"Jove's own tree, That holds the woods in awful sovreignty," was well known all over Greece, and forms the basis of many a Hellenic legend. According to some, Jupiter's might was derived from the oak; and with a disinterestedness worthy of imitation, he no sooner felt its power within him, than this father of gods and men set himself to the task of teaching mankind to live upon acorns, so that they might participate in his puissance. The temple and oracle of this god in Dodona, the most ancient in all Greece, was surrounded by oaks, which, with the ground in the neighborhood, was endued with a prophetic spirit. The oaks, therefore, became endowed with this gift, and delivered oracles. So far as the classic page is concerned, the voice of antiquity directs us to no tree more generally than the oak. It grew chiefly and in great abundance on the slopes and heights of Hellas, introduced, it is true, near to residences, for the sake of its umbrageous and cool arches in summer time; but still in its greatest perfection in the magnificent solitudes far from the busy hum of men. The state of art, of poetry, and elegance in Athens might have been pretty correctly ascertained from a simple fact connected with this object-the intense, yet discriminating delight with which the people looked upon the beauties of the oak in its numerous varieties, during its gorgeous autumnal appearance. Notwithstanding our advance in civilization and refinement, and love for sylvan imagery, it is questionable whether we are yet up to the mark of that taste which the Athenians exhibited in all that relates to trees and planting. The Mulberry is generally reckoned as a biblical tree, but it is very doubtful if it has really a right to be so included. Loudon, without inquiring whether our translators were right in rendering the original term baca, at once concludes that the tree is twice mentioned in the sacred writings. Hasselquist states, that the mulberry scarcely ever grows in Judea, very little in Galilee, though abounding in Syria and in the mountains of Lebanon. In Chronicles, the term becaim is rendered pear trees, and Aquila and the Vulgate have it in the same way. Parkhurst gives it as his opinion that baca means a kind of large shrub from which is distilled an odoriferous gum, and in this opinion he is strengthened by the fact that the Arabs have a shrub corresponding with this description, which they likewise call baca. Its other associations rest on a clearer foundation. Pyramus, who lived in Babylon, became enamoured of Thisbe, a very beautiful virgin of that city. The flame was mutual, but their parents forbade marriage, so that the lovers regularly interchanged sentiments through an aperture in a wall which separated their houses. They agreed to meet at a given time at the tomb of Ninus, which was overshadowed by a white mulberry tree, and without the walls of Babylon. Thisbe was first there, but the unlooked for arrival of a lioness frightened her away; and as she fled she dropped her veil, which the lioness found and left covered with blood. The lover soon after arrived, and having found Thisbe's veil bloody, concluded that she had been torn to pieces by wild beasts. He instantly stabbed himself. When she had so far recovered, Thisbe returned, and when she saw the dying Pyramus, she fell upon the sword with which he destroyed himself. The mulberry tree was stained with the blood of the lovers, and ever afterwards bore fruit of that color. Standard mulberries should invariably have a strong stake set up beside them to keep them in an upright position, and this should be continued until the tree is at least twenty years of age. The prevailing characteristic of mulberry trees throughout England, when left entirely to nature, is, that they are one-sided and top-heavy, requiring props to support them. This defect might be easily remedied by applying the aid alluded to. The trees should be planted in sheltered situations, in rich trenched soil, kept up by frequent manurings. When so treated the fruit is large and juicy. The Pomegranate (Punica Granatum,) Pliny informs us, was first found near Carthage. It is the malus punica of the Romans, and the rimon of the Hebrews, probably from rama, to project, from the strong projection or reflexion of light from the star-like crown of the fruit which bears the upper part of the calyx. The high estimation in which this tree was held in the land of Isreal may be inferred from the fact, that it was one of the three kinds of fruit brought from Eschol to Moses and the congregation in the wilderness; and from its being distinguished by the rebellious sojourners as one of the most delicious luxuries they enjoyed in Egypt. No circumstance more clearly evinces the value which the eastern nations put upon this fruit than the choice which king Solomon makes of it to represent certain graces of the church-" Thy temples are like a piece of pomegranate within thy locks." The ornaments placed in the net work over the crowns which were on the top of the