AND GENERAL HORTICULTURE. 



21 



AMO 



height of two feet. As it expands, the fetor 

 it exhales is overpowering and sickening, and 

 so perfectly resembles that of carrion as to in- 

 duce flies to cover the club of the spadix with 

 their eggs. Propagated by offsets. 



Amorphous. Without definite form. 



Ampelo'psis. Woodbine. 'FTomampelo8,&\ine, 

 and opaia, resemblance : in reference to its re- 

 semblance to the Grape vine. Nat. Ord. VUa- 

 cem. 



A. quinquefolia is well known by its common 

 names of Virginia Creeper and Pive-leaved 

 Ivy. Its flowers have no beauty, but it is 

 worth cultivating as an ornamental plant, 

 from the brilliant scarlet and orange which 

 its leaves assume in autumn, and which look 

 particularly well at that season, when in- 

 termingled with those of the common Ivy, 

 from the fine contrast they afford. The plant 

 is of very rapid growth in any kind of soil, 

 and it is propagated by layers or cuttings. 

 The Virginia Creeper is one of our finest indig- 

 enous climbers. It grows very rapidly, at- 

 taches itself firmly to wood or stone buildings, 

 or to the trunks of old trees, and soon covers 

 these objects with a fine mantle of rich foliage. 

 Nothing can be more admirably adapted than 

 this plant for concealing and disguising the 

 unsightly stone fences which are so common, 

 and so great a deformity in many parts of the 

 country. A. tritmspidata (syn. A. Veitchii), with 

 its sub- variety A. t. Royalii, is one of the most 

 valuable of hardy climbing plants, and is now 

 planted in immense quantities. It was first 

 extensively used in this country in Boston, 

 Mass., where it is now to be seen covering 

 some of the finest public and private build- 

 ings in the city. It clings with great tenacity 

 to wood, as well as brick or stone, and in 

 summer the leaves lapping over each other 

 resemble a coat of mail, and form a dense 

 sheet of rich, glossy, green, changing in au- 

 tumn to the most gorgeous shades of crimson, 

 scarlet and yellow. It Is also used largely on 

 rocky and shaly railroad cuts and embank- 

 ments, where its clinging tendency helps 

 greatly to keep the rocks from dropping on to 

 the track. ]t is perfectly hardy, and is prop- 

 agated by cuttings, layers, or most generally 

 from seeds. Introduced from Japan in 1868. 



Ampely'gonum. The name is an allusion to the 

 grape-like fruit. Nat. Ord. Polygonacece. 



This interesting species from China is one 

 from which the finest quality of indigo is ob- 

 tained. It is an herbaceous perennial, obtained 

 readily from seed. 



Amphicarpse'a. Hog Pea Nut. Prom amphi, 

 both, and Karpos, a fruit ; in allusion to the 

 two kinds of pods ; those of the upper flowers 

 being scimitar-shaped, three to four-seeded; 

 those of the lower, pear-shaped, fleshy, usu- 

 ally ripening but one seed. These lower pods 

 buiy themselves in the ground after fertiliza- 

 tion. Nat. Ord. Legwminosm. 



Ornamental annuals, with herbaceous twin- 

 ing stems, of easy culture. Allied to Wisteria. 



Amphi'come. Prom amphi, around, and Kome, 

 hair ; in allusion to the structure of the seeds. 

 Nat. Ord. Bignoniac&z. 



This genus consists of two species of very 

 elegant perennial herbs, natives of the temper- 



ANA 



ate regions of North-western India. A. Emodi 

 is a remarkably handsome plant, and well de- 

 serves a place in choice collections. It is 

 about one foot high, and the flowers, which 

 are large for the plant, stand erect when ex- 

 panded. The fruits are about the length and 

 thickness of a small quill, and their seeds are 

 provided with a tuft of hairs at each end, a 

 circumstance which gave rise to the name. 



Amplezicaul. Stem-clasping ; as when the base 

 of the leaf surrounds the stem, as in Oestrum 

 auriculatum, Lonicera, etc. 



Amso'nia. In memory of Charles Amson, a cel- 

 ebrated traveler. Nat. Ord. Apocynacece. 



A small genus of herbaceou s perennial plants, 

 with beautiful blue flowers' produced in ter- 

 minal panicled clusters. The several species 

 are natives of the United States. A. TabernoR- 

 montana, one of the more beautiful species, is 

 common on low grounds in the Southern and 

 Western States. 



Amy'gdalus. Almond. Prom amyaso, to lacer- 

 ate; in reference to the fissured channels in 

 the stone of the fruit ; but some suppose from 

 a Hebrew word signifying vigilant, as its early 

 flowers announce the return of spring. Nat. 

 Ord. Rosacem. 



A. nana is the common Flowering Almond of 

 gardens, of which there are several varie- 

 ties, the double white and double pink alone 

 being desirable. Native of Russia. Intro- 

 duced in 1683. Propagated readily by suck- 

 ers. A. communis bears the sweet, and JL. aTiw 

 arua the bitter Almonds of commerce. They 

 are supposed to be natives of Western Asia, 

 and are mentioned in sacred history as among 

 the best fruits of the land of Canaan. The 

 Almond is plentiful in China, in most Eastern 

 countries, and also in Barbary. It is exten- 

 sively cultivated in Italy, Spain and the South 

 of France. The several varieties, such as 

 hard, soft or paper shelled, have all originated 

 from A. communis. 



Amyrida'cese. With the appearance of Oranges, 

 and sometimes with the dotted leaves of that 

 order, these plants differ in their fruit, form- 

 ing a shell whose husk eventually splits into 

 valve-like segments. The tropics of India, 

 Africa and America exclusively produce the 

 species. Their resinous juice is ot great 

 importance, forming an ingredient of frankin- 

 cense and other preparations demanding a 

 fragrant combustible matter. 



Anacanthous. Spineless. 



Auacardia'oese. When trees or bushes have a 

 resinous, milky, often caustic juice, dotless 

 leaves, and small, inconspicuous flowers, with 

 an ovary containing a single ovule, suspended 

 at the end of an erect cord, it is pretty certain 

 that they belong to this order, of which more 

 than 400 species are described, inhabiting the 

 tropics both north and south of the equator, 

 but not known to occur in Australia. Pistacia 

 and some kinds of Rhus inhabit temperate 

 latitudes. Among the products of ttie order 

 are the Mango fruit, and that called in the 

 West Indies the Hog Plum ; the nuts named 

 Pistachios and Cashews, the Black Varnish of 

 Burmah and elsewhere. Mastic, Fustic, etc. 

 These varnishes are extremely acrid, and pro- 

 duce dangerous consequences to persons who 

 use them incautiously. 



