Kalm's account of his visit to England : on his way to America in 1748 / translated by Joseph Lucas ; with two maps and several illustrations.

  • Pehr Kalm
Date:
1892
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Kalm's account of his visit to England : on his way to America in 1748 / translated by Joseph Lucas ; with two maps and several illustrations. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    HS twigs begin to wither, dry up, and fall off, through which the hedge becomes thin at the bottom, so that small animals can creep through it. This can nevertheless, be remedied by sowing some furze seeds every year under the hedge. Also, if the twigs are cut off, or the stalks them- selves down at the bottom, then it strikes out new and fresh shoots, otherwise it is much used for hedges in gardens. The use of this bush, besides this, is that in this woodless district it is much used for fuel, whence it happens that it has seldom got to grow to any height. Otherwise it thrives well, so that where it has once taken hold, mtt fäste, it is not so easy to eradicate. The farmers,' Bönderna, sometimes have great trouble in effecting this, where it has got to insinuate itself [T. I. p. 178.] sufficiently into the fields. The twigs are much used to light fires with, because they have the same qualities as Jumper-twigs, or straw, viz., that they flare up, and quickly take fire, and rise up in a large and bright flame. In many places the walls of outhouses and sheds uthus och liders-väggar, were made of it in this way, that the roof of the shed, lider-taket, stood on posts, between each post there were staves, störar, erected, one foot or a little more apart; between t lese the furze was wreathed in the same way as the sprays in a kol-skrinda, or coal-sled, are plaited in serpentine folds. Sheep eat these shoots when they have newly run up, but they do so only from hunger, and for want of other better food. Rabbits eat it very much. It is a pity that it will not stand our climate. Who knows however, whether it might not be able to grow down in skäne ? [N. Lilja. Skdnes Flora, 1869, p. 512 “Sand Gultörne (Ulex. Europceus Linn) .... Cultivated very rare, Torup, Alnarp, Broby.” J. L.] [Kalm was at Little Gaddesden from March 2Sth to April i5th, 1748.] L
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