replant it once or twice at the Spring or fall and have it weeded carefully and after it is come to perfection they are very hardy Next I give you directions for setting of them of the root thus having roots of your own or procuring of them from some other place slip all the young roots off the old set the old by themselves and the young by themselves in the intervals of your knots or in borders where your fancy most leadeth you Lastly I advise you to cut off the dead branches when they have done flowering close by the earth and remove them once ntwo years Globe-flower It is known by no other name that ever I did hear of yet there are two sorts that is single and double they are of one nature to give you better knowledge of them this plant groweth up to two foot high with many branches of one stalk spreading with green leaves in shape like the ivy-Ivy-leaf but lesser rough and jagged this plant beareth many Flowers which are yellow round and of the bignesse of a Wallnut it flowereth in the latter end of April the branches die every Winter and springeth again early having stood four year root and branch dieth This Flower is propagated by seed or slip the slip is it which is taken from the side of the old mother which is taken from part of the root and part of the branch this is to be done at the later end of March the place for planting of it is where you plant your pot-flowers I hope I need not stand to insist upon every particular that appertaineth to this Flower Having given you the knowledge of ordering of more choiser Flowers I think your own discretion may guide you how to order this So to be short you may buy the seed and sow it in the Spring with other Flowers and it will come forward without any great care or curiosity Green Cowslips So called because part of the Flower is green for there are leaves that are mixed amongst the Flowers which maketh them appear to be green they flower early in the Spring and never beareth any seed This Flower is set only of the slip in the Spring or in August the place fit for it is upon the edge of borders you shall do it thus slip them into as many pieces as you can then prune them with your knife which is to cut off all the leaves within an inch of the root then set them down by a line one by one upon the edge of your border water them while they are rooted then afterward they need no care but cleansing of the weeds from them thus you shall have them alwayes after Holihock Or Mallows there are many kinds and full of many vertues but first I will describe which they are and then I 'le treat of them in particular First For worthiness and beauty that are placed in Gardens of pleasure is the white and red and double Holihock next the red white yellow and blew double Holihock forasmuch as they are called Mallows I take them to be two or three distinct kinds for there is the Kings-Mallow March Mallow and French-Mallow these bear single Flowers and so will the Holihock without good industry but that is not all they differ in vertue as the Kings-Mallow the French-Mallow these are for physicall uses and the Holihocks are very wholsome for the body and a very pleasant Flower they bear I shall not treat of every sort in this place because they fit not the Garden of pleasure I shall reserve the French-Mallow March-Mallow or Kings Mallow to the Treatise of the physicall Garden Holihocks I have described what they are in order to their places and names I think it is needless to write any farther description of them they are so generally known I now proceed to the propagating of them First To have them early from the seed you shall sow them in hot beds in the middle of March the seed is of a quick spirit and cometh up the sixth day these plants must be covered or else you will lose your labour by May day you shall replant these seedlings into borders next the walls set them at the innermost part at a yard distance set them nigh the wall because they spread much another reason is you may nail the body of it to the wall to keep the wind from breaking of them these will flower by the latter end of the summer A second and ordinary way of sowing of them is in the middle of April in beds of ordinary earth where you may let them remain till the next August then replant them as you did the former The third best way is to sow them in the middle of August so by the coming on in winter they will have four or five leaves be sure you shelter these plants in the frost and snow and the seedlings will flower as soon as the old standards which is in July and August the seed is ripe about Michaelmas which you may save and sow again Herbit If I am mistaken in the name I will give you a description whereby you shall know it it hath many jagged thick leaves rising half a foot from the ground in the midst of it riseth a stalk like the stem of a Cowflip though something bigger and higher it is bare without leaves the Flowers have many small leaves in the middle with five greater set round it this Flower is the bigness of a double Primrose white and red speckled the time of flowering is in May it seldome bringeth seed to perfection the nethermost leaves keep green all the year This plant is set of the slip in the Spring of the year I suppose it is needless to stand telling of you how in every particular the place fit for it is in a quarter laid out into beds for Flowers as before this being so planted it will endure any weather till the fourth year and then it dieth naturally therefore take off some of the slips from the branch and root and set them which will renew their nature and keep the Garden flourishing Humble-plant I suppose the name of it was derived from the nature of it for the nature of it is thus when it is in its perfection if a man or a woman go to it and touch it with their hand this plant will bow to them therefore an humble plant It 's a plant that riseth never above a span in heighth with a broad head only a single stalk with small sharp whiteish green leaves set thereunto about the top the foot of the stalk is without leaves it putteth forth a blossome before it yeeldeth its seed which I cannot fitly call a Flower the seed is in shape and colour like the Spanish-Broom seed though not half so big and a smooth glistering seed In the propagating of this plant there must be a great deal of care and diligence this plant is only raised of the seed
of the Garden There is two kinds of these plants that is the single and the double the single dieth yearly the double will continue two years if it be shelter'd from the frost and snow in the winter This plant is in growth like unto the stock Gilliflower it riseth not so high it spreadeth close to the ground with sharp-pointed leaves with a stock of the bigness of a mans thumb each Flower bringeth a seed and no more which is in shape and colour like the Pepper-corn but something greater The fit time for sowing of it is in the Moneth of March the Moon being in the encrease these seeds are tender and very dear for I never bought them for less than two pence a feed therefore they ought to be raised with great diligence and thus it must be ordered it must be sown in a hot bed but you need not make it purposely for about that time we fow Colliflowers Cowcumbers and Musmillions and in some part of one of these beds you may prick down your seeds three fingers asunder so done cover them with a glass the sixth day they will come up with two round thick leaves the next leaves that shoot forth will be long and sharp-pointed when this plant hath six leaves they ought to be transplanted into a border or pots of good mould so done about the beginning of August they will come to flower in manner as aforesaid There are other wayes of sowing of them that is in beds of freckled mould in the latter end of April for if they should be sowed before they would not grow those that are thus sown toward May day may be let stand in the same bed and it will be Michaelmas before they come to flower the year being so far spent they will not come to perfection therefore I think it best to take the pains to sow them in hot beds as was said so I 'le leave these directions to your charity and rest to speak any more here of the Worlds wonder Muscabious Be not Flowers of distinct natures and properties but distinguished in colours as the purple white red and damask-colour Flowers Scabious is a plant that groweth to great stature as it is in number of branches though they be but small they spread and grow to three foot high with some leaves growing jagged and others smooth of a dark green colour standing from the branches upon stems every plant yeeldeth abundance of Flowers in shape and bigness like the great double Emrose this Flower smelleth like honey the time of their flowering is from June till Michaelmas and after the seed of this plant groweth atop of all standing in order naked being enclosed in nothing these seeds when they are ripe have many beards whereby it entangleth one in another it is a hollow loose seed and the lightest of all others These plants are propagated from the seed the time for it is in April or August for indeed August is the best for then it sheddeth its seed and it is to be noted that at such time as plants shed their seed is the naturall time of sowing if they be such plants as keep green all the year Then in August prepare a bed of earth in a quarter which you reserve for Flowers so done mingle with your seed some earth or otherwise it will not untangle so that you will sow it too thick or too thin so done get some other earth and cover your seeds half an