5 . 



ADA 



great plenty In a wood near Kirby Lonfdale, as alfo 



A D 



There is known but one Species at preknt. 



near Inglcborough Hill in Yorklhire. It grows two Adansonia. This is the Baobab. Alp. Egypt, c. 2 7. f. 28- 

 feet and a half high, the foot-llalks of the leaves arife The young plants, and alfo moft of the new branches^ 



have fingle fpear-ihaped leaves towards their lower 

 part, but at their extremities the leaves have fome 

 three, and others five lobes, of the fame fize and form 

 as the lower, which arc difpofed like a liand ; thefe 

 are entire, ending in a point, and fall off in winter. 

 The flems are large and woody, but of a foft texture, 

 and have generally a large fwelling near the root. 

 It is propagated by feeds, which mull be procured 

 from the country where it grows naturally (for it doth, 

 not produce any in Europe); thefe mull be fown in 

 pots, and plunged into a hot-bed, where, in about fix 

 weeks, the plants will come up, and in a Ihort time 

 after be fit to tranfplant ; " when they fhould be each 

 planted into a feparate pot, filled with light fandy 

 earth, and plunged into a frefn hot-bed, obfervino- 



from the root ; thefe divide into three fmaller foot- 

 ftalks, each of which divide again into three, and 

 thele have each three lobes, fo that each leaf is com- 

 poled of twenty-feven lobes (or fmall leaves). The 

 flowcr-fl:em which arifes from the root, is garniftied 

 with leaves of the fame form, but are finaller. On the 

 top of the ftalk appears the flowers, which grow in 

 ramofe fpikes, and are of a pure white ; thefe come 

 out in May, and are fucceeded by black fhining ber- 

 ries about the fize of Peafe, which ripen in the autumn. 

 This is propagated by feeds, which fliould be fown 

 foon after they are ripe ; for if they are kept out of 

 the ground till fpring, the plants will not come up 

 till the year after, fo that a whole year will be loft, 

 Theyftiould be fown on a fliady border, and kept clean 

 from weeds. As the feeds feldom come up all at the 

 fame time, the border in wliich they are fownihould 

 not be difturbed till the following autumn, to fee 

 what plants may appear -, when the plants ftiould be 

 traniplanted into a fiiady border, where they may re- 

 main to flower. This plant hath a perennial root, 

 wi.ich lafts many years, but the ftalk is annual, and 

 p'jrilhes in autumn, foon after which is the beft time 

 to tranfplant them. 



The fecond fort grows naturally in North America, 

 from whence I have received the feeds ; the leaves of 

 this are fomewhat like thofe of the firil fort, but are 

 not fo deeply indented on their edges. The flowers 

 grow in a more compact fpike, and the berries are 

 very white and tranfparent when ripe •, the roots of 

 this is compofed of thick tubers, or knobs. This is 

 an abiding plant, and delights in a light moift foil, 

 and a fliady fituation -, it may be propagated in the 

 fame manner as the former. 



TJie third fort is a native of North America, where 

 it is called Black Snakeroot, to diftinguilh it from the 

 comn-ion Snakeroot. This plant hath large compound 

 leaves, which rife immediately from the root, and are 

 branched afterthe fame manner as the firft fort, which 

 grow more than two feet high. The flower-ftems fre- 

 quently rife to the height of four or five feet, being 

 terminated by a long fpike of white flowers, wliich is 



refiexed at the top. 



J 



ginning 



J 



but does not perfect feeds in 



England. During the time of its flowering, the plant 

 makes a good appearance in a garden, and therefore 



defervTs a place in the fliady borders, or among flirubs; 

 where, if it be not over-hung by them, it thnves very 

 v/cll, and being hardy, will require no other care than 

 the flirubs themfelves. It is generally propagated by 

 feeds, which are annually fent from North America j 

 it loves a m.olft light foil, and a fliady fituation. 

 The root of this plant is greatly ufed by apothecaries 

 and phyficians in America, in many diforders, and is 

 fuppofed to be an antidote againft poifon, or the biting 

 of the rattle-fnake. 



