CLASS POLYANDRIA. 
169 
qualities of plants; it is asserted that no plant 
with the stamens on the calyx is poisonous ; we 
know that many with the stamens upon the recep¬ 
tacle are so. 
Order Monogynia. 
We find in the first order some flowers of a 
curious appearance, as the Mandrake, or May- 
apple, ( Podophyllum ;) the distinction between 
this and the mandrake of the ancients, was re¬ 
marked under the class Pentandria. This plant 
is very common in moist, shady places, where 
you may often see great numbers growing toge¬ 
ther ; each stem supports a large white flower, 
and two large, peltate, palmate leaves ; its yellow 
fruit is eaten by many as a delicacy; the root is medicinal. 
The Side-saddle flower ( Sarracenia ) is a curious and elegant 
plant; it has large leaves proceeding directly from the root. These 
leaves form a kind of cup, capable of containing a gill or more of 
water, with which liquid they are usually filled. The stem is of that 
kind called a scape, growing to the height of one or two feet, bearing 
one large purple flower. This plant is found in swamps ; its com¬ 
mon name, Side-saddle flower, is given in reference to the form of 
its leaf. It is sometimes called Adam’s cup, in reference also to the 
shape of the leaf. No foreign plant, as an object of curiosity, can 
exceed this native of our own swamps ; it is well worth the trouble 
of cultivation by those who are fond of collecting rare plants.* 
The white Pond lily (Nymphcea) j* is a splendid American plant, 
very fragrant, and with a larger leaf than almost any other northern 
plant. This flower closes at evening and sinks under the water ; at 
the return of day, its blossoms rise above the surface and expand. 
The yellow Pond lily, ( Nuphar ,) though less showy, is equally cu¬ 
rious in its structure. 
In this artificial class and order is the Tea-tree, (Thea ;) of this 
plant there are two species, the bohea tea, ( bohea ,) and the green 
tea, ( viridis .) It is a small evergreen-tree or shrub, much branched, 
and covered with a rough, dark-coloured bark. The flowers are 
white; the leaves are lanceolate and veined; the capsule or seed 
vessel is three-celled, opening; the seeds are three, oblong and 
brown. This shrub is a nativeof China and Japan. Some suppose 
that all the teas are taken from the same species, and that the differ¬ 
ent flavour and appearance of them depend upon the nature of the 
soil and culture, and the method of preparing the leaves. On ac¬ 
count of the secret and jealous policy of the Chinese, the natural his¬ 
tory of the Tea plant is less known than might be expected from its 
very general use. The Chinese begin in February to gather the tea 
leaves, when they are young and yet unexpanded. The second col¬ 
lection is made in April, and the third in June, The first gathering, 
which consists only of the young and tender leaves, is the Imperial 
Tea ; the other two kinds are less odorous : the last collected is the 
coarsest and cheapest kind. Tea was introduced into Europe by 
the Dutch East India Company, in the year 1666, when it sold for 
* See Plate iii. Fig. 5. . ~ 
t An extensive locality of this plant exists upon the Saratoga lake. I have seen its 
surface for a quarter of a mile whitened by these lilies, occasionally intermixed with 
the yellow lilies, and the rich blue of the Pontederia, another beautiful aquatic plant. 
Order Monogynia—Podophyllum—Sarracenia—Pond lilies—Tea-tree. 
15 
g. 136. 
