L* I 
There is annually great Quantities of the feed of 
Flax imported into Scotland and Ireland, from the 
Eaft Country, particularly from Riga, to the amount 
of many thou land pounds fterling, per ann. which 
might be laved to the public, by encouraging the 
growth of Flax in the northern colonies of America, 
where the fummers are warmer than in England, fo 
that the feeds would ripen perfedlv there, and the 
change of feeds from thence would be greater than 
that from Riga, but it fhould be confined to the molt 
northern parts of America for fuch feeds as are 
faved in the warmer parts will not fucceed well here, 
as I have experienced in many other kinds of plants, 
whofe feeds I have fent to Carolina, where they have 
grown two or three years, after which fome of the 
leeds have been fent me back, which I have always 
found to be much longer in growing to perfection 
than before. 
The other forts which are here mentioned, are pre- 
ferved in gardens for the fake of variety, but none of 
them are ufed, except the Mountain Flax, which is 
efteemed a good purger in dropfical diforders, and has 
of late years been often prefcribed. 
They are all of them propagated by feeds, which may 
be fown in the fpring, in the places where they are to 
remain, and will require no other culture but to keep 
the plants clean from weeds. The annual forts will 
flower and perfed their feeds the fame year, but the 
roots of the perennial forts will continue feveral years, 
putting out frefh ftalks every fpring. The fhrubby 
forts will live through the winter in the open air, pro- 
vided it is in a dry foil and a warm fituation ; but 
thefe rarely produce feeds in England. 
The method of watering, piling, braking, &c. be- 
ing a particular bufmefs, and foreign to my defign, 
I fhall not pretend to give any diredions about it in 
this place. 
The common fort is a plant of the greateftufe, in feveral 
of the raoft eflential parts of life ; from the feeds an ex- 
prefied oil is drawn, which is of great ufe in medicine, 
painting, &c. from the bark of the ftalks is made 
. linen, and from the rags of linen is made paper ; fo 
that this plant may be efteemed as one of the moft va- 
luable, and abfolutely neceftary in many of the princi- 
pal conveniences of life. 
LINUM UMBILICATUM. See Cynoglossum. 
L I P P I A. Plouft. Gen. Nov. Lin. Gen. Plant. 699. 
This plant was fo named by the late Dr. William 
Flouftoun, who difcovered it at La Vera Cruz, where 
it grows naturally, in honour of Dr. Auguftus Lippi, 
a famous botanift, who travelled to Egypt, and dif- 
covered many new plants. 
The Characters are. 
The empalement of the flower is permanent , roundifh , 
and comprefl'ed . The flower hath one petals which is of 
the ringent kind ; the tipper lip is divided into two parts , 
which are reflexed ; the under lip is fmaller , and cut into 
two roundifh fegments. It hath four flsort ftamina, two 
of which are a little longer than the other , terminated by 
fmgle fummits , and an oval germen fupporting a fender 
Jlyle the length of the ftamina , crowned by an indented 
jtigma. The germen afterward turns to a comprejfed cap- 
fule with one cell opening with two valves , which ap- 
pear like the J cales of the empalement , inclofing two feeds 
which are joined. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the fecond fedion 
of Linnaeus’s fourteenth clafs, intitled Didynamia 
Angiofpermia, which includes thofe plants whofe 
flowers have two long and two fliorter ftamina, and 
the feeds are included in capfules. 
The Species are, 
1. Lippi a (. Americana ) arborefcens foliis conjugatis ob- 
longis, capital's fquamofis & rotundis. Houft. Tree 
Lippia with oblong leaves growing by pairs , having, round 
flaky heads. Lippia capitulis pyramidatis. Lin. Sp. 
883 . Lippia with pyramidal heads. 
%. Lippia (HmifpbJrica) capitulis hemifphasjncis. Jacq. 
Amer, 25. Lippia with hemifpherical heads. 
