OCR Text |
Show TheGardenof pleafant Flowers, ———— Lhe Gardenofprealant Famers, yi ns of thenafelues, left their vrine wete not very blond ¢ ofwhat fweetnefle, likea figoe This plant hath diuers names; foritis thought to be that kindeof Cams. wars that Pliniefetceth downe. reddifh ontheoutfide, and containing within ira bloudytedclammy inyce, makin the vrine of themthat eate ofthem asred as blond, which many feeing were in douse The Names. Dodonzuscalleth it Pfendecapficum, for fomelikeneffe inthe leafeand fruit ynto the {mall Capficwm or Ginnie Pep. per, althoughiuch valike-in the tafte and property. Others doecall it Shrichaedendréh,that is, Solanum arborefcens, and wee in Englith according “thereunto, Tree Night thade. But fomeLatine affés corrupting the Latine word Amomuns, doe callitthe Munimetree. Dalechampiuscalleth it Sala. gam Americam , few Indicwm , and faith the Spaniardscall icin theirtongue, Guindas de las Indias, thavis, Cera/a Indiana, Indian Cherries, whichif any would follow, I would not bee muchagainft it : but many Gentlewomen ; doe call them Winter Cherries, becaufethefruitis not throughly ripe vn. till, Winter. The Vertues. Tfinde‘no Phyficall propertyallotted vnto it, more then that by reafon _. ofthé infipidity,itisheldto be cooling. inthenaturall places, [amnot well affured, yetaffirmed: butthofe that hauebeene brought vnto me, whofe colour on the outfide was greeniffis were of a reddith purple within, and contained within them round, fmall, hard feede,the tafte was flat watt: tith, or infipide : che rooteis neither great, nor difperfethitfelfe very-deepe or fare but thooteth many {mall rootes vnder.the vpper-cruft ofthe earth, : Thereis a greater kinde hereof, whofe leanes are twice orthrice as bigge, which ha: uing been often brought vs , will {eldome abide morethen.one Summerwith vs. our Winters. alwaices rotting the lcaues, thatit could aot beJonger kept. : The Places: ; This Tadian Figgetres groweth;idifper{edly.in many places! of. America, gencrally calledithe: Weft Indies :'T he greater:kindeimthemoreres mote and. hot Countties, as Mexico; Florida;&c. and inthe Bermudas.or Summer Iflands, fromvhence wéehauc often had it.!Thelefferin Virgis nia, and thofe other Countries thatare nearer vato ys, which betterendi ».,4eth withvs; DOSY : : The Time. It flowreth with vs fometimes in May, or Iune ; but(as I faid) the fruit ne- Crap. CXVI. uer commeth to perfection in this Country. Fiews Indica minor. Thefmnaller Indian Figgetree. wba The Names. [es Indian Figgetree,ifyou will call ita tree (becaufe in our Countryitisnot Diners doetake it to bee Opantia Pliny» whereof hee fpeaketh in the 31. _fo,although it groweth in the naturall hot Countries froma wooddy {temme Booke and 17. Chapterof his Naturall Hiftory : buthethere faith, Opws- jitter: OF badyinto leaues)is a plant confiftin only ofleaues,one fpringing out ofat other, into.many branches.ofleaues, and all of them growing out ofoneleafe, put in: tiais an herbe, {weete and pleafanttobe eaten, and thatit isa wonder that the rootefhould come from the leafe , and foto growe ; which words althoughthey defcipher out the manner.of the growing of this plant, yet becaufe thisis'a kinde oftree, and norati herbe, nor to be eaten, it cannot bee thefame : butefpecially becatife there isan herbe which’ growethin the tothe ground halfe way,, which taking roote,all thereft rife out thereof,thofebelows forthe moft.part beingjlarger then thofeaboue 3 yetall of them fomewhatlong, fat, and round pointed,ofthe thickneffeofa fingervfually, and {malleft at the lower nd, whérethey are ayaa on {pring out ofthe other leaues, hauing at their firft breaking oura thew of{mall,..red,. or browne prickes., thicke fet ouer all the vpper fideofthe feaues, but withvsrfalling away quickly, leaning onely the markes where they ftood: burthey hayebefidesthis {hew ofgreat prickes,a few very fine;andfimall,hard,white; and tharpe »oalmoft infenfible prickes, being not fo biggeas haires onthe ynderfide, which willoften ftickein their fingers that handle them vnaduifedly, neither arethey fa be:dilceined walefle one look precifely forthem:the leaucs onthe vnderfide having onc oftthofe other great pricks or marks at all,being ofafaire freth pale green colout: put ofthe vppermoft leaues breake forth certaine greene heads very like vnto leaues (fo that many are deceiued,thinking them to be leaues, vntill they markethem betel and be better experienced inthem) but that they growe round and notflat, andart broad atthe toppe ; for that outof thetopsof cuery of them fhooteth outa paley¢ lowflower, confifting of twe rowes of leaues, each containing fine leaucsa pects laid open withcertaineycllowthreads, tipt with red in the middle : this greene het ya the flower be'paft, is not of halfe that bigneffe tharit attainethvnto after; Yt He ome orneher Conimeth vata petfecion with vs, being long and round,like vated igge,finalfbetowe- and steater about,bearing wpon the dat ot broad head the math : the flower ; fome holding ftillon them the dryéd Yeauds.’and others’ hauing lo them, fhew the hollowneffe which they-haue.in the toppe ormiddle of thehead, t fides round aboutbeing raifed or ftaie tng vp higher: this head or figge in our Cou try abideth greene on the outfide, andlittle or nothing reddith within (although it bideall thé Wintery:and the Siimiiter foltowing >> as'forctirnes itdoth) for want! that heateand comfort of the Sunnéit ‘hathin his nauirall-place, whereir growe! a redu fame manner, or very nearevnto it, one leafeftanding onthe toppeor fide ofanother, being a Seaplant; fitto be eaten with vinegar and oyle(as many other herbes are that growe in the falt marfhes , ornearetheSea, whereof Sea Purflaneis one)which Clufiuscalleth Lychen Aterinws; and (as Clufius faith) Cormfus very fitly.called Opuntia marinayand out of doubt is the verie fame Opsatie that Theophraftusmaketh mention of, atid/Plinie out of him. Our Englifhpeople in Virginia) andthe Bermuda Ifland, where ie growcth plentifully;beeaufeofthe form of the fruit,whichis fomewhat like toa Peare, & not being fo familiarly acquainted with the growing of Figs, fent it vnto vs by the name of the/prickly Peare, from which name many haue fuppofed itto bea Peare indeede, but were therein deceiued. The Vertues. Thereisno otherefpeciall property giuenchereanto, by any that haue written of the WeftIadies,.then of thecolouring of the vrine , as is before faid. |