ÆSTIVATION. The manner of the folding of the calyx and corolla in the flower bud.
ÆTHIONEMA (from aitho, to scorch, and nema, a filament; apparently in allusion to some tawny or burnt appearance in the stamens). ORD. Cruciferæ. A genus of elegant little plants, distinguished from allied genera in having the four larger stamens winged, and with a tooth. Herbs or sub-shrubs, perennial or annual, branched from the base, diffuse or erect. Flowers in crowded terminal racemes. Leaves fleshy, sessile. They are well worth cultivating in sunny situations, where they form a freer flowering habit than when growing in a wild state. Some of the more hardy species may be planted on rock work, which, by their dwarf growth, they are well adapted for. The annual and biennial species may either be sown on rockwork or in the front of the flower-border. A light dry soil suits them best. The shrubby kinds of this genus should be kept in pots, which should be well drained with potsherds, and treated like other alpine plants. Propagated by seeds, sown in May; or by cuttings, planted in summer.
Æ. Buxbaumii (Bauxbaum's). fl. pale red; racemes crowded, aggregate. June. l. oblong-spathulate, glaucous. h. 6in. Thrace, 1823. A pretty annual, with erect branched stems. SYN. Thlaspi arabicum.
FIG. 37. ÆTHIONEMA CORIDIFOLIUM, showing Habit and Flowers.
Æ. coridifolium (Coris-leaved).* fl. rosy lilac, small, in terminal dense rounded racemes. June. l. linear, glaucous, crowded. Asia Minor, 1871. A pretty perennial, shrubby below, with erect stems 6in. to 8in. high. See Fig. 37.
Æ. gracile (slender). fl. purplish; racemes crowded, terminal; when in fruit, loose. June. l. lanceolate, pointed. h. 8in. Branches and branchlets slender, elongated. Sandy hills in Carniola, 1820. Shrubby perennial.
FIG. 38. ÆTHIONEMA GRANDIFLORUM, showing Habit and Flowers.
Æ. grandiflorum (large-flowered).* fl. of a warm shaded rose; racemes crowded, terminal, numerous. May to August. l. ovate-oblong, glaucous. Mount Lebanon, 1879. This perennial species forms a spreading bush about 1½ft. high, and is perhaps the handsomest of the genus. It succeeds well in the ordinary border, but is far better suited for the rockery. See Fig. 38.
Æ. membranaceum (membranous-podded). fl. purplish, in terminal racemes. June. l. linear, distant, somewhat fleshy, strictly appressed. h. 3in. to 6in. Persia, 1828. A small shrub, with filiform branches.
Æ. monospermum (one-seeded). fl. purple, largish, in terminal racemes. July. l. oval or obovate, blunt, coriaceous; pods one-celled, one-seeded. h. 3in. to 6in. Spain, 1778. A pretty little biennial, with hardish branches.
Æ. pulchellum (pretty).* This is said to be a new species, but it much resembles Æ. coridifolium. It is scarcely in full cultivation yet, but it proves one of the hardiest as well as one of the most handsome kinds.
Æ. saxatilis (rock).* fl. purplish; racemes loose, terminal. May and June. l. lanceolate, acutish. h. 8in. Spain, 1820. A pretty annual.
AFRICAN ALMOND. See [Brabejum.]