Delphi Complete Works of Varro

by Marcus Terentius Varro

  L.

  Messis proprio nomine dicitur in iis quae metimur, maxime in frumento, et ab eo esse vocabulo declinata. Frumenti tria genera sunt messionis, unum, ut in Umbria, ubi falce secundum terram succidunt stramentum et manipulum, ut quemque subsicuerunt, ponunt in terra. Ubi eos fecerunt multos, iterum eos percensent ac de singulis secant inter spicas et stramentum. Spicas coiciunt in corbem atque in aream mittunt, stramenta relincunt in segete, unde tollantur in acervum. Altero modo metunt, ut in Piceno, ubi ligneum habent incurvum bacillum, in quo sit extremo serrula ferrea. Haec cum comprendit fascem spicarum, desecat et stramenta stantia in segeti relinquit, ut postea subsecentur. Tertio modo metitur, ut sub urbe Roma et locis plerisque, ut stramentum medium subsicent, quod manu sinistra summum prendunt; a quo medio messem dictam puto. Infra manum stramentum cum terra haeret, postea subsecatur; contra quod cum spica stramentum haeret, corbibus in aream defertur. Ibi discedit in aperto loco palam: a quo potest nominata esse palea. Alii stramentum ab stando, ut st[r]amen, dictum putant; alii ab stratu, quod id substernatur pecori. Cum est matura seges, metendum, cum in ea [in] iugerum fere una opera propemodum in facili agro satis esse dicatur. Messas spicas corbibus in aream deferre debent.

  [50.1] “The word messis is properly employed of the crops which we ‘measure’ (metimur), especially of grain; and this, I suggest, is the derivation of the word. There are three methods of harvesting grain: the first, employed in Umbria, in which the stalk is cut close to the ground with the hook, and each bundle, as it is cut, is laid on the ground. When a number of bundles are formed, they go over them again, and cut the ears from each close to the stalk. The ears are cast into the basket and carried to the threshing-floor, while the straw is left in the field and afterwards stacked. [2] In the second method, employed in Picenum, they use a curved handle of wood with a small iron saw attached to the end; when this catches a bundle of ears it cuts them off and leaves the straw standing in the field to be cut later. In the third method, employed near Rome and in numerous other places, seizing the top with the left hand they cut the straw in the middle; and I suggest that the word messis is derived from this middle (medium) which they cut. The part of the stalk below the hand remains attached to the ground, and is cut later; [3] while the part which is attached to the ear is carried to the threshing-floor in baskets. The name for straw, palea, may be derived from the fact that there, in an uncovered place, it is detached ‘openly’ (palam); some derive the other word, stramentum, from stare, as they do also the word stamen, and others from stratus, because it is ‘spread’ (substernitur) under cattle. The grain should be cut when it is ripe; and on easily worked land it is held that the reaping of one iugerum is approximately a day’s work for one man — this should include the carrying of the reaped ears to the threshing-floor in baskets.

  LI.

  Aream esse oportet in agro sublimiori loco, quam perflare possit ventus; hanc esse modicam pro magnitudine segetis, potissimum rutundam et mediam paulo extumidam, ut, si pluerit, non consistat aqua et quam brevissimo itinere extra aream defluere possit; omne porro brevissimum in rutundo e medio ad extremum. Solida terra pavita, maxime si est argilla, ne, aestu peminosa si sit, in rimis eius grana oblitescant et recipiant aquam et ostia aperiant muribus ac formicis. Itaque amurca solent perfundere, ea enim herbarum et formicarum et talparum venenum. Quidam aream ut habeant soldam, muniunt lapide aut etiam faciunt pavimentum. Non nulli etiam tegunt areas, ut in Bagiennis, quod ibi saepe id temporis anni oriuntur nimbi. Ubi ea retecta et loca calda, prope aream faciundum umbracula, quo succedant homines in aestu tempore meridiano.

