ALEURITES 



ALLAMANDA 



43 



cordata. Steud. Lvs. broadly ovate, acuminate, deeply 

 cordate, '.'-'> cuspidate or lobed. S- China. Yields an 



excellent lac varnish. 



S. China. Yields an 

 L. H. B. 



ALFALFA, LUCERNE (Jfedicago saliva. Linn.). A 

 deep-rooted perennial forage plant of the Leguminosce. 

 The plant grows a foot or two high, bears pinnate Ivs. 

 with :* ovate-oblong toothed leaflets, and small head-like 

 racemes of purple clover-shaped fls. It is native to Eu. 

 In the arid parts of the U. S. it is the staple hay and 

 foraire plant, and it is also grown to a considerable ex- 

 tent in the E. Two to six mowings may be made each 

 year from established meadows. Fifteen to 20 Ibs. of 

 seed are sown to the acre; and the seed is preferably 

 sown alone, without another crop. Alfalfa should not be 

 pastured the first year. In two or three years it be- 

 comes thoroughly established and productive, and it 

 should continue for many years. June grass often runs 

 it out in a cool, moist climate. Alfalfa often becomes 

 a weed in waste places. 



ALFILERIA. The West American or Spanish name 

 for ErbdiHiH cicutarium, L'Her. Geranidcece. A hairy 

 annual which is used for pasture in dry regions. 



ALGA, plural ALGJE. A general name for chloro- 

 phyll-bearing thallophytes. They are flowerless plants, 

 allied to the fungi, and generally inhabit water. Those 

 occurring in salt water are known as seaweeds. None 

 are cultivated. The green " moss" on flower-pots is made 

 up of algze. 



ALGAROBA is the fruit of Ceratonia siliqua 



ALHAGI (its Mauritanian name). Legumindsw. Low, 

 spiny, much branched shrubs: Ivs. oblong, small, ob- 

 tuse, entire, alternate : fls. papilionaceous, in few-fld. 

 racemes. Summer. Three closely allied species from 

 Greece and Egypt to Himalayas, producing the Persian 

 or Alhagi Manna. They may be cult, in temperate re- 

 gions in dry and sunny positions and prop, by seeds and 

 greenwood cuttings under glass with a little bottom 

 heat. 



A. camelbrum, Fisch. CAMEL'S THORN. Glabrous at length : 

 ovary glabrous. Cau. to Himal. A. maurdrum, DC. Pubes- 

 cent : ovary pubescent. Egypt to Persia. A. grcecbrum, Boiss. 

 Very spiny and more densely pubescent : ovary pubescent. 

 Greece. ALFRED REHDER. 



ALlSMA (derivation doubtful). Alism&cew. Hardy 

 aquatics, with small white or pale rose fls. on scapes 

 with whorled, panicled branches. Perennial by a stout 

 proliferous corm. Useful in ponds. Prop, by division 

 or seeds. 



Plantago, Linn. WATER PLANTAIN. Lvs. variable, 

 but usually broadly cordate-ovate ; thinner and nar- 

 rower when growing under water. Panicle 1-2 ft. long. 

 Common in swales and still waters in U. S.; also inEu. 



A. natans, Linn., is now referred to the monotypic genus 

 Elisma (E. natans, Buch.). It is native to Eu., and is offered in 

 foreign catalogues. Fl. white, single, on a long peduncle: float- 

 ing Ivs. elliptic and obtuse. 



ALKANNA, ALKANET. See Anchusa. 

 ALKEKENGI. See Physalis. 



ALLAMANDA (Dr. Allamand, Leyden). Apocynacece. 

 Greenhouse shrubs, mostly climbers. Lvs. entire, 

 whorled: fls. terminal, large and funnel-shaped, with a 

 flat-spreading or reflexed limb, the tube inflated below 

 the throat: ovary 1-loculed: stamens 5, the filaments 

 very short. 



Allamandas are of easy culture. They are usually 

 grown in the ground or in large tubs, and trained on the 

 rafters. For best results, they should have plenty of 

 sun. The bushy kinds, as A. neriifolia, A. grandiflora 

 and A. Williamsi, may be grown as specimen plants 

 in pots. The strong kinds, as A. Schottii, are some- 

 times used as stocks upon which to graft the weaker 

 ones, particularly if roof plants are desired. Prop, by 

 cuttings of growing wood in a bottom heat of 75 ; also 

 by layers. The species are much confused. 

 A. Fls. purple. 



Blanch6tii, DC. (A. violdcea, Gardn.). Lvs. in 4's, 

 hairy on both sides : fls. in terminal clusters, 3 in. across, 



salmon-purple: habit of A. cathartica. Brazil. B.M. 

 7122. Int. into U. S. in 1893. 



AA. Fls. yellow or orange. 

 B. Corolla with a swollen or bulb-like base. 

 neriifdlia, Hook. A stocky, bushy grower, useful for 

 pots, although it usually needs to be staked or grown 

 against a support if allowed to take its full course: Ivs. 

 in H's-5's, glabrous, oblong or elliptic, acuminate : co- 

 rolla smaller than A. Schottii or A. Hendersoni, deeper 

 yellow, streaked with orange. S. Amer. B.M. 4594. 



Early and profuse bloomer. 



BB. Corolla tube long, slender and stem-like. 



c. Lvs. and calyx more or less hairy. 

 nobilis, Moore. A strong, tall climber, with purple 

 twigs: Ivs. in 3's or 4's, large, acuminate, very short- 

 stalked: fls. very large (4-5 in. across), nearly circular 

 in outline of limb, bright, clear yellow, with magnolia- 

 like odor. Finest fls. in the genus. Braz. B.M. 5764. 



cc. Lvs. and calyx glabrous (except perhaps in A. 



Williamsi). 



D. Plant tall-climbing. 



cathartica, Linn. Lvs. rather small, obovate, usually 

 in 4's, and more or less wavy-margined, thin, acuminate : 

 fls. golden yellow, white-marked in the throat, the lobes 

 acuminate on one angle, 3 in. or less across, the tube 

 gibbous or curved. S. Amer. B.M. 338. P.M. 8:77. 



The species first described, but now rarely seen in 

 cultivation. 



Sch6ttii, Pohl. Strong-growing, suitable for rafters: 

 young shoots and petioles slightly pubescent, the older 

 stems warty: Ivs. in 3's or 4's, broadly lanceolate and 

 acuminate: corolla large, rich yellow, the throat darker 

 and beautifully striped. Braz. B.M. 4351, but this por- 

 trait is considered by Index Ke wen sis to belong to A. 

 cathartica. A. magnifica, introdxiced into the U. S. in 

 1893, is probably a form of this species. 



Hndersoni, Bull. (A. Wardley&na, Lebas.). Fig. 61. 

 Tall and vigorous, free-flowering, excellent for roofs: 



61. Allamanda Hendersoni (X %). 



glabrous: Ivs. large, elliptic-ovate, thick and leathery, 

 in 4's: fls. large, yellow-orange, with 5 light spots in the 

 throat, the corolla of thick substance, purplish on the 

 exterior when in bud. Gn. 29:542. I.H. 12:452. The 

 commonest Allamanda in this country. By some authori- 

 ties considered to be a variety of A. cathartica; by oth- 

 ers referred to A . Schottii. Int. from Guiana by Hender- 

 son & Co., St. John's Wood, England, and distributed 

 by Bull about 1865. 



