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1230 



tralia. The leaves are serrated or three- 

 cleft ; and the flower-stalks solitary in the 

 forks of the branches, rarely in the axils 

 of the leaves. The involucre consists of 

 two or three rows of scales, the outer of 

 which are leafy, the inner membranous, 

 the receptacle convex, the outer florets 

 ligulate, the central ones tubular, both 

 kinds yellow ; stigmas conical. The achenes 

 are compressed, surmounted by a pappus of 

 toothed or hairy scales. Some of the spe- 

 cies are in cultivation. [M. T. M.] 



WEDGE-SHAPED. The same as Cu- 

 neate. 



WEED. Any plant which obtrusively oc- 

 cupies cultivated or dressed ground, to 

 the exclusion or injury of some particular 

 crop intended to be grown. Thus, even 

 the most useful plants may become weeds 

 if they appear out of their proper place. 

 The term is sometimes applied to any in- 

 significant-looking or unprofitable plants 

 which grow profusely in a state of nature ; 

 also to any noxious or useless plant. 



WEEMBY. An East African name for 

 Eleusine coracana. 



WEENONG. A Javanese name for Te- 

 i trameles. 



WEIGELA. A handsome genus of Ca- 

 pri/oliacecB from China and Japan, some 

 i species of which are amongst the finest 

 1 shrubby ornaments of our gardens in early 

 summer. The flowers are produced in 

 short cymes at the ends of the young 

 shoots, and have a flve-lobed subequal 

 calyx with a linear pentagonal tube adnate 

 beiow to the ovary, beyond which it is 

 produced ; a funnel-shaped regular corolla, 

 equal-sided at the base, and widened at 

 the throat, with a spreading five-parted 

 limb ; five stamens ; a filiform exserted 

 style with a peltato-capitate stigma; a free 

 epigynous gland ; and an inferior ovary 

 cut into four false cells by the projection 

 of a pair of double placentae, which do not 

 unite in the axis. The genus is nearly 

 allied to Diervilla, and is united with it by 

 some botanists; but Dr. Lindley hasjioint- 

 ed out that the seed-vessel is crustAceous 

 not membranaceous, and the seeds winsred 

 instead of wingless. [T. M.] 



WEIGELTIA. The name of a shrub na- 

 tive of Surinam, and forming a genus of 

 Miirstiiacece. The leaves are entire, with 

 pellucid dots ; and the flowers grow in axil- 

 lary spreading racemes; calyx and corolla 

 each four-parted; stamens four, opposite 

 to the lobes of the corolla ; anthers short, 

 style short, acuminate. The plant is but 

 imperfectly known. [M. T. M.] 



WEINMANNIA. The plants belonging 

 to this genus of Cunoniacece are found in 

 various parts of South America both in the 

 tropical and temperate regions, in South- 

 ern Africa, Madagascar and the neighbour- 

 ing islands, and also in New Zealand. 

 They are evergreen shrubs or trees, with 

 simple or compound opposite leaves, and 

 racemes of smallish usually tufted flowers, 



which have a persistent four-parted calyx 

 with the segments overlapping, four over- 

 lapping petals, eight long stamens (alter- 

 nating with as many glands or with the 

 lobes of a disk), and a two-celled ovary 

 bearing two distinct styles. The fruit ! 

 is a leathery capsule splitting when j 

 ripe through the partition into two boat- J 

 shaped sharp-pointed pieces, and contain- | 

 ing several very small hairy seeds. 



The tree species of Weinmannia mostly ! 

 afford a soft light wood, useful in common j 

 carpentry and cabinet-making purposes, ; 

 though obtainable only in planks of small j 

 size. The astringent bark of one of the 

 Peruvian species is used for tanning lea- 

 ther, and in Bourbon W. tinctoria is em- 

 ployed for dyeing red. [A. S.] 



WEISSIEI. A natural order of ptero- 

 carpous mosses, with an erect equal cap- 

 sule, an obsolete peristome (or one with 

 sixteen teeth often united at the base), a 

 dimidiate veil, and the texture of the 

 leaves close. The true Gymnostoma differ, 

 only from Weissia in the want of a peri- j 

 stome. Several species of the latter genus ' 

 occur in Great Britain, but they are mostly j 

 small and obscure plants. W. cirrhata is \ 

 one of the prettiest, and is not uncommon i 

 in woods, on posts and rails, where it is j 

 recognised at once by its peculiar habit, j 

 Gymnostomum cur virostrum, whose stem is 

 beset with rooting fibres nearly to the i 

 top, is used in the Arctic regions for lamp- j 

 wicks. [M. J. B.J j 



WELCOME-TO-OUR-HOUSE. Euphorbia | 

 Cyparissias. 



WELD. Reseda Luteola. 



WELDENIA. A genus containing a 

 Mexican herb, which is probably to be re- 

 ferred to Melanthacew. It has imbricated 

 linear-lanceolate smooth root-leaves, and 

 numerous subsessile white flowers, en- j 

 closed in spathes, which split open longitu- ; 

 dinally. The perianth is coloured, salver- j 

 shaped, with a very long narrow tube, and j 

 a three-cleft limb; stamens six; ovary j 

 free ; style Aliform, with a three-sided 

 capitate stigma ; fruit subglobose, with i 

 five or six seeds in each of the three (or j 

 four) cells. [J. T. S.] ; 



WELDWORTS. A name proposed by 

 Lindley for the order Resedacem. 



WELLINGTONIA. English botanists, in j 

 their desire to do honour to a British hero, 

 seein to have committed an oversight in j 

 separating the Wellingtonia giganteaot our j 

 gardens from Sequoia, to which the j 

 reader is referred. [M. T. MJ : 



WELWITSCHIA. A low woody plant, | 

 most singular in shape structure and mode j 

 of growth, recently brought by Dr. Wel- 

 witsch from the dry sandy country of 

 Mossamedes, in Western Africa. It was 

 first designated by the name of Tumboa, 

 which was believed to be that by which it 

 is known to the natives ; but this word, 

 it appears, isapplied generally to all plants 

 which have a short thick woody trunk or 



