D I 



very well in Winter ; and in Sum- 

 mer they may be expofed to the 

 open Air with other Green-houfe- 



plants. 



The fecond and third Sorts take 

 Root much fooner, and more cer- 

 tainly, from Cuttings, than the firft ; 

 which many times require five or 

 fix Months to remain in the Pots 

 before they will have made Roots 

 fumcient to tranfplant. 



The fir It Sort frequently ripens its 

 Seeds in England-, but if the Seeds 

 are not fown foon after they are 

 ripe, they rarely grow; and thefe 

 commonly lie a whole Year in the 

 Ground. 



DIOSPYROS. The Indian Date 

 Plum. 



The Charaders are ; 

 The Emblement of the Flower is 

 of one Leaf, divided at the Top into 

 four Parts : the Flower is of one Leaf, 

 and is of the oval hell Jhaptd Kind, 

 flight ly cut at the Brim into five 

 Pin ts : in the Centre of the Flower is 

 fituated the Pointal, attended by eight 

 fhort Stamina: the Pointal after- 

 ward becomes a foft Fruit or Berry, 

 rejling in the expanded EmpaLmenf, 

 and inclojing oval flat Seeds. 

 The Species are ; 



1 . Diospyros foliis ut) toique hico- 

 loribus. Flor. Leyd. The Indian Date 

 Plum. 



2. Diospyros foliis utrinque con- 

 coloribus. Lin. Hort. Cliff. The 

 Pijharnin or P erf men, and by fome 

 Pitchumon Plum. 



The firft Sort is fuppofed to be a 

 Native of Africa ; and was trans- 

 planted from thence into feveral Parts 

 of Italy, and alio the South of 

 France. The Fruit of this Tree is 

 by fome fuppofed to be the Lotus, 

 which UlyJJes and his Companions 

 were inchanted with. This is a 

 Tree of middling Growth the 



D I 



warm Parts of Europe, where there 

 are feveral of them which are up- 

 ward of thirty Feet high ; but part- 

 icularly in the Botanic Garden at 

 Padua there is one very old Tree, 

 which has been defcribed by fome 

 of the former Botanifts, under the 

 Title of Guaiacum Pata<vinum. This 

 Tree produces plenty of Fruit every 

 Year j from the Seeds of which ma- 

 ny Plants have been raifed. In Eng- 

 land there are none of thefe Trees 

 but what have been raifed within a 

 few Years part, in the Phyfic garden 

 at Chelfea : for the Seeds of which I 

 was greatly obliged to my much 

 honoured Friend, his Excellency the 

 Chevalier Jlatbgcb, his Imperial 

 Majefty's Miniiter at Venice; who 

 has alio fupplied me with many 

 other curious Plants, Trees, and 

 Fruits, from different Parts of the 

 World ; where his extenfive Corre- 

 fpondence has been employed to col- 

 lect whatever rare Plants he could 

 procure; and his Generofity in. 

 communicating what Seeds and 

 Plants he can procure to the Phyfic- 

 garden at Chelfea, requires this pub- 

 lic Acknowlegement. 



The fecond Sort is a Native of 

 America ; but particularly in Vir- 

 ginia and Carolina there are great 

 Plenty of thefe Trees growing in the 

 Woods. The Seeds of this Sort are 

 frequently brought to England, 

 where the Trees are now become 

 pretty common in the Nurferies 

 about London. This rifes to the 

 Height of twelve cr fourteen Feet ; 

 but generally divides into many irre- 

 gular Trunks near the Ground; fo 

 that it is very rare to fee an hand- 

 fome Tree of this Sort. Thi< pro- 

 duces plenty of Fruit in England; 

 but they never come to Perfection 

 here: in America the Inhabitants 

 preferve the Fruit until it is rotten 

 F f 3 (ai 



