AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HORTICULTURE. 



341 



sem, pnnae, sae ; oes oo 



h. 1ft. Western Europe (Britain). A very showy and de- 



perennial ; it thrives well on rockwork. (Sy. En. B. 63.) 



Measures continued. 



indispensable for ascertaining the area of large spaces 

 or the length of walks, roads, &c. Measuring-rods are 

 always useful in gardens, for fixing the necessary dis- 

 tances, when planting various crops. Without measure- 

 ments of some sort, no regularity in cropping could 

 be insured. A 10ft. rod is a handy length. It should 

 be l$in. square, and be marked every Sin. on two op- 

 posite surfaces, the numbers of the feet reading from 

 either end. 



MECONOFSIS (from Melton, a Poppy, and opsis, 

 resemblance ; alluding to the general appearance of the 

 plant). ORD. Papaveracece. A genus comprising eight 

 species of showy, hardy, perennial, biennial, or rarely 

 annual herbs, of which one is found in Western Europe 

 (Britain), one in North-west America, and the rest in 

 the Himalayas. Flowers yellow, purple, or blue, large, 

 showy, on long peduncles, nodding when in the bud ; 

 petals four ; sepals two. Leaves entire, or often lobed 

 or dissected. The species are of easy culture in any 

 moderately good garden soil. Seeds of the Indian species 

 should be sown, during March, in a gentle hotbed, and 

 the seedlings transferred, when large enough to handle, 

 to the open border. 



M. aculeata (prickly), fl. purple, with numerous yellow stamens, 

 about 2in. across. I. cordate in outline, somewhat flve-lobed, 

 covered with rigid, hair-like prickles, h. 2ft. North-west India, 

 1864. Biennial. (B. M. 5456.) 



M. cambrica (Welsh).* Welsh Poppy, fl. pale yellow, erect, on 

 long peduncles. May to August. I. numerous on the lower part 

 of the stem, pinnate, stalked ; lobes toothed, somewhat clecur- 

 rent. 

 sirable 



M. nopalensis (Nepaulese).* fl. pale golden-yellow, nodding, 

 from 2in. to 3iin. across. Flower stems from 3ft. to 5ft. high, 

 not much branched. Himalayas, 1865. A handsome free-flowering 

 biennial. (B. M. 5585.) 



M. simpllcifolia (simple-leaved), fl, violet-purple, solitary and 

 terminal, from 2in. to 3in. across. June. I. tufted, lanceolate, 

 slightly toothed, covered with a short, dense, brownish pubes- 

 cence. h. 3ft. Nepaul, 1855. Biennial. (I. H. 114.) 



M. WalUcM (Wallich's).* fl. pale blue, drooping on the slender 

 branches, somewhat evanescent. June. I. pinnatifld, hispid, 

 sometimes 1ft. long. h. 4ft. to 6ft. Sikkim Himalayas. A very 

 handsome biennial. (B. M. 4668.) 



M. W. fusco-purpurea (brownish-purple). A very effective and 

 ornamental variety, having brownish - purple flowers arranged 

 in a loose panicle, 2in. to Sin. in diameter. (B. M. 6760.) 



MECOSORUS. Included under Gleichenia. 



MEDEOIiA (name of mythological origin, after the 

 sorceress Medea ; from the wholly imaginary notion 

 that the species possesses great medicinal virtues). STN. 

 Gyromia. ORD. Liliacece. A monotypic genus. The 

 species is a hardy herbaceous plant, with a white 

 rhizome, tasting like Cucumber. It thrives best in a 

 rich sandy soil. Propagated by dividing the plant, in 

 spring. 



M. asparagoides. See Myrsiphyllum asparagoides. 

 M. Vlrglnlana (Virginian). fl. yellow or greenish - yellow, in 



a sessile umbel. June. I. whorled, obovate-lanceolate, sessile. 



Stem erect, simple, h. 9in. Virginia, 1759. (B. M. 1316.) 



MEDICAGO (from Medike, a name given by Dios- 

 corides to a Median grass). Lucern ; Medick. ORD. 

 Leguminosee. A large genus (above forty species have 

 been described) of hardy herbs, or rarely shrubs, of 

 scarcely any horticultural value. flowers yellow or 

 violet ; peduncles axillary, one, two, or many-flowered. 

 Leaves trifoliolate, stalked ; leaflets usually toothed. The 

 only species worth cultivating is M. falcata, which is 

 suitable for banks or slopes, borders, and rough rock- 

 work of all sorts. It thrives in any ordinary soil. Pro- 

 pagated by divisions, or by seeds. The value of M. sativa 

 is wholly agricultural; and, from its great importance in 

 that sphere, it could not be omitted from this work. 

 M. arborea (tree-like), fl. yellow, in umbellate racemes. May 



to November. Pods lunate, entire at edge. I., leaflets obovate, 



light green. Stem arborescent, h. 2ft. to 8ft. South Europe, 



1596. (L. B. C. 1379.) 



Medicago continued. 

 M. falcata (sickle-shaped), fl. usually pale yellow, but occasionally 



violet and green, in short, close, axillary racemes, on stalks 



longer than the leaves. Summer. I., leaflets oblong, toothed at 



the apex, entire at base. Stems 2ft. to 4ft. long, prostrate. 



Europe (Britain), North Asia, and India. A hardy herbaceous 



perennial. (Sy. En. B. 336.) 

 M. marina (sea-loving), fl. yellow ; peduncles many-flowered. 



June to August. Pods cochleate, roundish, muricate. I., leaflets 



downy, obovate, entire, h. 1ft. South Europe, 1596. (S. F. G. 



770.) 

 M. sativa (cultivated). Purple Medick or Lucern. fl. violet, 



large, on racemose peduncles. Summer. I., leaflets obovate- 



oblong, toothed, mucronate. Stems erect, glabrous, h. 2ft. 



Mediterranean region (naturalised in Britain). Hardy herbaceous 



perennial. (Sy. En. B. 334.) 



MEDICIA. A synonym of Gelsemium (which see). 



MEDICK. See Medicago. 



MEDINILLA (named after J. de Medinilla, of 

 Pineda, Governor of the Marianne Islands). ORD. Melas- 

 tomaceas. A genus comprising about fifty species of erect 

 or scandent, stove, evergreen, branched shrubs, natives of 

 the East Indies, Ceylon, the Malayan and Pacific Islands, 

 rare in the West African and Mascarene Islands. Flowers 



FIG. 531. FLOWERING BRANCH OF MEDINILLA MAGNIFICA. 



white or rose, bracteate or ebracteate, disposed in panicles, 

 or in lateral, many or few-flowered cymes ; bracts some- 

 times large, rosy ; calyx entire, or four to six-toothed ; 

 petals four or five (rarely six), ovate, oblong, or obovate, 

 acute. Berry globose or ovoid. Leaves opposite or ver- 

 ticillate, rarely very unequal, or solitary and alternate, 



