Romance of Plant Life — Chapter XXIX - Names and Superstitions

CHAPTER XXIX NAMES AND SUPERSTITIONS

Giving names the first amusement--Curious and odd names--A spiteful naturalist--The melancholy Bartzia--Common names--British orchids--Dancing girls and columbines--Susans--Biblical names--Almond, apple, locust--Spikenard--Tares--Effects of darnel--Daffodil--Acanthus leaf--Ghost-disturbing branches--Elder or bour tree--Its powers and medicinal advantage--Danewort--Mandrake--How to pull it up--The insane root--Its properties--Plants which make bones pink--The betel nut--Henna--Egyptian and Persian uses--Castor oil--Leeks, onions, and garlic--Ancient use of them.

Man has always taken a certain pleasure in giving names to both plants and animals.

It was, of course, a necessity to do this, but it is probable that people enjoyed the process as they do now.

At the present moment there must be at least 200,000 plants named and described by botanists.

So that the number of ecstatic moments enjoyed by humanity has been undoubtedly increased.

The Egyptians, the Babylonians, and the Arabs named a great many plants, but for the most part those names are quite lost.

Most of the knowledge of the Egyptians and Babylonians remained a close secret confined to their priestly colleges or universities, and has entirely perished.

For centuries those fragments of the knowledge of Greece and Egypt which were preserved seem to have been translated and taught in Latin.

Long after the Roman Empire had passed away, all knowledge, including that of medicine, of botany, and of law, was imparted in Latin, which indeed was supposed to be learnt by every educated person almost until the present century.

Even now descriptions of new plants have to be given in Latin, and the name must have a classical appearance.

Of course, nowadays, it would be much more convenient and much more generally useful if every person learnt English, German, French, and Japanese, but in this case of naming plants, the Holy Roman Empire still exercises its sway over the whole world.

Very often the names given to plants are of the most extraordinary character.

The Latin is curious and the Greek remarkable, yet sometimes they are both pleasant to the ear and have a pretty and poetical meaning.

_Poggeophyton_, on the other hand, for example, means the plant discovered by Dr. Pogge, a German botanical explorer.

_Wormskioldia_, _Zahlbrucknera_, _Krascheninikowia_, _Acanthosicyos_, _Chickrassia_, _Orychophragmus_, _Warczewiczia_, _Lychnophoriopsis_, _Krombholtzia_, _Pseudorhachicallis_, _Sczegleewia_, _Zschokkia_, are all names that sound harsh and look odd to us.

Yet most of them are just called after those who discovered them, or their friends.

In many of the smaller microscopic plants the names are really much longer than the plants themselves.

Thus _Pseudocerataulus Kinkeri_ is a diatom which cannot possibly be seen without the use of a microscope.

Names are and were given in the most extraordinary way.

Not merely great botanists, but Themistocles, Aristides, Aristobulus, Virgil, and even Gyas and Clianthes, have plants named after them.

Yet that is not inexcusable, if people had not sufficient inventive power to do better.

There was a naturalist who quarrelled with the great French scientist Buffon.

Therefore he baptized as _Buffonia_ a group of ugly, unimportant little plants which had an unpleasant smell.

In other cases people have named plants after their sweethearts or friends.

A British plant called Bartzia has a rather melancholy, desolate appearance.

It was named when the author had just received the news of the death of his friend Dr. Bartsch.

One of the most usual complaints which one hears from those who are beginning to study flowers is that the Latin names are so difficult and hard to remember.

But they are not really more difficult than the common popular names, and especially those of foreign plants.

Cheirostemon, for instance, which means stamens like a hand, is much easier to speak and to remember than _Macpalxochitlquahuitl_, which is its soft, meandering, Spanish-American name.

Asperula (little rough one) is quite as good as Squinancywort, which means a herb good for quinsy (it is moreover of no good in quinsy).

Perhaps, however, Woodruff (which is really "wood rowel," from the resemblance of the leaves to an old-fashioned spur), or Waldmeister (master of the woods), are as good names as Asperula.