inch thick these things observed and your seed new and good it will come up in three weeks space like Gruncel let it alwaies grow on this bed and next summer following it flowereth then if you rail in this bed with little sticks it will keep the wind from breaking the Flowers keeping the plants in uniform order when the seed is ripe upon the stalk then cut the stalks off within a hands breadth of the ground the plant will spring again so you shall preserve seed and plant thus you may do for three years the fourth root and branch dieth Monks-hood Or old mans head it riseth up like the branches of Carawaies with small stalks never above two foot high every plant yeeldeth many Flowers which are set with many small whiteish grey leaves the Flower is of the bigness of the ordinary Cornations with a few green prickles growing among the Flowers This plant is sowed of the seed only in the latter end of April usually after this manner we dig a border by a walk side when this border is digged and raked then lay a line in the middle of the border and by the line make a drill then cast the seed thinly into that drill for it is very small then cover it this done it needeth no more care it cometh up well and by the mid August after it flowereth and dieth as soon as it yeeldeth its seed Marble-flower It is a plant of a small stature and the stalks are of a soft substance and of a whiteish green colour the leaves are of the same colour in shape like the wild poppy-leaves this plant beareth many Flowers which have no more than four leaves apiece and of a perfect white colour the time of flowering is in July the seed is ripe presently after then dieth the plant This plant is raised only of the seed in the Spring time I shall not stand to set down every particular concerning the ordering of it but so as you raise Monks-hood so you may raise this you may have that at one end of the border and this at the other Nurssusuly They are a kind of Daffodillies the difference is these flower after the Daffodilly and is of a milk white colour something smaller growing upon longer stalks These are planted of the root as I told you of the Daffodillies the place is chiefly upon borders of high walks because they are of a hardy nature and nothing else might so well grow there as they because of the drithe you may set them in any place else and they will grow and flower yearly neither weeds nor grasse nor any thing that groweth nigh them will kill them some will plant them in their Orchards round their fruit-trees Oxslips The double sort are planted in Gardens because they flower early in the Spring and for using of the Flowers in Salets and for strewing Flowers Oxslips are set of the slip onely in the Spring or fall the place fit for it is on bank-sides where they are once set they alwayes continue Oak of Paris It resembleth a young Oak plant the leaves being much smaller body and branches also are of a short substance the plant spreadeth at the top whereon are many pretty Flowers they flourish chiefly in August the seed groweth in great cods eight square wherein is brown seed as small as Parsley-seed after this seed is ripe the plant dieth This plant is propagated of the seed only in the beginning of May the place fit for it
and a Garden kind of the Garden kind there is only double and single one description will serve for both Burnats have winged leaves rising thick from the very root being much crumpled and jagged and of a palish green colour through the midst of them riseth a stalk two foot high whereon are many branches and at the top of each groweth a knob something like a button red and white speckled in which groweth yellow seed something like redish seed the branch dieth yearly Of this seed this Herb is sown or set of the slip in March or April in the end of a bed or border by it self where it will grow and flourish according to the description it requireth no more care than to cleanse it from weeds this herb is used in Claret-wine and in sallets in the beginning of March for it springeth very early Betony Garden Betony is so well known I need not write the description of it therefore take the ordering of it as followeth This herb is set of the slip only for it never beareth seed to any perfection the time for setting of it is in March or April the place for it is usually in the edge of borders or otherwise for to have a great quantity of it for stilling of it in cordiall waters then in beds by it self without any curiosity for it is a hardy herb and will continue a long time being once planted Camomill Is known so well and the manner and time for setting of it so I shall wave that and speak of the place only the first fit place that I shall name is round upon the edge of borders next to gravell walks the second place is upon banks of earth made couch-fashion to the end that a man might sleep upon a Camomill bed the third way is to set walks with it and of each side of the walk a water table laid with white sand which is a very pleasant sight the fourth way is to distinguish knots with it and that is thus set Camomill in the same form as you would lay Grass-work and truly the best Garden that ever I saw in his Majesties Dominions had a knot thus set Lastly Be pleased to take notice that Camomill set as was prescribed must be kept mown and clipt once or twice a week for the summer time or else it will grow out of form and hollow at the bottome and soon decay Comfrey A description of it is vain and a direction for the planting of it is needless for it will grow in any place where it is set I only name it to put you in mind of the planting of it somewhere about your house for its vertue is generall for man and beast as the Physicians Herbals will show you and I hope you will bestow the labour to plant it once for inso doing you need not do it more Cives Sometimes called Rush Leeks Chives and Chivet I hope that by one of these names there is no man but will know them the ready way for setting of them is to slip them into as many heads as they have and that will be sometimes twenty on one bed so done prick them into a bed finely digged and raked at two fingers distance so that they may come to cover the body themselves for the keeping of the ground moist and for the less expence in weeding and there they will alwayes remain yet they ought to be removed after they have stood four years because they will grow so thick that they will want moisture Cammell Beg. The leaves of this keepeth close to the ground and something resemble Violet leaves but only thicker and of a darker green and in the middle standeth a stalk some eight inches in heighth whereon groweth one knapped Flower like the Flower of Betony the stalk and some part of the leaves die yearly and the under leaves alwaies keep green This plant is set of the slip only which must have part of the root and branch the best place for setting of it in is upon the edge of borders for the keeping of them up this herb is for speciall uses being employed physically Chervill It is called Merah Chervill sweet Chervill and sweet Sisly it is supposed there were three kinds of them that is the wild Chervill the sallet Chervill and the sweet Chervill one description will serve for the Garden kinds Both sorts the leaves resemble tongue-grass but of a fresher green colour the stalks rising up a yard high spreading with white Flowers at the top after which comes long black shining seeds the herb is sweet to smell and tast where once it is growing it continueth many years but the branch perisheth in the winter This herb is sown only of the seed that is to say there is no other way of gaining of it there are two seasons for the sowing of it the one is in the beginning of April and the other in the latter end of August these are the times the place is in a bed amongst sweet herbs in manner as I shewed you of Basill so done it will come up according as it was described Carowaies At the first coming up a man at a distance may very well take them for Carots but as they grow up bigger they differ more for the Caroway is of a darker green and yeeldeth its seed like the Fennell The time and the only time for sowing of Carowaies is in the latter end of August for I have often tried it in the Spring and I could never have it to grow and I sowed but once in August and it prospered very well therefore sow it in August and the next summer it will yeeld seed and after the branch dieth but springeth again and yeeldeth seed every summer for many years without any care Clary The leaves are thick gross and woolly and of a light brownish colour very broad spreading upon the ground as it were and in the middle riseth a stalk of two foot high with many branches spreading whereon are many Flowers like those of Sage and each Flower leaveth its seed behind it like that of Radish but something smaller This herb is sown of the seed and it requireth a good ground and to grow in a bed by itself there is two seasons for the sowing of it one in the Spring and the other in the fall that which is sowed in the fall a hard winter will kill it therefore it is best to sow it in the Spring the vulgar uses of this herb is for frying with eggs and other things for it strengtheneth the back and encreaseth venery Course-Mary Or Ale-Coust and by some Balsom-herb it is known of a long whitish leaf sharp pointed at both ends and finely cut about the edges the stalk hath many such like leaves though smaller with a tust at the top when it flowereth like that of sweet Maudlin and it never yeeldeth seed This herb is set of the slip only I hope I need not stand to shew
