46 



THE DICTIONARY OF GARDENING, 



Alchemilla continued. 



Hardy herbaceous perennials, with corymbose, apetalous 

 flowers ; calyx tubular, with the tube rather contracted at 

 the apex. Leaves palmate or lobed. Of very easy culture, 

 in common, but well drained soil. They are well adapted 

 for rockwork and planting near the front of borders. Easily 

 increased by divisions of the roots, and seeds. All here 

 described are hardy, except A. sibbaldicefolia. 

 A. alplna (alpine).* Jl. greenish, small ; corymbose. June. 



L digitate; leaflets five to seven, lanceolate-cuneated, obtuse, 



serrated, clothed with white satiny down beneath. h. 6m. 



Britain. 

 A. pnbescens (pubescent), ft. greenish; corymbs terminal, 



crowded, clothe <T with a coating of long weak hairs. June. 



L roundish-renifonn, seven-lobed, toothed, silky beneath, h. bin. 



to Sin. Caucasus (Higher), 1813. 



A. sericea (silky).' A. greenish, corymbose. June. I. digitate ; 

 leaflets seven, lanceolate-obovate, obtuse, 



, connected at the base, 



serrated at the apex, clothed with satiny down beneath, h. about 

 6in. Caucasus, 1813. Much larger in every part than A. alpina, 

 to which it is closely allied. 



A. Slbbaldlwfolla (Sibbaldia-leaved). ft. white, conglomerate ; 

 stem corymbosely many-flowered at the apex. July. I. deeply 

 three-parted, clothed with adpressed pubescence beneath ; seg- 

 ments deeply serrated, lateral ones bifid, h. 6in. Mexico, 1823. 

 A greenhouse species, which should be grown hi small well-drained 

 pots, with a mixture of leaf soil and sandy loam. 



ALDEA. A synonym of Fhacelia (which see). 

 ALDER. See Alnus. 



ALETRIS (from aletron, meal; referring to the 

 powdery appearance of the whole plant). The American 

 Star Grass. SYN. Tritonia. OBD. Hcemodoraceas. In- 

 teresting hardy herbaceous perennials, closely allied to the 

 Amaryllids. Perianth half-inferior, tubular ; limb spreading 

 or funnel-shaped ; stamens inserted at base of perianth seg- 

 ments, filaments flat. They delight in a sunny but damp 

 situation, with peat, leaf mould, and sand, and are slowly 

 increased by division of the roots. 

 A. anrea (golden).* ft. yellow, bell-shaped, h. 1ft. to 2ft. North 



America, 1811. Similar in habit to A. farinosa. 

 A. capensis (Cape). See Veltheimia viridifolia. 

 A. farinosa (mealy).* Jl. white, bell -shaped, in a terminal spiked 



raceme, upon stems lift, to 2ft high. 1. lanceolate, ribbed. 



North America, 1768. A pretty species, forming a spreading tuft, 



and possessing intensely bitter properties. 



ALEURITES (from the Greek word signifying floury ; 

 all the parts of the plant seeming to be dusted with a 

 farinaceous substance). OBD. Euphorbiaceaa. A handsome 

 stove evergreen tree, with small, white, clustered flowers. 

 Leaves alternate, stalked, exstipulate. Of easy culture 

 in a loamy soil. Eipe cuttings, with their leaves un- 

 touched, root readily in sand, under a hand-glass. 

 A. triloba (three-lobed).* Candleberry Tree. I three-lobed, 



4in. to Sin. long. A. 30ft. to 40ft Moluccas and South Pacific 



Islands, 1793. 



ALEXANDERS. See Smyrnium. 



ALEXANDRIAN LAUREL. See Ruscus race- 

 xnosus. 



ALGAROBA BEAN, or CAROB. See Ceratonia. 



ALGAROBIA. Included under Frosopis (which see). 



ALHAGI (its Arabian name). OBD. Leguminosce. 

 Manna Tree. Greenhouse shrubs or sub-shrubs, with 

 simple leaves, and minute stipulas. Flowers few, in clusters. 

 They thrive in pots filled with a mixture of sand, loam, and 

 peat. Young cuttings will root in sand, with a bell glass 

 placed over them, in heat ; but by seeds, if they can be 

 procured, sown in a hotbed, is a preferable mode of in- 

 creasing the plants. They may be placed out of doors 

 during the summer months. 

 A. cameloram (camels), ft. red, few, disposed in racemes 



along the peduncles. July. I. lanceolate, obtuse, simple ; 



fsS mmut6 ' Stem herbace us- A. 1ft. to 2ft. Caucasus, 



A. maurorum (Moors'). 



about the ' 



Alliagi conl in ued. 



Firypt &c The Manna is a natural exudation from the branches 



and leaves of this shrub, which takes place only in very hot 



weather. 



ALIBERTZA (in honour of M. Alibert, a celebrated 

 French chemist, author of " Traite des Fievres Attaxiques," 

 wherein he mentions the effects of Peruvian bark). OBD. 

 Cinchonacece. A small stove evergreen tree, very orna- 

 mental when in flower. Flowers solitary or fascicled, 

 dioecious; corolla leathery, tubular. A mixture of loam 

 and peat is the best soil. Cuttings strike root freely, 

 in a similar kind of soil, under a hand glass, in a moist 

 heat. 

 A. cdulis (edible), fl. cream-coloured, solitary or in fascicles, 



terminating the branches, almost sessile. June. Jr. edible. 



I. opposite, leathery, oblong, acuminated, shining above, and 



bearded in the axils of the veins beneath, h. 12ft. Guiana, 



1823. 



ALICANT SODA. See Salsola. 



ALISMA (from alis, the Celtic word for water). Water 



Plantain. SYN. Actinocarpus. OBD. Alismacece. A genus 



entirely composed of hardy aquatic species. Flowers three- 



petaled. Leaves parallel -veined. Increased by division or 



/I. purple in the middle, and reddish 

 in 



racemes along the axillary, 

 uly. I. obovate-oblong, simple; spines BM 

 and longer than those of the above species 2ft. to 



FIG. 56. ALISMA NATA.NS. 



seeds. The latter should be sown in a pot immersed in 

 water, filled with loam, peat, and sand, and the former root 

 freely in a moist loamy soil. The British species are most 

 easily grown. 



A. Tiatatiq (floating).* ft. white ; peduncles simple. July. I. ellip. 

 tical-obtuse ; stem ones floating, on long stalks, scarcely nerved; 



