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^* Ctkmrvvs {Arbor efccns) foliis ovatis feffilibus ner- 

 Vbilis floribus alaribus. Ceanothus with oval nervous 

 , ; q^ave{ fet clofe to the branches, floivers proceeding from 

 . -the 'ivings of the leaves, commonly called Red-wood. 

 '■ The firtt f^rt grows naturally in moft parts of North 

 .; America, from whence great plenty of the feeds have 

 ieen of late years brought to Europe, by the title of 

 ,. -Jie^v Jerfey Thea, where I have been informed the 

 ! • Inhabitants dry the leaves of this Ihrub to ufe as Thea. 

 The people of Canada ufe the root in venereal cafes. 

 ;>i.'I liave received the, feeds of this fort frotn New 

 :'■ England, Penfylvania, Virginia, and Carolina -, and 

 >'-'tRe*^French mention it as a common Ihrub in Canada, 

 -J.: where they lay the cattle bfowze upon it, arid keep it 



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-vcrv low. • . ' * :; • ' , ' - 



Tn iui^Iand t;his fhrubfeldom rifes more than three or 

 four feet high, fending out branches on every fide 

 from the ground upward. The branches are very 

 iieiidcr, and as it is pretty late in the fpring before 

 'they begin to flioot, they keep growing very late ; 

 therefore, unlefs the autumn proves dry and mild, the 

 bnder fhoots are often killed down very low by the 

 c^arlv frofts -, but, in favourable feafons, the extreme 

 parts of the flioots only are injured by the cold. 

 Jhefe branches are garniihed with oval pointed leaves, 

 having three longitudinal veins running from the 

 fobt-ftalk to the point, which diverge in the broad 

 of the leaves frorn each other : the leaves are 



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placed oppofite, and are of a light; green colour, At 

 the extremity of each fhoot the Bqwers are produced 

 in clofe thick fplkes, which are compofed of five 

 fmall leaves, of a clear white. Thefe appear in July, 

 ^rid make a pretty appearance during their continu- 

 ance •, for, ^s every fhoot is terminated by one of 

 thefe Vpikes, the whole thrub is^cQvered over with 

 flowers, the branches conlitionly growing very clofe 

 to each other; and when the autumn proves mild, 

 thefe fhrubs often flower again in Oftober. After 

 the flowers are paft, there fucceeds to each flower a 

 ' trlcapfular feed-veffel, flatted at the top, opening into 

 three cells, each having a fingle feed. In warm fea- 

 * ions the feeds ripen in England. This fhrub is befl: 

 ' pr6pagated by feeds, which fhould be ibwn in the au- 

 '' tumn infmall pots, and plunged into an old hot-bed, 

 where they may remain during the winter, expofing 

 them in mild weather to the open air, but in froft 

 they muft be proteded from cold. In March the 

 pots fhould be plunged into a moderate hot-bed to 

 brin<y up the plants, which fhould be inured to bear 

 the open air by degrees'; and as foon as they have 

 obtained a iit'tle flrength, they Ihould be expofed in 

 ^ flickered fituation till adtumn, when they mufl be 



J)laced under a hot-bed frame, to fcreen them' from 

 cvere froll in winter ; but in mild weather they fhould 

 be fully expofed to the open air, for while the plants 

 are young, they will not endure the cold of the win- 

 . ten ' Tn the following fpring, before the plants be- 

 '7gin to fl)00t, they Ihould be ^ranfplanted ; fome of 

 ;■ them may be put into feparate pots, ^nd the others 

 into a nurfery-bed, in a warm fituation, where they 

 ' 'jTiay remain a year or tv^ to get flrength, after which 

 lime they may be removed tP the places where they 

 ^reclefigned to remain. They fnoiild have a mode-r 

 %ely dry foil and a fheltered fituation, wher^ they 

 'ViU thrive and flower extremely v/ell ; but in flifF cold 

 , they are always veiy late in the fpring before 

 they come out, fo that their young fhoots are full of 

 fap in the autumn, and the firlt froft commonly kills 

 t^.eir tops, which frequently caufes them to die great 



part of their length. 



may alio be propagated by laying down the young 

 branches, which, in a light foil, will put out roots in 

 a year's tinie, but thefe layers fliould not be much 

 watered •, for as the fnoots are tender, moifture will 

 often occafion their rotting, v/hen it i.s given in quanr 

 tities,^ or too often repeated -, therefore the beft me- 

 thod is to cover the fiirface of the ground in dry wca- 

 'ther, all round the layers, either with mulch or rotten 

 tan, which will preferve a fufficient moifture in the 

 ■graund, provided the feafon is not extremely dry j 



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in which cafe they fliould have a. little water once m 

 eight or ten days, which will be fuffigient. 

