sherds, or wood.
iERUA. Two species. Stove her-
baceous perennials. Cuttings. Rich
moist soil.
.^:SCYNOMENE. Eleven species.
JE. viscidula a green-house, and /J?.
hixpida a hardy annual, the rest stove
plants. Seeds. Sandy loam.
yV/FHIONEMA. Six species. All
hardy. Seed or cuttings. Common
soil.
^â– ITHIONIA. Two species. Green-
house evergreen shrubs. Cuttings.
Common soil.
AFRICAN ALMOND. Brahejum.
AFRICAN FLEABANE. Tarcho-
nanthus.
AFRICAN LILY. Agapanthus.
AFRICAN MARIGOLD. Tagetes
Erect a.
AGAPANTHUS. African Lily.
Three species. Nearly hardy bulbs.
Common soil. Offsets.
AGASTACHYS odorata. Green-
AG A
32
AGR
house evergreen shrub
Loam, peat, and sand.
AGATH/RA. Two species. Green-
house everfjreen shrubs. Young cut-
tinpp. Lf>:im and peat.
ACA'I'IIOPHYLLUM aromaticum.
Madagascar nutmeg. Stove evergreen
tree. Cuttings. Peat or rich loam.
AGATHOSMA. Twenty-two spe-
cies. Green-houf-e evergreen shrubs.
Cuttings. Peat and loam.
A(;ATHYIISUS. Seven species.
Cuttings. I arts and sciences." It is " tlie basis of
j all other arts, and in all countries co-
eval with the first dawn of civilization.
Without agriculture, mankind would be
savages, lliinly scattered through inler-
minal)le forests, with no other habita-
tions than caverns, hollow trees or huts,
more rude and inconvenient than the
most ordinary hovel or cattle-shed of
the modern cultivator. It is the most
universal as well as the most ancient of
the arts, and requires the greatest num-
visions. Common soil.
AGATI. Two species. Stove ever-
Hardy herbaceous. Cuttings and di- j her of operators. It employs seven
eighths of the population of almost
every civilized community. — Agricul-
green trees. Cuttings. Peat and loam, ture is not only indispensable tonation-
AOAVK. Aloe. Nineteen species, al prosperity, but is eminently condu-
Chiefly stove plants. Suckers. Rich cive to the welfare of those who are
loam. " The name is altered from engaged in it. It gives health to the
ctyrtw.t., admirable, which this genus may body, energy to the mind, is fiivourable
well be said to be, considering its ap- to virtuous and temperate habits, and to
pearance, its size, and the beauty of its knowledge and purity of moral charac-
flowers. In mythology, Agave is the ter, which are the pillars of good gov-
name of one of the Nereids. A. america- ernmentand the true support ofnation-
«a is a popularsucculent throughout Eu- ' al independence. — Witii regard to the
rope. It grows wild or is acclimated in i history of agriculture, we must confine
Sicily, the south of Spain, and Italy, and I ourselves to slight sketches. The first
is much used in the latter country, plant- j mention of agriculture is found in the
ed in vases as an ornament to piers, pa- : writings of Moses. From them we learn
rapets, and about houses. About Milan j that Cain was a ' tiller of the ground,'
and other towns in Lombardy, where it that Abel sacrificed the 'firstlings of
will not endure the winter, they use i his flock,' and that Noah 'began to be
imitations of copper so well formed and! a husbandman, and planted a vineyard.'
painted, as to be readily mistaken for
the original. In France and Germany
it is still \ery common ; and. in this
country formerly used to be the regular
companion of the orange, myrtle, and
pomegranate, then our principal green-
house plants. An idea used to prevail
that the American Aloe only flowered
once in a hundred years; but, inde-
pendently of this unnatural application
of time to the inflorescence, it has long
been known to flower sooner or later
according to the culture bestowed on
it.= ' — Encyc. Plants.
The Chinese, Japanese, Chaldeans,
Egyptians and Phoenicians appear to
have held husbandry in high estimation.
