Dowager Lady De Clifford to Messrs. Lee and Kennedy Hammersmith, in the
year 1794; at which time, her ladyship had just received the bulbs in a
present from the Cape. It is described by Thunberg, in his Dissertatio
de Ixia, published in 1783. The root of this plant is of a most curious
shape, having the appearance of being the half, rather than the whole;
it is very delicate, is easily destroyed by moisture, therefore (except
when in flower) should be kept very dry; it propagates by the root, the
old one generally producing two; flowering about the month of June, or
July, but requires the warmth of a moderate hothouse to expand its
blossoms. Like other Cape bulbs, it should be planted in sandy peat.
[Illustration]
PLATE XXXVI.
RHODODENDRON PUNCTATUM.
_Dotted-leaved Rhododendron._
CLASS X. ORDER I.
_DECANDRIA MONOGYNIA._ Ten Chives. One Pointal.
ESSENTIAL GENERIC CHARACTER.
CALYX 5-partitus. Corolla rotato-infundibuliformis. Stamina
declinata. Capsula 5-locularis.
EMPALEMENT of five divisions. Blossom of a rounded funnel-shape.
Chives bent downward. Capsule of five cells.
See RHODODENDRON DAURICUM, Plate IV.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Rhododendron foliis glabris, subtus punctatis; viminibus laxis;
corollis crispis, violaceo-purpureis.
Rhododendron with smooth leaves, dotted on the under part; slender
loose branches; blossoms crisped, and of a blueish purple.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. A Blossom.
2. The Chives, and Pointal (natural size); one tip detached (magnified).
3. The Seed-vessel, and Pointal, (natural size).
It is to the industrious researches of J. Frasier, nurseryman, of the
King’s Road, Chelsea, we are indebted for this charming species of
Rhododendron, who introduced it in the year 1792 from the back
settlements of Carolina, North America, where it is native. This species
is by far the most delicate of any yet discovered on that continent;
grows to the height of three, or four feet, and of sufficient hardiness
to resist our winters in the open ground; a slight protection insures
its flowering, as our late frosts are apt to injure the buds, which are
very often without that assistance destroyed. The best method of
propagating this shrub is by layers, which should be taken off in
autumn, and protected the first winter. It flowers about the month of
July, at which season this year a drawing was made from a plant, in the
nursery of Lee and Kennedy, Hammersmith. It (like most American plants)
delights in sandy peat.
[Illustration]
PLATE XXXVII.
GERANIUM FRAGILE.
_Brittle-stalked Geranium._
CLASS XVI. ORDER II.
_MONODELPHIA DECANDRIA._ Threads united. Ten Chives.
ESSENTIAL GENERIC CHARACTER.
MONOGYNA. Stigmata 5. Fructus rostratus, 5-coccus.
ONE POINTAL. Summits five. Fruit furnished with long awns, five dry
berries.
See GERANIUM GRANDIFLORUM, Plate XII.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Geranium foliis carnosis, pinnatis; caulis fruticosus, ramosus,
fragilis; petalis linearibus, pedunculis erectis.
Geranium with fleshy winged leaves; stem shrubby, branched and
brittle; petals linear, fruit-stalks upright.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. The Empalement cut open, to shew its tubular shape to its base.
2. The Chives, and Pointal, (natural size).
3. The Pointal, (magnified).
The Geranium fragile has in general seven fertile tips, and thus comes
under Linnæus’s first arrangement; and Mons. L’Heritier’s Genus
Pelargonium. It is a native of the Cape of Good Hope, and was introduced
by Messrs. Lee and Kennedy in the year 1792. This plant seldom grows
more than a foot high, but during the months of July, August, and
September, it is covered with blossoms, which are of a pale yellow,
striped at the bottom with red, standing nearly upright. It is rather a
tender plant, requiring a dry stove, or hothouse, to preserve it in
winter, being very subject to damp in the leaves; is easily propagated
by cuttings, and thrives best in rich mould.
[Illustration]
PLATE XXXVIII.
GLADIOLUS PRÆCOX. _Var. flore rubro._
_Red early-flowering Gladiolus._
CLASS III. ORDER I.
