S U R 
lar body of five feet altitude on a plane, at which 
time the Sun enters every fign of the zodiac, which, 
at a fouth Sun, will be found very exacft on a true i 
level. 
SUPERFICIES of the ground, &c. is the out- 
part or furface of it. 
SURFACE is the bare outfide of a body or fuper- 
ficies. 
SURIANA. Plum. Nov. Gen. 37. tab. 40. Lin. 
Gen. Plant. 353. 
The Characters are. 
The emp dement 'of the flower is permanent , and com- 
pofed of five fpear-fioaped finall leaves. The flower has 
five oval petals the length of the ernpalement , which 
fpread open ; it has ten J lender fiamina which are fhorter 
than the petals , terminated by fingle fummits , and five 
roundifh germen fupporting a f ender ftyle the length of 
the fiamina , which is inferted in the middle to the fide of 
the germen , crowned with an obtufe fiigma. The germen 
afterward become five roundifio feeds joined together. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the fifth fedtion of 
Linnaeus’s tenth clafs, which includes thole plants 
whofe flowers have ten fiamina and five germen. 
We know but one Species of this genus, viz. 
Suriana ( Maritima .) Plort. Cliff. 492. Suriana. Suri- 
ana foliis protulacas anguftis. Plum. Nov. Gen. 37. 
Suriana zvith narrow Purflain leaves. 
This plant was fo named by Father Plunder, who 
difcovered it in the French fettiements in America, in 
honour of Jofeph Surian of Marfeilles, who was a very 
curious botaniff. 
This grows naturally by the fea fide in mofl of the 
iflands in the Weft-Indies, where it rifes with a thick 
fhrubby ftalk eight or nine feet high, covered with a 
dark brown bark, and divides into branches, the up- 
per part of which are clofely garnifhed with leaves on 
every fide Handing without order ; they are about an 
inch long, and one eighth of an inch broad at the 
point, growing narrower to their bafe ; they are round- 
ed at their points, and fir clofe to the branches, hav- 
ing no foot-ftalks ; they are of a dirty green colour. 
From between the leaves come out the foot-ftalks of 
the flowers, which are about an inch long ; thefe do 
each fuftain two, three, or four yellow flowers, which 
have lome four, and others five petals, which are 
rounded at their points, and almoft heart-fhaped ; 
thefe are fucceeded by roundifh feeds, which are join- 
ed together, fitting in the ernpalement. Some flowers 
have two, others three, four, or five feeds to each. 
The feeds of this plant were brought from the Ha- 
vanna by the late Dr. William Houftoun, who found 
the plants growing there in great plenty on the fhore, 
In moift places, where the fait water ufualty flows. 
It alfo grows plentifully in fome parts of the ifland of 
Jamaica. 
It is propagated by feeds, which muft be fown on a 
hot-bed early in the fpring, and when the plants are 
come up they muft be carefully cleared from weeds, 
and frequently refrefhed with water. In warm wea- 
ther the glaffes of the hot-bed fhould be raifed every 
day to admit frefh air to the plants, to prevent their 
drawing up too weak. When the plants are fit to re- 
move, they fhould be taken up carefully, and each 
planted in a feparate fmall pot filled with frefh light 
earth, and plunged into a hot-bed of tanners bark, 
obferving to fhade them until they have taken new 
root ; after which time they muft be duly watered 
every evening in hot weather, and they muft have 
frefh air admitted to them every day in proportion to 
the warmth of the feafon. In this hot-bed the plants 
may remain till autumn, when the nights begin to be 
cold, at which time they fhould be removed into the 
ftove, and plunged into the bark-bed. During the 
winter feafon thefe plants muft be kept very warm, 
efpecially while they are young, otherwife they will 
not live through the winter in this country. They 
muft alfo be frequently refrefhed with water, but it 
muft not be given to them in large quantities in cold 
v/eather, for too much moifture in winter will loon 
deftroy them. Thefe plants make but flow progrefs 
S W E 
the nrfi year, afterwards they will grow pretty free- 
ly if they are not ftinted. In winter they muft con- 
ftandy be kept in the ftove in this country, and if 
they are plunged into the bark-bed, they will make 
the greater progrefs. In fummer they muft have a 
large fhare of air, by opening the glaffes of the ftoves ; 
and if their leaves are covered with filth (which the 
plants in ftoves often con trad,) they fhould be care- 
fully waffied with a fponge, otherwife the plants will 
not only appear unfightly, but it will retard their 
growth. 
