N A 



■ 



doubt not but if the feeds v/cre fown frequently, in 

 \hc countries where they are in plenty, there may be 

 us great variety of thcfe fruit, as thereare of Apples or 

 Pears in Europe, And this I have found true by 

 fyme trials v/hlch I have made by fowing the feeds, 

 which liave always produced a variety of forts from 

 thofe of the iame fruit. 



This fruit (v/hich is juflly efteemed for the richnefs of 

 its Havour, as it furpaffes all the known fruits in the 

 world), is produced from an licrbaceous plant, which 

 liath leaves fomev/hat refembling thofe of Aloe, and 

 are, for the molt part, fav/ed on their edges, but are 

 much thinner, and not fo juicy as the Aloe: the fruit 

 refembles the cones of the Pine-tree, from whence it 

 is fuppoied to have its name. 



Where this plant is a native, I believe is hard to de- 

 termine ; but it is probably an indigenous plant in 

 Africa, v/here, I have been informed, they grow in 

 uncultivated places in great plenty. They have been 

 long.cultivated in the iiotteft illands of the Weft-In- 

 dies, \vhere they are in great plenty, and extraordinary 

 goodnefs ; but they have. not been many years in the 

 European gardens, fo as to produce fruit : the firft 





Monfieur 



Cour of Leyden in Holland, who, after a great many 

 trials, with little or no fuccefs, did at length hit upon 

 a proper degree of heat and management, fo as to pro- 

 duce fruit equally good (though not fo large) as thofe 

 which are produced in the Weft-Indies, as hath been 

 often affirmed by perfons who have lived many years 

 there: and it is to this worthy cukivator of gardening, 

 who did not fpare any pains or expence to accomplifti 

 it, that all the lovers thereof are obliged, for intro- 

 ducing this king of fruits amongft them -, and it was 

 from him that our gardens in England were firft fup- 

 :plied, though we have fince had large quantities 



brought from America. 



I cannot here avoid taking 



notice of a common error which prevails amonsrft 

 many people, which is, that the plants' brought from 

 America are not fo p-ood n< thai? wKirh came from 



h 



™^|, 



not fo good as thcf 



-=■' 



ce. 



came 



wxre 



witl 



the people who fend over thefe plants from America 

 careful to (end the beft kinds, there would be found 

 many better than thofe cultivated "by M. Le Cour, 

 who had his from thence at firft, as' his gardener af- 

 fured me ; and I have {c(^n as good fruit produced 

 from American plants, as any 1 have^et feen, and 

 fome three times larger than any I faw in M. Le 

 Cour's o-arden. 



The firil fort is the moil common in Europe ; but 

 the fecond fort is much preferable to it, the fruit of 

 this being larger, and much better flavoured: the 

 juice of this fort is not ib afrringent as that of the firft, 

 fo that this fruit may be eaten in greater quantity 

 1 lefs danger. I'his frequently produces fuckers 

 immediately under the fruit, whereby it may be in- 

 creafed much fafter than the common fort ; fo that in • 

 a few years, it may be the moft common fort in 

 England. 



The third fort is prefei-ved by fome curious perfons ' 

 for the fake of variety, but the fruit is not worth any 

 thing. The fixth fort is at prefent the moft rare in 

 Europe, there being very few of the plants at prefent. 

 This has been efteemed the beft fort known, by fome 

 of the moft curious perfons in America, many of 

 whom have tlirown.out all the other forts from their 

 gardens, and cultivate only this kind. TJie plants of 

 this fort may be 'procured from Barbadocs and Mont- 

 ferrat, in both which places it is cultivated. 

 The Ibrt with very fmootii grafs-grcen leaves, was 

 railed from feeds taken out of a rotten fruit, which 

 came from the Weft-Indies to the late Henry Heath- 

 cotc, Efq; from whom I received one plant, which 

 hath produced large fruit : this, I am told, is what 

 the people of America call the King Pine. I have 

 fince raiicd fome plants of this kind from feeds, which 

 w^ere brought me from Jamaica. 

