240 FLORA HISTORICA. 



gathered before the seed is matured ; for it fre- 

 quently happens that when the seeds have arrived at 

 maturity they fly off when dry, and this sometimes 

 happens in the most beautiful manner. The seeds, 

 releasing themselves from the receptacle, are only 

 kept together by the feathery nature of their plu- 

 mage, which, as it becomes agitated by the air, 

 escapes by sweUing first into a kind of dome, the 

 feathers being attached to [each other in the most 

 delicate manner imaginable, with tlie seeds down- 

 wards ; after which, as they loosen themselves, the 

 effect is still more delicate and singular, as it re- 

 sembles, in miniature, a number of stars being 

 thrown out of a circular piece of fire- work. 



The annual Xeranthemum is a native of the 

 South of Europe ; and the first notice we have of 

 its being cultivated in this country was in 1658, 

 when it was growing in the botanic garden at Ox- 

 ford, under the management of Jacob Robart, a 

 German, who was the original gardener of that 

 establishment. This plant sends up a stalk of 

 about two feet in height, on which the purple or 

 white flowers are supported. These, when gatliered 

 just before the seeds are ripe, retain their beauty 

 for a great length of time, and the brilliancy of the 

 purple colour may be restored at the end of several 

 years, by holding them in the vapour of any acid. 



This plaat is best raised by sowing the seeds in 



