122 



THE BIKD-CHERRY. 



of so deadly a quality as the essential oil, or distilled water 

 of the leaves." l It is most abundant in the north of 

 England and Scotland. In Gerard's time it grew wild in 

 the woods of Kent, where it was used as a stock to graft 

 Cherries on : and in Lancashire it was found in almost 

 every hedge. The wood is much used in France by the 

 cabinet-maker, but little known in this country, owing, 



BLOSSOMS OF THE BIRD-CHERRY. 



among other causes, to the difficulty of obtaining it suffi- 

 ciently large. The leaves are more frequently attacked by 

 caterpillars y than those of any other species of Cherry; 

 hence, a writer in the Agricultural Journal of Bavaria 

 recommends that from one to four young trees (according 



1 English Flora. 



