which are toundifii at the top, but are contracted to 
narrow -tails at their bafe ; they fpread open, and are 
beautifully variegated with a deep red or Orange co- 
lour, yellow, and feme fpots of green j they have a 
Very agreeable odour. In the center of the 'flower is 
fi mated a (lender ftyle above three inches long, upon 
which the germen fits, and is accompanied by ten fta- 
mina nearly of the fame length with the ftyle, termi- 
nated by oblong fummits. After the flower is paft, 
the germen becomes a broad fiat pod about three 
inches long, divided into three or four cells by tranf- 
verfe partitions, each including one fiattifh irregular 
feed. The leaves of this plant are ufed inftead of Se- 
na in the Weft-Indies to purge, and in Jamaica the 
plant is titled Sena. 
Ligon fays the feeds of this plant were firft carried to 
Barbadoes from Cape Verd Blands, and the beauty of 
the flowers was fuch, that the inhabitants foon fpread 
it over that iiland, and afterward it was tranfported 
into moft of the neighbouring ifiands. This may have 
been fo, but it is very certain that the plant grows 
naturally in Jamaica, where the late Dr. Houftoun 
found it in the woods at a great diftance Tom any 
fettlements. He alfo found it growing naturally at 
La Vera Cruz, and at Campeachy, where he alfo 
found the two varieties with red arid yellow flowers. 
The only difference between thefe and the firft fort be- 
ing in the colour of their flowers, and their branches 
having fewer fpines. 
The feeds of this plant are annually brought over in 
plenty from the Weft-Indies, which, if fown upon a 
hot-bed, wall rife eafily. When the plants are come 
up, they fhould be tranfplanted each into a fmall pot, 
and plunged into a hot-bed of tanners bark, obferv- 
ing to (hade them from the fun till they have taken 
root •, after which you mull give them air in propor- 
tion to the warmth of the feafon •, they muft be fre- 
quently refrefbed with water in fummer. When the 
plants have filled the pots with their roots, they ftiould 
be (haken out, and placed into larger ones, that their 
roots may have room to fpread. If care be taken to 
water and fhift them as often as is neceffary, they 
will grow to be three feet high the firft feafon. At 
Michaelmas the pots ftiould be plunged into a frefh 
hot-bed of tanners bark in the ftove, which fhould 
be kept to the Ananas heat marked on the botanical 
thermometers, and frequently refrefhed with water, 
but they muft not have it in large quantities, which 
is very injurious to thefe plants at that feafon. The 
earth which thefe plants ftiould be planted in, muft 
be frefti, light, and Tandy (but not over-rich,) in 
which they will ftand the winter better than if planted 
in a ftronger foil. When the plants are grown large, 
there muft be great care taken when they are {Lifted 
into larger pots, not to fuffer the ball of earth to fall 
from their roots ; for when this happens, the plants 
feldom furvive it. 
Thefe plants muft conftantly remain in the bark-ftove, 
where in warm weather they ftiould have a large {hare 
of air, but they muft not be expofed to cold *, they 
are very impatient of moifture in winter, and, if 
damp leizes their top, it very often kills the plants, 
or at leaft occafions the lofs of their heads. With 
proper management they will grow much taller here 
than they ufually do in Barbadoes, but their Items 
will not be larger than a man’s finger, which is oc- 
cafioned by their being drawn up by the glaffes of 
the ftove. I have had fome of thefe plants near 
eighteen feet high in the Chelfea Garden, which have 
produced their beautiful flowers fome years. Thefe 
flowers have always appeared in December, but in the 
Weft-Indies I am informed they flower twice a year, at 
which times they make a moft beautiful appearance. 
POKE VIRGINIAN. See Phytolacca. 
POLEMONIUM. Tourn. Inft, R. H. 146. tab. 
61. Lin. Gen. Plant. 200. [fo called, according to 
Pliny, from Gr. to wage war; on account of 
the contefts which arofe betwixt two princes, each 
affuming. the honour of the difcovery of it to himfelf ] 
Greek Valerian, or Jacob’s Ladder. 
