v1 THE HISTORY OF THE BOTANICAL MAGAZINE 
Botanical Magazine. Nevertheless, and in spite of its title, 
which was given at a period when scientific botany was 
still in its infancy, the Botanical Magazine contains the 
history of flower gardening in the various phases through 
which it has passed during the last century. Although the 
marvellous results of the gardener’s skill are not represented 
therein, the wild parents from which he has obtained such 
results are so in most instances, and remain as silent 
witnesses of what may be effected by education, if it may 
be so termed, and freedom from the struggle for existence 
which plants are ever exposed to under natural conditions. 
Moreover, the serials which have been more especially 
devoted to the illustration of florists’ flowers may be 
regarded as the legitimate offspring of the Botanical Maga- 
zine, in the double sense of the priority of the latter, and 
by reason of its being a refuge for the usually less showy 
progenitors of the florists’ flowers themselves. This being 
so, a sketch of the history of the career of the Botanical 
Magazine and its collateral associations will doubtless 
interest many readers of the present day, for it is a part 
of their history as well as of their forefathers. 
But before proceeding to that history itself it may be 
well to go back a little further, and glance at the condition 
of flower gardening in England previous to the founding of 
the Botanical Magazine, as we shall then be in a better 
position to appreciate the advances made in the art subse- 
quently. It will be understood that in a sketch of this 
nature only the most noteworthy events, and a selection of 
the principal actors and books, can be passed in review; 
and it will be confined almost entirely to English illustrated 
works, though mention will be made of others which may 
be regarded as connecting links in the history of flower 
gardening. 
Frower GarpeNInc In Enqnanp ANTERIOR TO THE 
Founpation oF tar “ Boranica MaGAZzIne.” 
The earliest English printed book with figures of plants 
that I have seen, and probably the first produced, is the 
rrete Herball of 1526, “emprinted at London, in South- 
warke, by me, Peter Treveris;” though it is stated by 
Pulteney, on the authority of Ames, that the first edition 
was printed in 1516. The oldest Banksian copy is, how- 
ever, of the same date as that in the Kew library. This 
work, which is only mentioned on account of its historical 
_ interest, was translated from the French. There were 
