CEP 
florets as the other forts. This flowers in July, but 
rarely produces ripe feeds in this country, fo is pro- 
pagated by flips as the fifth fort ; and as the plants 
which are expofed to the open air in winter are fre- 
quently deftroyed, it will be proper to place one or 
two of them under a common frame to preferve the 
fpecies. 
The nineteenth fort grows naturally in Portugal : the 
ftalks of this are perennial ; the leaves continue in 
verdure through the year, for which it is chiefly va- 
lued, for the flower has little more beauty than the 
common Knapweed. It flowers in June and July, 
and in warm feafons the feeds ripen in September. It 
is propagated by feeds, which, if fown in April in a 
bed of light earth, the plants will rife eafily. Thefe 
plants, in a dry foil and a fheltered fituation, will live 
in the open air in mild winters ; but as they are fre- 
quently killed when the frofts are fevere, it will be 
proper to fhelter a plant or two under a common frame 
in winter to preferve the fpecies. 
The twentieth fort grows naturally in Spain, and 
upon the Helvetian mountains. This rarely conti- 
nues longer than two or three years : the lower leaves 
are doubly wing-pointed, thofe on the ftalks are 
fpear-fhaped, winged, and indented ; the ftalks rife 
three feet high, and are terminated by flowers like 
thofe of the common Knapweed, having filvery em- 
palements. It flowers in July, and the feeds ripen in 
September. If thefe are fown in April on a bed of 
light earth, the plants will come up, and will live 
through the winter in the open air. 
The twenty-firft fort grows naturally in the Campania 
of Rome. This is a biennial plant in England ; thofe 
plants which arife from feeds in the fpring feldom 
flower till the following year, and when they perfect 
their feeds they die. The ftalks of this fort rife three 
feet high •, the lower leaves are wing-pointed, without 
fpines ; thofe on the ftalks run along the ftalks like 
wings ; the flowers are large, red, and their empale- 
ments are ftrongly armed with fpines. This flowers 
in July, and the feeds ripen in September. It may 
be propagated by feeds as the former. 
The fecond fort grows naturally in Spain and Mauri- 
tania. This is an annual plant, which rarely ripens 
its feeds in England ; the leaves of this are fpear- 
fhaped, indented, and woolly; the ftalk rifes two 
feet high, dividing upward into three or fourbranches, 
which are terminated by pretty large heads of flow- 
ers, whofe empalements are woolly, and ftrongly 
armed with fpines. This flowers in July, and in 
warm feafons the feeds ripen in September. It is pro- 
pagated by feeds as the two former forts. 
The twenty-third fort grows naturally in Portugal. 
The ftalk of this rifes two feet high, garnilhed with 
woolly leaves ; fome of which are entire, others are 
flnuated on their borders ; the ftalks are terminated 
by woolly heads of flowers, ftrongly armed with dou- 
ble fpines on the empalement, which almoft inclofes 
the florets. It flowers in July, and in warm feafons 
the feeds ripen in September. It is propagated by 
feeds as the former. 
The twenty-fourth fort is the Carduus Benedictus, or 
Bleffed Thiftle, which is frequently ufed as an euii- 
tic. It grows naturally in Spain and the Levant ; in 
England it is propagated in gardens for medicinal 
ufe. It is an annual plant, which perifiies foon after 
the feeds are ripe. The fureft method of cultivating 
this plant, is to fow the feeds in autumn ; and when 
the plants come up, to hoe the ground, to cut up 
the weeds, and thin the plants ; and in the following 
fpring to hoe it a fecond time, leaving the plants a 
foot afunder, which will ripen their feeds in autumn, 
and foon after decay. 
CENTAUR HJM MINUS. See Gentiana. 
CENTINODIU M, Knot Grafs. See Polygonum. 
CEPA, the Onion. 
