OLERACEOUS PLANTS— BASIL. 



237 



are occasionally irrigated or flooded by water. 

 None of them require manure. 



For medical purposes they should be gathered 

 just as the flower appears ; but for obtaining 

 the essential oil, the flowering plant is preferred. 

 In both cases, as well as for drying for culinary 

 use, they should be cut when quite dry, and tied 

 up into small bundles, and suspended in an 

 apartment with a temperature of from 60° to 

 65°. By this means the agreeable flavour and 

 green colour are preserved. Some gardeners 

 place this, as well as most other herbs, in strong 

 wooden boxes, and subject the contents to con- 

 siderable pressure by loading them with weights, 

 or by the application of a screw, so as to com- 

 press them into solid masses. This is done with 

 a view to prevent the air from acting upon them, 

 and destroying their aroma. The operation is 

 carried on in a high temperature, and the boxes 

 kept afterwards in a dry room. Others again 

 dry them quickly by suspending them in a very 

 warm apartment ; and when sufficiently dry, 

 reduce them down to a fine powder, which they 

 keep in wide-mouthed glass bottles with glass 

 stoppers. 



Forcing. — In most families green mint is in 

 demand throughout the winter ; and, to pro- 

 vide for this, young healthy roots should be 

 taken up and planted in shallow pans or boxes, 

 in rotten tan, or light rich sandy soil, and placed 

 in a pit or vinery, with a temperature of from 

 55° to 65°. It is important that a sufficient 

 stock for the contemplated demand should be 

 potted in autumn, or a portion of the old beds 

 covered with litter to keep out the frost, so that 

 they can be readily got at when wanted. Place 

 the roots pretty closely together, and when one 

 gathering of the young shoots has taken place 

 throw them away, and introduce others. To 

 keep up a constant supply, set the first set of 

 pans or boxes into heat by the 1st of Novem- 

 ber, in number or extent corresponding to the 

 demand; and set in to a similar extent every 

 fortnight, until the end of February, after which 

 a supply may be expected from the beds, by 

 placing a few hand-glasses over a portion of 

 them. Supply the roots placed in heat with 

 abundance of water, and keep the plants as close 

 to the glass as possible. 



The mints are seldom annoyed by insects; 

 the Uredo labiatarum Dec, a parasitic fungus, a 

 sort of mildew common to all the Labiatse 

 order of plants, often appears upon the leaves, 

 but seldom to an extent to be injurious. 



The European names of mint are — La 

 menthe in French ; Die munze in German ; 

 Munt in Dutch ; Minta in Italian and Spanish ; 

 Miata in Russian ; Mietka in Polish. 



Costmary {Balsamita vulgaris W.) belongs to 

 the natural order Composite, sub-order Anthe- 

 midess, and to the class Syngenesia and order 

 Superflua in the Linnsean arrangement. The ge- 

 neric name is derived from Balsamon, balm, from 

 its strong balsamic smell; the English name 

 Costmary from Costus, an aromatic shrub, and 

 Mary— the Virgin Mary's costus. From its 

 being put into ale, was derived the old English 

 name of Alecost. A native of Italy, from 

 whence it was introduced to Britain in 1568. 

 VOL. II. 



It is sometimes put into salads, but seldom asked 

 for. It is a hardy perennial creeping-rooted 

 plant, easily propagated by division of the roots, 

 and succeeds well in any ordinary garden-soil. 



Its European names are — Coq-des-jardins in 

 French ; Die frauenmunze in German ; Tuinbal- 

 sam in Dutch ; Costo-ortense in Italian ; Heirba 

 de Santa in Spanish ; Balsmita in Portuguese ; 

 Hanegrses in Danish ; Svensk salvia in Swedish. 



Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare L.) belongs to 

 the natural order Composite, sub-order Anthe- 

 midae, and to the class Syngenesia and order 

 Superflua in the Linnsean arrangement. The 

 generic name is. altered from Athanasia, itself a 

 word which signifies a plant which does not 

 perish, or an immortal plant. Indigenous to 

 Britain, and an old inhabitant of our gardens. 

 In Gerard's time, cakes were made of the young 

 leaves in spring, mixed with eggs, and were 

 called tansies. It was much used formerly dur- 

 ing Lent, to correct the effects of eating salt 

 fish ; and cakes were made at Easter time and 

 offered to visitors, a custom still kept up in 

 many parts of England. At present it is chiefly 

 used to flavour a peculiar pudding, called tansy 

 pudding. The leaves are also used in omelets, 

 and the curled variety for garnishing by those 

 who like the smell. A hardy perennial plant 

 of easy culture, spreading rapidly, and readily 

 propagated by division of the roots. Like cost- 

 mary, a plant or two is sufficient for a small 

 garden. Roots of it potted in autumn and 

 placed in slight heat, will afford a supply during 

 winter ; and for Lent use it should be so pro- 

 duced. 



It holds a place in many cottage gardens, and 

 is more used by that class than by any other. 

 The European names are — Tanaisie in French ; 

 Der rheinfarrn in German ; Reinwaar in 

 Dutch ; Tanaceto in Italian and Spanish ; Ta- 

 nasia in Portuguese; Dikaja riabina in Russian ; 

 and Wrotecz in Polish. 



§ 4. — BASIL, SAVORY, ETC. 



Basil. — Ocymum Basilicum L. (the sweet or 

 larger basil), and the 0. minimum L. (the bush 

 or least basil), are both cultivated in all first- 

 rate gardens. They belong to the natural order 

 Labiatse, and to the class Didynamia and order 

 Gymnospermia in the Linnaean arrangement. 

 The generic name is derived from Ozo, a smell, 

 from their powerful scent. They are both na- 

 tives of India : the former was introduced in or 

 before 1548, and the latter in 1573. These are 

 the two sorts cultivated in Britain, while 0. 

 gratissimum is cultivated in China as a culinary 

 plant, and is also a native of the East Indies, 

 and being a shrubby stove-plant, deserves our 

 attention more than appears to have been be- 

 stowed upon it, more especially for winter use, 

 when the annual sorts are so difficult to grow: 

 a plant known from the earliest ages of Gre- 

 cian history. " The leaves and bractese, or leafy 

 tops, are the parts gathered ; and on account of 

 their strong flavour of cloves, they are often 

 used in high-seasoned dishes, as well as in 

 soups, stews, and sauces, and a leaf or two is 

 sometimes introduced in salads." — Sub. ffort, 



2 H 



