ENCYCLOPEDIA 



OF 



GARDENING 



Abele Tree (abe-le), the White Poplar, Populus alba. 



Abelia (abe-lia, after Dr. Abel. Ord. Caprifoliaceae) . Green- 

 house shrubs which are sometimes grown outside in mild districts. 

 They are propagated by layers in spring and by cuttings under a 

 bell glass in summer. Loam and peat, with sand, suit them. 

 Floribunda, a spring bloomer with rosy purple flowers, is the most 

 popular species. See the Botanical Magazine, t. 4316. 



Abies, Spruce Firs (a-bies, from abeo, to rise, in allusion to the tall 

 habit. Ord. Coniferae). Several important species are now re- 

 ferred to other genera by botanists, notably Albertiana, now Tsuga 

 Mertensiana; Douglasii, now Pseudostuga Douglasii; excelsa, now 

 Picea excelsa ; Mertensiana, now Tsuga Mertensiana ; Morinda, now 

 Picea Morinda; and Smithiana, now Picea Morinda. These species 

 still appear under Abies in the catalogues of many nurserymen. Of 

 the most important species kept under Abies by botanists may be 

 named balsamea, the Balm of Gilead; cephalonica, concolor (also 

 known as lasiocarpa), grandis, nobilis, nordmanniana, pectinata 

 (Silver Fir) and Pinsapo. These are all good. Conifers, suitable for 

 the garden, and make handsome trees in deep, fertile soil. If the 

 natural soil is poor the young trees ought to be given a start with a 

 barrowload of loam each. Plant in autumn or winter. The Abies 

 are closely connected with the Piceas, but have upright instead of 

 drooping cones, and flat, soft leaves instead of round, hard ones. 

 They are evergreens. 



Abronia (abro-nia, from abros, delicate. Ord. Nyctaginae). A 

 small genus of perennial trailing plants, suitable for rockeries. They 

 like sandy soil, and are commonly known as Sand Verbenas. Cut- 

 tings strike in sandy soil in spring under glass. A stock can be 

 raised in the first place from seed, which may be sown in a frame in 

 autumn. Arenaria, yellow, July; and fragrans, white, May, are pro- 

 curable. Both are sweet. Umbellata, pink, spring, is also grown. 



Abrus (a-brus, from abros, delicate. Ord. Leguminosae) . The 

 species precatorius is a stove climber, with purple flowers, and is of 

 interest on account of the pretty scarlet and white seeds, which are 

 used for rosaries, and also as weights. Carat, a proportional 

 measure of -^ of the fineness of gold, is said to derive from retti 

 (Greek Iteration] a name applied to these seeds. They must be 

 sown in heat. 



Abutilon (abu-tilon, mallow-like, from the Arabic. Ord. Mal- 

 vaceae). Greenhouse plants, sometimes grown in pots, but often 

 planted out, and allowed to run up rafters, walls, or pillars. They 



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