ECH 
4. Echium ( Lujitanicum ) corollis ftamine longioribus. 
Lin. Sp. 200. Viper’s Buglofs with the petal of the flower 
longer than the ftamina. Echium amplifiimo folio, 
Lufitanicum. Tourn. Portugal Piper’s Buglofs with a 
large leaf. 
5. Echium ( Creticum ) calycibus fruftefcentibus diftan- 
tibus, caule procumbente. Lin. Hort. Upial. 35. 
Viper’s Buglofs with fruitful empalements growing at a 
diftance , and a trailing fialk. Echium Creticum lati- 
folium rubrum. C. B. P. 254. Broad-leaved, Viper’s 
Buglofs of Candia , having a red flower. 
6. Echium ( Anguftifolium ) caule ramofo, afpero, foliis 
callofo-verrucofis, ftaminibus corolla longioribus. 
Viper’s Buglofs with a rough branching fialk , wanted 
leaves , and ftamina longer than the petal. Echium Cre- 
ticum anguftifolium rubrum. C. B. P. 254. Narrow- 
leaved Viper’s Buglofs of Candia, having a red flower. 
7. Echium ( Fruticoftm ) caule fruticofo. Hort. Cliff. 43. 
Viper’s Buglofs with afhrubby ftalk. This is the Echium 
Africanum fruticans, foliis piloiis. Hort. Amft. 2. 
p. 107. Shrubby African Viper’s Buglofs , having hairy 
leaves. 
The firft fort grows naturally in Germany and Auf- 
tria, from whence I received the feeds. This and our 
common Viper’s Buglofs, which is the fecond, have 
been confounded by moft of the writers on botany, 
who have fuppofed they were the fame plant, whereas 
they are very different; for the leaves of this are 
fhorter, and much broader than thofe of the fecond ; 
the fpikes of flowers are much longer, and the fta- 
mina of the flowers are in this equal in length with 
the petal; whereas thofe of the fecond ftand out 
much beyond the petal, which is an effential dif- 
ference. 
The fecond fort grows naturally upon chalky lands 
in moft parts of England : this is what Lobel titles 
Lycopfis Anglica, and has been generally taken for 
the common Echium. 
The third fort grows naturally in the fouth of France, 
in Italy, and the ifle of Jerfey ; this rifes with an 
upright hairy ftalk ; the flowers are produced in flaort 
fpikes on the fide of the branches ; they are fmall, 
and fcarce appear above the empalements; fome plants 
have white flowers, and others are purplifh ; the em- 
palements of the flowers are very hairy, and cut into 
acute fegments. 
The fourth fort grows naturally in Portugal and 
Spain ; the lower leaves of this are more than a foot 
long, and two inches broad in the middle, gradually 
leffening to both ends ; thefe are covered with foft 
hairs. The ftalks grow two feet high ; the flowers 
are in fhort fpikes coming from the fide of the ftalks ; 
the petals of thefe are longer than the ftamina. 
The fifth fort grows naturally in Crete ; this hath 
trailing hairy ftalks, which grow about a foot long, 
and put out feveral fide branches, garnilhed with 
hairy fpear-fhaped leaves about three inches long, and 
three quarters of an inch broad, fitting clofe to the 
ftalks. The flowers come out on {lender fpikes upon 
long foot-ftalks, which come from the wings of the 
leaves ; they are large, of a reddifh purple colour, 
which turns to a fine blue when they are dried ; thefe 
ftand at a diftance from each other on the fpike. It 
is an annual plant, which flowers in July and decays 
in autumn. 
The flxth fort hath branching ftalks which grow a 
ibot and a half long, declining toward the ground ; 
they are covered with ftinging hairs ; the leaves are 
four inches long, and not more than half an inch 
broad ; thefe are pretty much waited, and are hairy. 
The flowers grow in loofe fpikes from the fide of 
the ftalks, and alfo at the end of the branches ; they 
are of a reddifh purple colour, but not fo large as 
thofe of the former fort, and the ftamina of thefe are 
longer than the petal. This is alfo an annual plant, 
which grows naturally in Crete. 
