--- title: "On Agriculture · Res rustica" author: "Columella" translator: "Harrison Boyd Ash" languages: [la, en] shelf: "Classical Latin" url: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/ cite: "Columella, tr. Harrison Boyd Ash, On Agriculture · Res rustica. Scriptura (scriptura.si), https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/" --- # On Agriculture · Res rustica *Columella, tr. Harrison Boyd Ash* The fullest Roman manual of farming: choosing land, sowing grain, vines and olives, cattle, poultry, fish and bees, in the first nine of its twelve books. > Latin: ed. Harrison Boyd Ash, from the Perseus Digital Library (canonical-latinLit, phi0845.phi002, CC BY-SA 4.0). > English: Harrison Boyd Ash, from the Perseus Digital Library (phi0845.phi002.perseus-eng1). Notes are not included. > Rows follow the references the two texts share (books, chapters and sections), cut where both reach the end of a sentence. ## Contents 1. [Book I](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/1.md) 2. [Book II](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/2.md) 3. [Book III](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/3.md) 4. [Book IV](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/4.md) 5. [Book V](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/5.md) 6. [Book VI](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/6.md) 7. [Book VII](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/7.md) 8. [Book VIII](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/8.md) 9. [Book IX](https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/9.md) ## 1. Book I Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/1/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/1/#p-N [¶0] 1. Again and again I hear leading men of our state condemning now the unfruitfulness of the soil, now the inclemency of the climate for some seasons past, as harmful to crops; and some I hear reconciling the aforesaid complaints, as if on well-founded reasoning, on the ground that, in their opinion, the soil was worn out and exhausted by the over-production of earlier days and can no longer furnish sustenance to mortals with its old-time benevolence.1 Such 2 reasons. Publius Silvinus,6 I am convinced are far from the truth; for it is a sin to suppose that Nature, endowed with perennial fertility by the creator of the universe, is affected with barrenness as though with some disease; and it is unbecoming to a man of good judgment to believe that Earth, to whose lot was assigned a divine and everlasting youth, and who is called the common mother of all things—because she has always brought forth all things and is destined to bring them forth continuously—has grown old in mortal fashion. a And, furthermore, I do not believe that such misfortunes come upon us as a result of the fury of the elements, but rather because of our own fault; for the matter of husbandry, which all the best of our ancestors had treated with the best of care, Ave have delivered over to all the worst of our slaves, as if to a hangman for punishment. b As for me, I cannot cease to wonder why those who wish to become speakers are so careful in the choosing of an orator whose eloquence they may imitate; those who investigate the science of surveying and mathematics emulate a master of the art of their choice; those who devote themselves to the study of dancing and music are most scrupulous in their search for one to teach modulation of the speaking and singing voice, and no less for an instructor in graceful movement of the body; even those who wish to build call in joiners and master-builders; those who would entrust ships to the sea send for skilful pilots; those who make preparations for war call for men practised in arms and in campaigning; and, not to go through the list one by one, for any study which one wishes to pursue he employs the most expert director; in short, everyone summons from the company of the wise a man to mould his intellect and instruct him in the precepts of virtue; but agriculture alone, which is without doubt most closely related and, as it were, own sister to wisdom, is as destitute of learners as of teachers. For that there are to this day schools for rhetoricians and, as I have said, for mathematicians and musicians, or, what is more to be wondered at, training-schools for the most contemptible vices—the seasoning of food to promote gluttony and the more extravagant serving of courses, and dressers of the head and hair—I have not only heard but have even seen with my own eyes; but of agriculture I know neither self-professed teachers nor pupils. For even if the state were destitute of professors of the aforementioned arts, still the commonwealth could prosper just as in the times of the ancients—for without the theatrical profession and even without case-pleaders a cities were once happy enough, and will again be so; yet without tillers of the soil it is obvious that mankind can neither subsist nor be fed. For this reason, what has come to pass is the more amazing—that the art of the highest importance to our physical welfare and the needs of life should have made, even up to our own time, the least progress; and that this method of enlarging and passing on an inheritance, entirely free from guilt, should be looked upon with scorn. For other methods, diverse and in conflict as it were, are at odds with justice; unless we think it more equitable to have acquired spoils by the soldier's method, which profits us nothing without bloodshed and disaster to others. Or, to those who detest war, can the hazard of the sea and of trade be more desirable, that man, a terrestrial being, violating the law of nature and exposing himself to the wrath of wind and sea, should hang on the waves and always wander over an unknown world in the manner of birds, a stranger on a distant shore? Or is usury more commendable, a thing detested even by those whom it appears to aid? But certainly no more admirable is the " canine pursuit,"3 as the ancients called it, of barking at every man of outstanding wealth, and the practice of legal banditry against the innocent and in defence of the guilty—a fraud despised by our ancestors, but even allowed by us within the city and in the very forum. Or should I regard as more honourable the hypocritical fawning of the man who frequents the levees, for a price, and hovers about the thresholds of the mighty,6 divining the sleeping hours of his lord by hearsay? For the servants do not deign to reply to his questions as to what is going on indoors. Or am I to think it a greater gift of fortune for a man, rebuffed by a door-keeper in chains, to loiter about those ungrateful doors, often until late at night, and by the most demeaning servility to purchase at the price of dishonour the honour and power of the fasces, c though with the dissipation of his own inheritance? For it is not with voluntary servitude, but with bribes, that preferments are bought. If good men are to shun these pursuits and their kind, there remains, as I have said, one method of increasing one's substance that befits a man who is a gentleman and free-born, and this is found in agriculture. If the precepts of this science were put in practice in the old-fashioned way, even in imprudent fashion by those without previous instruction (provided, however, that they were owners of the land), the business of husbandry would sustain smaller loss; for the diligence that goes with pro- prietorship would compensate in large measure the losses occasioned by lack of knowledge; and men whose interests were at stake would not wish to appear forever ignorant of their own affairs, and for that reason more zealous to learn, they would gain a thorough knowledge of husbandry. As it is, we think it beneath us to till our lands with our own hands, and we consider it of no importance to appoint as an overseer a man of very great experience or at least, if he is inexperienced, one who is wide-awake and active, that he may learn more quickly what he does not know. But if a rich man purchases a farm, out of his throng of footmen and litter-bearers he sends off to the fields the one most bankrupt in years and strength, whereas such work requires, not only knowledge, but the age of vigour and physical strength as well, to endure its hardships; or, if the owner is of moderate means, out of the number of his hands for hire he orders someone who now refuses him the daily tribute money, since the man cannot be a source of income, to be made a foreman, though he may know nothing of the work which he is to superintend. When I observe these things, reviewing in my mind and reflecting upon the shameful unanimity with which rural discipline has been abandoned and passed out of use, I am fearful lest it may be disgraceful and, in a sense, degrading or dishonourable to men of free birth. But when I am reminded by the records of many -writers that it was a matter of pride with our forefathers to give their attention to farming, from which pursuit came Quinctius Cincinnatus, a summoned from the plough to the dictatorship to be the deliverer of a beleaguered consul and his army, and then, again laying down the power which he relinquished after victory more hastily than he had assumed it for command, to return to the same bullocks and his small ancestral inheritance of four iugera; b from which pursuit came also Gaius Fabricius c and Curius Dentatus d the one after his rout of Pyrrhus from the confines of Italy, the other after his conquest of the Sabines, tilling the captured land which they had received in the distribution of seven iugera to a man, with an energy not inferior to the bravery in arms with which they had gained it; and, not unseasonably to run through individual cases at this time, when I observe that so many other renowned captains of Roman stock were invariably distinguished in this twofold pursuit of either defending or tilling their ancestral or acquired estates, I understand that yesterday's morals and strenuous manner of living are out of tune with our present extravagance and devotion to pleasure. For, even as Marcus Varro e complained in the days of our grandfathers, all of us who are heads of families have quit the sickle and the plough and have crept within the city-walls; and we ply our hands in the circuses and theatres rather than in the grainfields and vineyards; and we gaze in astonished admiration at the posturings of effeminate males, because they counterfeit by their womanish motions a sex which nature has denied to men, and deceive the eyes of the spectators. And presently, then, that we may come to our gluttonous feasts in proper fettle, we steam out our daily indigestion in sweat-baths, a and by drying out the moisture of our bodies we arouse a thirst; we spend our nights in licentiousness and drunkenness, our days in gaming or in sleeping, and account ourselves blessed by fortune in that " we behold neither the rising of the sun nor its setting."b The consequence is that ill health attends so slothful a manner of living; for the bodies of our young men are so flabby and enervated that death seems likely to make no change in them. But, by heaven, that true stock of Romulus, practised in constant hunting and no less in toiling in the fields, was distinguished by the greatest physical strength and, hardened by the labours of peace, easily endured the hardships of war when occasion demanded, and always esteemed the common people of the country more highly than those of the city. For as those who kept within the confines of the country houses c were accounted more slothful than those who tilled the ground outside, so those who spent their time idly within the walls, in the shelter of the city, were looked upon as more sluggish than those who tilled the fields or supervised the labours of the tillers. It is evident, too, that their market-day a gatherings were employed for this purpose—that city affairs might be transacted on every ninth day only and country affairs on the other days. For in those times, as we have previously remarked, the leading men of the state used to pass their time in the fields and were summoned from their farms to the senate when advice on matters of state was wanted; as a result of which those who summoned them were called viatores b or “road-men.” And so long as this custom was preserved, with a most persevering enthusiasm for tilling their lands, those old Sabine Quirites and our Roman forefathers, even though exposed to fire and sword, and despite the devastation of their crops by hostile forays, still laid by a greater store of crops than do we, who, with the sufferance of long-continued peace, might have extended the practice of agriculture. So, then, in “this Latium and Saturnian land,” c where the gods had taught their offspring of the fruits of the fields, we let contracts at auction d for the importation of grain from our provinces beyond the sea, that we may not suffer hunger; and we lay up our stores of wine from the Cyclades Islands and from the districts of Baetica e and Gaul. Nor is it to be wondered at, seeing that the common notion is now generally entertained and established that farming is a mean employment and a business which has no need of direction or of precept. But for my part, when I review the magnitude of the entire subject, like the immensity of some great body, or the minuteness of its several parts, as so many separate members, I am afraid that my last day may overtake me before I can comprehend the entire subject of rural discipline. For one who would profess to be a master of this science must have a shrewd insight into the works of nature; he must not be ignorant of the variations of latitude, that he may have ascertained what is suitable to every region and what is incompatible. He should tell over in his mind the rising and setting of the stars, that he may not begin his operations when rains and winds are threatening, and so bring his toils to naught. He must observe the behaviour of the current weather and season, for they do not always wear the same habit as if according to a fixed rule; summer and winter do not come every year with the same countenance; the spring is not always rainy or the autumn moist. These matters I cannot believe that any man can know beforehand without the light of intelligence and without the most accurate instruction. Indeed, it is granted to few to discern what the very diversity of land and the nature of each soil may deny us, or what they may promise us. Of how many, in fact, is it the lot to survey all parts of this science, so as thoroughly to understand the practice of cropping and ploughing and to have an accurate knowledge of the varied and very unlike types of soil (of which some deceive us by their colour, some by their texture; in some lands the black soil which they call pulla, as in Campania, is commended; in others a fat, glutinous soil answers better; in some countries, as in Africa and Numidia, a crumbling, sandy soil surpasses in fertility even the strongest land; while in Asia and Mysia a a stiff and viscous soil is especially productive)? Of how many is it the lot to have an understanding in the matter of these soils, as to what crop a hillside will refuse to yield, what a level situation, what a cultivated land, what a wooded land, what a land that is moist and grassy or dry and blasted; to discern also the method of planting and tending trees and vineyards, of which there are endless varieties; and of acquiring and keeping cattle, since we have admitted this as a part of agriculture, though the herdsman's art is distinct from husbandry? And yet even this is not of one pattern; for a stud of horses requires one kind of management; a herd of cattle another; a flock of sheep still another, and of these the Tarentine breed 6 demands a different method from the coarse-wooled; a still different treatment is required by the goat kind, and of these the hornless and thin-haired are cared for in one way, the horned and shaggy-haired, as in Cilicia/ in another way. Moreover, the business of the swine-breeder and swineherd is different, their method of feeding is different; nor do light-coated and heavy-coated swine require the same climate, rearing, and care. And, to take my leave of cattle, as a part of which the care of farmyard poultry and bees is reckoned, who has extended his studies so far as to be acquainted, in addition to the points which I have enumerated, with the many methods of grafting and pruning? to put in practice the cultivation of the many fruits and vegetables? to devote his attention to the many varieties of figs as well as to rose-gardens, when even greater things are neglected by most people even though they have now begun to be, for many farmers, not the least part of their revenue? For meadows and willow-thickets, broom-plants and reeds, though they require little attention, still require some. After this announcement of subjects so many and so varied, it does not escape me that, if I demand, of those who are concerned with farm-work, the farmer whom we seek and shall describe, the enthusiasm of the learners will be cooled; for, being disheartened by the hopelessness of mastering so varied and so vast a science, they will not wish to try what they distrust their ability to attain. Nevertheless, as Marcus Tullius has very properly said in his Orator, a it is right that those who have an earnest desire to investigate subjects of the greatest utility for the human race, and to transmit to posterity their carefully weighed findings, should try everything. And if the force of an outstanding genius or the equipment of celebrated arts is wanting, we should not immediately relapse into idleness and sloth, but rather that which we have wisely hoped for we should steadfastly pursue. For if only we aim at the topmost peak, it -will be honour enough for us to be seen even on the second summit. Have not the Muses of Latium admitted to their sanctuaries, not Accius 6 and Vergil alone, but also assigned seats of honour to those next to them and to those far from second rank? The far-famed fulminations of Cicero a did not deter from the pursuit of eloquence Brutus or Caelius, Pollio or Messala or Calvus;6 for Cicero himself had not yielded in fright to the thunderings of Demosthenes and Plato, and the father of eloquence, that divine Maeonian,1 with the mighty floods of his rhetoric had not quenched the zeal of those who came after him. And we observe that even artists of lesser fame, who through these many generations have been admirers of Protogenes and Apelles and Parrhasius, d have not ceased from their own labours; and, though stunned by the beauty of Phidias' Olympian Jove and of his Minerva/ men of the succeeding age, Bryaxis, Lysippus, Praxiteles, and Polyclitus, f were not reluctant to try what they could do or how far they could advance. But in every branch of knowledge the highest have attained to admiration and reverence, and those of lesser worth have received their meed of praise. Added to this is that in the case of the man whom we wish to be a finished husbandman, even though he be not a man of consummate skill, though he may not have attained to the sagacity of a Democritus or a Pythagoras s in the nature of the universe, and the foreknowledge of Meton or Eudoxus h in the movements of the stars and the winds, the learning of Chiron1' and Melampus in the care of cattle and the prudent wisdom of Triptolemus a or Aristaeus 6 in the tilling of the fields and the soil, still he will have made great progress if he has equalled in practice our own Tremeliuses and Sasernas and Stolos.c For agriculture can be conducted without the greatest mental acuteness, but not on the other hand, “by the fat-witted,3” to use a frequent expression. For far from the, truth is the belief, held by many, that the business of husbandry is extremely easy and requires no mental keenness. There is no occasion for further discussion of the subject as a whole at this point, inasmuch as its several divisions are to be set forth in the several Books assigned to them, which I shall carry through, each in its own order, but only after I have said by way of preface what I judge to be especially pertinent to the science in general. > Latin: 1. Saepenumero civitatis nostrae principes audio culpantes modo agrorum infecunditatem, modo caeli per multa iam tempora noxiam frugibus intemperiem; quosdam etiam praedictas querimonias velut ratione certa mitigantes, quod existiment ubertate nimia prioris aevi defatigatum et effetum munis omnium parens dicta sit, quia et cuncta peperit semper et deinceps paritura sit, velut hominem consenuisse. Nec post haec reor violentia vel, quod magis mirandum est, contemptissimorum vitiorum officinas, gulosius condiendi cibos et luxuriosius fercula semperque ritu volucrum longinqui litoris peregrinus ignotum pererret orbem? An faeneratio probabilior sit, etiam his invisa quibus succurrere videtur? Sed ne caninum cum ignorantiae detrimentis multa pensaret, nec quorum commodum ageretur, tota vita vellent imprudentes negotii sui conspici eoque discendi cupidiores agricolationem pernoscerent. Nunc et ipsi praedia nostra colere dedignamur et nullius momenti ducimus peritissimum quemque vilicum facere vel, si nescium, certe vigoris experrecti, quo celerius, quod ignoret, tionis, ex qua Quinctius Cincinnatus, obsessi consulis et exercitus liberator, ab aratro vocatus ad dictaturam venerit ac rursus fascibus depositis, quos festinantius victor reddiderat quam sumpserat imperator, ad eosdemiuvencosetquattuoriugerum avitum herediolum redierit, itemque C. Fabricius et Curius Dentatus, alter Pyrrho finibus Italiae pulso, domitis alter Sabinis, accepta, quae viritim dividebantur, captivi agri septem iugera non minus industrie coluerit, quam fortiter armis quaesierat; et ne singulos intempestive nunc persequar, cum tot alios Romani generis intuear memorabiles duces hoc semper duplici studio floruisse vel defendendi vel colendi patrios quaesitosve fines, intellego luxuriae et deliciis nostris pristinum morem virilemque vitam displicuisse. Omnes enim, sicut M. Varro iam temporibus avorum conquestus est, patres familiae falce et aratro relictis intra murum correpsimus et in circis potius ac theatris quam in segetibus ac vinetis denegatum muliebri motu mentiantur decipiantque oculos spectantium. 'Mox deinde, ut apti veniamus ad ganeas, cotidianam cruditatem Laconicis festum est propterea usurpatos, ut nonis tantummodo diebus urbanae res agerentur, reliquis administrarentur rusticae. Illis enim temporibus, ut ante iam diximus, proceres civitatis in agris morabantur et, cum consilium publicum desiderabatur, a villis arcessebantur quandam vastitatem corporis aut partium eius velut singulorum membrorum subtilitatem dispicio, melius respondet, quibusdam sicut in Africa Numidiaque generibus ficorum sicut rosariis impenderet curam, cum a plerisque etiam maiora neglegantur, proximis et procul a secundis sacras concessere sedes? Nec Brutum aut Caelium Pollionemve cum Messala et Calvo Melampodis, et in agrorum solique molitione Triptolemi aut Aristaei prudentiam, multum tamen profecerit si usu Tremelios Sasernasque et Stolones nostros aequaverit. Potest enim nec subtilissima nec rursus, quod aiunt, pingui Minerva res agrestis administrari. Nam illud procul vero est, quod plerique crediderunt, facillimam esse nec ullius acuminis rusticationem. De cuius universitate nihil attinet plura nunc disserere, quoniam1 quidem cunctae partes eius destinatis aliquot voluminibus explicandae sunt, quas ordine suo tunc demum persequar, cum praefatus fuero quae reor ad universam disciplinam maxime pertinere. [¶1] 1. One who devotes himself to agriculture should understand that he must call to his assistance these most fundamental resources: knowledge of the subject, means for defraying the expenses, and the will to do the work. For in the end, as Tremelius remarks, he will have the best-tilled lands who has the knowledge, the wherewithal, and the will to cultivate them. For the knowledge and willingness will not suffice anyone without the means which the tasks require; on the other hand, the will to do or the ability to make the outlay will be of no use without knowledge of the art, since the main thing in every enterprise is to know what has to be done—and especially so in agriculture, where willingness and means, without knowledge, frequently bring great loss to owners when work which has been done in ignorance brings to naught the expense incurred. Accordingly, an attentive head of a household, whose heart is set on pursuing a sure method of increasing Ins fortune from the tillage of his land, will take especial pains to consult on every point the most experienced farmers of his own time; he should study zealously the manuals of the ancients, gauging the opinions and teachings of each of them, to see whether the records handed down by his forefathers are suited in their entirety to the husbandry of his day or are out of keeping in some respects. For I have found that many authorities now worthy of remembrance were convinced that with the long wasting of the ages, weather and climate undergo a change; and that among them the most learned professional astronomer, Hipparchus,0 has put it on record that the time will come when the celestial poles will change position, a statement to which Saserna, no mean authority on husbandry, seems to have given credence. For in that book on agriculture which he has left behind he concludes that the position of the heavens has changed from this evidence: that regions which formerly, because of the unremitting severity of winter, could not safeguard any shoot of the vine or the olive planted in them, now that the earlier coldness has abated and the weather is becoming more clement, produce olive harvests and the vintages of Bacchus in the greatest abundance. But whether this theory be true or false, we must leave it to the writings on astronomy. Other precepts of husbandly are not to be concealed from the tiller of the soil; and while Punic writers from Africa have handed them down in large numbers, yet many of them are assailed as erroneous by our farmers, as, for example, by Tremelius, who, though he brings this very charge, provides the excuse that the soil and the climate of Italy and of Africa, being of a different nature, cannot produce the same results. But whatever the causes by reason of which the agricultural practice of our times is at variance with the ancient principles, they should not discourage the learner from reading them; for in the works of the ancients far more is found to merit our approval than our rejection. There is, furthermore, a great throng of Greeks who give instruction on husbandry; and the first of them, that most renowned poet, Hesiod a of Boeotia, has contributed in no small degree to our art. It was then further assisted by men who have come from the well-spring of philosophy—Democritus of Abdera, Xenophon the follower of Socrates, Archytas of Tarentum, and the two Peripatetics, master and pupil, Aristotle and Theophrastus. Sicilians, too, have pursued that occupation with no ordinary zeal, Hieron and Epicharmus, whose pupil was even Attalus Philometor.6 Athens assuredly has been the mother of a host of writers, of whom our most out- standing authorities are Chaereas, Aristandrus, Amphilochus, Euphronius, and Chrestus—Euphronius being not, as many believe, the Euphronius of Amphipolis (who is himself regarded as a praiseworthy farmer), but a native of Attica. The islands, too, have honoured the study, as witness Epigenes of Rhodes, Agathocles of Chios, and Evagon and Anaxipolis of Thasos. Menander and Diodorus also, fellow-countrymen of the renowned Bias, one of the Seven,1 were among the first to lay claim to a knowledge of agriculture. Not inferior to these are Bacchius and Mnaseas of Miletus, Antigonus of Cymê, Apollonius of Pergamus, Dion of Colophon, and Hegesias of Maronea. As a matter of fact, Diophanes of Bithynia epitomized in six abridged volumes the entire work of Dionysius of Utica, who translated in many prolix volumes the treatise of the Carthaginian Mago.6Other writers, too, though of lesser fame, whose countries we have not learned, have made some contribution to our study. Such are Androtion, Aeschrion, Aristomenes, Athenagoras, Crates, Dadis, Dionysius. Euphyton, and Euphorion. And with no less fidelity have Lysimachus and Eubulus, Menestratus and Plentiphanes, Persis and Theophilus, to the best of their ability, brought us their tribute. And that we may endow Agriculture at last with Roman citizenship (for it has belonged thus far to writers of the Greek race), let us now recall that illustrious Marcus Cato the Censor, who first taught her to speak in Latin; after him the two Sasernas, a father and son, who continued her education with greater care; then Tremelius Scrofa, b who gave her eloquence, and Marcus Terentius, who added refinement; and presently Vergil, who gave her the power of song as well. And finally, let us not disdain to mention her paedagogus, d so to speak, Julius Hyginus/ though still paying greatest reverence to the Carthaginian Mago as the father of husbandry, inasmuch as his twenty-eight memorable volumes were translated into the Latin tongue by senatorial decree. No less honour, however, is due to men of our own time, Cornelius Celsus f and Julius Atticus; g for Cornelius has embraced the whole substance of the subject in five books, while the latter has published just one book on one kind of agriculture, that concerned with vines. And his pupil, as it were, Julius Graecinus, h has taken care that two volumes of similar instructions on vineyards, composed in a more elegant and learned style, should be handed down to posterity.i These, then. Publius Silvinus, are the men whom you are to call into consultation before you make any contract with agriculture, yet not with any thought that you will attain perfection in the whole subject through their maxims; for the treatises of such writers instruct rather than create the craftsman. It is practice and experience that hold supremacy in the crafts, and there is no branch of learning in which one is not taught by his own mistakes. For when a venture turns out unsuccessfully through wrong management, one avoids the mistake that he had made, and the instructions of a teacher cast a light upon the right course. Hence these precepts of ours promise, not to bring the science to perfection, but to lend a helping hand. And no man will immediately become a master of agriculture by the reading of these doctrines, unless he has the will and the resources to put them into practice. We set them forth, therefore, in the nature of supports to those who wish to learn, not intended to be beneficial by themselves alone, but in conjunction with other requirements. And, as I have stated, not even those aids, nor the constant toil and experience of the farm overseer, nor the means and the willingness to spend money, avail as much as the mere presence of the master; a for if his presence does not frequently attend the work, all business comes to a standstill, just as in an army when the commander is absent. And I believe that Mago the Carthaginian was pointing this out most particularly when he began his writings with such sentiments as these: “One who has bought land should sell his town house, so that he will have no desire to worship the household gods of the city rather than those of the country; the man who takes greater delight in his city residence will have no need of a country estate”.a This precept, if it could be carried out in our times, I would not change. But as things are, since political ambition often calls most of us away, and even more often keeps us away when called, I consequently rate it as most advantageous to have an estate near town, which even the busy man may easily visit every day after his business in the forum is done. For men who purchase lands at a distance, not to mention estates across the seas, are making over their inheritances to their slaves, as to their heirs and, worse yet, while they themselves are still alive; for it is certain that slaves are corrupted by reason of the great remoteness of their masters and, being once corrupted and in expectation of others to take their places after the shameful acts which they have committed, they are more intent on pillage than on farming. I am of the opinion, therefore, that land should be purchased nearby, so that the owner may visit it often and announce that his visits will be more frequent than he really intends them to be; for under this apprehension both overseer and labourers will be at their duties. But whenever the chance offers, he should stay in the country; and his stay should not be an idle one nor one spent in the shade. For it behooves a careful householder to go around every little bit of his land quite frequently and at every season of the year, that he may the more intelligently observe the nature of the soil, whether in foliage and grass or in ripened crops, and that he may not be ignorant of what-may properly be done on it. For it is an old saying of Cato that “land is most grievously maltreated when its master does not direct what is to be done thereon but listens to his overseer.” Therefore, let it be the chief concern of one who owns a farm inherited from his ancestors, or of one who intends to buy a place, to know what kind of ground is most approved, so that he may either be rid of one that is unprofitable or purchase one that is to be commended. But if fortune attends our prayer, we shall have a farm in a healthful climate, with fertile soil, partly level, partly hills with a gentle eastern or southern slope; with some parts of the land cultivated, and other parts wooded and rough; not far from the sea or a navigable stream, by which its products may be earned off and supplies brought in. The level ground, divided into meadows, arable land, willow groves, and reed thickets, should be adjacent to the steading. Let some of the hills be bare of trees, to serve for grain crops only; still these crops thrive better in moderately dry and fertile plains than in steep places, and for that reason even the higher grainfields should have some level sections and should be of as gentle a slope as possible and very much like flat land. Again, other hills should be clad with olive groves and vineyards, and with copses to supply props for the latter; they should be able to furnish wood and stone, if the need of building so requires, as well as grazing ground for herds; and then they should send down coursing rivulets into meadows, gardens, and willow plantations, and running water for the villa. And let there be no lack of herds of cattle and of other four-footed kind to graze over the tilled land and the thickets. But such a situation as we desire is hard to find and, being uncommon, it falls to the lot of few; the next best is one which possesses most of these qualities, and one is passable which lacks the fewest of them. > Latin: 1. Qui studium agricolationi dederit, antiquissima sciat haec sibi advocanda: prudentiam rei, facultatem impendendi, voluntatem agendi. Nam is demum cultissimum rus habebit, ut ait Tremelius, qui et colere sciet et poterit et volet. Neque enim scire aut velle cuiquam satis fuerit sine sumptibus, quos exigunt opera; nec rursus faciendi aut impendendi voluntas profuerit sine arte, quia caput est in omni negotio nosse quid agendum sit, maximeque in agri cultura, in qua voluntas facultasque citra scientiam saepe magnam dominis adferunt iacturam, cum imprudenter facta opera frustrantur impensas. Itaque diligens pater familliae, cui cordi est ex agri cultu certam sequi rationem rei familiaris augendae, maxime curabit ut et Liberique vindemiis exuberent. Sed haec sive falsa seu Chaereas, Aristandros, Amphilochus, Euphronius, Chrestus1—Euphronius gentis fuit) iam nunc M. Catonem Censorium illum memoremus, qui eam latine loqui primus instituit, post hunc duos Sasernas, patrem et filium, contrahas, advocato in consilium, nec tamen sic mente dispositus velut summam totius rei sententiis eorum consecuturus, quippe urbanum domicilium, rustico praedio non erit opus." Quod ego praeceptum, si posset his temporibus observari, non immutarem. Nunc quoniam faciendum sit non docet, sed audit vilicum. Quapropter vel a maioribus traditum possidenti vel empturo fundum praecipua cura sit scire, quod maxime regionis genus probetur, ut vel careat inutili vel mercetur laudabilem. Quod si voto fortuna subscribit, Sed haec positio, quam desideramus, difficilis et rara paucis contingit; proxima est huic, quae plurima ex his habet; tolerabilis, quae non paucissima. [¶2] 3. Porcius Cato, indeed, held the opinion that in the inspection of farm land two considerations were of chief importance—the wholesomeness of the climate, and the fruitfulness of the region;[a] and that if either of these were wanting and one had the desire none the less to live there, he had lost his senses and should be turned over to his legal guardians. b For no one in his right mind should go to the expense of cultivating barren soil, and, on the other hand, in an unhealthful climate, no matter how fruitful and rich the soil, the owner cannot live to the harvest; for where the reckoning must be made with Orcus, c not only the harvesting' of the crops but also the life of the husbandmen is uncertain, or rather death is more certain than gain. After these two primary considerations he added, as deserving no less attention, the following: the road, the water, and the neighbourhood. A handy road contributes much to the worth of land: first and most important, the actual presence of the owner, who will come and go more cheerfully if he does not have to dread discomfort on the journey; and secondly its convenience for bringing in and carrying out the necessaries—a factor which increases the value of stored crops and lessens the expense of bringing things in, as they are transported at lower cost to a place which may be reached without great effort; and it means a great deal,[a] too, to get transportation at low cost if you make the trip with hired draught-animals, which is more expedient than looking after your own; furthermore, that the slaves who are to accompany the master will not be reluctant to begin the journey on foot. As to the goodness of the water, the point is so apparent to everyone that it needs no further discussion; for who can doubt that water— without which none of us, whether of sound or delicate health, can prolong his life—is most highly esteemed? As to the suitability of a neighbour, there is, as a matter of fact, no fixed rule, since death and various other circumstances sometimes change him in our eyes. It is for this reason that some people reject Cato's opinion, though they appear to be badly mistaken. For, as it is the part of a wise man to endure the blows of fortune with a stout heart, so it is the mark of a madman to create misfortunes for himself voluntarily; and this is what he does who spends his money in the purchase of a worthless neighbour, even though he might have heard, from his first days in the cradle, provided he comes of gentle stock, the Greek proverb: Not even an ox would be lost but for an evil neighbour. b And this saying applies not only to the ox, but to all parts of our estate; to such an extent, in fact, that many have preferred to forsake their household gods and have quit their homes because of the wrongdoing of their neighbours; unless we attribute it to some other motive than their inability to put up with bad neighbours that whole nations (I speak of the Achaeans and Hiberians, the Albanians, too, and the Sicilians as well; and, to touch upon our own beginnings, the Pelasgians, the Aborigines, and the Arcadians) abandoned their native soil and sought out a different part of the world. And not to speak merely of disasters affecting communities at large, it is a matter of tradition that private individuals too, both in the countries of Greece and in our own Hesperia, have been abominable neighbours; unless anyone could have endured that infamous Autolycus a on an adjoining place, or unless Cacus,6 a resident of the Aventine mount, brought joy to his neighbours on the Palatine! For I prefer to speak of men of past times rather than of the present, so as not to call by name a neighbour of my own who does not allow a tree of any great spread to stand on our common line; who does not let a seed-bed go unhurt, or stakes to support the vines; who does not even let the cattle graze undisturbed. Rightly, then, as far as my opinion goes, did Marcus Porcius advise the avoidance of such a nuisance and particularly warn the farmer-to-be not to come near it of his own free will. To the other injunctions we add one which one of the Seven Sages c delivered to posterity for all time: that measure and proportion be applied to all things, and that this be understood as spoken not only to those who are to embark on some other enterprise, but also to those who are to acquire land —not to want to buy more than a regard for their reckonings allows. For this is the meaning of that famous maxim of our own poet: “Admire large farms, but yet a small one till.” This precept, which a most learned man has expressed in verse, is, in my opinion, a heritage from antiquity, inasmuch as it is agreed that the Carthaginians, a very shrewd people, had the saying that the farm should be weaker than the farmer; for, as he must wrestle with it, if the land prove the stronger, the master is crushed. And there is no doubt that an extensive field, not properly cultivated, brings in a smaller return than a little one tilled with exceeding care. b For this reason those seven iugera of Licinius, c which the tribune of the plebs distributed to each man after the expulsion of the kings, rewarded the ancients with greater returns than our very extensive fallow-lands bestow upon us nowadays. So great an amount, in fact, did Manius Curius Dentatus, whom we mentioned a little above, d regard as a good fortune greater than that of one who had been consul and had received a triumph, when after the winning of a victory under his successful leadership, the people bestowed upon him, in token of reward for his unusual ability, fifty iugera of land; and, declining the generosity of the state, he was content with the portion allotted to his fellow-citizens and to the common people. Later on, even though our victories and the annihilation of the enemy had desolated vast stretches of country, it was still a criminal matter for a senator to have more than fifty a iugera in his possession. And Gaius Licinius b was condemned under the terms of his own law when, with an unrestrained passion for ownership, he had exceeded the limit of landholdings which he had set up by legislation proposed when he was a tribune; and this not only because it was a mark of arrogance to occupy holdings of such extent, but quite as much for the reason that it seemed the more scandalous for a Roman citizen, by extending his ownership in unheard-of fashion beyond the sufficiency of his inheritance, to leave unfilled those lands which the enemy by their flight had abandoned. Therefore, as in all matters, so too in the acquiring of land, moderation shall be exercised. For only so much is to be occupied as is needed, that we may appear to have purchased what we may keep under control, not to saddle ourselves with a burden and to deprive others of its use and enjoyment after the manner of men of enormous wealth who, possessing entire countries of which they cannot even make the rounds, either leave them to be trampled by cattle and wasted and ravaged by wild beasts, or keep them occupied by citizens enslaved for debt c and by chain-gangs. But every man's limit will be determined by his own desire plus his means; for, as I have said before, the desire for possession does not suffice if you lack the wherewithal for cultivation. > Latin: 3. Porcius quidem Cato censebat inspiciendo agro 1 praecipue duo esse consideranda, salubritatem caeli et ubertatem loci; quorum si alterum deesset ac nihilo minus quis vellet incolere mente esse captum atque eum ad agnatos et gentiles deducendum. Neminem enim sanum debere facere sumptus in cultura sterilis soli, nec rursus pestilenti quamvis feracissimo pinguique agro dominum ad fructus pervenire. Nam ubi sit cum Orco ratio ponenda, ibi non modo perceptionem fructuum, sed et vitam colonorum esse dubiam vel potius mortem quaestu certiorem. Post haec duo principalia subiungebat illa non minus intuenda: viam, aquam, vicinum. et minuit impensas rerum invectarum, quia minoris adportentur eo, quo facili nisu perveniatur; nec non aliter existimamus diversum orbem gentes universas petisse relicto patrio solo, Achaeos dico et Hiberos, Albanos quoque nec minus Siculos et, ut primordia nostra contingam, Pelasgos, Aborigines, Arcadas, quam quia malos vicinos ferre non potuerant. Ac ne tantum de publicis calamitatibus loquar, privatos quoque memoria tradidit et in regionibus Graeciae et in hac ipsa Hesperia detestabiles fuisse vicinos, nisi Autolycus ille cuiquam potuit tolerabilis esse conterminus, aut Aventini montis incola Palatinis ullum gaudium finitimis quam ratio calculorum patitur, emere velint. agrorum vastitatem victoriae nostrae et interneciones hostium fecissent, criminosum tamen senatori fuit supra quinquaginta iugera possedisse, suaque lege C. Licinius damnatus est, quod agri modum, quem in magistratu rogatione tribunicia promulgaverat, immodica possidendi libidine transcendisset, nec magis quia superbum videbatur tantum loci detinere quam quia flagitiosius, Sequitur deinceps Caesonianum praeceptum, quo fertur usus etiam Cato Marcus, agrum esse revisendum saepius eum, quem velis mercari. [¶3] 4. Next in order is the precept of Caesonius, a which Marcus Cato b also is said to have employed, that land which one intends to purchase should be visited again and again; for at the first examination it does not reveal the hidden qualities, bad or good, which are more readily apparent to those who go over it again soon afterwards. Our ancestors, too, have handed down to us what may be called a standard for the appraisal of rich and fertile land, of whose properties we shall speak in a fitting place, when we come to the discussion of types of soil. c I have, however, a general rule which should be an attesting witness, so to speak, and should be proclaimed again and again; a rule which Marcus Atilius Regulus, a general of the greatest renown in the first Punic War, is reported to have laid down: that as a farm, even of the richest soil, is not to be purchased if it be unwholesome, just so we are not to buy a piece of worn-out land even though it be most wholesome.3 This advice Atilius gave to the husbandmen of his day with the greater authority as coming from the knowledge of experience; for history relates that he was once the tiller of a pestilential and lean piece of ground in Pupinia. e Wherefore, though it may be the part of a wise man not to buy anywhere and everywhere and not to be beguiled by either the allurements of fruitful land or the charm of its beauty, it is just as truly the part of an industrious master to render fruitful and profitable any land that he has acquired by purchase or otherwise; for our predecessors have left to us many means of relief from a noxious climate, whereby pernicious plagues may be alleviated, and even on lean land the good sense and painstaking of the husbandman can overcome the thinness of the soil. These results we shall attain, moreover, if we pay heed, as to an oracle, to the truest of poets, who says: “Be it our care to learn betimes the winds and moods of heaven, To learn the tillage of our sires and nature of the place, What fruits each district does produce and what it does refuse.” And yet, not content with the authority of either former or present-day husbandmen, we must hand down our own experiences and set ourselves to experiments as yet untried. This practice, though sometimes detrimental in part, nevertheless proves advantageous on the whole; because no field is tilled without profit if the owner, through much experimentation, causes it to be fitted for the use which it can best serve. Such management also increases the profit from the most fertile land. Accordingly, there should be no neglect, anywhere, of experimentation in many forms; and far greater daring should be shown on rich soil, because the return will not render the toil and expense a total loss. But as the nature of the farm and the method of its cultivation is a matter of importance, even so is the construction of the farmstead and the convenience of its arrangement; for tradition has it that many have made mistakes, as is the case of two very eminent men, Lucius Lucullus a and Quintus Scaevola, b of whom the one put up too large a stand of buildings, the other not large enough to meet the requirements of his acreage; though either error is contrary to the interests of the owner. For not only are we put to excessive expense in erecting buildings on too large a scale, but also we pay more for upkeep; on the other hand, when they are smaller than the farm requires, its products are wasted. For both the moist and the dry products which the earth produces are easily spoiled if there are no buildings into which they may be carried, or if such buildings are unsuitable because of their scantiness. Furthermore, the master should be housed as well as possible in proportion to his means, so that he may more willingly visit the country and find more pleasure in staying there. And especially, if his wife also accompanies him, since her disposition, like her sex, is daintier, she must be humoured by amenities of some sort to make her stay more contentedly with her husband. The farmer, then, should build handsomely, but without letting building become his passion, and he should take in only so large a plot that, as Cato 1 says, “the buildings may not seek for land, nor the land for buildings.” c As to the qualities of a building site, I shall now speak in general terms. As a building which is begun should be situated in a healthful region, so too in the most healthful part of that region; for when the surrounding atmosphere is bad, it is a contributing factor to a host of physical ills. There are certain places, such as Thebes in Bocotia is said to be, which are comparatively free from heat in midsummer but become frightful and unbearable with the cold of winter; there are places which are mild in winter but glow with a most cruel heat in summer, as they say of Chalcis in Euboea. Let there be sought, then, an atmosphere free from excesses of heat and cold; this is usually maintained halfway up a hill, because, not being in a hollow, it is not numbed with winter's frosts or baked with steaming heat in summer, and, not being perched on the top of a mountain, it is not fretted at every season of the year with every little breeze or rain. The best situation, then, is halfway up a slope, but on a little eminence, so that when a torrent formed by the rains at the summit pours around it the foundations will not be torn away. Let there be, moreover, a never-failing spring either within the steading or brought in from outside; a wood-lot and pasture near by. If running water is wanting, make a search for a well close by, to be not too deep for hoisting the water, and not bitter or brackish in taste. If this too fails, and if scanty hope of veins of water compels it, have large cisterns built for people and ponds for cattle; this rain-water is after all most suitable to the body's health, and is regarded as uncommonly good if it is conveyed through earthen pipes into a covered cistern. Next to this is flowing water which, having its source in the mountains, comes tumbling down over rocks as on Mount Gaurus in Campania. The third choice is well-water which is found on a hillside or in a valley, if not in its lowest part. Worst of all is swamp-water, which creeps along with sluggish flow; and water that always remains stagnant in a swamp is laden with death. But this same water, harmful though its nature is, is purified by the rains of the winter season and loses its virulence; from this fact water from the heavens is known to be most healthful, as it even washes away the pollution of poisonous water, and Ave have stated that this is most approved for drinking. a On the other hand, bubbling brooks contribute greatly to the alleviation of summer heat and to the attractiveness of places; and, if local conditions will allow, I think that they, by all means, should be conducted into the villa, regardless of the quality of the water if only it is sweet. But if the stream is far removed from the hills, and if the healthfulness of the region and the somewhat elevated position of its banks allow the placing of the villa above flowing water, care must still be taken that it have the stream at the rear rather than in front of it,6 and that the front of the structure face away from the harmful winds peculiar to the region and towards those that are most friendly; for most streams reek with mists, hot in summer and cold in winter, and these, unless dispersed by the greater force of winds that blow upon them, are the cause of destruction to man and beast. It is best, moreover, as I have said, for a villa to face the east or the south in healthful situations, the north in noxious. A villa is always properly placed when it overlooks the sea and receives the shock of the waves and is sprinkled with their spray; yet never on the shore but not a little distance removed from the edge of the water. For it is better to move back a considerable distance from the sea rather than a short way, since the intermediate space is filled with a heavier air. And neither should there be any marsh-land near the buildings, and no military highway adjoining: for the former throws off a baneful stench in hot weather and breeds insects armed with annoying stings, which attack us in dense swarms; then too it sends forth plagues of swimming and crawling things deprived of their winter moisture and infected with poison by the mud and decaying filth, from which are often contracted mysterious diseases whose causes are even beyond the understanding of physicians;[a] and at every season of the year rust and dampness play havoc with farm implements and equipment, and with unstored and stored produce; the highway, moreover, impairs an estate through the depredations of passing travellers and the constant entertainment of those who turn in for lodging. For these reasons my advice is to avoid disadvantages of this sort and to place the villa neither on a highway nor far from a highway, at a greater height, and to build it in such a way that it faces the point where the sun rises at the time of the equinox.6 For a situation of this kind maintains an even and steady balance between the winds of winter and those of summer; and the more the site of the building slopes toward the east the more freely can it catch the passing breezes in summer and the less be molested by the storms of winter, and it can be warmed by the morning sun so that the frosts will melt—since ground is regarded as well-nigh pestilential when it is in- accessible and unfavourably situated with reference to the sun and the sun-warmed breezes; and if it is cut off from these, no other force can dry up or clear away the night frosts and any mould or dirt that has settled there. And these are destructive not only to men but to cattle and growing crops and their fruits as well. But one who desires to erect a building on a sloping site should always begin operations at the lower side; for when the foundations start from the less elevated point, they will not only easily support their own superstructure but will also serve as a buttress and underpinning for any additions which may later be made to the upper side, if it should prove desirable to enlarge the villa—for of course the previous structure below will offer strong support for any that may be built above and rest on it afterwards. On the contrary, if the foundation at the upper side of the slope supports a load of its own, anything that you may later add below will be full of cracks and chinks; for when new construction is added to old, it draws away as if objecting to the growing burden, and the older structure will press upon it as it gives way until, gradually overpowered by its own weight, it will topple in ruins. Such a structural defect must therefore be avoided at the start when the foundations are first laid. The size of the villa and the number of its parts should be proportioned to the whole inclosure. and it should be divided into three groups: the villa urbana a or manor house, the villa rustica b or farmhouse, and the villa fructuaria or storehouse. The manor house should be divided in turn into winter apartments and summer apartments, in such a way that the winter bedrooms may face the sunrise at the winter solstice,0 and the winter dining-room face the sunset at the equinox.6 The summer bedrooms, on the other hand, should look toward the midday sun at the time of the equinox, c but the dining-rooms of that season should look toward the rising sun of winter. The baths should face the setting sun of summer/ that they may be lighted from midday up to evening. The promenades should be exposed to the midday sun at the equinox, so as to receive both the maximum of sun in winter and the minimum in summer. But in the part devoted to farm uses there will be placed a spacious and high kitchen, that the rafters may be free from the danger of fire, and that it may offer a convenient stopping-place for the slave household at every season of the year. It will be best that cubicles for unfettered slaves be built to admit the midday sun at the equinox; for those who are in chains there should be an underground prison, as wholesome as possible, receiving light through a number of narrow windows built so high from the ground that they cannot be reached with the hand. For cattle there should be stables which will not be troubled by either heat or cold; for animals broken to work, two sets of stalls—one for winter, another for summer; and for the other animals which it is proper to keep within the farmstead there should be places partly covered, partly open to the sky, and surrounded with high walls so that the animals may rest in the one place in winter, in the other in summer, without being attacked by wild beasts. But stables should be roomy and so arranged that no moisture can flow in and that whatever is made there may run off very quickly, to prevent the rotting of either the bases of the walls or the hoofs of the cattle. Ox-stalls should be ten feet wide, or nine at the least—a size which will allow room for the animal to lie down and for the oxherd to move around it in performing his duties. a The feed-racks should not be too high for the ox or pack-animal to feed from without inconvenience while standing. Quarters should be provided for the overseer alongside the entrance, so that he may have oversight of all who come in and go out; and for the steward over the entrance for the same reason, and also that he may keep close watch on the overseer; and near both of these there should be a storehouse in which all farm gear may be collected, and within it a closet for the storing of the iron implements. Cells for the herdsmen and shepherds should be adjacent to their respective charges, so that they may conveniently run out to care for them. And yet all should be quartered as close as possible to one another, so that the diligence of the overseer may not be overtaxed in making the rounds of the several places, and also that they may be witnesses of one another's industry and negligence. As to the part devoted to the storage of produce, it is divided into rooms for oil, for presses, for wine, for the boiling down of must, lofts for hay and chaff, storerooms, and granaries, that such of them as are on the ground floor may take care of liquid products for the market, such as oil and wine; while dry products, such as grain, hay, leaves, chaff, and other fodder, should be stored in lofts. But the granaries, as I have said, should be reached by ladders and should receive ventilation through small openings on the north side; for that exposure is the coolest and the least humid, and both these considerations contribute to the preservation of stored grain. The same reason holds true in the placing of the wine-room on the ground floor; and it should be far removed from the baths, oven, dunghill, and other filthy places which give off a foul odour, and no less so from cisterns and running water, from which is derived a moisture that spoils the wine. And I am not unaware that some consider the best place for storing grain to be a granary with a vaulted ceiling, its earthen floor, before it is covered over, dug up and soaked with fresh and unsalted lees of oil and packed down with rammers as is Signian work.[a] Then, after this has dried thoroughly, it is overlaid in the same way with a pavement of tiles consisting of lime and sand mixed with oil lees instead of water, and these are beaten down with great force by rammers and are smoothed off; and all joints of walls and floor are bound together with a bolstering6 of tile, for usually when buildings develop cracks in such places they afford holes and hiding-places for underground animals. But granaries are also divided into bins to permit the storage of every kind of legume by itself. The walls are coated with a plastering of clay and oil lees, to which are added, in place of chaff, the dried leaves of the wild olive or, if these are wanting, of the olive. Then, when the aforesaid plastering has dried, it is again sprinkled over with oil lees: and when this has dried the grain is brought in. This seems to be the most advantageous method of protecting stored produce from damage by weevils and like vermin, and if it is not carefully laid away they quickly destroy it. But the type of granary just described, unless it be in a dry section of the steading, causes even the hardest grain to spoil with mustiness; and if it were not for this, it would be possible to keep grain even buried underground, as in certain districts across the sea 0 where the earth, dug out in the manner of pits, which they call siri, takes back to itself the fruits which it has produced. But we, living in regions which abound in moisture, approve rather the granary that stands on supports above the ground and the attention to pavements and walls as just mentioned, because, as I have said, the floors and sides of storerooms so protected keep out the weevil. Many think that when this kind of pest appears it can be checked if the damaged grain is winnowed in the bin and cooled off, as it were. But this is a most mistaken notion; for the insects are not driven off by so doing, but are mixed through the whole mass. If left undisturbed, only the upper surface would be attacked, as the weevil breeds no more than a palm's breadth below;6 and it is far better to endanger only the part already infested than to subject the whole amount to risk. For it is easy, when occasion demands it, to remove the damaged portion and use the sound grain underneath. But these latter remarks, though brought in extraneously, I nevertheless seem to have introduced not unseasonably at this point. The press-rooms especially and the store-rooms for oil a should be warm, because every liquid is thinned with heat and thickened by great cold; and if oil freezes, which seldom happens, it becomes rancid. But as it is natural heat that is wanted, arising from the climate and the exposure, there is no need of fire or flame, as the taste of oil is spoiled by smoke and soot. For this reason the pressing-room should be lighted from the southern side, so that we may not find it necessary to employ fires and lamps when the olives are being pressed. The cauldron-room, in which boiled wine is made, should be neither narrow nor dark, so that the attendant who is boiling down the must may move around without inconvenience. The smoke-room, too, in which timber not long cut may be seasoned quickly can be built in a section of the rural establishment adjoining the baths for the country folk; for it is important also that there be such places in which the household may bathe—but only on holidays; for the frequent use of baths is not conducive to physical rigour. Storerooms for wine will be situated to advantage over these places from which smoke is usually rising, for wines age more rapidly when they are brought to an early maturity by a certain kind of smoke. For this reason there should be another loft to which they may be removed, to keep them from becoming tainted, on the other hand, by too much smoking. As for the situation of the villa and the arrangement of its several parts, enough has been said. It will be necessary, next, that the villa have the following near it: an oven and a gristmill, of such size as may be required by the number of hands that are to be employed; at least two ponds, one to serve for geese and cattle, the other in which we may soak lupines, elm-withes, twigs, and other things which are adapted to our needs.a There should also be two manure-pits, one to receive the fresh dung and keep it for a year, and a second from which the old is hauled; but both of them should be built shelving with a gentle slope, in the manner of fish-ponds, and built up and packed hard with earth so as not to let the moisture drain away. For it is most important that manure shall retain its strength with no drying out of its moisture and that it be soaked constantly with liquids, so that any seeds of bramble or grass that are mixed in the straw or chaff shall decay, and not be carried out to the field to fill the crops with weeds. And it is for this reason that experienced farmers, when they carry out any refuse from folds and stables, throw over it a covering of brush and do not allow it to dry out or be burned by the beating of the sun. The threshing-floor is to be so placed, if possible, that it can be viewed from above by the master, or at least by the farm-manager. Such a floor is best when paved with hard stone, for the reason that the grain is threshed out quickly, since the ground does not give under the beating of hoofs and threshing-sledges, a and the winnowed grain is cleaner and is free from small stones and clods which a dirt floor nearly always casts up during the threshing. Adjoining this there should be a shed b (and especially in Italy, because of the changeableness of the weather), in which the half-threshed grain may be stacked under cover if a sudden shower comes up. In certain districts across the sea, where there is no rain in summer, this is unnecessary. The orchards, too, and the gardens should be fenced all around and should he close by, in a place to which there may flow all manure-laden sewage from barnyard and baths, and the watery lees squeezed from olives; for both vegetables and trees thrive on nutriment of this sort too. After all these arrangements have been acquired or contrived, especial care is demanded of the master not only in other matters, but most of all in the matter of the persons in his service; and these are either tenant-farmers or slaves, whether unfettered or in chains. He should be civil in dealing with his tenants, should show himself affable, and should be more exacting in the matter of work than of payments, as this gives less offence yet is, generally speaking, more profitable. For when land is carefully tilled it usually brings a profit, and never a loss, except when it is assailed by unusually severe weather or by robbers; and for that reason the tenant does not venture to ask for reduction of his rent. But the master should not be insistent on his rights in every particular to which he has bound his tenant, such as the exact day for payment, or the matter of demanding firewood and other trifling services in addition, attention to which causes country-folk more trouble than expense; in fact, we should not lay claim to all that the law allows, for the ancients regarded the extreme of the law as the extreme of oppression.[a] On the other hand, we must not neglect our claims altogether; for, as Alfius the usurer is reported to have said, and with entire truth, “Good debts become bad ones if they are not called”. Furthermore, I myself remember having heard Publius Volusius, b an old man who had been consul and was very wealthy, declare that estate most fortunate which had as tenants natives of the place, and held them, by reason of long association, even from the cradle, as if born on their own father's property. So I am decidedly of the opinion that repeated letting of a place is a bad thing, but that a worse thing is the farmer who lives in town and prefers to till the land through his slaves rather than by his own hand. Saserna used to say that from a man of this sort the return was usually a lawsuit instead of revenue, and that for this reason we should take pains to keep with us tenants who are country-bred and at the same time diligent farmers, when we are not at liberty to till the land ourselves or when it is not feasible to cultivate it with our own servants; though this does not happen except in districts which are desolated by the severity of the climate and the barrenness I of the soil. But when the climate is moderately healthful and the soil moderately good, a man's personal supervision never fails to yield a larger return from his land than does that of a tenant—never than that of even an overseer, unless the greatest carelessness or greed on the part of the slave stands in the way. There is no doubt that both these offences are either committed or fostered through the fault of the master, inasmuch as he has the authority to prevent such a person from being placed in charge of his affairs, or to see to it that he is__ removed if so placed. On far distant estates, however, which it is not easy for the owner to visit, it is better for every kind of land to be under free farmers than under slave overseers, but this is particularly true of grain land. To such land a tenant farmer can do no great harm, as he can to plantations of vines and trees, while slaves do it tremendous damage: they let out oxen for hire, and keep them and other animals poorly fed; they do not plough the ground carefully, and they charge up the sowing of far more seed than they have actually sown; what they have committed to the earth they do not so foster that it will make the proper growth; and when they have brought it to the threshing-floor, every day during the threshing they lessen the amount either by trickery or by carelessness. For they themselves steal it and do not guard against the thieving of others, and even when it is stored away they do not enter it honestly in their accounts. The result is that both manager and hands are offenders, and that the land pretty often gets a bad name. Therefore my opinion is that an estate of this sort should be leased if, as I have said, it cannot, have the presence of the owner.— The next point is with regard to slaves—over what duty it is proper to place each and to what sort of tasks to assign them. So my advice at the start is not to appoint an overseer from that sort of slaves who are physically attractive, and certainly not from that class which has busied itself with the voluptuous occupations of the city. This lazy and sleepy-headed class of servants, accustomed to idling, to the Campus, the Circus, and the theatres, to gambling, to cookshops, to bawdy-houses, never ceases to dream of these follies; and when they carry them over into their farming, the master suffers not so much loss in the slave himself as in his whole estate. A man should be chosen who has been hardened by farm work from his infancy, one who has been tested by experience.[a] If, however, such a person is not available, let one be put in charge out of the number of those who have slaved patiently at hard labour; and he should already have passed beyond the time of young manhood but not yet have arrived at that of old age, that youth may not lessen his authority to command, seeing that older men think it beneath them to take orders from a mere stripling, and that old age may not break down under the heaviest labour. He should be, then, of middle age and of strong physique, skilled in farm operations or at least very painstaking, so that he may learn the more readily; for it is not in keeping with this business of ours for one man to give orders and another to give instructions, nor can a man properly exact work when he is being tutored by an underling as to what is to be done and in what way. Even an illiterate person, if only he have a retentive mind, can manage affairs well enough. Cornelius Celsus says that an overseer of this sort brings money to his master oftener than he does his book, because, not knowing his letters, he is either less able to falsify accounts or is afraid to do so through a second party because that would make another aware of the deception. But be the overseer what he may, he should be given a woman companion to keep him “within bounds” a and yet in certain matters to be a help to him; and this same overseer should be warned not to become intimate with a member of the household, and much less with an outsider, yet at times he may consider it fitting, as a mark of distinction, to invite to his table on a holiday one whom he has found to be constantly busy and vigorous in the performance of his tasks. b He shall offer no sacrifice except by direction of the master. Soothsayers and witches, two sets of people who incite ignorant minds through false superstition to spending and then to shameful practices, he must not admit to the place. He must have no acquaintance with the city or with the weekly market, except to make purchases and sales in connection with his duties. For, as Cato says, c an overseer should not be a gadabout; and he should not go out of bounds except to learn something new about farming, and that only if the place is so near that he can come back. He must allow no foot-paths or new crosscuts to be made in the farm; and he shall entertain no guest except a close friend or kinsman of his master. As he must be restrained from these practices, so must he be urged to take care of the equipment and the iron tools, and to keep in repair and stored away twice as many as the number of slaves requires, so that there will be no need of borrowing from a neighbour; for the loss in slave labour exceeds the cost of articles of this sort. In the care and clothing of the slave household he should have an eye to usefulness rather than appearance, taking care to keep them fortified against wind, cold, and rain, all of which are warded off with long-sleeved leather tunics, garments of patchwork, or hooded cloaks. If this be done, no weather is so unbearable but that some work may be done in the open. He should be not only skilled in the tasks of husbandry, but should also be endowed, as far as the senile disposition allows, with such qualities of feeling that he may exercise authority without laxness and without cruelty, and always humour some of the better hands, at the same time being forbearing even with those of lesser worth, so that they may rather fear his sternness than detest his cruelty. This he can accomplish if he will choose rather to guard his subordinates from wrongdoing than to bring upon himself, through his own negligence, the necessity of punishing offenders. There is, moreover, no better way of keeping watch over even the most worthless of men than the strict enforcement of labour, the requirement that the proper tasks be performed and that the overseer be present at all times; for in that case the foremen in charge of the several operations are zealous in carrying out their duties, and the others, after their fatiguing toil, will turn their attention to rest and sleep rather than to dissipation. Would that those well-known precepts, old but excellent in morality, which have now passed out of use, might be held to to-day: That an overseer shall not employ the services of a fellow-slave except on the master's business; that he shall partake of no food except in sight of the household, nor of other food than is provided for the rest; for in so doing he will see to it that the bread is carefully made and that other things are wholesomely prepared. He shall permit no one to pass beyond the boundaries unless sent by himself, and he shall send no one except there is great and pressing need. He shall carry on no business on his own account, nor invest his master's funds in livestock and other goods for purchase and sale; for such trafficking will divert the attention of the overseer and will never allow him to balance his accounts with his master, but, when an accounting is demanded, he has goods to show instead of cash. But, generally speaking, this above all else is to be required of him—that he shall not think that he knows what he does not know, and that he shall always be eager to learn what he is ignorant of; for not only is it very helpful to do a thing skilfully, but even more so is it hurtful to have done it incorrectly. For there is one and only one controlling principle in agriculture, namely, to do once and for all the thing which the method of cultivation requires; since when ignorance or carelessness has to be rectified, the matter at stake has already suffered impairment and never recovers thereafter to such an extent as to regain what it has lost and to restore the profit of time that has passed. In the case of the other slaves, the following are, in general, the precepts to be observed, and I do not regret having held to them myself: to talk rather familiarly with the country slaves, provided only that they have not conducted themselves unbecomingly, more frequently than I would with the town slaves; and when I perceived that their unending toil was lightened by such friendliness on the part of the master, I would even jest with them at times and allow them also to j est more freely. Nowadays I make it a practice to call them into consultation on any new work, as if they were more experienced, and to discover by this means what sort of ability is possessed by each of them and how intelligent he is. Furthermore, I observe that they are more willing to set about a piece of work on which they think that their opinions have been asked and their advice followed. Again, it is the established custom of all men of caution to inspect the inmates of the workhouse, to find out whether they are carefully chained, whether the places of confinement are quite safe and properly guarded, whether the overseer has put anyone in fetters or removed his shackles without the master's knowledge. For the overseer should be most observant of both points—not to release from shackles anyone whom the head of the house has subjected to that kind of punishment, except by his leave, and not to free one whom he himself has chained on his own initiative until the master knows the circumstances; and the investigation of the householder should be the more painstaking in the interest of slaves of this sort, that they may not be treated unjustly in the matter of clothing or other allowances, inasmuch as, being liable to a greater number of people, such as overseers, taskmasters, and jailers, they are the more liable to unjust punishment, and again, when smarting under cruelty and greed, they are more to be feared. Accordingly, a careful master inquires not only of them, but also of those who are not in bonds, as being more worthy of belief, whether they are receiving what is due to them under his in- structions; he also tests the quality of their food and drink by tasting it himself, and examines their clothing, their mittens, and their foot-covering. In addition he should give them frequent opportunities for making complaint against those persons who treat them cruelly or dishonestly. In fact, I now and then avenge those who have just cause for grievance, as well as punish those who incite the slaves to revolt, or who slander their taskmasters; and, on the other hand, I reward those who conduct themselves with energy and diligence. To women, too, who are unusually prolific, and who ought to be rewarded for the bearing of a certain number of offspring, I have granted exemption from work and sometimes even freedom after they had reared many children. For to a mother of three sons exemption from work was granted; to a mother of more her freedom as well. Such justice and consideration on the part of the master contributes greatly to the increase of his estate. But he should also bear in mind, first to pay his respects to the household gods as soon as he returns from town; a then at once, if time permits, if not, on the next day, to inspect his lands and revisit every part of them and judge whether his absence has resulted in any relaxation of discipline and watchfulness, whether any vine, any tree, or any produce is missing; at the same time, too, he should make a new count of stock, slaves, farm-equipment, and furniture. If he has made it a practice to do all this for many years, he will maintain a well-ordered discipline when old age comes; and whatever his age, he will never be so wasted with years as to be despised by his slaves. > Latin: 4. Nam prima inspectione neque vitia neque virtutes abditas ostendit, quae mox retractantibus facilius apparent. Inspectionis quoque velut formula nobis a maioribus tradita est agri pinguis ac laeti, de cuius qualitate dicemus suo loco, cum de generibus terrae disseremus. In universum tamen quasi testificandum atque saepius praedicandum habeo, quod primo iam Punico bello dux inclitissimus M. maciem soli vincere potest. Haec autem consequemur, memoria prodidit, sicut praestantissimos viros L. Lucullum et Q. Scaevolarn, quorum alter maioris, alter minus amplas, quam postulavit modus agri, villas exstruxit, cum utrumque sit contra rem familiarem. Diffusiora enim consaepta non solum pluris aedificamus, sed etiam impensis maioribus tuemur; at minora cum sunt, quam postulat fundus, dilabitur fructus. Nam et umidae res et siccae, quas terra progenerat, facile vitiantur, si aut non sunt aut propter angustias incommoda sunt tecta, quibus inferantur. Pro portione etiam facultatum quae solstitiis minus concalescunt, sed frigoribus hiemis intolerabiliter horrent, sicut Thebas ferunt Boeotias; sunt quae tepent hieme, sed aestate saevissime candent, ut adfirmant Euboicam Chalcidem. Petatur igitur aer calore et frigore temperatus, qui fere medios obtinet collina vel quae non infima valle reperitur; deterrima palustris, quae pigro lapsu repit; et quam ex ripa, sed haud paulum summota a litore. Nam praestat a mari longo potius intervallo quam brevi refugisse, quia media sunt spatia gravioris halitus. Nec paludem quidem vicinam esse oportet aedificiis nec iunctam militarem viam, quod illa caloribus noxium virus eructat et infestis aculeis armata gignit animalia, quae in nos densissimis examinibus involant, tum etiam nantium serpentiumque pestes hiberna destitutas quod est remotum ac sinistrum soli et apricis flatibus; quibus si caret, nulla alia vis potest nocturnas pruinas et quodcumque rubiginis aut spurcitiae resedit siccare atque detergere. Haec autem cum hominibus adferunt perniciem, tum in hibernacula ferarum conquiescant. Sed ampla gerantur tabulatis, ut frumenta, faenum, frondes, paleae ceteraque pabula. Sed si ea non sunt, oleae folia. Deinde cum exiget usus, esse debebit, quo amoveantur, ne rursus nimia suffuniatione optima est silice constrata, quod et celeriter frumenta deteruntur, non cedente solo pulsibus ungularum tribularumque, et eadem eventilata mundiora sunt lapillisque carent et glaebulis, quas per trituram fere terrena remittit area. Huic autem nubilar pecuniarum vel etiam vilici, nisi si maxima vel neglegentia servi vel rapacitas intervenit. Quae utraque peccata plerumque vitio domini vel committi vel foveri nihil dubium est, cum liceat aut cavere ne talis praeficiatur negotio, aut iam praepositus ut summoveatur curare. In longinquis tamen fundis, in quos non est facilis excursus patris familiae, cum omne genus agri tolerabilius sit sub liberis colonis quam sub vilicis servis habere, tum praecipue frumentarium, quem et minime, sicut vineas aut arbustum, colonus evertere potest et maxime vexant servi, qui boves elocant eosdemque et cetera pecora male pascunt nec industrie terram vertunt longeque plus imputant seminis iacti, quam quod severint, sed nec quod terrae mandaverunt sic adiuvant, ut recte instituamus, ne ex eo quidem ordine, qui urbanas ac delicatas artes exercuerit. Socors et somniculosum genus id mancipiorum, rationes contingere vel per alium propter conscientiam fraudis timeat. utiliter quam delicate habeat munitamque diligenter a vento, frigore pluviaque, quae cuncta prohibentur pellibus manicatis, centonibus confectis vel sagis cucullis.Id si fiat, nullus dies tam intolerabilis est, quo non sub divo moliri aliquid possit. Nec tantum operis agrestis sit artifex, sed et animi, quantum servile patitur ingenium, virtutibus instructus, ut neque remisse neque crudeliter imperet semperque aliquos ex melioribus foveat, parcat tamen etiam minus bonis, ita ut potius timeant eius severitatem, quam crudelitatem detestentur. Id contingere poterit, si maluerit custodire subiectos, ne peccent, quam neglegentia sua committere, ut puniat delinquentes. Nulla est autem maior vel nequissimi hominis custodia quam operis exactio, ut iusta reddantur, ut vilicus semper se repraesentet. Sic enim et magistri singulorum officiorum sedulo munia sua exsequuntur, qui ceteris praebetur. Sic enim curabit ut et panis diligenter eonfiat legerem, nonnumquam etiam iocarer et plus ipsis iocari permitterem. Iam illud saepe facio, ut quasi cum peritioribus de aliquibus operibus novis deliberem et per hoc cognoscam cuiusque ingenium, quale quamque sit prudens. Tum etiam libentius eos id opus adgredi video, de quo secum deliberatum et consilio ipsorum susceptum putant. Nam illa sollemnia sunt omnibus circumspectis, sua constitutione iusta percipiant, atque ipse panis potionisque probitatem Dicendum etiam est, quibus operibus quemque habitum corporis aut animi contribuendum putemus. [¶4] 9. Something should be said, too, as to what tasks we think each kind of body or mind should be assigned. As keepers of the flocks it is proper to place in charge men who are diligent and very thrifty. These two qualities are more important for this task than stature and strength of body, since this is a responsibility requiring unremitting watchfulness and skill. In the case of the ploughman, intelligence, though necessary, is still not sufficient unless bigness of voice and in bearing makes him formidable to the cattle. Yet he should temper his strength with gentleness, since he should be more terrifying than cruel, so that the oxen may obey his commands and at the same time last longer because they are not worn out with the hardship of the work combined with the torment of the lash. But what the duties of shepherds and herdsmen are, I shall treat again in their proper places;6 for the present it is sufficient to have called to mind that strength and height are of no importance in the one, but of the greatest importance in the other. For, as I have said, we shall make all the taller ones ploughmen, both for the reason I have just given and because in the work of the farm there is no task less tiring to a tall man; for in ploughing he stands almost erect and rests his weight on the plough-handle. c The common labourer may be of any height at all, if only he is capable of enduring hard work. Vineyards require not so much tall men as those who are broad-shouldered and brawny, for this type is better suited to digging and pruning and other forms of viticulture. In this department husbandry is less exacting in the matter of honesty than in the others, for the reason that the vine-dresser should do his work in company with others and under supervision, and because the unruly are for the most part possessed of quicker understanding, which is what the nature of this work requires. For it demands of the helper that he be not merely strong but also quick-witted; and on this account vineyards are commonly tended by slaves in fetters. Still there is nothing that an honest man of equal quickness will not do better than a rogue. I have inserted this that no one may think me obsessed of such a notion as to wish to till my land with criminals rather than with honest men. But this too I believe: that the duties of the slaves should not be confused to the point where all take a hand in every task. For this is by no means to the advantage of the husbandman, either because no one regards any particular task as his own or because, when he does make an effort, he is performing a service that is not his own but common to all, and therefore shirks his work to a great extent; and yet the fault cannot be fastened upon any one man because many have a hand in it. For this reason ploughmen must be distinguished from vine-dressers, and vine-dressers from ploughmen, and both of these from men of all work. Furthermore, squads should be formed, not to exceed ten men each, which the ancients called decuriae and approved of highly, because that limited number was most conveniently guarded while at work, and the size was not disconcerting to the person in charge as he led the way. Therefore, if the field is of considerable extent, such squads should be distributed over sections of it and the work should be so apportioned that men will not be by ones or twos, because they are not easily watched when scattered; and yet they should number not more than ten, lest, on the other hand, when the band is too large, each individual may think that the work does not concern him. This arrangement not only stimulates rivalry, but also it discloses the slothful; for, when a task is enlivened by competition, punishment inflicted on the laggards appears just and free from censure. But surely, in pointing out to the farmer-to-be those matters for which especial provision must be made—healthfulness, roads, neighbourhood, water, situation of the homestead, size of the farm, classes of tenants and slaves, and assignment of duties and tasks—we have now come properly, through these steps, to the actual tilling of the soil; of this we shall presently treat at greater length in the book that follows. > Latin: 9. Magistros pecoribus 1 oportet praeponere sedulos ac frugalissimos. Ea res utraque plus quam corporis statura roburque confert huic negotio, quoniam id ministerium custodiae diligentis et artis officium est. Bubulco quamvis necessaria non tamen satis est indoles mentis, nisi eum vastitas vocis et habitus metuendum pecudibus efficit. latio frugalitatem requirit, quia et in turba et sub monitore vinitor opus facere debet ac plerumque velocior animus est improborum hominum, que ita opus, ut neque singuli binive sint, quoniam dispersi non facile custodiuntur; nec tamen supra decem, ne rursus, ubi nimia turba sit, id opus ad se pertinere singuli non existiment. Haec ordinatio non solum concitat aemulationem, sed et deprehendit ignavos; nam cum certamine opus excitetur, tum in cessantes animadversio iusta et sine querela videtur adhiberi. Sed nimirum, dum quae maxime providenda sunt agricolae futuro praecipimus, de salubritate, de via, de vicino, de aqua, situ villae, fundi modo, colonorum et servorum generibus, officiorum operumque distributione tempestive per haec ad ipsum iam terrae cultum pervenimus, de quo pluribus libro insequente mox disseremus. ## 2. Book II Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/2/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/2/#p-N [¶0] 1. You ask me, Publius Silvinus, and I have no hesitation in informing you at once, why in the preceding book I immediately at the start[a] rejected the long-standing opinion of almost all who have discoursed on the subject of agriculture, and repudiated as mistaken the views of those who hold that the soil, wearied and exhausted by age-long wasting away and by cultivation now extending over a long period of time, has become barren. And I am not unaware that you hold in reverence, not only the authority of other renowned writers, but particularly that of Tremelius, who, in handing down to posterity a very great number of agricultural precepts set forth with refinement as well as learning, being obviously misled through too great deference to the ancients who treat of a like subject, held the mistaken belief that the earth, the mother of all things, like womankind now worn out with old age, is incapable of bearing offspring. This fact I too should admit if no fruits whatever were being produced; for the old age of a human being also is pronounced barren, not when a woman no longer gives birth to triplets and twins, but only when she is able to conceive and bring forth no offspring at all. Thus, after the period of youth is past, even though a long life still remains, still parturition is denied to years and is not re- stored. But on the contrary, when the soil, whether abandoned deliberately or by chance, is cultivated anew, it repays the farmer with heavy interest for its periods of idleness. a The antiquity of the earth, therefore, is not the reason for the scantiness of her fruits—if, I mean, when once old age sets in, it takes no backward step and has no power to grow vigorous and young again—but not even the weariness of the soil lessens its fruits for the farmer. For it is not like a man of intelligence to be persuaded that, as in the case of human beings exhaustion follows immoderate physical exertion or the bearing of some heavy burden, just so does it follow cultivation and activity on the part of the land. What then, you say, does Tremelius mean by his assertion that virginal and wooded areas, when they are first cultivated, yield abundantly, but soon thereafter are not so responsive to the toil of those who work them? He observes, undoubtedly, what occurs, but does not understand thoroughly why it happens. For ground that is new and but recently taken out of its wooded state and brought under cultivation should not be regarded as more fruitful on this account, because it has lain fallow longer and is younger; but because, in the leaves and herbage of many years, which it has kept producing naturally, fattened, so to speak, with more plentiful nourishment, it more readily satisfies the requirements for bringing forth crops and supporting them. But when the roots of the plants, broken by mattocks and ploughs, and when the trees, cut down by the axe, cease to nourish their mother with their foliage; when the leaves which fell from bushes and trees in the autumn season and which were spread over her are presently turned under by the plough-share and mixed with the subsoil, which is usually thinner, and are used up, the result is that the soil, being deprived of its old-time nourishment, grows lean. It is not, therefore, because of weariness, as very many have believed, nor because of old age, but manifestly because of our own lack of energy that our cultivated lands yield us a less generous return. For we may reap greater harvests if the earth is quickened again by frequent, timely, and moderate manuring. As I promised in the preceding book to speak of its cultivation, I shall now begin the discussion. Those who are most experienced in agricultural affairs have said, Silvinus, that there are three kinds of terrain—champaign, hilly, and mountainous.[a] Of champaign land they favoured especially that lying, not in a perfectly even and level plain, but in a somewhat sloping one; of hilly land, that with a gentle and gradual rise; of mountainous land, the high and rugged, but wooded and grassy.6 Furthermore, under each of these classes there fall six species of soil—fat or lean, loose or compact, moist or dry; and these qualities, in combination and in alternation with one another, produce a very great variety of soils. To enumerate them is not the mark of a skilled farmer; for it is not the business of any art to roam about over the species, which are countless, but to proceed through the classes, for these can readily be connected in the imagination and brought within the compass of words. We must have recourse, then, to certain unions, as we may call them, between qualities which are at variance with each other— what the Greeks call συζυγίαι ἐναντιοτήτων, and which we may fairly render “the couplings of opposites.” Furthermore, it must be pointed out that, of all things which the earth brings forth, more thrive better on a plain than on a hill, and more in fat land than in lean. As to dry ground and wet ground, we have not ascertained which of these excels in number, since there are, in each case, almost limitless things which thrive in dry places, and the same in wet areas; but of this number there is nothing that does not grow better in loose soil than in dense. This, too, our own Vergil said when, after recounting the other good points of a fruitful field, he added: and one of crumbling soil; for this is what we rival when we plough. a For cultivation is nothing else than the loosening and breaking up of the ground; and on this account a field which is both rich and mellow yields the greatest returns, because in producing most it demands least, and what it does require is supplied with trifling labour and expense. Such a soil may therefore with justice be called the very best. Next in order to this is the combination of rich and dense, a soil which rewards the expense and toil of the husbandman with rich increase. Third in rank is a well-watered place, because it can produce fruits without expense. Cato, who rated the yield of meadow lands far ahead of other returns, used to say that this kind of land was first;6 but we are now speaking of land under cultivation, not of that left unfilled. No kind is considered worse than that which is at the same time dry, stiff, and lean; for not only is it worked with difficulty, but even when worked it makes no recompense, and when left idle it is not altogether adequate for meadows or for grazing land. Therefore this type, whether in tillage or fallow, is a source of grief to the husbandman and should be shunned as if it were plague-ridden ground; for the one type brings death, and this brings starvation, that most frightful attendant of death, if we may trust the Grecian Muses, who cry: “To die of hunger is the bitterest of fates.” But now we shall turn our attention rather to the more fertile soil, and our treatment of this is to be set forth under two heads—land in tillage, and woodland. We shall first speak of reducing a wooded area to an arable state, for the reason that the preparation of a field comes before its cultivation. As to an unfilled piece of ground, then, let us consider whether it is dry or damp, shaded with trees or rough and stony; whether it is covered with rushes and grass or encumbered with fern-brakes or other bushy growth. If it is damp, the superfluous moisture must first be drained off with ditches. Of these we are familiar with two kinds—blind and open. In tracts of hard-packed and chalky soil they are left open; but where the ground is of looser texture some are made open and some of them, too, are covered over, though in such a way as to connect with the mouths of the open ditches.