-DANSONIA, Ethiopian four Gourd, or Monkies 

 Bread. 



This plant is fo named from one Mr. Adanfon, a 

 French furgeon, who refided fome years at Senegal, 

 in Africa, and during that time made feveral difco- 

 veries in natural hiftory, and brought home a curious 

 colledlion of feeds and plants. 



The Characters are. 

 It hath a cup-JImped empakmenty divided into five fegments 

 at the brim \ which turn backward^ and the empalement 



falls cff: the flower has five roundifhpetalsy tvhofe brims 

 are refiexed s at the tail of thefe are fituated many ftamina 



joined in a tube^ which fpread ' 



crowned by kidney-fijapedfummits. The germen is oval^ the 



fiyles erelong^ varioufiy intorted^ having many hairy ftigmc. 

 It hath a large Qvalligenoiis capfulc of ten cells filled with a 



farinaceous four pulp ^ inclofing many kidney fioaped feeds. 

 This genus of plants is ranged in the fifth feftion of 



lyandna, the flowers having many ftyl 

 with the ftamina in one houfe. 



7 



Monodelphi 



to fliade them until they have taken new root ; after 

 which time they fliould have free air admitted to them 

 every day in warm weather, but muft be fparingly 

 v/atered", for as their ftems are foft (efpecially when 

 young) too much wet will caufc them to rot. As the 

 plants advance in their growth, they are to befliifted 

 into larger pots, but muft conftandy be plunged into 

 the bark-bed, being too tender to thrive in this coun- 

 try without this artificial heat, therefore they muft 

 conftantly remain in the ftove with other tender exotic 

 plants : the plants when young make great progrefs 

 in their growth, where they are properly treated i for 

 in three years many of them have been more than fix 

 feet high, and have put out feveral lateral brandies, 

 their ftems were alfo proportionable ; but after four or 

 five years growth, they are almoft at a ftand, their 

 annual flioots rarely exceeding two or three inches. 

 The account which Monfieur Adanfon gives of the 

 trees he faw at Senegal and other parts of Africa, in 

 regard to the fize of them is amazing, feveral of which 

 he meafured round their ftems from fixty-five to fe- 

 venty feet in circumference, but their height was not 

 extraordinary. The trunks of thefe trees were from 

 eight to twelve feet high, dividing into many hori- 

 zontal branches which touched the ground at their 

 extremities ; thefe were from forty-five to fifty-five 

 feet long, and were fo large in circumference, that 

 each branch was equal to a monftrous tree in Europe; 

 and where the water of a neighbouring river had 

 waflied away the earth, fo as to leave the roots of one 

 of thefe trees bare and open to fight, they meafured 

 one hundred and ten feet long, without including 

 thofe parts of the roots which remained covered with 

 earth or fand : for he defcribes the plains where the 

 trees grow to be a barren moveable fand, fo that from 

 its being continually fliifted by the winds, there are 

 no trads difcoyerable, vvhereby perfons can be guided 

 in travelling over them. 



Profper Alpinus in his hiftory of Egypdan plants, de- 

 fcribes this tree, to which he gives the title of Baobab, 

 fo that It alfo grows In that country ; but he does not 

 mention any of them to be near the fize of thofe de- 

 fcribed by Monfieur Adanfon. 



There were fome plants of this fort in feveral gardens, 

 which were raifed from feeds obtained from Grand 

 Cairo in the year 1724, by the late Dr. William She- 

 rard, fome of which were grown to the height of 

 eighteen feet ; but in the fevere winter 1 740, they 

 were all loft, and fince that time there has not been 

 any of the feeds brought to England, till tlie return 

 of Mr. Adanfon to Paris in 1754, who fent fome of 

 the feeds over here, which have fijcceeded, and many 

 of the plants are now upv/ards of eight feet high. 



plants. 



Endifti 



mits. 



The Characters are, 



tth male and female flowers upon differ en t roots : t 

 fl.owers have an empalement of one leaf cut into fi* 

 ive fegments^ hut no corolla \ it hath many flender ft 



fthe empalement y crowned by roundifljfui 



paUmnt 



male flowers have a fi' 



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