BEOMUS 



BEOWALLIA 



183 



Ing panicles of spikelets about as large as those of Briza 

 maxima : Ivs. 5-7, soft-pubescent, blades 2-3 in. long : 

 spikelets 10-15-fld., nodding, awn short. Int. from Eu. 

 — Very useful in the mixed border, and for drying for 

 winter decoration. 



macr6stachys, Desf. {B. lanceolcltus , Roth. B. divari- 

 cdUis, Rohde). An erect, smooth annual : Ivs. soft, 

 covered with hairs; sheaths slit: panicles erect, nar- 

 row, the branches very short or the lower ones some- 

 what long ; spikelets large, lanceolate, 10-16-fld. Medi- 

 terranean, Siberia. 



AA. Spikelets from 1-10-flowered. 



MadritSnsis, Linn. (B. poh/.ifdchyns, DC). Long- 

 AWNED Bkome Gkass. Fig. 271. A soft, erect, .slender 

 annual, geniculate at the 

 base : sheaths longer than 

 the iuternodes ; blades 2K-3 

 in. long ; spikelets dull green, 

 7-10-fid. : flowering glume 

 linear -lanceolate, about % 

 In. long, including the two 

 slender points : awn about 1 

 in. long. — Pretty ornamental 

 grass. Int. from Eu. 



unioloides, H B K. (B. 

 Schrdderi, KunthJ. Eesoue 

 Grass. A stout, erect an- 

 nual, 2-3 ft. high : sheaths 

 shorter than the intemodes ; 

 blades flat, smooth on the 

 lower side, scabrous on the 

 upper ; panicle variable, 

 about 8 in. long ; rays stout, 

 bearing 1 to few spikelets 

 along the upper part. N. 

 Amer. 



B. inSrmis, Leys. (B. gigan- 

 teu'^, Hort.). An erect peren- 

 nial 2-5 ft. high. In Europe 

 classed among the best forage 

 plants. Int. from Eu.— -B. mdl- 

 lis, Linn. An erect annual 1-3 

 ft. high. Resembles chess (B. 

 secalinus), from which it differs 

 by its more erect panicle and 

 hairiness. — B. secalinus, Linn. 

 Chess. Cheat. A well-known 

 weedy annual grass, with 

 spreading and more or less drooping panicles. As it very 

 often occurs in wheat fields, it is erroneously regarded as de- 

 generated wheat. Int. from Eu. p^ g^ Kennedy. 



BEOOM. See Cytisits and Genista. 



BEOOM COKW. Brooms are made of the rays or pe- 

 duncles of the flower-cluster of Andropogon Sorglium 

 (Sorghum viilijnre), the species which in other forms is 

 known as Sorghum, Kaffir Corn, and Guinea Corn. 

 Broom Com is grown in various parts of the U. S. 



BEOSIMTTM (Greek, edible). Urticdcece. A few 

 large trees of Trop. Amer., yielding edible fr. B. Ali- 

 cdsiriim. Swz., is the Bread-nut of Jamaica, but it is 

 not grown within the U. S. It bears round yellow fr., 

 about an inch in diameter, containing a single large, 

 edible seed. The tree has shining lance-elliptic Ivs. 



BEOUGHTONIA (Arthur Broughton, English bota- 

 nist). Orchiddeece, tribe Hpidindreo!. Two or three W. 

 Indian Orchids much like Laelia and Cattleya. Several 

 species which have been referred to this genus are now 

 distributed in Epidendrum, Maxillaria, Pha;jus, etc. 

 Plant producing pseudo-bulbs, and sendingup a bracted 

 scape bearing several or many showy fls. : calyx of 3 

 equal lanceolate sepals; two lateral petals broad-ovate 

 and somewhat crisped, the labellum round-cordate and 

 somewhat 2-lobed, crenate, with a spur at the base ad- 

 nate to the ovary. Require warmhouse treatment. Cul- 

 ture like that for Lfelia. Do not dry off enough to 

 shrink the bulbs. Prop, by division. 



san^olnea, R. Br. (B. coccinea, Hook.). Pseudo- 

 bulbs clustered, roundish-ovate and somewhat flattened. 



