RAP 
three quarters of an inch broad at the bafe, Ieflening 
to a point at the end •, they have fmail indentures on 
their borders, and ftand upon fhort foot-ftalks. The 
upper (lender ftalks are thinly garnifhed with fmail 
purplifti flowers to the top, and thefe are fucceeded ' 
by fmail feed-veflels which ripen in autumn. When 
the feeds are permitted to fcatter on the pots which 
ftand near them, and thofe are (heltered from the 
froft, the plants will come up plentifully the fallow- 
ing (bring or, if they are fown in pots in autumn, 
and. (heltered in the winter, the plants will arife the 
following fpring; and thefe fhould be tranfplanted in- 
to feparate fmail pots, placing them under a frame, 
where they will flower in June and July, and their 
feeds will ripen in September, and the plants will 
then decay. 
The fifth fort grows naturally in the forefts about Blois 
in France ; this is an annual plant. The root is com- 
pofed of many flelhy fibres ■, the ftalk rifes about two 
feet high, and is garnifhed with fpear-fhaped leaves 
near three inches long, and one broad in the middle ; 
they are very thin, and are fawed on their edges, fit- 
ting clofe to the ftalk ; the upper part of the ftalk is 
garnifhed with very fmail leaves, and from their bafe 
arife the flowers, which are of a bright blue colour. 
Thefe appear in July, and arefucceeded by roundifli 
feed-veflels with holes at the top, which are filled 
with fmail red feeds. 
The feeds of this plant fhould be fown in autumn in 
pots filled with loamy earth, and placed under a hot- 
bed frame in winter, and when they come up in the 
fpring, they fhould be tranfplanted either into a bor- 
der of foft loamy earth, or into feparate pots, (hading 
them till they have taken new root ; and afterward 
the muft be duly watered in dry weather, which will 
caufe them to flower ftrong, and produce good feeds 
annually. 
The fixth fort grows naturally in North America ; 
this is a biennial plant in England, which rarely 
flowers the fame year as the plants come up, but de- 
cays foon after the feeds are ripe. The ftalks of this 
are channelled and hairy ; they grow erebt to the 
height of two feet, and are garnifhed with thin oval 
leaves about -two inches long, and one broad in the 
middle, fitting clofe to the ftalk ; they are of a light 
green, and a little fawed on their edges. The flow- 
ers ftand upon long (lender foot-ftalks which come 
out from the wings of the leaves, and form a loofe 
fpike which terminate the ftalk ; they are fmail, and 
of a light blue colour. This flowers in July, and 
the feeds ripen in September. This is propagated by 
feeds, which fhould be fown in autumn, in pots filled 
with rich earth, and treated in the fame way as the 
firft fort. 
The feventh fort grows naturally at the Cape of Good 
Hope ; this is a biennial plant ; the ftalks rife a foot 
and a half high, they are covered with a hairy down, 
and are purplifh toward the bottom ; the leaves are 
oval, two inches and a half long, and an inch and a 
quarter broad, of a deep green colour, a little hairy 
on their under fide, and fit clofe to the ftalks. The 
flowers ftand upon long (lender foot-ftalks, which 
come out from the bofom of the leaves, fometimes 
one proceeding from a joint, and at others they come 
out oppofite on each fide the ftalk, each foot-ftalk 
fuftaining one pale blue flower, which being fmail 
makes but little appearance. This flowers about the 
fame time with the former, and may be propagated 
in the fame way. 
