'* * 



A 



. experience, for all the cones grow upon the upper 

 part of the branches, and (land ereft, having a 

 ftfon^, woody, central ftyle, by which it is firmly 

 annexed to the branch, fo as with difficulty to be taken 

 off; which central ftyle remains upon the branches 

 after the cone is fallen to pieces, fo that they never 

 dropoff whole, as the Pines do. 

 The wood of this famous tree is accounted proof 

 acrainft all putrefaftion of animal bodies ; the faw- 

 duft of it is thought to be one of the fecrets ufed 

 by thofe mountebanks, who pretend to have the em- 

 balming myftery. This wood is alio faid to yield 

 an oil, which is famous for preferving books and 

 writings ; and the wood is thought by my Lord Ba- 

 con, to continue above a thoufand years found. It 

 is aUb recorded, that in the temple of Apollo at 

 TJtica, there was found timber of near two thou- 

 fand years old. And the ftatue of the goddefs, in 

 the famous Ephefian temple, was faid to be of this 

 material alfo, as was moft of the timber work of that 

 glorious ftrufture. 



This fort of timber is very dry and fubjedt to fplit, nor 

 does it well endure to be fattened with nails, from 

 which it ufually Ihrinks, therefore pins of the fame 

 wood are much preferable. 



LARKSPUR. See Delphinium. . 



LASERPITIUM. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 324. tab. 

 172. Lin. Gen. Plant, 306. Laferwort, 

 The Characters are, • . * - 



■ // hath an umbellated flower^ compofed of many fmall 

 umbels ; holb the fmall and principal umbels have a many- 

 leaved invohicrum. The general umbel is uniform \ the 

 flowers have five equal petals^ wbofe points are heart- 

 fhaptd and inflexed j they have five ftamina which are as 



- long as the petals^ terminated by fingle fummit s ; the round- 

 ijh germen is Jituated under the flower^ fupporting two 



■ thick acuminated ftyleSy crowned by obtufe fpreadtng ftig- 

 . mas. The germen afterward becomes an oblong fruit 



with eight longitudinal wings or membranes^ refembling 

 • the fliers of a water-mill }, the fruit divides into two part s^ 

 eac^ containing one feed. 



This genus of plants is ranged by Dr. Linn^us*s in 

 the fecond fedion of his fifth clafs, intitled Pentan- 

 dria Digynia, which includes thofe plants whofe 

 flowers have five ftamina and two ftyles. 

 The Species are, 

 T. Laserpitium {Commune) foliolis oblongo-cofdatis, 

 incifo-ferratis. Laferwort with oblong heart-floaped lobts^ 

 which are mi like a faw. . Laferpitium foliis latioribus 



lobatis.Mor. Umbel. 29. Laferwort with broader leaves^ 

 having lobes. ■; ■ .^ ... \ . .; 



2. Laserpitium {Latifolium) foliolis-cordatis incifo- 

 * ferratis. Hort. Cliff. ^6. Laferwort with heart-fhaped 



lobes^ cut like a faw, Laferpitium foliis amplipribus, 



feminecrifpo. Inft. R. H. 324. Laferwort with large 



. leaves and curled feeds, ^;:.vri^i iM^rl -'lnV?fon;?u 



3. LyiSERPiTiuM {PaludapifoUum)ioY\oY\% dvatis obtufis 

 . acute ferratis. 



,1 '.^f '-- ^< 



Laferwort with . oval obtufe lobes 

 fharply flawed. Laferpitium humilius, paludapii fo- 

 lio, flore'albo. Inft. R. H. 'Lower Laferwort^ with a 

 Smallage leaf and a white flower. 

 4. LASJiRPiTiuM {Gallictim) folioHs cuneiformibus fur- 

 catis. Lin. Sp. "Phxit, ij\.^y Laferwort with wedge- 

 fliaped forked lobes. Laferpitium Gallicum. 156. C. 

 B.P. FrenchlLaferwort.^ 







5.- Laserpitium (Jnguflifoliumf foWoWs lanceolatis in- 

 tegerrimis feffilibus. Hort. ClijF. 96. '^Lafe?worfwith 

 fpmr-fhaped entire leaves fitting clofe to th^ branches. 

 Laferpitium anguftiffimo & oblongo folio. Inft. R. 



H. 324, Laferwort with a very narrow oblong leaf ^• 

 o. Laserpitium {SeUnoides) foliolis trifidis acutis. La- 

 ferwort with acute trifidlcbes. Laferpitium felinoides, 

 feminecrifpo. Inft. R. H. Laferwort refembling fweet 

 Smallage, with a curled feed. \ ■ 

 7- Laserpitium {Trilcbiim) folioHs trilobis incifis. Lin. 

 Sp. 357. Laferwort with trifid leaves. Libanotis la- 

 tifoha aquilegia^ folio. C. B. P. 157. . 

