y 



N 



ii TO ELLA {Orient alts) 

 bvi3. Hort. Cliff. 215. 



G 



■ s 



piftillis denis corolla longion- 



■/-/ 



iv 



ith ten pointals 

 Nigella Orientalis, 



:dicb are longer than the petals, 

 florc navcfccnce, feminealato piano. Tuurn. Cor. 19. 

 Fennel-flower of the Eajl^ with a yellowijh ficweTy end 

 c fhihi "joingei feed, 



'Die lirll lore grows naturally among the Corn, in 

 J:\anctr, Italy, and Germany, fo \^ itrldom propagated 

 in gardens ;' this rifes with flenvicr ftalks near a foot 

 high, which fomecimes branch out at the boctom, and 

 at others they are fingle, garnilhed with a few very fine 

 cut leaves, fomewhat iik^r thofe of Dili •, each ftalk is 

 terminated by one ftar-pointcd Piower of five petals, 

 which are of a pale blue colour, and have no leafy in- 

 voTucrum under them i fhefe are fucceeded by cap- 

 fules, having five fliort horns, which incline different 

 ways at the top, and arc filled with rough black feeds ^ 

 there is a variety of this with white flowers, and ano- 

 ther with double flowers. 



The fecond fort grows naturally in Spain and Italy, 

 among the Corn \ this rifes with an upright; branching 

 llalk a foot and a half high, garnifhed with leaves 

 much longer and finer than thofe of the firft. The 

 powers are large, of a pale blue, and have a long 

 leafy involucrum under each: thefe are fucceeded by 

 larger fwclllng feed-veflels, with horns at the top ; of 





1 ■ 



vi 



■ < 



^, 



this there is one with fingle white flpwers, and another 

 with double flowers, which is fown in gardens for 



ornamenr. 



The ^hird fort grows naturally in Crete ; this rifes 

 about the fame height as the former. The leaves are 

 not fo finely cut as thofe of the fecond, and are a little 

 hairy. At the top of each ftalk is one flower, com- 

 pofed of five white petals, which are flightly cut at 

 their end into three points-, thefe are fucceeded by 

 oblong fwelling feed-veflels, with five horns^ at the 



top, filled with f^all pale-coloured feeds. 

 The fourth fort g-rows naturally in Crete ; this rifes 

 with branching ftalks about a foot high, garniftied 

 with fhorter and broader leaves than either of the 

 other fpecies. • At the top of each branch is one 

 flower, having no invqlucrum 5 they aj-e cpmpofed 

 of five oya^ petals, and have fiye^ pointals longer 

 than the petals J the feed-veflTel is not much fwoUen, 

 and has' five Jlender horns at the top ; the feeds are 

 of a light yellowifh brown colour. 

 \^The fifth fort is alfo a native of Crete ; this rifes 

 with a branching ftalk a foot high, garnifhed with 

 leaves like thofe of Larkfpur. The flowers have five 

 large oval petals, which are entire, and ten pointals 

 \^hich are fliorter than the petals, and a great num- 

 ber of gi'ecn ftamina with blue chives j the feed- 



the lower 



vcfi^els are like thofe of the laft fort. 

 . The fixth fort rifes a foot and a half high ^ 

 leaves are finelv cut, but thofe on the ftalks are cut 

 into broader fcgments. The flowers are larger than 

 thofe of the other fpecies, and are of a fine blue co- 

 lour : the pointals of this are of equal length with the 

 petals ; the feed-vefiel has five horns, and is of a 

 firmer texture than any of the other. This grows na- 

 turally in the fouth of France and Spain ; there is a 

 variety of this with double flowers, s . - .".. 

 The fevcnth fort grgv/s ng-turally in the Corn-fields 

 about Aleppo 1 this rifest with a branching ftalk a 

 foot and a half high, garnilhed with pretty long leaves, 

 ..which are finely divided.; The flowers are produced 

 at the end of the branches \ they are corhpofed of five 

 ^' yellowifli leaves or petals ; at the bafe of thefe are 

 ^^ placed eight nedariums, between which arife a great 

 ifiurTjbcr of ftamina^ with an unequal number of ger- 

 v^ iperr, fome having but five, others have eight or nine ; 

