0X4 
tli<?m to 93, and of thefe 58 are, or have been, cultiva¬ 
ted in the Royal Gardens at Kew. The fruit in many of 
the fpecies is unknown 5 but in tliofe that are known, the 
capfule is more or lefs quinquangular, feldom five-winged, 
cylindric or ovate, generally villofe, five-celled, and lon¬ 
gitudinally five-valved. The feeds in fome very few, in 
others many, in a longitudinal row lying over each other, 
roundifti, fomewhat com prefled, and tranfverfely wrin¬ 
kled. Each feed is inclofed in a white coriaceous pellucid 
and very-fliining pellicle, which is a fort of aril. This 
aril becomes dry in the ripe feed, and then (eparates with 
9 confiderable elaftic force into two cohering valves, fets 
the feed free, and, together with if, is violently call forth 
at the opening angles of the capfule. The capfules then 
dry and contrail. The aril retains the wrinkles of the 
feed imprefled upon it. Linnaeus fir ft gave the name of 
Oxalis to this genus, in his Hortus Cliffortianus; and the 
pame has been adopted by moll modern botanifts. The 
oxalis of Pliny, however, feeins to be a fpecies of rumex, 
la-path uni, or dock ; and probably Rumex acetofella, or 
common forrel. The older bofanifts, and Haller, Scopoli, 
and Allioni, aipong the moderns, name the genus, with 
more judgment, Oxys, Pliny having defcribed the Oxys 
as having ternate leaves: he probably means our Oxalis 
corniculata, which is a native of Italy. In deference, 
however, to Linnaeus and his followers, the name of Oxalis 
is here adopted. 
Of the ninety-fix fpecies here fet down from Jacquin’s 
fi/ie work on this genus, two only are natives of Europe, 
one of the Eall Indies, thirteen of America, and all the 
reft of the Cape of Good Hope, that inexhauftible trea- 
fur-y of beautiful plants, 
I. With many-flowered peduncles. 1. Caulefcent. 
1. Oxalis pentantha, or five-flowered wood-forrel: ftern 
upright; leaflets obovate; ftyles very Ihort. Root 
branched. Stem a foot and a half high, round, branched, 
the thicknefs of a pigeon’s quill; when old, brownilh, 
fmooth ; when young, pubefcent. Branches the fame. 
Leaves alternate, appromixating at the ends of the 
branches, ternate. Petiole not jointed at the bafe, flen- 
der, hirfute, about an inch in length. Leaves obovate 
or oval, rounded, villofe at the edge, dotted on both 
(ides, and rough with very Ihort hairs,' petioled ; the 
lateral ones generally emarginate; the middle one 
larger, on a longer petiole, and for the mod part quite 
entire. Peduncles not jointed at the bafe, axillary, foli- 
tary, filiform, hirfute, the length of the leaves, twice 
bifid at top, five-flowered ; corolla three times as long as 
the calyx, bell-lhaped, fp reac U n S very much at top, 
rounded, yellow. Native of the Caraccas in South Ame¬ 
rica. 
2; Oxalis rhombifolia, or rhomb-leaved wood-forrel: 
item upright; leaflets rhombed ; ftyles very Jong. Re¬ 
ferable s the preceding, except in the length of the ftyle ; 
and inhabits the fame place. 
3. Oxalis Plumieri: ftem upright; leaflets oblong; pe¬ 
duncles umbelled. Stem round, a foot high. Jacquin 
has changed Linnaeus’s name of j'rutefcens, this fpecies 
having the appearance perhaps of becoming fomething 
flirubby at bottom only in common with the two former 
and the next fucceeding fpecies; but it does not feem 
that any Oxalis is really frutefcent. This is a native of 
the Caribbee iflands and Guiana; difcovered by Plu¬ 
mper; and afterwards found growing plentifully at Vera 
Cruz by Dr. Houftoun, who lent it to England. Miller 
fays it rifes with a fhrubby ftaik a foot and a half high, 
fending out feveral (lender branches. Leaves in pairs or 
threes, on Ihort petioles ; peduncles near two inches long; 
each fuftaining four or five yellow flowers, with the petals 
not much longer than the calyx : each flower, being on a 
crooked pedicel, hangs down. 
4. Oxalis barrelieri s ftem upright; leaflets oblong ; 
peduncles bifid, racemed ; ftyles equal. Root branched, 
annual. Stem fomewhat villofe, round, the thicknefs of 
Vol. XVIII. No. 1230. 
