our third fort. , But as our author only faw the dried 
herb, he could no more diftinguifti their difference, 
than we can the Thea' brought from China ; I mean, 
as to the particular trees which produce it. 
C A S S Y T H A. Lin. Gen. Plant. 505. 
The Characters are, 
It hath a fma.ll three-leaved permanent empalement ; the 
fewer hath three petals which are concave and permanent , 
and three, oblong , coloured , nebtaerious glands furrounding 
the germen , with nine eredt comprejfed ftamina , and two 
globular glands, indofng each a Jingle ftamina, fitting on 
one fide the bafe ; thefe have fummits under the top of the 
ftamina % it has an oval germen within the coloured em- 
palement , fupporting a thick ftyle the length of the ftamina , 
crowned by an obtufe almoft trifid ftigma ; the receptacle 
becomes a pulpy berry * globular but a little deprejfed , in- 
clojeci in the coloured empalement , having a perforated 
navebinclofing many oval feeds. 
This is ranged in Linnaeus’s firft order of his eleventh 
clafs of plants, intitled Enneandria Monogynia, the 
flower having eleven ftamina and one ftyle. 
We have at prefent but one Species of this genus. 
Cassytha ( Filiformis ) Gib. It. Lin. 530. Slender Cajfytha. 
Cufcuta b.accifera Barbadenfium. Pluk. Phyt. tab. 
172. f. 2. 
This plant grows naturally in both Indies. I have 
received it from Barbadoes, Jamaica, and the Spanifh 
Weft Indies j and that it grows alfo in the Eaft Indies, 
is plain from its figure in the Hortus Malabaricus. 
It rifes with taper fucculent ftalks, which divide into 
many fender fucculent branches; thefe come out fre- 
quently by threes or fours at the fame joint, afterward 
they fend out fide branches fin gly without order, and 
become very bulky : the flowers come out on the 
fide of the branches fingly, fitting very clofe thereto, 
having no empalement ; the corolla is oval, v/hite, 
with a Email tindture of red, opening like a navel at 
the top, including the germen, ftamina, ftyle, and 
nediarious glands lb clofely, as not to be dilcovered 
till the corolla is cut open ; after the flower is pall, 
the germen becomes many oblong, oval, dark feeds, 
furrounded with a. mucilaginous fubftance. 
This plant is eafily propagated by planting cuttings 
of it during the fummer months, but as thefe cuttings 
are fucculent, it will be proper to cut them off a 
week before they are planted, laying them in the 
ftove, that the part cut may have time to heal over 
before they are planted. Thefe cuttings Ibould be 
planted in fmall pots, which muff be plunged into a 
moderate hoc-bed, where, if they are not over watered, 
they will take root in fix weeks ; then they may be 
parted, planting each into a feparate fmall pot, filled 
with light fancly earth, and may be plunged again 
into the hot-bed to forward their taking new root ; 
after Which they fhould be removed into a dry ftove, 
where they fhould conflantly remain, giving but little 
water in winter, and in fummer admitting a large 
fhare of air in warm weather, for this plant is too 
tender to thrive in the open air in this climate. 
CASTANEA. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 584. tab. 352. 
Fagus. Lin. Gen. Plant. 951. [It takes its name from 
Caftana, a city of Thefialy, where this tree anciently 
grew in great plenty.] The Chefnut-tree, in French 
Xbhateignier , or Mar outlier. 
The Char. act ers are, 
It hath male and female flowers on the fame tree , fome- 
times at feparate diftances , and at other times near each 
other . The' male flowers are fixed to a long firing , form- 
ing a fort of katkin ; thefe have each an empalement of 
one leaf . , cut into five parts ; they have no petals , but 
include about ten or twelve briftly ftamina , terminated by 
oblong fummits. The female flowers have alfo an empale- 
ment of one leaf divided into four parts , having no pe- 
tals , but. a germen fixed to the empalement , fupports three 
ftyles crowned by a reflexed ftigma. The germen , which 
is fiiuated at the baft of the empalement , becomes a 
roundifp fruit armed with foft fpines , including one or 
more nuts. 