The Egyptians were so sensible of its
blessings, that they ascribed its inven-
tion to superhuman agency, and even
carried their gratitude to such an ab-
surd excess as to worship the ox, for his
services as a labourer. The C;irthagin-
ians carried the art of agriculture to a
higher degree than other nations, their
cotemporaries. Mago, one of their
most famous generals, wrote no less
than twenty-eight books on agricultural
AGERATUM. Six species. Chiefly : topics, which, according to Columella,
hardy annuals. Seed. Light rich soil. ' were translated into Latin by an express
AGNOSTUS sinuata. Green-house : decree of the Roman senate. — Hesiod,
evergreen tree. Cuttings. Sandy peat. ' a Greek writer, supposed to be cotem-
AGRJCULTURE, as compared to i porary with Homer, wrote a poem on
Horticulture, is the culture and man- agriculture, entitled JVccks and Days,
Rgement of certain plants and animals j which was so denominated because hus-
for the food and service of man : it is, as i bandry requires an exact observance of
Marshall observes, "a subject which, I times and seasons. Other Greek writ-
viewed in all its branches, and to their ers wrote on rural economy, and Xeno-
fullest extent, is not only the most im- phnn among the number, but their
portant and the most diificult in rural | works have been lost in the lapse of
economies, but in the circle of human ; ages. — The implements of Grecian agri-
AGR
23
AGR
culture were very few and simple. He- | curious antiquarian, tlian of tlie practi-
siod mentions a plough, consisting ; cal cultivator. Tlie plough is repre-
of three parts — the share-beam, the , scnted by Cato as of two kinds — one for
draught-pole and the plough-tail; but , strong, the other for light so:is. Varro
antiquarians are not agreed as to its ! mentions one with two mould-boards*,
exact form ; also a cart with low wheels, ] with which, he says, 'when they
and ten spans (seven feet six inches) in â– plough, after sowing the seed, they are
width; likewise the rake, sickle and said to ridge.' Pliny mentions a plough
ox-goad; but no description is given of with one mould-board, and others with
the mode in which they were con- , a coulter, of wliich he says there were
structed. The operations of Grecian many kinds. — Fallowing was a practice
culture, according to Hesiod, were rarely deviated from by the Romans,
neither numerous nor complicated. The In most cases, a fallow and a year's
ground received three ploughings — one crop succeeded each other. M. inure
in autumn, another in spring, and a third , was collected from nearly or quite as
immediately before sowing the seed, i many sources as hav6 been resorted to
Manures were applied, and Pliny as- 'â– by the moderns. Pigeon's dung was
cribes their invention to the Grecian esteemed of the greatest value, and,
king Augeas. Theophrastus mentions next to that, a mixture of night soil,
six different species of manures, and scrapings of the streets and urine,
adds, that a mixture of soils produces * which were applied to the roots of the
the same effect as manures. Clay, he , vine and olive. — The Romans did not
observes, should be mixed with sand, i bind their corn into sheaves. When
and sand with clay. Seed was sown cut, it was sent directly to the area to
by hand, and covered with a rake. â– be threshed, and was separated from
Grain was reaped with a sickle, bound the chaff by throwing it from one part of
in sheaves, threshed, then winnowed by ; the floor to the other. Feeding down
wind, laid in chests, bins or granaries, | grain, when too luxuriant, was practised,
and taken out as wanted by the fainily, Virgil says, ' What commendation shall
to be pounded in mortars or (juern mills I give to him, who, lest his corn should
into meal. — The ancient Romans vene- lodge, pastures it, while young, as soon
rated the plough, and, in the earliest as the blade equals the furrow !' (Gear.,
and purest times of the republic, the : lib. i., 1. 111.) Watering ,on a large
greatest praise which could be given to 1 scale was applied both to arable and
an illustrious character was to say that ' grass lands. Virgil advises to 'bring
he was an industrious and judicious hus- down the waters of a river upon the
bandman. M. Cato, the censor, who sown corn, and, when the field is
was celebrated as a statesman, orator parched and the plants drying, convey
and general, having conquered nations it from the Ynow of a hill in channels.'