271. Bromus Madritensis. 

 (XM.) 



often brown-marked : scape 1 ft. high: fls. stalked, in a 

 loose, erect raceme, bright crimson, lasting a long time 

 in perfection. Jamaica. B.M. 3076, 3536. L 11 B 



BEOUSSONBTIA (after T. N. V. Broussonet, a French 

 naturalist). Urtic&cece. Trees or shrubs : Ivs. decidu- 

 ous, alternate, petioled, large : fls. dioecious, incon- 

 spicuous, apetalous, the staminate in cylindrical, nod- 

 ding catkias, with 4-parted calyx and 4 stamens, the pis- 

 tillate iu globular heads : collective fr. globular, consist- 

 ing of small fleshy nutlets. Three species in E. Asia, 

 and there often cultivated, the bark being used for 

 paper-making. Ornamental trees with broad, round 

 heads, but under culture often shrubby, of vigorous 

 growth when young, and effective by its large, often 

 deeply lobed foliage, not hardy north or only in very shel- 

 tered positions. They thrive best in rich, somewhat 

 moist soil and sheltered positions. Prop, by seeds, sown 

 after maturity or in spring, by greenwood cuttings under 

 glass, or by cuttings of ripened wood, kept in colder 

 climates during the winter in the greenhouse ; also by 

 root-cuttings and layers. Budding in summer or graft- 

 ing in early spring in the greenhouse is sometimes 

 practised. Known as Paper Mulberries. 



papyrifera, Vent. Tree, 30-50 ft., with thick, pubes- 

 cent branches : Ivs. long-petioled, usually cordate-ovate, 

 acuminate, coarsely dentate, often deeply lobed, espe- 

 cially on younger plants, rough above, pubescent be- 

 neath, 3-8 in. long : fr. -heads % in. across, red. May. 

 China, Jap. B.M. 2358.— Many varieties. Var. eucul- 

 l&ta, Ser. {B. naviciildris, Lodd.). Lvs. small, curled 

 upward. Var. lacini&ta, Ser. Lvs. deeply lobed and in- 

 cised. Decorative form, but more tender than the type. 

 Var. macrophylla, Ser. Lvs. large, usually undivided. 



Kazindki, Sieb. (B.Kwmpfcri, Hort.). Branches slen- 

 der, glabrous at length : lvs. short-petioled, ovate or 

 ovate-oblong, nearly glabrous, only somewhat rough 

 above, entire or 2-3-lobed, 2-8 in. long : fr.-head less 

 than ^ in. in diam. China, Jap. — This species is more 

 tender than the former, which is also cultivated some- 

 times as B. K(p>iipferi, while the true B. Kcempferi, 

 Sieb., with the lvs. resembling in shape those of B. 

 Kazit\ol;i , but much smaller and pubescent, and with 

 very small fr. -heads, seems not to be cultivated. 



Alfred Rehder. 



BEOWALLIA (after John Browall, Bishop of Abo, 

 Sweden). Solandeece. A genus of about 10 South 

 American annuals, with abundant blue, violet or white 

 flowers. The seeds can be sown in the open border, but 

 for the sake of the earlier bloom it is better to start 

 tliem indoors in early spring and transplant into the 

 open about May 15, where they will bloom profusely all 

 through our hot, dry summers, and until frost. They 

 can be grown in poorer soil than most half-hardy an- 

 nuals, and make excellent bedding plants. They are 

 also used for winter decoration, the seeds being sown in 

 midsummer, earlier or later according to the size of 

 the specimens desired. They should be placed near the 

 glass and frequently stopped, in order to produce com- 

 pact plants. Large specimens are excellent for cutting, 

 and small potted plants should be grown more com- 

 monly by florists for home decoration at Christmas. It 

 is even possible to lift flowering plants from the open 

 before the first frost of autumn and pot them for con- 

 servatory decoration, though the flowers are likely to 

 become successively smaller. Blue flowers are rare in 

 winter, and Browallias are especially desirable for their 

 profuse bloom all through winter and early spring. 

 The flowers are, however, likely to fade, especially the 

 purple ones. In the names of the early species, Linnaeus 

 commemorated the course of his acquaintancship with 

 Browall : elata, reflecting the exalted character of their 

 early intimacy ; de^nissa, its rupture ; and alienata , the 

 permanent estrangement of the two men. 



A. corolla segTnents long, acnminate : fls. large. 



specidsa, Hook. Lvs. sometimes opposite, sometimes 

 alternate : fls. thrice as large as in B. grandiflora, all 

 solitary, axillary : peduncle shorter than the lvs. ; co- 

 rolla-tube thrice as long as the calyx, and abruptly 

 swelled at the top into a globular form : limb of 5 ovate, 