two brazen pillars of Solomon's temple were carvings of this fruit, as were also those decorations ordered to be fixed on the skirt of Aaron's robe. Greece was full of it. That district known as the land of Pindar, Hesoid, and Plutarch, was in particular noted for rich crops of this fruit. Agatharchides relates the following anecdote connected with this tree: A dispute arising between the Athenians and Boeotians, respecting a spot called Side, situated on the borders, Epaminondas, in order to decide the question, took out a pomegranate from under his robe, and demanded of the Arthenians what they called it."Rhoa," they replied. "Very good," said Epaminondas; "but we call it Side, and, as the place derives its name from the fruit which grows there in abundance, it is clear the land must belong to us." And it was decided in favor of the Bootians. In fine seasons it produces its fruit of the full size in this country when trained against a wall. The fig tree is frequently mentioned in the Holy Scriptures, and is common throughout Palestine and the east generally. Amongst the ancient Hebrews it was known as thaena, signifying the tree of grief, probably from the leaf causing inflammation when applied to the body. It was of this tree that our first parents, immediately after the fall, twisted for themselves girdles or aprons. Throughout the Holy Land the failure or destruction of the fig tree was accounted one of the greatest public or private calamities. Hence it is said, "Although the fig tree shall not blossom, &c., yet I will rejoice in the Lord." In ancient Greece this fruit tree was well known and extensively cultivated. It was the pride of Attica. According to the traditions of the Athenians, figs first grew on a spot not far distant from the city on the road to Eleusis, thence called Hiera Suke, "the sacred fig tree." So much prized was the fruit here produced, that the inhabitants were forbidden to export them. This law, however, was often contravened, and the informers against the delinquents were called sycophants, or "revealers of figs;" a word which has since been in use to characterise mean-souled, dastardly persons, such as informers generally are. Naxos, a celebrated country in the Ægean sea, was celebrated for its fig trees, which were especially cherished by Bacchus, who was the chief god of the island. Here this divinity obtained the title of Meilichios, "the gracious," because he taught them the use of this fruit. In the processions of this god the fig was carried next to the vine. Throughout Sussex the fig is planted as a standard; and it is in this character that it can be best introduced in a classical group with others. To the Olive tree the Sacred Writings abound in references; it has been from the earliest ages the emblem of peace, and the bounteous gift of heaven. In the garden of the Horticultural Society at Chiswick, and in several parts of Devonshire, it grows as a standard, and survives the severest winter. In other counties, therefore, it may be made to flourish with the aid of shelter. This tree rose plentifully all over Judea, and so viewed, ex cites a crowd of interesting reflections in every well disposed mind. Thus it is often figuratively used in the poetical diction of the east. Speaking of the righteous man, it is said:"His branches shall spread and his beauty shall be as the olive tree." The most distinguished, and to many, the most endearing reflection, suggested by this tree, arises from its giving the name to that Mount, (the Mount of Olives,) so famous in the history of the Saviour. This mountain lay a little out of the city of Jerusalem, towards the east, commanding a full view of the metropolis, from which it was separated by the valley of Jehoshaphat, and the brook Kedron. To it the Redeemer of the world was wont to retire in the evening, after he had spent a laborious day in teaching the multitudes that attended His ministry in Jerusalem; from it, He gazed upon the city, wept over it, and predicted its final overthrow. In the garden, which lay at the bottom of this hill, He commenced the scene of His last sufferings; and from the highest or central elevation, He ascended into Heaven. The olive crowns the top of the hill till this day; and from its being so remarkably long lived, it is thought by many, that the vicissitudes of eighteen hundred years have not yet swept away the identical objects under which our Redeemer wandered. To many superficial readers of the Bible, and especially to those who rest implicitly on our translation of it, the olive tree forms a stumbling-block not easily removed. The plant, as is generally known, does not produce leaves of a deep green color, though properly enough classed amongst our evergreens. The leaves resemble those of the willow, are of a light, or yellowish green, and sometimes rusty underneath, and do not equal the expectations of travellers. Thus Mr. Sharpe, while in the East, observes: "The fields are in a manner covered with olive trees; but the tree does not answer the