636 



SC A 



THE UNIVERSAL HERBAL; 



S C A 



13. Scabiosa Decurrens ; Decurrent-leaved Scabious. Co- 

 rollets four-cleft, unequal ; scales of the calix ovate ; leaves 

 pinnatifid, with the pinnas decurrent. Native of the Cape. 



14. Scabiosa Tatarica; Giant's Scabious. Corollets four- 

 cleft, radiant; stem hispid; leaves lanceolate, pinnatifid; 

 lobes subimbricate ; root biennial ; flowers yellow. Native 

 of Tartary, and perhaps of Italy. 



15. Scabiosa Arvensis ; Field Scabious. Corollets four- 

 cleft, radiant ; leaves pinnatifid, gashed ; stem hispid. Root 

 perennial, long, spindle-shaped, mostly branched, running 

 deep into the ground ; plant three or four feet high, hairy ; 

 flowers large and handsome, the large radiating marginal 

 florets purplish-blue, the rest pale reddish : if held over a 

 lighted pipe of tobacco, in a few minutes they become of a 

 bright green colour. It varies much .in the divisions of the 

 leaves, which are sometimes all entire ; the whole plant is 

 occasionally smooth, and occurs with white flowers. It is 

 bitter, of a slightly astringent saponaceous quality, and ex- 

 cellent against disorders of the breast, such as coughs, asth- 

 matic affections, difficulty of breathing, &c. for which pur- 

 poses an infusion of the leaves is the best preparation. The 

 flowers are said to be of a cordial sudorific nature, and good 

 against feverish complaints; the juice applied externally is 

 good against foulnesses and discolourings of the skin. In 

 corn-fields it is a troublesome weed; but in grass, being a 

 hardy plant, and producing a large quantity of foliage, which 

 is eaten by cattle, horses, and sheep, it may be probably be 

 found useful. It flowers in July and August. Native of the 

 pastures and corn-fields ...< Europe. 



16. Scabiosa Parviflora; Small-flow ered Scabious. Corol- 

 lets four-cleft, almost equal, in ovate heads ; interior proper 

 calix very short ; lower leaves obovate, crenate ; stem dicho- 

 tomous. Native of Algiers and Sicily. 



17. Scabiosa Uralensis; Uralian Scabious. Corollets four- 

 cleft, radiant ; root-leaves simple ; stem-leaves decussively 

 pinnate; chaffs dry, reflexed at the tip. Annual; and a native 

 of Siberia. 



18. Scabiosa Sylvatica; Broad-leaved Scabious. Corollets 

 four-cleft, radiant ; all the leaves undivided, ovate, oblong, 

 serrate; stem hispid; root perennial. This plant varies 

 much. It flowers during the greatest part of summer. 

 Native of Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Carniola, and Pied- 

 mont, in woods among bushes, and sometimes in fields. 



'* With five -cleft Corollas. 



19. Scabiosa Gramuntia ; Cut-leaved Scabious. Corollets 

 rive-cleft; calices very short; stem-leaves bipinnate, filiform. 

 Native of the south of France, Barbary, &c. 



20. Scabiosa Columbaria; Small Scabious. Corollets five- 

 cleft, radiant; root-leaves ovate or lyrate, crenate; stem-leaves 

 pinnatifid; segments linear. This is easily distinguished from 

 the other British species, by its five-cleft corollas, and by being 

 also much more radiant than they, that is, having the outer 

 segment of the corollets much larger than the inner: root 

 perennial, tapering to a point. It flowers from June to Sep- 

 tember. Found in most parts of Europe, Barbary, and Siberia, 

 on hilly pastures in a gravelly or calcareous soil. 



21. Scabiosa Pyrenaica; Pyrenean Scabious. Corollets 

 four-cleft, radiant; leaves tomentose, entire, toothed, and 

 pinnatifid ; stem one-flowered ; flower single, radiate, purple, 

 with the scales of the calix ovate-lanceolate, not longer than 

 the flower. Native of the Pyrenees, Switzerland, Savoy, 

 Lombardy, and Barbary. 



