Sept. 15, 1855.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



615 





















j^^varieties belonging to this genus. W. Hopps, Light- 



diffe, Halifax, 



Which is the best Season for Transplanting?— I can 



bear testimony to the remarks of Mr. Scott on the 

 perfect safety of lifting all kinds of trees in summer. I 

 have done so from choice, and sometimes from neces- 

 sity I ventured on the experiment from supposing 

 that if gardeners can conduct many transplanting opera- 

 tions in the flower, kitchen, and forcing garden with 

 success, why not shrubs and trees. Various causes will 

 alwavs'operate against the plan being much adopted, 

 but as to its success when done properly there can be 

 no doubt whatever. Observer. 



Galvanised Wire. — Several statements have appeared 

 in your columns respecting the bad effects of employing 

 this wire in the formation of lattice work, or espaliers 

 for plants, and more especially for fruit trees. Now as 

 this kind of wire possesses great recommendation for 

 such purposes, being rendered extremely durable, and 

 no disturbance of the plants for the purpose of painting 

 (as the continual expense of such an appliance is 

 unnecessary) being required, I think it important that 

 we should know how far the serious charges brought 

 against it are founded on fact, and I must say that so far 

 as my own experience goes I have found them.to be 

 entirely groundless. This opinion has been much 

 strengthened by an examination made this day of 

 an entire garden so espaliered, on the estate of 

 the Hon. J. D. Bligh, at Sandgate, on the whole of 

 which there is no instance of any blight or canker 

 whatsoever, and finer grown trees for the time they have 

 been planted (some five or six years), it is impossible 

 to imagine. No doubt plenty of cankered and diseased 

 trees are to be found upon galvanised trellising, I have 

 no intention of saying that it will prevent such evils ; 

 but the great fact that trees do grow so admirably upon 

 it proves that it possesses nothing to engender them, 

 and I know that others can bring forward evidence to 

 the same effect /. M, 9 Folkestone. 



Notice s of Books. 



A System of Botanical Geography. Geographie Botanique 

 Raisonnee. By Alph. De Candolle. 2 vols. 8vo. 

 Paris. Masson. 



Under this title we have a long-looked-for desidera- 

 tum in botanical science, a book embodying the princi- 

 ples of the study of the geography of plants, skilfully 

 planned and conscientiously executed. M. Alph. De 

 Candolle, son of the late distinguished systematise has, 

 it is well known, been devoting his energies and ability 

 to the preparation of an elaborate work on this subject] 

 and as he is also known to possess attainments and faci- 

 lities for its successful completion which few or no 

 other naturalists do, the result is, as was to be antici- 

 pated, in every way worthy of the great name he bears. 



The work itself is a very full one, consisting of two 

 thick octavo volumes, with 1300 pages of closely printed 

 matter. It is, of course, addressed chiefly to botanists 

 and physicists, and it is written in French, with admir- 

 able clearness and logical precision of style and diction. 

 That it will soon be translated into English cannot be 

 doubted, and it will then command the attention of every 

 lover of science ; as, however, the direct application of 

 its principles to horticulture and gardening ought at 

 once to be laid before the English public, we shall devote 

 a few articles to a summary of these, as illustrated by 



the contents of the work. 



Few naturalists are, perhaps, fully aware of the wide 

 range of preliminary acquirements necessary to the 

 study of botanical geography ; the nature and amount 

 of these, together with the length of time which has 



geography. These may be arranged under two classes — 

 those that depend on a study of groups and species of 

 plants in their several relations to one another, and 

 those which are based on a study of plants in relation 

 to the physical phenomena of geographical site, soil, 

 climate, &c., under which they are found growing ; 

 hence arises the division of the whole subject into the 

 two branches of Botanical geography and Geographical 

 botany ; the attempt to consider which under all aspects 

 has often tended much to obscure both, and our author 

 has done wisely to dwell upon them separately. Towards 

 the elucidation of the physical problems M. De. Can- 

 dolle has devoted many years of careful experiment 

 and observation. He early directed his attention to 

 physical geography, and was schooled in methods of 

 applying it to the solution of botanical problems by his 

 father, while, as he informs us, he had always a natural 

 taste for arithmetical operations, and has published a 

 valuable essay on the elevations of localities in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Geneva, deduced from observations of his 