character I conceived of it: the royal Psalmist, and some of the sacred writers, speak with rapture of the green olive tree, so that I expected a beautiful green; and I confess I was wretchedly disappointed to find its hue resembling that of our hedges when they are covered with dust. The olive tree may possibly delight in Judea, but undoubtedly will disgust a man accustomed to English verdure." Now, it so happens, that the word translated green, means vigor, or freshness; and every one must know that exuberant vegetation is not necessarily of a green color, but frequently of a red or pinkish tinge. In Daniel, the seventy translators render the same word flourishing for it is absurd to suppose, that when King Nebuchadnezzar said, "I was at rest in my house, and green in my palace," (as it is in the Hebrew,) he referred to color. The passage in the Bible, therefore, should be rendered :—" I am like a vigorous olive tree in the house of God." Rich harvests of this tree waved over the plains of Greece; and it is yet an inhabitant of that highly favored country. It presents nothing magnificent-nothing solemn, for it never exceeds fifty feet in height; yet its loveliness, and sunniness, amply compensate for its shrublike size. A warm, dry air seems to suit it best. Hence it was found in greatest perfection in Attica and Cilicia. In those countries, where regularly propagated for its oil, it was the practice to plant the trees thirty feet apart, so as to allow the air to circulate freely about them on all sides. This tree forms a favorite haunt of singing birds, having a thin shade, sufficient to shelter them from excessive heat, yet not excluding much light. : The Almond, mentioned in the Holy Writ, was by the Hebrews called shakad, signifying to watch, or awake, because after the rigors of winter, it is one of the first to hail the coming of spring. This idea seems to be referred to in the vision which Jeremiah the prophet had. "The word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. Then said the Lord unto me, Thou hast well seen; for I will hasten My word to perform it;" or rather, "I am hastening or watching over my word to fulfil it." The rod of Aaron was of the Almond tree, as were also the rods which the princes of Israel bore. The tree has an interesting history in Greek mythology. Demophoon, the son of Theseus and Phædra, on his return from the Trojan war, visited Thrace, where he was tenderly received and treated by Phyllis, a beautiful queen, whose charms were not unappreciated by him. He retired to Athens, of which he was king, promising to return to Thrace at the end of a month. At the expiration of the time, the queen wandered daily on the sea-shore looking out for her lover, and when at last winter came and he returned not, in an agony of despair, she fell dead by the sea-side, and was immediately changed by the pitying gods into an almond tree. Her lover soon after returned, and hearing what had taken place, flew to the tree and clasped it in his arms, when the love of Phyllus, unable even then to restrain itself, caused the tree, though in winter, to burst forth into blossoms. The beauty of this tree when in flower, at a time when others have not begun to bud, renders it a most desirable object near to residences. It is the first to interrupt the reign of winter, and consequently the earliest forerunner of the coming spring. The Apple tree is mentioned in Holy Writ; but I am inclined to believe that our apple, (Pyrus malus,) is not the tree alluded to in the Sacred text. In Canaan, and the surrounding country, it is almost worthless, and is by no means entitled to the praise bestowed on that tree by the Spirit of inspiration. The inhabitants of Egypt and Palestine import their apples from Damascus, their own orchards producing no fruit fit for use. It is impossible, therefore, that a tree whose fruit was represented to be most delicious and comforting, could be found in the "crab, or wilding," whose fruit, according to Pliny, had "many a foul word and shrewd curse given it," on account of its sourness. Besides, the apple of the Scripture is classed with the vine and fig, palm and pomegranate, as furnishing a grateful repast, and the failure of which was reckoned a serious calamity,-an unquestionable proof, that we must look elsewhere for the real apple of the Holy Land, In Patrick's Commentary, it is thought that the word Thepucheem, translated apples, denotes any species of fruit emitting a fragrant odor; but this definition is too vague to be useful. The term occurs in six passages of Scripture, and in them all it is given as an appropriate title to one of the noblest trees in the garden of Nature. "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my Beloved among the sons; I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and His fruit was sweet to my taste." Again:-"Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples, for I am sick of love." "A word fitly spoken, is like apples of gold in pictures of silver." Now, when it