3172 



SKIMMIA 



SMILACINA 



covered with their bright red fruits, which are retained 

 through the whole winter if not eaten by birds. In the 

 greenhouse two crops of berries on a plant may be seen 

 occasionally. The skimmias are of rather slow growth 

 and thrive best in a sandy loamy soil, but also grow 

 well in strong clay; they prefer a partly shaded situa- 

 tion. On account of then: handsome fruits they are 

 sometimes cultivated in pots in a sandy compost of 

 peat and loam. As the skimmias are polygamous and 

 mostly unisexual, it will be necessary to plant stami- 

 nate plants among the pistillate ones to secure well- 

 fruited specimens. Propagation is by seeds sown in fall 

 or stratified and by cuttings under glass with gentle bot- 

 tom heat. William Scott writes: "Seeds sown in the 

 fall and grown along in a coolhouse during winter can be 

 planted out in a good loam the following spring, when 

 they will make a vigorous growth, and can be lifted the 

 following October. Then* red berries make them very 

 desirable as a Christmas berry plant." 



japonica, Thunb. (S. oblata, Moore. S. fragrans, 

 Carr. S. fragrantissima, Hort.). Shrub, 5 ft. high, 

 except the minutely pubescent inn. quite glabrous: Ivs. 

 crowded at the ends of the branchlets, short-petioled, 

 elliptic-oblong to oblong-obovate, narrowed at both 

 ends, obtusely pointed, bright or yellowish green above, 

 yellowish green beneath, 3 >-5 in. long: panicles 2-3 }/% 

 in. long; fls. polygamous, usually 4-merous, yellow- 

 ish white: fr. coral-red or bright scarlet, globose or 

 depressed-globose, J^in. across. Spring. Japan. S.Z. 

 1:68. B.M. 8038. G.C. II. 25, p. 244; III. 5, pp. 521, 

 524. Gn. 7, p. 183; 35, p. 480; 42, p. 133. J.H. III. 30, 

 p. 525; 66:175; 70:343. R.H. 1869, p. 259; 1880, p. 56. 

 F. 1865, p. 161. G.W. 5, p. 261. S. fragrans and S. 

 fragrantissima are names of the staminate plant; S. 

 oblata of the pistillate. Var. ovata, Rehd. (S. oblata 

 ovata, Carr.), has larger and broader Ivs. Var. Veitchii, 

 Rehd. (S. oblata Veitchii, Carr.), has obovate Ivs. and 

 often perfect fls. R.H. 1880, p. 57. 



F6rtunei, Mast. (S. japonica, Lindl.). Similar to the 

 preceding but of dwarfer habit: Ivs. lanceolate or ob- 

 long-lanceolate, acuminate, dark green above, light 

 green beneath, 3^-10 in. long: fls. white, in oblong- 

 ovate panicles, perfect: fr. obovate, dull crimson-red. 

 Spring. China. G.C. II. 25, p. 245 (as S. oblata); III. 

 5, p. 525. The following as S. japonica: B.M. 4719; 

 F.S. 7, p. 39; Gn. 7, p. 183, and 8, p. 519; G. 1:40; 

 R.H. 1869, p. 259, and 1880, p. 56. This species fruits 

 more freely than the preceding. Var. rubella, Rehd. 

 Peduncles, pedicels, and buds reddish; staminate form. 

 R.H. 1874:311; 1885, p. 189. Var. argentea, Mast., has 

 the Ivs. bordered with white. A hybrid between this and 

 the preceding species is probably S. intermedia, Carr., 

 with narrow oblong-elliptic Ivs. dark green above. To 

 this hybrid belong also S. Foremanii, Hort., with lan- 

 ceolate or oblanceolate yellowish green lys. and subglo- 

 bose and obovate fr. on the same panicle (G.C. III. 



3620. Rootstock of Smilacina racemosa. The figures designate the 

 position of the stalks in the different years. Between each of the figures 

 or scars is a year's growth. ( X Yd 



5:553. Gn. 61, p. 160; 67, p. 57) and S. Rdgersii, Hort., 

 with similar but deep green Ivs. and globose squarish fr. 



