Moronobea 



(88 ) 



Mosses 



surface should form a mound with, the plant in the 

 centre. When growing rapidly, and the pots are 

 well filled with roots, occasional applications of 

 weak cow manure and soot water are beneficial. 

 They, rejoice in a light position in the warmest 

 house when making their growth, but as soon as 

 the leaves begin to show signs of decay a cooler 

 and more airy position should be provided to 

 thoroughly ripen the growths. Thrips form the 

 worst insect pest, and must be kept under by light 

 fumigations. If green or black iiy appear on the 

 young shoots in early spring a. light fumigating 

 should be given at once. 



MoilMODES LCXATA. 



Principal Species and Varieties : 

 Buccinator, 1' to IS', Ap., eburnea, ivory wh., 



very fine, 

 pardina, 1', Jy., yel., crim. 



spots. 



rolreaua, 1' to IV, Jy., 

 gru., or., fragrant. 



reddish br. , with darker 



spots. 



aurea, or. yel. 

 luxata, 1' to H', Jy., pale 



yel., with deep yel. lip 



streaked with br. (se 



figure). 



Other Species and Variety : 



Cogniauxii, 1', Je. (near ignea, 2', Jan., red, pur., 

 rolfeaua). maculate, yel., br., 



spotted pur. 

 MORONOBEA. 



A small genus of stove evergreen trees (ord. 

 Guttiferse), growing to a height of 30' or 40'. 

 They are of little service horticulturally Cuttings 

 of half-ripe wood root in a close, warm case, and 

 sandy loam suits their requirements. 



Principal Species : 

 grandiflora,- 40'. riparia, 30'. 



Miirna (see Waitzia], 

 Morning Glory (see Ipomcea). 



MORUS. 



Trees or shrubs, for the most part hardy, form 

 this genus (ord. Urticacese). The most common 

 species is nigra, popularly called the Mulberry. 

 This is well known by reason of its large, dark red, 

 Raspberry-like fruits (see MULBERRY). The White 

 Mulberry, M. alba, though of little service as a 

 fruit, is useful from. the leaves being largely utilised 

 for feeding silkworms. The flowers of all the 

 species are inconspicuous. 



Principal Species : 

 alba, 30', My., grn., wh. 



Numerous vars. ; Col- 



oinbassa, Gasparini, 



heterophylla, italica, 



laciniata, latifoliii, ina- 



crophylla, pendula, 



and rosea, are the best 



known, 

 nigra, 30', Je., gru., wh. , 



fruit ripe in Sep., red or 



Hk. 

 rulira, 70', Jy., grn., yel., 



fruit ripe in Sep., red. 



MOSCHARIA. 



One species M. pinnatifida, a hardy annual 

 (aril. Composite), grows about li" high, and bears 

 white flower heads in loose panicles. Seeds may 

 be sown indoors and planted out in May. The 

 plant has a musky odour. 



MOSCHOSMA. 



Hiparium (ord. Labiate), a recently introduced 

 plant, is a greenhouse -perennial, growing 8' high, 

 with soft wood, opposite, Nettle-like leaves, and 

 large terminal inflorescences of whitish flowers with 

 purple anthers. It roots readily from cuttings of 

 young shoots, and requires exactly the same treat- 

 ment as is given to Salvias. December and 

 January are the two months when it may be ex- 

 pected to make the conservatory gay (seep. 89). 



MOSSES. 



Description. Klowerless plants, ranking below- 

 such vascular cryptogams as Ferns, Selaginellas, 

 Lycopods, and a few other flowerless groups, and, 

 like them, characterised by an alternation of 

 generations a sexual and a non-sexual. They 

 belong to the class Muscinese and the series Musci; 

 which again are divided into four orders Bryacea:, 

 Phascacea;, Andreajacerc, and Sphagnacea3. The 

 first, or sexual, generation is a leafy plant, either 

 creeping or erect, branching or simple, familiarly 

 known as " Moss," and bearing the sexual organs. 

 The spore-bearing generation is leafless, and corre- 

 sponds to the leafy generation of the Fern. 



Life History. When the spore of a Moss germin- 

 ates, it develops a branching, thread-like body, 

 the protonema, from different cells of which arise 

 leafy buds, the nascent stems. These, when fully 

 developed, at certain seasons give rise to antheridia 

 and archegonia, the male and female organs 

 respectively. The antheridia are more or less- 

 cylindrical sacs filled with a tissue which ultimately 

 becomes the mother-cells of the antherozoids, and 

 at maturity a single antherozoid is liberated from 

 each mother-cell, and swims freely about in moisture- 

 by means of cilia. The archegonium is a bottle- 

 shaped structure with a central cell (the oosphere), 

 which is fertilised when an antherozoid reaches 

 it. The result is an embryo which develops into 

 the spore-bearing generation. The antheridia and 

 archegonia are usually surrounded by bud-like 

 structures of modified leaves known as the peri- 

 chartium, and are either axillary or terminate the- 

 stem or branches. Both antheridia and archegonia 

 may occur in the same bud when the Moss is bi- 

 sexual. If in different buds, the Moss may be 

 monoecious or dioecious according as the sexes are- 

 on the same or different plants. The second 



