158 



HENDERSON'S HANDBOOK OF PLANTS 



ERA 



increasing every year. The improvements 

 effected among them, in quality, size, and pro- 

 ductiveness, are very remarkable indeed. 

 Berries have been exhibited in New York that 

 measured fully twelve inches in circumfer- 

 ence. For cultivation, forcing, etc., see 

 Strawberry. 



Frames, Garden. See Cold Frames. 



Franci'scea. Named in honor of Francis, 

 Emperor of Austria. Nat. Ord. Scrophularia- 

 cem. 



A genus of green-house evergreen shrubs, 

 natives of Brazil. There ax-e several in culti- 

 vation, most of them having very showy, 

 salver-shaped, purple flowers. The roots, 

 and, to some extent, the leaves, are employed 

 in medicine. The tincture is bitter, purgative, 

 and emetic, and is poisonous in large doses. 

 From its peculiar properties it is called by the 

 Portuguese, "Vegetable Mercurj'," 



Franco'a. Named after F. Franco, a Spanish 

 physician and botanist of the sixteenth cen- 

 tury. Nat. Ord. Saxifragacece. 



A small genus of tender herbaceous peren- 

 nials, natives of Chili. They are found to 

 succeed best when treated as tender annuals, 

 as they can only be increased by seeds, which, 

 if sown early in a hot-bed, make good flowei-- 

 ing plants for autumn. The white or purple 

 flowers are produced on long spikes, and are 

 quite showy. 



Francoa'ceae. A natural order now placed as a 

 tribe of Saxifragacece. 



Frangipani-Shrub. Plumieria alba, and P. 

 rubra. 



Fra'ngula. A synonym of Rhamnus. 



Franke'nia. See Heath. Named after John 

 Frankenius, Professor of Botany at Upsal, who 

 first enumerated the plants of Sweden, 1638. 

 Nat. Ord. Frankeniaceoe. 



A small genus of hardy and half-hardy ever- 

 green trailers, growing in marshy places 

 throughout Europe and the Canary Islands. 

 Though verj' pretty, they have x-eceived but 

 little attention from florists. The very 

 small pink flowers are produced in axillary 

 clusters. Propagated by division. 



Frankenia'ceae. A small order of hex-bs or sub- 

 shrubs, chiefly natives of north Africa and 

 the south of Europe. They possess no prop- 

 erties of importance. 



Frankincense, or Olibanum Tree. Boswellia 

 Carteri, and other species. 



Fra'sera. Named after John Fraser, an inde- 

 fatigaVjle collector in this counti-y toward the 

 close of the last century. Nat. Ord. Gentian- 

 acem. 



F. CarolinensU, the best known species, is a 

 tall-growiiig, showy herbaceous plant. The 

 flowers are about one inch in diameter, of 

 light gi-eenish-yellow color, marked with small 

 brown-purple dots. It is commonly known 

 as Axnerican Columbo, and is common from 

 southwest New York to Wisconsin and south- 

 ward. Syn. F. Walteri. 



Fraxine'lla. See Dictamnus. 



Fra xinus. The Ash. From phraxis, a sepai-a- 

 tion ; in reference to the facility with which 

 the wood splits. Nat. Ord. OleacecB. 



This genus includes some of the most com- 

 mon forest trees throughout the United States. 



FRE 



They ai"e also common in Europe, Asia, and in 

 the north of Africa. The more common and 

 important of the native species are the follow- 

 ing: The White Ash, F. Americana, is a 

 beautiful tree, with trunk perfectly straight, 

 and usually undivided to the height of thirty 

 to forty feet. Solitary trees are often very 

 beautiful, being symmetrical and globular, 

 with dense foliage of a dull bluish-gi-een coloi-. 

 This species delights in a wax'in, i-ich soil, and 

 is rarely found in its natural state in any 

 other. The timber of this species is valuable 

 in the mechanic arts, where strength and 

 durability are required. The Black Ash, F. 

 sambucifolia, is a tree of medium size, usually 

 found in wet or swampy situations. It is of 

 but little value as an ornamental tree, and the 

 timber has little value except to split into 

 rails for fencing. The other native species 

 are of no special intei-est. The English Ash, 

 F. excelsior, is almost identical with our White 

 Ash. From it several varieties have origin- 

 ated ; one of weeping habit, F. excelsior pen- 

 dula, a very beautiful and desirable tx"ee for 

 the lawn. Some of the varieties with go.den, 

 and some with variegated foliage, are being 

 extensively planted, and are strongly recom- 

 mended for suburban grounds. 



Free. Not adhering to anything else ; not 

 adnai:« to any other body. 



Free'oia. Derivation of name not given. Nat. 

 Ord. Iridacece. 



A small genus of handsome bulbous plants 

 from the Cape of Good Hope, introduced 

 previously to 1815, at which time they were 

 grown in English gardens, and included 

 in the genus Gladiolus. The Garden says : 

 •'According to Mr. Baker, whose labors on 

 the Iris have rendered their study compai'- 

 atively easy, the genus Freesia has been 

 included in Gladiolus and Tritonia, as well as 

 having a goodly number of specific names. 

 These are all now reduced to two species, viz., 

 Freesia refracta and F. Leichtlinii. The for- 

 mer vax-ies considerably, judging from the 

 earlier illustrations of it, which, if coxTect, 

 would seem to include F. Leichtlinii. F. 

 refracta has pale yellow flowers, sometimes 

 with a greenish, sometimes a purplish 

 tint, while its vai-iety, F. r. alba, has flowers 

 of the purest white, Avith two orange-yel- 

 low flowers on the lower segments. Some- 

 times these blotches are absent." F. refracta 

 alba is the only species much cultivated ; this, 

 from its pure white flowers, that are produced 

 in the greatest abundance during the winter 

 season, is a valuable plaxit to grow for cut 

 flowei's. The flowers are produced on slender 

 stalks, just overtopping the foliage, and num- 

 ber fi'om three to six in a loose cluster. They 

 are tubular, thimble-shaped, about one and a 

 half inches in length ; their pei-fume is deli- 

 cious, sufficiently powerful to be pei-ceptible at 

 a distance fiom the plant. They are extremely 

 useful as cut flowers, for which the elegant 

 manner in which they ai'e borne on the stalks 

 admirably adapts them. They can be easily 

 grown in the ordinary green-house, the only 

 care required being to have the bulbs well 

 ripened before drying off, after flowering. It 

 is best to put several bulbs in a pot or pan. 

 If the latter is used, put eight or ten in an 

 eight-inch pan. They like a fibrous soil, 

 modei-ately rich, and need considex'able rest. 



