sg6 ISA': 
notched at the end. Seed-vefi’els on flender peduncles, 
hanging down, clieftnut-coloured or dark brown, and 
lhining when ripe, of an oblong elliptic form, near half 
an inch long and two lines wide, compreffed at top and 
on the fides into a fharp edge, fwelling like a convex lens 
in the middle, with a Itraight longitudinal future on each 
fide, one-celled, two-valved, but hardly opening fponta- 
neoufly; valves of fpongy fubftance like cork, and boat- 
fhaped. Seed ftnooth, ftriated a little, two lines long, and 
three quarters of a line wide, yellow or brownilh-yellow 
when ripe; it has only a tingle membranaceous coat. 
Embryo curved, yellowifh. Cotyledons ovate, fleihy, 
plano-convex. Radicle fub-cylindrical, bent in upwards, 
lying on the back, not on the cleft of the cotyledons, fu- 
perior. 
Mr. Miller thus defcribes the cultivated plant, which 
however differs little from the wild one except in luxuri¬ 
ance. The lower leaves are of an oblong oval figure, and 
pretty thick confidence, when growing in a proper foil; 
they are narrow at their bale, but broad above, and end 
in obtufe roundifh points; are entire on their edges, and 
of a lucid green. The ftalks rife near four feet high, di¬ 
viding into feveral branches, with arrow-ffiaped leaves, 
fitting dole; the ends of the branches are terminated by 
ftnall yellow flowers, in very clofe duffers. The pods are 
lhaped like a bird’s tongue, half an inch long, and one- 
eighth of an inch broad, turning black when ripe. It 
flow’ers in July, and the feeds ripen the beginning of Sep¬ 
tember. 
Mr. Miller has another fpecies, which he names Dal¬ 
matian woad, from the place of its growth. The lower ' 
leaves of this are lpear-fhaped and crenated ; thofe on the 
ftalk very narrow, and arrow-pointed. The ftalks branch 
more than thofe of the firft fort, and rife higher. The 
flowers are larger, and of a brighter yellow colour. The 
feed-veifels are fhorter, and broader at the ends, which 
are indented. It is probably a variety of the common 
woad; but, no fpecimen of it occurring in Mr. Miller’s 
Herbarium, we cannot fpeak of it with certainty. 
Dyer’s woad is a native of feveral parts of Europe, as 
on the coaft of the Baltic and Ocean, by way-fides in 
Swiflerland, &c. in England, in corn-fields and on the 
borders of them, as at New Barns near Ely, by the river 
Wear near Durham, &c. This makes us fufpecl that 
woad is not an aboriginal with us, but has been natura¬ 
lized by its frequent culture for dying; for, according to 
Linnseus at lealt, it is a maritime plant. Yet, if the plant 
which Pliny informs us the ancient Britons painted their 
bodies with be ours, which is very probable, it muff be a 
native. Woad is much ufed by dyers for its blue colour, 
and it is the bafis of black and many other colours. Queen 
Elizabeth, as Hume tells us, took offence at the fmell of 
this herb, and iflued an edict prohibiting any one to cul¬ 
tivate it. According to Hakluyt, we were dependent 
upon France for it in 1576 ; but in 1582 he fays, “Thus 
was woad brought in, and came to good perfection, to 
the great lofs of the French, our old enemies.” 
2. Ifatis Lufitanica, or Portugal woad : root-leaves cre¬ 
mate; ftem-leaves fagittate; filicles fub-tomentofe, Ac¬ 
cording to Linnaeus, this is fcarcely-different from the 
preceding, only it is annual and fmaller. Gindin fays 
the flowers are white. Mr. Miller affirms, that there are 
very effential differences between them, particularly in 
the fhape of the under leaves, which in this are narrow 
and fpear-lhaped, and thofe on the ftalks are not more 
than,half the breadth of thofe on the cultivated woad. 
The ftalks do not branch lb much, and the pods are nar¬ 
rower, nor do the roots abide fo long, for they generally 
die within the year. Native of Portugal and the Levant. 
Cultivated by Mr. Miller in 1739. 
3. Ifatis Armena, or Armenian woad : leaves quite en- 
tire, cordate, blunt behind ; filicles cordate. Stem a foot 
high, loaded with yellow flowers. Native of Armenia in 
dry paftures, by the fides of brooks. 
r i s. 
