272 



LEGUMINOS^E. CXXXI. ASTRAGALUS. 



249 A. TESTICULA TUS (Pall., astr. p. 82. t. 67.) plant stemless, 

 clothed with cinereous villi : leaflets lanceolate or oblong ; 

 Mowers radical, almost sessile, aggregate ; legumes inflated, ovate, 

 tomentose. 7.H. Native in deserts and in sands at the Cas- 

 pian sea, and of Tauria. Flowers flesh-coloured, but in a dried 

 state they appear milk-coloured or yellowish. Calyxes cylin- 

 drical. Bieb. fl. taur. 2. p. 202. A. cinereus radiciflorus, D. C. 

 astr. t. 40. 



7'e^i'cM/rt<e-podded Milk-Vetch. Fl. June, July. Clt. 1818. 

 PI. | to | foot. 



250 A. RUWFRA'GUS (Pall. astr. p. 86. t. 70.) plant stemless, 

 clothed with cinereous villi ; leaflets oblong, obtuse ; scapes 

 shorter than the leaves, or about equal in length to them ; le- 

 gumes oblong, acute, 2-celled. If.. II. Native of the south of 

 Tauria, on rocks. Flowers purplish. Calyxes rather turgid. 



Var. a, exscapus (Pall. astr. t. 70.) scapes very short or hardly 

 any ; leaflets oblong-linear. 



/">. /3, caulescens (Pall. astr. t. 70. B.) scapes length of 

 leaves ; leaflets oblong, fewer ; calyxes rather bladdery. If. . H. 

 Native of the Ural mountains. Perhaps a proper species. 



Broken-rock Milk-Vetch. PL \ to -| foot. 



251 A. REDU'NCUS (Pall. astr. p. 109. t. 82.) plant almost stem- 

 less, hairy, and rather canescent ; leaflets 25-35, elliptic-oblong, 

 glabrous above ; scapes a little higher than the leaves ; flowers 

 disposed in elongated spikes ; legumes erect, hairy, incurved, 

 cylindrical, hooked downwards, channelled above, 5-times the 

 length of the calyx. Tf.. H. Native of Tauria, in sandy places 

 at the Volga, and about Sarepta. A. cinereus longipes, D. C. 

 astr. 41. Flowers purple or white. 



I fir. ft, brecipes (D. C. astr. t. 41.) scapes shorter than the 

 leaves ; leaflets elliptic-ovate, fewer. If. . H. Growing along 

 with the species. 



//oo/terf-podded Milk-Vetch. PI. j to foot. 



252 A. HIRSU'TUS (Vahl. symb. 1. p. 59. D. C. astr. no. 125. 

 t. 43.) plant stemless, clothed with hoary villi ; leaflets 7-9, 

 elliptic ; scapes rather longer than the leaves ; flowers capitate ; 

 calyx villous, 5-cleft, at length cleft above ; legumes nearly 

 globose, apiculated, hairy, 2-celled. 1. H. Native of Armenia 

 on hills. Colour of flowers unknown. 



Hairy Milk-Vetch. PI. i to | foot. 



253 A. ERIOCA'RPUS (D. C. astr. no. 135. t. 47. but not of 

 Bieb.) plant stemless, villously-hairy ; leaflets 21-27, elliptic, 

 obtuse^gcapes exceeding the leaves ; spikes of flowers ovate ; 

 calyjc villous, 5- toothed ; ovary very hairy. If.. H. Native 

 country unknown. Flowers purple. 



Woolly-fruited Milk-Vetch. PL i to A foot. 



254 A. PYGM/B'US (Pall. astr. 66. t. 54.) plant almost stem- 

 less, branched, prostrate ; leaflets 7-9, lanceolate, small, pubes- 

 cent; peduncles 1 -flowered, very short; legumes oblong, in- 

 flated, pubescent. I/ . ? T? . ? H. Native of Eastern Siberia, 

 in the Arctic region. Flowers unknown. Perhaps only a variety 

 of A. pumHio. 



Pygmy Milk- Vetch. PL prostrate. 



255 A. PUMI'LIO (Pall. astr. p. 67. t. 55.) plant almost stem- 

 less, with many little shoots rising from the neck ; leaflets 9, lan- 

 ceolate-linear, hoary, and rather pilose beneath ; flowers twin, 

 almost sessjle. 1. H. Native of the Curil islands. Flowers 

 large, pale violet. Calyx 5-cleft, clothed with white or brown 

 hairs. Legumes unknown. 



Dwarf Milk- Vetch. PL foot. 



256 A. GEMINIFLORUS (Humb. et Bonpl. pi. equin. 1. p. 126. 

 t. 37.) plant almost stemless, branched, prostrate ; leaflets 19-21, 

 approximate, complicate, oblong, silky, small ; flowers twin, 

 almost sessile ; legumes ovate, acuminated, silky, 2-seeded. If. . 