shall have your seeds to come up the tenth day you shall find that making of beds with Barley-straw and Bran to be the excellentest way of raising of Flowers that ever was invented for why your beds that are made with horse-dung forceth gemination too soon and does not continue that height which the plant was forced up for which cause the plant decayeth and those that are made only of earth they are too cold for outlandish plants if you will take my counsell and sowe it after this manner before described transplant it in May into a box of earth and you shall have the balm of Christ to flourish in July which is a great rarity to the beholders of this Nation there are few experiments more to be used than have been described it will dye when winters cold breath comes therefore remember every year to raise it as I told you Bears-Ears By some called Rickaluses by others French Cowslips and purple Cowslips it hath a leaf like your None so pretty very thick and jagged and keeps green all the year they never rise above a handfull high only the stalk the Flower on that stalk is much like the double Cowslip and the Flower is not much unlike in number of leaves and in shape but in colour they differ the colours are these the pink colour the scarlet the morey colour and the purple these naturally flower all at one time and that is in March and April these are Flowers of great estimation and a great many of curiosities are used about them in the propagating of them from seed and slip Now I will give you my own experience which I found true by my practice Rickaluses are encreased by seed and slip first of the seed if you can get the seed of the best colours then sowe it in a box in March or the beginning of April in speciall good mould you must be carefull to water the seed well for the first summer the second summer it will flower about that time as I told you before you may let these remain in the box so they stand not too thick where they will grow continually you may take slips from them to transplant into other places take notice that the putting of them inboxes is not because they will not endure the cold winter but to have them early There are ordinary means for raising of them by seed and slip the seed you may raise in beds with other Flowers the slip is to be set in August and March in this manner having gotten your slips prune them handsomely and setting of them at a distance atop of a border or by a borders side watering of them for the first ten moneths if the season should be dry by that time they will be rooted and come to perfection but they flower not that year Bell-Flowers There is a white and a blew they differ not much one from the other in nature therefore the directions of one will serve for both first I 'le give you a description they spring up with branches like Safforn-Crocus in the beginning of January if the weather be not too much unseasonable and flower in the latter end of March the Flower is in shape like a Bell it hath only five leaves presently after it is flowering the stalk withereth and beareth no seed but the root remains in the ground alwayes and springeth every year they are a Flower numbred amongst those that have Bullous roots The preserving of them in their nature is thus at any time after they are flowering you may transplant the root into new places or set them again in the old or if you have them not then you may send for the root to some other place where they may be had the place proper to set them in is in your intervails of herball or out-borders of Grass-work in this manner make holes in your ground with a diber half a foot asunder put in each hole a root be sure you make not your holes too deep for then it will keep back the Flower from coming early it lying so low and so cold otherwise you may get them early by putting of them in boxes and housing of them lastly take notice that you must replant them every two year or else the roots will grow thick and the Flower will be small Crows-foot There are single and double there are distinct colours as white red and purple the double sort beareth a Flower something like the double stock-Gilliflower in bigness set with many leaves like the inner part of the Emrose it spreadeth with many stalks of two foot high with many dark green leaves and shaped like the Vine leaves with a weak stalk it flowereth in July and August and beareth its seed a little after The chiefest way of propagating this is of the slip in the Moneths March or August the slip is taken partly from the root for the branch dyeth every year and the slip of such branches will not take root I shall not need to describe every particular in planting of them the places fit for them is in the borders next the walks in your Garden at a foot distance for they spread very much you must save the seed of this Flower or take of some of the slips and set for he 'le stay with you but two years then he dyeth you may raise it of the seed also even as you do any other ordinary Flower and therefore I 'le not stand to treat of it Crokus Of these there are two sorts the striped Crokus and the Safforn Crokus these are both winter Flowers for they flower at the beginning of February even to the latter end of March they are a very pretty Flower and they are so well known I need not stand to describe them only I 'le tell you what properties they have and though it be said that all Herbs and Flowers bear seed this I could never find to bear any for flower stalk and branches soon vanish after their first appearing nothing remaineth but the root and this root ought to be took up presently after he is flowered which is in April and when you have taken them up reserve the suckers by themselves and the bearers by themselves you may keep them in a box with a little earth a Moneth or two if you please and plant them at your leisure The manner and place of planting of them the properest place to plant them is in borders where Tulips are planted between every Tulip-root you shall set a Crokus-root at what time the Crokus hath done flowering a little after the Tulips will begin we usually take up Crokus as well as Tulips every other year because they should not lye too deep in the earth for they 'le run downwards and encrease with so many suckers that they 'le be hindered of their large growth and by having too many suckers about them and by lying so deep in the cold earth they 'le be hindered of their
William but it is strong it supporteth it self at the top of every stalk spring many small branches of an equal height atop of every branch is a Flower of a pritty Pink speckled colour the Flower is five leaves in number at the outer part of every leaf of the Flower groweth a prickle This Flower flourisheth most in the latter end of July For the propagating of them I will be short with you the time is in the latter end of April the place is in the quarter which you reserve for Flowers in that manner as I have shown you of other small seeds of Flowers in which bed you may let them stand till they flower soon after they have yeelded their seed the whole plant perisheth Lupins Many sorts there are viz. the blew the yellow the white the purple and the great Lupin these and all these differ as well in shape as in colour they differ also in growth every sort of seed hath a difference in greatnesse and in colour also to puzzle my self and trouble the Reader with the description of each is altogether needlesse I shall give you some observations how all sorts of Lupins may be raised of the seed and not stand to name in particular how each is to be raised for one direction will serve for them all The time of planting of all sorts of Lupins is in the middle of April and so till May the place is in beds or borders according as your fancy is or the quantity of your seed if you have a great quantity then you may plant them in trails in beds or borders in manner as they plant Peas these are for the blew and yellow which are the ordinary sorts but the greater sorts require more room Lastly Observe that any sort of Lupins committed to the earth in their season will spring up without any further care so they need nothing but weeding in the latter end of July all sorts of Lupins come to flower which are very beautifull in a Garden after the shading of the Flower springeth cods in the shape of a Bean-cod bigger or lesser according to their kinds the cods are rough like a Peach the seed will come to perfection in the latter end of August and may be set again in the same Garden where it grew for many years and it will not degenerate Ladies-Thistle It hath only one stalk upon a root with long leaves and as broad as a mans hand these leaves are prickley and of the colour of a Cardus-leaf the plant never groweth to above two foot high and in August it flowereth the flower is of the colour of the great wild thistle-flower but greater and without prickles the seed is long and rough of a gray colour This plant is set of the seed in the later end of March the place is in a border when you intend to have them flower each seed being set half afoot asunder and half an inch deep it cometh up suddenly and flowereth the same year and the time as aforesaid the branch when Winter cometh dieth and springeth again in March the third Winter after it soon dieth root and branch Lowe in idle Lowe in idle or two faces under a hood is a Flower that is much like Violets in all respects but only it flowereth at such times at Violets does not that is in June and July this Flower beareth a seed of which it may be raised if slips might not be