CALAMPELIS. See Eccremocarpus.
CALAMUS (from kalamos, a reed; old Greek name used by Theophrastus). ORD. Palmeæ. An elegant genus of stove palms. Flowers small, usually of a rose or greenish colour, clustered upon branching spikes, each branch having a separate spathe, which is not large enough to enclose it. Fruit one-seeded, and covered with smooth, shining scales. Leaves pinnate. Stems reed-like, 1in. to 2in. in thickness. When in a young state, these palms are most effective as drawing or diningroom decorations; and, when in a more mature condition, they are excellent as stove ornaments and for exhibition purposes. They are all of slender growth, and of easy culture in a compost of equal parts loam and vegetable mould; a copious supply of water being needed to keep them in a flourishing state. Propagated by seeds. C. Rotang, C. viminalis, and several other species furnish the canes usually employed in this country for the bottoms of chairs, couches, &c.
C. accedens (yielding). l. long, arching, dark green, pinnate; pinnæ long, narrow, closely set; petioles with slender black spines. India. A rare, but elegant, slender-growing, miniature tree.
C. adspersus (scattered). l. pinnate; pinnæ 6in. to 8in. long, narrow, deep green; petioles about 6in. in length, sheathing at the base, clothed with long, slender, black spines. Stem not much stouter than a large wheat straw. h. 20ft. Java, 1866.
C. asperrimus (very rough).* l. pinnate, 3ft. to 12ft. long; pinnæ 1ft. to 2ft. in length, 1in. in breadth, pendent, light green, upper side with two rows of hair-like spines; petioles broadly sheathing at the base, densely armed with long, stout, black spines. Java, 1877. A beautiful species, which attains a considerable size. (I. H. 275.)
C. ciliaris (fringed).* l. pinnate, clothed with a quantity of soft hair-like bristles; petioles sheathing at the base. Stem erect and slender. India, 1869. From the plume-like habit of the leaves, it makes a splendid plant for table decoration, as well as being a beautiful specimen for exhibition.
C. draco (dragon). l. 4ft. to 6ft. in length, beautifully arched, pinnate; pinnæ 12in. to 18in. long, narrow, slightly pendent, dark green; petioles sheathing at base, armed with long, flat, black spines. h. 20ft. to 30ft. India, 1819. A very handsome species, with a robust constitution.
C. fissus (cleft). l. ovate in outline, pinnate, when young bright cinnamon; leaflets pendent, dark green, bearing on the upper side a few black hair-like bristles; petioles armed with dark, stout spines. Borneo. A very ornamental species.
C. flagellum (whip-like). l. 6ft. to 8ft. in length when fully grown, pinnate; pinnæ pendent, about 1ft. in length and 1in. in breadth, dark green, furnished on the upper side with two rows of long, white, hair-like spines; petioles sheathing, copiously armed with stout white spines, much swollen at the base, and tipped with black. Stem slender.
C. Hystrix (bristly). l. pinnate; petioles spiny. A compact-growing and very graceful species.
C. Jenkinsianus (Jenkins's). l. pinnate, gracefully arched, 2ft. to 6ft. long; pinnæ 6in. to 12in. long, 1in. broad, rich dark green; petioles slightly sheathing at the base, armed with long flat spines. Sikkim.
C. leptospadix (slender-spadix).* l. pinnate; pinnules about ⅓in. wide, and from 6in. to 12in. long, subulately acuminate; upper surface with three bristle-bearing ribs; a few smaller bristles are disposed along the midrib underneath; margins finely and regularly toothed with small ascending bristles; petiole channelled, tomentose towards the base, bearing three or four solitary needle-like spines, about 1in. long. India. A rare species, and described as one of the most graceful.
C. Lewisianus (Lewis's).* l. ultimately spreading, 2ft. to 6ft. long, pinnate: pinnæ equidistant, ½in. broad, and front 13in. to 15in. long: veins on the upper surface bristled, under surface smooth; margins rough, with appressed bristles; petioles white, with a broad, sheathing, blackish-brown base, densely armed with long, flat, black spines. India. A fine, but somewhat rare, species.