 F. Native of South America, in the kingdom of Quito, in high 

 cold places ; frequent on mount Antisana. Flowers violaceous. 



Twin-flowered Milk- Vetch. PI. 4 foot, prostrate. 



257 A. UNIFLORUS (D. C. astr. no. 141. t. 50.) plant almost 

 stemless, branched, prostrate, glabrous; leaflets 13-17, linear, 

 obtuse ; stipulas joined ; flowers almost sessile, solitary. Tj . ? 

 1f..G. Native of Peru, at Huasa-Huasi. Flowers purplish. 



One-Jlowered Milk- Vetch. PL prostrate. 



f Species not sufficiently known. 



258 A. UNCA'TUS (Lin. spec. 1072.) plant stemless and scape- 

 less ; leaves with 8-9 pairs of obcordate leaflets, each terminating 

 in a bristle ; legumes subulate, hooked, longer than the leaves. 

 . F. Native abou{ Aleppo. Oxytropis uncatus, Pers. ench. 2. 

 p. 33. ? Said to be allied to A. trimi'stris. Flowers almost white. 



7/ooA-erf-podded Milk- Vetch. PL i foot. 



259 A. AR'CTICUS (Willd. enum. suppl. 51.) plant stemless ; 

 leaflets ovate-lanceolate, pilose, silky beneath ; scapes ascend- 

 ing, longer than the leaves ; legumes lanceolate, a little inflated. 

 2/.H. Native country unknown. Corolla shewy violet. 



Arctic Milk- Vetch. PL { to foot. 



260 A. ? OBCORDA'TUS (Ell. sketch. 2. p. 227.) plant glabrous, 

 decumbent ; leaves with 7-9 pairs of small obcordate leaflets : 

 peduncles elongated; lobes of calyx subulate. I/ . H. Native 

 of the south of Georgia, near St. Mary. Flowers white. 

 Legumes unknown. 



Obcordate-lvafteiteA Milk- Vetch. PL prostrate. 



261 A. psEu'no-crcER (Opiz, in flora, 1821. p. 758.) plant 

 caulescent, prostrate ; leaflets glabrous, lanceolate, acute ; stipulas 

 lanceolate ; racemes pedunculate, shorter than the leaves. Na- 

 tive of Bohemia. Melilotus dentata, Waldst. et Kit. hung, ex Opiz. 



False-chick-pea Milk-Vetch. PL prostrate. 



262 A. RADI'CANS (Horn. hort. hafn. 2. p. 708.) stolons root- 

 ing : leaflets ovate-lanceolate ; scapes nearly erect, length of 

 leaves ; flowers in ovate heads ; legumes oblong, flat, glabrous. 

 1{..H. Native country unknown. 



Rooting Milk- Vetch. PL creeping. 



263 A. SYRI'ACUS (Lin. spec. 1069.) plant pubescent, cau- 

 lescent and procumbent; leaflets few pairs, linear-lanceolate; 

 heads of flowers pedunculate, longer than the leaves ; flowers 

 reflexed ; legumes ovate-oblong, tomentose, ending in a long beak. 

 7(.. H. Native of Syria. The plant in the Linnaean herbarium 

 under this name certainly belongs to section Onobrycholdei. 



Syrian Milk-Vetch. PL procumbent. 



264 A. PASTELLIA'NUS (Pollin, pi. veron. 1816.) plant caules- 

 cent, diffuse, and silky ; leaves with 6 pairs of linear bluntish 

 leaflets ; spikes capitate, on long peduncles; legumes ovate, silky, 

 exceeding the calyx. If . H. Native of fields about Verona, 

 among stones on mount Pastello. 



J'astetlo Milk- Vetch. PL diffuse. 



265 A. LUNA' TUS (Pall. astr. p. 44.) plant caulescent, gla- 

 brous ; leaves with usually 15 pairs of linear-lanceolate leaflets ; 

 peduncles very long, sulcated, 10-flowered; legumes triquetrous, 

 rather lunate, erect, glabrous. TL. H. Native of Persia. Buxb. 

 cent. 3. t. 36. f. 2. ? Oxy'tropis lunata, Pers. ench. p. 333 

 According to Fischer this is a true species of Astragalus, inter- 

 mediate between A.falcatus and A. hamosus. 



Lunate-potUeA Milk-Vetch. PL 1 foot. 



Cult. All the species of this genus are worthy of cultivation 

 in every collection. The shrubby kinds, or those belonging to 

 section Tragacdnthaf, grow well in any light dry soil, and are 

 increased by cuttings or seeds. The herbaceous perennial kinds 

 thrive well in any kind of earth, though they prefer a dry light 

 soil, and they are easily increased by dividing the plants or by 

 seeds ; the last mode is preferable, as the greater part of the 

 species are very liable to die if even transplanted or divided at 

 the root. The dwarfer kinds are well adapted for ornamenting 

 rock-work, or to be grown in pots as alpines in a mixture of loam. 



