Loudon's encyclopædia of plants : comprising the specific character, description, culture, history, application in the arts, and every other desirable particular respecting all the plants indigenous to, cultivated in, or introduced to Britain / [J.C. Loudon].

  • Loudon, J. C. (John Claudius), 1783-1843.
Date:
1855
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Loudon's encyclopædia of plants : comprising the specific character, description, culture, history, application in the arts, and every other desirable particular respecting all the plants indigenous to, cultivated in, or introduced to Britain / [J.C. Loudon]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    425/1618 (page 395)
    6584 Leaves lanceolate, Peduncles 1-flowered very long horizontal axillary 6585 Leaves elliptical acute. Peduncles 1-flowered nodding terminal 6586 Calyxes two, Leaves with three nerves finely striated across beneath 6587 Leaves ovate-lanceolate smooth, Flowers terminal in panicled racemes 6588 Leaves stalked alternate obovate obtuse coriaceous entire smooth 6589 Leaves acute, Fruit subulate-clavate 6590 Leaves ovate, Peduncles 1-flowered 6591 Leaves alternate stalked ovate entire smooth veiny 6592 Leaves ovate acuminate, Veins hairy beneath, Wings of the fruit equal 6593 Lvs. obi. ovate obtusely pointed green on both sides very soft beneath, Wings of fruit alternately larger 6594 Leaves all ovate, Stem climbing 6595 Lower leaves rounded : upper ovate-lanceolate, Stem sarmentose 6596 Branches at end pubescent, Leaves cuneate oval, Flowers axillary 6597 Leaves opposite evergreen ovate shining serrated 6598 Leaves oblong obtuse shining, Racemes terminal and Miscellaneous Particulars. great deal of it may be eaten without any inconvenience; it is the only fruit which sick people are allowed to eat without scruple. It is given with safety in almost every disorder; and we are told that Dr. Solander, in the last stage of a putrid fever in Batavia, found himself insensibly recovering by sucking this delicious and refreshing fruit. The pulp has a most happy mixture of the tart and sweet, and is no less salutary than pleasant. It is propagated by ripe cuttings in sand in moist heat. But the plant rarely survives long after its importation. 1080. Grangeria. Named after N. Granger, a traveller in Egypt, Persia, &c. who died at Bassora in 1733. His voyage into Egypt was published in 1745. This is a tree the size of an oak, with alternate ovate entire leaves. The flowers are small, in small terminal and axillary racemes. 1081. Halesia. So named by Ellis, in honor of the learned^ and venerable Stephen Hales, D. D., F. R. S., author of Vegetable Staticks, 1727. The species are very ornamental shrubs, valuable for blossoming early in the season. The flowers hang in small bunches all along the branches, each bud producing from four to eight or nine; they appear before the leaves, are of a pure snowy whiteness, and last for two or three weeks; they are succeeded by pretty large winged juiceless drupes, hanging likewise in bunches. The leaves of H. diptera are six times the size of those of H. tetraptera, and the fruit has two large wings and two minute ones. They are propagated by cuttings of the roots 1082. Decumaria. Derived from decern, ten, all the parts of fructification answering to the number 10. It is commonly propagated by layers, but will grow by cuttings in sand under a hand-glass. 1083. Eurya. A name of Thunberg's, supposed to have been formed from weus, broad; its application no one has been able to discover. The Eurya chinensis is a little evergreen bush, bearing many whitish flowers on the under side of the branches and hidden by the leaves. It is easily propagated by cuttings. 1084. Aristotelia. After the celebrated ancient philosopher and naturalist Aristotle. Macqui is the name of this shrub in Chili. It grows freely in a sheltered situation; but its flowers are of little beauty. They are succeeded by small berries of a purple or black color, slightly acid and eatable : the inhabitants of Chili make a wine from them, which they give in fevers, and for curing the plague. It is increased by layers or ripened cuttings. 1085. Canella, A name given by Murray, on account of the resemblance between its wood and the aromatic flavor of Canella, Cinnamon. This tree rises very straight, from ten to fifty feet in height. The branches are erect, not spreading, and only at the top of the tree; furnished with petiolated leaves of a dark green color, thick, and shining like those of the laurel, and emitting a similar odor. The flowers, which exhale a powerful aromatic perfume, are small, seldom open, and in bunches. The inner bark of the branches is freed from the cuticle, and dried in the shade. This bark is stimulant, and slightly tonic. It is a useful adjunct to bitters in some cases of dyspepsia and atonic gout; but it is employed chiefly on account of its flavor, and to correct the griping quality of the resinous cathartics. It is said to prove useful in scurvy (London Dispensatory, 207.1