ASH 



ASP 



germ the length of the petals. The germ ob- 

 long, sharp, and compressed : thestylestwo,very 

 short: stigmas blunt: the capsule is compressed, 

 being covered with the shrivelled calyx. It is a 

 native of South Carolina. 



The second species grows about three feet 

 high. The flowers are produced at the ends of 

 the stalks, and are of the same shape and colour 

 with common St. John's-wort. It grows na- 

 turally in Virginia. 



Culture. — The best method with the first sort 

 is to propagate it by cuttings made from the 

 young shoots in May, as it rarely produces seeds 

 in this climate. These should be planted in 

 pots of good earth, and plunged into a moderate 

 hot-bed, till they have stricken root, and the 

 plants are become strong, when they may be 

 transplanted into the situations where they are 

 to remain, in the borders or other parts. A warm 

 aspect should always be chosen for the purpose, 

 and the roots must be protected, especially in 

 severe winters, by being covered with tan,litter,or 

 other similar substances. This sort may likewise 

 be raised by layers put down in autumn. 



The second kind may be increased by parting 

 the roots in the autumn after the stems are de- 

 cayed, planting them in situations where the 

 soil is of a loamy quality. These after some 

 time often produce seed. They should con- 

 stantly be guarded from the action of frosts in 

 the winter season. 



These two species arc useful in affording va- 

 riety in extensive pleasure-grounds. 



ASH Common. See Fraxinus. 



Ash Flowering. See Fraxinus. 



Ash Manna. See Fraxinus. 



Ash Mountain. See Sorbus. 



Ash Poison. See Rhus. 



ASHES, the particles of different ligneous 

 and other substances which remain after the 

 process of combustion. They are of different 

 kinds; but those mostly employed in garden 

 culture are wood, turf, coal, and peat ashes. 

 Their effects on the soil vary in some measure 

 according to the kinds. Such as contain saline 

 matter in any proportion not only afford im- 

 provement on the stiffer and more tenacious sorts 

 of ground, by rendering them more friable and 

 mellow, but by their action upon them bringing 

 them into a more fit condition for supplying 

 the nourishment of plants. Mr. Nicol found 

 where the ashes of green furze had been 

 thickly spread on the surface, and afterwards 

 dug into the earth, that when they had remained 

 some time in that state of union, they produced 

 the most beneficial effects in promoting the 

 growth of different sorts of trees. In this view, 

 therefore, the use of wood and turf ashes may 

 6 



be of much advantage in bringing such new 

 garden-grounds as are of a stiff" adhesive qmlity 

 into a condition proper for the growth of diffe- 

 rent kinds of vegetable crops. And where the 

 grounds are too much inclined to moisture, they 

 may be of great utility by the power which 

 they possess of taking up the superabundant 

 proportion of wetness. And it is not improbable 

 but they may likewise contribute in the way of 

 affording the food of plants. 



Coal-ashes, probably from their containing 

 a portion of calcareous matter, are also found to 

 be highly beneficial on stiff' and retentive gar- 

 den-grounds, in rendering them more open and 

 porous. In this view they are successfully used 

 in the neighbourhood of many great cities where 

 coal is much burnt for fuel. They also open 

 the texture of clayey grounds, and correct their 

 tenacity and other bad qualities. The gardeners 

 about London know their value, and make a. 

 very profitable use of them, particularly in bring- 

 ing into order those grounds which have been 

 dug up for brick earth. And it is probable that 

 peat-ashes may be made use of in the same in- 

 tention with great benefit, as they have the pro- 

 property of lessening the adhesion of such soils. 



The proportions in which manures of these 

 kinds may be employed must depend in a great 

 degree on the state of the grounds ; but too 

 sparing quantities can seldom be advantageous, 

 where the principal object is that of rendering 

 them more light and open. In the application 

 of the two first sorts, care should be taken to pre- 

 serve them for the purpose in covered sheds, and 

 to have them laid on when the weather is inclined 

 to be moist without being too wet. 



ASP or ASPEN-TREE. See Populus. 



ASPALATHUS, a genus containing plants 

 of the ornamental shrubby exotic kind. The 

 African Broom. 



It belongs to the class and order Diadelphia 

 Decumbia, and ranks in the natural order of 

 Papilionacece. 



The characters of which are : that the calyx is a 

 one-leafed, five-cleft perianthium : the divisions 

 acuminate, equal, except that the upper part is 

 larger. The corolla is papilionaceous : the ban- 

 ner compressed, ascending, obovate, generally 

 hirsute on the outside, obtuse with a point': 

 wings lunulate, obtuse, spreading, shorter 

 than the banner : keel bifid, conformable with 

 the wings. The stamina consist of ten fila- 

 ments, united into a sheath gaping loncitudi- 

 nally at top, and ascending. The anthers are 

 oblong. The pistillum is an ovate germ. The 

 style simple and ascending. The stigma sharp. 

 The pericarpium is an ovate awnless legume. 

 The seeds are generally two, and kidney-shaped. 



