Plate XXI.—Mexican Plants, Aloe. Mecal Cactus. Melo Cactus. Cactus, or Gauos.

spring. They are always large and beautiful, and last for many days. The Echino cactus of Otto, which is frequently cultivated, is indigenous to Mexico. The Melocactus has a globular, ovoid, or pyramidal stem, with the sides separated by straight furrows. This stem is surmounted by a kind of woolly, or, rather, hairy tuft, formed of very compact spines, from the axilla of which the leaves spring; they are very small, and ephemeral in their duration. The Melocactus vulgaris, cultivated in gate as an ornamental plant, was originally from the Antilles.

Lastly, we must mention the Mamillaria, of which we have previously given a representation. The thorny tubercles of this cactus are spirally disposed round the stem. The flowers, which last a long time, often surmount the trunk, forming a kind of crown to its branches.

GROSSALS.

If we except the fruits and the spines, there seems to be little in common between the Cactacee and Grossulacee; but that resemblance was considered so strong that the earlier botanists classed both in the same order. They now form distinct groups of orders. ° Lobelhefmaphrotite flowers, often tnisexialcalcoloured,fouro five—. with tube adherent to the ovary; corolla with — petals, $} CCLXXXVII. Grossulacese. = tine on to the ao of the calyx, jjinserted at ts orifice;

pra sy athena ‘eee leaves; axillary flowers;calyx supe- ‘rior, five-lobed; corolla of five petals, alternate wee lobes of the CCLXXXVIIL nee: Escalloniace w calyx; stamens alternate swith the petals, rising from the calyx; fruit

“ralesswith ite leaves: 7 — = pink ons; of s ©) e@ WH myk sprdhoestoyAe, or somenulls of tha ya CCLXXXIX. Philadelphacee,

inferior;fruit capsul Fong and shrubs, ae alternate,a serratedoe notinsealsifouee;.oe bors 2 sacar many-celled;; stamens nfruit pulpy,a one or CCXC. Barringtoniacez. mnany-celled, The Ghossutac are chiefly natives of the temperate and _colder regions of the northern hemisphere. The fruit, a berry, is mucilaginous—an agreeable mixture of malic, and nitric acid, and saccharine, with an astringent principle, which renders it pleasant and refreshing. The common Gooseberry (Rides grossularia) is a shrubby plant, often armed with spines, placed under the leaves, which are alternate, or fasciculate, with peted limb, having a

dilated petiole at the base. The flowers are arranged in bunches or clusters,—axillary in the species destitute of spines; solitary, or at least less numerous, in species thus armed. Calyx monosepalous, in five divisions. Corolla with five free petals, alternating with the sepals. Stamens, five and perigynous, are opposed. to the sepals. Their filaments are free, their anthers bilocular, opening from either by two longitudinal slits. The pistil consists of an inferior ovary, surmounted by two short styles with obtuse stigmata. In the interior of the ovary,

| which is unilocular, are two placente, charged

with numerous ovules placed horizontally and anatropical. The fruit is a berry (Fig. 442), crowned by the persistent limb of the calyx and the dried-wp petals. The seeds are enclosed, and the integuments become gelatinous externally, internally crustaceous, contain an albumen, hard and nearly horny, and very abundant, at the base of which is found a very small, straight embryo.: Many species of Ribes are cultivated in gardens as ornamental plants, such 98 R. aureum, R. sanguineum, the deep red cluster of flowers thrown out by the latter being extremely beautiful. Others are cultivated for their fruit, such as the gooseberry, which we have described, the currants, red and white, both varieties of R. rubrum, and the black currant (R. nigrum), both of which throw out clusters of grateful berries, which are

Fig. 443.—Bfanch and flower of the White Currant. wives, when ripe, being the e first,

Fig. 442.—The Gooseberry. fruit of which jellies and other preserves are made. Th

Fig. 443.—Branch and flower of the White Currant.

