PER 
about three quarters of an inch long, and half an inch 
broad, handing by pairs upon very fhort foot-ftalks. 
The flowers come out in frnail bunches from the fide 
of the ftaiks they are fmall, and of a worn-out pur- 
plifhfc colour, and a fweet fcent, being cut into five 
narrow fegments almoft to the bottom.. It flowers in 
the fummer months, but does not produce feeds here. 
There is a variety of this with fmooth leaves and 
ftaiks, from the fame country. 
The third fort was difcovered by the late Dr. Houf- 
toun, growing naturally at La Vera Cruz in America. 
This riles with a ftrong woody ftalk to the height of 
five or fix feet, covered with a gray bark, putting out 
many weak branches, which twill themfelves about 
any neighbouring fupport, and rife to the height of 
twenty feet •, they are garniflied with heart-ihaped 
leaves three inches long, and two broad near their 
bale ; they are of a yellowifti green, covered with 
filky hairs, which are foft to the touch ; they (land 
oppofite upon pretty long foot- ftaiks. The flow- 
ers come out in fmall bunches from the wings of 
the leaves;, they are fmall, white, and of the open bell 
fhape; thefe are fucceeded by fwelling taper pods, 
Filled with feeds crowned with long feathery down. 
The fecond fort is hardy enough to thrive in this 
country, with a little protection from the froft in win- 
ter. If the plants are flickered under a common 
frame or placed in a green-houfe during the winter 
feafon, and placed abroad with other hardy exotic 
plants in fummer, they will thrive and flower very 
well ; but as all the plants of this genus have a milky 
juice, fo they feould not have much wet, efpecially 
in cold weather, left it rot them. They are eafily 
propagated by laying down of their branches, which 
in one year will have roots enough to tranfplant •, thefe 
fhould be planted in a light fandy loam not rich, and 
the pots muff not be too large, for when they are over 
potted they will not thrive. 
The third fort is tender, fo will not thrive in England, 
unlefs the plants are placed in a warm ftove. They 
may be propagated by laying down of their branches 
in the fame manner as the former ; or from feeds, 
when they can be procured from the places where 
they naturally grow. Thefe fhould be fown upon a 
good hot-bed, and when the plants come up, they 
mull be treated in the fame manner as other tender 
exotic plants. 
If thefe plants are conftantly kept plunged in the tan- 
bed of the ftove, they will thrive and flower much 
better than in any other fttuation, but the ftove fhould 
not be kept too warm in winter ; and in the fummer 
the plants fnould have a large (hare of free air admit- 
ted to them •, for when they are kept too clofe, their 
leaves will be covered with infefts, and the plants 
will become fickly in a fhort time. 
All the fpecies of this genus are luppofed to be hurt- 
ful to animals, as the Dogfoanes in general are, and 
thefe are very near a-kin to them, both in their cha- 
racters and qualities. 
PERI W I N'C L E. See Vinca. 
PERSE A. Plum. Nov. Gen. 44. tab. 20. Laurus. 
Lin. Gen. Plant. 452. The Avocado, or Avogato 
Pear. 
The Characters are, 
T'he flower hath no empalement , but is compofed of fix 
petals ending in acute points , which fpread open. It hath 
fix fiamina which are about half the length of the pe- 
tals^ terminated by roundijh fummits , and a jhort fiyle , 
crowned by a pyramidal germen, which afterward becomes 
a large fiejhy pyramidal fruity inclofmg an oval feed hav- 
ing two lobes. 
This genus of plants Dr. Linnasus has joined to his 
of Laurus, which he places in the firft feCtion 
of his ninth clafs, which includes thofe plants whofe 
flowers have nine fiamina and one ilyle. 
We have but one Species of this plant, viz. 
Persea {Americana.) Cluf. Hilt. The Avocado, or Avo- 
crato Pear . 
