CHAP. I. TREES AND SHRUBS KNOWN TO THE ANCIENTS. 19 



ConifercE, Cedrus Libani ; Zarix europae^a ; Pinus halepensis, 

 Pmea, maritima, and *sylvestns; ^^bies excelsa and Picea; 

 Cupressus sempervirens ; Thuja aphylla ; Taxus * baccata ; 

 Jiiniperus * communis, Oxj^cedrus, lycia, and * nana. 



Qycadeoe. Cycas revoluta. 



SmildcecE. iSmilax aspera ; jRuscus hypopliyllum, * aculeatus 

 ? racemosus. 



Valmce. Phoe^nix dactylifera, and four varieties ; Cocos nuci- 

 fera ; ChamseVops ; ? Areca Catechu, 

 (jraminede. Bambusa arundinacea. 



It thus appears that the total number of species known to 

 Theophrastus was not less than 170, which belong to 53 groups 

 or natural orders. 



The Roma7is appear to have begun with a knowledge of all 

 the trees possessed by the Greeks ; and there are added to them, 

 in their works, almost all the trees of the colder regions of Eu- 

 rope. It is evident that the Romans introduced trees into Italy 

 from other countries ; because frequent mention is made, by 

 their agricultural writers, of the platanus, the cedar, the cypress, 

 and other trees, which are not indigenous to Italy; and the 

 cherry, the peach, and other fruits, we are informed, were 

 imported from Persia. The pine, the bay, the plane, and the 

 box appear to have been the favourite trees of gardens : the first, 

 for its refreshing odour ; the second, for its beauty, and because 

 it was used in crowning martial heroes; and the third, on 

 account of its shade. Pliny observes, " In old times trees were 

 the very temples of the gods ; and, according to that ancient 

 manner, the plain and simple peasants of the country, savouring 

 still of antiquity, do at this day consecrate to one god or other 

 the goodliest and fairest trees that they can meete withall ; and 

 verily, we ourselves adore, not with more reverence and devotion, 

 the stately images of gods within our temples (made though they 

 be of glittering gold and beautiful ivory), than the very groves 

 and tufts of trees, wherein we worship the same gods in religious 

 silence. First, the ancient ceremony of dedicating this and that 

 kind of tree to several gods, as proper and peculiar to them, 

 was always observed, and continues to this day. For the great 

 mighty oak, named esculus, is consecrated to Jupiter, the laurel 

 to Apollo, the olive to Minerva, the myrde to Venus, and the 

 poplar to Hercules." [Holland's Translation of Pliny's Natural 

 History, p. 357.) 



The Romans cultivated trees for useful purposes, like the 

 moderns. They planted coppice woods, for fuel, fence wood, and 

 props for the vine ; they had osier grounds, for producing hoop 

 and basket willows ; single rows of elms and poplars, for sup- 

 porting the vine; and they had indigenous forests on the hills 



c 3 



