ALB 
be devoured when they begin to ripen. T he plants which, 
arife from feeds, always grow more erect than thofe 
which are propagated by layers, fo are fitter for large 
plantations, as they may be trained up to items, and 
formed more like trees •, whereas the layers are apt to 
extend their lower branches, which retards their up- 
right growth, and renders them more like fhrubs. 
They will grow to the height of eighteen or twenty 
feet, if their upright fhoots are encouraged •, but to 
keep their heads from being broken by wind or fnow, 
thofe branches which fhoot irregular fhould be fhort- 
ened, w'hich will caufe their heads to be clofer, and 
not in fo much danger. 
All the forts thrive beft in a dry, gravelly, or fandy 
foil, for in rich ground they are often injured by 
froft, when the winters are levere, but in rocky dry 
land they are feldom injured : and if in very hard 
froft their leaves are killed, yet the branches will re- 
main unhurt, and will put out new leaves in the fpring. 
ALBUCA, Baftard Star of Bethlehem. 
The Characters are, 
The flower has no empalement •, it has fix oblong oval pe- 
tals . , which are permanent •, the three outer Jpread open , 
and the three inner are connected : it hath fix three-cor- 
nered flamina the length of the corolla , three of which are 
fertile , crowned with moveable fummits , the other three , 
which are barren , have no fimmits. The neliarium is 
fituated near the bafe of the three fertile flamina ; it has 
an oblong three-cornered germen , with a broad triangular 
fiyle , crowned by a pyramidal three-cornered fiigma •, the 
capfule is three-cornered , having three cells filled with f mall 
plain feeds. 
This genus is ranged in the firft fe&ion of Linnaeus’s 
fixth clafs of plants, the flower having, fix flamina 
and one ftyle. 
The Species are, 
1. Albuca [Major) folks lanceolatis. Lin. Sp. 438. 
Star flower with fpear-floaped leaves. Ornithogalum lu- 
teo-virens. Indicum. Com. Canad. 
2 . Albuca [Minor) foliis fubulatis. Lin. Sp. 438. Star- 
flower with awl-Jhaped leaves. Ornithogalum Africa- 
num, flore viridi altero a-lteri innato. Herm. Parad. 
209. African Star-flower with a greenijh yellow flower. 
Thefe plants have been generally ranged under the 
genus of Ornithogalum, but as their flowers differ in 
their form from the other fpecies of that genus, Dr. 
Linn^us has conftituted this genus for them. 
The firft fort grows naturally in Canada, and in fome 
other parts of North America •, the root is bulbous, 
from which flioot up eight or ten long narrow lpear- 
ftiaped leaves. In the center of thefe arife a flower- 
item a foot or more in height, garnifhed with a loofe 
fpike (or thyrfe) of greenifh yellow flowers, each have 
a long pedunculus, which turns downward, having 
pretty large ftipulse at their bafe, which are erect, and 
end in fharp points. After the flower is paid, the ger- 
men fwells to a three-cornered capfule, having three 
cells filled with flac feeds. 
The fecond fort grows naturally at the Cape of Good 
Hope ; this hath alfo a pretty large bulbous root, 
from which arife four or five narrow awl-fhaped leaves, 
of a deep green colour : the flower-ftem which comes 
from the center of the root, is naked, and rarely rifes 
more than eight or nine inches high, having five or 
fix greenifh yellow flowers growing almoft in form of 
an umbel at the top : thefe are rarely fucceeded by 
feeds in England. 
The Canada Albuca is hardy, fo the roots may be 
planted about four inches deep in a border of light 
earth, where they will thrive, and produce their flow- 
ers late in the fummer ; but as the feeds rarely ripen 
in England, and the bulbs do not put out many orf- 
fets, the plants are not common in this country. 
