362 



PRACTICAL BOTANY 



330. Ornamental plants. Only a very few of the best-known 

 ornamental plants of the choripetalous dicotyledons not already 

 referred to can here be mentioned. Among them are pinks, 



water lilies, lotuses, 

 magnolias, poppies, 

 " geraniums," "nas- 

 turtiums " (Tropceo- 

 Imri), balsams, vio- 

 lets, mallows, be- 

 gonias, and cacti. 

 Here belong a large 

 proportion of the 

 annuals in our gar- 

 dens and many of 

 the familiar early 

 wild flowers of the 

 woods and fields, 

 such as fire pink, 

 buttercup, Dutch- 

 man's-breeches, he- 

 patica, anemone, 

 catchfly, and blood- 

 root. Here, too, are 

 classed the numer- 

 ous showy species 

 of the Mustard 

 family. Many fa- 

 vorite shade trees, 

 such as the oaks, 

 birches, elms, and 

 maples, and many ornamental shrubs, such as barberries, hollies, 

 hibiscus, and others, belong to the choripetalous sub-class. 1 



1 Considerable matter relating to various species of hard-wood trees (most 

 of which are choripetalous dicotyledons) will be found in the summary of 

 facts concerning timber in Chapter XXII, and a short account of the citrous 

 fruits and the grapes in Chapter XXIII. 



FIG. 298. An American-grown camphor tree 



The tree is six or eight years old and eighteen feet 

 high ; it is grown on the Florida " high pine land," of 

 almost pure white sand. Camphor-growing is now car- 

 ried on extensively in this region, and by the improved 

 method of distilling camphor from twigs clipped with 

 their leaves from the live tree the latter is little in- 

 jured, and the industry can be carried on for many 

 years without replanting. Photograph furnished by 

 the Bureau of Plant Industry, United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture 



