LXXVIII. MTETRA N CEJE : ^MPETRUM. 



1091 



GENUS I. 



ft'MPETRUM L. THE CROWBERRY. Lin. Syst. Dioe v cia Triandria. 



Identification. Lin. Gen. ,515. ; Juss., 126. ; Fl. Br., 1072. ; Tourn., t. 421. ; Lamb., t. 803., Gsertn. ; t.106. 

 Derivation. From en, upon, and petros, a rock ; in allusion to the place of growth. 



Gen. Char. Calyx 3-leaved, coriaceous, with 6 imbricated scales at the base. Pe- 

 tals 3. Stamens 3. Sfigma^ 9-cleft. Berry depressed, 6 9-stoned. (G.Don.) 

 Leaves simple, alternate, exstipulate, evergreen ; linear, tongue-shaped, 

 -obtuse ; flat above, convex and marked with a membranaceous line beneath ; 

 dark green, shining. Flowers axillary, solitary, sessile, dark red. Berries 

 black or red. Shrubs small, branchy, procumbent ; natives of the North 

 of Europe, North America, and the Straits of Magellan. Propagated by 

 cuttings or seeds, and thriving best in peat soil. 



L 1. E. NI V GRUM L. The black Crowberry, or Crakeberry. 



Identification. Lin. Sp. PL, 1450. ; Eng. Fl.,4.p.283. ; Mack ay Fl. Hib.,p.238. ; Hook. Br.Fl.,p.431. 

 Synonymes. .Erica coccifera procumbens Ger. Emac. p. 1383. ; E. C6ris folio undecima Clus. Hist. 



1. p. 45. 

 Engravings. Eng. Bot., t. 526. ; our fig. 2034. to our usual scale ; SinAfig. 2035. of the natural size. 



Spec. Char., fyc. Leaves linear-oblong. Berries black and clustered. (Hook.) 

 A low procumbent evergreen shrub. Britain. Height 6 in. to 12 in. 

 Flowers purplish white ; June. Berries brownish black, like those of the 

 common juniper ; ripe in November. 



Variety. 



t. E. n. 2 scoticum Hook. Br. Fl. 

 Bather smaller than the species. 

 Cattle do not browse on this 

 shrub; but the berries are eaten 

 by the Scotch and Russian pea- 

 sants. It thrives 

 very well in gar- 

 dens, but requires 

 a moist boggy soil 

 and a shady situa- 

 tion. The seeds 

 remain a year in 

 the ground before 

 they vegetate, and 2034. 



the plants are very slow in their growth. The crowberry is the badge of the 

 ' 



p. 431. 



E. n*#rum. 



clan M'Lean. 



2. E. RU^BRUM L. The red-fruited Crowberry. 



Identification. Willd. Sp. PI., 4. p. 713. ; Lindl. Bot. Reg., t. 1783. 



Synonyme. Cranberry of Staten Island. 



Engravings. Bot. Reg., t. 1783. ; our fig. 2037. to our usual scale a 



Engravings. Bot. Reg 

 of the natural size. 



scale, an&fig. 2036. 



Spec. Char., $c. Leaves and branches with woolly 

 margins. Berries red. (Lindl.) An evergreen 

 procumbent shrub. Southern point of South 

 America, where it is found along the sandy 

 coast, spreading over the stones, but especially 

 thriving at the back of the low sandhills 

 by which the shore is often skirted. Height 

 Gin. to 1 2 in. Introd. 1833. Flowers brownish 

 purple ; July. Berries red ; ripe in November. 2057. E. 



According to Gaudichaud, the red berries are pleasant to eat. It grows 

 freely in peat, and is quite hardy. 



4A 2 