 own as well as of others. He has besides himself in- 

 vestigated the influence of soil, temperature, and light 

 on plants, experimentally and in the field, proposing and 

 carrying out new plans of operation and new methods 

 of working out their results. In pure botany too, 

 M. De Candolle's attainments are of a high order, he 

 has long been in the practice of studying in a most ex- 

 tensive and well arranged herbarium, has systematically 

 elucidated several large and important natural families 

 of plants, has studied in almost all the great European 

 herbaria, has taught botany in its several branches, and 

 has had the direction of one . of the largest and best 

 botanical gardens in Europe. When to these advantages 

 are added that he has such a competent knowledge of 

 French, English, and German, as to be able to read 

 fluently in those languages the literature of these 

 branches of science — that he combines great' accuracy 

 and industry with skill in the arrangement of his 

 materials, a lull appreciation of the labours of others, 

 and an extensive correspondence with his fellow 

 botanists everywhere — we shall have summed up the 

 requirements for the task he has undertaken, and may 



one, derived from 



connection with geology, or rather of the life of specie 

 in their relation to time, once entered upon, the mind is 

 hurried on to regions of inquiry where all, in the present 

 state of our knowledge, is impenetrahly dark ; referring 

 to epochs antecedent to our own all data are incom- 

 plete ; all facts are recognised only by halves, aud are 

 capable of the most opposite interpretations. We 

 acknowledge the existence of a species on the face of 

 the globe which we believe did not exist at what we 

 assume is an immediately antecedent epoch, but our 

 argument for its absence in the latter is a negative 



the fact of its remains not 

 having been found. On the other hand we have 

 positive proof of species that are not living now 

 having existed at previous epochs ; and the sum of 



our evidence leads to the belief in a rr placement of 

 species. These subjects are ably handled in this work, 

 and demand our especial attention at a future time ; it 

 will suffice to mention here, as theoretical data which 

 must have influenced the author's treatment of the 

 subject, however much he no doubt has striven to avoid 

 it, that M. De Candolle believes existing species, in the 

 ordinary acceptation of the term, to be definite crea- 

 tions, successively created, each at one spot only ; but 

 that all the individuals of each have not in all cases 

 proceeded from one parent or pair only. 



There is one other subject in the Preface to which 

 allusion must be made, and upon which we venture to 

 differ from our author ; he justly prides himself upon 

 not having introduced a single new term into his work, 

 and for this he will have the cordial thanks of every 

 well-wisher to botanical science. In the same desire to 

 avoid confusion, he has adopted the scientific names of 

 the species, genera, and families alluded to throughout 

 his work in preference to their German, French, or 

 English appellations ; but whilst we agree with him en- 

 tirely as to the necessity of using the Latin names, 

 and the propriety of diffusing a knowledge of them, we 

 can hardly agree with him in saying that amongst the 

 uneducated classes the Latin name of a plant will be 

 liked equally well with one in their native language, 

 supposing both to be new and the choice offered. There 

 it cannot be doubted, something in the sound and 



safely affirm that no other naturalist can produce so is, it cannot be doubted, something in the souuu. ana 

 manv and such varied qualifications for its successful intonation of a native name that renders it more easy 



accomplishment. 



In the preface to the first volume M. De Candolle 

 alludes to many important points relating to the object 

 and extent of the study of botanical geography, which 

 have never before been treated in so able a manner, but 

 which lie at the very threshold of the inquiry ; he says 

 that " the prevalent opinions as to its nature and limits 

 are still very vague ; these are too often regarded as 

 comprised in the idea that it consists in the accumula- 

 tion of innumerable facts relating to the relations 

 between species and their habitats and localities : such 

 a definition," he adds, u is far too general, and is incon- 

 sistent with the definitions given of other branches of 

 botany. Thus organography is not the description of 



all organs of all plants, but has for its object the suggest 



development of general laws from a study of the organs 

 of a few well selected types. A treatise on vegetable 

 physiology is in like manner based on the examination 

 of a very few species ; and so in botanical geography a 

 vast number of isolated facta must be eliminated, and 

 the attention devoted to such few as have the most 



general interest. 



