•23G THE FLORIST. 



NOTES FROM SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 



The following extracts have been made from letters of a private 

 correspondent residing in the Mount Barker district of the above 

 colony. To us these little links connecting our far-away friends 

 with the mother-country ape exceedingly interesting ; and we hope 

 to be favoured with future communications of a similar kind from 

 the same quarter. It is agreeable to think that the perusal of our 

 periodical forms the pleasing occupation of a few spare moments in so 

 distant a land, and that it is likely to contribute its share towards 

 the advancement of floriculture even in South Australia. 



Sept. \'2th, 1849. A damp spring-like day, vegetation in the 

 garden and field making rapid progress, almonds in leaf, early plums 

 and peaches blossoming ; the Lowry parroquet very busy and mis- 

 chievous among the buds, and not very easily frightened from his 

 purpose. In the woodlands, the little spring-flowers decking the 

 ground, the Yellow Wattle and the Blackwood, two false Acacias, 

 beautifully in blossom. The former grows in dense masses or clumps 

 over the poorer ground, runs up from seed very quickly, and, like 

 most rapid-growing timber, soon reaches its prime, and as soon goes 

 to decay. It cannot bear fire nor yet pruning ; and it is well it is so, 

 or it seems as if it would take forcible possession of the country ; but 

 by burning the grass-land in the autumn, their numbers may be kept 

 down. This is not the cass with our forest-trees, the Eucalypti, 

 of which there are many varieties, very many varieties, but all so 

 much alike in their general appearance, that it creates a great mono- 

 tony in our landscape. The occupants of our forests lack that luxu- 

 riance of foliage which in the mass yield such grateful shade, yet we 

 have not one deciduous tree a native of Australia. We have few 

 that lay any claim to beauty, and very few that yield fruit, and 

 M'hat native fruits there are, are worthless. Whether cultivation 

 might improve them or not, I do not know, for we have found it ex- 

 tremely difficult to get any of our native fruit-stones or pips to grow. 

 There is a very general shyness in all native seeds to vegetate, even 

 down to what may be considered the native weeds of our colony. 

 We have not one single plant as a weed which troubles in the garden 

 or field like the weeds which have been introduced from England. 



Dec. 13M. After having a peep at the landscape, you must now 

 take a walk round our garden, and see most of the plants and flowers 

 growing as nature prompts them ; some of them may be kept from 

 too much straggling by being tied to a stick, but the sun looks very 

 hard upon them all — not so hard, however, upon them this last year 

 or two as he has been wont to do. This season is a peculiarly fa- 

 vourable one for flowers, so very showery. Our garden is now look- 

 ing delightful, and smelling very sweetly after a soaking shower. 1 

 cannot, however, appeal so strongly to your senses as you do to ours 

 in the Florist. Yes, you make us quite long for some of the realities 

 there spoken of. However, step into the garden ; you will there 

 observe that Roses grow admirably with us ; but we have no great 



