814 



WUL 



THE UNIVERSAL HERBAL; 



W UR 



Worm-seed. See Artemisia and Erysimum. 



Wormwood. See Artemisia. 



Woundwort. See Laserpitium, Solidago, and Stachys. 



Wrightia ; a genus of the class Pentandria, order Mono- 

 gynia. GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix : perianth inferior, 

 of one leaf, in five small, rounded, bluntish segments, with 

 five or ten internal scales at the outside of the base of the 

 corolla, permanent. Corolla : of one petal, salver-shaped ; 

 tube cylindrical, various in length; border in five oblong, 

 spreading, oblique segments, as long as the tube, or longer ; 

 mouth crowned with ten divided scales, shorter than the 

 limb. Stamina: filamenta five, thread-shaped, short, inserted 

 into the throat of the corolla ; antheree arrow-shaped, pointed, 

 prominent, cohering by their middle part to the stigma. Pis- 

 til : germina two, superior, roundish, cohering ; style one, 

 thread-shaped, the length of the tube, dilated at the apex; 

 stigma contracted. Pericarp: follicles two, almost cylindrical, 

 either distinct or cohering, pointed, erect. Seeds : numerous, 

 inserted into the margins of each follicle, oblong, imbricated 

 downwards, crowned at the lower extremity with silky hairs, 

 directed towards the base of the seed-vessel. ESSENTIAL 

 CHARACTER. Corolla: oblique, salver-shaped; mouth 

 crowned with ten divided scales. Stamina: prominent. 

 Follicles: two, erect. Seeds: imbricated downwards, hairy 

 at the lower extremity. This genus consists of upright 

 shrubs, or small trees. The species are, 



1. Wrightia Antidysenterica ; Oval-leaved Wrightia. Leaves 

 obovate-oblong, short-pointed, smooth ; corymbs mostly ter- 

 minal ; tube of the corolla six times as long as the calix; 

 follicles distinct, a little swelling upwards, their points con- 

 verging. This is a handsome erect shrub, with numerous 

 branches. Native of Ceylon. 



2. Wrightia Zeylanica ; Lanceolate-leaved Wrightia. Leaves 

 oblong-lanceolate, blunt-pointed, smooth, smaller than in the 

 preceding species, about an inch and half long ; corymbs ter- 

 mintl ; flowers like those of the first species, but the tube 

 shorter in proportion, though four times as long as the calix. 

 The branches are long and straight, round, and of a pur- 

 plish colour. Native of Ceylon. 



3. Wrightia Tinctoria ; Dyer's Wrightia. Leaves elliptic- 

 lanceolate, or ovate, pointed, smooth ; branches and corymbs 

 divaricated ; tube of the corolla twice the length of the calix ; 

 follicles distinct. Found in the East Indies. 



4. Wrightia Pubescens ; Downy Wrightia. Leaves ellip- 

 tic-oblong, pointed, downy as well as the calix ; corymbs 

 erect ; tube of the corolla scarcely longer than the calix ; 

 follicles combined. Found between the tropics in New Hol- 

 land, and in Timor. 



Wvlfenia; a genus of the class Diandria, order Monogynia. 

 GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix: perianth inferior, of one 

 leaf, in five deep, linear-awl-shaped, equal, erect, permanent 

 segments. Corolla : of one petal, ringent ; tube gibbous, and 

 nearly globose at the base; border two-lipped; upper lip 

 shortest, undivided, or slightly notched, vaulted, acute ; 

 lower longest, deflexed, three-lobed. Stamina: filamenta 

 two, thread-shaped, ascending, shorter than the upper lip ; 

 antheree roundish. Pistil : germen superior, ovate-oblong, 

 compressed ; style thread-shaped, twice as long as the calix ; 

 stigma capitate. Pericarp : capsule ovate, compressed, fur- 

 rowed at each side, of two cells and two divided valves, burst- 

 ing at the summit. Seeds: numerous, roundish. Observe. 