4.. Ifatis iEgyptiaca, or Egyptian woad : all the leaves 
toothed. _ An annual plant, and native of Egypt. 
j. Ifatis alpina, or alpine woad: leaves lanceolate, half 
embracing, cordate; filicles ovate. Stem half a yard high, 
dividing into two, three, or four, (hurt branches, fupport- 
ed by Ihort leaves. Flowers in a fort of umbel, in fhort 
racemes, yellow, on yellow filiform peduncles; they have 
hardly any fmell. It differs from I. tinCtoria in having a 
perennial root, in the height of the whole plant, in the 
flowers being much larger, the filicles fhort, and alfo muck 
larger. Native of the mountains of Piedmont. 
Propagation and Culture. The firft, fort which is propa¬ 
gated for ufe, is fown upon frefli land which is in good 
heart, for which the cultivators of woad pay a large rent; 
they generally choofe to have their land fituated near great 
towns, where there is plenty of drefling; but they never 
ftay long on the fame fpot, for the belt ground will not 
admit of being fown with woad more than twice; for, if 
it is oftener repeated, the crop feldom pays the charges of 
culture, Src. Thofe who cultivate this commodity have 
gangs of people who have been bred to the employment, 
lo that whole families travel about from place to place, 
wherever their principal fixes on land for the purpofe; 
but thefe people go on in one track, juft as their prede- 
ceffors taught them, nor have their principals deviated 
much from the practice of their aneeftors, fo that there is 
a large field of improvement, if any of the cultivators c>f 
woad were perfons of genius, and could be prevailed on 
to introduce the garden-culture fo far as it may be 
adapted to this plant. Mr. Profeftor Martyn made many 
experiments in the culture of this plant, the fubftance 
and refult of which he has given in his new edition of 
Mr. Miller's Dictionary j and which we fhall take the li¬ 
berty to ti'anfcribe. 
“As the goodnefs of woad confifts in the fize and fat- 
nefs of the leaves, the only method to obtain this, is to 
fow the feed upon ground at a proper feafon, and allow 
the plants proper room to grow, as alfo to keep them 
clean from weeds; which, if permitted to run, will rob 
the plants of their nourifhment. After having made 
choice of a proper fpot of land, which fhould not be too 
light and fandy, nor over ftiif and inoift, but rather a gen¬ 
tle hazel loam, whofe parts will eafily feparate; the next 
is to plough this up juft before winter, laying it in nar¬ 
row high ridges, that the froft may penetrate through the 
ridges, to mellow and foften the clods ; then in the fpring 
plough it again croffways, laying it again in narrow ridges ; 
after it has lain fome time in this manner, and the weeds 
begin to grow, it fhould be well harrowed to deftroy them ;■ 
this fhould be twice repeated while the weeds are young; 
and, if there are any roots of large perennial weeds, they 
mult be harrowed out, and carried off the ground. In 
June the ground fhould be a third time ploughed, when 
the furrows fhould be narrow, and the ground ftirred as 
deep as the plough will go, that the parts may be as well 
leparated as poffible; and, when the weeds appear again, 
tlie ground fhould be well harrowed to deftroy them. 
Towards the end of July, or the beginning of Auguft, it 
fhould be ploughed the laft time, when the land fhould 
be laid fmooth; and, when there is a prol'pect of fhowers, 
the ground mult be harrowed to receive the feeds, which 
fhould be fown either in rows with the drill-plough, or 
in broad-caft, after the common method ; but it will be 
proper to lteep the feeds one night in water before they 
are (own, which will prepare them for vegetation. If the 
feeds are fown in drills with a plough, they will be co¬ 
vered by an inftrument fixed to the plough'for tint pur¬ 
pofe ; but til of e which are fown broadcaft in the common' 
way, mult be well harrowed in. If the feeds are good, 
and the feafon favourable, the plants will appear in a fort-' 
night, and a month or five weeks after will be fit to hoe. 
The fooner this is performed, when the plants are diftin- 
guifhable, the better they will thrive; and the weeds, be¬ 
ing then young, will be loon deltioyed. The method of 
hoeing 
