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I, 







fmiiated/ fometimes almofl: to the itild-rib^ find afe of 

 a fine glaucous colour; fo that this plant makes, a 

 beautiful variety among otlier exotic plants in the 

 ftove. The whole plant abounds with a yellow Juice 

 like the greater Celandine, which is of an acrid na- 

 ture ', fo that it is ufcd by the inhabitants of America, 

 to take off vrarts, and fpots from the eyes. , . 

 It is propagated by feeds, which fliould be fown in a 

 pot filled with light frelli earth, early in the fpring, 

 ' and plunged into a hot-bed of tanners bark, obferv- 

 ing to water it now and then gently, otherwife the 

 feeds will not grow. When the plants are come up, 

 they fhould be each tranfplanted into feparate fmall 

 pots filled with light fandy eardi, and plunged into 

 the hot-bed again, obferving to fliade the glafTes in 

 . the heat of the day, until the plants have taken root. 

 They muft be alfo gently watered, but it fhould be 

 done fparingly while they are young; for their ftems 

 being very tender, and full of juice, will rot, if they 

 receive too much moifture ; but after their ftems are 

 become woody, they will require it often,' efpecially 

 in hot weather; when alfo they fliould have a large 

 Ihare of air, by raifing the glafles of the hot-bed. 

 The plants, in two months after tranfplanting, will 

 have filled thefe fmall pots with their roots ; therefore 

 - they fliould be fliaken out of them, and planted into 

 pots one fize larger, filled with light frefli earth, and 

 plunged into the bark-ftove, whei'e, they fliould have 

 a good fliare of frefli air in warm weather. With this 

 management! haveraifed thefe plants upwards of two 

 feet high in one feafon, v/hich were alfo very ftrong 

 -in their ^cms : they mufl: be confl:antly kept in the 

 ilove, being too tender to thrive in this country in any 

 other fituation. This plant has flowered in the phyfic 

 ^garden at Chelfea, and perfected feeds ; but if it were 

 , not to flower, the Angular beauty of the plant renders 

 ,vic worthy of a place in every curious colleftion of 

 |; plants ; and it feems the Indians were very fond of it, 

 ^ for Hernandez tells us, the Indian kings planted it in 



their gardens. 



B O E R H A AV I A. This genus of plants was fo 

 named by Monf. Vaillant, profeflbr of botany at Pa- 

 ris, in honour of the famous Dr. Boerhaave, who was 

 profeflbr of botany, chemiftry, and phyfic, in the 

 viniverfity of Leyden, 

 The Characters are, 

 , The floijoer hath no empalement^ and but one bell-Jhaped 

 ■ petaly 'which is pentangular and entire. It hath in fome 



■ fpecies one^ and in others two jhort ftamina^ crowned by a 

 double globular fummit . "The germen isfituat^d below the 

 receptacle^ fupporting a fiort Jlender fiyle^ with a kidney- 



Jhapedjligma ; the germen afterward becomes a Jingle ob- 



■ long feed J having no cover. 

 This genus of plants is ranged in the firfl: fe6lion of 



' LinniEUs's firft clafs, intitled Monandria Monogynia, 

 the flower having but one fliamina and a Angle 



ftyle. 



The Species are, 



1. BoERHAAviA {Ere^fo) caule eredo glabro, Lin. Sp. 

 Plant. 3. Boerhaavia with an ere5t fialk. Boerhaavia 

 Solanifolia ereda glabra, floribus carneis laxius dif- 

 pofitis; Houfl:. MSS. 



2, Boerhaavia {Diffufa) caule diffufo. Lin. Sp. Plant. 

 3. Boerhaavia with a diffufed fialk. Boerhaavia Sola- 

 nifolia major. Vail. Def. 50. 



g. Boerhaavia (Scandens) caule fcandente floribus dian- 



dris. Lin. Sp. Plant. 3. Boerhaavia with a climbing 



Jlalk. Boerhaavia alfines folio fcandens, floribus pal- 



lide luteis majoribus in umbellas modum difpofitis fe- 



, mine afpero. Houfl;. MSS. 

 .4, Boerhaavia (Ccmw^^) foliis ovatis, floribus laterali- 



. bus compaftis, caule liirfutoprocumbente. Boerhaavia 

 with oval leaves^ flowers coming from the wings of the 



. deaves in cjofe heads^ and a hairy trailing fialk. Boerhaa- 

 vii Solanifolia procumbens & hirfuta floribus cocci- 

 Tieis compaftis. Houfl. MSS, 



The firft fort was difcovered by the late Dr. Houf- 



toun, at La Vera Cruz, in 1731. This rifes with an 



upright fmooth ftalk, two feet high, and at each 



joint hath two oval pointed leaves growing oppofite, 



2 



BOM 



\ 



iipon foot-ftalks, an inch long, of a whitiiTi colour 

 on their under fide. At the joints, which are far 

 afunder, come out fmall fide branches, growing erecb ; 

 thefe, as alfo tlie large ftalk, are terminated by loofe 

 panicles of flefli-coloured flowers, which are each 

 fucceeded by oblong glutinous feeds. 