Then Erigeron, which means "soon growing old," is an excellent description of the faded appearance of this little weed, for which the popular name is Fleabane (it has no effect upon these creatures whatsoever).

How popular names came to be associated with particular flowers is generally quite unknown.

A fair number are called from the diseases which they are supposed to cure.

Lungwort, however, was so called because the lichen Pulmonaria has a resemblance to lungs.

Then in course of time people began to suppose it was a cure for diseases of the lungs, which it is not.

The British Orchids are called Bee, Spider, Fly, and Hanging-man Orchids, because of a fancied resemblance to their namesakes.

Dancing-girls (_Mantisia_) was so called from a certain resemblance of the flower to a columbine.

The true Columbine (_Aquilegia_) was so called because of a resemblance which some one saw to a circle of little doves with wings seated on a circular well.

The greatest objection to popular names, however, lies in their being so indefinite.

Entirely different plants are known by the same name, and also in different parts of the country totally different names are given to the same plant.

All such difficulties disappear if one takes the trouble to learn the Latin names.

These also are often quite pretty.

Luzula, Veronica (with its pretty legend), Mimulus (the little monkey), Circæa (Enchanter's Nightshade), Senecio (_the old man_, from its woolly head of fruits), Nymphea, Naias, Carlina (_the old witch_), and so on, are quite as pretty and as nice as Mugwort, Devil-in-a-bush, Hairy Rock Cress, and the rest.

One curious result of the use of popular names is seen in the Biblical names of plants.

The Rose of Sharon seems most probably to have been _Narcissus Tarzetta_, and not a rose at all.

As regards the lilies of the Field, Mr. Ridley has the following remarks.

The Hebrew word _Shushan_ was a generic name given to a mixture of flowers, exactly as we now talk of ferns, herbs, or grass.

The Sermon on the Mount was preached near the plain of Gennesaret, and there flourish the Anemone (_Anemone coronaria_), _Ranunculus asiaticus_, and _Adonis aestivalis_ and _flammea_, which are exactly of the same colour and follow each other in close succession.

This word _Shushan_ is the original of the Christian name Susannah or Susan.

The Arabic name for _Anemone coronaria_ is Susan.

The Almond of the Bible is the common almond which is wild in Syria and Palestine.

"Aaron's rod that budded was a branch of an almond tree; the bowls of the Golden Candlestick were designed from the almond blossom.

Even at the present time English workmen call the glass drops for ornamenting candlesticks almonds."

The Apple of the Bible was more probably an Apricot.

The husks of the prodigal son were probably the Locust-beans, sometimes called St. John's bread, but it is quite probable that the "locusts" eaten by St. John were the insects.

At any rate, locusts are regularly eaten in the East.

The Locust Tree (_Ceratonia siliqua_), or Algaroba or Carob, has large, dark-purple pods; there is a pulpy material between the seeds which forms a valuable cattle food.

The seeds are said to have been the original "carat" weight of jewellers.

The Spikenard (_Nardostachys jatamansi_) belongs to the natural order _Valerianaceæ_.

It is a wild plant of Bhutan found near Rangasnati, in India, and in ancient times it was transported on camels by the regular caravan route to Syria, Greece, and Rome.

It was then worth about £3. 10s.

per lb.

The essence is obtained from the roots, but one hundred pounds of roots will furnish only half a pound of essence.

Now it has but little value.

[153] [153] Heuzé, _Les Plantes Industrielles_.

The Tares sown amongst the wheat were probably the seed of the Darnel.

When growing, this grass is very like wheat, and it would be quite possible to mistake one for the other until the flowers and fruit are formed.

Darnel is one of the very few poisonous grasses.

It is said that the poison is produced by a fungus which is found in the grain.

When darnel seed is ground up with wheat the bread becomes dangerous, for the poison produces severe headache, vertigo, and giddiness.

Other authorities say that it causes in man and rabbits eruptions, fits of trembling, and confusion of sight.

It seems not to affect horned cattle, swine, and ducks.

As regards those plants which were specially beloved and venerated by the Greeks, there is not very much to say.

Moly seems to have been _Allium moly_, one of the onion or garlic family.