The African fort I raifed from feeds a few years paft •, 
this generally flowers twice a year, the firft time in 
March or April, and again in July or Auguft, but 
has not produced any feeds. If the roots of this fort 
are kept in pots, filled with light earth, and are fhel- 
tered under a hot-bed frame in winter, they will thrive 
and produce flowers j but the beft method is to have 
A L C 
a border in the front of a green-houfe, or ftove, where 
the roots of moft of the bulbous flowers may be plant- 
ed in the full ground, and fcreened in winter from 
froft in fuch iituations they thrive much better, and 
flower ftronger, than when kept in pots. 
ALCEA. Lm. Gen. 750, The Hollyhock. 
The Characters are. 
The flower hath a double empalement , of which one is per-* 
manent. The outer one is fpread open, and cut at the 
top into fix fegments •, the inner is larger , and flightly cut 
into jive. The flower is compofed of five petals , which 
coalefce at their bafe , and fpread open at the top in form 
of a rofe. In the center is placed the round germen, fup- 
porting a floort cylindrical ftyle , crowned with numerous 
ftigma , which is attended by many flamina joined below to 
the pentagonal column , and fpread open at top •, thefe are 
crowned with kidney- f aped fummits : after the flower is 
paft, the germen becomes a round, deprejfed , articulated cap- 
fule, having many cells, in each of which is lodged one 
comprcjjed kidney-jhaped feed. 
This genus is ranged by Dr. Linnmus in his fixteenth 
clafs of plants, entitled Monadelphia Polyandria : in 
this clafs the flamina and ftyle coalefce and form a fort 
of column in the center of the flower, from whence 
Dr. V an Royen has given to this clafs the title of Co- 
lumnifera, and in this diviflon there are a great num- 
ber of flamina. 
The Species are, 
1. Alcea [Rofea) foliis finuatis angulofis. Hort. Cliff. 
348. Hollyhock with angular finuated leaves. Malva 
rofea folio fubrotundo. C. B. P. 315. 
2. Alcea (. Ficifolia ) foliis palmatis. Hort. Cliff. 348. 
Hollyhock with handed leaves. Malva rofea folio ficusj 
C. B. P. 315. 
Thefe are diflinfl fpecies, whofe difference in the 
form of their leaves always continues. The leaves of 
the firft fort are roundifh, and cut at their extremity 
into angles •, whereas thofe of the fecond are deeply 
cut into fix or feven fegments, fo as to refembie a 
hand. 
The various colours of their flowers being accidental, 
as alfo the double flowers being only varieties which 
have rifen from culture, are not by botanifts deemed 
diftinft fpecies. I have not enumerated them here, 
therefore lhall only mention the various colours which 
are commonly obferved in their flowers •, which are 
white, pale, red, deep red, blackifh red, purple, yel- 
low, and flefli colour. Befides thefe, I many years 
ago faw fome plants with variegated flowers, in the 
garden of the late Lord Burlington, in London, raifed 
from feeds which came from China. 
Although thefe varieties of double Hollyhocks are 
not conflant, yet where the feeds are carefully laved 
from the moft double flowers, the greateft number of 
the plants will arife nearly the fame, as the plants from 
which they were takem, both as to their colour and 
the fulnefs of their flowers, provided no plants with 
Angle or bad coloured flowers are permitted to grow 
near them. Therefore fo foon as any fuch appear, 
they fhould be removed from the good ones, that 
their farina may not fpread into the other flowers, 
which would caufe them to degenerate. 
The firft fpecies grows naturally in China, from 
whence I have often received the feeds. The fecond 
fort I have received from Iftria, where it was gathered 
in the fields, but thefe feeds produced Angle red 
flowers only •, whereas from fome feeds of this fort, 
which were given me by the late Charles Du Bois, 
Efq-, of Mitcham, in 1^26, which he procured from 
Madras, I raifed many double flowers of feveral co- 
lours. 
Thefe plants, although natives of warm countries, 
yet are hardy enough to thrive in the open air in Eng- 
land, and have for many years been fome of the 
greateft ornaments in the garden, toward the latter 
part of fummer ; but fince they have become very 
common, have not been fo much regarded as they de- 
ferve, partly from their growing too large for fmall 
gardens, and their requiring tall flakes to fecure them 
from being broken by ftrong winds. But in large 
I 
