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JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ April 10, 1884. 
Probably our familiar name for it came from the Greek appellation, 
which alludes to the curling of the young leaves ; for a century or 
more it was commonly written “ sailary.” With the old English 
herbalists, as Smallage, the species had also a medicinal repute. They 
prepared an ointment from the leaves, and squeezed the juice from 
the stem, which was mixed with honey, to cure sore throat ; and, 
now-a-days some writers upon dietetics commend the stalks of Celery 
as excellent in their influence on the health. 
Frequently do we lose all clue to the history of those who have 
made valuable discoveries, and thus it happens that the original 
grower of Celery for the table as we now see it is quite unknown, and 
also the exact date of its first cultivation. There is only obtainable 
this item of information from the excellent John Ray, that it was one 
of the plants brought to table as somewhat of a novelty early in the 
seventeenth century ; and he notes the fact, that without careful 
attention, Celery very soon reverts to its natural or wild condition. 
Occasional remarks in other authors imply that, though the blanched 
stalks were then produced, the young foliage was also eaten, probably 
chopped up and mixed into a stew. Evelyn adds another item, that 
Celery came to us from Italy, where it had been known as Celery for 
only a few years previous to its introduction. He recommends that it 
be accompanied by vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper ; we now prefer to 
take it with one of these condiments as a relish to cheese when we 
eat it raw. And he declares that for “ its high and grateful taste 
at our great men’s tables it is ever placed in the middle as the grace 
of the whole board.” 
So that, although the plant is one of our natives, no Briton can 
claim the credit of having tamed the wild species, but we may 
perhaps boast of some skill in producing good varieties, also in 
growing very fine examples. Loudon refers to a la’ge plant dug up 
near Manchester, weighing 9 lbs. when washed, and over 4 feet in 
height; when cut it was crisp and of good flavour. The Turnip- 
rooted Celery was, it is said, brought from Germany to England 
about a century ago ; it is mentioned by Mawe and Abercrombie, and, 
though hardier than other kinds, this has never been a favourite here, 
yet it has retained its German repute. Another variety, which 
seems now to have been lost sight of, was a tall sort grown in Samos, 
from whence the seed was sent to Norfolk in 1797. Only four or 
five kinds are noticed in books of gardening of the reign of 
George IIL, but the consumption of Celery in and near London was 
considerable, so that large quantities were raised by the market 
gardeners round the metropolis. Abercrombie, indeed, speaks of it 
as an article which many families required daily during several 
months of the year. 
The Parsnip (Pastinaca sativa) may have taken its Latin name 
from the circumstance that the root in its shape resembled a kind of 
digger named “ pastinum,” as some assert, but this explanation is not 
highly satisfactory. Nor is it certain that “Parsnip” is only a 
perversion of the Latin word, yet it may be so, unless the “ nip ” or 
“ nep " bears an allusion to another group, perhaps once supposed to 
be akin to the Parsnip. This plant, possibly less common than in 
the olden time, still grows wild upon chalky downs, in Wiltshire for 
instance, conspicuous during July and August by its yellow flowers 
and glossy leaves. Although less objectionable in its qualities than is 
the wild Celery, it is of no value while it is an uncultivated plant ; 
but hogs, when at large, are attracted to the roots, which they dig up 
and devour. But there were formerly some of the believers in that 
medical lore which was oddly combined with astrology, w r ho set great 
store by the seeds of the wild Parsnip, containing as they do a pungent 
essential oil; these were administered to those suffering from various 
forms of intermittent fever, or a decoction prepared from them. 
Afterwards, when the Parsnip became the garden plant, the seeds of 
that kind were commonly sold by druggists in place of those of the 
wild plant, much to the vexation of the herb doctors, for Culpepper 
and others maintained that the seeds of the “ tame ” Parsnip had 
little virtue in them. 
Early in the Christian era we find the cultivation of Parsnips 
referred to, and it is stated that the roots were sent from a district of 
Germany upon the banks of the Rhine to the capital of the Roman 
Empire, to supply the table of the sensual Tiberius, who, as we 
know, was apt to pamper his appetite with articles much less whole¬ 
some. In serving up this vegetable the Romans removed the pith, 
which they did not eat, and poured over it a sauce compounded of 
honey, so adding “ sweets to the sweet.” Their method of culture 
had its peculiarities ; one of these was that they took up the plants 
and replanted them when the roots had attained some size. They 
also regarded it as a good plan to allow them to be in the earth 
through a second season before eating them. It would seem the 
leaves were occasionally cooked, and a belief that the plant warded 
off the bites of serpents led some persons to carry about habitually 
some part of the Parsnip. 
