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JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ December i, 1866. 



but holds up on each side of the body, like a pair of oars out of 

 water ; also a drawing of the caterpillar and of the gall upon the 

 Pistachia (Pistacia terebinthus), within which the larva resides. 

 These 1 iiad received from Dr. Standinger, of Vienna. From M. 

 Ledere; . of tho same city, he also exhibited a beautiful series of 

 Tineid Hooted in the Holy Land, sent to him for collation with 



Mr. Pi . » M lambzadge's collection, which was intended for publication. 



Mr 1<\ Sniith exhibited some galls be had noticed on the Elm trees 

 near Deal, which, at a distance, might easily be mistaken for Apples, 

 being green and rosy in colour. They were, however, rilled with 

 hundreds of Aphides. [The species is a well-known one, having been 

 figured by Dr. Geer.] 



Mr. Pascoe exhibited two beautiful patella-like objocts with a fluted 

 surface, from Port Lincoln, supposed to be the cases of females of a 

 species of Coccus. They were found upon the Eucalyptus. 



The President exhibited specimens and highly-magnified drawings 

 of a minute new Myriapodous insect, which he had detected in his 

 grounds, at High Elms, Kent, remarkable for the comparative paucity 

 of the legs, one pair being attached to the first segment, and two pairs 

 to each of the four following segments. It is extremely active, 

 although only one-thirtieth of nil inch in length. He proposed to 

 name it Pauropus. He had observed that it had the habit of cleaning 

 its legs by drawing them through it Q 



The Si i bary exhibited some Beans from Egypt, very much in- 

 fested i all species of Bruchus ; and Mr. W. Rogers a pale 

 variety of Hrpparchia janira, and a specimen of Rumia era: 

 the left fore wing ami the right bind wing were pure white, the re- 

 mainder of the insect being of tin- usual dark colour. 



The Rev. Douglas Timins sent a note on the times of appearance 

 in France of Argynnis Lathonia, of which he had occasionally ob- 

 served three broods, the third appearing in September in fine seasons. 



A letter was read from Mr. li ' tying an account of his en- 



tomological captures in Newfoundland. 



Mr. MacLaehlau read u Descriptions of some new exotic Psocidte," 

 preserved in the K am at Oxford; and Mr. Edward Saun- 



ders read a paper entitled " Descriptions of six new species of Bupres- 

 tid; . belonging to the tiibe Chaleophorides of Lacordaire. A new 

 Part of the " Transactions" of the Society was laid upon the table. 



NOTES ON THE GARDENS OF THE EMPEKt'Il 

 OF RUSSIA AT TSARSKOE SELO. 

 The gardens of the Emperor of Russia at Tsarskoe Selo 

 are well worth a visit if you are at St. Petersburg!!, but it 

 would hardly pay to go there on purpose. At the same time 

 any one having the time and money would do well to see the 

 botanical gardens of the towns in his route. All the way to 

 St. Petersburgh the towns have something for the horticul- 

 turist to see — for instance, the gardens at Brussels are very 

 nicely kept, and will repay an inspection. At Potsdam there 

 are the king's gardens, and at Berlin there are beautifully laid 

 out gardens. I believe Cologne, Frankfort-on-the-Maine, and 

 Konigsberg all boast gardens ; and one can hardly g<- through 

 any garden without picking up some hint. If you arc 

 with the language of the country, and can converse freely with 

 the gardener, he will exchange ideas, and bo much pleased to 

 think you have journeyed so far in order to see his garden. 

 In short, travelling does every one good ; it shakes our pre- 

 judices, gives us fresh ideas, makes us think better of other 

 folk, and, lastly, gives us something to think about when we get 

 home. All this, however, is taking me away from my subject. 

 I had the good fortune to know an officer in the Imperial 

 army with whom I easily gained access to all the houses, the 

 palace as well; a description of this, however, would not suit 

 the readers of the Journal. The inevitable sentinel touched 

 his " kepi " as we passed over the bridge into the park. Here 

 were many promenaders ; for when the Imperial family are not 

 staying at Tsarski, as it is commonly pronounced, any one 

 may walk about the grounds. Broad, sandy, curving, undulat- 

 ing walks, overshadowed by numerous trees and shrubs, make 

 a delightful change from the hot glaring quays and perspec- 

 tives of St. Petersburgh ; and hither it is that the Court comes 

 when it quits the winter palace on the banks of the beautiful 

 Neva. Here are miniature lakes, surrounded by trees and grassy 

 slopes, with rowing and sailing boats dancing on their sur- 

 faces. One of these lakes — the largest — lies immediately below 

 the palace, and on a sunny breezy day looks beautifully cool. 



