CRUClFERyE 2j5 



Cruci ferae 



The prosaic order par excellence, whose interest lies in 

 the kitchen and economic gardens, giving us cabbages, 

 turnips, horse-radish, colza, cress and mustard, whose va- 

 luable antiscorbutic properties scientists may analyse into 

 an acrid, stimulating and sulphureous principle. The bota- 

 nist's analysis runs: annual or perennial herbs; leaves 

 alternate ; flowers regular, with a calyx of four sepals and 

 a corolla of four petals arranged alternately with the sepals 

 in a maltese cross and attached by long claws; six stamens, 

 tetradynamous (an alarming word, signifying four long, 

 and two short); style simple, with two adherent stigmas. 

 The flower-gardener will pass the order by, as containing 

 little of merit, and even of the more select species the 

 Alps contain few worthy except one or two Drabas, Ery si- 

 mums, Jiutchinsia and, perhaps, "Dentaria or Thlaspi rotundi- 

 folium. For example, no ordinary garden can accomodate 

 other Jlrabis than the Greek pallida. 



Draba 



"Eng.: Whitlowgrass ; Fr.; Drave ; Ger.i Hungcrblume. 



A genus composed of pretty, little rock- pi ants, of dwarf 

 and compact habit, and genuine children of the snows. 

 Too small to hold their own except among the tiniest of 

 companions, they are interesting without being striking, 

 and worthy of trial in mossy walls, the species with yellow 

 flowers making a gay show. The best are perhaps aizoides 

 and pyrenaica, though the second is inclined to damp off, 

 unless regularly topdressed with clean grit. Otherwise 