  [51.1] “The threshing-floor should be on the place, in a somewhat elevated spot, so that the wind can sweep over it; the size should be determined by the size of the harvest. It should preferably be round, with a slight elevation at the centre, so that, if it rains, water will not stand but be able to run off the floor in the shortest line — and of course in a circle the shortest line is from the centre to the circumference. It should be built of solid dirt, well packed, and especially if it is of clay, so that it may not crack in the heat and allow the grain to hide, or take in water and open the door to mice and ants. For this reason it is customary to coat it with amurca, which is poison to weeds, ants, and moles. [2] Some farmers build up the floor with stone to make it solid, or even pave it. Others, such as the Bagienni, go so far as to build a shelter over the floors, because in that country rain-storms frequently occur at threshing time. When the floor is without a roof and the climate is hot, a shelter should be built hard by, to which the hands may go at midday in hot weather.

  LII.

  Quae seges grandissima atque optima fuerit, seorsum in aream secerni oportet spicas, ut semen optimum habeat; e spicis in area excuti grana. Quod fit apud alios iumentis iunctis ac tribulo. Id fit e tabula lapidibus aut ferro asperata, quae cum imposito auriga aut pondere grandi trahitur iumentis iunctis, discutit e spica grana; aut ex axibus dentatis cum orbiculis, quod vocant plostellum poenicum; in eo quis sedeat atque agitet quae trahant iumenta, ut in Hispania citeriore et aliis locis faciunt. Apud alios exteritur grege iumentorum inacto et ibi agitato perticis, quod ungulis e spica exteruntur grana. Iis tritis oportet e terra subiectari vallis aut ventilabris, cum ventus spirat lenis. Ita fit ut quod levissimum est in eo atque appellatur acus ac palea evannatur foras extra aream ac frumentum, quod est ponderosum, purum veniat ad corbem.

  [52.1] “On the threshing-floor the largest and best ears should be placed apart, to furnish the best seed, and the grain should be threshed on the floor. This is done in some districts by means of a yoke of steers and a sledge. The latter is constructed either of a board made rough with stones or iron, which separates the grain from the ear when it is dragged by a yoke of steers with the driver or a heavy weight on it; or of a toothed axle running on low wheels, called a Punic cart, the driver sitting on it and driving the steers which drag it — a contrivance in use in Hither Spain and other places. [2] Among other peoples the threshing is done by turning in cattle and driving them around with goads, the grain being separated from the beards by their hoofs. After the threshing the grain should be tossed from the ground when the wind is blowing gently, with winnowing fans or forks. The result is that the lightest part of it, called acus and palea, is fanned outside the floor, while the grain, being heavy, comes clean to the basket.

  LIII.

  Messi facta spicilegium venire oportet aut domi legere stipulam aut, si sunt spicae rarae et operae carae, compasci. Summa enim spectanda, ne in ea re sumptus fructum superet.

  [53.1] “When the harvest is over the gleaning should be let, or the loose stalks gathered with your own force, or, if the ears left are few and the cost of labour high, it should be pastured. For the thing to be kept in view in this matter is that the expense shall not exceed the profit.

  LIV.

  In vinetis uva cum erit matura, vindemiam ita fieri oportet, ut videas, a quo genere uvarum et a quo loco vineti incipias legere. Nam et praecox et miscella, quam vocant nigram, multo ante coquitur, quo prior legenda, et quae pars arbusti ac vineae magis aprica, prius debet descendere de vite. In vindemia diligentis uva non solum legitur sed etiam eligitur; legitur ad bibendum, eligitur ad edendum. Itaque lecta defertur in forum vinarium, unde in dolium inane veniat; electa in secretam corbulam, unde in ollulas addatur et in dolia plena vinaciorum contrudatur, alia quae in piscinam in amphoram picatam descendat, alia quae in aream in carnarium escendat. Quae calcatae uvae erunt, earum scopi cum folliculis subiciendi sub prelum, ut, siquid reliqui habeant musti, exprimatur in eundem lacum. Cum desiit sub prelo fluere, quidam circumcidunt extrema et rursus premunt et, rursus cum expressum, circumcisicium appellant ac seorsum quod expressum est servant, quod resipit ferrum. Expressi acinorum folliculi in dolia coiciuntur, eoque aqua additur; ea vocatur lora, quod lota acina, ac pro vino operariis datur hieme.

