474 
HABITS AND LATIN NAMES OF BRITISH PLANTS, 
- e * pomoque onorata rubenti 
Arbutus 
yet so bitter withal, that Pliny is supposed to have denominated it in XJnedo be¬ 
cause only one can be eaten at a time. Tournefort informs us that a spirituous 
liquor is distilled from the fruit, especially in the Isle of Andros. The old Italian 
poet Sannazaro, in his Arcadia , represents this truly classical evergreen as 
. employed by the Roman shepherds to decorate their flocks, on the festival of the 
• goddess Pales. It is generally supposed to thrive most luxuriantly in a moist 
situation. We learn from the Bon Jardinier of M. Pirolle, that Arbutus trees 
raised from English seed are hardier than those produced from the seed of warmer 
climates. In the Levant it attains to a great size: in our pleasure grounds 
sometimes to twenty feet in height; and we can imagine no tree to afford a more 
refreshing canopy in its luxuriant growth; for we may presume that even Horace 
(no incompetent judge of luxury) occasionally sought repose beneath its shade— 
*‘ Nunc viridi membra sub Arbuto 
Stratus.” 
The right of this plant to be considered an aboriginal, 
46 Arbutus, with his scarlet grain, 
That richly crowns Irene’s plain,” 
has been contested by Mr. Smith in his History of the County of Kerry , in which 
he conjectures it may have been introduced by the monks of St. Finnian, who 
founded the Abbey in the sixth century. 
Arbutus uva-ursi , Red Bear-berry, Red-berried Trailing Arbutus.—The berries 
are insipid, pulpy, and mealy, but afford excellent food for game. The plant is 
much used in Sweden to dye an Ash-colour, and to tan leather. Horses, Cows, 
Goats and Sheep refuse it. The coccus uva-ursi, which, with alum, affords a 
crimson dye, is now neglected. 
Arctium.— Agxnov, from Agxros, a Bear ; so named from its roughness, and the 
coarse texture of the involucres. 
Arctium lappa. Common Burdock, Bur, or Clot-bur.—The calyx, when in 
seed, easily breaks from its stalk, and is well known by the name of a bur, stick¬ 
ing to the coats of animals, and the hair or clothing of young rustics, which can 
hardly be cleared of such incumbrances without breaking the scales asunder and 
scattering the seeds. The surface of the herbage leaves a slightly viscid, very 
bitter, exudation on the fingers. The plant itself, a cumbrous weed, is removed, 
the first year of its growth, by stubbing, like other things comprehended by 
farmers under the name of “ Hocks,” and paid for accordingly to the weeder. Hr. 
Withering states that before the flowers appear, the stems, stripped of their 
rind, may be boiled and eaten like Asparagus. When raw they are palatable 
with oil and vinegar. The seeds are recommended as diuretic : and are accept- 
