Botanical Notices from Spain. 179 



Don Antonio Blanco, the occupant of tlie post before hiin, a younger 

 but very well-informed man who had prosecuteil his studies jjartly in 

 Paris, had begun to arrange the plants according to DeCaudolle, Cur- 

 rascosa re-introduced the sexual system, which Pczcuerda has re- 

 tained, and has here displayed his ignorance in the grossest blunders 

 against system, since, for instance, he arranges Lecjvminosa; in the 

 nineteenth, Crucifcrce in the sixth class, &c. At last, as Currascosa had 

 suffered two show-plants of the garden, a very large old specimen of 

 Sophora japonica and another of Parkinso/iiaaadeala, to be cut down 

 — he having taken them for mulberry-trees (!), it was too out- 

 rageous, and Carrascosa was removed from the directory of the gar- 

 den. The directory was taken from Prof. IBlanco last year on political 

 grounds, which is much to be lamented. Of the present condition 

 of the garden, little can be said. The interior is divided into regular 

 compartments, surrounded by orange-hedges ; these are sufficiently 

 watered by means of stone water-courses, and separated from each 

 other by an elegant trellis-work of Spanish cane. Each plant, or place 

 where once one has been, is furnished with a label of fire-glazed 

 white clay, on which the number stands, but no name. The names 

 of the classes and orders of the sexual system are marked on larger 

 labels in the Spanish language. There is a special quarter for water- 

 plants, where however I saw only Ca/ina indica and one other appa- 

 rently determined as a fern, but which was oidy Pteris uquiUna cul- 

 tivated. Enormous cypresses, great trees of Cassia corymhosa, Pista- 

 cia Terebinthus, Acacia Farnesiana, Biynonia Catalpa, Melia Azeda- 

 rack, Schinus molle, shrubs of arborescent Malcacece, of Solanum Bo- 

 nariense, Bignonia radicans and other exotic vegetables, ornamented 

 the borders of the garden, — remnants of former splendour! Especially 

 worthy of mention are a beautiful date-palm, and, particularly, an old 

 specimen of Chamccrops humilis with a stem 10 feet high, as also a 

 showy Yucca gloriosa with a stem about G feet high and nearly 1 foot 

 thick, which were just in full bloom. 



More directly interesting is the rural or agricultural garden, 

 which is situated behind the botanical garden, and was established 

 six years ago. Its present director is the already often-mentioned 

 Carrascosa, to whom however the credit of having established the 

 garden is not due. Although it has only been laid out six years, 

 there are transplanted into it trees and slirubs already so large, that 

 one would take the garden to be much older, — an evidence of the lux- 

 uriant fertility of the soil. The garden is divided into twelve com- 

 partments. Two of these are designed for officinal plants, and sur- 

 rounded by a hedge of Cactus Opunlia, L. (sp. Nopal). Here are 

 collected the dye-plants, which are arranged according to tlie differ- 

 ent colours, the plants which yield soda and potash, as also those 

 used in the manufacture of textile fabrics. Under the latter the ce- 

 lebrated Esparto (Macrochloa tenacissima, Kth.) is especially to be 

 mentioned, which, growing on many of the hills situated near the 

 sea, forms a not unimportant article of trade in South Spain, since 

 this tough grass is used i)artly for the plaiting of coverings for rooms 

 and balconies, and for making various sorts of baskets, especially 



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