BRITISH WILD FLOWERS. 
7 
3.— THE LESSER MEADOW-RUE. (Tiialictrum minus, Lin.) 
Engravings.— Eng. Bot., t. 11; 2nd ed., t. 773 ; and our Jig. 2, three-cleft, glaucous on both sides; flowers panicled, pendulous; 
in PI. 1. stem zigzag ; stipulas rounded. (Smith.) 
Specific Character. —Leaves doubly pinnate; leaflets ternate, 
Description, &c. —The stem is light and graceful; the leaves are small, and, from their glaucous hue, more 
like those of the Common Rue than those of any other species of the genus. The flowers are drooping, and 
have a light feathery appearance. This plant is very common in the chalky and limestone districts of England, 
growing abundantly on the chalky downs of Sussex and Kent, and in the powdered shells on the sea-shore. In 
the North of England and Scotland it is always found in dry pastures, on limestone or chalk. This is the only 
British species that is cultivated in gardens ; and, though it is rarely met with in such situations, it is very 
suitable for the decoration of rock-work. 
4.—THE ALPINE MEADOW-RUE. (Tiialictrum alpinum, Lin.) 
Engravings. —Eng. Bot., t. 262 ; 2nd ed., t. 772. 
Specific Character _Stem simple, nearly leafless ; racemes simple, terminal ; flowers drooping. (Smith.) 
Description, &c. —This is an elegant little plant, with very small flowers, but pretty roundish leaflets, 
which are disposed in threes, and are of a deep glossy green. The stem is creeping, and roots beneath the soil, 
so as to render it very difficult to eradicate the plant when it has once established itself. The species is a native 
of the mountains of England, Scotland, and Wales, where it generally grows in the fissures of the rocks, or on 
the margins of the mountain streams. 
GENUS III. 
THE PHEASANT’S EYE. (Adonis, Lin.) 
Lin. Syst. POLYANDRIA POLYGYNIA. 
Generic Character. —Calyx of five adpressed sepals. Petals | of a torus. Akenia numerous, arranged in a spike, tipped by the 
5-15, with a naked claw. Stamens numerous, inserted at the base ; hardened style. ( Lindley.) 
Description, &c. —There is but one species of this genus found wild in Britain, and it only grows in corn¬ 
fields in the southern counties of England. The wild plant flowers much earlier than the Flos Adonis of the 
gardens, as it is generally in full blossom when the wheat and barley among which it grows are only showing 
their green leaves above ground; and the seeds of the Adonis are ripe, and have fallen, long before the grain is 
ready to be cut. The botanic name of this plant alludes to the fable of its springing from the blood of Adonis, 
when that favourite of Venus was gored to death by the tusks of the wild boar. The French call the plant 
Goutte de Sang for the same reason. The English name of Pheasant’s Eye alludes to the flower having some 
resemblance to the red circle round the eye of a pheasant. The botanical student will find no difficulty in 
knowing where to class this plant, as the resemblance between its flowers and seed-vessels and those of the 
Crow-foot, is too great to allow of any doubt of its being placed in the Crow-foot tribe ; while its numerous 
stamens and carpels show that, in the Linnsean arrangement, it must belong to Polyandria Polygynia. 
