B. minor (lesser). l. attaining 3½ft. Stems, several from same rhizome, 2ft. to 5ft. high, ½in. thick. Queensland.
B. monostachya (one-spiked). l. pinnate, pendent, 6in. to 12in. long, bifid at the apex; pinnæ about 4in. across, broad, irregular in shape, with ragged and irregular ends; dark green. Stem slender, petioles sheathing. h. 10ft. New South Wales, 1824. SYN. Areca monostachya. (B. M. 6644.)
BADGER'S BANE. See [Aconitum meloctonum].
BÆA (commemorative of Rev. Dr. Beau, of Toulon, brother-in-law to Commerson, the discoverer of the genus). SYN. Dorcoceras. ORD. Gesneraceæ. Curious and pretty greenhouse herbaceous perennials, requiring a rich sandy loam. They are easily propagated by seeds. Probably the only species in cultivation is the following:
B. hygrometrica (hygrometric).* fl. pale blue-coloured, yellowish at the throat; segments of the limb more or less reflexed; corolla five-lobed, somewhat resembling that of the Violet; scapes numerous, naked, few-flowered. Summer. l. in a rosette, thinly covered with coarse white hairs, ovate acute at both ends, crenate serrate. h. 6in. North China, 1868. (B. M. 6468.)
BÆCKEA (named after Abraham Bæck, a Swedish physician, and an esteemed friend of Linnæus). ORD. Myrtaceæ. Very pretty greenhouse evergreen shrubs. Flowers white, pedicellate, small. Leaves opposite, glabrous, dotted. They thrive in a compost of sandy peat, leaf soil, and lumpy, fibrous loam. Cuttings, taken from young wood, root readily, if pricked in a pot of sand, with a bell glass placed over them, in a cool house.
B. diosmæfolia (Diosma-leaved).* fl. axillary, solitary, approximate, sessile. August to October. l. oblong, rather cuneated, keeled, acute, crowded, imbricate, and are, as well as the calyces, ciliated. h. 1ft. to 2ft. New Holland, 1824.
B. frutescens (shrubby).* fl. solitary; pedicels axillary. November. l. linear, awnless. h. 2ft. to 3ft. China, 1806. (B. M. 2802.)
B. parvula (little). fl., peduncles axillary, umbelliferous. l. elliptic-oblong, obtuse, rather mucronate. h. 1ft. New Caledonia, 1877. This is very close to B. virgata. (R. G. 886, 2.)
B. virgata (twiggy).* fl., peduncles axillary, umbelliferous. August to October. l. linear-lanceolate. h. 2ft. to 3ft. New Caledonia, 1806. (B. M. 2127.)
BÆRIA (named in honour of Professor Baer, of the University of Dorpat). ORD. Compositæ. A genus consisting of about half a dozen species. Probably the only one in cultivation is that mentioned below; it is a very pretty plant, of easy culture in ordinary garden soil. Propagated by seeds, sown in spring.
B. chrysostoma (golden-mouthed). fl.-heads bright yellow, solitary, terminal, about 1in. across; involucre of about ten leaflets, in two series. Early summer. l. linear, opposite, entire. Stems erect, downy. h. 1ft. California, 1835. (S. B. F. G. ii. 395.)
BAGGED. Swelled like a sac or bag.
BAHIA (probably from Port of Bahia, or San Salvador, in South America). SYN. Phialis. ORD. Compositæ. An ornamental, hardy, herbaceous perennial, much branched from the base of the stem, and having a greyish appearance. It may be increased by seeds, or by divisions.