It is not very remarkable in any way.

Amaranth was apparently the garden Love-lies-bleeding, called in France Queue-de-Renard and Discipline-de-Religieuse.

The Asphodel which covered the Elysian fields seems to be _Asphodelus ramosus_.

[154] This grows in quantities in Apulia, and is said to afford good nourishment for sheep.

[154] Figured in Kerner's _Natural History of Plants_.

The Myrtle, with which the Athenian magistrates and victors in the Olympic games were crowned, is not really a European plant, though it has a wide range from Asia Minor to Afghanistan.

It was sacred to Venus, and had some importance as a medicinal plant and for perfumes.

It was even used in cookery and for making myrtle wine, which last is said to be still prepared in some parts of Tuscany.

"Narcissus, son of the river Cephisus and of Liriope, daughter of the Ocean, was a young man of great beauty who scorned all the Nymphs of the country, and made to die of languor Echo, because he would not respond to her passion.

But one day returning from the chase weary and fatigued, he stopped at the side of a fountain to refresh himself.

There having seen his own face in the water, he was so smitten with it and so greatly loved himself that he died of grief.

The Gods, touched by his death, changed him into a Daffodil, according to the fable."

Such is the account in M. l'Abbé Ladvocat's _Dictionnaire Historique-Portatif_, Paris, 1760. Daffodil means appearing early in the year.

The number of races, varieties, and forms of Daffodil, Jonquil, etc. , has become innumerable; yet it is doubtful if any are quite so graceful and absolutely charming as the _Narcissus poeticus_, supposed to be the original of the above legend.

The Acanthus leaf which was so much used in sculpture seems to have been that of _Acanthus spinosus_.

It can still be traced in modern carving, though, of course, it is very much altered and in a rather degenerate form.

It is often very difficult to say why certain plants have received so much attention and veneration in ancient times.

In some cases it is clearly because they are poisonous, and therefore become dreadful and awe-inspiring.

Why, however, should a twig of Rowan (_Pyrus Aucuparia_) be so often placed above the door of a Highland cottage?

In some way it was supposed to keep off evil spirits, but there is no special reason why it should have been chosen.

The "Bour Tree" or Elder (_Sambucus_) has been the centre of a whole series of extraordinary and remarkable superstitions.

Of the Ellhorn (Low Saxon), or _Sambucus nigra_, Arnkiel gives the following account: "Our forefathers also held the Ellhorn holy, wherefore whosoever need to hew it down must first make his request, 'Lady Ellhorn, give me some of thy wood, and I will give thee some of mine when it grows in the forest'--the which, with bended knees, bare head, and folded arms, was ordinarily done."

The flowers are an eye-wash and cosmetic, or they may be taken as tea or used as a fomentation.

The berries are used for "elderberry wine."

A certain cure for rheumatism is to carry about a small piece of elder cut after the fashion of a rude cross.

Evelyn speaking of it says: "If the medicinal properties of the leaves, bark, berries, etc. , were thoroughly known, I cannot tell what our countrymen could ail for which he might not fetch a remedy from every hedge, either for sickness or wound."

The other species (_Sambucus ebulus_, or Danewort) has had its name explained as follows by Sir J. E.

Smith: "Our ancestors evinced a just hatred of their brutal enemies the Danes in supposing the nauseous, fetid, and noxious plant before us to have sprung from their blood."

Of all these, however, the Mandrake (_Mandragora_) is connected with the most extraordinary and remarkable superstitions.

The plant is distinctly poisonous, and has peculiar divided roots which sometimes have a very rough resemblance to the human body.

It was supposed to be alive, and to utter the most piercing shrieks when it was pulled out of the ground.

In those accounts, which are based on that given by Josephus, it is the _person_ who pulls out the root, and not the plant, that shrieks, subsequently rolls on the ground, and finally dies in torments.

Therefore, if you wish to pull up a mandrake, the correct course to pursue is as follows: Tie a dog to the plant by its tail, and then whip the dog.

It will pull up the mandrake, and then die in frightful agony!

This is the "insane root" of Macbeth, but its various uses, real or pretended, are too numerous to explain in detail.

