H 1 B I 
reundilh, entire; peduncles very Ihort, one-fiowered ; 
calyx ten-toothed. This is a tree growing to a conti- 
derable fize. The wood is of a dark olive colour ; the 
bark pretty frnooth; the trunk tall and (Iraight. The 
flowers are large and open, not unlike fhofe of the yel¬ 
low lily, either in fize or appearance. It is reckoned 
excellent timber. All the tender parts of the tree 
abound with a delicate mucilage, which may be tiled 
inltead of the more common medicines of this trtbei 
The bark is made into ropes of all forts. Native of Ja¬ 
maica, where it is called viahot , or mahoe-tree. 
44. Hibifcus clandeftinus, dr model! hibifcus : Item 
virgate, rough with hairs, lhrubby ; leaves ovate, fliarp, 
fomewhat three-lobed; flowers minute, doled. Stems 
round, branched, fcabrous, three feet high; covered 
with little,fharp, divaricating,bridles, growing by threes* 
Native of Senegal. 
43. Hibifcus tomentofus, or rough hibifcus: leaves 
heart-lhaped, angular-ferrate, tomentofe ; Item arbore¬ 
ous. Stem woody, feven or eight feet high, fending 
out.many fide branches towards the top, covered with a 
whitilh bark. Leaves about four inches long, and three 
broad towards their bafe, ending in acute points, and 
having feveral longitudinal veins. Native of the Welt 
Indies. ~ 
44. Hibifcus cordifolius, or cordate-leaved hibifcus : 
leaves heart-lhaped, hirfute, crenate ; flowers lateral; 
Item arboreous, branched. This fort was difcovered by 
the la.te Dr. Houftoun in the illand of Cuba, from whence 
he fent the feeds to Mr. Miller. It rifes with a woody 
ilalk twelve or fourteen feet high, fending out many la¬ 
teral branches; the flowers come out fingle from the 
wings of the leaves; they are of a very bright yellow 
colour, but not large, and are fucceeded by Ihort cap- 
fules ending in acute points. 
45. Hibiicus Bahamenfis, or Bahama hibifcus: leaves 
oblong-cordate, frnooth, toothletted, hoary underneath ; 
with very large flowers. This has a perennial root, but 
an annual Italk, The feeds were fent from the Bahama 
ifiands, and fucceeded in the Chelfea-garden, where the 
plants produced plenty of flowers, but did notripen 
their feeds. It riles with feveral ltalks from the root,, 
four feet high ; with leaves, ending in acute points, of a 
light green on their upper fide, but hoary on their un¬ 
der, and flightly indented on their edges. Handing upon 
long footftalks ; the flowers are produced at the top of 
the llalks ; they are very large, and of a purple colour 
with dark bottoms, and are fucceeded by Ihort capfules. 
Propagation and Culture. The greater part of this ge¬ 
nus-are natives either of the Eaft or Welt Indies, and 
mull: be treated accordingly. The firft, fecond, twenty- 
fecond, thirty-fifth, thirty-Iixth, and fortieth, are hardy 
enough to bear the open air in England. But of thefe, 
the firft, fecond, and thirty-fifth, feldom flower in the 
open.air here, urilefs the fummer proves very warm, 
though the roots will live, if they are planted in a Ihel- ' 
tered fituation. 
The only way to have thefe plants flower in this coun¬ 
try, is to keep the roots in pots, and to ihelter them un¬ 
der a frame in winter, and in the fpring plunge them into 
a gentle hot-bed, which will caule them to put out their 
ltalks early; and when the Italics are lb high as to reach 
the glafies, the pots may be removed into a giafs-cafe ; 
where, if they are duly lupplied with water, and have 
plenty of air in hot weather, they will flower very well 
in July* and in warm feafons vyill ripen their feeds. 
