N 
VAC 
©f a deep purple colour, having a flue upon them when 
they are untouched, like the blue Plums, which rub 
off with handling. 
The fecond fort is of much humbler growth, feldom 
■rifing above fix or eight inches high. The leaves of 
this fort are fo like that of the Dwarf Box, as that, at 
a diftance, the plants are often taken for it, even by 
perfons of lkill. This is an evergreen fhrub, which 
grows upon moory ground in feveral parts of the 
North, but it is full as difficult to tranfplant into gar- 
dens as the other fort •, though I have been allured by 
perfons of credit, that they have feen this fort planted 
to make edgings to the borders of the gardens in Nor- 
way and Sweden, where the plants may grow much 
better, from the cold of thofe climes, than they will 
do in England, for this is a native of very cold coun- 
tries. I. have feveral times received plants of this fort 
from Greenland, by the whale (hips. The berries of 
this fort are red, and have a more agreeable add fla- 
vour than thofe of the firft fort. This fruit is fre- 
quently ufed for tarts in feveral of the northern coun- 
tries, where the plants grow wild upon the moors. 
The third fort grows naturally in Virginia and other 
parts of North America ; this has a low fhrubby (talk 
like the fecond •, the leaves are Email, oval, pointed, 
and not unlike fome forts of Myrtle ; they continue 
green all the year ; the flowers come out from the 
wings of the leaves at every joint; their foot-ftalks 
are pretty long, and nod downward ; they fuftain but 
one flower ; they are fmall, white, and are fucceeded 
by fmall red berries which feldom ripen here. 
The fourth fort grows naturally in marffiy grounds in 
moll parts of North America. The ftalks of this are 
flender, imbricated, and trail upon the ground ; the 
fcales are briftly ; the leaves are oval, entire, and 
their edges turn backward ; the flowers come out from 
the wings of the ftalk ; they are of an herbaceous 
white colour, and in their native foil are fucceeded 
by large red berries, but in England the fruit never 
£omes to perfection. 
The plants of this fort are difficult to preferve in Eng- 
land, for they require a moorifli boggy foil, which 
fhould be covered with Mofs, and conftantly kept 
wet, otherwife they will not thrive. 
The fifth fort produces long flender branches not 
bigger than thread, which trail upon the molly bogs, 
fo are often hid by the Mofs. The branches are thin- 
ly garniffied with fmall leaves, about the fize and 
fhape of thofe of Thyme, having their upper furface 
of a fhining green colour, but are white underneath. 
The flowers are generally produced toward the extre- 
mity of the fhoots, which are in fhape like thofe of the 
former forts, but are fmaller, and of a red colour ; 
thefe grow upon long flender foot-ftalks, and are fuc- 
ceeded by round, red, fpotted berries, of a ffiarp acid 
flavour, which are much efteemed by the inhabitants 
of the places near the bogs where they grow. Some 
ufe them for tarts, and others eat them with milk or 
cream. 
This fort is a native of bogs, therefore cannot by any 
art be propagated upon dry land ; but where there 
are natural bogs, the plants may be taken up care- 
fully, preferving fome of the foil to their roots, and 
tranfplanted into the bogs in the autumn ; and if they 
are once fixed in the place, they will fpread and pro- 
pagate themfelves in great plenty, and require no far- 
ther care. 
The two forts firft mentioned alfo propagate very fail 
by their creeping roots, fo that when they are fixed 
in a proper foil, they will foon overfpread the ground, 
for the heaths, upon which they naturally grow, are 
generally covered with the plants. The firft fort grows 
with the Heath, their roots intermixing together, and 
frequently is found upon fandy heaths in divers parts 
of England ; but the fecond fort grows only upon 
moorifh land, where, by its creeping roots, the ground 
is foon covered with the plants. 
There are feveral other fpecies of this genus, fome of 
which are natives of Spain and Portugal, others of 
v A L 
Germany and Hungary, and feveral of the northern 
parts of America, from whence thofe large fruit are 
brought to England, which are ufed by the paftrv 
cooks of London, during the winter feafon for tarts ; 
but, as all thefe forts naturally grow upon fwarnps 
and bogs, they are not eafy to tranfplant into garfe 
fo as to thrive or produce fruit, therefore there can 
be little hopes of cultivating them to advantage. 
