AND GENERAL HORTICULTURE. 



497 



WIS 



dotted with gold ; and another species vrhich 

 grows only three or four feet high, and flow- 

 ers in July and August. W. fruiescens, a 

 native species, with bluish-purple flowers, of 

 which there is also a white variety, is com- 

 mon from Virginia to Illinois and southward. 

 It is an elegant plant of similar habit, though 

 not quite so productive of flowers, and, unlike 

 the other species, the flowers are developed 

 with the foliage. The English sparrow is 

 very fond of the \)uds of the Wistaria, and 

 sometimes robs the plant of much of its 

 beauty. All the Wistarias are increased read- 

 ily from seeds or from layers. Syn. Glycine. 



"Wista'ria. Tuberous-rooted. A common name 

 for Apios tuberosa. 



Witch or "Wych Elm. Ulmus montana. 



"Witch or Wych Hazel. See Hamarmlia. 



Witches' Fingers. A popular English name 

 for Digitalis purpurea. 



Witches' Thimble. A common name for Silene 

 maritima. 



Witch Knots. This name is given to the 

 curious tufted bunches of small twigs that fre- 

 quently occur on the larger branches of Birch, 

 Plum, Horn-beam and other trees. The twigs 

 are usually swollen, and both they and the 

 siclily-looking leaves upon them are duller 

 green than usual, and frequently show a 

 slight velvety surface. They are the work of 

 very minute Fungi, belonging to a lowly 

 group of Ascomycetes. The mycellium of the 

 Fungi lives on the tissues of the leaves and 

 bark of the host-plants, and the velvety ap- 

 pearance results from the outgrowth over the 

 whole epidermis of their organs of reproduc- 

 tion. 



Witheri'ngia. Commemorative of W. Withering, 

 a British botanical author, 1776. Nat. Ord. 

 SolanaeecB. 



A small genus of shrubs or small trees, 

 natives of South and Central America and the 

 West Indies. The species are now mostly 

 included under Solanum. 



Withe-Rod. A common name for Viburnum 

 nudum. 



Withy. Salix viminalis and S. fragilis. 



Witse'nia. In honor of M. Witsen, a Dutch 

 patron of botany. Nat. Ord. IridacecB. 



A small genus of green-house, herbaceous 

 plants, with showy blue, purple, or yellow 

 flowers, natives of the Cape of Good Hope. 

 W. corymbosa, introduced from southern 

 Africa in 1803, closely resembles the Iris, but 

 has small flowers. It flowers during summer, 

 and is propagated by division. 



Woad. Dyer's. A common name for Isatis 

 tinctoria. 



Woad- Waxen or Wood-Tvaxen. One of the 



common names of Genista tinctoria. 

 Woad. Wild. Reseda luteola. 

 Wolf-berry. The popular name of Symphoricar- 



pus occidentalis. 

 Wolfs-bane. See Aconitum. Known also by 



the common name of Monk's-hood. 

 Wolfs Cla^w. A common name for Lycopodium 



clavatum. 

 Wood Ashes. See Fertilizers. 

 Wood Betony. The common nam,; of Pedicu- 



laris Canadensis, which see. 



WOR 



Voodbine. The popular name of Lonicera 

 irata, one of our native Honeysuckles. A 

 name also inappropriately applied to Ampe- 

 iopsis quinqusfolia and Bignonia radicans. 



Wood Fern. The genus Aspidium; also a 

 name applied to Polypodium vulgare. 



Woodfo'rdia. Named for J. Woodford, who 

 wrote an account of the plants around Edin- 

 burgh, Scotland, in 1824. Nat. Ord. Lytkror 

 ce<je. 



W. floribunda, the only species, is a low, 

 shrubby plant, with long, spreading branches 

 and bright scarlet flowers in short panicled 

 cymes, on axillary peduncles. It is a native of 

 India, and requires a stove-house to grow it 

 to perfection. It can be increased by cuttings 

 or seeds. 



Wood Grass. A common name of some of the 

 varieties or species of Sorghum, or Broom 

 Corn. 



Wood Lily. A common name for Pyrola minor 



and various species of Trillium. 



Wood Nettle. See Laportea Canadensis. 

 Wood Pea or Wood Vetch. Orobus sylvatica. 

 Woodruff. See Asperula. 

 Wood Rush. See Luzula. 

 Wood Sage. See Teucrium. 



Wo'oisia. Named in honor of Joseph Woods, 

 a British botanist. Nat. Ord. Polypodiaceoe. 



A small genus of very beautiful, low-growing 

 Ferns. Several of the more beautiful species 

 are natives of this country, and are common 

 in the mountains, north and west. Several 

 species are also found in Europe and Brazil. 

 They are easily grown in the green-house, 

 and are increased by division or from spores. 



Wood Sorrel. See Oxalis. 



Wood Violet. A common name for Viola syU 

 vatica. 



Woodwa'rdia. Chain Fern. Named in honor 

 of Thomas Jenkinson Woodward, an English 

 botanist. Nat. Ord. Polypodiacew. 



Very handsome native and exotic Ferns of 

 easy culture. Some of the species produce 

 little hairy bulbs at the axils of the leaves, 

 which either drop off and strike root in the 

 ground, or vegetate while attached to the 

 parent plant, a feature that is common in 

 many other Ferns. 



Woolly Beard Grass. See Erianthtis. 



Working Roots. This term, we believe, was first 

 used by the author in Practical Floriculture, 

 to distinguish the young white roots emitted 

 from the dry or old roots, and is well appli- 

 cable from the fact that it is only when these 

 young white roots are emitted that a plant 

 begins to grow, the buds or shoots starting 

 simultaneously with these young roots. For 

 example, when we take a dormant Rose that 

 has been grown in a pot, no matter how well 

 it may be supplied with old roots, there is no 

 healthy development of leaves and flowers 

 until the emission of young roots. When we 

 plant out such plants as Celery, Cabbage or 

 Strawberries, in the garden, the young or 

 "Working Roots" emitted from the main 

 roots are certain indications ^nat the plant 

 has started, and that their growth and future 

 development is fairly assured against drought 

 or other causes ; but if tne " Working Roots" 