[a] But it will be best to make open drains wider at the top, and sloping and narrowing together at the bottom, like inverted roof-tiles; for those whose sides are perpendicular are quickly eroded by water and are filled in by the slipping of the earth above. The covered ones, on the other hand, are to be blinded by sinking trenches to a depth of three feet, and then, after they have received a filling half way up of small stones or clean gravel, levelling them off by throwing over them the dirt that was dug out. Or, if stones and gravel are not available, a sort of cable of entwined brushwood will be fashioned of such a thickness as the bottom of the narrow trench may receive when it is fitted, so to speak, and pressed down close. This will then be stretched along the bottom, to be covered over with earth after cypress or pine foliage—or, failing this, other boughs—has been trampled down over it; there being, both at the beginning and at the outlet of the ditch, two stones set up, merely by way of supports, with one stone laid on top of them in the fashion of little bridges, that this sort of structure may hold the banks in place and prevent the stoppage of water at inlet and outlet. There are two methods of handling a wooded and bushy stretch of land: either by tearing out the trees by the roots and removing them or, if they are few, by simply cutting them down, burning them, and ploughing them under. It is easy to clear stony ground by gathering up the stones; and if there is a great quantity of them, parts of the field must be used for building them into piles of some sort, so that the other parts may be cleared off, or the stones will have to be buried in a deep-dug trench. This should be done, however, only if the cheapness of labour makes it advisable. The bane of rushes and grass is repeated grubbing, of the fern it is constant uprooting, which may be done also with the plough; for it dies out within two years' time if torn up repeatedly, and even sooner if at the same time you apply manure and sow with lupines or beans so as to have some return while remedying the defects of the field. For it is agreed that the fern is more easily destroyed by sowing and manuring; but even if you cut it down with the sickle (which is work even a child could do) as it sprouts out from time to time, within the aforesaid period its vigour is spent. But now, after a consideration of the clearing of unbroken ground, comes the management of land newly brought under cultivation; and I shall set forth presently my own views on this, after I have given to those who are concerned with land in tillage some precepts on matters which must be learned first. I recall that very many of the ancients who have written on agricultural topics have laid down as acknowledged and unquestioned evidence of fat and fertile grain-land the natural sweetness of the soil, its growth of herbage and trees, and its black or ashy colour. As to the other points I have no doubt; but in the matter of colour I cannot marvel enough, not only that other writers but especially that Cornelius Celsus, a man of discernment not merely in husbandry but also in nature as a whole, went so far astray, both in his thinking and in his observation, that the many marshes and the many stretches of salt meadows, in which the above-mentioned colours are usually present, did not attract his notice. For our casual observations reveal no place, provided it contains stagnant water, which is not of a black or ashy colour; unless perhaps I am myself mistaken in thinking that luxuriant grain crops cannot be produced in the soil of slimy swamp and brackish marshland or in a region of salt deposits along the seacoast. But this mistake of the ancients is too apparent to require refutation by further argument. It is not the colour, then, that is, so to speak, the infallible voucher and witness of goodness of ploughland; and for that reason grain-land, that is rich land, is to be judged rather by other qualities. For, as the sturdiest of farm animals have been allotted different and almost countless colours, just so the strongest soils have them in very great number and variety. Accordingly, we must take care that the soil which we intend to cultivate is rich. Still this of itself is not sufficient if it lacks sweetness; and we may come to know both qualities by a very easy method. For a clod is sprinkled with a little water and kneaded in the hand, and if it is viscous and cohesive when firmed with the slightest touch and, in the manner of pitch is shaped to the fingers in handling, as Vergil says, a and does not crumble when dashed to the ground, this test informs us that there is in such earth a natural moistness and fatness. But when you try to put back and tread down in trenches the earth that has been removed, if there is an excess as by some sort of leavening, it will be a sure sign that the soil is fat; if it is insufficient, that it is poor; if it makes an even fill, that it is ordinary. a And yet the statements which I have just now made may seem not so trustworthy in the case of blackish earth (pulla), b which is better tested by its yield of crops. We shall also make distinctions of taste as follows: from that part of the field which displeases us most, clods should be dug and soaked in an earthen vessel, then thoroughly mixed with fresh water and, after careful straining in the manner of dreggy wine, examined by tasting; c for, whatever is the taste transmitted from the clods to the water, such we shall take to be the taste of that soil. But, apart from this experiment, there are many signs which show that ground is sweet and suitable for grain—for example, the rush, the reed, grass, trefoil, the dwarf-elder, bramble bushes, wild plums, and many other things which are well known also to searchers for springs, d and which are not nourished except by veins of sweet water in the ground. And we should not be content with the first appearance of surface soil, but should take pains to investigate the character of what lies beneath—whether it is earthy or not. It will be satisfactory for grain, however, if the soil below is equally good to a depth of two feet; for trees, a depth of four feet is sufficient/ When we have investigated these points as stated, we shall put our field in readiness for planting; and it yields no trifling increase if it is worked with care and understanding. For this reason it is a matter of first importance to put a plan of this kind of work in writing, that husbandmen may adhere to it as a pattern and a law in the breaking up of their fields. To proceed then, it is proper to have oxen closely yoked while at work, so that they will move with a more stately gait, with lofty bearing and heads held high; also that their necks may be galled less, and that the yoke may sit more closely on their shoulders. This method of yoking is most approved; for the method in use in some provinces—fastening the yoke to the horns—has been condemned by almost all who have written precepts for husbandmen, and not without reason. For cattle can put forth more effort with neck and shoulders than with the horns, a and in this way they exert themselves with the entire bulk of the body and its whole weight; but in the other way, with their heads pulled back and faces turned upward, they are tortured, and barely scratch the surface of the ground with a very light ploughshare. And it is for this reason that they work with smaller ploughs, because they are unable to tear up the surface of new ground and dig it deep; but when this is done, all growing things are greatly benefited, for when ploughlands are deeply furrowed the fruits of crops and trees swell with greater increase. On this point, therefore, I disagree with Celsus, who, shrinking from the expense which is undoubtedly greater in the case of larger cattle, advises the breaking up of land with small shares and share-beams, so that it may be accomplished with oxen of smaller size; disregarding the fact that the revenue in fruit- fulness of crops outweighs the expense of buying heavier draught animals, and especially in Italy, where the land, being planted with vineyards a and olives, wants to be broken and worked rather deep, so that the uppermost roots of vines and olives, which are detrimental to the yield if they are left, may be cut off by the ploughshares, and that the deeper roots may receive the nourishment of moisture more readily when the ground is deeply worked. Still Celsus' method may be suited to Numidia and Egypt, where, as a rule, the land is destitute of trees and is sown with grain; and soil of that sort, crumbling with fat sands, and like loose ashes, is stirred sufficiently with the lightest plough-point (dens).b The ploughman, moreover, must walk upon the broken ground and in every other furrow must hold his plough slantwise, running alternate furrows with the plough upright and at its full depth, but in such a way as not to leave anywhere any solid and unbroken ground, which farmers call scamnum.c When the oxen come to a tree, he must keep them firmly in hand and check their pace, for fear that the driving of the ploughshare with too great force against a root may jolt their necks, and so that an ox may not strike a horn violently against the bole of the tree, or graze the trunk or break off a branch with the end of the yoke. He should keep them in dread of his voice rather than of his lash, blows being his last resort when they balk at a task. He should never urge a bullock with a goad, for this makes him irritable and inclined to kick; yet he may urge him on now and then with a whip. He should not stop in the middle of the furrow, but should allow a rest at the end of it, so that the ox will exert himself more energetically the whole way in the hope of stopping. But to run a furrow more than one hundred and twenty feet in length is injurious to a beast, for he is wearied more than is right when he goes beyond this limit. When the turning-point is reached, the ploughman should push the yoke forward and hold the oxen back, to allow their necks to cool off; for these quickly become inflamed if they are constantly bound, and as a result there arises a swelling and then running sores. And the ploughman should use the mattock no less than the ploughshare, and should dig up and hunt out all the broken stumps and surface roots with which a field is infested when it is planted with trees for supporting vines. When the ploughman has unyoked his oxen after work, he should rub the lower parts that were bound, c knead the upper part b with his hands, and pull up the skin and not allow it to cling to the body; for this, too, is a kind of ailment very injurious to cattle. c He should rub down their necks and pour unmixed wine down their throats if they are heated; and it is enough to give a pint of wine to each. But it is not proper for oxen to be tied to their cribs before they have stopped sweating and panting. Then, when they are in proper condition for feeding, it is best not to give them much feed, and not the whole amount at once, but to portion it out, a little at a time. When they have consumed this, they should be led to water and enticed by whistling to drink more freely, and then at length taken back to eat their fill of a more generous allowance of fodder. It is enough to have discussed the duties of the ploughman up to this point. Our next step is to give directions also as to the seasons for breaking up ploughland. > Latin: 1. Quaeris ex me, P. Silvine, quod ego sine cunctatione non recuso docere, cur priore libro veterem 1 opinionem fere omnium, qui de cultu agrorum locuti sunt, a principio confestim reppulerim, falsamque sententiam repudiaverim censentium longo aevi situ longique iam temporis exercitatione fatigatam et effetam humum consenuisse. Nec te ignoro cum et aliorum inlustrium scriptorum tum praecipue Tremeli auctoritatem revereri, qui, cum plurima rusticarum rerum praecepta simul eleganter et scite memoriae prodiderit, videlicet inlectus nimio favore priscorum de simili materia disserentium falso credidit parentem omnium terram, sicut muliebrem sexum aetate anili iam confectam, progenerandis esse fetibus inhabilem.Quod ipse quoque confiterer, si in totum nullae fruges provenirent. tuitur. At e contrario seu sponte seu quolibet casu derelicta et arboribus delapsa folia superiaciebantur, mox conversa vomeribus et inferiori solo, quod plerumque est exilius, permixta atque absumpta sunt, sequitur, ut destituta pristinis alimentis macrescat humus. Non igitur fatigatione, quemadmodum plurimi crediderunt, nec senio, sed nostra scilicet inertia minus benigne nobis arva respondent. Licet enim maiorem fructum percipere, si frequenti et tempestiva et modica stercoratione coniunctiones,' quas Graeci συζυγίασ ἐναντιοτήτων, tradetur, tum ne tractatum quidem gratiam refert nec relictum pratis vel pascuis abunde sufficit. Itaque hic ager sive exercetur seu cessat, colono est paenitendus ac tamquam pestilens refugiendus. Nam ille mortem facit, hic taeterrimam comitem mortis famem, si tamen Graecis camenis habemus fidem clamitantibus: λιμῷ δ' οἴκτιστον θανέειν. Sed nunc potius uberioris soli meminerimus, cuius demonstranda est duplex tractatio, culti et silvestris. De silvestri regione in arvorum formam redigenda fossarum competant. Sed lapidum, quorum si magna est abundantia, velut quibusdam substructionibus partes agri sunt occupandae, ut reliquae emundentur, vel in altitudinem sulco depresso lapides obruendi;quod tamen ita faciendum erit, si suadebit operarum vilitas. prudentem virum, sic et sententia et visu deerrasse, ut oculis eius tot paludes, tot etiam campi salinarum non occurrerent, quibus fere contribuuntur praedicti colores. Nullum enim temere videmus locum, qui modo pigrum contineat umorem, non eundem vel nigri vel cinerei coloris, nisi forte in eo fallor ipse, quod non putem aut in solo limosae paludis et uliginis amarae aut in maritimis areis salinarum gigni posse laeta frumenta. Sed est manifestior hic antiquorum error, quam ut pluribus argumentis convincendum sit. Non ergo color tamquam certus auctor testis est bonitatis arvorum; et ideo frumentarius ager, id est pinguis, magis aliis qualitatibus aestimandus est. Nam ut fortissimae pecudes diversos et paene innumerabiles, sic etiam robustissimae terrae plurimos et varios colores sortitae sunt. Itaque considerandum erit, ut solum quod excolere destinamus, pingue sit. Per se tamen id parum est, si dulcedine caret; quod utrumque satis expedita nobis ratione contingit discere. Nam perexigua conspargitur egestam humum recondere et recalcare, cum aliquo quasi fermento abundaverit, certum erit esse eam pinguem; cum defuerit, exilem; cum aequaverit, mediocrem. Quamquam ista, quae nunc rettuli, non tam vera possint faciundis expediemus. Is autem non minimum exuberat, si curiose et scite subigitur. Quare antiquissimum est formam huius operis conscribere, reditus in ubertate frugum quam impendii, si maiora mercemur armenta, praesertim in Italia, ubi arbustis atque oleis consitus ager altius resolvi ac subigi desiderat, ut et summae radices vitium olearumque vomeribus rescindantur, quae si maneant, frugibus obsint, et inferiores penitus subacto solo facilius capiant umoris alimentum. Potest tamen illa Celsi ratio Numidiae et Aegypto convenire, ubi plerumque arboribus viduum solum frumentis seminatur; atque eius modi terram pinguibus harenis putrem velut cinerem solutam quamvis levissimo dente moveri satis est. Bubulcum autem per proscissum ingredi oportet alternisque versibus obliquum tenere aratrum et alternis recto plenoque sulcare, sed ita necubi crudum solum et immotum relinquat, quod agricolae scamnum vocant; boves, cum ad arborem venerint, fortiter retinere ac retardare, ne in radicem maiore nisu vomis impactus colla commoveat, neve aut cornu bos ad stipitem vehementius offendat aut extremo iugo truncum delibet ramumque deplantet. Voce potius quam verberibus terreat, ultimaque sint opus recusantibus remedia plagae. Numquam stimulo lacessat iuvencum, quae res taetricum flagello. Sed nec in media parte versurae consistat detque requiem in summa, ut spe cessandi totum spatium bos agilius enitatur. Sulcum autem ducere longiorem quam pedum centum viginti contrarium pecori est, quoniam plus aequo fatigatur ubi hunc modum excessit. Cum ventum erit ad versuram, in priorem partem iugum propellat et boves inhibeat, ut colla eorum refrigescant, quae celeriter conflagrant, si adsidue stringuntur, oportet sibiloque adlectari, quo libentius bibant, tum demum reductos largiore pabulo satiari. Hactenus de officio bubulci dixisse abunde est. Sequitur ut tempora quoque subigendi arvi praecipiamus. [¶1] 4. Rich plains which hold water for a considerable length of time are to be broken at a time of year when it is growing warm, after they have put forth all their vegetation and while the seeds of this vegetation have not yet ripened; but they should be ploughed with furrows so numerous and close together that it can hardly be told in what direction the ploughshare has been driven, for in this way all the roots of the growth are broken off and killed. But fallow land a should be so pulverized by much re-ploughing that it will require no harrowing, or very little, after we have put in the seed. For the ancient Romans said that a field was poorly prepared when it had to be harrowed after the crop was in the ground. Furthermore, a farmer should examine it frequently to see whether it is properly ploughed—and not merely by sight, which is sometimes mistaken when earth is scattered over unploughed skips that lie hidden, but also by touch, which is deceived the less when a strong and stiff pole is put to use and pushed into the furrows crosswise. If it goes in to a uniform depth and without striking anything, it is clear that all the ground has been stirred in turn; but if some harder spot obstructs its entrance, it shows that there is unbroken fallow. When ploughmen observe that this is done rather frequently, they are hot guilty of leaving skips.6 Wet champaign lands, then, should be broken after the Ides of April.[a] When they are ploughed at this time, they should be gone over a second time after the passing of the twenty days around the solstice—which falls on the ninth or eighth day before the Calends of July b—and then a third time in the neighbourhood of the Calends of September; c for it is agreed among experts in husbandry that no ploughing should be done from the summer solstice up to this time, unless, as sometimes happens, the earth is soaked with heavy and sudden showers as if by winter rains. In this case there is no objection to breaking fallow land in the month of July. But whenever the ploughing is done, we must be careful not to let a field be worked when it is muddy or half soaked from light rains—a condition of soil which farmers call varia and cariosa; d that is, when, after a long drought, a fight rain wets the upper surface of the clods but does not reach the lower part. For ploughlands which are turned over when they are muddy cannot be worked for a whole year, and they are not fit for sowing or harrowing or planting; but, on the other hand, those which are ploughed when they are varia are visited with barrenness for three successive years. e Let us, then, above all, follow a middle course in ploughing our lands, that they may neither be entirely wanting in dampness nor immoderately wet; for too much moisture, as I have said, makes them sticky and muddy, while those that are parched with drought cannot be properly loosened. For either the point of the plough is rejected by the hardness of the ground or, if it docs enter at some spot, it does not break the soil into fine particles, but tears up huge clods; and when these he in the way, the plough-land is under a handicap and cannot be properly worked at the second ploughing, because the ploughshare is thrown out of the furrow by the weight of the clods as though by some deep-seated obstructions, with the result that hard skips are left even in the re-ploughing and that the oxen are severely injured by the unevenness of the strain. Added to this is that all ground, though it be never so rich, still has poorer soil underneath, and when the larger clods are turned up they bring this with them; the result being that the less productive soil, mixed with the richer, grows a less bountiful crop, and in addition the accounting of the farmer is made more difficult by the poor progress of his work; for the proper tasks cannot be completed when the ground is hard. For this reason my advice is, in dry weather, to replough ground already broken, and to wait for rain which, by its soaking of the earth, makes cultivation easy for us. But a iugerum a of such land is prepared with four days' labour; for it is broken easily in two days, gone over a second time in one, a third time in three-fourths of a day, and is formed into ridges and sown in one-fourth of a day. These ridges, moreover, country folk call porcae b when the ground is ploughed in such a way that the earth heaped up between two widely separated furrows affords a dry bed for the grain. Hillsides where the soil is rich should be broken after the sowing of the three-months crops is completed, in the month of March; or, if the warmth of the climate and the dryness of the region make it advisable, even in February. Then between the middle of April and the solstice they should be gone over a second time, and a third time in September around the equinox; and a iugerum of such ground is prepared with the same number of days labour as wet champaign land. But especial care must be taken in the ploughing always to run the furrow crosswise to the slope; for by this method the difficulty of the ascent is mitigated, and the toil of man and beast is thereby lessened most handily. Still, whenever it is reworked, the furrows should be run somewhat obliquely, now uphill, now downhill, so that we may tear up the ground in both directions and not work it in the same track. Lean land which lies level and is well watered should be ploughed for the first time during the latter part of the month of August, then gone over again a second time in September, and put in readiness for sowing about the time of the equinox. In ground of this sort, moreover, the work is easier, and for this reason fewer days of labour are expended; for three days are sufficient for one iugerum. Lean and sloping ground, likewise, is not to be ploughed in summer, but around the Calends of September; a for if it is broken before this time, the earth, being exhausted and destitute of moisture, is burned by the summer sun and has no reserves of strength. Therefore it is best to plough it between the Calends and the Ides of September, b and then to work it again immediately, so that it may be sown during the first rains of the equinox; and such land is to be sown, not in the ridges, but in the furrows. Still, before we give lean land its second ploughing, it will be best to manure it; for on such food, so to speak, it grows fat. On level ground piles of manure, about five modii a to the pile, should be placed farther apart, and on hilly land closer together: on the level it will suffice to leave an interval of eight feet each way, on a slope two feet less. My own preference is that this be done when the moon is waning, for this frees the crops from weeds. Furthermore, one iugerum, if manured heavily, requires twenty-four loads; b if lightly, eighteen. Then the manure, once it is spread, should be ploughed in immediately and covered over, that it may not lose its strength from the heat of the sun and that the soil, being mixed with it, may grow fat on the aforesaid nourishment. And so, when piles of manure are distributed in a field, the number of those so scattered should not exceed what the ploughmen can dig in on the same day. Inasmuch as we have given directions for the preparation of the ground for sowing, let us now treat of the kinds of seed. The seeds of first importance and most useful to mankind are grains of wheat and emmer. c We know of several varieties of wheat; but of this number that called robus or " ruddy " is most suitable for sowing, because it is superior in both weight and brightness. Second place must be given to siligo or winter wheat, which is of excellent appearance in bread d but lacking in weight. The third shall be the three-months wheat, the use of which is most gratifying to farmers; for when, because of rains or some other reason, an early sowing has not been made, recourse is had to this. This, again, is a variety of siligo. The other kinds of wheat, except for those who find pleasure in a great variety of crops and in idle vainglory, are superfluous. Of emmer, however, we commonly see four varieties in use: the far which is called Clusian, a of a white and shiny appearance; that called vennuculum, b one kind reddish and the other white, but both of greater weight than the Clusian; the three-months far, called, halicastrum, a which is excellent both in weight and in goodness. But these kinds of wheat and emmer should be kept by farmers for this reason, that seldom is any land so situated that we can content ourselves with one kind of seed, as some strip which is either swampy or dry cuts through it. Further, wheat grows better in a dry spot, while emmer is less harmed by moisture. Though there are very many kinds of pulse or legumes, those observed to be most pleasing and useful to man are the bean, the lentil, the pea, the cow-pea, the chick-pea, hemp, millet, panic grass, sesame, lupine, also flax and barley, because from the last named is made tisana d or barley-grits. Likewise of the fodder crops the best are Medic clover and fenugreek, and vetch no less so; and next in order are chickling-vetch, bitter vetch, and mixed fodder made from barley. But of this number we shall first discuss those which are sown for our own sake/ keeping in mind that very ancient rule in which we are warned to reap a in cold places last, in warm places sooner, and in hot places earliest of all. For the present, however, we shall give rules applicable to a temperate region. Our poet holds that emmer and even wheat should not be sown before the setting of the Vergiliae, b a rule which he puts in verse as follows: “But if for wheat or emmer you plough, intent on grain alone, Let Atlas' daughters at dawn be hid before the planting's done. c” Now they are " hidden " on the thirty-second day after the autumnal equinox, which usually falls on the ninth day before the Calends of October; d by which it should be understood that the seed-time of wheat lasts for forty-six days—from the setting of the Vergiliae, which occurs on the ninth day before the November Calends/ up to the time of the winter solstice./ For wise husbandmen observe this rule to such an extent that, for fifteen days before the occurrence of the solstice and a like number afterwards, they do no ploughing and no pruning of vine or tree. We, too, do not deny that the sowing should be governed by this rule in land that is temperate and not at all moist; but in sections that are wet and lean, or cold, or even shaded, it is usually proper to sow before the Calends of October, while the dry earth permits, while clouds are in suspense, a so that the roots of the grain may gain strength before they are attacked by winter rains or cold or frost. But even though the sowing be finished in good season, still we must be careful to make wide ridges and frequent water-furrows, which some call elices, and to turn off all water into drains b and hence outside the grain-fields. And I am not unaware that some ancient authorities have left directions that fields should not be sown except after the ground is well soaked with rain; and that this is to the greater advantage of the farmer, if it comes in due season, I have no doubt. But if the rains are late, as sometimes happens, the seed is safely intrusted to ground however thirsty; and that is actually the practice in certain provinces where such weather conditions exist. For seed that is put into dry ground and harrowed in, is no more injured than if it were stored away in a granary; and when the rain does come, the sowing of many days' standing sprouts up in one. c Tremelius, in fact, makes the statement that seed sown before the rains begin is not injured by birds or ants when the soil is parched during the fair weather of summer, and I have even tried it rather frequently and have thus far found it to be true. However, in land of this sort it is more suitable to sow emmer than wheat, as it has a husk enclosing it which is tough and resistant to moisture for a longer period. > Latin: 4. Pingues campi, qui diutius continent aquam, proscindendi sunt anni tempore iam incalescente, cum omnis herbas ediderint neque adhuc earum semina maturuerint; sed tam frequentibus densisque sidcis arandi sunt, ut vix dinoscatur, in utram partem vomer actus sit, quoniam sic omnes radices herbarum perruptae necantur. Sed et compluribus iterationibus sic resolvatur vervactum in pulverem, ut vel nullam vel exiguam desideret occationem, Igitur uliginosi campi proscindi debent post Idus mensis Aprilis. Quo tempore cum arati fuerint, viginti Nam vel respuitur duritia soli bit, Februario statim proscindendi sunt. Deinde ab Aprile medio usque in solstitium iterandi, tertiandique Septembri circa aequinoctium; ac totidem operis, quot uliginosi campi, excolitur iugerum talis agri. Sed stercorare conveniet; nam eo quasi pabulo gliscit. In campo rarius, in colle spissius, acervi stercoris instar quinque modiorum disponentur; atque in plano pedes intervalli quoquoversus octo, in clivo duobus minus relinqui sat erit. Sed id nobis decrescente luna fieri placet, nam ea res herbis liberat segetes. Iugerum autem desiderat, quod spissius stercoratur, vehes quattuor et viginti; quod rarius, duodeviginti. Disiectum deinde protinus fimum inarari et obrui est siliginis. Reliquae tritici species, nisi si quos multiplex varietas frugum et inanis delectat gloria, supervacuae sunt. Adorei autem plerumque videmus in usu genera quattuor: far, quod appellatur Clusinum, candidi oris ut locis frigidis novissime, tepidis celerius, calidis ocissime non abnuimus in agro temperato et minime umido sementem sic fieri debere; ceterum locis uliginosis atque exilibus aut frigidis aut etiam opacis plerumque citra quam triticum seritur, quoniam follieulum, quo continetur, firmum et durabilem adversus longioris temporis umorem habet. [¶2] 9. A iugerum of rich land usually requires four modii of wheat; a land of medium quality, five; it calls for nine modii of emmer if the soil is fertile, and ten if it is ordinary. For although there is little agreement among authorities as to the quantity, yet my own experience has shown that this amount seems best suited; and anyone who does not care to comply with this may follow the directions of those who instruct us to sow a rich field with eight modii of wheat a iugerum, and the same for emmer, and who hold that seed should be supplied to medium land in this proportion. My opinion is that not even the amount which I have mentioned above is always to be held to, for the reason that conditions of place or season or weather cause it to vary: of place, according as the grain is sown on level ground or hillsides, and these, too, either fat or medium or lean; of season, according as we cast the seed in autumn or even at the onset of winter, for the earlier sowing allows a lighter seeding while the later requires it to be heavier; of weather, according as it is rainy or dry, for the former requires the same as the early sowing, and the latter the same as the late. Further, every sort of grain especially delights in ground that is open and sloping toward the sun, warm and loose; for though hilly ground produces a somewhat stronger grain, it yields a smaller crop of wheat. Soil that is heavy, chalky, and wet is not unsuited to the growing of winter wheat and emmer. Barley tolerates no place except one that is loose and dry. And the first mentioned grains require ground that lies fallow and is worked by turns in alternate years and that is as rich as possible; while the last named wants no middling ground, being sown either in very rich or very poor soil. Even though you sow the first mentioned in ground that is still muddy and wet after continuous rains, if necessity so demands, it withstands the injury; if you commit the last named to miry ground, it dies. However, if the field is moderately chalky or marshy, you need for a sowing of the white winter wheat or common wheat somewhat more than the five modii that I mentioned above. But if the ground is dry and loose, no matter whether it be rich or poor, only four; for, conversely, lean land requires the same amount of seed, because if it is not sown thinly it produces a small and empty head. But when it forms a stool of several stalks from one seed it makes a heavy stand even from a light sowing. Among other things, too, we should not overlook the fact that a field planted with trees for supporting vines requires one fifth more seed than a treeless and open field. We have been speaking thus far of the autumn sowing, for this we regard as the most important. There is another sowing, however, when necessity requires it—what farmers call the " half-month sowing."a This is practised to advantage in very cold and snowy regions where the summer is damp and free from intense heat, but in other places it very seldom yields a return. And even in this sowing it will be better to finish it quickly, and certainly before the spring equinox; in fact, if conditions of ground and of weather allow it, the sooner we sow the better the result will be. For there is no seed that naturally requires three months, as many have believed, and in fact the same seed will do better when planted in the autumn. There are, nevertheless, certain seeds that do better than others in enduring the heat of spring, such as white wheat (siligo), Galatian barley, the three-months emmer, a and the grain of the Marsian bean; for the other hardy grains should always be sown before winter in temperate localities. Further, the earth has a way, at times, of emitting a brackish and bitter ooze which blights even full-grown crops with its poisonous seepage and in warm localities leaves patches without even a single stalk from the seed. It is best that such bare spots be indicated by the use of markers, so that we may take measures against faults of this kind in due season; for in a place where oozy ground or some other plague kills out the crop it is best that pigeon dung or, failing that, cypress foliage be scattered and ploughed in. But the very first thing to do is to draw off all free water by running a furrow; otherwise the aforesaid remedies will be useless. Some people wrap a three-modius sowing measure in the skin of a hyena and broadcast the seed from it after it has remained there a while, not doubting that seed sown in this way will do well. b Certain underground pests also kill out mature crops by cutting off their roots. As a remedy against this they use the juice of a plant which country people call sedum, c mixed with water; for the seeds are sown after they have been soaked in this solution for one night. Some take the juice squeezed from the wild cucumber and the crushed root of the same, dilute it with water, and after soaking the seeds in the same way they consign them to the earth.0 Others sprinkle the furrows with this same liquid or with unsalted lees of oil, when the crop begins to be infested, and so drive off the destructive creatures. The next direction that I have to offer is that when the crops have been harvested and are on the threshing-floor, we should consider the sowing that is to follow. For, as Celsus remarks, when the harvest is just ordinary we should select all the best heads and store the seed from them by itself; when, in turn, there is a more generous yield, everything that is threshed out should be cleaned with a sieve, and the grain that settles to the bottom because of its size and weight should always be kept for seed. This is a most beneficial measure because, while grain deteriorates more rapidly in damp places, it also does so in dry places unless such pains are taken. For there is no doubt that from strong seed there can be produced seed that has no strength; but it is obvious that what is produced continuously from weak seed can never acquire strength. For that reason Vergil, in treating of other matters, has also expressed himself very clearly on the subject of seeds, as follows; Some I have seen deteriorate, though chosen with great care And long examination, if with toil of man The largest were not hand-picked every year. But so the will of Fate. All things are doomed To hasten to the worse and, downward turned, To take a backward course. b Further, if a red grain, when cut in two, shows the same colour throughout, we have no doubt that it is sound; but one that is whitish outside and is also seen to be white inside, that should be set down as light and lacking in substance. And let us not be misled into thinking that siligo is desirable for farmers; for this is a degenerate kind of wheat, and though superior in whiteness, it is inferior in weight. It does well, however, in a humid climate, and for that reason is better suited to springy places. Still we need not go a great distance or to great pains to find it; for in wet ground every kind of wheat turns into siligo after the third sowing. Next to these grains in utility is that variety of barley which country people call hexastichim; a some also call it cantherinum b because it is a better food than wheat for all animals that belong on a farm, and is more wholesome for humans than is bad wheat; and in times of scarcity there is nothing better in guarding against want. It is sown in loose, dry ground, either very rich or poor, because it is agreed that land is weakened by crops of it; for this reason it is committed to a very fertile field, whose excessive strength cannot be impaired, or to a lean one to which nothing else is entrusted. The seed should be cast at the second ploughing, after the equinox, about the middle of seed-time if the soil is rich, and earlier if it is poor. One iugerum will take five modii of seed. And when this has ripened somewhat it should be harvested with more haste than any other grains, for, having brittle straw and grain that has no covering of chaff, it shatters quickly; and for the same reason it is more easily threshed than other grains. But when you have taken off a crop of it, it is best to let the ground lie fallow for a year; or if not, to saturate it with manure and drive out all the poison that still remains in the land. There is also a second variety of barley which some call distichum a and others Galatian, of extraordinary weight and whiteness, so much so that when mixed with wheat it makes excellent food for the household. It is sown about the month of March in ground that is very rich but cold; it does better, however, if a mild winter allows it, when sown around the middle of January. One iugerum calls for six modii. Panic and millet also should be counted among grain crops, even though I have already listed them among the legumes, for in many countries the peasants subsist on food made from them. b They require a light, loose soil, and thrive not only in gravelly ground but also in sand, if only the climate is moist or the ground well watered; for they have a great dread of dry and chalky ground. They cannot be sown before spring, for they are fond of warm weather above all; but they are intrusted to the earth to best advantage in the latter part of March. They do not burden the farmer's budget with a heavy expense, as about four sextarii are enough for a iugerum; and yet they demand repeated hoeing and weeding to make them free of weeds. When they have formed their heads, before the seeds crack open with the heat, they are gathered by hand, hung in the sun, and stored away after they have dried; and when stored in this fashion they keep longer than other grains. Bread is made of millet, and it may be eaten without distaste before it cools. Panic, when ground and freed from bran, and millet as well, makes a porridge which, especially with milk, is not to be despised even in time of plenty. Inasmuch as we have given sufficient instructions about grains, we shall next discuss the legumes. First consideration belongs to the lupine, as it requires the least labour, costs least, and of all crops that are sown is most beneficial to the land. For it affords an excellent fertilizer for worn-out vineyards and ploughlands; it flourishes even in exhausted soil; and it endures age when laid away in the granary. When softened by boiling it is good fodder for cattle during the winter; in the case of humans, too, it serves to ward off famine if years of crop failures come upon them. It is broadcast direct from the threshing-floor, and it is the only one of all the legumes which does not require a rest in the bin, whether you sow it in unbroken fallow in the month of September before the equinox or immediately after the Calends of October; and whatever way you cover it, it withstands the carelessness of the farmer. Still it needs the mild temperature of autumn to become quickly established, for if it has not taken a strong hold before winter it is greatly injured by the cold. It will be best to put away your left-over seed in a loft where smoke can reach it, for if dampness gets into it, it breeds worms; and when they have once eaten away the embryo of the lupine seed, the other part cannot germinate. The lupine likes lean ground, as I have said, and especially reddish soil; it has an intense dislike of chalky ground and does not come up at all in a miry field. One iugerum takes ten modii. Next after this it will be proper to commit to the earth the kidney bean, either in old fallow ground, or better in rich ground that is tilled every year; the sowing of one iugerum will require not more than four modii. The same may be said of the pea, which desires, however, an easy and loose soil, a warm situation, and a climate where it often rains. The same quantity may be sown to the iugerum as in the case of the kidney bean, or one modius less, at the beginning of seed time after the autumnal equinox. A spot that is naturally very fertile or well manured should be set aside for the common bean, and old fallow lying in a valley and receiving moisture from the higher ground. First, however, we shall cast the seed, then furrow the ground, and after furrowing reduce it to ridges and harrow it, to provide a deeper and more abundant covering of loose earth; for it is of the greatest importance that the roots of the sprouting seed be sunk deep. But if we must use restored land that has just borne a crop, after cutting the straw we shall distribute twenty-four loads of manure to the iugerum and spread it; and just as before, when we have scattered the seed on the unbroken ground, we shall plough it in, form ridges, and harrow, though there are some who say that beans should not be harrowed in cold regions because the projecting clods shelter them from the frosts while they are still young and provide some warmth when they are suffering from the cold. There are people, too, who think that in cultivated land this same plant takes the place of manurea—a belief which I take as meaning, not that the ground is enriched by the sowing of it, but that it uses up the strength of the soil less than other crops. For I am convinced that land which has borne no crop is better suited for grain than one which bore a crop of this legume the preceding year. A iugerum of land requires four modii of beans, as Tremelius thinks, but six, in my opinion, if the ground is rich, and somewhat more if it is just ordinary; and it does not tolerate lean ground or a foggy situation, though it often does well on heavy soil. It should be sown, part at the middle of seed-time, and part at the end—the sowing called “septimontial.” b The early sowing is more common, though the late one is sometimes better. There is little use in sowing it after the winter solstice, and the very worst time is spring; although there is also a three-months bean which may be sown in February, using one-fifth more than for the early variety, but which yields scanty straw and not many pods. And so I hear the old-time farmers commonly remark that they would rather have the bean straw of the early sowing than the beans of the three-months variety. But, whatever the season of sowing, we must take care that the quantity allotted for seed be broadcast on the fifteenth day of the moon, provided only she does not on that day traverse the rays of the sun—what the Greeks call ἀπόκρουσις or “waning”; otherwise that it be sown in any case on the fourteenth day, while the light of the moon is still waxing, even though the whole amount of seed cannot be covered immediately. For no harm will come to it from nightly dews or other causes, if only it be protected from cattle and birds. The ancient husbandmen, moreover, and Vergil too, held that it should first be soaked in oil lees or in nitre, and then sown. That the deceptive pods might have a larger fruit. Then seeds soon softened by even a little heat.a We, too, have learned that seed so treated is less infested by weevils after it has reached maturity. And what we are about to say next, we offer as a precept from own experience: Gather beans in the dark of the moon, b before dawn; and when they have dried on the threshing-floor, immediately, before the moon begins its waxing, beat them out, cool them, and carry them into the granary. When stored in this way they will not be harmed by weevils. And this one, especially, of the legumes, can be very easily threshed without the use of cattle, and cleaned without the aid of wind, as follows: Have a moderate number of loose sheaves brought together at one end of the threshing-floor, and let three or four men push them along with their feet through the middle of the floor the longest way, and beat them with sticks or forks; then, when they reach the other end of the floor, let them throw the stalks again into a pile. For the seeds that have been beaten out will He on the floor, and the other bundles will be threshed out on top of them, little by little, in the same manner. For the hardest chaff will be knocked off and separated by the beaters, but the fine chaff which has fallen from the pods along with the beans will be separated in another way: that is, when the mixture of chaff and seeds has been heaped together in one pile, let it be tossed some distance away, a little at a time, by winnowing-fans; and by this means the chaff, being lighter, will fall short, and the beans, which are thrown farther, will come clean to the spot where the winnower throws them. The lentil is properly sown only from the time of the half-moon up to her twelfth day, in ground that is lean and loose, or fat, but above all in a place that is dry; for when in flower it is easily damaged by rankness and moisture. To make it come out quickly and make a good growth, it should be mixed with dried manure before sowing, and then broadcast after it has remained thus for four or five days. Our practice is to make two sowings, the early one in the middle of seedtime, and the later in the month of February.A little more than one modius covers a iugerum of ground. To keep it from being destroyed by weevils—for they eat it even when it is in the pod—care must be taken that, as soon as it is threshed out, it be sunk in water, and that the sound grains be separated from the empty, which come at once to the surface; then that it be dried in the sun, sprinkled and rubbed with the bruised root of silphium a mixed with vinegar, and again dried in the sun; and presently, after cooling, that it be stored away—in the bin if the amount is rather large, or in olive jars and salt-fish jars if there is not much of it. If these are sealed with gypsum immediately upon being filled, we shall find the lentil sound whenever we take it out for use. Still, it can be kept satisfactorily without such treatment if mixed with ashes. Flax-seed should not be sown unless it yields a heavy crop and brings a good price in the region where you farm; for it is particularly hurtful to land. For this reason it requires a soil which is very rich and moderately moist. It is sown from the first of October to the rising of Aquila, which falls on the seventh day before the Ides of December.6 A iugerum of land is sown with eight modii of it. Some hold that it should be sown in poor land, and very thickly, so that the flax may grow with a more slender stem. The same people also say that if it is sown in rich ground in February, ten modii should be broadcast to the iugerum. Sesame c is to be sown earlier on well-watered ground, and from the autumnal equinox to the Ides of October a on ground that lacks moisture. It usually requires a loamy soil, such as the Cam-panians call pullum; still it thrives no less well even in rich sand or in mixed ground. b The same quantity of seed is sown to the iugerum as of millet and panic, sometimes even two sextarii c more. But I have seen this same seed sown in the months of June and July in districts of Cilicia and Syria, and harvested during the autumn, when it was fully ripe. The chick-pea or the chickling-vetch, which has a resemblance to the pea, should be sown in January or February in rich soil if the weather is moist; though in some sections of Italy the sowing is made before the first of November. Three 7 nodii are sufficient for one iugerum. No legume is less hurtful to land; but it seldom does well, because, when in bloom, it cannot endure dry weather or south winds; and both these drawbacks usually attend the season when it drops its blossoms. d The chick-pea which is called arietillum, e and also one of another variety, called Punicum, may be sown during the whole month of March, if the weather is moist, in the most fertile soil; indeed, this kind is harmful to land and for that reason is not approved by the more expert farmers. If it must be sown, however, it should be soaked a day ahead to hasten its germination. Three 7 nodii are enough for one iugerum. Hemp demands a rich, manured, well-watered soil, or one that is level, moist, and deeply worked. Six grains of this seed to the square foot are planted at the rising of Arcturus, which means toward the end of February, about the sixth or fifth day before the Calends of March; a and yet no harm will be done in planting it up to the spring equinox if the weather is rainy. After these legumes consideration must be given to the navew and the turnip, as both of them are filling food for country people. The turnips, however, are more profitable, because they yield a greater increase and serve as food, not only for mankind, but also for cattle, especially in Gaul, where this vegetable provides winter fodder for the aforesaid animals. Both require a loamy, loose soil, and do not grow in heavy ground. Turnips, however, like level and moist places, while the navew prefers ground that is sloping and dry with more of a tendency to leanness; and so it grows better in gravelly and sandy lands. The nature of the situation changes the seed of both: thus, turnips sown in one soil are changed into navews in two years' time, while in the other the navew likewise takes on the appearance of the turnip.6 In well-watered situations both are properly sown after the summer solstice, in dry places at the end of August or the early part of September.0 They demand a soil that is well prepared by repeated working with the plough or mattock and generously manured; for this is of the greatest importance, not only because they themselves make a better showing but also because, after they are harvested, soil so treated produces luxuriant crops of grain. One iugerum of ground should be sown with not more than four sextarii of turnip seed; of the navew, one-fourth more is to be scattered, because it does not widen out into a globular shape but pushes its slender root straight down. The above plantings are to be made, in our opinion, for the sake of man, and then come several kinds of cattle fodder, such as Medic clover, a vetch, mixed fodder of barley and oats, fenugreek, and also bitter vetch and chick-pea; for we do not think it worth while to enumerate the rest, and still less to sow them, excepting only the cytisus [shrub-clover] of which we shall speak in those books b which we have in writing on the various kinds of young shoots. But of those which find favour the Medic plant is outstanding for several reasons: one seeding affords, for all of ten years thereafter, four harvestings regularly and sometimes six; it improves the soil; lean cattle of every kind grow fat on it; it has medicinal value for an ailing beast; and one iugerum of it provides abundant fodder for three horses for an entire year. It is sown as we shall next direct. In the place where you are to sow Medic the following spring, break the ground about the first of October and allow it to mellow during the entire winter; then, at the beginning of February, work it again carefully, remove all stones, and break up the clods; after that, sometime in the month of March, plough it a third time and harrow it. When you have prepared the ground in this fashion, make divisions as you would in a garden, ten feet wide and fifty feet long, to allow water to be supplied by way of the foot-paths and to provide a means of access on both sides for the weeders. Then spread old manure over it, and at the end of April sow at the rate of one cyathus a of seed to a space ten feet long and five wide. When you have done so, the seed should be covered at once with wooden rakes—a matter of great importance—for the seed is very soon burned by the sun. After the seed is sown, the place should not be touched with iron; and so, as I have said, it must be hoed with wooden implements and repeatedly freed of weeds, so that no other kind of growth may kill out the weak Medic. It will be best to make the first cutting rather late, after it has dropped some of its seed. Thereafter, when it has started up, you may cut it as tender as you please and feed it to stock, but somewhat sparingly at first, until they become accustomed to it, so that the novelty of the fodder may not harm them; for it causes bloating and greatly increases the blood supply. After cutting, water it rather frequently; then, a few days later, when it begins to send out new shoots, weed out all other kinds of growth. If cared for in this way, it can be cut six times a year and will last for ten years. b Of vetch, however, there are two sowings: the first about the time of the autumnal equinox, for the purpose of forage, in which we sow seven modii to the iugerum; the second in the month of January or even later, when we scatter six modii for the production of seed. Both sowings may be made on unfilled land, but with better results on broken ground; and this species especially does not like dew at the time of sowing. For this reason it must be broadcast after the second or third hour of the day, when all moisture has been dried up by sun or wind, and no more should be scattered than can be covered in the same day; for, if night comes on before it is covered, the least moisture spoils it. Care must be taken not to put it in the ground before the twenty-fifth day of the moon; otherwise we usually find that the slug damages the crop. Mixed forage a should be sown in land that is worked every year, very heavily manured, and twice ploughed. It turns out best when sown with ten modii of horse-barley to the iugerum about the autumnal equinox; but when rains are threatening, so that, being watered by showers after sowing, it may come up quickly and gather strength before the severe weather of winter. For in cold weather, when other forage has failed, this provides excellent cut fodder for oxen and other animals; and if you care to graze it frequently, it holds out even up to the month of May. If, however, you wish also to take seed from it, cattle must be kept off after the first of March, and it must be protected from every kind of harm so as to be capable of bearing seed. The same method is applied to oats: they are sown in the autumn; some are cut for hay or for fodder while still green; and some are set apart for seed. Fenugreek, which country people call siliqua, b has two seasons for sowing: one of them in the month of September, when it is sown for fodder, on the same days as vetch, near the time of the equinox; the other, however, at the end of January or early in February, when it is sown for seed; though we use six modii to the iugerum for the latter sowing, and seven for the former. Both sowings are made not without advantage before the ground is prepared, and care is taken that it be ploughed closely but not deeply, for if the seed is covered more than four fingers deep it does not easily come up; and for this reason some people break the ground with the smallest ploughs before sowing, and then scatter the seed and cover it with light hoes. Bitter vetch, on the other hand, thrives on soil that is lean but not moist, because it is usually spoiled by rankness. It may be sown in autumn and equally well after the winter solstice, in the latter part of January or all of February, if only before the first day of March. This whole month, farmers say, is not suited to this legume, because when sown at this time it is harmful to cattle, and especially to oxen, in which it causes brain-madness when they eat it. a It is sown five modii to the iugerum. Crushed chickling-vetch instead of bitter vetch is given to oxen in Hispania Baetica b: after being broken by a suspended c millstone it is soaked for a time in water, until it becomes soft, and in this condition, mixed with sifted chaff, it is fed to cattle. But twelve pounds of bitter vetch are sufficient for one yoke, and sixteen of chick-pea. This same chick-pea is not unsuited to human use, and is not unpleasant; in taste, at least, it differs not at all from the chickling-vetch, being distinguished merely by its colour, for it is more dirty-looking and nearer black. It is sown at the first or second ploughing in the month of March, according as the richness of the soil requires, and the same consideration determines the amount—four modii, sometimes three, sometimes even two and a half to the iugerum. > Latin: 9. Iugerum agri pinguis plerumque modios tritici quattuor, mediocris quinque postulat; adorei modios novem, si est laetum solum, si mediocre, decem desiderat. Nam quamvis de mensura minus auctoribus convenit, hanc tamen videri commodissimam docuit noster usus; quem si quis sequi recusat, utatur praeceptis eorum, qui uberem campum in singula iugera tritici, quibus 1 et adorei, octo modiis obserere praecipiunt atque hac portione mediocribus agris semina praebenda censent. Nobis ne istam quidem, quam praediximus, mensuram semper placet servari, quod eam variat aut loci aut temporis aut caeli conditio; loci, cum vel in campis vel collibus frumentum seritur atque his vel pinguibus vel mediocribus vel macris; temporis, cum autumno aut etiam ingruente hieme frumenta iacimus, nam prima sementis rarius serere permittit, novissima spissius postulat; caeli, cum aut pluvium aut siccum est, nam illud idem quod prima sementis, hoc quod ultima desiderat. Omne autem frumentum maxime campo patente et ad solem prono apricoque et soluto laetatur; collis enim quamvis granum robustius aliquanto, minus tamen tritici reddit. Densa cretosaque et uliginosa humus siliginem et far adoreum non incommode alit.Hordeum nisi solutum et siccum locum non patitur. Atque illa vicibus annorum requietum agitatumque alternis et quam laetissimum volunt arvum; hoc nullam mediocritatem postulat, nam vel pinguissima vel macerrima humo iacitur. Illa post continuos imbris, si necessitas exigat, quamvis adhuc limoso et madente solo sparseris, iniuriam sustinent; hoc si lutoso commiseris, emoritur. Siliginis autem vel tritici, si mediocriter cretosus uliginosusve ager est, etiam paulo plus quam, ut prius iam dixi, quinque modiis ad sationem opus est. At si siccus et resolutus locus idemque vel pinguis vel exilis est, quattuor; quoniam et e contrario macer tantundem seminis poscit, nam nisi rare conseritur, vanam et minutam spicam facit. At ubi ex uno semine pluribus culmis fructificavit, trimestre semen, quippe idem iactum autumno melius respondet. Sed pressum et eiusdem tritam radicem diluunt aqua, similique ratione madefacta semina terrae mandant. Alii hac eadem aqua vel amurca insulsa, cum coepit infestari seges, perfundunt sulcos et ita noxia animalia summovent. Illud deinceps praecipiendum habeo, Granum autem rutilum si, cum est diffissum, paulum maturuerit, festinantius quam ullum aliud frumentum demetendum erit; nam et fragili culmo et nulla vestitum palea granum eius celeriter decidit, isdemque tionem non ante hiemem convaluit, et viginti vehes stercoris in iugerum disponemus dissipabimusque exiguas paleas nec multam siliquam facit. Veteres itaque rusticos plerumque dicentes audio malle se maturae tissime sic poterit. Modicus paulo plus quam modius occupat. Ea ne curculionibus absumatur—nam etiam dum est in siliqua exestur—curandum Idus Octobres. Putre solum, quod Campani pullum vocant, plerumque desiderant; non deterius tamen etiam pinguibus harenis vel congesticia humo proveniunt, tantumque seminis quantum milium panicumque, interdum etiam duobus sextariis amplius in iugerum spargitur. Sed hoc idem semen Ciliciae Syriaeque regionibus ipse vidi mense Iunio Iulioque conseri et per autumnum, cum permaturuit, tolli. seminis Arcturo exoriente, quod est ultimo mense Februario, circa sextum aut quintum Kalendas Martias; nec tamen usque in aequinoctium vernum, si sit pluvius caeli status, improbe seretur. Ab his leguminibus ratio est habenda napi gerum agri non amplius quattuor sextariis raporum seminis obserendum est; quarta parte amplius napi pedum quinquagenum facito, ut per semitas aqua ministrari possit aditusque utraque parte runcantibus pateat. Deinde vetus stercus inicito, atque ita mense ultimo Aprili serito tantum, quantum ut singuli cyathi seminis locum occupent decem pedum longum et quinque latum. Quod ubi feceris, ligneis rastris—id enim multum confert—statim iacta semina obruantur; nam celerrime sole aduruntur. Post sationem ferro tangi locus non debet; atque, ut dixi, ligneis rastris sariendus et identidem runcandus est, ne alterius generis herba invalidam Medicam perimat. cipue non amat rores, cum seritur. Itaque post secundam diei horam vel tertiam spargendum est, cum iam omnis umor sole ventove detersus est, neque amplius proici debet, quam quod eodem die possit operiri; nam si nox incessit, quantumcumque umore, prius quam obruatur, corrumpitur. Observandum erit ne ante quintam et vicesimam lunam terrae mandetur; aliter satae fere limacem nocere comperimus. Farraginem in restibili stercoratissimo loco et altero sulco serere convenit. Ea fit optima, cum cantherini hordei decem modiis iugerum obseritur circa aequinoctium autumnale, sed impendentibus pluviis, ut consita rigataque imbribus celeriter prodeat et confirmetur ante hiemis violentiam. Nam frigoribus cum alia pabula defecerunt, ea bubus ceterisque pecudibus optime desecta praebetur, et si depascere saepius voles, usque in mensem Maium sufficit. Quod si etiam semen voles ex ea percipere, a Kalendis Martiis pecora depellenda et ab omni noxa defendenda est, ut sit idonea frugibus. Similis ratio diebus, quibus vicia circa aequinoctium, alterum autem mensis Ianuarii ultimi vel primi Februarii, cum in semen Seritur primo vel altero sulco mense Martio, ita ut postulat soli laetitia, quod eadem quattuor modiis, non numquam et tribus, interdum etiam duobus ac semodio iugerum occupat. [¶3] 11. Since we have treated of the time at which each sowing should be made, we shall now show what method of cultivation is to be employed, and the number of days' labour required for each of the crops mentioned. After the sowing is finished, the next matter is that of hoeing, a point on which authorities are not agreed. Some say that this is of no advantage, because the roots of the grain are uncovered by the hoe and some of them arc even cut off, and, if the weather is cold after the hoeing, the grain is killed by frost; but that it is better that weeding and cleaning be done at the proper season. Still there are many who believe in hoeing, but that it should not be done everywhere in the same way and at the same time; thus, in dry and sunny fields, as soon as the crops can stand hoeing, they should be covered with well-stirred soil to enable them to bush out; and this should be done before winter, and then repeated after winter is past; while in cold and swampy places, usually after winter is over, they should be hoed without being covered over but having the earth thoroughly stirred by level hoeing. Nevertheless we find that winter hoeing is suited to many regions, but only where dryness and warmth of climate permit, though we think it best not to practice even this everywhere but to conform to the ways of those who live in the neighbourhood. For countries have their own peculiar advantages, such as those of Egypt and Africa, where the farmer does not touch his crop from the sowing until the reaping, for climatic conditions and the quality of the soil are such that scarcely any plant comes up except from seed that is sown; either because of the scarcity of rain or because the character of the soil so lends itself to those who cultivate it. a Moreover, in those regions where hoeing is desirable, the crops are not to be touched before the growth has covered the furrows, even if the condition of the weather should allow it. It will be proper to hoe wheat and emmer as soon as they have put forth four blades, barley when it has five, and beans and other legumes when they stand four fingers above ground—with the exception, however, of the lupine, as hoeing is hurtful to its seedlings; for it has a single root, and if this is cut or injured by an iron tool, the whole plant dies. And even if this were not the case, cultivation would still be unnecessary, for this one plant is so far from being troubled by weeds as actually to destroy them on its own account. Now other crops which may be worked when wet, are nevertheless hoed with better results when dry, because, when handled in this way, they are not attacked by rust; but barley must not be touched except when perfectly dry. Many people think that beans should not be hoed at all, because, being pulled by hand when ripe, they may be separated from the other growth, and the grass that grows among them may be saved for hay. This is also the opinion of Cornelius Celsus, who counts this too among the other virtues of this legume when he says that after the beans are removed a cutting of hay may be taken from the same spot. But to me it seems the mark of a very poor farmer to allow grass to grow among his crops, for it detracts greatly from the yield if weeding is neglected. And it is no mark of a wise husbandman to be more concerned with fodder for cattle than with food for man, especially when he may obtain the former as well by cultivation of his meadows. I am so strongly in favour of hoeing beans as to think that they should actually be hoed three times. For we find that when cultivated in this way they not only multiply their yield but also have but little pod in proportion, and that a measure of them when shelled and cleaned is almost as full as before they were shelled, as the amount is scarcely diminished by the removal of the outer coverings. And in general, as we have said before, winter hoeing is of very great benefit on clear and dry days after the solstice is past, in the month of January, if there are no frosts. It should be done, besides, in such a way that the roots of the plants will not be damaged, but rather covered over and hilled up, so that the offshoots of the main stem may spread out farther. It will be beneficial to do this at the first hoeing, but harmful at the second, because grain rots if it is covered after it has ceased to send out shoots. Therefore nothing more should be done at the second hoeing than to loosen the ground evenly; and this should be done immediately after the vernal equinox is past, within twenty days, before the plant forms a joint, for when it is hoed later it is destroyed by the dry weather and heat of the ensuing summer. To the hoeing must be added the weeding, and we must take care not to touch a grain-field when it is in bloom, but either beforehand or soon after the blossoms have fallen. Now all grain and barley, in short everything that is not of double seed,[a] sends out an ear from the third to the fourth joint; and when it has pushed out the entire spike it casts its bloom within eight days, and then continues to grow until it reaches maturity forty days after its flowering. On the other hand, those that are of double seed, such as beans, peas, and lentils, bloom in forty days and increase in growth for the same length of time. > Latin: 11. Quoniam quando quidque serendum sit persecuti sumus, nunc quem ad modum quotque operis singula eorum, quae rettulimus, colenda sint demonstrabimus. Peracta sementi sequens cura est sartionis; de qua non convenit inter auctores. Quidam negant eam 1 quicquam proficere, quod frumenti radices sarculo detegantur, aliquae etiam succidantur ac, si frigora incesserint post sartionem, gelu frumenta enecentur;satius autem esse ea tempestive runcari et purgari. Pluribus tamen sariri placet, sed neque eodem modo neque isdem temporibus usque quaque fieri; nam in agris siccis et apricis, simul ac primum sartionem pati queant segetes, debere eas permota terra adobrui, ut fruticare ante messem segetem non attingit, quoniam caeli conditio et terrae bonitas ea est ut vix ulla herba exeat nisi ex semine iacto, sive quia rari sunt imbres seu quia qualitas humi sic se cultoribus praebet. In iis autem locis, ubi desideratur sartio, non ante sunt attingendae segetes, etiam si caeli status permittat, herba proveniat;frugibus enim plurimum detrahitur, si relinquitur runcatio. frumentum et hordeum, quicquid denique non duplici semine est, spicam a tertio ad quartum nodum emittit et, cum totam edidit, octo diebus deflorescit ac deinde grandescit diebus quadraginta, quibus post florem ad maturitatem venit. Rursus quae duplici semine sunt, ut faba, pisum, lenticula, diebus quadraginta florent simulque grandescunt. [¶4] 12. And now to reckon up the number of days' labour required to bring to the threshing-floor what we have committed to the earth, four or five modii of common wheat b take up four days' work of the ploughmen, one of the narrower, two of the hoer for the first hoeing and one for the second, one of the weeder, and one and a half of the reaper—a total of ten and one-half days of labour. Five modii of winter wheat require the same number of days. Nine or ten modii of emmer c call for as many days' work as five modii of common wheat. Five modii of barley require three days' labour of the ploughman, one day of harrowing, one and a half of hoeing, and one of reaping—six and a half days in all. Four or six modii of beans use up two days' work of the ploughmen in old fallow ground, but one in land under cultivation; they are harrowed in a day and a half, hoed in a day and a half, hoed a second time in one day and a third time in one day, and harvested in one day—the total amounting to seven or eight days. Six or seven modii of vetch want two days' labour of the ploughmen in old fallow, and one in ground that is kept under cultivation; this likewise is harrowed in one day, and harvested in one day—the total amounting to [three or] four days' work. Five modii of bitter vetch are sown in the same number of days, harrowed in one day, and also hoed, weeded, and harvested in one day each—the total making up six days. Six or seven modii of fenugreek a are put in the ground with the same number of days' labour, and are harvested in one day. Four modii of cow-peas are put under ground in the same number of days, are harrowed in one day, and harvested in one. Four modii of chickling-vetch or of the small chick-pea require three days' work of the ploughmen; they are harrowed in one day, weeded in one, and pulled in one—the total amounting to six days of work. A modius and a half of lentil is covered in the same number of days, harrowed in one, hoed in two, weeded in one, and pulled in one—the total coming to eight days' work. Ten modii of lupine are covered in one day, harrowed in one, and harvested in one. Four sextarii of millet and the same amount of panic take up four days' labour of the ploughmen, are harrowed in three days, and hoed in three; the number of days for gathering is not fixed. Three modii of the chick-pea are sown in the same number of days, harrowed in two days, hoed in one, weeded in one, and pulled in three—a total of eleven days' work. Eight or ten modii of flaxseed are sown with four days' ploughing, harrowed with three days' work, weeded with one, and pulled with three—the total amounting to eleven days' work. Six sextarii of sesame are cared for with three days' ploughing after the first breaking of the ground, four days of harrowing, four of hoeing and two at the second hoeing, and two days of harvesting—a total of fifteen days. Hemp is sown as we have directed above, but the amount of expense and attention required is not fixed. Medic, however, is put in the ground, not with the plough, but, as I have said, with small wooden rakes. One iugerum of this is harrowed by two men, hoed by one, and harvested by one. From this summing up of the days of labour required it is concluded that two hundred iugera of land can be worked with two yoke of oxen, the same number of ploughmen, and six common labourers, provided it be free of trees; but the same amount, when it is planted with trees, Saserna says can be satisfactorily cultivated with three additional men. This calculation shows us that one yoke of oxen can meet the requirements of one hundred and twenty-five modii of wheat and the same of legumes, so that the autumn sowing may total two hundred and fifty modii, and even after that seventy-five modii of three-months crops may still be sown. The proof of this is as follows: Seeds that are sown at the fourth ploughing require, for twenty-five iugera, one hundred and fifteen days' labour of the ploughmen; for such a plot of ground, however hard, is broken in fifty days, re-ploughed in twenty-five, ploughed a third time and then sown in forty days. Other legumes require sixty days, that is, two months. Forty-five days also are allowed for rainy weather and holidays, on which no ploughing is done; likewise thirty days after the sowing is finished, in which there is a period of rest. Thus the total amounts to eight months and ten days. Still there are left of the year three months and twenty-five days, which we may spend either in sowing three-months crops or in the hauling of hay, forage, manure, and of other useful things. But of the crops that I have mentioned, the same Saserna thinks that land is fertilized and improved by some, and, on the other hand, that it is burned out and wasted by others; that it is fertilized by lupine, beans, vetch, bitter vetch, lentils, the small chickpea, and peas. As to the lupine I have no doubt, nor yet as to vetch when it is sown for fodder, provided, however, that after being cut green it be followed up immediately by the plough, and that the ploughshare cut up and bury, before it dries out, what is left by the sickle; for this takes the place of manure. For if the roots are left to dry out after the fodder is cut, they will draw all the moisture out of the soil and use up the strength of the land; and it is probable that this happens also in the case of beans and other legumes by which the ground appears to be enriched; so that, unless the ground is broken up at once after a crop of them has been taken off, it will be of no benefit to the crops which are to be planted in that spot thereafter. Of those legumes, too, which are harvested by pulling, Tremelius says that the poisons of the chickpea and of flax are most harmful to the soil, the one because it is of a salty nature, the other because of its burning qualities; and Vergil, too, points this out when he says: A field is burned by crops of flax, is burned by crops of oats, Is burned by crops of poppies with Lethaean slumber steeped. a For there is no doubt that a field is impaired by seeding it with these, just as it is by millet and panic. But for all ground that is exhausted by cropping the aforesaid legumes there is one remedy at hand, namely, to come to its aid with manure, and with this sustenance, so to speak, to restore the strength that has been taken from it; and this not only for the sake of seed which is committed to the ploughed furrow, but also for trees and bushes, which thrive in greater measure on this kind of nourishment. Wherefore, if manuring is of the greatest advantage to the farmer, as it appears to be, I believe that it should be discussed with unusual care, inasmuch as this subject, though not overlooked by the ancient authorities,[a] has nevertheless been given very slight attention. There are, then, mainly, three kinds of manure: that produced by birds, by humankind, and by cattle. Of bird dung that is considered first which is gathered from dove-cotes, and next is that which comes from hens and other fowl, excepting nevertheless marsh birds or swimming fowl, such as ducks and geese; for that is actually harmful. Still we especially commend pigeon dung, because we find that a moderate spreading of it causes the earth to ferment; and second to this is human excrement, if it is mixed with other refuse of the farmstead, for by itself it is naturally rather hot and for that reason it burns the ground. Better suited to young shoots, however, is human urine; and if you let it age for six months and then apply it to vines or fruit trees, there is nothing that makes them bear more abundantly; and not only will this treatment produce a larger crop but also it improves the flavour and the bouquet of the wine and the fruit. Also old oil Ices, unsalted and mixed with this, can be used to advantage in watering fruit-bearing trees, and especially olives; for even when applied alone the lees are very beneficial. But both of them are used chiefly during the winter and even in spring, before the heat of summer, while the ground is kept open around the vines and the trees. a The dung of cattle holds third place, and in this too there is a difference; for what the ass produces is considered best, because that animal chews very slowly and for that reason digests his food more easily, and he gives in return a manure that is well prepared and ready for the field immediately. After those that we have mentioned comes sheep dung, next is goat dung, and then that of other cattle and draught-animals. The dung of swine is considered the poorest of all. Moreover, the use of ashes and cinders is reasonably beneficial, while cut lupine plants provide the strength of the best manure. And I am not unaware that there is a certain kind of countryside in which neither cattle nor fowl can be kept; but even in such a place it is the mark of a slothful husbandman to be destitute of fertilizer. For he may store up any sort of leaves; he may gather any accumulated matter from bramble patches and from highways and byways; he may cut down his neighbour's fernbrakes without doing him harm, or even as a favour, and mix them with the cleanings from his inclosure; he may sink a trench such as, in my first book, a I directed to be made for the storage of manure, and may heap together in one pile his ashes, sewer filth, straw, and other dirt that is swept out. But it is well to fasten a piece of oak wood in the middle of that same place, for tins keeps the harmful serpent from hiding in the manure. b All this of land which is bereft of cattle; for where herds of four-footed animals are kept, there are some places, such as the kitchen and the goat-sheds, which should be cleaned every day, and others, like the ox-stalls and sheepfolds, which are to be cleaned on rainy days. And if the ground is used merely for grain, it is of no importance to keep the different kinds of manure apart; but if the farm is laid out for a nursery, for grainfields, and also for meadows, the manure too must be stored separately, as that of goats and of birds. Then the rest of the refuse should be gathered into the hollowed-out place before mentioned, and it should be constantly saturated with moisture, so that the weed seeds mixed with the chaff and other matter may rot. Then during the summer months the whole dunghill should be thoroughly stirred with rakes, just as if you were loosening the ground, so that it may decay more readily and be fit for the land. Moreover, I consider those farmers lacking in industry who have from each of the smaller animals less than one load c of manure in thirty days, and likewise ten loads from each of the larger ones; and the same amount from each person, for they can gather and heap together not only the waste matter from their own bodies, but also the dirt which the yard and the buildings produce every day. I have also this further direction to give, that all manure is most beneficial to crops when it has been stored in proper season and has rested for a year, for it still has its strength unimpaired and does not produce weeds; moreover, that the older it is, the less beneficial, because it has less strength. For this reason it should be spread on meadows while as fresh as possible, because it produces more grass; and this should be done in the month of February, while the moon is waxing, as this also contributes somewhat to the hay crop. As to the other use of manure, what sort is suitable for the several kinds of crops, we shall speak when we treat of them individually. Meanwhile, one who wishes to prepare his fields for grain should distribute manure in piles of moderate size while the moon is waning—in the month of September if he intends to sow in the autumn, at any time of winter if he is to sow in the spring—at the rate of eighteen loads to the iugerum on level ground and twenty-four on hilly land; and, as I said a little earlier, a he should not spread these heaps until he is ready to sow. Yet if anything keeps him from applying manure at the proper time, a second method is, before hoeing, to scatter over the grainfield the pulverized droppings from the bird houses in the manner of one casting seed; and if there is none of this, to broadcast goat dung by hand and then stir the ground thoroughly with hoes. This produces luxuriant crops. And I think that husbandmen should not be unacquainted with the fact that as land grows cold when it is not manured, so it is burned if manured too heavily; and that it is of greater advantage to the farmer to do this frequently rather than lavishly. And there is no doubt that wet land requires a greater quantity of it, and dry land less—the one because, being chilled by constant moisture, it is warmed when manure is applied, and the other because, being naturally warm, it is parched by the increased aridity when this is added; for which reason such dressing should be neither deficient nor over-sufficient. If, however, no kind of manure is available, it will be very helpful to follow the practice which I remember my uncle, Marcus Columella, a very learned and painstaking farmer, frequently employed: that is, to heap clay on gravelly ground, and gravel on ground that was clayey and too stiff, and in this way to grow not only luxuriant crops of grain but also very fine vineyards. For this same authority used to say that dung should not be applied to vines, because it spoiled the flavour of the wine; and he thought that a better dressing for making a heavy vintage was humus, either that which accumulates around bramble-thickets, or in fact any earth obtained elsewhere and brought in. But my opinion nowadays is that if the farmer is destitute of everything, at any rate there is no lack of lupine, that very ready aid; and if he will scatter this on lean ground about the middle of September, plough it in, and at the proper time cut it up with the ploughshare or the mattock, it will have the effect of the best manure. The lupine should be cut, moreover, in gravelly ground when it is in the second flower, and in sticky soils when it is in its third.[a] In the former case it is turned under while it is tender, so that it may rot quickly and be mixed with the thin soil; in the latter case when it has grown stronger, so that it may hold up the more solid clods longer and keep them suspended, to be broken down when heated by the summer sun. > Latin: 12. Et ut iam percenseamus, quot operis in aream perducantur ea, quae terrae credidimus, tritici modii quattuor vel quinque bubulcorum operas occupant quattuor, occatoris unam, sartoris duas primum et unam cum iterum sariuntur, runcatoris unam, messoris unam et dimidiam; in totum summam operarum decem et dimidiam. Siliginis modii quinque totidem operas desiderant. Seminis1 modii novem vel decem totidem operas quot tritici modii quinque postulant. Hordei modii quinque bubulci operas tres exigunt, occatoriam unam, sartoriam unam et dimidiam, messoriam unam: summam operarum sex et dimidiam. Fabae modii quattuor vel sex in vetereto duas operas bubulcorum detinent, at in restibili unam; occantur sesquiopera, sariuntur sesquiopera et una opera item occantur una opera, metuntur una: summa fit operarum quattuor. et sariuntur iterum duabus, metuntur duabus: summa fit operarum quindecim. Cannabis seritur, ut supra docuimus, sed incertum est quantam impensam curamque desideret. At Medica obruitur non aratro, sed, ut dixi, ligneis rastellis. Iugerum agri eius occant duo, triginta. Sic in asse fiunt octo menses et dies decem. Supersunt tamen de anno tres reliqui menses et dies quinque et viginti, quos absumamus Neque enim dubium, quin et his seminibus infestetur ager sicut et sed etiam saporem et odorem vini cum purgamentis cohortis, licet depressa fossa, qualem stercori reponendo primo volumine fieri praecepimus, cinerem caenumque cloacarum et culmos ceteraque, quae everruntur, in unum congerere. Sed eodem medio loco robustam materiem defigere convenit, namque ea res serpentem noxiam aedificii cotidie gignit, contrahere et congerere possunt. Illud quoque praecipiendum habeo, stercus omne, quod tempestive repositum anno requieverit, segetibus esse agricolae frequenter id potius quam immodice facere. Nee dubium quin aquosus ager maiorem eius copiam, siccus minorem desideret, alter quod adsiduis umoribus rigens hoc adhibito regelatur, alter quod per se tepens siccitatibus hoc vertitur, ut celeriter ipsum putrescat permisceaturque gracili solo; hic iam robustius, quod solidioris glaebas diutius sustineat et suspendat, ut eae solibus aestivis vaporatae resolvantur. [¶5] 16. These things the ploughman will be able to accomplish if he makes provision not only for the varieties of forage crops which I have mentioned, but also for a supply of hay for the better maintenance of his cattle, without which it is difficult to work the land to advantage; and on that account the tending of a meadow is also required of him. To the meadow the ancient Romans assigned the leading role in agriculture, and to it also they gave its name (pratum) from the fact that it was immediately " ready " (paratum) a and did not require a great amount of toil. Marcus Porcius, b indeed, called to mind also the following considerations: that it is not damaged by storms like the other divisions of the farm, and that, though needing very little outlay, it yields a return year after year—and that not a single return, because it pays no less in pasturage than in hay. We take notice, then, of two kinds of meadows, the dry and the watered/ In level ground that is rich and fat there is no need of an inflowing stream, and hay which grows naturally on a moist soil is considered superior to that enticed by irrigation; though such watering is necessary if the leanness of the soil demands it. For a meadow can be laid down both in stiff and in loose soil, however poor, if the opportunity for irrigation is offered. And it should not be a plain that slopes inward, nor a hill with a steep pitch—the former that it may not hold too long the water which settles there, the latter that it may not immediately pour it off in a torrent. However, if the ground has a gentle slope and is either rich or moist, a meadow may be laid down. But the place most approved is an even surface which, having a slight slope, does not allow rain or inflowing rivulets to stand too long; but when any moisture reaches it, it gradually drains off. And so if there is in any part of it a low and boggy place where water stands, it must be drained with ditches; for an oversupply and an undersupply of water are equally destructive to grass. The keeping up of meadows is, moreover, a matter of care rather than of labour. In the first place, we must not allow shrubs or thorn bushes or weeds of rather vigorous growth to remain in them, but before winter and throughout autumn we must root out some of them, such as bramble-bushes, thickets, and rushes, and pull up others like endive and midsummer thorns; and we should not permit swine to feed on them, as they root them up with their snouts and tear up the sod, nor larger animals except when the ground is very dry, because their hoofs, sinking into the wet ground, bruise and cut the grass roots. Then also the more rugged and elevated sections should be enriched with manure in the month of February, while the moon is waxing; and all stones and any harmful objects that may lie in the way of the sickle should be gathered up and carried some distance away, and then, sooner or later, according to the nature of the place, the meadows should be let alone to grow to hay. There are also some meadows covered with the mould of long neglect, and the old- time farmers have a way of restoring them by scraping off the moss and broadcasting seed from the hayloft, or by applying manure; neither of which is so effective as the frequent application of ashes. This last treatment kills the moss completely. Still these remedies are rather slow, whereas the most effective measure is to plough the spot all over again. The above are measures that we should take if we have taken over meadows ready-made; but if new ones are to be established or old ones restored—for there are many, as I have said, which run down and become barren through neglect, and it is expedient to plough them up now and then for a grain crop, because such land after long idleness produces luxuriant crops—we shall break up in the summer such land as we have set apart for a meadow, work it continuously throughout the autumn, and seed it with turnips or navews or even beans; then the following year, with grain. In the third year we shall plough thoroughly and dig out by the roots all the stouter growth, brambles and trees, that stand in the way, unless the fruitfulness of the set trees keeps us from so doing. Next we shall sow vetch mixed with hayseed, then break the clods with hoes and level the surface by drawing a brushwood drag over it, and scatter the heaps of earth which the drags usually form at the turnings, so that the mower's scythe may not strike against anything. But it is not advisable to cut this vetch until it is entirely ripe and has shed some seed on the ground beneath it. Then the mowers should cut it down, and the ground should next be irrigated if there is a supply of water, but only in case the ground is rather heavy; for in loose soil it is not wise to let in too heavy a flow of water before the ground is packed and bound together by vegetation, because the force of the water washes away the soil and, by exposing the roots, does not allow the grass to gain a foothold. It is for this reason that one should not even turn his herds into meadows that are still soft and settling, but should cut the grass with sickles whenever it shoots up; for, as I have said before, cattle plant their hoofs in the soft ground and, cutting off the grass roots, do not allow them to spread and form a dense growth. In the second year, however, we shall allow the smaller animals to be turned in after the haymaking, if only dry weather and the condition of the ground will permit it. Then in the third year, when the meadow is quite solid and firm, it will be in condition to receive even the larger cattle. But, in general, care must be taken that after the rising of Favonius a in February, about the middle of the month, the poorer spots and especially the higher places be given a coating of manure in which hayseed is mixed; for the more elevated slope supplies nourishment to the land that lies below when a pouring rain or a hand-conducted rivulet carries the liquid manure along with its own waters to the part below. And it is for this reason that wise farmers, even in ploughed land, manure a hillside more heavily than a valley, because, as I have stated, the rains are forever carrying all the richer matter down to the lowland. It is best, moreover, that hay be cut before it begins to wither, as a greater quantity of it is harvested and it affords a more agreeable food for cattle. But a middle course should be followed in the curing, that it be gathered neither when very dry nor, on the other hand, while still green—in the one case because it is no better than straw if it has lost all its sap, and in the other because, if it has kept too much of it, it rots in the loft and often, when it becomes heated, it breeds fire and starts a blaze. Sometimes, too, when we have cut our hay a rain surprises us; and if the hay is soaked through it is useless to move it while wet, but better to let the upper side of it dry out in the sun. Only then shall we turn it, and, when it is dry on both sides, we shall bring it together in windrows and then bind it up in bundles. And above all we shall lose no time in putting it under cover; or, if it is not convenient for the hay to be carried to the farmstead or tied into bundles, it will be well at any rate that all of it that had been dried out to the proper extent be built up into cocks and that these be topped off with very sharp peaks. For by this method hay is very conveniently protected from rains; and even if there is no rain, it is still not amiss to build the aforesaid cocks, so that any moisture remaining in the hay may sweat and dry out in the piles. For this reason wise husbandmen, even in the case of hay brought under cover, do not store it away until they have allowed it to heat and cool for a few days in a loose pile. But now after the haymaking comes attention to the grain harvest; and that we may properly gather it, we must first put in readiness the implements with which the crops are harvested. > Latin: 16. Atque haec arator exsequi poterit, si non solum quae rettuli genera pabulorum providerit, verum etiam copiam faeni, quo melius armenta tueatur, sine quibus terram commode moliri difficile est; et ideo necessarius ei cultus est etiam prati, cui veteres Romani primas in agricolatione tribuerunt. Nomen quoque indiderunt ab eo, quod protinus esset paratum nec magnum laborem desideraret. Marcus quidem Porcius et illa commemoravit, quod nec tempestatibus adfligentur ut aliae partes ruris minimeque aquam, hic ne statim praecipitem fundat. Potest tamen mediocriter acclivis, si aut pinguis est aut riguus ager, pratum fieri. At planities maxime talis probatur, quae exigue prona non patitur diutius imbres aut influentis rivos immorari, sed ut colae veteres si tamen terra densior est; nam in resoluta humo non expedit inducere maiorem vim rivorum, prius quam conspissatum fuerit quam inarescat; [¶6] 19. The threshing-floor, too, if it is of earth, to be satisfactorily prepared for threshing should first be scraped, then dug thoroughly, with an admixture of chaff and oil lees which have not been salted, and moistened; for such treatment protects the grain from the ravages of mice and ants. Then, after being smoothed down, it should be packed hard with rammers or with a millstone, and, again strewn with chaff, it should be tramped down and left in this condition to be dried by the sun. There are people, however, who set aside for the threshing a piece of meadow land which is exposed to the west wind, and smooth off a threshing-place by cutting beans and throwing them on it; for while the legumes are being trampled out by the cattle the vegetation also is worn away by their hoofs, and in this way the place becomes bare and makes a suitable threshing-floor for grain. But when the grain is ripe it should be quickly harvested before it can be parched by the heat of the summer sun, winch is most severe at the rising of the Dog-star; a for delay is costly—in the first place because it affords plunder for birds and other creatures, and, secondly, because the kernels and even the heads themselves quickly fall as the stalks and beards wither. And if wind-storms or cyclones strike it, the greater part of it is lost on the ground; for which reason there should be no delay, but when the crop is even golden yellow, before the grains have entirely hardened and after they have taken on a reddish colour, the harvest should be gathered, so that the grain may grow larger on the floor a and in the stack rather than in the field. For it is an established fact that, if cut at the proper time, it makes some growth afterwards. There are, furthermore, several methods of reaping: many cut the straw in the middle with cradle-scythes, and these either bill-shaped or toothed; many gather the heads only with forks, and others with combs b—an operation which is very easy in a thin crop, but very difficult in a thick one. But if the grain, with a part of the straw, is cut with sickles, it is at once gathered into a pile or carried into the shed, c and then after repeated drying in the sun, as opportunity offers, it is threshed. If, however, the heads only are cut off they may be carried into the granary and then, during the winter, be beaten out with flails or trodden out by cattle. But if it is convenient to have the grain threshed on the floor, there is no doubt that this work is better done with horses than with oxen; and if you have few teams you may hitch to them a threshing-sledge and a drag, either of which very easily breaks up the straw. It is better, however, that the heads themselves be beaten with flails and winnowed with fans. But when the grain is mixed with the chaff it is cleaned by the wind. The west wind is considered excellent for this purpose, as it blows gently and evenly in the summer months; but to wait for it is the mark of a dilatory farmer, for often, while we are waiting, a raging storm surprises us. Therefore the threshed grain should be heaped on the threshing-floor in such a way that it can be winnowed with any gentle wind. But if the air is quiet in every quarter for many days, the grain should be cleaned with winnowing-fans, for fear that after excessive stillness of the winds a mighty storm may bring to naught the toil of an entire year. Then the pure grain, if it is being laid away for a term of years, should be threshed again, for the better it is scoured the less it is preyed upon by weevils; but if it is intended for immediate use, there is no need of a second cleaning and it is sufficient that it be cooled in the shade and so carried to the granary. The handling of legumes, too, differs not at all from that of other grains, for they also are either consumed at once or stored away. And this is the crowning reward of the husbandman—reaping the harvest of the seed that he has entrusted to the earth. But inasmuch as our ancestors saw fit to render an account of their leisure hours as well as of their times of non-leisure, a I also believe that farmers should be advised of what they should do on holidays and what they should leave undone. For here are things which, as the poet says. Divine and human laws let be performed on festive days: No sacred law forbids to fetch the irrigating rills, A hedge along the field to stretch, for birds a snare to lay, And briars to burn, and bleating flocks to dip in wholesome stream. b And yet the pontiffs assert that a grain-field should not be fenced on holidays; they also forbid the washing of sheep for the good of the fleece, except as a curative measure. Vergil is instructing us as to the lawfulness of washing the flock in a river on holidays, and for that reason he adds " to dip in wholesome stream "—that is, in a healing stream; for there are ailments because of which it is expedient to bathe the cattle. a Furthermore, the religious observances of our forefathers permit these tasks also on holidays: b the braying of spelt; the cutting of torches; the dipping of candles; the tilling of a leased vineyard; the clearing out and cleaning of fish-ponds, cisterns, and old ditches; the sickling c of meadows; the spreading of manure; the storing of hay in the loft; the gathering of the fruits of a leased olive-grove; the spreading of apples, pears, and figs to dry; the making of cheese; the carrying of trees for planting, either on our own shoulders or with a pack mule. But it is not permitted to haul them with a yoked animal, nor to plant them after they are transported, nor to open the ground, nor to thin a tree; d and not to assist in the sowing either unless you have first sacrificed a puppy, nor to cut hay or bind it or haul it; and it is not permissible either by the ordinances of the priests for the vintage to be gathered on feast days, nor to shear sheep, unless you have sacrificed a puppy. It is also lawful to make boiled must and to boil wine. To gather grapes and olives for preserving is likewise lawful. It is not lawful to clothe sheep with skins. e Anything that you may do in your garden for the good of your vegetables is lawful. It is not lawful to bury a dead person on public feast days. Marcus Porcius Cato says that there are no holidays for mules, horses, and asses; a the same authority permits the yoking of oxen for the purpose of hauling wood and grain. We ourselves have read in the books of the pontiffs that only on the holidays called Denicales b is it unlawful to have mules in harness, but on other holidays it is lawful. I am well aware that at this point, after my survey of the observances of feast days, some people will miss the customs observed by the ancients in the matter of purificatory ceremonies and other offerings which are made for the good of the crops.c And I am not declining the task of offering this instruction, but am postponing it for that book d which I intend to put together after I have written precepts on the whole science of agriculture. Meanwhile I shall bring the present discussion to an end, having in mind to tell in the next book what ancient authorities have handed down on the subject of vineyards and of tree-plantations, and what I myself have since discovered. > Latin: 19. Area quoque si terrena erit, ut sit ad trituram satis habilis, primum radatur, deinde confodiatur,1 permixtis paleis cum amurca, quae salem non accepit, et rigetur; 2 nam ea res a populatione murum formicarumque frumenta defendit. Tum aequata paviculis vel molarilapide condensetur et rursus superiectis paleis inculcetur atque ita solibus siccanda relinquatur. Sunt tamen, qui prati subiacentem Favonio messis facienda est, ut potius in area et in acervo quam in agro grandescant frumenta. Constat enim, si tempestive decisa sint, postea capere incrementum. Sunt autem metendi genera complura. Multi falcibus veruculatis atque iis vel rostratis quia saepe, Quamquam pontifices negant segetem feriis saepiri debere; vetant quoque lanarum causa lavari non licet. In horto quicquid holerum causa facias, omnelicet. Feriispublicishominem mortuum sepeliri " Hactenus arvorum cultus," ut ait praestantissima poeta. ## 3. Book III Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/3/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/3/#p-N [¶0] 1. “Thus far of the tillage of the land,” as says that most excellent poet.0 For, Publius Silvinus, as we are about to speak on the same topics, there is nothing to keep us from beginning under good omens with the opening words of that most renowned poem. There follows the management of trees, which is a most important part of rural husbandry. They are diverse in kind, and of many shapes; for trees of various sorts, as the same author relates, of their own will come forth, By mortals not constrained; b and many, too, grow from seed planted by our own hand. c But those that are propagated without human aid, the wild and untamed, bear fruits or seeds according to their several natures; while those on which labour is spent are fitted for a greater yield. I must speak first, then, of that kind which supplies us with food. And of this there is a threefold division: for from a small shoot there comes forth either a tree, as the olive; or a shrub, as the palm of the plains; or a third something which we can properly call neither tree nor shrub, as is the vine. This last we rightly set above all other woody-plants, not only for the sweetness of its fruits, but also because of the readiness with which in nearly every country and every climate, except, however, the icy cold or burning hot, it responds to human care; it thrives on plain as well as hillside, in compact soil no less than in loose, often also in thin land, in fat ground and lean, in dry ground and wet; and it alone has the greatest endurance of both sorts of intemperate weather—either under a cold sky or one that is hot and stormy. Nevertheless an important consideration is the variety and the habit of the vine which you propose to cultivate, in relation to the conditions of the region. For its cultivation is not the same in every climate and in every soil, nor is there only one variety of that plant; and which kind is best of all is not easy to say, since experience teaches that to every region its own variety is more or less suited. Still the wise farmer will have discovered by test that the kind of vine proper for level country is one which endures mists and frosts without injury; for a hillside, one which withstands drought and wind. He will assign to fat and fertile land a vine that is slender and not too productive by nature; to lean land, a prolific vine; to heavy soil, a vigorous vine that puts forth much wood and foliage; to loose and rich soil, one that has few canes. He will know that it is not proper to commit to a moist place a vine with thin-skinned fruit and unusually large grapes, but one whose fruit is tough-skinned, small, and full of seeds; and that plants of a different nature are properly entrusted to a dry site. But in addition to this the proprietor of the place will not be un- aware that the nature of the climate—cold or warm, dry or moist, subject to hail and wind or calm, clear or foggy—is a more potent influence. To cold or foggy conditions he will adapt two varieties of vine, either the early ripe, whose fruits mature before cold weather, or those with firm and hard berries, whose clusters drop their blossoms during the foggy season and are presently ripened by freezing weather and frosts, as those of other grapes are ripened by warmth. To a windy and unsettled climate also he will boldly commit the same hardy vines and those of the hard-berried variety. On the other hand, he will entrust to a warm climate the more delicate and heavier-bearing sorts. For a dry climate he will select such as are rotted by rains or continual dews; for a dewy one, those that suffer in dry weather; for one subject to hailstorms, those that have tough and broad leaves for the better protection of the fruit. A calm and clear-skied region does not refuse to admit any kind of vine, though most suitably one whose clusters or berries fall quickly. But if your own wishes are to be considered in the selection of site and climate for your vineyards, the best soil, as Celsus very rightly believes, is neither too compact nor loose, but closer to the loose type; neither poor nor excessively rich, but nearest to the fertile kind; neither flat nor steep, but like plain-land with a rise; neither dry nor wet, but moderately moist; one which does not abound in springs, either on the surface or in the depths of the earth, but which supplies the roots with moisture close at hand—and that neither bitter nor brackish, lest it spoil the flavour of the wine and check the growth of the vines' greenery with a kind of scaly rust, if only we believe Vergil when he says. “Unkind to crops is salty ground, and what is bitter called; It is not tamed by ploughman's toil, nor does it keep unstained The good repute of Bacchus' child and other fruits' fair name.” Furthermore, as I have said before, a vineyard does not want an icy climate nor, on the other hand, one that is burning hot, though it thrives better in warm weather than in cold. It is harmed more by rain than by clear weather, and is more kindly disposed to a dry soil than to one that is subject to too much rain. It delights in moderate and gentle breezes, but is liable to injury from squalls. And this is the character of climate and soil that is most commendable. Further, the grape is planted either for eating or for the pouring forth of its juice. It is not profitable to establish vineyards for food unless the plot is so close to a city that conditions warrant the selling of the raw grapes to marketers, as we do other fruit. When this is the case, the early ripe and hard-berried b varieties are especially to be planted, and then the Purple and the Bumast (full-breasted), c the Dactyl (date-shaped)d and the Rhodian, and the Libyan and the Cerau- nian; a and not only those that can be recommended for agreeableness of flavour, but also those whose appearance can commend them, such as the Stephanitan (coronary), b the Tripedanean (three-foot kind),6 the Unciarian (ounce-weight), d and the Cydonitan (quince-grape); e likewise those vines whose grapes keep well in winter and are stored in jars, as the Venuculan, f and the Numisian, winch has recently been proved for this purpose. But when our interest is in the wine, a vine is selected which is both heavy in yield and strong in wood, because the one contributes greatly to the income of the husbandman, and the other to the durability of the stock. But such a vine is especially good if it does not put forth leaves too quickly, if also it casts its flowers very early in the season and does not ripen too slowly; moreover, if it easily withstands frosts and fog and blight, does not rot in rainy weather, and does not shrivel up in times of drought. A vine of this sort, though only moderately fruitful, should be our choice, if only we have a piece of ground where the flavour of the wine is distinguished and costly; for if it is of poor quality or low in price, it is best to plant the most prolific vines, so that our revenues may be increased by the greater quantity of the yield. Moreover, in nearly every type of place champaign slopes produce the larger quantity of wine, but hill lands the better flavoured; and in a temperate climate hills that slope to the north are more productive, while those with a southern exposure yield a superior quality. And there is no doubt that the nature of some vines is such that in the quality of their wine they sometimes excel, sometimes are excelled, according to their situation. The Aminean varieties a alone, except where the climate is exceedingly cold, and even if they decline in quality in comparison with their best, are said to provide wines of more or less true taste and to surpass all other varieties in flavour. Though they bear one name, they are not of the same appearance. We know of two " sister " vines, of which the smaller is earlier and better in casting its blossoms and may be trained to tree and trellis b alike. On the tree it requires rich ground; on the trellis, ordinary soil. And it far surpasses the larger variety by reason of its sturdier endurance of rain and wind. For the larger sort is quickly spoiled in the blossom, and more so on trellises than on trees; and on this account it is not suitable for vineyards, and hardly fit for an arbustum c except in ground that is very rich and vigorous; for it does not thrive in ordinary ground, and much less so in lean ground. It is distinguished by its great amount of rank woody growth and the large size of its leaves, clusters, and berries; it is also longer from joint to joint. In quantity of fruit it is surpassed by the smaller variety; it is not outdone in flavour. And both of these, to be sure, are Aminean vines. But there are two other vines, called “twins,” which derive their name from their producing of double clusters; they yield a harsher wine, but keep equally well. The smaller of the two is everywhere very well known, because it covers those most famous slopes of Vesuvius and of Surrentum a in Campania. It is sprightly amid the western breezes of summer, but downcast in southern winds; and so in other sections of Italy it is suitable, not so much for vineyards, as for the arbustum, although in the regions above mentioned it bears the yoke b very well. It produces wood and fruit—except for its double clusters—not unlike the smaller " sister " vine, just as the larger " twin " is like the larger “sister”; but the smaller vine is the better in that it is more fruitful even in ordinary soil, for I have already said that the other does not yield except in very rich ground. Some also approve very highly the “woolly” Aminean, which acquires this epithet not from the fact that it alone, of all the Aminean varieties, is hoary with down, but because it is especially so. A producer of exceedingly good wine, though mellower than those above mentioned, it also makes a rank growth; and for this reason, because of the compactness of its foliage, it often does not cast its blossoms perfectly, and it also rots quickly after the fruit has matured. In addition to the number that we have mentioned, there is included a " single “c Aminean not unlike the larger” twin "— a vine of first rank in the appearance of leafy shoots and stock, but somewhat inferior in the flavour of its wine; though even so it ranks next to the most outstanding varieties and is even to be preferred for qualities of its own. For it is more fruitful, it is better in casting its flowers, it bears compact light-coloured clusters of plumper grapes, it does not degenerate in poor land, and consequently it is counted among the most profitable vines. The Nomentan vines a follow close after the Amineans in excellence of wine, but in productivity they even take the lead; and naturally so, since they are often loaded full and keep exceedingly well what they have produced. But of these, too, the smaller is the more prolific; its leaf is not so deeply cleft, and its wood is not so red as that of the larger variety—from which colour the vines are called rubellanae. These vines are also called faeciniae from the fact that they make more dregs (faeces) than other varieties. Still they make up for this disadvantage in the greater number of their clusters, which they produce even on a trellis but better on a tree. They endure winds and rains valiantly, drop their flowers early, and therefore ripen sooner. They bear up under every adversity except that of heat; for, having small-berried and tough-skinned clusters, they shrivel in high temperatures. They delight most of all in