CENTURY VII. &quot;291 



we see wheat, barley, artichokes, are no good nou 

 rishment till they have passed the fire ; but the fire 

 doth ripen, and maketh them soft and tender, and 

 so they become esculent. As for radish and tarra 

 gon, and the like, they are for condiments, and not 

 for nourishment. And even some of those herbs 

 which are not esculent, are notwithstanding pocu- 

 lent ; as hops, broom, &c. Query, what herbs are 

 good for drink besides the two aforenamed ; for that 

 it may, perhaps, ease the charge of brewing, if they 

 make beer to require less malt, or make it last 

 longer. 



631. Parts fit for the nourishment of man in 

 plants are, seeds, roots, and fruits ; but chiefly seeds 

 and roots. For leaves, they give no nourishment at 

 all, or very little : no more do flowers, or blossoms, 

 or stalks. The reason is, for that roots, and seeds, 

 and fruits, inasmuch as all plants consist of an oily 

 and watery substance commixed, have more of the 

 oily substance, and leaves, flowers, &c. of the watery. 

 And secondly, they are more concocted ; for the 

 root which continueth ever in the earth, is still con 

 cocted by the earth ; and fruits and grains we see 

 are half a year or more in concocting ; whereas 

 leaves are out and perfect in a month. 



632. Plants, for the most part, are more strong 

 both in taste and smell in the seed, than in the leaf 

 and root. The cause is, for that in plants that are 

 not of a fierce and eager spirit, the virtue is increased 

 by concoction and maturation, which is ever most in 

 the seed ; but in plants that are of a fierce and eager 



