40 CROWFOOT FAMILY. 



\j 16. NIGELLA, FENNEL-FLOWER. (Name from the black seeds.) (i) 

 Garden plants from Eu. and Orient ; with leafy stems, the leaves finely di- 

 vided, like Fennel ; known by having the 5 ovaries united below into one 

 5-styled pod. Seeds large, blackish, spicy ; have been used as a substitute 

 for spice or pepper. 

 N. Damascena, COMMON F or RAGGED-LADY. Flower bluish, rather 



large, surrounded and overtopped by a finely-divided leafy involucre, like the 



other leaves ; succeeded by a smooth inflated 5-celled pod,' in which the lining 



of the cells separates from the outer part. 



~N. sativa, NUTMEG-FLOWER. Cult, in some old gardens ; has coarser 



leaves, and smaller rough pods. 

 . 



17. AQUILEGIA, COLUMBINE. (From aquila, an eagle, the spurs of 

 the petals fancied to resemble talons.) 1| Well-known, large-flowered 

 ornamental plants : flowers in spring and early summer, usually nodding, so 

 that the spurs ascend. 



* North A merican species, with long straight spurn to the corolla. 



A. Canadensis, WILD C. Flowers about 2' long, scarlet and orange, 

 or ijght yellow inside, the petals with a very short lip or blade, and stamens 

 projecting. Common on rocks. 



A. Skinneri, MEXICAN C., is taller, later, and considerably larger-flow- 

 ered, than the hist, the narrower acute sepals usually tinged greenish ; otherwise 

 very similar. Cult. 



A. coerulea, LONG-SPURRED C., native of the Rocky Mountains, lately 

 introduced to gardens, and worthy of special attention ; has blue and white 

 flowers, the ovate sepals often 1^', the very slender spurs 2' long, the blade of 

 the petals (white) half the length of the (mostly blue) sepals, spreading. 

 * * Old World species, with hoolct-d or incurved spurs to tke corolla. 



A. VUlgaris, COMMON GARDEN C. Cult, in all gardens, l-,3 high, 

 many-flowered ; spurs rather longer than the blade or rest of the petal ; pods 

 pubescent. Flowers varying from blue to purple, white, e., greatly changed 

 by culture, often full double, with spur within spur, sometimes al'l changed 

 into a rosette of plane petals or sepals. 



A. glandu!6sa, GLANDULAR C. A more choice species, 6'-l high, 

 with ll-wer very showy dec]) blue flowers, the Made of the petals white or white- 

 tipped and twice the length of the short spurs ; pods and summit of the plant 

 glandular-pubescent 



A. Sibirica, SIBERIAN C. Equally choice with the last, and like it; 

 but the spurs longer than the mostly white-tipped short blade, as well as the 

 pods, &c. smooth. 



18. DELPHINIUM, LARKSPUR. (From the Latin name of the dol- 

 phin, alluding to the shape of the flower.) The familiar and well-marked 

 flower of this genus is illustrated in Lessons, p. 91, 94, fig. 183, 184, 192. 





* Garden annuals 

 pistil, and 



f from Eu., with only the 2 upper ])(4<ih, united into one body, one 

 leaves finely and muck divided: Ji. snnn>t(r and fall. 



D. Consolida, FIELD L. Escaped sparingly into roadsides and fields ; 

 flowers scattered on the spreading branches, blue,' varying to pink or white; 

 pod smooth. 



D. Ajacis, ROCKET L. More showy, in gardens, and with similar flowers 

 crowded in a long clo^e raceme, and downy pods ; spur shorter : some marks on 

 the front of the united petals were fancied to read AIAI = Ajax. 



* * Perennials, ivith 4 separate petals and 2-5, mostly 3 pistils. 



D. grandifl6mm, GREAT-FL. L. of the gardens, from Siberia and China, 

 is 1 - 2 high, with leaves cut into narrower linear divisions ; blue flowers, 1^' 

 or more across, with ample oval sepals, and the 2 lower petals rounded and 

 entire. Various in color, also double flowered ; summer. 



D. cheilanthum, of which D. FORMOSUM, SHOWY L., is one of the 

 various garden forms, also Siberian, is commonly still larger-flowered, deep 