_TRIANDRIA MONOGYNIA._ Three Chives. One Pointal.
ESSENTIAL GENERIC CHARACTER.
COROLLA 6-partita, ringens.
STAMINA adscendentia.
BLOSSOM six divisions, gaping.
CHIVES ascending.
See Plate XI. GLADIOLUS ROSEUS.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Gladiolus foliis ensiformibus, apicibus tortis, lineari-cruciatis;
corollis sub-campanulatis, rubris; petalis acuminatis.
Gladiolus with sword-shaped leaves, twisted at the ends, linear,
and cross-shaped; blossoms nearly bell-shaped, and red; petals
sharp-pointed.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. The two Sheaths of the Empalement.
2. A Blossom cut open, to expose the situation of the Chives.
3. The Pointal, one of the Summits magnified.
4. A Seed.
Of all the species of this numerous Genus, this is the first to expand
its blossoms, seldom flowering later than April; is extremely hardy,
scarce requiring the warmth of a greenhouse for its protection, although
a native of the Cape. About the year 1791, the bulbs of this plant were
purchased of Messrs. Voorhelm, and Co. of Haarlem, in Holland, by
Messrs. Lee and Kennedy, Hammersmith, at whose nursery it has repeatedly
flowered, and where this figure was taken. It is propagated by the root,
as other Gladiolus, and requires the same earth, a light sandy peat.
[Illustration]
PLATE XXXIX.
ECHIUM FEROCISSIMUM.
_Prickly Viper’s Bugloss._
CLASS V. ORDER I.
_PENTANDRIA MONOGYNIA._ Five Chives. One Pointal.
ESSENTIAL GENERIC CHARACTER.
COROLLA irregularis, fauce nuda.
BLOSSOM irregular, mouth naked.
See ECHIUM GRANDIFLORUM, Plate XX.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Echium caule fruticoso; ramis, foliisque aculeatis; floribus
spicatis, violaceis; corollis sub-æqualibus.
Viper’s Bugloss, with a shrubby stem; branches and leaves covered
with sharp prickles; flowers growing in spikes, and violet
coloured; blossoms nearly equal.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. The Empalement.
2. A Blossom cut open, to shew the insertion of the Chives in the tube.
3. The Shaft and its Summit, magnified.
Although there are few species of this genus, but are rough, or hairy;
yet this by far exceeds any of them, or almost any other plant not
actually spiny, for its extreme coarseness to the touch; nevertheless it
is a very handsome shewy greenhouse plant, growing to the height of two
feet, and blowing freely. It is a native of the Cape of Good Hope, and
was introduced by Messrs. Lee and Kennedy in 1794; at whose nursery it
flowered for the first time, this year, in the month of July. The only
method of propagating the Cape Echiums is by cuttings, and that is done
with great difficulty; of course, this, as well as the other species,
are very scarce: they delight most in rich light mould.
[Illustration]
PLATE XL.
CHELONE CAMPANULOIDES.
_Bell-flowered Chelone._
CLASS XIV. ORDER II.
_DIDYNAMIA ANGIOSPERMIA._ Two Chives longer. Seeds covered.
ESSENTIAL GENERIC CHARACTER.
CALYX 5-partitus. Rudimentum filamenti quinti inter suprema
stamina. Capsula bilocularis.
EMPALEMENT of five divisions. The rudiment of a fifth thread is
found placed between the upper chives. Capsule of two cells.
See Plate XXXIV. CHELONE RUELLIOIDES.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Chelone foliis oppositis, sessilibus, acuminatis, profunde
serratis; corollis campanulatis, purpureis.
Chelone with opposite leaves fitting close to the stem, tapering to
the point, and deeply sawed; blossoms bell-shaped, and purple.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. A Blossom cut open, to shew the situation of the four Chives, and station
of the fifth imperfect thread.
