers ; 

 j A. dealbdta, the A. afflnis of some 

 • botanists, remarkable for the delicacy 

 1 of its foliage, and the whitish bloom 

 which covers its trunk and branches ; 

 A. spectdbilis, remarkable for the 

 immense number of its yellow balls 

 of flowers, which is nearly allied to 

 A. dealbata.but requires rather more 

 heat ; and A . meJanoxylon, the 

 i Black Wood, or Black Wattle of the 

 i Australians, the dilated petioles or 

 j phyllodia of which look like leaves, 

 j with the real leaves, which are 

 bipinnate, attached to their extremi- 

 I ties. Of the other kinds of Acacia, 



