editor's tablk, 



are more obdurate than Gentian seeds. These, I was assured, were quite fresh and newly 

 collected when dispatched, being some seven weeks before they reached me. I divided a 

 portion of the Gentian seeds into two ; steeped the one-half in glycerine, and sowed them 

 in one-half of a small pot, divided from the other by a partition ; the other half of the 

 seeds I sowed plain in the other half of the same pot. These sowings were done on the 3d 

 April, 1856. In about two months or so, the seeds sown plain began to vegetate, and I had 

 about twelve or fourteen up in the course of the summer. Of the seeds steej^ed in glyce- 

 rine, the first and only one yet vegetated appeared only yesterday in the seed leaf. But in 

 the hope of its efficiency, in an evil hour I steeped many other seeds in glycerine, especially 

 seeds of the Sida pichinchensis, and none of these have I yet observed to stir. My expe- 

 rience, therefore, of glycerine is, that it is not only of no use to promote vegetation, but 

 that it is a positive hindrance to, if not a preventive of, that operation." — Isaac Anderson, 

 near Edinhuryh. 



Fakm fok Sale. — We ask attention to tlie advertisement of a farm for sale in Westchester 

 County. It has many advantages, such as a fine view of Long Island Sound, with tAvo hun- 

 dred acres of land covered with fruit of all kinds, and within less than an hour of the city. 



Eugenia ugxi (pronounced Un-yee) is being elevated to imj)ortance among eatable fruits. 

 The plant thus called is a native of Chili, where it was first noticed in the beginning of the 

 last century, by the celebrated traveller. Father Feuillee, who published a description and 

 figure of it under the name of Murtilla. It forms an evergreen bush, with the appearance 

 of a Myrtle, but with darker and thicker leaves. It is also somewhat hardier than a Jlyrtle. 

 The flowers (which are white, with a tinge of pink and a peculiarly waxy a^jpearance) hang 

 down singly from among the leaves. The fruit consists of black purjile, round berries, about 

 the size of black currants, and, when ripe, resembles, in taste, nothing so much as a mix- 

 ture of the strawberry, pine-apjile, and purple guava. In our opinion, it is one of the most 

 agreeable fruits that have yet been introduced to cultivation ; and although the smallness 

 of the berries would seem an objection, yet their quantity compensates for their want of 

 size. 



One important quality belonging to the Ugni is the easiness with which it is cultivated. 

 No reason, indeed, seems to exist why it should not be grown wherever the common Myrtle 

 can be kept alive. When producing its fruit, however, it requires all the heat that can be 

 given it ; so that, if grown in pots, it should be placed, as soon as the flowers are set, in the 

 hottest part of a garden, fully exposed to the heat of the sun — such as the angle of a wall 

 facing the southwest, or in a conservatory, in the full rays of the sun ; and, if out of doors, 

 it would be as well to protect it from night cold by a temporary roof, reaching completely 

 over the front of the bush. 



These are mere suggestions ; by another year, further experience will have been gained, 

 for large numbers of the plant have been recently purchased. The fruit, which has been 

 tasted, and to which the above description applies, was all ripened under glass. 



Peruvian Tuees. — One is not aware of the great height of the trees here (River Ucayali, 

 Korthern Peru), until he attempts to shoot a monkey or bird from the topmost branches. 

 He is then surprised to find that the object is entirely out of his reach with the fowling- 

 piece, and that only a rifle will reach it. The trees throughout this country grow with 

 great rapidity, and, being in a light, thin soil, with a substratum of sand, the roots are 

 superficial, and the trees are continually falling down. Nature seems to have made a pro- 

 for their support ; for, instead of the trunk coming down round to the ground, about 

 feet above, it divides into thick, wide tablets, which, widening as they come down. 