22. Scabiosa Sicula; Sicilian Scabious. Corollets five- 

 cleft, equal, shorter than the calix ; leaves lyrate, pinnatifid ; 

 root annual ; stem herbaceous, a foot high, dichotomous, 

 divaricating, red, weak. Native of Sicily. 



23. Scabiosa Rutsefolia; Rite-leaved Scabious. Corollets 

 five-cleft; leaves pinnate, the upper ones linear; calices one- 

 leafed, five-cleft ; root perennial, woody, divided at top ; 

 stems several, erect, a foot high, stiff. Found in the king- 

 dom of Tunis, flowering in the middle of July. 



24. Scabiosa Maritima; Sea Scabious. Corollets five- 

 cleft, radiant, shorter than the calix ; leaves pinnate, the 

 upper ones linear, quite entire ; stem upright, branched, 

 round, striated, villose, a foot and half high. Annual. 

 Native of Italy, France, and Japan, 



25. Scabiosa Stellata; Starry Scabious. Corollets five- 

 cleft, radiant; leaves cut; receptacles of the flowers round- 

 ish. There is a variety with the flowers scarcely radiate. 

 It flowers in July and August. Native of Spain and Barbary. 

 This is a common hardy annual in our gardens, and is raised 

 more for the sake of its heads of seeds, than its large cream- 

 coloured flowers, the heads serving to d.ecorate flower-pots 

 in winter. Sow the seeds in a bed of light loamy earth, 

 where the plants are to remain : when they come up, thin 

 them, and keep them clean from weeds. 



26. Scabiosa Prolifera ; Prolific Scabious. Corollets five- 

 cleft, radiant ; flowers subsessile ; stem proliferous ; leaves 

 undivided. It is an annual plant; found in the corn-fields 

 of Barbary and Egypt. 



27. Scabiosa Atro-purpurea ; Sweet Scabious. Corollets 

 five-cleft, radiant; leaves cut; receptacles of the flowers 

 subsessile. The flowers are very sweet, and vary greatly in 

 their colour, some being of a purple approaching to black, 

 others of a pale purple, some red, and others variegated. 

 It also varies in the leaves, some being finer cut than others; 

 and sometimes from the side of the calix come out many 

 slender peduncles sustaining small flowers, like the Prolifer- 

 ous or Hen-and-chicken Daisy. It is a biennial plant; native 

 country not certainly known. The seeds were received first 

 from Italy, under the name of the Indian Scabious: but in all 

 probability it is a native of the south of Europe. Sow the 

 seeds at the end of May, or the beginning of June, upon a 

 shady border of fresh earth ; for if they are too much ex- 

 posed to the sun, and the season should be dry, few of them 

 will grow; and if they are sown early in the spring, they 

 will flower in the autumn, and the winter coming on will pre- 

 vent the seeds from ripening ; besides which, the flowers will 

 be few and weak. Whereas, if they are left to form a strong 

 loot and leaves in the autumn, they will send up their flower- 

 stems early in the next summer, branching out on every 

 side, producing a great number of flowers, continuing in 

 succession from June to September, and producing good 

 seeds in plenty. When the plants sown in May come up, 

 transplant them into a bed or border of fresh earth, watering 

 and shading them till t-hey have taken root; and having kept 

 them clean from weeds, transplant them at Michaelmas into 

 the middle of the borders in the pleasure-garden. It is very 

 hardy, being rarely injured by cold, unless it shoots up to 

 flower before winter. It dies after the seeds are ripe. 



28. Scabiosa Argentea; Silvery Scabious. Corollets five- 

 cleft, radiant, entire ; leaves pinnatifid, acute, hairy. This is 

 a low perennial plant, with a branching stalk spreading wide 

 on every side : the leaves are of a silvery colour; the flowers 

 are small, pale, and have no scent. It flowers from June to 

 October. Native of the Levant. 



29. Scabiosa Daucoides ; Carrot-like Scabious. Corollets 

 five-cleft, radiant; leaves bipinnate; common calix villose, 

 pinnatifid. Native of Algiers. 



30. Scabiosa Indurata. Corollets five-cleft, radiant; leaves 

 ovate, lanceolate, gnawn-toothed at the base ; stem rigid. 

 Native of Africa. 



