Enquiry into Plants/Volume 1/Chapter 32

by Theophrastus

Of the times of budding and fruiting of wild, as compared with cultivated, trees.

IV. Now the budding of wild trees occurs in some cases at the same time as that of the cultivated forms, but in some cases somewhat, and in some a good deal later; but in all cases it is during the spring season. But there is greater diversity in the time of fruiting; as we said before, the times of ripening do not correspond to those of budding, but there are wide differences. For even in the case of those trees which are somewhat late in fruiting,—which some say take a year to ripen their fruit—such as Phoenician cedar and kermes-oak, the budding nevertheless takes place in the spring. Again there are differences of time between individual trees of the same kind, according to the locality; those in the marshes bud earliest, as the Macedonians say, second to them those in the plains, and latest those in the mountains.

Again of particular trees some wild ones bud along with the cultivated forms, as andrachne and hybrid arbutus; and the wild pear is a little later than the cultivated. Some again bud both before zephyr begins to blow, and immediately after it has been blowing. Before it come cornelian cherry and cornel, after it bay and alder; a little before the spring equinox come lime zygia Valonia oak fig. Hazel^[1] oak and elder are also early in budding, and still more those trees which seem to have no fruit and to grow in groves,^[2] abele elm willow black poplar; and the plane is a little later than these. The others which bud when the spring is, as it were, becoming established,^[3] are such as wild fig alaternus cotoneaster Christ's thorn terebinth hazel^[4] chestnut. The apple is late in budding, latest of all generally are ipsos^[5] (cork-oak) aria (holm-oak) tetragonia odorous cedar yew. Such are the times of budding.

The flowering times in general follow in proportion: but they present some irregularity, and so in still more cases and to a greater extent do the times at which the fruit is matured. The cornelian cherry produces its fruit about the summer solstice; the early kind, that is to say, and this tree is about the earliest of all.^[6] The late form, which some call 'female cornelian cherry' (cornel), fruits quite at the end of autumn. The fruit of this kind is inedible and its wood is weak and spongy; that is what the difference between the two kinds amounts to. The terebinth produces its fruit about the time of wheat-harvest or a little later, manna-ash^[7] and maple in summer; alder hazel and a certain kind of wild pear in autumn; oak and chestnut later still, about the setting of the Pleiad; and in like manner alaternus kermes-oak Christ's-thorn cotoneaster after the setting of the Pleiad; aria (holm-oak) when winter is beginning, apple with the first cold weather, wild pear late^[8] in winter. Andrachne and hybrid arbutus first ripen their fruit when the grape is turning, and again^[9] when winter is beginning; for these trees appear to bear twice. As for^[10] silver-fir and yew, they flower a little before the solstice; ^[11](the flower of the silver-fir is yellow and otherwise pretty); they bear their fruit after the setting of the Pleiad. Fir and Aleppo pine are a little earlier in budding, about fifteen days, but produce their fruit after the setting of the Pleiad, though proportionately earlier than silver-fir and yew.

In these trees then the difference of time is not considerable; the greatest difference is shewn in Phoenician cedar holly and kermes-oak; for Phoenician cedar appears to keep its fruit for a year, the new fruit overtaking that of last year; and, according to some, it does not ripen it at all; wherefore men gather it unripe and keep it, whereas if it is left on the tree, it shrivels up. The Arcadians say that the kermes-oak also takes a year to perfect its fruit; for it ripens last year's fruit at the same time that the new fruit appears on it; the result of which is that such trees always have fruit on them. They say also that holly loses its fruit owing to the winter. Lime^[12] and box are very late in fruiting, (lime has a fruit which no animal can eat, and so have cornel and box. Ivy Phoenician cedar fir and andrachne are late fruiting^[13]) though, according to the Arcadians, still later than these and almost latest of all are tetragonia^[14] odorous cedar and yew. Such then are the differences as to the time of shedding and ripening their fruit between wild^[15] as compared with cultivated trees, and likewise as compared with one another.

 

1. See below, n. 4.
2. τὰ ἀκ. δοκ. καὶ ἀλσ. conj. W.; τὰ ἀκ. καὶ δοκ. καὶ ἀλσ. UMP; τὰ ἀκ. τὰ δοκ. ἀλσ. Ald.
3. ὥσπερ apologises for the unusual sense given to ἐνιστ (usually 'beginning'), conj. W.; U; MAld.H.
4. καρύα can hardly be right both here and above.
5. See Index.
6. σχεδὸν ὥσπερ πρῶτον not in G, nor in Plin. (16. 105); text perhaps defective.
7. ἀποδ. καὶμελία U; ἀποδίδωσι• μελία Ald. Some confusion in test, but sense clear.
8. ὀψία: ? ἡ ὀψία W.
9. After ὕστερον Ald. adds ἀνθοῡντι (so also H and G); Plin. 13. 121. omits it; om. W. after Sch.
10. γὰρ Ald.; δὲ conj. W.
11. Probably an early gloss, W. cf. Plin. 16. 106.
12. φίλυρα Ald.; φιλυρέα conj. Sch.
13. τὸν δὲ …. ἀνδράχλη. Apparently a gloss, W.
14. τετραγωνία conj. Sch. (τετρα- omitted after -τερα): cf. §2; γωνία <v; γωνίεια U.
15. τῶν ἀγρίων after πεπάνσεις conj. Sch.; after ἥμερα Ald.

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