THE HOLLY. 



the subject of plant culture with enthusiasm, and in a liberal and enlightened 

 spirit. There was one circumstance, at the close of the sale, which was touching 

 in the extreme, and, we are sure, to none more so than to Mr. Cope himself. In 

 consequence of Mr. Meehan, who assisted the auctioneer, having left before the 

 close of the sale, it fell to the lot of Mr. C. himself, to cry out the names of the 

 few last specimens. Few but lovers of plants can imagine the feelings of sadness 

 he must have experienced when he handed out the very last, amidst thunder and 

 lightning ; it happened to be the " Flower of the Holy Spirit" (Espiritu santo) ! 

 Here was a gentleman voluntarily renouncing his pursuits other than business, and 

 with feelings of regret, handing to another's care his last stake, and that was the 

 " Flower of the Holy Spirit." A sadness must come over his spirits as he goes 

 through his denuded houses, and sees no more those objects of his daily care, 

 which had for so many years been a source of pleasure to him, and also to his 

 many friends, and always calculated to multiply impressive lessons of the power 

 and munificence of the great Maker of them all. "But sooner or later," he says 

 in a private note to us, " we must resign them, with profound gratitude for the 

 mercies still extended." As a horticulturist, we are fain to consider this disper- 

 sion as a calamity, but we pass the collection to new hands with trust and hope. 

 The owner has been most liberal ; he has the means and the will to be liberal 

 still. If shown in other ways, it will only be a change from one liberality to 



another. 



• » > » » 



THE HOLLY. 



Mant gardeners having turned their attention to raising the Holly of late, the 

 following instructions regarding the proper treatment may be acceptable. We 

 have no native evergreen to compare with this tree. It is difficult to raise and to 

 remove, and is of rather slow growth, but this should be no discouragement; 

 every one should possess the Holly. 



First of all, gather the seeds just before Christmas. If you have more than a 

 bushel of berries, mix with them an equal quantity of sand, and bury them, or cover 

 them in a heap as you would a heap of potatoes ; if less than a bushel, put them 

 in a box with sand, and bury the box, and at the end of the following October 

 sow them, sand and all, and cover them half an inch deep. The best soil to sow 

 them in, is a piece of fresh ground which was trenched in the spring, and planted 

 with potatoes. Next spring, or the following, the seedlings will appear, and, to 

 do them justice, they should be watered, in dry weather, during the first two sum- 

 mers. At the end of two years (in October, or earlier), transplant them into a 

 newly trenched bed or piece of ground, at six inches apart, water as before, and, 

 at the end of four years, transplant them again, eighteen inches apart, in rows, 

 and six inches leaf from leaf in the row, and water at least next summer. At the 

 end of six years, take them all up, and trim their roots. Here is the turning point 

 and grand secret of getting Holly fences. The plants, being now root pruned, 

 must have lots of rotten dung, as for an onion bed, in their new quarters, and 

 room enough to leave twelve inches clear from leaf to leaf between the rows, and 

 six or eight inches from leaf to leaf in the row. Here let them remain three 

 years, when they are ready to plant out in a hedge ; but some prefer having the 

 spade "run down" on each side of the rows, and leaving them another season. 

 The site of the hedge should be trenched four feet wide and three or four feet 

 deep the winter before ; then planted with potatoes ; and, as soon as the potatoes 

 p, down with the Hollies. If you purchase, buy four-year seedlings, and do 

 st at home. 



