Sylva, Vol. 1

Sylva, Vol. 1 (of 2), by John
Evelyn

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Title: Sylva, Vol. 1 (of 2) Or A Discource of Forest Trees
Author: John Evelyn
Commentator: John Nisbet
Release Date: March 8, 2007 [EBook #20778]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
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VOL. 1 (OF 2) ***

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{Transcriber's note:
The spelling and punctuation in the original are idiosyncratic and
inconsistent. No changes have been made except as explicitly noted at
the end of this etext.
Greek has been transliterated and surrounded with ++: +Theos hylikos+.
{oe} ligatures have been unpacked. The ounce sign is represented by
{oz}.}

SYLVA: OR A DISCOURSE OF FOREST TREES & THE
PROPAGATION OF TIMBER V O L U M E O N E

{Illustration: John Evelyn From the engraving by R. Nanteuil}

S Y L V A
OR A DISCOURSE OF FOREST TREES: BY JOHN EVELYN F.R.S.
WITH AN ESSAY ON THE LIFE AND WORKS OF THE AUTHOR BY
JOHN NISBET D.OEc.
A REPRINT OF THE FOURTH EDITION IN TWO VOLUMES
VOLUME ONE
LONDON: PUBLISHED BY ARTHUR DOUBLEDAY &
COMPANY LIMITED AT 8 YORK BUILDINGS ADELPHI

CONTENTS.
VOLUME I.

Introduction page ix Title Page of 4th Edition " lxxiii To the King "
lxxv To the Reader " lxxvii Advertisement " xcix Books published by
the Author " ci Amico carissimo " cii Nobilissimo Viro " ciii +EIS
TÊN TOU PATROS DENDROLOGIAN+ " cvi The Garden.--To J.
Evelyn, Esq. " cvii
BOOK I.
CHAPTER I.
Of the Earth, Soil, Seed, Air, and Water " 1 " II. Of the Seminary and
of Transplanting " 12 " III. Of the Oak " 30 " IV. Of the Elm " 62 " V.
Of the Beech " 75 " VI. Of the Horn-beam " 81 " VII. Of the Ash " 86 "
VIII. Of the Chesnut " 94 " IX. Of the Wallnut " 101 " X. Of the
Service, and black cherry-tree " 111 " XI. Of the Maple " 115 " XII. Of
the Sycomor " 121 " XIII. Of the Lime-Tree " 122 " XIV. Of the Poplar,
Aspen, and Abele " 128 " XV. Of the Quick-Beam " 134 " XVI. Of the
Hasel " 136 " XVII. Of the Birch " 140 " XVIII. Of the Alder " 155 "
XIX. Of the Withy, Sallow, Ozier, and Willow " 159 " XX. Of Fences,
Quick-sets, &c. " 175
BOOK II.
CHAPTER I.
Of the Mulberry " 203 " II. Of the Platanus, Lotus, Cornus, Acacia, &c.
" 214 " III. Of the Fir, Pine, Pinaster, Pitch-tree, Larsh, and
Subterranean trees " 220 " IV. Of the Cedar, Juniper, Cypress, Savine,
Thuya, &c. " 253 " V. Of the Cork, Ilex, Alaternus, Celastrus,
Ligustrum, Philyrea, Myrtil, Lentiscus, Olive, Granade, Syring,
Jasmine and other Exoticks " 282 " VI. Of the Arbutus, Box, Yew,
Holly, Pyracanth, Laurel, Bay, &c. " 293 " VII. Of the infirmities of
trees, &c. " 314
VOLUME II.
BOOK III.

CHAPTER I.
Of Copp'ces page 1 " II. Of Pruning " 8 " III. Of the Age, Stature, and
Felling of Trees " 24 " IV. Of Timber, the Seasoning and Uses, and of
Fuel " 80 " V. Aphorisms, or certain General Precepts of use to the
foregoing Chapters " 130 " VI. Of the Laws and Statutes for the
Preservation and Improvement of Woods and Forests " 138 " VII. The
paraenesis and conclusion, containing some encouragements and
proposals for the planting and improvement of his Majesty's forests,
and other amunities for shade, and ornament " 157
BOOK IV.
An historical account of the sacredness and use of standing groves, &c.
" 205
Renati Rapini " 269

INTRODUCTION.
I
Evelyn & his literary contemporaries Isaac Walton & Samuel Pepys.
Among the prose writers of the second half of the seventeenth century
John Evelyn holds a very distinguished position. The age of the
Restoration and the Revolution is indeed rich in many names that have
won for themselves an enduring place in the history of English
literature. South, Tillotson, and Barrow among theologians, Newton in
mathematical science, Locke and Bentley in philosophy and classical