672 



PRACTICE OF GARDENING. 



Part III. 



head, not half the size of the larger basil. It is a native of the East Indies, flowers in 

 June and July, and was introduced to this country in 1573. 



4176. Use. The leaves and small brachia;, or leafy tops, are the parts gathered ; and 

 on account of their strong flavor of cloves, they are often used in highly seasoned dishes. 

 A few leaves are sometimes introduced into salad, and not unfrequently into soups. 



4177. Culture. Both species are raised from seed, and for a seed-bed of three feet by one and a half, to 

 furnish plants for a final plantation four feet by twelve, a quarter of an ounce will be sufficient Sow on 

 a hot-bed in the end of March, and plant out in a warm border of rich soil, the larger at eight or ten inches 

 every way, and the lesser at six or eight inches square. Sometimes both sorts are sown in the open border ; 

 but so treated, they come up late and small In transplanting from the hot-bed, take care to raise the 

 plants in small tufts, or single plants, with balls attached ; by which they receive no check, and if watered 

 after planting, and in dry weather, will soon produce abundance of tops.' 



4178. Seed can only be saved in England in warm dry seasons, and under the most favorable circum- 

 stances of situation and precocity. In general it is procured by the seedsmen from Italy. 



SuBSECT. 8. Rosemary. — Rosmarinus officivalis, L. {Flor. Grenc. 1. t. 14.) Dian- 

 dria Monogynia, L. and Labiatce, B. P. Romarin, Fr. ; Rosmarin, Ger. ; and 

 Rosvianno, Ital. 



4179. The rosemary is a hardy under-shrub, a native of the south of Europe, intro- 

 duced in, or before, 1548. The plant is evergreen, rising sometimes six or eight feet 

 high, though rarely. The leaves are sessile, linear, dark-green above, and grej-ish or 

 whitish underneath ; the blossoms are of a pale-blue color. The whole plant is highly 

 aromatic. 



4180. Use. The flowers and calyces form a principal ingredient in the distillation of 

 Hungaiy water. Infusions of the leaves are made in some drinks. Sprigs of rosemary 

 are used as a garnish ; and were given in Shakspeare's time as tokens of remembrance : 

 " There's rosemaiy ; that's for remembrance," says the distracted Ophelia. In some 

 parts of the west of England and in Wales, the sprigs are still distributed to the company 

 at funerals, and often thrown into the grave upon the cofiin of tlie deceased. 



4181. Varieties. These are — 



The green, or common | The gold-striped. | The silver-striped. 



4182. Culture. " The green is hardiest as a plant, and is the sort generally used. The finest plants are 

 raised from seed. Sow either broad-cast or in small drills, six inches apart. The green is also raised by 

 planting slips or cuttings of the young shoots in spring and summer, in a shady border. Let these be taken 

 off five, six, or seven inches long, detaching the under-leaves. Set them in a row from six to twelve inches 

 apart, nearly two thirds into the ground : water at planting, and occasionally afterwards, tiU they have 

 struck. The plants wiU be strong and well rooted by autumn, when they should be transplanted at proper 

 distances. A light sandy soil assists exotic evergreens, that retain some of their original deUcacy, to stand 

 the winter ; partly by preventing them from growing too luxuriantlj', and partly by not being a conductor 

 of frost. In their final situations, train the plants, either with a bushy head, of moderate growth ; or, if 

 near a fence, in a fan-like order. The striped sort may be propagated as above ; or with most success, by 

 layers of the young wood, as it is not so free to grow from cuttings. Being a little tender, it must be planted 

 in a warm situation. It is retained chiefly as ornamental, on account of the variegation of its leaves. 

 Rosemary is of several years' duration, continuing in full foliage at all seasons where the exposure is not 

 too severe." {Abercroynbie.) 



SuBSECT. 9. Lavende)\ — Lavayidula spica, L. (Schk. Hand. 2. t. 157.) Didyn. Gynv- 

 nos> L. and Labiates, J. Lavende, Fr. ; Spiklavendel, Ger. ; and Lavendula, ItaX. 



4183. The lavender is a hardy under-shrub, a native of the south of Europe, and intro- 

 duced in 1658. The plant rises from two to four feet high, witli hoary linear leaves, 

 slightly rolled back at the edges ; the flowers form terminating spikes, of a blue color, 

 and appear from July to September. The leaves and flower are powerfully aromatic. 



4184. Use. It is rather a medicinal plant than one used in cookery ; though a few 

 plants are kept in every garden. Imitation scent-bottles are made by the ladies of the 

 fragrant spikes. They ai-e also put in paper-bags, and placed among linens to perfume 

 them. Lavender-water, a well known perfume, is distilled from the flowers ; for which 

 purpose the plant is extensively cultivated in different places, but more especially at 

 Mitcham in Surrey, and Maidenhead in Berkshire. 



4185. Varieties. The narrow-leaved and the broad-leaved, both equally good. 



4186. Propagation and culture. " It is propagated by cuttings and slips like rosemary : it likes a dry 

 soil, and may be planted either in distinct plants two feet asimder, or to form a sort of hedge-row, in one 

 or more lines, especially where large supplies of flowers are required for distilling. The plants will advance 

 in a close branchy growth, from a foot and a half to two feet high, or more ; and, when established, will 

 produce plenty of flowers in July and August : gather them while in perfection, cutting the spikes off close 

 to the stem. Then give the plants occasional trimming, taking off the gross and rampant shoots of the 

 year, and the decayed flower-spikes." NeiU observes, " If lavender be planted in a dry, gravelly, or poor 

 soil, its flowers have a powerful odor, and the severity of our winters has little effect on it ; while in a rich 

 garden-soil, although it grows strongly, it is apt to be killed, and the flowers have less perfume." 



SuBSECT. 10. Tansy. — Tanacetum vulgare, L. {Eng. Bot. 1229.) jS^^^. Polyg. Suj)er. 

 L. and CorymbifercB, J. Tanesie, Fr. ; Rheinfarm, Ger, ; and Tanaceto, Ital. 

 4187. The tansy is a perennial plant, growing in many parts of Britain on the sandy 

 banks of rivers. The stem rises to the height of two or three feet in its wild state, richly 

 furnished with deep-green finely divided leaves ; the flowers are yellow,- arid appear in 

 terminating corymbs in July and August. The leaves and flowers are aromatic. 