Having acquired a competent knowledge of what had 

 been done by his predecessors, and prepared his own 

 data, the difficulty of so arranging his materials as to 

 deduce general laws from them seems to have delayed 

 M. De Candolle's progress during many years of anxious 

 thought and study. Thus, with regard to the influence 

 of temperature, he truly states that it has long been a 

 problem whether it is the mean or the sum or the ex- 



of retention by the memory, and more readily recalled 

 and applied to the object when again encountered, than 

 is the case with a foreign one ; added to which, that it 

 is often derived from some prominent peculiarity of the 

 plant, or suggests some object of comparison or con- 

 trast. The instance quoted by M. De Candolle offers a 

 case in point ; he says, * Talk to an English operative 

 of the plant called Nipple-wort, and you will find that 

 he will appreciate the botanical one of Lampsana quite 

 as much, and he will probably laugh at both, only 

 because he has heard neither before." Now we will 

 venture to say that for every ten uneducated persons 

 who would remember the English name, not one would 

 the Latin, for the obvious double reason, that the English 

 suggests definite i leas (accurate or inaccurate it matters 



not), and the Latin none ; added to which, the English 

 word will bear much alteration without destroying its 

 English sound, whilst it would be difficult to make the 

 Latin one sound English by the change or transposition of 

 the letters. We have had some experience in the relative 

 facility with which new Latin and English words are 

 acquired by children, who have no prejudice in favour 

 of either, and can confidently state, though for the sake 

 of science with much regret, that the preference with 

 the uneducated classes will always be given to a verna- 

 cular name. 



FLORICULTURE. 



- ^ m 



Royal South London Floricultuilal Society.— At the last 

 — , __ _ exhibition of this Society for the season, lately held in Cremorne 



elapsed since the publication of any good general treatise \ tremes of the given temperatures that most influence Gardens, the display of cut flowers was excellent, Dahlias of both 



on this subject, have combined to render the task of j the plant • M Bous^ 



systematisbg it one of the most difficult philosophical approached a solution of the problem, by his expen- j * ollection * wer / aU shown, in first rate condition, by growers 



from all parts of the country. In Dahlias. 24 varieties, the Rev. 

 C. Fellows, of Shottesham Kectory, near Norwich, was first with 

 Pre-eminent, Miss Caroline, General Faucher, Fanny Keynes, 

 Rachel Rawlings, Robert Brace, The Nigger, Mr. Seldon, Cos- 

 sack, 1 hop ot Hereford, Annie Salter, Richard Coblen, Queen 

 of Whites, Lemonade, Lilac King, Beauty of the Grove, Susan 

 Sainsbury, Fame, Diadem, Malvina, Queen of Beauties, Sir F. 

 Bathurst, Amazon, and Duchessof Kent ; 2d, Mr. J. Robinson, Pim- 

 .,..__ m Hco, with Duke of Wellington, Mrs. Seldon, M.Dugere, Admiral, 



tional materials now accessible from the countries whose him to regard their combined eflects as limiting the Abso i ro, British Queen, Rachel Rawlings, Annie, Scarlet Gem, 



problems of :the day. ments on cultivated plants, extending which, and 



Since the publication of Humboldt's "Easat sur la applying them to wild ones, has gradually led M. De 

 Gdographie des Plantes," in 1805, and Brown's Appen- Candolle to results which will hereafter be detailed, and 

 dixes to « Flinders' Voyage to Australia," and ! which he thinks indicate general laws. The influence 

 Tuckey's « Voyage to the Congo," little had been done I of light has in like manner been all along recognised 

 up to Schouw's time towards combining all into a general but never defined; a study of its effects upon special 

 whole, and deducing laws from the result, and the addi- examples conjointly with those of temperature has led 



vegetation was explored by Humboldt and Brown, have 

 demanded the complete revision of their labours, pre- 

 vious to their incorporation with those of their successors, 

 D y the author of the work now under consideration. 



During the thirty years which ha ve intervened between 

 the publication of Schouw's " Pflanzen Geographie" 

 (Geography of Plants) and the present time, facts have 

 been accumulating with unprecedented rapidity, but, 



distribution of species towards the north, and in their 



ascent of mountains. 



