GENISTA 



GENTIANA 



1323 



HH. The fls. in terminal racemes on the young growth. 

 I. Pod pubescent, 1-4-seeded. 



11. virgata, Link (Spdrtium virgdtum, L'Her.). 

 Shrub, to S ft., with slender branches: Ivs. lanceolate to 

 elliptic, silky-villous, yi-ViVO.. long: fls. in numerous 

 short 3-6-fld. racemes; standard and keel silky: pod 

 oblong, 1-3-seeded, villous. May-July. Madeira. 

 B.M. 2265. F. 1875:169. 



12. florida, Linn. Erect shrub, to 5 ft., with gla- 

 brous striped branches: Ivs. spatulate-oblong or lanceo- 

 late, silky beneath, '3-? 3 in. long: fls. in dense, many- 

 fld. racemes; corolla glabrous: pod oblong or narrow- 

 oblong, silky, 2— 1-seeded. April-July. Spain. 



II. Pod glabrous or slightly pubescent, rarely densely so, 

 S-10-seeded. 



13. polygalaeffilia, DC. Erect shrub, to 6 ft., with 

 somewhat silky branches: Ivs. spatulate-oblong, gla- 

 brous above, sparingly silky beneath, l-z-'rim. long: 

 fls. in many-fid. slender racemes; standard and wings 

 glabrous, keel silk}': pod oblong or narrow-oblong, 

 almost glabrous, 3-6-seeded. May-July. Spain, 

 Portugal. 



14. tinctoria, Linn. (G. sibirica, Hort. G. polygalse- 

 fblia, Hort., not DC). Dyer's Greenweed. Fig. 

 1624. Erect shrub, to 3 ft., with striped, glabrous or 

 slightly pubescent branches: Ivs. oblong-elliptic or 

 oblong-lanceolate, almost glabrous, ciUate, } 2-I in. 

 long: racemes many-fid., panicled at the ends of 

 branches; corolla glabrous: pod narrow-oblong, gla- 

 brous or slightly pubescent, 6-10-seeded. June-Aug. 

 Eu., W. Asia; naturalized in some places E. B.B. (ed. 2) 

 2:.350. S.E.B. 3:328. R.F.G. 22:2088. Var. plena, 

 Hort. With double fls. R.H. 1899, p. 573. G.W. 16, 

 p. 137. Var. virgata, Mert. & Koch (G. I'irgdta, WiUd., 

 not Link, not Lam. G. elata, Wender.). Of more 

 vigorous groft'th, to 6 ft. high: pod 3-6-seeded. S.E. 

 Eu. Var. humilior, Schneid. {G. mdntica, PoU.). Dwarf 

 and compact, more pubescent: pods silky-villous. 

 Italy. 



FF. Habit procumbent: fls. axillary. 



15. pilosa, Linn. Dwarf, procumbent or ascending: 

 Ivs. cuneate, oblong or obovate, dark green and ahnost 

 glabrous above, silky beneath: fls. a.xillary, 1-2, often 

 racemose toward the end of branches: pod linear, silky, 

 5-8-seeded. May, June. Cent, and S. Eu., W. Asia. 

 S.E.B. 3 : 327. R.F.G. 22 : 2093. 



BB. Twigs broadly 2-winged. 



16. sagittalis, Linn. {Cytisus sag-ittalis, Mert. & 

 Koch). Dwarf, procumbent, with ascending or erect, 

 mostly simple branches: Ivs. ovate to oblong, villous: 

 fls. in terminal, short racemes; corolla glabrous: pod 

 linear-oblong, silky. May, June. Eu., W. Asia. R.F.G. 

 27:2081. 



G. dlba. Lam. ^Cytisus multiflorua. — G. Aiidreana, Puissant^ 

 Cytisua acoparius var. .\ndreanus. — G. dnglica, Linn. Spiny ahnib, 

 to 3 ft., sometimes procumbent, glabrous: Ivs. oval to linear-oblong, 

 bluish green: racemes few-fld. Cent. Eu. S.E.B. 3:32S. R.F.G. 

 22:2086. — G. anxdntica, Tenore (G. tinctoria var. anxantica, 

 Fiori). Allied to G. tinctoria. Dwarf, diffuse: Ivs. elliptic, obtuse, 

 glabrous: fls. in racemes. Italy. — G. aspalathmdes. Lam. Low, 

 spiny shrub: Ivs. simple or 3-foliolate: fls. 1-3. axillary, forming 

 loose, terminal racemes: pod many-seeded. N. Afr. — G. cnnariensis, 

 Linn. ^Cytisus canariensis. — G. cdndicans. Linn.=Cyti9us mon- 

 apeliensis. — G. dalmdtica, Bartl. .\llied to G. germanica. Spiny 

 shrub with appressed or spreading silky pubescence: Ivs. linear- 

 lanceolate, simple: fls. in terminal racemes, 1-1. '2 m. long: pod 

 Klobose-ovoid, 1-seeded. Dalmatia, Herzegovina. B.M. S075. — 

 G. formdsa, Hort.^Cytisus racemosus. — G. (jlabrescens, Briquet=: 

 Cytisus emeriflorus. — G. horrida, DC. Spiny rigid shrub, to i ft.: 

 Ivs. opposite, usually .3-folioIate, pubescent: fls. 1-3. in terminal 

 heads: pods rhombic-lanceolate, pubescent. S. France, Spain. 

