EME 
'^ MERU S. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 650. Coronilla. Lin. 
Gen. Plant. 789. [this name was. given it by Theo- 
phraftus, and reftored by Csefaipinus.] Scorpion 
Sena. 
The Characters are. 
The flower hath' tt very jhort empalement of one leafy di- 
vided into five parts which is permanent. The flower is 
of the butterfly kind. The tails of the petals are much 
longer than the empalement. The jlandard is narrow , 
and floorter than the wings , over which it is arched. The 
wings are large and concave. The keel is heart-floaped 
and reflexed. There are ten ftamina in each y one of which 
ft anas ftp arete , the other nine are joined ; thefte are fituated 
in the ftandard. In the empalement is fituated an oblong 
fender germen , ftupportmg a ft.ender ftyle , crowned by a 
taper ftigma. The germen afterward becomes a taper cy- 
lindrical pod, fuddling in thofte parts xvhere the feeds are 
lodged which are alfto cylindrical. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the third feCtion of 
Tournefort’s twenty-fecond clafs, which includes the 
trees and fhrubs with a butterfly flower, whofe leaves 
are placed by pairs along the midrib. Dr. Linnaeus 
has joined this genus, and alfo the Securidacca of 
Tournefort to the Coronilla ; but hereby the number 
of fpecies are increafed, and therefore it is much better 
to keep them feparate, as there are more effential 
differences between them, than in fome of the other 
genera of this clafs which he has feparated. 
The Species are, 
1. Emerus ( Major ) caule fruticofo, pedunculis lon- 
gioribT caule angulato. Scorpion Sena with a florubby 
ftalk , longer footftalks to the flowers, and angular ftalks. 
Emerus. Caefalp. Scorpion Sena, vulgo. 
2. Emerus ( Minor) foliolis obcordatis, pedunculis bre- 
vioribus, caule fruticofo. Scorpion Sena with long heart- 
floaped leaves, floorter foot-ftalks to the flowers, and a 
florubby ftalk. Emerus minor. Tourn. Inft. R. H. 650. 
Leffer Scorpion Sena. 
3. Emerus ( Herbacea ) caule ere&o, herbaceo, foliolis 
multijugatis, floribus fingularibus alaribus, filiquis 
longiftimis ereftis. Scorpion Sena with an eredl herba- 
ceous ftalk, the leaves compofed of many pair of hbes, fingle 
flowers proceeding from the fides of the ftalks, and very 
long ereffl pods. Emerus filiquis lorigiffimis & an- 
guftiflimis. Plum. Cat. 19. Emerus with very long and 
narrow pods. 
The firft of thefe fhrubs is very common in all the 
nurferies near London ; this rifes with weak fhrubby 
ftalks to the height of eight or nine feet, dividing 
into many flender branches, garnifhed with winged 
leaves, compofed of three pair of lobes (or fmall 
leaves) terminated by an odd one. The flowers come 
out upon long foot-ftalks from the fide of the 
branches, two or three of thefe foot-ftalks arifing from 
the fame point ; each of thefe fuftains two, three, or 
four yellow butterfly flowers ; thefe appear in May, 
and are frequently fucceeded by long flender pods, 
which are taper, fwelling in thofe parts where the 
feeds are lodged, and hang downward ; thefe fhrubs 
continue long in flower, efpecially in cool feafons, and 
frequently flower again in autumn, which renders 
them valuable. 
The fecond fort rifes with many fhrubby ftalks like 
the firft, but not more than half the height ; this hath 
larger leaves, which are of an oblong heart-fliape. 
The flowers are rather larger than thofe of the firft, 
and ftand upon fhorter foot-ftalks ; thefe differences 
hold in the plants which are raifed from feeds, there- 
fore I think they may be allowed to ftand as diftind 
fpecies, though there is a great likenels at firft fight 
in them. 
The leaves of thefe fhrubs, when fermented in a vat, 
in the fame manner as is pradifed with the Indigo 
plants, will 1 afford a dye, very near to that of Indigo •, 
but whether it will anfwer the fame purpofes is not 
yet certain, or whether it may be worth cultivating 
for that purpofe, either here or abroad, is what we 
cannot yet determine ; but thete is fo great affinity 
between thefe plants, and thofe of the Indigo in their 
generical charaders, that Dr. Tournefort, and fe- 
6 
E M P 
veral other botanifts, have ranged them in the fame 
genus. 
