REPORT OF THE CALCUTTA BOTANIC GARDENS. 373 
indigenous Indian plants and small perennial plants. Nearly 1000 
species are now illustrated in this garden. They are arranged in linear 
beds, according to the natural system. The beds are six feet wide, and 
are divided by grassed footpaths. On the remaining portion of this 
land endogenous plants have begun to be arranged in circular groups, 
but I am unable to complete the illustration of this class of plants, or 
that of scandent species, for want of ground, and application will 
shortly be made for more of the Botanical Garden land in possession 
of the Horticultural Society. This new garden has already proved of 
great benefit to the seed department, as the seeds of the annual species 
cultivated in a small space of ground like this and carefully labelled, : 
are collected with little difficulty. 
An avenue of Mahogany has been formed along the road, parallel to 
the western boundary of the garden, leading southwards from the great 
Banyan-tree. This avenue consists of seedlings raised from seeds 
received from Trinidad, in July, 1865, and from seeds collected from 
the old trees in the Botanical Gardens in 1864. It is deserving of 
notice, that none of the Mahogany-trees produced any seed in 1865—66, 
although the trees blossomed in August and September, 1865. I 
ascribe this to the exhaustion of the trees by the unnatural production 
of leaves after the cyclone in October, 1864, and again at the natural 
period in the end of March, 1865. Another avenue has been planted 
along the road leading from the great ‘Banyan-tree to the old tree of 
Ficus venosa which stands in the centre of the road leading to the 
Howrah gate, and is formed of Polyalthia longifolia. The Casuarina 
avenue extending from the Ficus venosa to the Howrah gate, and 
which was destroyed by the cyclone, has been replanted. A second 
avenue of Casuarinas has been planted along the semicircular roads 
running right and left from the main entrance ghát. In the palmetum, 
a very long avenue has been formed of the Palmyra Palm Borassus 
flabelliformis, and on the road which winds through the centre of the 
has been made an avenue of the noble Cuban Palm Oreo- 
doxa regia. The tree of this species, now sixty feet high, from which 
the seedlings for planting were obtained, was presented to the gardens 
by Lord Auckland when Governor-General. These and other avenues 
whieh I intend forming, will be most useful in protecting the garden 
from storms. I have been careful to record their formation, in order 
that in after years there may be no doubt about their age. 