S W E R T I A. Lin. -Gen. PI. 321. Gentiana. C. B. P. 
The Characters are, 
The ernpalement is permanent , and cut into five fpear- 
fhaped Segments ; the flower is of one petal , divided at 
the top into five fpear-fhaped fegments , and is larger than 
the ernpalement it has ten neciarii which are 'finally ereft, 
fituated on the internal pari of the petal at the divifion of 
the fegments , and five awl-jhaped fiamina floor ter than the 
corolla , terminated by incumbent fummits ; and an oblong 
oval germen having no ftyle , but two fimple ftigmas. The 
ernpalement afterward becomes a taper acute-pointed cap- 
fiule with one cell , filled with fmall feeds. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the fecond fedion 
of Linnaeus’s fifth clafs, which contains thofe plants 
whole flowers have five fiamina, and two ftyles or 
ftigmas. 
The Species are, 
1. Swertia (fPerennis) corollis quinquefidis, foliis radi- 
calibus ovalibus. Lin. Sp. Plant. 328. Perennial Swer- 
tia with a five- pointed corolla , and the radical leaves oval. 
Gentiana paluftris latifolia. C. B. P. 188. Broad-leaved 
Marlh Gentian. 
2. Swertia (Differ mis) corollis quinquefidis, terminal! 
fexfida, pedunculis longiflimis, foliis linearibus. Lin. 
Sp. Plant. 328. Swertia with a five pointed corolla which 
terminates with fix points , very long foot-ftalks to the 
flower^ and linear leaves. 
There are two or three other fpecies of this genus* 
which grow naturally in Siberia and Canada, but as 
they are annual plants, and have not been introduced 
here, fo I have not inferted them. 
The flrft fort grows naturally upon the Alps in Hel- 
vetia and Bavaria. This is a perennial plant, fending 
out tufts of leaves from the root which are four 
inches long, and near two broad, of a deep green co- 
lour, and very fmooth ; from between thele arife the 
foot-ftalks of the flowers, which are eight or nine 
inches long, naked, and fuftains a pretty large bunch 
of blue flowers on the top, whofe petals are conned- 
ed at the top. Thefe appear in June, but are rarely 
fucceeded by feeds in England. 
The fecond fort grows naturally in Virginia. This 
hath narrow linear leaves which come from the root, 
about three inches long, and half a quarter of an inch 
broad ; the foot-ftalks of the flowers arife immediate- 
ly from the root; they are about fix or feven inches 
high, and fupport one blue flower. 
Thefe plants grow naturally in fwamps, fo are with 
difficulty preferved in gardens ; and as they do not 
produce feeds, fo are only propagated by parting ot 
their roots ; the bell time for which is in September, 
that they may have time to be eftabliffied before the 
froft comes on ; they fhould be planted in the fhade, 
and have a loofe moift foil, and in fummer muft be 
frequently watered, otherwife they will not live, but 
the winters cold will never injure them. 
SWIETENIA. See Cedrus. 
SYCAMORE. See Acer majus. 
SYMPHYTUM. Tourn. Inft. R, H. 138. tab. 56. 
Lin. Gen. Plant. 1 70. [Some derive it from a-v^tpusiv 
to conglutinate, because if the leaves or root of this 
plant are boiled with flefti, the fiefh returns again in- 
to one mafs ; hence it is called the Confolida major 
officinarum.] Comfrey ; in French, Confound. 
The Characters are, 
The flower hath a five-cornered, eredl, permanent- empale* 
merit, cut into five acute fegments ; it has one petal with 
a fhort tube , about which the limb has a fwelling belly , 
and thicker tube ; the brim is indented in five obtufe parts 
12 Z which 
I 
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