'ii. Cytisus (Cay an) racemis axill arib as e rectis , folio- 
lis jiiblanceolatis tomentofis, intermedio longius pe- 
tiolato. Flor. Zeyl. 357. Cytifus with erect fpik.es of 
flowers proceeding from the Jides of the branches , and 
jpear-fljaped leaves which are woolly , the. foot-ftalk of the 
middle one being the longeft. Cytifus arborefcens, frac- 
tal eduli albo. Plum. Cat. 19. Commonly called Pidgeon 
Pea in America. 
The firft fort is the common broad-leaved Laburnum, 
which was formerly in greater plenty in the Englifli 
gardens than atprefent ; for frnce the fecond fort hath 
been introduced, it has aimoft turned this out; the 
fpikes of flowers being much longer, they make a 
finer appearance when they are in flower, which has 
occafioned their being more generally cultivated ; but 
the firft grows to be the largeft tree, and the wood of 
it is very hard, of a fine colour, and will polifia very 
well ; it approaches near to green Ebony, fo is by the 
French titled Ebony of the Alps, and is there ufed 
for many kinds of furniture ; but in England there 
are few of thefe trees which have been luffered to 
Land long enough to arrive to any coniiderable fize, 
for as they have been only confidered as an ornamen- 
tal tree, the frequent alterations which moft of the 
gardens in England have undergone, have occafioned 
their being rooted out wherever they were growing ; 
but in home of the old gardens in Scotland, where 
they have been permitted to Land, there are large 
trees of this kind, which are fit to cut down for the 
ufe of the timber. .1 have feen two old trees of it in 
gardens, which were more than a yard in girt, at fix 
feet from the ground, and thefe had been broken and 
abufed, otherwife might have been much larger : they 
grow very fait, and are extremely hardy, fo may be 
well worth propagating upon poor fhallow foils, and 
in expofed fituations. His Grace the Duke of Queenf- 
berry fowed a great quantity of the feeds of this tree, 
upon the fide of the downs, at his feat near Amef- 
bury, in Wiltfiiire, where the fituation was very much 
expofed, and the foil fo lhallow, as that few trees 
would grow there ; yet in this place the young trees 
were twelve feet high in four years growth, fo be- 
came a flicker to the other plantations, for which 
purpofe they were defigned ; but the hares and rab- 
bits are great enemies to thefe trees, by barking them 
in winter, fo that where thele trees are cultivated, 
they fliould be fenced from thefe animals. 
Both thefe forts are eafily propagated by feeds, which 
the trees produce in great plenty. If thefe are fown 
upon a common bed in March, the plants will appear 
by the middle or end of April, and will require no 
other care but to be kept clean from weeds during 
the following fummer ; and if the plants are too clofe 
together, they may be tranfplanted the autumn fol- 
lowing, either into a nurfery, where they may grow 
a year or two to get ftrength, or into the places where 
they are defigned to remain : where people would 
cultivate them for their wood, it will be the beft way 
to fow the feeds upon the fpot where they are intend- 
ed to grow, becaufe thefe trees fend out long, thick, 
flefhy roots to a great diftance, which will penetrate 
gravel or rocks ; and if thefe roots are cut or broken, 
it greatly retards their growth ; therefore when they 
are not fown upon the intended fpot, they fliould be 
tranfplanted thither young, otherwife they will not 
grow to near the fize ; though where they are only 
defigned for ornament, the removing the plants twice 
will flop their growth, and caufe them to be more pro- 
duftive of flowers ; but all trees intended for timber, 
are much better fown on the ground where they are 
defigned to Hand, than if they are tranfplanted. 
If the feeds of thefe trees are permitted to fcatter in 
winter, the plants will rife in great plenty the follow- 
ing fpring, fo that a few trees will focn fupply any 
perfon with a fufficient number of the plants. 
