518 



THE DICTIONARY OF GARDENING, 



EPISTEPHIUM (from epi, upon, and stephas, a 

 crown; at the base of the perianth there is a small 

 toothed calyoulus). ORD. Orchidece. A genus of half-a- 

 dozen species of beautiful stove terrestrial Orchids, allied 

 to Sobralia, natives of Southern tropical America. Boots 

 fleshy, fibrous, underground. Perhaps the only one which 

 has been introduced is that here described. It thrives 

 in good fibrous loam and sand ; perfect drainage and 

 copious supplies of water are essential elements in its 

 culture. Propagated by division. 

 E. Williams!! (WUliams's).* fl. bright reddish-purple, large; 



spike terminal, six to eight-flowered. 1. very dark, shining. 



h. 1ft. Bahia, 1864. (B. M. 5485.) 



EQUISETACE.2E. An order of interesting crypto- 

 gams, which takes its name from the genus Equisetum, 

 the only one the order contains. There are about twenty- 

 five species, chiefly found in temperate Northern regions ; 

 a few are sub-tropical. One of the latter group (E. Martii), 

 recently introduced to Kew from Brazil, attains, in its 

 native habitats, the enormous height of 30ft. "Dutch 

 Bushes," used for scouring and polishing, are the stems 

 of E. hyemale ; their roughness is duo to a deposit of 

 siliceous particles in the epidermis. 



EQUISETUM (from equi, of a horse, and seta, a hair). 

 Horsetail. ORD. Equisetacece. A genus of leafless herbs, 

 with a perennial, usually creeping rootstock, and erect, 

 Bush-like hollow and jointed sterna, marked with longi- 

 tudinal furrows, with a sheath at each joint, inclosing 

 the base of the next internode. Some of the species of 

 this neglected genus are well worth growing in wet, 

 shady spots, and in similar situations in the rock garden. 

 Increased by division. 



E. Tnaxlmnm (largest). rones large. Sterile stems 3ft. to 

 6ft. high, twenty to forty-grooved, furnished with whorls of 

 slender, sub-erect branches. Fertile stem stout, about 1ft. high, 

 with many pale-brown sheaths ; teeth two-ribbed. Northern 

 hemisphere (Britain). A very fine plant when well grown. 

 SYN. JE. Telmateia. 



E. sylvaticum (wood).* cones ovoid-oblong, obtuse. Stems 

 ten to eighteen-grooved ; branches recurved or deflexed, 

 divided; stem sheaths lax; teeth long, obtuse; teeth of branch 

 sheaths three-ribbed to the top. Northern hemisphere (Britain). 

 A very pretty plant for pot culture in a conservatory. Readily 

 recognised by the elegant appearance of the whorls of com- 

 pound, recurved branches. 

 E. Telmateia (Telmateia). A synonym of K maximum. 



EQUITANT. When the two sides of a leaf are 

 brought together, and adhere except at the base, where 

 they inclose an opposite leaf, whose sides are in the 

 same state. Hence they look as if they rode on each 

 other. 



ERAGROSTIS (from eros, love, and agrostis, grass ; 

 alluding to the pretty dancing spikelets). Love Grass. 

 ORD. Graminece. A genus of about 100 species of annual 

 or perennial grasses (of which two or three are almost 

 cosmopolitan), found in all warm and temperate regions. 

 Some make decidedly pretty garden plants ; and are easily 

 grown from seeds, sown in the open, in spring. The best 

 are : cegyptiaca, capillaris, elegans, and megastachya. 



ERANTHEMUM (from eran, to love, and anthemon, 

 a flower; referring to the beauty of the flowers). ORD. 

 Acanthacece. A genus containing about thirty species of 

 handsome stove plants, of elegant and free-flowering 

 habit. They are found in the warmer regions of both 

 hemispheres. Propagated by cuttings, which may be 

 inserted at any time from March to June. Being soft- 

 wooded subjects, the young shoots root readily in peaty 

 soil, if placed in a close frame, or under a bell glass, 

 where there is a bottom heat of 70deg. When rooted, 

 the plants should be potted off singly in Sin. pots, in a 

 compost of equal parts leaf mould, peat, and loam, 

 with the addition of a little sand. If again placed in 

 bottom heat, the plants root and grow rapidly. As 

 they advance in size, they should be potted on, and 

 stood near the glass, supplying an abundance of water 



Eranthemum continued. 



in warm weather. This induces a stubby growth, which 

 favours free-flowering. A side shelf in the plant stove, 

 near the light, or a raised bed in the same structure, are 

 good positions for bringing Eranthemums into flower. The 

 plants may be cut back after blossoming, and kept some- 

 what dry for a time ; they should then be potted into 

 larger sizes for another season. Some species are culti- 

 vated chiefly for their handsome variegated foliage, and 

 others for their floral beauty. E. atropurpureum is a 

 fine species, with dark coloured foliage ; and E. pulchellum 

 has beautiful blue flowers, that are produced in winter 

 and early spring. 



