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t)F the male, they are barren; therefore in fuch 

 places where there are no male trees near the female, 

 the inhabitants cut off the bunches of male flowers 

 ■when they are juft opened, and carry them to the 

 female trees, placing them on the branches near the 

 female flowers to impregnate them ; which, they all 

 agree, has the defired effed, rendering the trees fruit- 

 ful, which would otherwife have been barren. Pere 

 Labat in his account of Am.erica, mentions a fingle 

 tree of this kind, growing near a convent in the ifland 

 of Martinico, which produced a gteat quantity of 

 fruit, which came to maturity enough for eating ; 

 but, as there was no other tree of this kind in the 

 ifland they were defirous to propagate it, and accord- 

 inly planted great numbers of the flones for feveral 

 years, but not one of them grew -, therefore after 

 having made feveral trials without fuccefs, they were 

 obliged to fend to Africa, where thcfe plants grew in 

 plenty, for fome of the fruit ; the flones of which 

 they planted, and railed many of the plants. He then 

 conjeftures, that the fingle tree before-mentioned, 

 might be probably fo far impregnated by fome neigh- 



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which are inclinable to mouldinefs, for if thefe are 

 kft on, they will in time decay, and hinder the frclh 

 fibres from coming out, which will greatly retard th 

 growth of the plants. 



The foil in which thefe plants fliould be placed 

 muft be compofed in the following manner, viz. half 

 of light frefh earth taken from a pafture ground, the 

 other half fea-fand, and rotten dung or tanners bark 

 in equal proportion ; thefe fliould be carefully mixed* 

 and laid in a heap three or four months at lead before 

 it is ufed, butfliouldbe often turned over to prevent 

 the growth of weeds and to fv;eeten the earth. 

 You fhould alfo obferve to allow them pots proporti- 

 onable to the fizes of the plants ; but you muft never 

 let them be too large, which is of worfe confequence 

 than if they are too fmall. During the fummerfea- 

 fon they ihould be frequently refrcilied with water 

 but you muft be careful not to give it in too o-rcac 

 quantities; and in winter they mull be now and then 

 refrefticd, efpccially if they are placed in a warm 

 ftove, otherwife they will require very litde water at 

 that feafon. 



bouring Palm-trees of other fpecies, as to render it ca- | Thcfe plants are very flow growers, even in their na- 

 pable of ripening the fruit, but not fufiicient to make I tive countries, notwithfl^anding they arrive to a o-reat 

 the feeds prolific, as is the cafe when animals of dif- 

 ferent kinds copulate. 

 The flowers of both fexes come out in very long 



magnitude; for it has been often obferved by feveral 

 of the old inhabitants of thofe countries, that the 

 plants of fome of thefe kinds have not advanced two 

 feet in height in ten years ; fo that when they are 

 brought into thefe countries, it cannot be expefted 

 they ftiould advance very faft, efpecially where there 

 is not due care taken to preferve them warm in win- 

 female flowers have no ftamina, but have a roundifti j ter. But however flow of grov/th thefe plants are in 

 germen, which afterward becomes an oval berry,! their native countries, yet they may be with us greatly 

 with a thick pulp inclofing a hard oblong ftone, with j forwarded, by placing the pots into a hoc-bed of tan- 

 a deep furrow running longitudinally. The bunches ( ners bark, which fliould be renewed as often as is nc- 



bunches from the trunk between the leaves, and are 

 covered with a (patha, (or fheath) which opens and 

 withers ; thofe of the male have fix fliort ftamina, with 

 narrow four-cornered fummits filled with farina. The 



of fruit are fometimes very large. 

 This fpecies of Palm is by Dr. Linnasus titled Phoe- 

 nix, which is the Greek name of it, and he makes it 



ccflTary, and the plants af 



winter and fummer, obferving to fliift them into 



pots 



with which manage- 



a diftindt genus. There are fome varieties, if not I .v ply them with water properly, 



different fpecies of this tree, 'In the wairm countries'; j ment I have had feveral of them come on very faft; 



but as we cannot cxped to fee the trees in perfcftion j for I obferve the roots of thefe plants are very apt to 



m our country, it is not likely we ftiall come to any 



•:.-'; -certainty how they differ from each other. ■ 

 *: V Thefe plants may be eafily produced from the feeds 

 . .J!taken out of the fruit, (provided they are frefti) 

 'M-^v -which ftiould be fown in pots filled with light rich 

 - ' earth, and plunged into a moderate hot-bed of tan- 

 ners bark, which fliould be kept in a moderate tem- 

 perature of hear, and the earth frequently refreftied 



with water. 



