M E S 



M E S 



sides are smooth ami grceii : the flowers come 

 out in bunches at the end of the shouts, are 

 lar^e and white : the petals are long and nar- 

 row, and the stamens about ten in number : 

 the fruit small ami sweet, black when ripe. 

 According to IinotSUS, while young the 

 branches, petioles, peduncles and under sur- 

 face of the leaves are tomentose ;. but when so 

 far advanced as to bear fruit, it puts off the 

 pubescence and becomes smooth. It is a na- 

 tive of the South of Europe. 



The fourth species has a smooth stalk, about 

 four or five feet high, sending out slender 

 branches covered with a purplish bark : the 

 leaves are about two inches long, and one inch 

 and a half broad, yellowish green on both sides, 

 on long slender foot-stalks: the flowers axillary, 

 four or" live together in a close head, purplish ; 

 with lonsr, narrow, purplish bractes : the fruit 

 small red7 While young, it is also woolly, but 

 w hen further advanced naked. It is a native of 

 the Pyrenees, &c. 



The fifth is a low shrub, seldom more than 

 Jive feet high, dividing into several smooth 

 branches, covered with a purplish bark : the 

 leaves grow upon long slender foot-stalks ; are 

 an inch and a half long, and an inch broad, 

 smooth on both sides, and serrate : the flowers 

 come out in smali bunches at the ends of the 

 branches ; arc about the size of those of the 

 common Hawthorn, and succeeded by small 

 fruit of a purplish colour. It is a native of Ca- 

 nada and Virginia, flowering in April and May. 



The sixth species is a low spreading shrub, 

 not more than four or five feet high, covered 

 with a smooth ash-coloured or purple bark, 

 when voung pubescent, but becoming smooth 

 with ai. r e : The leaves alternate, the upper surface 

 brightgreen and smooth, the lower white-to- 

 mentose, finely netted, about an inch long-, 

 and three quarters of an inch broad : the pe- 

 tioles two Hues in length, channelled above : 

 there are two lanceolate, acuminate, deciduous, 

 reddish stipules at the base of the petioles : 

 the peduncles either solitary and unbranched 

 from the tops of the twigs, or forming 'little 

 corymbs of three or four flowers, which are pe- 

 <luncled, somewhat nodding, round and pubes- 

 cent, with a small bractc at the base. It is a 

 native of many parts of Europe and Siberia, 

 flowenng in April and May. 



The seventh has a smooth stalk about eight 

 feet high, dividing into many smooth branches: 

 the leaves are two" inches and a half loug, of a 

 thick substance, dark green on their upper side, 

 but downy on the under, standing upon short 

 toot- stalk's : the flowers come out of the side of 

 the stalk, upon short small branches, five or six 



grow -ing upou each in a close bunch : the petals 

 are of a purple colour,little longer than the calyx, 

 which is woolly, with blunt segments : the 

 fruit is large, roundish, and of a line red colour 

 when ripe. It flowers in April and May. 



The eighth species is a bushy irregular Bhrubi 

 the branches strigose and ruirged, testaceous- 

 brown, divaricated, alternately spinose: the 

 spines are axillary, commonly branched with 

 secondary spines, sometimes gemmiferous and 

 producing branchlets : the leaves scattered, 

 smooth, petioled, continuing till winter, lan- 

 ceolate with a point, crenatc; but in the garden 

 serrate: the corymbs copious on the branches, 

 compound, subsessile, or elevated on the leafy 

 branchlets, on divaricating peduncles: the 

 flowers white, scarcely larger than those of 

 Elder : the berry globular, fulvous, the size of 

 a pea, umbilicated with the calyx ; pulpv and 

 five-seeded. But according to Scopoli, the 

 fruit is as large as the common Medlar ; the 

 seeds subovate and compressed. It is a native 

 of the South of Europe, flowering in May. 



Culture. — They are all easily raised by seeds, 

 layers, grafting and budding ; but it is the best 

 practice to raise the Medlar kinds principally by 

 grafting orbuddmg, inorderto continue thesorts. 



In the first method, the seeds should be sown 

 in autumn, in a bed of common earth, as they 

 usually lie a year, or more, before they germi- 

 nate, as in the haw and holly-berries, &c. 



When the plants appear they should be watered 

 frequently in dry weather ; and in the autumn or 

 spring following, the largest be thinned out and 

 planted in nursery-rows, two feet by one 

 asunder ; and in another year all the rest may 

 be set out in the same manner ; and in three or 

 four years they will be proper for being planted 

 out in the garden or shrubbery. 



In the second mode the young branches should 

 be laid down in theautumn in the common method; 

 and they will be properly rooted by the autumn 

 followins, when they should be planted out in 

 nursery-rows in the same way as the seedlings. 



The two last methods should be performed on 

 stalks of the larger Medlar kinds, or sometimes 

 upon those of the White Thorn, raised from 

 seed, as above ; but the Pear-stock is to be 

 preferred for the common Medlars, when intend- 

 ed as fruit-trees. The operations are performed 

 in the usual way, low in the stocks to form 

 dwarfs ; and for half or full standards, training 

 the first shoot lor a stem, or the slock may be 

 let form a stem, and then be wrought at from 

 about three or four to five or six feet in Height. 

 See Budding and G raiting. 



Those intended for fruit-trees, whether 

 dwarfs, half or full standards, in training, should, 

 Q2 



