ANISOMELES (from anisos, unequal, and melos, a member; in reference to the anthers of the longer stamens being halved). ORD. Labiatæ. Ornamental greenhouse or evergreen stove shrubs, herbaceous perennials, or annuals. Whorls sometimes densely many-flowered, at others few, and loose; corolla with upper lip erect, oblong, entire; lower lip larger, spreading, and lateral lobes ovate, obtuse. They are of very easy culture in light rich soil; young cuttings strike freely in spring, in heat, under a bell glass. A. furcata requires little or no artificial heat, but the protection of a bell glass is beneficial. Seeds of A. ovata may be sown in spring, in heat, and, after due hardening off, the seedlings may be planted outside in May.

A. furcata (forked).* fl. small, elegantly variegated with white, red, and purple, in loose many-flowered racemose cymes. July. l. petiolate, ovate, acuminated, crenated, cordate at the base, hispid on both surfaces. h. 4ft. to 6ft. Nepaul, 1824.

A. malabarica (Malabar). fl. purplish; whorls distant, many-flowered, dense. July. l. oblong-lanceolate, 2in. to 4in. in length, obtuse, serrately crenated in the upper part, quite entire at the base. h. 2ft. to 5ft. Tropical Asia, in humid places, 1817. Shrub.

A. ovata (ovate-leaved).* fl. purple; lower lip of a deeper colour; whorls many-flowered, lower ones distant, upper ones interruptedly spicate. August. l. ovate, obtuse, broadly crenated. h. 2ft. to 3ft. Nepaul, 1823. An annual. Habitat similar to last.

ANISOMEROUS. Unequally-parted; unsymmetrical.

ANISOPETALUM. See [Bulbophyllum.]

THREAD-LEAVED PINE, AGAVES, AND YUCCA, IN A GUERNSEY GARDEN.

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ANNUALS. All plants which spring from the seed, flower, and die within the course of a year. A number of things, however, which are not strictly of annual duration, but which are sown every year in preference to housing the roots before they are killed by late autumn or winter frosts, are generally classed, for the sake of convenience, under the head of Annuals. Hardy Annuals are those which require no artificial aid to enable them to develop, but grow and flower freely in the open air. These are best sown in the spots where they are intended to remain during March and April, and care must subsequently be taken to keep the ground clear of weeds, and also to thin out the seedlings, allowing each sufficient room to develop and exhibit its true character. If allowed to remain too crowded, the plants, as a matter of course, suffer, and the size and number of the flowers and the general effect are considerably decreased. Successional sowings of a good many of the showy species will be found to prolong their flowering season. In well-kept establishments, where Annuals are duly appreciated, several sowings are made in pots at intervals of a few weeks. As the previously-sown clumps begin to get shabby, they are removed, and replaced by others which have still to flower. By this means a continual sheet of blossom can be maintained for a long time. It is much better to trust to plants grown in pots in order to carry out the plan just sketched, as these receive no check when placed in their new quarters; whilst transplanted clumps frequently fail, and many species do not transplant at all readily from an open border. In order to secure, in early spring, a fine show of such plants as several of the Silenes, Myosotis, Saponaria, and a number of others, it is best to sow the seeds in an open, sheltered border, about the end of July or beginning of August, taking care to keep a small reserve stock in a cold frame, in case very severe weather kills the unprotected plants. Half-hardy Annuals are those for which our climate is not sufficiently warm, or, rather, our summer is not, as a rule, either hot enough or long enough, to allow them to grow, flower well, and ripen seeds, if sown in the open air. Many of these are amongst the showiest of garden plants, so it is worth while to give them the shelter of a warm frame during their earlier stages, and gradually harden them off, planting out at the end of May or beginning of June, when danger resulting from severe weather is passed. After germination, the seedlings should have plenty of light and air, or a weak, spindly growth, and, as a consequence, poor flowers, will result. The most satisfactory method of watering very tiny seeds is to place a piece of fine muslin over the seed-pot, through which the water will be easily conveyed to the seeds, and thus prevent disturbance. Tender Annuals require the same treatment as the half-hardy ones, except that they need throughout their existence the protection of a glass structure. All, or nearly all, garden Annuals delight in full sunlight and plenty of air. In the open, these requirements, as a rule, obtain, but sometimes mistakes are made under glass by keeping the plants too close and over much shaded, as well as too great a distance from the glass.

ANNULAR. Having a ring-like form.

ANNULATE. With the appearance of rings.