is known that trees of the citrus family flourished in Judea several centuries before the birth of Christ, and when it is recollected how appropriate the passages quoted become, when applied to the citron or orange, there is little doubt of their referring to the genus just mentioned. Flouishing under oriental skies, the citron becomes a large and beautiful tree, having a perennial verdure, and perfuming the air with exquisite odor. It is with peculiar propriety, therefore, that the spouse exclaimed:-"As the citron or orange tree among the trees of the wood, so is my Beloved among the sons. I sat down under His shadow with great delight, and His fruit was sweet to my taste." Those who are desirous of trying orange and citron trees in England, may take courage from the fact that they grow to a large size, with a slight protection during severe winters, at Salcombe, near Kingsbridge, in Devonshire; and at Dartmouth, Luscombe, and Kitley. I am inclined to think that if spaces were cleared in plantations, with an open space to the south, these trees might be planted in such places with every prospect of success. In severe weather, the tops and stems might be thatched with dead branches, and their roots covered with dry litter, and also thatched. This is the fruit which King Juba describes as the apple of the Hesperides, by which name it was known throughout Africa. The most ancient Greek writer who describes this tree is Theophrastus, who says it was grafted on the common apple to produce black citrons, and on the mulberry, for the sake of getting the fruit of a reddish color. Such things are quite impossible; all statements like these tend only to weaken the testimony of this great naturalist in other matters, and show clearly how closely the earliest efforts in history are allied to the works of the mythologists. This tree thrives remarkably well in Lower Egypt; and in the Garden of Heliopolis, where it shades the Temple of the Sun, it appears in matchless beauty. It is questionable whether the citron was known to the ancient inhabitants of Hellas; for Antiphanes observes in his Boetian, that it had only been recently introduced into Attica: "A. "Twould be absurd to speak of what's to eat, As if you thought of such things; but, fair maid, B. Oh! how beautiful! 4. They are, indeed, since hither they but lately Have come from the great king. B. By Phosphoros! I could have thought them from the Hesperian bowers, A. There are but three! B. The beautiful is nowhere plentiful." Viewed in connection with the present subject, the Vine forms a most important tree. No effort of mine can add anything to the delight with which this well known plant is looked upon by all nations. The classics seem to have written under its shade: their pages exhale the sweet odor of its fruit. It is frequently mentioned in the Old and New Testaments. It was known to the inhabitants of Judea, both in its wild and cultivated forms, though the former, in all probability, was not, strictly speaking, a vine. It was certainly not the Vitis Labrusca, or Fox Grape of Botanists. In the vales near Jordan, not far distant from Jericho and the Dead Sea, is found growing in great abundance, the vine of Sodom, which produces fruit as bitter as gall, and according to Bishop Lowth, as deadly as the poison of a serpent. This deleterious grape is alluded to by Moses in terms fully bearing out this description: "For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah; their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter, their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps." The tree, however, referred to so often in the Bible and in Classic Song, is the grapevine, (Vitis vinifera,) well known throughout all the temperate zones of the Old World, as an exuberant climber, and producing the noblest and most delicious of beverages. Thus, in contradistinction to the spurious plant, our Saviour, in the Gospel of John, says, "I am the true Vine, and my Father is the Husbandman." And again, in the triumphal Song of David on the plagues which desolated Egypt, and procured the liberation of his ancestors, he says: "He destroyed their vines with hail, and their Sycamore trees with frost." Of all the grapes produced in the East, those of Canaan were considered to be the finest. Dandini, an Italian traveller, and accustomed of course, to see grapes in great perfection, was surprised at the extraordinary size of those produced in the vineyards at Lebanon, which were of the size of prunes, and of the most delicious taste. In the book of Numbers, it is stated that a bunch gathered in the valley of Eschol required two men to carry it some distance, a fact which has been recently confirmed, if any proof had been needed, by Doubdon, who met with very extraordinary vines near to Bethlehem. Persia seems entitled to the honor of giving birth to this plant; thence it appears to have found its way into Judea, Greece, and Sicily, and soon after into Italy, Spain, France and Britain. It is, however, contended by |