360 Obdeb 55.— GROSSTJLACB^. 



4 C. grandifloruB DC. Creeping, rooting; st. with about 5 angles; fla. 

 terminal and lateral, very large, nootumal ; petals spreading, shorter than the 

 linear-lanceolate sepals. — From the "W. Indies. Sts. oylindric or prismatic, 

 branching, the angles not very prominent. Fls. expanding by night, and endur- 

 ing but a few hours, 8 to 12' diam. Sepals brown without, yellow within. Pet- 

 als white. A magnificent flower, of difficult culture, f 



5 C. flagelliformia DC, Snake Cactus. St. creeping, with about 10 

 angles, hispid ; fls. lateral, diurnal; tube slender, longer than the limb of the pet- 

 als. — From S. Am. St. about the size of the little finger, cylindric, indistinctly 

 articulated, 2 to 5f long. Fls. of a lively pink color, smaller than those of the 

 last, and continuing in bloom several days, f 



3. WELOCAC'TUS, Bauh. Meloit Thistle. Turk's Cap. (Com- 

 pounded of melon and cactus, from its form.) Calyx tube adherent to 

 the ovaiy, lobes 5 to 6, petaloid ; petals as many as sepals, united with 

 them into a long, cylindric tube ; stamens and style filiform ; stigma 5- 

 rayed ; berry smooth, crowned with the withered calyx and corolla. — 

 Sufti'uticous, fleshy, leafless. Spadix simple, crowning the globular, 

 deeply-furrowed axis. Fls. terminial. 



M. commilinia Link. Axis ovate-subglobous, dark green, 12 to 18-angled; 

 ribs straight; spines fasciculate, subequal. — Kative of the Caribbean Islands. 

 This remarkable plant appears like a largo, green melon, with deep furrows and 

 prominent ribs, and is fuU of juice. It is surmounted with a spadix, which 

 is cylindric, tuberculate, densely tomentous, bearing the red flowers at the 

 summit, f 



4. MAMffllLA^RIA, Hawarth. (Lat. mamma, the breasts ; alluding 

 to the tubercles.) Flowers and fruit similar to the preceding genus. — 

 Stock roundish or cylindrical, covered with conical or mamrnaofonn 

 tubercles, spirally arranged and tipped with a cluster of spines in wool. 

 Fls. sessile among the tubercles. 



M. macromeris Engelm. Bright green, with large, pear-shaped tubercles, 

 each surmounted by a cluster of straight, slender spines, and large (near 3' diam.) 

 carmine-roseate flowers, f From New Mexico. — Other species are cultivated in 

 the green-house. 



Order LV. GROSSULACE^. Currants. 



Low sh/nibs, often prickly with alternate, palmately lobed leaves. Calyx 5-lobed, 

 adherent to the 1-celled ovary, bearing at top the corolla of 5 petals alternating with 

 the 5 short stamens. Anth. introrse. Fruit a I-ceUed, inferior berry with 2 parietal 

 placentae. SiyUs 2. Seeds oo, embryo minute, in abundant horny albumen. (Figs. 

 67, 309.) 



Genera ], species 95. The gooseberries and currants ure natives of the N. temperate zone of 

 both continents, but unknown in the tropics or S. hemisphere, except S. America, 



Properties. The berries contain a sweet, maoilaginous pulp, together with Tnalio or citric 

 acid. They are always wholesome, and usually esculent. 



i. RPBES, L. Currants. (Nam'ed from the Arabic.) Character 

 the same as that of the Order. 



S CnEBANTS. Stems unarmed. Lvs. convolute in bnil. Pis. yellow No. 1 



§ CuREAMTS. stems unarmed. Lvs. plicate in bud.— Fruit hairy Nos. 2—4 



— Prni t smootli Nos. 5— T 



§ GoosEBEEKiis. Btcms spincscont. Lvs. plicate. — Fruitbispid No8.8,9 



— Fruit smooth. — Ped. veryshortNos. 10, 11 



—Fed. long Nos. 12-14 



1 R. afireum Ph. Missouri, or Golden Cubrant. Plant smooth; lvs. 

 3-lobed, lobes divaricate, entire or with a few largo teeth ; petioles longer than 

 the leaves ; teacts linear, as long as the pedicels ; rac. lax, with many bright yel- 

 low fls. ; oal. tubular, longer than the pedicels, segm. oblong, obtuse ; petals 