and governed provinces, derived his (Geor., lib. i., I. 106.) — The farm man-
highest and most durable honours from agemcnt most approved of by the sci-
having written a voluminous work on entific husbandmen of Rome was, in
agriculture. In the Georgics of Vir- general, such as would nieet the appro-
gil, the majesty of verse and the har- bation of modern cultivators. The im-
mony of numbers add dignity and grace portance of thorough tillage isillustrated
to the most useful of all topics. The by the following apologue : A vine-
celebrated Columella flourished in the dresser had two daughters and a vine-
reign of the Kn)peror Claudius, and yard; when his oldest daughter was
he wrote twelve books on husbandry,
which constituted a complete treatise
on rural affairs. Varro, Pliny and Pal-
Jadius were likewise among the distin-
guished Romans who wrote on agricul-
married, he gave her a third of his vine-
yard for a portion, notwithstanding
which he had the same quantity of fruit
as formerly. When his youngest daugh-
ter was married, he gave her half of
tural subjects. — With regard to the Ro- , wiiat remained ; still the produce of his
man implements of agriculture, we , vineyard was undiminished. This re-
Jearn that they used a great many, but : suit was tlio consequence of his bestow-
their particular forms and uses are very ; ingas much labour on the third part left
imperfectly described. From what we after his daughters had received their
can ascertain respecting them, they ap- \ portions, as he had been accustomed to
pear more worthy of the notice of the Igive to the whole vineyard. — The Ro-
AG R
24
AGR
mans, unlike many conqnerors, instead ] times. The various operations of hns-
of desolating, improved the countries bandry, such as manuring, ploughing,
which they subdued. They seldom or i sowing, harrowing, reaping, threshing,
never burned or laid waste conquered ! winnowing, &c., are incidentally men-
countries, but laboured to civilize the
inhabitants, and introduce the arts ne-
cessary for promoting their comfort and
happiness. To facilitate communica-
tions from one district or town to an-
other, seems to have been a primary
tioned by the writers of those days, but
it is impossible to collect from thein a
definite account of the manner in which
those operations were performed. —
The first English treatise on husbandry
was published in the reign of Henry
object with them, and their works of j VIII., by Sir A. Fitzherbert, Judge of
this kind are still discernible in nume- the Common Pleas. It is entitled the
rous places. By employing their troops ! Book of Husbandry, and contains direc-
in this way, when not engaged in active
service, their commanders seem to have
had greatly the' advantage over our
modern generals. The Roman soldiers,
instead of loitering in camps, or rioting
in towns, enervating their strength, and
corrupting their morals, were kept re-
gularly at work, on objects highly bene-
ficial to the interests of those whom the_v
subjugated. — In the ages of anarchy
and barbarism which succeeded the fall
of the Roman empire, agriculture was
almost wholly abandoned. Pasturage
was preferred to tillage, because of the
facility with which sheep, o.xen, &c.,
fan be driven away or concealed on
the approach of an enemy. — The con-
quest of England by the Normans con-
tributed to the improvement of agri-
culture in Great Britain. Owing to that
event, many thousands of husbandmen,
from the fertile and well-cultivated
plains of Flanders and Normandy, set-
tled in Great Britain, obtained farms,
and employed the same methods in cul-
tivating them, wliich the^had been ac-
customed to use in their native coun-
tions for draining, clearing and enclos-
ing a farm, for enriching the soil, and
rendering it fit for tillage. Lime, marl
and fallowing are strongly recommend-
ed. ' The author of the Book of Hus-
bandry,' says Mr. Loudon, ' writes
from his own experience of more than
forty years, and, if we except his biblical
allusions, and some vestiges of the su-
perstition of the Roman writers about
the influence of the moon, there is very
little of his work which should be omit-
ted, and not a great deal that need be
