114 CYCL0B0T1IEA ALBA. 



which will produce the number of blossoms shown by our artist ; usually there 

 are but six upon the same stem. The flowers are drooping, of a globular form, 

 and about one and a-half to two inches in diameter. The three petals are 

 externally convex, aud have their edges closely approximated, being rarely 

 separated to a greater degree than shown in our figure. In colour, they are of 

 a silky white, with a tinge of green near the base; they are bearded on their 

 inner surface with long white hairs, which under the microscope have a 

 flattened, ribband-like form. The three sepals are of a membranous texture, 

 oval pointed form and of a pale green with a tinge of purple. 



The stamens are six in number, with yellow anthers, attached by their base 

 to the filament, as in the Tulip. The ovarium is oblong, bluntly triangular, 

 with intermediate furrows, and terminated by three short spreading stigmas, 

 Seeds of an oval form, not winged. It flowers from Midsummer to the middle 

 or end of July. 



"We revert for a moment to the curious nectariferous cavity which, as already 

 observed, is of a different form to that of the C. barbata. In alba, it appears as a 

 linear or oval depression in the petal , at a short distance from its base, traversed 

 horizontally by four or five fringes, the intervening spaces being filled with a 

 sweet fluid. Our artist has represented an enlarged section of this organ, which 

 will serve to convey a tolerable idea of its structure. Under the microscope it 

 presents a beautiful wax-like appearance, and the whole petal appears to be 

 traversed by yellowish glandular duets. 



The Cyclolothra alba is quite hardy, but the bulbs suffer from excessive wet ; 

 when planted in the open borders, it should therefore be covered with a small 

 hand light, or empty pot, during long continued rains in autumn and winter. It 

 does well in a mixture of peat and sandy loam, and should be planted in a warm 

 well-drained border. If the bulbs are removed from the ground after the foliage 

 has withered, they must be replanted not later than the end of October, as they 

 usually commence their growth at an early period. It may also be grown in pots, 

 and in this case may be protected in a frame during the winter months. Seeds are 

 generally ripened, by which, as well as by offsets, it may be increased. The seeds 

 are best sown as soon as ripe, but in that case the young plants must be kept in a 

 frame through the winter. If the seed is preserved until spring, it will, however, 

 vegetate without much trouble, aided by a little heat. The C. barbata, of which 

 we have more than once spoken, is remarkable for producing numerous bulbils in 

 the axils of the leaves, by which it may be propagated, but they do not occur in 

 the present species ; whether they are found in the other members of the genus 

 we are unaware. 



Beside the C. alba and 0. barbata, there are four others ; monoph/lla, lutea, and 

 pulchella, with yellow flowers, and purpurea, with purplish green blossoms, but if 