'"The firft fort in the country of its native growth, 
commonly rifes to the height of fixteen or eighteen 
feet, with a rough bark: the branches come out by 
pairs oppofite, as do alio the leaves, which are oblong-, 
pointed, and a little fawed on their edges. From the 
wings of the leaves come out the foot-ftalks, which 
fuftain many pyramidal fcaiy heads, about the fize of 
a large gray Pea, in which are many fmall yellow 
flowers appearing between the Rales, which are fuc- 
ceeded by the feed-veftels. 
The fecond fort grows naturally in Carthagena in 
New Spain, where it rifes with fhrubby ftalks ten or 
twelve feet high, fending out {lender branches to- 
ward their top, garniihed with oval fpear-fhaped 
leaves three inches long, ending in acute points, 
fmooth on their upper furface, which are placed op- 
pofite ; the foot-ftalks of the flowers come out oppo- 
fite juft above the leaves, each fupporting a pyrami- 
dal head of white flowers, which peep out from the 
fcales of the head , thefe are fucceeded by capfules 
having two cells, including fmall feeds. 
The feeds of the firft fort were fent by Dr. Flouftoun 
to feveral curious gardens in Europe, where fome of 
the plants have been raifed ; but as the country from 
whence they came is very warm, fo the plants will 
not thrive in this climate, unlefs they are preferved 
in a warm ftove. The feeds fhould be fown on a 
hot-bed, and the plants may be treated in the fame 
manner as other fhrubby plants which are natives 
of warm countries : which is, to keep them always 
in the ftove, plunged in the bark-bed, obferving to 
give them a large fliare of air in warm weather, 
and frequently refrefh them with water; but in win- 
ter they muft be watered more fparingly, and be 
kept in a moderate degree of warmth, otherwife they 
will not live through the winter, efpecially while 
they are young; but when they have acquired 
ftrength, they may be preferved with a lefs fhare of 
warmth. 
As the plants advance in their growth, they fhould 
be fhifted into larger pots, but this fhould not be too 
often repeated ; for if they are removed into new pots 
every fpring, it will be as often as they will require ; 
fo that when thefe, and many other exotic plants, are 
too often removed, they do not thrive fo well as when 
they are permitted to fill the pots with their roots. 
The beft time to fhift thefe plants is in April, a% 
which time the tan of the hot-bed fhould be ftirred, 
and frelh tan mixed with it, to increafe the heat. The 
earth in which thefe plants are placed, fhould be frefh 
and light, but not too rich. 
LIQUIDAMBER. Mitch. Gen. 12. Lin. Gen, 
Plant. 955. Liquidamber, Sweet Gum, or Scorax-tree. 
The Characters are. 
It hath male and female flowers fometimes on the fame 
plant , at other times upon different plants ; the male 
flowers are numerous , difpofed In long , loofle, conical kat- 
kins ; thefe have four-leaved empalement s, but no pe- 
tals. They have a great number of fhort ftamina joined 
in one body , zvhich are convex on one fide , but plain on 
the other , terminated by erett twin fummits , with four fur- 
rows. The female flowers are often fituated at the bafle of 
the male J pike , collelied in a globe ; thefe have a double 
empalement like that of the male , and each of them has a 
bell-fhaped , angular, diftmli empalement , with many pro- 
tuberances. Lhey have no petals , but an oblong germen faft- 
ened to the empalement , fupporting two awl-J, hoped ftyles , 
to which is alfo fixed the recurved fiigmas , which are hairy 
and as long as the ftyles. The empalement afterward 
turns to a roundifh capfule of one cell , with two valves at 
the top , which are acute , and colls hied in a ligneous globe, 
containing oblong acute-pointed feeds. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the eighth fedion 
of Linnaeus’s twenty-firft clafs, which includes thofe 
plants with male and female flowers, whofe male 
flowers have many ftamina. 
The Species are, 
1. Liquidamber (. Styraciflua ) foliis quinquelobatis fer- 
ratis. Liquidamber with fawed leaves having five lobes. 
Styrax aceris folio. Flail Flift. 1681. Ivlaple-leaved 
Storax-tree . 
2 . Li- 