added, in so far as respects the culture
of corn, in a manual of husbandrv adapt-
ed to the present time.' — Agriculture
attained some eminence during the
reign of Elizabeth. The principal writ-
ers of that period were Tusser, Googe
and Sir Hugh Piatt. Tusser's Five
Hundred Points of Husbandry was pub-
lished in 1562, and conveys much use-
ful instruction in metre. The treatise
of Barnaby Googe, entitled Whole Art
of Husbandry, was printed in 1558. Sir
Hugh Piatt's work was entitled Jewel
Houses of Art and Nature, and was
tries. Some of the Norman barons printed in 1594. In the former work,
were great improvers of their lands, and says Loudon, are many valuable hints
were celebrated in history for their skill i on the progress of husbandry in the early
in agriculture. The Norman clergy, : part of the reign of Elizabeth. Among
.ind especially the monks, did still more i other curious things, he asserts that the
in this way than the nobility. The ' Spanish or Merino sheep was originally
monks of every monastery retained such derived from England. — Several writers
of their lands as they could most con- | on agriculture appeared in England dur-
veniently take charge of, and these they ing the commonwealth, whose names,
cultivated with great care under their i with notices of their works, may be seen
own inspection, and frequently with | in Loudon's Encyclopidia of Agricul-
their own hands. The famous Thomas ture. From the Restoration down to
a Becket, after he was Archbishop of [ the middle of the eighteenth century,
Canterbury, used to go out into the field | agriculture remained almost stationary.
^ith the monks of the monastery where
he happened to reside, and join with
them in reaping their corn and making
Immediately after that period , consider-
able improvement in the process of cul-
ture was introduced by Jethro Tull, a
their hay. The implements of agricul- ! gentleman of Berkshire, who began to
^ire, at this period, were similar to 1 drill wheat and other crops about the
ihose in most cornmon use in modern I year 1701, and whose Horse-hoeing
AGR
25
AI T
Husbandry was published in 1731.
Though this writer's theories were in
some respects erroneous, yet even his
errors were of service, by exciting in-
quiry, and calling the attention of hus-
bandmen to ini[)ort3nt objects. His
hostility to manures, and attempting, in
all cases, to substitute additional tillage
in their place, were prominent defects in
his system. — After the time of Tull's
publication, no great alteration in Bri-
tish agriculture took place, till Robert
Bakevvell and others effected some im-
portant improvements in the breed of
cattle, sheep and swine. By skilful
selection at first, and constant care
afterwards to breed from the best ani-
mals, Bakewell at last obtained a va-
riety of sheep, which, for early maturity
and the property of returning a great
quantity of mutton for the food which
they consume, as well as for the small
proportion which the weight of the offal
bears to the four quarters, were with-
out precedent. Culiey, Cline, Lord
Somcrville, Sir J. S. Sebright, Darwin,
Hunt, Hunter, Young, &c. &c., have all
contributed to the improvement of do-
mestic animals, and have left little to
be desired in that branch of rural econo-
my. — Among other works on agricul-
ture, of distinguished merit, may be
mentioned the Farmer's Letters, Tour
in France, Annals of Agriculture, &c.
&c., by the celebrated Arthur Young ;
Marshall's numerous and excellent
works, commencing with Minutes of
Agriculture, published in 1787, and
ending with his Review of the Agricul-
tural Reports in 1816; Practical Agri-
culture, by Dr. R. W. Dickson, &c. &c.
The writings of Kaimes, Anderson and
Sinclair exhibit a union of philosopliical
sagacity and patient experiment, which
have produced results of great import-
ance to the British nation and to the
world. To these we shall only add the
name of John Loudon, F. L. S. H. S.,
whose elaborate Encyclopaedia of Gar-
dening and Encyclopedia of Agricul-
ture have probably never been sur-
passed by any similar works in any
Janguage. — The establishment of a
national Board of Agriculture was of
very great service to 13ritish iiusbandry.