rich land, which can add some fullness to clusters that are naturally scanty and small. The Eugenians endure a cold, dewy ground and climate very well as long as they remain on the Alban hills; for in a changed situation they hardly answer to their own name. a The same is true of the Allobrogian b vines: the agreeableness of their wines is affected by a change of region. The three Apian c also are recommended for their great qualities; all of them fruitful and quite suitable for the trellis and for trees, though the one with bare leaves is superior. For the two lanate varieties, though of like appearance as to leaves and branches, differ in the quality of their juice, as one of them is slower in acquiring flatness of taste from long keeping. They are very prolific in rich ground, and fruitful also in average soil; their fruit ripens early, and for that reason they are very well suited for cold localities; they yield a sweet wine, but are not good for the head, sinews, and veins. If they are not gathered at the proper time they become the prey of rains, winds, and bees; and it is because of this plundering that they are surnamed from the word meaning " bees " (apes). And these are the vines most renowned for their precious flavours. There are, nevertheless, vines of second quality which can be commended for their growth and fruitfulness, such as the Bituric d and the Basilic, the smaller of which the Spaniards call coccolobis, e—both of them by far the closest to the very best; for their wine stands long keeping and attains some degree of excellence with age. And in fact they surpass in productiveness all that I have mentioned above, and also in hardiness; for they withstand storms and rain with the greatest fortitude, they have a good amount of juice, and do not fail in lean ground. They endure cold better than wetness, and wetness better than dryness, and yet they are not bothered by heat. Next after these are the Visula a and the smaller Argitis,6 which thrive in ground of middling quality; for they make a rank growth in rich ground because of their excessive vigour, while in lean ground they grow spindling and are devoid of fruit. They have a greater fondness for the trellis than for trees, though the Argitis is productive even on high supports and makes a luxuriant growth of wood and grape clusters. The Visula, better suited to very low frames, makes little wood but tough and broad leaves, whose size affords the fruit very good protection against hail; but if this is not gathered as soon as it is ripe, it falls to the ground; and in wet weather it rots even before it falls off. There are also the Helvolans, c which some call variae (variegated); they are neither purple nor black, and get their name, if I mistake not, from their dun (helvus) shade. The one which is more nearly black is the better as to quantity of wine, while the other is more highly prized in the matter of flavour. In neither of them does the colour of the berries appear to be uniform. Both yield white must in greater or smaller quantity every year. They make a better covering on a tree, though doing well on a trellis. They are productive also in mediocre soil, as are the smaller and larger Pretians. c But the latter are commended more highly for the quality of their wine, and they put forth much wood and foliage and ripen quickly. The Albuelis, d as Celsus says, is more profitable on a hill than on a plain; on a tree than on a trellis; and at the top of the tree than at the lower part. It produces much wood and many clusters. For those Greekling vines—such as the Mareotic, the Thasian, the Psithian, and the Sophortian—though they have an agreeable taste, still in our localities they yield little juice because of the looseness of the bunches and the small size of the berries. Nevertheless the black Inerticulan, which certain Greeks call amethystos, a may be placed in the second tribe, so to speak, because it makes good wine and is harmless; from this fact, too, it takes its name, because it is considered inactive (iners) in its effect on the sinews, although not dull in taste. Celsus makes a third class of those vines which are commended for fruitfulness alone, such as the three Helvenacans, b of which the two larger are considered by no means equal to the smaller in the quality and quantity of their must. One of them, which people who live in Gaul call marcus, c produces ordinary wine; and the other, which they designate as the " long vine " and also the “white vine,” yields a wine of low grade and of no such quantity as the number of its clusters promises at first glance. The smallest and best of the three is very readily recognized by its leaf, for it bears the roundest leaf of all of them; and it is praiseworthy because it endures drought best of all, because it bears cold if only it is free from rain, because in some regions its wine is racked off for long keeping, and especially because it alone gives a good name to even the poorest of soil by reason of its own fertility. [Celsus includes also] such as the Spionian, rich in must but fruitful in the size rather than the number of its clusters; such as the Horconian, a the Murgentine, a which is the same as the Pompeian, the Numisian, the Venuculan, also called Scirpulan and Sticulan; b such as the black Fragellan, the Merican, the Rhaetian, and that most prolific of all vines within our acquaintance, the greater Arcelacan, c wrongly considered by many to be the Argitis. For as to those that have recently come to my knowledge—I mean the Pergulan, the Irtiolan, and the Fereolan—I could not easily declare with certainty in what class they are to be considered; for, though I know that they are passably fruitful, I have not been able as yet to pass judgment on the quality of the wine that they produce. We have discovered also that there is an early-ripe vine, hitherto unknown to us and called Dracontion after the Greek fashion, which may be compared in fruitfulness and agreeableness to the Arcelacan, the Basilic, and the Bituric vines, and in its high quality to the Aminean. There are, besides, many sorts of vines of which we can relate neither the number nor the names with assurance. And, indeed, as the poet says, “to know their number is of no concern. One who would know of this might also wish to learn How many grains of Libyan sand by western breeze are stirred.” For all countries and almost all separate districts of those countries have their peculiar types of vines, which they designate according to their own fashion; some vine-stocks also have changed their names along with the places where they are grown; and some, as I said above, have so far departed from their peculiar character, through a change of place, as to be unrecognizable. And so in our own Italy, not to speak of the whole far-flung world, neighbouring peoples disagree in the names of vines, and their designations vary. Therefore it is a mark of the wise teacher not to retard his students with quibbling over a list of names of a sort which it is impossible to master, but in general to lay down as a precept what Celsus says, and Marcus Cato before him—that no kind of vine should be planted except that approved by common report, and that none should be kept for any length of time unless proved by test. And where the many advantages of a particular region invite us to plant a superior vine, we shall search out one of good origin, says Julius Graecinus; where there is nothing at all or not much to encourage us, we shall look rather for fruitfulness, which is not excelled in worth to the same degree that it excels in abundance of yield. a But as for this opinion, though I myself was of the same mind not long ago, I shall soon tell in the proper place what my more private judgment is. For it is my purpose to teach the method by which vineyards may be managed so as to be at the same time fruitful and productive of/ a wine that will bring a good price. > Latin: 1. Nihil enim prohibet nos, Publi Silvine, de iisdem1 rebus dicturos celeberrima carminis suspicari 2 principio.3 Sequitur arborum cura, quae pars rei rusticae vel maxima est. Earum species diversae et multiformes sunt: quippe varii generis, sicut auctor idem refert, nullis hominum cogentibus ipsae Sponte sua veniunt; multae ut est vitis. Hanc nos ceteris stirpibus iure praeponimus, non tantum fructus dulcedine, sed etiam facilitate per quam omni paene regione et omni declinatione mundi, nisi tamen glaciali vel praefervida, curae mortalium respondet, tamque felix campis quam collibus provenit, et in densa non minus quam in resoluta, saepe etiam gracili; atque pingui et macra, posse qualitatem caeli frigidam vel calidam, siccam vel roscidam, grandinosam ventosamque vel placidam, serenam vel nebulosam: virentium veluti quadam scabra rubigine nec solum quae iucunditate saporis, verum etiam quae specie commendari possint, Nec dubium, quin sit ea nonnullarum vitium natura, ut pro locorum situ bonitate vini modo vincant modo superentur. que Amineae. Verum et aliae duae geminae ab eo quod duplices uvas exigunt, cognomen trahunt pampini et trunci, sed vini sapore aliquanto inferior, quamvis generosissimis sit proxima, respondent;nec minus Allobrogicae, quarum vini iucunditas cum regione mutatur. Magis etiam dotibus tres Apianae tamen contristatur. Visula ferax et materiae frequentis et uvae. Nam quae Graeculae vites sunt, ut Mareoticae,Thasiae, Psithiae, Sophortiae, sicut habent probabilem gustum, ita nostris regionibus et raritate uvarum et acinorum exiguitate minus fluunt. Inerticula tamen nigra, quam quidam Graeci amethyston sine imbribus sit; quod non nullis locis etiam vinum eius in vetustatem diffunditur; quod praecipue sola macerrimum quoque solumfertilitate sua commendat. Ut Spionia cum certa fide referre possumus. Neque enim, vincitur pretio quam vincit abundantia. Sed de hac sententia, quamquam et ipse paulo ante idem censuerim, quid tamen arcanius iudicem, suo loco mox dicam. Propositum est enim docere qua ratione vineae pariter feraces et pretiosae fluxurae possint constitui. [¶1] 3. Now, before discoursing on the planting of vines, I think it not out of place to lay down, as a sort of foundation for the coming discussion, the principle that we would have carefully weighed and investigated in advance whether viticulture will enrich the proprietor; for it is well-nigh purposeless as yet to give directions for planting vines, as long as the prior question is not yet affirmatively answered—whether vines should be kept at all. And most people would be doubtful on this point, to such an extent that many would avoid and dread such an ordering of their land, and would consider it preferable to own meadows and pastures, or woodland for cutting; for in the matter of ground planted with trees for the support of vines b there has been no little dispute even among authorities, Saserna being unfavourable to this kind of land, and Tremelius approving it most highly. But we shall make an appraisal of this opinion in its proper place. Meanwhile those devoted to the study of agriculture must be informed of one thing first of all—that the return from vineyards is a very rich one. And to pass over the old-time fertility of the land, of whiter. Marcus Cato long ago, and Terentius Varro c more recently, recorded that each iugerum of vineyard yielded six hundred urnae d of wine—for Varro so declares most emphatically in the first book of his Res Rusticae— and that this was the customary yield not in one district alone but also in the country around Faventia a and in the Ager Gallicus, b which is now annexed to Picenum; in our own times, at any rate, the neighbourhood of Nomentum is illumined by a most distinguished reputation; and especially that part owned by Seneca, a man of outstanding genius and erudition, on whose estates it is learned that every iugerum of vineyard has yielded commonly eight cullei. d For the things that happened in our Ceretanum e seem to have been in the nature of a prodigy, in that a certain vine on your place exceeded the number of two thousand clusters, and with me, that eight hundred grafted stocks of less than two years f yielded seven cullei, or that first-class vineyards produced a hundred amphorae 9 to the iugerum, when meadows, pastures, and woodland seem to do very well by the owner if they bring in a hundred sesterces h for every iugerum. For we can hardly recall a time when grain crops, throughout at least the greater part of Italy, returned a yield of four for one.' Why, then, is viticulture in disrepute? Not, indeed, through its own fault, but because of human failings, says Graecinus; in the first place because no one takes pains in searching after cuttings, and for that reason most people plant vineyards of the worst sort; and then they do not nourish their vines, once planted, in such a way as to let them gain strength and shoot out before they wither; and if they do happen to grow, they are careless in the matter of cultivation. Even at the very start they think that it makes no difference what kind of ground they plant; or rather they pick out the very worst section of their lands, as though such ground alone were particularly fit for this plant because incapable of producing anything else. Either they do not understand even the method of setting them or else they fail to put it into practice when they do understand it. Then too, they seldom have the dowry a—that is, the equipment—in readiness for their vineyards; though this, if neglected, uses up many days of toil and puts a constant drain on the coffers of the proprietor. Most people, in fact, strive for the richest possible yield at the earliest moment; they make no provision for the time to come, but, as if living merely from day to day, they put such demands upon their vines and load them so heavily with young shoots as to show no regard for succeeding generations. After committing all these acts, or at any rate most of them, they would rather do anything at all than admit their own guilt; and they complain that their vineyards do not yield them a return—vineyards which they themselves have ruined through greed, or ignorance, or neglect. But any who combine painstaking care with scientific knowledge receive, not forty, or at least thirty according to my reckoning, but, as Graecinus says, though setting the lowest estimate, twenty amphorae from every iugerum, they will easily outdo in the increase of their ancestral estates all those who hold fast to their hay and pot-herbs. And he is not mistaken in this; for, like a careful accountant, he sees, when his calculations are made, that this kind of husbandry is of the, greatest advantage to his estate. For, admitting that vineyards demand a very generous outlay, still seven iugera require the labour of not more than one vinedresser, upon whom people in general set a low value, thinking that even some malefactor may be acquired from the auction-block; a but I, disagreeing with the opinion of the majority, consider a high-priced vinedresser of first importance. And supposing his purchase price to be 6000 or, better, 8000 sesterces, when I estimate the seven iugera of ground as acquired for just as many thousands of sesterces, b and that the vineyards with their dowry—that is, with stakes and withes—are set out for 2000 sesterces per iugerum, still the total cost, reckoned to the last farthing, amounts to 29,000 sesterces. Added to this is interest at six per cent, per annum, amounting to 3480 sesterces for the two-year period when the vineyards, in their infancy as it were, are delayed in bearing. The sum total of principal and interest comes to 32,480 sesterces. And if the husbandman would enter this amount as a debt against his vineyards just as a moneylender does with a debtor, so that the owner may realize the aforementioned six per cent, interest on that total as a perpetual annuity, he should take in 1950 sesterces every year. By this reckoning the return from seven iugera, even according to the estimate of Graecinus, exceeds the interest on 32,480 sesterces. For, assuming that the vineyards are of the very worst sort, still, if taken care of, they will yield certainly one adieus of wine to the iugerum', and even though every forty urns are sold for 300 sesterces, which is the lowest market price, nevertheless seven cullei make a total of 2100 sesterces—a sum far in excess of the interest at six per cent. And these figures, as we have given them, take account of the calculations of Graecinus. But our own opinion is that vineyards which yield less than three cullei to the iugerum should be rooted out. And, even so, we have made our calculations up to this point as if there were no quicksets a to be taken from the trenched ground; though this item alone, at a favourable price, would clear the entire cost of the land, if only the land belongs, not to the provinces, but to Italy. And no one should be skeptical of this statement when he distinguishes between my method and that of Julius Atticus; for I am now planting between the rows 20,000 mallet-shoots b to every iugerum of vineyard, while he sets out four thousand fewer. c Assuming that his way is the better one, still no ground, even the most unfavourable, will fail to yield a return exceeding the expense incurred; since, even though 6000 of the plants die through the carelessness of the vinedresser, still the remaining 10,000 will be purchased by contract-vineyardists, cheerfully and at a profit, for 3000 sesterces. This sum exceeds by one third the 2000 sesterces which we have named above as the cost of planting one iugerum of vines, and yet our own management has now progressed to the point where husbandmen are not averse to purchasing quicksets from me at a price of six hundred sesterces a thousand. But anyone else will hardly go beyond the above-named figure; for no one will readily take our word for it that there is such a quantity of wine upon our small pieces of ground as you, Silvinus, know to be the case. For that reason I have quoted the average and customary price of quicksets, so that those who, through want of knowledge, avoid this branch of husbandry, may be brought over more quickly to my opinion with no dissenting vote. Therefore either the revenue from ground prepared for planting or the hope of vintages to come should encourage us in the planting of vines. And now that we have shown that it is consistent with good business to plant them, we shall offer directions for putting them in order. One who has it at heart to make plantations of vines should guard especially against the willingness to entrust them to another's care in preference to his own; and he should not buy quicksets. But he should plant at home shoots of the sort most approved, and should make a nursery of vines from which he may clothe his land with vineyards. For foreign cuttings, transplanted from a different locality, are less at home in our soil than are the native varieties, and for that reason, being strangers, so to speak, they dread a change of climate and situation; and also they offer no definite assurance of quality, seeing that it is uncertain whether the one who has planted them has set out shoots of a carefully tested and approved variety. Therefore a period of two years must be considered the mini- mum time within which the quality of the cuttings can certainly show itself; though, as I have said, it has always been of the greatest importance to set out stock of carefully selected origin. Next after this he should remember to make a careful choice of a site for his vineyards; and when he has come to a decision on this point he should know that the greatest pains must be employed in trenching the ground. After he has finished the trenching he should use no less care in the planting of the vine, and after the planting he should attend with greatest diligence to the matter of cultivation; for this is, so to speak, the chief and crowning point of the investment, since on it rests the decision as to whether it has been better or worse for the proprietor to commit his money to the soil rather than to employ it in idleness. Therefore I shall discuss in their proper order each of those matters which I have proposed. A vine-nursery should be established in ground that is neither hungry nor wet, but moist and of medium quality rather than fat; though nearly all authorities have designated a very fertile soil for this purpose. This I consider as not at all to the advantage of the husbandman; for even though the cuttings quickly take root and shoot up when planted in strong soil, yet if transferred to poorer soil when they become quicksets, they wither and cannot grow to maturity. Moreover, it is the mark of a wise husbandman to transplant from poorer ground to better rather than from better to poorer. For this reason an intermediate quality is most approved in the choice of a site, because it stands on the border line between good and bad. For if necessity afterwards demands the setting of the young plants at the proper time in lean ground, they will be conscious of no great change when transferred from mediocre to poor soil; or if a more fertile field is to be planted, they gain strength far more quickly in the rich ground. On the other hand, it is not at all consistent with reason to make a nursery of vines in the very poorest ground, since the majority of the slips die, and such as do survive are slow in becoming fit for transplanting. A piece of average and moderately dry ground, then, is best suited for the nursery; and it should first be worked with the trenching-spade, a which equals the depth of the trenching when the ground is turned up to two and one-half feet. Then, leaving three-foot spaces for the cultivation of the plants, 600 cuttings are to be set in each of the rows which measure 240 feet. This number makes a total of 24,000 plants to the iugerum. b But the examination and choice of shoots takes precedence of this care. For, as I have often said before, the planting of the most approved kind of stock is the foundation, so to speak, of the aforesaid matter. But the choice must be made with two considerations in mind; for it is not enough merely that the mother vine from which the cuttings are sought should be prolific, but a more discriminating method must be employed, that they may be taken from those parts of her body which are both generative and especially fruitful. Moreover, the prolific vine whose offspring we wish to rear should not be valued merely because it puts forth grape clusters in great quantity, for this may be due to the large size of the stock and the great number of fruiting canes; a though I should not call that a fruitful vine where only one cluster is seen to each cane. But if a larger number of clusters hang upon every young shoot; if from every eye on its many mature branches it sprouts out with fruit; if, finally, it also puts out from its firm wood a green shoot with some clusters; if, too, it is heavy with the fruit of its secondary shoots;6 such a vine, fruitful beyond doubt, should be marked out for the gathering of mallet-shoots. The mallet-shoot, moreover, is a young shoot growing out of a cane of the year before; it is named according to its resemblance, because, projecting on both sides in that part where it is cut from the old branch, it has the appearance of a mallet. Our opinion is that this should be taken from the most prolific stock every time that the vines are pruned, and carefully planted, with three or four eyes showing above ground, in soil that is moderately moist but not wet; if only it be our first consideration that the vine from which the shoot is taken be not uncertain in its flowering, that its berries have no difficulty in growing big, and that it bear fruit which is neither early nor too late in ripening. For the former is damaged by birds, and the latter by wintry storms as well. Moreover, such a kind of vine is not proved by one vintage; for even a vine that is naturally unfruitful may produce an abundant yield a single time, either because of the bountifulness of the year or for other reasons. But when confidence in the slip has been established by the completion of several years of campaigning, as it were, there can be no doubt as to its fruitfulness. Yet such an examination is not carried beyond a period of four years; for the quality of plants usually becomes manifest in that period of time during which the sun returns to the same division of the zodiac through the same signs by which it began its circuit—a periodical course of fourteen hundred and sixty-one entire days, which students of celestial matters call ἀποκατάστασις. a But I am sure, Publius Silvinus, that you have long been inquiring in your own mind to what variety that fruitful vine belongs which we are at such pains to describe—whether one of those which are commonly regarded as most prolific nowadays is meant. For very many people are high in their praise of the Bituric, many of the Spionian, some of the Basilic, and several of the Arcelacan. We, too, do not deprive these varieties of our approbation, for they yield a very great quantity of wine; but we have resolved to teach the planting of vines of a sort that will produce fruit in no less abundance than the above-mentioned varieties, and that have a rich flavour like that of the Aminean, or at least not far from that taste. I am aware that the belief of nearly all agriculturists is at variance with my way of thinking; a belief which, as regards Aminean vines, has become deep-rooted and has gained strength through length of time, as though they suffered from a native and inborn unfruitfulness. For this reason there is greater necessity on our part of fortifying with many examples a method recalled from times past—a method which, being condemned through the slothfulness as well as the indiscretion of husbandmen and obscured, as it were, by the darkness of ignorance, has been deprived of the light of truth. The time is not unsuitable, then, for us to turn our attention first to considerations which seem able to correct this general misunderstanding. Therefore, Publius Silvinus, if we will look at nature through the keener eyes of the mind, so to speak, we shall find that she has established an equable law of fertility for all green things even as for human beings and other living creatures; and that she has not so bestowed special endowments upon some nations or regions as to deny like gifts altogether to others. To some peoples she has granted the gift of producing numerous progeny, as to the Egyptians and Africans, with whom the birth of twins is common and almost an annual occurrence; but of Italian stock, too, she has willed that there be women of extraordinary fertility—Alban women of the Curiatian family, mothers of three children at one birth. a She has adorned Germany with armies of exceedingly tall men; but she has not wholly deprived other nations of men of exceptional stature. For Cicero bears witness that there was once a Roman citizen, Naevius Pollio, a who was a foot taller than the tallest of other men; and recently we ourselves might have seen, among the exhibits of the procession at the games in the Circus, a man of the Jewish race who was of greater stature than the tallest German. I pass to cattle. Mevania b is famous for its herds of tali cattle, Liguria for small; but an ox of low stature is seen now and then in Mevania, and a bull of towering proportions in Liguria. India is said to excite astonishment for the hugeness of its wild animals; yet who will deny that beasts of equally vast size are bred in this land, when we consider that elephants are brought forth within our own walls? But I return to various kinds of crops. They say that Mysia and Libya produce enormous quantities of grain, but that the fields of Apulia and Campania are not wanting in rich crops; that Tmolus and Corycus c are considered famous for the saffron-flower, and Judea and Arabia for their precious scents; but that our own community is not destitute of the aforesaid plants, for in many sections of the city we see at one time cassia putting forth its leaves, again the frankincense plant, and gardens blooming with myrrh and saffron. Surely these examples remind us that Italy is most responsive to care bestowed by mankind, in that she has learned to produce the fruits of almost the entire world when her husbandmen have applied themselves to the task. Therefore our doubts should be lessened as to that fruit which is a native, as it were, belonging to and born of our soil. For there is no doubt that, of all the vines that the earth sustains, those of the Massie, Surrentine, Alban, and Caecuban lands hold first place in the excellence of their wine. The fruitfulness of these vines may leave something to be desired, but even this may be aided by diligence on the part of the vine-dresser. For, as I said a little before, if nature, that most bounteous parent of all things, has endowed every people and land with their own peculiar gifts, though in such a way as not to deprive others entirely of like endowments, why should we doubt that she has observed the aforesaid rule also in the case of vines? So that, although she has willed that some varieties be especially prolific, such as the Bituric and Basilic, yet she has not made the Aminean variety so barren that, of many thousands of them, there may not be found at least a very few fruitful vines, just as those Alban sisters among the humankind of Italy. Not only would this be highly probable, but what is more, experience has taught us the truthfulness of it; for on my place at Ardea, which I owned many years ago, and also on my estates at Carseoli and Alba, a I had marked vines of the Aminean variety, very few in number, to be sure, but so fruitful that on a trellis each of them yielded three urnae, while on pergolas they produced ten amphorae to each vine. And this fruitfulness in Aminean vines should not seem beyond belief. For how could Terentius Varro, and Marcus Cato before him, maintain that every iugerum of vineyard yielded the old-time husbandmen six hundred urnae of wine, a if fruitfulness was wanting in the Amineans—the only vines, for the most part, with which the ancients were acquainted? Unless, despite our belief up to this time that our most ancient vines are the Amineans, we are to suppose that they cultivated vineyards of the Bituric or Basilic varieties, vines which, being but recently indeed imported from far distant countries, have just come to our notice. Therefore if anyone would, for several vintages, search out and mark such Aminean vines as I have said were in my possession not long ago, so as to take from them the most fertile cuttings, he could produce vineyards of equal excellence and productiveness. For there is no doubt that nature herself has decreed that the offspring shall resemble the mother. Hence it is, too, that the shepherd in the Bucolics says, So whelps like dogs; so kids, I knew, Were like unto their darns. b And hence those who contend in the sacred games protect with watchful care the progeny of their swiftest race-horses, and upon the multiplying of offspring of noble stock they base their hope of future victories. We too, for a reason like theirs in selecting the progeny of victorious Olympic mares, should base our hope of a bountiful vintage upon the selection of progeny of the most fruitful Amineans. And there is no reason why the tediousness of the time required should discourage anyone; for any delay that occurs is taken up in the testing of the shoot. But when the fruitfulness of the vine has been proved, it is very quickly raised to a very large number by ingrafting. a You especially, Silvinus, can bear me out in this, since you will readily recall that I completed the planting of two iugera of vineyard within two years time by making grafts from one early-ripe vine belonging to you on your place at Caere. b What number of vines, then, do you think could be grafted within the same length of time with shoots taken from two iugera, when these two iugera are themselves the offspring of one vine? Therefore, as I have said, if we will exercise industry and care we shall easily, by the aforesaid method, establish vineyards of Aminean vines as fruitful as those of the Bituric or Basilic varieties: only it will be of importance, in transplanting the sets, to give heed to like conditions of climate and situation and to the habit of the vine itself; since a cutting is usually impaired in quality if the situation of the ground or climatic conditions are distasteful to it, or even if it is transferred from tree to trellis. Accordingly, we shall transplant from cold places to cold, from warm to the like, and from open vineyards to open vineyards. Yet Aminean stock can better endure the change from a cold to a warm situation than from a warm to a cold; because every kind of vine, and especially that just mentioned, has a natural fondness for warmth rather than cold. But the quality of the soil, too, is of very great assistance, so that the transfer should be made from lean or ordinary ground to a better sort; for a vine which has been accustomed to rich soil can in no way endure lean ground unless you manure it rather frequently. And these precepts we have given, in general, as to care in the choice of cuttings; next it is proper to advise in particular that slips be selected, not only from the most prolific vine, but also from the most fruitful part of that vine. Now, the most fruitful cuttings are not, as ancient authorities supposed, the extreme part of the vine—what they call its head, that is, the outermost and most extended shoot; for in this also husbandmen are mistaken. But the reason for this misapprehension lies in the prime appearance of the shoot and in the number of clusters very often seen on the longest branch. But we should not be deceived in this matter; for it comes about, not through the natural fertility of that branch, but through favourableness of location; because all the moisture and nourishment that is supplied by the soil courses through the other portions of the stem until it arrives at the tip. For by natural respiration all the nourishment of a green plant is drawn, as a sort of vital breath, into the highest point, passing through the pith of the stem as though through a siphon, which mechanics call diabetes;11 and when it arrives at that point, it halts there and is consumed. Hence it is that the most rigorous growth is found either in the head of the vine or in the main stem a close to the roots. More than that, the latter shoots, those that spring from the hard wood, are sterile, and yet they have a two-fold reason for their vigour, in that they do not bear fruit, and because they derive their nourishment from the full and undiminished flow of sap next to the ground; and the former are fruitful and strong because they sprout from young wood, and because, as I stated above, any nourishment that comes to them is not shared with others. The intermediate shoots are the leanest because the sap hastens past them, being partially cut off below and drawn to itself above. Therefore the leading shoot should not be regarded as fruitful even though it may bear much fruit, since it is forced into bearing by the fertility of its situation; but that branch should be considered fruitful which, situated in the middle of the vine, does not fail in even that unfavourable place but displays its bounteousness through numerous offspring. Such a shoot, when transplanted, seldom degenerates, since it passes from a worse to a better lot; for whether set out in trenched ground, or grafted on a stock, it is fed fat with nourishment in greater abundance than before, when it was on scant rations. Accordingly, we shall take pains to select propagating shoots from the places just mentioned, which country people call umeri, b but such canes as we shall have previously observed to have borne fruit. For if they are destitute of fruit, our opinion is that this part of the vine, much as it is to be commended, contributes nothing to the fruitfulness of the cutting. It is, therefore, a very mistaken notion that is held by those farmers who believe that it makes very little difference how many clusters a branch may have borne, if only it is taken from a fruitful vine and is not one that sprouted from the hard wood of the stock,—what they call pampinarium. a This notion, however, arising from ignorance in the matter of selecting cuttings, causes vineyards to have, first, too little fruitfulness, and then too much barrenness. For who, indeed, over what is now a long span of years, has laid down for the farmer, as he was selecting his cuttings, these precepts which we have just now set forth? More than that, who does not assign to this occupation whoever is least intelligent, and one who is not strong enough to perform any other task? As a result of this practice the men who are most lacking in intelligence enter into an occupation that is especially indispensable, and also those most lacking in strength; for, as I have said, it is the least useful fellow, one who can do no other work, who is put to this task.6 Such a person, moreover, even if he has some knowledge of the selection of shoots, conceals that knowledge and lays it aside because of his lack of strength; and that he may have the full number which the overseer has ordered, he does nothing carefully, nothing conscientiously. The one thing that he keeps before him is to get done with the task that is set; when, even though he may both know and carry out what he knows, he receives from his masters one precept alone—not to break off the stock-branch but to add everything else to the supply of cuttings. But we, having at first taken reason as a guide, and now a long period of experimentation as well, choose no shoot, and consider none to be fruitful, except one that has borne fruit in the generative part of the vine. For one that has come forth in a barren place, luxuriant and strong but destitute of offspring, offers a deceptive appearance of fruit-fulness but possesses no generative power. Common sense teaches us that this is undoubtedly true, if only, as in our own bodies every member has its peculiar functions, so too the parts of fruit-bearing stocks have their proper duties. We know that human beings have a soul breathed into them as a charioteer and guide of their members, and that senses were implanted in them for the perception of those impressions which are discovered by touch, by smell, by hearing, and by seeing; that feet were devised for walking and arms for embracing. And that my discourse may not wander without restraint over all the relations of sensory functions, the ears can effect nothing that belongs to the eyes, and the eyes nothing that belongs to the ears; nor, indeed, is the power of procreation bestowed upon the hands or the feet. But the father of the universe concealed in the belly that which he willed should be unknown to mankind, in order that the eternal creatress a of things, endowed with divine understanding, might mingle in certain hidden parts of the body, as it were, in mystery and concealment, those sacred elements of the soul with terrestrial principles, a and fashion this sort of living machine. By this law she produced cattle and trees; by this she fashioned the various kinds of vines, for which this same mother and parent first laid, as it were, certain foundations of roots upon which they might stand, as upon feet. Then upon these she placed the trunk, corresponding in a way to the upright carriage and appearance of a body; in the next place she caused it to spread out with branches as if with arms; and then she drew forth stems and shoots corresponding to hands, of which she endowed some with fruit and clothed others with leaves alone for the protection and safe-keeping of their progeny. If, then, from these vines, as I have said above, we select, not those parts which are capable of conception and heavy with young, but their coverings and sunshades, so to speak, which are destitute of fruit, our toil will certainly have been spent for shade and not for a harvest of grapes. What, then, is my point? Why, if a shoot is destitute of offspring, even though it be sprung, not from hard wood, but from young, do we condemn it as sure to be barren also in time to come? Just now, indeed, our reasoning inferred that every part of the body has assigned to it a peculiar function which is manifestly appropriate to that part; so that a vine shoot, too, if sprung from a favourable place, may have in it the power of fruitfulness even though it be remiss in bearing for a time. I would not deny that I have taken it upon myself to prove this point; but I declare most emphatically that a rod, even though sprung from a fruit-bearing part of the vine, does not even possess the power of productiveness if it has not itself borne fruit. And this statement is not at variance with the former opinion. For it is evident that some men are incapable of procreation even though they have the full number of members; so that it should not be beyond belief that a cane sprung from a generative place, if devoid of fruit at present, will be devoid of progeny in the future also. And so, to return to the usage of the farmers, they give the name spadones or eunuchs a to that sort of shoots which have produced nothing; which they would not do if they did not suppose them to be incapable of bearing. It is this very appellation that suggested to me a reason for not choosing mallet-shoots, b even though they were sprung from an approved part of the vine, if they had not borne fruit; although I understand that even these are not entirely affected with barrenness. For I admit that stock-shoots c too, though they have come out of the hard wood, acquire fruitfulness the following season; and for that reason they are reduced to a single spur, d so that it may have strength for bearing fruit. But we find that offspring of this sort owes not so much to the spur itself as to the munificence of the mother vine. For because it clings to its own stock, which is naturally fruitful, still mingling with the elements of its parent, e born of prolific seed and reared, so to speak, at the breasts of a nurse, it learns little by little to produce fruit. But when a slip is torn from the stock prematurely and unseasonably, without regard to a certain maturity required by nature, and is either planted in the ground or even grafted on a shortened stock, just as the age of childhood is capable not even of coition and much less of conception, so it either suffers complete loss of its generative power or at any rate has less of it. Therefore I think that we should take especial care, in the choice of cuttings, to select from a fruitful part of the vine those shoots which, by having already produced fruit, give promise of future productiveness; and yet we should not be satisfied with single clusters, but should especially approve those shoots which are conspicuous for the greatest number of offspring. Or shall we not commend the shepherd who multiplies the progeny of a dam that has borne twins, and the goatherd who breeds the young of those animals which are noted for bearing three at one birth? For he hopes, of course, that the offspring will match the productiveness of their parents. In the matter of vines we also shall follow this very method, and the more so because we have found out that seeds, a even though carefully tested, sometimes degenerate through some natural malignity; and this the poet would impress upon us, as if we were deaf to the truth, in saying, Some seeds I've seen, though chosen with time and care, Degenerate still, unless with human hand The largest were selected every year. But so it is; it is the will of fate That all things backward turn, all things deteriorate. b It is to be understood that this was said, not merely of the seeds of legumes, but of the whole matter of agriculture. If only we have discovered by a long period of observation, as we certainly have discovered, that a shoot which has borne four clusters, when it is cut off and put into the ground, degenerates so far from the fruitfulness of the parent stock as to produce sometimes one, occasionally even two clusters fewer than before, to what extent do we think that they will fall short which have produced two clusters or usually one on the parent stock, when even the most fruitful shoots often dread transplanting? And so I gladly profess myself a demonstrator of this method, rather than its inventor, lest anyone should think that our ancestors are unjustly deprived of the praise that is their due. For there is no doubt that they knew of it, even though it has been handed down in no writing except those lines of Vergil which we have quoted, and yet in such a way as to give directions for the seed of legumes. a For why did they reject the rod sprung from the hard wood, or even the “arrow” b cut from the fruitful mallet-shoot which they had approved, if they considered that it made no difference from what place the cuttings were gathered? Was it because they had no doubt that the power of fruitfulness was present in certain members, so to speak, that they very wisely condemned the stock shoot and the arrow as useless for planting? If this is the case, there is no doubt that they disapproved far more of that cane which, though sprung from a bearing part, had borne no fruit. For if they thought that the arrow—that is, the uppermost part of a mallet-cutting—was deserving of censure even though it was a part of a bearing shoot, how much more does mere common sense show that they would have disapproved of a slip, if it is sterile, even though it be sprung from the best part of the vine? Unless—and this is absurd—they believed that one which had been worthless on the mother vine would be fruitful when transplanted and cut off from its stock and deprived of its maternal sustenance. It may be that this has been told at greater length than a statement of the truth required; but even so, in fewer words than were demanded by the badly distorted and deep-rooted notion of country people. I now return to what remains of the topics proposed for systematic discussion. The business of preparing the ground a comes next, after this attention to the choice of cuttings, provided, however, that agreement has been reached beforehand as to the quality of the soil. For there is no doubt that this, too, contributes in very great measure to the goodness and abundance of the fruit. And before considering the soil itself, we think it a matter of very first importance that land hitherto unfilled, if we have such, should be chosen in preference to that upon which there has been a crop of grain or a plantation of trees and vines. As to vineyards which have become worthless through long neglect, it is agreed by all authorities that they are worst of all if we wish to replant them, because the lower soil is imprisoned in a tangle of many roots, as if caught in a net, and has not yet lost that infection and rottenness of old age by which the earth is deadened and numbed as if by some poison or other.[a] For this reason a piece of wild land is an especially good choice, and even if occupied with bushes or trees it is easily cleared, because all things that spring up naturally do not push their roots far nor to a great depth, but spread and extend them through the surface soil; and when they are cut off with the axe and are rooted out, the little that remains in the lower soil may be dug up with mattocks and brought together and heaped up for fermentation. But if you should have no unbroken ground, the next choice is ploughed land that is free of trees. Failing this, there is allotted to vineyards a plantation of trees and vines standing very far apart, or an olive grove—but preferably old olive trees which have not been wedded to vines. Last of all, as I have said, is the renewing of a worn-out vineyard. Now if circumstances make this necessary, all remaining parts of the vines should first be rooted out; then all the ground should be fertilized with dry dung or, if this is not available, with the freshest manure of another sort; and so it should be turned over, and all the unearthed roots must be very carefully brought to the surface and burned; and then again the dug ground should be covered generously either with old manure, because that does not produce weeds, or with earth brought from the bramble thickets. But where there is clean fallow, free from trees, we must consider before working it whether or not the land is suitable for young vine-shoots; and this is most easily discovered through the sprouts that come up of their own accord. For there is no soil so destitute of shrubs as not to produce some shoots, such as wild pears and plums or at least brambles; for even though these are varieties of thorns, still it is their common habit to grow up strong and thrifty and heavy with fruit. Therefore, if we observe that they are not shrivelled and scaly, but smooth and bright, tall and prolific, then we shall know that the ground is suitable for young shoots. But in the matter of what is especially suited to vines, this point in general deserves special consideration, as I have stated before, if the soil is easily worked and moderately loose in texture—what we have said is called pulla; not because such soil alone is proper for vineyards, but because it is especially so. For who, though he be but an ordinary farmer, does not know that even the hardest tufa or toph-stone, once it is broken in pieces and thrown up on the surface, is softened and loosened by storms and cold no less than by summer's heat; and that during hot weather it is very effective in cooling the roots of the vines and in holding moisture—conditions most suitable for the nourishing of the young shoot? And that for a like reason free gravel, pebbly ground, and loose stones are approved? on condition, however, that they are mixed with fat soil, for they meet with the greatest disapproval in lean ground. Moreover, the flint-stone also, in my opinion, is friendly to vineyards when it is moderately well covered with earth, because, being cold and retentive of moisture, it does not allow the roots to thirst during the rising of the Dog-star. Hyginus indeed, following Tremelius, asserts that the bases of mountains, which have received the soil that washes down from their summits, or even valley lands that have been formed by the soil deposits of rivers and floods, are especially suited for vineyards; and I do not disagree. Clayey soil is considered serviceable for the vine: but, by itself, the clay which potters use, and which some call argilla, a is most unfriendly; and no less so is hungry gravel and, as Julius Atticus says, everything that makes a shrivelled shoot—that being soil which is either wet or salty, or sour too, or thirsty and extremely dry. Still the ancients approved black and reddish sand when mixed with vigorous earth; for they said that ground containing red toph-stone, unless aided with manure, produced puny vines. Ruddle, as the same Atticus says, is heavy and does not offer roots an easy hold. But the same soil is nourishing to the vine when once it has obtained a hold, though it is more difficult to work, since you cannot dig it when wet because it is very sticky, nor when too dry because it is hard beyond measure. But that we may not now wander through the endless varieties of soil, it will be not out of place to call to mind a standard rule, as it were, of Julius Graecinus which has been laid down for the appraisal of land suitable for vineyards. For that same Graecinus speaks as follows: That some land is hot or cold, damp or dry, loose or compact, light or heavy, fat or lean; but that soil which is excessively hot cannot support the vine, because it burns it, nor can the very cold soil, because it allows no action of the roots when they are benumbed and chilled, as it were, by excessive cold,—for they extend themselves only when they are drawn out by moderate warmth: that soil of more than the proper moisture causes rotting of the plants that are set, while, on the other hand, excessive dryness deprives the plants of their natural sustenance and either kills them entirely or makes them scaly and shrivelled: that very compact ground does not absorb the rains, does not readily allow the circulation of air, is very easily broken through, and affords cracks through which the sun penetrates to the roots of the plants; and the same binds and chokes the plants, which are, so to speak, imprisoned and confined: that soil which is immoderately loose allows rains to pass through it as through a funnel, and is then completely dried out and parched by sun and wind: that heavy ground can hardly be subdued by any cultivation, while light ground can hardly be kept up by any: that the fattest and most fertile soil suffers from rankness of growth, the lean and poor soil from barrenness. There is need, he says, of much intermixture among these so different extremes, as is requisite also in our own bodies, whose well-being depends on a fixed and, so to speak, balanced proportion of the hot and the cold, the moist and the dry, the compact and the loose. And yet, in the case of land which is designed for vineyards, he says that this proportion should not be placed in equipoise but should incline more in one direction or the other, so that the land may be rather warm than cold, rather dry than wet, rather loose than compact, and so on in any like matters to which one who plants vineyards should direct a careful gaze. All of this, in my opinion, is of greater advantage when climatic conditions also are favourable: and in this matter there is long-standing disagreement as to what quarter of the heavens the vineyards should face, Saserna favouring the east especially, and next to that the south, and then the west; Tremelius Scrofa thinking a southern exposure superior to all others, Vergil explicitly rejecting the west in the words, Nor slope your vineyards toward the setting sun; a and Democritus and Mago commending the northern quarter of the heavens, because they think that vineyards exposed to it become the most productive, even though they may be surpassed in the quality of their wine. To us it has seemed best to direct in general that vineyards have, in cold regions, a southern exposure, and that in warm ones they face the east; on condition, however, that they are not harassed by the south and south-east winds, as are the maritime coasts of Baetica. If, however, your tracts are subject to the aforementioned winds, it will be better to entrust them to the north or the west wind; but in hot provinces, such as Egypt and Numidia, they will be exposed more properly to the north alone. And now that all these matters have been carefully examined, we shall take up at last the trenching of the ground. b Now the method of doing this must be handed down, not only to future husbandmen of the Italian race, but also to those from the provinces; for in countries that are far distant and quite remote this particular way of turning and subduing a field is very little practised, but the vines are set for the most part either in planting-holes or in furrows. > Latin: 3. Nunc prius quam de satione vitium disseram, non alienum puto velut quoddam fundamentum iacere disputationi futurae, ut ante perpensum et exploratum habeamus an locupletet patrem familiae vinearum cultus. Est enim paene adhuc supervacuum de his conserendis praecipere, dum quod prius est, nondum concedatur an omnino sint habendae. Idque adeo plurimi dubitent, ut multi refugiant et reformident talem positionem ruris, atque optabiliorem pratorum possessionem pascuorumque vel silvae caeduae iudicent; nam de arbusto etiam inter auctores non exigua pugna fuit, abnuente Saserna genus id ruris, Tremelio maxime probante. Sed et hanc sententiam suo loco aestimabimus. piovenire solitum, verum et in Faventino convalescant ac prosiliant, quam retorrcscant; sed et si forte adoleverint, neglegenter colunt. Iam illud a principio nihil referre censent, quem locum conserant; immo etiam seligunt ex singulis iugeribus, omnis istos, qui faenum suum et holera amplexantur, incremento patrimonii facile superabunt. Nec in hoc errat; quippe ut diligens ratiocinator octoginta nummorum. Quippe ut deterrimi generis sint vineae, tamen si cultae, singulos utique culleos vini singula earum iugera peraequabunt; utque trecentis nummis quadragenae urnae veneant, sestertiis sescenis quod utique tempestivitas seminum respondet; cum semper, ut dixi, plurimum rettulerit exquisiti generis stirpem deposuisse. Post haec deinde meminerit accurate locum vineis eligere; de quo cum iudicaverit, maximam diligentiam sciat adhibendam pastinationi. Quam cum peregerit, non minore cura vitem conserat, et cum posuerit solo committere, non magnam sentient geniem studemus summittere, non tantum debet eo aestimari, quod uvas compluris exigit, potest enim trunci vastitate id accidere et frequentia haec etiam tempestatibus hiemis infestatur. Tale porro genus non una Aminei, vel certe non procul ab eo gustu. Cui nostrae sententiae scio paene omnium agricolarum diversam esse opinionem, quae de Amineis inveterata longo iam tempore convaluit, tamquam natali maniam decoravit altissimorum hominum exercitibus; sed et alias gentes non in totum fraudavit praecipuae staturae viris. Nam et Cicero rum admonemur, curae mortalium obsequentissimam esse Italiam, quae paene totius orbis fruges adhibito studio colonorum ferre didicerit; quo minus addubitemus habuerimus, numero quidem perpaucas, verum ita fertiles ut in iugo singulae tenuis urnas praeberent, in pergulis autem singulae denas amphoras peraequarent. Nec incredibilis debet in Amineis haec videri fecunditas. pari ratione velut Olympionicarum equarum, ita feracissimarum Aminearum seminibus electis largae vindemiae spem capiamus. Neque est quod temporis tarditas quemquam naturaliter laetatur tepore potius quam frigore. Sed et qualitas soli plurimum iuvat, ut ex macro aut mediocri transducatur in melius. Nam quod adsuetum est pingui, nullo modo maciem terrae patitur, nisi saepius stercores. Atque haec de cura eligendi malleoli praecepimus; nunc illud proprie specialiter, in capite vitis aut in crure vicino radicibus. Sed et hae steriles, minimum referre credunt quot nariam virgam deplantet, cetera omnia ut seminibus contribuat. Nos autem primo elementa cum terrenis primordiis fecunditatis habere. Nec hoc illi sententiae repugnat. atque intempestiva planta direpta trunco vel terrae vel etiam stirpi recisae inseritur, quasi puerilis aetas ne ad coitum quidem nedum ad conceptum habilis, vim generandi vel in totum perdit, vel certe minuit. Quare magnopere censeo in eligendis seminibus adhibere curam, ut e Quod non tantum de seminibus leguminum, sed in tota agricolationis ratione magis ab his improbatum esse etiam illum palmitem, qui frugifero loco natus fructum non attulisset. Nam si sagittam, id est superiorem partem malleoli, vituperandam censebant, cum esset eadem pars surculi frugiferi, quanto magis vel ex optima reserere velimus, quod et inferius solum plurimis arboribus sunt libera, considerandum est ante quam pastinemus, surcularis necne sit terra; idque facillime exploratur per stirpes, quae sua sponte proveniunt. Neque enim est ullum tam viduum solum virgultis ut non aliquos surculos progeneret, tamquam piros silvestres et prunos, vel rubos certe; nam haec quamvis genera spinarum sint, solent tamen fortia et laeta et gravida fructu consurgere. Igitur si non retorrida nec scabra, sed levia et nitida, et prolixa fecundaque viderimus, eam intellegemus mea quoque fert opinio, vineis amicus etiam silex, cui Graecinus sic ait: Esse aliquam terram calidam vel frigidam, umidam vel siccam, raram vel densam, levem aut gravem, pinguem aut macram; sed neque nimium calidum solum posse tolerare vitem, quia inurat, neque praegelidum, quoniam velut stupentes et congelatas radices nimio frigore moveri non sinat; quae tum demum se promunt, cum modico tepore partem propensius; ut calidior terra sit quam frigidior, siccior quam umidior, rarior quam densior, et si qua sunt his similia, ad quae contemplationem suam dirigat, qui vineas instituet. Quae cuncta, sicut ego reor, magis prosunt, cum suffragatur etiam status caeli: cuius quam regionem Eius autem ratio cum Italici generis futuris agricolis tum etiam provincialibus tradenda est; [¶2] 13. Those, moreover, whose habit it is to set the vine in planting-holes, after excavating the earth for about three feet in length and two in depth—to as great a width as that of the iron spade permits, lay the shoots on both sides along the walls of the ditches and bend them to stand erect at the opposite ends of the holes; and then, allowing two eyes to project above ground, they replace the earth about it and level off the rest. This they do in the same line, leaving undug skips of the same number of feet, until they come to the end of the row. Then leaving a space, according to each man's habit of cultivating with either plough or two-pronged mattock, they set the next row. And if the earth is merely turned by a spade-man, the minimum distance between rows is five feet, and seven is the maximum; but if with oxen and plough, the minimum is seven feet, while ten is large enough. Yet some set all their vines at ten-foot intervals, in the form of a quincunx, a so that the ground may be broken up by diagonal and cross ploughing in the manner of fallow land. This sort of vineyard is not to the advantage of the farmer except where, in very fertile soil, the vine is of large growth. But those who dread the expense of trenching the ground, and yet wish to imitate that trenching in some measure, run straight furrows to a width of six feet, leaving alternate strips of equal width; then they dig the furrows and deepen them to three feet, and place the vines or shoots along the sides of the hollows. Some, with greater saving of expense, make a furrow two and three-fourths feet deep and five feet wide; then, leaving three times as much unbroken ground, they cut the next furrow. When they have done this throughout the whole plot set aside for vines, they set upright in the sides of the furrows either quicksets or young vine-branches as freshly cut as possible, putting in among the plants set in the regular rows a great number of cuttings which, after they have gained strength, they may propagate in cross-trenches in the ground which was left unbroken, and so arrange their vineyards in rows at equal distances. But these methods of planting vineyards, as we have given them, are ours to employ or reject according to the nature and favourableness of each region. It is now my intention to hand down the method of trenching a piece of ground. And first of all, when we have marked out a site for vineyards, whether it be a plantation of trees or natural woodland, every bush and tree should be rooted out and removed, so as not to be a hindrance to the digger thereafter, and that the ground already trenched may not be pressed down by heavy masses lying upon it and trodden down by the coming and going of those who carry off the branches and tree trunks. For it is of no little importance that trenched ground be in a very loose state and, if possible, not violated even by a footprint; so that the earth, being evenly stirred, may give way gently to the roots of the young plant in whatever direction they creep out, not repelling then-growth by its hardness, but taking them into its tender nourishing bosom, as it were, admitting the rains of heaven and dispensing them for the sustenance of the plants, and acting with all its members in harmony for the rearing of its new offspring. A level field should be dug two and one-half feet deep, a sloping region three feet; but a steeper hill should be turned to a depth of four feet, because when earth is carried down from a higher to a lower place, the amount thrown back is barely sufficient for trenching unless you make the bank much higher than on level ground. On the other hand, in sunken valleys it is not proper to set the vine less than two feet deep. For it is better not to plant it at all than to leave it suspended on the surface of the earth; except, however, when marshy ground stands in the way, as in the district about Ravenna, and prevents digging deeper than a foot and a half. It is, moreover, a first principle of the aforesaid operation not to deepen the furrow little by little, as is the practice of most farmers of our time, and so by a second or third gradation to arrive at the intended depth of trenching; but, running a line evenly forward, to extend a continuous trench with perpendicular sides and to pile the earth together behind you as it is removed, and to sink the trench down until it has reached the prescribed measure of depth. Then the fine must be moved evenly over the whole extent of the gradation; and you must see to it that the width is made the same at the bottom as it was started at the top. There is need, too, of an experienced and watchful overseer to give orders that the bank be made plumb and the furrow cleared, and that all the ground not yet thrown up be added to the earth already moved; just as I directed in the preceding book, a when I was handing down the methods of ploughing, in my warning that no ridges or skips should be left anywhere and that there should be no hard part covered over with surface clods. But our ancestors, devising a certain kind of instrument for the measuring of this work, have fashioned a straight bar and on the side b of it a small rod which, when reaching down to the depth to which the furrow should be sunk, touches the uppermost part of the bank. This sort of measuring device farmers call ciconia or stork. c But this too is open to fraud, because it makes a very great difference whether you place it slantwise or in an upright position. For this reason we have added certain parts to this contrivance, to do away with quarrels and disputes of contending parties. For we have fastened d two pieces crosswise in the form of the Greek letter X and of a spread equal to the width to which the trencher intends to make his ditch, and to the middle point, where the pieces are joined, we have fastened that old-fashioned ciconia in such a way as to stand at a right angle to it as upon a sub-base; then upon the transverse rod, which is on the side, we have fastened a workman's plumb-line. a When the instrument so constructed is let down into the trench, it settles all dispute between master and contractor without injustice to either. For the star, which we have said has the appearance of the Greek letter, measures the ground at the bottom of the trench and at the same time tests its exact level, because, if there is any slope downward or upward, it is detected by the position of the instrument; for the plumb-line that is placed on the aforementioned rod shows the one or the other and does not allow the overseer of the work to be deceived. The work so measured and levelled off progresses always towards a likeness to tilled fallow; and as the line is moved ahead, as much space is taken up as is occupied by the length and breadth of the trench that has been dug. b And this method of preparing ground is most approved. There follows the task of planting the vine; it is properly set out either in spring or in autumn; preferably in the spring if the weather is rainy or cold, or if the land is either fat or flat and wet plain; in autumn, on the other hand, if the atmosphere is dry or warm, if it is a poor and dry plain or a lean and steep hill. There are about forty days of the spring planting, from the Ides of February c up to the equinox; and of the autumn planting, from the Ides of October to the Calends of December. d Moreover, there are two kinds of planting, with cuttings or with quicksets, both of which are in use by farmers; and in the provinces more use is made of the cutting, for they do not concern themselves with nurseries and have no experience in the making of quicksets. This kind of planting has been disapproved with good reason by most vinedressers of Italy, because the quickset is superior in very many particulars: for it is less likely to die, since, because of its strength, it has a readier endurance of heat and cold and other kinds of weather; and, in the next place, it reaches maturity earlier. The result is that it also comes more quickly into condition to bear fruit; and besides, there is no doubt that it is more generally transplanted. a Still, a cutting may be set immediately in loose and light ground, in place of a quickset; but ground that is compact and heavy certainly requires a rooted vine. The planting, then, is made preferably in prepared ground that is well cleaned and harrowed and levelled off, leaving five feet between the rows in lean ground, and six feet in medium soil. But in fat soil intervals of seven feet must be allowed, so as to leave greater space of open ground over which the numerous and far-reaching branches of firm wood may spread themselves. This laying-out of vineyards in quincunx arrangement is accomplished by a very quick method: for a line is stitched with purple or some other striking colour at intervals of the same number of feet as you have determined upon for the distance between rows; and when so marked it is stretched along the dug ground, and a reed is thrust in beside each bit of purple. In this way the rows are equally spaced. b When this has been done, the digger follows and, leaving spaces by turns along the rows, he digs a trench from one reed to the next, not less than two and one-half feet deep on the level, two and three-fourths feet on sloping land, and even three feet in steep places. After the trenches are put down to this depth, the quicksets are set in such a way that they are laid flat, each by itself and in opposite directions from the middle of the trench, and raised upright alongside the reeds at opposite ends of the ditches. But the planter's duty is, first, to transfer the plant from the nursery in as fresh condition as possible, and, if this can be done, at the very moment that he wishes to plant it—removing it carefully and without mutilation; then to prune it all over like an old vine, reducing it to one very strong cane of firm wood and smoothing off the knots and scars; also, if any roots have been injured—and especial care must be taken that this does not happen in removing the vine—to cut them off; and then to set out the plant, bending it in such a way that the roots of two vines may not be intertwined. For this is easy to avoid by placing along the bottom, close to the opposite sides of the trenches, a few stones whose weight should not exceed five pounds each. a These seem, as Mago records, to ward off the winter's wetness and the summer's heat from the vine roots. Vergil, agreeing with Mago, teaches the safeguarding and strengthening of young plants in these words: With them you bury scaly shells or moisture-drinking stone. b and, a little later, And some are found who cover them with rock or heavy tile, Thus offering shelter 'gainst the driving rains, and shelter, too, When sultry Dog-star splits the fields that lie agape with thirst. c The same Carthaginian author approves an application of grape-husks mixed with dung when the plants are set in the trench, on the ground that they encourage and draw out new rootlets; saying that this gives a suitable warmth to the trenches during the cold and wet weather of winter, and supplies the growing plants with nourishment and moisture in summer. But if the ground to which the vine is committed seems to be lean, his advice is that rich soil be brought from some distance and put into the trenches. Whether this is profitable the annual yield of the region and an estimate of the labour involved will teach us. Trenched ground is suitable for planting when it is slightly moist; and yet it is better to commit the plant to it even when dry than when it is muddy. And when the plant extends several joints above the upper edge of the trench, that part of the top which projects above is cut off, leaving only two eyes above ground, and the trench is filled by throwing the earth into it. Then, after the trenched ground is levelled off, the mallet-cutting is to be planted between the rows of vines. It will be sufficient to set this in a single line in the centre of the space that lies vacant between the vines; for in this way the cutting itself will regain its strength the better, and the ground will be left moderately free for the cultivation of the plants in the rows. Then, in the same line in which the quickset is arrayed, five mallet-shoots are to be set for each foot of space, as reserves from whose number it may be possible to set a slip in place of a vine that has died; and this foot is taken from the middle space between the rows in such a way as to be equally distant from the vines on either side. Julius Atticus considers 16,000 cuttings enough for this kind of planting. But we plant 4000 more, because a large number of them are lost through the carelessness of the vinedressers, while the rest, that do thrive, are thinned out by the deaths of the young plants. On the matter of setting the shoot there has been no little dispute among authorities. Some have held that the whole rod, just as it was pulled from the parent vine, is proper for planting; and dividing this into sections with five or even six eyes each, they committed the several slips to the earth. This I by no means approve, agreeing rather with those authorities who have said that the upper part of the branch is not suitable for bearing fruit, and who gave their approval rather to that part which is joined to the old branch. But they wholly rejected the “arrow.” Farmers give the name “arrow” to the extreme portion of a shoot, either because it has withdrawn farther from its mother and has, so to speak, shot out and darted away from her, or because, being drawn out into a point, it bears a resemblance to the aforesaid missile.[a] Our wisest husbandmen have said, then, that the arrow should not be planted, and yet they have failed to give us the reason for their opinion; obviously because to those men of much experience in agricultural affairs that reason was obvious and almost laid bare before the eyes. For every fruiting cane bears in abundance within the limits of the fifth or sixth bud; while in the remaining portion, however great its length, it is either entirely lacking in fruit or displays very small clusters. For this reason the barrenness of the tip was justly censured by the ancients. Moreover, the mallet-shoot was so planted by these same ancients that some part of the old branch remained fixed to the new. But experience has condemned this kind of planting. For all that was left of the old wood quickly rotted with the moisture after it was set and covered with earth, and by the damage to itself it killed the tender roots lying next to it and scarcely creeping out as yet; and when this happened, the upper part of the plant would wither. Afterwards Julius Atticus and Cornelius Celsus, the most distinguished authorities of our time, following the example of the Sasernas, father and son, smoothed off every remaining bit of the old branch at the very joint where the new wood begins, and so they set the slip, tip and all. But Julius Atticus pressed the aforesaid plant into the ground with its head twisted and bent so that it might not slip away from the trench-fork. The name pastinum or trench-fork, by the way, is given by farmers to that two-pronged implement of iron with which the plants are set.6 Hence even old vineyards which were turned by the spade for a second time were said to be “repastinated,” this term belonging properly to a vineyard that was restored; but modern custom, ignorant of ancient usage, applies the term " repastinated " to any ground that is stirred and prepared for vineyards. But let us return to the subject before us. Quite wrong, in my opinion, is the method of planting employed by Julius Atticus, which allows mallet-cuttings with bent and twisted heads; and there is more than one reason for avoiding this practice: in the first place, because no stem which is damaged and broken before it is put into the ground thrives better than one that is planted whole without suffering any injury; and in the second place, anything that is curved back and tending upward at the time of planting resists the efforts of the digger, in the manner of a hook, when the time comes for taking it up, and like a barb fixed in the ground it is broken off before it can be pulled out. For the wood is brittle in that section where it received injury when twisted and bent at the time of planting, and for this reason it loses the majority of its roots, which are broken off. But, even though I pass over these disadvantages, surely I cannot conceal a point that is most hurtful; for a short time ago, while speaking of the uppermost part of the shoot, which I said was called the arrow, I observed that fruit is generally put forth within the limits of the fifth or sixth eye nearest to the old branch. Therefore one who bends the shoot destroys this productive part; because that part which is doubled over contains three or four eyes, and the remaining two or three fruit-bearing eyes are pressed deep into the earth, and when so buried they produce, not wood, but roots. Thus it comes about that, what we have avoided in not planting the arrow, we comply with in the case of a mallet-cutting of this sort, which we must make longer if we wish to plant it twisted. Nor is there any doubt that the buds next to the tip, which are unfruitful, are left on it; from which sprout young shoots, either barren or at least less fruitful, which farmers call racemarii. And furthermore, it is of the greatest importance that a cutting which is set in the ground should heal over and quickly form a callus at the point where it is cut from the mother vine. For, if this does not happen, excessive moisture is drawn up through the open pith of the vine, as though through a tube, and makes the stock hollow; and the result is that hiding-places are provided for ants and other creatures that cause the lower part of the vine-stalk to rot. And this also happens when plants are bent back; for when their lower sections are broken in taking them up, they are planted with the pith exposed; and when water and the aforementioned animals creep into them, they soon waste away. Therefore the best method is to plant a straight cutting, whose butt end, when caught in the two prongs of the trenching-fork, is easily held in the narrow jaws of the implement and so thrust into the ground; and a cutting that is set in this way heals over sooner. For it puts out roots from the butt, where it was cut off, and these cover the callus as they grow; and, besides, the wound itself, looking downwards, does not admit as much moisture as the one which, being bent back and facing upwards, conveys through its pith, as though through a funnel, all the rains that fall upon it. > Latin: 13. quoniam in longinquis et remotis fere regionibus istud genus vertendi et subigendi agri minime usurpatur, sed aut scrobibus aut sulcis plerumque vineae conseruntur. parte pastinationem imitari student, paribus alternis omissis spatiis quamcumque in partem prorepserint, molliter cedat, nec incrementa duritia sua reverberet, sed tenero velut in nutritio sinu recipiat, et caelestes admittat imbres eosque alendis seminibus dispenset, ac suis omnibus partibus ad educandam prolem novam conspiret. Campestris locus alte duos pedes et semissem infodiendus est, acclivis regio tres; praeruptior vero collis vel in quattuor pedes vertendus, quia cum a superiore parte in inferiorem detrahitur humus, vix iustum pastinationi praebet regestum, nisi multo editiorem ripam quam in plano feceris. Rursus depressis vallibus minus alte duobus pedibus deponi vineam non placet. Nam praestat non conserere quam in summa terra suspendere; nisi si tamen scaturigo iubeat, sulcumque vacuari, ac totum spatium crudi soli cum emota iam terra committi, sicut praecepi priore latere, virgulae fabrilem libellam superposuimus. nec usum habent faciendae viviradicis. Hanc sationem cultores Italiae plerique iure improbaverunt, quoniam plurimis dotibus praestat viviradix: nam minus interit, cum et calorem et frigus, ceterasque tempestates propter firmitatem facilius sustineat; deinde adolescit maturius. Ex quo dupondium Idemque Poenus auctor probat vinacea permixta stercori depositis seminibus in scrobe admovere, causa, quorum ex numero propagari paene exposita. Omnis enim fecundus pampinus intra quintam aut sextam gemmam fructu exuberat, reliqua parte quamvis longissima vel cessat vel perexiguos ostendit racemos. Quam ob causam sterilitas cacuminis iure ab antiquis incusata est. Malleolus autem sic ab iisdem pangebatur ut novello sarmento pars aliqua veteris haereret. Sed hanc positionem damnavit quicquid emoti soli vineis praeparatur, repastinatum vocat. Sed redeamus serenda Longitudo, quae debeat esse malleoli, parum certa est, quoniam sive crebras gemmas habet, brevior faciendus est; [¶3] 19. The length that a cutting should have is not absolutely fixed, since it should be made shorter if its eyes are close together, or longer if they are far apart. Still, it should be not more than a foot nor less than nine inches in length: lest in the latter case, being at the surface of the earth, it dry out in hot weather; while in the former case, if set too deep, it may make removal difficult after it has made some growth. But the above applies to planting in level ground. For on hillsides, where the land falls off rapidly, it may be set to a depth of a foot and a palm. A situation in a valley or a wet plain allows even a cutting of three buds, which is a little less than nine inches but in any case more than half a foot in length. And this cutting is called “three-budded,” not from the fact that it consists of three eyes in all—since it is usually full of sprouts about the wound where it was cut from its mother—but because, apart from those buds with which it is crowded at the butt, it has three joints in succession and the same number of buds. In addition, I offer this advice also to one who is planting either the cutting or the rooted vine—to avoid excessive wind and sun, lest the plants dry out; and both of these are warded off without inconvenience by throwing a garment or any sort of thick covering around the plants. However, it is better to choose for the planting a day when the air is still or at least stirring but lightly. For the sun is easily kept off by canopies. But, before putting an end to this discussion, we must speak of a matter which -we have not yet touched upon—whether vines of one or several kinds are to be kept, and whether these are to be separated and kept apart, sort by sort, or jumbled together and intermingled, one with another. We shall deal first with the question first proposed. > Latin: 19. seu raras, longior. Ac tamen 1 nec maior pede nee dodrante minor esse debet: hic ne per summam 2 terrae sitiat aestatibus; ille ne depressus altius cum adoleverit, exemptionem difficilem praebeat. Sed haec in plano. Nam in clivosis,ubi terra decurrit, potest palmipedalis deponi. Vallis et uliginosi campi situs patitur confusae et mixtae catervatim. Prius disseremus de eo quod primum proposuimus. [¶4] 20. It is, then, the part of a wise farmer to plant that vine which he especially approves, with no shoot of any other sort standing between, and always to increase the number of that vine as far as possible. But it is also the part of a man of foresight to set out different kinds as well. For there is never a year so mild and temperate as not to inflict some injury upon some variety of the vine: if it is dry, that kind which thrives on moisture is damaged; if rainy, that which delights in dry weather; if cold and frosty, that which cannot endure blighting cold; or if hot, that which cannot bear heat. And, not to run through, at this time, a thousand rigours of the weather, there is always something to work harm to vineyards. Therefore, if we plant but one kind, when that thing happens which is hurtful to that kind, we shall be deprived of the whole vintage; for he who is without plants of different sorts will have no reserve supply. But if we make plantings of various kinds of vines, some of them will escape injury to produce a yield. And yet this reason should not force us to many varieties of vines: but what we have judged to be an extraordinary variety, that we should produce in as great numbers as possible; then that which is next to the first choice, and after that the kind which is of third or even fourth rank. So far let us be content with a sort of quartet, so to speak, of champion vines; for it is quite enough to await the luck of the vintage with four varieties, or five at the most. a As for the other point, which I had next proposed, I have no doubt that vines should be separated according to their species and set in their proper plots, and marked off by foot-paths and boundary lines; b not that I myself have been able to obtain this of my household, or that any one of those before me accomplished it, however much he may have approved. For this is the most difficult of the farmer's tasks, because it requires the utmost care in the selection of plants, and in separating them there is need, for the most part, of the greatest good fortune combined with wisdom. But sometimes, as the divine author Plato says, the beauty of a thing attracts us to the pursuit even of those ends to which, because of the frailty of human nature, we cannot attain. And yet if our years suffice, and if our knowledge and means are in accord with our desires, we shall accomplish the task without great difficulty; though we must persist for more than a brief portion of our lives, so that a large number may be classified over a period of several years. For not every period of time permits a decision in this matter, seeing that vines which cannot be distinguished because of their likeness in colour or stock or shoots or berry make themselves known by the ripening of their fruit and by their foliage. Nevertheless, I would not say that this care can be employed by anyone except the head of the family; for it is folly to intrust it to an overseer or vine- dresser, since—what would be easier by far—it has been the lot of very few farmers as yet to be free from stock that produces black wine, though the colour of the grape may be detected even by the most inexperienced person. Nevertheless, one method suggests itself to me of accomplishing very quickly what we have proposed: that, if we have old vineyards, we should in-graft individual plots with slips of every sort, each kind by itself. Thus I have no doubt that within a few years we shall obtain many thousands of cuttings from the grafted vines, and that we shall set in separate blocks the plants so distinguished from one another. Moreover, the advantage of doing this may urge us on for many reasons: in the first place, to begin with the less important, because in respect to every concern of life, not only in farming but in every branch of study, the wise man delights more in those things which are separated into their proper kinds than in those which are thrown helter-skelter, so to speak, and jumbled together into a common heap: and in the second place, because even the man who is quite unversed in country life, if he should enter a field at the proper time, would marvel most pleasurably at the benevolence of nature, when on the one side the Bituric vines with their rich fruits correspond to the Helvolans, with like fruit, on the other side; when the Arcelacans turn his course to the one side and the Spionians or Basilicans to the other side, whereby the fostering earth each year, as if delighting in never-ending parturition,[a] extends to mortals her breasts distended with new wine. Meanwhile, as father Bacchus is propitious to the pregnant vine-branches, either of the white or yellow variety, and of the ruddy kind or that which gleams with purple sheen, on every hand Autumnus glows, laden with his fruits of changing hue. But though all these give the greatest delight, still profit prevails over pleasure. For the head of the household comes down the more willingly to feast his eyes upon his wealth in proportion to its splendour; and, as the poet says of the sacred deity. Wheresoever the god has turned his goodly head, b truly, wherever the person and eyes of the master are frequent visitors, there the fruit abounds in greater measure. c But, dismissing this statement, which is applicable also to vines not grouped according to their kinds, I shall proceed with those matters which are most deserving of notice. Vine-plants of different kinds do not cast their blossoms at the same time, nor do they reach the time of ripening together. For this reason, the man who does not have his vineyards divided according to their kinds must suffer one or the other of these disadvantages: either he must gather the late fruit along with the early ripe, which soon causes sourness; or, if he awaits the ripening of the late fruit, he may lose the early vintage, which, being assailed by the plunderings of birds and by rains or winds, usually comes to ruin. But if he should wish to gather the fruit of each kind at intervals of time, he must first take the risk of carelessness on the par t of the vintagers; for it would be impossible to assign the same number of overseers, one to each man, to watch over them and give orders that the sour grapes shall not be gathered. Moreover, when vines of different kinds ripen at the same time, the taste of the better kind is spoiled by the worse, and the flavour of many, when blended into one, becomes intolerant of age. And so necessity forces the farmer to market his wine when it is new, though it would bring a better price if the selling could be put off for a year, or at least until summer. Now the separating of varieties, mentioned above, has a very great advantage, in that the vinedresser can more readily give each its proper pruning when he knows the particular sort in that plot which he is pruning; and this is a difficult practice to observe in vineyards that are planted with many sorts of vines, because the greater part of the pruning is done during the time when the vine is not even bearing distinctive foliage. And it makes a great difference, according to the nature of each stock, whether the vinedresser allows the growth of more or fewer canes, whether he is encouraging the growth of the vine by leaving long shoots or re- tarding it by close pruning. Moreover, it is of very great importance what quarter of the heavens every kind of vineyard faces. For not every kind thrives in a hot situation nor, on the other hand, in a cold one; but it is a peculiarity inherent in young vines that some thrive exposed to the south because they are better adapted to warmth, while others want a northern exposure because they are damaged by heat; and certain kinds delight in the moderate temperature of an eastern or western exposure. One who separates the various sorts by sections has regard to these differences as to situation and setting. He also gains no small advantage in that he is put to less labour and expense for the vintage; for the grapes are gathered at the proper time, as each variety begins to grow ripe, a and those that have not yet reached maturity are left until a later time without loss; nor does the simultaneous ageing and ripening of fruit precipitate the vintage and force the hiring of more workmen, however great the cost. Now this also is a great advantage, to be able to preserve the flavour of every variety—not blended-but true and genuine—and to put it away by itself-whether it be Biturican or Basilican or Spionian. These varieties, when racked off in this fashion, attain the rank of nobility, because nothing of a different sort enters in to counteract their keeping qualities; for even after fifteen years or a little longer no trace of inferiority can be detected in their flavour, because almost every wine has the property of acquiring excellence with age. Therefore, as we proposed to show, the orderly distribution of varieties is of the greatest advantage; and yet, if you cannot effect such an arrangement, the next best method is to plant no vines of different sorts except those which have a similar flavour and produce fruit that reaches maturity at the same time. Furthermore, if you are interested in fruit trees, you may set the tops of fig or pear or apple trees at the very ends of the rows on that side of the vineyard which lies to the north, so that they may not shade it when they grow up; and after two years' time you may graft them or, if they are of superior quality, you may transplant them as mature trees. So much for the planting of vineyards. There still remains that part of most importance—that we give directions also for their cultivation, and of this we shall treat at length in the book that follows. > Latin: 20. Prudentis igitur agricolae est vitem, quam praecipue probaverit, nulla interveniente alterius notae 1 stirpe conserere, numerumque quam maximum eius semper augere. Sed et 2 providentis est diversa quoque genera deponere. Neque enim umquam sic mitis ac temperatus est annus, ut nullo incommodo vexet aliquod vitis genus: sive 3 siccus est, id quod umore proficit,4 contristatur; seu pluvius, quod siccitatibus gaudet; seu frigidus et pruinosus, quod non est patiens uredinis; seu fervens, 5 quod vaporem non sustinet. Ac ne nunc mille tempestatum iniurias persequar, semper est aliquid quod vineas offendat. Igitur si unum genus severimus, cum id acciderit quod ei noxium est, tota vindemia privabimur; neque enim ullum erit subsidium, cui diversarum notarum stirpes non fuerint. b At enim per quattuor vel summum quinque genera vindemiae fortunam opperiri. De altero, quod mox proposueram, nihil dubito quin per species digerendae vites disponendaeque sint in proprios hortos, semitis ac decumanis distinguendae: non quod aut ipse potuerint etiam vinitori, illinc Spioniae Basilicaeve convertant, amittat vindemiam praecoquem, quae angusta putatione vitem coerceat. Quin etiam quam caeli partem spectet genus quodque vineti plurimum refert. Neque enim omne deprehendi potest Cum de vineis conserendis librum a me scriptum, Publi Silvine, compluribus agricolationis studiosis relegisses,1 quosdam repertos esse ais, 2 qui cetera quidem nostra praecepta laudassent, unum tamen atque alterum reprehendissent: quippe seminibus vineaticis nimium me profundos censuisse fieri scrobes adiecto dodrante super altitudinem bipedaneam, quam Celsus et Atticus prodiderant; ## 4. Book IV Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/4/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/4/#p-N [¶0] 1. You say. Publius Silvinus, that when you had read over to several students of agriculture the book which I have written on the planting of vineyards, some persons were found who, indeed, had praise for the rest of our teachings, though they criticized one or two: in that I advised the making of excessively deep trenches for vine plants by adding three-fourths of a foot to the two-foot depth which Celsus and Atticus had recorded; and that I had shown little wisdom in assigning each quickset to its individual support when those same authors allowed them, at less expense, to clothe two successive props in the same row with the branches of one vine separated into two parts. Both these objections are based upon false reasoning rather than true judgment. For, to refute first what I first proposed, if we are to be content with a two-foot trench, why are we of such a mind as to work the ground deeper when we intend to set the vines at so shallow a depth? Some one will say, “So that there may be a lower layer of soft ground underneath which will not, by its hardness, check the young creeping rootlets or thrust them back.” It is possible, indeed, to accomplish that end also if the ground is stirred with the trenching-spade a and the trench sunk in the upturned earth, which is swollen to more than two feet and a half; b for always, in level ground, earth that is thrown out and then back again swells higher than the level of the unbroken ground. And surely the setting of plants does not require that a very deep bed be spread beneath them; but it is sufficient that half a foot of loose earth lie beneath the planted vines, that it may, so to speak, receive the increase of the growing plants into its hospitable—I might say even maternal—bosom. Let us take an instance of this in the arbustum c where, after digging planting-holes, we throw a very small bit of dust under the quickset. There is, then, a truer reason for trenching the ground deeper, in that “yoked” d vineyards grow up better when planted in deeper holes. For two-foot holes could hardly be approved even by farmers in the provinces, with whom a vine is usually of low stature and kept close to the ground; while one that is intended for the yoke (trellis) must be steadied by a deeper foundation, since if it merely climbs higher, it demands more nourishment and more earth. And on this account, in wedding vines to trees, no one prepares a planting-hole less than three feet deep for the vines. But it is with little insight into the interests of husbandmen, that he remarks that there are peculiar advantages in shallow planting, in that plants grow up quickly when they are not wearied and pressed down by a great weight of soil, and that plants which are lightly supported become more productive. For both these arguments of Julius Atticus are overthrown by the case of planting beside trees, which obviously makes the vine much stronger and more fruitful; which would not be the case if the plants were suffering from being sunk too deep. What answer is there to this—that the soil of a trenched plot, while it is newly broken up and loosened, swells up as though by some process of leavening? and then, when it has taken on no great length of age, it is packed, and settles, and leaves the roots of the vines swimming, a so to speak, on the surface of the ground? But this does not happen to my way of planting, in which the vine is put down to a greater depth. Now, as to the argument that deep-set plants are said to suffer from cold, this too we do not deny. But a depth of two and three-fourths feet is not such that it can produce that effect; especially since, as we said a little before, the vine, though planted deeper beside a tree, still escapes the aforesaid discomfort. The other point, their belief that two stakes are wedded with the shoots of one plant at less expense, is most falsely taken. For if the actual root dies, two props are bereft, and presently there must be a substitution of the same number of quicksets, which, by their number, burden the accounts of the vinedresser; or, if it takes hold and, as often happens, is of a black sort or not sufficiently productive, the fruit falls short, not on one prop alone, but on more than one. And men of more than ordinary insight into agricultural affairs think that even a vine of noble stock, when it is so divided upon two stakes, will be less fruitful because it is sure to form a mat of intertwined roots. For this reason the very same Atticus directs us to propagate old vineyards by layers rather than by spreading the whole vines flat, because layers soon and easily strike root so that each vine rests upon its own roots as though upon proper foundations. But a vine that has its whole body laid flat, by making a sort of lattice-work and entanglement of roots in the soil beneath, forms a mat and is choked by the intertwining of over-many roots, and it fails just as if it were burdened with many branches. Therefore I should prefer, on every account, to risk the setting of two plants rather than one, and not to pursue as gain a course which, considered from either side,[a] may bring far greater loss. But now the argument of the previous book demands of us the beginning of the next as promised. In every sort of costly enterprise, just as Graecinus says, most men enter upon new works with more vigour than they maintain them when finished. Some, he remarks, erect houses from the very foundation, and then fail to bestow care upon the finished buildings. Some are active in the building of ships, but do not fit them out accordingly with gear and crews when they are completed. Some have a fondness for the buying of cattle, and some for acquiring slaves; but they are moved by no concern over the keeping of them. Many also, by their inconstancy, undo the kindnesses that they have done to their friends. And that we may not wonder at these statements, Silvinus, some men are niggardly in the nurture of their children—objects of their marriage ties and solemn prayers—and do not look to their improvement through the training of the mind or through the general furnishings of the body. What is the inference from all this? Obviously that errors of like nature are commonly made by husbandmen also, who for various reasons abandon their most beautifully planted vineyards before they reach the age of bearing, some shrinking from the yearly expense and thinking it the first and surest income to have no outgo at all; as if they were under an absolute necessity of making vineyards, only to quit them presently because of their greed. Some consider it a fine thing to have extensive rather than well-tended vineyards. I have known a very great number also who were convinced that their land must be cultivated, whether by good methods or bad. But my judgment would be, not only that every kind of land cannot be profitable unless it is worked skilfully and with painstaking care, but that this is especially true of vineyards. For the vine is a tender thing, weak, and exceedingly intolerant of ill treatment, and it commonly suffers from over-productiveness; for, unless you place a limit upon it, it is exhausted by its own fertility. And yet when it has strengthened itself somewhat and has, as it were, taken on the vigour of youth, it endures neglect. But a newly planted vine, unless it receives every proper care while it is growing up, is reduced to extreme emaciation, and it pines away to such a degree that it can never be restored by any expenditure thereafter. Therefore the foundations, so to speak, must be laid with the greatest care, and from the very first day of its planting it must be moulded into shape, just as the bodies of young children must be shaped; and if we have failed to do this, the whole outlay comes to naught, and once neglected the proper time for each operation cannot be recalled. Believe it from my experience, Silvinus, that a vineyard well planted, of good kind, and under the care of a good vine-dresser, has never failed to make recompense with big interest. And the same Graecinus makes this clear to us, not only by argument but also by example, in that book which he wrote on the subject of vineyards. He relates that he often used to hear his father say that a certain Paridius Veterensis, his neighbour, had two daughters, and also a farm planted with vineyards; that he presented one-third of this farm to the older daughter as a dower when she married, and that, none the less, he used to take equally large yields from the remaining two-thirds of the farm; that he next married off the younger daughter with a half portion of the land that was left, and, even so, took away nothing from its old-time revenue. What does this prove? Why, obviously, that that one third of the farm was better tended afterward than the whole farm had been before. And so, Publius, let us plant our vineyards with great resolve, and tend them with greater zeal. And the most convenient method of planting them is that one alone which we proposed in the preceding book: a that, after making a planting-hole in prepared ground, the vine be laid flat from about the middle point of the trench, and that its firm wood be raised straight up from the very bottom along the end of the trench and fastened to a reed. For especial care must be taken that the planting-hole be not trough-shaped, but that its ends be drawn up straight, as though to a plumb-line, with clear-cut angles. For a vine that lies slantwise and is set in a trough in a leaning posture, so to speak, is subject to damage thereafter when the ground is loosened around it; a for the digger, in his eagerness to deepen the circle of loosened ground, usually wounds a vine that is aslant, and sometimes he cuts it off. b We shall remember, then, to fasten the sprig straight up to its prop from the very bottom of the hole, and so bring it to the surface. Then in other matters, to do as we directed in the preceding book; and next, leaving two eyes standing above ground, to level off the surface. Then, after planting the mallet-cutting between the rows, to loosen the trenched ground anew by frequent digging and reduce it to powder. For it is in this way that quicksets and other plants that we have set out will best gain strength, when once the softened earth supplies moisture to the roots without allowing weeds to creep in, and when the hardness of the soil does not choke the still tender plants as though with close-fitting bonds. Moreover, to confess the truth, no limit should be set to the number of times that the ground is to be turned by the hoes, since it is agreed that the more frequent it is, the more beneficial is the digging. But, since consideration for expenses demands some limit, it has seemed sufficient to most people to dig newly planted vineyards every thirtieth day from the Calends of March a up to October, and to root out all weeds and especially grasses; for these, unless pulled out by hand and thrown on the surface, return to life when any least part of them is covered with earth, and so scald the vine-plants as to make them scaly and shrivelled. Furthermore, whether we have planted cuttings or quicksets, it is best to train the vines from the beginning in such a way as to remove superfluous growth by frequent leaf-pruning, not allowing them to bestow their strength and all their nourishment upon more than one branch of firm wood.6 Yet two shoots are allowed to grow at first, that one may be a reserve if the other should happen to die. Later, when the green branches have hardened somewhat, one of each pair is removed. And that those which are left may not be beaten off by squalls of wind, it will be best to follow them up, as they grow, with a soft and loose band, until they catch hold of their props with their tendrils as though with hands.0 If shortage of workmen prevents the carrying out of this kind of labour in the case of the cutting—and we advise the pruning of this also—at any rate it must be brought about without fail in the case of vines planted in rows that they are not sapped of their strength by too many shoots, unless we are looking forward to future propagation by layers; but that they devote themselves each to one cane, whose growth we should encourage by applying a prop of greater length, along which they may creep up to such a height as to rise above the frame of the following year and to be bent over for bearing. When they have grown up to this height, their tops should be broken off, so that they may rather grow in thickness and strength than make a slender growth of useless length. However, we will leaf-prune this same stem, which we let grow into firm wood, up to three and one-half feet from the bottom, and will frequently pull off all the