The botanical characters of this genus are the fame 
with thofe of Allium, to which it is now joined by 
the late fyftem but as this work is intended for the 
inftrudion of fuch as are not well acquainted with the I 
CEP 
fcience of botany, or who may have no inclination to 
ftudy it, and yet may want information how to cul- 
tivate the plants which are ufeful in the kitchen, I 
have chofen to treat of thefe under their former ap- 
pellation. Mr. Ray and Tournefort admit of the 
flftular leaves and~ fwelling ftalks, as characters to 
diftinguifh the plants of this genus from Porrum and 
Allium. 
The Varieties of the common Onion are, 
The Strafburgh. Cepa oblong. C. B. P. 71. 
The Spanifh Onion. Cepa vulgaris, fioribus & tuni- 
cis purpurafcentibus. C. B. P. 71. 
The white Egyptian Onion. Cepa fioribus & tunicis 
eandidis. C. B. P. 71. 
All thefe vary from feeds, fo that there are feveral 
intermediate differences which are not worth enume- 
rating. 
Thefe three varieties are propagated by feeds, which 
fliould be fown at the latter end of February or the 
beginning of March, on good, rich, light ground, 
which fliould be well dug and levelled, and cleared 
from the roots of all bad weeds ; then the feeds 
fliould be fown in a dry time, when the furface of the 
ground is not moift ; and where they are intended for 
a winter crop, they muft not be fown too thick. The 
common allowance of feed is fix pounds to an acre 
of land ; but the generality of gardeners fow more, 
becaufe many of them allow for a crop to draw out, 
which they call cullings •, thefe are all fuch as want 
to be removed from others, fo are thinned out when 
young, and tied in bunches for the market ; but thofe 
who have regard to their principal crop, never prac- 
tife this ; therefore fow no more feeds than is fufficient, 
which is the quantity before-mentioned, for when the 
plants come up too clofe, they draw each other weak ; 
and when this happens, their roots never grow fo 
large as thofe which are thin : befldes, there is a 
greater trouble in hoeing them ; and when they are 
thinned for the market, the ground is trodden over, 
and the Onions whkh are to ftand have their leaves 
bruifed, whereby they are greatly injured ; fo that 
where young Onions are wanted, it is a much better 
way to fow fome feparate beds for this purpofe, than 
to injure the future crop. 
In about fix or feven weeks after fowing, the Onions 
will be up forward enough to hoe ; at which time 
(choofing dry weather) you fliould, with a finall hoe 
about two inches and a half broad, cut up lightly all 
the weeds from amongft the Onions ; and alfo cut 
out the Onions where they grow too clofe in bunches, 
leaving them at this firft hoeing at leaft two inches 
apart. This, if well performed, and in a dry feafon, 
will preferve the ground clear of weeds at leaft a 
month or five weeks ; when you muft hoe them over 
a fecond time, cutting up all the weeds as before, and 
alfo cut out the Onions to a larger diftance, leaving 
them this time three or four inches afunder. This 
alfo, if well performed, will preferve the ground 
clean a month or fix weeks longer, when you muft 
hoe them over the third and laft time. 
Now you muft carefully cut up all weeds, and Angle 
out the Onions to near fix inches fquare ; by which 
means they will grow much larger, than if left too 
clofe. This time of hoeing, if the weather proves 
dry and it is well performed, will keep the ground 
clean until the Onions are fit to pull up ; but if the 
weather fliould prove moift, and any of , the weeds 
fliould take root again, you fliould, about a fortnight 
or three weeks after, go over the ground and draw 
out all the large weeds with your hands ; for the Oni- 
ons ha dng now begun to bulb, they fliould not be 
difturbed with a hoe. 
Toward the middle of Auguft your Onions will have 
arrived to their full growth, which may be known by 
their blades falling to the ground and ftirinking ; you 
fliould therefore, before their necks or blades are wi- 
thered off, draw them out of the ground, cropping 
off the extreme part of the blade, and lay them abroad 
upon a dry fpot of ground to dry, obferving to turn 
them over every other day at leaft, to prevent their 
K k k finking 
U4 
