AR BORICULTURE 



291 



Floating Gardens. 



While the City of Mexico is eight thou- 

 sand feet higher than sea level, there are 

 in the vicinity several lakes and marshy 

 tracts which require extensive drainage 

 operations. The Viga canal is one of 

 these great drainage systems, and upon 

 it are numerous barges, which transport 

 farm and garden produce from the mar- 

 ket gardens to the city. Flat-bottomed 

 boats, propelled by a pole, convey passen- 

 gers to the Floating Gardens. One of 

 these boats is seen in our illustration. 



The gardens are located upon marsh 

 land quite similar to the tule lands of 

 California. The soil is composed of de- 

 cayed reed and grass roots, being entirely 

 of vegetable mould and quite fertile. 

 Ditches at frequent intervals drain the 

 gardens and furnish means of communi- 

 cation by canoes and small boats to the 

 larger canal, and thus to the city. Here 

 are the great market gardens, where veg- 

 etables are grown" for Mexico's consump- 

 tion. Here, too, are grown the magnifi- 

 cent flowers which form one of the prin- 

 cipal attractions of Mexico City, the 

 flower market being a wonder in the 

 quantity and exquisite beauty both of 

 the individual tropic flowers and the mag- 

 nificent floral forms, which are made with 

 great taste and skill. 



Street cars also connect the city with 

 the villages upon the Viga canal, and 

 they are well patronized. 



Our illustration of the swings and 

 home scene at Ixtacalco show this form 

 of amusement. 



Volcano Colema. 



Colima, the only active volcano in 

 ISTorth America, is now in eruption. Our 

 illustration shows the mountain with a 

 stream of vapor rising in an immense col- 

 umn. 



I spent one day and two nights at Tux- 

 pan, on the Mexican Central Eailway, 

 taking many photographs of the volcano 

 and of the country surrounding. 



At night the sudden explosions were 



accompanied with fire, and clouds of fine 

 sand were scattered for great distances, 

 but no lava was seen. The mountain 

 has two distinct cones, only one of which 

 is in eruption. The other is called the 

 cold mountain. 



The distance from my point of view 

 was about ten miles. I ascended 1,<J00 

 feet upon a mountain near Tuxpan to 

 procure a better view of the volcano than 

 could be had from the plain, but during 

 most of the day the clouds gathered and 

 hung about the high peaks, 15,000 feet 

 elevation, and seemed to be attracted, 

 scarce moving for hours. At the same 

 time the sky was absolutely clear in all 

 other directions. 



The eruptions are not continuous, but 

 intermittent, occurring several times dur- 

 ing the day and night. 



Colima is nineteen degrees from the 

 equator and is in view from a point with- 

 in a mile of the Mexican Central Rail- 

 way station, Tuxpan. 



When an explosion occurs the clouds 

 of vapor rise to a great height, making 

 a very beautiful appearance. 



At a distance of a few miles no danger 

 is apprehended, yet the Indians who oc- 

 cupy the villages upon the mountain 

 slope abandoned their homes tempora- 

 rily when the volcano gave evidence of 

 continuous eruption. 



One of the handsomest trees of our 

 Southern States is the Grevillea Robusta, 

 or Australian oak. It will not stand 

 more than 25 degrees of frost, probably, 

 at least not below freezing point. Of 

 this tree Mr. D. C. Green, of Bartow, 

 Fla., writes: 



"The Grevillea is not altogether 

 an ornamental tree. I purchased one in 

 1898. It could easily have been carried 

 in my pocket. It is now, at five years of 

 age, thirty feet high, twenty-seven inch- 

 es girth. It has outgrown an oak which 

 stands near by, and which is thirty years 

 old, and will soon get ahead of a pine 

 neighbor which is fifty years old. For 

 firewood the grevillea is equal to oak." 