C. Rotang (Rotang). l. pinnate, from 3ft. to 4ft. in length. very gracefully arched; pinnæ 6in. to 12in. long, less than 1in. broad; upper side dark green, with two rows of hair-like spines; petioles and stems armed sparingly with stout, slightly reversed spines. Stems slender. India. When young, especially, this plant is very handsome.
C. Royleanus (Royle's).* l. pinnate, arching; pinnæ very numerous, narrow, pendent, deep green; petioles with few spines, dark green. North-west Himalayas.
C. spectabilis (showy).* l. pinnate, with a few pairs of smooth linear-lanceolate, three-ribbed leaflets, measuring 6in. to 8in. long; petioles green, furnished with numerous short conical white spines, tipped with brown. Malacca. A slender-growing species.
C. verticillaris (whorled). l. pinnate, with a very ornamental plume-like appearance; pinnæ long, broad, drooping; petioles with the spines arranged verticillately. Malacca. This beautiful species is extremely rare.
C. viminalis (twiggy).* l. 1ft. to 2ft. long, pinnate; pinnæ about 6in. long, narrow, light green; petioles sheathing, densely armed with long flat white spines. When only 3ft. or 4ft. in height, its spiny whip-like spikes of flowers are often produced. Stem slender. h. 50ft. Java, 1847.
The following are other, but less-known, species: australis, elegans, micranthus, niger, oblongus, and tenuis.
CALAMUS AROMATICUS. An old name of [Acorus Calamus] (which see).
CALAMUS ODORATUS. An old name of [Andropogon Schœnanthus] (which see).
FIG. 315. CALANDRINIA MENZIESII, showing Flower and Habit.
CALANDRINIA (in honour of L. Calandrini, an Italian botanist, who lived in the beginning of the eighteenth century). ORD. Portulaceæ. A rather large genus of fleshy, glabrous, annual or perennial, herbaceous plants, some fourteen or fifteen species growing in Australia, the rest occurring in the New World. Flowers usually rose or purple, solitary, or in terminal umbels or racemes. Leaves quite entire, radical or alternate. Only four or five species are cultivated in this country; these are treated as half-hardy annuals—with the exception of C. umbellata, which is best treated as a biennial—and as such they are extensively grown in small gardens, with most satisfactory results. They should be sown in the spots where they are intended to flower, as transplantation, unless performed with more than ordinary care, will considerably check their growth or result in loss. Their flowers only expand during bright sunshine, and, consequently, they are less grown than they otherwise would be. The plants thrive in a light sandy soil. C. umbellata may be sown in a pan, placed in a cold frame, in May or June; and when the plants are large enough to handle, they should be potted off, or placed out in colonies where they are to bloom.
C. discolor (two-coloured). fl. bright rose, with a yellow tuft of stamens in the centre, 1½in. across; raceme long. July, August. l. fleshy, obovate, attenuated at the base, pale green above, purple beneath. h. 1ft. to 1½ft. Chili, 1834. (B. M. 3357.)
C. grandiflora (large.flowered).* fl. rosy, about 2in. across; calyx spotted; raceme simple, loose. Summer. l. fleshy, rhomboid, acute, petiolate. Stem suffruticose. h. 1ft. Chili, 1826. (B. R. 1194.)
C. Menziesii (Menzies').* FL. deep purple-crimson, from ½in. to 1in. across, terminal and axillary, solitary. June to September. l. elongated, spathulate, much attenuated at the base. Stems much branched, prostrate. California, 1831. SYN. C. speciosa. See Fig. 315. (B. R. 1598.)
C. nitida (shining). fl. rose-coloured, about 2in. across; raceme leafy, many-flowered. Summer. l. oblong-spathulate, sub-acute, glabrous, attenuated at the base, 1in. to 2in. in length. h. 6in. Chili, 1837. A very pretty hardy annual, forming a tuft from 4in. to 6in. across.
C. speciosa (showy). A synonym of C. Menziesii.
