The herball or Generall historie of plantes. Gathered by Iohn Gerarde of London Master in Chirurgerie very much enlarged and amended by Thomas Iohnson citizen and apothecarye of London

¶ The Description.

THis Willow leaued shrub, which Clusius coniectures may be refer'd to the Speiraea mentioned by Theophrastus, lib. 1. cap. 23. hist∣plant. I haue named in English, Mocke-Wil∣low, how fitly I know not; but if any will im∣pose a fitter name I shall be well pleased there∣with; but to the thing it selfe. It is a shrub, (saith Clusius) some two cubits high, hauing slender branches or twigs couered ouer with a reddish barke, whereon grow many leaues without order, long, narrow, like those of the Willow, snipt about the edges, of a light green aboue, and of a blewish greene vnderneath, of a drying taste conjoyned with some bitternes. The tops of the branches for some fingers length carry thicke spikes of small floures clu∣stering together, and consisting of fiue leaues apiece, out of whose middle come forth many little threds of a whitish red or flesh colour, together with the floure, hauing no 〈◊〉〈◊〉

smell, but such as is in the floure of the Oliue tree; these floures fading there succeed small fiue cornered heads, which comming to full maturitie containe a small and yellowish dusty seed: it floures in Iuly, and ripens the seed in the end of August. Clusius had this plant from Fredericke 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Physition to the Duke of Briga, and that from Briga in Silesia, and he (as I said) refers it to the 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 of Theophrastus, which he reckons amongst the shrubs that carry spike fashioned floures.

This is not vsed in medicine, nor the Temperature and faculties thereof as yet knowne.