ALB 



ALB 



The characters of which are: that it has no 

 calyx : the corolla has six oblong-oval permanent 

 petals, the three outer spreading, and the three 

 inner converging: the stamina have filaments 

 spotter than the corolla; three opposite to the 

 inner petals, Linear-subulate, complicate a little 

 above the base, then Hat, three opposite to the 

 outer petals, thicker; antherae on the former 

 oblbfig, fixed to the inflex tip of the filament, 

 below the middle upright ; on the latter, simi- 

 lar, but effete, or none : the pistillum has an 

 oblong triangular germ : style three-sided : stig- 

 ma a triangular, three-celled, three-valved cap- 

 sule: the seeds numerous, flat, lying over each 

 other, and widening outwards. 



The species are numerous ; but those mostly 

 for the purposes of ornament are: 1. A. altis- 

 simu, Tall Albuca; 2. A. major, Great Albuca; 

 3. A. minor, Small Albuca; 4. A. coarctata, 

 Channel-leaved Albuca; 5. A. spiralis, Spiral- 

 leaved Albuca. 



In the first species the leaves are so deeply 

 channelled as to he almost rolled into a cylinder; 

 two feet long, and almost three inches broad at 

 the base. The scape a little shorter than the 

 leaves, the thickness of a finger. The raceme 

 two feet long or more. The peduncles bent 

 downwards in the season of flowering, after- 

 wards spreading .and becoming finally erect ; 

 they are three inches in length. The bracteae 

 green, except at the edge, where they are of a 

 .clear white, an inch long. The flowers are of a 

 white colour; and the petals more than an inch 

 i:i length ; the outer ones sharp and thickened 

 at the tip, but the inner blunt, bent in, and hav- 

 ing a twin gland, composed of two globes, at 

 the end. The fertile filaments are waved on the 

 edge, with the anthera' curved inwards beneath 

 the glands of the petals : the barren filaments 

 are 'triangular, furrowed on the outside, a little 

 longer than the others, and k#ve no antherre. 

 The germ is subpedicelled. The style obversely 

 pvramidal, the length of the germ, covered with 

 ohmdulous scales : "the angles terminate in subu- 

 late horns, covered also with scales; the centre 

 being elongated into a pyramidal stigma. It 

 flowers in April and May. 



In the second the scape is a foot high, upright, 

 roundish, verv minutely streaked, smooth, and 

 ash-coloured, with a glaucous bloom on it. 

 The leaves are sharp, smooth, and streaked, a 

 foot long. The bracteae are sheath-form, lance- 

 olate, concave, with a long linear-subulate tip, 

 red, nerved, smooth, straight, and solitary, at 

 the base of the peduncles. The raceme termi- 

 nating, -long, of a crimson colour, and smoot! : 

 the flowers alternate, peduucled, slightly nod- 

 ding; there being fewer at bottom. The pe- 

 duncles round, smooth, one-flowered, longer 



than the bractea?, and spreading. The petals 

 linear, longitudinally nerved, marceseent ; the 

 three outer broader, a little concave, red, blunt 

 at the end, bent in with a small marginal scale ; 

 the three inner narrower, upright, pale red, with 

 a broad, thin, membranaceous, whitish rim on 

 eacfcTside, and an ovate, membranaceous, inflex 

 scale at the tip. The filaments erect, the length 

 of the corolla, linear, membranaceous, whitish, 

 joined at the base, inserted into the receptacle ; 

 they are alternately free, and fastened below by a 

 broader base to the inner petals. Antherae from 

 incumbent upright ; on the loose filaments bar- 

 ren ; on the three others whitish with yellow 

 pollen, linear, blunt at each end, emarginate, a 

 little curved inwards, convex at the back, plano- 

 concave in front, twin-furrowed. The germ 

 fleshy, pyramidal-eylmdric, blunt, crimson, 

 smooth, with three calluses at the tip, on a 

 short peduncle, ending in several small blunt 

 teeth pressed close to it. The style very thick, 

 somewhat flatted, with two of the angles nearer 

 to each other, a little attenuated at the base, 

 pubescent, red, shorter than the germ. The 

 stigma blunt, of a yellowish red colour, pubes- 

 cent at the edge. Capsule oval, smooth, trans- 

 versely nerved, compressed, with two rims along 

 the back. The seeds are orbiculate. It flowers 

 in May. 



In the third the leaves are a foot long and 

 more, half an inch broad at the base. The 

 scape half a foot high, scarcely a line in diame- 

 ter. The raceme sfx inches in length, or even 

 longer. The peduncles an inch and a half long. 

 The bracteae are green, with clear white edges, 

 half an inch long, quickly withering. The flow- 

 ers yellow. The petals less than an inch in 

 length; the outer ones thickened at the tip; the 

 inner having a white, inflex, kidney-shaped 

 gland. Barren filaments, linear, with a filiform 

 inflex tip, and no antherae. The style obversely 

 pvramidal, the length of the germ, coveted with 

 glandulous scales. The stigma pyramidal, pro- 

 minent between the inner converging petals. It 

 flowers in May and June. 



The fourth species lias the leaves linear-subu- 

 late, deeply channelled, two feet long and up- 

 wards, scarcely half an inch wide at the base. 

 The scape a little shorter than the leaves, and 

 not so thick as a goose quill. The raceme close, 

 half a foot in length. The peduncles spreading, 

 a little more than an inch in length. The bracteae 

 are almost the length of the peduncle. The 

 flowers yellow-. Outer petals oblong, thickened 

 at the tip, above an inch in length ; the inner 

 ones oval, a little shorter than the outer ones. 

 Barren filaments, somewhat shorter than the fer- 

 tile ones, convex without, channelled within : 

 the antheras sagittate and effete. The style prism- 



