BALM. 55 



Virgil, in one of his pastorals, which was indeed the 

 original of the poem of llucellai, mentions green casia, 

 wild thyme, and savory, instead of the violet, parsley, and 

 wild thyme. By casia, some have supposed the poet in- 

 tended rosemary ; but in another passage he distinguishes 

 these two plants : and as he uses the epithet ' green, 1 which 

 the ancient poets almost invariably apply to parsley, it is 

 probable Rucellai may have considered this as the plant 

 described by Virgil. The frequent changes in the names 

 of plants have occasioned much doubt and difficulty in 

 ascertaining exactly the plants intended by old authors. 

 Vaccinium has been translated by different writers, the 

 privet, the hyacinth, the violet, &e. 



Evelyn tells us that " this noble plant yields an in- 

 comparable wine ;" and that " sprigs, fresh gathered, put 

 into wine in the heat of summer, give it a marvellous 

 quickness." 



There is a plant called Bastard Balm, or Balm-leaved 

 Archangel ; in French, Le Melissot, or Melissa de Pu- 

 naissc [Bug-balm] ; of which the botanical name, Melittis, 

 is similar in its etymology to Melissa. This, like the true 

 Balm, yields a great deal of honey ; it is described as having 

 an unpleasant smell when fresh, but becoming delightfully 

 fragrant when dried. It has large white and purple flowers, 

 which are odoriferous when they first open. This plant is 

 very handsome, and is a common inhabitant of the flower- 

 garden. 



Both these plants may be increased by parting the roots, 

 which may be divided into pieces, with five or six buds to 

 each, and planted in separate pots : this should be done in 

 October, When intended for ornament, the roots should 

 not be disturbed oftener than every third year. The earth 

 should be loamy, and they should be placed in an eastern 

 aspect, where they will thrive and produce {lowers in 



