HÆMANTHUS, the BLOON-FLOWER; a genus of the monogynia order, belonging to the hexandria class of plants.
Species. 1. The coccineus, with plain tongue-shaped leaves, rises about a foot high, with a stalk supporting a cluster of bright red tubulous flowers. It hath a large bulbous root, from which in the autumn comes out two broad flat leaves of a fleshy consistence, shaped like a tongue, which turn backward on each side, and spread on the ground, so that they have a strange appearance all the winter. In the spring these decay; so that from May to the beginning of August they are destitute of leaves. The flowers are produced in the autumn just before the leaves come out. 2. The carinatus with keel-shaped leaves, has a taller stalk and paler flowers than the former; its leaves are not flat, but hollowed like the keel of a boat. 3. The punicus, with large spear-shaped waved leaves, grows about a foot high, and hath flowers of a yellowish red colour. These are succeeded by berries, which are of a beautiful red colour when ripe.
Cultures. All these plants are natives of the Cape of Good Hope, and do not propagate very fast in Europe, their roots seldom putting forth many off-sets. The best method of managing them is to have a bed of good earth in a bricked pit, where they may be covered with glasses, and in hard frosts with mats and straw. The earth in the frame should be two feet deep, and the frame should rise two feet above the surface, to allow height for the flower-stems to grow. The roots should be planted nine or ten inches asunder; and in winter, if they are protected from frost, and not suffered to have too much wet, but in mild weather exposed to the air, they will flower every year, and the flowers will be much stronger than with any other management. The third sort requires to be constantly kept in a dry stove.