Chapter 2

Borage.

TheBorage(Borago officinalis), though widely distributed, is by no means a common plant; and though mentioned by several old writers, must be considered as but a doubtful native. The generic name has been corrupted from two Latin words,cor, the heart, andago, I act, from a belief, as old as the time of Pliny, in its exhilarating effects; hence the old saying,Ego borago gaudia semper ago, “I borage give always courage.” The borage, like the comfrey and forget-me-not, belongs to the orderBoraginaceæ, and, in common with most of the species of that order, is marked by the gyrate or scorpoid arrangement of its flowers, the stem being coiled round like the mainspring of a watch. It may be met with occasionally in the ornament of the past—its large and striking-looking stellate(Latin,stella, a star) flowers, and the general growth of the plant, being admirably adapted to the purposes of design. As an example we may instance the MS. Hours of Henry VII. in the British Museum, where the borage is introduced upon a golden ground on one of the pages. Drawings of this plant will be found in E. B. 1114; M. B. 217; T. N. O. 98; and P. F. 36.

In studying the application of natural vegetable forms to the various requirements of ornamental art—such, for instance, as the employment of bold, vigorous plants to stone or wood carving, and the more graceful and delicate growths to such fabrics as muslin and lace—we speedily find that in some cases we are unable to treat the whole of the plant we have selected for our purpose, owing to the limitations placed upon us by the requirements of the work, the exigencies of manufacture, or the nature of the materials in which our design is to be embodied. In some cases the flowers are too small in detail, or in the general mass, to accord well from the ornamentist’s point of view with the foliage of the plant; the white bryony (Bryonia dioica), for instance, though excellently adapted for muslins, could not in its flowering stage be satisfactorily treated for stonework on this account, though the foliage by itself is admirably suited for such purpose. In other instances we find the case reversed, the flower being large and beautiful in form, and the leaves unsuited, either from their insignificant size or want of beauty, to the purpose of the ornamentist; thus, while the leaves of the stonecrop (Sedum acre) are, from their minuteness, scarcely available for the purposes of design, the stellate flower is exceedingly beautiful in form, andadmirably adapted for diapering and many other uses, when isolated from the rest of the plant. Where both leaf and flower are from their beauty and relative scale equally adapted for art-treatment, we are still, when circumstances require it, quite justified in employing either the one or the other by itself: where a monochrome arrangement is necessary, the leaves alone may, for example, be used; where a central radiate form, the flower may be introduced. The rosette or patera, so freely introduced both in ancient and mediæval art, is an example of this use of isolated floral forms.

TheBrambleorBlackberry(Rubus fruticosus), a more familiar plant than the last, has, so far as we are aware, been but little used in ornamental art, though theRubus idæus, or wild raspberry, may occasionally be seen in MSS. of the sixteenth century. The generic name is highly expressive of the prickly nature of the plant, being derived from an old Celtic verb,reub, to lacerate or tear away; while its English name, bramble, attests its indigenous nature, descending as it does from the Anglo-Saxon name for it,bremel. The stems, ordinarily of a pale purple colour and with a grey bloom upon them, are pentangular in section, the numerous prickles almost entirely confined to the ridges formed by the angles, and not occurring in the intermediate furrows; the leaves generally with five deeply serrated leaflets, a rich green on the upper surface, and covered with close white down on the lower; the petals of the blossom varying from pure white or delicate pink to a deep red; and the fruit of a rich crimson, so intense in colour as to appear almost black. The mode of growth

Blackberry.

admirably fits it for the service of the designer, the leaves being very ornamental in form, and the long trailing stems admitting of great freedom of curve, while for its use in decorative art a further great recommendation exists in the power of representing the plant under several phases of growth without violating natural truth, as at one and the same time we find the opening bud, the fully-expanded flower, and the fruit of all sizes and stages of development, varying in colour from green, light red, and crimson, to deep purplish black in its progress to maturity. We thus gain great variety of form, and also, when admissible, of colour. The bramble appears to be of especial value in ornamentwhere large surfaces require to be covered by forms at once suitable in scale, interesting in their details, and varied in their character; hence it would seem admirably adapted to muslins and lace, though, so far as we have had opportunity of observation, it has not been thus employed. Reliable drawings of the blackberry will be found in W. H. H., Plate E, Fig. 1.; in T. N. O. 51; G. O. 96; and P. F. 57.