Hartlib, a century before, and Lord
Kaimes, in his Gentleman Farmer, had
pointed outthe utility of such an institu-
tion, but it was left to Sir John Sinclair
to carry their ideas into execution. To
the indefatigable exertions of that wor-
thy and eminent man the British public
are indebted for an institution, whose
services cannot be too highly appre-
ciated. ' It made farmers, residing in
different parts of the kingdom, acquaint-
ed with one another, and caused a rapid
dissemination of knowledge amongst
the whole profession. The art of agri-
culture was brought into fashion, old
practices were amended, new ones in-
troduced, and a degree of exertion call-
ed forth heretofore unexampled among
agriculturists im this island.' " — Encyc.
Am.
AGRIMONIA. Agrimony. Nine
species. Hardy. Division. Commoa
soil.
AGROMYZA viola. Pansy Fly.
It attacks the flower by puncturing the
petal, and extracting the juice; the
puncture causes the colouring matter to
fade. This very minute fly is shining
black, bristly, eyes green, head orange.
It appears in May and lives throughout
the summer. Where it deposits its
eggs is unknown. — Card. Chron.
AGROSTEMMA. Four species.
Hardy herbaceous. Division. Common
soil.
AILANTUS. Two species. Hardy
deciduous trees. The glandulosa is of
rapid growth, and thrives admirably on
light thin soils, where many forest trees
do not succeed — it is objectionable by
reason of suckering, and to many from
the unpleasant odour of the flowers.
Cuttings. Loamy peat.
AIR. Atmospheric air is uniformly
and universally composed of
Oxygen'. ... 21
Nitrogen ... 79
Every 100 parts, even in the driest
weather, containing, in solution, one
part of Water; and every 1000 parts
having admixed about one part of Car-
bonic Acid. The average proportions
are
Air 98.9
Watery Vapour . 1.0
Carbonic Acid Gas 0.1
All these are absolutely necessary to
every plant to enable it to vegetate with
all the vigour of which it is capable; and
on its due state of moistness depends, in
a great measure, the health of any plant
requiring the protection of glass. See
Leaves, Roots, Stove.
AITONIA capensis. Green-house.
Cuttings. Rich mould.
A J U
26
ALS
AJUGA. Bugle. Elevpn species. | fixed kinds, one was called potash or
Hardy. Division or seed. Sandy ped.t \vegelable, because procured from the
Bli/^hia snpida.
Two species. Stove
Cuttings. Sandy
or ]o;im
AKEK-TREE.
ALANGIUM.
evergreen trees
loam.
ALBUCA. Nineteen species. Green-
house bulbs. Oftsets. Sandy loam
and peat.
ALBURNUM. The soft white sub- j
stance which in trees is found between
the liber or inner bark and the wood,
and in progress of time acquiring solid-
ity, becomes itself the wood. A new
layer of wood, or rather of alburnum is
added annually to the tree in every
part, just under the bark.
ALCHEMILLA. Ladies' Mantle.
Eleven species. Chiefly hardy. Seeds
or division. Common soil.
ALCOVE, is a seat in a recess,
formed of stone, brick, or other dead
material, and so constructed as to shel-
ter the party seated from the north and
other colder quarters, whilst it is open
in front to the south.
ALDER. Alnus.
ALETRIS. Two species. Hardy
herbaceous plants. Oiisets. Peat or
leafsoil.
ALEURITES. Two species. Stove
evergreen trees. Cuttings. Loamy
soil.
ALEXANDRIAN LAUREL. Rus-
CVS Racemosus.
ALHAGL Manna. Two species.
Green-house plants. Young cuttings or
seed. Sandy loam and peat.
"ALKALI, in cliemistry ; from the
Arabian kali, the name of a plant from
the ashes of which one species of alkali
can be extracted. The true alkalies
have been arranged by a modern che-
mist in three classes: — 1, those which
consist of a metallic basis, combined
with oxygen ; these are three in num-
ber — potash, soda and lithia; 2, that
which contains no oxygen, viz., ammo-
nia ; 3, those containing oxygen, hydro-
gen and carbon ; in this class are placed
aconita, atropia, hrucia, cicutn, datura,
delphia, hyoscyamia, morphia, strych-
nia. And it is supposed that the vege-
table alkalies may be found to be as nu-
merous as the vegetable acids. The
original distribution of alkaline sub-
Btnnccs was into volatile and fixed, the
volatile alkali being known under the
ashes of'vegetables gener:illy; the other,
\soda or mineral, on account of its hav-
ing been principally obtained from the
incineration ofmarine plants.'' — Encyc.
