T R E 



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be too much fmothered with crops of every fort of the 

 clofe-growing fliady kinds. 



It has been ftated by a late writer, that upon light and 

 poor fandy foils, or lands on which clover does not fuc- 

 ceed well, it is common hufbandry to fow trefoil with a 

 portion of white clover and rye-grafs, with the intention 

 of leaving it two years. In this cafe, fix pounds of 

 trefoil, four of white clover, and half a bulhel of rye- 

 grafs feeds are the common quantities. Thefe are with the 

 intention of providing flieep-feed. 



Where trefoil is left for hay, it does not afford a large 

 produce, but a fort which is highly ufeful and advan- 

 tageous as a fheep-fodder in the winter feafon, and lefs 

 wafteful than moft other kinds, when ufed in that way. 

 At the fame time, it is fuppofed to be lefs troublefome 

 in the procefs of making into hay. However, it is af- 

 ferted by Mr. Kent that it readily runs together, and 

 becomes mouldy by wet. 



The feed is to be coUeAed from the fecond fhoot, in 

 the fame manner as in common clover, the produce being 

 in general from iix to eight bufliels of clear feed from 

 the acre. In diftrifts where it is grown for the feed, 

 the crops are mown in the beginning of July ; the heads 

 or hulks being often threfhed off the ilraw in the field on 

 n cloth, and then fold by the quarter to thofe who have 

 mills and colleft them, who grind the feed out of the hufl<s, 

 and then difpofe of it to others, in different places, for the 

 ufe of the farmers in thofe dillridls where it is rarely faved. 

 The acre moftly produces from about four or five to ten 

 quarters in the hulk, each of which affords about two 

 bufhels of clean feed when grown folely in this intention. 



This plant has often the names of black-grafs, nanefuch, 

 yellow clover, and others, given it by writers on huf- 

 bandry. 



There are other different forts or varieties of this plant 

 occafionaUy cultivated by the farmer, fuch as the trefoil 

 termed bird's-foot, wluch has been found ufeful when cul- 

 tivated in meadows that are inclined to be moift, as growing 

 to a great height, and affording an excellent hay. In fome 

 places too it is raifed as pafturage for Iheep. Alfo the tre- 

 foil called by the name of hop, which is often confounded 

 with the real trefoil, as being nearly of the fame duration, 

 but which is more grateful to animals. The trefoils feem, 

 on the whole, not to be fo much difcriminated by agricul- 

 tural writers, as their importance as artificial grafles would 

 appear to demand. Befides, much confufion is introduced 

 in confequence of the diverfity of their provincial titles. It 

 has been remarked, that as fome are annual, fome biennial, 

 and others perennial, where the two former forts are fown 

 where it is intended to have a permanent pafture, difappoint- 

 ment muft of neceflity be the confequence. 



Trefoil, Bean, a fpecies of Cytifus ; which fee. 

 Trefoil, Stinting Bean. See Anagyris. 

 Trefoil, Bird's-foot. See Lotus. 



The fruit of the lotus was, by the ancients, imagined to 

 be endowed with the virtue of making ftrangers forget their 

 native country. 



Trefoil, Marjh. See Mf.nyanthes. 

 TrefoiLj Moon. See Medicago. 

 Trefoil, Shrubby. See Ptelea. 



The fecond fpecies of this genus, or the ptelea with 

 fingle leaves, was formerly {hewn for the tea-tree in many of 

 the European gardens, where it many years paffed for it 

 ^mong thofe who knew no better. 



Trefoil, Snail. See Medicago and Lucerne. 

 Trefoil of Candia, Thorny. See Fagonia. 

 Trepoil, Bafe Tree, See Cytisus. 



The ancient botanifts feem to have been acquainted with 

 two very different flirubr under the name cytifus ; and 

 there have been no fmall errors about the true meaning of 

 feveral paffages in Diofcorides and Theophraftus, on occa- 

 fion of the miflaking one of thefe things for another. 

 Diofcorides defcribes the cytifus, as being a (hrub with 

 leaves white and hoary, both on the upper and under fide, 

 and of no ufe, or value, to mankind : as to its wood, Pliny 

 tranflates this account, and adds to it from Hyginus, that 

 it was a very hardy and ftrong fhrub, not being affefted 

 by heat or cold, fnow or hail, or any other injuries of the 

 weather, nor of its enemies, as Phny expreffes it {hoflium). 

 It is not very eafy to conceive what enemies thefe fhould be ; 

 but the moll probable conjefture, as to this odd paffage, is, 

 that Pliny had tranfcribed it in his ufual carelefs way, and 

 that what is called bojtium, fiiould be the word nofirum. 



The fenfe then is clear enough ; the author had juft before 

 faid that the wood was good for no ufe to mankind ; and, 

 therefore, when he was fpeaking of the trees Handing a 

 long time, and fearing the injuries of no weather, he might 

 very well add, nor of us ; for the wood being good for 

 nothing, men would not be at the trouble of cutting it up. 

 It is plain, however, that Theophraflus means quite a dif- 

 ferent fhrub by this name cytifus ; for, as Diofcorides fays, 

 that the wood of his was white throughout, and very light. 

 Theophraftus obferves, that it was black at the heart, and 

 as heavy and foHd as ebony ; and, in many places, where 

 he fpeaks of the hard and elegant woods ufed for inlaymg, 

 he mentions the cytifus wood, coupling it with the ebony, 

 heart of oak, and other the hardeft and moft elegant woods 

 knovsm in his time. 



Pliny mentions no other cytifus than that of Diofcorides, 

 vi'hich was tlie common kind cultivated by the Greeks and 

 Romans, as a food for cattle ; he fays it was raifed by 

 feed, and came to its perfeftion in three years, and that it 

 was gathered in the fpring juft after the time of its flower- 

 ing : he adds, that this was ufually the office of children, or 

 old women, unfit for other work, and was the cheapeft of 

 all the offices of hufbandry. It is eafy to conceive, that 

 fuch a fhrub as the cytifus of Theophraftus, with a wood 

 as firm as the heart of oak, and hard as ebony, did not 

 come to perfeftion in three years from the fowing ; nor 

 could any more be cut up by boys and old women, than 

 eaten by cattle when taken up. There were, therefore, two 

 kinds of cytifus among the ancients, the one fown and cul- 

 tivated as food for cattle, the other a wild tree, or fhrub, 

 growhig in woods, and being larger than the fown kind. 

 Diofcorides and Pliny defcribe the firft, and Theophraftus 

 alone the latter, except that Pliny has now and then taken 

 a fentence from Theophraftus, when he mentions the cytifus 

 occafionaUy among other hard woods, and placed it to the ac- 

 count of his manured cytifus. 



Ovid, indeed, where he mentions the cytifus as a wild 

 wood fhrub, certainly means this kind mentioned by Theo- 

 phraftus : 



" Nee tenuis cytifus curtave tinus abeft." 



And Columella acknowledges both kinds. It may feem 

 a natural objeftion, that culture could never make fuch a 

 difference in this plant, as that it fhould be hard and black 

 in the wood in its wild ftate, and foft and white in the 

 cultivated kind. But we are not to fuppofe that the cul- 

 tivated and wild cytifus were the fame fpecies of Ihrub, 

 only alterea by thefe two ftates. The ancients were not fo 

 accurate ift their names as later botanical writers have been ; 

 and if a wood-llirub, in fome refpefts, refembled their ma- 

 nured cytifus, they would call it by that name, though it 



had 



