PLANT-LORE OF SHAKESPEARE 
283 
IR^e* 
(1) Ceres, most bounteous lady, thy rich leas 
Of Wheat, Rye, Barley, Vetches, Oats, and Pease. 
Tempest , iv. 1, 60. 
(2) You sunburnt sicklemen, of August weary, 
Come hither from the furrow and be merry ; 
Make holiday; your Rye-straw hats put on.— Ibid., iv. i, 135. 
(3) Between the acres of the Rye 
These pretty country folks would lye.— As You Like It, v. 3, 23. 
The Rye of Shakespeare’s time was identical with our own 
(Seca/e cereale). It is not a British plant, and its native country 
is not exactly known; but it seems probable that both the 
plant and the name came from the region of the Caucasus. 
As a food-plant Rye was not in good repute in Shakespeare’s 
time. Gerard said of it, “ It is harder to digest than Wheat, 
yet to rusticke bodies that can well digest it, it yields good 
nourishment.” But “recent investigations by Professor Wanklyn 
and Mr. Cooper appear to give the first place to Rye as the 
most nutritious of all our cereals. Rye contains more gluten, 
and is pronounced by them one-third richer than Wheat. 
Rye, moreover, is capable of thriving in almost any soil.”—• 
Gardener's Chronicle , 1877. 