S. Laurbola, Sieb. & Zucc. Shrub, 5 ft. high, of a strong aro- 

 matic odor when bruised: Ivs. narrow-oblong to obovate, acute or 

 acuminate, bright green: fls. 5-merous. Himalayas. G. 32:256. 

 S. melanocdrpa, Rehd. & Wilson. Shrub, or small tree, to 15 ft. : Ivs. 

 oblong-lanceolate or lanceolate, dark green and lustrous above, 

 1/4-3 J^ in. long: fls. dioecious, in panicles about 15^ in. long: fr. 

 purplish black, globose, }^in. across. W. China, Himalayas. 



ALFRED REHDER. 



SKIRKET (Sium Sisarum, Linn.) is a vegetable of 

 minor importance, the roots of which are used hke salsify 

 or oyster plant. It is a hardy perennial umbelliferous 

 herb, native to eastern Asia. It grows 3 to 4 feet high, 

 has pinnate foliage and small white flowers in compound 

 umbels. The roots grow in large clusters, something 

 like those of a sweet potato or dahlia, but they are much 

 longer, more cylindrical, and somewhat jointed. The 

 roots have a sweet and slightly floury taste and, if well 

 grown, are tender. The chief objection to this vegeta- 

 ble is the woody core, which must be removed before 

 cooking, as it is not easily separated from the fleshy part 

 at the table and detracts from its quality. The thick- 

 ness of the core varies greatly, no matter whether the 

 plants are propagated by seed or otherwise. 



Skirret needs a rich soil. The seeds may be sown in 

 autumn or spring and the plants yield well the first 

 season. For European practice Vilmorin recommends 

 that the seedlings be grown in a seed-bed until they 

 have made four or five leaves and then transplanted 

 into permanent quarters. Sow the seed in drills Yi inch 

 deep, and thin out the seedlings to 8 inches in the row. 

 The roots may be left outdoors in the ground all winter, 

 but others advise storing them in sand or earth. 



WILHELM MILLER. 



SKTJNK CABBAGE: Symplocarpus fcetidus. 



SLIPPER FLOWER: Calceolaria. Lady's: Cypripedium. 



SLOE: Prunus spinosa. 



SMALL-FRUIT: Blackberry, Blueberry, Currant, Dewberry, 

 Gooseberry, Raspberry. 



SMELOWSKIA (named for Prof. T. Smelowski, 

 botanist of St. Petersburg, died 1815). Crudferse. Some- 

 what cespitose gray-white-tomentose perennial herbs, 

 rather rare in cult., suitable for the rock-garden: Ivs. 

 pinnately or bipinnately cut: fls. racemose, without 

 bracts, white or yellow, frequently small; sepals short, 

 lax, uniform at the base : sUique rather short, narrowed 

 at both ends, somewhat 4-sided or laterally compressed; 

 seeds few, arranged in one series. About 10 species, 

 Asia and N. Amer. 



calycina, C. A. Mey. Low, tufted perennial, very 

 variable in foliage: Ivs. soft, usually deeply pinnatifid, 

 with 2 or several pairs of linear to obovate, obtuse 

 segms. and a terminal one: rarely a few Ivs. entire: 

 racemes at first dense and subcorymbose, but elon- 

 gating in fr. : fls. white or nearly so; petals about 

 2 lines long. Arctic regions. Recommended by 

 some persons for rock-gardens, but it does not seem 

 to be advertised in Amer. jr. TRACY HUBBARD.| 



SMILACINA (resembling smilax). Lilidcese. 

 FALSE SOLOMON'S SEAL. Perennial herbs, with 

 simple stems from rootstocks (Fig. 3620), used for 

 the hardy border or the wild-garden. 



Leaves alternate, nerved, and usually sessile: 

 panicles or racemes terminal; fls. white or greenish 

 white, sometimes fragrant; perianth 6-parted, 

 spreading, withering-persistent; stamens 6; ovary 

 3-celled: berry globular, 1-2-seeded. About 25 

 species, N. and Cent. Amer. and Temp. Asia. 

 Vagnera is an older name for this genus and is used 

 by some American writers; but on the principle 

 of fifty years of established usage, Smilacina is 

 retained in the "nomina conservanda" list of the 

 Vienna Congress. 



