390 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
Polyanthus. Crocus. 
FLOWERING BULBS. 
On page 230 of the October Agriculturist vve 
gave a description of most of those flowering 
bulbs requiring Autumn planting. October and 
November were the appropriate months for set¬ 
ting them, but if omitted they may still be plant¬ 
ed in localities where the ground is not frozen. 
We now introduce cuts showing the bloom of 
some of them, referring the reader to the des¬ 
criptions already given. Our first cut represents 
a truss of the Polyanthus, which is a fibrous, 
rather than a bulbous rooted plant, and is of the 
primrose family. It is of Alpine origin, not suc- 
ceeding.very well in our hot climate, except in a 
partial shade on moderately moist ground. The 
flowers are in clusters of from five to ten each, on 
foot-stalks six to twelve inches in hight, and vary 
in color. Those with brown petals, a yellow eye 
and a delicate edging of gold are the more com¬ 
mon shades. They form a very rich, though 
dwarfish bloom, in the latter part of April and first 
of May. Dividing the roots soon after flowering 
is the usual method of propagation. 
The second is the Crocus, in appearance like a 
flower bud scarcely expanded. It never opens 
very fully, but with its lowly head of ‘modest 
raien,’ though of varied color, it wins the eye, 
and is usually a favorite. Clumps of different 
colors interspersed form an attractive sight. It 
is the earliest flower of Spring except the Snow¬ 
drop. 
Daffodil. Tulip. 
The early flowered Daffodil, called also Narcis¬ 
sus and Jonquil, is in color white or pale yellow, 
and often quite fragrant. The profuse flowers 
and dense deep green foliage render it conspicu¬ 
ous and attractive. 
The fourth will at once be recognized as the 
Tulip. Could the brilliant hues and delicate pen- 
cilings of its petals be here represented, as in 
colored prints, the effect would be much hightened. 
Some of these flowers are almost the hight of 
perfection in richness of color. 
THE SENNA PLANT. 
As matters of interest we propose to occasion¬ 
ally introduce illustrations of plants, which, though 
not familiar to the general reader, are yet well 
known by their products. There are several of 
these, from which we select for this number a 
species of the Senna plant, which belongs to the 
genus Cassia. There are three species of Senna, 
of which the leaves are brought to this country in 
large quantities : 1. Cassia acutifolia, which grows 
wild in great abundance in Upper Egypt, Nubia, 
and Sennaar, and is known as Alexandrian 
Senna. 2. Cassia ohovata, which grows wild in 
Syria, Egypt and Senegambia, and has been culti¬ 
vated in Italy, Spain, and the West Indies. 3. 
Cassia elongata, which grows wild in the southern 
parts of Arabia, and, it is said, in the interior of In¬ 
dia, (Hindostan). The species are somewhat simi¬ 
lar in appearance, and the dried leaves are all 
used for a similar purpose, that is as a cathartic 
medicine. Our engraving represents the last 
named, or Cassia elongata. It is a low shrub, 
usually but a few feet in hight. The dried leaves 
are well known. In the specimen above, the le¬ 
gumes or seed-pods are shown. These are flat, 
about H inches long, and somewhat more than £ 
inch wide. 
IMPROVED SENNA TEA. 
Senna tea has long been known as a prompt, 
efficient and very safe purgative, well adapted to 
fever complaints, and other cases where a decided 
but not violent action is desired. We well re¬ 
member when, especially at the West, the com¬ 
ing of a physician, was an almost certain precur¬ 
sor of a dose of “ salts and senna,” following the 
inevitable “calomel.” The salts, or some aromatic, 
was added to mitigate the severe griping occa¬ 
sioned by senna administered alone. Latterly 
we have learned that, by putting senna into cold 
water and allowing it to stand for some time, an 
extract is obtained which is equally effective as a 
cathartic, with the hot tea, while cold made tea is 
far more pleasant to take, and it does not produce 
any griping effect. Those who live remote from 
a reliable physician—if so imprudent in their diet 
or habits as to require “ physic”—will, we think, 
find a cold infusion of senna one of the simplest 
and most effective cathartic medicines that can be 
used. 
WEEPING TREES. 
We are no special admirers of the artificially- 
made “weeping trees;” most of them, to our 
view, being awkward, distorted objects, sadly 
wanting in the grace and freedom ofnature. But 
we now-and then meet with specimens which 
greatly please us. In our own grounds, are the 
weeping linden, the old European weeping ash, 
and a variety of the weeping Scotch elm, which 
well deserve the room they occupy. At Roches¬ 
ter, and in the College Park at Clinton, in this 
State, we lately saw the new American weeping 
willow, which excited our admiration. It is a 
trailing species, of native origin, grafted on an 
upright slock eight or ten feet from the ground. 
The shoots are long and slender, and of a greyish 
purple, and they fall from the top of the tree like 
the spray of a fountain. It is hardier than the 
common weeping willow, and, being of only mod¬ 
erate size, is very suitable for small yards. 
It will prove an excellent and appropriate tree 
for planting in cemeteries. Wb give above a 
sketch of the tree taken as it appeared in Winter 
Its beauty in Summer may be imagined. 
Mushroom (Agaricus campeslris). 
MUSHROOMS AND TOAD-STOOLS. 
To “ Wisconsin Reader,” we reply that it is 
next to impossible to describe these two plants so 
as to enable the inexperienced to distinguish them 
unerringly, unless he has once had them both 
together, in which case he could very readily re¬ 
cognize the mushroom by its delicate agreeable 
odor, and he would not be likely to afterwards 
forget the peculiar smell. The main points of 
difference were set forth in our article in the last 
Agriculturist, on the cultivation of the mushroom— 
See page 262. We present above an engraving 
of the general form of the mushrooms, and be¬ 
low is ,a fair representative of the Toad Stools 
Toadstool tAgancus ciracus). 
It will be seen that mushrooms and toad-stools 
both belong to the same genus < A<rancus). Dr. 
