483 



Cyclamen, what are their names, and how are they to be distinguished ? 

 Will some more able botanist than myself reply to this ? 1 have never 

 seen the plant in a native locality, but have a fine root, purchased of 

 the late James Potter, and said by him to have been found in Sussex. 

 It was in full bloom in October, and bore scarcely any I'esemblance to 

 the figure in ' English Botany.'. — Edward Newman. 



Whether there exist two species of Cyclamen in England or not I 

 cannot say, never having had the pleasure of finding the Cyclamen 

 wild. There are, however, certainly two distinct species, C. europaeum 

 and C. hederaefolium. The following descriptions, translated from a 

 * Flora of the Canton of Vaud,' will clearly show the great difference 

 between these two species : — 



C. europ(Bum. C. hederafoUum. 



Leaves almost orbicular, heart- Leaves heart-shaped, acuminate 

 shaped, crenulate, appearing with or elongate, angular, and crenu- 

 the flowers ; corolla pink. Pe- late, appearing after the flowers ; 

 rennial: May and August. corolla pink or white. Perennial: 



September and October. 

 — H. L, de la Chaumette. 



Derivaiion of the Name " Osmunda" [Filices). 



The derivation of this name seems to be uncertain as yet. In the 

 last edition of the ' British Flora,' by Sir W. J. Hooker and Dr. 

 Walker-Arnott, it is supposed to have been derived from two Saxon 

 words, OS, signifying house, and mund, peace, " domestic peace." I 

 should feel much obliged to any of our learned botanists if they would 

 say whether the translation of the term, as in Linneus's ' Alphabetical 

 Table of the Etymology of Genera,' at the end of his ' Vegetable 

 Kingdom,' is not to be relied upon. He states there that it is derived 

 from the Latin osmundare, to wash the mouth. Is this at all likely to 

 be the proper derivation, and, if so, how would it be applied to the 

 fern ? — H. L. de la Chaumette. 



Wiltshire Locality for Sedum sexangulare. 



I have recently been applied to by various correspondents for spe- 

 cimens of Sedum sexangulare from the walls of Old Sarum ; also to 

 ascertain whether it is growing there in any great plenty. I have 