  [54.1] “As to vineyards, the vintage should begin when the grapes are ripe; and you must choose the variety of grapes and the part of the vineyard with whic
h to begin. For the early grapes, and the hybrids, the so-called black, ripen much earlier and so must be gathered sooner; and the part of the plantation and vineyard which is sunnier should have its vines stripped first. [2] At the vintage the careful farmer not only gathers but selects his grapes; he gathers for drinking and selects for eating. So those gathered are carried to the wine-yard, thence to go into the empty jar; those selected are carried to a separate basket, to be placed thence in small pots and thrust into jars filled with wine dregs, while others are plunged into the pond in a jar sealed with pitch, and still others go up to their place in the larder. When the grapes have been trodden, the stalks and skins should be placed under the press, so that whatever must remains in them may be pressed out into the same vat. [3] When the flow ceases under the press, some people trim around the edges of the mass and press again; this second pressing is called circumsicium, and the juice is kept separate because it tastes of the knife. The pressed grape-skins are turned into jars and water is added; this liquid is called lora, from the fact that the skins are washed (lota), and it is issued to the labourers in winter instead of wine.

  LV.

  De oliveto oleam, quam manu tangere possis e terra ac scalis, legere oportet potius quam quatere, quod ea quae vapulavit macescit nec dat tantum olei. Quae manu stricta, melior ea quae digitis nudis, quam illa quae cum digitabulis, durities enim eorum quod non solum stringit bacam, sed etiam ramos glubit ac relinquit ad gelicidium retectos. Quae manu tangi non poterunt, ita quati debent, ut harundine potius quam pertica feriantur; gravior enim plaga medicum quaerit. Qui quatiet, ne adversam caedat; saepe enim ita percussa olea secum defert de ramulo plantam, quo facto fructum amittunt posteri anni. Nec haec non minima causa, quod oliveta dicant alternis annis non ferre fructus aut non aeque magnos. Olea ut uva per idem bivium redit in villam, alia ad cibum, alia ut eliquescat ac non solum corpus intus unguat sed etiam extrinsecus. Itaque dominum et balneas et gymnasium sequitur. Haec, de qua fit oleum, congeri solet acervatim in dies singulos in tabulata, ut ibi mediocriter fracescat ac primus quisque acervos demittatur per serias ac vasa olearia ad trapetas, quae res molae oleariae ex duro et aspero lapide. Olea lecta si nimium diu fuit in acervis, caldore fracescit et oleum foetidum fit. Itaque si nequeas mature conficere, in acervis iactando ventilare oportet. Ex olea fructus duplex: oleum, quod omnibus notum, et amurca, cuius utilitatem quod ignorant plerique, licet videre e torculis oleariis fluere in agros ac non solum denigrare terram, sed multitudine facere sterilem; cum is umor modicus cum ad multas res tum ad agri culturam pertineat vehementer, quod circum arborum radices infundi solet, maxime ad oleam, et ubicumque in agro herba nocet.