stock-shoots that sprout from it within this space. Anything that sprouts forth then above that point shall be left untouched. For it will be better that the upper part be cut away with the pruning-knife the following autumn than that superfluous shoots be removed in summer time, since from that spot from which you have taken the secondary shoot a it immediately puts forth a second; and when this has sprouted, there remains in the firm wood no eye to sprout and produce fruit the following year. But the proper time for removing all superfluous growth is while the shoots are so tender that they may be struck off by a light touch of the finger. For if they have hardened to a greater degree, they must either be pulled off with a greater effort or cut away with the pruning-knife, both of which are to be avoided: the one, because it tears the parent vine if you try to pull them off; the other, because it wounds the vine, which is a harmful thing to do in a stem that is green and not yet mature. For the injury does not stop at the exact spot where the edge of the knife made its mark; but in the heat of summer a wound deeply imprinted by the knife dries up to a greater breadth, with the result that it kills more than a small part of the very body of the mother. And for this reason, if it is necessary that the knife be applied to stems that have already hardened, the cut must be made at a little distance from the mother vine, and spur-like ends a must be left to take upon themselves the injury of the heat up to the place where the shoots sprout from her side; for the heat's energy creeps no farther. In the case of the cutting there is a similar method of pruning and of encouraging length of wood, if we wish to use a cutting of one year, which I have often done. But if it is your fixed intention to cut it off, so as to use it rather when it is two years old, when you have now reduced it to one shoot and that shoot has exceeded one foot in length, it will be proper to lop off its head, that it may be strengthened rather up to the neck and have more vigour. And this is the first step in the cultivation of plants after they are set. The period next following, as Celsus has recorded, and Atticus too—men whom our age has especially and rightfully approved—demands greater care. For after the Ides of October, b before the coming of cold weather, the vine must be ablaqueated. a This operation lays bare the summer rootlets, and the wise husbandman cuts these off with a knife. For if he allows them to grow strong, the lower roots waste away; and the result is that the vine puts out its roots at the very surface of the earth, to be injured by the cold and burned to a greater degree by the heat, and to force a violent thirst upon the mother vine at the rising of the Dog Star. For this reason, when you ablaqueate the vine, anything that has sprouted out of it within a foot and a half must be cut off. But the method of this root-pruning is not the same as that proposed for the upper part of the vine. For the wound is not to be smoothed off, and by no means is the knife to be applied to the mother herself; because, if you cut away a root close to the stock, either more roots will spring from the scar, or the rains of winter which stand in hollows in the loosened soil will gall the fresh wounds by freezing in midwinter and will penetrate to the very pith. b That this may not happen, it will be proper to keep a distance of about one finger's breadth from the stock itself, and so to trim off the small roots; when they are removed in this manner, they sprout out no more and protect the stem from further injury. When this work is finished, the vine should be left exposed if the winter is mild in that region; but if a more severe winter prevents our doing this, the above-mentioned hollows must be levelled off before the Ides of December. a In fact, if there is a suspicion of extremely cold weather for that region, you will spread some stable-dung or, if more convenient, some pigeon dung over the roots before you bury the vine; or you will pour over them six sextarii of stale urine previously made ready for such use. But it will be necessary to ablaqueate the vine every autumn for the first five years, until it grows strong. However, when the main stem has come to maturity, this task may be omitted for about three-year intervals; for the lower parts 6 of the vine receive less injury from the iron, and small roots do not shoot out so rapidly, now that the stock has become old. Ablaqueation is then followed by pruning, in such a manner that the vine is reduced to one small rod, according to the directions of ancient authorities, leaving two eyes close to the ground. This pruning should not be done next to the joint, lest the eye be checked in its growth; but an oblique cut is made with the knife about midway between the joints, lest, if it be crosswise, the scar may hold the rain that falls upon it. But the slope is made, not toward the side where the bud is, but to the opposite side, so that it may shed its tears upon the ground rather than upon the bud. For the sap that flows down from it blinds the eye and does not allow it to grow. c There are two seasons for pruning; but the better time, as Mago says, is in the spring, before the shoot puts forth its buds, because, being full of sap, it allows an easy, smooth, and even cut, and does not resist the knife. Celsus and Atticus, moreover, have followed his method. To us it seems that plants should not be held back by close pruning unless they are very weak, and that at least they should not be cut in the spring. But, to be sure, in the first year that they are set out they should be aided, every month while they are in leaf, by frequent digging and by leaf-pruning, so that they may gain strength and support not more than one branch of firm wood. And when they have reared this they should be trimmed clean, in our opinion, in the autumn, or in the spring if it is more convenient, and freed from secondary shoots which the leaf-pruner had left on the upper part; and so they should be placed upon the frame. For it is the smooth and straight vine, without a scar, that overtops the frame with a rod of the first year. This happens, however, with few farmers, and seldom; and for that reason the aforementioned authors thought it best to cut off the first shoots of the vine. But in any case, spring pruning is not preferable in ail regions: for where the climate is cold, that time of pruning is doubtless to be chosen; but in regions that are sunny, where winters are mild, the best and most natural pruning is that of autumn, at which season, by some divine and eternal law, plants drop both fruit and foliage. This, I believe, is the thing to do, whether you have planted a quickset or a cutting. For experience has condemned that long-standing belief that year-old cuttings should not be touched with the knife because they have a dread of it. This was a matter on which Vergil a and Saserna and the Stolos and the Catos b had groundless fears; and they were mistaken, not merely on this point, in that they allowed the first year's foliage of plants to go untouched, but also after two years, when the quickset was to be cut back, they lopped off all the upper part right down to the ground, close to the very joint, so that it might make new growth from the hard wood. But experience, the master of arts, has taught us to regulate the growth of first-year cuttings and not to allow a vine to run wild with a rank growth of useless leafage; and, on the other hand, not to hold it back to the extent that the ancients directed, to the point of lopping off all the upper part. In fact, this method is most harmful; in the first place because, when you cut to the ground, most plants die, being visited, as it were, by an unbearable wound; while some of them also, which have a more stubborn hold on life, produce less fruitful wood—seeing that, by the admission of everyone, shoots which sprout from the hard wood are very often destitute of fruit. Therefore a middle course is to be followed; namely, that we neither cut back a cutting to the ground nor, on the other hand, draw it out into a woody branch of excessive length; but, trimming off the sprouts from the spur a of the year before, we shall leave, close to the crotch where the old branches were joined, one or two buds from which it may send out shoots. Attention to the propping of the vine follows the pruning. But the present, or first, year does not yet require a strong prop or stake; for it has been my observation that, for the most part, a young vine is better satisfied with a support of moderate size than with a stout prop. And so we shall attach each young vine either to two old reeds, lest new ones strike root; or, if local conditions allow it, to brier canes, to which single cross-bars may be tied along one side of the row—a kind of frame which farmers call a canterius or “horse.” a It is of the greatest importance that this be such that the young vine-shoot, as it creeps forth, shall immediately grasp it a little below the point of its bending and spread out on the crossbars rather than on the uprights, and so, resting upon the “horse,” may more easily bear up against the winds. And it is proper that this frame should be raised up to less than four feet, until the vine becomes strong. Then, after the propping, comes the binder, whose task it is to train the vine upright to the frame. And if the vine is set close to the stake, as has pleased some authorities, the man who ties it will have to guard against the notion that, in fastening the firm wood, he must follow the curve in the stake if it happens to be bent, for that makes a crooked vine; or, if space is left between the vines and the stake, as has seemed best to Atticus and some other husbandmen and is not displeasing to me, a straight reed must be joined to the stock, and so by numerous bindings the vine is to be guided up to the frame. What sort of bands they are with which the plants are tied, is of the greatest importance. For while the vine is young, it must be tied with the very softest kind; because, if you bind with withes of willow or elm, the growing vine cuts itself. The best, then, is broom, or the rush that is cut in marshy places, or sedge; and yet the leaves of reeds also, when dried in the shade, do not serve badly for this purpose. > Latin: 1. singulasque viviradices singulis adminiculis parum prudenter contribuisse, cum permiserint idem illi auctores minore sumptu geminis materiis unius seminis 3 diductis duo continua per ordinem vestire pedamenba. Quae utraque reprehensio potest etiam, si ager bipalio moveatur et deprimatur scrobis in regesto, quod est fermentatum plus dupondio semisse; nam semper in plano effosa et regesta celeriter adolescant semina quae non fatigentur vel nigri est generis vel parum fertilis, non in uno sed in pluribus pedamentis fructus claudicat. Quamquam etiam generosae stirpis vitem sic in duos palos divisam rerum rusticarum prudentiores existimant minus fertilem fore, quia cratem factura sit. Et idcirco veteres vineas mergis propagare potius quam totas sternere idem ipse Atticus praecipit; quoniam mergi mox facile radicentur, tangit. Multi etiam beneficia quae in amicos contulerunt, levitate destruunt. Ac ne ista, Silvine, miremur, liberos suos nonnulli nuptiis votisque quaesitos avare nutriunt, nec disciplinis aut ceteris corporis excolunt instrumentis. Quid his colligitur? Scilicet plerumque simili genere peccari etiam ab agricolis, qui pulcherrime positas vineas, antequam pubescant, variis ex causis destituunt: alii sumptum annuum refugientes, et hunc primum reditum certissimum existimantes, impendere nihil; quasi plane fuerit necesse vineas facere, quas mox avaritia desererent. Nonnulli magna potius quam culta vineta possidere pulchrum esse ducunt. summa cura ponenda sunt quasi fundamenta, et ut membra infantium a primo statim die consitionis formanda; quod nisi fecerimus, omnis impensa in cassum reddat, nec praetermissa cuiusque rei tempestivitas revocari queat. Experto mihi crede, Silvine, bene positam vineam bonique generis et bono cultore numquam non cum magno faenore gratiam reddidisse. Idque non solum ratione sed etiam exemplo nobis idem Graecinus declarat eo libro, quem de vineis scripsit, frontem eius ab imo usque recta materies exigatur calamoque applicetur; id enim praecipue observandum est, ne similis sit alveo scrobis, sed ut expressis angulis velut ad perpendiculum frontes eius dirigantur. Nam vitis supina et velut recumbens crebrior sit, plus prodesse fossionem conveniat. Sed quoniam impensarum ratio modum postulat, satis plerisque censemus, at certe in ordinariis vitibus utique obtinendum est, ne pluribus flagellis emacientur, nisi si propaginibus futuris prospiciemus; erunt, prius quam frigora invadant, hibet, ante Idus Decembris praedicti lacusculi coaequandi sunt. Si vero etiam praegelida frigora regionis eius suspecta erunt, aliquid fimi, vel, si et levem et aequalem accipit, nec falci repugnat. Hunc autem secuti sunt Celsus et Atticus. Nobis neque angusta putatione coercenda semina videntur, nisi si admodum invalida sunt; neque utique verno recidenda. Sed primo quidem anno, quo sunt posita, frequentibus lamenta seminum intacta patiebantur, sed et post biennium cum viviradix recidenda erat, omnem superficiem amputabant solo tenus iuxta ipsum articulum, ut e duro pullularet. Nos autem magister artium docuit usus, primi anni malleolorum formare incrementa, nec pati vitem supervacuis frondibus luxuriantem silvcscere; nec rursus in tantum coercere, quantum antiqui praecipiebant, veteres, ne novae radicem agant, harundines binas singulis vitibus applicabimus, umbra siccata faciunt in hunc usum harundinum quoque folia. [¶1] 14. But like attention should be given to cuttings, that after being cut back to one or two eyes in the autumn or in spring, before the time of budding, they shall be fastened to the frame. For these, as I have said, the " horse " must be placed closer to the ground than for mature vines in rows; for it should be not more than one foot in height, so as to be of such a sort that the still tender shoots may grasp it with their tendrils a and not be rooted out by the winds. Then follows the digger, to break up the surface soil evenly and finely with many strokes of the two-pronged hoe. This level digging we especially favour. For what they call the “winter digging” in Spain—when earth is removed from the vines and brought into the space between the rows—seems to us unnecessary, because it has been already preceded by the autumn ablaqueation, which has exposed the upper rootlets and carried the winter rains to the roots below. Again, the number of diggings should be the same as of the first year, or less by one; for the ground is in special need of frequent working until the vines shade it with their growth and do not allow weeds to grow beneath them. The same method of leaf-pruning should hold for this year as for the year before. For the childhood of the plants, so to speak, must still be held in check and the plant allowed to grow to not more than one shoot; the more so, in fact, because its tender age does not endure the burden of both offspring and woody branches. > Latin: 14. Sed et malleolorum similis cura agenda est, ut ad unam aut duas gemmas deputati autumno vel vere, prius quam germinent, iugentur.1 Iis, ut dixi, cantherius propius 2 a terra quam vitibus ordinariis summittendus est; neque enim editior esse debet pedali altitudine, ut sit quem teneri adhuc pampini capreolis suis illigent nec 3 ventis explantentur. Insequitur deinde fossor, qui crebris bidentibus aequaliter et minute magis, quod tenera aetas eius non sustinet et fetu et materiis onerari. [¶2] 15. But when the vineyard, at the age of one year and six months, is brought to the vintage, it must be recruited to full strength a immediately after the fruit has been removed, and reserve cuttings which were planted for this purpose must be set in the gaps; or, if these also are wanting, a layer 6 must be led from a vine in the row to another stake. For it is of the utmost importance up to this time that every prop be clothed with a new planting, and that the vineyard shall not be in a state of replanting later, when it is time to be taking its fruits. There is one kind of layer where the vine is bent above ground close to its support, and so, being carried underground by a deep trench, is brought out beside a vacant stake; then from the " bow " c it puts forth a vigorous shoot of firm wood, which is immediately attached to its prop and brought up to the cross-bar. Then in the following year a cut is made in the upper part of the bend, d as far as the pith, that the rod under propagation may not draw into itself all the strength of the mother vine, and that it may learn little by little to take its nourishment from its own roots. Next, when two years old, it is chopped off close to the branch which has been caused to spring up from the bow. And what is cut away and separated from the mother vine, immediately has the ground dug deep about it; then a small hole is made, and it is cut off at the very lowest point and covered with earth, so that it may drive its roots downwards and not sprout out near the top of the ground by being carelessly cut at the surface. Moreover, there is no time better suited for the amputation of this layer than from the Ides of October to the Ides of November,0 so that it may strengthen its roots during the winter months. For, if we do this in the spring, when the branches are beginning to bud, it droops as a result of being suddenly robbed of its mother's nourishment. The same method holds in transplanting the cutting. For in the second autumn, if conditions of weather and situation permit, it is taken up and planted to best advantage after the Ides of October; but if some harmful quality of soil or of air opposes this, the time of its planting is postponed to the next spring. And it should be left no longer in the vineyards, lest it use up the strength of the soil and impair the plants in the rows; the sooner they are relieved of the partnership of quicksets, the more readily do they gain strength. But in a nursery one may keep a vine for three or even four years, if it is cut back or closely pruned, because no thought is taken of a vintage. When the planted vineyard has passed its thirtieth month, that is in the third autumn, it must be propped at once with stronger supports; and this is not to be done just as you please or in haphazard fashion. For if the stake is set near the vine stock, still it must be left one foot away so that it will not press upon or injure the root, yet so that the digger may work around the plants on every side. And this stake must be so placed as to receive the fury of the colds and of the north winds and so protect the vine; or if it is placed midway between the rows, it must be either pushed well down or driven to a greater depth by first making a hole in the ground with a small stake, so that it may more easily support both the trellis and the fruit. For the closer a prop is set to the stock, even when lightly fixed in the ground, the steadier it is; since, by standing close to the vine, it both supports and is supported in turn. Then stronger cross-bars are to be bound to the standards; and these are made either of willow rods or of several reeds tied in some sort of bundles to give them stiffness, so that they may not be bent by the weight of the fruit. For now two firm wood branches must be allowed to grow on each plant; unless, however, the slenderness of some vine requires a closer pruning, in which case only one branch is to be left and that containing few eyes. A frame of rods is stronger and requires less work. Reeds are put together with greater labour, because they are tied in several places. And these must be bound with their tops turned, one opposite to another, so that the whole frame may be of equal thickness; for if the tops come together, the weakness of that part, when burdened with weight, throws the fruit to the ground just as it ripens and exposes it to dogs and wild animals. But when a frame is duly constructed of several reeds tied in bundles, with their tops in alternating order, it gives about five years of service. Nor, indeed, is the method of pruning or other culture different from that of the first two years. For ablaqueation a must be carefully done in the autumn, and new layers must be applied to the vacant props none the less; for this work must never be discontinued but should be renewed every year. Surely those things that are planted by our hands cannot be immortal; and yet we take such thought for their permanence that we set other plants in place of those that have died, and do not allow the whole genus to be brought to destruction through many years of neglect. Moreover, frequent diggings a must be given, although one may be subtracted from the number of the first year's cultivation. Leaf-pruning also must be practised often; for it does not suffice to remove excess leafage from the vine only once or twice in a whole summer. And especially must everything be broken off which has sprouted out below the head of the main stem. Likewise if any single eyes just below the frame should put out two shoots, even though they give evidence of an abundance of fruit, one branch must be pulled off from each, so that the remaining branch of strong wood may make more vigorous growth and better nourish the fruit that is left. After the forty-second month, when the vintage has been gathered, the pruning must be so managed, by allowing the growth of more shoots, that the vine may be spread out in the form of a star.6But it is the duty of the pruner to check the vine at a distance of about one foot short of the cross-bar, so that any tender growth that is sent out from the head may be drawn out in the form of arms and that, after being bent over the frame, it may be dropped down to a length which cannot reach the ground. But a limit must be observed in proportion to the strength of the stock, that no more branches may be allowed to grow than the vine is able to support. And in general, when the soil is fertile and the stock thrifty, the afore- said age requires three firm wood branches, rarely four, which should be separated by the binder into as many different parts. For it is of no use that the frame is given cross-pieces and made in the shape of a star unless fruit-bearing branches are joined to it. This arrangement, however, has not met the approval of all husbandmen; for many have been satisfied with a plain straight line. But that vine is more stable, both for supporting the burden of young branches and for bearing its fruit, which, being bound to the frame on both sides, is spread out in even balance as if with a kind of anchors. Then too a vine that is supported on every side spreads its woody branches over more arms and extends them more easily than one which is crowded with many fruiting canes on a simple “horse.” However, if a vine is not of wide spread or not very fruitful, and if it is in a climate that is not turbulent and stormy, it may be satisfied with a single frame. For where there is great violence and onslaught of rains and storms, where the vine is loosened by frequent downpours, where it hangs, as it were, on steep hillsides and requires a great many reinforcments, there it must be supported on every side, so to speak, by troops in square formation. But in warm and drier places the frame must be extended in every direction, so that the shoots, as they creep forth on every side, may be joined and, being matted together in the fashion of an arched roof, may shade the thirsty earth. On the contrary, in rainy and cold and frosty districts plain straight rows are to be put up; for in that way the ground is more readily warmed by the sun, and the fruit is thoroughly ripened and has a more wholesome ventilation; also the diggers ply their hoes with greater freedom and precision, and the fruit is better examined by the overseer and more easily gathered by the vintager. But in whatever way it pleases you to arrange your vineyards, let them be set off by footpaths into individual plots of one hundred vines each; or, as pleases some, have the whole extent of the vineyard broken up into divisions of half a jugerum. This separation, apart from the advantage that it affords more sun and wind for the vines, also allows easier access for the eyes and feet of the proprietor—things most beneficial to the vines—and it provides a definite gauge in the exaction of labour; for we cannot be deceived when the iugera are divided at equal intervals. Furthermore, the marking out of small plots in itself lessens the fatigue, as it Mere, in proportion to the smallness of the sections into which it is cut, and it goads on those who are performing the work and encourages them to hasten the task; for as a rule the immensity of impending work weakens their spirit. Also it is of some advantage to know the strength and the yield of each part of the vineyards, so that we may judge what part is in need of more or of less cultivation. These footpaths also provide for the vintagers and for those who repair the frames and props convenient room for the carrying of fruit or supports. As for the placing of the frame, how far it should be raised above the ground, it is sufficient to say that the lowest is four feet and the highest seven. This last, however, is to be avoided in the case of young plants; for this regulation should not apply to vineyards at the start, but the vine must be carried to this height after a long succession of years. But the moister the soil and climate, and the gentler the winds, the higher must the frames be raised. For the luxuriance of the vines allows them to spread themselves at a greater height, and the fruit is less inclined to rot when well removed from the earth; and by this method alone there is thorough ventilation by the winds, which quickly dry up the fog and pestilential dew, and contribute much to the casting of the flowers and the goodness of the wine. On the other hand, land that is poor and sloping and parched with heat, or that is subject to violent storms, calls for a lower frame. But if all circumstances answer to your desire, the proper height for a vine is five feet; and yet there is no doubt that the vine yields wine of better flavour in proportion to the height of the frames to which it raises itself. After the vineyard is staked and yoked, there follows the work of the binder, whose first concern should be, as I remarked above, to keep the vine-stock straight and not to let it follow the curve of the prop, lest the crookedness of the support form a vine after its own likeness. This is of the greatest importance, not only to its appearance, but also to its strength, productiveness, and durability. For a straight stem bears pith Like itself, through which, as by a sort of road without a turn or obstruction, the nourishment of mother earth more easily makes its way and arrives at the very top; but vines that are bent and misshapen do not offer equally smooth paths, a because knots obstruct, and the bend itself, like rough places in a road, checks the passage of moisture from the earth. Therefore when the vine is drawn straight up to the top of the stake, it is fastened with a band so that, when weighed down with its offspring, it may not sag and become bent. Then from that point where that which is nearest to the frame is tied, its arms are arranged in different directions, and the branches which are placed upon the frame are bent downward in a curve, and what hangs from the frame is filled with fruit; on the other hand, the bend puts forth firm wood next to the band. Some spread out upon the frame that part which we bend down, and hold it fast by tying it with withes closely set; but I consider these not at all worthy of approval. For rains and frosts and hail do not harm hanging branches as much as those which are bound and, so to speak, exposed to stormy weather. Still, those same branches should be tied before the fruit mellows, while the grapes are still of different colours and sour, so that they may be less likely to rot with the dews or to be pillaged by winds or wild beasts. Along the main path and the bypaths the branches should be bent inward, that they may not be injured by brushing against those who pass by. And by this method certainly the vine is brought to the frame at the proper time. For a vine that is weak or short must be cut back to two eyes, so that it may put forth more vigorous wood which may immediately shoot up to the frame. There is no other pruning for a vine five years old than that it shall be shaped as I have undertaken to describe above, and that it shall not spread too far; but that the head of the stock shall be about one foot below the frame and that, with its four arms, which some call duramenta, or “hardened branches,” it shall be spread out into a corresponding number of spaces. It will suffice for a time that these arms be reduced to one fruiting branch each, until the vines are of proper strength. Then, some years later, when they have entered the juvenile stage, so to speak, it is uncertain how many branches should be left. For richness of situation requires more, and leanness fewer; since, indeed, a vine of rank growth, unless it is checked by bearing, casts its blossoms badly and runs to wood and foliage; while a weak vine, on the contrary, is impaired when burdened with fruit. And so in rich ground it will be permissible to impose two rods upon each arm, but not to burden them with a number beyond the point where one vine supports eight rods, unless its very excessive fruitfulness shall demand more; for the vine which is extended with firm wood beyond this limit has the appearance of an arbour rather than of a vine. And we should not allow the arms to be larger than the stock; but when presently the growth of lateral shoots from them is permitted, the upper hard canes must be constantly cut away so that they may not go beyond the frame; but the vine should always be renewed with young branches. These laterals, if they have made sufficient growth, should be placed upon the frame; but if one of them is broken or not of sufficient length, and if it occupies a suitable place from which the vine should be renewed the following year, let it be cut down to a thumb (pollex), which some call custos or “keeper,” others resex or “cutback,” and several praesidiarium or " reserve "—that is, a stub of two or three eyes, from which all of the old arm above is cut off after the fruit-bearing wood has come forth; and so the vine sprouts out again from the young branch. And this management of well-established vineyards must be constantly observed. If, however, we have taken vineyards trained by another system, and if many years of neglect have now covered the frames, we shall have to consider the length of the old hardened branches that exceed the aforesaid measure. For if they are two feet long or a trifle more, the entire vine may still be put under the frame, provided that the supporting stake is close to the trunk; for it is moved away from the vine and set exactly in the centre of the space between the two rows, and then the vine is carried across to the prop and so brought under the frame. But if its hardened branches have grown to a greater length, so that they have crept out to the fourth or even to the fifth prop, it is restored at greater expense; for when propagated by layers—a method which pleases us most—it comes forward very quickly. This, however, if the surface of the trunk is old and decayed; b but if it is strong and sound, it requires less labour; for, having the soil loosened about its roots in the winter time, it is satiated with dung and closely pruned, and between the third and fourth foot from the ground it is wounded with the sharp point of an iron implement in the greenest part of the bark. Then the earth is thoroughly mixed by frequent digging, that the vine may be stimulated and that it may have the strength to put out a shoot especially from that place where it was wounded. a Generally, moreover, a bud grows from the scar, and if it shoots out to considerable length it is allowed to grow for a cane; if rather short, for a thumb; and if very small, for a knurl. This last may be formed from any fibrous growth, even the smallest. For when a twig of one or two leaves has come out of the hard wood, provided only it comes to maturity, it puts forth a vigorous branch of firm wood the following spring, if it is not trimmed away or rubbed off; and when this has grown strong and has formed a sort of arm, you may then cut back that part of the old branch that has spread too far, and so bring under the frame that part which is left. Many, aiming at the saving of time, chop off such vines above the fourth foot, having no fear of cutting them back in this way; since, as a rule, the nature of most stocks is so adapted that they sprout out with new leaves close to the scar. But this method is not at all pleasing to us, because a larger wound, unless it has vigorous wood above which may close in, is parched by the heat of the sun; and then presently it rots with the dews and the rains. Nevertheless, when a vine must in any case be cut down, it is best first to loosen the dirt about it and then to make the amputation a little below ground, so that the soil above may ward off the violence of the sun and give passage to the young stems that spring from the roots, that they may be able either to wed their own props or to bedeck with their offspring any mate-less props that are near by. However, this should be done in this way on condition that the vines are rather deeply planted and do not have roots gliding along on the surface, and if they are of good stock. For otherwise the labour is spent to no purpose, because low-grade vines, even when renewed, will retain their former character; while those that barely cling to the surface of the earth will fail before they can recover strength. The one vine, then, will have to be grafted rather with fruitful shoots, and the other completely rooted out and replanted, provided the goodness of the soil makes it advisable. When a vineyard has wasted away because of the bad quality of soil, we believe that it is in no way worthy of being restored. Furthermore, the bad qualities of a place which usually bring vineyards to destruction are meanness and barrenness of soil, salty or sour marshland, a steep and rugged situation, a valley that is too dark and not exposed to the sun, also sandy tufa, or gravel that is unduly hungry, and also gravel that is bare and destitute of earthy matter, and anything of like nature which does not nourish the vine. But if it is free from these disadvantages and their like, a vineyard may be restored by the method which we advised in the preceding book. On the other hand, those vineyards of bad stock which, even though of vigorous growth, are destitute of fruit because of barrenness, are improved, as we have stated, by grafting; and we shall treat of this in its proper place when we have come to that subject of discussion. > Latin: 15. Sed cum annicula mensiumque sex ad vindemiam perducta est, sublato fructu protinus frequentanda est, et praesidiarii malleoli propagandi sunt, qui in hunc usum fuerant depositi; vel, si ne hi quidem sunt, ex ordinaria vite in alterum palum mergus est attrahendus. Nam plurimum interest adhuc nova consitione pedamen omne vestiri; nec mox vineam tum subseri, cum fructus capiendus est. Mergi genus est, ubi supra terram iuxta suum adminiculum vitis curvatur, atque ex alto scrobe submersa perducitur ad vacantem palum: tum ex arcu vehementer citat materiam, quae protinus applicata suo pedamento ad iugum evocatur. Sequente deinde anno insecatur superior pars curvaturae usque ad medullam, ne totas vires matris propagatum flagellum in se trahat, et ut paulatim condiscat suis radicibus ali. Bima deinde praeciditur proxime palmam quae ex arcu summissa est. Et id quod a matre abscisum recessit, confestim alte circumfoditur. et scrobiculo facto ad imum solum praeciditur, idoneum est hunc mergum amputandi quam ab Idib. Octob. in Idus Novemb., ut hibernis mensibus suas radices confirmet. Nam si vere id fecerimus, quo gemmare palmites incipiunt, matris alimentis subito destitutus quo facilius et iugum et fructum sustineat. Nam quanto propius truncum ridica statuitur, etiam leviter defixa stabilior est; quoniam contingens stauretur materias, raro quattuor desiderat, quae per totidem partes ab alligatore dividi debent. Nihil enim refert iugum in stellam decussari atque diduci, liberius et aptius iactant bidentes, meliusque perspicitur a custodibus fructus et commodius legitur a vindemiatore. annorum longam seriem ad hanc altitudinem vitis perducenda est. Ceterum quanto est umidius solum et caelum, placidioresque quae curvae vehementiorem fundat materiam quae fuerit, locumque idoneum obtinebit unde vitis anno sequenti revocari integra, minorem operam desiderat. Quippe hiberno tempore ablaqueata fimo satiatur angusteque deputatus et inter quartum ac tertium pedem a terra viridissima parte corticis acuto mucrone ferramenti vulneratur. Frequentibus deinde fossuris terra permiscetur, ut incitari vitis possit, et ab ea maxime parte,quae vulnerata est, pampinum fundere. Plerumque autem germen de cicatrice procedit, quod sive longius prosiluerit, radicibus novellos prorumpentes caules transmittat qui possint vel sua maritare statumina, vel siqua sunt vidua in propinquo, propaginibus vestire. Haec autem ita fieri debebunt, si vineae altius positae nec in summo labantes radices habebunt, et si boni generis erunt. Namque aliter incassum dependitur Nunc quia1 parum videmur de putatione vinearum locuti, maxime necessariam partem propositi operis diligentius persequemur. [¶3] 23. Now, since we seem not to have said enough about the pruning of vineyards, we shall set forth with greater care that most necessary part of the work proposed. It is proper, if a gentle and temperate mildness of climate permits it in that region which we are cultivating, to begin the pruning after the Ides of October,0 when the vintage is finished: on condition, however, that the equinoctial rains have come before and that the branches have arrived at their proper maturity; for dry weather makes the pruning later. If, however, the cold and frosty state of the weather gives notice of a severe winter, we shall postpone this matter to the Ides of February. b And it will be permissible to do this if the measure of our holding is small. For where a vast extent of land denies us the choice of time, it will be proper that the strongest part of the vineyard be pruned in cold weather, and the weakest part in spring or autumn; indeed vines with a southern exposure may be pruned even during the winter solstice, and those exposed to the north wind during spring and autumn. And there is no doubt that the nature of these plants is such that the earlier they are trimmed, the more wood they produce, and the later, the more fruit. Therefore, at whatever time the vine-dresser shall enter upon this work, he should especially observe three things: first, to make fruit his chief consideration; next, to choose from the very start the most fruitful wood for the following year; and then, also, to make the vine-stock survive through as many years as possible. For any one of these that is neglected brings great loss to the owner. Moreover, when the vine is trained out into four parts, it faces the same number of quarters of the heavens. And since these different directions possess qualities that are contrary to one another, they also require a different arrangement in the parts of the vine according to the circumstances of their situation. Therefore those arms which are exposed to the north should receive the fewest wounds, and the more so if they are pruned at the onset of cold weather, by which the scars are blasted. And so only one firm wood branch next to the frame is to be allowed to grow, and one reserve branch below it to renew the vine presently for a year. But, conversely, more rods should be set apart for growth toward the south, to shade their mother as she suffers from the summer heat and not allow the fruit to wither before it comes to maturity. In the pruning of the east and west sides there is no very great difference, because the vines receive the sun for an equal number of hours in each quarter. The limit, therefore, of firm wood branches will be that which the fertility of the ground and of the stem itself shall prescribe. The above must be observed in general, and the following in particular. For, to begin at the lowest part of the vine, as at the foundation, so to speak, the earth around the shank should always be laid open with a small mattock. And if any offspring which country people call a suffrago or “sucker,” clings to the roots, it must be carefully pulled up and cut off smoothly with the knife, so that it may repel the rains of winter; for it is better to tear off a shoot that sprouts forth afterward from the wound than to leave a cut that is knotty and rough. For by the one method it quickly forms a callus, and by the other it becomes hollow and rots. Then, after care has been taken of the feet, so to speak, the legs themselves and the trunks must be examined to see that no sprouting leafy shoot or wart-like knob is left; unless the vine, being cut off above the frame, shall require renewal from the lower part. But if the old part of the trunk is dried out by the sun's blast, or if the vine is hollowed out by rains and by harmful animals which creep in through the pith, it will be proper to clear away with the mattock any part of it that is dead; and then that it be pared down to the quick with the pruning-knife, so that it may form a callus from the green bark. And it is not a difficult matter, soon after the wounds are smoothed off, to daub them with earth which you have first moistened with oil lees. For a daubing of this sort keeps out the wood-borer and the ant, and also keeps off the sun and the rains; and because of this the wound grows together more quickly and keeps the fruit green. Also the dry and shaggy bark hanging along the upper parts of the trunk must be peeled off down to the body; a because a vine, when rid of its rags, so to speak, thrives better and imparts less of dregs to the wine. Moreover, the moss which binds and compresses the legs of the vines in the manner of shackles, and softens them with its mouldiness and old dirt, must be stripped off and scraped away with the iron. This, then, for the lower part of the vine. And likewise those directions must next be given which are to be observed with reference to the head. The wounds which a vine receives in its hard wood should be made slantwise and rounded, for they grow together more quickly and, as long as they have not formed a scar, they shed water to better advantage; while crosswise cuts receive and hold more moisture. Let the vine-dresser especially avoid this fault. Let him cut off branches that are far extended, old, badly formed, crooked, and turning downward; and let him permit the growth of those that are young and fruitful and straight. let him preserve the young and tender arms, and remove the old and withered with the pruning-hook. Let him trim off the tips a of the reserve stubs when they are one year old. When the vine has been raised to about four feet above the ground, let him arrange it in the same number of arms, each facing in the direction of one cross-piece of the frame. Then let him allow the growth of one rod to each arm if the vine is rather slender, or two if it is more stocky; and, having placed them upon the frame, let him cause them to hang down. But we must bear it in mind not to allow two or more branches of firm wood to be in the same line and on one side of the arm. For it is especially injurious to the vine when every part of the arm does not exert itself equally, and when it does not dispense its juice to its offspring in equal portions, but is drained on one side only; whereby it comes about that that vein whose moisture is entirely taken away withers as though struck by lightning. There is also a shoot, called the “throat-shoot” (focaneus), a which usually comes out at the centre of the fork; and farmers call it by the aforesaid name because, sprouting out between the two arms where the vine divides itself, it obstructs the fauces or throat, so to speak, and forestalls both of the hardened branches by drawing off their nourishment. Therefore these same farmers are careful to cut off and trim away this rival, as it were, before it gains strength. If, however, it has already become so strong as to have impaired one arm or the other, the weaker arm is removed and the throat-shoot is allowed to grow. For when the arm is cut off, the mother vine bestows her strength equally upon both parts. Therefore let the pruner establish the head of the vine one foot below the frame, from which, as I have said, there may extend the four arms by which the vine is renewed yearly by cutting away the old branches and allowing the growth of new ones, the choice of which must be made with skill. For where there is a great abundance of woody branches, the pruner should guard against leaving either those that are next to the hard wood (that is, from the stock and head of the vine), or on the other hand, those at the ends. For the former contribute very little to the vintage, since they yield scanty fruit, being, in fact, like leaf-branches; while the latter exhaust the vine, because they burden it with too much fruit and extend themselves as far as the second or third stake, which we have declared to be wrong. Therefore branches will be let grow to best advantage on the middle of the arm, that they may neither disappoint the hope of a vintage nor cause the wasting of their own stem. Some men are more greedy in enticing the fruit by allowing the growth of terminal and medial shoots, and also by cutting the sprig next to the hard wood into a reserve stub; a thing which I believe should not be done in any circumstances unless strength of soil and stock permit it. For they cover themselves with grapes to such an extent that they cannot reach maturity if friendliness of the land and a thrifty condition of the stock itself are not present. The subsidiary branch, which is the same as the reserve stub, should not be cut back into a spur when the rods from which the next fruits are expected are situated in a suitable place; for when you have bound them and bent them to look downward towards the earth, you will force the growth of hard wood below the binding. But if the vine has sprung out from the head to a greater length than the practice of husbandmen allows, and has crept out with its arms to the roof-like a trellises that belong to other vines, we shall leave close to the main stem a strong reserve rod, and the largest possible, of two or three joints, from which, as from a spur, firm wood may be quickly fashioned into an arm the following year; so that the vine, cut back and restored in this way, may be kept within the frame. But in setting aside a reserve stub for growth the following points must be especially observed. First, that the wound shall not face upward toward the heavens, but rather that it slope downward toward the earth; for in this way it is both protected from the frosts and shaded from the sun. Secondly, that the cut shall not be made like an arrow-point but hoof-shaped a rather; for the former dies more quickly and over a wider area, while the latter is checked more slowly and within narrower limits. There is also a practice which I observe to be employed, and very wrongly, which should be especially avoided; for in their attention to graceful appearance, so that the reserve stub may be shorter and like a thumb, they cut the branch close to the joint. But this is very detrimental, because the bud, being placed next to the wound, suffers from frost and cold, and afterwards from heat also. The best plan, then, is to clip the subsidiary branch about midway between the joints and to make a sloping cut behind the bud, so that, as I have already said,6 its tears may not drop upon the budding eye and blind it. If there is no opportunity for a cut branch, we must look about for a knob which, even though cut very close in the manner of a wart, may put forth a firm wood branch the following spring, which we may leave either for an arm or for fruit. If such a knob is not to be found, the vine must be wounded with the knife and caused to form a " sore " in that place where we wish to draw out a shoot. Now I strongly believe that those branches which we are making ready for bearing should be freed of tendrils and secondary shoots. But one method is employed in cutting these away, and another in removing those that come out of the main stem. For anything that sprouts from mature wood is cut away and trimmed close by a more vigorous application of the pruning-hook, so that it may form a scar more quickly; while, on the contrary, anything that comes from young wood, such as the secondary shoot, is cut away with greater caution because it usually has a bud close beside it, and care must be taken that this is not grazed with the knife. For if, in applying the knife, you trim too closely, the bud is either taken away altogether or wounded severely; and because of this the branch which it presently puts forth in sprouting will be feeble and less fruitful and also more liable to injury by the winds, obviously because it will be weak when it comes forth from the scar. Furthermore, it is difficult to set a limit to the length of the woody branch which we allow to grow; yet most people draw it out to a length such that, when bent and falling down over the frame, it cannot touch the ground. We believe that the following points should be investigated more closely: first, the condition of the vine, for if it is strong it sustains a greater number of woody branches; and next, the richness of the soil, for if this quality is not present we shall quickly kill even the strongest vine if it is wasted away by rods that are too long. But long branches are valued, not for their length, but for the number of their eyes. For where there are rather considerable spaces between the joints, it is permissible to extend the wood to the point where it almost touches the ground, for nevertheless it will put forth but few leaves and shoots; but where the segments are short and eyes are found at close intervals, the branch, though short, is green with many sprouts and luxuriant with numerous off- spring. Therefore it is necessary that a limit be set to such a sort especially, that it may not be burdened by fruiting branches of excessive length, and that the vine-dresser may take into account whether or not the vintage of the previous year was abundant. For after a large yield the vines must be spared, and for that reason they should be closely pruned; but after a scanty yield they must be urged. In addition to the other directions we are of this opinion also, that we should carry out the entire operation with the thinnest and sharpest of hard iron tools. For a knife that is blunt and dull and soft delays the pruner, and for that reason he accomplishes less work and causes more labour for the vinc-dresser; for if the edge is curled over, which happens to soft iron, or if it penetrates too slowly, as is the case with a blunted and thick tool, greater effort is needed. Then, too, ragged and uneven wounds tear the vines; for the matter is not finished with a single stroke but by strokes often repeated. And so the usual result is that what should be cut off is broken off, and that in this way the vine, being mangled and jagged, is rotted with moisture and its wounds do not heal. Therefore the pruner should be expressly reminded to draw out the edge of his implement and to make it as razor-like as possible. And he should not be ignorant as to what part of the pruning-hook should be used in each operation; for I have learned that a great many men make havoc of vineyards through lack of knowledge on this point. Now the shape of the vine-dresser's knife is so designed that the part next to the haft, which has a straight edge, is called the culter or " knife " because of the similarity. The part that is curved is called the sinus or “bend”; that which runs on from the curve is the scalprum or “paring-edge”; the hook which comes next is called the rostrum or “beak,” and the figure of the half-moon above it is called the securis or “hatchet”; and the spike-like part which projects straight forward from it is called the mucro or “point.” Each of these parts performs its own peculiar tasks, if only the vine-dresser is skilful in using them. For when he is to cut something with a thrust of the hand away from him, he uses the culter; when he is to draw it toward him, he uses the sinus; when he wishes to smoothe something, he uses the scalprum, or, to hollow it out, the rostrum; when he is to cut something with a blow, he uses the securis; and when he wants to clear away something in a narrow place, he makes use of the mucro. But the greater part of the work in a vineyard must be done by drawing the knife toward you rather than by hacking; for the wound which is made in this way is smoothed with one impression, since the pruner first puts the knife in place and so cuts off what he has intended to cut. One who attacks the vine by chopping, if he misses his aim, as often happens, wounds the stock with many blows. Therefore that pruning is safer and more advantageous which, as I have said, is accomplished by the drawing of the knife and not by striking. When this is finished there follows, as I have said before,[a] the matter of propping and trellising the vineyard. b And for giving firmness to this the stake is better than the pole, and that not any stake you please; for chief of all is the olive tree split with wedges, the oak and the cork tree, and any other wood of like strength. The round prop holds third place; and that is most approved which is made of juniper, and also of laurel and cypress. Also forest pines do well for this purpose, and elders too are acceptable in the capacity of supports. These props and their like must be gone over again after the pruning, and the decayed parts must be hewn away and sharpened; and some, if they are sound, are to be reversed, while others, which are either rotten or shorter than is proper, must be removed and replaced with suitable props; those that are lying flat must be set up, and those that lean are to be straightened. As for the frame, if there is no need of a new one, have fresh bindings worked into the mending of it. If it seems to need rebuilding, let it be tied together with poles or reeds before the vine is attached to its prop, and then, as I have directed in the case of a newly planted vine, a we should bind the vine to the stake, close to the head and below the arms; and this tying should not be done every year in the same place, lest the band cut into the stock and choke it. Then we will arrange the arms in four directions, below the star, b and bind the tender fruiting branches upon the frame, not forcing them contrary to their nature; but according as each branch will submit, it will be bent slightly, so as not to be broken in the bending and that the buds already swelling may not be rubbed off. And when two mature branches are extended along one part of the frame, let a bar come between them; and let the separated vine-shoots run out over the quadrangular openings 0 of the frames, and, as if plunging downward, let them look upon the ground with their tips. That this ma)' be done skilfully, the binder must remember not to twist the young branch but merely to bend it down and tie it; and he must bear in mind that every mature branch which cannot yet be bent down to earth is to be placed upon the frame, so that it may rather rest upon a bar than hang from its binding. For I have often observed that farmers, through want of foresight, place a fruiting branch under the frame and tie it in such a way as to let it hang merely by a withe; and when this vine receives the weight of its shoots and grapes, it is broken down. When our vineyards are so put in order, we shall next hasten to clean them and to rid them of the pruned twigs and deadwood. However, these must be gathered when the ground is dry, lest the earth, being trampled when muddy, make the task harder for the digger, who is to be brought in immediately while the vines are still dormant. For if you send the digger in when the fruiting branches are swelling and putting forth buds, he will knock off a large part of the vintage. Therefore vineyards are to be dug as deep as possible during the time when spring begins and winter ends, before the buds come, that they may sprout out more luxuriantly and joyfully; and when they have bedecked themselves with leaves, a limit must be set to the young shoots before they are full grown. And let the same vine-dresser who made use of the knife before, now prune with his hand, and let him hold the shade in check and pull off superfluous foliage; and it is of the utmost importance not to do this unskilfully, since the removal of excess leafage is even more beneficial to vines than is pruning. For though the one is of great advantage, still it wounds and checks the vines; while the other heals them more gently, without a wound, and makes the next year's pruning easier. Then too it produces a vine that is freer from scars, because that from which a green and tender thing is plucked soon heals over. In addition, the mature branches which have fruit make a better recovery, and the grapes, being more completely exposed to the sun, are thoroughly ripened.[a] Therefore it is the part of an intelligent vinedresser, and one especially expert, to take stock and consider in what places he should allow the growth of firm wood for the year, and to remove not only the branches that are destitute of buds, but fruitful branches as well, if their number has gone beyond proper bounds; since it happens that some eyes put forth three shoots, of which you must remove two, that the eyes may better rear one nursling apiece. For it is the business of a wise husbandman to consider whether the vine has bedecked itself with a greater quantity of fruit than it can carry to maturity. Accordingly he will wish, not only to pick off superfluous foliage, which should always be done, but sometimes to shake off a part of the fruit so as to lighten a vine that is overburdened by its own productiveness. And a diligent vine-trimmer will do this for various reasons, even if there is no more fruit than is able to ripen; or if it is right that a vine, fettered by heavy bearing in previous years without interruption, should now rest and recover itself, if provision is to be made for the mature wood of the future. For to break off the tips of the rods for the purpose of cheeking rank growth, or to remove twigs that are situated on the hard part of the stock, unless it is necessary to preserve one or two for renewing the vine; as also to pull off every green shoot that comes out of the head and between the arms, and to strip away those sterile shoots which all along the mature wood shade the mother vine to no purpose, is a proper task for anyone at all, even for a child. But the time for vine-trimming a must be chosen, preferably, before the vine shows its flower, though it is permissible to repeat the operation afterwards. Therefore the intervening period of days, when the berries are being formed, refuses us entrance to the vineyard, because it is not expedient to disturb the fruit when it is in the blossom. But when the fruit is passing from childhood and is in the adolescent stage, so to speak, it is proper to bind it and strip it of all leaves, and also to make it plump by frequent diggings; for fruit is made more plentiful by pulverizing the soil. b And I do not deny that most teachers of husbandry before me were content with three diggings; a among whom is Graecinus, who speaks as follows: “It may seem sufficient to dig an established vineyard three times.” Celsus, too, and Atticus agree that there are three natural impulses in a vine, or rather in every branch: one which makes it sprout, another which makes it bloom, and the third which makes it ripen. These impulses, then, they think are stimulated by diggings: for nature does not sufficiently accomplish her purpose unless you diligently give her the benefit of your efforts. And this attention to the cultivating of vineyards comes to an end with the vintage. I return now to that part of my discussion in which I promised directions for the grafting of vines and protecting the grafts. Julius Atticus has said that the time for grafting is from the Calends of November to the Calends of June, up to which time he asserts that a scion can be kept without sprouting. And by that we should understand that no part of the year is excepted if we have a supply of dormant twigs. Furthermore, I would freely grant that this could be done in other kinds of stock that have stronger and sappier bark. In the case of vines, one thing it is not in keeping with my honesty to conceal—that it is exceedingly rash to allow husbandmen to graft during so many months; not that I am unaware that a vine grafted in the dead of winter sometimes takes hold. But we should instruct learners, not what may come about by chance in one or two experiments, but what commonly occurs under a definite system. For if the risk is to be taken with a small number, in whose case greater care makes amends for rashness, I can wink at it to a certain extent; but when the extensiveness of the operation divides the attention of even the most careful husbandman, we ought to remove every uncertainty. There is, indeed, a contradiction in what Atticus directs. For he says that it is not right to prune a vineyard during the middle of winter; and although this does less injury to the vine, still it is forbidden to be done, with good reason, because in cold weather every branch is numb with the cold, and because in its frozen condition it produces no impulse in the bark to heal the scar. And yet this same Atticus does not forbid grafting at the very same time, and he directs that it should then be done by cutting off the head of the whole vine and making a cleft at the point of this cutting. Therefore the more proper way of grafting is at the end of winter, when the days are now growing warm, when both bud and bark are stirred by nature, and when there is no attack of cold weather that may sear either the grafted scion or the wound made by the cleft. Nevertheless I would allow those who are in haste, to graft the vine in the autumn, because the temperature of the air at that season is not unlike that of spring. But at whatever time one intends to graft, let him know that attention to the choosing of scions is not different from that which was prescribed in the preceding book when we gave directions for the selection of cuttings. a When he has pulled from the vine scions which are of good stock, fruitful, and as well ripened as possible, let him also choose a day that is warm and free from winds. Then let him look for a scion that is round and of firm body, not of spongy pith, b and also with numerous eyes and short joints. For it is of the greatest importance that the twig which is ingrafted be not long; and also that there be many eyes on it, from which it may put forth shoots. And so, if the joints are long, it will be necessary to shorten the scion to one or at most two eyes, lest Ave make it so long that it cannot endure the storms and winds and rains without being disturbed. Now when a vine is grafted it is either cut off or left whole and bored through with an auger; a but the former is the more usual graft and is known to almost all farmers, while the latter is less common and is employed by few. Therefore I shall discuss first the method which is more in use. The vine is generally cut above ground, though sometimes below, in the place where it is most solid and free from knots. When it is grafted close to the ground, the graft is covered with earth to its very top; but when the graft is higher above ground, the cleft is carefully daubed with kneaded clay and bound with an overlaying of moss to ward off heat and rains. The scion is so shaped as to be not unlike a reed pen. The piece that is pared off you should hold against the cleft; b and under this cleft there is need of a node in the vine, to bind it together, as it were, and not allow the crack to advance beyond that point. Even if this node is four finger-breadths distant from the point of cutting, still it will be proper that it be bound before the vine is split, lest the wound spread wider than it should when a way is made for the graft with the knife. Moreover, the pen-shaped scion should be tapered not more than three fingers, and so that it may be smooth on the side where it is shaved. And this shaving is carried so far as to reach the pith on one side, and on the other side to be pared down a little farther than the bark; a and to be fashioned in the form of a wedge, so that the scion may be sharp at its lowest point, thinner on one side and thicker on the other, and that, when inserted by the thinner side, it may be pressed close on that side which is thicker and may touch the cleft on both sides. For, unless bark is fitted to bark in such a way that the light shows through at no point, it cannot grow together. There is more than one kind of band for grafting. Some bind the cleft with willow withes; some wrap it with inner bark; very many tie it with rush, which is most suitable. For the willow withe, when it has dried, penetrates and cuts into the bark. For this reason we give higher approval to softer bindings which, after being wrapped around the stock, are drawn tight by forcing in small wedges of reed. But it is of very first importance that the ground be loosened around the vine beforehand, and that the surface roots and suckers be cut away; and afterwards that the stock be covered with earth. And when the stock has taken hold of the graft, it again requires care of a different sort: for, when it buds, it must be stripped oftener of superfluous growth, and the suckers which sprout from the sides and roots must be pulled off more frequently. Furthermore, anything that it puts forth from the place of ingraftment must be tied up, lest the scion should be loosened when moved by the wind, or the tender shoot be pulled out. And when this shoot has increased in size it must be deprived of its secondary shoots, unless because of the poverty or baldness of the place they are reserved for layers. Then autumn applies the pruning-knife to the matured branches. But the following method of pruning is observed in grafted vines—that, where there is no desire for a layer, one shoot is brought up to the frame; and a second is cut back to such an extent that the wound is flush with the stock, though in such a way that nothing is pared from the hard wood. Excess foliage must be removed just as in the case of the young quickset; but the pruning is to be done in such a way that demands are put upon it very sparingly up to the fourth year, until the wound of the trunk forms a scar. This, then, is the method of procedure in cleft-grafting. The procedure by terebration or boring is as follows: a first, to take note of the most fruitful vine in the vicinity, from which you may draw over a traverse branch, so to speak, still clinging to its parent vine, and pass it through the hole. For this is a safer and surer way of grafting because, even though it does not take hold the next spring, at any rate it is forced to be united in the spring following, when it has grown larger; and presently it is cut loose from its mother, and the upper part of the grafted vine is lopped off close to the place where the scion was admitted. If there is no opportunity for such a traverse branch, then a twig is selected—one taken as fresh as possible from the vine—and, being lightly pared all around in such a way that the bark alone is removed, it is fitted to the hole; and then the vine is cut back and daubed over with clay, that the whole stock may devote itself to a vine of different origin. However, this is not done in the case of a traverse shoot, which is nourished at its mother's breast until it grows into the other vine. But there is one type of iron tool with which our ancestors used to bore through the vine, a and a different sort which I myself have now found by experience to be more suitable. For the ancient gimlet—the only kind that old-time farmers knew—would make sawdust and would burn the place which it perforated. Moreover, it was seldom that the burned part would revive or unite with the former and that the grafted scion would take hold. Then, too, the sawdust was never so completely removed that some did not remain in the hole; and this, by its intervention, kept the body of the scion from being closely joined to the body of the vine. We, having devised what we call the “Gallic auger” b for this kind of grafting, have found it far more suitable and practical. For it hollows out the stock in such a way as not to burn the hole, because it does not make dust but shavings; and when these are removed a smooth wound is left, which can more easily touch the seated scion on every side, since there is no interference of that woolly matter which the ancient gimlet produced. [Therefore see to it that the grafting of your vines is 17 finished immediately after the vernal equinox; and graft the black vine in places that are parched and dry, the white vine in wet places.] c[And there is no need of propagating this if only the stock is of so moderate a thickness that the growth of a grafted scion can cover the wound on all sides; unless, however, the place left vacant in a vine whose head is dead demands a replacement. When this is the case, one of the two shoots is turned down for a layer, and the other is carried up to the frame and set apart for fruit. And it is not without advantage to rear shoots from the vine which you have layered, as they sprout from the arched part of the layer, which, if it so happens, you may either use for further layers or leave for fruit.] a Inasmuch as we have discussed those matters which it seemed could be taught to advantage for the establishing and cultivating of vineyards, a method must be set down for the provision of props, frames, and withes. For these are prepared beforehand, as dowries, so to speak, for the vineyards. And if the farmer is destitute of these, he has no reason for making vineyards, since everything that is needed will have to be sought outside the farm; and, just as Atticus says, not only does the cost of purchase put a burden upon the accounts of the overseer, but also the procuring of them is a very great annoyance. For they must be brought together at a most inconvenient season—in winter. Therefore osier-willows and reed thickets must be provided beforehand, and also ordinary woods or woods purposely planted with chestnut trees. Atticus thinks that one iugerum of osier-willows may suffice for binding twenty-five iugera of vineyard,[a] and one iugerum of reed thicket for framing twenty; and that a iugerum planted with chestnut trees is enough to provide as many props as a iugerum of reeds can furnish with cross-rails. Ground that is either well watered or abounding in marshland is best for nourishing the willow, and yet level and rich ground is not unsuitable. And this ground should be turned with the double spade; for the ancients direct us to trench ground intended for a willow-bed to a depth of two and one-half feet. And it makes no difference what kind of osier you plant, if only it is very pliant. Still they think that there are chiefly three kinds of willows: b the Greek, the Gallic, and the Sabine, which most people call the Amerine. The Greek is of a yellow colour; the Gallic of a dingy purple, and with very slender switches; and the Amerine has a slim and reddish rod. And either top-shoots or truncheons of these are planted. Top rods of moderate stoutness, which, however, should not exceed the thickness of a circular two-pound weight, c are best planted if they are put down as far as solid ground. Truncheons of one and one-half feet are stuck into the earth and covered over with a little of it. A well-watered spot requires wider spaces, and spaces of six feet in the quincunx arrangement do very well; a place that is normally dry needs closer planting, but in such a way as to give easy access to those who cultivate it. In this case it is satisfactory that the distance between rows be five feet, yet so that the plants may stand at two-foot intervals in the line of planting, alternating with empty spaces between. The time for planting them is before they bud, while the slips are dormant, and it is best that they be taken from the trees when they are dry. For if you cut them off when they are wet with dew, they do not grow properly; and for this reason rainy days are avoided in lopping off the willows. Willow copses are to be dug more frequently during the first three years, as are new vineyards. Later, when they have gained strength, they are satisfied with three diggings; under any other cultivation they quickly run out. For, even though care is taken, very many willows die. In their place layers should be propagated from a near-by plant, by bending down and burying its leaders, so that anything that has died may be replaced with these. Then when the layer is a year old, let it be cut loose from its stock, that it may be fed by its own roots just like a vine. Very dry places, which do not admit copses of this sort, require broom. A band of this material not only has sufficient strength, but also it is very pliant. The plant is raised from seed, and when it has sprouted, it is either transplanted as a quickset when two years old; or, if left where sown after that time has passed, it may be cut close to the ground every year in the manner of standing grain. Other bindings, such as those made of bramble, require greater labour, but still a necessary labour in poor soil. Willow for poles requires about the same land as that for withes; nevertheless it thrives better in well-watered ground. And it is planted in the form of truncheons; and when it has sprouted it is made to grow as a single shaft, and is frequently cultivated and weeded; and excess foliage is removed no less than in the vine, that it may be encouraged to length rather than spread of branches. When so cared for it is cut finally in its fourth year. For the willow which is prepared for bindings may be cut off when it is one year old, at about two and a half feet above ground, so that it may send out branches from the trunk and be arranged in arms like a low vine; but if the ground has been rather dry, it will be cut back preferably at the age of two years. The reed a is planted in ground that is not worked so deep, though it is better to plant it with the two-foot spade. Although it is very hardy and does not refuse any situation, it succeeds better when put in loose soil than in compact; better in a damp place than in a dry one; better in valleys than on hillsides; and on river banks and in borders and thickets better than in midfield. Its bulbous root is planted, as also truncheons of the cane; and again the whole reed is laid flat in the ground. The bulb, when buried with three-foot spaces between, yields a full-grown stalk in less than a year. The truncheon and the whole reed are longer than the aforementioned time in coming to maturity. But whether truncheons of two and one-half feet are planted, or entire reeds laid flat, their tops should extend above ground; because, if they are entirely buried, they rot completely. But the culture of the reed thicket, for the first three years, is not different from that of the other thickets. Later, when it has become old, the ground must be trenched again. And this is its old age, when it has either dried up completely because of many years of decadence and sloth, or has become so crowded that the reeds grow up slender and cane-like. But in the former case it should be dug up again from the beginning; in the latter it may be cut out and thinned—an operation which farmers call castratio. a However, this repairing of a reed thicket is done blindly, because it is not apparent on the surface what should be removed or what should be left; still the reed suffers castration better before the time of cutting, since the small canes, like pointers, show what is to be plucked out. The time for redigging and planting is before the eyes of the reed sprout. Then the time for cutting is after the winter solstice; for it makes growth up to that time, and is then checked when stiffened by the winter cold. The reed plot must be dug as often as the vineyard; but its leanness must be relieved with ashes or other fertilizer, and for this reason most people burn it over after it is cut. The chestnut tree 6 is next best to the oaks, and for this reason it is suitable for supporting vines. Its nut, too, when planted in prepared ground, quickly springs up; and when cut down, after five years, it renews itself in the manner of the Mallow, and when made into a stake it lasts usually to the next cutting. It likes a black and loose soil; does not refuse a damp, gravelly soil or crumbling tufa; delights in a shady slope with a northern exposure; and fears a heavy soil that is full of red ochre. It is planted from the month of November throughout the whole winter, in ground that is dry and worked to a depth of two feet and a half. The nuts are placed in a row, half a foot apart; and the rows are separated by five-foot inter- vals. The chestnut is committed to furrows sunk to a depth of three-fourths of a foot; and when these furrows are planted with nuts, and before they are levelled off, short reeds are set beside the chestnuts, so that, with these markers of the planting, they may be dug and weeded with greater safety. As soon as the plants have formed a stem—and they may be transplanted when two years old—they are thinned out; and two feet of room is left free for the young saplings, lest crowding weaken the plants. The planting is closer, moreover, because of various mishaps: for the nut is sometimes dried up by droughts before it springs forth, or it decays from excessive wetness; and sometimes it is destroyed by underground animals, such as mice and moles. For these reasons young plantations of chestnut often grow up in thin numbers; and when it is necessary to increase them, it is better that a near-by sapling, if such a one is suitable, be bent over and propagated in the manner of a layer, than that it be taken up and replanted. For such a sapling, being undisturbed at its base, sends out shoots vigorously; but one that is torn out by the roots and transplanted is retarded for two years thereafter. On this account it has been found more advantageous to start trees of this sort from nuts rather than from quicksets. The spaces allotted to this planting, as described above, admit 2880 chestnut trees; of which total, as Atticus says, every iugerum of land will easily yield 12000 props. For the lengths cut closest to the stump generally supply four stakes when split, and then the second cuts of the same tree yield two; and this sort of split prop lasts longer than the round pole. The management of setting and digging is the same as that of the vineyard. It should be pruned lightly when two years old, and again when three; for twice in early spring it must be attacked with the knife, that its upward growth may be hastened. The oak also may be planted in like manner; but it is cut down two years later than the chestnut. For this reason common sense requires that we profit rather by the gain in time, unless it happens that brush-covered and stony mountains, and the kinds of soil which we mentioned above, demand the acorn rather than the chestnut. These matters concerning Italian vineyards and vineyard equipment I have discussed, so I believe, fully and not without profit. I intend presently to give an account of viticulture among our provincial farmers, also of the management of the arbustum both in our own country and in Gaul. NOTE Triticum is wheat in general; often common wheat and two other varieties; siligo is usually common wheat, but sometimes club-wheat; Jar and adoreum are both emmer-wheat (two-grained wheat). > Latin: 23. Placet ergo,2 si mitis ac temperata permittit in ea regione, quam colimus, caeli clementia facta vindemia secundum Idus Octobris auspicari putationem: cum tamen aequinoctiales pluviae praecesserint et sarmenta iustam maturitatem ceperint; nam siccitas seriorem putationem facit. Sin autem caeli status frigidus et pruinosus hiemis violentiam denuntiat, in Idus Febr. hanc curam differemus. Atque id licebit facere si erit exiguus possessionis modus. Nam ubi ruris vastitas electionem nobis temporis negat, valentissimam quamque partem vineti frigoribus, macerrimam vere vel autumno; quin etiam per brumam meridiano axi oppositas vites, aquiloni per ver et Quae declinationes cum contrarias inter se qualitates habeant, variam quoque postulant ordinationem pro conditione suae positionis scabram plagam relinquere. Hoc enim modo celeriter cicatricem ducit, illo cavatur atque putrescit. Pcrcuratis deinde quasi pedibus crura ipsa truncique circumspiciendi sunt, ne aut pampinarius palmes innatus Plagae, quas in duro vitis accipit, obliquae rotundaeque fieri debent, nam citius coalescunt, bifurco medius quae nec spem videmiae destituant nec emacient stirpem suam. Non nulli fructus avidius eliciunt, extrema et media flagella summittendo, nec minus proximum duro sarmentum in custodem resecando; quod faciendum, nisi permittentibus soli et trunci viribus, minime censeo. Nam ita se induunt uvis ut nequeant maturitatem capere gelicidiis ipsa se protegit, et ab sole obumbratur. Deinde ne sagittae sed ungulae similis quicquid est, quod e duro prominet, vehementius applicata falce adnodatur et eraditur, quo celerius obducat numeroso fetu exuberat. Quare modus talis generis necessario maxime est adhibendus, ne procerioribus fructuariis oneretur et ut consideret vinitor proximi anni magna necne fuerit vindemia. Nam post largos fructus parcendum est vitibus, et ideo anguste putandum; post exiguos, imperandum. Super cetera illud etiam censemus, ut duris tenuissimisque et acutissimis ferramentis totum istud opus exsequamur. Obtusa enim et hebes et mollis falx putatorem moratur, eoque minus operis efficit et plus laboris adfert vinitori; nam sive curvatur acies, quod accidit molli, sive tardius penetrat, quod evenit in retuso et crasso ferramento, maiore nisu est opus. Tum etiam plagae asperae atque inaequales vites lacerant; neque enim uno sed saepius repetito ictu res transigitur. Quo plerumque fit ut quod praecidi debeat praefringatur, flectitur, sinus; quae a flexu procurrit, scalprum; quae deinde adunca est, rostrum appellatur; cui superposita semiformis lunae species securis dicitur; eiusque velut apex pronus imminens mucro vocatur. Harum partium quaeque suis muneribus fungitur, si modo vinitor gnarus est iis utendi. Nam cum in adversum pressa manu desecare quid debet, cultro utitur; cum retrahere, sinu; cum adlevare, scalpro; cum incavare, pedamen teres, idque maxime probatur ex iunipiro, tum ex lauru et cupressu. Recte etiam faciunt ad rem silvestres pinus, compluvia decurrant, et velut mersae cacuminibus in terram despiciant. Id ut scite fiat, meminerit alligator ne torqueat sarmentum sed tantum innexum devinciat; et ut omnis materia, quae nondum que compescat, ac supervacuos pampinos deturbet; ventu religatam vitem requiescere fuisse; ex quibus Graecinus, qui sic refert: potest videri satis esse constitutam vineam ter fodere. Celsus quoque et Atticus consentiunt tres esse motus in vite seu potius in omni surcido naturales: unum, quo germinet; alterum, quo floreat; medetur, possum aliquatenus conivere; mum interest non esse longum sarmentum, quod inseratur; et rursus plures oculos, quibus egerminet, inesse. Itaque si sunt longa internodia, necesse erit fuerit iter surculo, plus iusto plaga hiet. Calamus autem motus resecta vitis, ut totus truncus alieni generis viti necessitas, si modo tam mediocris est crassitudo trunci ut incrementum insit i harundineti singula iugera vicenis iugandis; castaneti iugerum totidem palandis, quot harundineti iugandis. Salicem vel riguus ager vel uliginis abundans germinent, dum silent virgae, quas arboribus detrahi tudinem evocetur. Sic culta quarto demum anno potest intercidi et dirarari, dirimuntur. In altitudinem dodrantis castanea depressis sulcis committitur. Qui ubi nucibus sunt consiti, priusquam complanentur, breves harundines ab latere castanearum panguntur, ut per hos sationis indices tutius fodi et runcari possint. Simul atque semina stilaverint, manet diutius quam teres palus. Cultus idem est positionis fossionisque Prioribus libris, quos ad te de constituendis colendisque vineis, Silvine, scripseram, nonnulla defuisse dixisti, quae agrestium operum studiosi desiderarent; ## 5. Book V Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/5/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/5/#p-N [¶0] 1. You have said, Silvinus, that in the earlier books, which I had written to you about establishing and cultivating vineyards, some things were of land, omitted of which those who devote themselves to agriculture felt the want; and indeed I do not deny that, although I carefully studied what the agriculturists of our own age and also the ancients have handed down in written records, there are some topics which I have passed over. But when I undertook to teach the precepts of husbandry, if I mistake not, I did not assert that I would deal with all but only with very many of those subjects which the vast extent of that science embraces; for it could not fall within the scope of one man's knowledge, and there is no kind of learning and no art which has been completely mastered by a single intellect. Therefore, just as the task of a good sportsman, tracking his prey in a vast forest, is to catch as many wild beasts as he can nor has blame ever attached to anyone if he did not catch them all, so it is amply sufficient for us to have treated of the greatest part of the extensive material with which we have undertaken to deal. For indeed subjects, which do not properly belong to our profession, are demanded as though they had been left out; for example, only recently, when my friend Marcus Trebellius required from me a method of measuring land he expressed the opinion that it was a kindred and indeed closely connected task for one who was showing how we ought to trench land to give instructions also how we ought to measure the land thus trenched. I replied that this was the duty not of a farmer but of a surveyor, especially as even architects, who must necessarily be acquainted with the methods of measurement, do not deign to reckon the dimensions of buildings which they have themselves planned, but think that there is a function which befits their profession and another function which belongs to those who measure structures after they have been built and reckon up the cost of the finished work by applying a method of calculation. Therefore I hold that excuse should rather be made for our system of instruction if it only goes as far as to state by what method each of the operations of farming should be carried out and not the area over which it has been performed. But since, Silvinus, you also ask us in a friendly spirit for instructions about measurements, I will comply with your wish, on condition that you harbour no doubt that this is really the business of geometricians rather than of countrymen, and make allowances for any errors that may be committed in a sphere where I do not claim to possess scientific knowledge. But to return to my subject, the extent of every area is reckoned by measurement in feet, and a foot consists of 16 fingers. The multiplication of the foot produces successively the pace, the actus, the clima, the iugerum, the stadium and the centurio, and afterward still larger measurements. The pace contains five feet. The smallest actus (as Marcus Varro says) is four feet wide and 120 feet long. The clima is 60 feet each way. The square actus is bounded by 120 feet each way; when doubled it forms a iugerum, and it has derived the name of iugerum from the fact that it was formed by joining. a This actus the country folk of the province of Baetica call acnua; they also call a breadth of 30 feet and a length of 180 feet a porca. The Gauls give the name candetum to areas of a hundred feet in urban districts but to areas of 150 feet in rural districts; they also call a half-iugerum an arepennis. Two actus, as I have said, form a iugerum 240 feet long and 120 feet wide, which two numbers multiplied together make 28,800 square feet. Next a stadium contains 125 paces (that is to say 625 feet) which multiplied by eight makes 1000 paces, which amount to 5000 feet. We now call an area of 200 iugera a centuria, as Varro again states; but formerly the centuria was so called because it contained 100 iugera, but afterwards when it was doubled it retained the same name, just as the tribes were so called because the people were divided into three parts but now, though many times more numerous, still keep their old name. It was proper that we should begin by briefly mentioning these facts first, as being relevant to and closely connected with the system of calculation which we are going to set forth. Let us now come to our real purpose. We have not put down all the parts of the iugerum but only those which enter into the estimation of work done. For it was needless to follow out the smaller fractions on which no business transaction depends. The iugerum, therefore, as we have said, contains 28,800 square feet, which number of feet is equivalent to 288 scripula. But to begin with the smallest fraction, the half-scripulum, the 576th part of a iugerum, contains 50 feet; it is the half-scripulum of the iugerum. The 288th part of the iugerum contains 100 feet; this is a scripulum. The 144th part contains 200 feet, that is two scripula. The 72nd part contains 400 feet and is a sextula, in which there are four scripula. The 48th part, containing 600 feet, is a sicilicus, in which there The divisions of a iugerum (continued). Latin name of the divisions of the iugerum. Number of scripula in each division. Fractions of iugerum. Roman square feet. English square feet. Semuncia121/241,2001,160·40 Uncia241/122,4002,320·80 Sextans481/64,8004,641·60 Quadrans721/47,2006,962·40 Triens961/39,6009,283·20 Quincunx1205/1212,00011,604·0 Semis1441/214,40013,924·80 Septunx1687/1216,80016,245·60 Bes1922/319,20018,566·40 Dodrans2163/421,60020,887·20 Dextans2405/624,00023,208·0 Deunx26411/1226,40025,528·80 Iugerum288128,80027,849·60 are six scripula. The 24th part, containing 1200 feet, is a semi-uncia, in which there are 12 scripula. The 12th part, containing 2400 feet, is the uncia, in which there are 24 scripula. The 6th part, containing 4800 feet, is a sextans, in which there are 48 scripula. The 4th part, containing 7200 feet is a quadrans, in which there are 72 scripula. The 3rd part, containing 9600 feet, is a triens, in which there are 96 scripula. The 3rd part plus the 12th part, containing 12,000 feet, is the quincunx, in which there are 120 scripula. The half of a iugerum, containing 14,400 feet, is a semis, in which there are 144 scripula. A half plus a 12th part, containing 16,800 feet, is a septunx, in which there are 168 scripula. Two-thirds of a iugerum, containing 19,200 feet, is a bes, in which there are 192 scripula. Three-quarters, containing 21,600 feet, is a dodrans, in which there are 216 scripula. A half plus a third, containing 24,000 feet, is a dextans, in which there are 240 scripula. Two-thirds plus a quarter, containing 26,400 feet, is a deunx, in which there are 264 scripula. A iugerum, containing 28,800 feet, is the as, a in which there are 288 scripula. If the form of the iugerum were always rectangular and, when measurements were being taken, were always 240 feet long and 120 feet wide, the calculation would be very quickly done; but since pieces of land of different shapes come to be the subjects of dispute, we will give below specimens of every kind of shape which we will use as patterns. > Latin: 1. neque ego infitior aliqua me praeteriisse, quamvis inquirentem sedulo, quae nostri saeculi cultores quaeque veteres literarum monumentis prodiderunt: sed cum sim professus 1 rusticae rei praecepta, nisi fallor, asseveraveram, quae vastitas 2 eius scientiae contineret, non cuncta me dicturum, sed plurima. Nam illud in unius hominis prudentiam cadere non poterat. Neque enim est ulla disciplina, non ars, quae singulari abunde est, tam diffusae materiae, quam suscepimus, maximam partem tradidisse. Quippe cum ea velut omissa desiderentur, quae non sunt propria nostrae professionis, ut proxime, cum de commetiendis agris rationem M. Trebellius noster requireret a me, vicinum atque adeo coniunctum esse censebat demonstranti, quemadmodum agrum pastinemus, praecipere etiam pastinatum quemadmodum metiri debeamus. Quod ego non agricolae sed mensoris officium esse dicebam: cum praesertim ne architecti quidem, quibus necesse est mensurarum nosse rationem, dignentur consummatorum aedificiorum, quae ipsi disposuerint, modum comprehendere, sed aliud existiment professioni suae convenire, aliud eorum, qui iam exstructa Pes multiplicatus in passus et actus et climata et iugera et stadia centuriasque mox etiam in maiora spatia procedit. Passus pedes habet V. Actus minimus (ut ait M. Varro) latitudinis Nunc veniamus ad propositum. Iugeri partes non omnes posuimus, licus, in quo sunt scripula sex. Pars vigesima quarta pedes mille ducentos, hoe est semuncia, in qua scripula xii. Pars duodecima duo milia et quadris gentos, hoc est uncia, in qua sunt scripula xxiv. Pars sexta pedes quattuor milia et octingentos, hoc est sextans, in quo sunt scripula XXIV. Pars quarta pedes tionem, cuiusque generis species subiciemus, quibus quasi formulis utemur. [¶1] 2. Every piece of land is square, or long, or wedge-shaped, or triangular, or round, or else presents the form of a semi-circle or of the arc of a circle, sometimes also of a polygon. The measuring of a square is very easy; for, since it has the same number of feet on every one of its sides, two sides are multiplied together and the product of this multiplication we shall say is the number of square feet. For example if an area were 100 feet each way, we multiply 100 by 100 and the result is 10,000. We shall, therefore, say that the area contains 10,000 square feet, which make a triens (1/3) plus a sextula (1/72)of a iugerum, a and on the basis of this fraction we shall have to calculate the amount of work done. If it is longer than it is broad (for example let the form of the iugerum have 240 feet of length and 120 of breadth), as I said just now, you will multiply the feet of the breadth with the feet of the length in the following manner: 120 times 240 make 28,800, and we shall say that the iugerum of land contains this number of square feet. Similarly we shall always multiply the feet of the length with those of the width. But if the field is wedge-shaped (for instance, suppose it to be 100 feet long and 20 feet broad on one side and 10 feet on the other side) we shall add the two breadths together, making a total of 30 feet. Half of this sum is 15, and by multiplying the longitude by 15 we shall obtain the result of 1500. We shall say then that this is the number of square feet in the wedge-shaped field which will be a semuncia plus three scripula (3/288 of a iugerum). a But if you have to measure a triangle with three equal sides, you will follow this formula. Suppose the field to be triangular, three hundred feet on every side. Multiply this number by itself and the result is 90,000 feet. Take a third part of this sum, that is 30,000. Likewise take a tenth part, that is 9,000. Add the two numbers together; the result is 39,000. We shall say that this is the total number of square feet in this triangle, which measure makes a iugerum, plus a triens (1/3), plus a sicilicus (1/48). a But if your field is triangular with unequal sides, as in the figure given below, which has a right angle, the calculation will be ordered differently. Let the line on one side of the right angle be 50 feet long and that on the other side 100 feet. Multiply these two numbers together; 50 times 100 makes 5000; half of this is 2500, which makes an uncia(1/12 of a iugerum) + a scripulum (1/288). b If the field is to be round, so as to have the appearance of a circle, reckon the number of feet as follows. Let there be a circular area of which the diameter (that is, the measurement across) is 70 feet. Multiply this number by itself: 70 times 70 makes 4900. Multiply this sum by 11 and the result is 53,900 feet. I subtract a fourteenth part of this sum, namely 3850, and this I declare to be the number of square feet in the circle, which sum amounts to a sexcuncia of a iugerum and two scripula (1/144) and a half scripulum (1/576).a If the piece of land is to be semi-circular and its base measures 140 feet and the depth of the circular portion is 70 feet, it will be necessary to multiply the depth by the base. 70 times 140 makes 9800. This sum multiplied by 11 makes 107,800, and a fourteenth part of this is 7700. This we shall say is the number of square feet in the semi-circle, which makes a quadrans (1/4) of a iugerum and 5 scripula (5/288). b But if the area is to be less than a semicircle, we shall measure the arc as follows: let there be an are the base of which measures 16 feet and the depth 4 feet. I add the base to the depth, which together make 20 feet. This I multiply by 4, making 80, of which the half is 40. Again, the half of 16 feet, which form the base, is 8. This I multiply by itself, making 61. I then take a fourteenth part of this, which make 4 feet and a little more. a This you will add to 40, and together they make a total of 44. This I declare to be the number of square feet in the are, which is equivalent to half a scripulum (1/576 of a iugerum) less 1/25 of a scripulum. b If the area has six angles, it is reduced to square feet in the following manner. Let there be a hexagon, each side of which measures 30 feet. I multiply one side by itself: 30 times 30 makes 900. Of this sum I take one-third, which is 300, a tenth part of which is 90: total 390. This must be multiplied by 6, because there are 6 sides: the product is 2310. We shall say, therefore, that this is the number of square feet. It will, then, be equivalent to an uncia (1/12 of a iugerum) less half a scripulum (1/596) plus 1/10 of a scripulum. a Having grasped what may be called the first principles of this kind of calculation, we shall have no difficulty about entering upon the measurement of pieces of land, with the various kinds of which it is a long and arduous task to deal at this point. I will now also add, in addition to those which I have already set forth, two rules which husbandmen often employ in the setting out of plants. Suppose that you have a piece of land 1200 feet long and 120 feet wide, in which vines have to be so arranged that five feet are left between the rows. How many plants, I ask, are necessary when spaces of five feet are required between the plants. I take a fifth of the length, which makes 240, and a fifth of the breadth, which makes 24. To each of these numbers always add one unit, which forms the outermost row, and which they call the angular row; one number, therefore amounts to 241, the other to 25. Multiply these figures as follows: 25 times 241 makes 6025. This, you will say, is the number of plants required. Similarly, if you wish to set them six feet apart, you will take a sixth of the longitude (which is 1200), that is 200, and a sixth of the breadth (which is 120), that is 20. To each of these figures you will add what I called the angular units. The numbers are 201 and 21. These sums you will multiply together, 21 times 201, and you will get 4221. This, you will say, is the number of plants required. Similarly, if you wish to set them seven feet apart, you will take a seventh of the length and of the breadth and you will add the angular units, and by the same method and the same arrangement you will make up the number of the plants. In a word, however many feet you have decided for the distance between the plants, you will take the total length and the total breadth and add the units mentioned above. This being so, it follows that the iugerum of land, which is 240 feet long and 120 feet broad, if the distance between the plants is three feet (and this we consider to be the smallest distance which should be left when planting vines), will accommodate 81 plants in its length, and in its breadth, with a distance of five feet between them, it will hold 25 plants. These numbers when multiplied together make 2025. If the vineyard is arranged with intervals of four feet each way, the row which runs lengthways will contain 61 plants, and the row which runs breadthways 31 plants; this gives 1891 vines to a iugerum. If the vineyard be laid out so that there are intervals of four feet lengthways and five feet breadthways, the row which runs lengthways will have 61 plants and that which runs breadthways 25 plants. If the planting is carried out with intervals of five feet, the row will contain 49 plants lengthways and 25 breadthways; the two numbers multiplied together makel225. If, however, you have decided to lay out the same area with the vines at intervals of six feet, there is no doubt that 41 vines must be assigned to the length and 21 to the breadth; these numbers multiplied together make a total of 861. But if the vineyard has to be arranged with intervals of seven feet, a row will accommodate 35 heads lengthways and 18 breadthways; these numbers multiplied together make 630, and this, we shall say, is the number of plants which must be got ready. But if the vineyard is to be planted with intervals of eight feet, a row will accommodate 31 plants lengthways and 16 breadthways; these numbers multiplied together make 496. If the interval is to be nine feet, a row will hold 27 plants lengthways and 14 breadthways; these numbers multiplied together make 378. With intervals of ten feet, a row will hold 25 plants lengthways and 13 breadthways; these numbers multiplied together make 325. So that our discussion may not be infinitely prolonged, we shall carry out our planting by using the same proportion to suit the wider spacing which any one of us prefers. Let what we have said about the measurement of land and the number of plants suffice. I now return to my proposed order of subjects. I have found that there are several kinds of vines in the provinces; but of those of which I have personal knowledge those resembling small trees and standing by themselves on a short stock without any support are the most highly approved. Next come those which are supported by props and placed each on a single frame; these the peasants call “horsed” a vines. Next come those which are fastened round canes fixed in the ground and are bent into curves and circles, their firm-wood branches being tied by means of props formed of reeds. These some people call “staked” vines. The type which comes last in esteem is the vine which lies flat on the ground and which, being as it were projected from the stock as soon as it grows out of the earth, stretches all over the ground. The conditions under which all these vines are planted are almost identical. The plants are placed either in a plant-hole or in a furrow, since the farmers of foreign races are unacquainted with trenching, which indeed is almost superfluous in places where the soil crumbles and has fallen to pieces of its own accord, for, as Vergil says; a 'Tis this that with the plough we imitate, that is to say in fact by trenching. b Thus the Campanians, though they might take a neighbouring example from us, do not employ this method of working the ground, because the ease with which their soil can be cultivated calls for less labour; but wherever a dense soil calls for a greater expenditure on the part of the provincial peasant, what we effect by soil-preparation he achieves by making a furrow in order that he may set his plants in soil which has already been worked into a looser condition. But that I may deal particularly with each kind of the vine of which I have proposed to speak, I will resume the order already mentioned. The vine which stands by virtue of its own strength without any prop must in rather loose soil be placed in a planting-hole, in denser soil in a furrow, but both planting-holes and furrows are very beneficial, if, in temperate regions where the summer is not excessively hot, they are made a year before the vine- yards are planted. Inquiry, however, must first be made into the excellence of the soil; for if the plants are going to be set in hungry and poor land, planting-holes or furrows must be made just before the time of planting. If they are made a year before the vineyard is planted, it is quite enough for the planting- ' hole to be dug three feet in length and depth, but two feet in width; or, if we are going to leave four feet between the rows, it is generally reckoned more convenient to give the planting-hole the same measurement in every dimension without, however, sinking them to a greater depth than three feet. Each plant, then, will be applied to the four corners after fine soil has been put into the bottom of the planting-holes, which will then be filled in. As to the spaces between the rows we have this much advice to offer, that farmers should understand that, if they intend to cultivate their vineyards with the plough, wider intervals must be left, but they can be narrower if hoes a are used; but they should never be wider than ten feet or narrower than four. Many people, however, arrange the rows so as to leave two or at most three feet in a straight line between the plants, while on the other hand they make the transverse spaces wider, so that the digger or ploughman may pass freely. The precautions taken in planting ought not to differ from those which I directed in my Third Book. b Mago, the Carthaginian, however, makes one addition to this system of planting, namely, that the plants should be put into the ground in such a way that the whole plant-hole is not immediately filled with soil but about half of it is gradually levelled up in the two following years; for he thinks that in this way the vine is forced to drive its roots downwards. I shall not deny that this can be done with advantage in dry places; but where either the district is marshy or the climate rainy, I am of opinion that it should certainly not be done, for excessive moisture standing in the half-filled plant-holes kills the plants before they can gain strength. Therefore I think that it is more expedient that the plant-holes should be filled up again after the vine-stock has been put into them, but, when the plants have taken root, immediately after the autumn equinox, the soil round them ought to be carefully dug up a to a good depth and, after the rootlets which they may have put forth on the surface of the ground have been cut away, the earth ought to be