 The essential difference between this genus and Veronica, to 

 which it is allied, is in the border of the corolla, which in the 

 latter is wheel-shaped, its lowest segment narrowest: a cha- 

 racter of more importance than the proportion of the tube, 

 which in some Veronicas is as long as in this genus. ESSEN- 



TIAL CHARACTER. Corolla: tubular, ringent; upper lip 

 vaulted, lower three-cleft. Calix: in five deep segments. Cap- 

 sule: of two cells, and two cloven valves. The species are, 



1. Wulfenia Bonarota ; Blue Leafy Wulfenia. The stems 

 are leafy, simple, erect, five or six inches high, downy like 

 the rest of the herbage, each bearing four or five pairs of 

 roundish ovate leaves, about an inch long, with broad and 

 rather shallow serratures ; cluster terminal, solitary, ovate- 

 oblong, of several pretty blue flowers, accompanied by lan- 

 ceolate bractes : calix hairy: upper lip of the corolla entire, 

 decidedly ringent, with a concave upper lip, and the valves 

 of the capsule split at the summit, each into two sharp points. 

 The root is somewhat creeping. Perennial. Native of the 

 mountains of Italy and Carniola. 



2. Wulfenia Ageria; Yellow Leafy Wulfenia. Stem leafy; 

 upper lip of the corolla cloven, by which it is distinguished 

 from the first species ; leaves ovate-lanceolate, elongated 

 at the point ; corolla pale sulphur-coloured, not blue ; calix 

 smooth. Native of Carinthia, and Italy. 



3. Wulfenia Carinthiaca; Carinthian Wulfenia. Stem 

 naked ; root creeping, perennial, half as thick as the middle 

 finger; leaves crenate, several together in a tuft, all radical, 

 obovate, obtuse, four or five inches long, smooth, and shin- 

 ing, except the strong midrib, which is hairy at the back, 

 their base tapering into a winged footstalk; flowers largo and 

 handsome, of a fine blue colour, crowded numerously into a 

 dense cluster, supported by an upright, round, firm, though 

 somewhat scaly and slightly hairy, solitary, radical stalk, twice 

 or three times the height of the leaves. After flowering, the 

 cluster becomes three or four inches long, and the permanent 

 calices turn reddish. The capsules are each one-third of arf 

 inch in length, brown, abrupt, scarcely exceeding the calix, 

 soon splitting into four parts at the top. Found on the 

 highest mountains of Carinthia, in a rich soil, among lime- 

 stone rocks; flowering in July. 



Wurmbea; a genus of the class Hexandria, order Trigynia, 

 GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix: none. Corolla: of one 

 petal, tubular, permanent ; tube with six angles, abrupt at 

 the base ; border in six deep lanceolate, acute, equal, erect, 

 or spreading segments, usually about the length of the tube; 

 Stamina: filamenta six, thread-shaped, erect, inserted into 

 the mouth of the tube, and shorter than the border; antherae 

 roundish, of two lobes. Pistil: germen superior, triangular, 

 furrowed, smooth ; styles three, awl-shaped, triangular, the 

 length of the stamina; stigmas obtuse. Pericarp: capsule 

 invested with the withered corolla, oblong, with three angles 

 and three furrows, consisting of three cells, separating from 

 the top half way down. Seeds: numerous, round. ESSEN- 

 TIAL CHARACTER. Calix: none. Corolla: in six deep 

 equal segments, with an hexagonal tube. Stamina: inserted 



into the mouth of the tube. Capsule: superior. The 



species are, 



1. Wurmbea Pumila; Dwarf Wurmbea. Cluster of three 

 or four flowers, rarely more, erect, white, on longish partial 

 stalks, hardly rising above the foliage ; the margins of the 

 segments of the flower are purple, and there are spots of the 

 same colour just above the mouth of its tube ; tube the length 

 of the border; stamina white. Root a small globular bulb, 

 sunk deep into the earth. The whole herb is only an inch 

 high, with two or three short, sheathing, lanceolate leaves. 

 Native of the Cape of Good Hope, in sandy ground at the 

 foot of small hills; flowering in August or September. 



2. Wurmbea Campanulata ; Bell-flowered Wurmbea. Tube 

 of the corolla bell-shaped, the length of the limb, which is 

 twice as long as the stamina; stamina white, spreading, not 

 half the length of the limb, with yellow antherae ; spike dense, 



