/ 
POD 
admitted to them, by raifing the glaffes of the hot- 
bed every day, in proportion to the warmth of the 
feafon, to prevent their drawing up weak. Toward 
' Michaelmas, when the nights begin to be cold, the 
plants fhould be removed into the ftove, and plunged 
into the bark-bed, where they muft remain during 
the winter. As thefe plants all caft their leaves in the 
middle of winter, and continue deftitute of them till 
about the beginning of May, fo during that time, 
they fhould be watered very iparingly, becaufe they 
are in more danger of rotting, while they are in a 
lefs adive ftate, by too much moifture, than when 
they are furnifhed with leaves, through which the 
moifture is more freely perfpired. 
All thefe forts are too tender to thrive in the open air 
of this country in the fummer feafon, therefore fhould 
be conftantly preferved in the ftove, where, in warm 
weather, they muft have a large fhare of free air, 
but in cold weather they muft be kept very warm. 
While they are young, it will be proper to continue 
them in the bark-bed; but when they have obtained 
ftrength, they may be placed in a dry ftove, where 
they will thrive well, provided they are kept in a mo- 
derate temperature of heat, and have not too much 
water. 
Thefe plants may alfo be propagated by cuttings, 
which fhould be taken from the old plants two months 
before they are planted, during which time they 
fhould be laid on the flues in the ftove, that the part 
which joined to the old plant may be healed over be- 
fore they are planted, otherwife they will rot. Thefe 
cuttings fhould be planted in fmall pots filled with 
light fandy earth, and plunged into a moderate hot- 
bed of tanners bark, obferving to lhade them in the 
heat of the day from the fun, and refrelh them once 
in a week or ten days with water, but it muft be given 
to them fparingly each time. If the cuttings fucceed, 
they will have taken root in about two months, when 
they fhould have a larger fhare of air to harden them 
by degrees to bear the fun and air, and afterward may 
be treated as the old plants. 
The milky juice of thefe plants is very cauftic, and 
reckoned poifonous. In cutting off any of the branches 
of the plants, if the knife be not immediately cleaned, 
the juice will corrode it, and turn the blade almoft 
black in a very little time, fo as not to be cleaned off 
again ; and if dropped on linen will caufe it to wafh in 
holes, equal to aquafortis. 
PODOPHYLLUM. Lin. Gen. Plant. 571. Ana- 
podophyllum. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 239. tab. 122. 
Duck’s-foot, or May Apple. 
The Characters are, 
The bud of the flower is inclofed in a large , three-leaved , 
coloured empalement inform of a flpatha or Jheath. The 
flower has nine roundiflo concave petals which are plaited 
on their borders , fmaller than the empalement ; it has a 
roundiflo ger men without a jiyle , crowned by a plaited cb- 
tnfle Jiigrna. The germen afterward turns to an oval 
capfule of one cell , crowned by the Jligma , f iled with 
roundiflo feeds. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the firft fe&ion of 
Linnaeus’s thirteenth clafs, which includes thofe plants 
whofe flowers have many ftamina and one ftyle. 
We have but one Species of this genus at prefent 
\ in the Englifh gardens, viz. 
Podophyllum ( Peltaimn ) foliis peltatis lobatis. Lin. 
Sp. Plant. 505. Duck's-foci with targetfloaped leaves 
having lobes. Anapodophyllurn Canadenfe Morini. 
Tourn. Inft. R. H. 219. Canada Duck’s-foot of 
Morinus. 
