178 ME'SEMBRY 
come out feveral leaves difpofed crofswife; they are 
thickilh, bluntly flat at top, with a roundifh back below, 
more comprefled towards the end, and terminating in a 
procefs at the lower part; (fee Botany Plate IV. fig. 30.) 
their colour is deep glaucous green, except the old ones, 
which are yellowifh, and when dry brown ; the whole co¬ 
vered with frequent green dots, pellucid when held up to 
the light, protuberant towards the end of the leaves, and 
rendering them fomewhat rugged there. Flowers open- 
ingin the afternoon, (abput fouro’clock,) like M. ringens 
caninum, and like that coming out frequently feveral 
from the fame peduncle ; but they are much fmaller, and 
of a paler yellow colour. Native of the Cape. It flowers 
from May to July. 
70. Mefembryanthemum diflorine, or various-leaved 
fig-marigold: Ilemlefs ; leaves difform, dotted, connate. 
This is a middle fort between the caulefcent and fefiile 
ones, properly belonging to thofe which are procumbent, 
and acquiring by age woody branches, fliort and prelied 
to the ground, from which, at fliort difiances, and on fliort 
flender woody petioles of a dulky pale brown colour, 
fpring thick leaves in clufters, bright green and Ihining, 
triquetrous inclining to round. It is a circumllance pe¬ 
culiar to thefe leaves, that one fide of each is much fiiorter 
than the other, and hence they are called difform. See 
Botany Plate IV. fig. 29. Flowers rather large, like 
thofe of the tongue-leaved lort, but fomewhat fmaller, and 
of a deeper yellow ; internally they are of a Ihining golden 
colour, externally of a reddilh faffron-colour. Native of 
the Cape. Cultivated in the Eltham-garden feveral years 
before 17 32. 5 loll by the feverity of a winter, and reco¬ 
vered there from the botanic garden at Chelfea. 
71. Mefembryanthemum albidum, or white fig-mari¬ 
gold: ilemlefs ; leaves three fided, quite entire. Lower 
leaves oblique, the others more upright; they are long, 
thick, rigid, fmooth and Ihining, flat within or on the 
top, underneath produced into a lharpiih back, which 
becomes blunter and rounder in the lower part; all the 
fides, are nearly equal ; they are of a white elegantly- 
glaucous, colour, except that they are yellowilh near the 
bale, with flender tranverfe lines. Flowers large, yellow, 
on a long thick peduncle. It flowered many years be¬ 
fore 1.732, and frequently in the Chelfea-garden during 
winter. According to the Kew Catalogue, it was culti¬ 
vated in 1714, by the duchels of Beaufort. 
72. Mefembryanthemum linguiforme, or tongue-leaved 
fig-marigold: Ilemlefs.; leaves tongue- lhaped, thicker at 
one edge, undotted. The leaves of this fpecies in all the 
varieties are not decollated, but lie in the fame oblique 
plane. 
a. M. fcalpratum, broad-leaved fig-marigold. The 
leaves of this are wider and more comprefled about the 
edge; the flowers.fomewhat.larger, with blunter petals, 
more fcattered and lei's numerous, with fcarcely any pe¬ 
duncle. One plant has feveral heads, from each.of which 
are produced clufters of leaves in pairs, difpofed like thole 
of the tongue-aloes, but with the edges not horizontal, 
but oblique. There are generally three or four pairs of 
thefe leaves; they are broad and thick, fiat above, pil¬ 
lowed below, bright green, fmooth and Ihining, fometimes 
blunt, fometimes a little pointed, generally in the lhape 
of a fuoemaker’s knife. The younger leaves in this and 
the ether varieties are folded together, and obliquely in- 
l'erted into each other. The flowers come out fucceflively 
an Augull and September from the axils, beginning with 
the loweit; they are, fubfeflile, large, yellow, fomewhat 
jailer than in the next variety, Ihining in the fun ; petals 
ipmewhat blunter, entire or lometimes cut here and there; 
itamens numerous, with oblong yellow anthers. 
/?. Narrow; tongue-leaved fig-marigold, has thick Leaves, 
flat above, convex beneath, with the margins thicker and 
lets upright than in the preceding, fmooth and Ihining, 
pale green, especially towards the bale ; when held up to 
the light appearing to be compofed of innumerable vefi- 
cles. From the lower pair firlt, and then from the next, a 
ANTHEMUM. 
