five coloured leaves, which are called petala, the fta- 
mina being only encompaffed by the flower-cup ; of 
this fort are the male plants of Nettles, Spinach, 
Hemp, &c. 
STAPELIA, Lin. Gen. Plant. 271. Afclepias. 
Tourn. Inft. R. H. 94. Swallow-wort, or Fritiliaria 
craffa. 
The Characters are. 
The flower has a permanent empalement of one leaf, cut 
into five acute fegments ; it has one large plain petal , cut 
into five acute fegments above the middle , and a plain 
five-pointed ftarry nedlarium with linear fegments , whofe 
torn points furround the parts of generation ■, it has five 
plain , broad , eredl fkamina , with linear fummits fafiened 
on each fide the ftamina , and two oval plain germen hav- 
ing no ftyle , crowned by a blunt ftigma. 'The germen af- 
terward turn to. two oblong taper pods filled with comprejfed 
feeds , crowned with a feathery down , lying over each other 
like the fcales of fifth. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the fecond fe&ion 
of Linnaeus's fifth clafs, which includes thole plants 
whofe flowers have five ftamina, and two ftvles or 
germen. 
The Species are, 
1. Stapelia ( Variegata ) denticulis ramorum patentibus. 
Vir. Cliff. 20. Stapelia with fpreading indentures to the 
branches. Afclepias Africana aizoides. Tourn. Inft. 
94. African Swallow -wort like Houfeleek , commonly called 
Fritiliaria craffa. 
1. Stapelia ( Hirfuta ) denticulis ramorum ereCtis. 
Hort. Cliff. 77. Stapelia with eredl indentures to the 
branches. Afclepias Africana aizoides, fiore pulchre 
fimbriato. Com. Rar. Plant. 19. African Swallow-wort 
like Houfeleek , with a fine fringed flower. 
There are fome other fpecies of this genus, which 
grow naturally at the Cape of Good Hope the fi- 
gures and defcriptions of fome forts, having been ex- 
hibited by the learned Dr. Burman, profeffor of bo- 
tany at Amfterdam, though we have not more than 
three fpecies in England, one of which has not yet 
flowered here. There is a variety of the firft fort 
mentioned in books, with flat crefted branches, and 
is by fome gardeners titled Coxcomb Fritillary ; but 
this is no other than three, four, or more branches, 
joined together and becoming flat, fo will return 
back to its original again, therefore is not worthy 
notice. 
The firft fort rites with many fucculent branches. ( about 
the fize of a man’s finger, which are four or five 
inches long, having feveral protuberant indentures on 
their fides, which fpread open horizontally, ending 
in acute points ; thefe branches fpread on the ground 
and emit roots from their joints, fo where they have 
room will extend very wide j they are angular, and of 
a deep green colour in fummer, when they are free in 
growth, but in winter they change to a purplifh co- 
lour ; they abound with a vifcous juice of a naufeous 
tafte. From the fide of the branches toward their 
bottom comes out the foot-ftalk of the flower at one 
of the finufes, which is fhort, and fuftains one flower, 
having a large thick petal which is cut half way into 
five points like a ftar, which lpreads open flat ^ thefe 
are greenifh on the outfide, but yellow within, having 
a circle of purple round the ne&arii, and' the whole 
petal is finely fpotted with purple, refembling the 
belly of a frog. In the center are the five compreffed 
ne&arii which are prominent, of a livid colour, which 
include the genital parts. The flower, when blown, 
has a very foetid odour like that of carrion, fo like 
as that the common flefh fly depofit their eggs on it, 
which frequently are hatched, but wanting proper 
food die foon after ^ for I have many years watched 
the progrefs of thefe, to fee if the maggots produced 
from thefe eggs ever eat any part of the flower, or 
lived any time, but could never obferve either ; nor 
have ever heard that any other perlbn of credit has, 
though it has been afferted, that they have devoured 
great part of the petal, and come to maturity, chang- 
ing afterward into their laft ftate of flies. After 
the flowers are paft, the double germen changes into 
four taper pods joined at their bafe, which are near 
