376 FOREIGN NOTICES. 



ill 11 warm sitting-room, and thus is ndiU'd one of the most beautiful <if climbers 

 to tlie list of plants adapted to cuttin.tr for tlio liomnicts now so generally em- 

 ployed in internal decoration. 



The Cocoa-Xut Palm. — Of all tlie gifts wliieh bountiful nature has l)esto\vcd 

 on the inhaljitants of the tropics, this, jierhaps, is the must valuable, and cer- 

 tainly the one most fitting them for a paradisiacal state of idleness. What other 

 fruit is there in which, as in the Cocoa-nut, we find a refresiiing beverage con- 

 tained in a cool limpid state in a nutritious jiulp of the consistence of blanc- 

 mange, and as agreeable to the taste ? In a young nut, the lining pulp of which 

 was thin and almost of gelatinous softness, the quantity of contained fluid ex- 

 ceeded rather lialf a pint. It was quite clear, as much so as s{)ring water, 

 pleasantly, slightly sweet, of specific gravity 10183. The pulp was rendered 

 brown by the tincture of iodine. No starch particles could be detected in it 

 under the microscope, nor oil globules. The water of a ripe Cocoa-nut, much 

 less in quantity and nearly transparent, was of the specific gravity 10203. It did 

 not become turbid on boiling, or by the addition of acetic or nitric acid. Sugar, 

 it may be inferred, was its principal ingredient. The lining pulp Vas found to 

 consist of 3G per cent, solid matter and of 64 water, as determined by thorough 

 drying. As is well known, it abounded in oil. I could detect in it no starch 

 particles. In com))osition, I believe it to be very like the ripe almond. The 

 emulsion it makes is equal to that of the almond, and is an excellent substitute 

 for milk for tea. The Cocoa-nut Palm, I may add, thrives best by tlie seashore ; 

 it thrives even within high-water mark. "Viewed in this light, may it not be con- 

 sidered as designated by a kind Providence to yield a drink in situations in which 

 springs of fresh and wholesome water are often not to be found. It is only the 

 traveller in such regions who can justly appreciate its value, and be sufliciently 

 thankful for such a blessing. In Ceylon, the natives are iu the habit of putting 

 a i)ortion of salt into the ground when they plant the nut, so convinced are they 

 that salt is required for its successful growth. — Dr. Daw, iu the Edin. 2S/ew 

 PhilosopJiical Journal. 



Variegated Plants. — At the Crystal Palace Exhibition near London, a Mr. 

 Salter, among other variegated plants, showed a strawberry and a lily of the valley. 



Dwarf Trees. — There are many miniature trees, which typify their more gigan- 

 tic brethren of the forest, that may be introduced with advantage to grounds of 

 limited extent, and which, after many years' growth, arrive at only a few feet 

 elevation. Of elms, there is Ulmns vinnnalis; maples, Acer creticum ; beech, 

 Betnlnnana; alder, Abins ghiiinosa oxuc(tnth(pfnli(t ; chestnut, Paviajlava; besides 

 which are others less known as 7\7ia laciniata, Pterocarpn Caticasica (a type of 

 the walnut), with several dwarf oaks, the neatest being Quercus Ilex coccifera and 

 Quercus ilicifolia ; Buxus btdeirica makes a pretty tree in sheltered situations; 

 Caragana Chamlagu is a very graceful tree — the foliage a bright, handsome green, 

 which, with the pretty blossoms, produce a handsome effect; Rohinia hispida, 

 when worked on a short stem, is unrivalled for beauty. Small evergreen trees, of 

 great value for ornament, may be made of Jmiiperus recnrva and sqiurmata. There 

 are not many pinuses suitable for the purpose, as the majority are too tall and 

 rapid in their growth, but perhaps Pinus cemhra (which is a handsome species, 



d of very slow growth), may be admitted, and the singular Araucaria imhricata 

 ny years in attaining an objectionable height. 



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