492 Account of the Tetragonia, or New Zealand Spinach, 



garden mould, thus creating an elevated ridge in the middle of 

 the bed, the sides of which must extend three feet from the cen- 

 tre. The plants must be put out three feet apart ; I planted 

 mine at only two feet distance from each other, but they were 

 too near. In five or six weeks from the planting, their bran- 

 ches will have grown sufficiently to allow the gathering of the 

 leaves for use. In dry seasons the plants will probably require 

 a good supply of water. They put forth their branches vigo- 

 rously as soon as they have taken to the ground, and extend 

 before the end of the season three feet on each side from the 

 centre of the bed. 



The branches are round, numerous, succulent, pale green, 

 thick and strong, somewhat procumbent, but elevating their 

 terminations. The leaves are fleshy, growing alternately at 

 small distances from each other, on shortish petioles ; they 

 are of a deltoid shape, but rather elongated, being from two 

 to three inches broad at the top, and from three to four in- 

 ches long j the apex is almost sharp-pointed, and the two 

 extremities of the base are bluntly rounded ; the whole leaf 

 is smooth, with entire edges, dark green above, below paler, 

 and thickly studded with aqueous tubercles ; the mid-rib, 

 and veins project conspicuously on the under surface. The 

 flowers are sessile in the alee of the leaves, small, and green, 

 and, except that they show their yellow anthera* when they 

 expand, they are very inconspicuous. The fruit when ripe 

 has a dry pericarp of a rude shape with four or five horn- 

 like processes enclosing the seed, which is to be sown in its 

 covering. 



In gathering for use, the young leaves must be pinched off 

 the branches, taking care to leave the leading shoot uninjured ; 



