ACANTHUS 



ACER 



195 



It is supposed that acanthus leaves afforded the sug- 

 gestion for the foliage decoration on the capital of the 

 Corinthian and other columns. Fig. 85 shows the con- 

 ventionalized decoration, and Fig. 86 the form of leaf 

 of A. spinosus. The leaves of A. mollis were probably 

 also involved in variations of decoration. 



A. Lvs. spiny. 



Cfiroli-Alexandri, Hausskn. Nine to 18 in. : Ivs. few, 

 radical, in a lax rosette, lanceolate, spiny, 16 in. long, 



3-3 y<i in. broad: spike 

 dense; fls. white or 

 suffused rose - color. 

 Summer. Greece. 



spinosissimus, Desf . 

 Fig. 87. Lvs. dark 

 green, pinnately 

 parted; spines glist- 

 ening, whitish : fls. in- 



fre q uent - 



85. The Acanthus decoration of an 



architectural column. autumn; spikes loose, 



pilose or glabrescent: 



spines of the bracts recurved. S. Eu. Grows 3-4 feet. 

 Perringi, Siehe. About 1-1% ft. high: Ivs. sessile, 

 5-6 in. long, lanceolate tapering, deeply toothed and 

 spiny: fls. very profuse, rosy red, its bracts spiny. 

 Mts. of Turkey in Asia. June. Suitable for alpine gar- 

 den. Doubtfully hardy where summers are hot and dry. 

 spinosus, Linn. Fig. 86. Lvs. lanceolate, pinnatifid, 



Cubescent; spines short, whitish: fls. smaller than in the 

 ist, purplish, summer; spikes dense, slightly villous. 

 B.M. 1808. Gn. 8:147. 



montanus, T. Anders. Lvs. pinnatifid or sinuate- 

 spinose, 1 ft. or more long, olive-green, the lobes spine- 

 pointed: fls. rosy white in a long spike. Trop. Afr.- 

 Greenhouse. 



AA. Lvs. not spiny. 



mollis, Linn. Fig. 88. Lvs. 2x1 ft., cordate, sin- 

 uately pinnatifid, mostly radical: fls. summer; spikes 

 loose, pubescent. Gn. 52, p. 239. Also recommended 

 as a window plant. Var. latifolius, Hort. (A. latifdlius, 

 Hort. A. lusitdnicus, Hort.) is larger and hardier. Gn. 

 1, p. 303. 



longifolius, Poir. Lvs. radical, longer and narrower 

 than in A. mollis, bright green: fls. purple, June. 



Dalmatia. 



A. arbdreiis, Forsk. 

 Evergreen prickly shrub 

 attaining a height of 

 nearly 20 ft. N. E. 

 Trop. Afr. G.C. IH. 

 31:222. A. carduifA- 

 lius, I. in n. Blepharis 

 carduifolia. A. hispdn- 

 ims, Hort. 2 ft.: lys. 

 large, deeply cleft, shin- 

 ing green: fls. white. 

 Aug. Spain. Perhaps 

 A. niger, Mill. A. ilici- 

 fblius (Dilivaria ilici- 

 folia, Juss.). Smooth 

 greenhouse sub - shrub 

 80 Acanthus spinosus. From drawing with Ivs. resembling 

 by John Ruskin. Ilex aquifolium. the Eu. 



Holly. Prop, by cut- 

 tings under glass. E. Asia. A. nifler. Mill. Lvs. not spiny, sinu- 

 ate, glabrous: fls. purplish white. Portugal. XT TAYT.OR t 



ACER (classical Latin name). Aceracex. MAPLE. 

 Native and foreign trees cultivated chiefly for shade 

 and for the ornamental foliage. 



Trees, rarely shrubs: Ivs. opposite, petioled, simple 

 and mostly palmately lobed, or 3-5 foliolate, decidu- 

 ous, rarely evergreen: fls. small, polygamous or dirccious, 

 in racemes, panicles or corymbs; petals and sepals 5, 

 rarely 4, rarely sepals connate and petals wanting; disk 

 usually annular, conspicuous, rarely lobed or wanting; 

 stamens 4-10, mostly 8; styles 2, usually more or less 

 connate: fr. consisting of 2 long-winged, compressed 

 nutlets (samaras), each containing 1 seed. About 110 



species in N. Amer., Asia, 

 especially Cent, and E. 

 Asia, Europe and N. Afr. 

 Monogr. by Pax in 

 Engler, Pflanzenreich IV, 

 fam. 163 (1903), quoted 

 below as Pax; see, also, 

 Rehder, The Maples of 

 E. Continental Asia, in 

 Sargent, Trees and 

 Shrubs, 1:175 (1905), 

 and Koidzumi, Revisio 

 Aceracearum Japonica- 

 rum in Jour. College of 

 Science, Tokyo, 32, Art. 

 1 (1911), both with many 

 plates. Monogr. of the 



arden forms by Graf 

 chwerin in Gt. 1893; see 

 also G.C. II. 16:75. 



The maples are hardy 

 ornamental trees or 

 shrubs, with handsome 

 large foliage which, in 

 some species, shows a 

 remarkable tendency to 

 vary in shape and color- 

 ing. Numerous garden 

 forms are in cultivation. 



87. Acanthus spinosissimus. ( X ' o) 



Though the flowers are 

 small, they are quite attractive in the early-flowering 

 species as in A. rubrum and A. saccharum, since they 

 appear in great profusion; in some species the young 

 fruits assume a bright red color, particularly in A. 

 tataricum, A. ginnola, A. pseudoplatanus var. eryth- 

 rocarpum, and A. rubrum. The maples are among 

 our most ornamental and valuable trees for park and 

 street planting. Nearly all assume a splendid color 

 in autumn, especially the species of North America 

 and Eastern Asia, which surpass by far the European 

 maples. Many species are valuable timber trees, and 

 some American species, especially A. saccharum, pro- 

 duce sugar. For purposes of shade, the common 

 sugar maple is best and most popular. The Norway 

 maple makes a very dense and round head, and is ex- 

 cellent for lawns, but it is too low-headed for the 

 streets. A. pictum is similar, but smaller in every part. 

 The silver maple, A. saccharinum and its vars., is also 

 popular where quick-growing trees are desired. The 

 Japanese maples of the Palmata section are among the 

 most striking and showy 

 exotic small trees, and 

 are adapted for fine 

 grounds and for growing 

 in pots. 



The maples are not 

 particular as to soil ; some 

 species, as A. monspes- 

 sulanum and A. cam- 

 pestre, prefer drier situa- 

 tions, while A. sacchari- 

 num and A . rubrum prefer 

 moist situations, the lat- 

 ter growing well even in 

 swampy soil. Most of 

 the species are hardy in 

 the northern and middle 

 states; among the hard- 

 iest are A. Negundo, A. 

 saccharum (Figs. 89, 90), 

 A. saccharinum, A. rub- 

 rum, A. nigrum, A. penn- 

 sylvanicum, A. spicatum, 

 A. platanoides, A. tatari- 

 cum. 



Propagation is by 88. Acanthus mollis. ( 