filled in again after a few days. In this way two inconveniences will be avoided; firstly, the roots are not drawn to the upper part of the soil, and, secondly, the plants will not be troubled by excessive rains while they are still weak. When, however, they have become quite strong, there is no doubt that they are greatly benefited by the rains from heaven; and so, in places where the mildness of the winter allows it, it will be expedient to leave the vines uncovered and to keep the soil round them loose the whole winter. As regards the sort of vine-plants, the authorities are not agreed amongst themselves. Some think that it is better to plant a vineyard with mallet-shoots from the first, others think that it should be planted with quick-sets; I have already stated my opinion in the earlier part of this work. b However, I now add this further point, that there are some lands where vines which have been transplanted do not answer as well as those which have not been moved, but that this happens very rarely. It must also be noted that we ought to try diligently to discover: What every clime may yield and what refuse. a When, therefore, the plant has been put into the ground, whether it be a mallet-shoot or a quick-set, it is proper to adjust it in such a way that the vine may stand up without any prop. This, however, cannot be achieved immediately. For unless you have provided the vine with a support when it is tender and weak, the young shoots will creep along and keep close to the ground. So, when the plant is set in the earth, a reed is attached to it, so that it may, as it were, watch over its infancy and train it and raise it to such stature as the husbandman allows it to reach. This, moreover, ought not to be high, for it must be checked when it reaches a foot and a half. Afterwards, when it gains strength and can already stand without any help, it comes to maturity by the growth of its head or its branches. For here too there are two methods of cultivation, some people preferring vines which grow to a head, others those which grow out in arms. Those who delight in shaping a vine into arms should preserve whatever it puts forth near the scar where the young vine has had its top removed, and divide it into four arms a foot long in such a way that each of them looks towards a different region of the sky.6 But these arms are not allowed to reach this height immediately in the first year, lest the vine be too heavily laden while it is still weak, but they must only reach the length which I have indicated after numerous prunings. Next there must be left projecting from these arms what may be called horns, and thus the whole vine must be spread in a circular form on all sides. The method of pruning is the same as for vines which are trained on frames, though it differs in one respect, namely, that instead of longer firm-wood branches stumps with four or five “eyes” are left, and instead of “keepers” a short-cut branches with two “eyes” are formed. Then in the vine which we described as growing to a head, the shoot is pulled off close to the mother-vine right up to the stock, one or two “eyes” only being left which adhere to the trunk itself. This can be done with safety in well-watered and very rich districts when the strength of the earth can supply both fruit and firm-wood. Those who have vineyards formed in this way cultivate them mainly with ploughs and follow this method of pulling off the arms from the vines, because the heads themselves, having nothing projecting 6 from them, are not liable to damage from the plough or from the oxen. For in vines which grow out into arms it generally happens that the small branches are broken off by the legs or horns of the oxen, and often too by the handle of the plough while the careful ploughman is striving to graze the edge of the row with the ploughshare and to cultivate the ground as near as possible to the vines. Such then is the cultivation applied to vines whether they grow to arms or to a head, before they bud. When they have budded, a digger follows the ploughman and breaks with a hoe the parts which the ploughman could not reach. Then, when the vine puts forth its firm-wood branches, the vine-trimmer follows and clears away the superfluous shoots and allows those which are fruitful to grow; and when these have hardened they arc tied up into a kind of crown. This is done for two reasons: firstly, lest, if they are allowed to run free, the shoots should creep forward and become over-luxuriant, and use up all the shoots nourishment, and, secondly, in order that the vine, being tied back, may give the ploughman and the digger free access again for carrying on the cultivation of it. The following will be the method of trimming. In places which are shady and damp and cold, the vine should be stripped in summer and the leaves plucked from the shoots, so that the fruit may reach maturity and not become mouldy and rot away. In dry, warm and sunny places, on the contrary, the clusters of grapes should be covered by its shoots, and, if the vine is not sufficiently covered with foliage, the fruit should be protected with leaves brought from elsewhere and sometimes with straw. Indeed, my paternal uncle, Marcus Columella, a man learned in the noble sciences and a most industrious farmer of the province of Baetica, used to shelter his vines about the rising of the Dogstar with palm-mats, because usually during the period of the said constellation some parts of that district are so troubled by the East wind, which the inhabitants call Vulturnus, that, unless the vines are shaded with coverings, the fruit is scorched as it were with a fiery breath. Such is the method of cultivating both the vine which grows into a head and that which grows into arms. The vine which is placed on a single rail, or that of which the firm-wood is allowed to grow and which is tied in a circular form to props of reeds, requires almost the same treatment as that trained on a frame. I have, however, noticed that some people when dealing with " staked " vines, especially those of the Helvenacan a kind, bury the sprawling shoots, as though they were layers, under the surface of the soil, and then again erect them on reeds and let them grow for fruit-bearing. These our husbandmen call mergi (" divers "), while the Gauls call them candosocci(" layers"), and they bury them for the simple reason that they think that the earth provides more nourishment for the fruit-bearing whips; and so after the vintage they cut them off as useless shoots and remove them from the stem. Our advice, however, is that these same rods, when they have been cut away from the mother-vine, should be planted as quick-sets in any vacant spaces in the rows where vines have died or in a new vineyard which anyone wants to establish; for indeed the parts of the shoots which had been buried have enough roots to take hold immediately if they are put into plant-holes. There still remains the cultivation of the vine which grows on the ground; but this should not be undertaken except where the climate is very boisterous; for it presents a difficult task for the husbandmen and it never produces wine of a generous flavour. Where local conditions admit of this form of cultivation only, a hammer-shoot is put into plant-holes two feet deep. When it has budded, it is reduced to one firm-wood branch; this in the first year is confined to two “eyes.” Then in the following year, when it has put forth a profusion of shoots, one is allowed to grow and the rest are struck off. The shoot which has been allowed to grow, when it has produced fruit, is pruned back to such a distance that, as it lies on the ground, it does not reach beyond the space between the rows. Nor is there a great difference between the pruning of a recumbent vine and of one which stands upright, except that the firm-wood branches in the vine which lies on the ground should be allowed to grow to a shorter length and the stumps ought to be left narrower so as to resemble knobs. But after the pruning, which in this kind of vine ought naturally to be carried out in the autumn, the whole vine is bent, aside into one of the two spaces between the rows; and the part which was previously occupied is either dug up or ploughed, and when it has been thoroughly cultivated, it receives the same vine back again, so that the other space may also be cultivated. About the trimming of this kind of vineyard, there is little agreement between the authorities. Some say that the vine ought not to be stripped, that it may the-better conceal the fruit from injury by the wind and by wild beasts; others hold that it should be trimmed only sparingly, so that the vine may not be wholly burdened with superfluous leaves and yet may be able to cover or conceal the fruit. The latter method seems to me too to be the more expedient. We have now said enough about vines; must now give directions about trees. a He who wishes to have a thick and profitable plantation for supporting vines with the trees set at equal distances from one another will take care that it does not grow sparse because the trees have died and will be careful to remove any tree as soon as it is afflicted with old age or damaged by storm and substitute a young growth in its place. This he will easily be able to achieve if he has a nursery for elms ready prepared. In what manner and of what kind of trees it must be formed, I shall have no objection to stating forthwith. It is generally agreed that there are two kinds of elms, the Gallic and the native; the former is called the Atinian, a the latter our own Italian. Tremellius Scrofa 6 was wrong when he expressed the opinion that the Atinian elm does not bear samera, which is the seed of that tree; it certainly produces it but rather thinly and for that reason most people think that it is actually barren, since the seeds are hidden among the foliage which it produces at its first budding. That is why no one now grows it from seed but by means of shoots. This elm is much more luxuriant and taller than ours and produces foliage which is more acceptable to oxen; when you have fed cattle on it constantly and then begin to give them foliage of the other kind, you will cause them to feel a loathing for the latter. Therefore, if possible, we shall plant a whole field with the Atinian kind of elm only, or, failing that, we shall take care, in arranging the rows, to plant native and Atinian elms to the same number alternately. In this way we shall always have a mixture of foliage for use and the cattle, attracted by this kind of seasoning for their food, will finish off with greater heartiness the full ration allotted to them. But the poplar seems to sustain the vine best of all trees, then the elm, and after it the ash. The poplar tree, because it provides foliage which is scanty and unsuitable for cattle, has been rejected by most people; the ash, because it is most acceptable to goats and sheep and of some use for oxen, is rightly planted in rough and mountainous places in which the elm is less flourishing. The elm is preferred by most people, because it both accommodates itself very well to the vine and provides food most acceptable to oxen and flourishes in various kinds of soil. So if it is desired to establish a new plantation, nurseries of elms or ash-trees should be prepared on the system which Ave have described hereafter; for poplars are better put straight into the plantation in the form of tree-tops planted in the ground. We will, therefore, prepare the ground with a double mattock where the earth is rich and moderately moist, and in the spring-time, after the soil has been carefully harrowed and broken up, Ave shall mark it out into beds. We shall then cast upon the beds the elm-seed which will now be of a ruddy colour and has been exposed to the sun for several days, but still retaining some juice and stickiness, and Ave shall thickly cover the beds all over with the seed and scatter crumbling earth over them with a sieve to the depth of two inches and give them a moderate watering and cover the beds with straw, so that the heads of the plants, when they come up, may not be pecked off by birds. Then, when the plants have crept forth, Ave shall collect the straw and pull up the weeds by hand—a process which must be carried out gently and carefully, so that the still tender and short little roots of the elms may not be pulled up with the weeds. We shall have the beds themselves planned so as to be so narrow that those who are going to weed them can easily reach to the middle of them with their hands; for, if they are broader, the seedlings themselves will be trodden upon and receive damage. Then in the summer, before the sun rises or towards evening, the nursery-beds ought to be sprinkled from time to time rather than soaked, and when the plantshave growth three feet high, they should be transferred to another nursery-bed, and that they may not strike their roots too deep (for this afterwards involves much labour in lifting them when we are going to transfer them to another nursery-bed), we shall have to dig not very large plant-holes a foot and a half apart. Next the roots, if they are short, will have to be bent as it were into a knot, or, if they are too long, into a circle resembling a crown and, after being smeared with ox-dung, they must be lowered into small plant-holes and carefully trodden down all round. The plants, too, which are gathered on their stocks a can be set out in the same manner, and this is essential in the case of the Atinian elm which is not raised from seed. It is better to set this kind of elm in the autumn rather than in the spring, and its small branches are twisted little by little by hand, since in its first two years it dreads the blow of an iron implement. Finally, in its third year it is scraped with a sharp pruning-hook, and when it is fit for transplantation (that is, from the season of autumn, when the ground has been thoroughly soaked with rain, until the spring, before the root of the elm is likely to lose its bark while being removed from the soil), then is the proper time for planting it. Next plant-holes measuring three feet each way must be made if the soil is loose, but, if it is dense, furrows of the same depth and width must be prepared to receive the trees. But also in a soil which is exposed to dew and mist the elms must be planted in such a way that their branches may be directed towards the east and west, in order that the middle of the trees, to which the vine is applied and fastened, may receive more sunlight. But if we have in view the sowing of cereals also, the trees should be placed, if the soil is rich, at intervals of forty feet from one another, but if it is thin and nothing is planted in it, at intervals of twenty feet. Then when they begin to grow tali, they must be shaped with the pruning-hook and successive " stages " must be arranged; for the husbandmen call prominent branches and trunks by this name and either cut them closer with the knife or let them grow longer, that the vines may spread more loosely, the latter process being better on rich soil, the former on thin soil. The " stages " should be not less than three feet apart from one another and so shaped that an upper branch may not be in the same line as a lower; for the lower branch will rub against the budding shoot let down from the upper branch and shake off the fruit. But whatever tree you plant, you should not prune it during the next two years. Then afterwards, if the elm receives only a little growth, in the spring, before it sheds its bark, its top must be lopped off near the small branch which appears to be the most healthy, but in such a way as to leave above it on the trunk a stump nine inches long, towards which the branch can be trained and then applied and fastened, that, when it has been thus caught, it may provide a top for the tree. Then after a year the stump must be cut away and the place smoothed off. If, however, the tree has no suitable small branch, it will be enough if nine feet from the ground it is left standing and the upper part lopped off, in order that the new rods which it will have put forth may be safe from injury by cattle. If possible, the tree should be cut through with a single blow; if not, it will have to be sawn through and the wound smoothed off with a pruning-hook and covered with mud mixed with straw, so that it may not be damaged by the sun or the rain. After a year or two, when the little branches which have come forth have duly gained strength, it will be fitting that those which are superfluous should be pruned away and those which are suitable should be allowed to grow freely and take their place in the row. If an elm has made good progress since it was planted, its topmost rods should be freed from knots with a pruning-hook; but if the small branches are vigorous, they should be cut off with a knife in such a way that you leave a little stump projecting from the trunk. Then when the tree has gained strength, whatever can be reached with a pruning-hook should be cut away and smoothed off, without, however, any wound being inflicted on the body of the mother-tree. It will be proper to shape the young elm in the following manner. Where the soil is rich, eight feet should be left from the ground, without any branches, or seven feet in poor soil; then above this the tree must be divided into three parts throughout its circumference, and small branches, one on each of the three sides, should be allowed to grow and be allotted to the first “stage.” Then, three feet above, other branches must be allowed to grow in such a manner that their position is not in the same line as in the stage underneath; and the tree will have to be arranged on the same principle right up to the top. In stripping the tree care must be taken that the knobs which are left where the rods have been cut away do not project too much, and that they are not, on the other hand, so much smoothed away that the trunk itself is damaged or stripped of its bark; for an elm takes little pleasure in being bared to the quick. Also we must avoid making one wound out of two, for the bark does not easily grow over a scar of this kind. The elm requires constant attention, not only in training it carefully but also in digging round the trunk and in alternate years cutting off with a knife or tying back any foliage which has grown from it, so that excessive shade may not harm the vine. Then when the tree has reached a good age, a wound will be made in it near the ground in such a way that a hole is made reaching to the pith and a passage thus given to the moisture, which it has formed in its upper portion. It is well also to plant the vine before the tree has reached its full strength. But if you wed a tender young elm to a vine, it will now not support the weight; if you couple a vine with an old elm, it will kill its mate. The trees and the vines, therefore, ought to be nearly equal in age and strength. In order to wed the tree and the vine, a trench ought to be made for the quick-set two feet wide and the same number of feet deep, if the soil is light (but if it is heavy, two feet and three-quarters deep) and six or at least five feet long. The trench, however, should not be less than a foot and a half from the tree; for if you put the vine close to the roots of the elm, it will not strike root properly and, when it has taken hold, it will be smothered by the growth of the tree. If circumstances allow, make the trench in the autumn, that it may be' softened by the rains and frosts; then, about the time of the spring equinox, in order more quickly to clothe the elm, two vines a foot apart should be put into the trench, and care should be taken that they are not planted when the north winds are blowing, nor when the vines are wet with dew, but when they are dry. This rule I lay down not only when vines are being planted but also elms and the other trees; also, that, when they are removed from the nursery-bed, one side should be marked with ruddle to warn us not to plant trees in any position other than that in which they stood in the nursery-bed; for it is very important that they should face that quarter of the sky to which they have been accustomed from their early days. In sunny positions, however, when the climate is neither very cold nor too rainy, both trees and vines are better planted in the autumn after the equinox. They should be planted on the principle of putting beneath them to a depth of half a foot top-soil which has been broken by the plough and uncoiling all the roots and covering the plants when they are set with dunged soil, which I consider the best course, or, if not, at least with broken soil, and treading round the actual stem of the plant. The vines should be set at the edge of the trench and their firm-wood branches stretched along the trench and then erected into the tree and protected by railings from damage by cattle. In very hot localities the plants should be attached to the tree on the north side, in cold places to the south side, in a temperate climate either on the east or on the west side, so that they may not have to endure the sun or the shade all day. Celsus a is of opinion that at the next pruning-season it is better to refrain from using the knife and that the shoots themselves should be twisted and wrapped round the tree in the shape of a crown, so that this bending-back may cause a profusion of firm-wood branches, the strongest of which we may make the head of the vine in the following year. But long experience has taught me that it is much more expedient to apply the pruning-hook to the vines on the first possible opportunity and not allow them to become bushy with superfluous shoots. I also hold that the firm-wood branch which is to be allowed to grow at first, should be cut back with the knife as far as the second or third bud, so that it may put forth more vigorous shoots, which, when they have taken hold of the first " story " of the tree, will be trained in different directions at the next pruning, and furthermore will every year be raised to the story above, one firm-wood branch being always left which, applied to the trunk, will face towards the top of the tree. Once the vine is set in its place a fixed rule is applied to it by husbandmen. Most of them crowd the lower " stories " with firm-wood branches, their object being a more abundant yield of fruit and easier cultivation. But those whose chief object is high quality in the wine, encourage the vine to mount to the top of the trees, and, as each firm-wood shoot offers itself, they stretch it out to the highest possible branch in such a way that the top of the vine keeps pace with the top of the tree, that is, that the two furthest vine-shoots are applied to the trunk of the tree so that they face its top and, as each branch gathers strength, it takes up the burden of the vine. On the stouter branches more shoots should be placed, separate from one another, but fewer on the slenderer branches, and the young vine should be attached to the tree with three bindings, one on the stem of the tree four feet from the ground, a second holding the vine at its top, and a third clasping it in the middle. A binding should not be placed at the bottom, since it takes away the strength of the vine; however, it is sometimes considered necessary when the tree has had its branches lopped off or when the vine, growing too strong, runs riot. The other points to be observed in pruning are that the old shoots, upon which the fruit of the previous year has hung, should be all cut away, but the new ones should be allowed to grow after their tendrils have been cut back all round and the side-shoots which have grown from them have been lopped off—if the vine is in a flourishing state, the furthest shoots should be let down a through the top of the branches, if the vine is slender, the shoots nearest to the stock, and if it is of middling size, those in the middle. For the furthest shoot produces the most fruit, the nearest the least and exhausts and enfeebles the vine. It is of great benefit to vines to unbind them every year; for they can then be more conveniently freed from knots and they are refreshed by being bound in another place and they are less damaged and recover strength better. Also it is expedient that the shoots themselves should be so placed upon the " stories " of the tree that they hang down, being attached at the third or fourth bud, and that they should not be bound too tightly, lest the vine-twig be cut by the osier. But if the " story " is so far away that the firm-wood branch cannot conveniently be made to reach it, we shall bind the shoot itself to the vine, attaching it above the third bud. We give instructions that this should be done because it is the part of the shoot that is bent over which is clothed with fruit, and it is the part which, being tied with a band, grows upwards that provides the firm-wood branches for the following year. There are two kinds of the fruit-bearing shoots themselves, one that comes out of the hard-wood of the vine, which, because in the first year it usually puts forth leaves but no fruit, is called a tendril-bearing shoot, and another which is produced from a one-year-old shoot and, because it bears fruit immediately, is called a fructuary shoot. In order that we may have plenty of shoots of this kind in our vineyard, the portions of the shoots up to three buds must be tied back, so that whatever is below the band may produce firm-wood. Then, afterwards, when the vine has increased in years and strength, the cross-branches must be conveyed to all the nearest trees and after two years must be cut away and others which are younger must be trained across; for when they grow old they wear out the vine. Sometimes too, when the vine cannot occupy the whole tree, it has been found useful to bend part of it down and sink it into the earth and raise two or three layers again into the same tree, so that it may be surrounded by several vines and so be more quickly covered. A tendril-bearing shoot ought not to be allowed to grow on a young vine, unless it has grown in a place where it is required, so that it may be wedded to a branch which lacks a vine-shoot. Tendril-bearing shoots which grow in the right place on old vines are useful and are generally cut back to the third bud and allowed to grow with very good results; for in the following year they produce firm-wood in abundance. But if any tendril growing in the right place is broken in the process of pruning or tying, provided that it has some bud left, it should not be entirely removed, since in the following year it will produce an even stronger firm-wood branch from a single bud. Shoots are called " precipitated " which, sprung from rods one year old, are tied to the hard wood. These bear fruit very freely but do much damage to the mother-vine; and so a shoot ought not to be " precipitated " except from the ends of the branches or if the vine has surmounted the top of the tree. If, however, anyone wishes to let this kind of stem grow freely for the sake of the fruit, let him twist the shoot, and then tie it in that position and bend it over; for it will put forth flourishing firm-wood behind the point at which you have twisted it, and also, when it is bent over, it will attract less strength to itself, even though it bears an abundance of fruit. A shoot which has been bent over ought not to be allowed to continue so for more than one year. Another kind of shoot which grows from a young vine and hangs down tied to the tender part of the vine, we call firm-wood; it produces a good crop both of fruit and of new sprouts, and if two rods are allowed to grow from one head, both, nevertheless, are called firm-wood; for I have pointed out above what strength the leaf-bearing shoot possesses. The " throat-shoot " a is that which grows out of the middle between two branches, as it were in a fork. This I have found to be the worst kind of shoot, because it does not bear fruit and it weakens both of the branches between which it has grown. It must, therefore, be removed. Most people have believed that a strong, luxuriant vine becomes more fertile, if it is loaded with many shoots which are allowed to grow, but they are wrong; for it produces more leaf-bearing shoots from its more numerous rods and, when it has covered itself with abundant foliage, it flowers less well and holds the fog and dew too long and loses all its clusters of grapes. I am, therefore, in favour of distributing a strong vine over the boughs of the supporting tree and spreading it in the form of cross-branches and thinning it out and bending over a certain number of grape-bearing shoots, and, if it is not luxuriant enough, leaving the firm-wood loose. This method will make the vine more productive. Just as a dense plantation is commendable from the point of view of the fruit and for its fine appearance, so when it becomes thin through lapse of time it is equally unprofitable and ugly to look upon. To prevent this, it is the duty of a careful owner of property to remove every tree as soon as it becomes enfeebled by age and to plant a young tree in its place and not to crowd it round with quick-sets a—although there may be facilities for doing so—but, what is far better, to set layers from near at hand. In both cases the method is very similar to that which we have already set forth. We have now given enough instruction about Italian plantations. plantations. There is another kind of plantation found in Gaul, which is called that of dwarf trees. b It requires a low and not very leafy tree, and the guelder-rose tree c seems to be the most suitable for this purpose, a tree which closely resembles the cornel-tree. Indeed the cornel-tree, the horn-beam and sometimes the mountain-ash and the willow are planted by most people to this very end; but willows should not be planted except in watery places, where other trees take root with difficulty, because it spoils the flavour of the wine. The elm also can be adapted to this purpose a by having its top cut off while it is still young, so that it does not exceed the height of fifteen feet; for I have noticed that the plantation of dwarf trees is usually so ordered that the " stories " are arranged at the height of eight feet in dry, sloping places, and twelve feet on flat, marshy ground. But usually this tree is divided up into three branches, upon each of which several arms are allowed to grow on both sides; then almost all the rods are pared off at the time when the vines are pruned, so that they may not cause a shade. If no cereal is sown amongst the dwarf trees, spaces of twenty feet are left on either side; but if one indulges in crops, forty feet are left on one side and twenty on the other. In all other respects operations are carried out on the same principle as in an Italian plantation, namely, that the vines are planted in long holes, that they may be looked after with the same care, and trained along the boughs of the trees, and the young cross-branches joined together every year from the nearest trees and the old ones cut off. If one cross-branch does not reach to another, it should be connected by a rod running between them. When later the fruit bows the vine down with its weight, it should be supported by props put underneath it. This kind of plantation, just like all kinds of other trees, produces a greater abundance of fruit the deeper the ground is ploughed and dug round it; whether it pays the owner of the property to make it is shown by the profit which it returns. > Latin: 2. Omnis ager aut quadratus, aut longus, aut cuneatus, aut triquetrus, aut rotundus, aut etiam semicirculi vel arcus, nonnunquam etiam plurium angulorum formam exhibet.1 Quadrati mensura facillima est. Nam cum sit undique pedum totidem, multiplicantur in se duo latera, et quae summa ex multiplicatione effecta est, eam dicemus esse quadratorum pedum. Tanquam est locus quoquo versus C pedum: ducimus centies centenos, fiunt decem milia. Dicemus igitur eum locum habere decem milia pedum quadratorum, quae efficiunt iugeri trientem, et sextulam, pro qua portione operis effecti numerationem facere oportebit. At si longior fuerit, quam latior, ut exempli causa iugeri forma pedes habeat longitudinis CCXL, latitudinis pedes CXX, ita ut paulo ante dixi, latitudinis pedes cum longitudinis pedibus sic multiplicans. Centies vicies duceni quadrageni fiunt viginti octo milia et octingenti. Dicemus iugerum agri tot pedes quadratos habere. Similiterque omnis longitudinis pedes cum pedibus latitudinis multiplicabimus. id est triginta milia. Item sumito decumam, id est novem milia. Utramque summam componito. Fiunt pedes triginta novem milia. Dicemus hanc summam pedum quadratorum esse in eo triquetro, quae mensura efficit iugerum, et trientem, et rotunda, cuius diametros, Si autem minus quam semicirculus erit, arcum sic metiemur. Esto arcus, cuius basis habeat pedes xvi, latitudo autem pedes iv. Latitudinem cum basi pono. Fit utrumque pedes XX. Hoc duco quater. Fiunt LXXX. Horum pars dimidia est XL. Item sedecim pedum, qui sunt basis, pars dimidia VIII. Hi viii in se multiplicati, fiunt LXIV. Hoc sexies ducendum est, quoniam sex latera sunt, quae consummata efficiunt duo milia trecenteni et quadraginta. Tot igitur pedes quadratos esse dicemus. Itaque CCI, et XXI. Has summas inter se multiplicabis, vicies et semel ducentos et unum, atque ita efficies quattuor milia ducentos et viginti unum. pedes eundem vitibus locum placuerit ordinare, nihil dubium est quin longitudini dandae sint XLI vites, latitudini autem viginti una. Quae inter se multiplicatae efficiunt numerum DCCCLXI. Sin autem inter septenos pedes vinea fuerit constituenda, ordo per longitudinem recipiet capita triginta quinque, per latitudinem XVIII. Qui numeri inter se multiplicati efficiunt DCXXX. Totidem dicemus semina prae-paranda. At si inter octonos pedes vinea conseretur, ordo per longitudinem recipiet semina XXXI, per latitudinem autem xvi. Qui numeri inter se multiplicati efficiunt CCCCXCVI. At si inter novenos pedes, ordo in longitudinem recipiet semina viginti septem, et in latitudinem quattuordecim. Qui numeri inter se multiplicati faciunt CCCLXXVIII. Vel inter denos pedes, ordo longitudinis recipiet semina XXV, latitudinis XIII. Hi numeri inter se multiplicati faciunt CCCXXV, Et ne in infinitum procedat disputatio nostra, eadem portione, ut cuique placuerint vinctae tamen ante bonitas exploranda est. deorsum agere radices. Hoc ego siccis locis fieri utiliter non negaverim; sed ubi aut uliginosa regio est, aut caeli status imbrifer, minime faciundum censeo. Nam consistens in semiplenis deant: sed istud rarissime accidere. Notandum item diligenter explorandum esse, atque ita totam vitem omni parte in orbem diffundi. Putationis autem ratio eadem mittit, qui cum induruerunt, velut in coronam re-ligantur. Hoc duabus ex causis fit: una, ne libero excursu in luxuriam prorepant, animadverti, et maxime elvenaci fructum edidit, in eam longitudinem deputatur, uti iacens non excedat interordinii spatium. Nec magna est putationis differentia cubantis et stantis rectae vineae: nisi quod iacenti viti breviores materiae submitti debent, reseces quoque angustius in modum furunculorum relinqui. Sed narium paratum habuerit: quod montosis, quibus minus laetatur ulmus, recte seritur. Ulmus, quod et vitem commodissime patitur, et iucundissimum pabulum bubus affert, variisque generibus soli provenit, a plerisque praefertur. Itaque si conspergi saepius solis mediae arbores, quibus vitis applicata et religata innititur, accipiant. Quod si etiam frumentis consulemus, uberi solo inter quadraginta pedes, exili, ubi nihil seritur, inter viginti, arbores disponantur. Cum deinde adolescere incipient, falce formandae, et tabulata instituenda sunt. emiserit, relinquuntur, aut rursus ita alleventur, ut ipse truncus laedatur, aut delibretur; nam parum gaudet ulmus ulmum vestiant, pedem inter se distantes scrobibus deponendae: cavendumque ne aut septentrio-nalibus ventis aut rorulentae sed siccae serantur. Hanc observationem non solum in vitium positione, sed in ulmorum ceterarumque arborum praecipio: et uti cum de seminario eximuntur, rubrica notetur una pars, quae nos admoneat, ne aliter arbores constituamus, quam quemadmodum in seminario steterint. Plurimum enim refert, ut eam partem caeli spectent, cui ab tenero consueverunt. tortos arbori circumdari, ut flexura materias arboris a terra quattuor pedibus distans; cipitata est, ea ut aliquam gemmam habuerit, ex toto tolli non oportet, quoniam proximo anno vel validiorem materiam ex una creabit. oneretur. Nam ex pluribus virgis plures pampinos creat, et cum se multa fronde cooperit, peius defloret, nebulasque et rores idonea opulus1: ea est arbor como quanto altius arantur et circumfodiuntur, maiore fructu exuberant; quod an expediat patrifamilias facere, reditus docet. [¶2] 8. The cultivation of any kind of tree is simpler than that of the vine, and the olive-tree, the queen of all trees, requires the least expenditure of all. For, although it does not bear fruit year after year but generally in alternate years, it is held in very high esteem because it is maintained by very light cultivation and, when it is not covered with fruit, it calls for scarcely any expenditure; also, if anything is expended upon it, it promptly multiplies its crop of fruit. If it is neglected for several years, it does not deteriorate like the vine, but even during this period it nevertheless yields something to the owner of the property and, when cultivation is again applied to it, it recovers in a single year. We have, therefore, besides others thought it well to give careful instructions about this kind of tree. I fancy that there are as many kinds of olive-trees as of vines, but ten in all have come under my notice: a the Posia, b the Licinian, the Sergian, the Nevian, c the Culminian, d the Orchis, e the Royal, the Shuttle, f the Myrtle. Of these the berry of the Posia is the most agreeable, that of the Royal the showiest, and both are more suitable for eating than for oil. The oil from the Posia has an excellent flavour as long as it is green, but it goes bad within a year. The Orchis also and the Shuttle-olive are better gathered for eating than for their oil. The Licinian produces the best oil, the Sergian the most abundant, and, generally speaking, all the bigger olives are more suitable for eating, the smaller for oil. No olive-trees of these kinds can stand a very warm or a very cold climate; and so in very hot regions the olive-tree rejoices in the north side of a hill, in cool districts in the south side; but it does not like either low-lying or lofty situations but prefers moderate slopes such as we see in the Sabine territory in Italy and all over the province of Baetica. a Most people think that this tree either cannot live or is not productive more than a hundred miles from the sea, but in some places it thrives well. The Posia stands the heat best, the Sergian the cold. The most suitable kind of ground for olive-trees is that which has gravel underneath, if chalk mixed with coarse sand forms the top-soil. Not less highly esteemed is ground where there is rich sand, but denser soil also is well adapted to receive this tree, if it is moist and fertile. Chalk must be wholly rejected, and even more land which abounds in springs and where ooze is always standing. Land which is lean because of sand is unfriendly to the olive-tree; so is bare gravel: for, although it does not die in this kind of soil, yet it never acquires strength. It can, however, be planted on corn-land or where the strawberry-tree or holm-oak have stood; for the ordinary oak, even if it has been cut down, leaves behind roots harmful to the olive-grove, the poison from which kills the olive. So much for general remarks on this type of tree as a whole; I will now describe its cultivation in detail. > Latin: 8. Omnis tamen arboris cultus simplicior quam vinearum est, longeque ex omnibus stirpibus minorem impensam desiderat olea, quae prima omnium arborum est. Nam quamvis non continuis annis, sed fere altero quoque Regia, nuda glarea. Nam etsi non emoritur in eiusmodi solo, nunquam tamen convalescit. Potest tamen in agro frumentario seri, vel ubi arbutus, aut ilex steterant. Nam quercus etiam excisa radices noxias oliveto relinquit, quarum virus enecat oleam. Haec in universum de toto genere huius arboris habui dicere. Nunc per partes culturam eius exsequar. [¶3] 9. A nursery for your olive-grove should be prepared under the open sky on land which is moderately trees, strong and juicy with soil which is neither dense nor loose but rather broken up. This kind of soil generally consists of black earth. When you have trenched it to the depth of three feet and surrounded it with a deep ditch, so that the cattle may have no access to it, allow the ground to loosen up. Then take from the most fruitful trees tall and flourishing young branches, such as the hand can grasp when it takes hold of them—that is to say of the thickness of a handle—and cut off from these the freshest slips in such a way as not to injure the bark or any other part except where the saw has made its cut. This is quite easy if you have first made a forked support and protect with hay or straw the part above which you are going to cut the branch, so that the slips which arc placed in the fork may be severed gently without any damage to their bark. The slips then should be cut to the length of a foot and a half with the saw, and their wounds at each end smoothed with a. pruning-knife and marked with ruddle, in order that the portion of the branch may be properly placed in the position which the branch had occupied on the tree, and with its top towards the sky; for, if it is sunk into the ground in an inverted position, it will take root with difficulty and, when it has gained more strength, it will be barren for ever. You will have to smear the tops and lower ends of the slips with a mixture of dung and ashes and plunge them completely underground in such a way that there may be four inches of loose earth above them. But the slips should be provided with two marking-pegs, one on each side; these are of any kind of wood and are placed a little distance away from the slips and are tied together with a band, so that they may not easily be knocked over separately. It is expedient to do this because of the unobservance of the diggers, so that, when you start tilling your nursery with mattocks or hoes, the slips which you have planted may not be injured. Some people think it better to cultivate olive-trees by means of buds and to arrange them by means of a cord on a similar principle; a but in either case the planting ought to take place after the spring equinox, and during the first year the nursery ought to be hoed over as often as possible. In the following and subsequent years, when the rootlets of the plants have gained strength, they should be cultivated with rakes; but for the first two years it is best to abstain from pruning, and in the third year two little branches should be left on each plant, and the nursery should be frequently hoed. In the fourth year the weaker of the two branches should be cut away. Thus cultivated the small trees are fit for transplantation in five years. In dry soil and where there is very little moisture the plants are best put out in the olive-grove during the autumn, but, where the soil is rich and damp, in the spring just before they come into bud. Four-foot plant-holes are prepared for them a year earlier, or, if there is not an abundance of time before the trees are planted, let straw and twigs be thrown in and the plant-holes burnt, so that the fire may make them friable, as the sun and frost ought to have done. On ground which is rich and fit for growing corn the space between the rows ought to be sixty feet in one direction and forty in the other: if the soil is poor and not suitable for crops, twenty-five feet. But it is proper that the rows should be aligned towards the west, that they may be cooled by the summer-breeze blowing through them. The small trees themselves may be transplanted in the following manner. Before you pull up a little tree from the soil,[a] mark on it with ruddle the side of it which faces south, so that it may be planted in the same manner as in the nursery. Next let a space of one foot be left round the little tree in a circle and then let the plant be pulled up with its own turf, and that this turf may not be broken up in the process of removal, you must weave together moderate-sized twigs taken from rods and apply them to the lump of earth which is being removed and so bind it with osiers that the soil, being pressed together, may be held as it were enclosed. Then having dug up the lowest part, you must gently move the lump of earth and bind it to the rods put under it and transfer the plant. Before it is placed in the ground, you will have to dig up the soil in the plant-hole with hoes; then you should put in soil which has been broken up with the plough, provided that the top-soil shall be rather rich, and strew it with seeds underneath; a and, if there is any water standing in the plant-holes, it should all be drained away before the trees are put in. Next minute stones or gravel mixed with rich soil must be thrown in and, after seeds have been put in, the sides of the plant-hole must be pared away all round and some manure put in among them. If, however, it is not convenient to remove the plant with its own earth, it is best to strip the stem of all its leaves and, after smoothing its wounds and daubing them with mud and ashes, place it in the plant-hole or furrow. A stem is quite ready for moving b which is as thick as a man's arm; one of much greater and stronger growth can also be transplanted, but it must be so placed if it is not in any danger from cattle, that only a little of it projects above the plant-hole; it then produces more luxuriant foliage. If, however, the attacks of cattle cannot be avoided in any other way, the stem will be planted so as to project further from the ground, so that it may be free from such injury by cattle. The plants must also be watered, when droughts occur, and they must not be touched with the knife unless two years have passed; and, firstly, they ought to be trimmed so that there is only a single stem which exceeds the height of the tallest ox; and, secondly, lest in ploughing an ox should hit it with his haunch or any other part of his body, it is best to protect the plants with fences, even plants that are established. When the olive grove is established and has reached maturity, you must divide it into two parts, so that they may be clothed with fruit in alternate years; for the olive-tree does not produce an abundance two years in succession. When the ground underneath has not been sown with a crop, the tree is putting forth its shoots; when the ground is full of sown crop, the tree is bearing fruit; the olive-grove, therefore, being thus divided, gives an equal return every year. But it ought to be ploughed at least twice a year and dug deep all round the trees with hoes; for after the solstice, when the ground gapes open from the heat, care must be taken that the sun does not penetrate to the roots of the trees through the cracks. After the autumn equinox the trees ought to be trenched all round, so that, if the olive-grove is on a slope, ditches may be formed from the higher ground to convey water to the trunks of the trees. Next every shoot which springs from the lowest part of the stem must be removed each year, and every third year the olive-trees must be fed with dung. The olive-grove will be manured by the same method as that which I suggested in the second book, a if, that is, provision is going to be made for a crop of corn.0 If you are providing only for the olive-trees themselves, six pounds of goat's dung or a single modius of dry dung or a congius of unsalted lees of oil will suffice. The dung ought to be put in during the autumn, so that, being thoroughly mixed in, it may warm the roots of the olive in the winter. The lees of oil should be poured upon those trees which are not thriving very well; for during the winter, if worms and other creatures have got into them, they are killed by this treatment. Generally too in dry as well as in moist places the trees are infested with moss and unless you scrape it off with an iron instrument, the olive-tree will not put forth fruit or an abundance of leaves. Moreover, the olive-grove must be pruned at intervals of several years; for it is well to remember the old proverb “He who ploughs the olive-grove, asks it for fruit; he who manures it, begs for fruit; he who lops it, forces it to yield fruit.” However, it will suffice to have pruned it every eighth year, so that the fruit-bearing branches may not be from time to time cut off. It happens also frequently that, though the trees are thriving well, they fail to bear fruit. It is a good plan to bore them with a Gallic auger and to put tightly into the hole a green slip taken from a wild olive-tree; the result is that the tree, being as it were impregnated with fruitful offspring, becomes more pro- ductive. But it must also be assisted by being dug round and by unsalted lees of oil mixed with pigs' urine or stale human urine, a fixed quantity of each being observed; for a very large tree an urn will be fully enough, if the same quantity of water is mixed with it. Olive-trees also often refuse to bear fruit because of the badness of the soil. This we shall remedy in the following manner. We shall dig deep trenches in circles round them and then put more or less lime round them according to the size of the tree, though the smallest tree requires a modius. If there is no result from this remedy, we shall have to have recourse to the assistance of grafting. How an olive-tree should be ingrafted we will describe hereafter. Sometimes also one branch of an olive-tree flourishes somewhat more than the rest and, unless you cut it back, the whole tree will languish. This must suffice for our description of olive-groves. It remains to deal with the treatment of fruit-bearing trees, on which subject we will give instructions forthwith. a Before you set the plants I advise you to protect the bounds of your orchard with walls or a fence or a ditch and to deny a passage not only to cattle but also to man, for if their tops are frequently pulled off by the hand of man or gnawed away by cattle, the plants are forever unable to reach their full growth. It is expedient to arrange the trees accord- ing to their kinds, chiefly in order to prevent the weak from being overwhelmed by the stronger, because the former is not equal to the latter either in strength or in size and reaches maturity in a different period of time. Ground which is suitable for vines is also advantageous for trees. You will dig the plant-hole in which you wish to put a plant a year beforehand, for then it will be softened by the sun or the rain, and that which has been put into it will take root quickly. But if you are in a hurry to make the plant-hole and to set the plants in the same year, dig the plant-holes at least two months beforehand and afterwards warm the holes by burning straw in them. The broader and wider you make them, the more luxuriant and abundant will be the fruit which you will gather. Let your plant-hole be like an oven, wider at the bottom than at the top, so that the roots may spread more loosely, and less cold in winter and less heat in summer may penetrate through the narrow mouth, and also that on sloping ground the earth which is heaped up in it may not be washed away by rains. Plant the trees at wide intervals, so that, when they have grown, they may have room to spread their branches. For if you set them thickly, neither will you be able to plant anything underneath them, nor will they be themselves fruitful unless you thin them out; and so it is well to leave forty or at least thirty feet between the rows. Choose plants at least as thick as the handle of a hoe and straight, smooth, tall, free from excrescences and with sound bark. Such plants will take root well and quickly. If you take branches from trees, choose them from those which bear good and abundant fruit every year, taking them from the " shoulders " which face the rising sun. If you have set a plant with its root you will perceive that the growth will be quicker than in the other plants. A tree which is ingrafted is more fruitful than one which is not, that is, than one which is planted in the form of a branch or of a small plant. But, before you transplant small trees, note what winds they had formerly faced, and afterwards get to work and transfer them from a sloping, dry position to moist soil. Preferably plant a tree which has three prongs, and let it project at least three feet from the ground. If you wish to put two or three small trees in the same trench, take care that they do not touch one another, since then they will be killed by worms. When you set plants, lower right into the bottom of the trench, on the right and on the left hand side, bundles of twigs of the thickness of the arm in such a way that they project a little above the soil, so that in summer you may with little trouble convey water through them to the roots. Set trees and seedlings with roots in autumn, that is, about October 15th, but plant cuttings and branches in the early spring before the trees begin to bud; and, in order that the moth may not damage fig-tree seedlings, put in the bottom of the trench a slip from a mastic-tree with its top inverted. Do not plant a fig-tree in cold weather. It likes sunny positions, where there are pebbles and gravel, and sometimes also rocky places. This kind of tree quickly gains strength if you make your trenches roomy and wide. The various kinds of fig-tree, although they differ greatly in flavour and habit, are planted in the same manner, allowance being made for the difference of soil. In cold places and where the autumn season is wet, you should plant those whose fruits ripen early, so that you may gather the fruit before the rain comes; but plant winter figs in warm places. If, on the other hand, you wish to make a fig-tree bear late fruit, which it does not naturally do, shake down the unripe or early fruit, and it will then produce another crop which it will defer to the winter. Sometimes too, when the trees begin to bear leaves, it is beneficial to cut off the extreme tops of the fig-tree with a knife; the trees are then sturdier and more prolific. It will be always a good plan, as soon as the fig-tree begins to put forth leaves, to dissolve ruddle in lees of olive-oil and pour it together with human ordure over the roots. This makes the fruit more abundant and the inner part of the fig fuller and better. You should chiefly plant the Livian, a African, Chalcidian, b Fulcan, c Lydian, Callistruthian, d Astropian, e Rhodian, Libyan and Tiburnian f fig-trees, also all those which bear a floweret twice or three times a year. You should plant the almond-tree, since it is the first tree to put out buds, about February 1st. It requires hard, warm, dry ground; for if you plant a nut in places which have different qualities from these, it generally rots. Before you put the nut in the ground, soak it in honey-water, which should not be too sweet; it will then, when it comes to maturity, produce fruit of a pleasanter flavour, and meanwhile its foliage will grow better and quicker. Place three nuts so as to form a triangle and let them be at least a hand's breadth away from one another, and let one apex of the triangle face towards the West. Every nut sends out one root and creeps out of the ground with a single stem. When the root has reached the bottom of the planting-hole, it is checked by the hardness of the soil and bent back and puts forth from itself other roots like the branches of a tree. You will be able to make an almond and a filbert into a Tarentine nut in the following manner. In the planting-hole in which you intend to sow the nuts place fine soil to a depth of half a foot and set in it a fennel-root. When the fennel has grown up, split it and secrete in the pith of it an almond or a filbert without its shell, and then cover it over with earth. Do this before March 1st or between March 7th and 15th. You should at the same time plant the walnut, the pinenut and the chestnut. It is correct to plant the pomegranate in the spring up to April 1st. But if it bears fruit which is bitter and not sweet, this will be remedied by the following method: moisten the roots with sow-dung and human ordure and stale urine. This will both render the tree fertile and during the first years cause the fruit to have a vinous taste; after five years it makes it sweet and its kernels soft. We ourselves have mixed just a little juice of alexanders with wine and smeared the uppermost tops of the tree. This has remedied the tartness of the fruit. To prevent pomegranates from bursting on the tree, the remedy is to place three stones at the very root of the tree when you plant it; if, however, you have already planted it sow a squill near the root of the tree. According to another method, when the fruit is already ripe and before it bursts, you should twist the little boughs on which it hangs. By the same method the fruit will keep without decaying for a whole year. Plant the pear-tree in the autumn before winter comes, so that at least twenty-five days remain before mid-winter. In order that the tree may be fruitful when it has come to maturity, trench deeply round it and split the trunk close to the very root and into the fissure insert a wedge of pitch-pine and leave it there; then, when the loosened soil has been filled in, throw ashes over the ground. We must take care to plant our orchards with the most excellent pear-trees that we can find. These are the Crustuminian, a the Royal, the Signine, b the Tarentine, which are called Syrian, the Purple, the Superb, the Barley-pear, c the Anician, d the Naevian, e the Favonian, f the Lateritan, g the Dolabellian, h the Turranian, i the Warden-pear, J the Honey-pear, the Early-ripe, the Venus-pear and certain others, which it is a long task to enumerate now. Moreover, the following kinds of apple should be especially sought after, the Scaudian, k the Matian, l the Globeapple, the Cestine, m the Pelusian, n the Amerian, o the Syrian, the Honey-apple and the Cydpnian p (of which there are three kinds, the Sparrow-apple, the Golden apple and the Must-apple q). All these cause not only pleasure but also good health. Service-apples also and apricots and peaches have no small charm. You should plant apple-trees, service-trees and plum trees after the middle of winter and until February 13th. The time for planting mulberries is from February 13th to the spring equinox. The carob-tree, which some people called Ceration, a and the peach-tree you should plant during the autumn before winter comes. If an almond is not productive enough, make a hole in the tree and drive in a stone and so allow the bark of the tree to grow over. It is proper to plant out the branches of all kinds of fruit trees about March 1st in gardens on raised beds after the soil has been well worked and manured. Care must be taken to trim them while the little branches are young and tender and in the first year the seedlings should be reduced to a single stem. When autumn has come on, before the cold nips the tops, it is well to strip off all the foliage and to cover the trees with caps, as it were, of thick reeds which have their knots intact on one side, and thus protect the still tender rods from cold and frosts. Then after twenty-four months you will be able quite safely (to do whichever you wish of two things—either to transplant and arrange them in rows or else to en-graft them. Any kind of scion can be grafted on any tree, if it is not dissimilar in respect of bark to the tree in which it is grafted; indeed if it also bears similar fruit and at the same season, it can perfectly well be grafted without any scruple. Further, the ancients have handed down to us three kinds of grafting; one in which the tree, which has been cut and cleft, receives the scions which have been cut; the second, in which the tree having been cut admits grafts between the bark and the hard wood (both these methods belong to the season of spring); and the third, when the tree receives actual buds with a little bark into a part of it which has been stripped of the bark. The last kind the husbandmen call emplastration a or, according to some, inoculation. b This type of grafting is best employed in the summer. When we have imparted the method of these graftings, we will also set forth another which we have discovered. You should engraft all other trees as soon as they begin to put forth buds and when the moon is waxing, but the olive-tree about the spring equinox and until April 13th. See that the tree from which you intend to graft and are going to take scions for insertion is young and fruitful and has frequent knots and, as soon as the buds begin to swell, choose from among the small branches which are a year old those which face the sun's rising and are sound and have the thickness of the little finger. The scions should have two or three points. You should cut the tree into which you wish to insert the scion carefully with a saw in the part which is most healthy and free from scars, and you will take care not to damage the bark. Then, when you have cut away part of the trunk, smooth over the wound with a sharp iron instrument; then put a kind of thin wedge of iron or bone between the bark and the firm-wood to a depth of not less than three inches, but do so carefully so as not to damage or break the bark. Afterwards with a sharp pruning-knife pare down the scions which you wish to insert, at their bottom end to such a size as will fill the space given by a wedge which has been thrust in, in such a way as not to damage the cambium or the bark on the other side. When you have got the scions ready, pull out the wedge and immediately push down the scions into the holes which you made by driving in the wedge between the bark and the firm-wood. Put in the scions by inserting the end where you have pared them down in such a way that they stand out half-afoot or more from the tree. You will be correct in inserting two grafts in one tree, or more if the trunk is larger, provided that the space between them is not less than four inches. In doing so take into account the size of the tree and the quality of the bark. When you have put in all the scions that the tree will stand, bind the tree with elm-bark or reeds or osiers; next with well-worked clay mixed with straw daub the whole of the wound and the space between the grafts to the point at which the scions still project at least four inches. Then put moss over the clay and bind it on so that the rain may not seep through. Some people, however, prefer to make a place for the slips in the trunk of the tree with a saw and then smooth the parts in which cuts have been made with a thin surgical-knife and then fit in the grafts. If the tree which you wish to engraft is small, cut it off low down so that it projects a foot and a half from the ground; then, after cutting it down, carefully smooth the wound and split the stock in the middle a little way with a sharp knife, so that there is a cleft of three inches in it. Then insert a wedge by which the cleft may be kept open, and thrust down into it scions which have been pared away on both sides, in such a way as to make the bark of the scion exactly meet the bark of the tree. When you have carefully fitted in the scions, pull out the wedge and bind the tree in the manner described above; then heap the earth round the tree right up to the graft. This will give the best protection from wind and heat. A third kind of grafting is our own invention; being a very delicate operation, it is not suited to every kind of tree. Generally speaking those trees admit of this kind of grafting which have moist, juicy and strong bark, like the fig-tree; for this both yields a great abundance of milk and has a stout bark, and so a graft can be very successfully inserted by the following method. On the tree from which you wish to take your grafts, you should seek out young and healthy branches, and you should look out on them for a bud which has a good appearance and gives sure promise of producing a sprout. Make a mark round it enclosing two square inches, so that the bud is in the middle, and then make an incision all round it with a sharp knife and remove the bark carefully so as not to damage the bud. Also choose the healthiest branch of the other tree, which you are going to inoculate, and cut out a part of the bark of the same dimensions as before and strip the bark off the firm-wood. Then fit the scutcheon which you have prepared to the part which you have bared, so that it exactly corresponds to the area on the other tree from which the bark has been stripped. Having done this, bind the bud well all round and be careful not to damage the sprout itself. Then daub the joints of the wound and the ties round them with mud, leaving a space, so that the bud may be free and not be constricted by the binding. Cut away the shoot and upper branches of the tree into which you have inserted the graft, so that there may be nothing to which the sap can be drawn off or benefit from the sap to another part rather than the graft. After the twenty-first day unbind the scutcheon. This kind of grafting is very successful with the olive also. The fourth method of grafting we have already explained when we treated of vines; so it is superfluous to repeat here the method of " terebration “already described.” But since the ancients denied that any kind of scion could be grafted on any kind of tree and, according to the limitation which we made use of just now, b established as a hard and fast rule that only those scions can unite which resemble the trees in which they are inserted in bark and rind and fruit, we have thought it advisable to destroy this erroneous opinion and to hand down to posterity a method by which any kind of scion can be grafted upon any kind of tree. That we may not weary the reader with too long a discourse, we will submit a single example by following which any kind of scion can be grafted upon a different kind of tree. Dig a trench measuring four feet each way at such a distance from an olive-tree that the ends of the branches can reach it. Then plant a small fig-tree in the trench, and be careful that it grows strong and healthy. After two years, when it has made enough growth, bend down the branch of the olive-tree which seems to be the healthiest and bind it to the stock of the fig-tree. Then lop off the rest of the branches and leave only the tops which you wish to engraft; then cut through the trunk of the fig-tree and smooth off the wound and split it in the middle with a wedge. Then pare the tops of the olive-tree, still adhering to the mother-tree, on both sides, and then insert a them in the cleft in the fig-tree, and take away the wedge and carefully tie the little branches so that no force may tear them away. Then after an interval of three years the fig-tree will coalesce with the olive-tree, and finally, in the fourth year, when they have become properly united, you will cut off the little olive branches from the mother-tree, just as if they were layers. This is the way in which you will graft any kind of scion on any kind of tree. But before we make an end of this book, since in the earlier books we treat of almost every kind of small tree, I regard it as a brief and opportune task to give instructions about the shrub-trefoil. b It is very important to have as much shrub trefoil as possible on your land, because it is most useful for chickens, bees, sheep, goats, oxen and cattle of every kind, which quickly grow fat upon it and it makes ewes yield a very large quantity of milk; moreover you could also use it for eight months of the year as green fodder and afterwards as dry. > Latin: 9. Seminarium 1 oliveto praeparetur caelo libero, terreno 2 modice valido et succoso, neque denso neque soluto solo, potius tamen resoluto; id genus fere terrae nigrae est. Quam cum in tres pedes pastinaveris, et alta fossa circumdederis, ne aditus 3 pecori detur,4 fermentari sinito; tum ramos si inversa mergatur, difficulter conprehendet, et cum validius in oliveto disponuntur optime siccis minimeque uliginosis agris per autumnum, laetis et humidis verno tempore, paulo antequam germinent. Atque ipsis scrobes quarternum pedum praeparantur anno ante, vel si tempus non largitur, priusquam de-ponantur arbores, innectere,ut constricta terra innoxius ab iniuria pecorum. Atque etiam rigandae sunt plantae, cum siccitates incesserunt, nec nisi post biennium ferro tangendae. posui, si fertilior extat. Sed ponere arbores utile est, maxime ne procera, sine ulceribus, integro libro. Ea bene et celeriter comprehendent. Si ex arboribus per quos aestate parvo labore aquam radicibus sub-ministres. Arbores ac semina cum radicibus autumno serito, hoc est circa idus Octob.; taleas et ramos meliorem. Serendae sunt autem praecipue Livianae, putamine nucem Graecam aut Avellanam abscondito, et ita adobruito. Hoc ante calend. Martias facito, vel etiam inter nonas et idus Mart. Eodem tempore iuglandem et pineam et castancam serere oportet. Malum Punicum vere simis pyris pomaria conseramus. Ea sunt Crustumina, regia, Signina, Tarentina, quae Syria dicuntur, purpurea, superba, hordeacea, Aniciana, Naeviana, Favoniana, Lateritana, Dolabelliana, Turraniana, volaema, mulsa, Siliquam Graecam, quam quidam κεράτιον vocant, et Persicum ante brumam per autumnum serito. Amygdala, si parum ferax erit, forata arbore lapidem adicito, et ita librum arboris inolescere sinito. Omnium autem generum ramos resecta inter librum et materiam semina admittit. Quae utraque genera veris temporis sunt. Tertium, quo ipsas gemmas cum exiguo cortice in partem sui delibratam recipit, quam vocant agricolae emplastrationem; vel, ut quidam, inoculationem. Hoc genus insitionis aestivo tempore optime usurpatur. Quarum insitionum rationem cum tradiderimus, a nobis repertam quoque docebimus. Omnes arbores simulatque gemmas agere coeperint, tantum, quantum cuneus demissus trium sit in ea. Deinde cuneum, quo tum emplastrum aptato, Scrobem Cytisum in agro esse quam plurimum maxime refert, quod gallinis, apibus, ovibus, capris, bubus quoque et omni generi pecudum utilissimus est: quod ex eo cito pinguescit, et lactis plurimum praebet ovibus,1 tum 2 etiam 3 octo mensibus viridi eo pabulo uti et postea arido possis. [¶4] 12. Furthermore, on any ground whatsoever, even if it be very lean, it quickly takes root, and it bears any ill-treatment without taking harm. Indeed if women suffer from lack of milk, dry shrub-trefoil ought to be steeped in water and, after it has soaked for a whole night, on the following day three heminae of the juice squeezed out of it should be mixed with a little wine and given them to drink; in this way they themselves will enjoy good health, and the children will grow strong on the abundance of milk provided for them. Shrub-trefoil can be sown either in the autumn about October 15th or in the spring. When you have worked the soil thoroughly, make little beds and in the autumn sow there the seed of the shrub-trefoil as you would that of basil. Then in the spring set out the plants so that they are distant four feet each way from one another. If you have no seed, plant out tops of shrub-trefoil in the spring and heap well-manured soil round them. If rain has not come on, water them on the fifteen following days. As soon as a plant begins to put forth young foliage, hoe the ground. Then after three years cut down the plants and give them to the cattle. Fifteen pounds of shrub-trefoil when it is green is quite enough a for a horse, and twenty pounds for an ox, and it should be given to the other animals according to their strength. Shrub-trefoil can also be quite conveniently propagated by planting boughs round the fence of a field, since it easily takes root and stands up to rough usage. If you give it dry, give it rather sparingly, since it has more strength, and soak it first in water and after taking it out of the water, mix it with chaff. When you wish to dry it, cut shrub-trefoil about the month of September, when its seed begins to grow large, and keep it in the sun for a few hours until it withers; then dry it in the shade and store it. In what has gone before I have given ample instruction about trees; in the next book I intend to deal with the care of cattle and the remedies for their diseases. I am well aware, Publius Silvinus, that there are some intelligent farmers who have refused to keep cattle and have consistently rejected the pursuit of the master of a flock as harmful to their profession.I do not deny that they have some reason for so doing on the ground that the aim of the farmer is contrary to that of the shepherd, since the former rejoices in land which is tilled and cleared to the greatest possible extent, while the latter takes pleasure in ground which is fallow and grassy; the one hopes for the fruits of the earth, the other for the produce of his cattle, and so the cultivator detests while on the other hand the grazier longs for a rich yield of grass. But, in spite of these irreconcilable desires, there exists a sort of alliance and union between them, because, firstly, it is generally better to use the food provided by one's own farm in feeding one's own cattle rather than those of other people, and, secondly, because it is owing to the plentiful use of manure, which is derived from flocks, that the fruits of the earth abound. Nor indeed is there any region in which nothing but cereals is grown and which is not cultivated quite as much by the aid of cattle as of men. Hence also draught-animals (iumenta) and animals which draw the plough (armenta) derive their names from the fact that they aid our labour either by carrying burdens or by ploughing. a Therefore, as the ancient Romans taught, I myself am also of the opinion that we should thoroughly understand the management of cattle as well as the cultivation of the fields. For in the history of farming the system of grazing is certainly very ancient and at the same time very profitable, and it is on this account also that the names for money (pecunia) and private property (peculium) seem to have been derived from the word for cattle (pecus), because this was the only possession which the men of old time had, and, even at the present day, amongst some peoples, this is the only kind of wealth in general use, and even among our farmers there is nothing which yields a richer increase. This was the opinion of Marcus Cato among others, who, when someone seeking advice asked him what department of agriculture he should practise in order to get rich quickly, replied that he would get rich if he were a competent grazier. When the same person went on to ask him what is the second best thing to do in order to obtain a sufficiently rich return, Cato insisted that he could achieve this by being a moderately good grazier. I feel some hesitation in relating about so wise a man the reply, which some authors attribute to him, when the same person enquired what was the third most lucrative practice in agriculture, namely, for a man to be even a bad grazier; since certainly the losses which attend a lazy and ignorant grazier are greater than the profits which attend one who is prudent and careful. As for Cato's second answer, there is no doubt that the profit from cattle more than makes up for a moderate amount of carelessness on the part of their owner. a It is on this account, Silvinus, that, following the precepts of our forefathers, we have taken all the pains which we can to hand on to posterity an account of this department of agriculture also. There are, then, two classes of four footed animals, one of which we procure to share our labours, such as the ox, the mule, the horse and the ass, and the other which we keep for our pleasure and the profit which they bring us or for keeping watch, such as the sheep, the goat, the pig and the dog. We will deal first with the class which we employ to take part in our work. There is no doubt, as Varro says, that the ox ought to be ranked above all other cattle, especially in Italy, which is believed to have derived its name from this animal, which the Greeks formerly called italos, b and in that city c at the founding of whose walls an ox and a cow drew the plough which marked its boundaries; also because, to go still further back, at Athens in Attica the ox too is said to have been the attendant of Ceres (Demeter)and Triptolemus, and because it has its place in the heavens, among the most brilliant constellations, and, lastly, because it is still man's most hardworking associate in agriculture, and so great was the respect in which it was held among the ancients that it was equally a capital crime to have killed an ox and to have killed a fellow-citizen. Let us, therefore, begin the task before us with the ox. > Latin: 12. Praeterea in quolibet agro quamvis macerrimo celeriter comprehendit: omnem iniuriam sine noxa patitur. Mulieres quidem si lactis inopia premuntur, cytisum aridum in aqua macerare oportet, et cum tota nocte permaduerit, postero die expressi succi ternas heminas permiscere modico vino, atque ita potandum dare: sic et ipsae etiam circa sepem agri satis commode ramis cytisus seri, quoniam facile comprehcndit et iniuriam sustinet. Aridum si dabis, parcius praebeto, quoniam vires maiores habet, priusque aqua macerato, et exemptum paleis permisceto. Cytisum cum aridum facere voles, circa mensem Septembrem, ubi semen eius grandescere incipiet, caedito, paucisque horis, dum flaccescat, in sole habeto: deinde in umbra exsiccata, et ita condito. Hactenus de arboribus praecepisse abunde est, reddituro pecoris curam et remedia sequenti volumine. BOOK VI Scio quosdam, Publi Silvine, prudentes agricolas pecoris abnuisse curam, gregariorumque pastorum velut inimicam suae professionis disciplinam constantissime repudiasse. Neque infitior id eos aliqua ratione fecisse, quasi nostrum laborem, vel onera subvectando non est, quin mediocrem negligentiam domini fructus pecoris exsuperet. Quam ob causam nos hanc quoque partem rei rusticae, Silvine, quanta valuimus industria, maiorum secuti Quae in emendis bubus sequenda quaeque vitanda sint, non ex facili dixerim; ## 6. Book VI Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/6/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/6/#p-N [¶0] 1. I should find it far from easy to say what are the points to be looked for and what to be avoided in the purchase of oxen; for cattle show variation in bodily form and disposition and the colour of their hair according to the nature of the district and climate in which they five. Those of Asia and of Gaul and of Epirus are different in form, and not only are there diversities in the various provinces, but Italy itself shows varieties in its different parts. Campania generally produces small, white oxen, which are, however, well suited for their work and for the cultivation of their native soil. Umbria breeds huge white oxen, but it also produces red oxen, esteemed not less for their spirit than for their bodily strength. Etruria and Latium breed oxen which are thick-set but powerful as workers. The oxen bred in the Apennines are very tough and able to endure every kind of hardship but not comely to look upon. Though there is so much variety and diversity, yet there are certain as it were universal and fixed principles which the farmer of arable land ought to follow in buying bullocks.' Mago a the Carthaginian has laid down these principles in the form which we will now detail. The bullocks which should be purchased are those which are young, squarely built, with large limbs and horns which are long and blackish and strong; the forehead should be wide and covered with curly hair, the ears shaggy, the eyes and lips dark in colour, the nostrils bent back and wide spreading, the neck long and muscular, the dewlap ample and falling almost to the knees, the chest broad, the shoulders huge; the belly should be capacious and have the appearance of pregnancy, the flanks extended, the loins wide, the back straight and flat or even sinking slightly, the buttocks round, the legs compact and straight but short rather than long and the knees not ill-shaped, the hoofs large, the tail very long and bristly, the hair all over the body thick and short and of a red or brindle colour and the body very soft to the touch. Calves of such a strain, you must accustom, while they are still young, to allow themselves to be handled and fastened to their mangers, so that there may be little trouble and less danger in breaking them in. The general opinion is that bullocks should not be broken in before their third or after their fifth year, since the former age is as yet too tender and the latter too hard. Those which are taken wild from the herd ought to be tamed in the following manner. First of all a spacious shed should be got ready, where the trainer may be able to move about easily and from which he can withdraw without danger. There should be no narrow spaces in front of the. shed but either open country or a wide road, so that, when the bullocks are driven forth, they may have room to escape and that they may not, in their alarm, become entangled in trees or anything else which gets in their way and hurt themselves. In the shed there should be roomy stalls, and overhead horizontal beams should be fixed shaped like yokes, raised seven feet above the ground to which the bullocks can be tied. Then, to inaugurate the training, choose the morning of a day which is free from storms and not the occasion of any religious ceremony and fasten the horns of the bullocks with hempen cords. The nooses with which they are caught should be wrapped round with woolly skins, so that the tender part of the forehead below the horns may not be injured. Then when you have captured the steers, you should lead them to the shed and attach them to the posts in such a way that their ropes give very little play and that they are a little distance apart from one another, so that they may not hurt each other in their struggles. If they are too savage, allow them a day and a night to expend their fury, and as soon as the edge of their anger is blunted, they should be driven forth early in the morning, care being taken that several persons follow them behind also and hold them back by their tethers while one man, going in front of them with a club of willow wood in his hand, from time to time restrains their onrush with light blows. If, however, the cattle are placid and quiet, it will be possible for you to drive them out even before the evening of the day on which you have tied them up and train them to walk for a thousand paces in an orderly manner and without fear. When you have conducted them home again, you should bind them very closely to the posts, so that they cannot move their heads. Then is the time to approach the oxen, when they are tied, not from behind or from the side but from straight in front, quietly and by using a soothing tone of voice, in order that they may become accustomed to see you approaching them, and next rub their noses so that they may learn to know a man by his odour. Soon after this it is also a good plan both to stroke their hides all over and to sprinkle them with unmixed wine, so that they may become on more familiar terms with their oxherd; it is well also to put the hand on the belly and under the thighs, so that they may not be alarmed if they are touched in this way afterwards, and also so that ticks, which generally fasten on the thighs, may be removed. In doing this the trainer ought to stand at the side, so that the animal may not reach him with its hoof. After this you should pull the jaws apart and draw out the tongue and rub the whole mouth and palate with salt and put down the animal's throat cakes of a pound's weight of meal moistened with well-salted drippings of fat, and pour into their jaws a sextarius of wine at a time by means of a horn; for by blandishments of this kind they generally become tame in three days and allow themselves to be yoked on the fourth day. This yoke has the bough of a tree tied to it instead of a pole; a sometimes too a weight is attached, so that the capacity of the animal for enduring toil may be tested by the greater effort which is involved. After experiments of this kind the bullocks should be yoked to an empty wagon and gradually be made to go longer journeys with loads. Soon after they have been thus broken in, they should be set to draw the plough, but over land already tilled, so that they may not be frightened at first by the difficulty of their task and that their still tender necks may not be bruised by the tough first breaking of the ground. I have already in my first book b given instructions how the ploughman is to train the ox in ploughing. Care must be taken that the ox does not strike anyone with his hoof or his horn while he is being trained; for, unless precautions are taken against this, it will never be possible to get rid of faults of this kind, though the animal has been broken in. The method which we are prescribing should be followed only if no ox is available which has already done service; otherwise the system of training which we follow on our own farm is more expeditious and safer. For when we are accustoming the young bullock to the wagon or plough, we yoke with the untrained animal the strongest and at the same time quietest of the trained oxen, which both keeps it back if it rushes forward and makes it advance if it lags behind. Indeed, if we have no objection to constructing a yoke to which three animals can be fastened, Ave shall by this device achieve the result that even obstinate oxen do not refuse the heaviest tasks. For when an idle bullock is yoked between two veteran oxen and forced to till the ground with the plough which is put upon them, he has no opportunity of refusing to obey the order which has been given him; for, if he has become savage and rushes forward, he is checked by the controlling power of the other two; or, if he stands still when the other two pace along, he also follows even against his will; or, if he tries to lie down, he is upheld and dragged along by his more powerful companions. Hence he is forced from all sides to lay aside his obstinacy, and it takes very few blows to induce him to submit to hard work. There is also an ox of a softer kind after it has been broken in, which lies down in the furrow; in my opinion he should be made to mend his ways by reasoning rather than by cruelty. Those who think that the vice is better eradicated by means of goads, fire or other forms of torture, do not know how to reason aright; for the animal's stubborn obstinacy usually wears out the angry ploughman. Hence it is more expedient to cure the ox which has the habit of lying down by hunger and thirst without having recourse to doing it bodily hurt; for its natural desires affect it more deeply than blows. So, if an ox has lain down, the best plan is for its feet to be fastened together with straps in such a way that it can neither stand up nor walk nor feed. As a result, under the compulsion of starvation and thirst, it lays aside its sloth, which, however, is very rarely found amongst our home-grown cattle. Indeed a native ox is far superior to one which comes from elsewhere; for it is not disturbed by change of water or food or climate and is not troubled by the local conditions, as an ox would be which has been brought from flat plain-lands to a rough mountainous country or vice versa. When, therefore, we are obliged to bring oxen from a distance, care must be taken that they are transferred to country which resembles that in which they were born. You must also be on your guard when pairing oxen together not to yoke one which is inferior in height or strength with one which is more powerful; for either of these circumstances quickly proves fatal to the weaker of the two. Characteristics which are esteemed in oxen are possessed by those which are placid rather than excitable and at the same time not lazy, and which are afraid of blows or shouts, but, being confident in their own strength, are not alarmed by anything which they hear or see, and which are not nervous at having to cross rivers or bridges, and which can eat plenty of food but are slow in finishing it; for leisurely chewers digest better and therefore preserve their bodily strength without becoming thin better than those which eat their food hurriedly. But it is quite as much a fault in an oxherd to make his oxen fat as to make them thin; for the bodily form of a working ox ought to be active and moderate in bulk, with strong sinews and muscles and not encumbered by fat, so that it may not be wearied either by the weight of its own body or by the exertion necessary for its work. But since we have now set down the principles which must be followed in buying oxen and in breaking them in, we will next give directions for the care of them. > Latin: 1. quoniam pecudes pro regionis caelique statu et habitum 1 corporis et ' ingenium animi et pili colorem gerant. Aliae formae sunt Asiaticis, aliae Gallicis, Epiroticis aliae. Nec tantum diversitas provinciarum, sed ipsa quoque Italia partibus suis discrepat. Campania plerumque boves progenerat albos et exiles, labori tamen et culturae patrii soli non inhabiles. Umbria vastos et albos; eademque rubios; clunibus rotundis, cruribus compactis ac rectis, sed brevioribus potius quam longis, nec genibus improbis, ungulis Cum deinde buculos comprehenderis, perducito ad stabulum, et ad stipites religato ita, ut exiguum laxamenti habeant, distentque inter se aliquanto spatio, ne in colluctatione alter alteri noceat. Si nimis asperi erunt, patere unum diem noctemque desaeviant. Simulatque iras contuderint, qui plerumque feminibus inhaerent, eximantur. Idque cum fit, a latere domitor stare debet, ne calce contingi possit. Post haec diductis malis educito linguam, totumque os et domandi est, quam nos in nostris agris sequimur. Nam ubi plaustro aut aratro iuvencum consuescimus, ex domitis bubus valentissimum eundemque placidissimum cum indomito iungimus. Is et procurrentem retrahit, et cunctantem producit. Si vero non pigeat iugum fabricare, quo tres iungantur, per plagae. Itaque si bos decubuit, utilissimum est pedes eius sic cingulis nervisque et musculis robusta, non adipibus obesa, ut nec sui tergoris mole nec labore operis degravetur. Sed quoniam quae sequenda sunt in emendis domandisque bubus tradidimus, tutelam eorum praecipiemus. [¶1] 3. Oxen should remain out of doors when it is warm and under cover when it is cold; therefore, for their winter stabling, straw must be prepared, which ought to be cut and heaped up in stacks in August within thirty days of the gathering of the harvest. The cutting of the straw is beneficial both to the cattle and to the ground; for the fields are thus freed from briers, which, if they are cut back in the summer at the time of the rising of the Dogstar, usually die off at the roots, and also, if straw is put down as litter for the cattle, it produces a very large quantity of dung. When we have arranged for this, we shall make provision also for every kind of fodder and ensure that the cattle will not be thin for want of food. There is more than one system of feeding cattle properly. If the fertility of the district supplies green fodder, there is no doubt that this kind of food is to be preferred to all others; but this is only to be found in well-watered or dewy places. In these circumstances there is the very great advantage that one farm-labourer is enough to look after two yoke of oxen, which on the same day either plough or graze alternately. On drier farms the oxen must be fed at their stalls, the fodder provided varying according to the nature of the district. There can be no doubt that the best foods are vetches tied up in bundles and chickpea and also meadow-hay. We are not looking after our cattle so well if we feed them on chaff, which is a universal, and in some districts the only, resource. The chaff which is most highly esteemed comes from millet, the next best from barley, and the third best from wheat; beasts of burden which are rendering regular terms of labour are given barley as well as chaff. The diet of oxen is regulated according to the time of year. In January it is a good plan to give them four sextarii each of bitter-vetch crushed and soaked in water and mixed with chaff, or a modius of soaked lupines, or half a modius of soaked chickling-pea, as well as chaff in abundance. If there is a lack of pulse, it is allowable to mix with chaff grape skins taken from the after-wine which have been washed and dried, but there is no doubt that it is far better to give them the grapemash, skins and all, before they have been washed, for they contain the strength both of food and of wine and make the cattle sleek and of good cheer and plump. If we abstain from giving them grain, it is enough to supply a fodder-basket holding twenty modii of dry leaves or thirty pounds of hay, or green bay-leaves or the foliage of the holm-oak in unlimited quantities. To these mast is added, if the resources of the district permit, but, unless enough is provided to cause satiety, it causes the scab. A half-modius of crushed beans may also be provided, if a good crop makes it cheap enough to do so. In February the food is usually the same. In March and April an addition should be made to the weight of hay in places where the ground is being broken up for the first time; forty pounds, however, will be enough to give to each animal. From April 13th to June 15th it is proper to cut green forage for them; supply of it can even be continued until July 1st in cooler regions. From then through the whole summer and the following autumn up to November 1st, they should be given their fill of leaves, which, however, are not fit for use until matured either by rain or by continual dew. The most highly esteemed is the foliage of the elm, next comes that of the ash, and, thirdly, that of the poplar; the least satisfactory is that of the holm-oak, the oak and the bay-tree, but these may have to be used after the summer, if all other kinds fail. It is also proper to give them fig-leaves, if there is abundance of them or if it is expedient to strip the trees. Holm-oak-leaves are better than oak-leaves, but they should. not be of the kind that has spines, for this is refused by cattle because of the prickles, as also are juniper-leaves. In November and December, during the period of sowing, an ox should be given all the food which it wants; but a modius of mast a head is generally enough and as much chaff as they can eat, or a modius of soaked lupines or seven sextarii of bitter-vetch sprinkled with water and mixed with chaff, or twelve sextarii of chickpeas similarly sprinkled and mixed with chaff, or a modius of grape-skins each, provided that, as I have said above, chaff is generously added to them; if none of these foods is available, forty pounds of hay should be given by itself. It will be no use to give cattle a satisfying diet unless every care is taken that they are healthy their rem-in body and that they keep up their strength. Both edie8, these objects are secured by administering on three consecutive days a generous dose of medicine com- pounded of equal weights of the crushed leaves of the lupine and of the cypress, which is mixed with water and left out of doors for a night. This should be done four times a year—at the end of the spring, of the summer, of the autumn and of the winter. Lassitude and nausea also can often be dispelled if you force a whole raw hen's egg down the animal's throat when it has eaten nothing; then on the following day you should crush together spikes of leek or garlic in wine and pour it into its nostrils. Nor are these the only remedies which make for health. Many people mix also a generous quantity of salt with the fodder; some grate white hore-hound in oil and wine; some infuse fibres of leek, others grains of frankincense, others savin a and crushed rue in unmixed wine and give them these medicaments to drink. Many people use the stalks of white-vine (bryony) and the shells of bitter-vetch as a medicine for oxen; some crush a snake's skin and mix it with wine. Thyme crushed in sweet wine and squill cut up and soaked in water are also used as remedies. All the above-mentioned potions in doses of three heminae given daily for three days purge the bowel and renew the animal's strength by driving away its maladies. But lees of olive-oil are regarded as particularly salutary if you mix them with an equal portion of water and accustom the cattle to them; this remedy cannot be administered all at once, but at first is sprinkled on the food, next a small portion is infused in the water, and then the animal is given as much as it can take mixed in equal portions of both ingredients. > Latin: 3. Boves calore sub divo,1 frigoribus intra tectum, manere oportet. Itaque hibernae stabulationi 2 eorum praeparanda sunt stramenta, quae mense Augusto intra dies triginta sublatae messis 3 praecisa 4 in acervum extrui debent. Horum desectio cum pecori tum agro est utilis: liberantur arva sentibus, qui aestivo5 tempore per Caniculae ortum recisi plerumque radicitus intereunt, et stramenta pecori 6 subiecta plurimum stercoris efficiunt. Haec cum ita curaverimus, tum et omne genus pabuli praeparabimus, dabimusque operam, ne penuria cibi macrescat pecus. Boves autem recte pascendi non una ratio est. Nam si ubertas regionis viride pabulum subministrat nemo dubitat quin id genus cibi ceteris praeponendum sit: quod tamen nisi riguis aut roscidis locis non contingit. Itaque in iis ipsis vel maximum commodum est, quod sufficit una opera duobus iugis, quae eodem die alterna temporum vice vel arant vel pascuntur. Siceioribus agris ad praesepia boves alendi sunt, quibus pro conditione regionum cibi praebentur: eosque nemo dubitat, quin optimi sint cicercula itemque pratense faenum. Minus commode tuemur armenta Iunias viride pabulum recte secatur: potest etiam in calend. Iulias frigidioribus locis idem praestari: a quo tempore in calend. Novemb. tota aestate et deinde autumno satientur fronde; quae tamen non ante est utilis, quam cum maturaverit ponitur pari pondere triti lupini Nullo autem tempore et minime aestate utile est boves in cursum concitari: nam ea res aut alvum movet, aut1 frequenter 2 febrem. [¶2] 5. At no season of the year and least of all in the summer is it beneficial to incite oxen to run; for this either relaxes the bowels or else often gives rise to fever. Care must also be taken that no pig or chicken slips into their stalls, for the excrement which falls from them, mixed with their food, is fatal to oxen. A diseased sow may cause plague. If this falls upon a herd, a change of climate must immediately be made, and the cattle must be divided up, in a number of groups, and sent to distant places and those which are infected segregated from the healthy, that no infected animal may come into contact with the rest and destroy them with the contagion. When they are thus isolated, they have to be taken to places where no herd is pastured, so that they may not by their arrival bring the plague there also. Diseases, however pestilential, must be overcome and expelled by carefully sought-out remedies. Sometimes roots of all-heal and sea-holly should be mixed with fennel-seeds and, together with flour of crushed and ground wheat, should be sprinkled with boiling water, and the suffering herd given a drench with this medicament. Sometimes a potion consisting of equal weights of cinnamon, myrrh and frankincense and a like quantity of the blood of a sea-tortoise is mixed with three sextarii of old wine and poured through the animal's nostrils. It will suffice to have given the medicine itself divided into equal doses of one and a half ounces together with wine for three days. We have also found a sovereign remedy in the root which the shepherds call consiligo. a It grows in large quantities in the Marsian mountains and is very salutary for all cattle; it is dug up with the left hand before sunrise, for it is believed to have greater potency if it is picked in this way. The following is the traditional manner of using it. A line is drawn round the widest part of the ear-lap with brazen pin in such a way that a figure resembling the letter O appears where the blood flows. When this operation has been performed both inside and on the upper part of the ear, the middle of the circle which has been described is pierced with the same pin and the root mentioned above is inserted in the hole thus made, and, when the newly made wound has closed on it, it holds the root so tightly that it cannot slip out. Then all the virulence of the disease and the poison of the plague is attracted to this ear, until the part round which the line was described by the pin mortifies and comes away. Thus the head is saved by the sacrifice of a very small portion of it. Cornelius Celsus a also recommends the pouring into the nostrils of wine in which the leaves of mistletoe have been crushed. The latter course must be adopted if the cattle are suffering as a herd, the former if individual animals are affected. Signs of indigestion are frequent eructations, rumblings of the belly, distaste for food, tension of the sinews and dimness of the sight, with the result that the ox neither ruminates nor cleanses himself by licking. The appropriate remedy will be two congii of hot water, followed by thirty moderate-sized stalks of cabbage cooked and dipped in vinegar; but the animal must abstain from other food for one day. Some people keep the animal shut up indoors, so that it cannot graze; they then mix four pounds of the tops of mastic and wild olive crushed up with a pound of honey in a congius of water, which they keep for one night in the open air, and then pour it down the animal's throat. Then after an interval of an hour they put before it four pounds of soaked bitter-vetch and keep it away from any other drink. This should be continued for three days, so that every cause of lassitude is dissipated. If indigestion is neglected, inflation of the belly and more severe pain in the intestines follow, which does not allow the animal to take its food, causes it to bellow, does not suffer it to remain in one place, and makes it lie down frequently, toss its head and lash its tail continually. An obvious remedy is to bind down tightly the part of the tail nearest to the haunches and to pour down its throat a sextarius of wine and a hemina of oil and then drive it for a mile and a half at a quick pace. If the pain persists, you should cut the hoof all round, draw off the excrement by greasing the hand and inserting it into the anus, and again drive the animal at a running pace. If this also has done no good, three dried wild figs are crushed and administered with a dodrans of hot water. If this remedy has also been unsuccessful, two pounds of the leaves of wild myrtle are pulverized and mixed with the same number of sextarii of hot water and poured down the throat by means of a wooden ' vessel; then the animal is bled under the tail and, when enough blood has flowed, it is checked by a bandage of papyrus; then the animal is driven at a quick speed until it is out of breath. The following remedies are applied before drawing off any blood: a triens of pounded garlic is mixed with three heminae of wine, and, after drinking this, the animal is compelled to run; or else a sextans of salt is pounded up with ten onions, and after being mixed with boiled- down honey is introduced as a suppository into the bowel and the ox is driven at a quick pace. Pain in the belly and intestines is assuaged by the sight of swimming birds, especially a duck. If an ox which has a pain in its intestines sees a duck, it is quickly delivered from its torment. The sight of a duck is also even more successful in curing mules and the race of horses. Sometimes, however, no remedy is of any avail and colic follows, the sign of which is a flux of blood and mucous matter from the belly. The cure for this consists of fifteen cypress-cones and the same number of oak-apples and very old cheese equal in weight to the other two ingredients. When these have been pounded up together, four sextarii of rough wine are mixed with them, and the mixture is administered in equal doses for four days; nor should tops of mastic and myrtle and wild olive be lacking. Diarrhoea a wastes the body and the strength and renders an animal useless for work. When this happens, the ox will have to be kept from drinking for two days and on the first day must be kept from eating; but soon thereafter tops of wild olive and of reeds must be given, also berries of mastic and myrtle, but no opportunity of drinking water must be allowed except as sparingly as possible. Some people crush a pound of tender leaves of bay and the same quantity of horned southernwood b in two sextarii of hot water and pour it down the animal's throat and put before it the same food as I mentioned above. Some people.heat two pounds of grape-skins and crush them in two sextarii of rough wine and then give them to be drunk as a medicine, keeping any other liquid away from them, but nevertheless putting before them the tops of the trees mentioned above. But if neither the violent flux from the belly nor the pain in the intestine and stomach has ceased and the animal refuses his food, and its head is very heavy and it frequently blinks and tears flow from its eyes and slime from its nostrils, the middle of its forehead should be burnt down to the bone and its ears cleft with a knife. It is in fact a good plan to rub with ox-urine the wounds caused by the fire while they are healing; but those which are due to cuts with the knife are better treated with pitch and oil. Aversion to food is often caused by morbid swellings of the tongue which veterinary surgeons " call “frogs.” They are cut back with a knife and the wounds rubbed with salt and garlic crushed together in equal quantities, until a viscous discharge thus provoked flows forth. The mouth is then washed out with wine and after the interval of one hour a diet of green herbs or leaves is administered until the sores which had formed are scarred over. If no “frogs” have formed and the bowel is not disturbed but nevertheless the animal has no appetite for its food, it will be beneficial to pour a mixture of pounded garlic and oil through its nostrils or to rub the throat with salt and marjoram, or to smear the same part with crushed garlic and fish-sauce. But this remedy should be used if aversion to food is the only symptom. > Latin: 5. Cavendum quoque est, ne ad praesepia sus aut gallina perrepat. Nam hoc 3 quod decidit 4 immixtum pabulo, bubus affert necem. Sus aegra pestilentiam facere manu effoditur ante solis ortum. Sic enim lecta maiorem vim creditur habere. Usus eius traditur talis. Aenea fibula pars auriculae latissima circumscribitur, ita ut manante sanguine tanquam O literae ductus congio, quam nocte una mixto melle dococto collyria immittuntur alvo, faciunt, et ita conferunt cum totidem sextariis vini austeri, potandumque medicamentum praebent, omni alio humore subtracto, Febricitanti bovi convenit