CHOICE 



STOYE Am GREENHOUSE PLANTS. 



STOVE PLANTS. 



INTBODUCTION. 



ilF the earliest races of mankind had possessed no 

 love for plants, and had not been impressed by 

 the grand and noble outlines of the trees of the 

 forest, the importance of these vegetable monarchs would 

 soon have become manifest through their yielding not only 

 the necessaries of life, but, by the aid of attention and culti- 

 vation, supplying also its luxuries. Hence we find that, at 

 a very early age, man was engaged in husbandry, and was 

 busily occupied in cultivating the vine and the corn-pro- 

 ducing plants, as well as trafficking in myrrh and spices. 

 At the time the Greek EepubUc was ia the zenith of 

 its glory, a class of men called Ehizomatse employed them- 

 selves in the digging of roots, and in searching for herbs, 

 which were principally applied to the healing art. Aristotle 

 first founded a natural science of plants, but his writings on 

 this subject have been lost. He was followed by his pupil 

 Theophrastus ; and then for a long period we hear of no one 

 prosecuting the study. The ancient Eomans seem to have 



