ASTRA GALUS VIRGA'TUS. 
TWIGGY MILK VETCH. 
Class. Order. 
DI A DELPHI A . DECANDRIA. 
Natural Order. 
LEG U SUNOS AC. 
Native of 
Height. 
Flowers in ! Duration. 
Introdu ced 
Siberia. 
3 feet. 
May, Ang. Perennial. 
in 1806. 
No. 775. 
Of the various meanings given to the wordAstra- 
galus, that of the Greeks which refers to the verte- 
bne of the back or neck, seems to be the most 
applicable to the plant. The articulated appearance 
of the pods of some of the genus is not unlike that 
of the vertebral column of some animals. 
This is a pretty upright suffruticose plant, which 
is mentioned as having been introduced to this 
country as early as 1806. That from which our 
drawing w T as made, was, however, raised in the 
Birmingham Horticultural Society’s Garden, from 
Russian seeds, in 1838. 
Its natural habitat — Siberia, would indicate its 
perfect hardiness in our climate; notwithstanding 
this it demands a little protection in severe weather, 
although it is, perhaps, damp instead of intense cold 
by which it suffers. If it be protected in a frame 
during winter, and turned into the open ground 
early in May, it will blossom gaily during the 
months of August and September; after which it 
should be potted again in sandy soil, to receive 
winter protection. Increased by cuttings, and 
slowly by division of its roots. 