Ihort peduncle arifes; flowers large, of a {hinhig golden 
colour, with many ftamens, having oblong golden anthers. 
y. M. longum, long tongue-leaved fig-marigold. Dif- 
tinguilhed from the others by the leaves being longer 
and more ereft. The flowers have a double or triple row 
of petals, Ihining in the fun with the fplendour of gold ; 
ftamens numerous with oblong faftron-coloured anthers. 
Native of the Cape. Cultivated in 1714, by the duchefs 
of Beaufort. 
73. Mefembryanthemum pugioniforme, or- dagger¬ 
leaved fig-marigold: leaves alternate, clustered, awl- 
Ihaped, three-fided, very long, undotted. This fpecies 
grows up into a Item an inch and snore in thicknefs, and 
two or three feet in height; Handing upright with little 
or no aflsftance, with a crown of ciuflered leaves a lon°- 
fpan in length at the top, and branches a foot long and 
more at the bale, which hang down with the weight of a 
multitude bf leaves. Very old plants grow a yard in 
height, with long incurved twilled branches. The Hems 
and lower branches are of a dulky yellowilh colour, but 
the upper flowering branches are green ; on the lower part 
of thefe the leaves are alternate, but on the upper part, 
where the flowers come out, they are cluftered and fome¬ 
what Ihorfer, in pairs at Ihort intervals, triquetrous, with 
equal angles, llightly grooved on the fides, efpecially on 
the inner fide ; but the alternate ones have the inner fide 
rather flat. Flowers large, expanding when the fun 
fliines, ftraw-coloured above, tinged with red underneath, 
compoled of numerous flender eufped petals, gradually 
fmaller, and the inner ones filamentofe. The flowers are 
open from eight or nine isi the moniing to four or five in 
the afternoon. Native of the Cape. It flowers from May 
to Augull. 
IV. With green corollas. 
74. Mefembryanthemum viridiflorusn, or green-flow¬ 
ered fig-marigold : leaves femicylindric, papulofe-haiiy ; 
calyxes five-cleft, hirfute. Flowers terminating, from 
one to five ■. when three or four, forming a linall dicho¬ 
tomous panicle; when five, forming a kind of fpike, 
curving lharply upwards ; they are the fize of a Ihilling, 
quite green, and open in the forenoon. Native of the 
Cape, where it was found by Maflon. It flowers in July 
and Augull. 
75. Mefembryanthemum capillare : leaves connate, 
round, papulofe ; Hem upright; branchlets one-flowered, 
filiform, fmooth. Native of the Cape of Good Hope, 
where it was found by Thunberg. 
There are doubtlefs many other fpecies, but not being 
fufliciently determined, or diftinguilhed from varieties, I 
have confined my lei f (fays Mr. Miller’s editor) chiefly to 
thole which are afeertained by Dillenius, Linnaeus, and 
Alton. 
Propagation and Culture. This fine genus was un¬ 
known to the ancients; indeed very few of the fpecies 
were cultivated till the end of the laft and the beginning 
of the prefent century. M. edule was introduced in 
1690, by Mr. Bentick from Holland ; and in 1696 feveral 
of the ipecies were cultivated in the royal garden at 
Hampton Court. Some were in the botanic garden of 
the Apothecaries at Chelfea in 1700. Br. Hvedale and 
Charles Dubois, efq. had fome fpecies in 1705. The 
duchefs of Beaufort had many in 1714. Proleflbr Brad¬ 
ley cultivated a good colleftion between 1716 and 1727. 
About the fame time the Sherardian garden at Eithain 
boalled a very fine aflembiage of thefe lingularly-beauti- 
ful plants; and as many were cultivated by Mr. Miller 
at Chelfea. M. auftrale was introduced from New Zea¬ 
land, in 1773, by fir Jofeph Banks ; M. compaiSlum, by 
the countefs of Strathmore 1780;. and many lpccies by 
Mr. Francis Maflon in 1774, 1775, aftd 1787. The col¬ 
lections of thefe plants at Kew, Mr. Lee’s nurfery at 
Hammerfmith, and feveral others of the nurferies about 
London, are very fplendid. 
The ice-plant (M. cryftallinum) and other annual forts 
are 
