1071 



E\)t Crea£ury at SSotann. 



[sole 



In 1725 they were introduced into Scot- 

 land and cultivated with much success, 

 first in gardens.andaf.envardsiabout 1760), 

 when they had become plentiful, in the 

 open fields. Since that period the prejudices 

 which so long existed against their use 

 both in England and Scotland have gra- 

 j dually vanished, and for many years past 

 the Potato-crop has been regarded through- 

 out the British Dominions as a most valu- 

 able addition to the staple commodities of 

 life, only second in importance to cereals. 



The varieties of the Potato are innume- 

 rable—some early, others late ; and these 

 again differing considerably, not only in 

 size form and colour, but in their quality, 

 being either waxy, or dry and floury. It 

 has also heen found that when a particular 

 variety has been grown in the same soil 

 for any length of time it degenerates, and 

 requires to be renewed either by seed, but 

 more frequently by resorting to sets or 

 sorts which have been grown in a diffe- 

 rent soil and locality. In this way varieties 

 are continually changing, and every town 

 or district has its particular favourite. 



As a vegetable, the Potato is excellent in 

 whatever way it may be dressed— whether 

 plain boiled, steamed, fried, or roasted. 

 With the flour of potatos puddings and 

 cakes have been made ; starch has also 

 been obtained, which for purity and nutri- 

 tive properties is very little inferior to 

 arrowroot. By distillation a powerful 

 spirit is produced, and even a strong wine 

 by the fermentative process. The most re- 

 markable instance of the utility of the 

 potato is probably that of II. Parmentier, 

 who did so much in France to promote its 

 cultivation towards the end of the last 

 century, and who gave a grand entertain- 

 ment at Paris, at which Benjamin Franklin, 

 Lavoisier, and many other celebrated men 

 of that day were present. Every dish con- 

 sisted of potatos dressed in an endless 

 variety of form and fashion; even the 

 liquors were the produce of this precious 

 root; and it is only to be regretted that 

 the bill of fare, and the recipes of the 

 cooks, have not been preserved. 



The mysterious disease which made its 

 appearance amongst Potatos in this coun- 

 try in 1845, soon after the introduction 

 of' guano as a manure, threatened the en- 

 tire destruction of the crop; and we are 

 , still without any known preventive, the 

 disease being regarded as an epidemic, to 

 which the plant has become liable at some 

 period of its growth according to the con- 

 ditions of the atmosphere. [W. B. B.] 



SOLDANELLA. A genus of Primulacece, 

 principally distinguished by the corolla, 

 which is somewhat bell-shaped, with the 

 border five-cleft, and each division fringed 

 at the margin. The species are small herbs 

 j of graceful habit, natives of alpine districts 

 of Continental Europe. One of them, S. 

 alpina, a native of Switzerland, is well- 

 known as an object of culture. The generic 

 name is from the Latin solidus 'a piece of 

 money,' the leaves of the species being in 

 shape like coin. [G. D.] 



SOL DANE LLE. (Fr.) Convolvulus Sol- 

 danella. 



SOLDIER- WOOD. Calliandra purpurea. 



SO LEA. Viola. 



SOLEIL, or S. A GRANDES FLEURS. 

 (Fr.) Helianthus annum. — D'OR. Nar- 

 cissus aureus. — VIVACE. Helianthus 

 tnultifiorus. 



SOLEIROLIA. Corsica is a delicate little 

 weed of the family Urticacece, found in 

 Corsica and Sardinia, and nearly related to 

 Parietaria, but readily recognised by the 

 minute green flowers being single instead 

 of three or more together in the axils of 

 the leaves. Helixine is the generic name 

 adopted by some authors. [A. A. B.] 



SOLE-LEATHER, or SOLE- LEATHER 

 KELP. A name given to the thicker La- 

 minarice, as L. digitata, bulbosa, &c, with- 

 out particular reference to any individual 

 species. [M. J. B.J 



SOLENANTHA. A genus of Violacece, 

 proposed by Don, which lias proved to be 

 the same as Hymenanthera of Brown. 



SOLENANTHUS. A genus of Boragi- 

 nacece allied to Cynoglossum, from which 

 it differs chiefly in the corolla being tubu- 

 lar and cylindrical. It is. a native of 

 Siberia, the Caucasus, Taurus, Northern 

 Persia, and the Mediterranean region. 

 The stem and foliage resemble those of 

 Cynoglossum, and are often covered with 

 white down or wool; the flowers are'also 

 arranged in scorpioid racemes, as in that 

 genus, but they are tubular, five-lobed at 

 the apex, with five very short scales in 

 the throat ; the stamens are more or less 

 exserted ; the nuts depressed prickly im- 

 marginate. [J. T. S.J 



SOLENIDITJM racemosum. An epiphytal 

 orchid from Tropical America, bearing 

 pseudobulbs, and having the habit of Onci- 

 dium, from which it is generically distin- 

 guished by the column in its early stage 

 being bordered by a membrane terminating 

 upwards on each side in a thin triangular 

 tooth; by the presence of a pair of minute 

 glands at the lower end of the column : and 

 by the crest on its lip consisting of a pair 

 of long feathery raised plates. [A. S.] 



SOLENOCARPUS. An Indian tree sup- 

 posed to form a distinct genus of Anacar- 

 diacew. The leaves are unequally pinnate, 

 and the flowers are arranged in panicles 

 at the ends of the branches. These are 

 perfect, and have a five-cleft deciduous 

 calyx, five petals inserted with the ten 

 stamens on the outside of the disk sur- 

 rounding the one-celled ovary, a short 

 style with oblique stigma, and an oblique 

 fruit containing a single pendulous seed. 

 The rind of the fruit is traversed by a 

 number of channels containing oil- 

 whence the name of the genus, from sdlen 

 ' a tube,' and carpos ' a fruit.' [M. T. M.J 



SOLENOGYNE. A little perennial herb 

 of the Compositce peculiar to South-eastern 

 Australia, where it grows in pasture-land. 



