266 R. BROWN, FLORULA DISCOANA. 



V. Economic Botany of Disco Bay. — (1.) Gardens. — Around 

 most of the little trading posts the Danish officers have at- 

 tempted to cultivate a few garden vegetables, and by bringing 

 soil from old Eskimo houses, and taking the greatest care, a few 

 of the hardier vegetables are raised in small quantities. Potatoes 

 never get bigger than marbles ; but spinach, radishes, lettuces, &c. 

 prosper, and are ready for use about the middle or beginning of 

 August. Of Dr. Pfaff 's and Hr. Andersen's gardens at Jakobs- 

 havn and Ritenbenk we have most pleasant remembrances. The 

 garden at the latter place deserves honourable mention, and as it 

 was, perhaps, one of the most favoured and favourable specimens 

 of such, the description will suffice for all. It is situated on a 

 sunny slope, with a southern exposure, and composed of earth 

 brought from old Greenland houses (and therefore richly manured), 

 heaped up to the depth of two feet. The vegetables were most 

 luxuriant — lettuce, cabbage, turnips (white), carrots, parsley, and 

 onions. This garden parallelogram of 18 by 12 yards, with its 

 luxuriant vegetation, the gravel walk, the miniature summer-house 

 in the centre, the green watering-pot, and the bird nets over the 

 lettuce, had quite a home aspect amid the barren grey syenite 

 and granite, with hundreds of icebergs in sight at any hour. The 

 Danish ladies cultivate in their houses most of our garden flowers, 

 — geraniums, fuchsias, roses, nasturtiums (a great favourite), ivy, 

 &c. ; but they are apt to be destroyed if placed out of doors. 



(2.) Fuel. — It is a great mistake to suppose that the Eskimo 

 burn nothing but blubber for fuel. Their principal fuel is turf, 

 the Birch, Empetrum, Willow, Andromeda, Ledum, Vaccinium, 

 &c., which they collect and store for winter use, or use immediately 

 in the summer. We used this in all our travels, though, indeed, 

 an armful soon blazes up like a bunch of straw. The collection, 

 storing, and cutting of the various descriptions of fuel is interesting ; 

 but I must pass it over with this notice. 



(3.) Food Plants. — Equally erroneous is the notion that they use 

 no vegetable food. Berries form their principal article of vege- 

 table diet, and comprehend Blaeberries ( Vaccinium uliginosum). 

 Cranberries, Empetrum^ Vaccinium Vitis-idcea, &c. Though the 

 latter is used by the Danish residents as a preserve, yet it is not 

 eaten generally by the natives ; and even the Blaeberries are eaten 

 cautiously by them, on account of some supposed noxious quality. 



(4.) Plants used Hygienically. — There are some plants, of 

 which the flowers, leaves, or roots are eaten raw or boiled, such as 

 Sedum Rhodiola, the flowers of Epilobium, Pedicularis hirsuta, 

 of which the flower tops are boiled and eaten as a sort of cabbage ; 

 the Sorrel {Oxyria), and the well-known Scurvy-grass (Coch- 

 learia), which is used iu scurvy by the natives, who are often 

 affected by that disease, though never touching salt. I have 

 already spoken of the use of the Angelica by the Danes and 

 Greenlanders. Iceland-moss (^Cetraria islandica) is found in 

 various places ; but is rarely, if ever, used by the natives. 

 Various species of Algae are used as food, but only resorted to 

 when hard pressed by hunger. The species chiefly used is called 