VALANTIA. Lin. Gen. Plant. 1151. Chuciata 
Town. Inft. 1 1 5. Croftwort. 
The Characters are, 
Ithath hermaphrodite folitary flowers in the place of the 
get men, of one leaf \ cut into flour oval acute fegments , ancl 
flour ftamina as long as the petals , terminated by flmatt 
flummits , with a large germen flupportmg a flender ftyle 
the length ofl the ftamina, crowned by headed ftigmas ; the 
empalement afterward becomes a thick comprejfled capfule 
containing one globular feed. rj ’ 
This genus of plants is ranged in the firft fection of 
Linnaeus’s twenty-third clafs, intitled Polygamia Mo- 
ncecia, which includes thofe plants which have male 
female, and hermaphrodite flowers on the fame plant! 
The Species are, r 
Valantia ( Hiflpida ) floribus mafculis trifidis herma- 
phroditici germini hilpido infidentibus. Lin. Sp. 1490. 
Valantia with three male flowers fluting on the hiflpid Mer- 
men of the hermaphrodite flowers. Aparine femine Co- 
riandri faccharati. Park. Theac. 576. Goofegrafs like 
a Coriander comfit. 
Valantia (fl/Lur alls') floribus mafculis tnfidis herma- 
phroditici germini gkbro infidentibus. Sauv. Monfp. 
162. Valantia with three made flowers flitting on the 
flmooth germen of the hermaphrodite . Crueiata muralis 
minima Romana. Col. Ecphr. 1. p. 298. 
. Valantia ( Aparina ) floribus mafculis trifidis pedi- 
ciUatis hermaphroditici pedunculo infidentibus. Hort. 
Upfal. 302. Valantia with trifid male flowers fitting on 
the • foot fit alks ofl the hermaphrodite flowers. Aparine fe- 
mine l^vi. Vaill. Parif. 18. Goofe-grafls with a flmooth 
feed. 
.. Valantia (. Articulata ) floribus mafculis quadrifidk, 
pedunculis dichotomis nudis fohis cordatis. Hort. 
Upfal. 303. Valantia with male flowers which are qua- 
drifid, the knots of the forked ftalks naked, and heart- 
fljaped leaves. 
1. 
2. 
5. Valantia ( Crueiata ) floribus mafculis quadrifidis, 
pedunculis diphyllis. Hort. Upfal. 3 03. Valantia with 
quadrifid male flowers , whofle foot-ftalks have two leaves. 
Crueiata hirfuta. C. B. P. 335. Hairy Crojflw or t. 
Thefe plants are feldom cultivated except in botanic 
gardens for variety. The four forts firft mentioned 
are trailing annual plants ; if thefe are permitted to 
fcatter their feeds in autumn, the plants will come up, 
and require no farther care but to thin them, and 
keep them clean from weeds. 
The fourth fort is an abiding plant ; this grows natu- 
rally in many parts of England; the roots'are yellow, 
and fpread greatly in the ground ; the ftalks have four 
leaves at each joint, placed in form of a crofs ; the 
flowers are yellow, fitting in whorls round the ftalks. 
It is fometimes ufed in medicine, but is generally ga- 
thered in places where it grows naturally. 
VALERIANA. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 131. tab. ^2. 
Lin. Gen. Plant. 43. Valerian. 
The Characters are. 
The flower has a fmall empalement ; it has one tubulous 
petal cut into five fegments at the brim, with a gibbous 
honey gland on the inftde ; it has three fmall, ere ft , awl- 
Jhaped ftamina the length of the petals, terminated by 
roundifh' flummits. The germen is fltuated under the flower, 
flupporting a fender ftyle crowned by a thick ftigma ; it af- 
terward turns to a crowned capfule which flails oft. \ J iri' 
which is lodged a Jingle feed. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the firft feeftion of 
Linn^us’s third clafs, which contains thofe plants 
whofe flowers have three ftamina and one ftyle. 
The Species are, 
I. Valeriana (Phu) floribus triandris, foliis caulinis 
pinnatis, radicalibus indivifis. Hort. Upfal. 13. Vale- 
rian 
