The dictionary of daily wants / [Robert Kemp Philp].

Robert Kemp Philp

Date:: [1861]

Credit: The dictionary of daily wants / [Robert Kemp Philp]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

46/1152 page 36

$consequence, and this, in the majority of in- stances, may be accomplished by attending to certain rules of both regimen and diet, which experience and common instinct tell us we ought to follow. In the first place exercise daily in the open air is ne- cessary. We all know when we take a walk in the country before dinner with what a zest we return to that meal; while, on the contrary, if we remain within doors all day, our meals are partaken of more as a matter of I’outine than to satisfy any par- ticular desire. Early rising and early going to bed should also be habitually practised, and an excessive indulgence in wine, spirits, or beer, should be carefully avoided. Ihe mind should also be kept in as calm and equable a state as possible, excessive griel, violent paroxysms of anger, and other men- tal emotions, are extremely prejudicial to the appetite, and if indulged in during the time of taking meals, will render the process of eating more huriiul than beneficial. It should also be borne in mind that the ap- petite is materially influenced by the r^u- larity with which meals are taken, and that stated intervals should be obsen'ed beUveen each meal, so as to allow the food which has been previously eaten to undergo the process of digestion thoroughly, without being in- terrupted by the introduction of fresh ma- terials into the stomach. The length of time required between each meal for tlie piccess of digestion differs ac- cording to the nature of the food taken, to the employment of the body afterwards, and other accidents. As a general rule, however, an interval of from four to five hours maybe regarded as the standard for persons whose health is moderately robust, and whose oc- cupations are of an ordinary character. In cases where the appetite fails without any apparent cause, the operations of nature may be assisted by having recourse to the following remedies. . Mix a saltspoonful of rhubarb m a wine- glassful of extract of gentian, and take morning and nfght; or, , , Take llhubarb . • I'® drachms Syrup . . • one drachm ” Oil of Caraway .. ten drops make into forty pills, and take two every morning. Frequently also appetite mav be encouraged by taking a wincglasslul of bitters half an hour before a meal, or by chewing two or tliree ginger or peppermint lozenges. — See Bueakfast, Oigestion, OiNNEU, Food, Suppek, Tea, &c. APPLE.—This well-known fruit, com- prising upwards of 1500 varieties, is to be found in every part of the kingdom, and m all kinds of situations and soils. Ihe apple is propagated chiefly by seed, and by gralt- liiK' by seed in order to produce new va- rieties, and by grafting to increase the stock of those kinds already held in esteem. In pro- vaaation bit seed, they may be sown d'l!''!? the autumn in ixits or beds, in rich lighi earth, and about an inch below the suriace. At tlie expiration of a year they are h-oin- planted into nursery rows, and are so us to have a foot of clear space lor each removed to their destined place in the orchard or garden, and planted in the midst of a clear space of six or eight feet. They^ will then bear fruit in five or six years. M hen a selection is to be made from the plants raised from seed, those having broad round leaves are preferable to others having long narrow leaves: the former indicating a more fruitful tree than the latter. The seeds selected should be those of the largest and most convex form; care si>ould also be taken that the stock is of a superior class, sound and healthy, as any defect in the parent tree is perpetuated in the youthful plant. When it is desired to improve or strengthen any species already existing through the medium of seedlings, recourse is had to mixing, or “crossing” seeds of various fruits having properties in common, but \vith different qualities : thus the various kinds of pippins will cross better together than when mingled with a totaUy opposite class, such as the codUng. Propagation by grafting is achieved by two kinds of stocks, the xcild crab and the paradise: the former should be used only for standards, being of a vigorous growth ; while for dwarf trees the paradise is more suitable, as it possesses the property of curbing the growth of the shoots, and rendering them more fertile. The period for grafting is generally the fii*st or second week in March. It may, however, be more particularly guided by the rising of the sap, indicated by the enlargement of the buds.— SeeGRAETING. ^ . X, ^ r Apple trees are tramed in the form of standards, dwarfs, or espaliers. 'When standards are planted they should be supported by a stake, in order to protect and strengthen them. At the end of the first year the branches should be thinned so as to en- courage the formation of a good head. After this they will require only an ordinary amount of care and attention, and may be left to their own natural growth. Dwarfs are generally trained for garden culture, their fruit being of the finer sort for supply- ing the dessert table. Plants which have been grafted one year will train best for this purpose after standing untouched for a year, at the end of which time the head should be thinned, and redundant branchc.s pruned; and on the completion of the second and third years the same process should be had recourse to, but more sparingly. Espa- liers entail an elaborate mode of culture, and demand the greatest care to keep them in order. They are mostly trained so as to form a leading shoot from the centre, with lateral branches from the stem, as seen in the accompanying engraving. 'J he young plant when first put into the ground is not more than a foot high, and the lo\\cr branches are secured by small stakes. I lies*$

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