APHx] 



Cfje Crea^ur^ ai 2S0tang. 



78 



consisting of a small sedge-like plant, A. 

 cyperoides, from the southern shores of 

 New Holland, which grows in small tufts, 

 with short thread-like leaves and naked 

 stems, a few inches high, at the top of 

 which are short two-ranked spikes of 

 glumaceous flowers, the lower glumes fre- 

 quently empty; the outer glume of each 

 flower is mucli acuminate, the upper glume 

 shorter, hispid at the base. [J. T. SJ 



APHLOIA. A genus of the Flacourtia 

 family, containing but few species. They 

 are small trees, with much-cut, serrate, or 

 entire alternate leaves, and axillary, soli- 

 tary, or fascicled flowers, without petals. 

 From all the allied genera, they are dis- 

 tinguished by their single one-sided pla- 

 cental line, to which the ovules are 

 attached. They are natives of Madagas- 

 car or the Mauritius, some of them varying 

 much in their foliage, entire or pinnatifid 

 leaves being found on the same plant. A. 

 theiformis has an emetic bark. [A. A. B.] 



APHYLLjE. A name applied to that 

 portion of cryptogamic plants compre- j 

 hended under the term Thallogens, in con- 1 

 sequence of the greater part of them being 

 destitute of such modifications of leaves 

 as occur in mosses, ferns, &c. Some sea- 

 weeds, or Algcs, indeed, have leaf -like 

 organs, but these differ in many respects 

 from leaves, and are mere expansions of 

 the common stem. [M. J. BJ [ 



APHYLLANTHES. A genus of Liliacece, ! 

 consisting of a single species, found in 

 the South of Europe. It is a perennial, ' 

 slender, rush-like herb, leafless, the scapes 

 having membranous sheaths at the base, 

 like those of the rush, and being terminated 

 by a small head of fugacious blue flowers. 

 The perianth is six-parted, spreading at 

 the apex, connivent into a short tube 

 at the base ; six stamens, with thread-like 

 filaments, are inserted above the base of 

 the perianth; the filiform style is termi- 

 nated by a three-lobed stigma ; and the 

 ovary is three-celled, with a solitary basal 

 ovule in each cell. The scapes appear like i 

 grassy leaves, but are seen to be tipped by 

 the glumaceous scales which protect the 

 blossom-buds. [T. M.] j 



A.Vl\CKM(Umbelliferw,Umbellifers). Un- ! 

 derthisnameis collected a very large num- 

 ber of plants inhabiting for the most part, 

 in the northern regions of the northern 

 hemisphere, woods, bogs, marshes, and 

 dry places. As we approach the equator 

 they become less and less known, and 

 in the southern hemisphere, are compa- 

 ratively rare. They all have a double—, 

 didymous— inferior ovary, separating when i 

 ripe into two similar parts, vulgarly called ! 

 seeds, surmounted by a superior calyx, | 

 which is generally scarcely, and often 

 not at all observable ; five separate petals ; 

 five intervening epigynous stamens ; and 

 two styles proceeding from what is not very 

 correctly termed a double epigynous disk. 

 Hemlock, carrot, parsley, and parsnip are 

 familiar examples. Although the order 



, numbers at least 1,500 species, divided 

 among nearly 300 genera, not a tree is | 

 known among them; a very few only | 

 attaining the condition of woody bushes. ! 

 Many are important as producing articles j 

 of food ; many are poisons ; most are ' 

 merely unimportant weeds ; a few, like ; 



; Astrantia, are furnished with gay colours, 

 and thus become objects of decoration, j 



I One of them, Bulax Glebaria, forms huge 

 tussocks in the Falkland Islands, resemb- j 

 ling haycocks. Of the harmless species, i 



■• in which, with a little aroma, there is no 

 considerable quantity of acrid watery 

 matter or gum-resinous secretion, must be 

 more particularly named celery, fennel, 

 samphire, parsley, and the roots of the 

 carrot, parsnip, and skirret (Slum tiisarum ). 

 The root of Eryngium campestre and mari- 

 timum, vulgarly called Eryngo, is sweet, 

 aromatic, and tonic. The aromatic roots 

 of Meum athamanticum and Mutellina 

 form an ingredient in Venice treacle. 

 Angelica root, belonging to Archmujelira 

 officinalis, is fragrant, sweet when first 

 tasted, but leaving a glowing heat in the 

 mouth. Others are gum-resinous, as the 

 species of Ferula, yielding Asafoetida, the 

 fetid odour of which is supposed to be 

 owing to sulphur in combination with a 

 peculiar essential oiL For aromatic and 

 carminative fruits, the most celebrated 

 are anise (Pimpinella Anisum), dill (Ane- 

 thuni grareulens), caraway {Carum C'aruh, 

 and coriander {Conundrum sativum). Be- 

 sides these, great numbers of less note 

 are also employed for the same reason, the 

 chief of which are the ajwains or ajo- 

 wains of India (species of Ptychotis), hone- 

 wort (Sison Amumum), whose fruits smell 

 of bugs, and cummin (Cuminum Cymi- 

 num), now only used in veterinary practice. 

 Among poisons, hemlock (Conium macula- 

 turn) holds the first place. Anthriscus vul- 

 garis and sylvestris are not so dangerous. 

 JEthusa Cynapium, OEnanthe crocata, CE. 

 Phellandrium, Cicuta maculata, and C. vi- 

 rosa are other fatal species. See Plate 16. 



APICRA. A division of the genus Aloe, 

 sometimes regarded as distinct, and com- 

 prising, along with Haworthia, a group of 

 species of very different aspect from the 

 great cylindrical or tubular-flowered aloes 

 more commonly associated with the name. 

 The present are dwarf or acaulescent 

 plants, with very crowded leaves and slen- 

 der flower-scapes, bearing erect greenish- 

 white flowers, which consist in the Apicra 

 series of a regular cylindrical perianth, 

 having short, spreading, conformable limb 

 segments. A considerable group of species 

 is referred hither. [T. M,] 



APICULATE. Terminating abruptly in 

 a little point. 



APIOS. An elegant climbing plant be- 

 longing to the natural order Leguminosa, 

 having pinnate leaves, with a terminal leaf- 

 let, and lateral clusters of brownish-purple 

 sweet-scented flowers. It is a native of 

 North America, from Pennsylvania to Caro- 

 lina,on the mountains,inhedges,and among 