had The time for setting of them in the slip or sowing of them in the seed is in March the place is either in the side borders of high walks or on the edge of low borders in manner as I told you of Cowslips if you sow them of the seed then you shall make drils by a line with a stick half an inch deep each drill at a foot asunder if it be on the side border of your high walks if on your low borders one is sufficient in these drils thinly cast your seed then cover it and it will grow up and cover the whole border suddenly where it will alwayes remain for it renewes its nature by the branches taking root as they lie on the ground Ladies-liveries This is not a Flower yet many people fancy to have it in the Garden of pleasure because it hath such a pretty property with it for it shouteth up with many blades like spire-grasse of an inch in breadth each blade is striped red white yellow and green some call it Truelowe-grasse it hath a root like such grasse though it runne not so farre this root if you set in any part of your Garden there it will grow and continue alwayes This plant I thought fit to set down for brevities sake because I would not exempt any Ladies-smocks Otherwise called Blew-caps and White-caps It is a plant that the nethermost leaves keep green all the year those leaves are green and jagged of the length of a mans finger set on close to the ground in the midst of these leaves riseth a stalk with a few smaller leaves on it and on the top of the stalk are four or five Flowers white or blew according to their kind This Flower is single with five leaves in shape and bignesse like a Dogg-rose the time they chiefly flower in is in April and May it seldom bringeth seed to perfection This plant is set of the slip at any time of the Spring or the fall in the edge of borders for the keeping of them up and for the beautifying of the Garden if you set them in the fall it is much better than in the Spring for those that are set in the Spring in dry weather usually cometh presently after then your borders will be so dry without watering will cause the slips to die those that are set at Michaelmas will be well rooted by that time the Summer cometh and so flower in their season these slips being thus planted continue always nothing dieth but the stalk whereon is the Flower which you shall cut off after the Flower fadeth for the keeping of your border handsome Marmadle deparve Or otherwise called the Worlds wonder and I think it no wonder that it should be so called for it hath a quality naturally as no other Flower hath and that is this it beareth a Flower of one colour as it may be to day and on the morrow after of another and sometimes two or three colours at once the colours are chiefly these first red white purple peach yellow and cinamon these are distinct colours there are mixt also as the white and the red the purple and the yellow and so of the rest the shape of this Flower is much like a heart with the smallest end upward no bigger than an Acron this Flower is of no continuance for it continues not long upon the stock not touched and being pulled off it withereth presently so that it is of no use but for the ornament
the propagating of them they being of alike nature Both these sorts are raised of the seed only the time for it is in the beginning of March the place for it is in a bed in a quarter which is reserved for Flowers onely in manner as I shewed you concerning the Princes-feather if your seed be good in a short time it will come up and observe if your plants should be thick then pull some of them up and set them in another place or cast them away by the later end of July following your plants will flower according to their kinds The white Poppie is for general uses and for distilling as the Physicians Herbals will shew you The red is also good for the cure of many maladies The second season of sowing of Poppies is in the later end of August or the beginning of September in place and manner as aforesaid These plants will come to flower in the later end of May following Lastly Where Poppies are once they likely alwayes continue though the plant dieth every other year yet the seed that it sheddeth springeth up again naturally Pinks Two sorts there are viz. the matted Pink and the grasse Pink. I need not trouble my self to write any more of them they are so well known I will only acquaint you the easiest and the best way of propagating them by seed and slip which may be most for pleasure First For sowing of them of the seed the time which is seasonable for it is in the middle of April the place in some high border side or a high wall side provided that there be but earth drest conveniently and finely if the bank-side be ten foot high then make as many drils at a direct line and at an equal distance one from another in those drils sow your seed with an equal hand then cover it and fix the face of your bank smooth again Now understand that these seeds will come up in ranks which will be very pleasant to the beholders these plants must be well weeded the first Summer the second Summer they will spread so that they will cover the bank themselves so that no weed can possibly grow there then these Pinks will flower which will cause such a beautious sight as hath nor been seen in England unlesse it were the like Besides this they will alwayes continue there and need no labour but cutting off the dead stalks after they have done flowering The time for the setting of the slips is in the beginning of September the place is in the edge of borders round grasse-work or herb-work a single chace in every border set at three inches distance so done they 'll come to flower the later end of the next May following Purple-Primrose These are Flowers that differ not from the white Primrose in shape and growth but only in bearing purple Flowers and that which is more rare they flower twice a year in March and in September These Flowers are set only of the slip at two several seasons and those are presently after their flowering The place fit for it is in borders at the uppermost part thereof directly at a hands breadth asunder if this be done in the Spring time the slips must be well watered till they have taken root if in the fall you have no more care or trouble with them but to keep them weeded to cut off their dead leaves and stalkes after their flowering for the renewing of their nature and to cause them to look the pleasanter Pawmers So called because the seed is the figure of a Pawmer and upon this account men hold such a thing a great rarity and though of little use yet they will bestow the pains to propagate it as followeth About May-day this plant is only to be raised of the seed in this manner prepare a place in a border under a wall or some other warm place there prick in your seeds with your finger at a hands breadth asunder I suppose you will not set many of them because they are no more usefull and so by July they will come to flower and a moneth after the seed is ripe and the plant dieth Queens-Gilliflower Some call it the white Gilliflower whether it hath any more names I cannot tell yet I know it is usuall to give divers names to one and the same plant It hath many leaves growing and spreading close to the ground something long sharp-pointed of a dark green colour being hard rough rugged and grayish underneath of little or no sent but of a fine pleasant sharp tast above these rise a stalk two foot in heighth and at the tops of the stalks and branches stand many tufts of small white Flowers which smell sweet and in their places being fallen come cods wherein is a brown flat seed and at one time you shall have Flower and seed ripe upon the stalk the root is somewhat black and woodish with divers great strings the top branches die every year but the root and the under leaves perish not but abide many years the sides partly from the root send forth many young slips every year By this description I hope you understand the nature of this plant I shall not need to stand to treat of every particular in reference to its ordering to be short get of the slips of this plant either in Spring or fall and set them in a convenient bed or border of good earth c. The Flowers of this plant are good in nosegaies or to be placed in Flower-pots the leaves are a good pot-herb and serve for many physicall uses Rose-campions Be these the white the red the purple they differ not in form but in the colour let one description serve for all Rose-campions have white hoary leaves and soft sharp at each end the stalks are of the same colour weak and small as a Hop-vine not well able to support themselves from one root springeth many of them which spread mightily in June and July this plant hath its Flower richest in the branch these Flowers are made of five leaves the seed lieth in bags which are round and of the bigness of a mans fore-finger and when this seed is full ripe it will rattle in the husks the seed is as small as Gunpowder and of a dark brown colour on this plant will be ripe seed and a rich Flower at once this plant riseth to three foot high the second year the whole plant dieth naturally This plant is propagated only of its seed and in short I will show you the way viz. prepare a bed or one end of a bed in the quarter which is appointed for Flowers so done sow your seed then cover it thinly with a little ridled earth let this be done in the beginning of April or the latter end of August now observe that those that are sown in August if the winter following be hard they must be covered with a little straw and the