Am. The sulphate of ammonia has
been used with success as a stimulant to
vegetable growth — and is now prepared
and sold by chemists for that purpose.
ALLAMANDA cathartica. Stove
evergreen shrub. Cuttings. Rich
loamy soil.
ALLANTODIA. Five species.
Green-house herbaceous plants. Di-
vision. Loamy peat.
ALLEYS are of two kinds. 1. The
narrow walks which divide the com-
partments of the kitchen garden ; and
2. Narrow walks in shrubberies and
pleasure-grounds, closely bounded and
overshadowed by the shrubs and trees.
ALLIONIA. Three species. Hardy
annuals. Seeds. Sandy peat or loam.
ALLIUM. Garlic or onion tribe.
126 species. Hardy bulbous plants.
Offsets or seed. Common soil.
ALLSEED. Poly car pon.
ALLSPICE. Caiycanthus.
ALLSPICE-TREE. Pimenta.
ALMOND. Amygdalm.
ALNUS. Alder. Nineteen species.
Hardy deciduous trees. Layers or
seeds. Moist soil.
ALOE. Forty-seven species. Green-
house evergreen shrubs. Suckers.
Sandy loam and peat.
ALOMIA Ageratoides. Half-hardy
dwarf evergreen plant. Cuttings.
Sandy loam.
ALONSO.-^. Five species. Green-
house evergreen shrubs, except A. cau-
lialata, which is half-hardy. Cuttings
or seeds. Rich mould.
ALOYSIA citriodora. Green-house
deciduous shrub. Cuttings or seeds.
Rich mould.
ALPINIA. Twenty-five species.
Stove herbaceous perennials. Division.
Rich sandy soil.
ALSINE. Chickweed. Six speciee.
Hardy annuals. Seeds. Common soil.
ALSODEIA. Two species. Stove
evergreen shrubs. Cuttings. Loam
and peat.
ALSTONIA. Two species. Stove
evergreen shrubs. Cuttings. Rich light
soil.
ALSTRCEMERIA. Twenty-five spe-
name of ammonia ; while, of the twolcies. The seeds should be sown ira-
ALS
27
ALT
mediately, in sandy loam and rotten j
dung, and kept in a green-house, as 1
tliey will not require lieat. When the j
plants are about an inch high, they may '
be potted singly into very small pots,
and kopt in a growing state till they
have formed their tubers; if suffered to i
die down before that period, they will i
never shoot again, which is the cause of
many persons losing them after they
have got tliem up from seeds. A. acu-
lifoUa is hardy. Tho seeds are sown
in heat in February or March, and the
young plants make their appearance
in about six weeks afterwards. When
strong enough, they are potted singly in
sixty-pots and shifted progressively into
larger sizes, as they require more room ;
and by autumn many of them are full
four feet in lieight. These should be j
kept cool, and rather dry during winter, i
and then planted out against a wall,
where thev are finally to remain. The |
soil for potting them in is light sandy
peat and loam: and when planted out
they should be also placed in a light
sandy soil, two feet deep, on a perfectly |
drv bottom. i
ALTKRNANTHERA. Twelve spe- [
cies. Stove herbaceous; except A.
frutescens, which is a green-house ever-
green. Cuttings. Light rich soil.
ALTFLEA. Marsh mallow. Seven-
teen species. Hardy plants. Division
or seed. Common soil.
ALTIXGIA. Two species. Green-
house evergreen trees. Cuttings and
seeds. Deep loamy soil.
ALTITUDE, or elevation above the
sea, has a great influence over a plant's
vegetation. The greater that altitude
the greater the reduction of tempera-
ture, so much so that every GOO feet of
altitu<lc are believed to reduce the an-