54 



HENDERSON'S HANDBOOK OF PLANTS 



BOR 



Boro'nia. Named after Boroni, an Italian 

 attendant of Dr. Sibthorp. Nat. Ord. Rutaeece. 

 A genus of elegant green-house shrubs 

 from New Holland. The flowers are pink or 

 whitish. They are very elegant and useful 

 shrubs, requiring the same treatment as 

 ordinary hard-wooded gref;n-house plants, 

 being much aided by a little extra heat in 

 spring when starting into growth. Propa- 

 gated by cuttings. 



Bossiae'a. Named after M. Bossier Lamartiniere, 

 a French botanist, who accompanied the 

 unfortunate La Peyrouse round the world. 

 Elegant Australian green-house shrubs of the 

 Nat. Ord. Leguminosce. 



Flowers yellow or yellow and purple, B. 

 linophylla, B. rotundifolia, B. cinerea (Syn. B. 

 tenuicaulis), and others of the genus are highly 

 ornamental, and no green-house collection of 

 any pretensions is to be found without some 

 of them. Propagation by cuttings or seeds. 



Boswe'llia. Olibanum Tree. Ornamental and 

 economic evergreen trees of the Nat. Ord. 

 Burseracece. 



These trees are remarkable as furnishing a 

 gum-resin. B. glabra is used in India in 

 place of pitch ; B. thurifera, known also as B. 

 eerrata, a very common tree in Coromandel, 

 furnishes the resin known as Indian Olibanum, 

 which is supposed to have been the Frankin- 

 cense of the Ancients, and is still employed 

 for its grateful perfumes as incense in the 

 Roman Catholic churches. 



Botry'chium. Moonwort. From bolrys, a 

 bunch ; in reference to the bunch-like form of 

 the fructification forming a separate branch 

 on frond. Nat. Ord. Polypodiacece. 



A genus of hardy ferns, composed of about a 

 dozen species, found in nearly all countries 

 except Africa. B. lunaria, Moonwort, is 

 found rarely in the North and West. B. Vir- 

 ginica is a very beautiful and ornamental 

 native species, easily transplanted to the 

 hardy fernery. Many of the other species are 

 common in rich woods. 



Bottle-brush. Equisetum sylvaticum, E. arvense, 

 and Hippuris vulga/r'is. 



Bottle-brush Flowers. The flowers of Beau- 

 fortia splendens, Melaleuca hypericifolia, Metro- 

 Kiderosjloribunda, and some species of Callis- 

 tvmon. 



Bottle-gourd. Lagenaria vulgaris. 



Bottle-grass. One of the common names of 

 Setaria. 



Bottle-tree, Australian. Brachychiton (Dela- 

 bechea) rupestria. 



Bougainvi'llea. Named after the French navi- 

 gator De Bougainville. Nat. Ord. Nyctagi- 



Gorgeous warm green-house or conserva- 

 tory plants, comprising some of the most 

 showy climbers in cultivation. Their beauty 

 lies in the showy rose-colored bracts which 

 envelop the small greenish flowers. Those 

 of B. spectabilis, are singularly handsome. 

 J5. glabra may be grown in pots but the other 

 species require moro room and are best 

 planted out in the green-house border. Na- 

 tives of South America ; easily increased by 

 cuttings. 



Bouncing Bet. A popular name of Saponaria 

 ojfficinalia. 



BOU 



Bouquets, Baskets of Flowers, etc. Bouquet 

 making is (or at least ought to be) the art of 

 arranging cut flowers. 



Many people decry the artificial arrangement 

 of flowers, but how shall we otherwise use 

 them to advantage? The moment we begin 

 to tie them together we leave nature, and 

 ought to do so only to study art. In their 

 simplest arrangement, form and color must 

 be studied to produce the best effect, and 

 whoever best accomplishes this, will surely 

 succeed in displaying his flowers to the best 

 advantage. 



Probably the simplest, easiest, and com- 

 monly the most desirable, method of using 

 cut flowers is arranging them in vases. The 

 more loosely and unconfused, the better. 

 Crowding is particularly to be avoided, and to- 

 accomplish this readily a good base of greens 

 is required, to keep the flowers apart. This 

 filling up is a very important part in all 

 bouquet making, and the neglect of it is the 

 greatest stumbling-block of the uninitiated. 

 Spiked and drooping flowers, with branches- 

 and sprays of delicate green, are indispensable 

 to the grace and beauty of a vase bouquet. 

 To preserve the individuality of flowers, which 

 is of the greatest importance, the placing of 

 those of similar size and form together ought 

 to be avoided. Thus Heliotrope, Stevia, Eupa- 

 torium, or Alyssum, when combined, lose 

 their distinctive beauty ; but, if placed in j uxta- 

 position to larger flowers, and those of other 

 forms, their beauty is heightened by contrast. 

 It may be stated as a rule, that small flowers- 

 should never be massed together. Large 

 flowers with green leaves or branches may be 

 used to advantage alone, but a judicious con- 

 trast of forms is most effective. 



Some years ago, Bouquets were Invariably 

 arranged in the formal style, the colors being 

 used in consecutive rings, or alternating with 

 each other in geometrical forms. Taste, or 

 fashion, if you will, has changed for the 

 better, and closely-made, mushroom-like 

 bouquets, are now the exception rather than 

 the rule. The flowers are now arranged quite 

 loosely, plenty of Maiden-hair Fern and 

 Smilax being used so as to show off each 

 flower distinctly. Indeed the modern Bouquet, 

 especially if composed of roses, looks as if the 

 flowers had been picked up and tied together 

 without any thought of, or attempt at ar- 

 rangement. In these bunches, one color is 

 usually chosen, with a bunch of Violets, Heli- 

 otrope, Mignonette or other sweet smelling 

 flowers, tied on one side as a contrast, and to 

 add fragrance to the arrangement. For extra 

 occasions, Bouquets are made of Orchid blos- 

 soms, generally two or more sorts that har- 

 monize in color, being used, aided by a liberal 

 admixture of Fern fronds or sprays of the 

 beautiful filmy South African Asparagus. 

 Bouquets of Lily of the Valley, forced White 

 Lilacs, Violets, etc., are often used, either 

 alone or in combination with one or two other 

 flowers, the colors generally massed, however, 

 rather than mixed, fashion now leaning to- 

 wards simplicity and naturalness of arrange- 

 ment. Baskets and Plateaus of flowers are 

 also arranged on the same principles, groups 

 of different flowers or of the same flower in 

 different shades being used in preference lo- 

 an admixture of color. 

 Bourbon Palm. See Livistona. 



