300 FLORA HISTORICA. 



the Greek naXkot, beauty, because the flower is 

 both beautiful in appearance and has a fine texture. 

 It will be necessary to observe that botanists have 

 now placed this plant out of the genus Arum, 

 although in the natural arrangement of plants it 

 stands in the same family; but in the sexual system 

 it is found to be of a different class and order. 

 Martyn places it under the class and order Gynan- 

 dria Polyandria, and M. Pirolle continues it under 

 the same head ; whereas Aiton and Brown remove 

 it to the class Heptandria Monogynia, which ap- 

 pears to us to be correct, since we observe that the 

 spadix is not simply covered with the parts of fruc- 

 tification, but surrounded with minute flowers, each 

 of which contains seven anthers and one stigma. 



Although this plant has generally been treated 

 as a greenhouse flower, we are desirous to remove 

 it into the open garden where it endures the winter 

 very well, excepting when the frost is very severe, 

 and then a temporary covering is sufficient to 

 protect it. In the open garden it should have a 

 dry soil and a warm sheltered situation, where it 

 will be found to propagate itself very fast by off- 

 sets ; and when from five to ten plants are placed 

 on a spot at about twenty inches from each other, 

 they make a fine figure in the garden, not only 

 whilst in flower, but by their large pointed leaves, 

 which succeed each other throughout the year. 