The Syrian hibifcus, commonly called Althcea Jrutex, 
is propagated by feeds, which Ihould befown in pots till¬ 
ed with light earth the latter end of March ; and if they 
are plunged into a gentle heat, it will greatly forward 
the growth of the feeds. When the plants are come up, 
they mull be inured to the open air, and in May the pots 
may be plunged into the ground, in a border expoled to 
the eaft, where they may iigve the morning fun. Thefe 
plants will require no other culture, but to keep them 
SCUS. MI 
clean from weeds, and in very dry weather to refrclh 
them with water during the firft: fummer ; but in autumn 
it will be proper to remove the pots under a common 
frame to fereen them from the froft ; or, where there is 
not fuch conveniency, they may be plunged clofe to a 
hedge, pale, or wall, to a good afpebt; and in fevere 
froft they Ihould be covered with mats, ftraw, and other 
light covering. Towards the latter end of March will 
be a good time to tranfplant thefe plants, at which time 
a fpot of light ground mu ft be prepared to receive them, 
which Ihould be divided into beds four feet broad, with 
athsoftwo feet broad between; then the plants Ihould 
e Ihaken out of the pots with the earth about them, 
and feparated with care ; for their roots are tender, and 
apt to break with little force ; thefe Ihould be planted 
at about nine inches afunder in the beds; fo that, if four 
rows are planted in each bed, there will be fix inches al. 
lowed between the outfide rows and the paths. The 
ground Ihould be gently clofed about the roots to pre¬ 
vent the air penetrating to them; and, if a little old 
tanners’ bark, or mulch, is laid over the furface of the 
beds, it will prevent the earth from drying, and be of 
great ufe to the plants. During the following fummer 
they muftbe kept clean from weeds ; and, if the follow¬ 
ing winter prove fevere, it will be prudent to cover the' 
plants again in autumn, efpecially if they fhoot late in 
the feafon, or the autumn, prove cold and moift, for 
then the plants will be in great danger of having their 
tops killed. In thefe beds the plants may remain two 
years, by which time they will be fit to tranfplant where 
they are defigned to remain ; for, if they are kept longer 
in the nurfery, they will not remove fo well. The heft 
time for tranfplanting thefe plants is the end of March 
or the beginning of April, for they feldom begin to 
Ihoot till the end of April or the beginning of May 
they Ihould have a light foil, not too wet; for in ftrong 
land their Items grow molly, and they never thrive af¬ 
ter. Thefe plants may alto be propagated by layers ; 
and by cuttings, which, if planted the latter end of 
March, in pots filled -with light earth, and plunged into 
a gentle heat, will take root; but the plants Id railed 
are not fo good as the feedlings. The feveral varieties 
may be increafed by grafting upon each other, which is 
tiie common method of propagating thole with ftriped 
leaves. 
The bladder hibifcus, No. 40, is propagated by feeds, 
which Ihould be fown where the plants are defigned to 
remain, for they do not bear traniplanting well; if the 
feeds are fown in autumn,' the plants, coming up early 
in the fpring, will flower, in the fummer, and thole 
which are fown early in the fpring will fucceed them; 
fo that, by lowing them at three different feafons, they 
may be continued in fuccelfion till the froft Hops them. 
Thefe require no other culture but to keep them clean 
from weeds, and thin them where they are too clofe ; 
and, if the feeds are permitted to featter, the plants will 
come up full as well as when fown, fo that it will mairi- 
.tain its fituation unlefs it is weeded'out. The fifth, 
fixth, twenty-fourth, twenty-eighth, and thirty-ninth, 
require the protedfion of tire greenhoufe, cape-ltisve, or 
glafs-cafe ; thefe being natives of the Cape of Good 
Hope, except the twenty-eighth, which is from South 
Carolina. The reft, being the far greater number, or 
three-fourths of the whole, muft be kept in tire bark- 
ftove, where fome of them will make a fplendid figure ; 
particularly the fifteenth and nineteenth. The princi¬ 
pal mode of propagating thefe is by feeds, fown on a 
good hot-bed'in the fpring; and the plants afterwards 
put into pots filled with light earth, and plunged into a 
frelh hot-bed ; treating them afterwards in the fame 
way as the amaranths. The more tender forts mnft be 
plunged in autumn into the tan-bed, there to remain, 
'and to be treated as other tender plants from the Weft 
Indies; giving them but little water in winter. Seve¬ 
ral of the fort£ will produce feeds here with cate in a 