new I dare promise you that it will grow and come to be cut by the next March for Sallets and by the latter end of April it cometh to flower and in June the seed is ripe which if you save it you may sow it again or if you let it scatter of it self sometimes it will grow naturally Goards As they are known to be in distinct forms and something in nature so they bear their names according to the Country from whence they are brought that is the Italian Goard the lowland Goard and the Cocker Goard if I am mistaken in the names I am not mistaken in the properties and the form for there is one sort which is nigh a yard long and sometimes as big as the lowermost part of a mans thigh with that end which is farthest from the stalk and so it cometh lesse and lesse by degrees Another sort is long and both ends alike for matter of bigness the other is bigger and shorter all these grow in like manner as Pumpkins do as for stalk and shels and they say the leaves differ not much Now for the raising of them if you have a desire I will give you my directions as far as I have observed by others viz. at the same time as they set Cucumber-seed in the same manner they do the Goard-seed and what they require afterward I cannot affirm it to you but it is said they are as easily raised as Cucumbers The stalk and root perisheth yearly as they do Indian suckory It is so well known I need not write any thing of its use and virtues but for the nature of it it is very probable I have observed more of it than those that have cultevated it longer than I have done and in my observation I have found it to be of a strong nature so that if you commit it to the earth in the Spring or Autumn it needeth no farther care but being cleansed from weeds so it will continue till it hath yeelded its seed three times and then root and branch dieth English-Beans Or great Garden Beans I name them here because they are usually set in Gardens though sometimes in Fields In which place soever you plant them in I find but one Objection and that is some plant them here and there according to their fancy and not by a direct line the errour is this those that are set at random and not by a line they have not their proportion of ground nor can you cleanse them hoe them or gather them without great injury in breaking of them down therefore learn of the Gardeners and Husbandmen about London for if they plant twenty acres together it is all set in rows by a line each row some eighteen inches difference one from another and the Beans the other way some six French-Beans They are much like the former but something thinner and of a tenderer nature they are ripe something sooner and require an hotter soil these may be set in the same manner as I described before of the English-Beans Let that suffice Jerusalem-Artichoaks The property of this plant is so that nothing is usefull but the root and it remainet hin the ground some as big as a Hens egg some bigger some less and of divers shapes some long some round some crumpled and all full of dents and of a reddish colour from which riseth a stalk near eight foot high resembling that of the Flower of the Sun though not so big a stalk This stalk perisheth yearly the root continueth in the ground as was said Of the root these Artichoaks so called are propagated either by cutting of the great ones into small pieces or else setting the little roots descending from the mother in beds of earth by themselves in March without any difficulty for they are very hardy and will grow in any place but they prosper best in a light mould Now note that once a year these roots may be taken up and the great ones reserved for to be eaten and the little ones set again Kidney-Beans My Countrey men I suppose call them French-Beans like Ideots for why names that are given things which are newly found out are given them according to what they resemble and it is so that this Bean resembleth a Kidney and therefore it is fitly called a Kidney-Bean let that passe There is red white purple and speckled of them but the nature of them is one and my directions for the planting of them shall be one and that briefly In the latter end of April provide a hot natured ground if it be something sandy it is the better so that it be but well holpen with rotten muck the year before when the ground is digged they may be either planted or set in ranges by a line at eighteen inches distance those that go to the trouble to set them usually take the pains to stick sticks for them to run up upon to the end to keep them from the ground for to save their fruit and to cause it to ripen the sooner those that plant them in drils take no farther care but only hoing the ground being hot and dry they ripen very well and bring good increase Lettice Many sorts there be but of all others the French Lettice is the best but that being sown in England it doth often degenerate from its own nature because it findeth not the air and the earth so temperate here as in its own Countrey therefore if it be raised here it must be done with care and judgment and as for our ordinary English Lettice it may be it would appear as light as vanity to the vulgar sort of people to give any directions for the raising and governing of them although there is matter of consequence in the work yet I shall wave it and only put you in mind that you may sow Lettice any moneth from the latter end of February to the latter end of September yet take notice that those which be sown in the middle of the Summer ought to be watered and those that are sowed in September for salletting early in the Spring would be covered with straw or sown under a warm pale that might shelter it from the sharp winds Lastly If you have a desire to save seed of Lettice let it be of such as was sown in September let them not be cut or medled with till the seed be full ripe in it and that will be in July Leeks A short account may very well serve for the raising and governing of this Herb or root and so it shall be Leeks are sown in the beginning of March in a rich soil for that it delighteth in much in which place they may remain all the Summer following and in September be transplanted into a rich soyl laying of them in rows at half afoot asunder as the ground was digged The end of removing of them is to cause them to grow the bigger and so the next Lent those Leeks are drawn up by the roots for
springeth the next year after and having yeelded its seed three years the root and branch dieth the general use that it is for is for the beautifying the Garden and for flower-pots This flower is propagated of the seed only the time for it is the beginning of April the place fit for it is in a piece of ground which we reserve only for a Nursery only for raising of flowers in there you may sow it with others or by themselves in the end of a bed having committed them to the earth you shall see them spring up in a fortnights time with two small green leaves being carefully watered they will be big enough to be removed for they will spread mightily so they will not have room enough to grow in the bed where they are sown therefore transplant them into beds or borders in your Garden of pleasure and in August they will come to flower and the next year they will flower by the latter end of May. There is another season in sowing of them and that is in the latter end of August but the plants that were sown at this season must be carefully looked after and sheltered from the frost and snow they will come to flower in the Spring seasonably and die at the third years end as I told you before therefore save that seed and sow it again there is nothing more of curiosity belongeth to this flower so let these short and plain directions serve Emrose Considering that flowers are more for beauty than for vertue this flower challengeth the title of praise First for its early flowering for in warm places some begin to flower presently after Christmas and then others begin so some are continually flowering while June others by art and nature flower twice a year as in March and September Now to give you a description of them they are of a set colour seldom or never speckled the ordinary colour is red blew and purple the Emroses held most in estimation are the scarlet the London white and the black these colours being of large kinds I have known a root of each sold for ten shillings others have told me they have known them sold for three pound a root Of these flowers there are double and single the root is like a Ginger-race in shape and bignesse this flower beareth a weak seed something like sweet Madeling-seed and that will seldome grow and I suppose that Emrose-seed never grew though it be commonly sold for that purpose yet I have found by experience that it will not grow and as many Gardeners as ever I had conference with did ever affirm such a thing to be true therefore if you will have Emrose you must set them of the root and I will be brief and willing to show you where and how The fittest season for setting of them is in June the Moon being at the full but if opportunity doth not then serve you may plant them any time betwixt that and the latter end of August but as I said before it is best to remove them in June for then there will be the stalks above ground and some flowers and afterwards there will be none so that in the taking of them up you may cut them with a spade but that 's not all you 'll never find all your roots unless you will sift the earth and that is a great deal of trouble The fittest place in planting of these roots is in beds amongst your Cloves or else at the edge of your