Thus it was used for the following purposes: as a poison, an emetic, a narcotic like chloroform, in love-philtres and love-charms, as well as to dispel demons, who cannot bear its smell or its presence.

There are many of these relics of medieval times which are difficult to explain or to find a reason for.

Why, for instance, should old women always carry a sprig of Southernwood to the kirk in their Bibles?

The leaves are, however, said to be disagreeable to insects.

The Lavender stalks usually placed in linen both keep away insects and have a pleasant old-world scent.

A great many of the properties possessed by plants are of the most extraordinary and unsuspected nature.

The roots of the Madder (_Rubia tinctorum_), for instance, when they are eaten by swine or other animals, change the colour of their bones, which become pink.

This curious property has actually been made useful, for physiologists have employed madder in the study of the growth and development of bone.

In India and other eastern countries one is often shocked and surprised to find an apparently quite healthy native expectorating blood in a most lavish manner.

But the native is only chewing Betel nuts, which have the power of turning the saliva red.

The fruit is that of _Areca Catechu_, a fine palm which is cultivated, for this purpose only, in many parts of India and the East.

The nuts are cut in pieces and rolled up with a little lime in leaves of the Betel pepper.

It is said to turn the teeth red and sometimes to produce intoxication; at any rate, people become slaves to this disgusting habit, and they do not seem to be at all injured by indulgence in it.

Another extraordinary plant is Henna (_Lawsonia inermis_).

The Egyptian mummies are found to have the soles of the feet, as well as the palms and finger-and toe-nails, dyed a reddish-orange colour by the use of henna.

But the practice is continued to-day in most parts of the East, and no odalisque's toilet would be considered complete without the use of henna.

It is even said that men dye their beards with it.

The white horse used in processions by the Shah of Persia has its legs, tail, and body dyed with henna.

The powdered leaves are used: they are made into a paste with hot water, and then spread upon the place.

It is grown in Syria, Egypt, Algeria, China, Morocco, Nubia, Guinea, and the East Indies.

In China women dye their eyebrows with an extract of the petals of _Hibiscus Rosa-sinensis_.

One of the first plants to be utilized by man was the Castor-oil (_Ricinus communis_).

It was used by the Indians from time immemorial; it is mentioned by Herodotus (under the name Kiki); seeds have been found in mummy-cases, showing the careful preparations which were made for the dead when starting on their travels in the other world!

It is one of the very commonest plants in the tropics and in sub-tropical or warm, temperate countries.

It is rather handsome, and has large reddish-green leaves and handsome spikes of flowers.

It is said to be sometimes twelve feet high, but is usually only six or seven feet.

The seeds are mottled or marbled, and have a distinct resemblance to a beetle when seen from above.

It has been suggested that this protects them from birds, or enables the latter to recognize the seed, which is strongly medicinal.

That, however, is at least doubtful, and certainly pigeons are exceedingly fond of the seeds and eat them in quantity.

The oil is used for lighting, in making soap, and also in painting.

Another characteristic Egyptian plant was the Leek, which with the onion and garlic seems to have been one of the very first to be brought into cultivation.

Herodotus says that on the Great Pyramid there was an inscription saying that 1600 talents had been paid for onions, radishes, and garlic used by the workmen during its erection.

The Jewish priests were forbidden to eat garlic, which (with cucumber) formed the dishes most regretted by the Israelites during their wanderings in the wilderness.

The Shallot comes from Ascalon, where it will be remembered Richard the First defeated Saladin the Sultan, and where also Sir Sidney Smith defeated the Emperor Napoleon and made him miss his destiny.

It was not brought to this country till 1548. Probably, therefore, Tennyson's Lady of Shalott lived somewhere else.

Onions and leeks are of course popular in this country, and especially in Wales, where the latter has been the badge of the Welsh since they gained a victory over the Saxons in the sixth century.

They wore it as a badge on that occasion by an order of St. David.

But in warmer countries onions and garlic are much more important, where they have flavoured almost every dish since the days of Nestor's banquet to Machaon in Asia, and of the Emperor Nero in Italy, until our own days.