Thefe are moft of them biennial plants, except the fifth 
and fixth iorts, which are annual, and are the moft 
beautiful of all the kinds : the feeds of thefe rnuft be 
fown every year, in the places where they are de- 
figned to remain ; and the plants require no ofhef 
culture but to keep them clean from weeds, and 
thin them where they grow too clofe. In July they 
flower, and their feeds ripen in five or fix weeks after.' 
The feeds of the other forts being fown in the fpring, - 
will the fecond fummer after produce flowers and 
feeds, after which they feldom continue. They all 
delight in a rubbifhy gravelly foil, and will grow upon 
the tops of old walls or buildings ; where, when oilce 
they have eftabliftied themfelves, they will drop their 
feeds, and thereby maintain a fucceffion of plants 
-without any care, and on thefe places they appear 
very beautiful. 
The feventh fort grows naturally at the Cape of Good 
Hope, from whence the feeds were brought to Hol- 
land, where the plants are now preierved in fome cu- 
rious gardens. This riles with a fhrubby ftalk two 
or three feet high, dividing upward into feveral 
branches, garnifhed with oval leaves placed alternate, 
w.hofe bale fits clofe to the ftalk ; they are hairy, and 
of a light green colour. The flowers are produced 
fmgly between the leaves at the end of the branches ; 
they are of a purple colour, and in fhape much like 
thofe of the fifth fort. Thefe appear in May and 
June, but the feeds do not ripen in England. 
It is propagated by feeds, when they can be obtained, 
which fhould be fown in pots filled with light iandy 
earth foon after they are received. Thefe may be 
expofed to the open air till the beginning of Oftober, 
when the pots fhould be placed under a frame, to 
guard them from froft ; but in mild weather, they 
fhould be opened to have the free air, to prevent the 
feeds from vegetating till the winter is paft ; for if 
the plants come up at that feafon, their items will be 
weak and full of juice, and very liable to rot with 
damps ; therefore it is much better if the plants do 
not come up till toward March, which is the uluai 
time of their appearing, when the feeds are not forced 
by warmth. When the plants are fit to remove, they 
fhould be each planted into a fmall pot filled with 
light earth, and placed under a frame to forward their 
putting out new roots ; then they fhould be gradually 
inured to bear the open air, and the latter end of 
May be placed abroad in a fneltered fituation, where 
they may remain till the beginning of October ; at 
which time they muft be removed into an airy glafs- 
cafe, where they may enjoy the fun and have free 
air in mild weather. During the winter feafon thefe 
plants muft be fparingly watered ; for as their ftems 
are fucculent, fo much moifture will caufe them to 
rot. In the fummer they fhould be fet abroad in a 
fheltered fituation, and treated in the fame manner as 
other plants from the fame country. 
EDERA QJU I N QU E F O L I A. See Vitis. 
EDGINGS. The beft and moft durable plant for 
edgings in a garden is Box ; which, if well planted, 
and rightly managed, will continue in beauty feveral 
years : the beft feafon for planting this, is either in 
the autumn, or very early in the fpring ; for if you 
plant It late, and the feafon fhould prove hot and dry, 
it will be very fubjecft to mifcarry, unlefs great care 
be taken to fupply it with water. The beft fort for 
this purpofe is the dwarf Dutch Box. 
Thefe edgings are only planted upon the ftdes of 
borders next walks, and not (as the fafhion was fome 
years ago) to plant the edgings of flower-beds, or 
the edges of fruit-borders in the middle of gardens, 
unlefs they have a gravel- walk between them ; which 
renders it proper to preferve the walks clean, by 
keeping the earth of the borders from waffling down 
into the walks in hard rains. 
It was alfo the practice formerly to plant edgings of 
divers forts of aromatic herbs, as Thyme, Savory, 
Hyffop, Lavender, Rue, &c. But as thefe very foon 
grow woody, fa that they cannot be kept in due corii- 
pafs, and in hard winters they are often killed in 
patches, whereby the edgings are rendered incomplete, 
they are now feldom ufed for this purpofe. 
Some people make edgings of Daifies, Thrift, Catch- 
fly, and other flowering plants; but thefe alfo re- 
5 E quire 
