G4 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[Febuuaky, 
The Shell Flower — 
(Phaseohis Caracalla.) ^ 
Our readers are aware 
that we are fond of old- 
fashioned plants and have 
endeavored to keep some 
of the old border favorites 
from being forgotten. We 
now give them an illustra¬ 
tion of a green-house 
vine, so old and so com¬ 
pletely crowded aside by 
later comers, that it has 
all the rarity of a new 
thing. The plant is Plux- 
seolus Caracalla^ which 
was introduced into Eng¬ 
land from the East Indies 
as long ago as 1690. The 
genus Phaseolus is the one 
to which our varieties of 
the garden bean belong, 
and which also includes 
the Scarlet Eunner and 
other species that are 
grown for ornament. The 
present one is a strong 
climber, with the large 
compound leaves of three 
leaflets common to the 
genus. Its flowers are 
borne in large clusters 
and appear in their cu¬ 
riously coiled shape, as 
well as their texture, so 
like some kind of shell, 
that there was no trouble 
in giving it a common 
name. The specific name Caracalla, is one by 
which it is called by the Portugese, and means 
a hood for the head. Though the flower does 
not at first sight appear much like 
tliat of the bean, yet when the two 
are compared, it will be seen to 
have all the parts that the bean 
flower has, only much larger, and 
all having a strong spiral twist. 
The color is white, shaded with li¬ 
lac, and the flower is one not only 
singular in appearance, but of great 
beauty, to which is added a charm¬ 
ing perfume. It is grown as a 
green-house plant, and we dc not 
know of any attempt to cultivate it 
in the open air. The plant from 
which our specimen came, had its 
roots under glass, but the branches 
ran outside of the house. It flour¬ 
ishes in the open air in the South 
of France, and would probably do 
so in some of our Southern States. 
- 0 - 
The Mountain Laurel.— 
latifolia.) 
Last summer we visited the 
ground of an enthusiastic lover of 
plants and saw many interesting 
things that he had recently im¬ 
ported from Europe. When we 
had seen most of his novelties, with 
the air of one who saves the best 
wine till the end of the feast, he took 
us behind a screen of evergreens 
and witlr much satisfaction said, 
“iook there!” We did look and 
pride of our amateur that 
we had not the heart to 
tell him that he could get 
them by the cart-load not 
far from the place where 
he stood. Why should 
Tve ? For here were sev¬ 
eral flourishing plants 
which, as ornamental 
shrubs, were worth all 
they cost him. We have 
often "wondered why this 
beautiful shrub was so 
seldom found in our col¬ 
lections. Perhaps, one 
reason is, that success is 
not readily attained with 
plants of a large size, and 
we are too impatient to 
wait for the rather slow 
growth of the small ones. 
A plant so beautiful, both 
in foliage and flower, is 
certainly worth waiting 
for. The Mountain Lau¬ 
rel grows from Maine to 
Kentucky, in damp soil on 
rocky hills. It is usually 
a shrub from four to eight 
feet high. To see it in 
its best development, one. 
should go to the Allegha- 
nies, where if sometimes 
reaches the hight of 20 
feet, and with the Kho- 
dodendrons and Azaleas, 
forms large thickets. The 
old stems are reddish 
brown, with a bark that 
separates in plates; the young growth of a bright 
green. The shape of the shining green leaves 
is shown in the drawing; these differ somewhat 
I in size according to the vigor of 
.the plant. The flowers appear in 
May and June, and are produced 
in the greatest profusion, in clusters 
.often much larger than the one re¬ 
presented in the engraving. The 
flowers vary in color from nearly 
pure white, to rose color, and the 
appearance of the shrub in flower 
has in some localities given it the 
^ name of Calico-bush. The buds 
are very symmetrical and pleasing 
in form, being marked by ten regu¬ 
lar projections. The peculiar ar¬ 
rangement of the stamens men¬ 
tioned, when describing the Sheep- 
laurel in August last, is much more 
readily observed in this species, as 
the parts are much larger. The 
ten projections seen upon the bud, 
are found, when the flower opens, 
to be caused by a corresponding 
number of depressions of the corol¬ 
la. In each of these is caught an 
anther which being held in this po¬ 
sition bends the stamen over like a 
bow; a slight touch liberates the 
anther and the stamen springs up 
toward the pistil with considerable 
force. The fruit is a small, nearly 
globular, 5-celled dry capsule, con¬ 
taining many minute seeds. The 
W"ood is very hard and may be used 
for turning small articles. It is 
said that the Indians used it iot 
THE SHELL FLOWEU.—(P/wsfiolMS Caracolla ) 
saw several very thrifty plants of laurel, which 
under the name of Kalmia, had come all the 
way from England, and were so evidently the 
UOVHTAlK^ Ob BBOAO-IiBAVIIiD latifolia,) 