2. The Pointal, (natural size).
3. The Seed-vessel, with the Empalement and Shaft still remaining attached.
This species of Chelone is of the same date in our gardens as the
Chelone Ruellioides, and was introduced through the same medium: it is a
native of Mexico in South America; will make a pretty addition to our
greenhouse exotics; and is described and engraved by A. J. Cavanilles,
in his first volume of Spanish plants. It seems to thrive best in rich,
dungy earth, and is easily propagated by cuttings, or seeds; of which
latter it produces abundance; but does not appear to be long lived. The
plant from which this figure was taken, flowered (as we suppose for the
first time in England) in the collection of B. Robertson, Esq. of
Stockwell in Surry, and kindly communicated by him to the author.
[Illustration]
PLATE XLI.
LACHENALIA PENDULA.
_Drooping-flowered Lachenalia._
CLASS VI. ORDER I.
_HEXANDRIA MONOGYNIA._ Six Chives. One Pointal.
GENERIC CHARACTER.
CALYX, nullus.
COROLLA monopetala, cylindracea, sexpartita; tubus gibbus; laciniis
tribus exterioribus brevioribus.
STAMINA. Filamenta sex, subulata, longitudine corollæ, inserta basi
laciniarum corollæ. Antheræ oblongæ, incumbentes.
PISTILLUM. Germen trigonum, trisulcum. Stylus simplex, corolla
paulo longior. Stigma obtusum.
PERICARPIUM. Capsula triquetra, trilocularis, trivalvis.
SEMINA plurima, globosa.
EMPALEMENT, none.
BLOSSOM one leaf, cylindrical, divided into six; tube gouty; the
three outer divisions the shortest.
CHIVES. Threads six, awl-shaped, the length of the blossom, fixed
into the base of the divisions of the blossom. Tips oblong, laying
on the threads.
POINTAL. Seed-bud three-sided, three-furrowed. Shaft simple, a
little longer than the blossom. Summit blunt.
SEED-VESSEL. Capsule three-sided, three cells, three valves.
SEEDS many, globular.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Lachenalia foliis longissimis, ovato-oblongis, immaculatis;
corollis speciocissimis, maximis, tricoloratis, pedunculatis,
cernuis.
Lachenalia with very long egg-shaped oblong leaves, without spots;
blossoms very shewy, large, three-coloured, having foot-stalks, and
nodding.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. A Flower spread open, to shew the insertion of the Chives.
2. The same, exhibiting the character of the outer Petals.
3. The Pointal, natural size.
The genus Lachenalia is certainly an infringement on Hyacinthus; the
small distinction on which this new genus is founded can, at most, be
considered but of sufficient consequence to form a specific character,
so thought Linnæus: the son of Professor Jacquin has thought otherwise,
having called it after a botanist of the name of De la Chenal; and under
which it is now generally known; therefore we have not replaced it under
its old title, though we have authority of such weight to corroborate
our opinion. The Lachenalias are natives of the Cape of Good Hope, yet
are of so hardy a nature as to require no farther protection than
shelter from the severe frosts. Our species is the handsomest yet known,
flowering about September; was, according to the Kew catalogue,
introduced there by Mr. F. Masson in the year 1774. It was from a plant
in the extensive collection of G. Hibbert, Esq. Clapham Common (to whose
kind communications the author acknowledges himself much indebted), that
this figure was taken, the latter end of September this year. No plant
is more easy or certain to increase than this; the young offsets are
produced in such abundance from the old bulb, which delights in a light
soil; but its flowering is not so certain.
[Illustration]
PLATE XLII.
ORCHIS CILIARIS.
_Fringed Orchis._
CLASS XX. ORDER I.
_GYNANDRIA DIANDRIA._ Chives on the Pointal. Two Chives.
GENERIC CHARACTER.
CALYX. Spathæ vagæ. Spadix simplex. Perianthium nullum.
COROLLA. Petala quinque; tria exteriora; duo interiora sursum
conniventia in galeam.
_Nectarium_ monophyllum, a latere inferiore inter divisuram
petalorum receptaculo affixum. Labio superiore erecto, brevissimo.
Labio inferiore magno, patente, lato. Tubo postice corniformi,
nutante.
STAMINA. Filamenta duo, tenuissima, brevissima, pistillo
insidentia. Antheræ obovatæ, erectæ, tectæ duplicatura biloculari
labii superioris nectarii.