But the subject is so inexhaustible, depending as it does upon man's powers of invention and his tendency to weird superstitions, that we must close this chapter and also the book.

And we will end by asking the reader to think sometimes of all these many and various ways in which plants help and interest man.

It is not merely because our life depends upon them.

Everything that we eat has been produced by plant life and plant work.

Tea, coffee, cocoa, and wine are pleasant because plants have produced some essence which is found useful and agreeable by mankind.

Even water would be tasteless and unwholesome were it not for the minute diatoms and other microscopic vegetables in it.

But those who take an interest in flowers and leaves _for themselves_, find that they need never spend a dull hour in the country.

There is so much to see and to find out, even in the commonest weed or the tiniest floweret.

But it is necessary to sympathize with them, to try to look at things from their point of view, and not merely from an artistic or collector's standpoint.

The romance of plant life then becomes a fascinating and engrossing pursuit.

But however long one studies it, the knowledge that the wisest naturalist can ever attain to must remain a negligible quantity compared with what he does not know.

Suppose a mouse happened to stray into the office of the editor of the _Times_, he might boast to his fellow-mice of his knowledge of the "higher journalism," but his opinions would not really be of very great value on the subject.

However hard we study, and however much we observe and reflect upon the working of this great world of Nature, we really cannot expect to know more relatively than that little mouse.

In fact, the more we think, the more humble men of heart we become, and the greater also should be our reverence for the Creator of this wonderful universe.

