THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 123 



(d.) A leading horticulturist of Melbourne mentioned to me 

 some time ago a process he had tried with some degree of success, 

 but it was, as he described it, precarious and tedious. He used 

 gum — preferably gum dammar — dissolved in water until it "ran" 

 freely, and then dipped the flower to be preserved in it. He 

 dipped the flower, stalk end first of course, wabbling it about to 

 drive out air, and then hung it up to dry. This dipping and dry- 

 ing was repeated for at least three times. Dahlias, for instance, 

 treated in this manner, kept for five years, but such a tedious 

 process, not to speak of its precariousness, could never be 

 recommended for general adoption. 



{e.) I have tried various imbedding materials. A mixture 

 of sand and melted parafiin has been favourably mentioned, but 

 I found the mixture cake so that it would not work. 



Only two of the absorbents tried need be specially mentioned 

 here. 



I St. "Pounce," which is just the so-called bone of the cuttle- 

 fish pounded, is a well-known absorbent, having been used in 

 the early days for drying ink before blotting-paper was made. 

 The specimen shown — Cape weed — was dried in it for about 

 three days, then treated with gum dammar dissolved in 

 kerosene. Both colour and shape are well preserved, and I 

 mean to use this material extensively. 



2nd. Fine sawdust was also tried — the ordinary sawdust, 

 passed through fine wire gauze. It serves the purpose fairly 

 well, but has no special advantages that I should recommend it. 



For after-treatment I tried Canada balsam dissolved in 

 chloroform, as well as dammar, but the former is so difficult to 

 work with that I gave it up, and confined myself to the latter. 



As the result of these various experiments, I recommend 

 for practical use plaster of Paris as an absorbent, since it can be 

 easily procured, and for after-treatment gum dummar dissolved 

 in petroleum, kerosene, or benzol. Mr. English recommends 

 gum dammar dissolved in turpentine, then benzol added, in the 

 proportion of 50Z. of the gum to one pint each of turpentine 

 and benzol. 



In the case of white flowers the petals need not be varnished 

 since it darkens the colour. 



It is in the hope that the process will be tried and improved 

 upon by members of the club that I have brought it forward. 

 And there is one order of plants to which this mode of preser- 

 vation is specially applicable, I mean the orchids. With them 

 form is so varied and withal so important, combined with the 

 accompanying colours, that their very identity is bound up, as 

 it were, therein. Hence attempts have been made and 

 instructions given to preserve, if possible, fheir colour. It is 



