O R N 



O R N 



The tlircc first sorts arc useful as culinary 

 plants, as well as ornamental in the borders 

 of the pleasure groinul : and the other kinds 

 afford varittv in the green-house collections. 



ORNITlJOGALUM, a genus containing 

 plants of the bulbous-rooted, flowery, herba- 

 ceous, perennial kind. 



It belon<z;s to the class and order Hc.raiidria 

 Mo/>oiii/i:ia, and ranks in the natural order of 

 Coin)mri/:e. 



The characters arc : that there is no calyx : 

 the corolla has six petals, laneer;late, upright 

 below the middle, above it spitading, perma- 

 nent, losing their colour: the t.tainina have 

 six upright tilanients, alternately widening at 

 the base, shorter than the corolla; anthers 

 simple: thepistillum is an angular germ : style 

 awl-shaped, permanent : stigma blunt : the pe- 

 ricarpium is a roundi^h capsule, angular, three- 

 celled, three- valved : the seeds many and 

 roundi.sh. 



The species cultivated are: 1. O.vmlellatiim, 

 Umbelled Star of Bethlehem ; 0. 0. lutmm. 

 Yellow Star of Bethlehem ; 3. 0. winhninn, 

 Small Star of Bethlehem ; 4. 0. Pyrenukitm, 

 Pyrenean Star of Bethlehem; 5. 0. latiJoliinM, 

 Broad-leaved Star of Bethlehem; 6. 0. pyravii- 

 dale, Pvramidal Star of Bethlehem ; 7- 0. 

 vn'fo/iiim, One- leafed Star of Bethlehen) ; 8. 

 0. nutans, Neapolitan Star of Bethlehem ; 9. 

 0. Capense, Cape Ornithogalum; 10. O.aureum, 

 Golden Star of Bethleheni. 



The first has a solid bulb, having smaller 

 bulbs joining to it : the root-leaves (sometimes 

 five) soft, keeled, or convex on the outside and 

 channelled within, with a white silvery streak, 

 from one to two lines in width, and above a 

 foot in length, linear, bright green : the scape 

 upright, round, very smooth, a long span or 

 a fo'ot in height, terminating at top in alter- 

 nate peduncle's, very long and broad ; all toge- 

 ther forming a sort of corymb, resembling an 

 irregular umbel, but not springing from the 

 same point; the lower ones being longer; the 

 flowers are all nearly of the same height ; they 

 are one-flowered, and each has a white, mem- 

 branaceous, lanceolate, very large bracte. 

 Woodward remarks thit it is improperly called 

 iimitllatnm, as the flowers are in a most evident 

 spike (or rather corymb). It is a native of the 

 southern parts of Europe, &c., flowering in April 

 and May. 



The second species has the root-leaves gene- 

 rally single, and longer than the stem, which is 

 froiii four to six inches high : the stem-leaves 

 two, three, or four, one very large, the other 

 smaller, all unequal ; fringed with fine white 

 hairs < from these arise a few fruit-stalks, (three 



to seven) each supporting one flower, and form- 

 ing an umbel. It is a native of iii'st parts of 

 Europe, flowering in April. 



its roots have been used for food in times of 

 scarcity, in Sweden. 



In the third, according to Miller, the bulbs arc 

 not larger than peas. Tlure is one or two nar- 

 row keel -shaped leaves about dv^ inches long, 

 of a grayish colour, arising from th<m. The 

 stalk IS angular, about four inches high, having 

 two narrow keel-slmpcd leaves just below the 

 flowers, u hicli are di-^posed in an umbel on branch- 

 ing peduncles, vellow within but of a purplish 

 green on the ou't>ide ; they appear in May, and 

 arc succeeded by small tiiangular capsules filled 

 with rediljsh uneven seeds. It is a nati\e of 

 Sweden Sec. 



The fourth species has a naked stem, a foot 

 and half or tuo feet high ; the flowers are in a 

 long spike on slender peduncles, each arising 

 from a membranaceous half-embracing bracte, 

 broad at the base, tapering to a point : the bulb 

 pretty large, with several long keeled leaves 

 coming out from it and spreading on the 

 ground ; among these comes out a single naked 

 stalk about two feet long, sustaining a long loose 

 spike of flowers of a yellowish grteu colour, 

 on pretty long peduncles, and spreading wide 

 from the principal stalk. The flowers have an 

 agreeable scent, and appear in May. It is a na- 

 tive of some parts of Europe. 



The fifth hLis a large bulb ; the root-leaves 

 are several, broad, sword-shaped, spreading on 

 the ground ; the stalk thick, strong, between 

 two and three feet high, bearing a long spike of 

 large white flowers, upon long pedicels : the 

 leaves are a foot long, and more than two inches 

 in breadth. It has been obverved by Clusias, 

 with above one hundred flowers on a spike. It 

 is a native of Egypt and Arabia, flowering in 

 June. 



The sixth species has a very large oval bulb, 

 from which arise several long keeled leaves, of 

 a dark green colour ; in the middle of these 

 springs up a naked stalk, near three feet high, 

 terminated by a long conical spike of white 

 flowers, on pretty long pedicels. It grows na- 

 turallv in Spain and Portugal, flowering in 

 June. 



The seventh has an ovate bulb, the size of 

 a hazel nut ; the leaf is upright, flat, broad- 

 lanecolate, blunt, naked, ciliate, sheathing the 

 scape at the base ; the scape upright, round, 

 longer than the leaf, terminated by a few- 

 flowered raceme ; the flowers pcduncled, alter- 

 nate. It is a native of the Cape of Good 

 Hope. 



The eighth species has a pretty large, c^n;- 

 Z 2 



