1280
ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM.
FART 111,
are, a!so,avariety with the leaves variegated with gold colour,and a silvery-leaved variety; but these are often ratherweaker, and more dwarf, than the species.
The wild rosemary is a native of the south of France ,
Spain , Italy , the Levant, Barbary, &c., on rocks and rockyhills ; and, in some places, it is so abundant, that in spring,when it is in flower, the air is perfumed with its odour toa considerable distance. On this account, and also from thepowerful attraction which it forms to bees, at a season whenthere are few other plants in flower, it has long been partiallycultivated by the inhabitants of those countries of whichit is a native. In Narbonne and Mahon, the rosemary isso abundant, partly from being indigenous, but principallyfrom its being frequently used there to form hedges to gar-dens, that it communicates its flavour to the honey, whichis considered the finest in France . The rosemary is men-tioned, in many of the old Continental songs of the trouba-dours, as emblematic of that constancy and devotion to thefair sex, which was one of the characteristics of the days ofchivalry. Garlands and chaplets were formed of myrtle,laurel, and rosemary, and put on the heads of the principalpersons in fetes. It was formerly held in high esteem as acomforter of the brain, and a strengthener to the memory;and, on the latter account, is considered as the emblem offidelity in lovers. Formerly, it was worn at weddings, and also at funerals;and it is still grown for that purpose in many parts of the Continent. Manyallusions have been made to both customs by poets, and also to its beingthe symbol of remembrance. Shakspeare makes Ophelia say, “ There’srosemary for you: that’s for remembrance;” and in the notes to Stevens’sedition of Shakspeare are many references to passages referring to thisplant in the works of the old poets. It is said to be found wild in the GreatDesert; and Moore, in allusion to this, and its use for funerals, says,—
■■ ■ — s< The humble rosemary,
Whose sweets so thanklessly are shedTo scent the desert and the dead.”
The points of the shoots are a most powerful bitter, and they are aromatic;they, also, when distilled with water, yield a thin, light, pale, essential oil, atthe rate of 8 oz. of oil to 100 lb. of the herb in a green state. The oil of theflowers (which ought always to be gathered with their calyxes) is somewhatmore volatile than that of the leaves, and is readily extracted with spirits ofwine. This oil contains a considerable quantity of camphor. The oil ofrosemary was in great use among the Greeks and Romans, and still forms anarticle of the materia medica. Hungary water (so called from being first usedby the Queen of Hungary ) is made with rosemary, and is considered excellentfor keeping the hair in curl. If constantly used, however, the hair will loseits colour, and become wiry. The smell of the plant is fragrant and aromatic;and the taste pungent and bitter. Its properties are effectually extracted byrectified spirit, and partly, also, by water. In France , besides its use by theapothecaries and perfumers, a conserve, a honey, and a liqueur, are made fromit by the confectioners. Though the rosemary is indigenous to the southof France , it will scarcely live through the winter, in the open air, in theneighbourhood of Paris ; and the varieties, except the broad leaved one, arekept there in the conservatory. In some parts of Germany , especially in theCatholic countries (at Nuremburg , for example), rosemary is cultivated mquantities, in pots, by the commercial gardeners, for the purpose of selling sprigsof it when they come into flower, in winter and early in spring, for religiouspurposes. (See Enyc. of Gard., edit. 1835, $ 545.) Like almost all the plantsof this chapter, it is easily propagated by cuttings, and it also ripens seeds u>abundance in fine seasons, it is said always to thrive best near the sea;
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