 G.C. in. 53: 140. — G. jiincea, Lam.^Spartium junceum. — G. 

 lusitdnica, Linn. Spiny shrub, 1-3 ft.: Ivs. 3-foliolate: Ifta. linear- 

 lanceolate, silky, very small: fls. in peduncled heads. Spain, Por- 

 tugal. — G. nysnana. PetroWch. Shrub, to 3 ft., silky-villous: Ivs. 

 3-foliolate: fls. in terminal leafy racemes to 8 in. long: pod rhombic, 

 villous, 2-seeded. Servia, Albania. I.T. 5:197. — G. ovdla, Waldst. 

 & Kit. Allied to G. tinctoria. To 1 ft., with ascending or erect 

 branches: Ivs. ovate to lanceolate, \'illou3: pod villous. S. E. Eu. 



L.B.C. 5:482. — G. prostrAta, Lam.=Cytisu3 decumbens. — G. 

 racemdsa, Hort.=Cyti3us racemosus. — G. radidta. Scop. Erect 

 shrub, with opposite rigid branches: Ivs. simple or 3-foliolate: fla. 

 in 3-6-fld. heads: pod oval, silky. S. E. Eu. B.M. 2260. — G. 

 Rddtmj, Nichols. ^G. monosperma. — G. scaridsa, Viv.^G. trian- 

 gularis. — G. scoparia, Lam.=Cytisus scoparius. — G. triangularis, 

 Wind. Dwarf, with ascending or procumbent triangular branches, 

 glabrous: Ivs. obovate to lanceolate, with transparent margin: lis. 

 in short racemes. Italy. S. E. Eu. L.B.C. 12: 1135 (as G. scariosa). 



Alfred Rehder. 



GENTIANA (after Gentius, King of lUyria, who 

 is said to have discovered the tonic value of these 

 plants). Gentiandcex. Choice herbs, mostly blue- 

 flowered, grown in the open, many of them in alpine 

 gardening. 



Chiefly perennial herbs, only rarely biennial or annual, 

 often dwarf, diffuse or frequently tufted, sometimes 

 erect and slender or even tall and stout: Ivs. opposite, 

 rarely verticiUate, mostly sessile: fls. blue, violet, purple, 

 rarely dull yellow or white; floral parts tvpically 5, 

 rarely 4-7 : fr. a caps. — There are about .300 species, 

 widely scattered in temperate and mountainous regions. 

 Many botanists now consider the genus in a highly 

 restricted sense, taking up various names for gentians, 

 such as Amarella, Dasystephana, and so on, but they 

 are here all considered as of the genus Gentiana. 



Gentians are amongst the most desirable of alpine 

 plants, and of blue flowers in general, but they are 

 usually considered difficult to establish. The genus is 

 the largest in the family, and from the horticultural 

 standpoint, the most important. 



The blue gentian, celebrated by tourists in the Alps, 

 is mostly the stemless G. acaulis. This was brought to 

 EngUsh gardens so long ago that all record of its intro- 

 duction is lost. It is by far the most popular kind in 

 cultivation. This species is by some split into five 

 distinct forms, of which G. angustifolia, Vill. (not 

 Mich.x.) , is nearest to the Gentianella of Enghsh gardens. 

 It has been so much modified in cultivation that it now 

 has stems 4 to 6 inches high and the rootstock is so 

 stoloniferous that the plant has to be cut back every 

 year when used for edgings in English gardens. In 

 France it is easily grown in a compost of one-half 

 humus or leaf-soil and one-half good vegetable mold, 

 to which may be added a httle sand. Correvon writes: 

 "It can be multipKed by means of offsets, but it is 

 infinitely better to raise it from seed, and, in doing 

 this, it should not be forgotten that the seeds of this 

 group of gentians are very tedious, and, more espe- 

 cially, very capricious in germinating. I have sown 

 seeds of G. acaulis, some of which did not germinate 

 for twelve months, while others (which I must say 

 were more recently gathered) germinated in a few 

 weeks. The seedlings should be potted as soon as 

 possible and while they are very young. They will 

 begin to flower in about three years from the time of 

 sowing, rarely sooner." Except G. Andrewsii, G. 

 Saponaria and G. puberula, and perhaps a few others, 

 gentians do not thrive so well in America as in England. 

 Our seasons are too hot and dry. Whenever possible, 

 choose a damp atmosphere. 



It is rash to generahze on gentian-culture, because 

 some plants are tall, others dwarf, some found on moun- 

 tains, others in lowlands, some in moist soil, others in 

 dry lands, while some Ukc hmestone and others cannot 

 endure it. The annual kinds are of interest only to the 

 expert. Alpine plants in general are singular in requir- 

 ing an extremely large water-sujjply, combined with 

 extremely good drainage. Another difficult problem is 

 to keep the plants as cool as they are on the mountains 

 without shading them more than nature does. Gentian 

 seeds are small, and in germination slow and uncer- 

 tain. They should be sown as soon as gathered, for the 

 thorough drying out of small seeds is, as a rule, soon 

 fatal. Gentians are difficult to establish, and dislike 

 division of the root, but are well worth patient years of 

 trial, for they are very permanent when once estab- 

 lished. Nature-like alpine gardens are one of the latest 



