AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HORTICULTURE. 



533 



Otlionna continued. 



O. crassifolia (thick-leaved).* JL-heads few, terminal, sub-corym- 

 bose ; pedicels very long, and slender. A very pretty trailer, and 

 suitable for growing in a basket See Fig. 786. 



O. denticulate (toothed). fl,-heads disposed in terminal panicles. 

 April to July. I. oblong, denticulated, glabrous, attenuated at 

 base, amplexicaul. h. 2ft. 1774. Shrub. (B. M. 1979.) 



O. frutescens (shrubby), fl.-heads large, in terminal, many- 

 flowered panicles; ray of about eight florets. Late summer. 

 I. alternate, obovate, acute, thick, and fleshy. Stem erect, 2ft. to 

 3ft. high, suffruticose, but succulent. (B. M. 3967.) 



O. pectinata (comb-leaved).* fl.-heads solitary, twice or thrice as 

 long as the leaves. May and June. I. pinnatittd, Wormwood-like, 

 hoary; segments linear, parallel. A. 2ft. to 3ft. 1731. An 

 interesting, shrubby plant, readily known by its copious, soft, 

 whitish pubescence. The correct name of this is Euryops 

 pectinatus. (B. M. 306.) 



O. pinnata (pinnate), fl.-heads, ray florets neatly rolled back at 

 night, expanding in the morning. May. I. glaucous, obovate, 

 very obtuse, some quite entire, others pinnatifld, with entire, 

 decurrent leaflets. Stem herbaceous. Boot tuberous, h. 3ft. 

 1759. (B. M. 768.) 



O. triplinerva (three-nerved), fl.-heads few or several, loosely 

 corymbose ; pedicels very long ; mvolucral scales and rays about 

 five. I. crowded towards the apices, obovate, obtuse, tapering 

 at base into a slender petiole. Stem short, sub-simple or forked, 

 shrubby carnose. h. 5ft. 1862. 



O. tuber osa (tuberous-rooted), fl.-heads solitary, rather large, 

 terminal. August. I., radical ones petiolate, broadly ovate or 

 obovate : stem ones few, ovate or oblong. Root tuberous. 1842. 

 Herb. (B. M. 4038.) 



OTHONNOPSIS (from Otlionna, and opsis, like ; in 

 allusion to the resemblance which exists between the 

 two genera). OED. Composite. A genns comprising about 

 eight species of glabrous, greenhouse shrubs, differing 

 from the allied genera, Othonna and Senecio, in the disk 

 being constantly sterile. One species is North African, 

 another Persian, a third native of Scindia, and the re- 

 mainder South African. Flower-heads yellow, peduncu- 

 late, solitary, or in leafy panicles ; receptacle flat or 

 scarcely convex, naked. Leaves alternate, sessile, slightly 

 fleshy, glabrous or slightly toothed. 0. cheirifolia (pro- 

 bably the only species in cultivation) is a very pretty, 

 low-spreading evergreen, with glaucous leaves. It thrives 

 in almost any soil, but flowers most profusely in light 

 loam, and in a warm situation. A protection of some sort 

 is required in winter. Propagated by divisions, or by 

 cuttings. 



FTG. 787. OTHONNOPSIS CHEIRIFOLTA. 



O. cheirifolia (Wallflower-leaved).* fl.-heads rich yellow, about 

 liin. across, terminal ; rays acute. Early summer. I. greyish, 

 thick, lanceolate, sessile, narrow at the base, broad and rounded 

 at the apex. h. Sin. to 12in. North Africa, 1752. See Fig. 787. 

 (B. K. 266, under name of Othonna cheirifoUa.) 



OTIDIA. Included under Pelargonium (which see). 



OTIORHYNCHUS. A genus of beetles, belong- 

 ing to the group of Weevils, with short beaks, and long- 

 elbowed, twelve-jointed antennae, inserted in front of the 

 eyes; well-formed elytra, soldered together, with usually 

 ten rows of small, shallow pits or dots along each, no 

 wings, and simple claws. There are numerous species, 

 mostly about in. to in. long, by half as much 

 broad. One or two do not exceed -tin. in length. 



