310 TRANSACTIONS, NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 



look for the result of their labours, and for the 

 preparation of trees and shrubs for another year'a 

 crop of flowers and fruit. Chrysanthemums and 

 Rhododendrons did not set their flower buds at all 

 well, and the bloom of the former all over the 

 West of Scotland has been very poor. Altogether,, 

 the outlook for fruit and flowers during 1886 is not 

 very bright. 



It is worthy of remark, however, that two con- 

 secutive bad seasons rarely succeed each other, and 

 that although 1885 proved to be such a disastrous 

 year for gardeners and agriculturalists, the two pre- 

 vious seasons were above the average. We may 

 therefore hope that 1886, upon which we have now 

 entered, will be a more prosperous year for all 

 concerned than its predecessor has been. It is, 

 however, rather interesting to note that the year 

 1878 — already quoted as a remarkably dry season — 

 was succeeded by extremely severe weather in the 

 early months of 1879, when frost and snow pre- 

 vailed, 249° of frost being registered in January, 

 and a total of 684° during the year. We are experi- 

 encing, during the first month of 1886, very similar 

 weather ; and it is sincerely to be hoped that we 

 are not to have during the coming year a recur- 

 rence of the weather of 1879, which, from first to 

 last, proved to be most disastrous to vegetation all 

 over Scotland. 



Subjoined is the Meteorological Record for the 

 last three years, as kept at the Queen's Park, and 

 the averages for the last 10 years. 