Here we have a succession of sloping walks and level strips 

 of gravel. This is a montagne Russe, only now the snow is all 

 gone, and nothing is seen but a long, long walk about 12 feet 

 wide, stretching away for hundreds of yards. As we went 

 along, I noticed a very pretty young lady — she held a pape- 

 rasse, or cigarette, in her delicately-gloved hand, and begged 

 a light of a handsome young officer who stood by her side ! 



Many ladies do such things in this eastern country, but it does 

 not suit our English notions. At the far end of this long 

 walk we remarked an artificial rocky bridge. It crossed the 

 path and rose in the air so high that one was tempted to think 

 it was too large to have been made by human hands. A walk 

 led up to it, and, on attaining the summit, the wind was 

 strong enough to blow one away, had it not been for the 

 parapet. The view of the lake and palace from this point was 

 superb ; but the task of describing this I leave for abler pens. 



And now to the ranges. The first house we entered was a 

 half span — a kind of house, by the way, to which I am very 

 partial for vineries — with Vines planted inside the house, and 

 running over to the wall at the back. In front was a broad 

 stage, then a path, followed by another stage for Strawberries 

 and the like. From this second stage to the rafters was a 

 trellis screen, which served as a support to some smaller Vines. 

 On a shelf near the glass fixed to this trellis were Strawberries 

 bearing nicely; the sorts I was unable to kirn, as the head 

 gardener was away, and we had only a lad to show us through. 



Passing through a glazed corridor, we came into another 

 house of the same shape, and filled with delicious Apricots. 

 This was in May, which speaks well for the gardener, when we 

 think of the fearful climate during the winter months. It 

 a that winter that a horse trotted into its stable in St. 

 Petersburgh with its rider frozen to death in the saddle ! 

 Such cold as this we should be quite unable to cope with, but 

 necessity is the mother of invention. This house, No. 2, was 

 about 50 feet long by 15 broad. A path led through it, and on 

 the right there was a sloping trellis, covered with trees in first- 

 rate health, extending to the rafters : on the left, wires 

 stretched to form an arch, over which were trained the fruit 

 trees. There was a stage under this for various pot plants, 

 and a pendent stage, close to the glass, for forcing early 

 Strawberries. 



In this range were seven houses, each from 50 to 100 feet 

 in length, and all constructed and arranged on nearly the 

 same plan. I regret that I am quite unable to speak in detail 

 respecting the heating apparatus. In every case flues warmed 

 the houses, but more I cannot say to be certain of speaking 

 bt;ietly within the truth. 



A second range of houses, numbering five in all, contained 

 fine healthy specimens of Peaches, Apricots, Vines, and Straw- 

 berries in all stages of growth. Some were in bud, some 

 flowering, and some just setting the fruit, and all, I must 

 say, looked extremely well. I have seen Mr. Rivers's houses 

 at different seasons of the year, and can fairly say these 

 would not have been shamed by the great Savs bridgeworth 

 fruit-houses. 



In flie connecting-houses, or vestibules, were kept some 

 prcu. , hrubs, so that in passing from house to house 



the eye was rtuevecl by gay colours. Here were no speci- 

 mens worth mentioning, only the place deserves notice. In- 

 of going direct from one house into the next, you pass 

 through a little conservatory — perhaps 10 or 12 feet in length, 

 filled with plants, and kept in the most perfect order. 



In conclusion I may say that the neatness of the whole es- 

 tablishment would have struck any gardener. Not a branch 

 untied or out of place, hardly a leaf lying i a the path, and yet 

 there was no bustle, no noise ; the men all worked quietly, and 

 without attracting attention, and, so far as I was able to see, 

 appeared intelligent. 



I trust this rapid sketch may help to show what I have en- 

 deavoured to point out in my previous letters, that our friends 

 in the East are both clever and artistic in their horticultural 

 pursuits. Let us hope the friendship which seems to be 

 springing up betwixt us may be furthered by a more inti- 

 mate knowledge of each other's ways, and may we gardeners 

 help in so desirable a result. — Patelix. 



Todmobden Botanical Socn-rrv. — Mr. Rogers, of Manchester, sent 

 specimens of the interesting Crocus nudiflorus, gathered at Xorthenden. 

 The same gentleman sent, also, a number of specimens of Lady Ferns, 

 raised from spores by Mr. Glover, an enthusiastic Manchester amateur. 

 They were mainly' forms of Miss Frizell's Lady Fern. Athyrium 

 Fmi-fceniina Frizelliae. We remarked one form splendidly crested; 

 another, which might fitly be named " ramosnm," was very curious. 

 It was remarked by the President that the varieties of British Ferns 

 were " evidently breaking up into groups like the genera of other 

 plants." Referring to Crocus nudiflorus, the Librarian stated that ho 

 had recently met with a large patch of it — a hundred plants or more — 

 near Great House, in Stansfield. This is worthy of note, as being the 

 first instance of the plant having been found in the neighbourhood. 