This tree grows in great plenty in- the Spanifh Weft- 
PER 
Indies, as alfo in the iftand of Jamaica, and hath been 
tranfplanted into molt of the Engiifh fettlements in 
the Weft-Indies on account of its fruit ; which is 
not only efteemed by the inhabitants as a fruit to be 
eaten by way of defert, but is very neceftary for the 
fupport of life. The fruit of itfelf is very infipid, 
for 'which reafon they generally eat it with the juice 
of Lemons and fugar, to give it a piquancy. It is 
very nourifhing, and is reckoned a great incentive to 
venery. Some people eat this fruit with vinegar and 
Pepper. ■ & 
In the warm countries where this is planted, it grows 
to the height of thirty feet or more, and has a trunk 
as large as our common Apple-trees ; the bark is 
fmooth, and of an Alh colour ; the brances are befet 
with pretty large, oblong, fmooth leaves, like thofe 
of Laurel, which are of a deep green colour, and con- 
tinue on the tree throughout the year. The flowers 
and fruit are, for the moil part , produced toward the 
extremity of the branches. The fruit is as large as 
one of the jargeft Pears, inclofing a large feed with 
two lobes, included in a thin fliell. 
In Europe this plant is preferved as a curiofity, by 
thofe perfons who delight in colle&ing exotic plants 4 
and though there is little hope of its producing fruit, 
yet for the beauty of its fhining green leaves, which 
continue through the winter, it deferves a place in 
every curious colledion of plants. 
It is propagated by feeds, which Ihould be obtained 
as frefh as poflible from the countries of its growth ; 
and if they are brought over in land, will be more 
likely to grow, than fuch as are brought over dry. 
Thefe nuts or feeds fhould be planted in pots, filled 
with light rich earth, and plunged into a hot-bed of 
tanners bark, which fhould be kept pretty warm. 
The pots fhould be alio frequently watered when the 
earth appears dry, which will greatly facilitate the 
vegetation of the feed, provided the water is not giv- 
en in large quantities, which would rot them. In 
about five or fix weeks the plants will come up, when 
they muft be treated very tenderly, for the bed muft 
be kept in a due temperature for heat ; and when the 
weather proves warm, the frefh air fhould be admit- 
ted to the plants, by raifing the glaffes a little. When 
they have grown about four inches high, they fhould 
be carefully tranfplanted ; and where there are feve- 
ral plants in one pot, they muft be parted, being 
careful to preferve a ball of earth to the root of each, 
and planted into feparate fmall pots filled with light 
rich earth, and then plunged into a hot-bed of tanners 
bark, obferving to fhade them until they have taken 
new root •, after which time they fhould have frefh 
air admitted to them, in proportion to the warmth of 
the feafon. Towards Michaelmas the plants muft be 
removed into the ftove, and plunged into the bark- 
bed, where, during the winter feafon, they fhould 
be kept in a moderate warmth, and muft be gently 
watered twice a week. In the fpring the plants fhould 
be fhifred into pots a fize larger than the former, and 
the bark-bed fhould be then renewed with frefh tan, 
which will fet the plants in a growing ftate early, 
whereby they will make a fine progrefs the following 
fummer. Thefe plants muft be conftantly kept in 
the ftove, for they are too tender to bear the open 
air in this country at any feafon, but in warm weather 
fhould have a large fhare of air admitted to them. 
PERSIC A. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 624. tab. 402. [fo 
called or Perfia in Afia, from whence this kind of plant 
was brought into our climate.] The Peach-tree. 
' Amygjalus. Lin. Gen. 619. 
The Characters are, 
The flower has a tubulous empalement of one leaf cut 
into five obtufe fegments which fpread open. It hath 
five oblong , oval, obtufe petals , which are inferted in 
the empalement , and about thirty ere hi fender fiamina 
which are Jhorter than the petals , terminated by fingle 
fummits ; thefe are alfo inferted in the empalement. It 
hath a roundijh hairy germen , fupporting a fiyle the length 
of the fiamina , crowned by a headed ftigma. The germen 
afterward 
