CER 
CERE ERA. Lin. Gen. Plant. 260. Thevetia. Lin. 
Hort. Cliff. 76. Prod. Leyd. 413. Ahouai. Tourn. 
Inft. R. H. 657. tab. 434. 
The Characters are, 
The empalcment is compofed of five fharp-pointed haves , 
which fpread open and fall away.. 'The flower is of one 
leaf funnel-fioaped , having a long tube fpread open at the 
top , where ft is divided into five large obtufe fegments , 
fianding oblique to the mouth of the tube ; it hath five 
Jlamina Jituated in the middle of the tube , which are ter- 
minated by erebi fummits ; thefe fland clofe together. In 
the center is fituated a roundifh germen, fupporting a fhort 
fiy is, crowned by a fiigma in form of a head. The ger- 
men afterward becomes a, large , flefioy , roundifh berry , 
with a longitudinal furrow on the fide , dividing it into 
two cells , each containing a Jingle , large , compreffed nut. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the firft leftion of 
Linnaeus’s fifth clafs, intitled Pentandria Monogynia, 
the flower having five ftamina and one ftyle. 
The Species are, 
1. Cerbera ( Ahouai ) foliis ovatis. Lin. Sp. Plant. 208. 
Cerbera with oval leaves. Ahouai. Thevet. An tar eft . 
66. Tourn. Inft. 658. The Ahouai. 
2. Cerbera {Thevetia) foliis linearibus, longiffimis, 
confertis. Lin. Sp. Plant. 209. Cerbera with very long 
narrow leaves growing in clufiers. Ahouai Nerii folio, 
flore luteo. Plum. Cat. 20. Ahouai with a Rofe-bay 
leaf \ and a yellow flozver. 
3. Cerbera {Manghas) foliis lanceolatis, nervis tranf- 
verfalibus. Flor. Zeyl. 106. Cerbera with fpear-fioaped ' 
leaves and tranfverfe nerves. Manghas lactefcens, fo- 
liis Nerii craflis venofis, Jafmini flore, fru'eftu Perfici 
fimili venenato. Burm. Zeyl. 1 50. tab. 70. 
The firft fort grows naturally in the Brazils, and alfo 
in the Spanifh Weft Indies in plenty; and there are 
fome of the trees growing in the Britifh iflands of A- 
merica ; this rifes with an irregular ftem to the height 
of eight or ten feet, lending out many crooked dif- 
fufed branches. Which toward their tops are garnifhed 
with thick fucculent leaves about three inches long, 
and near two broad, of a lucid green, ftnooth, and 
very full of a milky juice, as is every part of the 
Ihrubs. The flowers come out in loofe bunches at 
the end of the branches, of a cream colour, having 
long narrow tubes at the top cut into five obtufe feg- 
ments, which feem twilled, fo as to Hand oblique to 
the tube ; thefe fpread open, and have the appearance 
of the flowers of Oleander. It flowers in July and 
Auguft, but never produces fruit in England. The 
wood of this tree ftinks moft abominably, and the 
kernels of the nuts are a moft deadly poifon ; fo that 
the Indians always caution their children againft eating 
them, for they know of no antidote to expel this poi- 
fon ; nor will any of them ufe the wood of this tree 
for fuel, but they take the kernels out of the fhells, 
into which they put final! ftones, then bore a hole 
through each fhell, and ftring them ; thefe they tie 
about their legs to dance with, as the morris-dancers 
ufe bells. 
The fecond fort grows naturally in the Spanifh Weft 
Indies, and alfo in fome of the French iflands in A- 
merica, and hath lately been introduced into the Bri- 
tifli iflands, from whence I received the feeds by the 
title of French Phyfic Nut ; but how it came by that 
appellation, I cannot imagine, becaufe there is another 
plant which grows common there, and has palled un- 
der that title many years. 
This rifes with a round ftalk about the fame height 
as the former, dividing upward into many branches. 
