ti 



ANANAS mata. MIL Dift. ed. 8. n. i. 

 ANANAS aculeatus fru&u ovato carne albida. trew. Ebret. i, 

 tab. 2. Mill. DiB. ed. 7. n. 1. 



We have tranflated the following fpecific defcription from 

 Lamarck's work. " Root fibrous; leaves feveral, (radical) 

 fafciculate divergent, 2 — 3 feet long, 2 — 3 inches broad, 

 11 channelled, acuminate, edged with fhort clofe fpines, gene- 

 [t rally fomewhat glaucous, not unlike thofe of Aloe, but 

 ■ neither fo thick nor fo juicy ; flower-fiem central, cylindric, 

 " fhorter, leafy, terminated by a denfely glomerate oval or 

 '* conic (brafteate) /pike furmounted by a crown (or coma) of 

 M perfiftent leaves which are lefs in fize than the others ; flowers 

 " fmall, blueifh, fcattered over the furface of the fpike, which 

 " is compofed of a thick flefliy receptacle ftudded with germent 

 " that imbed themfelves half their length in its fubftance (and 

 '* have each a fmgle bra&e). The flowers foon fall off, when 

 M the receptacle on which they flood, increafes in fize, acquires 

 " a colour, and becomes a fucculent fruit befet with fmall tri- 

 M angular fcales (brakes)." The refemblance of this fruit in 

 form to the cones of fome fpecies of Pine Trees, has evidently 

 fuggefted the Englifh generic name. Marked as biennial in the 

 Hortus Kewenfis. Propagated by offsets, as well as by the 

 crown of the fruit ; feldom by feed in Europe, where it rarely 

 forms any. Miller thinks, that if the feeds were frequently 

 fown, there would be as many varieties as of Apples and Pears. 

 He made himfelf fome trials by fowing them, and always found 

 them to produce varieties of the parent plant. The prefent 

 Variety, the flefh of the fruit of which is white, is the moftufual 

 in Europe j but is deemed inferior in its efculent quality to 

 the fugar-loaf fort, the flefh of which is yellow. The fpecies * 

 native of South- America ; and was introduced into England in 

 1690, by Lord Portland. We have omitted to enumerate 

 varieties, not having examined any with that view. In Mt L * 

 ler's Dictionary, and moft gardener's manuals, an ampl c 

 account of them, and abundant inftru&ions for their culture. 

 are to be found ; to which fources we refer as to thofe points. 



