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P L A T E CXXI.
GERANIUM CORTUSiEFOLIUM.
Cor tufa-leaved Geranium.
C L A S S XVL ORDER IV. "fSuppl Syjlem. Veg.
1781.
MONODELPHIA DECJNDRIA. Th r e a d s uni ted. Ten Chives.
E S S E N T I A L GENERIC CHAKACTER.
MONOGYNA. Stigmata quinqué. Fruflus roftratus,
penta-coccus.
One PoiNTAL. Five lummits. Fruit furniihed
witli long awns, five diy berries.
S e e GERANIUM GRANDIFLOHUM, PI. X I I . Vol. I.
S P E C I F I C CHARACTER.
Geranium foliis cordatisj fublobatis, ferratis, tomen
tofo-fericeis; petiolis longiffimis, erectis;
floribus umbellatis, odoratiffimis, ftipulis
fubulatis; caule robufto, lubcarnolb.
Geranium with heart-ihaped leaves, flight!;^-
lobed, fawed, and covered with a downy
pile; footftalks very long and upright; flowers
grow in umbels, and are very fweet
fcented; leaf-props awl fliaped; ftem ftouf,
and rather flefliy.
R E F E R E N C E TO THE PLATE.
1. The Empalement cut open.
2. The Chives and Pointal, natural fize.
3. The fame, magnitied.
4. The Chives cut open, magnified.
5. The Seed-bud, and Pointal, magnified.
THE Cortufa-leaved Geranium is a tender plant, feldom growing to more than a foot in height; producing
its bloflbms, which are extremely fragrant, in ereft bunches, from the fummit of the branches,
and muft be proteaed, through the depth of winter, in the hothoufe. The propagation is both flow
and difficult, as it rarely perfefts any feeds, and forms but few branches. The cuttings when taken
off, which ought to be done about the end of May, fliould be expofed to the fun, till the part where
cut has formed a tough coat over the wound, which will take place in two or three days; when they
will not be fo fubjecl to rot from the moifture of the earth, as if planted when juli taken from the
plant. Thefe inftrufitions are neceflary to be obferved, in the propagation of all the thick-ftemmed
Geraniums, by cuttings. A mixture of fandy peat, with a fmall quantity of old rotten dung, will
prove the befi compoft for preferving this plant. Our drawing was taken this year, in July, at the
Hammerfmith nurfery. A miftake has arifen with regard to the name of this fpecies of Geranium ;
which was evidently not known to any botanift, antecedent to its being brought to England in 17S6
by Mr. A. Hove,"a native of Poland, from the fouth wefl: coaft of Africa, and found by him in about
the 23d degree of fouth latitude. Profeflbr Martyn, in his new edition of Miller's Difitionary, article
Pelargonium 43, has taken for granted that this is the plant defigned by ProfelTor Jacquin, where he
treats of G. cortufaefolium; giving the G. tabulare of Burman, Linnaeus, &c. as fynonymous to it;
but undoubtedly, no fuch intention could be in the Profeffor, as the uniting thefe two plants, which
are fo entirely diffimilar; but only an unfortunate inclination to alter an old ertabliihed name, for one,
which he conceived more appropriate to a well known, common fpecies; whence the confufion; the
conftant confequence of fuch ufelefs alterations, whether generic or fpecific.
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