Thefe, when young, are covered with a green fmooth 
bark, but as they grow older, the bark becomes rough, 
but changes to a gray or Afh-colour. The leaves are 
four or five inches long, and half an inch broad in 
the middle, ending in fliarp points, of a lucid green, 
and come out in drifters without order, and are full 
of a milky juice, which flows out when they are 
broken. The flowers come out from the fide of the 
branches upon long foot-ftalks, each fupporting two 
or three yellow flowers with long tubes, fpreading 
open in the fame manner as the former. It flowers 
C £ 11 
about the fame time as, the former, but never piifi 
duces fruit in England. 
The third fort grows naturally in India, and alfo in 
fome parts of the Spanilli Weft Indies, from whence i 
received the feeds ; this rifes with a woody fbfem to 
the height of twenty feet, fending out many branches 
toward the top, garnifhed with long fpear-fliapect 
leaves, which are rounded at their ends ; the/are 
thick, fucculent, and, on their upper fide, of a lu- 
cid green, having feveral tranfverfe nerves from the 
midrib to the fide ; on their under fide they are of a 
paler green. The flowers are produced at the end of 
the branches, ftanding on long foot-ftalks, each fuf- 
taining two or three flowers fhaped like thofe of the 
other fpecies. 
Thefe plants may be propagated from their nuts, 
which muft be procured from the countries where 
they grow naturally ; thefe fhould be put into fmall 
pots filled with light earth, and plunged into a hot- 
bed of tanners bark in the fpring, and treated in the 
fame manner as other tender exotic feeds, giving them 
now and then a little water to promote their vegeta- 
tion. When the plants are come up about two inches 
high, they fhould be tranfplanted each into a fepa- 
rate pot, filled with light landy earth, and plunged 
again into a hot-bed of tanners bark, obferving to 
fhade the glaflfes in the heat of the day, until the 
plants have taken new root ; they muft ’alfo be fre- 
quently refrefhed with water, but it muft not be 
given in too large quantities. As the fummer ad- 
vances, thefe plants fhould have air admitted to them 
in proportion to the warmth of the feafon ; and when 
they have filled thefe fmall pots with their roots, they 
fhould be turned out and tranfplanted into other pots 
of a larger fize, but they muft not be too large ; for 
the roots of thele plants fhould be confined, nor fhould 
the earth in which they are planted be rich, but a 
light fandy foil is belt for them ; after they are new 
potted they fhould be plunged into the hot-bed again, 
obferving to water them now and then, as alfo to ad- 
mit air under the glaffes every day in proportion to 
the warmth of the feafon. When the plants are growq 
about a foot high, they fhould have a larger fhare 
of air, in order to harden them before the winter, 
but they fhould not be wholly expofed to the open 
air. In the winter thefe plants fhould be placed in a 
warm ftove, and during that feafon they fhould have 
very little water given to them, efpecially in cold 
weather, left it fhould rot their roots. In the fol- 
lowing fpring thefe plants fhould be fhifted again into 
other pots, at which time you fhould take away as 
much as you conveniently can of the old earth from 
their roots, and afterwards cut off the decayed fibres ; 
then put them into pots filled with the fame light fan- 
dy earth, and plunge them into the bark-bed again, 
for thefe plants will not thrive well unlefs they are 
conftantly kept in tan : and as they abound with, 
milky juice, they fhould be fparingly watered, for 
they are impatient of moifture, efpecially during the 
winter feafon. 
When by any accident the tops of thefe plants are 
injured, they frequently put out fnoots from their 
roots, which, if carefully taken up and potted, will 
make good plants, fo that they may be this way pro- 
pagated. 
CERCIS. Lin. Gen. Plant. 458. Siliquaftrum. Tourn. 
Inft. R. H. 646. tab. 414. The Judas-tree, in French 
Gminier. 
The Characters are, 
It hath a fhort bell-fhaped empalerneni of one leaf. \ which 
is convex at the bottom ? and full of honey liquor ; at the 
top it is indented in five parts. The flower hath five 
petals , which are inferted in the empalement , and. greatly 
refembles a papilionaceous fiozver. The two wings rife 
above the jlandard and are reflexed ; the Jlandard is of 
one roundifh petal , and the keel is compofed of two petals , 
in form of a heart , which inclofe the parts of genera- 
tion. It hath ten diflinbl ftamina, zvhich decline, four 
of which are longer than the reft, and are terminated by 
oblong incumbent fummits. It hath a long fender ger- 
men. 
