Ayrshire, Stirlingshire. \ \ 3 



SCOTLAND. 



Ayrshire. 



The Nurseries and Botanic Grounds of Messrs. Smith and Sons, at Ayr, 

 Monkwood, and Colroy, were founded by Mr. Smith, sen., about 1820. 

 They contain several acres, with a green-house, pits, and frames; and are 

 devoted to a general collection, and more particularly to rare and curious 

 herbaceous plants, and to trees and shrubs. There is a seed-shop in Ayr, and 

 a few seeds are grown. We have already (Vol. VI. p. 713.) given a select 

 list of these; and, in one of our earliest Numbers (Vol. II. p. 129.), a list 

 of North American plants, with remarks on their culture, derived from 

 observations made in America by Mr. Goldie, Mr. Smith's son-in-law, and 

 one of his partners. Mr. Goldie has a small garden at Colroy, in which, 

 in the summer of 1831, he flowered the following species : — 



Primula pusi'lla, sibirica, amoe*. Nntt'iH?Vi digitata. Scorzonera humilis. 



na, and Palindrz. Habenaria spectabilis, orbieu- J'iola mirabilis and campus- 

 Cyclamen *ibericum. lata, dilatala, and fimbriata. tris 

 C61chicum umbrbsum and Lychnis chalced6nica fibre Tidipa tricolor, biflbra, and 



*bulbocodioldes. albo*pleno. Celsidna. 



Galanthus plicatus. Psebmn tenuifblia *fl. pU-no. Fritillaria leucantha, and ml. 



Ixiolirion (Amaryllis W.) ta- Corydalis bracteata. nor. 



taricum. Malaxis ophioglossiildrs Houstbnz'a serpyllifblia. 



Panax trifblia and quinque- .Ranunculus *longicHulis, fri- Delphinium giandiflbrum var. 



fblia, gidus, cardiopli^Uus, and *Barlbvvz. 

 Ornith6galum ciliatum //. B. chaerophyllus. 



In his collection are also the following : — 



7 v ris parad6xa, *Uevigata, and Malaxis *unifblia. Scheuchzerz'a paUistris. 



pumila lutea. /Rhododendron lapp6nicum. Anthericum serotinum. 



Colchicum *lae v tuin. Dryas integrifblia and Drum- Silene regia. 



Merendera caucasica. mondii. Trdllius caucasicus. 



ie6ntice altaica and veslcaria. Dodecatheon integrifblium. Campanula *Pallas^«a and 



Fritillaria rutht5nica. Gerardz'a juercit'blla. Saxifraga. 



In the nursery at Ayr, we noticed strong plants of Ribes sanguineum, 

 WistanVz Consequa,K«, C'aprifolium flexuosuin, japonicum, and pubescens, 

 Piptanthus nepalensis, and a number of other shrubs reckoned rare and 

 valuable in the London nurseries. At the Monkwood nursery we saw a 

 curious collection of herbaceous plants, many of them very rare, growing up, 

 not altogether without weeds, " in a friendly manner," as expressed by Mr. 

 Smith, sen., an enthusiastic botanist, and a most benevolent, kind-hearted, 

 and apparently happy man. With respect to the mixture of weeds with rare 

 plants, the former by no means do the injury to the latter that at first sight 

 one would be apt to imagine. Plants which would soon be lost in the 

 loose dug earth of a garden are preserved from extremes of temperature, 

 and from mechanical changes in the soil, by the shade, shelter, and firm 

 and consistent texture given by weeds, especially perennials ; for it must 

 always be recollected, that the object in a botanic garden is not to cultivate 

 plants, but to preserve them. The botanic garden of the late eminent bo- 

 tanist, Mr. Don, at Forfar, is said to have been managed in the same style 

 as that of Mr. Smith at Monkwood. 



There is a small garden library kept in the nursery at Ayr ; but the great 

 resource of the Ayrshire gardeners is the Ayrshire Horticultural Library. 



Stirlingshire. 



The Stirling Nurserymen, Messrs. W. Drummond and Sons, held an agri- 

 cultural and horticultural exhibition at their premises during the first and 

 second weeks in December, which reflects the. highest credit on these 

 gentlemen, by whose spirited exertions it was got up, more especially as 

 there is no agricultural society in the county. It was held in a large 

 room on their premises, 70 ft. long and 15 ft. wide, with ample light. _ Their 

 correspondents and customers in all parts of the country were invited to 

 send in field and garden articles ; and, accordingly, extensive collections of 

 turnips, carrots, field beet, potatoes, wheat, barley, oats, beans, peas, tares, 

 rye, groats, malt, pot barley, oatmeal, barleymeal, peasemeal, linseedmeal, 



Vol. VIII. — No. 36. 1 



