O R N 



O R N 



The three first sorts are useful as culinary 

 plants, as well as ornamental m the borders 

 or the pleasure ground : and the other kinds 

 afford variety in the green-house collections. 



ORNITHOGAL1 M, a L ,im> containing 

 plams or' the bulbous-rooted, flowery, herba- 

 ceous, perennial kind. 



U belongs to the class and order Hexandria 

 ta, and ranks in the natural order of 

 Corona) ice . 



The characters arc: that there is no calyx: 

 the corolla has six petals, lanceolate, upright 

 below the middle, above it spreading, perma- 

 nent, losing their colour: the stamina have 

 six upright filaments, alternately widening at 

 the base, shorter than the corolla: anthcis 

 simple : the pistillum is an angulai germ : style 

 awl-shaped, permanent : stigma blunt: the pe- 

 ricarpium is a roundish capsule, angular, three- 

 celled, three-valved : the seeds many and 

 roundish. 



The species cultivated are: 1. 0. umleUatum, 

 Umbclled Star of Bethlehem ; 2. 0. luteum, 

 Yellow Star of Bethlehem ; 3. 0. minimum, 

 Small Star of Bethlehem ; 4. 0. Pyrenaicum, 

 Pyrenean Star of Bethlehem ; 5. 0. latifoliiim , 

 Broad-leaved Star of Bethlehem; C>. O.pyr ami- 

 dale, Pyramidal Star of Bethlehem ; ',. 0. 

 intifoliinn, One-leafed Star of Bethlehem ; 8. 

 0. nutans, Neapolitan Star of Bethlehem ; 9. 

 O.Capense, Cape Ornithogalum; 10. O.aureum, 

 Golden Star of Bethlehem. 



The first has a solid bulb, having smaller 

 bulbs joining to it : the root-leaves (sometimes 

 five) soft, keeled, or convex on the outside and 

 channelled within, with a white silvery streak, 

 from one to two lines in width, and above a 

 foot in length, linear, bright green : the scape 

 upright, round, very smooth, a long span or 

 a foot in height, terminating at top in alter- 

 nate peduncles, very long and broad ; all toge- 

 ther forming a sort of corymb, resembling an 

 irregular umbel, but not springing from the 

 same point, the lower ones being longer: the 

 flow ers are all nearly of the same height ; they 

 are one -flowered, and each has a white, mem- 

 branaceous, lanceolate, very large bracte. 

 Woodward remarks that it is improperly called 

 urn tiUatum, as the flowers are in a most evident 

 spike (or rather corymb). It is a native of the 

 southern parts of Europe, Sec., flowering in April 

 and May. 



The second species has the root-leaves gene- 

 rally single, and longer than the stem, which is 

 from four to six inches high : the stem-leaves 

 two, three, or four, one very large, the other 

 .smaller, all unequal ; fringed with fine white 

 .hairs : from these arise a few fruit-stalks, (three 



to seven) each supporting one flower, and form- 

 ing an umbel. It is a native of most parts of 

 Euroj ; ing in April. 



Its roots have been u^i\ lor food in times oi 

 scarcity, in Sw eden. 



In the third, according to Miller, the bull 

 not larger than peas. There is one or two nar- 

 row kccl-sh. , live inches long, 

 dt' a grayish colour, arising from them. The 

 -talk is angular, about four inches high, having 

 two narrow keel-shaped leave.-, just below the 

 flowers, w bich are-disposcd man umbel on branch- 

 ing peduncles, yellow within hut of a purplish 

 green on the outside ; they appear in May, and 

 are succeeded by small triangular capsules tilled 

 with r ddish uneven seeds. Jt is a native of 

 Sweden eve. 



The fourth spi 1 ies has a naked stem, a foot 

 and half or two feet high : the flowers are in a 

 long spike on slender peduncles, each arising 

 from a membranaceous hall-embracing bracte, 

 broad at the base, tapering to a point : the bulb 

 pretty large, with several long keeled leaves 

 coming out from it and spreading on the 

 ground ; among these comes out a single naked 

 stalk about two feet long, sustaining a long loose 

 spike of flowers of a yellowish green colour, 

 on pretty long peduncles, and spreading wide 

 from the principal stalk. The flowers have an 

 agreeable scent, and appear in May. It is a na- 

 tive of some parts of Europe. 



1 he Gfth has a large bulb ; the root-leaves 

 are several, broad, sword-shaped, spreading on 

 the ground : the stalk thick, strong, between 

 two and three feet high, bearing a long spike of 

 large white (lowers, upon long pedicels : the 

 leaves are a foot long, and more than two inches 

 in breadth. It has been obverved by Clusias, 

 with above one hundred flowers on a spike'. It 

 is a native of Egypt and Arabia, flowering in 

 June. 



The sixth species has a very large oval bulb, 

 from which arise several long keeled leaves, of 

 a dark green colour ; in the middle of these 

 springs up a naked stalk, near three feet high, 

 terminated by a long conical spike of white 

 flowers, on pretty long pedicels. It grows na- 

 turally in Spain and Portugal, flowering in 

 June. 



The seventh has an ovate bulb, the size of 

 a hazel nut: the leaf is upright, flat, broad- 

 lanceolate, blunt, naked, ciliate, sheathing the 

 scape at the base : the scape upright, round, 

 longer than the leaf, terminated by a few- 

 flowered raceme ; the flowers peduncled, alter- 

 nate. It is a native of the Cape of Good 

 Hope. 



The eighth species has a pretty large, coin - 

 Z 2 



