THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 365 



resemblance to stone. The best designs have been sought and well 

 worked out, for fountains, statues, vases, and groups of objects of 

 various kinds, and these form valuable accessories to an ornamental 

 garden. Iron is not only more capable of assuming graceful outlines 

 when fused into well-designed moulds, but it bears exposure to the 

 weather for any number of years without deterioration, if painted 

 once in two or three years ; it is not liable to chip, as most real, and 

 some few artificial stones are, and generally the cost is lower than 

 artificial stone of any kind. Nevertheless, iron is not stone, and 

 must ever depend for its capability of imitation on paint, which pre- 

 cludes the possibility of weather stains, and that mellowing of colour 

 which stone acquires by long exposure to the atmosphere. 



The annexed design for a fountain, consisting of a group of 

 Tritons supported by dolphins, in a basm of the old Trench school, 

 might very well be worked out in artificial stone. It should be pro- 

 duced on a somewhat large scale, to tell with effect in the scene, 

 and is, of course, only adapted to the terrace of an Italian garden, or 

 to form a centre to a series of brightly-coloured parterres or grass- 

 plots, broken by flowers. In a rustic scene it would be inappropriate. 

 The artist has carried the outer jets too high ; if they had but half 

 the height given them iu the engraving, the summits of the several 

 jets would form a pyramid, and give much more grace to the amp 

 d'ceil than it has at present. 



PRIMULA. SINENSIS. 



tes"™^ aag'ROM the popularity of this flower, it is needless my 

 attempting a word in its praise, but I must be excused 

 expressing my admiration of beauties I have not seen 

 noticed by any professional writer. It is the extreme 

 delicacy and softness of colouring peculiar to the flower, 

 the tints varying, with but few exceptions, in each individual plant, 

 as produced from seed, also the forms of the blossoms are worthy of 

 particular attention, differing as these do, equally with the various 

 tints, keep up a lively interest at the first opening of every new flower. 

 It is to those who, like myself, feel pleasure in the cnltivation of the 

 Primula sinensis, and who are not in the possession of a superior 

 mode of growing their favourite plant, that I venture to offer my 

 mite of information ; and, if considered by you worthy a place in 

 your valuable magazine, venture to suppose that it may provo 

 acceptable to a portion of your readers. The compost is an important 

 object, but there are also other matters connected with it to which 

 proper attention must be paid, and it is by their combination that 

 superior cultivation is obtained. Kihrous loam of a sandy quality 

 (if of a retentive nature, add sufficient silver sand to reduce 

 it to a proper state), and peat, equal parts of each, and one-fifth part 

 of well-decomposed cow manure ; to the above add a little pounded 

 charcoal. 



DeTnibor. 