I heie fhrubs are eafily propagated by fowing their 
feeds (which they commonly produce in great plenty) 
in March, upon a bed of light fandy earth, obferving 
to keep the bed clear frdm weeds ; and in very dry 
weather the bed muff often be refrefhed with water, 
which ffiould be given carefully, left the feeds fhould 
be wafhed out of the ground by hafty watering. When 
the plants are come up, they muft be kept clean from 
weeds, and in very dry weather, if they are watered, 
it will promote their growth ; the Michaelmas fol- 
lowing (if the plants have thriven well) you may draw 
out the largeft, which may be tranfplanted into a 
nurfery, at three feet diftance row from row, and one 
foot afunder in the rows. This will give room -to 
thofe plants which are left to grow in the feed-bed, 
in which place they may remain another year, when 
they will alfo be fit to tranfplant into a nurfery, where 
they fhould be two years, when they will be fit to 
plant out, where they are to remain for good 5, in 
doing of which, you fhould be careful in taking them 
up, not to break or wound the roots, nor fhould they 
remain too long in the nurfery before they are tranf- 
planted, for they are fubject to fhoot downright roots, 
which, when cut off, oftentimes proves the death of 
the tree. In all other rdpedts it muft be treated like 
other flowering fhrubs, among which this is com- 
monly fold at the nurferies. It may alfo be propagated 
by laying down the tender branches, which will take 
root in about a year’s time, and may then be tranf- 
planted into a nurfery, and managed in the fame 
manner as the feedling plants. 
The third fort grows naturally in the Weft-Indies, 
where Plunder firft dilcovered it in the French fet- 
tlements •, but it was found growing in plenty at La 
Vera Cruz, in New Spain, by the late Dr. Houftoun, 
who fent me the feeds, which fucceeded in the Chel- 
fea garden, where the plants flowered, but did not 
perfed their feeds, and the plants being annual, the 
fpecies was loft here. This rifes with a round her- 
baceous ftalk three feet high, which is garniftted at 
each joint with one long winged leaf, compofed of 
about twenty pair of lobes, terminated by an odd one; 
thefe have obtufe points, and are of a deep green. 
The flowers come out fingly from the fide of the 
ftalk, immediately above the foot-ftalk of the leaves, 
Handing upon flender foot-ftalks two inches long; 
they are larger than thofe of either of the former forts, 
and are of a pale yellow colour ; thefe are fucceeded 
by flender compreffed pods, which are more than fix; 
inches long, having a border on each fide, and a 
fwelling where each feed is lodged. 
This is an annual plant, whole feeds muft be fown. 
upon a hot-bed in the fpring, and when the plants are 
fit to remove, they fhould be each planted into a fe- 
parate fmall pot filled with light kitchen-garden earth, 
and plunged into a moderate hot-bed of tanners bark, 
fhading them from the fun until they have taken new 
root, then they muft be treated in the fame manner 
as other exotic plants from thofe warm countries. If 
thefe plants are brought forward in the fpring, and 
kept under a deep frame in a tan-bed, or plunged 
into the bark-bed in the ftove, when they are grown 
too tall to remain under common frames, they will 
ripen feeds in England ; for thofe feeds which I re- 
ceived did net arrive here till May, and yet thofe 
plants flowered well in Auguft; but the autumn 
coming on foon after, prevented their perfecting feeds, 
and that part of the feed which I referved till the 
next year did not grow. 
E M P E T R U M. Lin. Gen. Plant. 977. Tourn. Inft. 
R. H. 579. tab. 421. of h, in, and 7 tT£T£fl 5 , 
Gr. a rock or ftone, becaufe this tree grows in ftony 
places.] Black-berried Heath. 
The Characters are, 
It hath male and female flowers on different plants ; the 
male flowers have a three-pointed empalement , which is 
permanent \ they have three oblong petals , which are nar- 
row at their bafe , and three long hanging ftamina which 
are 
