Natural history -- England -- Wiltshire; Wiltshire (England) -- History
When I learnt my accidents, 1633, at Yatton Keynel, there was a fair
and spreading ewe-tree in the churchyard, as was common heretofore. The
boyes tooke much delight in its shade, and it furnish’t them with their
scoopes and nutt-crackers. The clarke lop’t it to make money of it to
some bowyer or fletcher, and that lopping kill’d it: the dead trunke
remaines there still. (Eugh-trees grow wild about Winterslow. A great
eugh-tree in North Bradley churchyard, planted, as the tradition goes,
in the time of ye Conquest. Another in …. Cannings churchyard. Leland
(Itinerary) observes that in his time there was thirty-nine vast
eugh-trees in the churchyard belonging to Stratfleur Abbey, in
Wales.-BISHOP TANNER. Abundance of ewgh-trees in Surrey, upon the
downes, heretofore, thô now much diminished.—J. EVELYN.)
Box, a parish so called in North Wilts, neer Bathe, in which parish is
our famous freestone quarre of Haselbery: in all probability tooke its
name from the box-trees which grew there naturally, but now worne out.
Not far off on Coteswold in Gloucestershire is a village called
Boxwell, where is a great wood of it, which once in …. yeares Mr.
Huntley fells, and sells to the combe-makers in London. At Boxley in
Kent, and at Boxhill in Surrey, bothe chalkie soiles, are great box
woods, to which the combe-makers resort.
Holy is indifferently common in Malmesbury hundred, and also on the
borders of the New Forest: it seemes to indicate pitt-coale. In Wardour
Parke are holy-trees that beare yellow berries. I think I have seen the
like in Cranborne Chase.
Hazel.—Wee have two sorts of them. In the south part, and particularly
Cranbourn Chase, the hazells are white and tough; with which there are
made the best hurdles of England. The nutts of the chase are of great
note, and are sold yearly beyond sea. They sell them at Woodbery Hill
Faire, &c.; and the price of them is the price of a buschell of wheate.
The hazell-trees in North Wilts are red, and not so tough, more
brittle.
Coven-tree common about Chalke and Cranbourn Chase: the carters doe
make their whippes of it. It growes no higher than a cherry-tree.
Buckthorne very common in South Wiltshire. The apothecaries make great
use of the berries, and the glovers use it to colour their leather
yellow.
Prick-timber (euonymus).—This tree is common, especially in North
Wilts. The butchers doe make skewers of it, because it doth not taint
the meate as other wood will doe: from whence it hath the name of
prick-timber.
Osiers.—Wee have great plenty of them about Bemarton, &c. near
Salisbury, where the osier beds doe yield four pounds per acre.
Service-trees grow naturally in Grettwood, in the parish of Gretenham,
belonging to George Ayliffe, Esq. In the parke of Kington St. Michel is
onely one. At the foot of Hedington Hill, and also at the bottome of
the hill at Whitesheet, which is the same range of hill, doe growe at
least twenty cervise-trees. They operate as medlars, but less
effectually.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account