C I s 
veins or nerves. According to Cavanilles, the ilem is 
two feet high, with a brown bark; leaves fubconnate, 
ovate-oblong, white on the lower furface, with a-promi- 
nent dorfal nerve ; thole on the older branches ftiort, nar¬ 
rowed at the bale, with a fort of petiole, relembling thofe 
of thymus maltichina; on the flowering branches they 
are many times longer* but ftill feflile and connate. Na¬ 
tive of Spain. 
Propagation and Culture. All the various kinds of cif- 
tus are very great ornaments to a garden; their'flowers, 
though but of a fliort duration, are fucceeded by frefli 
ones almoft every day for above two months fucceflively; 
thefe flowers are many of them about the bignefs of. a 
middling rofe, but Angle, and of different colours; the 
plants continue tlve-ir leaves all the year. The moll de- 
iinvble forts for their beauty are the 3d, 4th, 5th, 8th, and 
12th. The ,6th, 9th, and 10th, are alfo very handfotne. 
Thefe plants are mod of them hardy enough to live in 
the open air in England, unlefs in very fevere winters, 
which often deftroy many of them, fo that a plant or two 
of each fort may be kept in pots, and flieltered in winter, 
to preferve the kinds; the reft; may be intermixed with 
other Ihrubs, where they will make a pretty diverflty.; 
and, in fuch places where they are flieltered by other 
plants, they will endure the cold much better than where 
they are fcattered fingly in the borders. 
The ill, 17th, 30th, 31ft, 36th, 49th, and 50th, require 
the prott'dlion of a (love. The 12th is the molt tender of 
the European lpecies, and will hardly live abroad in the 
winter. The 2d, 3d, and 9th, are the next in tendernefs; 
and, after them, the 4th, 8th, and 12th. Many of thefe 
plants will grow to the height of five or fix feet, and 
will have large fpreading heads, provided they are per¬ 
mitted to grow uncut; but, if they are ever trimmed, it 
fliould be only fo much as to prevent their heads from 
growing too large for their Items; for, whenever this 
happens, they are apt to fall on the .ground, and appear 
unfiglitly. 
Thefe Ihrubs are propagated by feeds, and alfo from cut¬ 
tings ; but the latter method is feldom praftifed, unlefs 
for thofe forts which do not produce feeds in England ; 
thefe are the twelfth and the fifty-fifth forts; all the others 
generally produce plenty of feeds, efpecially thofe plants 
which came from leeds; for thofe which are propagated 
by cuttings, are very lubjeft to become barren, which is 
alfo common to many other plants. The feeds of thefe 
plants may be fown in the fpring upon a common border 
of light earth, where the plants will come up in fix or 
feven weeks; and, if they are kept clear front weeds, and 
thinned where they are too dole, they wdll grow eight or 
ten inches high the fame year; but, as the plants, when 
young, are liable to injury from hard fro ft, they fliould be 
traniplanted, when about an inch high,Tome into fmall 
pots filled with light earth, that they may be removed 
into firelter in winter, and the others into a warm border, 
at about fix inches diltance each way; thofe which are 
potted, mull be fet in a fliady fituation till they have 
taken new root; and .thole planted in the border bruit be 
fiiaded every day with mats till they are rooted, after 
which the latter will require no other care but to keep 
them clean from weeds till autumn, when they fliould 
have hoops placed over tl^em, that they may be covered 
in frofty weather; thofe in the pots may be removed into 
an open fituation, fo foon as they have taken new root, 
where they may remain till the end of October, but, 
during the fummer, they mull be fliifted into large pots, 
and be frequently watered; at the end of October they 
fliould be placed under a hot-bed frame to Tcreen them 
from the cold in winter; but, at all times, when the 
weather is mild, they fliould be fully expofed to the open 
air, and onty covered in frofts : with this management, 
the plants will thrive much better than wdien they are 
more tenderly treated. 
