Trees, Shrubs, and Plants of Virgil 



The white poplar is not a native of England, and 

 does not often make a good tree in this country. In 

 popular parlance its name is often transferred to the 

 grey poplar (P. canescens), which is a native both 

 here and in northern Italy. It may be distinguished 

 by the colour and by the toothed and angled leaves 

 of the suckers. Virgil's eye must have seen the 

 difference between these two trees. 



Where the climate was too hot for the oak, as at 

 Olympia, the abele took its place as a coronary plant. 



Flower, March and April. 



Italian names, Alberello and Gattice. 



Porrum (Porrum capitatum). 



' capiti nomen debentia porri ' (Mor . 74). 



The leek (Allium porrum) is an Oriental plant, 

 which very early came into cultivation. Except for 

 an increase of size, it seems to have changed little 

 since Roman times. Columella says that the best 

 were grown at Ariccia at the foot of the Alban hills, 

 a town famous for other vegetables as well. 



The other Roman porrum, called ' sectile,' was 

 chives (A. schoenoprasum), is also common in our 

 gardens, and is interesting to us by reason of its two 

 isolated stations in this country, one in Cornwall, 

 the other along a basaltic dyke in Northumberland. 

 It has no Continental station in western Europe. 



Flower, June and July. 

 Italian names: Porro (leak). 



Cipolline (chives). 

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