310 FLORA DOMEST1CA. 



Dallaway observes, that the banks of the Meles, the 

 rivulet sacred to Homer, are in some parts set thick with 

 Oleanders *. 



OLIVE-TREE. 



OLEA. 



OLEINE^E. DIANDEIA MONOGYNIA. 



French, 1'olivier. Italian, ulivo; olivo; when wild, olivastrello 

 salvatico. 



OLIVES are evergreen trees or shrubs, and some of the 

 species are common in drawing-rooms, balconies, &c. In 

 this country they require winter shelter, from September 

 till May, in common seasons. The earth should not be 

 suffered to remain dry, but water should be given in small 

 quantities. The blossoms are white, and very small. 



The unripe fruit of the Olive, pickled, of the Provence 

 and Lucca kinds in particular, is to many persons extremely 

 grateful, and is often eaten after dinner with wine : it is 

 supposed to promote digestion, and excite appetite. The 

 oil expressed from the fruit is one -of the purest of all the 

 vegetable oils : it is the kind commonly used for culinary 

 purposes ; and with the exception of the oil of almonds, is 

 that most frequently directed for medicinal preparations. 

 The wood is of a brown colour, and very heavy. Thun- 

 berg, in his Travels in the Cape of Good Hope, says that 

 he has often seen chairs made of it, in the farmers' houses ; 

 and that they felt very heavy in the hand. " This strong 

 wood," continues he, " is used in the construction of mills. 

 The wood of the Cape Olive, which they call the Bucku- 

 tree, is reckoned by the inhabitants the best wood for 

 making wheels and waggons (." 



* Dallaway's Constantinople, p. 205. 



t See Thunberg's Travels, vol. i. p. 110, 111. 



