Notes and Gleanings. 379 



Giants of the Vegetable World. — Within a day's journey of the me- 

 tropolis of Victoria, there grow the loftiest trees of AustraHa, and perhaps of 

 the world. In the back gulleys of Dandenong on the Black Spur, and near the 

 sources of the La Trobe River, as well as in some of the remoter valleys of the 

 Upper Yarra, a kind of Eucalyptus, botanically known as E. amygffalina 

 (almond-leaved gum-tree), attains such a marvellous height, as to rival, at least in 

 this respect, the Wellingtonia pines of California. The stems rise as straight as 

 masts, but with a height far exceeding the masts of any naval structure. The 

 height of the loftiest ranges from four hundred to five hundred feet. A fallen 

 tree on the Black Spur measured four hundred and eighty feet in length. Another 

 in Dandenong showed a height of two hundred and ninety-five feet to the first 

 branch : the lieight then extended seventy feet farther in ramifications to the 

 broken top-branch, which here still measured three feet across. A still larger 

 tree at Berwick measured eighty-one feet ia circumference at a distance of four 

 feet from the ground. The stems, with exception of the base, are beautifully 

 smooth, and of an ashy color. The wood is excellent for shingles, and sphts 

 with facility. Like many other Eucalypti, this huge species grows with celerity, 

 far more so than the Californian Wellingtonia ; and the minute seeds germinate 

 with the utmost facility. Eucalyptus ainygdalina is restricted to Victoria, New 

 South Wales, and Tasmania. — The Builder. 



Gladiolus. — William Tillery sends to "The Florist" his experience with 

 the gladiolus in i863. The following new sorts of i853 have already flowered 

 with me ; namely, Semiramis, a grand flower, of a peculiarly purplish rose, with 

 white lines in the centre of each petal. Norma, a large, well-formed flower, 

 French white, stained with lilac. Princess Alice, lilac rose, stained with carmine. 

 Mozart, Rossini, and Urani, of this year's sending-out, have not yet flowered 

 with me. 



The following varieties, sent out in 1867, have flowered very finely, and can 

 be recommended to growers as of the very best quality : Shakspeare, a grand 

 flower, white, flamed with carmine rose : it is an early bloomer, and has seeded 

 plentifully with me. Eurydice, another grand light flower, white, flamed with 

 carmine. Milton, very fine white, tinted with rose. Thomas Moore, one of the 

 very best, rosy carmine on a white ground. Princess Mary of Cambridge, clear 

 white, large carmine spot. Lady Franklin, very fine, white ground, shaded with 

 rose. Adolphe Brongniart, fine, light rose, flamed with orange. Anais, very 

 dwarf and fine, white and lilac shaded. Sir J. Paxton, fine large flower, light 

 orange carmine on a white ground? Marechal Vaillant, very fine scarlet, with 

 white lines. Sir W. Hooker, cherry and carmine, large flower. Grueze, rose 

 cerise, fine spike. Noemie, large, light rose. Felicien David, cherry and rose, 

 white throat. Apollon, rose and lilac, white throat. 



Of the older varieties, the very best have been the following : Meyerbeer, 

 fine vermilion scarlet, grand spike, and finely-shaped flowers. Madame Furtado, 

 fine white and rose shaded. Reine Victoria, fine large white, one of the very 

 liest. Empress Eugenie, another fine white variety. Belle Gabrielle, lilac rose, 

 flamed with rose. Fulton, cerise scarlet, fine spike. Lord Byron, very bright 

 crimson scarlet, but the flowers deficient in shape. 