Otiorliyiiclius continued. 



They are all black or brown in colour, with the legs in 

 some black, in others dull red. They are so much alike 

 that it is very difficult to distinguish some of the 

 species from each other. The following are among the 

 more destructive kinds : 0. picipes (the Pitchy-legged 

 Weevil), in. long, pitch-brown, or earth-coloured, with 

 the upper surface tubercled, and sprinkled with minute 

 pale grey or yellow scales. Each pit in the rows on the 

 elytra has a whitish scale, like the pupil of the eye, in 

 the middle. The legs and antennae are usually rather 

 paler than the body ; each thigh is toothed. 0. raucus 

 is much like the last in size, but may be distinguished 

 by a slight ridge down the middle of the thorax, the 

 dots of the elytra being deeper, and not having white 

 scales, by the black body being clouded with yellow and 

 grey pubescence, and by the red-brown legs and antennas, 

 and the unarmed thighs. O. sulcatus (the Black Vine 

 Weevil) is black or dark brown in colour, with greyish- 

 yellow tufts of hair on the deeply-furrowed elytra. The 

 thorax is coarsely tubercled, and has a slight furrow 

 down the middle ; the beak is deeply grooved, and the 

 thighs are toothed. This insect measures about fin. in 

 length. 0. tenebricosus (the Red-legged Garden Weevil) 

 is said to be one of the most destructive, as well as the 

 largest species of the genus, being about in. long. It is 

 at first black, dotted with tufts of delicate yellow down ; 

 afterwards glossy. The elytra are only slightly striated ; 

 the legs are red-brown or chestnut, and the beak is notched 

 at the tip, and faintly ridged. O. ligustici is about fin. 

 to in. long ; it is black, with greyish scales. The thorax 

 and the almost unstriated elytra are finely granulated, 

 and the thighs bear a short tooth. Other species also 

 have been detected injuring plants, but are less common 

 and less hurtful than the above. The species in this 

 genus are destructive both as perfect beetles and as 

 larvae. The beetles feed on buds or young shoots of 

 Vines, Peaches, Apricots, and other choice fruit-trees, as 

 well as on the young shoots of Raspberries ; and Curtis, 

 in " Farm Insects," mentions O. picipes as being very 

 destructive to Peas, Turnips, Kale, &c. In consequence 

 of the damage done, the injured parts are destroyed in 

 a short time ; and the plants may be killed, or, at 

 least, much crippled, so as to greatly diminish their 

 productiveness. The larvae are frequently most injurious 

 to the roots of plants of various kinds, such as Rasp- 

 berries, Strawberries, and other fruit-bearing plants, as 

 well as to roots of a great variety of other plants in 

 gardens ; e.g., Primroses, Sedums, Saxifrages, &c., upon the 

 shoots of which the beetles also feed. The larvae never 

 show themselves above ground; hence, the only sign of 

 their presence is the withering of the plants. They 

 frequently do great harm to potted plants in greenhouses. 

 They become pupae about Sin. or 4in. below the surface 

 of the soil. 



Remedies. As the beetles are wingless, their attacks 

 are usually limited in area, and the damage can be 

 much restricted by suitable means, of which the most 

 successful are those directed against the perfect insects. 

 As all the species have very similar habits, the same 

 methods of destruction apply to all. The beetles con- 

 ceal themselves by day in holes in walls, or under loose 

 mortar and stones, among dead leaves, in the soil, or in 

 any other convenient retreats, such retreats varying with 

 the nature of the crop attacked by them, and with the 

 habitat. At night, they come out to feed, and, owing 

 to their not possessing wings, they require to creep up 

 the plants to arrive at the young shoots and buds; or 

 else, in the case of Vines, and other plants trained against 

 walls, they may gain access to them by crawling over 

 the walls. Prevention may be secured by the removal 

 of all cover, such as loose mortar on walls, dead leaves, 

 or bark, &c., and stopping up holes in the walls. This 

 should be followed by putting a belt of soft soap, or tar 



