r
REF
L A T E CCCCXXXVIIL
AGAVE AMERICANA.
G'rm^f American Aloe.
CLASS VI. ORDER I
HEXANDRU MONOGYNLt Si. Chi.es. One Poi.UaL
ESSENTIAL GENERIC, CHARACTER.
CALYX mülüs. CoroUa monopetd. , sex-partita
Stamina sena, corolla longiora. Germen
in erum. Stj-Ius longior staminibus. Capsula
ùUocularis, trivalvis. Semina numi
ros3,
SPECIFIC
AGAVE, acaulis, foliis denfatis, spinosis : scapo
L^h'^H " terminaJibus in
umbellis densissime capitatis : tubo corollce
r o ni r"l ' ^ " f t « « ^"gustato: staminibus
corolla longionbus: stylo stammibus lon-
IMPALHMENT none. Elossom one-petalled, sixparted.
Chives six, longer than the blossom,
beed-bud beneath. Shaft longer than the
chivjs. Capsule three-celled, three-valved.
Seeds many.
CHARACTER.
AGAVE without a stem ; leaves toothed and
a oiny: flower-stem in tl.e centre branched:
hpL r ' ^ ' l ' f the branches in closeheaded
umbels : the tube of the blossom is
greenish, and narrowed in the centre • the
chives are longer than the tlovvers, and the
style longer tlian the chives.
REFERENCE TO THE PLATE.
1- A plant in miniature.
'J. A flower natural size.
3. The same spread open
4. Seed-bud cut transversely.
The end of a leaf, the upper part scr.ped to show its thready fibres.
S ' f S i i - i n J ' S t t S S ™ int e^s t and
Portugal they are so abundant as to form hedc.es bv w av of k' P^rts of Spain and
are several very slight varieties; one oFwho e L v e L - ^ T h e e
other respect. Miller enumerates one whrseTan c l t t H ^ «ame in eveiT
IS said to be the first European that posreted Ais ^reaf A f k «^P^'^F- Coi t u s «
ered at Hampton Court, and one at Ae d i e of s S t h a ^ ' ^^ r ' " ^ 1714 two flow!
feeTTh'Tl'^'^^"''^^^ flowers in Denmark, one
fee high They are now more frequently found iu b lLm r f garden, said to be 40
of them being advertised for public inspection In addX'n ^ ' "«e or more
useful properties: Cavanilles, in his Natural His orv of v l , they possess many
numbers ot people employed in manufactSn" t e m f l T,' ' ' ^^^""daLe, and the
water they yield a strong thread, of which aU tl f h ^ a . ! ' i " separated, and steeped in
for t nder. The points of the leaves are bv ths I n r n r r r . and the spungy substance of the stem
consistence is a good substitute for iron; and the fl re dv rh 'r ' f " ^ h^r^
necessary to fasten them. Linnaeus has separated th^k ^ character of their fibres furnishes all that is
ttens and style beyond the corolla, and theTest ng of t h f c r o l i r n " " .f
as al Agaves have their central leaves doselv enfohatIn. f K S'™ : tliey also differ in growth,
^ g in the centre, never appears till they a r ^ e x p ! 2 d ® k Aower-stem, whichf form-'
^.eeKS reaches maturity, and when the flowers a r ^ i ' '"f"/''«'^eeds a rapidity that
in a few
stem of the Aloe comes out from the side annuallv^fr ' f" contrary, the flowertwo
plants at Kensington Gore, each t a r i g 2 ^ 0 ^^ from
^^heret..ey a., so abundant. 3a or 30 year. . r s u S ^ l t ^ ^ , ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ warmer ®liLs,