 ». Laserpitium {Prutenicum) foliolis lanceolatis inte- 

 gernmis extimis coalitis..X^/-rz£;V/ with fpear-fhaped 

 entire kbesy whofe outer ones coaelefce.'- •\.zkx^\i\x\m 



t 



I 



--r 



■ ■ / 



daucoides prutenicum vifcofo femine. Breyn. Cent- 

 167. 



9. Laserpitium {Pewcdanoides) foliolis lineari-lanceo- 

 latis venofo-ftriatis diftindis Amoenit. Acad. 4. p. 



Laferwort with linear fpear-floaped leaves, which 



are diflinti and veined. Larerpitium exoticum, lobis 

 anguftiflimis integris. Pluk. Phyt. tab. 96. f. 2. 

 10. Laserpitium {Siler) foliolis ovaco-lanceolatis inte- 

 gerrimis pctiolatis. Hort. Cliff. ^6, Laferwort with 

 ovaly fpear-fljaped^ entire leaves, having foot-ftalks. Siler 

 Montanum. Mor. Hift. 3. p. 276. 



it. Laserpitium (C/:?/r(5;OT;;;) foliolis oblique cordatis, 

 petiolis hirfutis. Lin. Sp, 358/ Laferwort with oblique 



hcart-flmped lobes^ having haifj foot-ftalks. Panax rle- 

 racleum. Mor. Hift. 3. p. 315. Herculus^s All-heal. _ 

 12. Laserpitium {Fcrulaceiim) foliolis linearibus. Lin. 

 Sp. 358. Laferwort with linear leaves. Cachrys Orien- 

 talis, ferula.* folio tcnuiore, frudlu alato piano. Tourn. 

 Cor. 23. . ' ■ 



There are fome other varieties, if not diftinfl: fpe- 

 cies of this plant , fome of which have been put ' 

 down as diftind: fpecies, which differ only in the co- 

 lour of their flowers, therefore fliould not be regarded 

 as fuch ; but the number of fpecies has been greatly 

 lefTened by fome late writers, who have erred as much 

 . in leflening, as thofe before them had done in multi- 

 plying of the fpecies : which miftake they may have 

 fallen into by fowing of the feeds near old plants of 

 the fame genus, or on ground where fome of thefe 



- forts have grown, fo that their feeds have been fcat- 



- tered and buried in the ground, where they will re- 

 main two or three years, and afterward grow \ fo that 



. unlefs their feeds are fown at a diftance from any of 

 . the other fpecies, there will commonly fome other . 

 fpecies come up, whereby people have been often con- 

 fufed in diftinguiftiing thefe plants; nay, I have fre- 

 quently obfervedthe feeds of one fpecies fall, and the 

 plants come up on the head of another plant which 

 grew near it ; and this young plant, if not timely 

 rooted out, has gotten the better of the old plant, 

 and deftroyed it ; therefore where there is not great 

 care taken to prevent this, the different forts cannot 

 be preferved in gardens where the fpecies grow near 

 each other. 



Thefe plants grow, naturally in the fouth of France, 

 in Italy, and Germany, and are preferved in botanic 

 gardens for the fake of variety ; but as they have no 

 great beauty, fo are feldom cultivated in other gar- 

 dens : they require much room, for their roots ex- 

 tend far every way, and the leaves of many forts . 

 -will fpread* three feet, when the plants are ftrong;.* 

 ; /their flower-ftalks rife four or five feet high, and 



their umbels of flowers" are. very large •, they have . 

 , all of them perennial roots but annual fl:alks. They 

 . '.flower in June, and the feeds ripen m September.'^ ■ 

 : • It is generally fuppofed, tliat the Silphium of the an- J 

 ^"tients wks procured from' one fpecies of this genusy^-- 

 but from which of them we are at prefent ignorant-^ 

 All the fpecies, if wounded, drop a very aqrid juice, 

 which turns to a refinous gummy fubftance, very acri- 

 monious. This was externally applied by the anticnts 

 *-to take away black and blue fpots that came by 



■ bruifes and blows, as alfo to take away excrefcenc,e$ ^ 



■ it was alfo by fome of the antients prefcribed in in-^ 

 . ternal medicines, but others have cautioned people 

 Lnot to make ufe of it this way, from the effects which 

 Vthey mention to have feen produced from the violence 



I, 



\ 



;-of its acrimony,-5^N.-; .- nl^^' J:"' -rv^r: rt:r^ 3;.r>, 

 V All thefe plants are extreme hardy,"" exc:ept the laft, 



- which requires a warmer fituation, otherwife will be 

 ■killed in Iharp winters ; the other forts will thrive in 



- moft foils and fituations ; they are propagated by feed, 

 which if fown in' autumn, the plants wdil come up the 



- following fpring ; but when they are fown in the 



rpring, the feeds com.monly rem.ain in the ground a 



whole year. The plants ftiould be tranfplanted the 



following autumn where they are dcfigned to remain, 



for they fend out long deep roots, which are fre- 



quently broken by tranfplanting if they are Jarg^eT" 



when the^plants are removed, they fnould be planted. 



•.::% three. 



9 



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