 f tfiey are oblong and comprcfled ; thefe afterward be- 

 \j, come fo many oblong compreflrd feed-veflTels, joined 

 ..together on their inner fide, terminating with horns, 

 /,^nd open longitudinally, containing many thin com- 

 prefled feeds, having; borders round them. '^ 

 The varieties of thefe with double flowers, are chiefly 

 propagated in gardens for ornament ; but thofe with 

 fingle flowers are rarely admitted into any but botanic 



i-H-- 



garuenSi wiiere the)- are preferved for the ikkc nf 



varicryi ^^ 



All thefe plants may be propagated by fowinc/ their 

 leeds upon a bed of light earth, where they art^o rt 

 main (tor they feldom Succeed well if uaniplantcd."^ 

 therefore, in order to have them intermixed amon&ft 

 other annual flowers in the borders of the flower-ear 

 den, the feeds Ihould be fown in patches at prS^r 

 diftances \ and when the plants come up, you muft 

 pull up thofe which grow too clofe, leaving but three 

 or four of them in each patch, obfcrvingalfo to keen 

 them clear from weeds, which is all the culture th 

 , require. In July they will produce their flowers and 

 their feeds will ripen in Auguft, when they fhould be 

 gathered and dried ; then rub out each fort fepa- 

 rately, and preferve them in a dry place. .' 



The feafon for fowing thefe feeds is in March j but 

 if you fow fome of them in Auguft, foon after'thcy 

 are ripe, upon a dry foil and in a warm fituation, they 

 will abide through the winter, and flower ftroncr the 

 fucceeding year ; fo by fowing the feeds at different 

 times, they may be continued in beauty moft part of 

 the fummer. . • 



* ■ - 



They are all annual plants, which perifh foon after 

 they have perfected their feeds ; which, if permitted 

 to fcatter upon the borders, will come up without any 

 farther care. 



NIGELLA ST RUM. See Agrostemma. 

 NIGHTSHADE. SeeSoLANuM. 



NI G H T S H A D E, the Deadly. See Belladonna. 



NIL. See Anil. 



NISSOLIA. See Lathyrus. 



NITRE is a kind of fait, impregnated with abun- 

 dance of fpirits out of the air, which renders it vo- 

 latile, 



AJonfieurLeClerc gives us thefoUowii _ 

 In Egypt they make a great quantity of it, but it is 

 not fo good, for it is dufky, and full of knots and 



ftoncs. A^-.^^ :. . ' f 



\^ 



V* 



It is made almoft; in the manner that fait is made, 

 but only that they ufe fea-water in th<&* falt-works, 

 and the water of Nile about their Nitre. 

 When the Nile retires, their Nitre-oits ftand foalcin(T 



firm, thev are in hafte 



grown 



melt again in the pits. They pile it up in heaps, and 

 it keeps very well. 



The Memphian Nitre grows ftrong, and there are fe- 

 veral pits of ftone thereabouts \ out of thefe they 

 make vefTels, and fome they melt down withfuiphur 



among their coals. 



This fame Nitre ^...^ 



they would have to laft a long time. 



things 



-. 



The proof of the goodnefs of Nitre is, that it be very 

 light, very friable, and very near of a purple colour. 

 There is but very little difference between the naturd 

 and artificial Nitre v but that the one refines itfelf,and 

 the other is refined by art, as fait ; and, indeed, all 

 Nitre is a kind of fait, and hardly differs from fait, 

 properly fo called, farther than in thefe relpefts, 

 That well refined Nitre is more acid and light thaa 

 fait, and eafily takes fire. - \. 



The reafon of which difference, he fays, fcem^ ta 

 be; 



X-. That the angles at both ends of the oWong para- 

 des of Nitre arc ftiorter than the angles ^ the falinc 

 particles. ■ ;- 'V . : v ' W 



2. That the particles of Nitre are liner and fuller of 

 pores ; which, when the particles of fire get in, they 

 foon put the nitrous particles into a hurry, till they 

 break to pieces, and turn to flame. - 



Nitre exceeds fait in lightnefs, becaufe the falme 



' ■ » 



3 



the 



particles contain more homogeneous matter m ^ 

 famecompafs, than the nitrous do. ".' ' f' . 



Dr. Lifter tells us, he viewied the particles of A^trc 



through a microfcope, and found them to have iit 



parallelograoi 



mid at one end. . 



H^ 1 



4 w 



r -< 



Some 



^-v -* 