Some plants, beautiful in themselves, possess an increased importance in the eyes of the followers of ornamental art, from their being used heraldically; such, for example, are the rose, the shamrock, the broom, and the thistle.Broom(Sarothamnus scoparius) is thus used as the badge of the Scottish clan Forbes, and, as all readers of history will remember, was also chosen as the device of the Plantagenets. A very good example of its use in past art—though scarcely, from its being found in a Tudor monument, having any heraldic meaning—will be seen in a glass quarry in Henry VII.’s Chapel.Sarothamnusis derived from two Greek verbs, signifying a shrub, and to sweep. The English name has the same force of meaning. In an old work we have consulted, the author deems it useless to go into a long account of the plant, so well known was it in his time from this domestic use:—“To spend time in writing a description hereof is altogether needless, it being so generally used by all the good housewives almost throughout this land to sweep their houses with, and, therefore, very well known to all sorts of people.” The broom may ordinarily be found on sandy commons, railway banks, and dry hillsides. The large yellow pea-shaped flowers appear ingreat profusion throughout May and June, and are succeeded in due course by the black seed-pods. The plant grows from three to six feet high, and when covered with its brilliant blossoms is a very striking object. Leaves very inconspicuous. Drawings of this very beautiful plant may be seen on referring to S. B. 121; E. B. 329; M. B. 89; F. L. vol. v. 31; S. C. 67; T. N. O. 49.

Bulbous Crowfoot.We have selected the present plant (Ranunculus bulbosus) as a good representative of the numerous species of plants familiarly termed buttercups, partly because it is the most striking in effect, partly because it is the one that will most readily be met with under ordinary circumstances; for while its fine flowers and beautifully-cut leaves render it singularly well suited to the purposes of ornament, the abundance of it in every meadow throughout the country places it within the reach of all who would desire to adapt it to any artistic purpose. From the commonness of the plant, and its general distribution throughout England, it has received many other names: goldknob, goldcup, baffiner, troil-flower, polt, kingcup, buttercup, butter-flower, cuckoo-bud, are all synonyms. The termRanunculusis derived fromrana, a frog, many of the species being found in wet, swampy places; while the specific name,bulbosus, alludes to the bulb-like swelling of the lower part of the stem in this particular species. The name crowfoot has been given to the plant from the radiating character of the segments of the leaf, spreading as they do like the divisions of a bird’s foot; while the use of the word buttercup points to the old belief that the richyellowness of spring butter is owing to the eating of this plant by the cows; the effect must rather, however, be ascribed to the tender grass, as any one who will take the trouble to notice the fact will find that cows in a meadow will, as far as possible, avoid the buttercups. The leaves of the bulbous crowfoot, like, with one exception, those of the rest of the family, are very acrid, and will, if applied to the skin, speedily blister it. The plant will be found in flower throughout the spring and summer: a variety is sometimes met with having cream-coloured flowers. The crowfoot is one of the favourite plants in the ornament of the Decorated period of Gothic. Representations of the natural plant may be seen on consulting E. B. 35, or F. L. vol. i. 38; refer also to “Water Crowfoot” in the present work, page 84.

Celandine(Chelidonium majus). The Celandine, though, so far as we are aware, not to be met with in ornamental art, is a plant in every way fitted for the purposes of the designer, whether we consider the form of the flower, of the pods which succeed the blossoms, or the rich outline of the leaf. The inflorescence is umbellate (Lat.umbella, an umbrella), that is to say, all the flower-stalks start from the same point in the stem, as in the case of the hemlock, the cowslip, flowering rush, and many other plants.Chelidoniumis derived from the Greek wordchelidon, a swallow, from an old belief that the plant came into flower on the arrival of those birds, and withered when they took their departure; hence in old writings we frequently find the Celandine termed swallow-wort. The plant will commonly be found in waste places, and more especially near human habitations. Itattains to a height of about two feet, and flowers throughout May, June, July, and August. Consult S. B. 95; E. B. 67; M. B. 263; S. C. 86, for drawings of the natural growth of the celandine.

TheCinquefoil(Potentilla reptans). This graceful little plant may generally be met with in abundance, a very favourite habitat being in the low grass and coarse herbage we so frequently find skirting the pathways in country districts. When it has once taken root upon any favourable spot, it speedily throws out long running stems, which, in turn, develop roots from the points whence the leaves spring; in a very short space of time a large extent of ground is covered with a dense mass of the plant, and, from its habit of rooting at each joint, it is with great difficulty eradicated, since if one root alone be overlooked, the labour spent will speedily prove to have been but of little more than temporary use. Regarding the cinquefoil, however, rather from the stand-point of the ornamentist than of the agriculturist, we are struck by the beauty of its growth, the forms of the individual parts, and the general fitness of the plant for employment in Decorative art. The familiar name cinquefoil clearly alludes to the division of the leaves into five conspicuous leaflets, though when the plant is growing under exceptionably favourable circumstances these are very frequently seven in number. The generic name is derived from the Latinpotens, powerful, and refers to the strong medicinal qualities possessed by some of the species ofPotentilla. The root of the tormentil (P. tormentilla), an allied species, is very powerfully astringent; it has occasionally been substituted for oak-bark in tanning, and with equal success, the leather being found to be in

