ETHIOPIAN SOUR-GOURD, or MONKIES-BREAD; a genus of the monodelphia order, belonging to the polyandrin clas of plants. It has its name from one Mr Adanson, a French surgeon, who brought a curious collection of plants and seeds from Senegal in Africa.

Species. We know but of one species belonging to this genus at present. It is a native of Africa and South America. The leaves of the young plants are entire, of an oblong form, about four or five inches long, and almost three broad towards the top, having several veins running from the middle rib; they are of a lucid green colour. As the plants advance in height, the leaves alter, and are divided into three parts, and afterwards into five lobes, which spread out in the shape of an hand. The fruit is almost as large as a man's head, the shell woody and close, having a greenish-downy coat; it is divided into 10, 12, or 14 cells within, which contain a good number of kidney-shaped seeds, as large as the tip of a man's little finger; these are closely surrounded with a mealy pulp of an acid taste.

According to Mr Adanson's account, these trees grow in plains of barren moveable sand, which being continually shifted by the wind, admit of no tracts whereby the traveller can be guided over them. The size of the trunks, roots, and branches, is very surprising, their circumference being sometimes 65 or 70 feet, but their height only from 8 to 12. These trunks were divided into many horizontal branches, which touched the ground at their extremities; these were were from 45 to 55 feet long, and so large in circumference that each branch was equal to a monstrous tree in Europe; and where the water of a neighbouring river had washed away the earth so as to leave the roots of one of these trees bare and open to sight, they measured 110 feet in length, without including those parts which remained covered with sand.

Culture. This tree is propagated from seeds, which are brought from the countries where they grow naturally. Being natives only of hot climates, the plants will not thrive in the open air in Britain, even in summer. The seeds are therefore to be sown in pots, and plunged into a hot-bed, where the plants will appear in about six weeks, and in a short time after be fit to transplant. They must then be planted each in a separate pot, in light sandy earth, and plunged into a hot-bed, shading them until they have taken root: after which they should have fresh air admitted every day in warm weather; but must be sparingly watered, as being apt to rot. They grow quickly for two or three years, but afterwards make little progress; the lower part of the stem then begins to swell, and put out lateral branches, inclining to a horizontal position, and covered with a light grey bark.—Some of this kind of plants were raised from seeds obtained from Grand Cairo by Dr William Sherard, in 1724, and were grown to the height of 18 feet; but were all destroyed by the severe frost in 1749; after which they were unknown in Britain till the return of Mr Addison to Paris in 1754.