 Thele plants are propagated by planting the crowns 

 which grow on the fruit, or the fuckers which are 

 produced citlier from the fides of the plants, or under 





A N A 



the fruit, both which I have found to be equally 

 ood; although by fome perfons the crown is thought 

 preferable to the fuckers, as fuppofing it will prodilce 

 fruit fooner than the fuckers, which is certainly a mif- 

 take ; for by conftant experience I find the fuckers 

 if equally ftrong) will fruit as foon, and produce as 

 large fruit as the crowns. , 



The fuckers and crowns muft be laid to dry in a warm 

 place for four or five days, or more (according to the 

 moifture of the part which adhered to the old fruit;) 

 for if they are immediately planted, they will rot, e'f- 

 pecially the crowns. The certain i-ule of jud'eino- 

 when they are fit to plant, is by obferving if'^the 

 bottom is healed over and become hard ; for if the 

 fuckers are drawn off carefully from the old plants, 

 they will have a hard fkin over the lower part, fo need 

 not lie fo long as the crowns, or thofe whofe bottoms 

 are moift. But whenever a crown is- taken from the 

 fruit, or the fuckers from old plants, they ftiould be 

 immediately diverted of their bottorn leaves, fo high 

 as to allow depth for their planting •, fo that they may 

 ■be thoroughly dry and healed in every part, left when 

 they receive heat and moifture, they ftiould perifli, 

 which often happens when this method is not ob- 

 ferved. If thefe fuckers or crowns are taken off late 

 in the autumn, or during the winter, or early in the 

 fpring, they ftiould be laid in a dry place in the ftove, 

 for a fortnight or three weeks before they are planted, 

 but in the fummer feafon they will be fit for planting 

 in a few days. ' 



As to the earth in which thefe ftiould be planted, if 

 you have a rich good kitchen-garden mould, not too 

 heavy, fo as to detain the moifture too long, nor over 

 light and fandy, it will be very proper for them with- 

 out any mixture: but where this is v^anting, you 

 ftiould procure fome frefti earth from a good pafture ; 

 which fliould be mixed with about a third part of 

 rotten ncats dung, or 'the dung of an old Melon or 

 Cucumber-bed. which is Wf*1l rnnfnmpd Thf f^ fhnnlri 



leo^ but 



■ ' fc r^^n^ 



fliould be often turned, that their parts may be tlie 



■A 'it^ KI-CV^P 



,umtedj„.as.,alfcL.t 



"iTT 



This — 



earth fhould not be fcreened very fine, for if you only 

 clear it of the great ftones, it will be better for the 

 plants than when it is made too fine. You Ihould 

 always avoid mixing any fand with the earth, unlefs 

 it be extremely ftifi", and then it will be neceflary to 

 have it mixed at leaft fix months or a year before it is 

 ufed J and it muft be frequently turned, that the fand 

 may be incorporated in the earth, fo as to divide ;ts 

 parts : but you fhould not put more than a fixth part 

 of fand, for too much fand is very injurious to thcfe 

 plants. , , . 



In the fummer feafon, when the weather is warm," 

 thefe plants 'muft be frequently watered, but you 

 fliould not give them large quantities at a time : you 

 •muft alfo be very careful, that the moifture is not 

 detained in the pots, by the holes being ftopped, for 

 that will foon deftroy the plants. In very warm weather 

 they fiiould be watered twice or three times a week ; 

 but in a cool feafon, once a week will be often enough: 

 and during the fummer feafon, you fliould once a 

 week water them gently all over their leaves, which 

 will wafli the filth from off them, and thereby greatly 

 prorhote the growth of the plants. 

 There are fome perfons who frequently fliift thefe 

 plants from pot to pot, but this is by no means to be 

 praftifed by thofe who propofe to have large well fla- 

 voured fruit ; for unlefs the pots be filled with the 

 roots, by the time the plants begin to fhew their fruit, 

 they commonly produce fmall fruit, which have ge- 

 nerally large crowns on them, therefore the plants 

 will not require to be potted oftener than twice in a 

 feafon : the firft time fliould be about the end 6f 

 April, .when the fuckers and crowns of the former 

 year's fruit (which remained all the winter in thofe 

 pots in which they were firft planted} fhould be fiiifted 

 into larger pots, i. e. thofe which were in halfpenny, 

 or three-farthing potS; Ihould be put into penny,, or 



at 



