AND ITS SURROUNDINGS. 153 



picturesque scenery, there are few portions of the coast that 



exceed it, while the various tender plants which it displays 



^render it a spot of no ordinary interest to the horticulturist. 



At Woodville there is a wall of thriving Orange, Lemon, 

 and Citron trees, protected only by temporary frames of reed. 

 Near them stood, a few years since, a large Olive tree, trained 

 also against a wall, but wholly unprotected, and there is still 

 a specimen in the grounds. The luxuriance of the New 

 Zealand Flax is remarkable, some immense masses being 

 more than seven feet high. The beauty of these plants is 

 great, as they evince the strongest health, and are uninjured 

 by the severest Devonshire winters. Two smaller plants have 

 blossomed, the flower-stalks being between two and three feet 

 higher than the leaves. 



At the Moult, a great number of exotics have been 

 planted in the open air, and the grounds at the present 

 moment are gay with Dahlias, Salvias, Petunias, Seneceos, 

 Sollyas, Bouvardias, Pelargoniums, and Brugmassias. The 

 last-named shrubs stand the winters well; and though often 

 cut down to the ground, form strong plants by the end 

 of the summer. There are also some fine specimens of 

 Cassias, New Holland Acacias, an interesting species of 

 Eucalyptus (raised from seed) marked ' White Gum.' A 

 still finer species, called the 'Blue Gum,' (the fragrance 

 of which was very perceptible after rain) was killed by 

 the severity of the winter of 1840-1. Various herbaceous 

 plants from Mexico, particularly Stevias, are perfectly ac- 

 climatized; and a species of Phytolacca is conspicuous 

 from its numerous spikes of deep purple berries. Until 

 the intense cold we experienced a few years since, the 

 varieties of Cape Pelargonium had formed immense bushes, 

 and were everywhere rising from self-sown seeds. A 



