An Encyclopedia of Horticulture. 



Abobra — contin ved. 

 tuberous roots may be stored during winter in a green- 

 house or frame. See also Gourds. 



A. vlridiflora (green-floweredV /'. pale green, frasTant ; females 

 succeeded by small oval scarlet frints, which are about as large as a 

 filbert. I, dark green, flossy, much divided into narrow segments. 

 South America. A rapid growiu'^ plant, adndrahly ad.-ipted for 

 tnaining overarliours or trellis-work. It is a very pretty form of 

 ormmiental gourd. 



ABORTION. An imperfect formation, or the non- 

 formation of an organ ; any fruit or produce tliat does not 

 come to maturity, or anything whicli fails in its progress 

 before it is matirred, frequently from a defect in the male 

 or female flowers. 



ABRAXAS GROSSULARIATA. See Goose> 

 berry or Mag'pie Moth. 



ABRICOCE, A former mode of writing Apricot. 



ABROMA (from a, not, and hmmn, food ; from its im- 

 wholesomeness). Okd. Sterctdiacea:. Handsome, free- 

 flowering evergreen trees, with hairy lobed leaves, and 

 extra axill,iry or terminal few-flowered peduncles. Of easy 

 culture, in a stove temperature, in loam and peat soil. 

 Propagated by seeds or cuttings, the former sown in March, 

 the latter made in April from half -ripened wood, and placed 

 nndcr a bell glass. 



A augnsta (smooth-stalked).* jf. dingy purple, drooping. 

 August. I. lower, cordate, three to five lobed ; upper, ovate- 

 lanceolate, undivided, h. 10ft. East India, 1770. 



A fastuosa (prickly-stalked), jl. dark purple. June. I. lower, 

 cordate, acutely five lobed ; upper, ovate, entire, h. 10ft. New 

 Holland, 1800. 



ABRONIA (from abros, delicate ; referring to its in- 

 Tolucrimi). Sand Verbena. Okd. Nyctaijinacea;. A small 

 genus of seven species, mostly natives of California, four 

 of which only are known in general cultivation. Tbny are 



Fig. 1. Abronia umbellata, showing Flower and Habit. 



of a dwarf trailing habit, producing fhowy blossoms in 

 dense verbena-like clusters. CoroUa funnel-shaped ; limb 

 spreading. They succeed best in light sandy soil, in a posi- 

 tion fully exposed ; if well drained, the rockery is perhaps 

 the best place. Increased by seeds, the outer skin of which 

 should be peeled off before sowing: sow during autumn in 

 pots of sandy soil, and keep in a frame until tlie follow- 

 ing spring, when they may be placed in their flowering 

 quarters ; or by young cuttings, sot in spring, and also in 

 sandy soil. 



A arenaria (sand-loving).* /. lemon-yellow, about iin. long, in 

 dense clusters, with a noney-like fragrance. July. l. broadly 

 ovate, or leniform, on short, thick petioles, h. 9in. to 18in. 1865. 

 Half-hardy perennial. bY.N. A. lati, oUa. 



Abronia—coyitinued. 



A. iVagrans (fragrant).* Jl. pure white, in terminal and axillary 

 clusters, very delicately perfumed, expanding in the evening. 

 May. 1865. A perennial, more or less erect in growth, forming 

 lartre branching tufts from 1ft. to 2ft. high. Imported seeds 

 only of this species will grow. 



A. latifoUa (l^road-Ieaved). A synonym of A. arenaria, 



A. pulchella (pretty), fl. pink. July. h. 6in. 1848. 



A. rosea (rose-coloured), tl. rose-colouretl. -lune. h. 6in. 1847. 

 An unimportant species. 



A. umbellata (umbel-flowered).* jl rcsy pink, in dense tirminal 

 clusters, slightly scented. April. I. oval or oblong. It. 6in. to 

 24iii. 1823. An elegant prostrate half-hardy annual; but under 

 Greenhouse culture it is a perenni.al. SVN. Tricratus admirabiiis. 

 See Fig 1. 



ABRUPT. Suddenly terminating, as abruptly pinnate ; 

 when pinnate leaves are without a terminal or odd leaflet. 



ABRUS (from abros, soft, in reference to the extreme 

 softness of the leaves). Own. Leguminosce. A very orna- 

 mental and delicate much branched deciduous stove climber, 

 whose roots have the vii'tues of the common liquorice. 

 Leaves abruptly pinnate, bearing many pairs of leaflets. 

 Requires a strong heat to keep it in a growing, healthy 

 condition, and to flower it well ; and thrives best in sandy 

 loan}. Increased by cuttings under a hand glass, in sand, 

 or seeds raised in heat. 



A. precatorlus (prayer). fl. pale purple, butterfly -shaped, 

 disposed in axillary clusters. Seeds bright scarlet, with 

 a black spot at the base, used by the Buddhists for 

 niakina rosaries, whence the specific name. RIarch to May. 

 I. leaflets ligulate, oblong. h. 12ft. East Indies, 1680. 

 Varieties are now and then met with having rose coloured 

 or white flowers. 



ABSORFTIOnr. The action by whicli liquids and 

 gases become incorporated with various bodies, through 

 molecular or otlier invisible means, to which function all 

 parts of a growing plant contribute, the roots moro 

 especially. 



ABXJTA (native name). Oed. Menispermaceai. A 

 strong growing ornamental stove evergreen climber. Used 

 medicinally in Cayenne. Flowers dicEcious, fascicled, 

 males raoemosely panicled ; females loose and simply 

 racemose. It grows freely in a mixture of loam and 

 peat. Cuttings will root readily if planted in a pot of 

 sand, with a hand glass placed over them, in heat. 

 About half-a-dozen species are known. 

 A. rufescens (rusty-coloured), fl. grey-velvety on the outside, 



dark purple on the inside. March. ;. ovate ; under surface 



brownish, h. 10ft. Cayenne, 1820. 



ABUTILON (Arabic name for a plant analogous to 

 the Marsh Mallow). Okd. Malvaceae. Very showy, de- 

 corative, and free-growing shrubs, both for the greenhouse 

 and outside culture. Calyx naked, five-cleft, usually 

 angular ; style multifid at apex. The many beautiful 

 hybrids (of which Fig. 2 represents a group) now 

 in cultivation, far supersede the true species. Ctdti- 

 vation : Few plants are more easily grown and worthy 

 of liberal treatment than these. The best soil for them 

 is equal parts turfy loam, peat, and leaf mould, with 

 some gritty sand. They may either be grown in pots, or 

 planted out ; but in all cases thorough drainage is indis- 

 pensable, as they require an abundance of water, and stag- 

 nancy must be guarded against. At the end of May they 

 may be planted outside, when they will flower profusely 

 through the summer. In a free growing ajid flowering state 

 they enjoy weak manure water. From the latter part of 

 autumn till early spring they may be kept almost dry with- 

 out injury, though in a warm conservatory some of the later 

 struck plants will go on flowering throughout the greater 

 part of the winter ; or plants may be specially prepared 

 for winter flowering. They are admirably adapted for 

 forming standards of various heights, from 2ft. to 6ft. 

 Some of the taller sorts are very usefxil for training under 

 roof rafters. As pillar plants, too, very loosely trained, so 

 as to allow the upper and side branches to droop to a con- 

 siderable distance from the pillar, they are very effective. 

 Propagation : They strike readily from cuttings made 



