C. ericoides (Heath-like). A synonym of C. tetragona.

C. glabra (glabrous). A synonym of C. tetragona.

C. tetragona (tetragonal).* fl. white; bracts one-half shorter than the tube of the calyx. l. scattered, petiolate, glabrous; stipules deciduous. h. 2ft. 1825. SYNS. C. ericoides, C. glabra. (B. R. 409.)

C. angulata, aurea, and breviseta are other species which have been introduced, but are not worth house room when that described above is grown.

CALYX. The external whorl of floral leaves.

CAMARIDIUM (from kamara, an arched roof; in reference to the arched tip of the stigma). ORD. Orchideæ. A pretty stove orchid, allied to Cymbidium. It thrives best if grown in a shallow basket, or raised above the surface of the pots with sphagnum and broken pots.

C. ochroleucum (yellowish-white).* fl. yellowish-white. July. l. ligulate. Pseudo-bulbs oblong, compressed, smooth. h. 1ft. Trinidad, 1823. SYN. Cymbidium ochroleucum. (B. M. 4141.)

CAMAROTIS. See Sarcochilus.

FIG. 335. CAMASSIA ESCULENTA.

CAMASSIA (from Quamash, so called by the North American Indians, who eat the bulbs). SYN. Sitocodium. ORD. Liliaceæ. A small genus (two species) of handsome bulbous plants. Perianth of six segments, slightly connected at base, and spreading out horizontally, but not equally. Leaves narrow, about 1ft. long, grooved down the inside. They thrive best in a sheltered, partially-shaded situation, but will do fairly well in almost any ordinary good garden soil. A compost of loam and leaf mould, with a liberal mixture of sharp sand, suits them best. They need not be disturbed for several years; but a top-dressing of rich soil or well-rotted manure may be given yearly. Propagated by offsets and seeds. The plants are so hardy that they ripen seeds in warm situations. These may be sown as soon as ripe, or the following spring, either in a warm situation out of doors, or in pots or boxes, under glass. The young plants make rapid progress, and should remain for at least two years in the seed beds. The best time for final transplanting is in February. Offsets are produced very freely, and should be removed either when in a dormant condition, or just previously to starting into fresh growth, and arranged in clumps or lines, placing a little sand about them.

C. esculenta (edible).* Camash or Quamash. fl. blue, about 2in. across; racemes loose, ten to twenty-flowered, borne on stout scapes; perianth six-cleft, the five upper segments close together, the sixth standing by itself. Summer. l. linear, about 1ft. high. Columbia, &c., 1837. The colour of the flowers varies from a deep blue to nearly white. See Fig. 335. (B. R. 1486.) The white-flowered form is figured in B. M. 2774, under the name of Scilla esculenta flore albo.

C. e. Leichtlini (Leichtlin's).* fl. creamy-white, larger than those of the type, with more numerous nerves in the keel of the segments of the perianth; racemes longer, and sometimes compound. Spring. h. 2ft. Columbia, 1853. This also differs from the type in its more robust habit and broader leaves. SYN. Chlorogalum Leichtlini. (B. M. 6287.)

C. Fraseri (Fraser's).* fl. pale blue, smaller than those of C. esculenta; pedicels and scape much more slender. l. narrow, acute; capsule more acutely angled. h. 1ft. Eastern States of North America. A smaller and more slender plant. (B. M. 1574, as Scilla esculenta.)

CAMBESSEDESIA (named after James Cambessedes, coadjutor of Auguste St. Hilaire, in his "Flora Brasiliæ Meridionalis," and author of several botanical memoirs). ORD. Melastomaceæ. A genus of elegant, erect, or ascending, dichotomously branched stove shrubs or herbaceous plants. Flowers terminal and axillary, in paniculate cymes; petals five, obovate; calyx bell-shaped. Leaves sessile, opposite or verticillate, obovate, oblong or linear. They thrive best in a compost of peat and sand. Propagated by half-ripened cuttings, which root freely in a similar mixture, if placed in heat and under a hand glass. There are about eight species known to science, but probably that mentioned below is the only one in cultivation.