This genus of plants is ranged In the eighth feftion 
of Linnseus’s twenty-firft clafs, Intitled Moncecia Po- 
lyandria, the plants of this fe&ion have male and fe- 
male flowers, and the male flowers have many fta- 
mina ; but he has joined this genus to the Fagu* 
making thefe of one "genus, fo that he has entirely 
abflifhed the title. However, as the male flowers 
of the Chefnut are formed into long katkins, and 
thoie of tiie .ocech are globular, they may with 
propriety be kept feparate; and this I choofe to do, 
that it may be more intelligible to common readers. ’ 
The Species are, 
1. Castanea ( Saliva ) foliis lanceolatis acuminato-fer- 
ratis, fubtus nudis. Chefnut with fpear-fhaped leaves , 
which are fharply flawed, and naked on their under fide ! 
Caftanea fativa. C. B. P. 418. The manured Chefnut. 
2. Castanea fPumiia) foliis lanceolato-ovatis acute fer- 
ratis, fubtus tomentofis, amentis filiformibus nodofis. 
Chefnut with oval fpear-fhaped leaves ftmrply flawed , 
which are woolly on their under fide , and a fender knotted 
katkin Caftanea pumila Virginiana, racemofa fruffu 
parvo in fingulis capfulis echinato unico. Pluk. Aim. 
90. The Chinquapin. 
3. Castanea ( Sloanea ) foliis oblongo-ovatis, ferratiw 
fruftu rotundo maxima echinato. Chefnut with oblong 
oval, fawed leaves , and a very large , round . , prickly fruit. 
Sloanea amplis Caftante foliis. frudtu echinato. Plum. 
Nov. Gen. 49. 
The Chefnut is a tree which deferves our care, as 
much as any of the trees which are propagated in 
this country, either for ufe or beauty, being one of 
the bell fort of timber, and affording a goodly fliade. 
It will grow to a very great fize, and fpread its 
branches finely on every fide where it has room. 
The leaves are large, of a lucid green, and continue 
late in the autumn ; nor are they to liable to be eaten 
by infects, as are thofe of the Oak, which of late 
years have frequently happened to the latter, and has 
rendered them very unfightly great part of fummer, 
which I have never obferved to be the cafe with the 
Chefnut, which renders them more valuable for parks 
and plantations for ornament ; and there is no better 
food for deer, and many other animals, than their 
nuts, which moft of them prefer to acorns ; but yet, 
there fhould not be many of thefe trees planted too 
near the habitation ; becaufe, when they are in flower, 
they emit a very difagreeable odour, which is very 
offenfive to moft people. 
There are feveral varieties of this tree, which have 
accidentally arifen from feeds ; lome have been fup- 
pofed diftinbl fpecies, but the differences are only in 
the fize of their fruit and leaves, which have been 
altered, and improved by culture ; fo that the wild 
and manured Chefnut, are undoubtedly the fame ; 
for I have frequently found, that the nuts taken from 
, the fame tree, and cultivated in the fame foil, with 
equal care, have produced trees with very lmall fruit; 
and among them have been others, whole fruit have 
been as large as thofe of the parent tree ; therefore 
they can be only efteemed as varieties. But in many 
countries, where the trees are cultivated for their 
fruit, the people graft the largeft and faireft fruit, 
upon flocks of Chefnut raffed from the nut; and 
thefe grafted trees are by the French called Maron- 
nier, but they are unfit for timber. 
There is alfo a Chefnut with variegated leaves, which 
is propagated in the nurferies by way of curiofity : 
this is maintained by budding, and Inarching it upon 
common Chefnut flocks, in the fame manner as other 
fruit-trees ; but thefe variegated trees and plants are 
not fo much regarded at prefent, as they were feme 
years paft. 
The Dwarf branching Chefnut which is mentioned 
in moft of the books, I take to be only a variety of 
the common; for Dr. Boerhaave fhewed me fome 
young trees in his garden near Leyden, which he had 
railed from nuts, which were fent him by Micheii 
from Florence, as the true fruit of the Dwarf Chef- 
nut; but there appeared to be no difference between 
thofe, and fome other which came from nuts of the 
large fort. 
The 
