AND GENEEAL HORTIOULTUEE. 



97 



COL 



terminated with an umbel of large, pendulous 

 flowers, upward of two inches long; sepals 

 orange red, tipped with black ; petals yellow, 

 tipped with green. Propagated by offsets. 



Collar. The ring upon the stipe of an Agaric. 

 Also applied to the neck or line of junction 

 between the root and stem of a tree, etc. 



Collards. (Brasaieaoleracea.) This is a curled- 

 leafed variety of Cabbage grown for " greens," 

 but mostly in the Southern States. It attains 

 a height of from six to eight feet. This stem 

 is an inch and a half to two inches in diameter, 

 and is used to a considerable extent in 

 Europe for making light walking canes. 



Colle'tia. Named after M. Collet, a French 

 botanical writer. Nat Ord. Rhamnacece. 



A genus of singular shrubs inhabiting Chili, 

 Peru and Mexico. They are much branched, 

 and scantily furnished with minute leaves, 

 having spines which stand at right angles 

 with the stem in alternate pairs. The flowers 

 are yeUow or white, and are produced in axill- 

 ary clusters. The species are but half-hardy 

 in this latitude. 



CoUi'nsia. In honor of Z. Collins, Vice-Presi- 

 ■dent of the Academy of Natural Sciences, 

 Philadelphia. Nat. Ord. Scrophulariacem. 



A genus of free-flowering CaJiforniah annu- 

 als of great beauty, and deserving of culti- 

 vation, being well adapted for massing and 

 for mixed borders. For massing, the seed 

 should be sown thick, so as to thin out to four 

 inches apart, which will give the bed an ap- 

 pearance of a solid mass. For this purpose 

 the dwarf species are to be preferred, the 

 taller ones being more suitable for mixed 

 borders. There is a great variety of color, 

 white, purple and crimson predominating. 

 First introduced in 1826. 



CoUinso'nia. Horsfe-Balm. Named in honor 

 of Peter CoUmaon, a well-known patron of 

 science and correspondent of Linneeus, who 

 introduced it into England. Nat. Ord. Labia- 



tCB. 



A genus of strong-scented perennial herbs, 

 common throughout the United States. 

 None of the species has any special merit that 

 would warrant its cultivation. 



CoUo'mia. From kallo, glue ; referring to the 

 glue which surrounds the seeds. Nat. Ord. 

 Polemoniacem. 



A genus of hardy annuals from California. 

 They are showy plants, but too coarse and 

 weedy in appearance to entitle them to a 

 place in choice collections. They grow 

 readily from seed, and when once planted 

 need no care except to exterminate the sur- 

 plus quantity. 



Coloca'sia. Elephant's Ear. From kolokasia, 

 the Greek for the root of an Egyptian plant. 

 Nat. Ord. Aroidem. 



An interesting genus closely allied to the 

 Caladium, most of the species being known 

 under that name. C. macrorhiza is a beautiful 

 green-house plant, remarkable for the bold 

 and distinct markings of the foliage, consist- 

 ing of light green and pure white. C. odorala 

 has large cordate leaves, with rounded lobes, 

 and forms a stem-like root, and a stock often 

 two feet or more in height. It is an excellent 

 plant for summer decoration. C. eaculenta is a 

 favorite plant for single specimens on the 

 lawn, or for borders of a sub-tropical group, in 



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a deep, rich soil. If freely watered, the leaves 

 will sometimes grow four feet in length by 

 three feet in width. This species and C. om- 

 tiquorum are grown extensively in the Sand- 

 wich Islands for food, and are called by the 

 natives Taro, the root being eaten Like Pota- 

 toes, and the leaves cooked like Spinach. The 

 roots are also eaten by the negroes in the 

 Southern States, and are called by them Tan- 

 yah. See Taro. 



Co'locynth. Cuawmis {CitruMua) Colocyntlma. 

 This is one of the gourd family inhabiting 

 various parts of Turkey, although it is not 

 well ascertained in what country it is indigen- 

 ous. It is an annual trailing and climbing plant, 

 like the garden cucumber. The fruit is a 

 round gourd, about the size of an orange, 

 divided into three cells, abounding with a 

 pulpy matter, and containing numerous seeds. 

 The pulp is exceedingly bitter ; a decoction of 

 this pulp in water, and then evaporated, forms 

 the well-known extract of Colocynth. 



Cologa'nia. In honor of the family of M. 

 Cologan, of Port Oratavo, in Teneriffe, from 

 whom the men of science, visiting that island, 

 experienced the greatest hospitality. Nat. Ord. 

 LeguminosoB. 



A small genus of evergreen climbers, allied 

 to the Clitoria, and requiring the same treat- 

 ment. The flowers are of a lively purple, 

 generally in pairs at the axils of the leaves. 

 They are natives of Mexico. Introduced in 

 1827. 



Color, Colored. Botanically, this term is used 

 to denote any color except green. In technical 

 botany white is regarded as a color, but green 

 is not. 



Color in Flovwers, The Law of. This matter 

 is referred to in the hope that it may be the 

 means of saving some readers, not only from 

 being duped and swindled by a class of 

 itinerant venders who annually reap a rich 

 harvest in disposing of impossibilities in' 

 flowers, but that they may be assured of the 

 utter improbability of their ever seeing such 

 wonders as these fellows offer, thereby saving 

 them from parting with money for worthless 

 objects, and from the ridicule of their friends 

 who are already better advised. This subject 

 cannot .be too often brought before our 

 amateur horticulturists. Warnings are given 

 year after year in leading agricultural and 

 other journals devoted to gardening, yet a 

 new crop of dupes is always coming up, who 

 readily fall victims to the scoundrels who live 

 upon their credulity. Not a season passes but 

 some of these swindling dealers have the 

 audacity to plant themselves right in the 

 business centres of our large cities, and hun- 

 dreds of our sharp business men glide 

 smoothly into their nets. The very men who 

 will chuckle at the misfortunes of a poor 

 rustic when he falls into the hands of a mock 

 auctioneer, or pocketbook dropper, will freely 

 pay ten dollars for a rose plant of which a 

 picture has been shown them as having, a 

 blue flower-; the chance of its coming blue 

 being about equal to the chance that the 

 watch of the mock auctioneer will be gold. 

 It has long been known among the best ob- 

 servers of such matters, that in certain 

 families of plants particular colors prevail, 

 and that in no single instance can we ever ex- 

 pect to see blue, yellow, and scarlet colors in 