The Characters are. 
The flower has 'a permanent empalemetu of one leaf which 
is cut into Jive fegments ; it ’has one petal, of the wheel 
which is 
2. 
fhape. The tube -is very floor t *, the upper pa. 
divided, fpreads open. It hath five Jlender ftamina which 
are inflerted in the valves of the tube , thefe are inclined , 
and are fib or ter than the petal , and are terminated by 
royndifh fummits . In the bottom of the tube is filuated 
an acute oval germen, fupporting a fender ftyle which 
is equal with the petal, crowned by a revolving trifid flig- 
ma. The germen afterward turns to. a three-- cornered oval 
capfiule having three cells , filled with irregular acute - 
pointed feeds. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the firft fedion of 
Linnaeus’s fifth clafs, which includes thofe plants 
whofe flowers have five ftamina and one ftvle. 
The Species are, 
. Polemonium (Cnrukum) calycibus corollas tubo lon- 
'gioribus. Lin. Sp. Plant. 162.. Greek Valerian, with an 
enipalernent longer than the tubs of the flower. Polemo- 
nium vulgare cseruleum. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 146. 
Common Hue Greek Valerian. 
Polemonium {Reptans) foliis pinnatis, radicibus rep- 
tatricibus. Flor. Virg. 22. Greek Valerian, -with winged 
leaves and a creeping root. 
The firft fort grows naturally in many parts of Eu- 
rope ; it has been difcovered growing wild in Carie- 
ton Beek, and about Malham Cove near Craven, in 
Yorkfhire. Of this there are two or three varieties, 
one with a white, and the other a variegated flower, 
and another with variegated leaves. 
This plant has winged leaves, which are compofed of 
feveral pair of lobes placed alternately. The lower 
leaves have eleven or twelve pair, and are terminated 
by an odd one •, thefe are broadeft at their bale, end- 
ing in points, and fit clofe to the midrib. The ftalks 
rife near a foot and a half high j they are hollow, 
channelled, and are garnifhed with winged leaves of' 
the fame form with the lower, but decreafe upward 
in their fize, and are terminated by bunches of flow- 
ers which fit very clofe ; they have each one petal, 
which has a fhort tube, cut into five roundifh feg- 
ments at the top ; they are chiefly of a beautiful blue 
colour, and have each five ftamina, which are termi- 
nated by yellow fummits. Thefe flowers appear the 
latter end of May, and are fucceeded by oval acute- 
pointed capfules, with three cells filled with irregular 
feeds, which ripen in Auguft. 
Thefe plants are eafily propagated by fowing their 
feeds in the fpring upon a bed of light earth, and 
when they are come up pretty ftrong, they fhould be 
pricked out into another bed of the fame light earth 
about four or five inches afunder, obferving to fhade 
and water them until they have taken root; after 
which they will require no farther care, but to keep 
them clear from weeds until Michaelmas, at which, 
time they muft be tranfplanted into the borders of 
the flower-garden, where, being intermixed with dif- 
ferent forts of flowers, they will make a beautiful ap- 
pearance. 
This plant is not naturally of long duration, but by 
taking them up in autumn and parting of them, they 
may be continued fome years ; but as the feedling 
plants always flower much ftronger than the offsets, 
few perfons ever propagate them' by flips. 
The fort with white flowers will frequently arife from 
the feeds of the blue, as will alfo that with variegated 
flowers, but thefe may be^ continued by parting of 
their roots. 
The fort v/ith variegated leaves is preferved by part- 
ing of their roots, becaufe the plants raifed from 
feeds would be fubjed to degenerate and become 
plain. The heft time to part them is about Michael- 
mas, that they may take good root before the cold 
weather prevents them. Thefe fhould have a frefh 
light foil, but if it be too rich, their roots will rot in 
winter, or the ftripes of the leaves will go off in the 
fummer. 
The fecond fort grows naturally in Virginia and other 
parts of North America. This hath creeping roots, 
10 Cff by 
1 
<1 