PISTILLUM. Germen oblongum, contortum, inferum. Stylus adnatus
labio superiori nectarii, brevissimus. Stigma compressum, obtusum.
PERICARPIUM. Capsula oblonga, unilocularis, tricarinata, trivalvis;
sub carinis trifariam dehiscens, apice et basi cohærens.
SEMINA numerosa, minima.
EMPALEMENT. Sheaths scattered. Fruit-stalk simple. Cup none.
BLOSSOM. Petals five; three outer ones; two inner ones approaching
upwards in form of a helmet.
_Honey-cup_ one leaf, fixed by the lower side to the receptacle
betwixt the division of the petals. Upper lip upright, and very
short. Lower lip large, spreading, broad. Tube standing behind,
shaped like a horn, and hanging down.
CHIVES. Two threads, very slender, and very short, fixed on the
pointal. Tips inversely egg-shaped, upright, covered by a folding
of the upper lip of the honey-cup, forming two cells.
POINTAL. Seed-bud oblong, twisted, and beneath. Shaft fixed to the
upper lip of the honey-cup, very short. Summit flattened, and
blunt-ended.
SEED-VESSEL. Capsule oblong, of one cell, three keels, three
valves; splitting in three places under the keels; fastened at the
point, and the base.
SEEDS numerous, very small.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER
Orchis radicibus subpalmatis, expansis; nectarii labio lanceolato,
ciliato, cornu torto, longissimo; floribus luteis.
Orchis with roots nearly hand-shaped, spreading; lip of the
honey-cup lance-shaped, and fringed, horn twisted, very long;
flowers yellow.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. The Honey-cup with its Horn.
2. The upper Petal.
3. A side Petal.
4. One of the inner Petals.
5. The Chives, and Pointal attached to the horn of the Honey-cup.
6. The Chives, and Pointal, magnified; with the Chives drawn from their cells.
This handsome Orchis is a native of North America, and is found in all
the states from Virginia as far north as Canada: it has been treated of
by Ray, Morison, Gronovius, Royen, Linnæus, and others; but although so
long known by name, it was not introduced to our gardens before the year
1796; having been sent that year from Philadelphia by Mr. J. Lyons, from
the gardens of J. Hamilton, Esq. to Messrs. Lee and Kennedy,
Hammersmith; at whose nursery it flowered this year, in the month of
July, when the drawing was made. It is a hardy herbaceous plant,
thriving best in a shady border, and should be planted in a mixture of
loam and peat earth. The propagation of this plant, like most of the
genus, is difficult, the seeds being too small to be collected, and the
root seldom producing more than one bud.
[Illustration]
PLATE XLIII.
BIGNONIA LEUCOXYLON.
_Oleander-flowered Trumpet Flower._
CLASS XIV. ORDER II.
_DIDYNAMIA ANGIOSPERMIA._ Two Chives longer. Seeds covered.
GENERIC CHARACTER.
CALYX. Perianthium monophyllum, erectum, cyathi-forme,
quinquefidum.
COROLLA monopetala, campanulata; tubus minimus, longitudine
calycis; faux longissima, subtus ventricosa; limbus quinque
partitus; laciniis duabus superioribus reflexis; inferioribus
patulis.
STAMINA. Filamenta quatuor, subulata, corolla breviora, quorum duo
reliquis longiora. Antheræ reflexæ, oblongæ, velut duplicatæ.
PISTILLUM. Germen oblongum. Stylus filiformis, situ et figura
staminum. Stigma capitatum.
PERICARPIUM. Siliqua bilocularis, bivalvis.
SEMINA plurima, imbricata, compressa, utrinque membranaceo alata.
EMPALEMENT. Cup one leaf, upright, cup-shaped, and cut into five
divisions.
BLOSSOM of one bell-shaped petal; tube small, the length of the
cup; mouth very long, swelled at the bottom; border of five
divisions; the two upper segments reflexed, the lower ones
spreading.
CHIVES. Threads four, awl-shaped, shorter than the blossom, two of
which are longer than the others. Tips bent back, oblong, and
appear doubled.
POINTAL. Seed-bud oblong. Shaft thread-shaped, of the same
situation and shape as the chives. Summit headed.
