488 



ROY 



THE UNIVERSAL HERBAL; 



RUB 



into the bottom of the capsule, cylindric, striated ; the pedi- 

 cels surrounded with numerous small pellucid vesicles. ES- 

 SENTIAL CHARACTER. Calix: four-leaved. Corolla : four- 

 petalled, inwardly keeled. Nectaries : four, awl-shaped ; 

 leaflets on the apex of the keel of the petals, converging. 

 Antherce: linear, sessile, in the grooves of the keel. Cap- 

 sule: one-celled, two-valved. Seeds: many, inserted into a 

 spongy receptacle. The above Essential Character is thus 

 corrected by Withering : Nectaries : lanceolate ; leaflets in- 

 serted in the middle of the petals. Antherce : in pairs, hang- 

 ing down from the base of the leaflets of the nectary. 



The only known species is, 



1. Roxburghia Gloriosoides. Leaves alternate or opposite, 

 nearly depending, heart-shaped, fine-pointed, the point re- 

 curvate, entire, smooth, shining, in substance soft and deli- 

 cate, generally eleven-nerved, with beautiful very fine trans- 

 verse veins running between the nerves, from four to six 

 inches long. Willdenow observes, that this is a singular 

 plant, between the Liliacex and the Asclepiadete ; that the 

 root is fusiform, the stem grooved, the branches alternate ; 

 that there are two bractes at the division of the peduncle ; 

 that the calix is yellow, and larger than the corolla, which is 

 purple. It is the Canipoo-Tiga of the Telingas. Native of 

 Coromandel, in moist valleys among the mountains. 



Royena; a genus of the class Decandria, order Digynia. 

 GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix: perianth one-leafed, 

 pitcher-shaped, five-cleft, permanent. Corolla: one-petalled ; 

 tube the length of the calix ; border spreading, revolute, 

 five-parted; segments ovate. Stamina: filamenta ten, very 

 short, fastened to the corolla ; antherae oblong, acute, twin, 

 erect, the length of the tube. Pistil: germen ovate, ending 

 in two styles, a little longer than the stamina; stigmas simple. 

 Pericarp: capsule ovate, four-grooved, one-celled, four- 

 valved : (Geertner describes this a globular, fleshy, four-celled 

 berry, covered by the permanent calix.) Seeds: nuts four, 

 oblong, triangular, wrapped in an aril ; (according to Geert- 

 ner, the seeds are solitary, all in four or two, oblong or 

 elliptic, subtriquetrous or plano-convex.) ESSENTIAL CHA- 

 RACTER. Calix: pitcher-shaped. Corolla: one-petalled, 

 with the border revolute. Capsule: one-celled, four-valved ; 

 (according to Gsertner, a four-celled berry.) The spe- 

 cies are, 



1. Royena Lucida; Shining -leaved African Bladder-nut. 

 Leaves ovate, somewhat rugged. It is an evergreen shrub, 

 eight or ten feet high, and puts out branches on every side; 

 flowers axillary, along the branches, having little beauty ; 

 berry red, and fleshy like an apple. It flowers in May and 

 June. Native of the Cape of Good Hope. All the plants of 

 this genus are too tender to live through the winter in the 

 open air of England ; they must be removed therefore into 

 the green-house in autumn, and treated in the same way as 

 Orange-trees. This species, and also the fifth, are difficult 

 to propagate here, for the branches which are laid down 

 seldom put out roots, and those which do are two or three 

 years before they make roots sufficient to transplant ; and 

 their cuttings very rarely succeed. The best time to plant 

 the cuttings is early in the spring : they should be made from 

 the young shoots : plant them in small pots filled with loam, 

 aud plunge them into a very moderate hot-bed ; cover them 

 down with hand-glasses, and refresh them with a little water 

 every eighth or tenth day. If the cuttings shoot, inure them 

 gradually to bear the open air ; and when they are well 

 rooted, plant each in a separate small pot, and afterwards 

 treat them as the old plants. If they put out any young 

 shoots from the bottom, lay them carefully down whilst young; 

 slitting them, as is practised in laying Carnations. During 



warm weather, water them frequently, but gently ; in cold 

 weather sparingly. When they are rooted, take them off, 

 and treat them in the same manner as the cuttings. 



