Chap. 31.] THYME. 331 



the "oxytriphyllon," 2 has a pointed leaf ; and the third has 

 the smallest leaf of them all. Among these plants there are 

 some which have a tough, sinewy stem, such as marathron, 3 

 for instance, hippomarathron, 4 and the myophonum. 5 The um- 

 bels, too, of fennel-giant and the purple flowers 6 of the ivy are 

 employed for this purpose ; as also anothej kind of ivy very 

 similar to the wild rose, 7 the colour only of which is attractive, 

 the flower being quite inodorous. There are also two 8 varieties 

 used of the cneorum, the black and the white, this last being 

 odoriferous : they are both of them provided with branches, 

 and they blossom after the autumnal equinox. 9 



(10.) There are the same number of varieties, also, of ori- 

 ganum employed in making chaplets, one of which is destitute 

 of seed, the other, which is also odoriferous, being known as 

 the Cretan 10 origanum. 



CHAP. 31. TWO VARIETIES OF THYME. PLANTS PRODUCED FROM 



BLOSSOMS AND NOT FROM SEED. 



There are also as many varieties of thyme 11 employed, the 

 one white, the other dark : 12 it flowers about the summer sol- 

 stice, when the bees cull from it. From this plant a sort of 

 augury is derived, as to how the honey is likely to turn out : 



2 " Pointed trefoil." Pliny has probably committed an error here, as 

 Dioscorides makes oxyphyllum, minyanthes, and asphaltium to be different 

 names of the same variety. Sprengel, however, identifies this pointed 

 trefoil with the Trifolium Italicum of Linnaeus. 



3 The Anethum faeniculum of Linnaeus. See B. viii. c. 41, B. xx. c. 95, 

 and B. xxx. c. 9. 4 See B. xx. c. 96. 



5 The " mouse-killer." Probably the Aconitum napellus of Linnaeus. 

 See B. xxvii. c. 2. 6 See B. xvi. e. 62. 



7 Fee remarks, that there is no such ivy in existence ; he agrees with 

 Dalechamps in the opinion that Pliny has confounded ici<r(ro, " ivy," with 

 jctVroc, the " rock-rose. See B. xvi. e. 62. 



8 The Daphne Cnidium and the Daphne Cneorum of Linnaeus. See B. 

 xxiii. c. 35, and B. xv. c. 7. 



9 In reality, they blossom in April and May, and mostly a second time 

 in autumn as well, the Daphne Cneorum in particular. 



10 See B. xx. o. 69. 



11 Under the head " Thymus," F6e thinks that both the Satureia capi- 

 tata of LinnaBUS, headed savory, and the Thymus vulgaris, and Thymus 

 zygis of Linn^us (varieties of thyme), should be included. 



K Fee thinks that in the expression " nigricans," he may allude to the 

 deep red of the stalk of some kinds of thyme, more particularly at the end 

 of summer. It is the Thymus zigis that has a white, downy stem. 



