HONEY DEW. 



HONEYSUCKLE. 



HONEY DEW. See APHIDIA*S. 



HONEY LOCUST, or Sweet Locust (Gle- 

 ditsia triacanthos). The sweet locust belongs 

 peculiarly to the country west of the Alleghany 

 Mountains, and it is scarcely found in any part 

 of the Atlantic States, except in Limestone Val- 

 ley and its branches, which lie between the 

 first and second ranges of the Alleghanies, be- 

 ginning near Harrisburg in Pennsylvania, in 

 the latitude of 40 42', and extending from 

 north-east to south-west into the state of Virgi- 

 nia. The soil in this valley is generally very 

 substantial. In the fertile bottoms which are 

 watered by the rivers emptying into the Mis- 

 sissippi, in the Illinois country, and, still more, 

 in the southern part of Kentucky and Tennes- 

 see, the sweet locust is abundant. It commonly 

 grows with the black walnut, shell-bark hick- 

 ory, red elm, blue ash, locust, box elder, and 

 coffee tree, and forms a part of the forests that 

 cover the most fertile soils. In different parts 

 of the United States, this species is called in- 

 differently sweet locust and honey locust ; the 

 French of Illinois call it f 



In situations the most favourable to its 

 growth, such as are observed on the banks 

 of the Ohio, between Gallipolis and Limestone, 

 the sweet locust attains a very ample size. 

 Michaux measured several stocks which were 

 three or four feet in diameter, and which ap- 

 peared to equal in height the loftiest trees of 

 these immemorial forests. Some of them had 

 the trunk undivided for forty feet. 



The sweet locust is easily known by its bark, 

 which, at intervals of a few inches, detaches 

 itself laterally in plates three or four inches 

 wide and two or three lines thick, and by the 

 form of its trunk, which appears to be twisted, 

 and which presents three or four crevices of 

 inconsiderable depth, opening irregularly from 

 the bottom towards the top. The large thorns 

 which cover the branches, and frequently the 

 trunk of young trees, afford another very dis- 

 tinct characteristic. These thorns are some- 

 times several inches long, ligneous, of a reddish 

 colour, and armed, at some distance from the 

 base, with two secondary thorns, about half the 

 size of the first. 



The leaves of the sweet locust are pinnated, 

 and composed of small, oval, serrate, sessile 

 leaflets. This foliage is elegant, and of an 

 agreeable tint ; but it is thin, and scarcely ob- 

 structs the passage of the sunbeams. It is shed 

 annually at the approach of winter. 



The flowers are small, not very conspicuous, 

 and disposed in bunches. The fruit is in the 

 form of flat, crooked, pendulous pods, from 

 twelve to eighteen inches long, and of a reddish- 

 brown colour. The pods contain brown, smooth, 

 hard seeds, enveloped in a pulpy substance, 

 which, for a month after their maturity, is very 

 sweet, and which then becomes extremely sour. 

 Beer is sometimes made by fermenting this 

 pulp while fresh; but the practice is not gene- 

 ral, as the apple tree and peach tree, particu- 

 larly the last, have become common in the 

 western country, and afford a much superior 

 beverage. 



The perfect wood or heart of the sweet locust 

 nearly resembles that of the locust, but its grain 

 is coarser and its pores more open : in these 



respects it is more strikingly characterized 

 than even the wood of the red oak. When 

 perfectly seasoned, it is extremely hard. It is 

 little esteemed in Kentucky, where it is more 

 employed, and consequently can be better ap- 

 preciated, than elsewhere. It is used neither 

 by the carpenter nor the wheelwright: it is 

 sometimes taken by the farmers for rails to 

 fence their fields, but only when they are unable 

 to procure better wood. It is found by expe- 

 rience to be far inferior to the wild cherry and 

 black walnut for cabinet-making. The only 

 destination for which it appears to be pecu- 

 liarly adapted, is the forming of hedges, which 

 would be rendered impenetrable by its long 

 thorns. 



The sweet locust has been cultivated for 

 many years in Europe. It flourishes, blooms, 

 and yields seed in the climates of London and 

 Paris ; but its vegetation is less active than in 

 the south of France. (Michaux.) 



HONEYSUCKLE (Lonicera, named after 

 Adam Lonicera, a German botanist, who died 

 in 1586). This is a genus of very ornamental 

 shrubs, closely allied to the genus Caprifolium. 

 The species grow in any common soil, and are 

 readily increased by cuttings taken off in au- 

 tumn and planted in a sheltered situation. 

 (Paxton's But. Dirt.} 



In the English Flora, by Dr. Smith, three in- 

 digenous species are described. 



There are five hardy sorts of honeysuckle 

 mentioned by Miller; namely, the Virginian 

 trumpet honeysuckle (Z. sempervirens), the Ger- 

 man honeysuckle, the Italian honeysuckle, the 

 English honeysuck'e or woodbine (L. pericly- 

 memini'), and the evergreen honeysuckle. He 

 names also three other sorts, which are too 

 tender to raise without artificial heat. 



There are two varieties of the trumpet ho- 

 neysuckle; one is a native of Virginia, and the 

 other is from Carolina. The Virginia trumpet 

 honeysuckle is hardier, its leaves are of a 

 darker green, and its flowers are a deeper red 

 than the Carolina. These plants are weak and 

 trailing; they should therefore be placed against 

 walls and trellis-work. 



The German or Dutch honeysuckle is a hardy 

 shrub, which can be formed into a good round 

 head : the flowers are reddish outside and yel- 

 lowish within, blooming in June, July, and 

 August. Miller mentions two varieties of this 

 honeysuckle, the "long blowing" and the "late 

 red."' 



The Italian honeysuckle has two varieties, 

 the "early white," which is fragrant, but of 

 short duration, blooming in May; and the "yel- 

 low," which bears yellowish flowers, and is 

 succeeded by red berries. 



The American or evergreen honeysuckle is 

 the most valuable, for it flowers from June till 

 the frost nips its blooms. It has strong branches 

 bearing evergreen leaves and fragrant flowers, 

 which are bright-red outside and yellow within. 



All the sorts are propagated by layers or by 

 cuttings. The plants produced from cuttings 

 are the best rooted, and should be done in Sep- 

 tember. Each cutting should have four joints, 

 and only one joint should be left above ground. 

 The honeysuckle loves almost any soil, pro- 

 vided it be not too dry. See RHODODENDRON. 



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