B. Kœnigi (Konig's). fl. whitish-yellow, small; racemes many, forming a corymb at the top of the branches. June. l., leaflets serrated. h. 40ft. India, 1820. (L. B. C. 1019.)
BERKHEYA (named after M. J. L. de Berkhey, a Dutch botanist), ORD. Compositæ. A genus of ornamental greenhouse or hardy thistle-like herbs or shrubs. Flower-heads surrounded by a spiny involucre, the scales of which are united at the base only; pappus of many flat, obtuse, or pointed, scales. They are of easy cultivation in a sandy loam soil. The perennials are increased by cuttings placed under a glass; the herbaceous perennials usually by divisions of the plant in spring. The species most frequently seen in English gardens is B. purpurea.
FIG. 246. BERBERIS WALLICHIANA.
B. grandiflora (large-flowered).* fl.-heads yellow; scales of involucre spiny toothed. July. l. opposite, lanceolate, three-nerved, spiny toothed, downy beneath. h. 2ft. Cape of Good Hope, 1812. Greenhouse evergreen. (B. M. 1844.)
B. pinnata (pinnate). fl.-heads yellow; involucral scales spine-pointed, entire or toothed. Autumn. l. oblong, woolly beneath, deeply cut into lance-shaped segments. SYN. Stobæa pinnata. (B. M. 1788.)
B. purpurea (purplish).* fl.-heads numerous, pedunculate, corymbose, circular, 3in. across, surrounded by an involucre of spreading or reflexed linear oblong bracts. l., lower ones 15in. to 18in. long, 2in. to 2½in. wide, dark green, viscid above, paler and cottony beneath. h. 3ft. South Africa. A very handsome, hardy, herbaceous perennial. (G. C. 1872, p. 1261.) SYN. Stobæa purpurea.
B. uniflora (one-flowered). fl.-heads yellow; scales of involucre spiny toothed. June. l. alternate, lanceolate, three-nerved, spiny toothed, downy beneath. h. 3ft. Cape of Good Hope, 1815. Greenhouse evergreen. (B. M. 2094.)
BERMUDA CEDAR. See Juniperus bermudiana.
BERRY. A fleshy fruit, containing seeds.
BERTHOLLETIA (in honour of Louis Claude Berthollet, a celebrated French chemist). Brazil Nut Tree. TRIBE Lecythideæ of ORD. Myrtaceæ. B. excelsa is a tall tree, having the young branches leafy at the apex. Leaves alternate, oblong, quite entire, rather coriaceous. From this Brazilian species are obtained the well-known Brazil or Para Nuts of commerce. The tree is of no value for decorative purposes.
BERTOLONIA (named after A. Bertoloni, an Italian botanist, author of "Rariorum Italiæ Plantarum Decades," &c.). ORD. Melastomaceæ. Elegant little creeping or dwarf-growing stove plants, chiefly cultivated for their exquisitely marked leaves. Flowers white or purple. Leaves stalked, ovate-cordate, five to eleven-nerved, crenulated; cymes corymbose, terminal. They thrive in a compost of equal parts peat, leaf mould, and sand, in a warm, close, and moist atmosphere, but are most successfully cultivated under a bell glass in the stove; in fact, the latter is the only plan of growing them where a constantly humid atmosphere cannot be otherwise obtained without such means. They are easily propagated by cuttings or seeds.
B. ænea (coppery). fl. purple. h. 6in. Brazil.
B. guttata (spotted). See Gravesia.
B. maculata (spotted).* fl. violet-purple; peduncles axillary, bearing at the apex a short raceme of six to seven flowers. l. on long petioles, cordate, ovate, quite entire, pilose on both surfaces and on the margins, five-nerved. Branches, petioles, peduncles, and calyces hispid from long bristles. Stem rooting at the base. Brazil, 1850. (B. M. 4551.)
B. marmorata (marbled).* l. 5in. to 8in. long, ovate-oblong, hairy, five-nerved; upper side vivid bright green, beautifully marked with irregular streaks of pure white; under surface of a uniform rich purple. Stem fleshy. h. 6in. Brazil, 1858.
B. pubescens (downy).* l. ovate-acuminate, 3in. to 4in. long, and 2in. to 3in. broad; bright light green, with a broad chocolate-coloured band down the centre; upper surface clothed with long white hairs. Ecuador.