218 ME FORTUNE'S VISIT TO CHINA. 



was of more importance to me, contained a number of new plants 

 of great beauty and interest. On entering one of the gardens 

 on a fine morning in May, I was struck with a mass of yellow 

 flowers which completely covered a distant part of the wall ; the 

 colour was not a common yellow, but had something of buff in 

 it, which gave the flowers a striking and uncommon appearance. 

 I immediately ran up to the place, and to my surprise and de- 

 light found that I had discovered a most beautiful neio yellou 

 climbing rose. I have no doubt, from what I afterwards learned, 

 that this rose is from the more northern districts of the Chinese 

 empire, and will prove perfectly hardy in Europe. Another 

 rose, which the Chinese call the ^^five-coloured " was found in 

 one of these gardens at this time ; it belongs to the section com- 

 monly called China roses in this country, but sports in a very 

 strange and beautiful manner. Sometimes it produces self- 

 coloured blooms — being either red or French white, and frequently 

 having flowers of both on one plant at the same time — while at 

 other times the flowers are striped with the colours already men- 

 tioned. This will also be as hardy as our common China rose. 

 Glycine sinensis is often grown on a flat trellis in front of the 

 summer-house, or forms a kind of portico, which affords a pleas- 

 ing shade from the burning rays of the summer's sun. Entwined 

 with one of these trees I found another variety, having very long 

 racemes of pure white flowers, which contrasted well with the 

 light blue of the other. I immediately asked permission from 

 the old Cliinese gentleman to make some layers of this fine plant, 

 and I am happy to say that one of these is now alive in the 

 garden at Chiswick. Several other fine plants were procured 

 about this time, which will be described from time to time in the 

 Journal of the Horticultural Society. 



After seeing the different gardens and nurseries in the town, I 

 generally left Ningpo for the hills in the district. The natives 

 in this part of the country, as I have already stated, are quite a 

 different race from those in the south, and perfectly harmless in 

 their dispositions : I have often resided amongst their mountains 

 for weeks at a time, and never had any reason to complain of the 

 treatment I received at their hands. The temple of Tein-tiing, 

 a large monastic building situated amongst the green-tea hills 

 about 20 miles from Ningpo, was a favourite place of resort, 

 owing to the peculiar richness of the vegetation in this part of 

 the country. Here many of the trees and shrubs, which were 

 only found in gardens in other places, were wild on the hills and 

 in the hedges. The Forsythia already named was common on 

 the road-sides, and was covered with its bright-yellow flowers in 

 early spring. Several species of Viburnum of great beauty, and 

 one Hydrangea, were also met with here, besides all the other 



