AMARILLIS, in botany, a genus of the Hexandria Monogynia class and or der, of the natural order of Lilin or Lilia cem ; its characters are, that the calyx is a spathe, oblong, obtuse, compressed, etnarginate, gaping on the flat side, and withering ; the corolla has six petals, /anceolate, the nectary has six very short scales without the base of the filaments ; the sttunina have six awl-shaped filaments, with oblong, incumbent, rising anthers ; the pistillum has a roundish, furrowed, inferior germ, the style filiform, almost of the length and in the situation of the sta mens, the stigma trifid and slender; the pericarpium is a subovate, three-celled, three-valved capsule ; and the seeds are several. The inflection of the petals, stamens, and pistil, is very various in the different species of this genus ; and the corolla in most of the species is rather Itexapetaloid than six-petalled. Gmelin reckons 27 species. A lutea, yellow, A. or autumnal narcissus, with an undivided obtuse spathe, sessile ; flower bell sha ped ; corolla erect, shortly tubular at the base, and erect stamens; alternately shorter; the flowers seldom rise above three or four inches high ; the green leaves come up at the same time, and when the flowers are past, the leaves in crease through the winter. This species recedes a little from the genus. It is a native of the south of•France, Spain, ItaIY, and Thrace : was cultivated by Gerard, in 1596, and flowers in September. A. formosissima, jacohea lily, so called, because some imagined that they disco vered in it alikeness to the badge of the order of the knights of the order of St. James, in Spain, the lilio-narcissus and narcissus of others, with a spathe undi vided, flower pedicelled, corolla two-lip ped, nodding, deeply six-parted stamens, and pistil hent down. The flowers are produced from the sides of the bulbs, are large, of a deep red, and make a beauti ful ippearance : it is a native of America, first known in Europe in 1593, some roots of it having been found on board a ship which had returned from South America, by Simon de Jovar, a physician at Seville, who sent a description of the flowers to Clusius, who published a drawing of it in 1601, called, by Parkinson, who figured it in 1629, the Indian daffodil, with a red flower : cultivated in the Oxford Garden in 1658. A. regime, Mexican lily, with spathe,hav ing about two flowers, pedicels divaricating, corollas bell-shaped, shortly tubular, nodding, throat of the tube hir sute, and leaves lanceolate, patulons ; the bulb is green, corolla scarlet, and at the bottom whitish green, the style red, the flowers large, of a bright copper colour, inclined to red: it flowered in Fairchild's garden, at Hoxton, in 1728 ; and Dr. Douglas wrote a folio pamphlet upon it, giving it the title of lilium reginx, because it was in full beauty on the first of March, the queen's birth-day : the roots were brought from Mexico, and therefore :Hr. Fairchild called it Mexican lily, the name which it has retained. lt flowers in tlte spring in a very warm stove; is in beauty in February; and in a moderate tempera ture of air will flower in March or April. A. sarniensis, Miura sarniense of Douglas, who published a description of it in 1725; narcissus of others ; Cuernscy lily, so called by- Mr. Ray in 1665; with petals linear, flat, stamens and pistil straightish, longer than the corolla, stigmas, parted and revolute. The bulb is an oblong
spheroid ; the leaves are dark willow green; the number of flowers is common ly from eight to twelve, and circumfer ence ()leach about seven inches; the co rolla, in its prime, has the colour of a fine gold tissue, wrought on a rose-coloured ground, and when it. begins to fade, it is a pink: in full sunshine, it seems to be studded with diamonds, but by candle light the specks or spangles appear more like fine gold dust ; when the petals be gin to wither, they assume a deep crim son colour. The flowers begin to come out at the end of August, and the head is usually three weeks in gradually expand ing.. This beautiful plant is a native of Japan, and has been long naturalized in Guernsey. .1t. is said to have been brought from Japan to l'aris, and cul ivatecl in Morin's garden before 1634. It was cul tivated at Wimbledon, in England, by General Lambert, in 1659, and in 1664 be came more common : it does not seem to have been in Holland before 1695. The plants are reputed to owe their origin in Guernsey to the shipwreck of a vessel re turning from Japan, probably before the middle of the seventeenth century. The bulbs, it is said, being cast on shore, took root in that sandy soil, and produced beau tiful flowers, which engaged the attention of Mr. Hatton, the governor's sun, who sent roots to several of his fri e A va riety of this, found at tile Cape of Good Hope, is described by lacquin with a nia ny-flowered spathe, corollas very patent and reflex at the apex, stamens aml pistil somewhat straight, longer than the corol la, and leaves ensiform-linear. Most of these species have very beautiful flowers, and merit the attention of the botanist and florist. 'rhe first, or yellow autumnal A. is very hardy, and increases by offsets. The ses.son for transplanting these mots is from May to the end of July, when the leaves are decayed. They will grow in any soil or situation ; but they will thrive best in a fresh. drv soil. and onen situation, and will keep flowering froth the beginning of September to the middle of November, provided that they escape severe frosts ; and a succession of flowers will spring from thc same root- 'rhe Guernsey lily has been cultivated for ma ny years in the gardens of Guernsey and Jersey, whence the rows are sent to most parts of Europe. The bulbs are common ly brought over in June and July, and they should then be planted in pots filled uith fresh, light, sandy earth, mixed with a small quantity of very rotten dung, placed in a warm situation, and occasion ally refreshed with water. About the middle of September the stronger roots will sheu- their red-coloured flower-stem ; and then the pots should be removed int o a situation where they may have the full benefit of the sun, and be sheltered from strong winds; but not placed under glasses, or too near a wall, which would draw them up, and render them less beau tiful. When the flowers begin to open, the pots should be put under shelter, so as to be secure from too much wet, but not kept too close or too warm. The flowers will continue in beauty for a month; and, though without scent, their rich co lour entitles them to the first rank in the flowery tribe.