Gilbert White: A Naturalist's Journal: One day in July

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A view from the back garden of Gilbert White's house, The Wakes, Selborne, Hampshire: photo by Ludi Ling, 26 August 2010

25 July, 1790

Lime trees are fragrant: the golden tassels are beautiful. Dr Chandler tells us that in the south of France, an infusion of the blossoms of the lime-tree, tilia, is in much esteem as a remedy for coughs, hoarseness, fevers, etc.; and that at Nismes he saw an avenue of limes that was quite ravaged and torn to pieces by people greedily gathering the bloom, which they dryed and kept for their purposes. Upon the strength of this information we made some tea of lime-blossoms, and found it a very soft, well-flavoured, pleasant, saccharine julep, in taste much resembling the juice of liquorice.

25 July, 1789

No garden-beans gathered yet.  Threw the hay in the meadows into large cocks.  The lime-trees with their golden tassels make a most beautiful show.  Hops throw out their side branches, which are to bear the fruit.  Cran-berries at bin pond not ripe.  Hog pease are hacking at Oakhanger.

25 July, 1786

Pease are hacked: rye is reaping: turnips thrive and are hoing.

25 July, 1785

Boys bring the sixth and seventh wasp’s nest.  My Nep. Edmd White sends me some fine wall-nuts for pickling.  The trees at Newton were not at all touched by the severity of last winter; while mine were so damaged that all the bearing twigs were destroyed.  My wall-nut trees have this summer pushed out shoots thro’ the old bark, several feet from the extremities of the boughs.  While the hen-fly-catcher sits, the cock feeds her all day long: he also pays attention to the former brood, which he feeds at times.

25 July, 1783

Trenched two more rows of celeri in the upper end of the plot by W. Dewey’s: the ground mellow.  We plant out the cabbage-kind some few at a time.  The boys bring me a large wasp’s nest full of maggots.

Some young martins came out of the nest over the garden-door.  This nest was built in 1777, and has been used ever since. As the summer has been dry, and we have drawn much water for the garden, I caused my well to be plumbed, and found we have yet 13 feet of water.  When we were measuring I was desirious of trying the depth of Bentham’s well, which becomes dry every summer; and was surprized to find it 25 feet shallower than my own: the former being only 38 feet deep, and the latter 63.

25 July, 1781

The crop on my largest Apricot-tree is still prodigious, tho’ in May I pulled off 30, or 40 dozen.

25 July, 1779

Puff-balls come up in my grass-plot, and walks: they came from the common in the turf.  There are many fairy-rings in my walks, in these the puff-balls thrive best.  The fairy-rings alter and vary in their shape.

25 July, 1778

The water shines in the fallows.  Much damage done about London by lightening on July 20.

25 July, 1776 

Bees that have not swarmed kill their drones.

25 July, 1774 

Grapes very small and backward for want of sun.  qu: if they will ripen.

*They did in Octr.

25 July, 1773 

Some hops much infested with aphides.

25 July, 1772

 

Wheat turns yellowish.  Mercury falls very fast.

25 July, 1768 

Cut the first cantelupe-melon.

Gilbert White (1720-1793): from Naturalist's Journal (entries for 25 July, 1768-1790) in Journals, edited by Walter Johnson, 1931

Hot Beds used by Gilbert White. Gilbert White successfully grew melons in these hotbeds. A pit is dug and filled with fresh horse manure, on top of which is a foot or so of good loamy soil. The manure ferments and produces a high temperature which aids the germination of the seeds. If required, glass can also be placed across the frame: photo by Dr Neil Clifton, 2 September 2007

Selborne, Hampshire: The Wakes, home of the famous naturalist and gardener Gilbert White: photo by Dr Neil Clifton, 2 September 2007

Gilbert White's garden, Selborne, Hampshire. Gilbert White was not a rich man and could not afford statues to decorate his garden. Instead he used wooden boards painted to resemble statues at the end of sight lines as here through the field gates: photo by Dr Neil Clifton, 2 September 2007

Young Orchard. At Sotherington Farm near Selbone: photo by John Phillips, 1 May 2006

Mind the Nettles: photo by John Phillips, 1 May 2006

Snap of Snap Wood: photo by John Phillips, 1 May 2006

Pond near Selborne: photo by Mike Parsons, 11 July 2006

Temple Wood near Selborne: photo by John Phillips, 1 May 2006

The water below Outshott hangar. Stagnant in places. We saw a owl fly off in between the trees as we walked back: photo by Andrya Prescott: 3 June 2006

Noar Hill Wildlife Reserve: photo by Bob Ford, 15 May 2005

 

Noar Hill near Selborne: photo by John Phillips, 1 May 2006

Noar Hill from the Hangers' Way path on the south side of Selborne Hill: photo by Keith Rose, 8 June 2004

Looking south from Noar Hill. The ploughed field forms the plateau-like summit of Noar Hill. Almost surrounding the field is a glorious wildlife reserve: photo by Hugh Chevallier, 8 October 2006

Hawkley Hanger, from footpath at Vann Farm, Empshott. On Hangers Way: photo by Keith Rose, 6 May 2006

Road by Vann Farm, Empshott. On Hangers Way: photo by Keith Rose, 6 May 2006

Hangers near Empshott. Another section of the boundary between the hangers and open farmland: photo by Graham Horn, 4 March 2007

Footpath towards Empshott. Take your pick of which bit of mud you wish to use: photo by Graham Horn, 4 March 2007

Byway through the Woods. Taken on the byway to Selborne Priory through the woods east of Selborne: photo by Ron Strutt, 23 March 2003

 Looking Down the Zig-Zag Walk, Selborne Hanger. This is the area where Rev. Gilbert White researched and wrote his celebrated "Natural History of Selborne". At the age of 23, in 1743, White helped his brother John to clear and construct this path: photo by Colin Smith, November 2002

for Karen and Duncan Jones