abstineri cibo uno die, postero deinde exiguum sanguinem ieiuno sub cauda emitti, atque interposita hora modicae magnitudinis coctos brassicae coliculos triginta ex oleo et garo1 salivati more demitti, eamque escam per quinque dies ieiuno dari. [¶3] 9. When an ox suffers from fever, it is a good plan that it should go without food for a day, and that on the following day a little blood should be drawn off under the tail before it eats anything, and that after an interval of an hour it should be made to swallow thirty cooked stalks of cabbage of moderate size which have been dipped in oil and pickled fish in the manner of drench. This food should be given for five days on an empty stomach. Furthermore, tops of mastic or olive or any other very tender foliage and vine-shoots should be placed before it, also its lips should be wiped with a sponge and cold water given it to drink three times a day. This treatment should be carried out under cover and the animal should not be allowed to go out until it is cured. The symptoms of a state of fever are running at the eyes, a heavy head, contracted eyes, a flow of saliva from the mouth, an unusually slow and a somehow obstructed respiration, accompanied also at times by lowing. A cough, if treated early, is best dispelled by a medicine which causes salivation made of barley-flour. Sometimes grass cut up small and crushed beans mixed with it are more beneficial; also two sextarii of lentils removed from their pods and ground up small are mixed with hot water and the draught thus formed is poured down the throat through a horn. A cough of long standing is cured with two pounds of hyssop infused in three sextarii of water. Now this medicament is crushed up and administered with four sextarii of lentils ground small, in the manner I have described, and given to cause salivation, and the hyssop-water is afterwards poured in through a horn. The juice of a leek together with oil, or the fibre itself of the leeks crushed up with barley-flour, is also used as a cure; the roots too of the same plant carefully washed and pounded up with wheaten flour, given to the animal when it is fasting, dispel the most inveterate cough. The same effect is produced by bitter-vetch without its husk pounded up with an equal portion of toasted barley and poured down the throat in the manner of a drench. It is better to get rid of suppuration by the surgeon's knife than with medicine. Then, when the pus has been squeezed out, the sinus itself which contained it is washed out with warm ox-urine and then bound up with linen bandages soaked in liquid pitch and oil, or, if the part affected cannot be bound up, goat's or ox's tallow is dripped upon it by means of a red hot plate of iron. Some people, when they have cauterized the part affected, wash it with stale human urine and then anoint it with raw liquid pitch and stale axle-grease in equal quantities. Down-flow of blood into the animal's feet gives rise to lameness. When this happens, the first thing that you should do is to inspect the hoof; merely touching it proves the presence of inflammation, and the animal cannot bear any at all violent pressure on the affected part. But if the blood is still in the legs above the hoofs, it can be dissipated by continual friction, or, if that has no effect, it can be removed by scarification. But if it has already reached the hoofs, you will make a slight incision with a lancet between the two halves of the hoof; then bandages dipped in salt and vinegar are applied and the foot is covered with a " slipper " of broom and the greatest care is taken to prevent the ox from putting his foot in water and that it keep dry in its stall. This same blood, unless it is drawn off, will give rise to a bruise, and, if this suppurates, it will take a long time to heal. First a cut must be made round it with a knife and it must be cleaned, then it is brought to a healthy condition by having rags pressed against it soaked in vinegar, salt and oil, and afterwards by treatment with stale axle-grease and goat's tallow boiled in equal quantity. If the blood is in the lower part of the hoof, the extremity of the hoof itself is cut to the quick and the blood thus discharged, and the foot is wrapped in bandages and protected with a “slipper” of broom. It is not advisable to open the middle of the hoof from below, unless suppuration has already taken place in that part. If the lameness is due to pain in the sinews, the knees, the ham and the legs should be rubbed with oil and salt until it is cured. If the knees are swollen, they must be fomented with warm vinegar and poulticed with linseed or millet which has been ground up and sprinkled with honey-water; also sponges soaked in boiling water and then wrung out and smeared with honey are correctly applied to the knees and wrapped round with bandages. But if there is any liquid matter under the swelling, some yeast or barley-flour boiled in raisin-wine or honey-water is placed upon it; and when the suppuration has come to a head, it is cut with the surgeon's knife, and, when the pus has been extracted, it is treated with bandages in the manner I described above. Incisions made with the knife can also be treated, as Cornelius Celsus taught, by means of lily-roots or squills mixed with salt, or the staunching plant which the Greeks call polygonum, a or horehound. Almost all bodily pains, if there is no wound, can in their early stages be better dissipated by fomentation; in the advanced stage they are treated by cauterizations and the dropping of burnt butter or goat's fat upon the place. > Latin: 9. Praeterea cacumina lentisci aut oleae, vel tenerrimam quamque frondem, ac pampinos vitis obici; tum etiam spongia labra detergeri, et aquam frigidam ter die praeberi potandam. Quae medicina sub tecto fieri debet, nec ante sanitatem bos emitti. Signa febricitantis manantes lacrimae, gravatum caput, oculi compressi, fluidum salivis os, longior et cum quodam impedimento tractus spiritus, interdum et cum gemitu. Recens tussis optime salivato farinae hordeaceae discutitur. Interdum magis prosunt gramina concisa, et his admixta fresa faba. Lentis quoque valvulis exemptae et minute molitae miscentur aquae calidae sextarii duo, factaque sorbitio per cornu infunditur. Veterem tussim sanant duae librae hyssopi macerati sextariis aquae tribus. Nam id medicamentum teritur, et eum lentis minute, ut dixi, molitae sextariis quattuor more salivati datur, ae postea aqua hyssopi per cornu infunditur. Porri enim succus cum sale atque aceto imbuta cipit, lilii radix aut scilla cum sale, vel sanguinalis herba, quam poligonum Graeci appellant, vel marrubium ferro reclusa sanare. Fere autem omnis dolor corporis, si sine vulnere est, recens melius fomentis discutitur; vetus uritur, et supra ustum butyrum vel caprina instillatur adeps. [¶4] 13. The scab is alleviated if it is rubbed with bruised garlic, and the same remedy is used for the bite of a mad dog or wolf, which, however, is also quite as easily cured by placing stale pickled fish upon the wound. There is also a still more efficacious remedy for the scab; ox-marjoram and sulphur are pounded up together and cooked in lees of olives mixed with oil and vinegar; then, when the mixture is hot, split alum is ground up and sprinkled upon it. This remedy is most efficacious if it is smeared on when the sun is hot. Ground oak-galls are a cure for ulcers, likewise the juice of horehound together with soot. There is also a dangerous plague which affects cattle, called by the farmers “hide-binding,” when the skin adheres so closely to the back that, if it is taken hold of with the hands, it cannot be drawn away from the ribs. It occurs only when the ox is either reduced to a lean condition as the result of some illness or has become chilled when sweating in the course of its labours, or if it has been drenched by rain when it is carrying a load. Since these conditions are dangerous, care must be taken that the oxen, when they have returned from work still hot and panting, are sprinkled with wine and that balls of fat are thrust down their throats. If, however, the above-mentioned malady has already taken hold of them, it will be beneficial to make a concoction of bay-leaves and foment their backs with it while they are still warm and immediately after to massage them with a large quantity of oil and wine and to take hold of the hide all over the animal and draw it away. This is best done in the open air in burning sunshine. Some people mix dregs of oil with wine and fat and use it as a remedy after the fomentations mentioned above. It is also a serious distemper when the lungs become ulcerated; it results in coughing and emaciation and finally in phthisis. To prevent these conditions from causing death, a root of lungwort, as we prescribed above, is inserted in a hole made in the ear and then about a hemina of the juice of leek is mixed with a like quantity of oil and given as a potion for several days with a sextarius of wine. Sometimes too a swelling of the palate causes the animal to refuse its food and heave frequent sighs, and an impression is caused that it is hanging over towards one side. a It is beneficial also to make a wound in the palate with a knife, so that the blood may flow, and to administer bitter-vetch without its husk and soaked and green leaves or some other soft fodder, until the wound heals. If in the course of its work the ox has his neck bruised, the most efficacious remedy is to draw blood from the ear, or, if that is not done, the herb called groundsel is crushed up with salt and placed on the part affected. If the neck is moved in a certain direction and hangs down, we shall examine and see to which side it declines and draw blood from the ear on the other side; moreover, what appears to be the largest vein in the ear is first beaten with a twig, and then when it has swollen up as a result of the blows, it is opened with a lancet, and on the following day blood is again drawn from the same spot and the animal is given two days' rest from work. Then on the third day a light task is enjoined upon it, which is gradually increased until it does a full day's work. If, however, the neck does not incline to either side but is swollen in the middle, blood is let from both ears. If bleeding is not performed within three days after the ox has got the disease, the neck swells up and the sinews become taut and as a result a hard lump is formed which cannot endure the pressure of the yoke. For this kind of malady we have discovered a suitable remedy composed of liquid pitch, beef-marrow, goat's fat, and stale, oil in equal quantities and cooked together. This compound should be used in the following manner: when the ox is unharnessed after its work, the swelling on its neck is moistened with water in the trough from which it drinks and then massaged and rubbed and smeared with the medicament described above. If the animal absolutely refuses the yoke because of the swelling on its neck, it must be given a few days' rest from work; then the neck must be rubbed with cold water and anointed with litharge of silver. Celsus indeed recommends that to a swollen neck the herb called groundsel should, as I have already said, be crushed and applied. The warts which generally infest the neck constitute only a minor malady; for they can easily be cured with oil dripped on them from a burning lamp. A better plan, however, is to take care that they do not form and that the necks of the oxen do not become bald, for they only become hairless when the neck is moistened by sweat or rain during work. When this happens, therefore, their necks ought to be sprinkled with dust made by grinding brick-work before they are unyoked; then, when their necks have dried, they ought to be moistened from time to time with oil. If the pastern or hoof has been injured by the ploughshare, wrap round it hard pitch and axle-grease, bind it with sulphur and greasy wool and make a burn above the wound with a piece of red-hot iron. The same remedy has an excellent effect after the removal of a piece of wood from the hoof, if the ox has by chance trodden on a shoot or pierced its hoof with a sharp tile or stone. If, however, the wound is rather deep, a wider cut is made round it with a knife and it is then cauterized according to the method which I have described above; next the hoof is covered with a “slipper” made of broom and treated for three days with a suffusion of vinegar. Also if an ox has damaged its leg on the ploughshare, sea-spurge, a which the Greeks call tithymallus, mixed with salt, is applied to the wound. The feet are rubbed underneath and are washed with warmed ox-urine; then a bundle of twigs is burnt and when now the fire has sunk to embers, the animal is made to stand on the glowing ashes and the horny parts of the hoof are anointed with liquid pitch mixed with oil or axle-grease. Cattle, however, will be less likely to go lame, if their feet are washed in plenty of cold water when they are unyoked after work, and if their hocks, the crowns of their hoofs and the division itself between the two halves of the hoofs are rubbed with stale axle-grease. > Latin: 13. Scabies extenuatur trito alio defricta;1 eodemque remedio curatur rabiosae canis vel lupi morsus, qui tamen et ipse imposito vulneri vetere salsamento aeque bene sanatur. Et ad scabiem praesentior alia medicina est. Cunila bubula,2 et sulphur conteruntur, admixtaque amurca cum oleo atque 3 aceto incoquuntur; deinde tepefactis scissum alumen tritum spargitur. Id medicamentum candente4 sole illitum maxime prodest. Ulceribus gallae tritae remedio sunt; nec minus succus marrubii cum fuligine. Est et infesta pestis bubulo pecori, coriaginem rustici appellant, cum pellis ita tergori adhaeret, ut apprehensa manibus diduci a costis non possit. Ea res non aliter accidit, calda fovere terga, multoque oleo et vino confestim subigere, ac per omnes partes apprehendere et attrahere pellem. verberatur. Deinde cum ad ictum intumuit, cultello solvitur; et postero die iterum ex eodem loco sanguis emittitur, ac biduo ab opere datur vacatio. Tertio deinde die levis iniungitur labor, et paulatim ad iusta perducitur. Quod si cervix in neutram partem deiecta est, mediaque intumuit, ex utraque auricula sanguis emittitur. Qui cum intra triduum, cum bos vitium cepit, emissus non est, intumescit collum, nervique tenduntur, et inde nata durities iugum non patitur. Tali vitio comperimus aptum id accidit, pulveri Saepe etiam vel gravitate longioris itineris,1 vel cum in proscindendo aut duriori solo aut obviae radici obluctatur,2 convellit armos. [¶5] 16. It often happens that an ox wrenches its shoulders either owing to the weight of its load on a somewhat prolonged journey or when, in breaking up the ground, it has to struggle against an unusually hard patch or a root which gets in its way. When this happens, blood must be drawn from its front legs—from the left leg if it has injured its right shoulder and from the right leg if the left shoulder is affected. If it has injured both shoulders rather seriously, veins will have to be opened in the hind legs as well. If the horns are broken, pieces of linen soaked in salt and vinegar and oil are put upon them and the same things poured over them for three days after they have been bound up; next on the fourth day axle-grease and liquid pitch in equal portions and pulverized pine-bark are applied, and, finally, when they are already beginning to scar over, they are rubbed with soot. Ulcers, too, if they are neglected, generally swarm with worms. If they are drenched in the morning with cold water, they shrivel up with the cold and die. If they cannot be got rid of by this method, horehound or leek is pounded up and applied with a mixture of salt; this promptly kills these creatures. After the ulcers have been cleaned out, linen bandages must be immediately applied with pitch, oil and stale axle-grease, and the wounds must be anointed outside with the same medicament, so that they may not become infested by flies which, when they settle on the ulcers, breed worms. The bite of a snake is also fatal to oxen, and the poison of certain lesser animals is also hurtful. For an ox while grazing often lies down unawares upon vipers and lizards, which, provoked by its weight, inflict a bite upon it. The shrew-mouse, which the Greeks call mygale, though its teeth are small, gives rise to a malady which is far from being slight. A viper's poison can be expelled by scarifying with a knife the part affected and applying to it the herb called burdock, pounded up and mixed with salt. The crushed root of the same plant is even more beneficial, or the mountain trefoil, which grows in rugged places and is most efficacious, if it can be found; it has a strong odour like that of bitumen, whence the Greeks call it asphalteion, but our country-folk call it " sharp trefoil " from its shape, for it grows long, hairy leaves and forms a stouter stalk than the meadow trefoil. The juice of this herb mixed with wine is poured down the throat, and the leaves themselves are pounded up with salt to form. a poultice. If the season of the year makes it impossible to obtain this herb in a green state, its seeds are collected and pulverized and given with wine as a potion, while the roots are pounded up with their stalks and mixed with barley-flour and salt and, after being dipped in honey-water, are applied to the scarified part. A sovereign remedy is also provided by crushing five pounds of tender tops of ash with the same number of sextarii of wine and two of oil and by pouring the juice which you have squeezed out down the animal's throat. You should also apply the tops of the same tree pounded up with salt to the part affected. The bite of a lizard causes swelling and suppuration, as also does that of a shrew-mouse, but the injury caused by the former is cured if you puncture the part affected with a brazen awl and anoint it with Cimolian chalk a dipped in vinegar. The shrew-mouse atones with its own body for the harm which it has inflicted; for the animal itself is killed by being drowned in oil, and, when it has putrefied, it is crushed and the bite inflicted by the shrew-mouse is anointed with it as a remedy. If this is not available and the swelling shows teeth-marks, cumin is crushed up and a little liquid pitch and axle-grease is added to it, so that it may have the soft consistency of a poultice. The application of this gets rid of the mischief. If the swelling turns into a suppuration before it is dispersed, it is best to cut away the abscess with a hot iron plate and burn away any harmful matter and then anoint the place with liquid pitch and oil. There is also a practice of encasing the shrew-mouse itself while still alive in potter's clay and, when the clay is dry, hanging it round the ox's neck. This renders the animal immune from the bite of a shrew-mouse. Maladies of the eyes are generally cured with honey. If they have swollen up, wheaten flour is sprinkled with honey water and applied to the eyes; or, if there is a white film on the eye, Spanish or Ammoniac or even Cappadocian rock-salt, pounded small and mixed with honey, lessens the malady. The shell of a cuttle-fish ground up and blown into the eye three times a day through a pipe has the same effect, as also has the root which the Greeks call silphion and of which the common name in our language is laserpitium. c To any quantity of this ten parts of Ammoniac salt are added; and both are poured similarly into the eye after being ground up in the same manner, or else the root of the same plant crushed up and mixed with oil of mastic is used to anoint the eye and purges away the malady. Running at the eyes is stopped by pearl-barley sprinkled with honey-water and applied to the eyebrows and cheeks; wild parsnip seeds and the juice of the horse-radish diluted with smooth honey assuage pain in the eyes. But whenever honey or any other juice is introduced into the remedies employed, the eye will have to be anointed all round with liquid pitch and oil to prevent its being infested with flies; for not only flies but also bees are attracted to the sweetness and odour of honey and other medicaments. Much harm too is often caused by a leech swallowed with the drinking-water, which, fastening on the throat, sucks the blood and blocks the passage of food with its own added bulk. If the leech is in such a difficult place that it cannot be removed by hand, you should insert a pipe or reed and then pour in warm oil; for if this touches it, the leech immediately falls off. The odour from a burnt bug may also be introduced through a pipe (for when a bug is put upon the fire and has produced smoke, the vapour given off reaches the leech through a pipe) and this vapour dislodges the leech from its clinging hold. If, however, it is attached to the stomach or intestine, it can be killed by pouring hot vinegar through a horn. Though I have prescribed these remedies to be used for oxen, most of them are certainly suitable also for all the larger kinds of cattle. It is necessary also to construct a machine in which one can enclose beasts of burden and oxen and treat them, in order that those who are applying remedies may have readier access to their patients and that these quadrupeds, while they are actually being doctored, may not struggle and reject the remedies. The shape of this machine is as follows: a piece of ground nine feet long and two and a half feet wide in front and four feet wide at the back is floored with boards of oak. In this space four upright posts seven feet high are placed on the right and left sides; they are set upright in the four corners and are all bound to each other with six cross-poles a to form a kind of railing, so that the animal can be driven in from the back, which is broader, as into a cage, but cannot get out on any of the other sides, because the bars get in his way and prevent him. On the two front posts a stout yoke is placed, to which beasts of burden are fastened with halters and oxen tied by their horns, and you can also contrive here stocks, so that, when the animal's head has been inserted, bars may descend and pass through holes and the neck thus be held tight. The rest of the body, secured with nooses and stretched out, is bound to the cross-poles and is subject to the will of the person who is doctoring the animal. This machine will serve alike for all the greater quadrupeds. Now that we have given enough instruction about oxen, it will be proper to deal next with bulls and cows. In my opinion we ought to esteem most highly bulls which have very large limbs and a calm temperament and are not too young or too old. In other respects we shall look for much the same qualities as we sought when choosing oxen. For a good bull does not differ from a gelded ox except that its expression is fierce, its appearance more animated, its horns shorter, its neck more brawny and so huge as to form the greatest part of its body; its belly is rather less developed underneath, so that it forms a straighter line and is more convenient for coupling with the female. Cows also are most highly esteemed which are very tall and long in shape, with large bellies, very broad foreheads, eyes black and very wide-open, horns elegant, smooth and inclined to blackness, hairy ears, compressed cheek-bones, very large dewlaps and tails, hoofs of moderate size, and small legs. In other respects almost the same qualities are desirable in the females as in the males; above all things they should be young, since, when they have passed ten years, they are useless for breeding. On the other hand they should not be covered by the bulls when they are less than two years old; if, however, they conceive before reaching two years, it is thought proper that their young should be taken from them and their udders emptied for three days that they may not feel pain, and that after that they should be kept away from the milk-pail. You should also take care to hold an examination of your cows, as of all herds of cattle, every year; for those which have done with calf-bearing and are old, since they have ceased bearing, should be removed, and barren cows in particular, which are occupying the place of the fertile, must be got rid of or broken in to the plough; for on account of their sterility they can endure toil and work quite as well as bullocks. This kind of cattle requires sunny pasture-ground near the sea in the winter; but in summer they like the shadiest parts of the woods or mountains and pasturage on high ground rather than in the plain; for it is better for them to feed in grassy woods and places covered with bushes and sedge-beds, since in dry, stony places their hoofs become hard. They do not require rivers and streams so much as artificial ponds, since river-water, which is generally colder, causes abortion, while rain-water is pleasanter to the taste. Cows, however, endure every outdoor cold better than horses and so can easily pass the winter under the open sky. Enclosures must be constructed which allow ample space, so that one cow may not in narrow quarters cause abortion in another and that a feeble cow may avoid the blows of a stronger. The best cow-sheds are floored with stone or gravel, though sandy floors are also suitable, the former because they keep out rainwater, the latter because they quickly absorb it and drain it away. In either case they must be shelving, so as to make the moisture flow away, and they should face the south that they may dry easily and not be exposed to the cold winds. The care of the pasturage is a small matter; for, in order that the grass may grow more abundantly, it is usually burnt in the last part of the summer. This makes the fodder more tender when it grows again, since the hard briers are. burnt, and it keeps down the bushes which would grow to a great height. Salt sprinkled on the stones and water-courses near the enclosures contributes to the good bodily health of the cattle and they gladly have recourse to it after they have eaten their fill, when what may be called the cowherd's signal for retreat is sounded; for this too ought always to be given at dusk, so that any cattle which have remained in the woods may be accustomed, when the horn sounds, to seek-their enclosures. Here it will be possible to pass the herd in review and its numbers can be verified, if, as though under military discipline, they occupy the quarters assigned to them by the keeper of the stalls. But the same strict rules are not imposed upon the bulls, which, relying on their strength, wander about in the woods and have free exit and return and are only recalled when they are required to cover the females. Bulls which are less than four years old and more than twelve are prevented from mounting the females, the former because, being as it were in their infancy, they are regarded as hardly suitable for breeding purposes, the latter because they are worn out with old age. The females are generally allowed to consort with the males in the month of July, in order that they may give birth to the young which are conceived at this time in the following spring, when the fodder has already come to perfection; for the period of gestation is ten months. The cows do not admit the male at their owner's command but of their own accord and their natural desires coincide generally with the time of year which I have mentioned, since exhilarated by the abundance of food which the spring provides they become wanton and desire intercourse. If the female refuses intercourse or the bull feels no desire for her, the same method is employed as we shall presently prescribe for the stallion who shows distaste for the mare, namely desire is stimulated by bringing to the nostrils the odour of the genital parts. Also towards the time when the females are to be covered their food is reduced, so that excessive fatness may not render them barren, while the diet of the bulls is increased, so that they may put more energy into the sexual act. One bull is quite enough for fifteen cows; and, when it has covered a heifer there are definite signs by which you can tell what is the sex of the offspring which it has begotten; since, if he uncouples towards the right side, it is clear that he has begotten a male, if towards the left, a female. But whether this is really true is only apparent when after one copulation the pregnant cow refuses to admit the bull again, and this actually happens only rarely; for although the cow may have conceived, she is not satisfied in her desires; so true is it that the seductive allurements of pleasure exercise the greatest power even over cattle beyond the bounds prescribed by nature. There is no doubt that where there is a great luxuriance of fodder, a calf can be reared from the same cow every year, but, where food is scarce, the cow must be used for breeding only every other year. This rule is particularly observed where cows are employed for work, in order that, firstly, the calves may have abundance of milk for the space of a year, ' and, secondly, that a breeding cow may not have to bear the burden of work and pregnancy at the same time. When she has given birth to a calf, ' however good a mother she may be, if she is worn out by work, she denies the calf its due nourishment if her diet does not give her enough support. That is why green shrub-trefoil and toasted barley and sodden bitter-vetch are given to a cow which has borne a calf, and her tender young is given a drench of grilled millet ground up and mixed with milk. For these purposes a too it is better to procure cows from Altina, b which the inhabitants of that region call cevae. c They are of low stature and produce an abundance of milk, for which reason, if their own young are taken from them, excellent cattle can be reared at the udders of cows who are not their mothers; or if this resource is not available, the calf puts up quite well with crushed beans and wine. This plan should be adopted particularly in large herds. > Latin: 16. Quod cum accidit, e prioribus cruribus sanguis mittendus est: si dextrum armum laesit, in sinistro; si laevum, in dextro; si vehementius utrumque vitiavit, item in posterioribus cruribus venae 3 solventur. Praefractis cornibus linteola sale atque aceto et oleo imbuta superponuntur, ligatisque per triduum eadem infunduntur. Quarto demum axungia pari pondere cum pice liquida, et cortice pineo levigata cubuit, lacessita onere morsum imprimit. Musque araneus, quem pungas, cretaque cimolia ex aceto Unas. Mus perniciem, quam intulit, suo corpore luit: nam animal ipsum oleo mersum necatur, et cum imputruit, conteritur, eoque medicamine morsus muris aranei linitur. Vel si id non adest, tumorque funduntur, vel eadem radix tunsa ad pecudem medentibus sit, nec in ipsa curatione quadrupes reluctando remedia respuat. Est autem talis machinae forma: roboreis axibus compingitur solum, quod habet in longitudinem pedes novem, et in latitudinem pars prior dipundium semissem, pars posterior quattuor pedes. Huic solo septenum pedum stipites recti ab utroque latere quaterni applicantur. Ii autem in ipsis quattuor angulis affixi sunt, omnesque transversis sex temonibus quasi vacerrae inter se ligantur, corporis, venter melius nemoribus herbidis et frutectis saepta repetere consuescat. Hic enim recognosci grex poterit, numerusque et tauris adicitur, quo fortius ineant. Unumque marem quindecim vaccis sufficere abunde est. Qui ubi iuvencam supervenit, certis signis comprehendere licet, quem sexum generaverit: quoniam si parte dextra desiluit, marem seminasse manifestum est; si laeva, feminam. Id tamen lactis abundantes, propter quod remotis earum fetibus, generosum pecus alienis educatur uberibus: vel si hoc praesidium non adest, faba fresa et vinum recte tolerat, idque praecipue in magnis gregibus fieri oportet. [¶6] 25. Worms, which generally occur when indigestion is present, are often harmful to calves. Their feeding, therefore, must be so regulated that they digest properly; or, if they are already suffering from a malady of this kind, half-raw lupines are crushed and pellets of them thrust down their throats to serve as a drench. Wormwood a can also be ground up with dried figs and bitter-vetch and made up into pellets and thrust down their throats to act as a drench. The same effect is produced by one part of axle-grease mixed with three parts of hyssop; also the juice of horehound and of leek is effectual for killing creatures of this kind. Mago is in favour of castrating calves while they are still young and tender, and he advises that calves, the operation should not be performed with a knife but that the testicles should be compressed with a piece of cleft fennel and gradually broken up. He considers this to be the best method of castration, because it is applied when the animal is still tender and causes no wound. When the animal has grown tougher, it is better that it should be castrated as a two-year-old than as a one-year-old. He recommends that the operation should take place in the spring or in the autumn when the moon is waning, and that the calf should be bound in the machine b; then, before applying the knife, you should seize between two narrow laths of wood, as in a forceps, the sinews of the testicles, which the Greeks call “hangers,” because the genital parts hang from them, and then take hold of the testicles and lay them open with a knife and after pressing them out cut them off in such a way that their extremities are left adhering to the said sinews. By this method the steer runs no danger from an eruption of blood, nor is it likely to lose its masculinity and become totally effeminate, and it keeps the form of a male when it has been deprived of generative power. This, however, it does not lose immediately; for, if you allow it to cover a cow directly after the operation, it is certain that it is possible for it to beget offspring; but it should by no means be allowed to do so, lest it die from a flux of blood. The wounds should be anointed with the ash of brushwood and litharge of silver, and the animal should be kept away from water for that day and be fed on only a little food. For the three following days it should be treated as a sick animal and tempted to eat with the tops of trees and green fodder cut off for it and must not be allowed to drink much. It is thought right also to anoint the actual sores after three days with liquid pitch and ashes mixed with a little oil, so that they may scar over more quickly and that they may not be infested by flies. I have now said enough about oxen. For those whose pleasure it is to rear horses it is of the utmost importance to provide a painstaking overseer and plenty of fodder; both these points can be neglected up to a certain point in dealing with other domestic animals. A stud of horses, however, requires the most assiduous attention and a generous diet. Horses themselves fall into three classes. There is the noble stock which supplies horses for the circus and the Sacred Games; then there is the stock used for breeding mules which in the price which its offspring fetches is a match for the noble breed; and there is the common breed which produces ordinary mares and horses. The more excellent each class is, the richer must be the pasturage assigned to it. The feeding-grounds chosen for herds of horses must be spacious and marshy, mountainous, well-watered and. never dry, empty rather than encumbered by many tree-trunks, and producing an abundance of soft rather than tall grass. The stallions and mares of the common stock are allowed to be pastured everywhere together, and no fixed seasons are observed for breeding. The stallions of the noble stock will be put to the mares about the time of the spring equinox, so that the mares may be able to rear their offspring with little trouble, when the pasture is rich and grassy, at the same season a year later as that at which they conceived them; for they give birth to their young in the twelfth month. The greatest care, therefore, must be taken that at the said time of year every opportunity is given equally to mares as to their stallions to couple if they desire to do so, because, if you prevent them from doing so, horses beyond all animals are excited by the fury of their lust. (Hence the term " horse-madness " is given to the poison which kindles in human beings a passion like the desire in horses.) Indeed, in some regions, there is no doubt that the mares are affected by such a burning desire for intercourse, that, even though there is no stallion at hand, owing to their continuous and excessive passion, by imagining in their own minds the pleasures of love they become pregnant with wind, just as farmyard hens produce “wind-eggs.” Indeed the poet is not indulging his fancy too much when he says: a But, beyond all furies, wondrous is the rage Of mares; Love leads them over Gargara b And o'er Ascanius' c loudly roaring stream; They scale the mountain and through rivers swim, Soon as the flame has reached their craving marrow (More so in spring, for then the heat returns And warms their bones) all on high rocks they stand Facing the west, and the light breezes catch, And oft with wind conceive, without the aid Of union—a wondrous tale to tell! d For it is also well-known that on the Holy Mountain of Spain, e which runs westward near the Ocean, mares have often become pregnant without coition and reared their offspring, which, however, is of no use, because it is snatched away by death at three years of age, before it can come to maturity. Therefore, as I have said, we shall take care that the broodmares are not tormented by their natural desires about the time of the spring equinox. But during the rest of the year the valuable stallions should be kept away from the mares, so that they do not cover them whenever they wish, nor, if they are prevented from doing so, harm themselves through excitement due to their desires. It is better, therefore, either to banish a stallion in some distant pasture or else keep it shut up in the stables; then at the time when it is summoned by the mare, it should be fortified by a generous diet, and with the approach of spring should be fattened on barley and bitter-vetch, so that it may be equal to the fatigues of intercourse, and that, the stronger it is when it covers the mare, the greater may be the sexual vigour which it communicates to its future descendants. Some authorities also prescribe that one should fatten up a stallion by the method used for mules, so that, exhilarated by this condition, it may suffice for a number of mares. However, one stallion ought to be able to impregnate not less than fifteen and on the other hand not more than twenty mares, and is generally suitable to breeding purposes from three years of age to twenty. But if a stallion is disinclined for intercourse, he can be roused by the odour of a sponge, with which the parts of the mare have been wiped, applied to his nostrils. On the other hand, if the mare refuses to submit to the stallion, her parts are anointed with crushed squill, and this kindles her desire. Sometimes, too, a badly-bred ordinary horse is used to arouse in the mare a longing for copulation; for, when he has approached her and, so to speak, invited her compliance, he is led away and the better-bred horse is mated with the now more complaisant mare. From the time when mares become pregnant they need special care and must be fortified by generous fodder. If the grass has failed owing to the cold of winter, they should be kept under cover and not be fatigued by work or journeys, and they should not be exposed to the cold nor enclosed in a narrow space lest they should cause one another to miscarry; for all these unfavourable conditions cause abortion. But if a mare has suffered either in producing its offspring or from abortion, polypody crushed and mixed with tepid water, and administered through a horn will serve as a remedy. If, on the other hand, all goes well, the foal must on no account be touched with the hand, for even the lightest contact is harmful. All that one will have to do is to take care that the foal lives with its mother in a place which is both roomy and warm, so that the cold may not hurt it while it is still weak and that its mother may not crush it because its quarters are narrow. Then gradually it will have to be made to leave the stable, and care must be taken that it does not burn its hoofs with dung. Soon, when it has become stronger, it must be sent out to the same pasture as its mother, so that the latter may not be afflicted through longing for its offspring; for this kind of animal especially suffers through its love for its young, if it have not the opportunity for indulging it. An ordinary mare is in the habit of bearing a foal every year; but a well-bred mare ought to be pregnant in alternate years, in order that, receiving greater strength from its mother's milk, the foal may be prepared for the toil of the contests. It is generally thought that a stallion is not suitable for breeding purposes before it is three years old, and that it can continue to procreate until its twentieth year, but that it is all right for a mare to conceive at the age of two years, so that it is three years old when it bears and rears its young, and it is also considered to be of no use after the tenth year, because the offspring of an aged mother is slow and lazy. Democritus declares that it will rest with us whether a male or a female is conceived, since he directs us, if we wish that a male should be begotten, to tie up the stallion's left testicle with a flaxen cord or some other material, and the right testicle if we want a female offspring; and he thinks that the same method should be adopted with almost all other cattle. > Latin: 25. Solent autem vitulis nocere lumbrici, qui fere nascuntur cruditatibus. Itaque moderandum est, ut bene concoquant: aut si iam tali vitio laborant, lupini semicrudi conteruntur, et offae salivati more faucibus ingeruntur. Potest etiam cum arida fleo et ervo conteri herba Santonica, et formata in offam, sicut salivatum demitti. Facit idem axungiae pars una tribus partibus hyssopi permixta. Marrubii quoque succus et porri valet eiusmodi necare animalia. Castrare vitulos Mago censet, dum adhuc teneri sunt; neque id ferro facere, sed fissa 1 ferula comprimere testiculos, et paulatim confringere. Idque optimum genus castrationum putat, quod adhibetur aetati tenerae sine vulnere. Nam, ubi iam induruit, melius bimus quam anniculus castratur. Idque facere vere ligneis regulis veluti forcipibus apprchendere testium nervos, quos Graeci κρεμαστῆρασ ab eo appellant, quod ex illis genitales partes dependunt. Comprehensos deinde testes ferro reserare, et expressos ita recidere, ut extrema pars eorum adhaerens praedictis nervis relinquatur. Nam hoc modo nec eruptione sanguinis periclitatur iuvencus, nec in totum effeminatur adempta omni virilitate; formamque servat maris cum generandi vim deposuit, quam tamen ipsam non protinus amittit. Nam si patiaris eum a recenti curatione feminam inire, constat ex eo posse generari. Sed minime id permittendum, ne profluvio sanguinis intereat. Verum vulnera eius sarmenticio cinere cum argenti spuma linenda sunt, abstinendusque eo die ab humore, et exiguo cibo alendus. Sequenti tripartite feminae, ut etiam si marem non habeant, assidua et nimia cupiditate figurando prohibeantur, cupidine sollieitati neque cursu exerceantur, neque frigori committantur, nec in angusto clauso, ne aliae aliarum conceptus elidant: nam haec omnia incommoda fetum abigunt. Quod si tamen aut partu aut abortu equa laboravit, remedio erit felicula trita, et aqua tepida permixta ac data per cornu. Sin autem prospere cessit, minime manu contingendus pullus erit. eandemque post decimum non esse utilem, quod ex annosa matre tarda sit atque iners proles. Quae sive ut femina sive ut masculus concipiatur, nostri arbitrii fore Democritus affirmat, qui praecipit, ut, cum progenerari marem velimus, sinistrum testiculum admissarii lineo funiculo aliove quolibet obligemus; cum feminam, dextrum. Idemque in omnibus paene pecudibus faciendum censet. [¶7] 29. As soon as a foal is born, it is possible to judge its natural qualities immediately. If it is good-humoured, if it is courageous, if it is not alarmed by the sight or sound of something unfamiliar, if it runs in front of the herd, if it surpasses its age-mates in playfulness and activity on various occasions and when competing in a race, if it leaps over a ditch and crosses a bridge on a river without baulking—these are the signs of generous mettle. Its physical form will consist of a small head, dark eyes, wide-open nostrils, short, upstanding ears, a neck which is soft and broad without being long, a thick mane which hangs down on the right side, a broad chest covered with well-proportioned muscles, the shoulders big and straight, the flanks arched, the back-bone double, the belly drawn in, the testicles well matched and small, the loins broad and sunken, the tail long and covered with bristling, curly hair, the legs soft and tall and straight, the knee tapering and small and not turned inwards, the buttocks round, the haunches brawny and well-proportioned, the hoofs hard, high, hollow and round with moderately large crowns above them; the whole body must be so formed as to be large, tall and erect, and also active in appearance and, in spite of its length, rounded as far as its shape allows. As regards character, those horses are esteemed which are roused to activity after being quiet and become very mild again after being roused; for such animals are found to be both amenable to discipline and very ready to take part in public contests and the effort which they require. At two years of age a horse is suitable to be trained for domestic purposes; but, if it is to be trained for racing, it should have completed three years, and provided that it is entered for this kind of effort only after its fourth year. a The signs which mark a horse's age change with its physical changes. For when it is two years and six months old, its middle teeth, both the upper and the lower, fall out. In the course of its fourth year the so-called canine teeth are shed and it grows new ones in their place; then, before the end of its sixth year the upper and lower molars fall out, and in the course of the sixth year it makes up the number of the first set of teeth which it has changed; in the seventh year the whole set is completed, and henceforward the animal has some hollow teeth; and, subsequently, it is impossible to ascertain with certainty what its age is. In its tenth year, however, its temples begin to sink and its eyebrows sometimes begin to turn white and its teeth to project. I think I have said enough on the subject of the horse's disposition, character, physique and age. My next business is to set forth the way to look after horses in health and sickness. If a horse is thin without being ill, it can be restored to condition more quickly with roasted wheat than with barley; but it must also be given wine to drink, and then by degrees foods of this kind must be reduced by mixing bran with barley until it becomes accustomed to a diet of beans and pure barley. The bodies of horses require a daily rubbing down just as much as those of human beings, and often to massage a horse's back with the pressure of the hand does more good than if you were to provide it most generously with food. Chaff ought to be spread on the ground where horses stand. It is also very important to maintain the vigour in their bodies and feet; we shall secure both these objects if we conduct the herd at suitable times to their stable, to their watering-place and to exercise, and if care is taken that they are stabled in a dry place, so that their hoofs are not wetted. This we shall easily avoid if the stable is floored with boards of hard wood, or if the ground is carefully cleaned from time to time and chaff thrown over it. Beasts of burden generally fall ill from fatigue or from the heat, and sometimes also from the cold and when they have not passed urine at the proper time, or if they sweat and then drink immediately after having been in violent motion, or when they are suddenly spurred into a gallop after they have stood for a long time. Rest is the cure for fatigue, provided that oil or fat mixed with wine is poured down the throat. For a chill, fomentations are applied, and the loins moistened with heated oil, and the head and spine soaked with tepid fat or ointment. If the animal does not pass urine, the remedies are almost the same; for oil mixed with wine is poured over the flanks and loins, and if this has not produced the desired effect, a small suppository made of boiled honey and salt is applied to the orifice from which the urine flows, or a live fly or a grain of incense or a suppository of bitumen is inserted in the genital organs. The same remedies will be applied, if the urine has scalded these organs. Head-aches are indicated by tears which flow from the eyes and the hanging down of the ears, and the neck and head which are weighed down and droop towards the ground. In these circumstances the vein under the eyes is opened and the mouth fomented with hot water and the animal is kept away from food for the first day. Then on the next day, before it has eaten anything, it is given a drink of tepid water and some green grass; then a litter of old hay or soft straw is spread under it and, at dusk, water is again given and a little barley with haulm of vetch, so that by means of small doses the animal may be brought back to regular forms of food. If a horse's jaws give it pain, they should be fomented with hot vinegar and rubbed with old axle-grease, and the same remedy should be applied if the jaws are swollen. If it has damaged its shoulders or has had an extravasation of blood to these parts, the veins somewhere near the middle of each leg should be opened and the shoulders should be anointed with a mixture of incense-dust and the blood which flows from the wound, and, that the animal may not be unduly weakened, some of its own ordure should be applied to the bleeding veins and bound with bandages. On the following day blood should again be drawn from the same places and the same treatment given, and the animal should be kept away from barley and only given a little hay. After three days and until the sixth day the juice of a leek to the quantity of about three cyathi mixed with a hemina of oil should be poured down its throat through a horn. After the sixth day it should be made to walk slowly and, after it has taken this exercise, it will be a good plan to drive it into a pond so that it may swim; then, by the administration by degrees of a more solid diet, it will be brought back to normal conditions. If a horse is troubled by bile and its belly swells and it cannot get rid of wind, the hand is greased and inserted into its bowel and the natural exits which have been blocked are opened up; afterwards, when the ordure has been removed, ox-marjoram and lousewort crushed up with salt are mixed with boiled-down honey, so as to form a suppository, and inserted from below; these move the belly and bring away all the bile. Some people pour down the throat a quadrans of ground myrrh in a hemina of wine and anoint the anus with liquid pitch; others wash out the bowel with sea-water, still others with fresh brine. Tape-worms and maw-worms, too, often do harm to the intestines. It is a sign of their presence when horses roll about on the ground in internal pain or bring heads near their bellies or frequently flick their tails. An efficacious remedy is that described above, namely, the insertion of the hand and the removal of ordure followed by the washing out of the bowel with salt water or hard brine, and afterwards the pouring down the throat of the root of the caper-tree ground up with a sextarius of vinegar; for by this method the animals mentioned above are killed. When any animal is sick, deep litter must be provided, so that it may have a softer resting-place. A cough which has only just begun is quickly cured with crushed lentils separated from the pods and pounded into minute fragments. When this has been done, a sextarius of hot water is mixed with the same quantity of lentils and poured down the animal's throat; the same treatment is continued for three days and the sick animal is strengthened by a diet of green grass and tree-tops. A cough of long standing can be dispelled by pouring down the throat on several days three cyathi of leek-juice in a kemina of oil and providing the same diet as we have prescribed above. Skin-eruptions and any form of scab are rubbed with vinegar and alum. Sometimes, if these sores persist, they are anointed with equal quantities of soda and split alum mixed together in vinegar. Pustules are scraped with a curry-comb in very hot sunlight until blood is made to flow, then equal portions of the root of wild ivy, sulphur and liquid pitch are mixed with alum. The aforesaid ailments are treated with this medicament. Sores due to chafing are washed twice a day with hot water, and then they are rubbed with salt powdered and boiled with fat until the blood flows. Scabies is fatal to this kind of quadruped, unless help is speedily given. If the attack is only slight, in the first stages the sores should be anointed in burning sunlight with cedar-oil or mastic-gum or nettle seed and oil crushed together or the fish-oil which is deposited on dishes by salted tunnies. The fat of the sea-calf is particularly efficacious against this malady. If, however, the trouble is of long standing, more violent remedies are needed; and so bitumen and sulphur and hellebore mixed with liquid pitch and stale axle-grease in equal quantities are boiled together, and the patients treated with this preparation, the sores having been previously scraped with a knife and thoroughly washed with urine. Often, too, it has been found beneficial to cut the scab to the quick with a lancet and remove it and to treat the resulting sores with liquid pitch and oil, which both cleanse the wounds and cause them to fill up; when they have filled, soot from a brazen vessel rubbed into the sore will be found most beneficial in causing the wounds to scar over and grow hair. We shall get rid of the flies which infest wounds by pouring on them pitch and oil or fat. The other kinds of sores are correctly treated with the flour of bitter-vetch. Scars on the eyes are reduced by rubbing with fasting spittle and salt or with the shell of a cuttle-fish pounded up with mineral salt or with the seed of the wild parsnip crushed and squeezed through linen over the eyes. Any kind of pain in the eyes is quickly alleviated by anointing them with the juice of the plantain mixed with honey obtained without smoking out the bees, or, if this is not available, at any rate with thyme-honey. Sometimes bleeding at the nose has proved dangerous and has been stopped by pouring the juice of green coriander into the nostrils. A horse sometimes languishes through distaste for food. The remedy for this is a kind of seed called git, a two cyathi of which are crushed and dissolved in three cyathi of oil and one sextarius of wine and poured down the throat. Nausea can also be stopped by frequently giving the animal a bruised head of garlic in a hemina of wine to drink. It is better to open up an abscess with a red-hot metal plate than with a cold iron instrument, and when the pus has been squeezed out, it is dressed with lint. There is also a pestilential malady the effect of which is that mares are attacked with sudden emaciation and carried off by death in the course of a few days. When this comes on, it is beneficial to pour four sextarii of fish-pickle into the nostrils of each victim if it be of small stature, one congius if it be of larger size. This remedy draws away all the phlegm through the nostrils and purges the animal. > Latin: 29. Cum vero natus est pullus, confestim licet indolem aestimare, si hilaris, si intrepidus, si neque conspectu novae rei neque 1 auditu 2 ferretur, si ante gregem procurrit, si lascivia et alacritate interdum et cursu certans aequales 3 exsuperat,4 si fossam sine cunctatione transilit, pontem flumenque transcendit, haec erunt honesti animi documenta. Corporis vero forma constabit exiguo capite, nigris oculis, naribus apertis, brevibus auriculis et arrectis, cervice molli lataque nec longa, densa iuba et ex longo, quantum figura permittit, rotundum. Mores autem laudantur, qui sunt ex placido concitati, et ex. concitato mitissimi. Nam hi et ad obsequia reperiuntur habiles, et ad certamina laboremque promptissimi. Equus bimus ad usum domesticum recte domatur; certaminibus autem expleto triennio: sic tamen ut post quartum demum annum labori committatur. Annorum notae cum corpore mutantur. Nam dum bimus et sex mensium est, medii dentes superiores et inferiores cadunt. Cum quartum annum est, ac deinde paulatim eiusmodi cibi subtrahendi immixtis hordeo furfuribus, dum consuescat faba et puro hordeo ali. inditur foramini, hemina faucibus per cornu infundatur. Post sextum diem lente ingredi cogatur, et cum ambulaverit, in piscinam demitti eum conveniet, ita ut natet: sic paulatim firmioribus cibis adhibitis sextarius aquae calidae in eandem mensuram lentis miscetur, et faucibus infunditur; similisque medicina triduo adhibetur, ac viridibus herbis cacuminibusque arborum recreatur aegrotum pecus. Vetus autem tussis discutitur porri succo trium cyathorum cum olei hemina compluribus diebus ea compositione curantur, ita ut prius scabies ferro erasa perluatur urina. Saepe etiam scalpello usque ad vivum resecare et amputare scabiem profuit, atque ita factis ulceribus mederi liquida pice atque oleo, quae expurgant et replent vulnera. Quae curatur. Est etiam illa pestifera labes, ut intra paucos dies equae subita macie et deinde morte corripiantur: quod cum accidit, quarternos sextarios gari singulis per nares infundere utile est, si minoris formae sunt: nam si maioris, etiam congios. Ea res omnem pituitam per nares elicit, et pecudem expurgat. [¶8] 35. There is a form of madness which comes over mares and is rare but remarkable, namely, that if they have seen their reflexion in the water, they are seized with a vain passion and consequently forget to eat and die from a wasting disease due to love. It is a sign of this form of insanity when they rush about over their pastures as though they were goaded on and at times seem to be looking about them and seeking and missing something. This delusion is dispelled if you cut off her mane unevenly and lead her down to the water; then beholding at length her own ugliness, she loses the recollection of the picture which was formerly before her eyes. What I have now remarked with regard to mares in general must suffice; special instructions must now be given for those who devote themselves to breeding droves of mules. For the rearing of mules it is of the utmost importance to seek out and examine the male and female which are to be the parents of the future offspring; for if one of them is not suitable to the other, the result of their union is a failure. A mare should be chosen which is between four and ten years of age, physically very big and handsome, with stout limbs and well able to endure toil, that she may receive and bear in her womb an alien offspring of another race planted within her and confer on her progeny not only her good physical qualities but also her natural disposition. For not only are the seeds, which are injected into the genital parts, with difficulty quickened into life but also after conception they take longer to mature into the creature which is to be born, and it is only after the completion of a year that in the thirteenth month the offspring is brought forth with difficulty, and more of the sluggishness of the father is inherent in the offspring than the vigour of the mother. Nevertheless, while mares for breeding mules are less trouble to find, the task of selecting the male parent is greater, for often experience disappoints the judgment of the man who has to choose it. Many stallions which are admirable as far as appearance goes procreate offspring which are very inferior either in physique or sexual qualities—for if they produce she-mules of small size or more males than females of fine physique, they diminish the income of the proprietor of the estate—while some stallions which ' have been despised on account of their appearance are productive of the most valuable progeny. It sometimes happens that a stallion displays his high quality in his offspring but is sluggish in taking his pleasure and can be only very seldom induced to have intercourse. Owners of studs stimulate the senses of such a stallion by bringing up to him a female of the same race as himself,0 since nature has made like more at home with like; then, when by putting the ass a in his way, they have lured on the stallion which has thrown himself upon her, while he is as it were inflamed and blinded by desire, they take away the ass, which he had wanted, and put him to the mare which he had scorned. There is another type of stallion which is mad to gratify his lust and brings ruin on the stud unless cunning is used to restrain him, for he often breaks his bonds and disturbs the pregnant mares and, when he covers them, inflicts bites on their necks and backs. To prevent this he is harnessed for a time to a mill and tempers the fierceness of his passion with hard work and is only put to the mare when he has moderated his desires. Nor indeed should a stallion of milder passions be allowed to. cover a mare under any other conditions, since it is very important that the naturally slumbering temperament of the animal should be stirred up and excited by moderate exercise and that the male should be put to the female when he has become more animated, in order that the seed itself, in virtue of some secret force, may be fashioned by more active elements. A mule can be bred not only from a mare and a donkey, but also from an ass and a horse, and further from a wild ass and a mare. Indeed some authors, who ought not to be passed over in silence, such as Marcus Varro b and, before him, Dionysius c and Mago, have related that in some regions of Africa the production of offspring by mules is so far from being considered a prodigy that their offspring is as familiar to the inhabitants as those born from mares are to us. There is, however, nothing in the way of a mule superior either in disposition or in form to that begotten by a male ass, though up to a certain point the progeny of a wild ass can be compared to it, except that, being both difficult to train and rebellious against servitude, it exhibits the wild character and lean condition of its sire. A stallion, therefore, of this kind is more useful for the production of descendants in the second than in the first generation; for, when the offspring of a she-ass and a wild ass is put to a mare, the ferocity of the wild animal has been broken down, and any offspring of this union reproduces the form and mild temper of its sire and the strength and quickness of its grand-sire. The progeny conceived and procreated from a horse and an ass, though they have derived their name of " hinny " from their sire, a show in every respect a greater resemblance to their dam; it is, therefore, most advantageous to choose a donkey as sire for a race of mules whose appearance, as I have said, is proved by experience to be handsomer. However, from the point of view of appearance, it ought not to be approved unless it has an ample stature, a strong neck, robust and broad flanks, a vast and muscular chest, brawny thighs, solid legs and a black or spotted coat; for a mouse-colour, as it is commonplace in a donkey, is not very suitable in a mule either. We must not let the general appearance of this quadruped deceive us if we see that it is such as we approve of; for just as the spots on the tongue and palates of rams are generally found repeated on the fleeces of the lambs which they sire, so if a donkey has different coloured hairs on its eyelids or ears, it often sires an offspring of diverse colouring also; and this colouring, although the stallion was most carefully examined to see if it was present, is often a cause of disappointment to the owner. For sometimes also a stallion shapes mules very different from himself in respects other than the signs mentioned above. This, I think, occurs for no other reason than that the colour of the grandsire is transmitted to the second generation mixed with the elements which form the seed. As soon as the foal of the ass, such as I have described, is brought to birth, it should be taken away from its mother and put under a mare who has no knowledge of it. This deception is best carried out in dark conditions; for if her offspring has been taken away from her in a dark place and the aforesaid foal is put under her it is nourished by her as if it were her own offspring; and then, when she has become accustomed to it for ten days, she henceforward always gives it her dugs whenever it wants to feed. The future stallion fed in this manner learns to have an affection for mares. Sometimes also, although it has been reared on its own mother's milk, if it has lived familiarly amongst mares from its tender years it may well seek their company. It must not, however, be allowed to cover them when it is less than three years old, and when it is permitted to do so, it will be well that intercourse should take place in the spring, since it will have to be fortified with chopped green fodder and an abundance of barley and sometimes also given a drench. It ought not, however, to be put-to a young mare; for unless she has already had experience of a male, she repulses the donkey with her hoofs when he leaps upon her, and the affront which he has received inspires him furthermore with an aversion for all other mares. To prevent this, a badly-bred, ordinary donkey is brought to seek her compliance; he should not, however, be allowed to cover her, but if the mare is inclined to submit to his desires, the more ignoble donkey is promptly driven away and the mare is covered by the valuable stallion. A special place is constructed for these purposes— the countryfolk call it a " machine " a—it consists of two lateral walls built into gently-rising ground, having a narrow space between them, so that the mare cannot struggle or turn away from the donkey when he tries to mount her. There is an entrance at each end, that on the lower level being provided with cross-bars, to which the mare is fastened with a halter. and stands with her forefeet at the bottom of the slope, so that, leaning forward she may the better receive the insemination of the donkey and make it easier for a quadruped smaller than herself to mount upon her back from the higher ground..When the mare has given birth to a foal of which the donkey is the sire, she rears it during the following year without being with foal again. This method is better than that which some people follow, who cause her to be covered again by the stallion and to be with foal, although she has only just foaled. When a she-mule is a year old, it is right to take it away from its dam and put it to feed far away in the mountains or in wild places, so that it may harden its hoofs and presently be fit for long journeys. Now the male is better than the female mule for carrying a pack-saddle, whereas the latter is more nimble; but both sexes step out well on a journey and are useful for breaking up the soil, unless the price of the animal is too burdensome an expense for the farmer, or a soil, being of heavy sod, demands the strength of oxen. > Latin: 35. Rara quidem, sed et haec est equarum nota 1 rabies, ut cum in aqua imaginem suam viderint, amore 2 inani capiantur, et per hunc oblitae pabuli, tabe cupidinis intereant. Eius vesaniae 3 signa sunt, cum per pascua veluti extimulatae concursant, subinde ut circumspicientes requirere 4 ac desiderare aliquid videantur. Mentis error discutitur, si decidas inaequaliter comas equae et eam rimae formae, membris fortibus, patientissimam laboris eligere, ut discordantem utero suo generis alieni stirpem insitam facile recipiat ac perferat, et ad fetum superiectum stantius, quam quod seminavit asinus palpebris aut auribus gerit, sobolem asellus admovetur, qui solicitet obsequia feminae: neque is tamen inire sinitur. Sed, si iam est equa veneris patiens, confestim abacto viliore, pretioso mari Medicinas huius pecoris plerumque iam in aliis generibus edocui: propria tamen quaedam vitia non omittam, quorum remedia subscripsi. [¶9] 38. Though, in dealing with other classes of animals, I have already described most of the medicines which mules require, I will not omit to mention certain maladies which are peculiar to these animals, the remedies for which I have here subjoined. If a mule is in heat, raw cabbage is administered; if it is asthmatic, blood is drawn off and about a hemina of the juice of horehound mixed with a sextarius of wine and half an ounce of oil of frankincense is poured down its throat. If it is suffering from spavin, barley-flour is applied, and then the suppuration is opened with a lancet and dressed with lint, or else a sextarius of the best fish-pickle in a pound of oil is poured through the left nostril; the whites of three or four eggs from which the yolks have been separated are mixed with this medicament. Blood-blisters round the ankles are usually cut and sometimes cauterized. When blood flows down into the feet, it is drawn off by the same method as is applied to horses, or, if the herb which the countryfolk call veratrum a is available, it is given as fodder. Another remedy is henbane, the seed of which, crushed and administered with wine, cures this malady. Emaciation and languor are dispelled by frequent potions containing half an ounce of sulphur? a raw egg and a denarius weight of myrrh; these are beaten up and mixed in wine and then poured down the animal's throat. The same ingredients serve equally well as a remedy for a cough and for pain in the stomach. For emaciation nothing is as efficacious as lucerne b; this herb, when it is green, quickly fattens beasts of burden, and is not slow in doing so even when it is dry and used instead of hay, but it must be given in moderation, lest the animal be choked by an excess of blood. When a mule is exhausted and feeling the heat, fat is thrust down its throat and wine poured into its mouth. In all other respects in dealing with mules we shall follow the method which we have prescribed in the earlier parts of this book which deal with the care of oxen and horses. > Latin: 38. Equienti mulae cruda brassica datur. Suspiriosae sanguis detrahitur, et cum sextario vini atque olei thuris semuncia marrubii succus instar heminae mixtus infunditur. Suffraginosae hordeacea farina imponitur, mox suppuratio ferro reclusa linamentis curatur, vel gari modice danda, ne nimio sanguine stranguletur pecus. Lassae et aestuanti mulae adeps De minore pecore dicturis, P. ## 7. Book VII Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/7/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/7/#p-N [¶0] 1. Since, Publius Silvinus, we are now about to deal with the lesser farm-animals, our first subject shall be that cheap and common animal the lesser a ass from the region of Arcadia, to which the majority of writers on agriculture consider that particular attention should be paid when it is a question of buying and tending beasts of burden; and they are quite right, for it can be kept even in a country which lacks pasturage, since it is content with very little fodder of any sort of quality, feeding on leaves and the thorns of brier-bushes, or a bundle of twigs which is offered to it; indeed it actually thrives on chaff, which is abundant in almost every region. Further, it endures most bravely the neglect of a careless master and tolerates blows and want most patiently; for which reasons it is slower in breaking down than any other animal used for ploughing, for, since it shows the utmost endurance of toil and hunger, it is rarely affected by disease. The performance by this animal of very many essential tasks beyond its share is as remarkable as the very little care which it requires, since it can both break up with a light plough easily worked soil, such as is found in Baetica and all over Libya, and can draw on vehicles loads which are far from being small. Often too as the most famous of poets says: The tardy donkey's driver loads its sides With cheap fruits and returning brings from town A hammered millstone or black lump of pitch. a This animal's almost invariable task at the present day consists in turning a mill and grinding corn. Every estate, therefore, requires a donkey as that might be called a necessary instrument, since, as I have said, it can conveniently convey to town and bring back most things that are required for use either with load on its neck or on its back. What kind of ass and what method of looking after it is most approved, has been sufficiently described in a previous book, where instructions have been given about the valuable type of animal. b The importance of the sheep is secondary to that of the ass, though the sheep is of primary account if one has regard to the extent of its usefulness. For it is our principal protection against the violence of the cold and supplies us with a generous provision of coverings for our bodies. Then, too, it is the sheep which not only satisfies the hunger of the country folk with cheese and milk in abundance but also embellishes the tables of people of taste with a variety of agreeable dishes. Indeed to some tribes, who have no corn, the sheep provides their diet; hence most of the nomadic tribes and the Getae c are called the “Milk-Drinkers.” Though the sheep, as Celsus most wisely remarks, is a very delicate creature, it enjoys sound health and suffers very little from contagious disease. Nevertheless a breed of sheep must be chosen to suit local conditions, a prin- ciple which ought always to be observed not only with regard to sheep but in every department of agriculture, as Vergil warns us, when he says: Nor can all kinds of land all things produce. a A rich, flat country supports tall sheep, a lean and hilly region those of square build, while a wooded, mountainous land produces small sheep. “Coated” b sheep are best pastured in meadows and flat fallow ground. Not only the question of the kinds of sheep but also that of their colour are matters of great importance. Our farmers used to regard the Calabrian, Apulian and Milesian as breeds of outstanding excellence, and the Tarentine as the best of all; now Gaulish sheep are considered more valuable, especially that of Altinum,[a] also those which have their folds in the lean plains round Parma and Mutina. d While white is the best colour, it is also the most useful, because very many colours can b? made from it; but it cannot be produced from any other colour. By their very nature black and dark brown sheep also, which Pollentia e in Italy and Corduba f in Baetica produce, are esteemed for the price which they command; Asia likewise provides the red colour which they call “crythraean.” Experience has also taught the way to produce other variations of colour in this kind of animal. For when fierce wild rams of a marvellous colour were brought across amongst other wild beasts from a neighbouring district of Africa to the municipal town of Gades for those who were giving public shows, my uncle Marcus Columella, a man of keen intelligence and a dis- tinguished agriculturist, bought some of them and transferred them to his estate, and, when he had tamed them, mated them with " coated " ewes. These produced in the first generation lambs with coarse wool but of the same colour as their sires. When these in their turn were coupled with Tarentine ewes, they produced rams -with a finer fleece. All the descendants of these latter in their turn reproduced the soft wool of their dams and the colours of their sires and grandsires. Columella used to claim that in this way whatever outward appearance the wild animals possessed was reproduced in the second and later generations of their descendants, while their savage nature was tamed. But I must return to my subject. There are then two kinds of sheep, the soft-fleeced and the shaggy-coated; but, while there are several points common to both kinds when you are buying or looking after them, there are certain special characteristics of the well-bred sheep which it is well to observe. The following are generally the common points to be looked for when you are buying flocks: if whiteness of fleece is what pleases you most, you should never choose any but the whitest rams, for a dark lamb is often the offspring of a white ram, while.. a white lamb is never bred from a red or brown sire. And so, if a ram has a white fleece, this is not itself a reason for approving of it, but only if its palate and tongue are also of the same colour as its wool; for if these parts of the body are black or spotted, the offspring is either dark or even parti-coloured. The same poet as I quoted above, amongst many other points, has expressed the same thing excellently in the following lines: But though the father-ram itself is white, If under his wet palate a black tongue Lurks, then reject it, lest with dusky spots It stain the fleeces of the future race. a The same reasoning applies both to red and to black rams, in whom, likewise, as I said just now, neither the tongue nor the palate ought to be different in colour from the wool, still less should the whole skin be variegated with spots. Sheep, therefore, should never be bought unless they still have their wool on their backs, so that it may be easier to see that they are of one colour only, because, unless this is a prominent feature of the rams, the marks on the father generally persist in the offspring. The points which are most highly esteemed in a ram are breadth and height of stature, a belly which hangs down and is woolly, a very long tail, a thick fleece, a broad forehead, large testicles and curling horns—not because such a ram is more useful (for it is better without horns), but because horns do much less harm if they are curling than if they are up-standing and spreading. In some localities, however, where the climate is damp and windy, we should prefer that both he-goats and rams should have very large horns, because, being thus wide-spreading and lofty, they protect most of the head from the storm. So, if the winter generally tends to be severe, we shall choose rams of this type; if it is milder, we shall prefer a ram which is hornless; for there is this disadvantage about a sheep with horns, that, being conscious that its head is armed, as it were, with a natural weapon, it often rushes into the fray and also becomes too wanton towards the females. For (although it does not itself suffice to mate with the whole flock) it pursues its rival in the most violent manner and does not allow the flock to be covered at the proper time by any other ram, except when it is worn out by lust. On the other hand the hornless ram, since it realizes that it is, as it were, disarmed, is not prompt to quarrel and is milder in its amours. Shepherds, therefore, use the following ruse to check the brutality of a butting he-goat or ram: they fix spikes in a strong board a foot in length and tie it to the horns with the spikes facing the forehead. This prevents the animal, fierce though he may be, from quarrelling, because by his blow he pricks and wounds himself. Epicharmus, a the Syracusan, who has written a very careful treatise on remedies for cattle, declares that a pugnacious ram can be tamed by piercing its horns with a gimlet near the ears at the point where the horns bend into a curve. The best time for breeding from this animal is when it is three years old; but it continues to be suitable up to eight years of age. The female ought to be mated after its second year and is still regarded as young at five years; after its seventh year it becomes exhausted. You will, therefore, as I have said, buy ewes before they have been sheared and you will reject those which are parti-coloured or bald, because its colour can not be determined. You will refuse a sterile ewe which has passed its third year and has projecting teeth: you will select a two-year-old with a large frame, a neck covered with shaggy hair which is abundant but not coarse, and a woolly and ample belly; for a small and hairless ewe must be avoided. These are, roughly speaking, the general points which must be observed when you are buying sheep; the following points must be observed in their management. Their folds should be built low and extended in length rather than in breadth, so that they may be warm in winter and also that lack of space may not cause the ewes to cast their young. They should be placed so as to face the mid-day sun; for sheep, though naturally the best clothed of animals, can least endure cold, or summer heat either. For this reason a closed court with a high wall ought to be constructed in front of the entrance, so that there may be a safe way out for the animal when it is affected by the heat; and care must be taken to prevent there being any standing water by always keeping their folds strewn with the driest possible fern or straw, so that the ewes after lambing may have something clean and soft on which to lie, and that the folds may be very clean, and that the health of the ewes, which must be specially guarded, may not be impaired by dampness. Sheep must be supplied with an abundance of every kind of food; for even a small flock, if it is given its fill of fodder, brings its owner a bigger return than a very large one which has suffered from want. You must look for fallow land which is not only grassy but also for the most part free from thorns; for, to make our repeated appeal to the authority of inspired poesy, a If wool is your desire, above all else Avoid the prickly woods and burs and caltropses. For, as the same poet says, a it causes scab in sheep, When after shearing sweat unwashen clings And prickly briers tear away their flesh. Moreover, the yield of wool is daily reduced, for the more abundantly it grows upon the animal, the more exposed it is to brambles, by which it is caught, as if by hooks, and torn from their backs as they feed. The sheep also loses the soft covering with which it is protected, and this can only be replaced at considerable expense. The authorities are in general agreement that the earliest time of the year at which the ewes should be mated is the spring, when the Parilia b is celebrated, if the ewe has just reached maturity, but, if she has already produced a lamb, about the month of July. The earlier date is, however, undoubtedly preferable, so that, just as the vintage follows the harvest, so the birth of the lamb may succeed to the gathering in of the grapes, and the lamb, having enjoyed its fill of food during the whole autumn, may gain strength before the gloomy cold season and the short rations of winter come on. For an autumn lamb is superior to a spring lamb, as Celsus very truly remarks, because it is more important that it should grow strong before the summer solstice than before the winter solstice, and it alone of all animals can be born without risk in mid-winter. If circumstances require that more males than females should be produced, Aristotle,[a] that shrewd researcher into natural phenomena, advises that in the breeding season we should look out for breezes from the north on dry days, so as to pasture the flock facing this wind, and that the male should cover the female looking in that direction; if, on the other hand, female births are desired, we should seek for southern breezes, so that the ewes may be covered in the same manner.. The device, which was described in the preceding book, a of tying up the right or left testicle of the ram with a band, is difficult to carry out in large flocks. After the lambing season the bailiff in charge of the sheep on an outlying estate reserves almost all the young offspring for pasture; and in a section near town hands over the tender lambs, before they have begun to graze, to the butcher, since it costs only a little to convey them to the town and also, when they have been taken away, no slighter profit is made out of the milk from their mothers. Even in the neighbourhood of a town, however, one lamb in five will have to be left with its mother, for an animal born on the spot is much more profitable than one brought from a distance, nor ought the mistake be made of letting the whole flock become exhausted by age and leave the owner without any stock, especially as it is the first duty of a good shepherd every year to substitute the same number of sheep, or even more, in place of those which have died or are diseased, since the severity of the cold and winter often surprises the shepherd and causes the death of those ewes which he had failed to remove from the flock in the autumn because he thought them still able to stand the cold. These mishaps are also further reason why no ewe, unless it is very strong, should be caught unprepared by winter and why the number should be made up with young stock. Whoever is going to follow this system will have to take care not to put a lamb under a ewe which is less than four years or more than eight years old, for a ewe of neither of these ages is fit to bring up its young; moreover, the offspring of aged stock generally reproduces the qualities of old age inherited from its parents, being either sterile or weakly. The delivery of a pregnant ewe should be watched over with as much care as mid-wives exercise; for this animal produces its offspring just in the same way as a woman, and its labour is often even more painful since it is devoid of all reasoning. Hence the owner of a flock ought to have some knowledge of veterinary medicine, so that, if circumstances require it, when the foetus becomes stuck crosswise in the genital organs, he may either extract it whole, or be able to remove it from the womb, after dividing it with a knife without causing the mother's death—an operation which the Greeks call embryalkein. a The lamb, when it has been brought forth, ought to be set upon its feet and put near its mother's udder; then its mouth should be opened and moistened by pressing the mother's teats, so that it may learn to derive its nourishment from her. But, before this is done, a little milk should be drawn off, which shepherds call “biestings,” for, if this is not to some extent extracted, it does harm to the lamb, which for the first two days after its birth should be shut up with its mother, so that she may cherish her offspring, and that it may learn to know her. Then, as long as it has not begun to frisk about, it should be kept in a dark and warm en- closure; afterwards, when it begins to be sportive, it will have to be shut up with the lambs of its own age in a pen fenced with osiers, so that it may not become thin from what we may call too much youthful frolicking, and care must be taken to separate a more tender lamb from the stronger ones, because the robust torments the feeble. It is enough to make this separation in the morning before the flock goes out to pasture, and then at dusk to let the lambs mingle with the ewes when they return home after eating their fill. When the lambs begin to get strong, they should be fed in the folds with shrub-trefoil or lucerne, and also with bran, or, if the price permits, with flour of barley or of bitter-vetch. Afterwards, when they have reached their full strength, their mothers should be brought about mid-day to the meadows or fallow lands adjoining the farm and the lambs released from their pen, so that they may learn to feed outside. Concerning the nature of their food we have already spoken before and now call to mind what was not mentioned, namely, that the vegetation which is most acceptable is that which comes up when the fields have received their first ploughing; the next best is that which grows in meadows which are free from marsh; boggy and wooded lands are considered least suitable. There is, however, no fodder or even pasturage so agreeable that the pleasure which it gives does not grow stale with continuous use, unless the shepherd counteracts this aversion of his sheep by providing salt. This is placed in wooden troughs during the summer to serve as a kind of seasoning in their water and fodder and the sheep lick it up when they return from the pasture, and the taste of it makes them conceive a desire to eat and drink. But on the other hand the lack of food in winter is relieved by putting food for them under cover in their folds. They can be most conveniently fed on leaves of elm or ash which have been kept in store or on autumn hay, which is called the “after-crop”; for it is softer and therefore pleasanter than the early crop. Shrub-trefoil and cultivated vetch also make excellent fodder; but, when all else has failed, chaff of dried pulse must be used as a last resort, for barley by itself or chickling-vetch crushed with beans is too expensive to be provided at a reasonable price in districts near towns; but, wherever their cheapness allows, they are undoubtedly the best food. As for the times at which sheep ought to be fed and taken to water during the summer, my opinion is the same as that delivered by Maro: At Lucifer's first rising let us haste To the cool fields, while yet the dawn is new, And turf still hoary, and on tender grass The dew is sweetest to the feeding herd. Then, when the sky's fourth hour brings thirst to all, Let's lead the flocks to wells and deep-dug pools, a and in the middle of the day, as the same poet says, let us conduct them to a valley, Where haply Jove's great oak with hardwood old Stretches its giant branches or a grove Black -with thick holm-oaks broods with holy shade. b Then, when the heat is abated, let us again conduct them to the water (and this must be done even in the summer) and again drive them back to the pasture, Till sun-set, when chill evening cools the air And Luna's dews the thirsty glades refresh. a But about the time when the Dogstar shows itself, we must carefully observe the position of the sun in summer, so that before mid-day the flock may be driven facing the west and may advance in that direction, but that after mid-day it may be driven towards the east, since it is of great importance that their heads, as they graze, should not face the sun, which is generally harmful to animals at the rising of the aforesaid constellation. In winter and spring the sheep should be kept in their pens during the morning hours until the sun removes the rime from the fields, for grass with hoar-frost upon it causes catarrh in cattle and loosens the bowels; wherefore also in cold and damp seasons of the year they must be given the opportunity of drinking only once a day. He who follows the flock should be observant and vigilant—a precept which applies to every guardian of every kind of four-footed animal—and should be gentle in his management of them and also keep close to them, because they are silent, b and when driving them out or bringing them home, he should threaten them by shouting or with his staff but never cast any missile at them, nor should he withdraw too far from them nor should he lie or sit down; for unless he is advancing he should stand up right, because the duty of a guardian calls for a lofty and com- manding elevation from which the eyes can see as from a watch-tower, so that he may prevent the slower, pregnant ewes, through delaying, and those which are active and have already borne their young, through hurrying forward, from becoming separated from the rest, lest a thief or a wild beast cheat the shepherd while he is day-dreaming. These precepts are of general application and apply to sheep of all kinds; we will now deal with some points which are peculiar to the best breeds. It is scarcely advantageous to keep the Greek breed, which most people call the Tarentine, unless the owner is constantly on the spot, since it requires more care and food than other kinds. For, while all the sheep which are kept for their wool are more delicate than the others, the Tarentine breed is particularly so, for it does not tolerate any carelessness on the part of the owner or shepherd, much less niggardliness, nor can it stand heat or cold. It is seldom fed out of doors but generally at home, and is most greedy of fodder and, if the bailiff fraudulently abstracts any of the food, disaster overtakes the flock. During the winter, when the sheep are fed in their pens, a satisfactory diet per head is three sextarii of barley or of beans crushed with their pods, or four sextarii of chickling-vetch provided you also supply them with dried leaves or lucerne, dry or fresh, or shrub-trefoil; also seven pounds of hay of the second crop is to their liking or plenty of pulse-chaff. Only a very small profit can be made by selling the lambs of this kind of sheep and no return from the ewes' milk; for the lambs which ought to be taken away from their mother a very few days after birth, are generally slaughtered before they reach maturity, and their dams, deprived of their own lambs, are given the offspring of others to suckle; for each single lamb is put under two nurses and it is inexpedient that it should be deprived of any of their milk, that so, receiving a more satisfying quantity of milk, it may quickly grow strong, and that the ewe which has borne a lamb, having a nurse to share her duties, may have less difficulty in bringing her offspring up. Therefore you must be very careful to see that the lambs are daily put to the udders of their own mothers and also of strange ewes who have no maternal affection for them. But in flocks of this kind more males must be brought up than in those of coarse-woolled sheep; for the males are castrated before they can be mated, when they have completed two years, and are killed, and their skins sold to dealers at a much higher price than other fleeces because of the beauty of their wool. We shall remember to feed a Greek sheep on open fields free from all shoots and brambles, lest, as I have already said, its wool and its covering be torn away. Nor, because it does not go out to pasture every day, does it require less but more diligent care at home than out of doors; for it must frequently be uncovered and allowed to cool and its wool pulled apart and soaked with wine and oil. Sometimes too the whole animal must be washed, if sunny weather allows it, but it is enough to do this three times a year. The fold must be frequently swept and cleansed and all moisture due to urine must be brushed away, the best method of keeping it dry being the use of boards with holes in them with which the sheep-folds are paved, so that the flock may lie down on them. The shelters must be free not only from mud and ordure but also from deadly snakes; with this end in view, Learn too to burn the fragrant cedar-wood And from the stalls to drive dread water-snakes With fumes of Syrian gum; a a viper oft, Dangerous to the touch, 'neath unmoved pens Has lurked and, frightened, shunned the light of heaven, Or else a grass-snake wont to haunt the shed. b Therefore, at the bidding of the same poet, Seize, shepherd, A club of oak, and when it rears its head In threatening wise and swells its hissing neck, Then strike it down. c Or, to avoid the necessity of this dangerous expedient, burn a woman's hair continually or a stag's horn, the odour of which is the best thing to prevent this pestilential creature from settling in the sheep-folds. It is impossible to observe in all regions the same fixed time of year for shearing, because summer does not everywhere advance with the same speed or slowness. The best plan is to watch carefully for weather when the sheep will not feel the cold if you deprive them of their wool, nor the heat if you put off shearing them. But, whenever a sheep has been sheared, it must be anointed with the following preparation: the juice of boiled lupines, the dregs of old wine and the lees of olives are mixed in equal portions and the sheep is soaked with this liquid after it has been sheared, and when, after its skin has been anointed during three days and it has absorbed this preparation, on the fourth day, if the sea is near at hand, the sheep should be driven down to the shore and plunged in; but, if this is impossible, rain-water, after being hardened for this purpose with salt in the open air, is boiled for a short time and the flock thoroughly washed with it. Celsus declares that a sheep treated in this manner cannot possibly suffer from scab for a whole year, and there is no doubt that, as a result, its wool too will grow again more soft and luxuriant than before. Since we have now considered the management and care which sheep require when in good health, we will now give directions how to come to the help of those which are suffering from ailments or diseases, although almost all this part of my treatise has already been entirely exhausted when we were discussing in the previous book a the medical treatment of the larger cattle; for since the physical nature of the smaller and of the larger quadrupeds is practically the same, only a few trifling differences are to be found in their diseases and the remedies of them; but, however unimportant they are, we will not omit them. If the whole flock is sick, we again prescribe in this case also as the most efficacious remedy what we directed before, because we regard it as the most salutary, namely, to change both the fodder and the watering-places and to seek another climate for the grazing-ground as a whole, and to take care to choose densely shaded country, if the malady which has attacked the flock is the result of heat, but, if it is the result of cold, to choose a sunny district. But it will be advisable to drive the flock at a moderate pace and not to hurry it for 'fear of aggravating its enfeebled condition with long journeys; on the other hand it should not be driven at an absolutely slow and sluggish rate; for, while it is not expedient to urge sheep on forcibly when they are worn out by disease and put a strain upon them, yet it is good to give them moderate exercise and, as it were, to rouse them from their torpor and not allow them to lose strength through inactivity, and so perish. Next, when the flock has been conducted to its new station, it should be distributed in small groups amongst the farmers; for it recovers more easily when it is divided up than when it is kept together, either because the infectiousness of the disease itself is less in a small number or because a more effective cure can be applied more expeditiously to fewer victims. These precepts, then, and the others which we laid down in the earlier part of our treatise (to avoid repeating here what we have already said) should be observed when the whole flock is sick; but if individual animals are affected, the following rules should be observed. Sheep more often than any other animals are attacked by the scab, which generally occurs, as our poet says, a When the cold shower and shivering -winter, chill With hoary frost, have pierced them to the quick, or else after they have been sheared, if you do not apply the remedy already described, or if you do not wash out the summer sweat in the sea or in a river, or if you allow the flock, after having been shorn, to suffer wounds from wild brambles or thorns, or if you are using a pen in which mules or horses or donkeys have stood; but, above all things, scantiness of fodder causes emaciation, and emaciation causes the scab. This disease can be diagnosed in the following way when it begins to creep in: the sheep either gnaw the part affected, or strike it with horn or hoof, or rub it against a tree or wipe it upon the walls. When you see any sheep acting in these ways, it will be best to take hold of the animal and draw its wool apart, for there is a rough skin underneath it and a kind of crust. This must be treated at the first possible opportunity, lest it infect the whole flock, since, while other cattle are readily attacked by contagious disease, sheep are particularly so. There are, however, several remedies, which we will on this account enumerate, not because it is necessary to use them all at one time but in order that, since some of them are not to be met with in certain regions, one out of many may be found in order to effect a cure. First, the preparation which I explained just now can be used with advantage, namely, a mixture in equal portions of crushed white hellebore with lees of wine and dregs of oil and the juice of boiled lupine. The juice of green hemlock can also be used to remove scabbiness; this plant is cut in spring-time, when it is already producing stalk but not seeds, and crushed, and the juice is pressed out and stored in an earthenware vessel, half a modius of dried salt being mixed with two urnae of the liquid. Next the vessel is sealed up and buried in a dung-pit and, after having matured for a whole year in the heat of the dung, it is taken out and the preparation is heated and smeared over the part affected by scab after it has been previously reduced to a state of soreness by being rubbed with a rough potsherd or a piece of pumice-stone. The same disease is also treated with oil-lees boiled down by two-thirds, and also with stale human urine in which red-hot tiles have been plunged. Some people, however, put the urine itself upon the fire and reduce its volume by one-fifth and mix with it an equal quantity of the juice of green hemlock and then pour into each urn of this liquid a sextarius of crushed salt. a An equal quantity of ground sulphur and liquid pitch boiled over a slow fire has a good effect. A passage in the Georgics, however, declares that there is no more sovereign remedy, Than if with knife one cuts the ulcer's head; The scab, if covered, gains fresh food and life. b That is why it must be opened and treated, like other wounds, with medicaments. The poet presently adds, with equal wisdom, that, when sheep are in a state of fever, they should be bled either from the pastern or between the two parts of the hoof; for, as he says, It oft has greatly helped to keep away The kindled flames of fever, if you strike The vein which throbs with blood beneath the foot. c We also draw off blood beneath the eyes and from the ears. Lameness also troubles sheep in two ways, either when fouling or galling occurs in the actual division of the hoof, or when the same place harbours a tubercule from about the middle of which a hair projects like that of a dog, which has a small worm beneath it. Fouling and galling are removed by being anointed with liquid pitch by itself or with alum and sulphur and vinegar mixed together, or young pomegranate, before it forms its seeds, crushed up with alum and with vinegar poured over it, or copper-rust sprinkled over it, or else burnt oak-apples pulverized and mixed with rough wine and smeared on the sore. A tubercule which has a worm inside it should be cut round with a knife with the greatest possible care, lest, in the course of cutting, we should also wound the part of the animal which is underneath it; for, if this is damaged, it discharges poisonous matter and, if this is sprinkled over the wound, it makes it so difficult to heal that the whole foot has to be amputated. But when you have carefully cut round the tubercule, burning fat should be made to drip over the wound by means of a lighted torch. Any sheep which is suffering from a disease of the lungs should be treated in the same way as a pig is treated for the same disease, by the insertion through the ear of what the veterinary surgeons call lungwort.