R. grassularia, is spiny, especially iin its natural state; its flowers solitary or gemmate; but varying much in garden varieties, both as to the size and colour of its fruit. The second is without spines; its fruit is borne in clusters (Fig. 442), red or white. In the third the fruit is in bunches of loose black berries, containing, as does its leaf, an aromatic resinous principle.

CINCHONALS. pigynous Bydogens, having the flowers dichlamydeous, in which they differ from Asarals; the corolla monopetalous, in which it differs from Cactals, emails and Umbilifers; and a minute embryo, in which it differs from Campanals and Myrtals.

. Small trees and shrubs, with numerous angular branches; leaves sem gic dentate, with short foot stalks; flowersa i aphrodite; regu a erent to t e ovary; corolla e i our, five, or ce six lobed, ailernate: with the pte seis ofIbes of the an OCXCT. Vacciniacen. on ge ‘double the number of lobes of thec; ovary inferi fruit a berryor drupe.

Seat shrubs or trees, with opposite t minal yellow flowers; calyx superior, five- Eacinihscom ratveh parted, apetalous; stamens two, inserted in the throat alternate with CCXCII, Columeliacez. = ey arents of the corolla; anthers sinuous, bursting icapttudinalys ovary inferior; fruit capsular,c eh deaecany and many eeseeded.

ig —@ i] = ® Hea 8.? - S —_3Bé + 4 ysBg pee yo &z= 2.2 gig tion, Sires in paniclesor corymbs; aye tubular, adherent;; Colrelia EEsik eee CCXCIII. Rubiacez. _ etalous, inserted in the “yap of the calyx; stamens four to six, ratingew the lobes of the corolla; ovary inferior, two or more celled fru a drupe orsh Shrubs or Nplate: ometimes climbing plants, with opposite. Piaget connate leaves, simple, rarely pinnate, withontstipules; flowers in corymbs es or whorled; calyx gh ooo cmon adherent =tesa ova rolla;sta CCXCIV, Caprifoliacex:. monopetalous four, inserted in the smi =nog tubeof the foeweesSay onc three to Reectlie’: frui Herbaceous plants, withsee leaves, without stipules; angular stem; flowers minute; calyx superior, four to. six-lobed; corolla CCXCV. Galiacex. 57os monopet alous: stamens epipetaous anthers straigh, bursting longi tudinally; fruit didymous The Vaccrntace® or Cranberries are found on mountainous and marshy places in temperate regions of the old and new world, chiefly in the northern hemisphere; a few, with parasitical habits, are natives of Brazil. The common Bilberry, or Blueberry of the _ Moors (Vaccinium myrtillus), is a well-known example. The Whortleberry (V. uliginosum), and the common Cranberry (Ozy-coccus palustris), are equally well known in many parts of the ritish Isles, The CoLumELrack® occupy an anomalous position among the surrounding orders. Professor Don thought their proper position near Jasmines, with which he found they corresponded in the structure and xstivation of the corolla, in the bilocular ovary and erect K K

ovules. Endlicher, acting upon this supposition, has placed them among the Symplocacee. The only known species are from Mexico and Peru, and their uses still unknown.

The Rusracem, or CrncHonace®, as Dr. Lindley names the order, are almost exclusively natives of the hottest parts of the world. Endlicher has divided this important Order into—

SuB-ORDER I. CiNcHONE., having numerous ovules in the cells; cells of the fruit many-seeded. This includes— I, The tribe Gardenidee. Trees or shrubs, with

II. The Encinchoniee. Fruit a two-celled wide flowers aida, collectoit into a head upon the receptacle.

PERS The FHledytidea, sth 7 + ee oo soe + th 11

Isertiee. Shrubs.or donne fruit drupaceous; ria to six ‘maang-ecoded bony nuts.