Cinquefoil.

no way inferior in quality. The properties possessed by the roots of the cinquefoil are very similar, but, from being less powerful in their operation, are now rarely used, their value being naturally greater at a time when stronger foreign astringents were not so readily procurable. Tormentil root is still, however, retained in the Pharmacopœia. The distinctive specific name of the presentplant,reptans, has evident allusion to the marked feature in its growth already referred to, being derived from the Latinreptare, to creep. We are not aware of any examples of the use of the cinquefoil in the art of any past period, though from the size and beauty of form of the leaves and blossoms, and from the grace and freedom of the curves of which the main stem is capable, it appears to be well adapted to ornamental art. Refer to E. B. 432; F. L. vol. i. 37; M. B. 59; and P. F. 46, for the natural growth.

Cockle.This, though now so frequently met with in the midst of the corn, being in fact so common as to be classed amongst the farmer’s pests, is not an indigenous plant; it has, however, been established so long that it may very fairly be comprehended in our list. The botanical name of the plant isLychnis githago. The whole plant is closely covered with soft hairs, giving it a woolly appearance. The large purple flowers are very conspicuous, and have a curious effect, from the segments of the calyx being so much longer than the petals of the corolla. (Calyx, Gr., a cup, the outer and generally green portions of a flower, the protecting member for the delicate organs within the flower. When the calyx is cut up into several divisions each segment is termed asepal.Corolla, the floral ring next within the calyx, ordinarily of a brilliant colour, the part which, for instance, in a rose is pink: this, though sometimes in one piece, as in a blue-bell, is ordinarily, as in the buttercup, composed of several similar members; these are calledpetals.) The cockle will be found in flower during the months of June, July, and August. Though admirably adapted for service in ornamental art, the onlyexample we can quote occurs in a sixteenth-century MS., a missal, in the British Museum: the treatment is very naturalistic. Drawings of the plant will be found in F. L. vol. iii. 27; E. B. 215.

Columbine(Aquilegia vulgaris), one of our most beautiful wild flowers, derives, like the broom, an additional importance to the ornamentist from its heraldic associations, the columbine being adopted as a badge by the House of Lancaster, and also by the Derby family at a time when every important house adopted some such symbol. The petals bear a strong resemblance to birds; henceAquilegiais derived from the Latinaquila, an eagle, while the English name is derived from Lat.columba, a dove. An old English name for the plant is culverwort,culfrebeing the Anglo-Saxon word for pigeon. It will be found in hedges and thickets, thriving more especially where the soil is calcareous. Both the flower and leaf are very rich in character, and well suited for the requirements of ornamental art. Examples may be seen in the church of Shearbourne, Dorset, and in the spandrels of the canopy of a brass in Exeter Cathedral, in memory of Sir Peter Courteney, one of the adherents of the Lancastrian king, Henry IV. The columbine is a favourite flower in cottage-gardens, and may be much more generally thus met with than as a wild plant. It is in flower from May to July. A very beautiful gradation of form is seen in the leaves, the lower ones being of a very complex form, while the upper ones are very simple in outline. Refer to E. B. 46, V. W. 367, for drawings.

TheComfrey(Symphytum officinale). This plant may be very commonly found by the sides of streams, ditches, and other moist

Comfrey.

situations. The corolla of the flower is generally of a yellowish white, but a variety having purple flowers is not uncommon in many localities; we have seen it, for instance, growing in profusion on the banks of the East Yar, between Brading and Sandown, in the Isle of Wight. The generic name,Symphytumis derived from a Greek verb signifying to unite, from an old belief in the efficacyof the Comfrey in the healing of wounds. A very marked peculiarity in the growth of the plant is the circinate, or, as it is frequently termed, scorpoid arrangement of the flowers, from a supposed resemblance between the spiral form of the inflorescence and the tail of the scorpion; hence, in the same way, scorpion-grass is one of the old English names of the familiar forget-me-not, a plant belonging to the same natural order, theBoraginaceæ, and having the same peculiarity of growth. We need scarcely say that in the Middle Ages the favourite dogma that each plant had its undoubted value as a remedial agent, and generally by its form or colour indicated its medicinal use, was firmly held; thus the colour and shape of the flower of the foxglove, formerly called the throatwort, were considered as indications of its service in complaints affecting the throat, as its older name implies; and the deep red colour often assumed, as the summer advances, by the leaves of the herb-robert and others of the cranesbill family, was deemed conclusive proof of the value of the plants in stanching the flow of blood from a wound; hence, in the case of the forget-me-not, we find an old writer on medicine referring to the healing virtues of the plant as shown by its mode of growth: “The whole branche of floures do turne themselves round like the taile of the scorpion. The leaves of scorpion-grass applied to the place are a present remedy against the stinging of scorpions, and likewise boyled in wine and drunke, prevaile against the said bitings, as also of adders, snakes, and such venomous beasts.” Drawings of the comfrey may be seen on referring to F. L. vol. iv. 18; V. W. 432.

