January 29. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
WEEKLY CALENDAR. 
268 
M W 
D D 
JAN. 29 — FEB. 4, 1852 
I29 Th 
30 F 
King Charles I. mart. 1649, 
31 S 
Hilary Term ends. 
1 Sun 
4 Sunday- after Epipiiany. 
2 M 
Purif. Candl. Day. 
3 Tu 
Blase. 
4 W 
Musca Tenax seen. 
Weather near London in 1851 . 
Barometer. 
Thermo. 
Wind. Rain in In. 
Rises. 
29.722 — 29.463 
52—32 
S.W. 
20 
46 a. 7 
09.520 — 29.252 
46—30 
S.W. 
38 
45 
29.289 — 29.194 
45—28 
S.W. 
07 
43 
29.470 — 29.424 
43—29 
N.E. 
04 
42 
29.575 — 29.513 
40—22 
N.E. 
10 
41 
29.567 — 29.490 
44—25 
S. 
06 
39 
29.939 — 29.793 
45—23 
N.W. 
— 
37 
Sun 
Sets. 
Moon 
R.&S. 
Moon’s 
Age. 
Clock 
bef. Sun. 
Day of 
Year. 
41 a«4 
0 21 
13 
22 
29 
42 
1 28 
9 
13 
32 
30 
44 
2 36 
10 
13 
41 
31 
46 
3 m 45 
11 
13 
50 
32 
48 
4 53 
12 
13 
58 
33 
49 
5 55 
13 
14 
5 
34 
51 
6 50 
14 
14 
n 
35 
BRITISH WILD FLOWERS. 
CROWFOOTS—RANUNCULACE.E. 
RANUNCULUS. 
Ranunculus was the Roman, and Batrak'wn the Greek 
1 name, for our common Crowfoot, or Butter-cup ; and, as 
I both those classical names refer to the frog, it is pretty evi- 
: dent that the intention was to refer to the marsh-loving 
| habit of the plant, and its consequent companionship with 
that animal. Tt belongs to the Class and Order Polyandria 
Pulyyynia of the Linntean system. 
1. Leaves Uncut. 
Gf.neric Characters.— Cal. inferior, of 5, rarely fewer, 
egg-shaped, concave, somewhat coloured, deciduous leaves. 
Pet. 5, rarely 8 or 10, blunt, polished, with short broad 
claws. Ned. a pore towards the base of each petal, in 
several instances covered by a scale. Filani. numerous, 
rarely but 5, not half the length of the petals. Anth. 
roundish, linear, or heart-shaped, terminal, erect, of 2 cells, 
bursting at the outer edges. Germ, superior, numerous, 
collected into ahead. Styles none. Stigmas small, reflexed. 
Seeds numerous, egg-shaped, compressed, either smooth, 
channelled, pimpled, or prickly, each tipped with a point, or 
hook. 
There are sixteen species, natives of the British Isles. 
These have been divided into two sections—1. Those with 
uncut or simple leaves. 2. Those with lobed. or cut leaves. 
Ranunculus flammula : Lesser Spear wort Crowfoot.— 
Ray says that its specific name, Jlammula, was derived from 
the Laim flammens, burning, because of the acrid, blistering 
quality of the plant. 
There are three varieties of this species : a, has broader, 
plantain-like leaves, hairy at the edges, and is found in Ire¬ 
land ; b, lias the edges of the leaves remarkably toothed; 
and c, has a creeping stem, putting forth roots from each 
joint. No plant varies more than R.flammula, according to 
the soil and situation in which it is growing. In low, moist 
situations it is tall and almost perfectly erect, hut on moun¬ 
tain, dry soils, it is small and creeping. 
Description. — Roots of many long, simple fibres, partly 
from the lower joints of the stem. Herb generally smooth. 
Stem more or less reclining, partly, or entirely, decumbent, 
from (i to 18 inches long, branched, leafy, hollow; De 
Candolle says “ solid; ” it is often hairy in the upper part. 
Leaves on channelled clasping footstalks, alternate, spear¬ 
head-like, varying greatly in breadth, sometimes egg-shaped. 
FI. opposite to the leaves, as well as terminal, on round 
stalks, without bracteas. Pet. of a golden yellow. Ned. 
minute. Seeds small, smooth at the sides. Calyx often 
slightly hairy. 
Places where found. —Plentifully in marshy places, 
especially in boggy parts of heaths and commons. 
Time of Flowering. —June to September. 
Uses. —It is very acrid. Applied externally it inflames 
and blisters the skin, and is so employed in the Highlands 
and Islands of Jura, where the bruised leaves are applied in 
a limpet shell. Horses eat it. Cows, sheep, goats, and 
swine refuse it. Its acrimony rises in distillation. Some 
years ago a man travelled through several parts of England 
administering emetics, which, like white vitriol, operated the 
instant they were swallowed. The distilled water of this 
plant was his medicine: and, from the expeiience Dr. J 
Withering had of it, he felt authorised to assert, that in the 1 
case of poison being swallowed, or other circumstances 
occuring, in which it is desirable to produce instantaneous 
vomiting, it is preferable to any other medicine yet known, 
and does not excite those painful contractions in the upper j 
part of the stomach which white vitriol sometimes does, j 
thereby defeating the intention for which it was given. 
Unfortunately he does not specify the dose to be employed. 
— Smith's English Flora. Withering. Marlyn's Miller's 
Diet. Ray's Hist. 
Meteorology of the Week. —At Chiswick, from observations | 
during the last twenty-five years, the average highest and lowest tem¬ 
peratures of these days are 44.1° and 31.8° respectively. The greatest 
heat, 56°, occurred on the 3rd in 1833 ; and the lowest cold, 18° on the 
30th in I 827 . During the period 102 days w'ere fine, and on 73 vain fell. 
Pruning is one of the most difficult of gardening prac¬ 
tices, though usually performed by jobbing gardeners 
with an indescriminate application of the knife, having 
hut one guiding principle or object,—making all look 
i neat. 
The necessity for more discrimination in pruning, is 
evident from the leading facts, that some plants bear on 
their old wood some on the previous year’s shoots; 
some on spurs, and some on buds issuing directly from 
the laterals. Yet these are not the only considerations 
to be kept in remembrance as we apply the pruning- 
knife, for, if the branches are too much reduced in 
number, an excessive development of leaves is caused, 
and the production of blossom is proportionately pre¬ 
vented. Nor is the season at which a tree is pruned 
without its influence. Indeed, so far from it, that the 
No, CLXXIV,, Vo i. Ill 