[a] We have already spoken6 of this plant when we dealt with the treatment of the larger cattle. This disease is usually contracted in the summer if the water has been in short supply, and for this reason opportunity must be given to all quadrupeds of drinking more freely in hot weather. Celsus is of opinion that, if there is trouble in the lungs, one should give the sufferer as much sour vinegar as it can stand, or else pour down the left nostril through a small horn about three heminae of stale human urine which has been heated, and put a sextans of axle-grease down its throat. Erysipelas, which the shepherds call pusula, is incurable. Unless it is confined to the first sheep which is attacked by this kind of trouble, it infects and lays low the whole flock, if it does not yield to medical or surgical treatment; for it blazes forth at almost any touch. The only remedy which it does not reject is fomentation with goat's milk, which, when poured upon it, as it were, charms by its touch the fiery raging of the disease, postponing rather than preventing the destruction of the flock. The celebrated writer of Egyptian race. Bolus of Mendesium, a whose commentaries, which in Greek are called Hand-wrought Products and are published under the pseudonym of Democritus, is of opinion that as a precaution against this disease the hides of the sheep ought to be frequently and carefully examined, so that if any trace of disease is by chance discovered in any one of them, we may immediately dig a trench on the threshold of the sheep-fold and, laying it on its back, inter alive the animal which is suffering from erysipelas and allow the whole, flock to pass over its buried body; for by doing this the disease is driven away. Bile, not the least fatal disease in summer, is dispelled by making the victim drink stale human urine. The same remedy is also given to a sheep which is suffering from jaundice. If rheum is trouble- some, stalks of ox-marjoram or wild mint, wrapped round with wool, are inserted in the nostrils and turned round and round until the sheep sneezes. The broken legs of sheep are treated in the same manner as those of human beings; they are wrapped in wool soaked in oil and wine and then bound up in splints which are placed round them. Knotgrass a has also bad effects which are serious; for, if the sheep feeds on it, its whole belly becomes distended and then contracts, and the animal foams at the mouth and emits a thin kind of matter which has a foul odour. The victim must immediately be bled underneath the tail in the region nearest to the buttocks, and also a vein must be opened on the upper lip. Sheep whose breathing is asthmatical must have their ears cut with the knife and be transferred to other districts, a precaution which, in my opinion, ought to be taken in all diseases and plagues. Succour must also be given to lambs when they are suffering from fever or affected by any other sickness; those which are labouring under any disease ought not to be admitted to their dams, lest they pass on the malady to them. The ewes, then, must be milked separately, and rain-water must be mixed in equal measure with the milk and this potion given to the lambs which have fever. Many people use goats' milk as a remedy for these same lambs, pouring it down their throats through a small horn. There is also an eruptive disease, called by the shepherds ostigo (lamb-scab), which is fatal to sucking lambs. This generally occurs, if, through the carelessness of the shepherd, the lambs or even kids have been let loose and have fed on grass which is covered with dew, which they certainly should not be allowed to do. But when this has happened, a kind of erysipelas surrounds their mouths and lips with filthy sores. The cure consists of hyssop and salt crushed together in equal quantities, the palate, the tongue and the whole mouth being rubbed with this mixture. Next the sores are washed with vinegar and then thoroughly anointed with liquid pitch and lard. Some people prefer a mixture of one part of verdigris to two parts of stale axle-grease heated and used as a medicine; some make a mixture of crushed cypress-leaves and water and thoroughly wash the sores and the palate. The method of castration has already been described, for the operation is performed on lambs in the same manner as on the larger quadrupeds. Now that enough has been said about sheep, I will next turn to goats. This species of animal prefers thickets to open country and is best pastured in rough and wooded districts; for it has no aversion to brambles and has no fault to find with briers and takes a particular pleasure in bushes and shrubs, such as the strawberry-tree, the buck-thorn, the wild trefoil and shrubs of holm-oak and oak which have not yet reached any great height. The points of the best type of he-goat are two excrescences which project downwards from its throat below its jaws, a large frame, thick legs, a full, short neck, flabby and drooping ears, a small head, and black, thick, glossy and very long hair; for the he-goat is also shorn For use in camps and hapless sailors' coats. a The he-goat is quite ready for breeding purposes at the age of seven months; for it is immoderate in its desires and, while it is still being fed at its mother's udder, it leaps upon her and tries to do her violence. Hence, before it has reached six years of age, it is fast becoming old, because it has worn itself out in early youth by premature indulgence of its desires; and so, when it is only five years old, it is regarded as unfit for impregnating the female. A she-goat is most highly approved which most closely resembles the he-goat which we have described, if it also has a very large udder and a great abundance of milk. If we live in a calm climate we shall acquire a she-goat without horns; for in a stormy and rainy climate we shall prefer one with horns; but always and in every district the fathers of the herd will have to be hornless, because those which have horns are generally dangerous because of their viciousness. One ought not to keep a larger number than a hundred head of goats in one enclosure, though one can equally easily keep a thousand sheep in the folds. When one is acquiring she-goats for the first time, it is better to buy a whole herd at once than to purchase them one by one from a number of sources; this prevents them from splitting up into small groups while they are pasturing and makes them settle down quickly and in greater harmony in goat-stalls. The heat is harmful to this creature, but the cold is even more so, especially to pregnant she-goats, for an unusually frosty winter destroys the embryo. But not only the abnormally frosty winter causes abortion; it also occurs if less than a sufficiency of mast is given them; and so the herd should not be allowed to eat mast unless a plentiful supply can be provided. The time which we advise for covering the she-goats is during the autumn, some time before the month of December, so that the kids may be born when spring is already approaching and the shrubs are coming into bud and the woods just sprouting with new foliage. A site for the goats' stable should be chosen which has a natural or artificial stone floor, since no Utter is provided for this animal. A careful goatherd sweeps out the stable every day and does not allow any ordure or moisture to remain or any mud to form, all of which things are prejudicial to goats. If a she-goat is of good stock, it frequently bears twins and sometimes triplets. It is a very poor increase when two mothers produce only three kids between them. a When the kids are born, they are reared in the same manner as lambs except that their wantonness must be more repressed and kept within stricter bounds. Besides an abundance of milk, elm-seed or shrub-trefoil or ivy must be provided, or else tops of mastic and other delicate foliage must be put before them. When there are sets of twins, from each pair one, whichever seems to be the more robust, is reserved to fill up the herd, while the rest are handed over to the dealers. A she-goat of only one or two years (for both ages are capable of bearing young) should not be given kids to rear; for it ought not to bring up a kid till it is three years old. And a mother of one year ought to be immediately deprived of its offspring, but a kid of a two-year-old mother ought to be left with it until it is ready to be sold. The mother-goats ought not to be kept beyond eight years, because, worn out by continual bearing, they end by becoming barren. The herd-master ought to be keen, hardy, energetic, well able to endure toil, active and bold—the sort of man who can make his way without difficulty over rocks and deserts and through briers; he ought not to follow the herd like keepers of the other kind of cattle, a but should usually precede it. The she-goat which leads the herd is a very energetic animal; the one which so advances ought from time to time to be restrained in order that it may not race out in front but may browse quietly and slowly, so that it may have a large udder and not be lean of body. Other kinds of domestic animals, when they are afflicted with pestilence, begin by wasting away with disease and weakness, but she-goats are the only animals which, though they are plump and lively, are suddenly cut off and over-whelmed, as it were, with sudden ruin, the whole herd at a time. This usually occurs as a result of too rich a diet. Therefore, when the plague has still stricken only a few of the herd, the goats should all be bled and given no food for a whole day and be kept shut up in their pens for the four middle hours of the day. If besides this, a languor attacks them, they are dosed with a beverage consisting of the roots of reeds and white thorn, with which, after we have carefully bruised them with an iron pestle, we mix rain-water and give this, and nothing else, to the goats to drink. If this does not dispel their sickness, the animals must be sold; or, if this cannot be managed, they should be slaughtered with the knife and their flesh salted. Then, after an interval, the fitting time will come to replace the flock, but not before the pestilential season, if it was winter, has changed to summer, or, if it was autumn, has changed to spring. If only individual goats are suffering from the disease, we shall apply the same remedies as to sheep; for when the skin is distended with water—the malady which the Greeks call hydrōps (dropsy)—a slight incision should be made in the skin under the shoulder, causing the fatal liquid to flow away; then the wound thus caused should be treated with liquid pitch. If, after a she-goat has borne young, the genital parts swell up and the after-birth has not put in an appearance, a sextarius of boiled down must, or, if this is not available, the same quantity of good wine, should be poured down the throat and the sexual parts filled with a liquid solution of wax. But, not to enter into more detail now, we shall give goats the same remedies as we have prescribed for sheep. It will be necessary too not to neglect the task of cheese-making, especially in distant parts of the country, where it is not convenient to take milk to the market in pails. Further, if the cheese is made of a thin consistency, it must be sold as quickly as possible while it is still fresh and retains its moisture; if, however, it is of a rich and thick consistency, it bears being kept for a longer period. Cheese should be made of pure milk which is as fresh as possible, for if it is left to stand or mixed with water, it quickly turns sour. It should usually be curdled with rennet obtained from a lamb or a kid, though it can also be coagulated with the flower of the wild thistle or the seeds of the safflower, a and equally well with the liquid which flows from a fig-tree if you make an incision in the bark while it is still green. The best cheese, how- ever, is that which contains only a very small quantity of any drug. The least amount of rennet that a pail of milk requires weighs a silver denarius; and there is no doubt that cheese which has been solidified by means of small shoots from a fig-tree has a very pleasant flavour. A pail when it has been filled with milk should always be kept at some degree of heat; it should not, however, be brought into contact with the flames, as some people think it proper to do, but should be put to stand not far from the fire, and, when the liquid has thickened, it should immediately be transferred to wicker vessels or baskets or moulds; for it is of the utmost importance that the whey should percolate as quickly as possible and become separated from the solid matter. For this reason the countryfolk do not even allow the whey to drain away slowly of its own accord, but, as soon as the cheese has become somewhat more solid, they place weights on the top of it, so that the whey may be pressed out; then, when the cheese has been taken out of the moulds or baskets, it is placed in a cool, shady place, that it may not go bad, and, although it is placed on very clean boards, it is sprinkled with pounded salt, so that it may exude the acid liquid; and, when it has hardened, it is still more violently compressed, so that it may become more compact; and then it is again treated with parched salt and again compressed by means of weights. When this has been done for nine days it is washed with fresh water. Then the cheeses are set in rows on wickerwork trays made for the purpose under the shade in such a manner that one does not touch another, and that they become moderately dry; then, that the cheese may remain the more tender, it is closely packed on several shelves in an enclosed place which is not exposed to the winds. Under these conditions it does not become full of holes or salty or dry, the first of these bad conditions being generally due to too little pressure, the second to its being over-salted, and the third to its being scorched by the sun. This kind of cheese can even be exported beyond the sea. Cheese which is to be eaten within a few days while still fresh, is prepared with less trouble; for it is taken out of the wicker-baskets and dipped into salt and brine and then dried a little in the sun. Some people, before they put the shackles a on the she-goats, drop green pine-nuts into the pail and then milk the she-goats over them and only remove them when they have transferred the curdled milk into the moulds. Some crush the green pine-kernels by themselves and mix them with the milk and curdle it in this way. Others allow thyme which has been crushed and pounded through a sieve to coagulate with the milk; similarly, you can give the cheese any flavour you like by adding any seasoning which you choose. The method of making what we call " hand-pressed " cheese is the best-known of all: when the milk is slightly congealed in the pail and still warm, it is broken up and hot water is poured over it, and then it is either shaped by hand or else pressed into box-wood moulds. Cheese also which is hardened in brine and then coloured with the smoke of apple-tree wood or stubble has a not unpleasant flavour. But let us now return to the point from which we digressed. b In every kind of quadruped it is a male of the fine appearance which is the object of our careful choice, because the offspring is more often like its father than like its mother. > Latin: 1. Silvine, principium tenebit minor in ora 1 Arcadiae vilis hic vulgarisque asellus, cuius plerique rusticarum rerum auctores in emendis tuendisque iumentis praecipuam rationem volunt esse; nec iniuria. Nam etiam eo rure,2 quod pascuo caret, contineri potest, exiguo et qualicunque pabulo contentus. Quippe vel foliis spinisque vepraticis 3 alitur, vel obiecto fasce sarmentorum. Paleis vero, quae paene omnibus regionibus, abundant, etiam gliscit. Tum imprudentis custodis negligentiam fortissime sustinet: plagarum et penuriae tolerantissimus: propter quae tardius deficit, quam ullum aliud armentum. Nam laboris et famis maxime patiens raro morbis afficitur. Huius animalis tam non minima pondera vehiculo trahat. Saepe etiam, ut celeberrimus poeta memorat: … tardi costas agitator aselli Vilibus aut onerat pomis, lapidemque revertens Incusum aut atrae massam picis urbe reportat. Iam vero molarum et conficiendi frumenti paene solemnis est huius pecoris naturam loci: quod semper observari non solum in hoc, sed etiam in tota ruris disciplina Vergilius praecipit, eum ait: Nec vero terrae ferre omnes omnia possunt. Pinguis et campestris situs proceras oves tolerat; gracilis et collinus quadratas; silvestris et montosus exiguas; pratis planisque novalibus tectum pecus commodissime pascitur. Idque non solum generibus, sed etiam coloribus plurimum refert. Generis eximii Calabras, Apulasque et Milesias agricola, quosdam mercatus, in agros transtulit, et mansuefactos tectis ovibus admisit. Eae primum hirtos, varia nascitur proles; idque inter cetera eximie talibus numeris quod cum sentiat se velut quodam naturali telo lanosi et ampli uteri. Nam vitandus est glaber et exiguus. Atque haec fere communia sunt in comparandis ovibus. Illa etiam tuendis: humilia facere stabula, sed in longitudinem potius quam in latitudinem porrecta, quoniam ea res, ut ait idem, scabras oves reddit, cum tonsis illotus admissurae tempore observare siccis diebus halitus septentrionales, ut prehendatur hieme, novaque progenie repleatur numerus. Quod qui faciet, servare debebit, ne minori quadrimae, neve ei, quae excessit annos octo, prolem submittat. Neutra enim aetas ad educandum est idonea: tum etiam quod ex vetere materia nascitur, plerumque congeneratum parentis senium luxuriantem virgea cum comparibus hara hiemis succurritur obiectis intra tectum per praesepia cibis. Aluntur autem commodissime repositis ulmeis vel ex fraxino ad custodis officium sublimem celsissimamque oculorum veluti speculam desiderat, ut neque tardiores et gravidas, dum cunctantur, mactantur; orbaeque natis exitiosis quoque serpentibus tecta liberentur: quod ut fiat, Disce et odoratam stabulis incendere cedrum, Galbaneoque agitare graves nidore chelydros. Saepe sub immotis praesepibus, aut mala tactu, Vipera delituit, caelumque exterrita fugit: Aut tecto assuetus coluber. Quare, ut idem iubet: cape robora, pastor, Tollentemque minas, et sibila colla tumentem Deice. Vel ne istud cum periculo facere necesse sit, muliebres capillos, perhibent, quarto die, si est vicinia maris, ad litus deducta mersatur: si minus, caelestis aggravetur: nec tamen in totum pigre ac segniter agere. Nam quemadmodum fessas morbo pecudes vehementer agitare et extendere non convenit, ita conducit mediocriter exercere, et quasi torpentes excitare, nec pati veterno consenescere atque extingui. Cum deinde grex ad locum fuerit perductus, in lacinias colonis tamen exiguitas cibi maciem, macies autem scabiem facit. Haec ubi coepit irrepere, sic intelligitur: vitiosum locum pecudes aut morsu scalpunt, aut cornu vel ungula fundunt, aut arbori adfricant, parietibusve vel pumice redulceratur. Eidem remedio est amurca duabus partibus decocta: item vetus hominis urina testis candentibus inusta. Quidam tuberculum habet, cuius media fere parte canino similis extat pilus, eique corniculo infundere, atque axungiae sextantem faucibus inserere. Est etiam insanabilis sacer ignis, quam pusulam pituita est, cunelae bubulae, vel surculi nepetae silvestris lana involuti naribus inseruntur, versantur-que donec sternuat ovis. Fracta pecudum non aliter quam hominum crura sanantur, involuta lanis oleo atque vino insuccatis, et mox circumdatis ferulis conligata. Est etiam gravis pernicies herbae sanguinariae, qua si pasta est ovis, toto ventre dis-tenditur, contrahiturque, et spumat et depaverint, quod minime committi oportet. Sed cum id factum Est autem mensum Tempus admissurae per autumnum fere ante mensem Decembrem praecipimus, ut iam propinquam vere, gemmantibus frutectis, eum primum silvae nova germinant fronde, partus edatur. Ipsum vero caprile vel naturali saxo, vel manu constratum strenuus, laboris patientissimus, alacer atque audax esse debet, et qui per rupes, per solitudines, per vepres facile vadat, et non, ut alterius generis pastores, sequatur, sed plerumque ut antecedat gregem. Maxime strenuum pecus est capella hiemis, vertatur caseus est, qui exiguum medicaminis habet. Minimum autem coagulum plura tabulata. Sic neque In omni genere quadrupedum species maris diligenter eligitur, quoniam frequentius 1 patri similior est progenies, quam matri. [¶1] 9. So too, when it is a question of pigs, those boars must meet with our approval which are remarkable for their outstanding bodily size in general, provided that they are square rather than long or round, and which have a belly which hangs down, huge haunches, but not correspondingly long legs and hoofs, a long and glandulous neck, and a snout which is short and snub; also it is especially important that they should be as lustful as possible when they have sexual intercourse. They are fit for breeding purposes from a year old until they are four years old, though they can also impregnate a sow at six months old. Breeding sows are esteemed which are very long in shape, provided that in their other limbs they resemble the description which we have given of the boars. If the district is cold and frosty, a herd should be selected with very hard, dense, black bristles; if it is temperate and sunny, smooth pigs and even white ones such as are kept by bakers a may be pastured there. A sow is considered fit for breeding purposes until it is about seven years old, but the more prolific it is the more quickly it becomes old. It can quite well conceive at a year old, but ought to be covered by the boar in the month of February and, having been four months with young, it should farrow in the fifth month, when the grass is already of stronger growth, so that the porkers may find the milk at the perfection of its full strength and also, when they cease to be suckled at the udder, they may feed on stubble and the fruits also which fall from leguminous plants. This is the practice in out-of-the-way regions where raising stock is the only thing which pays; for in districts near towns the sucking pig must be turned into money, for then its mother is saved trouble by not having to rear it and will more quickly conceive and produce another offspring, and so bear twice in the same year. The males are castrated, so that they may be enabled to grow fat, either at six months, when they first begin to cover the sows, or else at three or four years of age, when they have been often used for breeding. An operation is also performed with the knife on the wombs of the females to make them suppurate and close up as a result of scarring over, so that they cannot breed. I do not know the reason for doing this, unless it is lack of food; for where there is abundance of fodder, it always pays to rear stock. Moreover, pigs can make shift in any sort of country wherever situated. For they find suitable pasture both in the mountains and in the plains, though it is better on marshy ground than on dry. The most convenient feeding-grounds are woods covered with oaks, cork-trees, beeches, Turkey oaks, holm-oaks, wild olive trees, terebinth-trees, a hazels, wild fruit-trees like the white thorn, carob-trees, junipers, nettle-trees, vine-tendrils, cornel-rees, strawberry-trees, plum-trees, Christ's thorn, and wild pear-trees. For these ripen at different times and provide plenty of food for the herd almost all the year round. But where there is a lack of trees, we shall have recourse to fodder which grows near the ground and prefer muddy to dry ground, so that the pigs may root about in the marsh and turn up worms and wallow in the mud, which pigs love to do; and may they also be able to use water freely; for it has proved a great benefit for them to do this in the summer and to tear up the sweet-flavoured rootlets of under-water growths, such as the reed-mace, the rush, and the bastardreed, which the vulgar call the “cane.” Sowsindeed grow fat on cultivated ground when it is grassy and planted with fruit-trees of several kinds, so as to provide at different seasons of the year apples, plums, pears, nuts of many kinds and figs. You should not, however, on the strength of these fruits be sparing of the contents of the granary, which should often be handed out when out-door food fails. For this purpose plenty of mast should be. stored either in cisterns of water or in lofts exposed to the smoke. a They should also be given the opportunity of feeding on beans and similar leguminous vegetables, when their cheapness makes this possible, especially in the spring when green fodder is still in a juicy condition, which is generally harmful to pigs. Early in the morning, therefore, before they go out to pasture, they should be given a nourishing meal of food from the store, that the bowel may not be irritated by grass which is immature and that the herd may not waste away by the trouble which it causes. Pigs ought not to be shut up all together, like all other herds, but sties ought to be constructed after the manner of colonnades, in which the sows can be shut up after farrowing and even during pregnancy; for sows more than any other animals, when they are penned together in a crowd and pell-mell, lie one on top of another and abortions are thus caused. Therefore, as I have said, sties should be built joined by party walls each to the other and four feet in height, so that the sow may not be able to jump over the these barrieis. They ought not to be roofed over, so that the man in charge may be able to look in from above and count the number of piglings, and that if any mother is lying on top of its litter and squeezes one of them, he may extract it from under her. The swineherd must be watchful, energetic, painstaking and active: he ought to be able to remember all the sows under his charge, both those which have produced offspring and the younger sows, so that he may identify the offspring of each separately. He. must be on the watch for sows which are farrowing and shut them up, so that they may produce their Utter in a sty; he must then take note immediately of the number and quality of the piglings which are born and take special care that none of them is brought up by a sow which is not its mother; for the sucking-pigs, if they have escaped from the sty, very easily become mixed up, and the sow, when it lies down, offers its dugs as freely to the offspring of other sows as to her own. Thus the most important duty of the swine breeder is to keep each sow shut up with its own litter. If he has not a good memory and so cannot recognize the offspring of each sow, he should put the same mark on the sow and its piglings with liquid pitch, so that he may distinguish the different litters and their mothers by means of letters or some other device; for where a large number is involved, it is necessary to employ distinctive marks, so that the swineherd's memory may not be confused. Since, however, it seems a laborious task to carry out this plan in large herds, the most convenient method is to construct the sties in such a way that their thresholds are low enough for the sow to be able to get out but too high for the sucking pig to climb over; thus no strange porker can creep in, and each litter awaits its own mother in the place where they sleep. A litter ought not to number more than eight, not that I am ignorant that the fecundity of breeding-sows can produce more than this number, but because a sow which rears more than eight quickly becomes worn out. Those sows which are given a litter to rear, must be sustained with cooked barley, so that they may not be reduced to a state of extreme emaciation and from that to some fatal sickness. The careful swineherd will frequently sweep out the piggery and the sties still more often; for, though the animal in question behaves in a filthy manner when it is at pasture, it likes its sleeping-place to be very clean. Such, more or less, is the manner in which pigs should be kept when they are in good health; our next task is to deal with the care of the pig in disease. The signs of fever in pigs are when they lean over and hold their heads awry, and, after running their cures, forward a little way over their feeding-ground, suddenly halt and are seized with giddiness and fall down. Notice must be taken in which direction they lean their heads forward, so that we may let blood from the ear on the opposite side; we shall also smite under the tail, at two fingers' distance from the haunches, the vein which at this point is fairly big, but it ought first to be beaten with a vine-twig, and then, as it swells up from the stroke of the rod, it should be opened with a knife, and, after the blood has been drawn off, the vein ought to be bound up with bark of a willow or even of an elm-tree. After this we shall keep the animals under cover for a day or two and give them as much moderately warm water as they shall desire and a sextarius each of barley-flour. If pigs are scrofulous, they must be bled under the tongue and, when the blood has flowed, it will be well to rub the whole mouth with powdered salt mixed with wheaten flour. Some people think that a more efficacious remedy is to make them swallow three cyathi each of fish-pickle through a horn; they then tie together split sticks of fennel with a linen cord and hang them round their necks in such a way that the scrofulous tumours are in contact with the fennel-stalks. For pigs suffering from vomiting, ivory-dust is regarded as a good remedy mixed with powdered salt and beans ground very small and given to them on an empty stomach before they go out to pasture. Sometimes also the whole herd suffers at the same time, which causes them to become thin and to refuse their food and to lie down in the middle of the field when they are driven out to pasture and to want to go to sleep in the summer sunshine overcome by a kind of drowsiness. When this happens, the whole herd is shut up in a covered stable and deprived of drink and food for one day; then on the following day the root of the snake-like cucumber, crushed and mixed with water, is given to quench their thirst, and when the animals have drunk it they are seized with nausea and vomit and so are purged; when all the bile has been discharged, they are given chick-pea or beans sprinkled with hard brine, after which they are allowed to drink warm water, as men are allowed to do in similar circumstances. While thirst in the summer is pernicious to all quadrupeds, it is specially hurtful to pigs. We, therefore, advise that they should not be taken to water twice a day, like goats and sheep, but that, if possible, they should be kept in the neighbourhood of a river or pool at the time of the rising of the Dogstar; for, when a pig is feeling the intense heat, it is not content with drinking the water, if it cannot also plunge into it and so cool its fat maw and its belly distended with fodder, and there is nothing in which it takes so much pleasure as wallowing in streams and muddy lakes. But if the nature of the district makes this impossible, drinking water should be drawn from wells and poured into troughs in generous supply; for, unless they are abundantly satisfied, their lungs become affected. This disease is best treated by inserting lungwort into the ears, a small root of which Ave have already more than once spoken about and in detail. Pain from a diseased spleen also often attacks them; this happens when a serious drought occurs and when, as the Bucolic poem says, a Fruits lie on all sides, each strewn 'neath its tree. For pigs, being insatiable animals, make for sweetness in their food beyond measure and suffer exceedingly in the summer from swelling of the spleen. This can be relieved if troughs made of tamarisk wood and butcher's broom are constructed and filled with water and put in their way when they are thirsty; for the juice of the wood has a medicinal effect and, being swallowed, stops intestinal swelling. > Latin: 9. Quare etiam in suillo pecore verres probandi sunt totius quidem corporis amplitudine 2 eximii,3 sed qui quadrati potius quam longi aut rotundi sint, ventre promisso, clunibus vastis, nec proinde cruribus aut ungulis proceris, amplae et glandulosae cervicis, rostri4 brevis 5 et resupini.6 Maximeque ad rem pertinet, quam salacissimos esse ineuntes. rint uberibus ali, sicco limosum praeferemus, ut paludem rimentur, effodiantque vatim atque incondite cum sunt pariter inclusae, super alias aliae cubant et fetus elidunt. Quare, ut dixi, iunctae parietibus harae construendae sunt in altitudinem pedum quattuor, ne sus transilire septa queat. Nam contegi non debet, ut a superiore parte custos numerum porcorum recenseat, et si quem decumbens mater oppresserit, cubanti subtrahat. Sit autem vigilax, impiger, industrius, navus. Omnium, quas pascit, et matricum et iuniorum meminisse debet, ut uniuscuiusque partum consideret. Semper observet enitentem, claudatque ut in operosum, commodissimum est haras ita fabricare, ut limen earum mentem ferro rescindi, detractoque sanguine colligari saligneo libro vel etiam ulmeo. Quod cum fecerimus, uno aut altero die sub tecto pecudem continebimus, et aquam modice calidam quantam volent, farinaeque hordeaceae singulos sextarios praebebimus. Strumosis sub lingua sanguis mittendus est, qui cum profluxerit, sale trito cum farina triticea confricari totum os conveniet. Quidam praesentius putant esse remedium cum per spersa, deinde, sicut hominibus, aqua calida potanda permittitur. Sed cum omni quadrupedi per aestatem sitis sit infesta, tum suillo maxime est inimica. Quare non ut capellam vel ovem, sic et hoc animal bis ligni succus medicabilis epotus intestinum tumorem compescit. [¶2] 11. Two seasons are observed for castrating the pig, spring and autumn. There are two methods of carrying out this operation. The first, which we have already described, consists of making two incisions and squeezing out a testicle through each of them. The other is more spectacular but more dangerous; but I will not pass it over in silence. When you have opened up with the knife and drawn out one of the male organs, a insert a lancet through the wound that has been made; then cut the middle skin, as it were, which intervenes between the two genital members, and with your bent fingers draw out the other testicle also; the result will be that there will be only one scar after the application of the other remedies which we have described earlier. But there is one point, which concerns the religious scruples of the head of the family, b and which I have thought that I ought not to pass over in silence, namely, that there are some breeding-sows which devour their young. When this happens; it is not regarded as a prodigy; for pigs, of all farm-animals, are the least able to endure hunger, and sometimes feel such need of food that they consume not only the offspring of other sows, if they are allowed to do so, but also their own young. I have now, unless I am mistaken, dealt in sufficient detail with animals used for ploughing and other cattle and with the herdsmen who are employed to look after and watch over flocks of four-footed animals at home and out of doors with all the resources of human intelligence. Now, as I promised in the earlier part of my treatise, I will speak of the dumb guardians of the flocks, though it is wrong to speak of the dog as a dumb guardian; for what human being more clearly or so vociferously gives warning of the presence of a wild beast or of a thief as does the dog by its barking? What servant is more attached to his master than is a dog? What companion more faithful? What guardian more incorruptible? What more wakeful night-watchman can be found? Lastly, what more steadfast avenger or defender? To buy and keep a dog ought, therefore, to be among the first things which a farmer does, because it is the guardian of the farm, its produce, the household and the cattle. There are three different reasons for procuring and keeping a dog. One type of dog is chosen to oppose the plots of human beings and watches over the farm and all its appurtenances; a second kind for repelling the attacks of men and wild beasts and keeping an eye at home on the stables and abroad on the flocks as they feed; the third kind is acquired for the purposes of the chase, and not only does not help the farmer but actually lures him away from his work and makes him lazy about it. We must, therefore, speak of the farm-yard dog and the sheep-dog; for the sporting hound has nothing to do with the art which we profess. As guardian of the farm a dog should be chosen which is of ample bulk with a loud and sonorous bark in order that it may terrify the malefactor, first because he hears it and then because he sees it; indeed, sometimes without being even seen it puts to flight the crafty plotter merely by the terror which its growling inspires. It should be the same colour all over, white being the colour which should rather be chosen for a sheep-dog and black for a farm-yard dog; for a dog of varied colouring is not to be recommended for either purpose. The shepherd prefers a white dog because it is unlike a wild beast, and sometimes a plain means of distinction is required in the dogs when one is driving off wolves in the obscurity of early morning or even at dusk, lest one strike a dog instead of a wild beast. The farmyard dog, which is pitted against the wicked wiles of men, if the thief approaches in the clear light of day, has a more alarming appearance if it is black, whereas at night it is not even seen because it resembles the shadow and so, under the cover of darkness, the dog can approach the crafty thief in greater security. A squarely built dog is preferred to one which is long or short, and it should have a head so large as to appear to form the largest part of it; it should have ears which droop and hang down, eyes black or grey, sparkling with rays of bright light, a broad and shaggy chest', wide shoulders, thick, rough legs and a short tail; the joints of its feet and its claws, which the Greeks call drakes, should be very large. Such are the points which will meet with most approval in all farm-yard dogs. In character they should neither be very mild nor, on the other hand, savage and cruel; if they are mild, they fawn on everyone, including the thief; if they are fierce they attack even the people of the house. It is enough that they should be stern but not fawning, so that they sometimes look even upon their companions in servitude with a somewhat wrathful eye, while they always blaze with anger against strangers. Above all they should be seen to be vigilant in their watch and not given to wandering, but diligent and cautious rather than rash; for the cautious do not give the alarm unless they have discovered something for certain, whereas the rash are aroused by any vain noise and groundless suspicion. I have thought it necessary to mention these points, because it is not nature alone but education as well which forms character, so that, when there is an opportunity of buying a dog, we may choose one with these qualities and that when we are going to train dogs which have been born at home, we may bring them up on such principles as these. It does not matter much if farm-yard dogs are heavily built and lack speed, since they have to function rather at close quarters and where they are posted than at a distance and over a wide area; for they should always remain round the enclosures and within the buildings, indeed they ought never go out farther from home and can perfectly well carry out their duties by cleverly scenting out anyone who approaches and frightening him by barking and not allowing him to come any nearer, or, if he insists on approaching, they violently attack him. Their first duty is not to allow themselves to be attacked, their second duty to defend themselves with courage and pertinacity if they are provoked. So much for the dogs which guard the house; our next subject is sheep-dogs. A dog which is to guard cattle ought not to be as lean and swift of foot as one which pursues deer and stags and the swiftest animals, nor so fat and heavily built as the dog which guards the farm and granary, but he must, nevertheless, be strong and to a certain extent prompt to act and vigorous, since the purpose for which he is acquired is to pick quarrels and to fight and also to move quickly, since he has to repel the stealthy lurking of the wolf and to follow the wild beast as he escapes with his prey and make him drop it and to bring it back again. Therefore a dog of a rather long, slim build is better able to deal with these emergencies than one which is short or even squarely built, since, as I have said, sometimes the necessity of pursuing a wild beast with speed demands this. The other joints in sheep-dogs if they resemble the limbs of farm-yard dogs meet with equal approval. Practically the same food should be given to both types of dog. If the farm is extensive enough to support herds of cattle, barley-flour with whey is a suitable food for all dogs without distinction; but if the land is closely planted with young shoots and affords no pasture, they must be given their fill of bread made from emmer or wheaten flour, mixed, however, with the liquid of boiled beans, which must be lukewarm, for, if it is boiling, it causes madness. Neither dogs nor bitches must be allowed to have sexual intercourse until they are a year old; for if they are allowed to do so when they are quite young, it enfeebles their bodies and their strength, and causes them to degenerate mentally. The first puppies which a bitch produces must be taken from her, because at the first attempt she does not nourish them properly and the rearing of them hinders her general bodily growth. Dogs procreate vigorously up to ten years of age, but beyond that they do not seem suitable for covering bitches, for the offspring of an elderly dog turns out to be slow. and lazy. Bitches conceive up to nine years of age, but are not serviceable after the tenth year. Puppies should not be allowed to run loose during the first six months, until they are grown strong, except to join their mother in sport and play; later they should be kept on the chain during the day and let loose at night. We should never allow those whose noble qualities we wish to preserve, to be brought up at the dugs of any strange bitch, since its mother's milk and spirit always does much more to foster the growth of their minds and bodies. But if a bitch which has a litter is deficient in milk, it will be best to provide goats' milk for the puppies until they are four months old. Dogs should be called by names which are not very long, so that each may obey more quickly when he is called, but they should not have shorter names than those which are pronounced in two syllables, a such as the Greek Σκύλαξ (puppy) and the Latin Ferox (savage), the Greek Λάκων (Spartan) and the Latin Celer (speedy) or, for a bitch, the Greek Σπουδή (zeal), Ἀλκή (Valour), 'Ρωμή (strength) or the Latin Lupa (she-wolf), Cerva (hind) and Tigris (tigress). 14 It will be found best to cut the tails of puppies forty days after birth in the following manner: there is a nerve, which passes along through the joints of the spine down to the extremity of the tail; this is taken between the teeth and drawn out a little way and then broken. As a result, the tail never grows to an ugly length and (so many shepherds declare) rabies, a disease which is fatal to this animal, is prevented. b It commonly happens that in the summer the ears of dogs are so full of sores caused by flies, that they often lose their ears altogether. To prevent this, the ears should be rubbed with crushed bitter almonds. If, however, the ears are already covered with sores, it will be found a good plan to drip boiled liquid pitch mixed with lard on the wounds. Ticks also fall off if they are touched with this same preparation; for they ought not to be plucked off by hand, lest, as we have remarked also before, they cause sores. A dog which is infested with fleas should be treated either with crushed cumin mixed in water with the same quantity of hellebore and smeared on, or else with the juice of the snake-like cucumber, or if these are unobtainable, with stale oil-lees poured over the whole body. If a dog is attacked by the scab, gypsum and sesame should be ground together in equal quantities and mixed with liquid pitch and smeared on the part affected; this remedy is reported to be suitable also for human beings. If this plague has become rather violent, it is got rid of by the juice of the cedar-tree. The other diseases of dogs will have to be treated according to the instructions which we have given for the other animals. So much for the lesser domestic animals. In the next book we will give instructions about the keeping of live stock at the farm-house, which includes the care of fowls, fish and four-footed wild creatures. > Latin: 11. Castrationis autem in1 hoc pecore duo tempora servantur, veris et autumni: et eius administrandae duplex ratio. Prima illa, quam iam tradidi-mus, cum duobus vulneribus impressis per unamquamque plagam singuli exprimuntur testiculi. Altera est speciosior, sed magis periculosa, quam tamen non omittam. Cum virilem partem unam ferro reseratam pollicitus, de mutis custodibus loquar; quamquam canis falso dicitur mutus custos. Nam quis hominum clarius aut tanta vociferatione bestiam vel furem praedicat, quam iste latratu? quis famulus amantior domini? quis fidelior comes? quis custos incorruptior? quis excubitor inveniri potest vigilantior? quis denique ultor aut vindex constantior? Quare vel in primis hoc animal mercari tuerique debet agricola, quod et villam et fructus familiamque et pecora custodit. Eius autem parandi tuendique triplex ratio est. Namque unum genus adversus hominum in pastorali, niger in villatico: nam varius in neutro est laudabilis. Pastor album probat, quoniam est ferae dissimilis, magnoque opus interdum discrimine est in propulsandis lupis sub obscuro mane vel etiam crepusculo, ne pro bestia et circumspecti magis quam temerarii. ferum consequi fugientem praedam excutere atque auferre debeat. Quare status continendi, et noctibus solvendi. Nec unquam eos, quorum generosam stillari conveniet. Hoc eodem Quae fere consummabant, Publi Silvine, ruris experiendi 1 scientiam, quaeque pecuariae negotiationis exigebat ratio, septem memoravimus libris. ## 8. Book VIII Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/8/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/8/#p-N [¶0] 1. We have now, Publius Silvinus, dealt in seven books with what practically constituted a complete account of the science of gaining knowledge of the land and all that was required for the business of raising cattle. Our present book shall bear the next number, eight, for its title, not that the subject of which we are going to speak demands the close and particular attention of the farmer, but because it ought not to be undertaken except in the country and on the farm, and brings benefit to country-folk rather than to town-dwellers. For the keeping of animals at the farm, as of cattle on the pasture, brings no small profit to farmers, since they use the dung of fowls to doctor the leanest vines and every kind of young tree and every kind of soil, and with the fowls themselves they enrich the family kitchen and table by providing rich fare; and, lastly, with the price which they obtain by selling animals they increase the revenue of the farm. Therefore I have thought it fitting that I should speak also of the keeping of this kind of animal. But it is generally carried on either at the farm or in its neighbourhood. At the farm there are what the Greeks call ὀρνιθῶνες and περιστερεῶνες (poultry-houses and dovecotes), and also, where a supply of water is available, ἰχθυοτροφεῖα (fish-ponds), the management of which requires unremitting care. All these, to use by preference the terms employed in our own language, are enclosures for farm-yard fowls and likewise for birds which are fattened in coops, or else for aquatic animals. On the other hand, in the neighbourhood of the farm μελισσῶνες and χηνοτροφεῖα (bee-hives and goose-pens) find their place, and there are also carefully managed λαγοτροφεῖα (feeding-places for hares). To these we give a set of similar names, speaking of apiaries, where bees are lodged, aviaries for swimming birds which take their pleasure in pools and fish-ponds, and vivaria for wild creatures which are confined in enclosed woodlands. First then I will give instructions about the creatures which are fed within the precincts of the farm. With regards to other animals it may perhaps be doubted whether country people should possess them; but the keeping of hens by farmers is quite a general practice. They fall into three classes, the farm-yard fowl, the " rustic "-hen a and the African fowl. The farm-yard fowl is the bird commonly to be seen on almost every farm. The " rustic "-cock which is not very different from the farm-yard bird and is caught by the wiles of the fowler, is found in the greatest number in the island in the Ligurian sea to which sailors have given the name Gallinaria, b a lengthened form of the Latin word for hen. The African fowl, c which most people call Numidian, resembles the meleagris, d except that it has on its head a red helmet and crest, both of which are blue on the meleagris. Of these three kinds the female farm-yard fowls alone are properly called hens, its males being called cocks and the half-males capons; they are given this name because they have been castrated to rid them of sexual desire. They do not, however, suffer castration by the loss of their, genital organs but by having their spurs burnt with a red-hot iron; when these have been consumed by the force of the fire, they are smeared with potter's clay until the sores which have been caused heal up. The profit from keeping the farm-yard type of fowl is not to be despised if a scientific method of rearing them is put into operation, which most of the Greeks and in particular the people of Delos have made famous. The Greeks, however, since they desired height of body and determined courage in the fray, esteemed most highly the Tanagran a and Rhodian breeds and likewise the Chalcidian b and Median c (called by the ignorant vulgar Melian, d by the change of one letter). We take most pleasure in our own native breed; however, we lack the zeal displayed by the Greeks who prepared the fiercest birds they could find for contests and fighting. Our aim is to establish a source of income for an industrious master of a house, not for a trainer of quarrelsome birds, whose whole patrimony, pledged in a gamble, generally is snatched from him by a victorious fighting e-cock. He, therefore, who shall be minded to follow our instructions, should consider first with how many and what kind of breeding-hens he ought to provide himself, and then how he ought to look after and feed them; next, at what seasons of the year he ought to reserve the eggs which they produce; then he should arrange for their setting and hatching, and finally take thought for the proper rearing of the chickens. For it is by attention to these points and management that the business of poultry-keeping, which the Greeks call ὀρνιθοτροφία (bird-rearing), is carried out. Two hundred head are the limit which should be acquired fully to employ the care of one person to feed them, provided, however, that an industrious old woman or a boy be set to watch over the fowls which go astray, so that they may not be carried off by the wiles of men or of animals which lie in wait for them. Further only the most prolific fowls should be bought. They should have red or darkish plumage and black wings; and, if this is possible, they should be chosen of the latter colour all over and of the nearest colour to it. Failing these colours, white hens should be avoided; for, while they are delicate and not very long-lived, it is also not easy to find white fowls which are prolific: also, being conspicuous owing to their remarkably light colour they are rather often carried off by hawks and eagles. Let your brood-hens, therefore, be of a red colour, square-built, big-breasted, with large heads, straight, red crests, white ears; they should be the largest obtainable which present this appearance and should not have an even number of claws. Those are reckoned the best-bred which have five toes a but without any cross-spurs projecting from their legs; for a hen which has this masculine characteristic is refractory and disdains to admit the male to intercourse and is rarely prolific, and, when she does sit, breaks the eggs with the sharp points of her spurs. It is advisable not to keep any but the most salacious cock-birds and the same colour as in hens, and the same number of claws is looked for in them, but a loftier stature. Their crest should be high, blood-red and not crooked, their eyes darkish or tending towards black, their beaks short and hooked, their ears very large and white, their wattles bright-red tending towards white and hanging down like grey beards, their head-feathers of different colours or gold shading into yellow and extending over their throats and necks on to their shoulders. Their chests should be broad and muscular, their wings brawny and like arms, and their tails very prominent and divided into two halves, bending over with a single projecting feather on each side. They should also have huge thighs, thickly covered with bristling feathers; their legs should be robust but not long, and armed for offence with what may be described as stakes ready for the attack. These male birds, though they are not being trained for fighting and the glory of winning prizes, are, nevertheless, esteemed as well-bred if they are proud, lively, watchful and ready to crow frequently and not easily to be frightened; for on occasion they have to act on the defensive and protect their flock of wives, nay, even to slay a snake which rears its threatening head or some other hurtful animal. For such male birds as these five hens each are provided. Of the Rhodian and Median breeds the father-birds are not very salacious on account of their heavy build, nor are the mother-birds very prolific: however, three hens are mated with each cock-bird. And when they have laid a few eggs, they are lazy about sitting on them and much more so about hatching them, and they rarely bring up their own offspring. Those, therefore, whose hearts are set on possessing these breeds on account of their fine appearance, when they have set aside the eggs of the well-bred hens, put them under ordinary hens, in order that the chickens when they are hatched may be brought up by the latter. Tanagran fowls, which are usually equal in size to the Rhodian and Median, do not differ greatly from our native fowls in disposition, and the same is true of the Chalcidian. But of all these breeds the cross-bred chickens are the best, which our own hens have produced after conceiving them by foreign male birds; for they show the fine appearence of their fathers and their own native salaciousness and productivity. I do not highly commend bantam-hens either for their fecundity or for any other return which they give—unless one takes a pleasure in their low stature—just as indeed I do not commend the bantam-cock either, which is given to fighting and whose lust makes him quarrelsome. For it generally attacks the other cock-birds and does not allow them to cover the hens, though it cannot itself suffice for a large number of-hens. Its petulance, therefore, must be checked by means of a piece of leather from an old flask, of which, after it has been formed into a round shape, the middle part is cut away and the cock's foot is inserted through this cut-out part, and by this kind of shackle its fierce disposition is restrained. But, as I proposed, I will now give directions for the care of poultry in general. Hen-houses should be placed in the part of the farm which faces the rising sun in winter and should adjoin the oven or the kitchen, so that the smoke, which is particularly beneficial to this kind of animal, may reach the fowls. Three adjacent cells are constructed to form the whole building or poultry-house and, as I have said, their continuous front should face the east. In this front there should be one small entrance provided leading into the middle cell, which in itself should be the smallest of the three, being seven feet in height and in its other dimensions. In this cell entrances should be made in the right and left party walls, one leading to each of the other two cells and adjoining the wall which faces those who enter the central cell. To this wall a hearth should be fixed of such a length as not to block the entrances already mentioned and to allow the smoke from it to penetrate into each of the other two cells. These latter should have a length and height of twelve feet and no more breadth than the middle cell. The height should be divided up by lofts with four unoccupied feet above them and seven below, since they themselves take up one foot. Both lofts ought to be used to accommodate the hens and should each be lighted by a small window on the east side, which may also provide the birds with a means of exit in the morning into the poultry-yard and a means of entrance in the evening; but care must be taken that they are always kept closed at night that the fowls may remain in greater safety. Below the lofts larger windows should be opened up and secured with lattice-work, that harmful animals may not be able to creep in, but at the same time so constructed that the interior may be well lighted, so that the poultry-keeper, who ought from time to time to keep an eye upon the hens when they are sitting and hatching their young, may more conveniently visit them. For in the hen-houses themselves too the walls should be built so thick as to allow nesting-places for the hens to be cut out of them in a row, where either the eggs may be laid or the chickens hatched; for this is both healthier and neater than what some people do when they forcibly drive pegs into the walls and support wicker-work baskets on them. But in front of either the walls which have been hollowed, as we have described, or of the wicker-work basket, porches must be placed through which the breeding-hens may reach their nests for the purpose of either laying eggs or sitting on them; for they ought not to fly into the nests themselves, lest, as they leap into them, they break the eggs with their feet. Next a means of ascent for the hens to the lofts across each of the cells is provided by attaching to the wall moderately sized planks which are roughened a little by having steps made on them, so that the hens may not find them slippery when they fly on to them. Similarly little ladders should be attached on the outside leading from the poultry-yard to the little windows mentioned above, by which the birds may creep in for their nightly repose. But we shall take particular care that these poultry-houses and those about which we shall be speaking presently, are made smooth, within and without, with plaster-work, so that no cat or snake may have access to the fowls and that equally hurtful pests may be kept away. It is not expedient that the hen should rest on a loft's floor when it is asleep, lest it be harmed by its own dung, because this, if it has adhered to its crooked feet, causes gout. That this calamity may be avoided, perches should be hewn square lest their rounded smoothness should fail to give the bird a good hold when it springs up. After being squared the poles should be fixed in holes in two walls which face one another, so that they may be a foot in height above the loft floor and two feet in breadth away from one another. Such will be the arrangement of the hen-house in the poultry-yard. But the poultry-yard itself, through which the hens wander, should be free not so much from dung as from moisture; for it is extremely important that there should be no water in it except in one place, namely, the water for them to drink and that water should be very clean (for water which has dung in it gives fowls the pip), yet you cannot keep it clean unless it is enclosed in vessels made for the purpose. But there are leaden troughs which are filled with either water or food, and it has been found that they are more useful than troughs of wood or pottery. These are closed by having lids placed over them and are pierced with small holes above the middle of their height a palm's breadth apart from one another and large enough to admit the birds' heads. For if they are not provided with covers, any small quantities of water or food that is inside is swept out by the birds' feet. Some people make holes above in the top part of the covers themselves; this should not be done, for the bird leaping on the top befouls the food and water with its excrement. The best foods to be given to hens are bruised barley and grape-husks, likewise chick-pea and also millet and panic-grass, but these last two only when the low price of cereals permits. When cereals are dearer, small refuse a from wheat is a convenient food to give; for this grain by itself, even in places where it is very cheap, is not a suitable food because it is injurious to fowls. Boiled darnel can also be put before them and likewise bran if only partly separated from the meal; for if there is no meal with the food, it is not suitable nor have they much appetite for it, though they be hungry. The leaves and seeds of the shrub-trefoil are very highly approved and are greatly appreciated by fowls, and there is no region in which it is not possible to find a very great abundance of this shrub. Grape-husks, although they tolerate them as food, should not be given to fowls except at times of year when they are not laying; for they cause them to lay seldom and only small eggs. But when they obviously stop laying after the autumn, they can be kept on this food. Whatever food is to be given them when they are loose in the poultry-yard should be distributed in two parts, one when day is beginning and the other when it has already declined towards evening, so that in the morning they may not immediately wander too far away from their sleeping-quarters and that they may return before dusk to the poultry-house in better time in hopes of finding food there, and that the number of head may be verified more often. For winged creatures easily delude the watchfulness of the man who looks after them. Dry dust and ashes should be placed near the party walls wherever a porch or a roof shelters the poultry-yard, so that the birds may have the means to sprinkle themselves; for it is with these that they clean their feathers and wings; if we believe Heraclitus a the Ephesian who says that pigs wash themselves with mud, farm-yard fowls with dust or ashes. A hen ought to be let out after the first hour of the day and be shut up again before the eleventh hour. Its manner of life when it is let loose will be as we have described, and it will be no different when it is shut up except that it is not allowed to go out but is kept within the hen-house and fed three times a day with a larger quantity of food; for the daily ration is four cyathi per head, whereas that of the wandering bird is only two cyathi. A bird which is shut up, however, should have a spacious portico to which it can go out and bask in the sun; and this should be protected with nets, so that no eagle or hawk can fly in. It is only worth while to go to these expenses and to take these precautions in places where the prices of hens and their produce are high. But in the keeping of fowls, as of all domestic animals, the most important thing is that the man who looks after them should be trustworthy, for, unless he is faithful to his master, the profit from the poultry-house will not surpass the cost. Enough has now been said about the management of hens; we will now pursue the other topics in order. When midwinter is over, this kind of bird is generally wont to lay. In warmer places the most prolific hens begin laying eggs about the first of January, but in colder regions after the 13th of the same month. But their productivity must be encouraged by suitable food to make them lay earlier. The best food to give them is their fill of half-cooked barley; for it both increases the size of the eggs and makes them lay more often. But this food must be seasoned, as it were, by throwing into it the leaves and seed of shrub-trefoil, which are thought greatly to increase the productivity of birds. The quantity of food, as I have said, should be two cyathi of barley per hen if they are allowed to wander freely, but some shrub-trefoil should be mixed with it, or, if this is not available, vetch or millet. The keeper will have to take care that the hens, when they are breeding, have their nests strewn with the cleanest possible straw, and he must sweep them out from time to time and put in other litter which is as fresh as possible. For the nests become full of fleas and other similar creatures which the hen brings with it when it returns to the same nest. The keeper ought also to be continually on the look-out for hens which are laying, a fact to which they bear witness by frequent cackling interrupted by shrill cries. He will have to watch until they produce eggs and then immediately go round the nests so that the eggs which have been laid may be collected and a record taken to show the number which have been laid each day and that the freshest possible eggs may be put under the clucking hens, for this is what country-folk call those birds which wish to sit. The rest should either be stored or else turned into money. Furthermore, the freshest eggs are most suitable for hatching; those, however, which have been kept for some time can also be set, provided that they are not more than ten days old. Hens which have completed their first clutch of eggs generally want to sit from January the 13th onwards; but they must not all be allowed to do so, since young pullets are more useful for laying eggs than for hatching them, and their desire to sit is checked by passing a small feather through their nostrils. Veteran fowls, therefore, will have to be chosen for the task of sitting, which have already done so frequently, and their disposition must be fully known since some hens are better at hatching the chickens and others are more suitable for bringing them up when they have been hatched. Some hens, on the other hand, break and consume both their own and other hens' eggs; any hen which does this will have to be got rid of immediately. The chickens of two or three hens, when they have been hatched and are still very young, should be transferred to one mother, whichever is the best nurse; but this must always be done the very first day while the mother, owing to their similarity, is unable to distinguish her own young and those of other hens. A limit, however, must be observed, which ought not to be more than thirty head; for it is said that a larger flock than this cannot be cared for by a single hen. The rule is observed of putting an uneven number of eggs under a hen, but it is not always the same number. At the first setting, that is, in the month of. January, fifteen eggs, and never more, ought to be set, in March nineteen and never less: in April, twenty-one, and the same number throughout the summer until October 1st. a After this date any attention given to the matter of hatching is useless, because, owing to the cold, the chickens generally die as soon as they are hatched. Most people, however, do not think that it is good to hatch chickens after the summer solstice, because from that time onwards, even though it is easy to rear them, they never come to their proper growth; but in the neighbourhood of towns, where chickens are sold at a high price straight from their mother's care, summer rearing is to be approved. When eggs are being put under a hen, care should always be taken that this is done when the moon is increasing, namely, from the tenth to the fifteenth day of the month; for the actual placing of the eggs is most convenient somewhere about this time, and it is necessary to arrange that the moon is increasing again when the chickens are hatched. It takes twenty-one days for the eggs to become quickened and take on the form of birds in the case of farm-yard poultry, but for peacocks and geese rather more than twenty-seven days are required. If ever it should be necessary to put the eggs of the two latter species under ordinary hens, we shall allow them to sit first for ten days on the eggs of these alien birds, and then they will be given four eggs of their own kind to sit upon, and never more than five. These must be as large as possible; for from undersized eggs only very small birds are produced. Next, when anyone wishes as many male chickens as possible to be hatched, he will set the longest and most pointed eggs; if, on the other hand, he wants female chickens, he should set the roundest eggs. The following is the usual method of placing eggs as handed down by those who are most scrupulous in the way they manage such matters. First of all they choose the most retired nesting-boxes, so that the brooding hens may not be disturbed by other fowls; then, before they strew anything in them, they cleanse them carefully and purify the chaff which they are going to put under the hens with sulphur and bitumen and a burning torch, and when they have thus purged it they throw it into the nest-boxes, making the nest hollow so that the eggs may not roll out and fall when the hens fly in or leap down. Very many people also lay a little grass under the litter in the nest-boxes and small branches of bay and also fasten underneath heads of garlic with iron nails, all of which things are regarded as preservatives against thunder by which the eggs are spoilt and the half-formed chickens killed before they can reach complete perfection in all their parts. The man who places the eggs is careful not to place them one by one in the nest-box by hand, but should collect the complete number in a wooden basin and gently pour the whole clutch into the nest ready prepared. Food must be placed near the hens when they are sitting, so that, being well satisfied, they may be more eager to remain on their nests and may not wander too far away and let the eggs grow cold. Though the hens themselves turn the eggs with their feet, the keeper of the poultry, when the hens have leaped down, should go round and turn the eggs by hand, so that they may easily be quickened, receiving heat equally all over, and also that he may remove any eggs which have been damaged or broken by the hen's claws. After doing this for eighteen days, on the nineteenth he should look and see whether the chickens have broken through the eggs with their little beaks and listen whether they are peeping; for often, because of the thickness of the shells, they cannot break their way out. He will, therefore, have to remove with his hand the chickens which are stuck in the shell and put them under their mother to be kept warm, and he should do this for not more than three days, for after the twenty-first day the eggs which are silent have no living creature in them and must be removed, so that the hen may not be kept sitting any longer after the hatching is over, deluded by vain hope. Chickens should not be removed one by one as they are hatched but should be allowed to remain in the nest for one day with their mother and should be kept without water or food until they are all hatched. On the next day, when the brood is complete, it should be brought down from the nest in the following manner. The chickens should be placed in a sieve made of vetch or darnel, which has already been in use, and they should then be fumigated with sprigs of penny royal a; this seems to prevent the pip, which very quickly kills them when they are young. After this they must be shut up in a coop with their mother and given a moderately large feeding of boiled barley-flour with water or flour of two-grained wheat sprinkled with wine. For above all things indigestion must be avoided, and so on the third day they should be kept in the coop with their mother and before they are let out for fresh food, they should each be examined separately to see if they still have any of the previous day's food in their gorge; for if the crop is not empty, this is a sign of indigestion and they ought to be kept away from food until digestion has taken place. While they are very young, chickens should not be allowed to wander too far but should be kept in the neighbourhood of the coop and fed on barley-meal until they are strong, and care must be taken that they are not breathed upon by snakes, whose odour is so pestilential that it kills them all off. This is prevented by frequently burning hart's-horn or galbanum b or women's hair; by the fumes from all these things the aforesaid pest is generally kept away. Care will also have to be taken that they are kept moderately warm; for they do not bear extreme heat or cold. It is best that they should be kept shut up in the hen-house with their mother and be given full liberty to wander abroad only after forty days. But in the first days of what may be called their infancy they should be held in the hands and the little feathers under their tails should be plucked from their buttocks, lest they become befouled with dung and grow hard and so block the natural passages. It often happens, however, in spite of the precautions taken, that the bowels have no exit; a perforation is, therefore, made and a passage thus opened for the digested food. Often too when the chickens have already grown stronger they will have to avoid the fatal disease of the pip, as also will their mothers. To prevent it, we shall give them the purest possible water in the cleanest possible vessels, and we shall also frequently fumigate the hen-houses and keep them cleansed from dung. Some people, if the pestilence persists, moisten morsels of garlic with warm oil and insert them in their throats. Others wet their mouths with warm human urine and keep them closed until the bitter taste of the urine forces them to expel through their nostrils the nauseous matter produced by the pip. The berry also, which the Greeks call the “wild grape,” is beneficial mixed with their food, or else pounded up and given them in water to drink. These remedies are given only to those who are suffering just to a slight degree; if the pip surrounds the eyes and the fowl now rejects its food, its cheeks are cut with a lancet and all the diseased matter collected under the eyes is pressed out, and then a little pounded salt is rubbed into the wounds. Further, this disease chiefly arises when the fowls are suffering from the cold and from poor feeding, and also when, during the summer, water standing in the poultry-yard is drunk, and, again, when they are allowed to eat figs and unripe grapes and not to take their fill of them, foods from which fowls should certainly be kept away. A method of making them loathe them is to pick the wild grapes from the bushes while they are still unripe and put them before them when they are hungry cooked with fine wheat-meal, for being disgusted by the taste the birds refuse every kind of grape. A similar method can be employed also with the wild-fig, which being cooked with their food and given to the birds, creates a distaste for figs also. A practice too, which is employed for all other livestock, of choosing the better and selling the worse should be observed also in the case of poultry, in order that annually during the autumn, when they cease to be productive, their number may be diminished. We shall get rid of the old hens, that is, those which are more than three years old, also those which are not very prolific or are not very good nurses, and, above all, those which eat their own and other hens' eggs, likewise also those which are beginning to crow like cocks or even to strut about, and also late-born chickens, which have been hatched from the solstice onwards and could not reach their full growth. The same system will not be observed for the cock-birds, but we shall keep those which are well-bred as long as they can impregnate the hens; for good quality in a mating male is rather rare among these birds. Also at the time when the hens cease to lay, that is, from the 13th of November, the more expensive food must be withheld and grape-husks be supplied, which form quite a suitable diet, if refuse from wheat is added from time to time. > Latin: 1. Hic nunc sequentis numeri titulum possidebit: nec 2 quia proximam propriamque rustici curam desiderent ea, quae dicturi sumus, sed quia non alio loco, quam in agris aut villis debeant administrari, et tamen agrestibus magis, quam urbanis prosint. Quippe villaticae pastiones, sicut pecuariae, non minimam colono stipem conferunt, cum et avium stercore macerrimis vineis et omni surculo atque arvo medeantur; et eisdem familiarem focum sunt omnia, ut Latine potius loquamur, sicut avium cohortalium stabula, nec minus earum, quae conclavibus saeptae saginantur, vel aquatilium animalium receptacula. Rursus circa villam ponuntur μελισσῶνεσ καὶ χηνοτροφεῖα, quin etiam λαγοτροφεῖα studiose administrantur, quae nos similiter appellamus apum cubilia, apiaria, vel nantium volucrum, quae stagnis piscinisque laetantur, aviaria, vel etiam pecudum silvestrium, quae nemoribus clausis custodiuntur, vivaria. Prius igitur de his praecipiam, quae intra saepta villae pascuntur.1 Ac de aliis quidem forsitan ambigatur,2 an sint agrestibus possidenda: gallinarum vero plerumque agricolae cura solennis est. Earum genera sunt vel cohortalium,3 vel rusticarum vel Africanarum. Cohortalis est avis, quae vulgo per omnes fere villas conspicitur: rustica, quae non dissimilis villaticae per aucupem decipitur, eaque plurima est in insula, quam nautae in Ligustico mari sitam producto nomine alitis Gallinariam vocitaverunt: Africana est, quam plerique Numidicam dicunt, Meleagridi similis, nisi quod rutilam galeam et cristam capite vocantur, cum sunt castrati libidinis abolendae causa. Nec tamen id patiuntur amissis genitalibus, sed ferro candente calcaribus inustis, quae cum ignea vi consumpta sunt, facta ulcera dum consanescant, figulari creta linuntur. Huius igitur villatici generis non spernendus est reditus, si adhibeatur educandi scientia, quam plerique Graecorum et praecipue celebravere Deliaci. Sed et hi, quoniam procera corpora et animos operam dare. His enim curis et ministeriis exercetur ratio cohortalis, quam Graeci vocant ὀρνιθοτροφίαν. Parandi autem modus est ducentorum capitum, quae pastoris unius curam dispendant1: dum tamen anus sedula vel puer adhibeatur custos vagantium, ne obsidiis hominum, aut insidiatorum Gallinaceos mares nisi salacissimos habere non expedit. Atque in his quoque sicut in feminis, idem color, idemque numerus unguium, status altior quaeritur: sublimes, sanguineaeque, nec obliquae cristae: ravidi, raro fetus suos educant. Itaque quibus cordi est ea genera propter corporum speciem possidere, cum exceperunt ova generosarum, vulgaribus gallinis subiciunt, ut ab his exclusi generi praecipue salutaris. Totius autem officinae, id est ornithonis, tres continuae extruuntur cellae, quarum, sicuti dixi, perpetua frons orienti ut excisa per ordinem gallinarum cubilia recipiant: in quibus aut ova edantur, aut excludantur pulli: hoc enim et salubrius et elegantius est, quam illud, quod quidam faciunt, ut, palis in parietes vehementer actis vimineos qualos superimponant. deinde foratis duobus adversis parietibus induuntur, decoctum obici, nec minus furfures modice a farina excreti: qui si nihil habent farris, non sunt idonei, nec tantum appetuntur iciunis. Cytisi folia semina-que maxime probantur, et sunt huic generi gratissima: neque est ulla regio, in qua non possit erit: nec tamen alius clausae, nisi quod ea non emittitur sed intra ornithonem ter die pascitur maiore mensura. Nam singulis capitibus quaterni cyathi diurna cibaria sunt, cum vagis cytisi, vel si id non fuerit, viciae aut mihi. Curae autem debebit esse custodi, cum parturient aves, ut habeant quam mundissimis paleis constrata cubilia, eaque excludunt, aliae editos pullos commodius educant. locis, ubi a matre pulli non exiguis pretiis veneunt, probanda est aestiva educatio. Semper autem, cum supponuntur ova, considerari debet, ut luna crescente a decima usque ad quintamdecimam id fiat. Nam et ipsa suppositio per hos fere dies est commodissima; et sic administrandum est, ut rursus cum excluduntur pulli, luna crescat. Diebus quibus animantur ova, et in speciem volucrum conformantur, ter septenis opus est gallinaceo generi. At pavonino cubilibus iniciunt, ita factis concavatis nidis, ne advolantibus aut desilientibus evoluta decidant ova. Plurimi etiam infra cubilium stramenta graminis aliquid et ramulos lauri, nec minus alii capita cum clavis ferreis subiciunt: quae cuncta remedio creduntur esse adversus tonitrua, quibus vitiantur ova, pullique semiformes interimuntur antequam toti partibus suis consummentur. Servat autem qui subicit, bus: eaque removenda sunt, ne incubans inani spe diutius detineatur submovetur. Sed et curandum erit, ut tepide habeantur. Nam nec calorem nec frigus sustinent. Optimumque est intra officinam clausos haberi cum matre, et post quadragesimum diem potestatem vagandi fieri. Sed primis quasi infantiae diebus pertractandi sunt, plumulaeque sub cauda clunibus triti salis vulneribus infricatur. cum parere desinent aves, id est, ab idibus Novembribus pretiosiores cibi subtrahendi sunt, et vinacea praebenda, quae satis commode pascunt, adiectis interdum tritici excrementis. [¶1] 6. The keeping of eggs over a longer period is also germane to the subject which we are now considering. In winter they are conveniently preserved if you bury them in chaff, in summer if you put them in bran. Some people cover them first for six hours with pounded salt; next they wash them and then bury them in chaff or bran. Some people cover them with a heap of whole beans, many with a heap of bruised beans; others bury them in unpounded salt: others harden them in lukewarm brine. But salt in any form, although it does not allow the eggs to rot, shrinks them and prevents them from remaining full: and this is a deterrent to the purchaser. Thus even those who plunge the eggs in brine do not completely preserve their original condition. Although it is the business of the poulterer rather than of the farmer to fatten hens, yet, since it is not a difficult task, I thought that I ought to give directions on the subject. A spot is required for this purpose which is very warm and has very little light, where the birds may be hung, shut up each separately in rather narrow coops or plaited cages and confined in so close a space that they cannot turn round. They should, however, have holes on either side, one through which they can put out their head and the other through which they can put out their tail and hind-quarters, so that they may be able both to take their food and also get rid of it when it has been digested and so may not be befouled with dung. Very clean chaff should be spread under them or soft hay, that is, hay of the second crop; for if their bed is hard they do not easily fatten. All the feathers should be cleared away from their heads and under their wings and hind-quarters, from the head and wings so that they may not breed lice, and from their hind-quarters so that sores may not be caused by dung in the private parts. Barley-meal is given as food, which, sprinkled with water and kneaded, is formed into pellets with which the birds are crammed. They should, however, be given somewhat sparingly for the first few days, until they become accustomed to digest more of this food; for indigestion must above all things be avoided and only as much given them as they can assimilate; nor ought fresh food be put before them until it is apparent, from feeling the crop, that none of the old food has remained behind. Then, when the bird has had its fill, the coop is lowered a little and the bird is let out, not in order that it may wander at will but rather that it may pursue with its beak anything that stings or bites it. The latter is the common precaution taken by fatteners of birds: but those who wish to make the birds not only plump but also tender, sprinkle meal of the kind already mentioned with fresh honey-water and then cram them with it. Some people mix one part of good wine with three parts of water and fatten the bird with wheaten-bread soaked in it. If the process of cramming is begun at the new moon (for this date too should be observed), the fowl is quite fat by the twentieth day: but, if it takes a dislike to its food, you will have to lessen the amount for the same number of days as the cramming has already proceeded, but only provided that the whole period of fattening does not go beyond the twenty-fifth day of the lunar period. It is very important that all the biggest fowls should be reserved for the more sumptuous feasts; for thus a worthy recompense attends one's trouble and expense. > Latin: 6. Ovorum quoque longioris temporis custodia non aliena est huic curae: quae commode servantur per hiemem, si paleis obruas, aestate, si furfuribus. Quidam prius trito sale sex horis adoperiunt: deinde eluunt, atque ita paleis aut furfuribus obruunt. Nonnulli solida, multi etiam fresa faba coaggerant: alii salibus integris adoperiunt: alii muria tepefacta durant. Sed omnis sal, autem mundissima palea, vel molle fenum, id est, cordum. Nam si dure cubant, non facile pinguescunt. Pluma omnis e capite et sub alis atque clunibus de-tergetur: illic, ne pediculum creet; hic, ne stercore loca naturalia exulceret. Cibus autem praebetur hordeacea farina, quae cum est processerint: ita tamen, ne tempus omne opimandi quintam et vicesimam lunam superveniat. Antiquissimum est autem maximam quamque avem lautioribus epulis destinare. Sic enim digna merces sequitur operam et impensam. [¶2] 8. The same method is successfully employed to make wood-pigeons and house-pigeons that live in dovecots very plump; there is, however, not so much profit in cramming pigeons as in just rearing them; for mere possession of them is not unworthy of the attention of a good farmer. The feeding of this kind of bird too requires less supervision in distant parts of the country where they can be allowed free egress, for they frequent the haunts assigned to them on the tops of towers or on very lofty buildings with ever-open windows through which they fly forth to seek their food. Nevertheless for two or three months in the year they welcome food from the store-house, while during the other months they feed themselves on seeds picked up in the fields. But in regions near a city they cannot do this because they are caught by the various snares of the bird-catchers. They ought, then, to be shut up and fed under cover; and on the farm they should not be kept in a part of the farm-house which is level with the ground or cold, but a loft should be constructed for them in an elevated position to face the midday sun in winter; a and, that we may not repeat the instructions already given, the walls, as we described in speaking of the hen-house, should be hollowed to form a row of sleeping-places: or, if this is not convenient, pegs should be driven into the walls and boards placed upon them to hold lockers, in which the hens may nest, or earthenware dovecots with porches in front of them through which they may reach their sleeping-quarters. The whole place and the pigeon-cells themselves ought to be finished off with white plaster, since birds of this kind take a special pleasure in that colour; also the walls ought to be made smooth outside, particularly round the window, which should be so placed as to admit the sun for the greater part of a winter's day and should have adjoining it a fairly large pen, protected by nets to keep out hawks, which may accommodate the doves when they come out to bask in the sun; through this also the mother-birds, which are sitting on their eggs or their squabs, can be let out into the fields, so that they may not become prematurely aged through the depression caused by the grievous servitude of perpetual imprisonment; for when they have fluttered about a little round the farm-buildings, they are exhilarated and refreshed and return invigorated to their young, for whose sake they make no attempt to wander far afield or escape by flight. The vessels in which water is provided should be like those used for fowls, so constructed as to admit the necks of those which drink from them and too narrow to allow the entrance of those which wish to wash in them; for to do so is not good either for the eggs or the young, sitting on which they spend most of their time. It will be found a good plan that their food should be scattered near the wall, since generally those parts of the dove-house are free from dung. Vetch or bitter-vetch and next in order lentils and millet and darnel are considered to be the most suitable foods, likewise the refuse from wheat, also any other kinds of pulse on which hens too are fed. The place ought to be swept and cleaned out from time to time; for the better it is looked after, the more cheerful is the appearance of the bird, and so squeamish is it that it often takes a dislike to its own home and abandons it if it is given the opportunity to fly away. This is wont to happen often in districts where the birds are allowed free egress. For the prevention of such an escape, there is an ancient precept of Democritus. There is a kind of hawk which the country-folk call a tinnunculus (kestrel) and which generally makes its nest in buildings. The young of this bird are enclosed separately in earthenware pots, and while they are still breathing, lids are put over the pots which are smeared with plaster and hung up in the corners of the pigeon-houses. This induces in the birds such a love for the place that they never desert it. For the rearing of the young chicks female birds must be chosen which are neither old nor too young, but they should be very large, and care must be 1 taken that, if possible, the chicks should never be separated but be kept together as they were hatched; for if this principle is observed in mating them, they generally rear larger broods. If this is not done, at any rate birds of different breeds, for example the Alexandrine and the Campanian, should not be mated; for they feel less affection for hen-birds unlike themselves and so have little intercourse with them and do not often produce offspring. The same colour of plumage is not approved always or by everybody; it is, therefore, not easy to say which is the best. White, which is generally to be seen everywhere, is not.very highly commended by some people; it should not, however, be avoided for birds which are kept in confinement, but for those' which wander freely it is much to be con- demned, because it is very easily espied by a hawk. Fecundity in pigeons, though it is much less than in hens, yet brings in greater profit; for a pigeon, if it is a good breeder, rears eight broods in the year, and so pigeons fill the coffers of their owners with the prices which their young command, as that excellent writer Marcus Varro a assures us, who has recorded that, even in those more austere times, a single pair used to be sold for 1,000 sesterces. It makes us blush for the present generation, if we are willing to believe that people can be found to pay 4,000 nummi for a pair of birds, though I should regard those people who pay great sums in copper and silver for the pleasure which their pets give them merely because they own and possess them, as less insufferable than those who clear of all their birds the river Phasis b in Pontus and the pools of Lake Maeotis c in Scythia; nay, they are now in their drunkenness belching forth birds brought from the Ganges and from Egypt. Nevertheless, the fattening process can also be carried out in this pigeon-house, as has already been said; for if any barren or badly-coloured pigeons occur, they are crammed in the same manner as hens. Young pigeons indeed are more easily fattened under their mothers' care, if when they are already strong but before they begin to fly, you pull out a few of their wing-feathers and crush their legs, that they may remain quiet in one spot, and give plenty of food to the parent-birds with which they may feed themselves and their young more abundantly. Some people bind their legs loosely together, because they think that if they are broken, pain, and consequently emaciation, is caused; but doing so does not contribute at all to their fattening, for, while they are trying to get rid of their bonds, they are never at rest, and by this kind of exercise, as it were, they add nothing to their bulk. Broken legs cause pain for not more than two or at most three days and deprive them of all hope of wandering abroad. > Latin: 8. Hae eadem ratione palumbos columbosque cellares pinguissimos facere contingit: neque est tamen in columbis farciendis tantus reditus, quantus in educandis. Nam etiam horum possessio non abhorret a cura boni rustici. Sed id genus minore tutela pascitur longinquis regionibus, ubi liber egressus avibus permittitur: quoniam vel summis turribus, vel editissimis aedificiis assignatas sedes frequentant patentibus fenestris, per quas ad requirendos cibos evolitant. Duobus tamen aut tribus mensibus acceptant conditiva cibaria, ceteris se ipsas pascunt seminibus agrestibus. Sed hoc suburbanis locis facere non possunt, quoniam intercipiuntur variis aucupum insidiis. Itaque clausae intra tectum pasci debent, nec in plano villae loco, nec in frigido: sed in edito fieri tabulatum oportet, quod aspiciat hibernum meridiem. Eiusque parietes, ne iam dicta iteremus, ut in ornithone praecepimus, continuis cubilibus exeaventur: vel si non ita competit, paxillis adactis tabulae superponantur, quae vel loculamenta, perveniant. Totus autem locus et ipsae columbarum cellae poliri debent albo tectorio, quoniam eo colore praecipue delectatur hoc genus avium. Nec minus extrinsecus levigari parietes, tur, eaque tam fastidiosa est, ut saepe sedes suas perosa, si detur avolandi potestas, relinquat. est improbandus, quod eum facillime speculatur accipiter. Fecunditas autem, quamvis longe minor sit quam est galliarum, maiorem tamen refert quaestum. Nam et octies anno pullos educat, si est bona matrix; et pretiis eorum dominicam quoniam si frangantur, dolorem, et ex eo maciem fieri putant. Sed nihil ista res pinguitudinis efficit. Nam dum vincula exercre conantur, non conquiescunt: et hac quasi exercitatione corpori nihil adiciunt. Fracta crura non plus quam bidui, aut summum tridui dolorem afferunt, et spem tollunt evagandi. [¶3] 9. The rearing of turtle-doves is of no benefit, because this kind of bird neither lays eggs nor hatches its young in an aviary. A flight of them is ready for cramming in the condition in which it is caught, and can on this account be crammed with less trouble than any other bird, not, however, at every time of year. For in the winter, in spite of all the trouble spent upon them, it is difficult to make them grow, and yet the price of turtle-doves is lessened owing to the greater abundance of thrushes. During the summer, on the other hand, the turtle-dove grows fat even of its own accord, provided it has easy means of getting food. Indeed it is only a question of putting food in its way, especially millet, not that it grows less fat on wheat or other cereals but because it takes the greatest pleasure in millet-seed. In winter, however, pellets of bread soaked in wine fatten turtle-doves as well as wood-pigeons more quickly than any other food. People do not construct either pigeon-boxes or hollow cells as receptacles for turtle-doves as for wood-pigeons, but brackets are fixed in a row along a wall and hold small hempen mats with nets spread in front of them, so that the birds are prevented from flying about, because, if they do so, they lose bulk. Here they are constantly fed with millet or wheat; but the grain must not be given them unless it is dry. Half a modius of food every day easily satisfies a hundred and twenty turtle-doves. The purest possible water is always provided in vessels such as are used for pigeons and hens. The mats are kept clean so that the dung does not burn their feet, and the dung should itself be carefully set aside for the cultivation of the fields and trees, as also that of all birds except those which swim. This bird is not so suitable for cramming when it is old as when it is young, and so the choice is made about harvest-time when the young brood has already gained strength. Still more labour and expense is spent on thrushes, which are kept in every country district, but, with greater advantage to their health, in that in which they have been caught; for there are difficulties about moving them elsewhere, because, when they are shut up in cages, most of them become despondent; indeed they do so when they are instantaneously hurled from the net into the aviaries. So, to prevent this, some old thrushes ought to be mixed with them which, having been brought up by the fowlers for this purpose, may serve as decoys for the captives and may mitigate their distress by flying in among them. For in this way wild birds will become used to seeking both their water and their food when they have seen the tame birds doing so. They require a place as well protected and as sunny as wood-pigeons need, but transverse poles are fixed in it fitted into holes pierced in the walls which face one another, on which they may perch when they have had their fill of food and wish to rest. These poles ought not to be raised higher from the ground than a man's height allows, so that they may be within his reach when he is standing up. The food is usually placed in those parts of the aviary which have no perches above them, so that it may remain more clean. Dried figs, carefully crushed and mixed with fine flour, ought always to be provided, so abundantly indeed that some is left over. Some people chew a fig and then offer it to the thrushes; but it is scarcely expedient to do this where the number of thrushes is large, because people to chew the figs cost a good deal to hire and themselves eat an appreciable quantity because of the pleasant taste. Many people think that a variety of food ought to be provided, lest the thrushes take a dislike to a single food. This variety consists in putting before them seeds of myrtle and mastic, also wild olive and ivy berries and likewise the fruit of the strawberry-tree, for these are the things for which this kind of bird generally seeks in the fields, and so they do away with the distaste for food which they feel in their idle captivity in the aviaries and make the bird population there more voracious, which is a great advantage; for the more they eat the quicker they get fat. Little troughs, however, full of millet are always placed near them since it is the most solid part of their diet; for the foods which we have mentioned above are given them as relishes. Vessels for the supply of fresh, clean water should be not unlike those for poultry. Thanks to the expenditure in this way of money and care, so Marcus Terentius informs us, a these birds were often bought for three denarii a piece in our grandfathers' time, when those who celebrated triumphs gave a feast to the people. But at the present day luxury has made this their everyday price; wherefore this source of income must not be despised even by farmers. We have now dealt in general with those kinds of birds which are fed within the precincts of the farm; we must now speak of those which are also given freedom to seek their food in the fields. The rearing of peafowl calls for the attention of the city-dwelling householder rather than of the surly countryman; yet it is not alien to the business of the farmer who aims at the acquisition, from every source, of pleasure with which he beguiles the loneliness of country life; and the elegance of these birds delights even strangers, much more their owners. This breed of birds, therefore, can be easily kept on the small wooded islands which lie off the coast of Italy; for since they cannot fly high or over long distances and since too on these islands there is no fear of their being carried off by a thief or by harmful animals, they can safely wander about without anyone to look after them and acquire most of their food for themselves. The hen-birds, finding themselves as it were released from bondage, of their own accord bring up their young with unusual devotion, and the man in charge of them should have nothing to do except, at a fixed time of day, to give the signal and summon the flock to the neighbourhood of the farm and throw down a small quantity of barley before them as they run to meet him, so that the birds may not be hungry and that the number may be verified of those who come to his call. But the possession of these birds is a rare circumstance and so an unusual amount of care must be exercised in inland districts, and the following procedure must be followed. A flat piece of land covered with grass and trees is enclosed with a high fence to three sides of which galleries are attached, while on the fourth side there are two huts, one for the dwelling-place of the custodian, the other as a peacock-house. Then in the galleries enclosures are made with reeds in a row to form coops such as are placed on the roofs of a pigeon-house. These enclosures are separated from one another by barriers as it were of reeds which run between them, so arranged as to have one entrance on either side. The peacock-house ought to be entirely free from damp, and in the floor short stakes are fixed in a row, the tops of which have carefully hewn tenons for insertion into holes made in the transverse perches. Moreover, these perches which are placed on the top of the stakes are cut square, so that they may give a foothold to a bird when it leaps onto them, but they are made so as to be removable in order that, when it is necessary, they may be detached from the stakes and give free access to those who are sweeping out the peacock-house. This kind of fowl, when it has completed its first three years, breeds excellently, but at a tenderer age it is either sterile or not very prolific. The male bird has the salaciousness of the farmyard cock and so requires five hens; for if it frequently covers one or two of them that have been laying, it spoils eggs which are hardly yet formed in the womb and does not allow them to be brought to birth, since they fall out of the genital parts while they are still immature. In the last part of the winter the desires of both sexes must be kindled by foods which excite lust. The best means to this end is to toast some beans over embers which are not very hot and give them while still warm to the fowls every fifth day on an empty stomach; but you should not go beyond six cyathi to each bird. This food must not be scattered promiscuously to all of them together but must be placed in each of the enclosures, which I had suggested should be made of reeds woven together, a portion having been set aside for five hens and a cock and likewise water which should be suitable for drinking. When this has been done the male birds are driven, without quarrelling, each into its own enclosure together with their hens, and the food is equally distributed over the whole flock. For even among birds of this kind pugnacious males are found which try to deprive those which are weaker than themselves of food and sexual intercourse, if they are not kept apart in this way. Generally in sunny places, when the west winds begin to blow, that is, from the 13th of February until the month of March, a desire for sexual intercourse torments the male birds. It is a sign that a peacock's lust is excited when it covers itself with its bejewelled tail-feathers and seems to be admiring itself; when it does so, it is said to be “forming a wheel.” After the mating season the laying hens must immediately be watched carefully lest they lay their eggs anywhere except in the peacock-house, and the parts of the females must often be felt with the fingers, for, when the time for laying is at hand, they carry their eggs in readiness. When they begin to lay they must be shut up, so that they may not produce their eggs outside the enclosure. Above all during the seasons in which they lay, the peacock-house must be piled high with more straw, the better to ensure that the eggs are delivered intact. For usually peahens, having come to seek rest at night, lay their eggs while they are roosting on the perches, which have already been described, and when the eggs have fallen from a lesser height and more softly, they keep their soundness unimpaired. Every day, therefore, during the period of laying you will have to go carefully round the peacock-houses in the early morning and collect the eggs which are lying about, and the fresher they are when they are set under the hen, the better are the prospects of a good hatch, and that this should be done is very much to the householder's advantage. For peahens which do not sit generally produce three lots of eggs during the year, but those which sit spend the whole period of their productivity in either hatching or even rearing their young. The first laying generally consists of five eggs, the second of four, and the third of either three or two. There, is no reason for making the mistake of letting Rhodian hens incubate peahens' eggs, since they do not even bring up their own offspring properly; but the biggest veteran farmyard-fowls of our native breed should be chosen and should be put to sit upon nine eggs, five of which should be peahen's and the rest ordinary hen's eggs, nine days after the moon's first increase. Then on the tenth day all the hen's eggs should be removed and the same number of fresh eggs of the same kind substituted, that they may be hatched out with the peahen's eggs on the thirtieth day which is about new moon. But it must not escape the keeper's attention to mark the mother-hen when she leaps down and to visit the nest-box frequently and with his hand to turn the peahen's eggs, which on account of their size are more difficult for the farmyard-hen to move; and so that he may carry out this task with greater care, one side of the eggs should be marked with ink and the poultry-man will then have a means of knowing whether the eggs have been turned by the hen. But, as I have said, we must remember that farmyard hens of the greatest possible size are provided for this purpose; and if they are of only moderate build, they ought not to sit upon more than three peahen's eggs and six of their own kind. When the hen has hatched the chickens, the farmyard chickens will have to be transferred to another nurse, and any young peafowls which are hatched from time to time should be collected round one nurse until a flock of twenty-five head is made up. But when the young peafowls are hatched out, on the first day, like farmyard chickens, they should not be moved, but on the following day they should be transferred to a coop with the hen that is to bring them up, and during the first days they should be fed on barley-meal sprinkled with wine and with gruel made from any kind of cereal and allowed to grow cold. Then after a few days a Tarentine leek cut up small should be added to their diet and soft cheese which has been pressed out with great force, for whey is obviously harmful to chickens. Locusts too, whose feet have been removed, are regarded as useful for feeding the peachicks and they ought to eat them until the sixth month; afterwards it is enough to give them barley from the hand. After the thirty-fifth day following their birth they may even be quite safely taken out into a field, and the flock follows the clucking hen as though it were their mother. The latter is shut up in a coop and taken out to the field by the man who feeds them, and when it is let out it is secured by a long line attached to its foot. The chicks flutter round it and, when they have eaten their fili, they are brought back to the farm, following the clucking of their foster-mother, as I have already described. The authorities are pretty well agreed that the other hens which are bringing up chickens of their own kind ought not to be fed in the same place; for when they have seen the little peachicks, they cease to care for their own chickens and abandon them before they reach maturity, evidently hating them because they do not equal the little peachicks either in size or in beauty. The same diseases as usually harm farmyard fowls attack these birds also, and no remedies are applied to them other than those which are administered to ordinary cocks and hens; for the pip and indigestion and any other plagues which occur are checked by the same remedies as we have prescribed. When they have passed the seventh month, they should be shut up with the others in the peacock-house for their night's rest; but care will have to be taken that they do not remain on the ground. Those who go to sleep in this position must be picked up and placed on the perches, so that they may not suffer from the cold. The rearing of guinea-fowls is almost the same as that of peacocks. But woodland hens, which are called " rustic "-fowls, do not breed in captivity, and, therefore, we have no instructions to give about them except that they must be given their fill of food, so that they may be better suited for feasts to which guests are invited. > Latin: 9. Turturum educatio supervacua est: quoniam id genus 1 in ornithone nec parit nec excludit. Vola-tura ita ut capitur, farturae destinatur: eoque leviore cura, quam ceterae aves saginatur: verum non omnibus temporibus.2 Nam per hiemem, quamvis adhibeatur opera, difficulter crescit,3 et tamen, quia maior est turdi copia, pretium turturum minuitur. Rursus aestate vel sua sponte, dummodo sit facultas cibi, pinguescit. Nihil enim aliud, quam obicitur esca, sed praecipue milium: nec quia tritico vel aliis frumentis minus crassescat; niam si id faciant, corpori detrahunt. In his assidue pascuntur milio aut tritico, sed ea semina dari nisi sicca non oportet. Satiatque semodius cibi in diebus singulis vicenos et centenos turtures. Aqua semper recens et quam mundissima vasculis, qualibus columbis atque gallinis, praebetur; tegeticulaeque emundantur, ne stercus urat pedes, quod tamen et ipsum diligenter reponi debet ad cultus agrorum arborumque, sicut et omnium avium, praeterquam nantium. Huius avis aetas ad saginam non tam vetus est idonea quam novella. Itaque circa messem, cum iam confirmata est pullities, eligitur. Turdis maior opera et impensa praebetur, qui omni quidem rure, sed salubrius in eo pascuntur, in quo capti sunt. Nam difficulter in aliam regionem transferuntur, quia caveis clausi plurimi despondent: quod faciunt etiam cum eodem momento temporis a rete in aviaria coniecti sunt. Itaque ne id accidat, veterani debent intermisceri, qui ab aucupibus in hunc usum nutriti quasi allectores sint captivorum, maestitiamque eorum mitigent intervolando. Sic enim consuescent et aquam et cibos appetere feri, si mansuetos id facere viderint. Locum aeque munitum et apricum, quam columbi desiderant: sed in eo transversae perticae perforatis parietibus adversis aptantur, quibus insideant, cum satiati cibo requi- escere volunt. Eae perticae non altius a terra debent sublevari, quam hominis statura patitur, ut a stante contingi possint. Cibi ponuntur fere partibus his ornithonis, quae super se temporibus, quibus qui triumphabant populo Sed huius possessionis rara conditio est. Quare mediterraneis locis talibus locis excidunt. Ultima parte hiemis concitantibus libidinem cibis utriusque sexus accendenda venus est. Maxime facit ad hanc rem, si favilla levi torreas fabam, tepidamque des iciunis quinto quoque die. Nec tamen excedas modum sex cyathorum in singulas aves. Haec cibaria non omnibus promiscue exaggerandum est aviarium, quo tutius integri fetus excipiantur. Nam fere pavones, cum ad nocturnam requiem venerunt, praedictis perticis insistentes enituntur ova, quae quo propius ac mollius deciderint, illibatam servant integritatem. Quotidie ergo diligenter mane temporibus feturae stabula circumeunda erunt, et iacentia ova colligenda. Quae quanto recentiora gallinis subiecta sunt, tanto commodius exeluduntur: non effugiat observare desilientem matricem, saepiusque ad cubile pervenire, et pavonina ova, quae propter magnitudinem difficilius a gallina moventur, versare manu: idque quo diligentius faciat, una pars ovorum notanda est atramento, quod signum habebit aviarius, satis tuto educi, sequiturque grex velut matrem gallinam singultientem. Ea cavea clausa Venio nunc ad eas aves, quas Graeci vocant ἀμφιβίουσ, quia non tantum terrestria, sed aquatilia quoque desiderant pabula, nec magis humo quam stagno consueverunt. [¶4] 13. I now come to those birds which the Greeks call “amphibious,” because they require not only food produced from the earth but also that which comes from the water, and have accustomed themselves quite as much to standing water as to the land. Of this type of bird the goose is particularly acceptable to farmers, because it does not demand very much attention and keeps watch more cleverly than a dog, since by its cackling it betrays the presence of anyone who is lying in wait, just as (so history has informed us) when during the siege of the Capitol it was the goose which loudly announced the approach of the Gauls while the dogs kept silence. The goose, however, cannot be kept everywhere, an opinion which Celsus expresses with much truth when he says: “A goose cannot easily be maintained without plenty of water and plenty of grass and is not profitable in closely planted land because it plucks at anything which it can reach; but wherever there is a river or a lake and an abundance of grass and there are not sown crops too near at hand, this kind of bird also should be reared.” We, furthermore, are in favour of keeping geese not because it brings a large profit but because it gives very little trouble. Yet it produces goslings and feathers; the latter you may gather not merely once a year, like wool from sheep, but you can pluck twice, in spring and in autumn. Indeed for these reasons, if local conditions permit, you should rear at any rate a few geese and assign three female birds to one male; for because of their weight they cannot couple with more. Moreover, so that they may have protection, separate goose pens should be made for each inside the poultry-yard a in which they can rest and where they can lay their eggs. Those who desire to possess flocks of swimming birds establish goose-pens, which then will flourish only if they are arranged in the following manner. A yard remote from any other livestock is enclosed by a wall nine feet high and surrounded by porticos so arranged that the keeper's hut may be in some part of them. Then under the porticos square pens are built of unhewn stones or even small bricks. It is enough if each pen measures three feet each way and has a single entrance fitted with strong little doors, because the pens ought to be kept shut when the geese are laying or sitting. If there is a pool or river outside the farm and not far from the building, no other water need be looked for; otherwise a lake and fish-pond should be artificially constructed, so that the geese may have water into which to dive; for they can no more live properly without the element of water than they can without the element of earth. A marshy field too which is also grassy should be set aside for them, and other foods be sown such as vetch, trefoil, fenugreek and above all the kind of endive which the Greek call seris. b Lettuce seeds in particular should also be sown for this purpose, since it is a very tender vegetable and is also much sought after by these birds; also it is a very useful food for goslings. Having made all these preparations, you must take care that the male and female birds which you choose are of the largest possible size and of a white colour; for there is another kind which is of various colours and, originally wild, has been tamed and become a domestic bird, but it is not so prolific and commands a lower price, and so should certainly not be reared. The most suitable time for coupling geese is from the height of winter onwards, and then for laying eggs and sitting on them from the first of February or March until the summer solstice, which falls in the last part of the month of June. They couple not standing on the ground, like the birds of whom we dealt before, but generally in a river or pond; and each hen-bird lays a clutch of eggs three times a year if prevented from hatching them out, which is a better plan than if they sit on their own eggs; for the young are better reared by ordinary hens and also the result is a much larger flock. At each laying they produce the following numbers of eggs, at the first five, at the next four and at the last three. Some people allow the geese themselves to rear the last clutch, because for the rest of the year they will be taking a holiday from laying. The female birds must not on any account be allowed to lay outside the enclosure, but, when they seem to be looking for a nesting-place, they must be stopped and must be examined; for if they are near laying, the eggs, which are in the nearest part of the genital organs, can be felt with the finger. Wherefore they ought to be taken to the goose-pen and shut up there so that they may lay their eggs; and it is enough to have 'done this once with each of them since every one of them returns to the place where it first laid an egg. But, after the last laying, when we wish the geese themselves to sit, the eggs of each will have to be marked so that they may be put under those which laid them; for it is said that a goose does not hatch another's eggs unless she has some of her own also beneath her. Goose eggs, like those of peahens, are put under ordinary hens, the maximum numbers being five and the minimum three, whereas a minimum of seven and a maximum of fifteen are put under the geese themselves. But care must be taken, when stalks of nettle (which are used as a remedy to cure disease) are placed under the eggs, that they may not possibly hurt the goslings when they are hatched; for nettles kill them if they sting them when they are quite young. Thirty days are required for the forming and hatching of the goslings when the weather is cold; for when it is warm, twenty-five days are enough, but more often the gosling is hatched on the thirtieth day. While it is quite small, for the first ten days it is shut up with its mother in the pen and fed there; afterwards, when calm weather allows, it is taken out into the meadows and to the ponds. Care must be taken that it is not stung by the prickles of the nettle or sent out hungry to pasture, but that it has had its fill beforehand of chopped endive or lettuce leaves; for if it is still not very strong and arrives hungry at the pasture-ground, it struggles so persistently with shrubs or the tougher plants that it breaks its neck. It is also well to provide it with millet or even wheat mixed with water. When it has become a little stronger, it is driven out to join a flock of birds of its own age and fed on barley, the provision of which for laying geese also is not without advantage. It is not expedient to assign more than twenty goslings to each goose-pen, nor, again, must they be shut up at all with birds older than themselves, since the stronger kills the weaker. The coops in which they sleep must be very dry and have chaff spread on the floor, or, if this is not available, the coarsest possible hay. For the rest, the same precautions must be taken as for other kinds of young birds to prevent a grass-snake or a viper or a cat or even a weasel from being able to catch them; for these pestilential creatures generally lay them low and destroy them while they are young and tender. Some people put barley soaked in water by the side of geese which are sitting and do not allow them to leave the nest too often; then, when the goslings have been hatched, for the first five days they put before them pearl-barley or meal soaked in water, as they also give to peahens. Others give them green cress cut up very small with water—a food which is very agreeable to them. Then when they have become four months old, all the biggest goslings are set aside for fattening, since a tender age is regarded as especially suitable for this process. Indeed the cramming of these birds is an easy matter; for besides pearl-barley and wheat-flour three times a day, absolutely nothing else need be given them, provided that they have facilities for drinking freely and are not allowed to wander about and are kept in a warm, shady place; for all these precautions contribute greatly to the formation of fat. In this manner even the older birds grow fat in two months, for the tenderest young brood is often brought to a plump condition in forty days. a A place for rearing ducks requires similar attention but is more costly. For mallard, teal, pochard and coots and similar birds, which root about in pools and marshes, can be kept in captivity. A level space is chosen and is provided with a wall fifteen feet high; then it is covered in by having lattice-work or nets of a large mesh placed over it, so that there may be no opportunity for the tame birds to fly away or for eagles or hawks to fly in. The whole of the wall is made smooth by plastering it inside and outside, so that no cat or ferret may creep through it. Then in the middle of the duck-yard a pond is dug, two feet deep, and as much space is assigned to its length and width as the local conditions permit. The edges of the pond are paved with plaster, so that they may not be damaged by the violence of the water when it overflows (for it ought to be always running in), and they should not be raised in the form of steps but should slope down gradually, so that there may be an easy descent as if from the shore into the water. The floor of the pond along the circumference to the extent of about two-thirds of its whole dimension must be constructed with stones well rammed down and plaster, so that it may not be able to put forth any vegetation and may keep the surface of the water clear for the fowls which swim upon it. On the other hand, the middle part of the pond should be made of earth, so that it may be sown with the Egyptian bean a and other green stuff which generally grows in the water and provides shade for the haunts of the waterfowl. Some of them take pleasure in lingering in little plantations of tamarisk and thickets of club-rushes. Nevertheless the whole space should not for this reason be occupied by little plantations, but, as I have said, should be left free all round the circumference, so that, as they are cheered by a day of sunshine, the water fowl may vie with one another to see which swims the fastest. For just as they require to be where there are holes into which they can creep and where they can lie in wait for fresh-water creatures which are in hiding, so they are displeased if there are no open spaces in which they can roam freely..The banks of the pond should be clothed with grass to a distance of twenty feet all round and beyond this space round the wall there should be nest-boxes one foot square made of stone and covered with a smooth layer of plaster in which the birds may lay their eggs. These nest-boxes should be protected by bushes planted between them of box and myrtle which should not exceed the walls in height. Next a continuous channel should be constructed, sunk into the ground, along which the food may be carried down every day mingling with the water, for this is how birds of this kind get their food. The foods grown on dry land which they like best are panic-grass and millet and also barley; but, where there is abundance of them, acorns and grape-husks are also provided. If there is food which grows in the water available, they are given fresh-water crayfish and small pickled river-fish and any other river animals which grow only to a small size. They observe the same seasons for coupling as other wild birds, namely, March and the following month. During these months stalks and twigs should be scattered about everywhere in the bird-pens, so that the birds may be able to collect them and use them to build their nests. But it is most important, when anyone wishes to establish a place for rearing ducks, to collect the eggs of the said fowls in the region of the marshes, where they usually lay, and set them under farm-yard hens. For when they are hatched and reared in this way they lay aside their wild nature and undoubtedly breed shut up in the bird-pens. If you want to hand over to custody birds which have only just been caught and have been used to a life of liberty, they are slow to begin to lay in captivity. But enough has now been said about the care of fowls which swim. In dealing with aquatic animals we come in due course to the management of fishes, the profitable nature of which, though I regard it as far removed from the business of farmers—for what things are so contrary to one another as dry land and water?