20Q REMARKS ON THE HOLLY. 



The holly which forms a verdant pavilion for the chirping tribe, 

 protecting them from the inclemency of the stormy season, forms 

 also a snare for their destruction ; for the fowler obtains a viscid 

 substance from the bark of this tree, which he prepares into bird- 

 lime, and thus entangles his prey. 



This tree which loves a cold loamy soil and a sheltered situa- 

 tion will thrive also where the south-west sea-blasts cut most other 

 trees as if they were mown with a scythe, nor does it refuse to 

 grow on gravel, chalk, or rocky land ; and we have often seen it 

 thrive upon brick earth, as well as upon dry hot sand and sterile 

 heathy commons ; thus accommodating itself to almost every 

 soil and situation in the kingdom, particularly in very barren 

 soils. The holly is valuable as well as ornamental. The tim- 

 ber is the whitest of all the hard woods ; and therefore preferred 

 by the turner and engraver to most others, as well as by the ca- 

 binet maker, when fashion permits the inlaying of coloured 

 woods. It is often dyed black to imitate ebony ; and it has long 

 been in great demand at Tunbridge, in Kent, where it is manu- 

 factured into numerous fancy articles. 



Deer feed upon the leaves in winter, and sheep browse upon it 

 to their advantage. 



Like the hawthorn, the holly sends forth its white blossoms in 

 May, and its berries, like the thaws of the thorn, hang on the 

 branches all the winter, and remain in the earth two years before 

 they germinate, unless when they have passed through the sto- 

 mach of fowls, when they vegetate the first year. We have, 

 therefore, only to give them a similar fermentation by art, which 

 nature gives them in the body of birds, to enable us to raise, 

 young plants in one year instead of two. For this purpose we are 

 recommended to take a bushel of bran, and to mix it with the 

 seeds in a tub or earthen vessel, and wet it with soft water, and 

 let it remain undisturbed for ten days when it will again ferment. 

 It must be sprinkled occasionally with warm water to keep it 

 moist, and in about thirty or forty days the heat of the moistened 

 bran will put the berries into a state of vegetation fit for sowing 

 in about a week after the fermentation has commenced. 



March is the best season for sowing this seed, which may also 

 be treated according to the direction given for raising hawthorns. 

 September is the proper time for transplanting young hollies ; but 

 in cold and moist soils, they may be planted safely in the spring. 



Mr. Evelyn says, he has raised hedges four feet high in four 