SEED-VESSEL. Pod of two cells, and two valves.
SEEDS many, laying one over the other, flat, and winged at each
side.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Bignonia foliis digitatis; foliolis integerrimis, ovatis,
acuminatis; caule erecto, arboreo; floribus nerii; alato semine.
Trumpet Flower with fingered leaves; the small leaves entire,
egg-shaped, tapered; stem upright, growing to a tree; with flowers
like the oleander; seed winged.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. The Empalement.
2. A Blossom cut open, shewing the proportionate length of the Chives
to the Blossom, and their insertion;
one of the Tips detached, and magnified.
3. The Pointal, (natural size); the Summit detached, and magnified.
This species of Bignonia is well known in most collections of hothouse
plants, and was first introduced to the Chelsea gardens by Mr. P.
Miller, the then gardener, in 1759, and may be found described in his
Dictionary; but, notwithstanding its frequency, few have seen its
blossoms. Owing to the naked appearance of the stem, and its growing to
so considerable a height before it flowers, and that but rarely, has
rendered it a plant but of little consideration; though perhaps, from
the great beauty of its blossoms, it deserves more attention. Being a
native of the West Indies, it does not flourish without the assistance
of tan heat; but will live in any situation of the hothouse; thriving
best in a mixture of loam and peat, and is readily propagated by
cuttings. It was from a plant in the select and valuable collection at
Paddington, belonging to the Hon. Dowager Lady De Clifford (to whom the
author, as well as all the cultivators and professors of the science,
stand much indebted for the zeal and patronage which her ladyship has
shewn, in her endeavours to promote it), that this figure was taken in
July this present year 1798.
[Illustration]
PLATE XLIV.
IXIA CINNAMOMEA.
_Cinnamon-smelling Ixia._
CLASS III. ORDER I.
_TRIANDRIA MONOGYNIA._ Three Chives. One Pointal.
ESSENTIAL GENERIC CHARACTER.
COROLLA 6-petala, patens, æqualis. Stigmata tria, erectiusculo
patula.
BLOSSOM six petals, spreading, and equal. Summits three, nearly
upright, spreading.
See IXIA REFLEXA, Plate XIV.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Ixia foliis falcatis, crispis; floribus alternis, noctiflorens,
cinnamomi odore.
Ixia with scimitar-shaped leaves, waved at the edge; flowers
alternate, blowing at night, and smelling of cinnamon.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. The Empalement.
2. A Flower cut open, with the Chives attached.
3. The Chives, attached to the tubular part of the Blossom, the border cut off, (magnified).
4. The Shaft, Summit, and Seed-bud, (magnified).
Amongst this most extensive genus no species stands more distinct than
this. The extreme sweetness and delicacy of its blossoms, which expand
only by night, and close in the morning, give it a decided superiority
over many of its congeners. Thunberg, who saw it at the Cape, has
described it under the name it here bears; but till the year 1792 we had
no knowledge of it, when it was first introduced by Messrs. Lee and
Kennedy, Hammersmith, from the Cape of Good Hope; at whose nursery it
flowered the following year; where it continues to blow annually, and
whence this figure was taken. It is rather a tender bulb, small, and
easily rotted; should therefore be placed in the warmest part of the
greenhouse, and kept dry when out of flower; is rather difficult to
increase, as each bulb seldom produces more than one offset, nor that
always, and rarely seeds.
[Illustration]
PLATE XLV.
IRIS LONGIFOLIA.
_Long-leaved Iris._
CLASS III. ORDER I.
_TRIANDRIA MONOGYNIA._ Three Chives. One Pointal.
GENERIC CHARACTER.
CALYX. Spathæ bivalves, flores distinguentes, persistentes.
COROLLA sexpartita; petala oblonga, obtusa, tria exteriora reflexa,
tria interiora erecta, acutiora; omnia unguibus conata.
STAMINA. Filamenta tria, subulata, petalis reflexis incumbentia.
Antheræ oblongæ, rectæ, depressæ.
PISTILLUM. Germen inferum, oblongum. Stylus simplex, brevissimus.