INDEX

Acacia, 108, 110, 111, 140, 179, 286 Acanthus, 369 Aconite, 231 Acorn, 256 Adansonia, 48 Adaptations (desert), 134 Afterglow, 132 Age of trees, 48 Agriculture (primitive), 149 Akocanthera, 229 Alder, 71 Alfred, 150 Algæ, 200, 202 " and Brittle Stars, 340 Alluvial flats, 210 Almond, 367 Alpine flowers, 103 " garden, 106 Ancient forests, 53 Angraecum, 79 Animals and poisons, 237 Animals and fruits, 241 Ants, 284-6 " and Centaury, 288 Antiaris, 230 Ant rice, 284 Aphanizomenon, 201 Aphis, 293 Apple, 248 Apple-blossom weevil, 294 Apple-sucker, 295 Arctic plants, 102, 104, 360 Arctic times, 104 Aristolochia, 78 Arrow poisons, 227, 229 Araucaria, 56 Arum, 78 Asclepiads, 78 Ash, 66 Asphodel, 368 Asses, 179 Associations, 26 Autumn crocus, 94 Aztecs, 126 Baboons, 247 Babylonian botanists, 37 Bacteria, 21, 85, 86, 95, 282, 328, 358 Balm of Gilead, 114 Banana, 248, 249 Barberry, 78, 183 Barley, 90, 272 Bartsia, 365 Bats, 246 Bean, 277 Bears, 247 Becquerel rays, 21 Bees, 74, 77 Bees and poppy, 303 Beetroot, 278, 280 Berries and winter, 245 Betel nut, 371 Bhang, 306 Bible plants, 366 Big Bad Lands, 133 Big trees, 58, 67 Birch, 60 Birch bark, 51 Birds, 85, 281 " and fruits, 245, 246, 256, 257 " and insects, 297 Bird's nest orchid, 329 Bishopsweed, 91 Bladderwort, 345 Blooming of weeds, 100 Bluebeard salvia, 74 Boers, 223 Boulger, 59 Box, 60 Bracken, 288 Bramble, 93, 183, 184, 248, 314 Brazil, 309 Breadfruit, 249 Breaking of meres, 201 Bridges of creepers, 319 Brigalow scrub, 112 Brier, 184 Britain (prehistoric), 144 British agriculture, 16 Britons, 150 Bromelia, 342 Broom, 256 Broomrape, 335 Brown, Dr. Horace, 18 Buds, 294 Buffonia, 365 Bulbs, 138 Burning bush, 115 Bushmen, 226 Buttercups, 233, 296 Butterflies, 192 Butterwort, 348 Cabbage, 23, 277 Cacti, 134, 179 Calabar bean, 232 Caledonian forest, 66 Calthrops, 185 Camargue, 161 Canadian forests, 62 Cannibals, 327 Canoes, 51 Cañons, 176 Carbon atom, 22 Carbonic acid gas, 16, 21 Carboniferous period, 55, 56 Carline thistle, 184 Cassier, 118 Castor oil, 245, 372 Catapult fruits, 263 Catchfly, 347 Cattle, 52 Cattle poisoning, 238 Caustic creeper, 235 Cedar, 59 Charlock, 275 Cherry, 97 Chickweed, 100, 346 Chicory, 125 Chinese botanists, 37 Chocolate, 125 Cinnamon, 35 Clematis, 265 Climate (effect of), 108 Climbing plants, 313 Clover, 86 Cloves, 30 Club-mosses, 55 Coal period, 55-70 Coca, 125 Cocoa, 125 Cocoanut, 259 Cockchafer, 292 Cockspur thorn, 183 Codlin moth, 295 Coffee, 123 Coffee disease, 124 Colocynth, 137 Colonizing of lavas, 171 " of shale, 173 Colorado desert, 139 Colour of birds, 81 " butterflies, 81 " flowers, 72-4 " fruits, 240 Coltsfoot, 18, 86 Congo, 309 Cooke, Dr. , 201 Coralroot orchid, 329 Cotton, 265 " grass, 355 " tree, 59 Country life, 155 Cow tree, 312 Cretaceous period, 70 Crocus, 19 Crows and acorns, 256 Cucumber, 86 Cultivated plants, 269, 273 Curare, 228 Currents and seeds, 255, 259 Cypress, 59 Daffodil, 368 Dahlia, 265 Daisy, 218 Dandelion, 19, 93, 264 Danewort, 370 Darling pea, 237 Darnel, 234, 367 Date palm, 141, 251 Datura, 232 Deer, 178 Deodar, 60 Depopulation of country, 154, 155 Depth of water (plants), 205 Desert, 132 Desmids, 206 Desmoncus, 316 Destruction of plants, 61-5 Diatoms, 206 Dioscorides, 37 Dischidia, 342 Distribution of seeds, 254 Dixon, Dr. , 25 