Another class of facts for whose explanation no satis- 

 factory theory had for many years been proposed is 

 that which relates to the extension and limitation of 

 species — why one species should be local and another 

 cosmopolitan. The effects of climate and the relative 

 facilities with which species propagate will not ac- 



with the exception of the elder De Candolle's, Watson's count for it, for many an exotic transported artificially 

 *nd the late E. Forbes's admirable efforts, there have j to another country becomes even more abundant in the 

 been few extended attempts to classify and arrange them. 

 Since Botany was first systematised by Linnseus, a 

 Multitude of local " Floras' 5 have been published, with 



prefaces or appendixes (often of great value) detailing 

 the distribution of species over areas more or less in 



latter than it was in its native locality. To these 

 problems M. De Candolle saw no solution till geology 

 opened up a new path for investigation, and proved that 

 we are not to look to existing causes or relations alone 

 to account for the geographical distribution of existing 



Sir F. Bathurst, Beauty of the Grove, Agincourt, Miss Caroline, 

 Roval Sovereign, Triumphant, Sir C. Napier, Princess Radzwill, 

 Cossack, Mr. Seldon, Louisa Glenny, Sir J. Franklin, and Rose 

 Unique ; 3d, Mr. Cooke, Hotting Hill ; 4th, John Sladden, Esq., 

 Ash, near Sandwich; 5th, Mr.Maher,gr. to J. M. Strachan, Esq., 

 Teddington Grove. For 12 varieties: George Holmes, Esq., 

 Brook Lodge, Norwich, was first with 12 large and beautiful 

 flowers. These consisted of Pre-eminent, Miss Caroline, Lord 

 Palmerston, Fanny Keynes, The Nigger, Robert Bruce, Amazon, 

 Advance, Sir J. Franklin, Sir F. Bathurst Duke of Wellington; 

 2d, Mr. Pope, Chelsea, with Mrs. Seldon, Miguel, John Keynes, 

 Amazon, Scarlet King, Absolom. Rachel Rawlings, Duchess of 

 Kent, Princess Radzwill, Lilac King, Robert Bruce, Richard 

 Cobden; 3d, Mr. Shrimpton, Thame, Oxon; 4th, Mr. Castles. 

 Fancy varieties, 12 blooms, not more than two of a kind : 1st, 

 Rev. C. lellowes with Jonas, Triumph de Roubaix, Topsy, 

 Baron Alderson, Flower of the Day, Triumphant, Duchess of 

 Kent, Imperatrice Eugenie, and Miss Ward; 2d, Mr. Robinson, 

 with Mrs. Hansard, Photon, Jonas, Triumphant, Flora Mclvor, 



uieir published travels with scattered notices of species 



t K *?* r ran S es * or devoted chapters to a laborious 

 tabulation of details, arranged geographically or syste- 

 matically. 



^"e have already alluded to M. De Candolle as pos- 

 Jf 88 "^ in an eminent degree the attainments necessary 

 10 a right understanding of the principles of botanical 



From such points of view our author tells us that 

 geographical botany ceases to be a dry accumulation of 

 facts, and takes a high position as a scientific pursuit. 

 Henceforward its main object is to show how far the 



present distribution of plants is explicable by the Q p erfecti0D} Miss Caroli ne , Primrose Per f e ction, Dr. Reid, 



existing conditions of climate, or what must be attri- Sir j. Franklin, Colonel Baker, L*iy Folkestone, Sir C. Napier, 



buted to anterior causes. The wide field of botany in Malvina, Duchess of Kent, Lwd Bath, Lilac King, Richard 



"Whittington, Miss Caroline, Cossack, Yellow Beauty, Duke of 

 Wellington, Amazon, Miss Burdett Courts, Duchess of Kent, 

 Fearless, Annie, Annie Salter, Sir C. Napier, Lilac King, Em- 

 press, and Agincourt; 2d, Mr. Keynes, Salisbury, with Trium- 

 phant, Kachei Rawlings, Argo, Pre-eminent, Ruby Queen, Annie, 