  [55.1] “With regard to the olive harvest: the olives which can be reached from the ground or by ladders should be picked rather than shaken down, because the fruit which has been bruised dries out and does not yield so much oil. Those picked with bare fingers are better than those picked with gloves, as the hard gloves not only bruise the berry [2] but also tear the bark from the branches and leave them exposed to the frost. Those which cannot be reached with the hand should be beaten down; but a reed should be used rather than a pole, as the heavier blow renders necessary the work of the tree-doctor. The one who is beating should not strike the olive directly; [3] for an olive struck in this way often tears away the shoot with it, and the fruit of the next year is lost. This is not the least reason for the saying that the olive fails to bear a crop every other year, or does not bear so full a crop. [4] The olive reaches the steading by the same two roads as the grape, one portion for food, and one to gush forth and anoint the body not only within but also without, thus following the master into the bath and into the gymnasium. [5] The portion from which oil is made is usually heaped on a flooring in piles as it comes in from day to day, so that it may mellow a little; and the piles pass in the same order through the jars and the olive vessels to the trapeta, which is an olive-mill fitted with hard stones roughened on the surface. [6] If the olives, after being picked, lie too long in the piles, they spoil from the heat and the oil becomes rancid; hence, if you cannot work them up promptly they should be aired by moving them about in the piles. [7] The olive yields two products: oil, well known to all, and amurca. As most people are ignorant of the value of the latter, you may see it flowing out from the olive presses on to the fields, and not only blackening the ground but rendering it barren when there is a large quantity of it; whereas, in moderate quantities, this fluid is not only extremely valuable for many purposes, but is especially valuable in agriculture, as it is usually poured around the roots of trees, chiefly olive trees, and where noxious weeds grow in the fields.”

  LVI.

  Agrius, Iamdudum, inquit, in villa sedens expecto cum clavi te, Stolo, dum fructus in villam referas. Ille, Em quin adsum, venio, inquit, ad limen, fores aperi. Primum faenisiciae conduntur melius sub tecto quam in acervis, quod ita fit iucundius pabulum. Ex eo intellegitur, quod pecus utroque posito libentius est.

  [56.1] “I have been sitting in the steading for a long time,” exclaimed Agrius, “waiting, key in hand, Stolo, for you to bring the crops into the barn.” “Well,” replied Stolo, “here I am. I am coming up to the threshold; open the doors. First, it is better to stow the hay crop under cover than in stacks, as by this method it makes better fodder — as is proved by the fact that when both kinds are offered them, cattle prefer the former.

  LVII.

  Triticum condi oportet in granaria sublimia, quae perflentur vento ab exortu ac septemtrionum regione, ad quae nulla aura umida ex propinquis locis adspiret. Parietes et solum opere tectorio marmorato loricandi; si minus, ex argilla mixta acere e frumento et amurca, quod murem et vermem non patitur esse et grana facit solidiora ac firmiora. Quidam ipsum triticum conspargunt, cum addant in circiter mille modium quadrantal amurcae. Item alius aliut adfriat aut aspargit, ut Chalcidicam aut Caricam cretam aut absenthium, item huius generis alia. Quidam granaria habent sub terris speluncas, quas vocant sirus, ut in Cappadocia ac Thracia; alii, ut in agro Carthaginiensi et Oscensi in Hispania citeriore, puteos. Horum solum paleis substernunt et curant ne umor aut aer tangere possit, nisi cum promitur ad usum; quo enim spiritus non pervenit, ibi non oritur curculio. Sic conditum triticum manet vel annos L, milium vero plus annos C. Supra terram granaria in agro quidam sublimia faciunt, ut in Hispania citeriore et in Apulia quidam, quae non solum a lateribus per fenestras, sed etiam subtus a solo ventus refrigerare possit. Faba et legumina in oleariis vasis oblita cinere perdiu incolumia servantur.

  [57.1] “Wheat should be stored in granaries, above ground, open to the draught on the east and north, and not exposed to damp air rising in the vicinity. The walls and floor are to be coated with marble cement, [2] or at least with clay mixed with grain-chaff and amurca, as this both keeps out mice and worms and makes the grain more solid and firm. Some farmers sprinkle the wheat, too, with amurca, using a quadrantal to about a thousand modii. Different farmers use different powders or sprays, such as Chalcidian or Carian chalk, or wormwood, and other things of this kind. Some use underground caves as granaries, the so-called sirus, such as occur in Cappadocia and Thrace; and still others use wells, as in the Carthaginian and Oscensian districts in Hither Spain. They cover the bottom of these with straw, and are careful not to let moisture or air touch them, except when the grain is removed for use; for the weevil does not breed where air does not reach. Wheat stored in this way keeps as long as fifty years, and millet more than a hundred. [3] Some people, as in Hither Spain and in Apulia, build granaries in the field, above ground, so constructed that the wind can cool them not only from the sides, through windows, but also beneath from the ground. Beans and legumes are kept fresh for a very long time in olive jars sealed with ashes.