Doctors, 28 Dodder, 338 Dorynicum, 263 Dragon tree, 49 Dropwort, 234 Drosera, 349 Drosophyllum, 347 Dundonald, Earl of, 151 Dwarf plants, 102 Egyptian botany, 37 Elder, 369 Electrical phenomena, 197-9 Elephant grass, 178 Esparto grass, 136 Eucalyptus, 47 Euphorbia, 110 Evening flowers, 74 Exploded pollen, 71 Fairy rings, 86 Fermentation, 242 Ferns, 172 Fig, 79, 251 Fig wasp, 79 Fires, 50, 148 Fish, 165, 206 Fish poison, 227 Flag, 203 Flies, 74, 80 Floating islands, 204 Floral clock, 76 Florida hyacinth, 209 Flowers, 68 Fly catcher, 348 Fly mushroom, 31 Fog, 203 Forestry, 43, 55 Forests, 63, 64, 220, 358, 361 Foxglove, 19, 79 Frankincense, 113 Fruits, 240 Fuegians, 51 Fungi, 80, 330 " and caterpillar, 341 " and eel-worms, 289 Galbanum, 114 Garlic, 373 Giant sawfly, 44 Ginkgo, 57 Girdleroots, 325 Goats, 52, 109, 179, 181, 184 Gooseberry, 182, 247 Goosegrass, 259 Gorse, 100, 181, 182 Gory dew, 202 Grass, 177, 185, 215, 218 Grasslands, 213, 330, 332 Grazing animals, 111, 177 Green of plants, 72 Greenfly, 293 Guanaco, 222 Gums, 111 Gutta-percha, 311 Hairs of plants, 136, 346 Hair (remedies), 30, 235 Hatasu, 113 Hawthorn, 182, 183 Hedgehog, 135 Heer, 55 Height of trees, 47 Hellebore, 231 Hemp, 305 Henna, 371 Henry, Dr. , 52, 53 Holly, 186, 189, 190 Honey-dew, 293 Hop, 316 Hornwort, 208 Hot springs, 200 Humming-birds, 75 Hyacinth, 278 Hybridizing, 249, 273 Hydrophobia cures, 29 Hygroscopic grasses, 266 Ibn Sena, 37 Ice and seeds, 257 Ice plant, 136 Ice sheet, 147 Imbauba, 287 Incense, 113 Indiarubber, 307, 311 Indigo, 35 Insects, 69, 73, 168 Ipecacuanha, 34 Iris, 203 Ironwood, 58 Ivy, 79, 323 Jarrah, 60 Johnson, Dr. , 151 Kangaroo, 75 Karoo, 138 Kite, 265 Kola, 127 Laburnum, 235 Lake dwellings, 52 Landes, 45 Land-forming plants, 161, 162 Larch, 181 Latex, 307 Lathrea, 336 Lava, 171 Lavender, 371 Lawns, 218 Leaf-cutting ants, 286 Leaf-miners, 297 Leaf-mould plants, 329 Leaves and light, 20 Lecanora, 167 Lecidea, 167 Leek, 372 Lewis, 54 Lianes, 314, 318 Lichens, 133, 166-71, 261 Life of flowers, 76 Lilienfeldt, 89 Lily order, 234 Lions and fruits, 258 Liverworts and animalcula, 341 Locoweed, 235 Locust tree, 367 Logwood, 35 Loranthus, 334 Madder, 371 Maidenhair tree, 57 Mallee scrub, 112 Mammoth trees, 47 Man, 247, 281, 300 " and flowers, 81 " and forests, 67 Manchineel, 228 Mandrake, 370 Mangroves, 156 Manna, 115, 261 Marshes, 211 Meadows, 213 Medicines, 27, 28 Mimulus, 70 Mistletoe, 245, 332 Mites, 299 Moats, 298 Mohammed, 119 Moly, 368 Monkey-puzzles, 56 Monotropa, 329 Moors, 353 Mosquitoes, 159 Mosses, 170, 353 Movement in plants, 14 Mud and seeds, 258 Mud rivers, 357 Mustard, 30 Myrrh, 114 Myrtle, 116, 368 Names of plants, 363 Narcissus, 368 Nepenthes, 344 Nettle, 71, 191 Nicotine, 130 Nile desert, 139 Nipa, 260 Nitrates, 84 Nomadic agriculture, 57 Number of plants, 38 Oak, 24 Oak forest, 53 Oat, 270 Obi, 232 Oil shales, 207 Olive, 48, 116, 251 Onions, 373 Opening of flowers, 76 Opium, 301 Opopanax, 114 Orange, 116, 243 Orchards, 252 Orchids, 78, 81, 330 Oxalis, 196 Painters and poets (botanists), 39 Palms, 69, 180 Pampas, 221 Paper (wood), 61, 62 Papyrus, 211 Parasitic insects, 294 " plants, 338 Pear, 188 " midge, 296 Peat, 170, 353 Peat-mosses, 353, 361 Pepper, 36 Perfumes, 73, 115, 119, 241 Petals, 98 Pfeffer, 88 Phragmites, 209 