496 



FARMERS' REGISTER 



[No. 8 



show that permanent hybrids cannot be produced 

 between genuine species; and to confirm that part, 

 of the definition of a species which desijrnates it 

 as a form which cannot be obliterated either by na- 

 ture or art. A botanical society has been estab- 

 lished in Edinbiirijh, and another in London. 

 (See '■^Domestic Notices.'''') 



New agents of culture. — Of these the most val- 

 uable which has been produced during the year is 

 Reid's new iiydraulic machine, which combines 

 all the advantages of a syringe, and most of those 

 of a garden watering-engine. In this machine, a 

 great acquisition of power is obtained by having 

 two cylinders, in one of which the air is compress- 

 ed as in Montgolfier's engines. We regret to ob- 

 serve that, owing to the imperfection of the pre- 

 sent laws relating to patents, iMr. Raid's invention 

 (the most important, we think, that he has yet 

 made for garden! n<r) has been pirated by two in- 

 dividuals. A double action garden puirip, invent- 

 ed by Mr. Greene of Sheffield, has been exhibi- 

 ted at some of the provincial shows; but we have 

 not had an opportunity of seeing it. A pruning- 

 knife for vines, and a botanist's spud, with some 

 other articles belonging to this department of gar- 

 dening, will be found figured or described under 

 their appropriate heads. 



Landscape-gardening. — We are not aware of 

 any remarkable improvement that has been made' 

 in this branch of the art, as such; but we think 

 we may refer to several papers in the preseVit vol- 

 ume, to show that a knowledge of it is making 

 considerable progress among practical gardeners. 

 Nothing contributes more to the improvement of 

 any young man in landscape-gardening, than vis- 

 iting country seats and gardens, endeavoring to as- 

 certain the causes of their beauties and delects, 

 and committing his criticisms and remarks on 

 what he has seen to paper. One advantage of 

 writing down our opinions, accompanied by our 

 reasons lor having formed them, in this as in eve- 

 ry other case, is, that the doing so obliges us to ex- 

 amine our opinions with more care; and thus to 

 test their justness and propriety. By this means 

 a habit is attained of thinking correctly, as well as 

 of writing correctly; and these will ultimately lead 

 to habits of order in every thing. 



In Garden jlrchitecture, some very useful de- 

 signs appear m the present volume, accompanied 

 by highly instructive remarks. A plan for laying 

 out a public cemetery well merits attention; and 

 there are various designs for different descriptions 

 of forcing houses. The practice ofjieating by hot 

 water continues to increase; and the two^ modes 

 most generally in use about London are, that with 

 common horizontal pipes and an open boiler; and 

 that practised by Weeks, by which the water is 

 first raised to a level varying in heiirht according to 

 circumstances, and afterwards circulated in small 

 tubes on the same or on different levels; every in- 

 equality being overcome which is below the level 

 of the elevation to which the water is raised. 

 Cast-iron tubes are in most general use; but zinc 

 is employed in some places, and eartlienware in 

 others; and at Vienna, glass, as will appear by 

 the design of a house so erected, which will be 

 given in our succeeding volume. The use of iron 

 eash-bars, and of curvilinear surfaces, in the con- 

 Btruction of hot-houses, appears tg be on the in- 

 •crease. 

 .Arboriculture.— The advantage of girdlino- trees 



has been pointed out by Mr. Ward; and Mr, 

 Gorrie has illustrated Mr. Lawrence's plan for 

 fbrming plantations with a view to fiicilitate their 

 afier-management. The difference between the 

 stalked fruited oak, and the sessile-fruited oak, as 

 painters' trees, has beeh shown, for the first time, 

 we believe, by the Re.v. W. T. Bree. The es- 

 tablishment of the pine and fir tribe, in situations 

 where they are liable to be blown down by high 

 winds, n)ay be efli-cted by increasing the number 

 and strength of then- roots; and this, it is said, is 

 to be done by pi^nching off the leading shoot of 

 the tree for sever;*! years in succession. A paper 

 ilhjstraliiig this theory was read by Mr. Nuttall at 

 the Biilish Association; and we expect to be able 

 Lb give the essence ol' it, together with some other 

 interesting particulars respecting the pinte and fir 

 tribe, in our succeeding volume. A number of 

 papers on the study of trees, on their culture, on 

 the dimensions which they have obtained in dif- 

 ferent parts of the country, and on the compara- 

 tive progress which they have made in different 

 soils and situations, are distributed throughout this 

 volume; and some of them, we think, are ex- 

 tremely interesting. No new trees have been in- 

 troduced from foreign countries during the past 

 year; but some old trees, and some new shrubs, 

 will be mentioned in our Arboricultiiral notices for 

 January, 1837. 



Floriculture, as a branch of cultivation, may be 

 considered as advancing, both \n the ordiuary and 

 in the hiu-her departments. Great progress is 

 yearly making in raising new sorts pf ro.ses, dahli- 

 as, pansies, &c., from the seeds produced by flow- 

 ers which have been cross-fecuiulated; and great 

 progress, also, , is making in the difficult culture of 

 the tropical orchidecB. .New orchideous plants 

 are being continually introduced, chiefly from 

 South America; and hardy herbaceous plants, 

 which l)ave been raised from seeds sent home by 

 Douirlas, Drummond, and -other collectors, or 

 brought to England bj^ travellers, are coming into 

 flower from time to time, and are thus added to 

 our collections, and recorded in our catalogues. 

 All of these which have bpen fiixured, in the bo- 

 tanical periodicals in the course of the year will be 

 found enumerated in our Floricultural and Botani- 

 cal notices. The' most beautiful hardy annual of 

 \\ie year is phlox dnmimondi; a.nd (he most beau- 

 tiful new dahlia Dod's Mary. The most interest- 

 ing modes of cultivating flowering plants given in 

 the present volume are, those applied to the brug- 

 7nansia by Mr. Spence, and to the solandra by 

 Mr. Sympnds. 



Horticulture. — A notice by Mr. Thompson, 

 the fruit-gardener in the London Horticultunil So- 

 ciety's Gardens, qfthe new fruits which have been 

 lately proved, and deserve culture, will be found 

 in a succeeding article, followed by Ane on the new 

 culinary vegetables of the past year. By far the 

 most remarkable tropical fruit which has been 

 brought into notice for many years is the musa 

 cavendishii, which, produces abundance of highly 

 flavored fruit, at an early age, with less care and 

 attention than either the pine-apple or the melon. 

 From the difficulty of procuring plants, this 7nusa 

 has not yet been nmch cultivated; but the reader 

 will find in p. 316, the higii anticipations that have 

 been fijrmed of it by Mr. Paxton, who, in a letter 

 to us dated Nov. 8., informs us that after nine 

 months' trial he has no reason to suppose that his 



