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pofed of twelve ftar-polnted pointals, fet round the 

 circle or gernien, which is attended by twenty-four 

 ftamina terminated by purple fummits. This flowers 

 at the fame time with the firft fort. 

 The fourth fort grows naturally upon the Alps and 

 Helvetian mountains; this has much Ihortcr and nar- 

 rower leaves than either of the former. The heads 

 ^xi fmall and very compadl ; the leaves are gray, 

 lliarp-pointed, and have (lender white threads croffing 

 from one to the other, interfedting each other in va- 

 rious m.anners, fo as,in fome mealure to reprefent a 

 fpider's web. The flower-ltalks rife about fix inches 

 high, they are fucculent, round, and garnilhed with 

 awl-fliaped fucculent leaves placed alternately ; the 

 upper part of the ftalk divides into two or three 

 branches, upon each of which is a fingle row of flow- 

 ers, ranged on one fide above each other, compofed of 

 eight Ipear-fhaped petals, of a bright red colour, with 

 a deep red line running longitudinally in the middle j 

 thefe fpread open in form of a ftar, and in the center 

 is fituated the crown or germen of an herbaceous co- 

 lour, furrounded by fixteen purple ftamina which are 

 ere<5t and fpreading, terminated by yellow fummits. 

 This fort flowers in June and July. 

 All the above-mentioned forts are extremely hardy, 

 and propagate very faft by offsets; they love a dry 

 foil, fo are very proper to plant in rock- work, where 

 they will thrive better than in the full ground, and 

 they want no care; for when they are once fixed, they 

 will propagate and fpread faft enough, fo that the lar- 

 ger forts may require to be annually reduced to keep 

 them within proper compafs.-. When any of thefe 

 heads flower, they die foon after, but the offsets foon 

 fupply their place. 



The fifth fort grows naturally at the Cape of Good 

 Hope, and alfo in Portugal ; the old walls about 

 Lifbon are covered with this plant. This rifes with 

 a flefliyfmooth fl:alk eight or ten feet high, dividing 

 into many branches, which are terminated by I'ound 

 heads or clufters of leaves lying over each other like 

 the petals of a double Rofe ; they are fucculent and 

 fpear-fliaped, of a bright green, and have very fmall 

 indentures on their edges like the teeth of a very fine 

 faw. The ftalks are marked with the veftiges of the 

 fallen leaves, and have a light brown bark ; the 

 flowers rife from the center of the heads, forming a 

 large pyramidal fpike ; they are of a bright yellow 

 colour, and the petals fpread open like the points of 

 a ftar ; the other parts are like thofe of the other 

 fpecies. This fort generally flowers in autumn or 

 winter, and the flowers continue long in beauty, dur- 

 ing which time they make a fine appearance. 

 There is a variety of this with variegated leaves, 

 which is much efteemed by the curious ; this was 

 obtained by a branch which had been acciden- 

 tally broken from a plant of the plain kind at 

 Badmington, the feat of his Grace the Duke of Beau- 

 fort, which, after having laid fogne time, was planted, 

 and when the young leaves puflied out, they were 



Thefe plants are eafily propagated by 

 cutting off" the branches, which, when planted, foon 

 .put out roots ; thefe fhould be laid in a dry place for 

 a week before they are planted, that the bottom may 

 be healed over, otherwife^they are apt to rot, efpe- 

 cially if they have much wet. When the cuttings 

 are planted in pots, they flliould be placed in a fliady 

 Situation , and miuft have but little wet, and if they 

 are planted in a fliady border, they will require no 

 water, for the moifture of the ground will be fuffici- 

 ent for them. Some years paft thefe plants were ten- 

 derly treated ; their cuttings were put into a hot-bed 

 to forward their putting out roots, and in winter the 

 plants were kept in ftoves, but later experience has 

 taught us that they wuU thrive better with hardier 

 treatment; for, if they are protcfted from froft and 

 wet in winter, and have a good fliare of air in mild 

 .weather, they will thrive better, and flower oftener 

 than when they are tenderly nurfcd. I have fre- 

 quently ittvi the branches of thefe plants, which 

 have been accidentally broken off and fallen on the 



variegated. 



S E N. 



ground, put out roots as they have laid, and liavt 

 made good plants. The fort with ftriped leaves is 

 tenderer than the other, and more impatient of wet 

 in winter. 



