New Publications. 387 



have, then, seen announced, with more than ordinary pleasure, 

 an Encyclopedia of Plants, under the general direction of an ac- 

 tive and enterprising gentleman Mr Loudon, whilst thedeterm- 

 ing the characters of the genera and species, and what number of 

 them was to be introduced, were promised from the pen of Pro- 

 fessor Lindley. Under such auspices, the execution could not 

 fail to be such as would meet the wants and wishes of the bota- 

 nical public; and its appearance we have now to announce. 

 It must not be supposed that the work includes cdl the speaes 

 of plants known to exist, Avhether in gardens or herbaria; for 

 that would have extended it to a size, and incurred a cost, 

 which would have precluded many for whose use the pubhca- 

 tion is intended, from becoming the purchasers. But, as the 

 title-page expresses, it contains « the description, specific cha- 

 racter, culture, history, application in the arts, and every de- 

 sireable particular respecting all the plants, indigenous, culti- 

 vated in, or introduced to Britain.^ Yet even this is circum- 

 scribed to the vegetable productions of the fields and the gar- 

 dens, for such has been the vast addition to our collections, con - 

 ^uent upon the peace, and such our communications wuh all 

 Trts of the world, that the number has extended to 2409 gene- 

 ra and 16712 species. Now, if from these we deduct 2254, for 

 the British Cryptogamia, which cannot be cultivated, we have 

 the result 14,458 as the number at present actually in a state ot 

 cultivation, or which has been grown in our gardens. Yet, with 

 the exception of such as are of British origin, and such as have 

 appeared in the costly periodical botanical publications of this 

 coLry, where, perhaps, upon the average, 4000 species may be 

 included, there has existed scarcely a work m the Enghsh lan- 

 guage in which they have been systematically arranged ; with- 

 Lt which method, all the endeavours of the student to deter- 

 mine any given species must often be in vain. We have stated 

 above the number of plants which have been introduced to our 

 wardens, as amounting to 14,458 known species. It is worth 

 while to mark the progress of our collections within the space ot 

 thirty years; for no longer time has elapsed since the fii;st edi- 

 tion of the ^or^.« iT.^..^.^ appeared ; from which period we 

 may date a desire in botanic gardens to cultivate plaiits generally, 

 without reference to their variety or beaAity ; and the Hortm 