The eighth fort grows naturally in moift places, on 
moft of the iflands in the Weft-Indies. This is alfo 
a biennial plant, whofe root is compofed of a few 
ftrong ligneous fibres, which ftrike deep in the ground; 
the ftalk rifes about eight or nine inches high, and is 
clofely garnifhed with leaves on every fide ; thefe are 
four inches long and half an inch broad, very deeply 
indented on their edges ; they are hairy, of a deep 
green, and fit clofe to the ftalks. The flowers come 
out at every joint from the wings of the leaves, (land- 
ing upon very fhort foot-ftalks ; the tube of the 
flower is from three to four inches long, very (lender',- 
and is deeply cut at the top into five legments, which 
fpread open ; they are white, and appear in June, and 
are fucceeded by turgid feed-veflels, crowned by the 
five legments of the petal, having three holes at the 
top, and filled with fmail grayifh feeds. The feeds 
of this fort fhould be fown foon after it is ripe, in 
pots filled with rich earth, and plunged into the tan- 
bed in the ftove, obferving to refrelh the earth fre- 
quently with water. In the fpring, thefe pots may be 
removed, and plunged into a hot-bed, which will 
foon bring up the plants : when thefe are fit to re- 
move, they fhould be each tranfplanted into a fepa- 
rate fmail pot filled with rich earth, and plunged in- 
to a frefh hot-bed, (hading them from the fqn till they 
have taken new root ; then they may be treated in 
the fame way as other tender plants from the fame 
country, giving them a large fhare of air in warm 
weather, and frequently refrefhing them with water. 
In autumn the plants muft be plunged into the tan- 
bed of the ftove, where they will flower the follow- 
ing fummer and produce ripe feeds, foon after which 
the plants will decay. If the feeds of this plant are 
brought from the Weft-Indies, they fhould be fown 
as foon as they arrive, in pots filled with rich earth ; 
and if it happens in the winter, the pots fhould be 
plunged into the tan-bed in the ftove •, but if it is in 
the fpring or fummer, they may be plunged- into a 
hot-bed in the common frames. Thefe feeds when 
fown in the fpring, feldom grow the fame year, there- 
fore the following autumn the pots fhould be remov- 
ed into the ftove, and managed according to the above 
directions. 
The ninth fort grows naturally at the Cape of Good 
Hope ; this is an annual plant ; the ftalks are (lender, 
branching, and fpread out on every fide ; they rife 
about a foot high, and are garnifhed with fmail fpear- 
fhaped leaves which are indented on their edges, 
and fit clofe to the branches. The flowers are (mail 
and blue ; they ftand upon very (lender long foot- 
ftalks, and appear in July ; thefe are fucceedcd by 
fmail roundifli feed-veflels, filled with fmail feeds 
which ripen in September. If the feeds of this fort 
are fown in autumn, they will fucceed much better 
than when they are fown in fpring : thefe may be 
fown in pots, and (heltered under a common hot- bed 
frame in winter, expofing them to the open air at all 
times in mild weather, but fereening them from the 
froft ; and in the fpring, the pots fhould be plunged 
into a moderate hot-bed, which will foon bring up 
the plants ; when thefe are fit to remove, they fhould 
be each planted in a feparate fmail pot filled with 
rich earth, and plunged into a moderate hot- bed 
again, (hading them from the fun till they have taken 
new root ; then they muft have a large (hare of free 
air at all times when the weather is mild ; and as the 
plants grow ftrong, they fhould be gradually harden- 
ed to bear the open air, into which they fhould be 
removed in June, placing them in a (heltered fttua- 
tion, where they will flower in July, and if the feafen 
proves favourable, the feeds will ripen in September § 
but if the feafon fhould prove cold, it will be proper 
to remove one or two plants into a glafs-cafe, to ob- 
tain good feeds. 
The tenth fort comes from the Cape of Good Hope ; 
this hath trailing ftalks, and the leaves are fawed on 
their edges, and the foot-ftalks come out from the 
fide of the branches, in which it differs from the laft 
fort. It may be propagated by feeds, and treated in 
the fame manner as the laft. 
RAUVOLFIA. Plum. Nov. Gen. 19. tab. 40, 
Lin. Gen. Plant. 259. 
The name was given to this genus of plants by Fa- 
ther Plumier, who was the perfon that d ifeo;vered it 
in America, in honour of Leonard Rauvolf, who was 
a curious botanift, and fiourifiiecl about the year 1 58 3. 
He travelled into the Holy Land, and feveral other 
places in the eaft, and publuhed his travels m High 
Dutch, which were tranflated into Englifh under the 
inipebtion of the great Mr. Ray.. 
The 