When the plants are come up, they fliould be each 



{)lanted into a feparate fmall pot filled with the fame 

 ight rich earth, and plunged into a hot-bed again, 

 obferving to refrefli them with water, as alfo to let 

 them have air in proportion to the warrfith of the 

 *. ' feafon, and the bed in which they are J)laced. Dur- 

 '■ ■ ing the fummer time they fliould remain in the fame 

 hot-bed, but in the beginning of Auguft you fliould 

 let them have a great ftiare of air to harden them 

 againft the approach of winter ; for if they are too 

 much forced, they will be fo tender as not to be pre- 

 "- ferved through the winter without much difficulty, 

 efpecially if you have not the conveniency of a bark- 

 ": ftove to keep them in. '> 



- The beginning of Oftober you muft remove the plants 



i V into' the ftove, placing them where they may have a 



moderate ftiare of heat (thcfe being fomewhat ten- 



root 



dcrer 



, while young, than after they have acquired 



V - fome ftrength ;) though indeed they may be fome- 



»./ times preferved alive m a cooler fituation, yet their 



' ' progrefs would be fo much retarded, as not to reco- 



if,: vcr their vigour the fucceeding fummer. Nor is it 



/i-. if^'orth the trouble of raifing thefe plants from feeds, 



r^^'ij^here a perfon has not the conveniency of a ftove to 



. . forward their growth ; for where this is wanting, they 



^%ill not grow to any tolerable fize in twenty years. 



. "Whenever thcfe plants are removed, (which fliould 



. be done once a year) you muft be very careful not to 



cut or injure their large roots, which is very hurtful 



to them i but jou fliould clear oflT all the fmall fibres 





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derablc time without fliifting, where they meet with 

 a gentle warmth, and the nioifture arifing from the 

 fermentation of the bark doth preferve their fibres 

 plump and vigorous ; but although the leaves grow 

 tall in a few years with this management, yet it is 

 long before the plants come to have any ftems. There, 

 are plants now in the Chelfea Garden, whofe leaves are 

 fevcn feet long, which were raifcd from feeds more 

 than twenty years ago, and their ftems are not two 

 feet high, fome of which have produced fmall bunches 

 of male flowers. 



The fecond fort here mentioned, is the Cocoa-nut, 

 whofe fruit are frequently brought to England, Tome 

 of which are of a large fize. The branches of this 

 tree arc winged like thofe of the former, but the 

 fmall leaves or lobes are three times as broad ; they 

 open flat, their borders fold backward, and arc of a 

 lighter green than thofe of the firft fort. The whole 

 leaf (or branch) is often twelve or fourteen feet long ; 

 the male flowers grow in different parts of the fame 

 tree with the fruit, proceeding from the trunk between 

 the leaves ; they are difpofed in long bunches, as arc 

 alfo the female, the nuts growing in very large clufters, 

 which arc covered with a thick fibrous coac adhering 

 clofely to them. .The nuts are large, oval, and have 

 three holes in the ftiell at the top ; the kernel is firm, 

 white within, and the fliell contains a quantity of pale 

 juice, which is called the milk. . ^ 



The Cocoa-nut is cultivated in moftof the inhabited 

 parts of the Eaft and Weft-Indies, but is fuppcfed a 

 native of the Maldives, and the defert iflands of the 

 Eaft-Indics, from whence it is fuppcfed it hath been 

 tranfported to all the warm parts of America; for it 

 is not found in any of the inhnd parts, norany where 

 far diftant from fcttlcments. It is one of the molt 

 ufeful trees to the inhabitants of America, who have 

 many of the common neccflarics of life from k. The 



bark of the tree is made into cordage, the fliell of the 



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