The above method is what the gardeners generally 
praftifej but thofe who are defirous to have their plants 
T U S. 623 
come forward, fliould fow the feeds on a moderate hot¬ 
bed in the fpring, which will bring up the plants very 
foon: but thefe mull have plenty of air when they ap¬ 
pear, othervvife they will draw up very weak; when the 
plants are fit to remove, they fliould be each planted into 
a feparate finally pot, and plunged into a very moderate 
hot-bed, obferving to fiiade them till they have taken 
frefli root; then they mull have plenty of air admitted to 
them every day in good weather, to prevent their draw¬ 
ing up weak; and, by degrees, they mull be hardened, 
fo as to be removed into the open air the beginning of 
June, and then they may be treated in the fame manner 
as is before dire fled for the other feediing plants. By 
bringing the plants forward in the fpring in this method, 
they will grow to the height of two feet, or more, the 
firfc fummer, and diave many lateral branches, fo that 
they will be firong enough to plant abroad the following 
fpring, and moll'of them will flower the fame’fummer; 
whereas thofe which are fown in the full ground, rarely 
flower till the year after; nor will they be fo itrong, or capa¬ 
ble to refill the cold of the fecond winter, as thofe which 
have been brought forward. In the fpring following, thefe 
plants may be turned out of the pets., with all the earth 
preferved to their roots, and planted in the places where 
they are to remain, (for they are bad plants to remove 
when grown old,) obferving to give them now and then a 
little water, until they have taken frefli root; after which 
time, they will require no farther care than to train them 
upright in the manner you would have them grow; but 
thofe plants which were at firll planted into a border in 
the open ground, fliould be arched over, and covered with 
mats in frofty weather, during the firll winter, but may 
be traniplanted 1 abroad the lucceeding fpring. In re¬ 
moving thefe plants, you fliould be careful to preferve as 
much earth about the roots as you can ; and, if the fea- 
fon fliould prove hot and dry, you in lift water and fliade 
them until they have taken frefli root, after which they 
will require no other culture than was before direfled. 
Thefe plants may alfo be propagated by cuttings., which 
fliould be planted in May or June, upon a bed of ljght 
earth, keeping them fliaded with mats, and frequently 
refrefhed with water, until they have taken root; which 
will be in about two months time, when'you may tranf- 
plant them into pots filled with good frefli light earth, 
and they fliould be fet in a fliady place until they have 
taken root, then they may be expofed to the open fun 
until October, when you fliould remove them into (bel¬ 
ter the firll winter ; but the lucceeding fpring you may 
plant them abroad, as was before directed for the feediing 
plants. 
Moll of the perennial forts of dwarf ciltus or funflowcr 
(helianthetnum) will thrive in the open air in England ; 
they are propagated by feeds, which may be fown in 
places where they are to remain, and will require no 
oilier care but to keep them clean from weeds, and to 
thin them where they are too dole, always obferving to 
leave thofe forts at a greater diltance, whole (talks trail 
on the ground to the greateft length. Thefe plants will 
continue feveral years in a poor dry foil ; but, in rich 
gronnd, or moiil fituations, they feldom lalt long; but, 
as they ripen feeds in plenty, they may be eafily lenew- 
ed. For the annual forts, the ,feeds may be fown in April 
upon a bed of common earth ; the plants will come up in 
May, and flower in July. Mr. Curtis adds, that, though 
our common dwarf ciltus cannot vie with thofe which 
are the produce of warmer climates, yet it is,one of the 
moll ornamental of our native plants, and admirably well 
calculated to decorate a rock or dry bank, efpecially if 
its feveral varieties, with white, role, and lemon-coloured, 
flowers, be intermixed. It- is hardy, eafily propagated 
either by feeds or cuttings, and continues for the greateft 
part of the fummer to put forth daily a multitude of new 
blofloms. If the variety with double flowers, mentioned 
by Haller, could be obtained, it would be- a valuable ac- 
quifltioa to our gardens. See Anpromeda, Diosma, 
Kalmia* 
