560 



HISTORY OF THE VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 



ing of the temple of Pandrosus : " Within this 

 building, so late as the second century, was pre- 

 served the olive tree inentioned by ApoUodorus, 

 which was said to be as old as the foundation of 

 the citadel. Stuart supposed it to have stood 

 in the portico of the temple of Pandrosus (called 

 by him the Pandroseum) from the circumstance 

 of the air necessary for its support, which could 

 here be admitted between the caryatides ; but in- 

 stances of trees, that have been preserved to a 

 very great age, within tlie interior of an edifice 

 inclosed by walls, may be adduced." 



The province of Suse, in Morocco, produces 

 great abundance of olive oil, whicli is stated to 

 be equal in quality to the best Florence oil, wlien 

 it is expressed from the fruit before it becomes 

 quite ripe. Mr Jackson, in his Account of the 

 Empire of Morocco, mentions a curious circum- 

 stance regarding an extensive plantation of olive 

 frees in the neighbourhood of jMessa, which in- 

 dicates the great facility with which this tree 

 may be propagated. Being struck with the 

 whimsical arrangement of this large plantation, 

 lie inquired the cause of their being so arranged, 

 which was thus explained ; " I learnt from the 

 viceroy's aide-de-camp, who attended me, that 

 one of tlie kings of the dynasty of Saddia, being 

 on his journey to Soudan, encamped here witli 

 liis army ; that the pegs witli wliich the cavalry 

 picketed their horses were cut from the olive 

 trees in tlie neighbourhood ; and that these pegs 

 being left in tlie ground, on. account of some sud- 

 den cause of the departure of the army, the olive 

 trees in question sprang up from them. I con- 

 fess, while I acknowledge the ingenuity of the 

 idea (for the disposition of the trees exactly re- 

 sembled the arrangement of cavalry in an en- 

 campment), I treated it as fabulous. Some time 

 afterwards, however, the following circumstance 

 occurred, which induced me to think the story 

 was not only plausible, but very credible. Hav- 

 ing occasion to send for some plants for a garden 

 which I had at Agadeer, or Santa Cruz, the 

 foulah (gardener) brought, amongst other tilings, 

 a few bits of wood, without any roots or leaf, 

 about eighteen inches long, and three in circum- 

 ference, which he with a large stone knocked 

 into the ground. Seeing the fellow thus em- 

 ployed, I asked him what he meant by trifling 

 in that way? ' I am not trifling,' said he, 'but 

 planting your pomegranate trees.' I began to 

 take them out of the ground ; but some persons 

 who were near assuring me that it was the mode 

 in which they were always planted, and that 

 they would (with the blessing of God) take root 

 and shoot forth leaves the next year, I was at 

 length prevailed on to leave a few in the ground, 

 merely for experiment ; and they certainly did 

 take root, and were in a fair way of becoming 

 good trees when I left Santa Cruz." 



Tlie olive will grow luxuriantly in a strong 



clayey richly manured soil ; but will not be so 

 prolific as in a dry, calcareous, schistous, sandy, 

 or rocky situation, wliicli ought to be imitated 

 in some degree in the green house. The mode 

 of propagation is generally from suckers, which 

 arise abundantly from the roots of the old trees. 

 In pruning, the object is to have a regular dis- 

 tribution of wood of the former year from the 

 axils of the leaves, of which the flowers spring 

 out. When shoots of three or more years ai'e 

 shortened for this purpose, they do not produce 

 blossoms ; but wood of the preceding or current 

 year may be shortened, and th6 shoots proceeding 

 from them will produce blossoms in due couise. 

 In the olive countries the varieties are nearly 

 as numerous as those of the grape or fig. The 

 French describe between thirty and forty sorts. 

 The following are found in the English nurse- 

 ries: — 



The Common. 

 Large leaved. 

 Broad leaved. 

 Iron coloured. 

 Twisted leaved. 

 Box leaved. 



Besides the extensive consunipt of olive oil 

 in the countries where it is produced, there ia 

 an annual exportation to a great amount. In 

 1831, four millions, one hundred and fifty-eight 

 thousand gallons, were imported into Great Bri- 

 tain, nearly one-half of which was retained for 

 home consumption. 



The following interesting details of the olive 

 trade were communicated to the Library of En- 

 tertaining Knowledge by a gentleman long resi- 

 dent on the spot. 



" All that part of Italy which may be called 

 the heel of the boot, is little else than one con- 

 tinuous olive grove. It forms an extreme point 

 of the Neapolitan kingdom, and is divided into 

 two provinces, viz. Bari and Lecce, or La Terra 

 d'Otranto. Its principal ports are Bari, Brin- 

 disi (the ancient Brundusium), Otranto, Galli- 

 poli (now the most important of them all), and 

 Taranto (the ancient Tarentum ) . Starting from 

 Gallipoli, as I have often done, and travelling to 

 the Cape Santa Maria di Leuca, or to Taranto, 

 or to Lecce, a very large city, and the capital of 

 one of the provinces, you literally are scarcely 

 ever ten minutes out of the shade of olive trees. 

 The slight cultivation of grain, &c., which is 

 not nearly enough for the consumption of that 

 district, is carried on in the midst of olive groves. 

 Before and behind you, on hill or in hollow, you 

 see scarcely any thing but oliveti. I have stood 

 on the terrace of an old baronial castle at the 

 to\vn of Parabita, and seen the olive grove spread 

 around me on every side for many miles, like a 

 dull sea of leaves. Though so much poetry is 

 associated with this emUem of peace, the tree 

 itself is certainly neither picturesque nor poetic; 



