B. albescens (whitish).* fl., petals ten, pale yellow, disposed in a leafy panicle. July. l. sinuately toothed. Stem with a white shining epidermis. h. 1ft. to 4ft. Chili, 1831. Annual or biennial. (S. B. F. G. ii., 182.)
B. aurea (golden).* fl. two or three together, terminal, bright golden yellow, as large as a half-crown; petals five. June. h. 1ft. California, 1834. Annual. See Fig. 207. (B. M. 3649.)
B. nuda (naked) and B. ornata (adorned) are two very pretty white-flowered biennial species. h. 2ft. Missouri, 1811.
BARYOSMA. See [Barosma].
BASAL, or BASILAR. Situated at the base of anything; as the embryo, when situated at the bottom of the seed.
BASELLA (its Malabar name). Malabar Nightshade. ORD. Basellaceæ. Annual or biennial stove trailers, with white or pinkish flowers, of no great horticultural value. In India, and elsewhere throughout the tropics, some of the species are cultivated as pot herbs, and are used as a substitute for Spinach.
B. alba (white).* fl. white. August. l. heart-shaped, pointed. h. 8in. India, 1688. This plant, either when allowed to fall in festoons from the roof of a warm house, or treated as a basket plant, forms an elegant object when in flower.
BASELLACEÆ. A series of usually herbaceous climbers, and considered a tribe of Chenopodiaceæ.
BASIL, SWEET (Ocymum basilicum). This is a tender annual from India, and must be raised in gentle heat. The foliage is somewhat largely used for flavouring purposes. Seeds should be sown in April, the seedlings pricked out into boxes to strengthen, and finally planted out about 8in. asunder, in beds of light rich soil, in June, being well watered until fully established. As soon as they bloom, they should be cut down to within a few inches of the ground, and the portions cut off should be tied up in small bunches and dried in the shade for winter use. Some of the plants can be lifted in September, potted up, and placed in a warm greenhouse for the winter, when the fresh green leaves will be found very useful. Bush Basil (Ocymum minimum) is a dwarfer plant, but may be treated in the same way. Wild Basil is botanically known as Calamintha Clinopodium.
BASIL-THYME. See [Calamintha Acinos].
BASI-NERVED. When the nerves of a leaf spring from the base.
BASING-UP. The raising of a small bank of earth entirely round a plant, so as to retain water immediately about the root. The term is sometimes used to signify Earthing or Moulding, which see.