TheField Convolvulus(Convolvulus arvensis). This pretty little plant is very commonly found on grassy banks, open downs, or in our corn-fields, running up the stems of the standing corn, and flowering during June, July, and August. It is one of the enemies of the farmer, from its spreading, to the detriment of the crops, over so large an area of ground; and owing to the great depth to which the roots descend, it is exceedingly difficult to get rid of it when it has once taken possession. Its generic name, derived from the Latinconvolvo, I entwine, is very descriptive of the nature of the plant, and its English name, bindweed, evidently embodies the same idea. Another of its old English names, the withwinde, very beautifully expresses its lightness and delicacy, unable to resist the force of the wind, but conquering by yielding to its power. Where the plant occurs, it will generally be very common, many square feet of ground being often covered by its long trailing stems. When any suitable object, such as a grass stem, is met with, the convolvulus, too weak to rise by itself, ceases to trail along the ground, and twines round the support thus afforded, always ascending in a spiral direction to the left, as do also theC. majorof the flower-garden, the scarlet-runner bean, and many others; while others, as the hop, invariably ascend in a spiral direction from left to right. It may at first sight seem difficult to establish this, but if the reader will imagine the plant in question turning round his own body, he will at once be able to determine whether the plant in ascending would cross in front of him from right to left, or from left to right. In introducing this plant in ornament, it will be

Convolvulus.

necessary to remember, that though frequently represented as possessing tendrils, it does not in nature acquire the needed support by such means, the stalk itself being the part of the plant that entwines round other plants. The means thus employed by climbing plants are very varied; the ivy, for instance, throwing out root-like forms from the stems, which, by their grasp and penetration into the hollows of brickwork or the bark of other trees, amply suffice to support the plant; the bryony, passion-flower, and many other plants throw out true tendrilsfrom the stem; the goose-grass clings by means of the small hook-like appendages with which the stems and under sides of the leaves are furnished; while in the pea the tendrils spring from the end of the leaf-petiole. TheC. arvensis, like the silver-weed, the pimpernel, and many other equally familiar plants, seem to be cosmopolitan. De Candolle, in his “Géographie Botanique,” records its occurrence in a truly indigenous state in localities so widely differing in temperature, soil, &c., as Sweden, Siberia, China, India, Persia, Arabia, Egypt, Abyssinia, New Holland, Mauritius, the Azores, Canada, Mexico, and Chili. The only instances of the use of the plant in mediæval ornament with which we are acquainted are in wood-carving on the ends of the stalls in Wells Cathedral, and in a similar position in the Church of St. Gereon, Cologne; in each case the leaves only are represented. Illustrations of the natural growth will be seen in S. B. 166; E. B. 923; T. N. O. 97; and P. F. 93.

TheCorn Blue-bottle(Centaurea Cyanus) from its delicacy of growth, and the beauty of the flower-heads, would be a valuable plant for the decoration of surfaces requiring a delicate treatment, such as muslins and lace. It is one of the characteristic flowers of the corn-field, and, in conjunction with the poppy, would be valuable in any floral grouping symbolic of autumn. The plant was at one time held to possess great remedial virtue, though its use is now abandoned. The generic name,Centaurea, refers to an old legend that the Centaur Chiron, when wounded by Hercules, recovered his strength by the use of this herb. A very characteristic name in some parts of thecountry is hurt-sickle, in allusion to its hard and wiry stems. An example of its use in ornamental art will be found in a sixteenth-century MS. in the Library of the British Museum. The treatment, as is usual at that period of the illuminator’s art, is very naturalistic. Drawings of the natural plant may be seen in S. B. 159; E. B. 709; F. L. vol. vi. 62; and P. F. 8.

TheCorn Marigold(Chrysanthemum segetum) is, like the last, one of the characteristic and striking plants of the harvest-field, the intense scarlet of the poppy, the rich blue of the blue-bottle, and the brilliant yellow of the present flower, forming a very beautiful trio. The generic name,Chrysanthemum, alludes to this brilliancy of colour seen in several of the species, being derived from two Greek words signifying golden flower. There is considerable quaintness in the forms of the leaves, and the general growth of the plant renders it well adapted for art-treatment. We are unable to refer you to any examples of its introduction in the ornament of the past, but any of our readers desiring to remedy a neglect so unjustifiable will find reliable drawings of it in E. B. 713; F. L. vol. vi. 60; P. F. 28.