—I will nevertheless not pass over. Our ancestors carried their zeal for this pursuit to such a pitch that they even imprisoned salt-water fish in fresh water and fed the grey mullet and parrot wrasse with the same care with which the lamprey and the sea-pike are now reared. The country-bred descendants of Romulus and Numa of old prided themselves greatly on the fact that, if life on the farm were compared with that in the town, it did not fall short of it in abundance of any kind; they, therefore, not only stocked the fish-ponds which they had themselves constructed, but also filled the lakes which nature had formed, with fish-spawn brought from the sea. Hence the Veline a and Sabatine b lakes, also the Volsinian c and Ciminian d lakes produced basse and gilt-head, and all the fishes to be found anywhere which can live in fresh water. Then an age followed which abandoned this method of keeping fish and the extravagance of the wealthy enclosed the very seas and Neptune himself, so that within the memory of our grandfathers the action and speech of Marcius Philippus e was on everyone's lips as being very witty, whereas it was the action and speech of a luxurious man. For once when he happened to be dining at a friend's house at Casinum, f. and after having tasted a pike from a neighbouring river which was set before him had spit it out, he followed this opprobrious action with the words: “Plague take me if I did not think that it was a fish.” This oath caused many people to put more refinement into their gluttony and has taught learned and educated palates to loathe the basse unless it were one which had been wearied by struggling against the current of the Tiber. Therefore Terentius Varro says: g There is no paltry or foppish fellow in these days who does not now declare that he cares not whether he has a fish-pond crowded with this sort of fish or with frogs. Yet in the very times to which Varro ascribed this luxury, the austerity of Cato was highly commended, who, nevertheless, himself as the guardian of Lucullus sold his ward's fish-ponds for the immense sum of 400,000 sesterces. For culinary delicacies were already in great demand when fishponds were made to communicate with the sea and, just as at an earlier date Numantinus a and Isauricus b rejoiced in names taken from conquered nations, so Sergius Orata (goldfish) c and Licinius Muraena (lamprey), d who made fish-ponds their chief interest, rejoiced in the names of the fish they had captured. But since men's moral sense has become so blunted that such behaviour is reckoned not only as customary but also as highly laudable and honourable, we too, lest we should seem to be only out-of-date critics of so many past generations, will show that the fishpond is also a source of profit which the head of a household can gain from his country estate. He who has bought either islands or land near the sea and is unable, owing to the poverty of the soil which is generally found near the coast, to gather the fruits of the earth, should establish a source of revenue from the sea. The first step in this direction is to examine the nature of the ground where you have decided to construct your fish-ponds, for every kind of fish cannot be kept on every coast. A muddy stretch of shore is the place for rearing flat fish, such as the' sole, the turbot and the flounder; e it is also very suitable for testaceous animals: of purple-producing shell-fish, the true purple fish; and also, of other molluscs, the oyster, small scallops, barnacles or sphondyli. f But the sandy whirlpools are not bad feeding-grounds for flat-fish—better, however, for deep-sea fish such as gilt-head and sea-braize and the Carthaginian and our own Italian maigres, but they are less suitable for shell-fish. On the other hand a rocky sea provides excellent nourishment for fishes which bear its name, that is, are called rock-fish because they find shelter among the rocks, such as merles and wrasse and likewise “black tails.” a We must also know the different qualities both of shores and of seas, lest we be deceived about foreign fish; for every fish cannot exist in every sea, the sturgeon for example, which feeds in the depths of the Pamphylian Sea b and nowhere else, and the dory in the Atlantic which in our municipality of Gades is numbered amongst the noblest of fishes and which by an ancient custom we call zeus, and the parrot wrasse which is produced in great numbers on the coasts of the whole of Asia Minor and Greece as far as Sicily but has never swum into the Ligurian c sea nor past the Gauls d into the Iberian Sea; e therefore, even if they were captured and conveyed to our fish-ponds, they could not long remain in our possession. Alone of the valuable fish the lamprey, although a native of the Tartessian and the Carpathian Sea, which is very far away, in whatever sea it finds itself a guest can thrive in strange waters. But the time has come to speak of the situation of fish-ponds. We consider that incomparably the best pond is one which is so situated that the incoming tide of the sea expels the water of the previous tide and does not allow any stale water to remain within the enclosure; for a pond most resembles the open sea if it is stirred by the winds and its waters constantly renewed and it cannot become warm, because it keeps rolling up a wave of cold water from the bottom to the uppermost part. The pond is either hewn in the rock, which only rarely occurs, or built of plaster on the shore; but in whatever way it is constructed, if it is kept cold by the swirl of water which is constantly flowing in, it ought to contain recesses near the bottom, some of them simple and straight to which the " scaly flocks " a may retire, others twisted into a spiral and not too wide, in which the lampreys may lurk. Some people, however, hold that lampreys should not be mixed with fishes of another kind, because, if they are seized with madness, which sometimes happens to this sort of fish just as it happens to dogs, they very often pursue their scaly companions and chew them up and devour great numbers of them. If the nature of the ground permits, channels should be provided for the water on every side of the fish-pond; for the old water is more easily carried away if there is an outlet on the side opposite to that from which the wave forces its way in. We are of opinion that these passages, if the lie of the ground is suitable, should be made along the lowest part of the enclosure, so that a plummet placed on the bottom of the pond may show that the level of the sea is seven feet higher; for this measurement in the depth of the water is fully enough for the fish in the pond, and there is no doubt that, the greater the depth of the sea from which the water comes, the colder it is, and this suits the swimming fishes very well. But if the place where we think of constructing the fish-pond is on a level with the surface of the sea, the pond should be excavated to the depth of nine feet, and two feet below the top streams of water should be conducted along small channels, and care must be taken that the flow is very abundant, since the quantity of water which lies below the level of the sea is only forced out by the greater violence of the fresh sea water rushing in. Many people think that in the sides of ponds of this kind deep recesses and winding caves should be constructed for the fishes, so that there may be shadier places of retreat for them when they feel the heat. But if a change of sea water is not continually passing through the pond, the result is to cause a contrary condition, for lurking-places of this kind do not easily admit a change of water and only with difficulty get rid of the stale water, and more harm results from the putrid water than benefit from the shade. There ought, however, to be excavated in the sides of the pond what may be described as a series of similar cells which may serve to protect the fish when they want to avoid the heat of the sun and yet at the same time let the water, which they have received, easily flow out again. It will be well to remember that gratings made of brass with small holes should be fixed in front of the channels through which the fish-pond pours out its waters, to prevent the fish from escaping. If space allows, it will not be amiss to place in various parts of the pond rocks from the sea-shore, especially those which are covered with bunches of sea-weed a and, as far as the wit of man can contrive, to represent the appearance of the sea, so that, though they are prisoners, the fish may feel their captivity as little as possible. Having arranged “stalls” for them on this principle, we shall introduce our " water flock " into it, and it should be our prime concern to recall also in our dealings with rivers the advice given for our business with dry land: “And consider well what every place will bear.” For we cannot, if we should wish to do so, feed in a fish-pond a multitude of red mullet, such as we have very often seen in the sea, since it is a very delicate kind of fish and most intolerant of captivity, and so only one or two out of many thousands can on rare occasions endure confinement, while, on the contrary, we frequently notice in closed waters shoals of those deep-sea fish: the sluggish grey mullet and the greedy basse. Therefore, as I have already suggested, let us consider the quality of our sea-shore and, if we find it rocky, let us be content with it. We shall imprison in our ponds several kinds of wrasse and sea-merles and greedy sea-weasels and also basse which have no spots (for there is also a mottled kind), also floating lampreys, which are much esteemed, and any other lampreys of the rock-dwelling kind which command a high price; for it does not pay to catch, much less to keep, anything which is cheap. These same kinds of fish can also be kept in ponds on a sandy shore; for shores which are covered with slime and mud are, as I have already said, better suited to shell-fish and animals which lie at the bottom. A different position too is required for ponds which harbour those fish which lie down, nor is the same food provided for prostrate as for upright fish. For soles and turbots and similar creatures a shallow pond is sunk two feet in that part of the shore which is never left high and dry by ebbing of deep water. Next close barriers are fixed along the edges of the pond, so that they always stand out of the water even when the tide of the sea is at its highest; then dams are thrown up all round so as to encompass the pond in their embrace and at the same time to rise above its level. For in this way the violence of the sea is broken by the barriers of a bank, and the fish, keeping in calm water, are not driven out of their usual haunts nor is the pond itself filled with a collection of sea-weed which the force of the sea throws up in stormy weather. It will, however, be necessary that cuts should be made in the moles at some points, forming small but narrow passages with meandering course, so that, however fierce a winter storm is raving, they may let the sea-water pass in without creating a wave. The diet of flat fish ought to be softer than that of rock-fish, for, lacking teeth, they either lick up their food or swallow it whole, being unable to chew it. It is, therefore, fitting that decaying pilchards or over-salted herrings or rotten sardines, also the gills of parrot wrasse and any part of the intestines of a young tunny or lizard-fish, also the entrails of a mackerel, a dog-fish or a spindle-fish,0 and, not to go into further details, the refuse of any salted fish which is swept out of fishmongers' shops. We have named several kinds, not because they are all produced on every coast, but in order to mention some of those which it will be possible to provide. Of fruits too the green fig cut open is suitable and a ripe arbutus-berry crushed by the fingers, likewise a soft sorb-apple squeezed out and any foods which most closely resemble things which can be easily swallowed, such as curds fresh from the milk-pail, if local conditions and the cheap price of milk make this possible. No food, however, is so suitable for giving them as the diet of salt fish already mentioned, since it has a strong odour; for every flat fish tracks down its food rather by scent than by sight. For lying constantly on its back it looks towards what is above it and does not easily see things which are on a level with itself on the right or left. When, therefore, salted fish is put in its way, it follows the scent of it and so reaches its food. The other kinds of fish, namely those which live among the rocks and in the open sea, can quite well be fed on this diet, but still better on fresh food. For a newly caught pilchard, crayfish or small goby, in a word any fish of minute growth serves as food for a larger fish. If, however, the violence of the winter does not allow this kind of food to be given, bits of coarse bread or any fruits that are in season are cut up and given. Dried figs indeed are always offered to them, an excellent thing to do if they are abundant as they are in the regions of Baetica and Numidia. But the mistake ought not to be made, which many people make, of providing no food at all on the ground that the fish can maintain themselves for a long time even when they are shut up; for unless a fish is fattened with food provided by its owner, when it is brought to the fish-market, its leanness shows that it has not been caught in the open sea but brought out of a place of confinement, and on this account a large sum is knocked off the price. Let this account of the method of feeding fish on the farm-estate bring our present discourse to a close, lest the reader be wearied with the immoderate length of this volume. In the next book we will return to the management of wild stock and the culture of bees. > Latin: 13. Eiusque generis anser praecipue rusticis gratus est, quod nec maximam curam poscit, et solertiorem custodiam quam canis praebet. Nam clangore prodit insidiantem, sicut etiam memoria tradidit in obsidione Capitolii, cum adventum haras faceret oportet, eligantur. Nam est aliud genus varium, quod a fero mitigatum domesticum factum est. Id neque aeque fecundum est, nec tam pretiosum: propter quod minime nutriendum est. Anseribus admittendis tempus aptissimum est a bruma; mox ad pariendum, et ad incubandum a Calen. Februariis vel Martiis usque ad solstitium, quod fit ultima parte mensis Iunii. Ineunt autem non, ut priores aves, de quibus diximus, insistentes humi: nam fere in flumine aut piscinis id faciunt: singulaeque ter anno pariunt, si prohibeantur fetus suos excudere, subiciantur: quoniam negatur anser aliena ex-cudere ova, nisi subiecta sua quoque habuerit. Supponuntur autem gallinis huius generis ova, sicut pavonina, plurima quinque, paucissima tria: ipsis autem anseribus paucissima vii, plurima xv. Sed custodiri debet, ut ovis subiciantur herbae urticarum, quo quasi remedio medicantur, ne noceri possit excusis dior enecat infirmum. Cellas, in quibus incubitant, siccissimas esse oportet, substratasque habere paleas: vel si eae non sunt, crassissimum maiores. Nam tenerrima pullities puram superficiem. Media rursus terrena pars esse debet, ut colocasiis conseratur, aliisque familiaribus aquae rivalis alecula, vel si qua sunt incrementi parvi fluviorum animalia. Tempora concubitus eadem quae ceterae silvestres alites observant Martii, sequentisque mensis: per quos festucae non solum piscinas, quas ipsi construxerant, frequentabant: sed etiam quos rerum natura lacus fecerat, convectis marinis seminibus replebant. Inde Velinus, inde etiam Sabatinus, item Volsiniensis, et Ciminius lupos auratasque procreaverunt, ac si qua sunt alia piscium genera dulcis undae tolerantia. Mox istam curam sequens aetas abolevit, et lautitiae locupletum maria ipsa Neptunumque clauserunt, ut sestertium pelagios melius pascunt, ut auratas ac dentices, Punicasque et indigenas umbras: verum conchyliis minus apti. Rursus optime saxosum mare nominis sui pisces nutrit, qui scilicet, quod in petris stabulentur, saxatiles dicti sunt, ut merulae turdique, nec minus melanuri. Atque ut litorum sic et fretorum differentias nosse oportet, ne nos alienigenae pisces decipiant. Non enim omni mari potest omnis esse, ut helops, qui Pamphilio profundo nec alio pascitur: ut Atlantico faber, qui et generosissimis piscibus adnumeratur, in nostro Gadium municipio eumque prisca consuetudine partem superiorem. Id autem stagnum vel exciditur largissime veniant, quoniam modus ille aquae iacentis infra libram maris non aliter exprimitur, quam si maior recentis freti vis incesserit. Multi putant in eiusmodi stagnis longos quid quaeque ferat regio. obiectu crepidinis frangitur, et in tranquillo consistens piscis sedibus suis non exturbatur, neque ipsum vivarium repletur algarum congerie, quam tempestatibus eructat pelagi violentia. Oportebit autem nonnullis locis moles intercidi more Maeandri parvis sed angustis itineribus, quae quantalibet hiemis saevitia mare sine fluctu transmittant. Esca iacentium mollior esse debet, quam saxatilium, nam quia dentibus carent, aut lambunt cibos, aut integros hauriunt, mandere quidem non possunt. Itaque praeberi convenit tabentes aleculas, quoniam odorata sunt. Omnis enim iacens piscis magis naribus escam, quam oculis vestigat. Nam dum supinus semper cubat, sublimiora BOOK IX Venio nunc ad tutelam pecudum silvestrium et rium, semperque de manu cibos et aquam praebere: qui vero quaestum reditumque desiderant, cum est vicinum villae nemus (id enim refert non procul esse ab oculis domini) sine cunctatione praedictis animalibus destinant. ## 9. Book IX Source: https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/9/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/columella-on-agriculture/9/#p-N [¶0] 9. I now come to the care of wild cattle and the rearing of bees, which also, Publius Silvinus, I can justly place among creatures which are fed on the farm, since ancient custom placed parks for young hares, wild goats and wild boars near the farm, generally within the view of the owner's dwelling-place, so that the sight of their being hunted within an inclosure might delight the eyes of the proprietor and that when the custom of giving feasts called for game, it might be produced as it were out of store. Also within our own memory accommodation for bees was provided either in holes cut in the actual walls of the farm-building or in sheltered galleries and orchards. So, since we have assigned a reason for the title which we have prefixed to this discourse, let us now proceed to deal, one by one, with the topics which we have proposed. Wild creatures, such as roebucks, chamois and also various kinds of antelopes, deer and wild boars sometimes serve to enhance the splendour and pleasure of their owners, and sometimes to bring profit and revenue. Those who keep game shut up for their own pleasure are content to construct a park, on any suitable site in the neighbourhood of the farm buildings, and always give them food and water by hand. Those on the other hand who look for profit and revenue, when there is a wood near the farm (for it is important that it should not be far out of sight of the owner), reserve it without hesitation for the above-mentioned animals, and if there is no natural supply of water, either running-water is introduced or else ponds are dug and lined with mortar to receive and hold the rain-water. The extent of wood involved is in proportion to the size of each man's property and, if the cheapness of stone and labour make it advisable, certainly a wall built with unhewn stone and lime is put round it; otherwise it is made with unburnt brick and clay. When neither of these methods serves the purpose of the master of the house, reason requires that they should be shut up with a post fence; for this is the name given to a certain kind of lattice made of oak or cork-wood, since olive-wood is only rarely obtainable; in a word, according to local conditions, any kind of wood is chosen for this purpose which resists injury from rain better than any other. Whether it be the round trunk of a tree or cleft into stakes, as its thickness demands, it has several holes bored through its side and is erected firmly in the ground at fixed intervals all round the park; then bars are put across through the holes in the sides of the posts to prevent the passage of the wild beasts. It is enough to fix the posts at intervals of eight feet and to fasten them to the cross-bars in such a way that the width of space which occurs where holes are left may not offer the animals a means of escape. In this manner you can even enclose very wide regions and tracts of mountains, as the vast extent of ground permits in the provinces of Gaul and in certain others; for there is both a great abundance of timber for making posts and everything else which is needed for the purpose is in abundant supply. The soil abounds in frequent springs, which is particularly wholesome for the above-named kinds of animals; then too it furnishes wild creatures with fodder most liberally even of its own accord. Woodlands are chiefly chosen which abound in the fruits of the ground and also in trees; for as these creatures have need of grass, so too they require the fruits of oak-trees, and those woods are most highly commended which are most productive of the acorn of the ordinary oak and of the evergreen oak and likewise of the Turkey-oak, also of the fruit of the strawberry-tree and the other wild fruits which we described in great detail when we were discussing farm-yard pigs. a For the fodder of wild cattle is almost the same as that of domestic animals. Nevertheless the careful head of a household ought not to be content with the foods which the earth produces by its own nature, but, at the seasons of the year when the woods do not provide food, he ought to come to the help of the animals which he has confined with the fruits of the harvest which he has stored up, and feed them on barley or wheat-meal or beans, and especially, too, on grape-husks; in a word, he should give them whatever costs the least. Also in order that the wild creatures may understand that provision is being made for them, it will be a good plan to send among them one or two animals which have been tamed at home, and which, roaming through the whole park, may direct the hesitating creatures to the fare offered to them. It is advisable that this should be done not only during the scarce season of winter but also when those which were with young have brought them forth, so that they may rear them better. And so the park-keeper will have frequently to be on the watch and see if they have borne their young, in order that their strength may be sustained by cereals given them by hand. But neither the antelope nor the wild boar nor any other wild creature should be allowed to live to a greater age than four years. For up to that time they advance in growth, after it they grow old and lean; and so they should be turned into cash while a vigorous time of life preserves their bodily comeliness. The deer, however, may be kept for many years, for it long remains young in your possession, because it has been allotted a life of longer duration. But as regards animals of lesser growth, such as the hare, our advice is that, in those parks surrounded by a wall, the seeds of mixed cereals and of the pot-herbs, wild endive and lettuce, should be thrown upon small beds of earth made at different intervals apart. Also the Carthaginian and our own native chick-pea, and barley too and chickling should be produced out of store and put before them after having been soaked in rain-water; for dry food is not much sought after by hares. Moreover, it is easily understood even without my mentioning it, concerning these animals and others like them, how inexpedient it is to introduce them into a park which is surrounded by railings, since owing to the small size of their bodies they can easily creep under the bars and, having obtained free exit, manage to escape. I come now to the management of bee-hives, about which no instructions can be given with greater care than in the words of Hyginus, a more ornately than by Vergil, or more elegantly than by Celsus. a Hyginus has industriously collected the opinions of ancient authors dispersed in their different writings; Vergil has embellished the subject with the flowers of poetry; and Celsus has applied the method of both the above-mentioned authors. Therefore, we ought never to have even attempted to discourse on this subject, did not the fulfilment of the promise which we made call for the treatment of this part of our subject also, lest the body of the work begun, looked at as a whole, should appear mutilated and imperfect, as if a limb had been cut off. The tradition of the fabulous origin of the bees which Hyginus has not passed over I would rather attribute to poetic licence than submit to the test of our belief; nor indeed is it a fit question for a husbandman to ask whether there ever existed a woman of surpassing beauty called Melissa, whom Jupiter changed into a bee, or whether (as Euhemerus b the poet says) the bees were bred from hornets and the sun, and that the nymphs, the daughters of Phryxon, c reared them, and that soon after they became the nurses of Jupiter in the Dictaean Cave d and that, by the gift of the god, they had allotted to them the food with which they themselves had reared their little foster-child. Upon this story, though not unworthy of a poet, Vergil touched briefly and lightly in a single line when he said: 'Neath Dicte's cave they fed the king of heaven. e But it does not even concern husbandmen when and in what country bees first came into existence, whether in Thessaly under Aristaeus, a or in the island of Cea, b as Euhemerus writes, or on Mount Hymettus c in the time of Erechtheus, d as Euthronius e says, or in Crete in the time of Saturn, as Nicander f says. All this no more concerns farmers than the question whether the swarms of bees produce their offspring, as we see the other animals do, by copulation, or whether they pick up the heir of their race from the flowers, as our own poet Maro g affirms, and whether they vomit the liquid honey from their mouths or yield it from some other part. The inquiry into these and similar questions concerns those who search into the hidden secrets of nature rather than husbandmen. They are subjects more agreeable to the students of literature, who can read at their leisure, than to farmers who are busy folk, seeing that they are of no assistance to them in their work or in the increase of their substance. > Latin: 9. non et in aliis quibusdam provinciis locorum vastitas patitur. Nam et fabricandis ingens est vacerris materiae fieri expedit, sed cum etiam fetae partus ediderint, quo melius educant Hygino iam dictum est, nec ornatius quam Vergilio, nec elegantius quam Celso. Hyginus veterum auctorum placita Sed ne illud quidem pertinet ad agricolas, quando et in qua regione primum natae sint: utrum in Thessalia sub Aristaeo, an in insula Cea, ut scribit Euhemerus, an Erechthei temporibus in monte Hymetto, ut Euthronius; an Cretae Saturni temporibus, ut Nicander: non magis quam utrum examina, tanquam cetera videmus animalia, concubitu subolem procreent, an heredem generis sui floribus eligant, quod affirmat noster Maro: et utrum evomant liquorem mellis, an alia parte reddant. Haec enim et his similia magis scrutantium rerum naturae latebras, quam rusticorum est inquirere. Studiosis quoque literarum gratiora sunt ista in otio legentibus, quam negotiosis agricolis: quoniam neque in opere neque in re familiari quidquam iuvant. [¶1] 3. Therefore let us return to topics which are more suitable to those who have charge of bee-hives, namely, how many kinds of bees there are and which of them is the best. Aristotle, the founder of the Peripatetic School, in the books which he wrote about animals, g shows that there are several kinds of swarms of bees, some of them having bees huge and globular in shape and at the same time black and hairy; others smaller but equally round and of a dusky colour and with bristling hairs; others still smaller but not so round, but nevertheless fat and broad and of rather a better colour; some very small and slender with bellies which end in a point, striped of a golden colour and quite smooth. Vergil, following Aristotle as his authority, approves most of bees which are very small, oblong, smooth and shining. Burning with gold, their bodies stained with spots of equal size, a calm, too, in disposition; for the larger and rounder a bee is, the worse it is, and if it is unusually fierce, it is by far the worst kind of all. However, the irascibility of the better kind of bees is easily soothed by the frequent intervention of those who look after them; for when they are often handled, they quickly become tame. If they are carefully looked after, they live for ten years; but no swarm can exceed this age, even if young stock is substituted yearly in place of those which have died; for usually in the tenth year all the population of the whole hive is destroyed and exterminated. In order, therefore, that this may not be the fate of the whole apiary, fresh stock must be continually propagated and care must be taken in the spring, when the fresh swarms issue forth, that they are intercepted and the number of dwelling-places increased; for bees are often overtaken by diseases. The methods by which these ought to be cured will be dealt with in their proper places. > Latin: 3. Quare revertamur ad ea, quae alveorum cultoribus magis apta sunt quot 1 genera sunt apium et quid 2 ex his optimum.3 Peripateticae sectae conditor Aristoteles in iis libris, quos de animalibus conscripsit, apium 4 examinum genera complura demonstrat, earumque alias 5 vastas sed glomerosas, easdemque nigras et hirsutas apes habent: alias Interim per has notas, quas iam diximus, probatis apibus destinari debent pabulationes, eaeque sint secretissimae, et ut1 noster praecipit Maro, viduae 2 pecudibus, aprico et minime procelloso caeli statu: Quo neque sit ventis aditus; [¶2] 4. Meanwhile, when you have chosen your bees in accordance with the points which we have just mentioned, feeding-grounds ought to be assigned to the bees of which you approve. These should be as retired as possible and, as our Maro a directs, void of cattle and with a sunny aspect as little as possible exposed to storms, Where winds may not approach; for winds prevent The bees from bearing home their food; nor sheep. Nor frisky kids must trample down the flowers, Nor heifers wandering o'er the plain shake off The dews or crush the rising blades of grass. The region should also be rich in small clumps, especially thyme and marjoram and also in Greek savory and our own Italian savory, which the country-folk call saturcia. Next let there be plenty of shrubs of larger growth, such as rosemary and both kinds of trefoil (for there is one variety which is sown and another which grows of its own accord), also the ever-green pine and the lesser holm-oak (for the taller variety is universally condemned). Ivy, too, is admitted not for its other good qualities but because it provides a large quantity of honey. Of trees the following are very highly commended, the red and white jujube-trees, likewise tamarisks, also almond-trees and peach-trees and pear-trees, in a word, so as not to waste time in naming each kind, the majority of the fruit-bearing trees. Of woodland trees the most suitable are the acorn-bearing oaks, also terebinths and mastic-trees, which closely resemble them, and lime-trees. Of all the trees of this class yews only are excluded as being hurtful. Moreover a thousand seeds, which flourish in uncultivated turf or are turned up in the furrow, produce flowers which are much loved by bees, for example shrubs of starwort a in virgin soil, stalks of bear's foot, b stems of asphodel and the sword-like leaf of the narcissus. White lilies sown between the furrows in the garden make a brilliant show and the gilliflowers have no less pure a colour; then there are red and yellow roses and purple violets and sky-blue larkspur; also the Corycian c and Sicilian saffron-bulbs are planted to give colour and scent to the honey. Moreover, countless herbs of a baser kind spring up on cultivated land and pasture which supply an abundance of wax for the honey-combs, such as the common charlock and the horse-radish, which is no more precious, the mustard-herb, and flowers of wild endive and black poppy, also the field parsnip, and the cultivated variety which bears the same name and which the Greeks call staphylinos (carrot). But of all the plants which I have suggested and of those which I have not mentioned so as to save time (for their number could not be computed), thyme yields honey with the best flavour; the next best are Greek savory, wild thyme and marjoram. In the third class, but still of high quality, are rosemary and our Italian savory, which I have called satureia. Next the flowers of the tamarisk and the jujube-tree and the other kinds of fodder which I suggested have only a mediocre flavour. The honey which is considered of the poorest quality is the woodland honey which comes from dirty feeding-grounds and is produced from broom-trees and strawberry-trees, and the farm-house honey which comes from vegetables. Now that I have described the situation of the feeding-grounds and also the various kinds of food, I will next speak of the arrangement for receiving and housing the swarm. A position must be chosen for the bees facing the sun at midday in winter, far from the noise and the assemblage of men and beasts and neither hot nor cold, for bees are troubled by both these conditions. It should be situated in the bottom of a valley, that the empty bees, when they go forth to feed, may be able more easily to fly up to the higher ground, and also, when they have collected what they require, they may fly with their burden on a down-hill course without any difficulty. If the situation of the farm permits, we ought not to hesitate to join the apiary to a building and surround it with a wall, but it must be on the side of the house which is free from the foul odours which come from the latrines, the dunghill and the bathroom. If, however, this position has drawbacks, but yet the worst disadvantages are not all present, even under these conditions it will be more expedient for the apiary to be under the master's eye. If, however, everything is unfavourable, at all events a valley should be pitched upon close at hand, so that the owner may be able to go down rather often and visit it without grave inconvenience; for in bee-keeping perfect honesty is necessary, and since this is very rare, it is better secured by the intervention of the master. Not only is an overseer who is fraudulent abhorrent to the business but also one whose laziness causes filthy conditions; for beekeeping revolts alike against a lack of cleanliness and against fraudulent management. Wherever the hives are placed, they should not be enclosed within very high walls. If, through fear of robbers, a rather lofty wall is thought desirable, passages through it should be made for the bees in the form of a row of little windows three feet above the ground, and there should be an adjoining cottage in which the keepers may live and the apparatus may be stored. The store-house should be chiefly occupied by hives ready for the use of new swarms and also by health-giving herbs and any other remedies which may be applied to bees when they are sick. And let a palm or vast wild-olive tree O'ershade the porch, that when new kings lead forth The infant swarms and the young bees make sport In their own spring, from honey-combs set free; Then let the neighbouring bank invite retreat From mid-day heat, and let the sheltering tree Hold them in leafy hospitality. a Next let ever-flowing water, if it is available, be introduced or drawn by hand and provided, without which neither combs nor honey nor even young bees can be formed. Whether, therefore, as I have said, it be running water which has been conveyed in channels or well-water, it should con- tain heaps of sticks and stones for the use of the bees, That upon frequent bridges they may rest And spread their wings to catch the summer sun, If swift east winds have caught them loitering And rained on them or plunged them in the deep. a Next, round the whole apiary, little trees of small growth ought to be planted and in particular shrub-trefoils on account of their health-giving properties (for they are a remedy for bees when they are listless); also wild cinnamon and pines and rosemary, and clumps of marjoram and thyme and violets and whatever else the nature of the ground allows to be profitably planted. Not only growing things but also anything whatsoever which has a disagreeable and noisome odour should be kept away from the apiary, such as the smell of a crab when it is burnt on the fire or the odour of mud taken from a marsh. Likewise let hollow rocks and shrill noises produced by valleys, which the Greeks call echoes, be avoided. When, therefore, the sites have been arranged, beehives must be constructed in accordance with local conditions. If the place is rich in cork-trees, we shall certainly make the most serviceable hives from their bark, because they are neither cold in winter nor hot in summer; or if it grows plenty of fennel-stalks, with these too, since they resemble the nature of bark, receptacles can be quite as conveniently made by weaving them together. If neither of these materials is at hand, the hives can be made by plaiting withies together; or, if these are not available either, they will have to be made with wood of a tree either hollow or cut up into boards. Those made of earthenware have the worst qualities of all, since they are burnt by the heat of summer and frozen by the cold of winter. Two kinds of hives remain to be described, those which are either made of dung or built of bricks. Celsus was right in condemning the former because it is very liable to catch fire; the latter he approved, although he made no secret of its chief disadvantage, namely, that if occasion should arise, it cannot be moved to another site. L do not agree with him who thinks that hives of this kind ought to be used in spite of this drawback, for it is not only against the interests of the owner that they should be immovable when he wants to sell them or furnish another site with hives (for these considerations concern the convenience of the owner alone), but the question arises as to what ought to be done for the sake of the bees themselves, when it is advisable that they should be sent to another district because they are suffering from disease or from the barrenness and poverty of the locality and yet cannot be moved for the reason mentioned above—a state of affairs which ought above all things to be avoided. So, though holding in respect the authority of a learned man, yet, without seeking to set myself up against him, I have not omitted to express my own opinion. For Celsus' chief anxiety, lest the bees' quarters should be exposed to fire or thieves, can be avoided by building a brick wall round the hives to prevent the plundering of robbers and to give protection against the violence of fire, and, when the hives have to be moved it will be possible to take apart the framework of the structure and move the hives elsewhere. > Latin: 4. nam pabula venti Ferre domum prohibent: neque oves haedique petulci Floribus insultent, aut errans bucula campo Decutiat rorem, et surgentes atterat herbas. Eademque regio fecunda sit fruticis exigui, et maxime thymi aut origani, tum etiam thymbrae, vel nostratis cunilae, quam satureiam taxi repudiantur. Mille praeterea semina vel crudo cespite virentia, vel subacta sulco, flores amicissimos apibus creant, ut sunt in virgineo nemorense, quod sparto atque arbuto curatorem fraudulentum tantum, sed etiam immundae segnitiae perosa est. Aeque enim dedignatur, si minus pure habita est, ac si tractetur fraudulenter. Sed ubicumque fuerint alvearia immissa fuerit, virgis ac lapidibus aggeretur apium causa, Pontibus ut crebris possint consistere, et alas Pandere ad aestivum solem, si forte morantis Sparserit, aut praeceps Neptuno immerserit Eurus. Conseri deinde circa totum apiarium debent arbusculae incrementi parvi, maximeque propter salubritatem (nam sunt etiam remedio languentibus) cytisi, tum deinde casiae atque pini et rosmarinus: ligno cavae Sed quoniam plerisque videtur istud opero-sum, qualiacunque vasa placuerint, collocari debebunt. [¶3] 7. But since most people regard all this as involving too much trouble, whatever kind of receptacles take their fancy will have to be arranged thus. A bank made of stones built three feet high is stretched across the apiary and carefully smoothed over with plaster, so that no chance of climbing it may be offered to lizards and snakes or other harmful creatures; then on the top of it are placed either bee-houses made with bricks, which Celsus prefers, or, as we prefer, hives walled round except at the back; or else—and this is the practice of almost all those who are careful in these matters—receptacles arranged in a row are fastened together either with small bricks or with unhewn stones in such a way that each is contained within two narrow walls and the two sides, at the back and at the front, are left free; for the sides on which they issue forth have sometimes to be opened and this is especially necessary at the back because the swarms have to be attended to from time to time. If there are no partitions between the hives, they will, nevertheless, have to be so placed as to be at a little distance from one another, so that, when they are being inspected, one which is handled in the course of being attended to may not shake another which is closely joined to it, and alarm the neighbouring bees, which are afraid of every movement as threatening ruin to their structures which are frail, being of wax. It is quite enough to have three rows of hives one above the other, since even so the man who looks after them cannot very conveniently inspect the top row. The fronts of the hives, which afford entries for the bees, should slope down more than their backs, so that the rain may not flow in, and that, if by chance it does find its way in, it may not remain there but flow out through the entrance. Also, on account of the rain, the hives should be protected above with colonnades, or, failing these, they should be overshadowed by green foliage daubed over with Carthaginian clay, forming a covering which keeps off both the cold and rain and also the heat. However the heat of summer is not so harmful to this kind of creature as the cold of winter,[a] and so there should always be a building behind the apiary to intercept the violence of the north wind and provide warmth for the hives. Likewise the bees' dwelling-places, although they are protected by buildings, ought to be so arranged as to face the south-east, in order that the bees may enjoy the sun when they go out in the morning and may be more wide-awake; for cold begets sloth. For the same reason, too, the holes through which they go in and out ought to be very narrow, so as to admit as little cold as possible; indeed it is enough that they should be so bored that they cannot admit the bulk of more than one bee at a time. Thus neither the poisonous gecko nor the foul race of beetles and butterflies and the cockroaches that shun the day-light, as Maro says, b will not lay waste the honey-combs by having too wide an entrance to pass through. It is also a most useful device to have made in proportion to the number of bees in the hive, two or three entrances in its outer covering at a distance from one another to defeat the craftiness of the lizard, which standing like a door-keeper at the entry, with open mouth, brings destruction upon the bees as they come forth, and fewer of them perish when they are at liberty to avoid the pest which lies in wait for them by flying out by another passage. We have now said enough about the choice of feeding-grounds, dwelling-places and their sites. These having been provided, the next things that we require are swarms of bees, these come to us either by purchase or without being paid for. Those which we are going to buy we shall test with particular care by means of the points already mentioned, and we must consider how numerous they are before we purchase them, by opening the hives; or if there are no facilities for inspecting them, we shall at any rate take note of what we are allowed to see, namely, whether a goodly number of bees are standing in the entrance-porch and whether a loud noise is to be heard of bees buzzing inside. Also if it so happens that they are all silent and at peace within their dwelling-place, we shall be able to estimate their great or small number from the sudden noise on the part of the bees as a result of our applying our lips to the hole by which they enter and blowing into it. But we must be particularly careful that the swarms are brought from the neighbourhood rather than from distant regions, since they are usually irritated by a change of climate. But if this is impossible and we are obliged to convey them over long distances, we shall be careful that they are not disturbed by the roughness of the road, and they will be best carried on the shoulders and at night; for they must be given rest in the day-time, and liquids which they like must be poured into the hives, so that they may be fed while remaining shut up. Then when they have arrived at their destination, if daylight has come on, the hive must be neither opened nor placed in position until evening comes, so that the bees may go forth quietly in the morning after a whole night's rest, and we shall need to watch carefully for about three days to see whether they all sally forth in a body; for when they do this, they are meditating escape. We will presently prescribe what remedies we ought to apply to prevent this. Bees which come to us by gift or by capture are accepted less scrupulously, although even in these circumstances I would not care to possess any but the best, since good and bad bees require the same expenditure and the same labour on the part of their keeper; also (and this is especially important) inferior bees should not be mixed with those of high quality, since they bring discredit upon them; for a smaller yield of honey rewards your efforts when the idler swarms take part in the gathering of it. Nevertheless, since sometimes, owing to local conditions, an indifferent set of bees has to be procured (though never on any account should a bad one be acquired), we shall exercise care in seeking out swarms by the following method. Wherever there are suitable woodlands where honey can be gathered, there is nothing that the bees would sooner do than make choice of springs near at hand for their use. It is a good plan, therefore, usually to frequent these springs from the second hour onwards and watch how many bees come to them for water. For if only a few are flying about (unless there are several sources of water which attract them and cause them to be more widely dispersed) Ave must conclude that there is a scarcity of them, which will make us suspect that the place will not produce much honey. But if they come and go in large numbers, they inspire greater hopes of our catching swarms of them; and the following is the method of finding them. First we must try to discover how far away they are, and for this purpose liquid red-ochre must be prepared; then, after touching the backs of the bees with stalks smeared with this liquid as they are drinking at the spring, waiting in the same place you will be able more easily to recognize the bees when they return. If they are not slow in returning, you will know that they dwell in the neighbourhood; but if they are late in doing so, you will calculate the distance by the period of their delay. If you notice them returning quickly, you will have no difficulty in following the course of their flight and will be led to where the swarm has its home. As regards those who apparently go farther away, a more ingenious plan will be adopted, as follows. The joint of a reed with the knots at either end is cut and a hole bored in the side of the rod thus formed, through which you should drop a little honey or boiled-down must. The rod is then placed near a spring. Then when a number of bees, attracted by the smell of the sweet liquid, have crept into it, the rod is taken away and the thumb placed on the hole and one bee only released at a time, which, when it has escaped, shows the line of its flight to the observer, and he, as long as he can keep up, follows it as it flies away. Then, when he can no longer see the bee, he lets out another, and if it seeks the same quarter of the heavens he persists in following his former tracks. Otherwise he opens the hole and allows them to emerge one after another, and marks the direction in which most of them fly home, and pursues them until he is led to the lurking-place of the swarm. If it is hidden in a cave, the swarm will be driven out with smoke, and when it has sallied forth, it is checked by the noise of brass being beaten; for, terrified by the sound, it will immediately settle on a shrub or on a higher kind of foliage, that of a tree, and is enclosed in a vessel prepared for the purpose by the man who has tracked down the bees. But if the swarm has its home in a hollow tree and either the branch which the bees occupy stands out from the tree or they are inside the trunk of the tree itself, then, if the small size of the branch or trunk allows, first the upper part, which is empty of bees, is cut through with a saw which should be very sharp so that the operation may be more quickly carried out, and then the lower part so far as it seems to be inhabited. Then, when it has been cut off at both ends, it is covered with a clean garment (for this too is very important), and if there are any gaping holes, a they are daubed over, and it is carried to the place where the bees are kept, and, small holes being left in it, as I have said, it is put in position like the rest of the hives. The searcher for swarms should choose the morning for his search, so that he may have the whole day to spy out the comings and goings of the bees. For often, if he is too late in beginning to observe them, when they have finished their usual tasks, they go home and do not return to the water, even though they are near at hand, with the result that the man who is searching for them does not know how far away the swarm is from the fountain. There are some people who during the early spring collect wild parsley and, in the words of the great poet, Bruised balm and wax-flower's lowly greenery, a and other similar herbs in which this kind of creatures takes delight, and rub the hives thoroughly with them, so that the scent and juice stick to them; then, after cleaning them, they sprinkle them with a little honey and place them here and there in the woods not far from the springs and, when they are full of swarms, they carry them back home. It is not, however, expedient to do this except in places where there is an abundance of bee's, because it often happens that chance passers-by, finding the hives empty, carry them off with them, nor is the possession cf one or two full of bees enough to compensate for the loss of several empty hives. But where bees are more plentiful, even if many hives are carried off, their loss is made up by the bees which are obtained. Such is the method of catching wild swarms of bees. Next there is another method of retaining the swarms produced from our own apiaries. The keeper ought always diligently to go round the hives for there is no time when they do not need his care; but they demand still more careful attention when the bees feel the approach of spring and the hives overflow with new offspring, which, unless they are promptly intercepted by the constant watchfulness of the keeper, fly off in different directions. For such is the nature of bees that each brood of ordinary bees is generated together with its king and, when they have acquired enough strength to fly away, they despise the society of their elders and even more the orders which they give; for as the human race, which possesses reason, allows no partnership of the kingly power, much less do the dumb animals who are lacking in understanding. Therefore the new chieftains come forth with their following of young bees, which, remaining in a mass for one or two days at the very entrance of their abode, by their coming out show their desire for a home of their own, and if the man in charge immediately assigns it to them, are as content with it as if it were their native place. If, however, the keeper has been away, they make for some strange region as if they had been driven away unjustly. To prevent this, it is the duty of a good overseer in spring-time to keep an eye upon the hives until about the eighth hour of the day (after which the new battalions of bees do not take to impetuous flight), and carefully watch their departures, for some of them, when they have broken out, usually immediately rush away. He will be able to find out beforehand their decision to escape by putting his ear to each of the hives in the evening; for about three days before they intend to break out an uproar and buzzing arises like that of an army setting out on the march. From this, as Vergil very truly says, You can foreknow the purpose of the herd; The martial roar of the hoarse brass reproves The loiterers, and a voice is heard whose notes The broken sound of trumpets imitates. a The bees, therefore, which behave like this ought especially, to be kept under observation, so that, whether they sally forth to battle (for they wage a kind of civil war amongst themselves and as it were foreign wars with other swarms) or break out in order to escape, the keeper may be at hand, ready for either event. Fighting either of the bees of one swarm quarrelling amongst themselves or of two swarms at variance with one another is easily quelled; for, as the same poet says, By casting of a little dust the strife Is stayed and laid to rest, a or else by sprinkling over them honey-water or raisin-wine or some similar liquid, that is to say the sweet taste of things familiar to them, abates their wrath. The same expedients too are wonderfully efficacious for reconciling king-bees when they are at enmity; for there are often several leaders of one people, and the common herd is as it were divided into factions by the quarrels of its chiefs. This must be prevented from happening often, since whole nations are destroyed by civil war. And so, if good feeling exists between the princes, peace continues and no blood is shed. If, however, you have often noticed them fighting a pitched battle, you will take care to put to death the leaders of the factions; but when they are actually fighting, their battles can be calmed by the above-mentioned remedies. Next, when a host of bees has settled in a mass on the neighbouring branch of a leafy shrub, you should take notice whether the whole swarm hangs down in the form of a single bunch of grapes. This will be a sign either that there is only one king-bee in it or, at any rate, that, if there are several, they are reconciled and on good terms with one another, in which case you will leave them as they are until they fly back to their abode. If, however, the swarm is divided into two or even more clusters, you need have no doubt that there are several chiefs and that they are still in an angry mood, and you will have to search for the leaders in the parts of the clusters where you see the bees most closely massed together. Having, then, smeared your hand with the juice of the herbs already named, that is, balm and wild parsley, lest they fly away at your touch, you will gently insert your fingers and, after separating the bees from one another, you will search until you find the author of the quarrel. Now the king-bees are slightly larger and more oblong in shape than the other bees, with straighter legs but less ample wings, of a beautiful shining colour and smooth, without any hair, and sting less, unless one regards as such the coarser hair-like object growing on their belly, of which, however, they do not make use to inflict a hurt. Some, too, are found of a dusky colour and hairy, of whose disposition you will form an unfavourable opinion judging from their bodily appearance. As two-fold are the features of the kings, So are the bodies of their subjects-; one Will gleam with markings rough with gold, and bright With ruddy scales, and of a comely mien. a That is why this one is especially approved, being superior; for the inferior kind, like dirty spittle, is as foul as The wayfarer who comes from depth of dust And from his parched mouth the dirt spits forth: a And as the same writer says, With sloth inglorious his wide paunch he drags. b Therefore all the leaders of the baser kind Give them to death, and let the better prince Ride in the empty hall. c Nevertheless he too must be despoiled of his wings, when he oft-times attempts to break out with his swarm and fly away; for, if we strip him of his wings, we shall keep the vagrant chieftain as though in fetters chained, who, deprived of the resource of flight, ventures not to leave the confines of his realm and, for this reason, does not allow even the people under his sway to wander further than he is able. > Latin: 7. Suggestus lapideus extenditur per totum apiarium in 1 tres pedes altitudinis 2 extructus, isque diligenter opere tectorio levigatur, ita ne ascensus lacertis, aut anguibus, aliisve noxiis animalibus praebeatur. Superponuntur deinde, sive, ut Celso placet,lateribus facta domicilia,sive,ut nobis, alvearia, praeterquam a tergo et si forte tamen incesserint, licet aperiri nec collocari oportebit alvum, nisi vesperi, ut apes placidae mane post totius requiem aucupandi examina maiorem faciunt; eaque sic inveniuntur. Primum quam longe sint explorandum est, praeparandaque notat, in quam plures revolent, et eas persequitur, donec ad latebram perducatur examinis. Quod sive est abditum specu, fumo elicietur, et cum erupit, aeris strepitu coercetur. Nam statim sono territum vel in frutice vel in editiore silvae fronde considet, et a vestigatore praeparato vase distet examen. Sunt qui per initia veris apiastrum, atque, ut ille vates ait, Trita melisphylla et cerinthae ignobile gramen, aliasque colligant similes herbas, quibus id genus animalium delectatur, et ita alvos perfricent, ut odor et succus vasis inhaereat: quae deinde mundata exiguo melle respergant, et per nemora non longe a fontibus disponant, eaque cum repleta sunt examinibus, domum referant. Sed hoc nisi locis, quibus abundant apes, facere non expedit. Nam saepe vel inania vasa nacti, qui forte praetereunt, secum auferunt: neque est tanti vacua perdere complura, ut uno vel altero potiare imperia: quippe cum rationabili generi Itaque maxime observari debent, quae istud faciunt, ut sive ad pugnam eruperint, nam inter se tanquam civilibus bellis, et cum alteris quasi cum exteris gentibus proeliantur, sive fugae causa se proripuerint, praesto sit ad utrumque casum paratus inesse, aut certe plures bona fide reconciliatos; quos sic Atque hic maxime probatur, qui est melior: nam deterior, sordido sputo similis, tam foedus est, quam pulvere ab alto Cum venit et sicco terram spuit ore viator. Et, ut idem ait, Desidia latamque trahens inglorius alvum. Omnes igitur duces notae deterioris Dede neci, melior vacua sine regnet in aula. Qui tamen et ipse spoliandus est alis, ubi saepius cum examine suo conatur eruptione facta profugere'. Nam velut quadam compede retinebimus erronem ducem detractis alis, qui fugae destitutus praesidio, finem regni non audet excedere, propter quod ne ditionis quidem suae populo permittit longius evagari. [¶4] 11. But sometimes the king-bee has to be put to death when an old hive falls short of its proper Complement of bees, and its want of numbers must be made up from another swarm. Therefore, when in the early spring a young brood is born in the hive, the new king-bee is squeezed to death, so that the multitude of bees may live with their parents without discord. But if the combs have produced no offspring, it will be open to you to bring together the population of two or three hives into one, but only after they have been sprinkled with sweet liquid; then you can shut them up and, after placing food for them, keep them enclosed for about three days., leaving only small breathing-holes, until they are accustomed to live together. There are some. people who prefer to get rid of a king-bee that is old, but this is harmful; for the crowd of older bees, who form a kind of senate, do not think fit to obey the juniors and, through obstinately despising the orders of those who are stronger than themselves, are visited with punishment and death. The trouble, indeed, which usually befalls a younger swarm, when the king of the old bees whom we have left in power has failed through old age and wild discord arises through lack of control (just as happens in a family when its head dies), can easily be met. For one leader is chosen from those hives which have several chiefs and is transferred to those which have no one to govern them, and set up as ruler. In those quarters which are afflicted by some pestilence the lack of bees can be remedied with less trouble; for when the disaster to the crowded hive is recognized, you must examine any combs which it contains. You must then next cut away, from the wax which holds the seeds, that part in which the offspring of the kingly race comes to life. It is easy to see this, since almost at the very end of the wax there appears as it were-the nipple of a breast projecting somewhat and with a wider cavity than the rest of the holes, in which the young bees of the common kind are enclosed. Celsus indeed declares that there are transverse cavities in the outermost combs which contain the royal progeny. Hyginus, too, following the authority of the Greeks, says that the ruler is not formed, like the rest of the bees, from a small worm, but that, on the circumference of the combs, straight holes are to be found somewhat larger than those which hold the bees of common birth, filled with a kind of dirt of a red colour from which the winged king-bee is immediately formed. > Latin: 11. Sed nonnunquam idem necandus est, cum Vetus alveare numero apium destituitur, atque infrequentia eius alio 1 examine 2 replenda est. Itaque cum primo vere in eo vase nata est pullities, novus rex eliditur 3 ut multitudo sine discordia cum parentibus suis conversetur. Quod si nullam progeniem tulerint favi, duas 4 vel tres alvorum plebes in unum contribuere licebit, sed prius respersas dulci liquore: tum demum includere, et posito cibo, dum conversari consuescant, exiguis spiramentis relictis triduo fere clausas habere. Sunt qui seniorem potius regem submoveant, quod est contrarium: quippe turba vetustior, velut quidam senatus, minoribus parere non censent, atque imperia validiorum contumaciter spernendo seminis, inveniri recta foramina repleta quasi sorde rubri coloris, ex qua protinus alatus rex figuretur. [¶5] 12. Care must also be taken of the home-bred swarm, if by chance, taking a dislike to their paternal abode, they break forth at the time already mentioned and announce their intention of taking a more distant flight. This the swarm intimates when the bees so completely avoid the entrance to the hive that not a single one flies back again into it, but immediately rises high into the sky. The young bees who are escaping should be frightened by the rattling of brass or potsherds, which are usually to be found lying about; and when in their alarm they have returned to the maternal hive and hang in a mass at the entrance to it or betake themselves immediately to the nearest foliage, the keeper should immediately besmear the inside of a new receptacle prepared for the purpose with the herbs mentioned above, and then, after sprinkling it with drops of honey, bring it near and gather the mass of bees together with his hands or with a scoop; and, after taking every proper precaution, he should let the hive, after it has been carefully adjusted and besmeared inside, remain in the same place until evening begins to fall. Then at first twilight he should remove it and replace it in a row with the other hives. But you should also have empty hives placed in the apiary; for there are some swarms which, as soon as they have come forth, immediately seek a home for themselves nearby and occupy one which they find empty.. You now have a practically complete account of the measures to be taken for acquiring bees and keeping them in your possession. > Latin: 12. Est et illa vernaculi examinis cura, si forte praedicto tempore facta eruptione 1 patriam 2 fasti-diens3 sedem longiorem fugam denuntiavit. Id autem significat, eum sic apis evadit vestibulum, ut nulla intra revolet, sed se confestim levet sublimius. Crepitaculis aeris Sequitur ut morbo vel pestilentia latrantibus remedia desiderentur. [¶6] 13. The next thing is that remedies are needed for those which are suffering from disease or pestilence. The ruinous disease of pestilence ' is rare in bees, nor can I find anything which ought to be done other than what we have prescribed in the case of the other animals (except that the hives should be moved far away); but the causes of common ailments a in bees are more easily diagnosed and remedies found for them. The most serious is their annual distemper at the beginning of spring, when the spurge-bush flowers and the elms put forth their bitter blossoms; for as by fresh apples, so are they allured by these early flowers and eat greedily of them after their winter hunger, such food not being hurtful when not eaten beyond satiety, but when they have gorged themselves abundantly with it, they die from a flux of the belly, unless help is quickly given. For spurge produces looseness of the bowels in the larger animals also, but elm has this effect particularly on bees. This is the reason why bees rarely continue numerous in the districts of Italy which are planted with trees of this kind. And so at the beginning of spring, if you supply them with medicated food, by means of the same remedies it is. possible both to provide against their being troubled by plague b of this kind and also to cure them when they are already suffering from it. Now I myself do not venture to insist on the treatment which Hyginus, following ancient authorities, has recorded, since I have not tried it; but it is open to those who wish to do so to test it. For his instructions are: when a plague of this kind has attacked the bees, and the bodies are found for dead in heaps under the honeycombs, lay them aside in a dry place through the winter, and, at about the time of the spring equinox, when the mildness of the day invites us, bring them out into the sunshine, after the third hour, and cover them with fig-wood ashes. If this is done, he declares that within two hours, brought to life by the quickening breath of the heat, they begin to breathe again and crawl into a vessel provided for this purpose, if it is placed in their way. We rather, that they may not perish, are of opinion that the diet, which we will forthwith describe, should be put before the swarms when they are sick. For they ought to be given either seeds of pomegranate, bruised and sprinkled with Aminean a wine, or raisins with an equal quantity of Syrian sumach b and soaked in rough wine; or, if these are without effect taken separately, all the same ingredients should be pounded in equal quantities into a single mass and boiled in an earthenware vessel with Aminean wine and then allowed to cool right away and placed before the bees in wooden troughs. Some people boil rosemary in honey-water and, when it has cooled, pour it into troughs and give it to the bees to sip. Others put the urine either of oxen or of human beings near the hives, as Hyginus declares. Moreover also, that disease is particularly remarkable which makes them hideous and shrunken and consumes them, when some often carry out from their abodes the bodies of those which have died, while others remain listless within their dwellings in sad silence, as though in time of public mourning. When this happens food is offered them poured into troughs made of reeds, especially boiled honey pounded up with an oak-apple or a dried rose. It is also a good plan to burn galbanum, a that they may be cured by its odour, and to keep up their strength, when they are exhausted, with raisin-wine and boiled-down must. The root of the starwort, the bushy part of which is yellow and its flower purple, has the best effect of all; it is boiled with old Aminean wine and pressed and then the juice is strained and given as a remedy. Hyginus indeed, in the book which he wrote about bees, says: “Aristomachus b is of opinion that help ought to be brought to bees which are sick in the following manner: first, all the diseased combs should be removed and entirely fresh food placed for the bees, and then they should be fumigated.” He thinks also that it is beneficial to add a new swarm to the bees who are wasted by old age, although there is a danger that they may be destroyed by sedition, nevertheless they are likely to rejoice because their number is increased. But that they may remain in a state of concord, the kings of those bees which are being transferred from another hive ought to be put out of the way as rulers of an alien people. There is, however, no doubt that the honey-combs of the most populous swarms, which have young bees already matured in them, ought to be transferred and made subject to the less populous swarms that their families may be strengthened by the adoption, as it were, of fresh progeny. But, when this is going to be done, we must remember to put in the care of the old swarm those honey-combs in which the young ones are already opening their cells and putting out their heads and eating away the wax which was laid upon the top as a kind of covering for their holes. For if we transfer the honey-combs when the brood has not come to maturity, the young bees will die when they cease to be kept warm. For they often die of a distemper which the Greeks call phagedaina. a For since it is the habit of bees to construct beforehand as many cells as they think they can fill, it sometimes happens that, when their waxen structures are finished, the swarm, while it is roaming too far afield in search of honey, is overwhelmed in the woods by sudden showers and whirlwinds and loses most of the ordinary bees. When this has happened, the few that remain are not enough to fill the combs and then the empty parts of the wax cells become rotten, and since diseases gradually creep in, the honey becomes corrupted and the bees, too, themselves die. To prevent this, either the populations of two hives ought to be united, so that they can fill the waxen cells which are still sound, or, if a second swarm is not available, we must remove the honey-combs from the uninhabited parts, before they go rotten, with a very sharp knife. For it is very important also that a very blunt iron tool, because it does not easily penetrate, should not be pressed with great force and- dislodge the honeycombs from their places; for if this has happened, the bees desert their abode. There is also this cause of mortality among bees that sometimes very many flowers come up during several continuous years and the bees are more eager to make honey than to produce offspring. And so some people, whose knowledge of these matters is defective, are delighted at the large production of honey, not being aware of the destruction which is threatening the bees; for, exhausted by too much labour, very many of them are perishing and, as their numbers are not being increased by the addition of young stock, the rest at last die off. And so, if such a spring comes on that both the meadows and the cornfields abound in flowers, it is most expedient every third day to close the exits from the hives (small openings having been left through which the bees cannot pass), so that, called from the activity of making honey, since they have no hope of being able to fill up the waxen cells with liquid honey, they may fill them with offspring. Such then in general are the remedies for swarms suffering from some distemper. Next comes the management of bees throughout the year according to the excellent system set forth by the same Hyginus. From the first equinox, which takes place about the twenty-fourth of March in the eighth degree of the Ram, until the rising of the Pleiads, there are reckoned to be the forty-eight days of spring. During these days, he says, the bees ought to receive attention for the first time by opening the hives, so that all filth, which has collected during the winter season, may be removed, and, after the spiders, which rot the honeycombs, have been got rid of, the hives may be fumigated with smoke produced by burning ox-dung; for this smoke is particularly well suited to bees as if some affinity existed between it and them. The little worms also which are called moth-caterpillars and also the developed moths must be killed. These pests which generally adhere to the honey-combs fall off, if you mix ox's marrow with dung and, after setting the mixture on fire, bring the smell of burning near them. As a result of this precaution the swarms will be strengthened during the period which we have mentioned and will apply themselves to their work with more vigour. But very great care must be taken by the man in charge, who feeds the bees, when he must handle the hives, that the day before he has abstained from sexual relations and does not approach them when drunk and only after washing himself, and that he abstain from all edibles which have a strong flavour, such as pickled fish and all the liquids which accompany them, and also from the acrimonious stench of garlic and onions and all other similar things. On the forty-eighth day after the vernal equinox, when the rising of the Pleiads takes place about the 8th of May, the swarms begin to increase in strength and number; but in the same period of days the swarms also which contain few and sickly bees die off, and at the same time in the extremities of the honey-combs bees are born of larger size than the rest, which some people think are king-bees. Some writers among the Greeks, however, call them oistroi a from the fact that they excite the swarms and do not allow them any rest; therefore they recommend that they should be killed. From the rising of the Pleiads to the solstice, which takes place at the end of June in about the eighth degree of the Crab, the hives generally swarm. This is a time at which they must be very strictly watched, so that the young brood may not escape. Then, when the solstice is passed and until the rising of the Dog-star, a period of about thirty days, the harvests of the cornfields and the honey-combs alike are gathered in. How the combs should be removed will be told presently when we give instructions for preparing honey. Now Democritus, Mago and likewise Vergil have recorded that bees can be generated at this same time of year from a slain bullock. Mago indeed also asserts that the same thing may be done from the bellies of oxen, but I consider it superfluous to deal in more detail with this method, since I am in agreement with Celsus, who very wisely says that there is never such mortality among these creatures, that it is necessary to procure them by this means. But at this time and until the autumn equinox, the hives ought to be opened and fumigated every tenth day. This, though it annoys the swarm, is generally considered to be very wholesome. Then after they have been fumigated and are still heated the bees ought to be cooled by sprinkling the empty parts of the hives and pouring in water which is cold because it is very freshly drawn: then when there is anything which cannot be washed away, it must be cleansed with the feathers of an eagle or of any other large bird which are of a stiff quality. Moreover caterpillars should be swept away and moths killed, which generally linger among the hives and are destructive to the bees; for they both gnaw at the waxen combs and from their dung breed worms which we call “hive-moths.” Therefore, at the season when the mallows flower, when the moths are most numerous, if a bronze vessel of the shape of a milestone is placed amongst the hives in the evening and a light lowered to the bottom of it, the moths rush together from all sides and, flitting round the flame, are scorched because they cannot easily fly upwards from the narrow space or retire to a distance from the fire, since they are hemmed in by the brazen sides of the vessel. They are, therefore, consumed by the burning heat which is near them. About fifty days from the rising of the Dog-star is the rising of Arcturus, at which time the bees make their honey from the dew-drenched flowers of thyme and marjoram and savory. Honey of the finest quality is at its best at the autumn equinox,[a] which falls before the first of October, when the sun reaches the eighth degree of Libra. But great care will have to be exercised between the rising of the Dog-star and that of Arcturus that the bees are not surprised by violent attacks from hornets, which generally lie in wait in front of the hives for them to come out. After the rising of Arcturus about the time of the equinox, which takes place when the sun is in the Balance (as I have said), the second extraction of honey-combs takes place. Then from the equinox, which occurs about September 24th, until the setting of the Pleiads, a period of forty days, the bees store up the honey which they have collected for winter food from the tamarisk flowers and woodland shrubs. Of this nothing at all must be extracted,-lest the bees, disheartened by continual ill-treatment and, as it were, in despair, should take to flight. From the setting of the Pleiads till the winter solstice, which falls about December 23rd in the eighth degree of Capricorn, the bees make use of the honey already stored up and are sustained by it until the rising of Arcturus. I am well acquainted with the reckoning of Hipparchus, a which declares that the solstices and equinoxes occur not in the eighth but in the first degrees of the signs of the Zodiac; however, in these rural instructions I am now following the calendar of Eudoxus and Meto b and the old astronomers, which are adapted to the public festivals, because this view, accepted in old times, is more familiar to farmers and, on the other hand, the subtility of Hipparchus is not necessary for rustics of less refined education. On the first rising, then, of the Pleiads it will be advisable immediately to open the hives and clear away any filth that there is and attend to them with particular care, since during the winter time it is not expedient to move or open the hives. For this reason, while there are some remains left of autumn, on a very sunny day, after the bees' habitations have been cleansed, the covers must be put inside close to the honey-combs to prevent there being any empty space within, so that the narrow quarters of the hives may warm up more easily during the winter. This must always be done also in those hives which are sparsely inhabited through lack of bee population. Next any chinks or holes that there are we shall daub outside with a mixture of clay and ox-dung, and we shall only leave entrance by which they may come and go. Also, although the hives are protected by a porch, we shall nevertheless cover them by heaping stalks and leaves on the top of them and fortify them, as far as circumstances allow, against cold and bad weather. Some people kill birds and, after taking out their intestines, shut the birds up in the hives, so that in winter time they may provide a gentle heat for the bees which lurk amongst their feathers; furthermore, if the stock of food is used up, they can very well feed on these birds, if they are hungry, and leave nothing but the bones. But if the honey-combs supply their needs, the birds remain untouched, nor do they offend the bees with their odour, fond though they are of cleanliness. It is better, however, in our opinion, when they are suffering from hunger in the winter time, to provide them with dried figs pounded and soaked in water or with boiled-down must or raisin-wine placed in little troughs at the very entrance to the hives; and it will be advisable to soak clean wool in these liquids, so that the bees, settling upon it, may draw up the juice as through a small pipe. We shall also do well to give them raisins sprinkled a little with water after we have broken them up. With these foods they must be sustained not only in winter but also at those seasons, when, as we said just now, spurge and also elms are in blossom. When the height of winter is passed, for a period of about forty days, they use up all the honey which is stored, unless an unusually generous allowance is left, and often too, after they have emptied the waxen cells, they lie fasting in the honey-combs in a torpid condition, like snakes, until about the rising of Arcturus, which is on the 13th of February, and by keeping quiet preserve the breath of life; in order, however, that they may not lose it, if too long a fast occurs, it is best to pour sweet liquids through the entrance of the porch by means of small pipes and thus support them during the temporary scarcity until the rising of Arcturus and the coming of the swallow with promise of more favourable weather for the future. And so, after this time, when the more cheerful weather allows it, the bees venture to go forth to their pastures; for after the spring equinox they are already roaming about everywhere without hesitation and plucking the produce of flowers which are suitable for the production of their young and carrying it into their dwellings. These are the principles which Hyginus recommends for the most careful observation throughout the seasons of the year, but Celsus makes the following additions. He says that only in a few places are conditions so favourable as to provide different foods for the bees in winter and summer, and that, therefore, in places where suitable flowers are lacking after the season of spring, the swarms ought not to be left without being moved, but, when the spring foods are consumed, they should be transferred to places which can offer the bees a more liberal diet from the late-flowering blossoms of thyme, marjoram and savory. This, he says, is the practice both in the regions of Achaia, where the bees are transferred to pastures in Attica, and in Euboea, and also in the islands of the Cyclades, when they are transferred from other islands to Scyros, and likewise in Sicily, when they are moved from the other parts of the island to Hybla. The same writer says that, the waxen cells are made from flowers and the honey from morning dew, and that, the pleasanter the material from which the wax is made, the better the quality which the honey acquires. He gives instructions to examine the hives carefully before transferring them and to remove honey-combs which are old and wormy and falling to pieces, and to keep only a few and these the best, so that as many as possible may be made at the same time from the better flowers. He also says that the hives which anyone wishes to transfer should only be moved at night and without being shaken. Presently, when spring is over, as I have said, the the harvesting of the honey follows, with a view to which the whole year's work is carried out. We conclude that the honey is ripe when we notice that the drones are being expelled and put to flight by the bees. They are insects of a larger growth, very like bees, but as Vergil a says " a lazy herd " and idle, sitting near the honey-combs without doing any work; for they do not collect food but consume that which is brought in by others. Nevertheless these drones seem to contribute something to the procreation of the younger generation by sitting on the seeds from which the bees are formed, and so they are admitted on terms of some intimacy in order to sit upon the eggs which produce the new offspring; then, when the young bees are hatched, they are hustled out of the hives and, as the same poet says, “they are kept away from the fold.” b Some people recommend that they should be entirely exterminated; but I agree with Mago that this should not be done, but that a limit ought to be set to cruelty. For the race ought not to be wholly destroyed, lest the bees suffer from idleness, since, when the drones consume part of their provisions, they become more active in repairing their losses; but, on the other hand, a crowd of robbers ought not to be allowed to form a band, lest they plunder all the wealth of others. Therefore, when you see bees and drones frequently quarrelling with one another, you will open and inspect the hives, so that, if the honey-combs are half-full, they may be let alone for a time, but, if they are already full of liquid and sealed up with wax, just as if they had lids over them, the harvest of honey may be gathered in. The morning should generally be chosen for the removal of the honey; for it is not advisable that the bees should be provoked when they are already exasperated by the midday heat. Two iron instruments are required for this operation, measuring a foot and a half or a little more, one of which should be an oblong knife with a broad edge on both sides and having a curved scraper at one extremity, and the other flat in front and very sharp, so that with the latter the honey-combs may be cut out better, and that with the former they be scraped off and any filth which has fallen upon them may be cleaned away. When the hive has been opened from the back, where there is no porch,[a] we shall apply smoke made from galbanum a or from dried dung; moreover, these ingredients are mixed with live coals and put into an earthenware vessel. This vessel has handles and is shaped like a narrow pot in such a way that one end of it is sharper through which the smoke may issue through a small aperture, while the other end is broader and has a rather wider mouth, so that the coals can be blown upon through it. When a pot of this kind is applied to a hive, the smoke is conveyed to the bees by the movement set up by the breath. The bees, unable to endure the smell of burning, immediately move to the front part of their abode and sometimes outside the porch. When there is an opportunity of inspecting the hives more freely, usually, if there are two swarms, two kinds of honey-combs are also found; for even if they live in harmony together, each community keeps to its own manner of shaping and constructing its waxen cells. All the combs, however, always hang down from the roofs of the hives, adhering very little to the sides and in such a way as not to touch the bottom, thus leaving a passage for the swarms. But the shape of the wax cells depends on the nature of the bee-house; for square and round and also long dimensions impose their own shapes upon the honeycombs as if they were moulds, and that is why the honey-combs are not always found to be of the same shape. But of whatever kind they are, they should not all be removed; for at the first harvesting of honey, when the country still provides plenty of food, one-fifth of the honey-combs must be left; at the later harvesting, when the winter is already causing apprehension, a third part should be left. This, however, is not a fixed rule for all districts, since plans for the bees must be dependent on the abundance of flowers and the richness of the food available. If the hanging waxen cells run into length, the combs must be cut with the iron tool which resembles a knife and must be received by putting your two arms underneath them, and so removed; but if they run horizontally and keep close to the roofs of the hives, then you must use the scraping instrument, so that they may be cut down by the pressure exerted on the side which faces you. But old and defective honey-combs ought to be removed, and those which are soundest and full of honey should be left, as also those which contain young bees, so that they may be preserved for propagating a swarm. Next the whole store of honey-combs must be collected, in the place where you intend to make the honey, and the holes in the walls and windows must be carefully daubed over, so that there may be no passage for the bees which obstinately search as if they were looking for lost wealth, and, if they track down the honey, eat it up. Smoke must, therefore, also be kindled of the same materials as before at, the entrance of the place to drive away those that are trying to get in. Then those hives from which the honey has been cut out, if they have combs lying across the entrance, will have to be turned round, so that the hinder parts in their turn become entrances; for in this way, the next time the honey is taken, the old combs rather than the new will be removed, and the waxen cells, which deteriorate as they grow older, will be renewed. But if the hives happen to be surrounded by walls and cannot be moved, we must take care that the combs are cut out, sometimes from the back and sometimes from the front. This process will have to be carried out before the fifth hour of the day and then repeated after the ninth hour or else next morning. But whatever be the number of honey-combs that are harvested, you should make the honey on the same day, while they are still warm. A wickerwork basket or a bag rather loosely woven of fine withies in the shape of an inverted cone, like that through which wine is strained, is hung up in a dark place, and then the honey-combs are heaped in it one by one. But care must be taken that those parts of the waxen cells, which contain either young bees or dirty red matter are separated from them, for they have an ill flavour and corrupt the honey with their juice. Then, when the honey has been strained and has flowed down into the basin put underneath to catch it, it is transferred to earthenware vessels which are left open for a few days until the fresh produce ceases to ferment; and it must be frequently skimmed with a ladle. Next the fragments of the honey-combs, which have remained in the bag, are handled again and the juice squeezed out of them. What flows from them is honey of the second quality and is stored apart by itself by the more careful people, lest any of the honey of the best flavour should deteriorate by having this brought into contact with it. The yield of wax, though of little monetary value, must not be overlooked, since its use is necessary for many purposes. The remains of the honeycombs, when they have been well squeezed, after being carefully washed in fresh water, are thrown into a brazen vessel; water is then added to them and they are melted over a fire. When this has been done, the wax is poured out and strained through straw or rushes. It is then boiled over again a second time in the same manner and poured in such moulds as one has thought suitable, water having been first added. When the wax has hardened, it is easy to take it out, since the liquid which remains in the bottom does not allow it to stick to the moulds. Having now finished the discussion of the animals kept at the farmhouse and their feeding, the part of husbandry which still remains to be treated, namely the cultivation of gardens, we will now present in verse in accordance with the desire which both you. Publius Silvinus, and our friend Gallio a were pleased to express. > Latin: 13. Pestilentiae rara in apibus pernicies, nee tamen aliud, quam quod in cetero pecore praecepimus, quid fieri possit 1 reperio, nisi ut longius alvi transferantur. Morborum autem facilius et causae dispiciuntur, et inveniuntur medicinae. Maximus autem annuus cipit apium corpora, quae cum eiusmodi pestis incessit, sub favis acervatim enectae offeruntur cibi, maxime dococti mellis, et cum galla et velut opercula foraminum obductas ceras erodunt ficiis quam fetibus student. Itaque nonnulli, quibus minor est harum rerum scientia, magnis enecandi sunt: quae pestes plerumque favis adhaerentes decidunt, si fimo medullam bubulam misceas, et his incensis acto solstitio usque ad ortum Caniculae, qui fere dies triginta sunt, pariter alvos, et in fundum eius lumen aliquod demittitur, undique papiliones concurrunt: tur. Nec me fallit Hipparchi ratio, quae docet solstitia et aequinoctia non octavis sed primis partibus signorum confici. Verum in hac ruris disciplina sequor nunc Eudoxi et Metonis sunt absumpta cibaria, commode pascuntur esurientes, nec nisi ossa audent in pascua. Nam ab plurimi fiant: eaque vasa, quae semipleni favi sint, differantur: sive iam liquore completi, et superpositis ceris tamquam opereulis obliti, demetantur. Dies vero castrandi fere matutinus occupandus est. Neque enim convenit aestu medio exasperatas apes lacessiri. inveniuntur. Nam etiam in concordia Omnis deinde copia favorum conferenda est in eum locum, in quo mel conficere voles, linendaque sunt diligenter foramina parietum et fenestrarum, nequid sit apibus pervium, quae velut amissas opes suas pertinaciter vestigant, et persecutae consumunt. Itaque ex iisdem rebus fumus fluxit, transfertur