_ VY. Hamelicee, Fruit amany-celled berry. and the cells many-se

VI. Cordier7 Shrubs, with opposite leaves: broad interpetiolar stipules;fruit amany-celled berry; cells one-seeded,

VII. Cerdieree. Shiubs,with opposite leaves; fruit a many-celled berry; cells one-seeded.

FF i eesti II. Corre, having ovules solitary, rarely two in the cells; cells of the fruit one or two

VIII. Gnettardee. Shrubs or trees; fruit a drupe; seeds cylindric - IX. Pederiee. Climbing shrubs, with opposite leaves and inte ke stipules; fruit two-celled, unopening, hardly fleshy. ~ i ae f:

X. Psychotriee. Trees and |shrubs, with opposite leaves;fruit a two-celled berry, aghempre two

XI. Bhersansiinne Fruit dry or slightly fleshy, usually consisting of tw ded carpe

I, Anthospermee. ‘Herbs! or under-shrubs, with flowers sometimes dioecious; corde rotate; sigs two; fruita one-seededcPpntel.

XIII. Stellate. Sometimes b-shrubs, but usually herbs;leaves opposite, with two or three leaflike stipuleson the axil on ak ‘side; flowers he rmaphrodite, rarely unisexual;corolla funne 1-shaped; lobessoPiacteas styles two, distinct, Is more olin ted.

XIV. Operculacee. Herbsor shrubs, ‘havi ng opposite leaves;twin stipules on each side; fruit one-celled and one-seeded,joiined segvte laterally into a head, an opening by two valves at the apex.

The greater part of this important family are found between the tropics, or in regions upon their borders, where they form a larger proportion of the vegetation as compared with any other order. The Stellatz are confined to the hilly regions of Chili, Peru, and Australia, and the northern regions of both hemispheres—many of the madders or Stellate being British. Before noting the more remarkable species,—the produce of the tropics,—which are 8° essentially useful to man, we shall give, as a type of the order,a sketch of the floral structure of a species which is common in our own fields. The Field Madder (Sherardia arvensis) i8 a small annual with flowers of a rose-shaded lilac, nearly sessile, and disposed in a dense head. The flowers are hermaphrodite and regular; the. calyx presents six teeth, or lobes; the corolla is monopetalous,: hollowed into a funnel shape, and four-lobed. There are nes:

stamens alternating with these lobes, inserted upon the tube of the corolla; anthers bilocular, opening from within by two longitudinal slits. The pistil consists of an inferior ovary, sur-

Fig. 443.—Sherardia Arvensis. mounted by a style divided into two stigmatic branches. Each of the cells contains an ascending anatropal oval. The fruit forms two achenes, each covered by three lobes of the calyx. Under the - KK2

integuments of the seeds, an embryo, slightly curved, in a horny albumen. The leaves are simple, opposite, and accompanied by two lateral stipules, which resemble the leaves sufficiently to make it appear that there are six verticilate leaves without stipules. Besides the Sherardia, there are several other species, such as the Woodruff (Asperula), the Bedstraws, or Scratchweeds ((Galium), the true Madder (Rubia), allcommon field plants. Rubia tinctorum is cultivated in the South of France, for the sake of its roots, which contain a colouring matter of a beautiful red, much used in dyeing.

Coffee-tree (Coffea) is an important section of the Rubiacez. They are evergreen shrubs, having lanceolate, wavy, and smooth leaves, resembling those of the Laurel. They are opposite, and accompanied by two lateral stipules; the flowers are white an odorous, forming an agglomerate of flowers in the axil of the leaves;the calyx is five-lobed; the corolla, funnel-shaped and also five-lobed;stamens five, with an inferior bilocular ovarium like the Sherardia. The fruit, a red berry about the size of a cherry, consists of a thick and rather sweetish pulp, which encloses two nuts joined together, the walls of which are parchment-like. ‘Each of these nuts encloses a seed, convex on the exterior, smooth and hollowed, and furrowed in the interior. The embryo is short, straight, and smooth, at the base of a hard albumen, which constitutes nearly the whole of the seed.

The Coffee-tree, which was brought originally from Abyssinia, was in the fifteenth century transported into Arabia, which has since become as a second home to this shrub, no coffee being equal to that produced in the neighbourhood of Mecca. a

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