24 



THE DICTIONARY OF GARDENING, 



Fraxinus continued. 



slender; leaflets five. Northern China, 1880. 

 (B. M. 6678.) 

 F. nigra (black). A synonym of F. pubescent. 



A small tree. 



FIG. 34. FLOWERING BRANCH OF FRAXINUS ORNUS (MANNA ASH). 



F. Ornus (Ornus). Manna Ash. fl. greenish-white, complete or 

 hermaphrodite; peduncles axillary, shorter than the leaves. 

 May and June. Samaras brown. I., leaflets lanceolate or elliptic, 

 attenuated, serrated, stalked, entire at the base, yillous or downy 

 beneath. Young branches purplish or livid, with yellow dots. 

 A. 20ft. to 30ft. South Europe, 1730. A very handsome and 

 free-flowering tree. SYNS. F. argentea, F. rotundtfolia, and 

 Ornus europcea. See Fig. 34. (W. D. B. 2, 107.) 



F. oxycarpa (sharp-fruited). A synonym of F. oxyphylla. 



F. oxyphylla (sharp-leaved), ft. greenish-yellow, naked. May. 

 Samaras lanceolate, attenuated at both ends, mucronate. I. dark 

 glossy green, produced in tufts at the ends of the branches; 

 leaflets two to three pairs, almost sessile, lanceolate, acuminated, 

 serrated. Branchlets green, with white dots. A. 30ft. to 40ft 

 Caucasus, 1815. SYN. F. oxycarpa. 



F. o. parvifolia (small-leaved), ft. greenish-yellow, naked. 

 May, June. Samaras narrow, gradually widening to the apex, and 

 retuse there. I., leaflets four to five pairs, petiolate, oblong and 

 lanceolate, sharply serrated ; serratures mucronate. Branches 

 dark purple, h. 30ft. to 50ft. Aleppo, 1710. SYN. F. lenliscifolia. 



F. pallida (pale). A synonym of F. platycarpa. 



F. pauciflora (few-flowered). A synonym of F. platycarpa. 



F. pennsylvanlca (Pennsylvanian). A synonym of F. pubescens. 



F. platycarpa (broad-fruited). Carolina Water Ash. ft. 

 greenish-yellow. May. Samaras broadly winged, 2in. long, 

 acute at both ends. I., leaflets almost sessile, very distinctly 

 serrated, elliptic-lanceolate, 2in. long, lin. broad, h. 30ft. to 

 50ft. Eastern United States, 1724. SYNS. F. caroliniana, F. 

 pallida, F. pauciflora, and F. triptera. 



F. potamophila (swamp-loving), fl. greenish, in short dense 

 racemes. Samaras stalked, oblong, with a wedge-shaped base. 

 I. small. Young branches of a greyish-brown colour, with black 

 buds. Turkestan. 



F. pubescens (downy). /. greenish-yellow, calyculate ; racemes 

 rather compound. May. Samaras narrow-lanceolate, obtuse, 

 with a short mucro at the apex, 2in. long. I., leaflets three to four 

 pairs, petiolate, elliptic-ovate, serrated, downy or tomentose 

 beneath, as well as the petioles and branches, h. 30ft. Eastern 

 United States, 1811. SYNS. F. . nigra, F. pennsylvanica, F. tomen- 

 toga. 



F. quadrangulata (four-angled). Blue Ash. /. greenish- 

 vellow. May. Samaras blunt at both ends. I. 1ft. to lift, long ; 

 leaflets two to four pairs, almost sessile, elliptic-lanceolate, ser- 

 rated, downy beneath. Branches quadrangular, h. 60ft. to 70ft. 

 Eastern United States, 1823. 



F. rotundifolia (round-leaved). A synonym of F. Ornus. 



F. sambucifolia (Elder-leaved). Black Ash. fl. like those 

 of the common Ash. May. I., leaflets three pairs, 3in. to 4in. 

 long, acute at both ends, sessile, ovate-lanceolate, serrated. 

 Young branches green, beset with black dots. h. 30ft. Eastern 

 United States, 1800. 



F. tomentosa (tomentose). A synonym of F. pubescent. 



F. triptera (three-winged). A synonym of F. platycarpa. 



F. viridis (green). - I, leaflets bright green both sides, or barely 

 pale beneath, from oblong-lanceolate to ovate, mostly acuminate, 

 and sparsely and sharply serrate or denticulate, h. 30ft. North 

 America, 1824. SYNS. F. concolor, F. juglandijolia. There is a 

 variety, F. v. Berlandieriana. 