This plant grows naturally in many parts of North 
America. The root is compofed of many thick tu- 
bers which are fattened together by flefhy fibres, which 
fpread, and propagate greatly under ground, fending 
out many fmaller fibres which ftrike downward. In 
the fpring arife feveral foot-ftalks about fix inches 
high, which divide into two fmaller, each fuftaining 
one leaf, compofed of five, fix, or feven Jobes, the 
five middle being deeply indented at the top ; thefe 
join together at their bale, where the foot-ftalk meets, 
P O I 
which is fattened to the under fide of the leaf like the 
handle of a target ; the leaves are ffnooth, and of a 
lignt giecn. At the divifion of the foot-ftalk comes 
out the flower, with a large empalement covering it 
like a fheath ; the flower hath nine pretty large con- 
cave white petals, which are roundifii at the top, and 
plaited on their borders. In the center is fituated a 
large, round if h, oval germen, crowned by a plaited 
obtufe ftigrna, and iurrounded by a great number of 
fliort ftamina, terminated by oblong, erect, yellow 
fummits. The flowers appear in May, and when 
they fall off, the germen fwells to a fruit of the fjze , 
and hi ape of the common Flip or fruit of the wild Rofc. 
This is at firft green, but when ripe changes to a yel- 
low colour, in doling feveral roundifh feeds faftenjgd 
to the placenta. 
1 his plant propagates fo fall by its creeping roots, as 
that few perfons are at the trouble of fowing the feeds. 
Every part of the root will grow, fo they may be an- 
nually parted, either in autumn when their leaves d®- 
cay, or in the fpring juft before the roots begin to 
ihoot ; they require no other culture but to keep them 
clean from weeds. It loves a light loamy foil and a 
fhady fituation, and is fo hardy as feldom to be in- 
jured by the froft. 
POINCIAN A. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 619* tab. 391. 
Lin. Gen. Plant. 462. BarbadOes Flower-fence^ or 
Spanifh Carnations ; in French, PoincilMe. 
The Characters are. 
The empalement of the flower is compofed of five cblom 
concave leaves which fall off. The flower has five unt- 
oual petals ; four of them are nearly equal and roufidifio , 
but the fifth is larger, deformed , and indented. If hath 
ten long , brifily , rifling ftamina, terminated by oblong fum- 
mits, and an awl- fo aped declining germen which Jits upon 
the flyle the length of the jlamina , and is crowned by an 
acute jligma. The germen afterward becomes an oblong 
cornpreffed pod, with feveral tranfverfe partitions ; in each 
of thefe is lodged a Jingle flattifo feed. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the firft fecftion of 
Linnaeus’s tenth clafs, which contains thofe plants 
whofe flowers have ten ftamina and one ftyle. 
We have but one Species of this genus in the 
Englifh gardens, viz. 
PomciANA ( Pulcherrima ) aculeis geminis. Hort. Upfal. 
101. Flower-fence with double fpines. Poinciana flora 
, pulcherrimo. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 619. Poinciana wiih 
a ?nofl beautiful flower. 
There are two varieties of this which were difeovered 
by the late Dr. Houftoun in the Spanifh Weft-Indies. 
One of thefe hath a red, and the other a yellow 
flower ; but as there appears to be no other difference 
in the plants from the common fort, they muft be 
fuppofed only accidental variations which have rifen 
from feeds. 
This plant grows naturally in both Indies; it is plant- 
ed in hedges to divide the lands in Barbadoes, from 
whence it had the title of Flower-fence ; it is alfo 
called Spanifh Carnations by fome of the inhabitants 
of the Britifh iflands in the Weft-Indies. It rifes with 
a ftrait ftalk ten or twelve feet high, which is covered 
with a frnooth gray bark, and is fometimes as thick 
as the fmall of a man’s leg, dividing into feveral 
fpreading branches at the top, which are armed at 
each joint with two fhort, ftrong, crooked fpines, and 
are garnifhed with decompound winged leaves, each 
leaf being compofed of fix or eight pair of fimple 
winged leaves, the lower pair being compofed of four 
or five pair of lobes, the others gradually increafing 
in their number toward the top, where they decreafe 
again, and are fmaller. The lobes are three quarters 
of an inch long, and almoft half an inch broad at their 
points, leffening gradually to their bafe ; they are of 
a light green colour, and when bruifed emit a ftrong 
odour. 
The branches are terminated by loofe fpikes of flow- 
ers, which are fometimes formed into a kind of pyra- 
mid, and at others they are difpofed more in form of 
an umbel. The foot-ftalk of each flower is near three 
indies long ; the flower is compofed of five petals 
which 