TheDaffodil(Narcissus pseudo-narcissus). This beautiful flower will be found of value to the designer, both from its own inherent beauty, and also more especially in combination with the primrose, wild hyacinth, or cowslip, in any design where it is desirable to embody the idea of spring, since it is one of the most striking plants of that season of the year. The daffodil may be found in meadows and copses, and is generally abundant throughout England, though in many cases probably as an escape from thecottage-garden. In Ireland and Scotland it is never met with except under such circumstances. Where the daffodil has once established itself it grows with great freedom, and will generally be met with in profusion, though it is so local in its growth, that even if abundant in any one spot, it may frequently be sought for in vain throughout the rest of a district. The flowers, of a pure and brilliant yellow, grow singly upon the stalks, each rising directly from the root. The daffodil has a very wide area of distribution, being met with throughout the greater part of Europe, and more especially in the south-west; it is, for instance, one of the characteristic plants of the meadows and hillside pastures of Spain, together with the two-flowered narcissus (N. biflorus), a plant which, though abundant in Southern Europe, has never been naturalised in England. It may be frequently met with in cultivation, and will easily be distinguished from the daffodil from the flowers being generally in pairs upon the stem, and from their creamy white or straw colour. The generic name,Narcissus, is derived from a Greek word signifying stupor, in allusion to the heavy and powerful odour of another species, theN. poeticus.

Drawings of the daffodil will be met with in E. B. 1501, and P. F. 89. The daffodil being like the daisy and eglantine, what we may perhaps be allowed to term a poet’s flower, a further reason for intimacy with it is furnished to the designer, as he may possibly be required to make a design for a page border to someédition de luxeof Wordsworth or Herrick.

TheDaisy(Bellis perennis). So many rural and poeticassociations cluster around this “wee, modest, crimson-tipped flower,” that our list would be sadly incomplete did it not find a place in it. Leaving the consideration of these associations, however, we would desire to point out that on its own inherent merits it is a plant admirably adapted for art-work, the forms of the leaves, buds, and flowers being all very ornamental in character, and well suited to the decoration of any light fabric. The generic name,Bellis, testifies to the general appreciation, being derived from the Lat.bellus, pretty. Daisy is a corruption of its old English name, day’s eye.

“As soon as ever the sunne ginneth westTo sene this flower, how it will go to rest,For fear of night, so hateth she darkness.Well by reason men it call maieThe Daisie, or else the Eye of the Daie.”

In France it is calledMarguerite, from Lat.margarita, a pearl,—hence ladies of gentle birth, of that name, frequently chose it in the days of chivalry as their device. It may be seen carved in stone on the gateway of St. John’s College, Cambridge, founded by Margaret, Countess of Richmond. It also occurs in carvings at Cubberley, Gloucestershire; Coton, in Cambridgeshire; and Culham, in Oxfordshire.

“The daisie, or flower white and rede,And in French called la belle Marguerite,To herne I have so great affectiounAs I sayd erst, when comen is the Maie,That in my bedde there dawneth me no daieThat I n’am up and walking in the medeTo see this floure ayenst the sunne sprede,So glad am I, that when I have presenceOf it to doue it all reverence,As she that is of all floures the floure,Fulfilled of all vertue and honoure;And ever ylike faire and fresh of hewe;And ever I love it, and ever ylike newe.”Chaucer.

The family of Parr bore as one of their devices a tuft of daisies. The daisy may be met with abundantly in pasture land and the grassy borders of country roads, blooming freely from April to October. Illustrations may be seen in E. B. 772; F. L. vol. i. 62; T. N. O. 76; P. F. 63.

TheDog-rose(Rosa canina). This is one of the commonest of our numerous species of English wild rose—a family which, like the brambles, willows, and others, has by some botanists been cut up into several species from more or less obvious botanical marks, frequently of a nature, however, which subjects them to be by other observers considered as mere variations depending upon chance external influences; thus, while one writer reduces the various rose forms to five specific types, another, of equally high standing, mentions nineteen species as occurring in Britain. This refinement of scientific observation will, however, be of no real service to the designer: for his purpose the dog-rose, the most familiar of our English species, may be accepted as a fairly typical flower. The garden varieties of roses are derived from theRosa sempervirensof Southern Europe, theR. Indica, an Asiatic species, and many others. The sweet-briar,R. rubiginosa, one of our wild English species, is also a favourite in many gardens from the fragrance of its leaves when pressed in the hand. The

Dog-Rose.

