CENTURY VI. 25 1 



take earth made with marjoram, or origanum, or 

 wild thyme, bruised or stamped, and set in it fennel 

 seed, &c. In which operation the process of nature 

 still will be, as I conceive, not that the herb you 

 work upon should draw the juice of the foreign 

 herb, for that opinion we have formerly rejected, 

 but there will be a new confection of mold, which 

 perhaps will alter the seed, and yet not to the kind 

 of the former herb. 



529. The fourth rule shall be, to mark what 

 herbs some earths do put forth of themselves, and to 

 take that earth and to pot it, or to vessel it : and in 

 that to set the seed you would change : as for exam 

 ple, take from under walls or the like, where nettles 

 put forth in abundance, the earth, which you shall 

 there find, without any string or root of the nettles ; 

 and pot that earth, and set in it stock- gilly-flowers, 

 or wall-flowers, &c. or sow in the seeds of them, and 

 see what the event will be ; or take earth that you 

 have prepared to put forth mushrooms of itself, 

 whereof you shall find some instances following, and 

 sow it in purslane seed, or lettuce seed ; for in these 

 experiments, it is likely enough that the earth being 

 accustomed to send forth one kind of nourishment, 

 will alter the new seed. 



530. The fifth rule shall be, to make the herb 

 grow contrary to its nature ; as to make ground- 

 herbs rise in height : as for example, carry camomile, 

 or wild thyme, or the green strawberry upon sticks, 

 as you do hops upon poles, and see what the event 

 will be. 