2. Royena Villosa ; Heart-leaved Royena. Leaves cordate, 

 oblong, tomentose underneath. This resembles the preced- 

 ing species, but the branches are more villose. Flowers axil - 

 lary, nodding, solitary, on villose stalks ; bractes two, oppo- 

 site, ovate, pointed, downy, large, deciduous. It flowers 

 in June and July. Native of the Cape. 



3. Royena Fallens ; Pale Royena. Leaves oblong-ovate, 

 blunt, smooth. Native of the Cape. 



4. Royena Glabra; Myrtle-leaved African 'Bladder-nut. 

 Leaves lanceolate, smooth. Stem shrubby, five or six feet 

 high, sending out numerous slender, leafy, evergreen branches, 

 covered with a purplish bark. The leaves are less than those 

 of the Box-tree, entire, of a lucid green, and continuing 

 all the year. The flowers come out from the wings of the 

 leaves round the branches, and are white. Fruit roundish, 

 purple, ripening in our green-houses in the winter. It flowers 

 in September. Native of the Cape. This species is very 

 apt to send up suckers from the roots, and may be propa- 

 gated that way. When it does not, the branches may be 

 laid down. The cuttings succeed much more easily than 

 those of the other species. 



5. Royena Hirsuta; Hairy-leaved African Bladder-nut. 

 Leaves oblong-lanceolate, somewhat villose. This rises with 

 a strong woody stalk seven or eight feet hig-li, covered wilh 

 a gray bark, sending out many small brancb.es alternately. 

 Leaves an inch long, covered with soft hairs. The flowers 

 come out on short peduncles from the side of the branches; 

 they are small, and of a worn-out purple colour, appearing 

 in July, but are not followed by seeds in England. Native 

 of the Cape. See the first species. 



6. Royena Polyandra; Oval-leaved Royena. Leaves ellip- 

 tic ; flowers polygamous, many-stamined. This differs from 

 the other species in the disposition of the flowers, which are 

 in short, axillary, downy clusters. The stem has knotty, irre- 

 gular branches. Native of the Cape. See the first species. 



7. Royena Angustifolia ; Narrow-leaved Royena. Leaves 

 lanceolate, acute, somewhat hairy underneath. This is also 

 very different from all the species yet known, in having nar- 

 row lanceolate leaves, sharp at both ends, and somewhat 

 hairy underneath. It flowers in Juoe and July. Native of 

 the Cape. See the first species. 



Rubia ; a genus of the class Tetrandria, order Monogynia. 

 GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix: perianth very small, four- 

 toothed, superior. Corolla: one-petalled, bell-shaped, four- 

 parted, without a tube. Stamina : tilamenta four, awl-shaped, 

 shorter than the corolla; antherte simple. Pistil: germen 

 twin, inferior; style filiform, bifid at top; stigmas two, capi- 

 tate. Pericarp: berries two, united, smooth. Seeds: soli- 

 tary, roundish, umbilicate. Observe. The corolla is fre- 

 quently five-cleft. ESSENTIAL CHARACTER. Corolla: one- 

 petalled, bell-shaped. Berries: two, combined, one-seeded. 

 The species are, , 



1. Rubia Tinctorum; Dyer's Madder. Leaves annual, 

 about five or six in a whorl, ovate-lanceolate, ciliate, rugged 

 on the upper surface, with little recurved prickles on the edge 

 and keel ; stem prickly. Root perennial, composed of many 

 long, thick, succulent fibres almost as large as a man's little 

 finger, its bark principally affording a scarlet dye. Stems 

 herbaceous, annual, decumbent, widely spreading, branched, 

 leafy, obtusely quadrangular, prickly, with little hooks at the 

 angles. From the joints of the stalk come out the branches, 

 which sustain the flowers ; they appear cut into four seg- 

 ments resembling stars : and appear in June, being of a 



