Afterwards, these corpiiscides were esteemed of great moment, and on them particular names 

 were imposed ; and, moreover, all the several parts of fructification were carefully described. 



Exactly to pronounce ^vho first discovered the Sexes of Plants would be a task of the greatest 

 difficulty, and of. no real utility. For many inventions have increased by degrees, just as a 

 river, which at first springs from a small rivulet, several of which run into a single channel, tdl 

 at length it becomes augmented so as to bear the largest ships. 



This knowledge oi Sexual Distinction cannot be denied to the ancient cultivators of Palms,* 



* Old Parkinson, who wrote his " Theatre of Plants' in l640, speaking of the Palm, says, " the Date is the fruit of this tree, the best 

 kinds are called regia, as being diet fit for kings. The ancient writers have set down many things of the date-tree, ' that there are male and 

 female, and that to make them bear, they must be near each other, or else they will not bear,' but I pray you account this among the rest 



of their fables." 



It is worthy of enquiry, whether the ancients really understood the meaning of the distinction of the date-tree mto male and female, 



as it is at present understood. Quotations will, I think, settle fully this point. 



Xt'iug, KC/.V tSto Tra^Jj, Stocjyipet kxi hk oiTroCoiXXsi. 



" When the male Palm is in vigour, the spatha is cut, whence the flowers proceed, as soon as it contains the down, flowers, and dust,^ 

 and they shake this over the fruit of the female tree, and from that sprinkling, it turns out, that none drop their fruits, but all perfect them." 

 Theoph. Hist. Plant. Lib. ii. c. 9. 



How near had Pliny hit the mark! 



" Arboribus, immo potius omnibus qua terra gignat, herbisque etiam, utrumque sexum esse, diligentissimi Naturae scrutatores tradunt : 

 tmllis tamen arboribus manifestius quam Palmis. Sine maribus non gignere foeminas sponte edito nemore confirmant : circaque smgulos 

 plures nutare in earn pronas blandioribus comis. Ilium erectis hispidum Afilatu Visuque ipso et Pul^^ere etiam reliquas maritare: hujus Arbore 

 excisa viduas post sterilescere Foeminas. Adeoque est Veneris intellectus, ut Coitus etiam excogitatus sit ab Homine, ex Maribus Flore ac 

 Lanugine, interim vero tantum Pulvere insperso Fosminis." 



" All trees, or rather in all things which the earth produces, even in herhs, the most diligent enquiries into Nature report, ' there be 

 two sexes ;' but in none more evident than in Palms. It is confirmed, that the wM female Palms do not produce fruit without the assist- 

 ance of the male, and for this purpose the females bend their boughs to him for mutual embface. He also marries with the other female 

 palms by gentle sighings, tender looks, and the dispersion of a powder. This male tree being cut down, the widowed females afterwards 

 become sterile. This love in plants has been observed by men who imitate it, and by the scattering of flowers and down of the male, or 

 even only by the dispersion of the powder, upon the females." Plinii Nat. Hist. Lib. xiii. c. 4. 



'O (5"e (poifi^ epx, Ktzi Spipceug, I icp (poiviK<^, ug (^XcoobvtTvo; Iv ro~g r^upyiKoig aCrta (^jjo"), ku) »' tt^oti^ov nvxwircn th ttc^h, tug uv ocurviu e^o)piev<B^ ttoc^x- 

 [u,v9r,(TixiT0. 'igt yap ISsTv to SbvSoov iTTiKeKixpipievov Kca piij (ps^ou t^v lSia.v (3ix(riv, fxri^l Kocp7ro(pop5i'. tSto a Xocv^avsi tov yBupyov, aXX ti piiv s^x Kcxi e^xrai TBKpiai^i- 

 rxi, dyvoBi Sb 'ttoW Sid 7rapx7flo[^Bv'B^ (poiviKuu, ttoXXuv, Koci TrdXiv btt] rijv £§u(ra bttxviuv, ««; B(pa7r]opisv©^ tsj %H'^», SoxbT (piXripixTt u(T7rip dixxovsTv. ttoih ob (poivmog 



\gi KVTfj TToS-©^ (TTlplUiVBt TDOTTOV Tivd, TVj TUV •WO.'^COV Kx) T^ TUV ^SffWC, Cog UV Tig BtTTOI, VB\J(Til, TT^Og IkB~VOV yxp XTTO^XbtTSI, Kx) ES"' BKbTvOV TT^O^'^i^©- WCTTTe/) (TTnVOiiirX 