a fpan long, and almoft as .thick as a man’s finger, 
which are filled with flat feeds crowned with a lea- 
thery down, lying over each other like the Rales of 
fift>, but thefe pods are feldom formed in England • 
for in fipward of forty years which I have cultivated 
thele plants, I nevei law them produce their pods 
but three times, and thole plants were pluno-ed into 
the tan-bed in the ftove, into which the branches' 
had put out long roots, and thereby became very 
luxuriant. 1 
The branches of the fecond fort are much larger than 
thofe of the firft, and Hand more ereft, buf fpread 
and emit roots in the fame way- they have four lon- 
gitudinal furrows, which divide them into four an- 
gles, which have protuberant indentures on their 
edges, whofe points are erect ; they are nearly of the 
fame colour as thofe of the firft, beino- 0 f’a dark 
green in fummer, but inclining to purple in autumn] 
The flowers come out upon fhort foot-ftalks from the 
fide of the branches ; thefe are of the form with thofe 
of the former, but are much larger ; the petal is of a 
thicker fubftance, and on the infide covered with fine 
purplilh loft hairs ; the ground of the flower is an 
herbaceous yellow, ftreaked and chequered with pur- 
plifti lines. This fort produces its flowers in much 
greater plenty than the firft fort, fo that in fummer 
and autumn thefe plants are feldom long deftitute of 
flowers, but I have never feen any of" the pods of 
this fort produced in England. 
Both thele plants grow naturally upon the rocks near 
the Cape of Good Hope, where they ftrike their 
roots into the crevices cf the rocks and fpread them- 
felves greatly. They are propagated here very eafily, 
by taking off any of the fide branches during any of 
the fummer months, which, when planted, put out 
roots very freely. The branches Ihould be flipped 
off from the plants to the bottom, where they are 
joined Dy a ftnall ligature, fo will not occafion a great 
wound, the joints at the place where they are connect- 
ed being almoft clofed round for ft they are cut 
thiough the branch, the wound will be fo great as to 
occafion their rotting when planted : thefe Ihould be 
laid in a dry place under cover for eight or ten days, 
that the wounded part may dry and heal over before 
they are planted, otherwife they will rot j then they 
fhould be planted in pots filled with earth, compofed 
of frefh fandy earth, mixed with lime rubbifh and 
fea land and if the pots are plunged into a very mo- 
derate hot-bed, it will promote their taking root ; 
they, fhould be now and then fprinkled with water, 
but it muft be given them fparingly ; and as foon as 
they have taken root, they muft be inured to the open 
air. If thefe plants are kept' in a very moderate 
ftove in winter, and in fummer placed in an airy glafs- 
cafe, where they may enjoy much free air, but be 
fcreened from wet and cold, they will thrive and flow- 
er very well ; for although they will live in the open 
air in fummer, and may be kept through the winter 
in a good green-houfe, yet thofe plants will not flower 
fo well as thofe managed in the other way. Thefe 
plants muft have little water given them, efpecially 
in winter. 
STAPHYLAEA. Lin. Gen. Plant. 336. Staphylo- 
dendron. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 616. tab. 386. focail- 
ed of fca pv\ri, a Grape, and bdfyov, a tree, becaufe its 
fruit grows upon trees in clufters.] Bladder-nut ; in 
French, Nez-Coupcz. 
The Characters are, 
The empalement is roundifh , concave , and coloured ,■ fo 
large as to inclofe the flower , which has five oblong eredl 
petals like the empalement , and a pitcher-Jhaped concave 
nedlarium at the bottom of the flower , with five oblong 
eredl fiyles terminated by Jingle fummits , and a thick ger- 
men divided in three parts fupporting three fiyles , to which 
there are obtufie ftigmas contiguous. The germen afterward _ 
become two hard almoft globular feeds , included in three-cor- 
nered bladders, joined by a longitudinal fleam, with an acute 
point opening within. 
This 
