AQUATIC PLANTS. 



29- 



CTPEfiDS PAPTBOS 



India, and is cultivated for its root-stock and seeds. iVyju- 

 phiectce<e. 



Mydropeltis purpurea = Branenia peltata. 



Zimnoiium {Trianea) bogotense. — A floating plant with. 



the habit of Mchornia crassipes, but it is very much smaller, 



and the leaves are not erect, but float on the water, the 



leaf -blades in this case being spongy and buoyant. They 



are nearly round, an inch long, and three-quarters of an 



inch broad, arranged in pretty rosettes. The flowers appear 



in summer, but they are unisexual and quite inconspicuous. 



This plant is known also as Sydromystria etolonifera ; it 



belongs to the Sydrocharidea, and is closely allied to our 



British Frogbit. It is a native of the northern part of 



South America. An illustration will bo found in Kegel's. 



" Gartenflora," plate 980, and also in the Gardeners' Chronicle, vol. 



XV., pp. 466, 467. 



Zimnocharis Jlava. — This is very distinct from the better-known 

 Z. nymphaoides. It has broadly-ovate leaves with long stalks, and the 

 flowers are produced on tall, erect stems, which bear from two to 

 twelve. The flowers are pretty, though not large, and the plant is 

 elegant in appearance. It is easily grown in a pot submerged to the 

 rim. Though perennial it is apt to die, and the seeds should always 

 be preserved. There is a figure in the Botanical Magazine, tab. 2525. 

 It is a native of tropical America. Better known as Z. Plumieri. 

 Z. Mumboldtii ^= Z. nymplueoides. 



Zimnocharis nympheeoides. — One of the best of floating stove- 

 aquatics. It fohns a sheet of pretty, round, light green leaves, and 

 large pale yellow flowers are produced in profusion. Though not an 

 allied plant, it has much the general appearance of our native 

 Villarsia or Zimnanthemum nymphaoides. It is allied to the Flowering 

 Rush, and belongs to the same tribe of the Alismacea. Some warmth 

 is necessary for its preservation during winter, and moderate speci- 

 mens established for the purpose are most convenient. It is figured 

 in vol. Ix. of the Botanical Magazine, and there is a cut in The 

 Garden, vol. xii., p. 255. Native of South America. Usually grown 

 under the name Z. Swnboldtii. 

 Zimnocharis Plumieri ^ Z. Jlava. 



Marsilea. — ^The plants of this genus are of greater interest to the 

 botanist than to the horticulturist. They are all easily grown in pans 

 of light soil standing in saucers of water. M. quadrifolia, a native of 

 South Europe, is grown at Cambridge submerged in large glasses of 

 water, and so treated the fruits are freely produced. M. maeropus is the 

 Nardoo of Australia. There are several other kinds in cultivation, and 

 M. Drtimmondi is one of the prettiest. These plants are allied to Ferns, 

 but in appearance are remarkably different ; the leaves aie Clover- 

 like, but four-leaved, and the fructification resembles a small legu- 

 minous pod. They are foimd in all quarters of the globe. Marsileaceie. 

 Monoehoria <:y««e«.— This is a beautiful kind recently introduced to 

 Kew from Australia, where it is native. The flowers are deep blue, 

 with yellow stamens, in loose spikes of about ten. The flower-stalks 

 are curiously sheathed by those of the leaf, so that the spike emerges 

 from near the base of the leaf-blade. The leaves are ovate and 

 long-pointed, supported on long stalks. It has a, creeping rhizo^le, 

 and occupies but small space. Increase may be effected by division 

 or seeds, and the pot in which it is grown may be just submerged. 

 The genus is closely allied to Mehomia. Two other species deserving 



