454 



NATURAL HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



known as some of the most grateful perfumes. The sweet Orange 1 

 (figs. 455-459), comprehending numerous cultivated varieties — 

 such, as Orange with red juice, with thick rind, with soft rind, 

 with dwarf fruit, Chinese Orange, &c. &c, is not the plant which 

 supplies medicine and industry with the products so well known 

 under the name of Orange leaves and flowers, and with all the ex- 

 tracts, especially true Essence of Neroli, Orange flower-water, 

 rind of bitter Oranges, Orangettes, or petit grains — that is to 

 say, young fruits with which bitter digestive liqueurs are prepared, 

 and often issue peas also. All these are derived from the Seville 

 Orange \Bigaradier), a tree with round head, young thorny shoots, 

 of a pale green, leafed petioles much winged, globular fruits, rough 

 zests of a reddish-yellow, very aromatic, with a thin white layer 

 extremely bitter, and an acid but very bitter juice hindering this 

 fruit from being edible, contrary to that of all the true oranges, 

 which are scarcely used for any other purpose. Citrus limetta, 3 espe- 

 cially one of its forms, Bergamia* has a fruit with a piriform, smooth, 

 yellow pericarp, with very agreeable smell, and giving an excel- 

 lent essence ; but the pulp is sharp and bitter, and, consequently, 

 useless. The Citron 5 has large fruits, with rough tubercular sur- 

 face, often mammillate towards the apex, violet before maturity, and 

 of a fine yellow when ripe ; their peel is very thick, and is used in 

 preparing a grateful essence, and also excellent conserves and 

 sweetmeats. The Citron was probably the true Ajiple of Media of the 

 Ancients ; and it is a mistake that this name should have been after- 

 wards applied to the Lemon tree, 6 remarkable for its young angular, 

 violet shoots, its oval leaves, with petiole naked or but slightly 

 winged, and its flowers violet or red outwardly. Its fruit is elongated, 

 and terminated by a prominent teat ; it is used in preparing syrup 

 of lemon ; its yellow zest, which enters into the preparation of 



1 Citrus Aurantium sinense Galles., Trait., 

 H<). — c. Aurantium Eisso, in Ann. Mus., xx. 

 181, t. 1.— DC, Prodr., i. 539. 



2 C. Aurantium indieum Galles., Trait., 

 j 22. — C. Bigaradia Uuuam., Arbr., ed. 2, vii. 

 !»;>. — Risso, loc. cit., 190. — C. Aurantium 

 Lindl., in Bot. Reg., t. 3 10. 



'■> C. Li"" tta Risso, loc. cit., 195, t. 2, 

 fig. l. — Lindl., Bot. Med., 163. 



4 C. inedica Limon aurantiata fructu parvo, 

 suavissime odorato, vulgo Bergamotto Galles., 

 Trait., 118. Was much used in perfumery. 



Formerly the elegant and recherches bonbonnieres 

 called bergamoies, were made of the rind (GuiB., 

 op. cit., 624). 



5 C. medica Cedra Galles., Trait., 87 (Ci- 

 tronnier). — C. cedra Feiir., Ilesper., t. 59, 61, 

 63 (ex Guib., op. cit., 620). It is also 

 the Citron of the Jews, consecrated in the 

 Temple. 



6 See p. 452, note 7. C. medica Limon 

 Galles., Trait., 105. — C. Limomim llisso, 

 loc. cit., 201. — BeEg. & Schm., Off. Geiv., ii. 

 t. 31/. 



