JONQUIL. 



1. Hypericum Virginicum, or Virginia hype- 

 ricum, having a perennial root, stem 18 inches 

 to 2 feet high, whole plant of a purplish hue, 

 flowering in July and August, the blossoms 

 being of a dull orange colour. It is found in 

 w^t, low ground, though rare. 



2. H. piinctatum, or dotted hypericum, fre- 

 quent in open woodlands and fields, flowers of 

 a pale yellow colour, with numerous oblong 

 black dots, appearing in July and August. 



3. H. perforatum, or perforated hypericum, 

 oou,>ionly called St. John's Wort. This plant 

 has a perennial root and stem growing from 1 

 to 3 feet high. It is frequent in fields and 

 pastures where it puts forth its rich clusters of 

 yellow, or orange-yellow flowers, from June to 

 October. This, says Dr. Darlington, is an in- 

 troduced and pernicious weed. The plant has 

 a resinous odour ; and is believed to produce 

 troublesome sores on horses and horned cattle, 

 especially those which have white feet and 

 noses, the skin of such being more tender, or 

 irritable. The dew which collects on the plant 

 appears to become acrid ; as I have seen the 

 backs of white cows covered with sores, wher- 

 ever the bushy ends of their tails had been 

 applied, after dragging through the St. John's 

 Wort. A tincture of the flowers and leaves 

 has been used, it is said, with good effect in 

 some complaints of the stomach and bowels. 



4. H. quinquenervum, or five-nerved hyperi- 

 cum. This is frequent in low grounds, along 

 streams. Its root is supposed to be annual, 

 and its slender stems grow 6 to 12 inches high; 

 the flowers have very small petals of a yellow 

 colour. 



5. H. Canadense, or Canadian hypericum. 

 This so much resembles the last mentioned 

 species as to be regarded by some botanists as 

 identical. 



6. H. sarothra, broom-like hypericum, com- 

 monly called ground pine, netweed, and orange 

 grass. This is frequent in sandy fields and 

 along road-sides, where it puts forth yellow 

 flowers in July and August. Its root is annual, 

 the stem is slender and grows 4 to 8 inches 

 high. (Flora Cestrica.) 



JONQUIL. A species of daffodil, of which 

 there are several sorts. The great jonquil and 

 the odorous jonquil blow about the middle of 

 March. The lesser or proper jonquil some- 

 what later. When they blow well and early 

 they forebode a fine season. 



JUDAS TREE (Ceras). This is a beauti- 

 ful genus of ornamental trees, flowering early 

 in spring, and looking very pretty planted 

 singly on a lawn, or trained to a wall or trellis; 

 they grow to the height of 20 feet, prefer an 

 open loamy soil, and may be plentifully in- 

 creased from seeds. 



The species found in the United States is the 

 Cercis Canadensis of botanists, commonly called 

 red bud. In the Middle States, it is a small 

 tree 15, 20, or 30 feet high, greatly admired for 

 the clusters of small flowers, which in April 

 clothe the limbs in purple before the leaves 

 appear. The flowers are acid to the taste. It is 

 the only species of qercis in the United States. 



JUNE BERRY (Mespilusarboreaof Michaux> 

 With the exception of the maritime parts 01 

 678 



JUNIPER. 



the Carolines and Georgia, this -tree, as Mi- 

 chaux informs us, is spread over the whole 

 extent of the United States and Canada. But 

 it is most multiplied upon the Alleghany moun- 

 tains, and upon the elevated banks cf the rivers 

 which flow from them. In the northern section 

 of the Union it is called wild pear tree, whilst 

 in the Middle and other States it goes by the 

 various names of wild service berry, June berry, 

 snowy medlar, and shad-flower. The last name 

 is derived from its blooming about the time the 

 shad ascend the rivers (beginning of April), 

 when it is quite a showy little tree. The flow- 

 ers, which are white and pretty large, are ar- 

 ranged in pannicles at the extremities of the 

 branches. As it blossoms early, so does it 

 mature its fruit amongst the earliest trees of 

 the forest. The largest tree, however, rarely 

 yields more than half a pound. Long culture 

 has been found to improve the fruit, both in 

 size and quality. The berries are roundish, 3 

 or 4 lines in diameter, smooth, dark-red, and 

 even purple when mature, pleasant flavoured, 

 and not unwholesome. In Pennsylvania and 

 the neighbouring states, it is generally found 

 in moist and shady situations, especially along 

 brooks and rivulets. In the western country, 

 however, it grows in the midst of the forest 

 among the oaks, walnuts, &c., and here reaches 

 its greatest height, which does not- exceed 35 or 

 40 feet, with a diameter of 10 or 12 inches. 



JUNIPER (Juniperus, derived from the Celtic 

 juniperus, rough or rude, in allusion to the stiff 

 habit of the shrubs). This genus is too well 

 known to need to be particularized here. All 

 the species will grow in sandy loam, and some 

 in any common garden soil. They are mostly 

 raised from seed, though cuttings will strike 

 when planted in a sheltered situation, under a 

 hand-glass. The stimulating and diuretic 

 powers of the savin (/. sabina) are well known. 

 The fruit of /. commivnis are proverbial for the 

 flavour they give to gin. (Paxton's Bot. Diet.) 

 The species are all evergreen aromatic shrubs, 

 with narrow leaves, either spreading and sharp- 

 pointed, or closely imbricated, minute, and ob- 

 tuse. The fruit is globular or oval, black or 

 brown, with a glaucous efflorescence. 



/. sabina is a native of the south of Europe, 

 but it is cultivated as an evergreen in our gar- 

 dens. The plant is a pyramidal shrub, with 

 small, closely-adhering, glandular leaves, which 

 exhale, when rubbed, a strong, heavy odour, 

 and have a bitter, nauseous taste. By distilla- 

 tion they yield a large quantity of volatile oil, 

 which has the odour and taste of the recent 

 plant. Savin is a powerful acrid poison, irri- 

 tating and vesicating the skin when it is ap- 

 plied to it. When swallowed in large doses, it 

 causes vomiting, purging, and inflammation of 

 the stomach and bowels. 



The common juniper (/. communis') grows 

 wild on hills and heathy downs, especially 

 where the soil is chalky. Dr. Sibthorpe found 

 it on Olympus and Athos, in Greece. It is, 

 like all the species, a bushy shrub, with ever- 

 green, linear pointed, glaucous leaves, dark 

 green on the under disk. The flowers are 

 axillary, small, sessile, male and female organs 

 in separate flowers. The fruit, although called 