borders where you plant Tulips and sometimes in beds by themselves for the common sort make a little trail of an inch deep then break the roots into a many small peeces and lay them into this trail at a hands breadth distance the least peece will grow and flower the next year following Here followeth experiments worthy of observation Emrose-roots must be removed once in two years because they do so increase and multiply so that you shall have twenty or thirty roots about one old bearer these being so thick and growing barren will cause them to bear very poorly which is a very sufficient reason that they must be removed every year or every other year at least Secondly Whether there might be any alteration in the colour by any skill or care that may be used Many men have said this may be done and they have given some blind reasons for it which I shall wave and tell you how you may propagate the natural growth viz. Take Tulip-roots Lettice Sheeps-dung Strong-waters mix these together into a salve and apply it to the root and so commit the root to the earth and it will cause this root to send forth a large flower and more speedilier than those that are not so ordered those roots ought to be planted in a box for to have them come timely not but that any Emrose-roots will endure any weather Lastly To produce Emrose at all times in the year is easily done if the Winter be not too violent First take notice that you may take up Emrose-roots at any time and keep them in your house though for a year then set them again and they will grow Having this advantage if you have a desire to have them in Harvest you must plant them in the later end of May and they will flower at that time and to have them flower later plant them at the later end of July Now observe that there is such a Law and Nature that any Herb being deprived of its natural season yet it will bud forth its flower afterwards having liberty alwayes provided it be sheltered from the cold so it is plain that a man may put such flowers as have bullous roots you may put them forward or backward by keeping of them in season or out of season out of the earth African By some called the African-Marigold all that can be spoken of this flower is that it serveth for beautifying of a Garden for they flower towards the later end of Summer when most flowers are nigh done another thing they have not been long in England it came to use first out of Africa and you know that things that are new are rare in estimation It rises first like young ashes in shape and colour afterwards spreadeth it self into many branches and before it flowereth it riseth to be a yard high the flowers are in shape like the double Marigold but three times as big and of a yellow colour if you smell to it it will put you in mind of honey the seeds are small and black something like Oats this seed is ripe about September the branch and root dieth presently after It is propagated by sowing of it in hot beds as you may see of Amorantus in this Book this must be done in the beginning of March so that they may be ready to transplant into borders at the beginning of May so that you may have them to flower timely The
acted on this Flower as any other whatsoever The first experiment is you may take them out of the earth and keep them in a room in sand two moneths in which space you may steep them in morical substances whereby you may make some infusions and alterations and crosse the nature and the seasons of the plant whereby you may bring about pretty fancies Other experiments may be made by grafting of them which is subtil viz. take the root of this and the Foxes-glove cut a part on the side of each of these roots off with a sharp knife of each part alike letting the strings of the bottom of the root alone then join them together and tie them with a little soft flax and so plant them in a box of earth these two roots will unite into one body and the effect will be pretty for there will be two several Flowers in one body Lastly This Flower is a great ornament to a Garden and for beautifying of rooms being placed in Flower-pots and an excellent shape it hath which my artlesse pen cannot describe in writing but in draught work my Pen Rule and Compasse hath walked a station and set it forth in its own shape and fashion and so I leave this worthy Flower to your care The Flower of the Sunne It is well known to those that have it and so is any other Flower therefore I shall give a short description of it to satisfie those that are not acquainted with it This Flower when it is at its full growth is at the height of a man onely with one stalk and that is as big at the nether end of a mans hand-rist upon the stalk are many leaves something like Mallow-leaves in colour and in bigness but they are not divided this one plant beareth but one Flower and that is at the very top of all and is of a great bigness so that some of them are thirty inches about and of a black and yellow colour bending it self down and inclining after the Sunne it flowereth in August The season fit for sowing of them is in April on this manner Prepare a border then prick in these seeds with your finger at half afoot asunder they come up suddenly after their setting they ought to be replanted after they are half afoot high into a rich earth where they may have good store of rotten dung under them to the end they may grow large you must water them often for it is a plant requireth much moisture so it will grow up and flower and bring forth seed which you may save and sow again the root and branch of this Flower dieth every year French Marigolds These are something like the African Marigold that is to say as like as any two several kinds may be like one another howsoever yet they are not so neer alike but there is a difference in every part for seeing the one and not seeing the other it puts you in mind of the other this is at such time till they come to flower then there is a great deal of difference in the colours of the Flowers for this is more delightfull than the other for it is intermixt with purple and yellow like your double Wall-flowers this flowereth in July being sown in natural earth being produced from hot beds they flower sooner Concerning the raising of them I shall not need to trouble my self to set it down how or where but see the directions for Africans as you raise them so you mayraise these I shall only give you a few observations if you low them in natural earth you need not replant them those that are sown in hot beds must be replanted you nor I need not trouble our selves with any more curiosity than hath been spoken for they continue not long with us they die that year so I hope out of your own capacity and what hath been spoken may sufficiently serve for the propagating of this Flower French Pinks French Pinks otherwise called French-Daises by others None so pritty and seeing the names are so obscure I will give you a description of this Flower it never riseth not above half afoot high but lieth on the ground with some stalks about afoot long these stalks are reddish about the bignesse of a Peas-vine of a hard substance with many thick leaves set in order upon them thick and jagged a whitish green colour about the bignesse of a ten shilling-piece round also at the top of the braches rise little spindles of a handfull long of a red colour on these branches grow many small Flowers no bigger than a single peny five leaves in number white and red speckled their time of flowering is from the latter end of May even to the later end of July they never bear any seed therefore take the propagating of them with slips as followeth The fit time for it is in the later end of August or the beginning of March for they cannot endure any drithe therefore set them in these seasons and now I will give you my directions how it ought to be done having gotten slips then prepare a border which is round an Herb knot and if you have none prepare a border next the wall having drest this border by a direct line and made the sides of it firme then set your line against the side of the border two inches below the top then prick in your slips by your line at two or three inches distance so that nothing appear but the tops of them if you do this in August they will flower the next Spring following timely those that be set in the Spring will not cast their Flower so soon Lastly Remember that you cut the leaves and dead branches off after they have done flowering then they will spring again fresh where they are once planted they alwaies continue and spread mightily so that they will run out upon your walls to prevent this and keep them in uniforme order strain a line at the bottome of your border and cut them off with a spade by that line those slips you may set again or pleasure your friends with them which you please Foxes-glove It is a Flower that springeth up with a blade like the Corn-flag through which shouteth up a stalk which beareth many Flowers set in order one above another and of a reddish colour and in the shape of a drinking bowl This Flower is richest on the branch in July it continueth fresh long on the stalk it beareth a seed which is ripe in the latter end of August The propagating of this Flower is either by seed or root First of the seed and that you shall sow in the beginning of April the Moon being in the increase in beds of natural earth in manner as I told you of the seed of the Flower-deluce the plants sprung of this seed groweth very slowly so that it will be two or three years before it come to flower in which space you must
