Garlic

Early Classification.

The science that treats of plants. Like grammar and other sciences based on logical thought, scientific botany originated with the Greeks, and from them found its way to the Jews. Agriculture, gardening, and popular medicine naturally led to a knowledge of the plant world and of the most remarkable phenomena of plant life; and the natural impulse toward nomenclature led to naive classifications of the plant world. Biblical language is not poor in designations for plants (

Later Classifications.

Maimonides' classification is repeated later on by others; for example, in "Kaftor wa-Feraḥ," ed. Berlin, 56:119b; Caleb Afendopolo, in "Adderet Eliyahu," Appendix, 14a. Afendopolo adds to the above, "fruits of the ground," as cucumbers, watermelons, the castor-oil plant, and those medicinal plants which are not used for foods.

For purposes of the ritual blessing there is but one classification; namely, fruit of the tree and fruit of the soil, in addition to which mushrooms and truffles form a group by themselves, as, according to Jewish belief, they are nourished by the air (Maimonides, "Yad," Ber. and the ritual codices). As a curiosity of more modern times, the fact may be mentioned that Azulai speaks of fifty-five kinds of "fruits of the soil," for which reason, he says, the Hebrew benediction reads:

From the standpoint of the value of the soil's products, those used for maintaining life (for example, wine, oil, flour, fruit) are distinguished from others less important, as caraway-seeds and spices ('Ab. Zarah 4:465,25 et seq.; "Sheiltot," No. 32). Israel is compared with wheat, and not with nutmeg or pepper; for the world could well exist without the latter, but could not do so without the former (Pesiḳ. R. 10 [ed. Friedmann, p. 35a] and parallel passages). Separate categories are formed of the seven plants characteristic of Palestine (see see PALESTINE) and of those used for incense, medicine, and dyestuffs (

Besides the plants of Palestine and Egypt the Bible only mentions spices and condiments, coming from southern Asia and its groups of islands. These found their way, partly by land, partly by sea, to the peoples of foreign countries, and were used especially in their sacrificial offerings (Gildemeister and Hoffmann, "Die Aetherischen Oele," pp. 4 et seq., Berlin, 1899).

Post-Biblical Period.

The entire plant world is called in the Mishnah

For the different parts of the plant the language of the Mishnah is so rich in synonyms as to make it impossible to reproduce them here. Some of the designations are for particular products, as

The rich flora and the fertility of Palestine (see Palestine, Flora of) are lauded as highly by the Talmud and the Bible as in secular literature. "The vegetation of Palestine was always a very rich one; its fruits were the finest and most easily cultivated. But on two occasions its productivity reached the highest pitch: at the time when our fathers took possession of the country, and at the time of their going into exile" (Sifre, Deut. 37 [ed. Friedmann, p. 76b]; 316, 317 [ed. Friedmann, p. 135b]; Pesiḳ. R. 132a; Yalḳ., Yer. 328). Still greater shall be its fertility at the time of the Messiah: "On the day of sowing, the fruit will ripen as at Creation, yea, even the wood of the fruit-trees will become edible." Wonderful was also the harvest at the time of Queen Salome: the wheat-kernels grew to the size of kidneys; barley was as large as olives; peas were as large as golden dinars; and, accordingly, samples of them all were preserved for later generations, to show what would be the deteriorating consequences of sin! (Sifra, Beḥuḳḳotai, ed. Weiss, p. 110d, and parallel passages). "Unseemly, yea, even insolent, it is of the land which has been manured and cultivated by its owners, not to deny its harvest to the conquerors after the destruction of Jerusalem" (Yer. Ta'an. 4:69b; Lam. R., Introduction, end).

The total number of plant-names found in the Bible (100) does not correspond with the excessively rich vegetation of Palestine. But this will not be a matter for surprise, considering that the legislative part of the Bible is, on account of the food restrictions contained therein, very copious in names of animals, and that there is little occasion to consider plants in such connection, these being only occasionally mentioned in poetical and prophetical writings. The literature of the Mishnah enriches the Biblical list of plant-names to the extent of about 180 good Hebrew words; so that it may be inferred that a very large proportion of the Hebrew botanical vocabulary has been preserved.

Halakah.

Halakic writers often had occasion to mention plants. The establishment of the ritual blessings for the various kinds of vegetable food and for the first-fruits of the season (

Foreign Plant-Names.

Europe received most of its cultivated plants from the Orient. Some plant-names, like that of the balsam, it returned to the East later; but the Orient also owes many new terms to the Greeks and Romans. The preponderating culture of the former, and the commerce and luxury of Roman life, led the Jews to adopt the names of many plants long before they were known in Palestine. Through the Greeks podded "grains" (pulse) came to the East; the words ϑέρμος, λόβια, φάση;λος, piίσον became familiar to the Jews and other Semites, while many fine sorts of fruit were known by the names which the Roman consumer gave them, as, for example, "plums of Damascus" (Δαμασκηνὰ), two sorts of dates (νικόλαος, καρυωτός), a celebrated brand of figs, called φιβάλεως, the fine eating olive (κολυμβάς), etc. The names of the peach (περσικά), the quince (μελΊμηλα), the kind of pear known as Crustuminum pirum, the cembra-nut (στρόβιλος), and the fruit of the Cordia myxa (Linnæus) indicate the influence ofthe Greeks on the fruit-trees and fruit-markets of Palestine. The cabbage, kale, and mustard (λαψάνη) came from Europe; the turnip, carrot (γογγυλίδια), parsnip, leek (κεφαλωτόν), parsley, artichoke, and sugar-melon are known by Greek designations. The ash (μελία), of which three kinds are now found in Palestine, bears a Greek name; even for the indigenous cedar the word κέδρος maintains itself; while the wood of the native box-tree is also designated by the Greek word εύξινον.

Passages indicating where various plants were especially cultivated abound in the Mishnaic and Talmudic literature; but these belong rather to a description of the agriculture of Palestine than to botany. R. Simon b. Gamaliel, however, shows an accurate knowledge of the special habitats of plants when he says: "Of mountains, the ash is characteristic; of ravines ["ghor"], the date-palms; of water-courses ["wadis"], the reeds; and of lowlands ["she-felah"], the sycamore" (see Tosef., Sheb.; Yer. 9:38d; Pes. 13a; Bacher, "Ag. Tan." 2:327; and "Kaftor wa-Peraḥ," p. 107a; Vogelstein, "Landwirt-schaft in Palästina," 1:7; Kaplan, "Ereẓ Ḳedumim," p. 34).

Ritual Mention of Plants.

In other passages also R. Simon b. Gamaliel shows an interest in botanical questions (Frankel, "Darke ha-Mishnah," p. 184); and the interpretation of the Biblical