TILIA 



TILLAGE 



ISO!) 



ribbed. July. Alleghanies. S.S. 1 :27. — This has been 

 sent out as T. macrophylla, a name that properly he- 

 longs to a large-leaved var of T. Americana. 



5. Miqueliana, Maxim. Tree, attaining 100 ft., with 

 usually an oblong head : lvs. ovate, truncate or slightly 

 cordate at base, gradually acuminate, rather coarsely 

 serrate with incurved teeth, 4-0 in. long: floral bract 

 adnate almost to the base of the peduncle: fr. globose, 

 thick-shelled, 5-ribbed only at the base. Japan. G.F. 

 6:113. 



0. pubescens, Ait. (T. A iilrrinhm. var. pubiscenS, 

 Loud.). Similar to the better known T. Americana, but 

 a smaller tree: winter-buds finely pubescent: lvs. 

 smaller, obliquely truncate at the base, glabrous above, 

 pubescent beneath: floral bract usually rounded at 

 base: fr. globose. June. Long Island to Pla., west 

 to Tex. S.S. 1:20. -Less ornamental than T. Ameri- 

 cana and hut rarely cult. 



7. Americana, Linn. ( T. Caroliniana, Hort.). Ameri- 

 can Linden. Basswood. Fig. 2514. Stately tree with 

 large cordate lvs. shining above, usually smooth except 

 for the tufts of hairs in the axils of veins: floral 

 bract very large, tapering to a more or less stalked 

 base: fr. ovoid, tomentose. July. E. N. Amer. S.S. 

 1:24. Mn. 0:153. — This is our most common American 

 species and the one most frequently planted. Variable 

 in its habit, size and shape of lvs. and in the color of 

 its bark. As a forest tree it was formerly abundant in 

 the eastern and middle states, but with the general 

 destruction of the forests and the greatly increased de- 

 mand for its white wood for manufacturing purposes, 

 good specimens are becoming scarce, and the source of 

 supply is constantly moving westward. Vars. in the 

 trade are macrophylla, Hort.. a large-lvd. form; Molt- 

 kei, Hort., a very strong-growing large-lvd. form which 

 originated in cultivation in Europe. What is sold some- 

 times as T. Americana, var. pendnla, is a form of 

 T. petiolaris, 



8. Mongdlica, Max,m. A slender tree with very small 

 orbicular or ovate lvs., truncate at the base, usually 3- 

 lobed, cuspidate, coarsely serrate with acuminate teeth, 

 glaucous beneath or green on vigorous shoots: cyme 

 rather dense, with the stalk naked at the base. E. Asia. 



9. platyphyllos, Scop. (T. grandifblia, Ehrh.). This 

 is the broad-leaved Linden of European plantations and 

 probably the largest. It attains 00 ft. Lvs. large, green, 

 pubescent, often on the upper side to some extent, un- 

 equally cordate, petioles and veins hairy: fr. 5, rarely 

 4-angled, tomentose, thick-shelled. This is the species 

 most commonly sold here as T. Europwa, and the earli- 

 est to flower. June. Eu. G.F. 2:250. — The following 

 varietal names in the American trade seem to belong 

 here: pyramidalis, an upright grower with reddish 

 shoots; rubra, bark of branches very red ; ailrea, with 

 yellow bark on branches; laciniata and laciniata 

 rubra, with deeply cut leaves and reddish young bark; 

 sulphurea, probably the same as aurea; vitifolia, the 

 vine-leaved Linden with lobed leaves. 



10. dasystyla, Stev. Crimean Linden. Lvs. tough 

 and leathery, dark glossy green above and pale beneath, 

 with tufts of brown hairs in the axils of the principal 

 veins: bark of young branches bright green: lvs. often 

 obliquely truncate at base. E. Eu.,W. Asia. 



11. vulgaris, Hayne (T. Europina, Hort., in part). 

 This species grows nearly as large as T. platyphyllos, 

 has large unequal or oblique cordate lvs., smooth and 

 green on both sides; tufts of hairs in axils of veins 

 whitish: fr. globose or oval, tomentose, shell thick, 

 June, July. Eu. G.F. 2:250. — This is said to be the 

 celebrated spe"ies of Berlin and is often sold in this 

 country under ihe name of T. Europam. It is a week or 

 ten days later in blooming than T. platyphyllos, and 

 about the same number of days earlier than T. Ameri- 

 cana. 



12. ulmiJdlia, Scop. (T. cord&ta, Mill. T. parvifblia, 

 Ehrh. T. Sibirica, Bo jer. T. E uropaa , in part. T.micro- 

 plujlln, Vent.). Of slower growth and usually smaller 

 tree than the T. platyphyllos: lvs. small, thin, cordate, 

 green above, silvery beneath, with tufts of rusty hairs 

 in the axils of the veins: fr. globose, sometimes slightly 

 ribbed, very thin-shelled. July. Eu. G.F. 2:257. — Very 

 late in flowering. JoHN F- Cowell. 



TILLAGE. The working or stirring of the land, in 

 order to improve it for agricultural purposes, is known 

 by the general name of tillage. There is a tendency 

 to use the word cultivation for these operations. Til- 

 lage is a specific technical term, and is to be preferred. 

 In the eager discussions of scientific matters, as applied 

 to agriculture in recent years, there is danger of for- 

 getting that the fundamental practice in all kinds of 

 farming is, after all, the tillage of the land. The knowl- 

 edge of the importance of tillage has developed late in 

 the world's history. In fact, it is only within the latter 

 part of the century just closed that the real reasons for 



2514, Basswood 



American Linden- 



(x %.) 



tilling have come to be popularly understood in this 

 country. Even now there are many persons who believe 

 that the object of tillage is to kill weeds. The modern 

 conceptions of tillage probably date from Jethro Toll's 

 book on "Horse-Hoeing Husbandry,'' which reached the 

 second and full edition in 1733, in England. This book 

 awakened so much discussion that the system of "horse- 

 hoe husbandry " recommended by it was called the 

 "new husbandry." There had been tillage of land be- 

 fore Tull's time, but his writing seems to have been the 

 first distinct effort to show that tillage is necessary to 

 make the soil productive rather than to kill weeds or to 

 open the ground to receive the seeds. He contrived va- 

 rious tools whereby grain crops could be sown in rows 

 and afterwards tilled. The tillage of the land in early 

 times was confined very largely to that w T hich preceded 

 the planting of the crop. In the vineyards of southern 

 Europe, however, Tull observed that tillage was em- 

 ployed between the vines during the season of growth. 

 Such vineyards prospered. He made experiments and 

 observations on his return to England and came to the 

 conclusion that tillage is of itself a very important 

 means of making plants thrifty and productive wholly 

 aside from its office of killing weeds. He supposed that 

 tillage benefits plants by making the soil so fine that the 

 minute particles can be taken in by the roots of plants. 

 Upon the same hypothesis he explained the good effects 

 of burning or "devonshiring" land, and also the benefits 

 that followed the application of ashes: the minute par- 

 ticles of the ashes are so small as to be absorbed by 

 roots. Although this explanation of the benefits of til- 

 lage was erroneous, nevertheless Tull showed that til- 

 lage is necessary to the best agriculture and that it is 