according to the description that would be cut off at the Winters approaching and that is all that need to be done till the third year and then the root ought to be took up for its use and vertue the use is for Diers for dying and the Physical vertues the Herbals will shew you Marygolds There be double and single flowered ones and both of them yeeldeth seed and if it be sown in any place which is digged it will grow and keep the Garden full but if the ground be barren they will degenerate and turn single The use of the Flower of this Herb is for the pot for broth and the like and those that do think of the Winter in the Summer do gather the Flowers and dry them in the shade and put them up in paper bags for the like uses and others viz. for to make Posit-drinks for those that have any distemper at their hearts It is also thought that it is as effectual as Saffron Mother-wort It hath brownish strong stalks rising two or three foot high with many leaves cut deep into the very stem something like the Vine-leaf rough and crumpled of a sad green colour but many veins therein there are many branches and one stalk which also yeeld at the tops thereof a purple coloured Flower as small as that of Balm but in the same manner as that of Hore-hound after which come small blackish seeds in great plenty The bottome of the plant keepeth green many years before the root perisheth This Herb will seldom grow of the seed therefore it must be set of the slip or sucker which is taken partly from the root The time for it is either in the Spring or fall in a border or a bed of good earth where it will prosper and come to perfection according to the description Nip Garden Nip is much like Balm in the leaf but that they are sharper pointed whiter and hoary growing on four square stalks shoot up to three foot high with many small branches set thereunto having smaller leaves than those at the bottome This Herb yeeldeth a strong sent something sweet like Balm the Flowers grow in large tufs at the tops of each branch something like that of Sparemint of a whitish purple colour The root remaineth in the ground like that of the Mint and all the Winter some of the nether most leaves keep green The seed that this Herb yeeldeth is like Purslain in all respects but only it hath one white speck and that is where it grew to the cod and at that place it springeth its branch again Of the seed or slip this Herb may be propagated the seed if it hit it is long before it comes to perfection and it is very tickle in gemination as I have found by experience The best time for sowing of it if you will go to the trouble is in the later end of August but I think it better to set it of the slip if it may be had for that way it will prosper very well in any ordinary earth The time and manner of doing of it is as I told you of Balm in the former part of this Treatise in a bed by it self Orpine It hath round and brittle stalks with fat and fleshy leaves of a pale green colour the Flowers are white growing in tufts the roots are divers thick round tubelous roots and the branches fade yearly This Herb is set of the root onely in a bed reserved for it self The time is either in the Spring or fall and without any curiosity being committed to the earth in its season it will grow and flower as was said Pepperwort The root sendeth up leaves in shape like the Coursemary cut on the edges carrying the colour of the Horse-reddish leaves it hath a hard small round stalk with many branches like the same very thinly set with leaves and at the top of every branch are small white Flowers which leaveth a small seed that seldome cometh to perfection after the seed falleth the branch dieth and the root remaineth in the ground which sendeth up the like again This root is something like the wild Parsnip The way of propagating of this Herb is of the root the time for it is in March the manner thus Cut your roots into short pieces of three inches in length so done a bed of earth prepared for that purpose then prick in them pieces of roots at half a foot distance by May they will shoot up with leaves and by the later end of Summer with stalks as was said Now note that these roots must remain in that place untouched three years if you would have them at their full vertue and then they may be took up and the roots set again Pot-Margerum I imagine it is altogether needlesse to describe it seeing it is so common an Herb therefore take the propagating of it by seed and slip as followeth First Of the seed The season for it is either in the latter end of April or the latter end of August the place is in a bed by it self in a quarter with other sweet Herbs and done in the manner as I shewed you of Basil Secondly Of the slip that is done at the same seasons but sometimes not in the same places for we set it on border sides to keep them up where it will spring as well as in a bed and it will continue alwayes where it is once rooted in bed or border for it putteth forth side suckers which flourish after the old plant dieth I think it is but lost labour to write any thing more of it the Herb being so hardy and so well known Prick-Madam Or Prick my Dame Divers trailing branches upon the ground it hath composed of a soft substance not divided into branches or leaves but all parts alike which are round prickles like those of the Furse but as big as a Goose quill if you touch it a small matter breaketh it and it is not prickley at all though it seem so to be the colour of it is a blewish green and beareth a yellow Flower in August and a long seed a little after like that of Muscove but seldom to perfection This Herb is set of the slip in borders sides either in the Spring or the fall one chase in a border upon the uppermost edge thereof for after it is rooted it runneth upon the ground like Penny-royal and taketh root with its branches therefore it would be kept cut in order by a direct line at the nethermost part of the border and then it appeareth pretily it keepeth green all the year and continueth many so This Herb is eaten in Sallets in the Spring time Purple-grasse In Physicians Herbals I cannot finde this Herb named or described therefore I will describe this Herb and its vertues This Herb runneth on the ground like Clover-grasse with leaves and stalks of a purple-colour spotted as it were with blackish bloud and beareth a Flower
propagating of it and that in particular First China Rubarb which Physicians make such division in names and quoil about the nature of it so that they say it is unpossible to produce any plants in our English clymate to be so vertuous as that which comes out of its naturall Countrey But I will not dispute this but prosecute the raising of it as briefly as may be The season fit for the sowing of it is in the beginning of April the place must be where it may have the benefit of the Sunne and a shelter from the cold the earth as loose and as fat as may be such a place provided cast it up into a bed and prick in the seeds half an inch deep so done let the bed be sheltered with a mat at nights and in three weeks space the seed will come up by the latter end of May the plants need not be covered till the next Winter following and then it must be sheltered likewise and in the Spring following it would be transplanted into a like earth and that Summer some of it will spindle to seed and the third year it cometh to its full growth the fifth year it hath its whole vertue the vertue is in the root chiefly and then it is taken up Monks Rubarb and bastard Rubarb may be raised of the seed at that time as I told you of the China Rubarb with lesse curiosity and trouble especially the bastard Rubarb True it is I should insist upon some particulars further in the ordering of this but that I have been something large in the information so that I cannot permit any more time about it but must speak something of others Spare-mint Of Mint there are many sorts as Mackarel Mint Horse-Mint white Mint and wild Mint these I wave Of Spare-mints there are two sorts that is smooth Mint and crudled Mint or crumpled Mint The way of propagating of them both is of the root and in this manner for the saving of labour and the surenesse of the work for to have the roots to grow that is thus when you have prepared a bed or a border where you have a desire they shall grow then make three or four drils in the bed with a planting Hoe then lay your roots into those drils with the Spire end upward so done fill up the drils again with the head of your rake let this be done either in March or September and those roots will spring without any further care and never leave you nor forsake you Saffren If you please to look into the Alphabetical Table there is Crokus named and in the page Saffron-Crokus exprest Now what is to be understood by this is that Saffron-Crokus or Crokus differeth not in shape from this but in colours as blew Crokus and yellow which are sometimes called Saffron-Crokus because they differ not in form but in vertue This Saffron which I here prescribe is planted only for its vertue and profit which it returneth to the Planter thereof as in Cambridgeshire and Saffronwalden where they plant many achers thereof Now I 'll speak a word or two in reference to the planting of it This Herb or Flower is planted of the sucker from the root for it never beareth seed The time that it is chiefly planted in is presently after its flowering which is in April the manner is without any difficulty for if the root be committed to the earth it will grow so therefore there needeth nothing but to set every plant decently in order so