Andrachne

Plant Characteristics

Cultivation

Scientific Names

Andrachne >

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Read about Andrachne in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Andrachne (ancient Greek name). Euphorbiaceae. Low shrubs with bright green foliage, of little ornamental value; sometimes grown in botanical collections. Shrubs or perennials: Lvs. alternate, usually entire: fls. small, monoecious or incompletely dioecious, axillary, 5-6-merous; staminate in clusters, with petals smaller than the sepals, stamens with free filaments, not exceeding the sepals; pistillate usually solitary, with very" small petals, sometimes wanting, ovary 3-celled with 3 distinct, 2-cleft or 2-parted styles: fr. a subglobose or depressed caps., separating into 3 2-valved carpels, 6- seeded.—Ten or 12 species in N. Amer., Peru, Asia, N. and S. Afr., Malay Archipelago. These are low deciduous shrubs similar to Securinega, but smaller, with small bright green leaves, slender- stalked whitish inconspicuous flowers in axillary clusters or solitary, appearing during the summer followed by small greenish brown capsular fruits. There are three species in cultivation, of which two, A. phyllanthoides and A. colchica, have proved hardy at the Arnold Arboretum; they may be used in borders of shrubberies. They seem to grow in any soil, if it is well-drained, and prefer sunny positions. Propagation is by seeds, which are usually freely produced, and also by greenwood cuttings under glass. None of the species is in the trade. A. colchica, Fisch. & Mey. Shrub, to 2 ft., usually lower, glaucescent, glabrous : Lvs. ovate, obtuse. ⅓-½ in. long: petals 5, filiform, as long as the glands of the disk, much shorter than the calyx: caps, depressed-globose, ⅕ in. thick. Asia Minor.—A. cordifólia, Muell. Arg. Shrub, to 3 ft.: Lvs. ovate to oblong, rarely cordate at base, obtuse, 1-2 in. long, soft pubescent beneath: petals spathulate, disk- glands membranous: caps, depressed-globose, ¼ in. thick. E. India. —A. fruticosa. Linn. A greenhouse shrub from S. China with ovate or broadly ovate, short-stalked Lvs., 1-1¾ in. long, and small greenish white, short-stalked us., staminate as well as pistillate in axillary clusters of 3-6, is now referred to Breynia as B. fruticosa, Benth. It is probably no longer in cult. B.M. 1862 and L.B.C. 8: 731 (as Phyllanthus turbinata).— A. phyllanthoides, Muell. Arg. (A. Roemeriana, Muell. Arg. ). Shrub, to 3 ft. with slender glabrous branches: Lvs. oval to obovate, obtuse, ⅓-1 in. long, glabrous or slightly pubescent beneath: petals little shorter than the sepals, obovate, dentate near the apex; disk-glands thick: caps, depressed« globose, about ⅓ in. thick. Mo. to Ark. and Texas. The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.

Cultivation

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References

• Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture, by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963

External links

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