The Globe-Flower. 259 



jpecies takes its name from the black bark of its underground 

 stem. ^ is a native of the Apennines, whence it was intro- 

 duced into England before 1596. It will grow in any soil or 

 situation; but it prefers a dry soil, and a situation open to the 

 sun. It is propagated by dividing the underground stem in 

 summer, after the leaves have decaj'ed." 



The Livid Hellebore is a native of Corsica, and is sometimes 

 cultivated. Its leaves are evergreen, in three leaflets, serrated 

 on the margin, and those of the stem have sometimes a dilated 

 leaf-like petiole. It is more difficult to propagate than the 

 other species, since it has not the creeping underground stem, 

 and the seeds do not ripen well. 



TROLLIUS— THE GLOBE-FLOWER. 



Natural Order, Ranunculaceae ; Linnaean System, Polyandria Polygynia. 

 Generic Distinctions :— Calyx of five, ten, or fifteen petal-like sepals; 

 petals, from five to twenty, small, linear, tubular at base; stamens and 

 ovaries, numerous ; capsules, sessile, columnar; many seeded. 



T. Europeus.—Scpnls, fifteen, converging so as to form a globe, concealing 

 the petals ; petals equal in length to the stamens.— Plate 36, Fig. 3. 



From the old German word trol, or trolhen, signifying round, 

 is derived the Latin name which is applied to this genus, on 

 account of the globular shape of the flowers. This shape is 

 most remarkable in the European globe-flower — some of the 

 other species differing in this respect. They all agree, how- 

 ever, in having their sepals much larger and more ornamental 

 than the petals, which appear rather like abortive stamens. 

 The leaves, like those of most plants of the same order, are 

 deeply cut, and their petioles are dilated, and sheathe the stem, 

 which is hollow, and yields an acrid juice. T. Europeus is 

 a native of Great Britain and other parts of Europe, and has 

 long been a favorite in gardens. The flower stem is erect and 

 branched, each branch terminating in a single flower. The 

 flowers :ire at first small, but they gradually become larger, 

 though without opening ; the sepals, which are numerous, pre- 



