379 



Native Plum. For a full description of this tree see page iML 

 volume 1. 



'I' lie Star Apple and the other species mentioned are handsome 

 trees and worth v of attention for ornamental planting', irrespective of 

 tin- value of their fruit, in localities where the climate is congenial. 

 They will grow in any ordinary good soil, but thrive hest in a deep 

 rich well-drained loam and in sheltered situations. Propagation may 

 he effected by seeds, which should be planted an inch and a-half 

 deep. Cuttings of the ripened wood of the present season will root 

 freely in sand if placed in a close frame, and when practicable plants 

 an be readily obtained from layers. 



STRAWBERRY. 



HlSTOKY. 



The Strawberry belongs to the natural order of Rosacece, and in 

 known botanical ly as Fray aria. This name comes from the Latin 

 fragrans (fray-rant), in allusion to the strong- and pleasant odour of 

 Hie fruit. The common or English name is supposed to have 

 originated from the practice of laying straw under the fruit to keep 

 it clean. Some authorities, however, contend that the name was 

 originally Strayberry. in allusion to the runners trailing along the 

 ground and forming young plants away from the parent one. There 

 are a number of species, and the family is widely diffused, represen- 

 tatives being found in the temperate zones of Europe. Asia, and both 

 North and South America. The numerous varieties now cultivated 

 have originated from several species which, as a rule, alter materially 

 in character when brought under cultivation. 



Strawberries appear to have been unknown or neglected by the 

 nations of antiquity, as they are not mentioned by the early Greek 

 and Roman writers upon agriculture. In England they appear to 

 have been systematically cultivated for hundreds of years, as Stray- 

 berries are mentioned in old records from the time of Henry VI. In 

 the latter part of the fifteenth century the garden of the Bishop of 

 l']|y, situated in Holborn, London, was noted for the fine Strawberries 

 grown in it, and Shakspeare makes prominent allusion to this 

 circumstance in one of his plays. The kind then grown is supposed 

 to have been the common Wood Strawberry (Frugaria vescu), which 

 was doubtless the first species brought under cultivation. This 

 species grows wild in the woods in. the United Kingdom and many 

 other parts of Europe, and is also found in North America. In its 

 native state it produces an abundance of small red fruit, which is 

 rather poor in flavour, but under cultivation its quality is greatly 

 improved. The Alpine Strawberry comes from the same species 

 (Fruyaria vesca). This kind is more vigorous in growth than the Wood 

 Strawberry, and bears larger and better flavoured fruit, This Strawberry 

 is very prolific, and under liberal treatment will yield more or less fruit 