 The beft time for laying down thefe branches is in 

 autumn ) and if after this is performed, the furfi^ce of 



edges,'. 



the ground is covered over with fome old tan^ taken 



from a decayed hot-bed, it will prevent the froft froni^ 



penetrating the ground, which will fecure them from 



injury 5 and the fame covering will prevent the winds 



from drying the ground in th? fpring, and thereby 



promote their putting out roots, Theie layers^ when 



rooted, may be taken up the following fpring, anc| 



treated \n the f^me manner as thofe r^^ifed from 

 feeds. 



The fecond fort grows naturally at the Cape of Good 

 Hope, from whence it was originally brought to fiol-r 

 land, and has be?n many years preferved there ; ancj ' 

 fince has been comnuinicated to molt of the curious 

 gardens int^urope, where it has been long knowri by 

 the title of Alaternoides, &c, and by fomje authors 

 it is titled Ricinoides Africana ^rborefcens, 6fc. but 

 Dr. Linnaeus, having examined the char^ftejrs rripr? 

 exactly, has joined it to this genus. 

 This rifes to the height of ten or twelve feet, with 

 a woody ftem, coyej"ed with a rough dark-colourecl 

 bark, and fends out many weak branches, which 

 hang downward', thefe while young are green, but 

 afterward change to a, purplifh colour, They arp 

 garnifhed with oblong pointed leavesj of a lucic^ 

 green, which are fmooth, and flightly fawned on their 



The flowers are fmalL of an herbaceous co- 

 lour, coming out from the fide of the branches j thefe 

 fometimes appear in July, but are not fucceeded by 

 feeds in this country, nor do the plants often produce 

 flowers i fo thg^t they afe preferved only fof th? beauty 

 of their fhining evt^rgreen leaves, which make d, y^^ 

 riety in the green-houfe during the winter feafon, 

 It may be propagated either by layers or cuttings j the 

 latter being a very fure and expeditious method, is 

 generally preferred. The cuttings fhould be planted 

 in the fpring into pots filled with good kitchen-garden 

 earth, and plunged into a very moderate hot-bed, ob-^ 

 ferving to fhade them in the heat qf the day, and 

 now and then refrefh them with water, |n about twQ 

 months or lels, they will have taken root, when they 

 mufl be gradually inured fo the open air, placing 

 them in a flickered fituation till they have obtained 

 flrength, when they may be feparated, and each 

 planted in a fmall pot filled with light earth, placing 

 them in the fliade till they have taken fre(h root j 

 then they may be removed, and intermixed with other 

 exotic plants for the fummer feafon. In autumn they 

 mufl be houfed with Myrtles, and other more hardy 

 exotic plants, and treated in the fame manner, 

 The third fort grows naturally in the Bahama Iflandsa 

 from whence the late Mr, Catefby brought the feeds 

 to England, It alfo grov/s naturally in Barhadoes, 

 ^nd fome other iilands in the Welt Indies, frqm 

 whence I have received the feeds, This, in the coun- 



tries of its natural growth, riles to the height of forty 

 or fifty feet, with large trunks, which ,?rc by the in- 

 habitants fav/n into boards, and were acfirft elleemed 

 for the beauty of their colour ; but being expofed to 

 the air, their colour vanifhed and they bec^rnp pale, 

 fo have not fince beten miich regarded, 

 In Europe, where the plants have been properly 

 treated, they have grown to the height of twenty 

 feet i and if the ftoves in which they were placed ha4 

 been lofty enough, would have grown much higher, 

 The flem is ftrong, woody, and is covered with a 

 light brown bark, which, v/hen young, has feveraj 

 furrows ; the branches come out irregularly from 

 every fide the ftem, garnifhed with pretty large oval 

 leaves, of a light green colovir, having feveral longir 

 tudinal veins inclining to white. The flowers are 

 fmall, of ^n herbaceous white, fo make little appear- 

 ance ; they come out from the v/ings of the leaves, 

 and, in their native foii, are fucceeded by roundifh 

 fruit almoft the fizc of fmall Peafe, opening in thre^ 

 cells; in each i$ inclofed one flunino- bjackfeed. 



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