998 



MEDICAGO 



pods slightly pubescent, with two or three spirals. Eu. 

 — Now widely cult., particularly in dry regions, as a 

 hay and pasture, being to the West what red clover is 

 to the Northeast. See Alfalfa. A hardier and drought- 

 resisting race (known as var. Turkestanica, Hort. ) was 

 Introduced from central Asia in 1898 by N. E. Hansen, 



1383. Medeola Virgil 



Agrostology, U. S. Dept. Agric). 



AA. .f^/s. yellow. 



B. Plant annual and herbaceous. 



lupullna, Linn. Black or Hop Medick. NoNEsncH. 



Diffuse, the branches often rooting and becoming 2-3 



ft. long, deep-rooted, and difficult to pull up: plant gla- 



brous or slightly pubescent : Ifts. oval to orbicular, 

 toothed: stipules broad and toothed: fls. small, light 

 yellow, in pedunculate heads : fr. nearly glabrous, 

 spiral, becoming black. Eu. — Extensively naturalized. 

 Has the appearance of 

 a clover. The yellow 

 clovei'S with which it 

 is likely to be con- 

 founded have larger 

 heads, which soon be- 

 come dry and papery, 

 and the stipules are en- 

 tire. It is sometimes 

 used as a forage or hay 

 plant Of no ornamen- 

 tal value. 



prostr4ta,Jacq. Stem 

 prostrate: Ifts. linear, 

 dentate at the apex: 

 stipules linear -subu- 

 late: pod glabrous, spi- 

 rally contorted, 2- 

 seeded, black. S. Eu. 

 — Advertised as an or- 

 namental plant. M.ele- 

 rjans, a name for a low, 

 yellow-fld. species, is 

 also in the trade; it 

 may be any one of 4 or 



scutellita, Mill. Snails. Erect or spreading, soft- 

 pubescent: Ifts, broadly obovate or the upper ones 

 broadly oblong, prominently toothed: stipules falcate, 

 toothed at the base: fls. small, solitary or nearly so: 

 pod large and prominently reticulated, yi in. across, 

 like a snail shell. Eu.— Grown for the odd snail-like 

 pods, which are used as surprises. See the article Cat- 

 erpillars and Worms. 



BB. Plant perennial and woody. 



arbdrea, Linn. Tree Alfalfa. Moon Trefoil. Two 

 to 8 ft. tall, with hard black wood: Ifts. oval to obovate, 

 light green, toothed at the top : stipules linear-acute, 

 entire: fls. orange-yellow, in rather loose, axillary, pe- 

 duncled clusters: pod spiral, 2-3-seeded. S. Eu. L.B.C. 

 14:1379. — Offered as an ornamental plant in S. Calif. 



Alfalfa. 



L. H. 1 



MEDICK. Sec Medicago. 



MEDINlLLA (after Jos« de Medinilla y Pineda, 

 governor of the Ladrones). Melastom&cea. A genus of 

 98 species of tropical plants, mostly from the East 

 Indies and Pacific islands. M. magnifica is one of the 

 most gorgeous tropical plants in cultivation, and one of 

 the most desirable for amateurs who have hothouses. 

 It is a native of the Philippines. It has handsome 

 broad, shining, leathery foliage and coral-red, 5-petaled 

 fls., each about 1 in. across, which are borne in pendu- 

 lous pyramidal panicles sometimes a foot long, and 

 bearing 100-150 fls. The axis and branches of the pani- 

 cle are pinkish, and the same color tinges the large, 

 showy bracts, which are sometimes 4 in. long. Hooker 

 says: "Its most beautiful state is, perhaps, before the 

 full perfection of the fls., when the large imbricated 

 bracts begin to separate and allow the buds to be par- 

 tially seen. As the expansion of the blossoms advances, 

 the upper bracts fall off, but the lower ones remain and 

 become reflexed." This truly magnificent plant flowers 

 copiously when only 2 or 3 ft. high, and a large well- 

 kept specimen in flower is a sight that is never to be 

 forgotten. The numerous long, bent, purple anthers, 

 with their yellow filaments, form an additional feature 



Medinilla is distinguished from allied genera (none 

 of which has garden value) chiefly by the curious ap- 

 pendages of the stamens. The stamens are 8, 10 or 12, 

 the anterior connective, 2-lobed or 2-spurred, the pos- 

 terior one usually setose or 1-2-lobed or 1-spurred. 

 Medinillas are branching shrubs, erect or climbing: Ivs. 

 mostly opposite or whorled, entire, fleshy: fls. white or 

 rose, with or without bracts, in panicles or cvmes. 

 , Cogniaux in DC. Mon. Phan. 7:572-602 (1891). The 2 