Stigma maximum, tripartitum, laciniis petala mentientibus, latis,
reflexis, stamina et petala alterna deprimentibus, apicibus
bifidis.
PERICARPIUM. Capsula oblonga, angulata, trilocularis, trivalvis.
SEMINA plurima, ovata, glabra.
EMPALEMENT. Sheaths of two valves, separating the flowers,
permanent.
BLOSSOM with six divisions; petals oblong, blunt, the three outer
ones reflexed, the three inner ones upright, and sharper; all
connected by the claws.
CHIVES. Threads three, awl-shaped, laying on the reflexed petals.
Tips oblong, straight, depressed.
POINTAL. Seed-bud beneath, oblong. Shaft simple, very short. Summit
very large, divided into three segments, resembling petals, broad,
bent back, and alternately pressing down the chives and petals,
cleft at the ends.
SEED-VESSEL. Capsule oblong, angular, of three cells, and three
valves.
SEEDS many, egg-shaped, and smooth.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Iris foliis linearibus, canaliculatis, longissimis, glaucis; scapus
teres, multiflorus; radix bulbosus.
Iris with linear, channelled leaves, very long, and bluish;
flower-stem cylindrical, with many flowers; the root bulbous.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. The two Sheaths of the Empalement.
2. The Chives as attached to the Seed-bud.
3. The Pointal complete.
This Iris is a native of the Cape of Good Hope, and was introduced to us
from the collection of Messrs. Voorhelm and Schnevoght, of Haarlem in
Holland, about the year 1792. The leaves of this delicate Iris grow
sometimes to the length of three feet, giving it a very singular
appearance: it should be treated like the Cape Ixias, and protected from
the weather, whilst in bloom, as the flower is injured by the lightest
wind, and the duration of each blossom is but a few hours; there is,
however, a good succession, which rise diurnally from the same sheath,
seldom more than one at a time. This figure was taken in the month of
June 1797 at the Hammersmith nursery. It has a singular mode of
propagating itself; the old root dying, two young ones are formed above
it, from whence the flower-stem arises: seldom ripe seeds are produced.
[Illustration]
PLATE XLVI.
MASSONIA VIOLACEA.
_Purple-flowered Massonia._
CLASS VI. ORDER I.
_HEXANDRIA MONOGYNIA._ Six Chives. One Pointal.
GENERIC CHARACTER.
CALYX, nullus.
COROLLA sex-petala. Petala nectario imposita, lanceolata, patentia.
_Nectarium_ inferum, cylindricum, membranaceum.
STAMINA. Filamenta sex, nectarii dentibus inserta, filiformia
declinata, petalis paulo longiora. Antheræ ovatæ.
PISTILLUM. Germen (respectu nectarii) superum. Stylus subulatus,
declinatus, longitudine, staminum. Stigma simplex, acutum.
PERICARPIUM. Capsula triquetra, glabra, trilocularis, trivalvis,
angulis dehiscens.
SEMINA plurima, globosa, glabra, magnitudine seminum sinapios.
EMPALEMENT none.
BLOSSOM six-petals. Petals placed on the honey-cup, are
lance-shaped and spreading.
_Honey-cup_ beneath, cylindrical and skinny.
CHIVES. Six threads, fixed into the teeth of the honey-cup,
thread-shaped, bent downward, and a little longer than the petals.
Tips egg-shaped.
POINTAL. Seed-bud (with regard to the honey-cup) above. Shaft
awl-shaped, and bent downward the length of the chives. Summit
simple, and pointed.
SEED-VESSEL. Capsule three-sided, and smooth, of three cells and
three valves, splitting at the angles.
SEEDS many, globular, smooth, the size of a mustard seed.
SPECIFIC CHARACTER.
Massonia, foliis spathulatis, glabris; scapus filiformis, erectus,
bipollicaris; flores pedunculati, violacei, sparsi, pedunculi
uniflori.
Massonia with spatula-shaped, and smooth leaves; flower-stalk
thread-shaped, upright, two inches high; the flowers have
foot-stalks, are of a violet colour, and grow scattered; the
foot-stalks have each but one flower.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1. A Flower complete.
2. The same cut open, to shew the insertion of the Chives.
3. The Pointal.