The fixth fort grows naturally in the Canary Iflands ; 

 this feldom rifes high, unlefs the plants are drawn up 

 by tender management. The ftalk is thick and rug- 

 ged, chiefly occafioned by the veftiges of the decay- 

 ed leaves ; it feldom rifes above a foot and a half 

 high, fupporting at the top one very large crown of 

 leaves, dilpofed circularly like a full-blown double 

 Rofe. Tlie leaves are large, and end in obiufe 

 points which are a little incurved ; they are fucculent, 

 foft to the touch, and pliable. The flower-ftalk 

 comes out of the center, and rifes near two feet high, 

 branching out from the bottom, fo as to form a re- 

 gular pyramid of flowers, which are of an herbaceous 

 colour, and fliaped like thofe of the other fpecies ; 

 they appear in June and July, and are fucceeded by 

 horned capfules filled with fmall feeds which ripen 

 late in autumn or winter, land then the plant dies. 

 This is propagated by feeds, which ftiould be fown 

 foon after it is ripe m pots filled with light fandy 

 ' earth, covering them over very lightly with the fame 

 earth. ^ Thefe pots fliould be placed under a common 

 frame to keep out the froft, but fliould be expofed 

 to the op'en air at all times in mild weather ; here the 

 pots may remain till the fpring, when the danger of 

 hard frofts is over, and then they fliould be remov- 

 ed to a fituation where they may have only the morn- 

 ing fun, and in dry weather the earth ftiould be wa- 



tered gently. This will foon bring up the plants, 

 which muft be kept clean from weeds, and, when 



_ they are fit to remove,, they fliould be planted in pots 

 filled with light loamy earth, and placed in thefliade 

 tin, they have taken new root; then they may ht 

 placed with other hardy fucculent plants in a ftielter- 

 cd fituation for the fummer, and if in winter they 

 are placed in a frame where they may be protecled 

 from hard froft, and enjoy the free air in mild wea- 



. thcr, they v/ill thrive better than with tender treat- 

 ment. 



The feventh fort grows naturally at the Cape of Good 

 Hope; this is a very low plant, whofe heads fpread 

 clofe on the ground ; they are much fmaller than 

 thofe of the common Floulelcek. The leaves haye 

 whice edges, which are indented like the teeth of a 

 ■ faw ; they fpread open flat j the flowers are produced 



JjriT loofc. panicles upon naked foot-ftalks ; they are 



f^ fmall and white, fo make but littfe appearance^ \-' 

 This is propagated by offsets, which are put out in 

 plenty from the fides of the heads ; this muft be plant- 

 ed in pots, flieltered from the froft in winter, and in 



V fummer placed in the open air with other hardy fuccu- 

 lent plants. ■ *, 



SENECIO. Tourn. Inft. R. H.456. tab. 260.' Lin* 

 Gen. Plant. 857. [fo called from fenefcere, Lat. to 

 wax old, becaufe in a hot ^ climate or weather it foon 

 flouriflies, and grows old, and the feed afterward 

 reprefents the head of old mcn^ It is alfo called 

 Erigeron from rf*, in the fpring, and ys^aw, to waxi 

 old, becaufe it flourifties in winter, and become old 



" in the fpring. It is alfo called Herba Pappa, becaufe 

 its feeds are very downy.] Groundfel ; in French, 



Senefon. ■ 

 * The Characters are, 



The flower is compofed of many herrnapbrodite florets which 

 form the difk^ and female half florets which make the 

 border or rays -, thefe are included in one common cylindri- 

 cal empalement which is roughs fcaly^ ayid contrasted 

 above. ■ The hermaphrodite florets are ttibulousj funneU 

 fhaped^ and cut into five pa7'ts at the brim^ which are re^ 

 flexed i they have five fmall hair-like flamina conne^ed at 

 the top^ terminated by cylindrical fti:7imitSy and an cval 

 germen covered with down^ fituated tinder the petals fup- 

 porting afiender ftyle^ crowned by two oblong Y evolving 



' fligmas. The germen afterward turns to an oval feed, 

 covered with dozvn, inclofed in the empalement. The 



. female half florets^ which form the rays arc ftr etched out 

 like a tongue^ and are indented in three parts at the top. 



This 



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