BxvT-^v BTnpptTrjBi xK^ Sv ytvBTOu ryj I^uktvi, t» ysupyS QovB^dg xTirjofjiBVii t5 a^^Sf©^, Kxl rag ^sf^af a\jT^ ■zsr^oa-TrsXx^ovJ®^ T^ £^uy.Bvyj' fixXigx £J Tijy xwviv e^eXav 

 diro Tvig Q-urd'^rig t« xqIbv®^, Bv'^vitrBi Big ttiv xetpaA^y rijf spuayjg. iru yxp Tir^auvBi tov e^uja, xxi Xoinrov ■>} (poiviz xyXxl^opiBVf} KxXXtg-ov xxpwov oktbi, 



" Palm trees possess the passion of love, and indeed most ardently, as Florentinus delivers in his Georgics, nor can this passion be 

 extinguished until they meet. The female in love droops her head, nor is the basis firm, nor does she then produce fruit. This the farmers 

 notice, they are conscious she is in love, endeavour to console her, and when she meets with the male plant she loves, she elevates herself, 

 . and they appear to embrace by mutual kisses. And the male plant also displays his affections, extends his arms, and as it were gazes at the 

 object of his love, extends his roots to hers, and thus embraces her. The cure of this love, when the two are at a distance, is applied by 

 countrymen, who bring the arms or hands of the lover to his mistress, and thus the male flowers a.ve placed on the head of the female tree. 

 This mitigates the wastings from the flame of love, and the rejoicingybmaZe then bears fruit." Geoponic. Lib. X. C. 4. 



ilspt oe Tuv (pVTuv XByiS(n Tratoeg iTD(puv, kxi pcv-jov eXByov tov Xoyov Bivxi, Bi ttjj TTxtocg eXsyov ysupyuv. ob Xoyog xXXo piBv xXXa <puTov e^xv. tu oe (poivtKi tov 

 'e^uTX pcxXXov £voxXb~v. Xsyaa-t Sb tov piXv d^'oBvx tuv (poiviKOov, tov Sb 9-^Xuv. xp'gtjv Sv tS ^^Xsog e^x, xxv ^TjXag xTruKtcrptBvog ety; t^ Tr]g (pVTBixg <TTx<TSt, B^xgTijg 

 ccp'priv xvxivBTxt. avviriiTtv ouv ysu^yog ttjv Xvtti^v t£ (fUTB" icx\ sij tjji/ ra %6)f<a TTBPtWTr^v dvBX^uv, e(popx, ttS vbvbvxbv, kXivbtxi yx^ Big to B^ufiBvov' kxi fix^dv, S'e- 

 pxvTBUii t5 (puTa T1JI/ voiTov. TTTcp^ov yd^ t5 ^i^Xsog (poiviKog Xxf3uv, slg t^v ra x^oBvog xxpSiav BVTtd'7!(nv, xx) xvs^v^B piBv T'ljv i|/u%5fi' ra ipura. to Sb (ru[j.x XTro^vijaxov 

 irdXiv dvB^u7iv^v}irev, xx) BpxvB^r,, x'^~t^Qv btti tih TVjg l^upt.ei'Tig (rvpnrXoKri' xx) tuto Bg-t ydpcog (pvTUu. 



" As it respects plants, it is the opinion of philosophers, which otherwise would be esteemed a fable, to which also farmers subscribe, 

 that plants are taken in love with one another, and feel all the disappointment of love. They report that there are male and female. The 

 female tree desires the male, and if she happens to be at a distance from the male, she pines away. On which account the farmer under- 

 standing the malady, as a cure plants the male on a loftier spot, from which he looks down upon his beloved female, inclining to her his 

 boughs ; or he places on the highest branch a bough of the male-tree in flower, the sight of which recreates her mind, recruits her dying 

 body, and revives /ler even by a partial embrace. Such are the Nuptials of Plants." Achilles. Tatius. C. 17. p. 88. 



Hence those much admired lines of Claudian, who most happily introduces a notice of this Love hetwixt Plants in his description of the 

 retreat of Venus into the Island of Cyprus. 



Vivunt in Venerem Frondes, omnisque vicissim 



Felix Arbor amaf^, nutant ad mvitua Palm^b 



Faedera: Populeo suspirat Populus ictu: 



Et Platani Platanis, Alnoque assibilat Alnus. 



Claudian. Epith. p. 177. 

 As a confirmation how little the ancients understood the true doctrine of the sexes of plants, Theophrastus mentions a male and female 

 Peony and Fern, in which last certainly there could be no knowledge of the sexes in plants. He also expressly calls the fig, vine, and 

 pomegranate, female plants in Book I. Chap IX. " Cur Feminas magis Masculi augescunt." " Why female plants grow more than the 

 male plants." Aristotle and Pliny also say, " that the male plants differ only from the female plants in being taller, and more vigor'ous 

 withal! It would be, therefore, absurd to attribute a knowledge of the sexes of plants to the ancients. " Ferat Palmam qui meruit." 



the 



