1133 



CIjc Creasurjj of StSniang. 



TETR 



the flowers are yellowish dioecious, in axilla- 

 ry tufts. The calyx has four overlapping de- 

 ciduous segments ; there are four petals ; 

 numerous stamens united into a kind of 

 disk, which adheres also to the petals, 

 and is surmounted by a number of small 

 tubercles, each of -which bears three or 

 four anthers. In the female flower there 

 ! are eighteen scale-like triangular sterile 

 ; stamens; and a free two-celled ovary, 

 with a single ovule; the stigma almost 

 sessile, peltate. The fruit is fleshy, contain- 

 ing a balsamic juice. [M. T. M.] 



TERRA JAPONICA. A trade name for 

 Gambir. — MERITA. The Turmeric, 

 Curcuma longa. 



TERRANEOUS, TERRESTRIAL. Grow- 

 ing on land. 



TERRE CREPIE. (Ft.) Picridium vul- 

 gare. — NOIX. Carum Bulbocastanum. 

 — >~UE. A kind of Agrostis. 



TERRETTE. (Fr.) Glechoma. 



TERSONIA. A Swan River shrub, with 

 small alternate thick fleshy leaves, and 

 axillary pedicellate flowers, forming a 

 genus of Phytolaccacece closely allied to 

 Gyrostemon, but distinguished by its seeds 

 having no albumen. 



TERTIANAIRE. (Fr.) Scutellaria gale- 

 riculata. 



TESSELATED. "When colour is arranged 

 in small squares, so as to have some re- 

 semblance to a tesselated pavement. 



TESSERANDRA. A genus of Brazilian 

 shrubs cf the Oleacea:, having sessile leaves. 

 and axillary panicles of flowers. The ca- 

 lyx is small cup-shaped, with four blunt 

 teeth ; the petals four, linear ; the stamens 

 four, of equal length, with dilated fila- 

 ments ; and the ovary oblong, on a fleshy 

 receptacle, two-celled, each compartment 

 having two ovules. Thefruitisapurplish- 

 coloured drupe. [M. T. M.] 



TESSULARIS. When the three dimen- 

 sions of a body, thickness breadth and 

 length, are equal. 



TESTA. The skin of a seed. 

 TESTACEUS. Brownish-yellow, like 

 unglazed earthenware. 

 TESTA DI QUAGLTA. The Italian name 



for Ma rtyniaproboscidea. 



TESTICULAR, TESTICULATE. Having 

 the figure of two oblong bodies, as the 

 roots of Orchis mascula. 



TESTUDINARIA. The distinction be- 

 tween this genus and Bioscorea, the type 

 of the order of yams iBioscoreacem), de- 

 pends more upon the general habit of the 

 plants than upon characters derived from 

 the flowers or frui-t; for, with the excep- 

 tion of the seeds being winged at the top 

 only, instead of all round, their technical 

 peculiarities are almost identical. In habit, 

 however, they differ widely. True yams 

 produce large underground thin-skinned 

 tubers ; but in the two species of Testudi- 



| nana, the corresponding portion, called- 

 the rootstock or rhizome, is wholly above 

 ground, and is coated with a bark-like 

 corky or woody substance, which in time 

 becomes deeply cracked and forms large 

 angular protuberances ; this has been j 

 compared to the shell of a tortoise : 

 whence its generic name. These root- 

 stocks are usually more or less globular, 

 and frequently of a large size, some of 

 them measuring four feet in diameter. 

 Several slender climbing stems rise from 

 their summit and grow to the length of 

 thirty or forty feet, bearing small entire 

 smooth more or less heart-shaped leaves, in 

 the axils of which the short racemes of 

 little inconspicuous greenish-yellow flow- 

 ers are produced. Both species are natives 

 of the Cape of Good Hope. The best-known, 

 T. elephantipes, is occasionally seen in 

 greenhouses in this country, where it is 

 commonly called theElephant's-foot, in re- 

 ference to its unwieldly rootstock. At the 

 Cape it is known as Hottentot's Bread : the 

 fleshy inside of its rootstocks having at 

 one time afforded part of the food of the 

 Hottentots, though now it is only eaten 

 by baboons and other animals. [A. S.] 



TETA DE CAPRA. A Chilian name for 

 Tetilla hydrocotylcefolia. 



TtlTE CORNUE. (Fr.) Bidens tripar- j 

 tita. — DE COQ. Hedysarum caput galli. 

 — DE DRAGON. Bracocephalmn aus- 

 triacum. — D'OR. Ranunculus auri- 

 comns. — DE MEDUSE. Euphorbia 

 Mnhiscc. — DE MOINEAU. Centaurea Sra- 

 biosa. — DE MORT or DE NOIRE. 

 Antirrhinum Orontium. — DE SERPENT. 

 Iris tuberosa. — DE SOURIS. Sedum 

 sexangidare. 



TETER. Having a very bad smell. 



TETILLA. The natural order Francoa- 

 cem contains, as at present constituted, 

 only two genera, Francoa and Tetilla ; the 

 latter comprising certain Chilian annuals, 

 with stalked roundish palmately-nerved 

 leaves, from among which rises a naked 

 stalk supporting a raceme of flowers. Each 

 flower is slightly irregular as to its calyx 

 and corolla, which circumstance affords 

 the main distinction between the genus 

 and Francoa. The leaves are slightly as- 

 tringent, and are used for medicinal pur- 

 poses in Chili. [M. T. M.] 



TETRA. In Greek compounds = four ; as 



tetraphi/Uous,fmir-\e(ive&;tetrapterous,{ou.r- 

 winged; tetrapyrenous, four- stoned, &c. 



TETRACARP2EA. A genus of Billenia- 

 ceai, including a Tasmanian shrub of low 

 stature. The flowers are white, and borne 

 in terminal racemes. The calyx has four 

 persistent sepals ; the corollafour roundish 

 stalked petals, within which are eight j 

 stamens, with two-celled anthers, each of ! 

 which has a thickened connective; fruit of j 

 four many-seeded follicles. [M. T. M.] | 



TETRACERA. The plants belonging to I 

 this genus of Billeniaceaz are mostly climb- j 

 ing shrubs, rarely erect small trees ; and i 