 The feeds of the fecond fort were fent me by the fame 

 gentleman from Jamaica, where it naturally grows. 

 This fends out many difflifed ftalks a foot and a Iialf 

 or two feet long, garriifhed with fmall roundifli leaves 

 at each joint. The flowers grow very fcatteringly 

 upon long branching foot-ftalks from the wings of 

 the leaves, as alfo at the end of the branches, whicli 

 are of a pale red colour, and are fucceeded by feeds 

 like the former. ^ . 



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t>> 



The third fort was fent me from Jamaica with the 

 former. This fends out feveral ftallcs from the root, 

 which divide into many branches, and trail over what- 

 ever plants grow near them, and rife to the height of 

 five or fix feet, garniflied with heart-fliaped leaves, 

 grov/ing by pairs at each joint upon long foot- 

 ftalks, which are of the colour and confiftence 

 of thofe . of the greater Chickweed. The flowers 

 grow in loofe umbels at the extremity of the branches, 

 which are yellow, and are fucceeded by fmall, oblong 

 vifcous feeds. 



; The fourth fort was fent me from Jamaica with the 

 two former : this fends out many trailing hairy ftalks, 

 v/hich divide into fmaller branches, garniflied with 

 oval leaves at every joint; and at the wings of the 

 leaves' come out the naked foot-ftalks, fuftaining a 

 fmall clofe head of fcarlet flowers, which are veiy fu- 

 gacious, feldoni ftanding more than half a day before 

 their petals drop \ thefe are fucceeded by fliort oblong 

 feeds. 



The firft, fecond, and fourth forts are annual plants, 

 which decay in autumn, but the third fort is peren- 

 nial : they are all tender plants, fo will not thrive ia 

 the open air in England ; they are propagated by 

 feeds, which muft be fcwn on a hot-bed in the fpring, 

 and when the plants are fit to be removed, they fliould 

 be eachplantcd in a fmall pot and plunged into the hot- 

 bed, and treated as other tender exotic plants. When 

 they are grown too tall to remain under a common 

 frame, a plant or two of each fort fliould be placed 

 in the ftove ; the other may be turned out of the pots, 

 and planted in a warm border, where, if the feafon 

 proves warm, they will perfect their feeds ; but as 

 thefe are fubjeft to fail in cold feafons, fo thofe in ihe 

 ftove will always ripen their feeds in autumn ; the 

 third fort may be preferved in a warm ftove two or 

 three years, - 



BOMBAX. 



Lin. Gen. Plant. 580. 



Ceiba. Plum. 



,Nov. Gen. 32. Silk Cotton-tree. 



The Characters are. 

 It hath a permanent empalement of me kaf which is 

 bell-fhaped^ ere5l, and quinquefid. ne flower is quinque- 

 fid and fpreading^ the petals are oval and concave. It 

 Imth many awl-fhaped Jtamina^ which are the length of the 

 petak crowned with oblong incurved fummits. In the cm-- 

 ter isfttuated the round germen^ fupporting aflendcr flyle 

 the length of the fiamina^ with a round ftigma. "The em- 

 palement afterward becomes a large^ oblongs turbinated 

 capfulcy having five cells y opening wilh five valves ^ which 

 are ligneous^ containing many roundifh feeds^ wrapped in a 

 foft down, and fixed to a five-cornered column. 

 This genus of plants is ranged in the fifth order of 

 Linnasus's fixteenth clafs, intitled Monadclphia Po- 

 lyandria, the flower having many ftyles and ftamina 

 joined to a column. 



The Species are, 



T. ^ouz AX {Ceiba) floribus polyandris, foliis quinatiK. 

 Jacq. Amen 26. Silk Cotton-tree whofe fiowers have 

 many fiylesy and leaves with five lobes, Ceiba viticis 

 foliis caudice aculeato. Plum. Nov. Gen. 42. 



2. BoMBAX {Penlandrum) floribus pentandris. Jacq. A- 

 mer. 26. Silk Cotton-tree whofe flowers have five fiylcs, 



Ceiba viticis foliis caudice glabro. Plum. Nov. Gen. 



42 



3 



BoMBAX 



