6-2 



AUBORETUM ET FHUTTCETUM BRITANNICUM. 



Section III. 



Ovanum solitary ; Placenta central. {The Column in the Fruit to which the Seeds 

 are attached central, and not adhering to the Side as in Section II.} 



Order IX. MALVA^CEtE. 



Ord. Char. Calyx with a valvate aestivation, mostly with an involucre. Sta- 

 mens with the filaments monaclelphous, and the anthers 1-celled. Pubes- 

 cence starry. (Liiidl.) Trees or shrubs, deciduous, natives of warm climates. 

 Leaves siniple, alternate, stipulate, deciduous ; more or less divided. 

 Hairs stellate, axillary. Flowers on peduncles, large, showy. The only 

 genus containing hardy species is i/ibiscus. .The genus La\ater contains 

 some species which have an arborescent appearance, but which are in fact 

 only suffrutescent biennials or triennials. 



Genus I. 



//IBI'SCUS L. The Hibiscus. Lin. Syst. Monadelphia Polvandria. 



Identification. Lin. Gen., 846. ; Dec. Prod , 1. p. 446. ; Don's Mill., 1. p. 476. ' 



Synonymes. Ketmie, Fr. ; Eibisch, Ger. ; Ibisco, Ital. 



Dcrivntiim. The word hibiskos is one of tiie names given by the Greeks to the mallow. The /TiMscus 

 of Pliny appears to be an umbelliferous plant ; while that of Virgil is a plant with pliant branches, 

 which was made into baskets. The word //ibiscus is supposed by some to be derived from ibis, a 

 stork, which is said to feed on some of the species. Ketmie (Fr.) is derived from Kitniia, the name 

 given to the genus by Toumefort. Eibisch is the German aboriginal word for the mallow. 



Gen. Char. Calyx encompassed by a many-leaved, rarely by a few-leaved, in- 

 volucel, or one with its leaves connate. Petals not auricled. Stigmas 5. 

 Carpels joined into a 5-celled 5-valved capsule, with a dissepiment in the 

 middle of each valve on the inside. Cells many-seeded, rarely 1-seeded. 



Leaves simple, alternate, stipulate, deciduous ; variously lobed and 

 toothed, generally ovate-wedge-shaped. Flowers pedunculate, large, showy. 

 The only hardy ligneous species is H. syriacus. 



^ 



I. H. sYRi^ACus L, The Syrian Hibiscus, or Althcea Frutex. 



Identification. Lin. Sp., 978. ; Dec, Prod., 1 . p. 448. ; Don's Mill., 1. 478. 

 Syno7ii/mes. Ketmie des Jardins, Fr. ; Syrischer Eibisch, Ger. 

 Derivation. It is called Althffia from the resemblance of its flowers to those 



of the v41thEe"a rbsea. 

 Engravings. Cav. Diss., 3. t. 69. f. 1. ; Bot. Mag., t. 83. ; and our Jig. ^5. 



Spec. Char., &c. Stem unarmed, arboreous. Leaves 

 ovate, wedge-shaped, 3-!obed, toothed. Pedicels hardly 

 longer than the leaves. Involucel 6 7-leaved. {Don's 

 Mill.) A deciduous shrub. Syria and Carniola. Height 

 6 ft. Introduced in 1596. Flowers large, single or 

 double, white, red, purple, or variegated ; August and 

 September. Capsule greenish brown ; ripe in October. 

 Decaying leaves yellowish green. Naked wood white 



One of our most ornamental hardy shrubs, of which 

 there are the following varieties : 



95. /fibiscus sj-n.-^cus. 



2 foliis variegdtis. Leaves variegated. 



3 Jlore varirgdto. Flowers variegated. 



4 ^ore purpiireo. Flowers purple. 



3 Jlore jmrpureo plcno. Flowers double, purple. 

 Q flore rubra. Flowers red. 

 1 fibre dlho. Flowers white. 



5 fibre dlbo plcno. Flowers double, white. 



