THE 



FARMER'S ENCYCLOPEDIA, 



AND 



DICTIONARY OF RURAL AFFAIRS. 



ABATE (French, abbalre ; Spanish, aba- 

 tir , Italian, abbaterey, to beat down. In com- 

 merce, to let down the price in selling. 



In law, means the beating down or removal 

 of an obstruction or nuisance, which, accord- 

 ing to the common law of England, any per- 

 son may remove, provided he does it in a 

 peaceable manner, so as pot to occasion a 

 breach of the peace, such as the obstruction 

 of an ancient light, which is a private nuisance, 

 or the erection of a gate across a common 

 road, which is a public nuisance, and which 

 any one may beat down and remove. 



ABELE TREE (Populus alba). European 

 White Poplar, or Dutch Beech, otherwise call- 

 ed the Arbeel. The Abele is a tree of very 

 rapid growth, but seldom exceeds forty or fifty 

 feet in height. The leaves are large, and di- 

 vided into three, four, or five lobes, which are 

 indented on their edges. 



This tree is not to be considered as a native 

 of England. Hartlib, in his " Complete Hus- 

 bandman," 1659, states that some years ago, 

 there were ten thousand Abeles at once sent 

 over into England from Flanders, and trans- 

 planted into many counties ; that the timber is 

 incomparable for all sorts of wooden vessels, 

 especially trays ; and that butchers' trays can- 

 not be made without it, it being so exceedingly 

 light and tough. 



"A specimen of their advance," says Eve- 

 lyn, "we have had of an Abele tree at Sion, 

 which being lopped in Feb. 1651, did, by the 

 end of October, 1652, produce branches as big 

 as a man's wrist, and seventeen feet in length. 

 As they thus increase in bulk, their value ad- 

 vances likewise, which, after the first seven 

 years, is annually worth one shilling more. 

 The Dutch, therefore," he continues, "look 

 upon a plantation of these trees as an ample 

 portion for a daughter." Besides the uses of 

 the wood before stated, it is considered good 

 for wainscoting, for floors, laths, and packing 

 cases ; and, from the boards of it not splitting 

 by nails, but closing over the heads, it is 

 esteemed superior to deal for the latter pur- 

 pose. It is found to answer for works under 



water. Peaty and low damp soils are the most 

 proper for the Abele, and in these it is well 

 worthy the attention of the forest planter. It 

 should never be planted near the margins of, 

 nor in grass fields, for it extends its roots 

 under the grass to a great distance, and sends 

 up numerous shoots. The Abele is propa- 

 gated by layers, cuttings, and off-shoots or 

 suckers. The month of February is the best 

 season for planting the cuttings. In two years, 

 many, if not all that have rooted, will be fit to 

 plant out for good, on the sites where they are 

 to remain for timber. The size of the plants 

 considered the "best for final transplantation, is 

 from one and a half to three feet in length, but 

 much larger plants will succeed very well by 

 paying proper attention to keep the roots as 

 perfect as possible. 



The Abele is sometimes made a variety of 

 the Gray Poplar (Populus canescens), and seve- 

 ral British as well as foreign botanists have 

 confounded the two species, but they are very 

 distinct. 



There are many varieties of the Abele, aris- 

 ing from local circumstances. The variety, 

 called on the continent, Polan de Holland, is 

 preferable for avenues and for landscape gard- 

 ening, from its rapid growth, its majestic 

 height and aspect, and from its fine white 

 leaves contrasting well with the green of other 

 leaves. There are some magnificent ones 

 near the Hague, and more particularly exten- 

 sive avenues of them along most of the high- 

 ways in the lower districts of Belgium, near 

 Bruges and Ghent. It is so common on the 

 romantic banks of the Rhone, that some French 

 authors call it Arbre du Rhone. 



According to M'Intosh, the best cuttings are 

 taken from the wood of the preceding year; 

 and when made, each cutting should be nine 

 inches in length, and planted in nursery lines 

 eighteen inches apart, and the cuttings about 

 six inches distant from each other. When in- 

 serted in the ground, they should be put in 

 deep enough to resist the drought ; and if only 

 two inches of the top appear above ground, it 

 will be found sufficient. In two years, or three 

 at most, these cuttings will be fully grown to 

 fit them for being finally planted out ; but ii* 



