THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION.— Junk 10,1850. 101 
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Solatium cardiophyllum. 
met with were very small. Some were found 
an inch-and-n half in length, and an inch in 
diameter; but generally they were not larger 
than the seeds of Kidney Beans. Their form 
is somewhat obovate, faltering to the end at¬ 
tached to the runner; and their colour was 
whitish. They exhibited no symptoms of dis¬ 
ease. 
This Potato is also, I think, a mere variety 
of Solatium tuberosum , with which it agrees in 
everything except its excessive hoariness, and 
its unwillingness to produce tubers. When 
placed by the side of the Maglia of Chile, there 
is no apparent distinction. It seems to bo a 
white-dowered variety of the Solatium verruco- 
sum, figured by Professor Sehlechtendahl in 
his “ Hortus Halensis,” Fig. ‘A His plants 
were raised in the Halle garden from tubers 
sent from Mineral del Monte by Mr. Charles 
Ehrenberg, upon whose authority it is stated 
to be common by pathways in woods, arnon 
ruins of walls (in muris ), and elsewhere, 
am unable to discover any botanical distinc¬ 
tions between this Solatium rerrucosum and 
another wild Mexican plant, published by 
Sehlechtendahl and Bouchein the “Yerhand- 
lungen des vereins zur Beforderung des Gar- 
tenbauesin den Preussischen Staalen,” vol. ix. 
p. .117. That plant was from the Volcano of 
Orizaba, at an elevation of from 10,000 to 
11,000 feet, where it is said to be known by 
the name of “ Papa cimarron,” The authors 
just mentioned call it, indeed, Solatium stoloui- 
ferum, but it is not so different from S. vernt- 
costim as many cultivated Potatoes are from 
each other. 
In addition to the foregoing, which appear 
to prove conclusively that the Potato is either 
wild in Mexico or lias become so, two very 
different Potato-bearing plants were received 
from Mr. Uhde. 
The first of these was marked “ Native 
Mexican Potatoes, growing at N000 to 9000 
feet elevation.” This proved a particularly 
dwarf sort. It was planted May 2, and was 
in flower in the end of June. Its flowers are 
produced close to the ground, and fruit soon 
succeeds them; branches then push up, and 
blossom at the height of twelve to fifteen 
inches. 
The foliage and stems have a grey appear¬ 
ance; and yet the hairs upon them are incon¬ 
siderable in number and much scattered. The 
leaves are from four to six inches long, pin¬ 
nated like the Potato, and often with numerous 
small leaflets placed between the larger ones; 
but many leaves consist of large leaflets alone. 
The latter from two to three pairs, with a 
terminal odd one; they are extremely blunt, 
broadest at the end, flat, and perfectly sessile. 
The flowers are nearly an inch across, and bright violet, 
arranged in loose terminal dichotomous somewhat scorpioid 
racemes. The calyx is hairy, and is 5-cleft with acute tri¬ 
angular acuminate teeth. The corolla is 10-toothcd, with 
a nearly circular outline, and reflexed so as to hide the calyx. 
The stamens are small in proportion to the size of the 
corolla, and shorter than the stylo. They are succeeded by 
smooth globular berries about as large as a black currant. 
Very few tubers were formed. Many stems had none; and 
where they did occur they were small, flattened, somewhat 
kidney-shaped, and of white colour, with white, crisp, semi¬ 
transparent flesh. 
This appears to be distinct from the Potato, and may be 
called Solatium demissnm, because of its dwarfuess. It was 
attacked by the disease in July. The stems exhibited the 
characteristic blotches in a worse degree than any other sort in 
the Garden. The runners were also affected. 
Amongst the “ Tubers of Mexican Potatoes growing at 
8000 to 0000 feet of elevation,’’ which proved to be chiefly 
the two sorts last mentioned, there was a plant entirely | 
different from either. It had an erect stilf stem, about a 
foot in height, very dark-green heart-shaped leaflets, and 
small cream-coloured flowers, much like those of the Black 
Nightshade (Solatium nigrum). It formed very small 
roundish white tubers, which were less watery than the last, 
and it was not attacked by disease. From its having been 
found mixed with other samples of Potatoes, it had probably 
been gathered accidentally. 
This species, although producing Potato-like tubers, and 
belonging to the same section of the genus as the true 
Potato, can in no way be confounded with it. It does not 
appear to be of any value, but deserves to be put on record 
as a curious new form of the genus. Its deeply heart-shaped 
leaves render the name S. cardiophyllitm appropriate. 
In addition to the foregoing, packets were also received 
from Mr. Ulule, labelled, “ Tubers of a Potato, found growing 
wild in Mexico at 8000 feet elevation, possibly brought from 
Peru;’’ and “Tubers of a Red Potato found in Mexico, 
supposed to be Peruvian ;” a third packet contained some 
“ Red Potatoes, like Peruvian." These all proved to be a 