word rose is derived, according to some authors, from the Celticrhos, which is in turn derived from the adjectiverhodd, red; while others affirm that it descends to us from the Latinrosa, itself deduced from the Greekrodon, derived fromerythros, red; but we are unable to give any satisfactory clue to the meaning of the prefix “dog” in the familiar English name, the same idea being also evidently expressed in the specific wordcanina, in the Frenchrose de chien, and the GermanHundrose. Some writers, however, imagine it to refer to the uselessness of the plant, and quote the scentless or dog-violet as another illustration in support of their theory. Even on the lowest utilitarian ground this theory is scarcely tenable, since the plant is largely used by gardeners as astock for grafting, while the fruit is also considerably employed in medicine. The rose, though commonly met with in ornament throughout the whole of the Decorated and Perpendicular periods of Gothic, is more especially found in the latter, since it was then employed not merely on its own merits, but also as the badge of the Tudors; hence, as an heraldic form, we frequently meet with it in secular no less than in ecclesiastical work. It is also, we need scarcely say, the badge of England, as the shamrock and thistle are of Ireland and Scotland respectively. It was also the personal badge of Edward I., and the family device of the De la Warres. Examples of the heraldic use of the rose are very numerous; it may merely suffice to mention Hampton Court and Henry VII.’s Chapel at Westminster as abounding in illustrations. In the church at Hawton, Nottinghamshire, in a sculptured representation of the Resurrection, there is as a background a very elaborate and beautiful diaper of the rose—its leaves, flowers, and buds being all employed; this, as the Rose of Sharon, may be considered as introduced in a symbolic sense, though we must here mention that the plant ordinarily known as the Rose of Sharon is not a true rose at all botanically. It is one of the Hypericums. A golden rose has from time to time been given by the popes to those whom they more especially desired to reward for services rendered to the Church: Henry VIII. of England received, together with his title “Defender of the Faith,” this mark of honour from Pope Alexander VI. The dog-rose will be found in flower in early summer, the colour of the blossoms varying on different shrubs from pure white to a deeppink; the brilliant scarlet fruit, an equally ornamental feature, being met with as the season advances. Illustrations of the natural growth of the plant will be seen in M. B. 139, S. C. 100, P. F. 7, 90, 96; and T. N. O. 51.

Examples of its use in decorative art occur at Winchester, where a hollow moulding is filled with a waved line of rose leaves and flowers; in a boss in Beverley Minster; in a glass quarry at Yaxley, Suffolk; in a more conventionalised treatment in a panel of Perpendicular period, East Harling Church, Norfolk; a very good example as a glass quarry, Milton Church, Cambridge; in a piece of oak-carving in the stalls at Wells; in the carving of a tomb in Bourges Cathedral; a capital at Miraflores; a hollow moulding wreathed with alternate flowers and leaves in one of the doorways of Notre Dame, Paris. Many other instances might be given, but these will suffice to show how favourite a plant the rose has been in past ornament. The following extract from the old herbalist Gerarde, though the adulation is, from its implied reference to Elizabeth, somewhat fulsome, is a further illustration of its association heraldically with the Tudors: “The plant of roses, though it be a shrub full of prickles, yet it had bin more fit and convenient to have placed it with the most glorious flowers of the world, than to insert the same here among base and thorny shrubs” (this allusion refers to Gerarde’s system of classification), “for the rose doth deserve the chief and prime place among all flowers whatsoever, being not only esteemed for his beauty, vertues, and his fragrant and odoriferous smell, but also because it is the honour and ornamentof our English Scepter, in the uniting of those two most Royall Houses of Lancaster and Yorke.”

Feverfew.

The subject of our next illustration is derived from theFeverfew(Chrysanthemum parthenium), a plant widely distributed over Britain, but at the same time with doubtful claims to be considered a true native; it is, however, thoroughly at home in those places in which it is to be met with, and from the clear white daisy-like flowers and the delicate green of its handsome foliage it merits the attention of designers of ornamental art. From its lightness and the deep cutting of the leaves, the feverfew would be found of more service in painted or engraved ornament than in any kind of relief work. The feverfew has a reputation among herbalists as a bitter and tonic; and no doubt, before the introduction of quinine and such-like more powerful remedies, would possess a valued and considerable remedial virtue. The familiar English name implies this, and is one of the numerous class of names, as eyebright, goutweed, lungroot, livelong, wormwood, &c., given to plants in recognitionof their real or fancied medicinal use. Drawings of the natural growth of the feverfew may be seen in E. B. 715; M. B. 249; P. F. 39.

Fool’s Parsley.We have selected this plant, theÆthusa cynapium, as a good representative of the very large order of plants known botanically as theUmbelliferæ. The whole of the plants of this order, as the name implies, have their flowers growing in umbels, that is to say, all the flower-stalks start from one point on the stem, and radiate from the common centre. Many of theUmbelliferæ, as the parsley, carrot, fennel, and celery, must be familiar to our readers, though they may not have noticed particularly this umbellate mode of flowering. Several of the species are exceedingly poisonous: of these we may instance the hemlock, the water-dropwort, and the present plant. With very few exceptions, the flowers of the whole of the plants of this order are either white or yellow. The fool’s parsley is so called from a slight resemblance which the plant bears to the common parsley of the kitchen-garden. Though the differences are not difficult to detect—the flowers, for instance, of the fool’s parsley being white, and those of garden-parsley yellow; the leaves of the first giving a disagreeable odour when bruised, and those of the second a rich aromatic scent—the want of a little circumspection has frequently led to serious and even fatal results. The plant is the more dangerous from its being rarely met with except on cultivated ground. The generic name,Æthusa, is given to it in allusion to its acrid nature, being derived from a Greek word signifying to burn, whilecynapiummeans dog’s parsley. Though as yet we havesaid nothing but evil of it, it is but just to add in its favour that, ornamentally, it is a very desirable plant for insertion in our list, the leaves, flower-buds, and general growth being very graceful, and well suited for the decoration of any delicate fabric. For illustrations of the plant we would refer you to F. L. vol. i. 18; S. C. 8; S. B. 139. It will be found in flower during July and August.

