OLAND AND GOTHLAND 109 



to be met with in every field ? These excellent flowers 

 grow here profusely, while some of the varieties are but 

 rarely found in Sweden.' Linnaeus's botanical catalogue 

 reads like a raving : he enjoyed the expedition like a 

 very boy. He found the small but rare-in-the- whole- 

 world plant Astragalus campestris minimus here on the 

 Landborg, to the north of Borgholm. What a prize ! 

 Small too, and easily packed. Every now and then the 

 remembrance of his public duties brings him back to 

 analyse the island stone, when a precious new vegetable 

 in its crannies again takes off his attention. The walnut 

 trees which had grown in the gardens, and were very 

 large, had been killed during the late winter. Goose- 

 berries grow wild between the church of Koping and 

 the parsonage house. On the 3rd they had a happy 

 excursion to Borgholm Castle. Linnaeus says it was 

 built during the minority of Carl X. (Gustav). 1 "He 

 describes it as having a wooden roof in his time. It is 

 roofless now. 



From Borgholm the exploring party went to Hall- 

 torp, passing several stud farms. At Halltorp they en- 

 countered thunderstorms, which gave them time to calm 

 their minds and arrange their collections : but they 

 managed to see the herb gardens with lavender, balm, 

 rue, and mint, ' as fine as can be seen anywhere.' The 



1 He probably means before Carl Gustav's accession in 1654. 

 Queen Christina had procured his election as her successor in 1649. 

 Between these two dates the castle was probably built. The print 

 by Rhezelius is possibly the architect's elevation of the proposed 

 building. 



