1890.] History of Garden Vegetables. 631 
RUE. Ruta graveolens L. 
The leaves of Rue, although of a strong odor, disagreeable to 
some people, are occasionally used for seasoning, and the 
Italians and Greeks are said to eat them in salads. It was for- 
merly in request, and the Romans seem to have appreciated it 
highly; and Pliny? devotes more than a just space in enumerat- 
ing its virtues, and speaks of wine flavored with Rue as among 
the viands distributed to the populace by a Roman consul. In 
the book on cookery by Apicius" in the third century we find 
Rue used among ‘the condiments. In the thirteenth century 
Albertus Magnus” describes Rue among garden esculents, and 
praises it. At a later period its garden culture is mentioned in 
the early botanies and in the earlier works on gardening. In 
1806 McMahon™ mentions it among the medicinal herbs for 
American gardens. Two varieties, the broad-leaved and the 
narrow-leaved, were known to Burr? in 1863, to Mawe" in Eng- 
land in 1778, and apparently to Tragus" in Germany in 1552. 
Rue or herb grace is called in France, rue; in Germany, 
raute, weinraute ; in Holland, wijnruit; in Spain, ruda;,? in 
Norway, vünrude ;* in Italy, ruta; in Greece, peganos,;” in 
Arabia, schedab ;”" in India, satoora, aloodu;" in Japan, mats 
kase so. 
RUTA-BAGA. Brassica napo-brassica. 
The Ruta-bagas of our gardens include two forms, the one with 
white flesh, the other with yellow. The French call these two 
classes chou-navets and Ruta-bagas. The chou-navet or Brassica 
napo-brassica communis A. P. DC. has either purple or white 
21 Pliny. Lib., XX., c. 51; XIX., 45. 
» eR Les PL Pot., = 
31 Forskal. Fl. Aeg. Arab., CXI. 
32 Speede. Ind. Handb. of Gard., 185. 
3 Thunberg. Jap., 180. 
Am. Nat.— July. —3. 
