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ejusmodi scrupulositas. Columella]. There are indeed some certain
seasons and suspecta tempom, which the prudent gard’ner ought
carefully (as much as in him lies) to prevent : but as to the rest,
let it suffice that he diligently follow the observations which (by
great industry) we have collecited together, and here present him.’’
.1, r - 7 opinion of John Evelyn, thus expressed, doubtless shook
the iaith of gardeners in the efficacy of lunar influence on plants,
and, as a rule, we find no mention of the Moon in the instructions
contained in the gardening books published after his death. It
IS true that Charles Evelyn, in ‘ The Pleasure and Profit of
Gardenmg Improved ’ (1717) directs that Stock Gilliflower seeds
should be sown at the full of the Moon in April, and makes several
other references to the influence of the Moon on these plants ; but
tois IS an exception to the general rule, and in ‘ The Retired
Gardener,’ a translation from the French of Louis Liger, printed
in 1717» ffie ancient belief in the Moon’s supremacy in the plant
kingdom received its death-blow. The work referred to was
published under the direction of London and Wise, Court Nurserymen
to Queen Anne, and in the first portion of it, which is arranged
in toe form of a conversation between a gentleman and his
gardener, occurs the following passage :—
gardeners say that vigorous trees ought to be
prun d in the Wane, and those that are more sparing of their shoots in the Increase
i i , by no means promotes the fruit if it be not done in
the Wane. They add that the reason why some trees are so long before they bear
£ 0 0 ^ ’ ^ planted or grafted either in the Increase or Full of the
G a r d . - ‘ ‘ Most of the old gardeners were of that opinion, and there are some
who continue still to be misled by the same error. But ’ tis certain that they bear no
ground for such an imagination, as I have observ’d, having succeeded in my rardeninff
without such a superstitious observation of the Moon. However, I don’t urire this
tKo be bhe Ulie"ve! d! than my se>lf;.« 'T' fh“es e"> a>’r e“ hIfis «w» o“rd■s d:—« la Quintinie, who deservef more
‘ I solemnly declare [saith he] that after a diligent observation of the Moon’s
changes for thirty years together, and an enquiry whether they had any influence on
gardening, the affirmation of which has been so long established among us I oerceiv
d that It was no wei J t i e r than old wives’ tales, and that it has been Advanc’d by
unexperienc’d gardeners.’ duvauc u oy
“ And a little after : ‘ I have therefore follow’d what appear’d most reasonable.
and reje/ed what was otherwise. In short, graft in what time of the Moon you
please, if your graft be good, and grafted in a proper stock, provided you do it like an
artist, you \vill be sure to succeed . . . . In the same manner [continues he] sow what
sorts of gram you please, and plant as you please, in any Quarter of the Moon I ’ll
answer for your success ; the first and last day of the Moon being equally favourable ’
J his IS the opinion of a man who must be allow’d to have been the most experienc’d
m tills âge.
p f a n f é o f tRe
The Germans call Mondveilchen (Violet of the Moon), the
Lunaria annua, the Leucoion, also known as the Flower of the Cow
that IS to say, of the cow lo, one of the names of the Moon. The
©id classic legend relates that this daughter of Inachus, because she
was beloved by Jupiter, fell under the jealous displeasure of Juno,
and was much persecuted by her. Jupiter therefore changed his
beautiful mistress into the cow lo, and at his request, Tellus (the
Earth) caused a certain herb (Salutaris, the herb of Isis) to spring
up, in order to provide for the metamorphosed nymph suitable
nourishment. In the Vedic writings, the Moon is represented as
slaying monsters and serpents, and it is curious to note that the
Moonwort [Lunaria), Southernwood [Artemisia), and Selenite (from
Selene, a name of the Moon), are all supposed to have the power of
repelling serpents. Plutarch, in his work on rivers, tells us that
near the river Trachea grew a herb called Selenite, from the foliage
of which trickled a frothy liquid with which the herdsmen anointed
their feet in the Spring in order to render them impervious to the
bites of serpents. This foam, says De Gubernatis, reminds one of
the dew which is found in the morning sprinkled over herbs and
plants, and which the ancient Greeks regarded as a gift of the
nymphs who accompanied the goddess Artemis, or Diana, the lunar
deity.N
umerous Indian plants are named after the Moon, the
principal being the Cardamine ; the Cocculus cordifolius (the Moon’s
Laughter) ; â species of Solanum called the Flower of the Moon ;
the Asclepias acida, the Somalatâ, the plant that produces Soma ;
Sandal-wood (beloved of the Moon) ; Camphor (named after the
Moon) ; the Convolvulus Turpethum, called the Half-Moon ; and
many other plants named after Soma, a lunar synonym.
In a Hindu poem, the Moon is called the fructifier of vegetation
and the guardian of the celestial ambrosia, and it is not surprising
therefore to find that in India the mystic Moon-tree, the Soma, the
tree which produces the divine and immortalising ambrosia is
worshipped as the lunar god. Soma, the moon-god, produces the
revivifying dew of the early morn ; Soma, the Moon-tree, the exhilarating
ambrosia. The Moon is cold and humid : it is from her
the plants receive their sap, says Prof. De Gubernatis, “ and thanks
to the Moon that they multiply, and that vegetation prospers.
There is nothing very wonderful, therefore, if the movements of the
Moon preside in a general way over agricultural operations, and if
it exercises a special influence on the health and accouchements of
women, who are said to represent Water, the humid element.
The Roman goddess Lucina (the Moon) presided over accouchements,
and had under her care the Dittany and the Mugwort [or Motherwort]
[Artemisia, from Artemis, the lunar goddess), considered,
like the Vedic Soma, to be the queen or mother of the herbs.”
Thus Macer says of it :—
“ Henbarum niatrem justum puto ponei^e primo ;
Proecipue morbis muliebribtis ilia medeturP
This influence of the Moon over the female portion of the
.human race has led to a class of plants being associated either