E. albo-marginatnm ( white-margined).* I. oblong-elliptic, 4in. 

 to 6in. long, 2in. to Sin. broad, broadly margined with white, and 



o n. ong, n. to n. roa, roaly margine 

 irregularly suffused with grey. Polynesia, 1880. 



E. Anderson! (Anderson's), fl. numerously disposed in long ter- 

 minal leafless cymulose spikes or panicles ; corolla with the tw 



upper and lateral lobes pure white, and the lower segments very 

 thickly dotted with crimson-lake and broadly margined with 

 white. November. I. ovate-oblong. India, 1868. (B. M. 5771.) 



E. aspersum (sprinkled).* fl. white, spotted with purple, pro- 

 duced freely in short axillary clusters ; lower larger lobe rich deep 

 purple. March. I. ovate-oblong, 2in. long, dark green, veined 

 at thi 



at the margins. Solomon Isles, 1867. 

 growing species. (B. M. 5711.) 



E. atropurpureum (dark purple).* I. and steins dark lurid 

 purple. Polynesia, 1875. 



E. cinnabarinum (cinnabar).* fl. reddish-pink, disposed in loose 

 panicles from the ends of the branches. I. ovate-lanceolate, 

 acuminate, deep green. Martaban, 1880. A very handsome 

 species. (R. G. 916.) There is a pretty variety (ocellatum) of 

 this, having crimson flowers with a white eye (B. M. 5921). 



E. Cooper! (Cooper's). fl. white, handsomely spotted with lines of 

 small purple dots, axillary. June. I. Sin. long, 5in. wide, narrow- 

 lanceolate, dark green ; margins deeply cut. New Caledonia, 

 1864. A handsome sub-shrubby plant. (B. M. 5467.) 



E. crenulatum grandiflorum (large-flowered scolloped). 

 /. pinkish-lilac ; racemes terminal, aggregated ; corolla funnel- 

 shaped, with a very slender, almost filiform, white tube, dilated 

 at the throat ; pedicels very short, small, approximate or remote, 

 subtended by one or two small bracts. I. rather long-petioled 

 ovate, sometimes cordate at the_ base, or lanceolate, acuminate, 

 pennivemed, generally quite entire at the margin, h. 1ft. to 2ft. 

 Moulmein, 1864. A moderate-sized glabrous shrub. 



E. eldorado (El Dorado). I. yellow, mottled and veined with 

 green. Polynesia, 1877. 



E. laxiflorum (loose-flowered), fl. purplish, disposed in terminal 

 panicles. I. ovate-oblong, tapering at both ends. h. 2ft. to 4ft. 

 Polynesia, 1877. (B. M. 6336.) 



E. Moore! (Moore's). I with a dull sap-green centre, which 

 gradually softens off to a bright canary-yellow. It is very curious 

 and distinct. Polynesia. 



E. pulchellum (pretty).* fl. of a rich bright blue, very freely pro- 

 duced. April. I. petiolate, broadly ovate, dark green ; surface 

 somewhat wrinkled, h. 2ft. East India, 1796. One of the prettiest 

 of the genus for winter decoration. (A. B. R. ii. 88.) 



E. reticulatum (reticulated).* I. ovate-lanceolate, green, with a 

 network of gold. Polynesia, 1875. SYN. E. Schvmburgkii. (I. H. 



E. Schomburgkii (Schomburgk's). A synonym of E. reticulatum. 



E. tricolor (three-coloured). I. opposite or ternate, oblong-ovate, 

 olive-green, blotched irregularly with greyish-purple and salmony- 

 pink ; tints more or less varied. Polynesia, 1876. 



E. tuberculatum (tuberculated).* fl. pure white, nearly 14111. 

 across. I. dense, small, oval. New Caledonia, 1863. An elegant 

 species, branching freely into slender twigs, tuberculated. (B. M. 

 5405.) 



I. lanceolate, with an irregular outline, 



E. variabile (variable). 

 3i 



3in. to 4in. long, lin. broad, variegated with 

 bronzy-green, intermixed with creamy-white, cri 

 pink. 1879. A slender-growing plant, varying 



hite, crimson, and rosy- 

 considerably in 



ariegated with different tints of 

 rean 



colour and habit. (P. M. B. xiii."75.) d 



ERANTHIS (from er, spring, and anthos, a flower; 

 flowers produced early in the year). Winter Aconite. 

 ORD. Ranunculacece. A genus of a couple of species of 

 pretty little hardy tuberous-rooted perennials. Flowers 

 yellow, solitary ; sepals narrow. Leaves divided. These 

 plants, from their very early flowering habit, are ex- 

 tensively grown for naturalising in shrubby or woody 

 situations, for which they are well adapted. Increased by 

 division. 



E. hyemalis (winter).* /. yellow, sessile ; sepals six to eight, 

 oblong, petal-like ; petals six to eight, very short, tubular. 



