7 



OF FOREST-TREES. 145 



monly succeeds lousiness, which is cured by boring a hole into the CHAP.VII. 

 principal root, and pouring in a quantity of brandy, stopping the orifice ^■^V'^ 

 up with a pin of the same wood. 



Crooked trees are reformed by taking off or topping the preponderers 

 whilst charged with leaves, or woody and hanging counterpoises. 



year without losing their virtue. It sometimes happens that the females are impregnated 

 by the dust blown to them by the wind ; but since this is precarious, it is better done by 

 the hand. If there be no impregnation, the female trees inevitably drop all the rudiments 

 of the fruit, which is a great calamity to the owners, and to the country people in general, 

 who are supported by their crop of dates, as we are by our crops of corn. I remember 

 it happened in my time, that the Grand Seignior meditated an invasion of the city and 

 territory of Bassora, which the prince of the country prevented, by giving out that he 

 • would destroy all the male Palm-trees on the first approach of the enemy, and by that 



means cut off from them all supplies of subsistence during the siege." Thus far Ksempfer. 

 Hear also what Tournefort says on this subject. " Hagdi Mustapha, ambassador from 

 Tripoli, told me, that a branch of the flower of the male Palm was inserted into the spatha 

 of the female just at the time the spatha used to open; for when the flower is fully ex- 

 panded, it sheds its dust; without the assistance of which, the dates would be harsh and ill- 

 tasted, disagreeable, and without stones or kernels, and only fit to be given to camels and 

 other beasts of burden." In the males and females of the Pistachio Nut-tree, they observe 

 the same method as in those of the Date-tree. " In Sicily (says Geofroy, in his Materia 

 Medica,) the countrymen pluck clusters of flowers from the male Pistachio, with the fecun- 

 dating dust of which they impregnate the female flowers: others gather the male 

 flowers, expose them to dry in proper bags, and scatter the proliferous dust on the female 

 flowers, that the fruit may not prove abortive, and the crop fail." 7- Nodding Flowers. — 

 Since the male dust is generally of a greater specific gravity than the air in most plants, 

 that have the pistillum longer than the stamina, the all-wise Creator has made the flowers 

 nodding, that the powder may more easily reach the stigma, as may be seen in the 

 common Snow-drop, greater Snow-drop, Sow-bread, Narcissus, Fritillary, Campamda, Dog's- 

 tooth, Violet, &c. Now it cannot be said that this happens merely from the weight of 

 the flower, for sometimes the fruit in the same plants, which is ten times heavier than 

 the flower, grows erect, as in the Crown Imperial, Fritillary, and others. 8. Sunk-Flowers. — 

 The stems of many plants grow under water ; but a little before they blow, the flowers 

 emerge or rise above the surface of the water, as we see in the Water-lily, Frog's-bit, 

 Broad-leafed Pond-weed, Perennial Arsmart, &c. There are others in which all the parts 

 grow under water, as the Water-milfoil, Water-soldier, several of the Pond-weeds, all 

 which, about the time of flowering, raise their flowering stems above the water, which 

 stems sink again as soon as the time of flowering is over. The Vallisneria of Micheli, 

 a kind of Pond-weed, which grows in Italy, bears a very long scapus, or flowering stem, 

 but twisted in form of a screw ; hence it appears very short. This plant grows in rivulets, 

 and ditches under water, and bears on the extremity of its stem one flower only. About 



