“> 
‘the Britif Species of Mentha. 187 
probably from Ray's having fo ftrongly infifted upon the firft of 
them. being diftinét from the garden Spear-mint. Hence Hudfon 
was induced to feparate them from that, and, on account of their 
hairy fpikes perhaps, to refer them to his «//;/z, our fy/vefrris. Iam . 
convinced the conftant nakednefs of their flower-ftalks and bafe of 
the calyx, how hairy foever the teeth may be, is a decifive mark of 
their having no affinity to /y/vefris or rotundifolia, but, on the con- . 
trary, evinces their belonging to the viridis, with which their gene- 
ral habit and ftruéture altogether'agree. They only differ from it 
iù having a ftronger and lefs grateful fmell; their leaves are more 
rugofe, rather broader, and generally fhorter; their bractea perhaps 
are not quite fo fctaceous as in the viridis, but all thefe circumflances 
vary. With refpe& to their differences from ‘each other, nothing 
can be more flight: nor thould E have believed that any botanift 
would have made them different fpecies, had I not examined the au- 
thentic fpecimens of Dale in Buddle’s and Sherard’s collections. "Of 
thefe my variety y has the moft hairy fpike, the teeth of the calyx 
and tlie bra&ez being fringed with long white hairs. The leaves 
are alfo alittle hairy beneath. Itis not ealy to underftand why Dil- 
lenius defines this “ /pica latiore.” £ has fhorter and rather broader 
— Jeaves, and the hairs on the bra&ez and calyx are fhorter.. 2, the 
moft common variety, has broader leaves, with a lefs hairy fpike. 
"^1 cannot conclude this account of M. viridis without noticing one 
more variety of that fpecies, though it has not yet been obferved wild 
jn Great Britain. This differs from the foregoing chiefly in having 
Very bro d ovate leaves; deeply and fharply ferrated, more or Jefs 
crifped or curled about the edges. The bractex and calyx-teeth are 
fringed with fhort hairs, and the former are broader than i ufual 
in the other varieties, fo that they might be termed lincar-lanceolate. 
This is the— ae nae o CLE. 
—— n ; Bb2 - Mentha 