  LVIII.

  Cato ait uvam Aminneam minusculam et maiorem et Apiciam in ollis commodissime condi; eadem in sapa et musto recte; quas suspendas opportunissimas esse duracinas et Aminneas.

  [58.1] “Cato says that smaller and larger Aminnian grape, and the Apician, a
re best stored in jars, and that the same grapes keep well also in boiled or plain must; and that the best ones for drying are the hard grapes and the Aminnian.

  LIX.

  De pomis conditiva, mala struthea, cotonea, Scantiana, Scaudiana, orbiculata et quae antea mustea vocabant, nunc melimela appellant, haec omnia in loco arido et frigido supra paleas posita servari recte putant. Et ideo oporothecas qui faciunt, ad aquilonem ut fenestras habeant atque ut eae perflentur curant, neque tamen sine foriculis, ne, cum umorem amiserint, pertinaci vento vieta fiant; ideoque in iis camaras marmorato et parietes pavimentaque faciunt, quo frigidius sit. In quo etiam quidam triclinium sternere solent cenandi causa. Etenim in quibus luxuria concesserit ut in pinacothece faciant, quod spectaculum datur ab arte, cur non quod natura datum utantur in venustate disposita pomorum? Praesertim cum id non sit faciendum, quod quidam fecerunt, ut Romae coempta poma rus intulerint in oporothecen instruendam convivi causa. In oporotheca mala manere putant satis commode alii in tabulis in opere marmorato, alii substrata palea vel etiam floccis; mala punica demissis suis surculis in dolio harenae, mala cotonea struthea in pensilibus iunctis; contra in sapa condita manere pira Aniciana sementiva; sorba quidam dissecta et in sole macerata, ut pira; et sorba per se, ubicumque sint posita in arido, facile durare: servare rapa consecta in sinape, nuces iugulandis in harena. Punica mala et in harena iam decerpta ac matura et etiam immatura, cum haereant in sua virga et demiseris in ollam sine fundo, eaque si coieceris in terram et obleris circum ramum, ne extrinsecus spiritus adflet, ea non modo integra eximi, sed etiam maiora, quam in arbore umquam pependerint.

  [59.1] “The varieties of apples for preserving are the smaller and larger quinces, the Scantian, the Scaudian, the small round, and those formerly called must-apples, but now called honey-apples. It is thought that all these keep well in a dry and cool place, laid on straw. For this reason those who build fruit-houses are careful to let them have windows facing the north and open to the wind; but they have shutters, to keep the fruit from shrivelling after losing its juice, when the wind blows steadily. [2] And it is for this reason, too — to make it cooler — that they coat the ceilings, walls, and floors with marble cement. Some people even spread a dining-table in it to dine there; and, in fact, if luxury allows people to do this in a picture gallery, where the scene is set by art, why should they not enjoy a scene set by nature, in a charming arrangement of fruit? Provided always that you do not follow the example set by some, of buying fruit in Rome and carrying it to the country to pile it up in the fruit-gallery for a dinner-party. [3] Some think that apples keep quite well in the gallery if placed on boards on the cement, but others lay them on straw, or even on wool; that pomegranates are preserved by burying their stems in a jar of sand, and large and small quinces in hanging baskets; while, on the other hand, late Anician pears keep best when put down in boiled must. Some hold that boiled sorbs keep best when cut up and dried in the sun, like pears; and that sorbs are easily kept just as they are, wherever they are put, if the place is dry; that rape should be cut up and preserved in mustard, walnuts in sand. Pomegranates are also kept in sand if they are stored freshly gathered and ripe; green ones also, if you keep them on the branch, put them in a pot with no bottom, bury them in the ground, and seal the ends of the branches so that no outside air can reach them; such fruits will be taken out not only sound but even larger than they would ever be if they had hung on the tree.