2tX10 



MOMOUDICA 



known to Aniericiui pardens as oniamcntal vinos, but 

 the frs. of .W. Chnrantia aro eaten by the American 

 Chinese. Tliov ait- tender annuals and tlnive where 

 cueiiinlH^rs and ^ovinls will prow. They are excellent ui 

 the S. forcoverinn porches and arliors. M. Ehhrium of 

 tiie catalogues is Eeballixnu, which see. 



A. BracI iisuaUy about midway (or at basi) on the 

 ;x'(/i(nWc, entire: all peduncles bracted. 



Charfintia, Linn. B.\ls.\m Pe.\r. Fig. 2382. Run- 

 ninn 10 ft. or more, the st. slishtly jMibeseeiit and 

 furroweil: Ivs. roumlish, dull green, pubescent beneath 

 Uit least on the ribs), .5-7 lobes with rounded snui.ses, 

 the lobes shari>-tootheil and notched: fls. yellow, 1 in. 

 across, both the sterile and fertile solitary : fr. yellowi.sh, 

 oblong, pointeit, furrowed lengthwise and tubeiculate, 

 ti or 1 in. long, at maturity splitting into 3 divi.sions 

 and disclosing the bright scarlet arils of the white or 

 brown carved seeds. Trop. Asia and .\fr.. and i\atund- 

 izeil in \V. Indies. B.M. 24.5.5. (i.C. 111. .52: 173. \.V,. 

 13:, 525. — The Chinese gardeners about the .\nierican 

 cities grow this plant vmder the name of la-kwa, for 

 the edible pulpv arils surrounding the seeds, and also 

 for the edible "fr. itself (.which is prepared, us\ially 

 by boiling, before it is ripe). The rind is sonietinies 

 dried and used in medicinal preparations (see Bailey, 

 Bull. No. 67, Cornell Exp. Sta., with illustrations). 

 The odd seeds cause it to be called the "art pumpkin" 

 by some persons. 



Var abbreviata, Ser. (.1/. zeyUnica, Mill.). Plant 

 smaller: lobes of Ivs. narrower: fr. shorter, ovatc- 

 mucronate, with rows of sharp spines; seeds small, 

 commonly smooth. In the tropics.— Perhaps speci- 

 fically dis'tinct ; but M. Charantia runs into many forms. 



AA. Bract of sterile peduncle near the top, toothed: peduncle 



of fertile fl. bracted at base or not at all. 



Balsamina, Linn, Balsam Apple. Slenderer and 



more graceful, bright green throughout, glabrous, the 



foliage smaller an<l neater: Ivs. cordate-orbicular in 



2382. Momordica Charantia. 

 (Main spray X 'A) 



MONARDA 



outline, 3 in. or less across, ;{-,5-lobed, with roimded 

 sinu.ses, the lobes ami the few notches or teeth acute: 

 lis. solitary, nearlv or quite 1 in. across, yellow, often 

 with blackish center: fr. orange, 2-3 in. long, ovoid and 

 more or less narrowed each way, smooth or liibcrculate; 

 seeds compressed, nearlv smooth. Widely distributed 

 in Afr. and Asia, and naturalized in the W. Indies. 

 G.C. 1SIS:27L R.H. 1S57, p. 1S2. CM. 48:3.— A 

 neat vine, growing 4-lJ ft . 



AAA. Hraci near the top of the sterile peduncle, entire. 



involucrata, E. Mever. Much like M. lialsamina, but 

 leetli of Ivs. blunt, w'lth a short niucro, lis. larger, bract 

 much larger: fls. while or creani-white, often dotted 

 witli black: fr. sulfur-vellow, changing to scarlet, burst- 

 ing 2 in long. S. Afr. H.ll. 1S()5:3.5() (as M. lial- 

 samina var. lem-anlha). B.M. ()'.«2.— A very .slender 

 and graceful climber, with the peduncle bract against 

 the cahx, like an involucre. Intro, to American trade 

 about is90. 



M. roMnchinensis. Spreng. (M. mixta, RojbK.), is a large species 

 witli 3-loliocl Ivs., pale yellow, purple-eyed fls. 4 in. across anrt an 

 iil.lonK, bright red fr. 4-7 in. long. Farther India. B.M. 5145. h.b. 

 14:1478. G.C. III. 16:531. G.M. 37:777. L. H. B. 



MONANTHES (named for the often solitary 

 flower). ( 'ni.s.si/Mcca-. About 10 Uttle fleshy herbs of 

 the Canary Isls. and Morocco. Perennial, tufted, 

 mostlv glandular-hairy: Ivs. fleshy, clavate or cylindri- 

 cal, opposite or alternate, part or all of them rosulate: 

 fls. reddish or orange, on slender peduncles, solitary or 

 in cyines or racemes; sepals connate at base; petals 

 6-12 small, lanceolate; scales broad and petal-hke. 

 Closely allied to Cotyledon and Sempcrvivum, and 

 presumably requiring similar treatment. Froin Seni- 

 pervivum It dilTers in the much more developed scales 

 in the fl., opposite the carpels. Fanciers are likely to 

 grow a ntimber of species; the following description 

 will indicate what the plants are like. 



atlantica, Ball. Branches prostrate, 1-3 in. long, 

 <tylindric, bearing toward the end a dense imbricated 

 rosette of 20 or more Ivs., the latter about ^,m. long: 

 fls golden yellow, speckled red on back, on peduncles 

 from the ends of the branches; petals 6, elliptic-ovate, 

 acuminate. Canaries, Morocco. B.M. 5988 (as M. 

 muralis). L. H. B. 



MONARDA (after Nicolas Monardes, a Spanish 

 physician :ind botanist, who iniblished in 1.571 a book 

 containing a(^counts of American products, bee tig. 

 1,S.50). Labiatse. Horse-Mint. Annual and perennial, 

 erect, aromatic herbs. 



Leaves dentate or serrate: calyx tubular, narrow, 

 1.5-nerved, nearly .5-toothed, mostly villous in t;he 

 throat; fls. rather large, white, red, purplish, yellowish 

 or mottled, in dense capitate clusters, mostly bracteate, 

 terminal and sometimes axillary, the bracts often 

 highly colored; corolla glabrous within, tube slightly 

 dilateil above; upper lip erect or arched; lower lip 

 spreading, 3-lobed, the middle lobe larger or longer than 

 the others; anther-bearing stamens 2, usually exserted, 

 the posterior pair rudimentary or wanting; anthers 

 linear; ovary 4-parted.— About 12 species, natives of 

 N. Anier., including Mex. 



This includes the Oswego tea (M. didyma), one ot the 

 most brilliant of our native wild flowers, being sur- 

 passed in the intensity of its red only by the c;irdiiial- 

 (lowcr. It is a rather coarse herb, with large heads of 

 g:i))iiig, wi.le-mouthed flowers, which have none of the 

 refinement of the cardinal-flower. For mass effects, 

 however, these plants are very striking. They grow 

 wild [dong the banks of streams, lighting up the dark 

 corners of the woods. This suggests their proper place 

 in landscape gardening. They should be gro\\^l in 

 masses, in wild spots against a dark h:tckground. 

 However, they can, if desired, be growm in an ordinary 

 suimv border'without more moisture than usual. As a 