Though the Romans introduced various fruits and vegetables to 
these shores, we cannot credit them with the fact of having brought 
us the Parsnip, and it is all but certain that the Flemings, who fled to 
England from the persecutions carried on by that tyrant Philip II., 
and who are known to be the first cultivators of the Carrot here, did 
also raise the first English Parsnips. This would be about the 
middle of the sixteenth century, and the place probably the soil of 
Kent or Essex. Gerarde, a man quite up to the level of the natu¬ 
ralists of Elizabeth’s time, was yet somewhat puzzled by the Parsnip, 
which he seems to have half suspected to be a variety of the Carrot, 
but afterwards acknowledges their distinctness. His friend Plat had 
manufactured bread from Parsnip roots, and he himself believed 
they were superior to those of the Carrot and Turnip. Turner 
alludes to the custom of eating Parsnips during the Lenten season. 
Ray utters a word of warning that old Parsnips might possibly give 
rise to delirium. Rather slowly the Parsnip came into general use, 
but for many years only a single cultivated form was to be seen in 
English gardens. Several .varieties, however, had been grown in 
Normandy and the Channel Islands ; one of these has roots of 
enormous length, and is still made to yield heavy crops for the 
feeding of cattle. The Parsnip has been highly commended as a 
fattener, answering indeed better than its relative the Carrot, yet it is 
very moderately used for that pui’pose in Britain ; and with many 
of the Scotch it is a more favourite vegetable than it is to the south 
of the Tweed.—J. R. S. C. 
ROSES NIPHETOS AND SAFRANO. 
It would indeed be a poor Rose that had no admirers or advocates, 
and I felt sure when I penned my remarks (page 104) that someone 
would be sure to defend the case of that popular variety Niphetos. I 
wrote of the qualities as winter flowerers, and have no desire to withdraw 
one word that I have written respecting the merits of these two varieties. 
I have had abundant opportunities of testing them side by side both in 
pots and planted out under various circumstances and conditions. It 
must be understood that by free winter-flowering varieties I mean those 
that are best adapted to grow and unfold their delicate buds, say from 
the month of November until the early part or middle of February, 
which comprise the worst months of the year in this locality where fogs 
predominate. Rose-forcing is thus conducted under difficulties, and I 
hope that my friend Mr. Iggulden enjoys a pure bright atmosphere free 
from the evils which surround us in this neighbourhood. 
Niphetos lacks vigour as compared with Safrano, and during the 
months named will not make growths half so strong or so numerous as 
those of Safrano ; in fact, it will not grow so rapidly or with the same 
freedom either planted out or grown in pots, under exactly the same 
conditions. If a variety does not possess vigour of habit it will not 
produce half so many buds as a stronger variety will do. Growth must 
be constant in order to yield a continuous supply of buds, and this is the 
character of Safrano. Mr. Iggulden says, “ One good bloom of Niphetos 
is worth four Safrano buds,” but during the winter the former will not 
produce “ good blooms ; ” they are only buds, and smaller than those of 
the latter, which will produce fully twice as many, one being fragrant 
and the other not. To write accurately there is no variety that is really 
scentless, for all have a slight perfume ; but what is the scent of Niphetos, 
Etiole de Lyon, Capitaine Christy, Magna Charta, Baronne de Rothschild, 
Countess of Oxford, and many others, compared with that possessed by 
Safrano, Gloire de Dijon, the Hon. George Bancroft, La France, Bessie 
Johnson, Marie Baumann, and many others, even when grown under the 
same treatment 1 
I freely endorse the editorial remarks (page 195) that there are more 
blooms of “ Niphetos sold in London at the present time than those of 
any other Rose,” and why ? Simply because a preference is given to 
white flowers by the florists, and the price realised for the former would 
be considerably more than for coloured flowers, however choice, early, or 
delicate. It is exactly the same with the Rose as the Camellia, for there 
is no difficulty in disposing of white flowers, often at a very high price, 
while there is much difficulty in selling red or other colours at less than 
a third the price of the others.—W m. Bardney. 
CRYSTAL PALACE SPRING SHOW. 
April 4th and 5th. 
The first of the series of horticultural exhibitions announced for the 
present year by the Crystal Palace Company was held on Friday and 
Saturday last, and gave hopeful evidence of what may be expected at the 
later and larger shows. An exhibition so early in the season is quite a 
novelty, and it was regarded by the projectors almost as an experiment, the 
success achieved consequently forming an agreeable surprise, and furnished 
additional encouragement for further efforts. In the arrangement of the 
exhibits a new departure was also made, for the centre transept from the 
great organ to the stage was solely devoted to the show, four rows of tables 
being arranged in parallel lines. The four corners were devoted to the 
groups, a magnificent semicircular group from the Palace collection occupying 
the most prominent position at the base of the orchestra. The great 
advantage of this method was that, though a less extensive effect was 
produced than under the ordinary system, there was a greater concentration, 
and visitors were enabled to inspect the exhibits without having to wander 
half over the Palace. The tables employed, however, would have been 
greatly improved had they been draped with baize or some material to 
conceal the tressles, but with this exception the general organisation was all 
that could be desired, and was highly creditable to the garden Superintendent, 
