166 THE ASH-TREE. 



tion of them to their wonted shelter. So pleasing 

 are the " signs of the times " afforded by plants ; 

 very many of which are almost as trustworthy as 

 those drawn from astronomy. 



Linnaeus proposed to construct a calendar for the 

 guide of the gardener and of the agriculturist, 

 which would enable them, by observing at what 

 periods certain trees come into leaf, or certain 

 plants into blossom or fruit, to judge of the best 

 times for sowing and planting, and also for gather- 

 ing in the crops. It stands to reason that if after a 

 few years' careful observation, a particular vegetable 

 is found to succeed best when the seed is sown at 

 the time some particular flower is in perfection, the 

 recurrence of that period, the renewal of the perfec- 

 tion of that particular flower, will mark the time 

 when the vegetable in question will again be most 

 likely to be sown to advantage. In this beautiful 

 concord we should in time secure a certain guide to 

 healthy and prosperous operations, alike in field 

 and garden, and should be able to calculate exactly 

 when to look for the results. " If we found," for 

 instance, says one who laboured hard to establish 

 the fact, " that on sowing peas or other seed when 

 the gooseberry -bush blossomed, they were ready for 

 getting when the corn-marigold flowered, we might 

 be pretty sure that every succeeding year the same 

 uniformity would prevail, and by a little attention, 

 the suitable times for all other such operations 



