Oedbr 30. — ^LINACE^. 2*75 



5 C. M^dica L. CitrIin Tree. Petioles not at all winged; If. oblong, acute- 

 siam. 40 ; fr. oblong-spheroid, rugous, with an acid pulp. — Commonly about 8f 

 high. Fr. 6' in length, fragrant, f 



Obs. In a splendid work entitled "The Natural Uietory of Oranges," written in French by 

 Eisso, of Nice, in 1818, there are described 1G9 varieties, .and 105 of them figuj:ed. They are 

 arranged as Bweet oranges, of which there are desci-ibed 42 varieties ; bitter and sour oranges, 

 83 ; Bergarnots, 5 ; Limes, 8 ; Shaddocks, 6 ; Lumes, 12 ; Lemons, 46 ; Citrous, 17. The most 

 successful methods of cultivation are by cuttings. 



Order XXIX. MELIACE^. 

 Trees or shrubs with exstipulate, often pinnate leaves. Fls. 3 — 5-merou3, stamens 

 6 — 10, coherent into a long tube with sessile anthers. Disk hypogynous, sometimes 

 cup-liko ; style 1. Ovary eompound, several-celled, cells 1 — 2, 4-ovul6d. 'Fruit 

 \ fleshy or dry, often 1-celled by abortion. Seeds neither winged nor aziUate. 

 Ge^iera 83, species 150, natives of the hotter parts of the globe. 



MELIA, L. Pkide of India. (Gr. jj,iXc, honey ; the name was 

 first applied to the Manna Ash.) Sepals small, 5, united ; petals 

 spreading; stamen tube 10-cleft at summit with 10 anthers in the 

 throat ; ovary 5-celled, 10-ovuled' ; style deciduous ; drupe with a 

 5-celled, bony nut, cells 1-seeded. — Trees with bipinnate Ivs. and 

 panicles of delicate flowers. 



M- Azedaraoh L. Lvs. deciduous, glabrous, Ifts. obliquely lance-ovate, acuminate, 

 serrate. — Southern States, common. A large tree 30 — lOf high, with light 

 foliage and a profusion of lilac-colored fls. Drupes as large as cherries, with a 

 poisonous pulp, hanging in clusters through the winter. The bark is esteemed as 

 a vermifuge, but narcotic. Dwarfed specimens are frequent in green houses at the 

 North. 



Order XXX. LINAGES. Flaxworts. 



Serbs with entire, simple leaves and no stipules ; with flowers regular, symme- 

 trical, and perfect, 5-(rareIy 3 or 4:-)merous. Calyx strongly imbricated in the bud, 

 ooroUa convolute, hypogynous ; stamens definite, hypogynous, alternate with the 

 petals ; styles distinct with 'capitate stigmas, and each cell of the capsule more or 

 less divided by a false dissepiment into two 1-seeded compartments. Seeds with 

 little or no albumen, attached to axile placentae. 



Genera 8, species 90. A very important order in tho arts. The Linum has a very tenacions 

 fiber in itsljark, which is wrought into thread and cloth, forming the linen of commerce. Somo 

 species are cathartic, and yield from their seeds a fine inucilage. Only one genus need be men- 

 tioned here, viz; — 



LINUM, L. Flax. (Celtic Uin, a thread ; hence Gr. Xlvov, Eng. linen, 

 flax.) Sepals, petals, stamens and styles 5, the latter rarely 3 ; cap- 

 sules 6-celled ; cells nearly divided by a false dissepiment; seeds 10, 

 suspended, mucilaginous. — Herbs with a bark of strong fibers, and sim- 

 ple, sessile Ivs. 



' * Flowers blue (—red, No. 7.) Nos. 1, 2 



* Flowers yellow.— Sepals ciliate. Lvs. linear. K"os. 8,4 



— Sepals entire. Lvs. lanceolate , . . , Nos. 5, 6, 8 



1 L. usitatfssimum L. Commou Flax. St. branching above ; lvs. alternate, 

 linear-lanceolate, acute ; panicle corymbous ; sep. ovate, acute, 3-veined at the 

 base, membranous on- the margin ; petals crenate. — ® Introduced and some- 

 what naturahzed in fields. St. 1 to 2f high, with 3-veined leaves, and many 

 large, handsome, blue flowers. Jn., Jl. — This important plant has been cultivated 

 froin remote antiquity (see Gen. xli. 42), for the strong fibers of the bark, which 

 are manufactured into Unen. The seeds yield linseed oil, so extensively used in 

 mixing paint, printers' ink, etc. They are also medicinal. § ■]■ 