that every plant may have its proportion of ground which would be four inches Lastly Observe that in the gathering of the Saffron that you must be carefull to see to it every morning for the Saffron cometh up in the middle of the Flower like horns as it were and the Sunne causeth them to perish two or three dayes therefore it is that I counsell you to be watchfull over it Sage I discovered Roman Sage to you or the Sage-tree This Herb is the common English Sage and of that there is red and green a man would think that it were a needless thing to write any thing of the propagating of it seeing every one can say set Sage in May and it will never decay truly that is a long day but if that were true the last Winter would not have killed the most of the Sage about London But so set Sage in the beginning of May in good earth cast into beds of half a foot high and two foot and an half broad setting three chase in each bed of slips each slip half a foot asunder watering of it well at the first planting till it hath taken root and then this Sage set in May may not for six or seven yeares decay Summer-savoury So called because it perisheth so soon as the Winter approacheth This Herb is raised of the seed only the season for it is in the later end of April after this manner Prepare a bed of earth in a quarter amongst the other sweet Herbs and the bed being finely raked then cast the seed thereon then get some fine mould well ridled and cast thinly thereon so that it cover the seed not above half an inch thick yet I know some Ideots have written that they should be covered three inches thick and in so doing you had as good cover it three yards thick for any expectation of the growth of the seed To be short the seed sown as I told you will come up in a weeks space and covereth the bed suddenly and needeth no replanting or any more trouble but only cleansing from weeds Setterwort Or black Eleyvert it is known of a stinking smell it is much like the Bears foot it hath winged leaves and runneth up with stalks like Parsnips and beareth the seed in like manner the root lieth in a clumper as big as a bushell if it have stood long the root of this herb yeeldeth such a strong stinking smell so that a man in the digging of it up will be even sick with it so that of all herbs or roots of herbs there is none that yeeldeth so noisome a savour of this root this plant doth encrease and if any part of it be set in any kind of digged earth it will grow without any further trouble and spring every year after but observe the time and that may be at any time but when the branch flourisheth and he that will not observe this and bestow this small pains to have this vertuous herb in his Garden if he have Cattell he is a very unwise man if he did but know what diseases it doth prevent in Cattell Stone-crop This is not unlike Prick-Madam in any thing but that it is smaller with divers trailing branches upon the ground set with fat roundish blewish green sprouts pointed at the ends it beareth a Flower which standeth somewhat loosely not composed together but stands stragling this herb also keepeth green all the year Of the slip it is propagated by setting
set in a decent manner and I shall spare the ink and paper to set it down but see as Hysop is done so is this The last thing that is to be taken notice of is that it be kept clipt so that it bring forth neither Flower nor seed for if it does it will not continue half so long and this you may know to be true by the Garden knots that are sown or planted with it and that being clipt alwayes to make it show pleasant continueth fresh seven or eight years when that which is sown in beds and let run to seed continueth not above half so long Tansie The double kind is planted in Gardens for its vulgar and physicall uses the place would be in some reversion or out-part of a Garden for it spreadeth very much where it is planted and abideth there alwayes only losing of its branches every winter I pray you excuse me for writing any directions for the planting of it it being such a vulgar hardy herb it is needlesse V. laren Of it there is two sorts in form and colour of Flowers and that is the purple Valaren and the blew Valaren they differ in seed as well as in colour yet they differ not so much in stature and growth but that one description will serve them both It hath leaves round and of a dark green smooth on the edges and all parts else many of them set on upon one stem much like that of Box these are set all upon stalks and the bigger of them are springing as it were from the root and spreading on the ground the stalk riseth to three foot high and on the top are many Flowers set one above another of a blewish or a purple colour glistering as it were the time it begins to flower is at the latter end of June and so continueth till after Michaelmas this causeth some seed to be ripe when Flowers are rich in the branch the nether most part of this herb keepeth green all the year and continueth many before it dyeth Now for the raising of it my words must be few that is this Herb may be sown of the seed or set of the slip in the latter end of March or in August in a bed by it self in the usual manner of sowing and planting of others and it will prosper according to the description Wormwood Of this there be three sorts viz. Sea Wormwood Field Wormwood and Roman Wormwood and the last of these is onely cultivated in Gardens for its cordiall and physicall uses This Herb is set of the slip or sown of the seed but the sowing of the seed I shall wave because nature doth it better than I can teach you the slip is set in the Spring time which is taken from the head of the root it prospereth well in any earth being something shaded Winter-savoury This is the last Herb in the Physical Garden as it fals out in the Alphabetical order though the vertues are the best of all others for vulgar uses Of Winter-savoury there is three sorts in form of leaves and only one in nature and vertue I will now give some directions for the propagating of this Herb though most men know it yet it may serve to put them in mind of that which they know in mid April and the later end of August either of these seasons the seed of this Herb is sown and the slip is set I shall not trouble you with the manner but as Hysop was sown in like manner is this so done it prospereth very well THE PHYSICAL GARDEN as it treateth of TREES A short Description or Direction for the Propagating of each TREE which is Fruitfull and Physical usually planted in a Fruitfull or Physical Garden Barberry I Will be as short on this and all the rest as possibly may be so that I may but give an information The plain way of propagating of each Tree as this is of the sucker which springeth partly from the root and being taken away in September and set in the nursery where suckers slips and seedlings are set and after they have taken root they may be transplanted into the quarters of the Garden in uniform order where they are to remain Currants Currants are generally white black and red but yet each of these sorts differ in greatness as well as in goodness according to the care as is used about them in the raising of them from suckers to fruitfull trees the thing is plain yet there are mistakes many times in it therefore I would willingly give my evidence in it to insist upon it presently after Michaelmas take your suckers from your Currant trees and if you have not ground ready for them to transplant them where they should alwayes grow then plant them in a piece of ground by themselves at a foot distance which may be fitly called a nursery let them stand there while that time twelve moneth then plant them into the middle of Strawberry beds at a yard distance each tree bound to a stake so that the wind may not break them and put them out of uniform order Lastly observe let these suckers be taken yearly from the roots of the old bearers or otherwise they hinder them from being fruitfull they must be pruned also which is to cut away the superfluous branches which run above the rest and never bear fruit Gooseberries Are distinguished into many sorts usually thus Dutch and English first with the Dutch there is white and red which are the worthiest of all other both to the pallate and the eye of the English kinds there are white and red also and many others but I will only name these that is the long yellow and the round yellow the amber and the christall the nepture and the wild all these are set of the sucker as I told you of Currants in like manner and transplanted into like places Many arguments of curiosity I could raise in the propagating of them which would appear to men of experience to be needlesse my self being sensible of the same I passe that and only desire you to remember to prune them so that the fruit may be the larger and the trees renew their nature and appear the more pleasanter Mulberries Are white red and black these trees seldome send forth any sucker neither are they to be grafted upon other stocks to advance the fruit but the way is to get young sprouts from the body and to set them in good earth in September or thereabouts so that they may take root and at two or three years end to be replanted into certain places where they may remain so done it is without question but these slips or cuttings will come to be trees and bring forth fruit according to its mother Quinces Are supposed to be of divers kinds by reason that they yeeld contrary fruits in vertue and in shape I shall not end the controversic here by any arguments but shall refer you to a Book of mine which