HEDGE-BIRDS. 



Foreshortening, or rutting in, is an approved 

 method of pruning, and is admirably adapted 

 to training hedgerow trees, to benefit the land- 

 lord without doing much injury to the tenant. 

 This operation is performed by shortening the 

 over-luxuriant side branches, but not to cut 

 them to a stump, as in snag pruning; on the 

 contrary, the top only of the branch should be 

 cut off, and the amputation effected immediately 

 above where an axillary (side shoot) springs 

 from the branch on which the operation is to 

 be performed: this may be at the distance of 

 two, f.'iir, or any other number of feet from the 

 stem of the tree; and suppose the axillary 

 branch which is left (when the top of the 

 branch is cut off) is also over-luxuriant, or 

 look* unsightly, it should also be shortened at 

 its sub-axillary branch, in the same manner as 

 before described. 



"The branches of trees pruned in this man- 

 ner are always kept within due bounds; they 

 do not extend over the adjoining land to the 

 injury of the occupier, at least not until the 

 stem of the tree rises to a height (out of the 

 reach of pruning) when the top branches can 

 do comparatively little injury to the land. By 

 adopting this system of pruning, the bad effects 

 and snag pruning will be avoided, the 

 country will be ornamented, and the commu- 

 nity at large, as well as individuals, benefited." 

 (Blakie, On Hedges and Hedgerotv Timber.) See 

 FENCES and HAWTHORX. 



A great deal of valuable information upon 

 the subject of hedges in the United States will 

 be found in almost every agricultural periodi- 

 cal, in many of which the merits of the Virginia 

 thorn, Newcastle cock-spur, English black- 

 thorn, Buck-thorn, Osage orange, &c. &c., and 

 their adaptations to particular parts of the 

 country, are discussed. It has been objected 

 against hedges, that they are not only very expen- 

 sive to raise and keep in good order, but by sha- 

 ding and exhausting the ground, destroy on each 

 side the product of a land or ridge. To other 

 objections must be added the difficulty of getting 

 horses near them, and the consequent retarding 

 of the plough and hairow, with not unfrequent 

 accidents from dangerous wounds inflicted by 

 the thorns. The loss of ground from hedge-rows 

 is most sensibly felt, where the enclosures are 

 small, averaging about 12 per cent., when the 

 lots are between 2 and 3 acres, and in fields of 

 10 acres amounting to 4 per cent. Hedges un- 

 doubtedly add great beauty to country scenery, 

 but, according to many utilitarians, are more 

 sightly and poetical than profitable to the farmer. 

 See OKANOK, OSAGE. 



HEDGE MUSTARD (Sisymbrium.) A genus 

 composed for the most part of worthless annual 

 and biennial plants, flourishing in the open 

 ground in any soil. The indigenous species 

 are three, all annuals. 



1. The common hedge mustard (S. officinale), 

 growing in waste ground, by road-sides, and on 

 banks; very common in England; flowering in 

 June and July. According to Haller, hedge mus- 

 tard bprings up wherever houses have been 

 i-urnt. The herb is of a dull green, minutely 

 nairy or downy; the stem solitary, two feet high, 

 erect, with numerous horizontal branches, 

 leafv round, clothed with fine dehexed bristles. 

 Leaves hyrate, their lobes runcinate, unequally 

 612 



HELIOTROPE. 



toothed ; the upper ones narrowest. The 

 flowers are pale yellow, small, in little corym 

 bose heads, soon becoming very long, straight, 

 close clusters of erect, tapering pods, finely 

 downy, rather more than half an inch long, on 

 very short stalks. Seeds not numerous, about 

 six in each cell. This species was once used 

 as a stimulating expectorant, but it is now de- 

 servedly out of favour. 



2. The broad hedge mustard, or Lon^n 

 rocket (S. irio), grows chiefly about Lond. i, 

 and in habit is somewhat like the precedh.^ 

 species ; but the herbage is of a lighter greeiK 

 and entirely smooth. The leaves are pinnati- 

 fid, runcinate, acute, the upper lanceolate, with 

 hastate base ; the seed-pod is two inches long, 

 rugged when ripe ; the seeds are very abun- 

 dant. It is sometimes used as a heating pot- 

 herb. 



3. Fine-leaved hedge mustard or flixweed 

 (S. sophia). In this species the root is small 

 and tapering, and the whole plant of a slen- 

 der, delicate structure ; stem branched, bushy, 

 erect; flowers small, greenish-yellow. Pods an 

 inch long, numerous, erect, bearded. (Smith's 

 Eng. Flor. vol. iii. p. 196.) 



This is one of the plants which defeats the 

 opinion that popular names are never imposed 

 without good reason. The plant was formerly 

 supposed to be a cure for fractured limbs, 

 hence its name, Sophia chirurgorum; an opinion 

 only demonstrative of the contemptible state 

 of surgery at the period when the name origi- 

 nated. Its medicinal powers as an antidysen- 

 teric rest on equally mistaken observations. 



The S. officinalis is a naturalized foreigner 

 in the United States. The indigenous species 

 of this weed found in the States are, 1. The S. 

 Canadensis, or Hoary sisymbrium. 2. Jlrabis-lik* 

 sisymbrium. 3. Thalian sisymbrium, commonly 

 called Wall cress, Mouse-ear cress, extensively 

 naturalized in the United States, in which 3 or 

 4 additional species of the plant are enume- 

 rated. (See Flor. Cestric.) 



HEDGE-KNIFE. Of this implement, for 

 trimming hedges, there are two sizes, to be 

 used either with one or both hands. The 

 smaller one is a common and well-known im- 

 plement. The larger-sized knife should have 

 the blade 20 inches long by 2 broad, and the 

 handle 3 feet. It is slightly curved at the point. 



HEDGE PARSLEY (Torilis). Of this use- 

 less weed there are in England three common 

 species : the upright hedge parsley (T. anthris- 

 cus), the spreading hedge parsley (T. infesta), 

 and the knotted hedge parsley (T. nodosa). 

 They are annual plants, growing by waysides 

 and the borders of fields, varying in height from 

 6 inches to 3 feet. The flowers are small, white 

 or flesh-coloured, blowing in June; the umbels 

 lateral and terminal; the rays from 7 to 10, 

 rough, little spreading. Fruit small, purplish 

 at the summit, furnished with incurved bristles. 

 (Smith's Eng. Flor. vol. ii. p. 42.) 



HELIOTROPE (Heliotropum; from helios, the 



sun, and trope, twining. The flowers are said 



I to turn towards the sun). Some of the plants 



of this genus are highly valued for the fragrant 



perfume of their flowers, and are therefore to 



be met with in most gardens. They succeed 



, freely in any rich, light soil; and cuttings of 