FREE. Not adhering to anything else; not adnate 

 to any other body. 



FREES! A (derivation unknown). ORD. Iridece. A 

 genus of a couple of species (in all probability, these 

 are simply forms of one) of very pretty conservatory 

 plants, from the Cape of Good Hope. They may be readily 

 increased from seed, which should be sown as soon as 

 ripe, in pots of light sandy soil, and placed in a sunny 

 position, in a cool frame. When the young plants appear, 

 air should be admitted ; but draughts are very injurious, 

 and must be specially avoided. As the seedlings do not 

 succeed well transplanted, it is best to sow in Sin. pots, 

 and thin out to six or eight of the strongest plants, this 

 being about the space required for flowering bulbs. If 

 sown in August, the young plants may flower the follow- 

 ing spring, but this is by no means certain. They will, 

 however, form good bulbs for the second year. Freesias 

 intended for flowering should be shaken out of the 

 old soil in August or September, and repotted in sandy 

 loam, leaf mould, and decayed manure. The different 

 sizes should be placed together in separate pots or shallow 

 pans, in order to have plants uniform in strength when 

 flowering. Water will not be required until growth com- 

 mences, and a frame where frost is excluded will be warm 

 enough. Plenty of air in mild weather, with a light 

 position, is most conducive to a dwarf, sturdy growth. 

 When the flowers appear, a little more heat may be 

 applied to a portion for an earlier, supply, others being 

 left to form a succession. Freesias are largely and very 

 successfully grown in Guernsey. They are potted in suc- 

 cessive batches throughout the autumn, the first being 

 inserted in August. These begin flowering in December, 

 and the supply is kept up until late in spring. The 

 flowers are very fragrant, and last a long time when cut 

 and placed in water. A number of slightly varying 

 forms have received distinctive names in nurseries. 

 F. Leichtlinii (Leichtlin's). fl. yellow or cream-colour ; funnel 



narrowing abruptly into the tube ; throat more open, with the 



segments spreading less horizontally than in F. refracta. 

 h. 1ft. 1875. (R. G. 808.) 



F. oclorata (sweet-scented). A synonym of F. refracta. 



F. refracta (bent back), fl. pure white, sometimes marked with 

 a few violet lines, and usually with orange patches on the lower 

 segments of the perianth ; funnel long, gradually narrowing into 

 the tube below ; throat of funnel somewhat narrow ; segments 

 spreading horizontally, and with a peculiar fragrance. SYN. 

 F. odorata. (B. R. 135.) 



F. r. alba (white). /. of the purest white, frequently without 

 the orange-coloured blotches usually present in the type. See 

 Fig. 35. 



FREMONTIA (named after Colonel Fremont, an 

 American officer). ORD. Malvaceae. A beautiful hardy 

 deciduous shrub, with coloured calyx, and without petals. 

 It thrives in a sandy loam soil, and does well on a west 

 or north wall, also as a bush in the Southern Counties 

 of England. Increased by cuttings, in spring, placed 

 under a hand glass ; or by seeds. 



F. californica (Californian). fl. bright yellow, about 2in. across, 

 solitary on short peduncles opposite the leaves. April. I. large, 

 cordate, five to seven-lobed, hairy beneath ; young shoots covered 

 with a rich brown tomentum. h. 6ft. to 10ft. California, 1851. 

 (B. M. 5591.) 



FRENCH BEANS. See Beans. 



FRENCH MARIGOLD. See Tagetes patnla. 



FRENELA. See Callitris. 



FREYCINETIA (named after Admiral Freycinet, 

 1779-1842, the French circumnavigator). ORD. Pandanece. 

 A genus of about thirty species, natives of Eastern tropical 

 Asia, the Malayan Archipelago, tropical Australia, and the 

 Pacific Islands. They are tall-growing evergreen stove 

 climbers, suitable for clothing pillars, &c., which should, 

 however, be bound round with sphagnum or fibrous peat, 

 kept moist, so that the climbing stems may root into it. 

 The soil in which the plants do best, either in pots or 

 when planted out, is a well-drained sandy loam. Increased 

 by offsets. 