Thefe trees flower in May, at which time they make 
a fine appearance, their branches being generally 
loaded with long firings of yellow flowers, which 
hang down from every part. The feeds grow in long 
pods, which ripen in autumn. There is a variety of 
both thefe trees with variegated leaves, which foilie 
perfons are fond of cultivating ; but this is only to be 
done by cuttings or layers, for the feeds of thefe will 
produce plants with green leaves : the cuttings fliould 
be planted in autumn, when the leaves begin to fall,, 
and the plants mull have a poor foil, for in good 
ground they are apt to become plain. 
If the firft fort comes to be confidered as a ufeful 
wood, which there is no reafon to doubt it may be, it 
may be planted in large clumps in parks, where they 
will be very ornamental; and I am certain, from long 
experience, that this tree will thrive upon many foils, 
and in fuch fituations as few other trees will make any 
progrefs ; the objection to fencing is the fame here, 
as for any other trees, for wherever plantations are 
made, if they are not well fecured from animals, they 
will not anfwer the defign of the planters. 
The fecond fort differs from the firft, in having nar- 
rower leaves, longer bunches of flowers, and the trees 
do not grow fo large and ftrong ; this difference I 
find is conftant from feed. There is another fort 
meFitioned by Tournefort, with fliorter bunches of 
flowers than either of thefe, one tree of which kind I 
thought I had found in a garden ; the bunches of the 
flowers upon this tree were dole and aimoft round, 
but I fowed the feeds of it, and the plants proved to 
be only the common fort. 
The third fort grows naturally in Auftria, in Italy 
and Spain, and at prefent is pretty rare in the Englifli 
gardens ; it was formerly in fome of the curious gar- 
dens here, but had been long loft, till a few years 
ago, when I procured the feeds from abroad, which 
fucceeded in the Chelfea gardens, where the plants 
have flowered and produced ripe feeds, which have 
been communicated to feveral curious perfons. 
This fhrub feldom rifes more than three or four feet 
high in England ; it naturally puts out many lateral 
branches near the ground, which fpread out on every 
fide, fo as to form a low fhrubby bufh, fo is with dif- 
ficulty raffed to a flem : the branches are very Tender, 
and their ends are frequently killed if the winter is 
fevere ; thefe are garnifhed with oblong oval leaves, 
growing by threes on each foot-ftalk ; they are equal 
in fize, and of a dark green colour; the branches 
grow ered, and are terminated by fpikes of yellow 
flowers, about four or five inches in length, Handing 
upright ; and as all the branches are thus terminated, 
fo when the fhrubs are in flower, they make a fine 
appearance ; it flowers in July, after moft of the other 
forts are paft, and the feeds ripen in autumn. This 
is propagated by feeds, which fhould be fown upon 
a bed of" light earth in March, covering them about 
one third of an inch with fine fcreened mould ; in 
the beginning of May the plants will appear, when, 
they muft be carefully weeded, and during the fol- 
lowing fummer they muft conftantly be kept clean, 
which is all the culture they require till autumn, 
when it will be very proper to arch the bed over with 
hoops, that in frofty weather the plants may be 
covered with mats, to prevent their tender flioots 
from being killed ; for as thefe young plants are apt 
to continue growing later in the autumn than thole 
which are become woody, fo they- are much more 
luiceptible of cold ; therefore where there is not fome 
care taken to cover them, if the winter fhould prove 
fevere, many of them may be entirely deftroyed, and 
the others killed to the ground. The fpring fol- 
lowing, after the danger of hard froft is over, the 
plants fliould be carefully taken up, and planted out 
at the diftance of one foot, row from row, and fix 
inches afunder in the rows ; this fliould be in a fhel- 
tered fituation, and as thefe plants do not flioor till 
late in the fpring, fo they need not be traniplanted 
before the end of March, or the beginning of April; 
and if the feafon fhould then prove warm and dry, it 
will be proper to give the plants fome water to fettle 
the earth to their roots ; and if the drought continue, 
and the waterings are three times repeated at a week’s 
interval from each, it will be of fervice to the plants. 
After they have taken new root, they will require 
no 
