SPIN 



3Dl)C QtoaSurg of botany. 



1084 



SPINACIA. A genus of Chenopodiacece, 

 composed almost entirely of uninteresting 

 weedy-looking plants, with small flowers 

 of no beauty. Of this genus, which is 

 bisexual, the male flowers being borne on 

 one plant and the female flowers on 

 another, there is only one species, the 

 S. oleracea, well known as a favourite pot- 

 herb during the early spring and summer 

 months. 



The Common Spinach is a hardy annual 

 whose native country is unknown, though 



fenerally supposed to be Western Asia, 

 t has been cultivated in this country for 

 more than 300 years, and is noticed in 

 Turner's Herbal of 1568 as 'an herb lately 

 found, and not much in use.' The plant 

 has large thick succulent deep-green 

 leaves, of a somewhat triangular form, 

 produced on long footstalks. The stem is 

 erect large round and hollow, about two 

 feet high. The male plants are distin- 

 guished by their green uninteresting 

 flowers, growing in long terminal spikes; 

 •while those of the females are axillary ses- 

 sile and clustered. The seeds are prickly 

 in some varieties, and smooth in others. 



Spinach is solely cultivated for its large 

 fleshy leaves, which, although rather in- 

 sipid, are considered wholesome ; and 

 when properly dressed, and thoroughly 

 deprived of all moisture before being 

 mashed with butter or rich gravy and a 

 few sorrel leaves, they make an excellent 

 dish, which may be eaten with any kind of 

 meat. It is a singular fact that the water 

 drained from Spinach after being boiled is 

 capable of making as good match-paper as 

 that made by a solution of nitre. [W. B. B.] 



SPINDLE-SHAPED. The same as Fusi- 

 form. 



SPINDLE-TREE. Euonymus europams. 



SPINE. A stiff sharp-pointed body, con- 

 sisting of woody tissue covered with 

 cellular tissue. A hardened leafstalk, sti- 

 pule, abortive branch, or any other process 

 into the composition of which woody 

 tissue enters. Spines of the leaves are the 

 hardened extremities of lobes, or in some 

 cases superficial spiny elevations. 



SPINESCENS, SPINIGER, SPINOSUS. 

 Covered with spines. 



SPINIFEX. A genus of grasses be- 

 longing to the tribe Panicea, and having 

 the heads or bundles of inflorescence 

 terminal and axillary, with the male and 

 fruiting plants distinct; glumes thin and 

 membranaceous, seven to nine-nerved, 

 those of the male plant unequal, the inner 

 the shortest, those of the fruiting plant 

 equal and acuminate ; flowers two, sessile ; 

 anthers three; lowest flower neuter, upper 

 Hermaphrodite. The few species belonging 

 to this small genus are mostly natives of 

 New Holland. [D. MJ • 



SPINKS. Cardamine pratensis. 



SPINOSO-DENTATE. Having teeth tip- 

 ped with spines. 



SPINIJLOSO-CILIATE. Ciliated with 

 fine spines. 



SPIRAEA. An extensive genus of 

 shrubby or herbaceous plants belonging 

 to the tribe Spirmdce of rosaceous plants, 

 and thus characterised :— Petals five ; seed- 

 vessels oblong, opening at the side (fol- 

 licles), and containing one to six seeds 

 suspended from the inner edges of the 

 follicle. The best-known British species 

 is S. Ulmaria, the Meadow-sweet, or Queen 

 of the Meadows, an herbaceous plant with 

 pinnate leaves having a large terminal 

 lobe, erect slender rigid stems about two 

 feet high, and terminal dense corymbs of 

 white highly fragrant flowers. It is com- 

 mon near watercourses and in damp 

 meadows. S. Filipendida.ov Dropwort, also 

 a British species, is a plant of similar 

 habit ; but the leaves are pinnate, with all 

 the leaflets jagged and deeply serrated. 

 The white scentless flowers while in bud 

 are tinged with crimson externally. This 

 species grows in dry pastures and on 

 heaths ; a pretty variety of it with double 

 flowers is frequent in gardens. S. salici- 

 folia, a shrub with terminal compound 

 clusters of dull rose-coloured flowers, is 

 found in woody places in Scotland and the 

 North of England, and in some parts of 

 North Wales is very abundant. 



Of the foreign shrubby kinds of Spirwa 

 some are very handsome : for example, S. 

 j prunifolia, with double flowers, a native of 

 I Japan, a beautiful shrub, with leaves like 

 j those of the plum, silky beneath, and pure 

 I white flowers ; S. hypericifolia and S. cha- 

 i m&drifolia, with white flowers; 8. bella f rora 

 Nepal, with rose-coloured flowers growing 

 in lateral and terminal corymbs; S.tomcn- 

 tosa from Canada, with cottony leaves and 

 pyramidal panicles of rose-coloured flow- 

 ers ; S. Fortimei from China, with ovate 

 smooth toothed leaves, often tinged with 

 purple, and rose-coloured flowers— and 

 many others. Some are valued from the 

 rapidity of their growth, and others for 

 their remaining in flower during many 

 months. French : Heine despres; German: 

 Wiese7ikiinige?i. [C. A. J.] 



SPIR^ANTHEMUM. A genus referred 

 to Saxifragacece by A. Gray, comprising 

 Polynesian plants, with opposite or verti- 

 cillate leaves, interpetiolar deciduous sti- 

 pules, and small paniculate perfect or poly- 

 gamo-dicecious flowers. The calyx is eight 

 or five-cleft; petals nine ; stamens four or 

 ten ; follicles four or five, compressed de- 

 hiscent, one or two-seeded. [J. T. S.] 



SPIRALTHREAD. Spiro?iema. 



SPTRANTHES. A terrestrial genus of 

 orchids forming the type of a tribe called 

 the Spiranthidece, consisting of about fifty 

 species, for the most part inhabitants of 

 the New World. One species, .9. anstralis, 

 is common to Australia, New Zealand, and 

 tropical and subtropical Asia. They are 

 herbs with tuberous or thick fibrous roots, j 

 numerous linear grass-like leaves growing i 

 from the root and stem (occasionally want- ! 

 ing, or represented by small brown scales), j 