Phylloxera, 291 Pine forests, 40, 71, 148 Pine seeds, 41 Pineapple, 251, 277 Pink snow, 72 Pistacio, 69 Pitcher plant, 344 Plantain, 219 Plantations, 154 Plover, 298 Poisons, 226 Polar regions, 197 Pollen, 70 Polluted rivers, 208 Pomades, 119 Pondweeds, 205 Poppy, 263, 302 Potato, 279 Prairie, 220 Pressure inside plants, 25 Prickly pear, 243 Primula, 193 Protoplasm, 195 Quinine, 33 Rabbits, 50, 178, 182, 239 Radium rays, 21 Rafflesia, 337 Railway plants, 174 Rain of blood, 252 Rainwater (absorbed), 298 Raspberry, 92 Rattan, 47 Rat's-tail plantain, 93 Reeds, 163, 204, 209 Resin, 44, 45 Restharrow, 189 Retama, 137 Rhubarb, 36 Rimbach, 92 Roadside plants, 214 Robin-run-the-hedge, 313 Rock plants, 166, 169, 175 Rooks, 292 Roots, 86, 88, 89, 90, 137, 157, 180 Rose, 127, 182, 314 Rowan, 369 Rubber, 301, 310 Rushes, 203 Rye, 46, 272 Safflower, 34 Sago palm, 58 Saltwort, 161 Salvia, 78 Sandbox tree, 266 Sap, 23, 24 Sarracenia, 342 Satchell, 64 Savages and plants, 27 Scale insect, 288 Scenery and plants, 166 Schimper, 99 Scotch fir, 54, 71, 86, 360 Screes, 172 Scrub, 107 Scythian lamb, 32 Scythians, 224 Sea-grass, 162 Sea meadows, 162 Seaweeds, 163, 164, 171, 172 Season of flowers, 77 Sedges, 260 Selaginella, 56 Selection (principle of), 248, 277 Semaphore plant, 196 Senecio, 174 Sensitive plant, 14, 194 Sequoia, 47, 58 Shale, 173 Sheep-killing grasses, 267 Shelley, 79 Sherwood Forest, 53 Silvia Caledonica, 53 Silver fir, 58 Silurian times, 70 Smell (of flowers), 80 Smith, Dr. , 54 Snow, 103 Soil, 82, 84 Solanaceæ, 234 Soldanella, 103 Solomon's seal, 94 Southernwood, 371 Speedwell, 319 Sphagnum, 357 Spice trade, 34 Spikenard, 367 Spines, 179, 186, 188, 190 Sprengel, 69 Spring, 98, 101 Squiers, 198 Squirrel, 178, 257 Stapelia, 80 Starch, 18 Starwort, 319 Steppes, 223 Sticky fruits, 255, 258 Sticky hairs, 347 Stimulus (effect of a), 14 Stomata, 23 Stones, 166 Storms, 46, 164 Strength of roots, 96 " seeds, 244 " trees, 46 Strophanthus, 229 Strychnos, 228 Subsoil, 147 Succulents, 134 Sugar (fruits), 241 Sugar-cane, 279 Sunbirds, 75 Sundew, 349 Sunlight, 19, 20 Sunshine, 17 Tanghinia, 231 Tartars, 224 Taru Desert, 110 Tea, 120 Teak, 60 Telegraph plant, 196 Temperature (flowers), 73, 103 Tendrils, 320, 321 Tennyson, 153 Theophrastus, 37, 69, 161, 184 Thistles, 91 Thorns, 179, 190 Timber, 58, 66 Tobacco, 127 Toothwort, 335 Tragacanth, 185 Trap, 146 Traveller's tree, 24 Tumble weeds, 262 Turnip, 277 Twining stems, 317 United States (forests), 62 Underground life, 94 Upas tree, 230 Utricularia, 345 Vaucheria, 163 Vegetable demons, 177 Venus' fly-trap, 351 Vestal virgins, 51 Vetch, 19 Victoria regia, 205 Vine, 248, 272, 291, 323 Virginian creeper, 323 Wait-a-bit thorn, 180 Wall plants, 166 Warning colours, 238 Water-carried pollen, 162, 200 " circulation of, 16, 25, 84, 95 " level, 217 " lily, 204 Weeds, 215, 274 Wheat, 271 Whin, 100, 181 White flowers, 74 Wild garlic, 92 Wild tamarind, 235 Willows, 165, 208 Wind (effect), 71 " and seeds, 255, 260, 264 Winged fruits, 266 Wood, 58, 59, 62, 146 Wood pigeon, 246 Woodsorrel, 19 Work of sunshine, 18 Worms, 85, 359 Xanthium, 259 X-rays, 21 Yam, 180 Yeast fungus, 243 Yew, 66, 67, 239 Yucca, 79 Zostera, 162 PLYMOUTH

WILLIAM BRENDON AND SON, LTD.

, PRINTERS

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