TheGround-Ivy(Nepeta glechoma), the subject of our next two illustrations, is so commonly distributed throughout Britain, that there can be but little need of our dwelling at any great length upon a description of it, though, from its habit of trailing on the ground and among the roots of larger plants, it is not so conspicuous to the eye as many others. Its English name, ground-ivy, refers to its slight resemblance in mode of growth to the common ivy, though in every other respect they are very dissimilar, the ground-ivy having rounded or reniform leaves growing in pairs up the stem, the flowers large and of a brilliant colour, tubular and bisymmetrical, while in the ivy the leaves terminate in an acute point, and spring singly from the stem, the flowers small, pale green, multisymmetrical in form, and composed of five distinct petals. The generic name,Nepeta, is derived fromnepa, a scorpion, from an old belief that the bite of the scorpion was rendered harmless if treated by means of a recipe of which a preparation of our present plant was the leading ingredient. The flower of the ground-ivy, though generally of a deep purplish blue, may sometimes be met with of a pure white. This variation from a given colour to white is comparatively not uncommon in many of our wild plants, though more especially noticeable in

Ground-Ivy.

plants of normally blue or purple flowers: thus the purple foxglove, blue Jacob’s ladder, pink herb-robert, purple snapdragon, blue harebell, and many others, are occasionally to be found with white blossoms. The ground-ivy, from its abundance, and also from its past and present medicinal use, may be met with in the works of various authors under a great choice of synonyms: of these alehoof is the most common; others, almost equally familiar, being creep-by-ground and cat’s-foot. When not in flower the general appearance of the marsh pennywort (Hydrocotyle vulgaris) is, to a casual observer, not altogether unlike that of the ground-ivy; but the pennywort is only met with on swampy ground, the leaves are peltate or shield-like, the stalk rising from the centre of the under side of the leaf, as we see it in the more familiar garden nasturtium (Tropæolum majus), differing in these respects from the ground-ivy. When in blossom, the contrast between the greenish-yellow flower of the pennywort and the deep purple of the flowers of the ground-ivy is too marked to permit of any chance of error. The only examples of the use of the ground-ivy

Ground-Ivy.

with which we are acquainted in the ornament of the past are in a small spandrel in one of the doorways at Rheims Cathedral, and on some of the flooring tiles from the ruins of the Abbey of Chertsey, Surrey. In the latter case the leaves are four in number, in a cruciform arrangement within a quatrefoil—a very simple yet true and effective treatment of the plant; for as the leaves grow, as we have already mentioned, in pairs, and as each pair of leaves is placed upon the stem at right angles to the pairs immediately above and beneath it, the effect produced in looking down upon the plant is necessarily cruciform in character. A great variety of these Chertsey tiles may be seen in the South Kensington Museum: though very simple in design, they afford excellent examples of the true application of the principles which should govern the introduction of natural forms, and are well worthy of the attention of the student of decorative art. In both these cases, Rheims and Chertsey, the leaves alone are employed, as the flowers, from their intricacy of detail and position upon the plant, would require the aid of colour to bringthem out with due effect; hence, while the ground-ivy, during its period of flowering, is admirably adapted for surface decoration, muslins, wall-papers, and many other such-like purposes, it is but ill suited to relief-work in stone or wood. Refer to S. B. 172; E. B. 1055; F. L. vol. ii. 44; M. B. 28, for illustrations of the natural growth of the ground-ivy.

Groundsel, though a plant exceedingly likely to be overlooked, is on that account the more deserving of a place in our list, as it really possesses qualities which fully entitle it to the consideration of the student of ornamental art, the general growth of a good specimen being very vigorous and characteristic, and the variety of beautiful forms seen in the leaves a further recommendation. The botanical name isSenecio vulgaris.Seneciois derived fromsenex, an old man, in allusion to the grey heads of seed-down which succeed the blossoms. The groundsel may be met with abundantly almost everywhere, and may at all times of the year be found in flower. Drawings of the plant may be seen in E. B. 749; F. L. vol. i. 61; P. F. 2.