L I Sr. 133 
a reed at the bafe, dulky at bottom, a foot and half high, 
putting forth many alternate branches below. It flowers 
in the Hove from May to October. Native of the Carac¬ 
cas and Guiana. Mr. Miller fays it grows naturally in 
the Brazils ; plants having come up jn plenty, in a tub 
of earth which came thence. According to him, it fel¬ 
dom rifes more than three or four inches high 5 the leaf¬ 
lets are large and hairy, on long foot-ftalks : the flowers 
rife immediately from the root, on fc.apes the fame length 
with the leaves, bifid, and fupporting two pretty-large 
red flowers. 
5. Oxalis rofea, or rofe-flowered wood-forrel : ftem up¬ 
right; leaflets obcordate ; peduncles divided, racemed. 
Native of Chili, in moift places. 
6. Oxalis conorrhiza, or conic-rooted wood-forrel 
ftem upright; leaflets obcordate; peduncles fubbiflorous. 
Root perennial, turbinate, putting forth capillary fibrils 
from the fide, near an inch thick at top, ending in a 
(harp point at bottom, flefliy, dulky-afli coloured. Stem 
round, fomewhat fcaly, putting forth from the top feveral 
leaves and feveral branches or Hems, erefil, round, (len¬ 
der, white, villofe, pale-green, about nine inches long. 
Leaves alternate, ternate. ^Native of Paraguay, in the 
vaft plain to the northward of the Rio de la Plata. Ob- 
ferved by Feuillee with the preceding and two next fpe¬ 
cies. 
7. Oxalis crenata, or notcli-petalled wood-forrel: ftem 
S ht; leaflets obcordate; peduncles umbelliferous; 
; crenate. Root annual, fufiform, putting forth 
many fibrils, half an inch thick at top, pale-green. Stem 
round, two feet high, branched, half an inch thick at the 
bafe, pale-green, full of an acid juice. Leaves alternate, 
ternate. Native of Peru. It fee ms to be wholly fmooth. 
About Lima it is generally cultivated in gardens, and is 
ufed as forrel. 
8. Oxalis Dillenii : ftem upright; leaflets obcordate: 
peduncles fubumbelliferous; petals emarginate. Stem 
round, branched, half a foot high, villofe. Leaves fcat- 
tered, ternate. Native of Carolina. It flowers here in 
June and July. Cultivated in Sherard’s garden at Eltham, 
before 1732. 
9. Oxalis ftrifta, or upright wood-forrel: ftem upright; 
leaflets obcordate ; peduncles umbelliferous ; petals quite 
entire. Root perennial, creeping, round, putting out 
capillary fibres at the knots, branched. Stems from the 
root, as it creeps along, feveral, roundifh, (lender, fome¬ 
what villofe, purplilh, finally branched, half a foot high 
and more, upright; but, being weak, often lying down ; 
annual. Swartz obferves, that it varies with "a (lifter and 
weaker ftem, upright or declining ; fo that it is fcarcely 
any thing more than a variety of O. corniculata. 
Mr. Salifoury delcribes his O. ambigua (which is the 
name he gives to this fpecies) as having a creeping ftem, 
ternate leaves, on half-round petioles without ftipules, 
emarginate leaflets, the petals obovate, quite entire ; 
ftyles the height of the longer filaments, and fpreading. 
Mr. S. remarks, that, though the primary Items in fome 
degree anfwer to the definition which Linnaeus has given 
of the term /Indus, yet the branches which, break out 
near the root are conftantly creeping ; there is, however, 
an obvious difference to the eye between this and the 
following. Browne recommends it as a pleafant cooler 
and diuretic, and fays that it was formerly adminiftered 
in inflammatory cafes, but has been little ufed iince the 
more agreeable acid fruit-trees have been fo much cul¬ 
tivated in the Weft Indies. Native of North America, 
Jamaica, and Piedmont. Cultivated in the botanic gar¬ 
den at Oxford in 1658. It flowers from June to Octo¬ 
ber. Mr. Miller remarks, that, wherever this plant has 
been differed to ripen its feeds, it has become a common 
weed. 
10. Oxalis corniculata, or yellow wood-forrel : ftem 
proitrate, rooting; peduncles two-flowered ; ftyles almoft 
equal. Root branched, fibrous, brownifh, annual. Stems 
feveral, wholly proftrate, rooting, branched, flender, 
M m round. 