TheHarebell(Campanula rotundifolia). This graceful little plant may generally be found in profusion on dry and hilly pastures and heaths, though by no means in such localities exclusively, as the roadside hedge-bank is another favourite spot. There are ten species indigenous to England, most of them of great beauty and adaptability to art-requirements: of these we may in particular mention theC. hederacea, the ivy-leaved campanula, a little plant by no means uncommon in moist shady pastures and swampy low-lying ground. The present species isabundant everywhere throughout Europe and Northern Asia. The Canterbury bell (C. medium) is an allied and familiar garden species.

Harebell.

The generic name,Campanula, means a little bell, and from the shape of the corolla is aptly applied to these plants.Rotundifolia, meaning round-leaved, seems at first sight a misnomer, as the leaves most easily visible on a cursory glance at the plant are thin and strap-shaped. The lower leaves of the plant, however, are rounded in form; and, as we study the foliage, we shall see a delicate ascending gradation of form, from the rounded leaves at the lower end of the stem, to the thin, almost grass-like leaves of the upper part. Drawings of the harebell will be found in T. N. O. 80; P. F. 12.

TheHazel-nut(Corylus avellana) is so familiar a shrub that any lengthened description of it must be needless, or, to quote our old writer, Gerarde: “Our hedge-nut, or hazel-nut tree, which is very well knowne, and therefore needeth not any description, whereof there are also sundry sorts, some great, some little, as also one that is in our gardens, which is very

Nut.

great, bigger than any filberd, and yet a kinde of hedge-nut; this then that hath beene said shall suffice for hedge-nuts.” The smaller twigs of the hazel afford an excellent charcoal for artistic purposes, and the long straight shoots, thrown up with such rapidity and vigour, are largely employed in the manufacture of the crates in which earthenware is packed—a use for which their size and flexibility combined with great strength admirably fit them, as the rods, when the wood is still green, may be bent almost double before they will give way. There is a pleasing appropriateness in its English name, hazel-nut, derivedfrom the Anglo-Saxonhaesel, a hat, andhnut, a nut or ball, which we notice and appreciate when we see the fruit in its natural state, surrounded by the foliaceous and cap-like partial envelope formed by the scales of the involucre. The generic name also,Corylus, refers to this peculiarity of growth, being derived from a Greek word signifying a covering for the head. The natural order to which the hazel belongs includes several trees of great value to man, either on account of their timber or their fruit—such, for example, as the beech, Spanish chestnut, and the oak; and in the olden time, when a belief in the use of the divining-rod, as an indicator of subterranean springs, was common, the mystic virtue was sought in the forked twigs of the hazel. The size of the leaves and the striking character of the fruit alike combine to render it a plant admirably fitted for the purposes of ornamental art, though the only example of its use, so far as we are aware, may be seen in a hollow moulding in the cathedral at Winchester, where, upon a continuous scroll running along the centre of the moulding, both foliage and fruit are introduced. The leaves are deeply serrated, and the nuts grow in clusters of two, three, or four, the general treatment being very naturalistic. Among the many extraordinary remedies in use by our ancestors, hazel-nuts occupied a place, being employed in complaints affecting the chest, though, even then, when scarcely any reputed remedy seems to have been thought too fanciful and absurd, some appear to have ventured to doubt the efficacy of the medicine, bringing down upon themselves the scathing rebuke of the faculty, as we find in the followingextract from an old medical work, where, after the setting forth of the benefits to be derived from the use of the hazel as a remedial agent, he goes on to say:—“And if this be true, as it is, then why should the vulgar so familiarly affirm that eating nuts causeth shortness of breath? than which nothing is falser. For how can that which strengthens the lungs cause shortness of breath? I confess the opinion is far older than I am; I know tradition was a friend to error before, but never that he was the father of slander; or are men’s tongues so given to slandering one another, that they must slander nuts too to keep their tongues in use? And so thus have I made an apology for nuts, which cannot speak for themselves.” For illustrations of the growth of the nut, see W. H. H., Plate B, Fig. 1; T. N. O. 127.

Our next illustration is derived from theHawthorn,Whitethorn, orMay(Cratægus oxycantha), a plant familiar to every one, from its being so extensively used for hedgerows; its strength, closeness of growth, and spiny character, admirably adapting it to the purpose. The wood is very hard, and will take a high polish; the generic name,Cratægus, from a Greek word signifying strength, being an allusion to this characteristic of the plant. Its use as a hedgerow plant in England dates, according to Sowerby, from the time of the Romans, and of this there can be but little doubt, as its most common name—hawthorn—is, literally, the hedge-thorn, from the Saxon wordhage. The second name—white-thorn—has been given to it in contradistinction to the black-thorn (Prunus spinosa), a somewhat similar, and, in a wild state, almost equally common plant; the

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