Utility of Mensuration to Gardeners. *I 



Mr. Colley was for some time in the employment of Mr. Knight 

 of the Exotic Nursery, and more recently had become foreman 

 of Mr. Fairbairn's Nursery. His address is now changed to 

 25. Ernest Street, Albany Street, Regent's Park. If unable 

 to obtain an engagement as a collector, he would be glad of a 

 situation as a curator of a public or private garden. 



Knyperslei/ Hall, near Congleton^ Cheshire^ 

 Oct. 1. 1834. 



Art. II. Hints on the Vtility of Mensuration to Gardeners. 

 By Mr. William Taylor. 



A KNOWLEDGE of mensuration is unquestionably as requisite to 

 gardeners, in not a few situations, as the knowledge of the art of 

 forcing is to them in others. It is, therefore, the duty, as well 

 as the interest, of the young gardener to qualify himself for 

 filling a situation of the former kind, to which there is attached 

 as much responsibility, and, in consequence, as much respect- 

 ability, as there is to the culture of plants in an artificial climate. 

 The latter, however, being the more refined occupation, is, on 

 that account, more the object of a young man's ambition ; and, 

 while pursuing it, he is too apt to neglect other things which, at 

 the time, appear to him of little consequence. 



Every gardener who considers his attainments superior to 

 those of a mere labourer, ought to be capable of measuring all 

 the superficies and solids usually measured, and of performing as 

 much of land-surveying as will enable him to give a sketch, or a 

 plan, to a scale, of any part, or the whole, of the grounds under 

 his charge. But, before he can do this, he must be well versed 

 in the elementary rules of arithmetic, such as vulgar and decimal 

 fractions, duodecimals, the square and cube roots, geometry, 

 and plane trigonometry. There are now so many excellent 

 treatises on these sciences, that it is not for me to say which are 

 the best. Morrison's Arithmetic, Ingram's Meiisuration (now 

 Ingram's Mathematics), Mutton's Mathematics, and Crocker's 

 Elements of Land-Surveying are the best which I have seen for 

 self-instruction. Hutton has tables of logarithms ; Ingram is 

 concise and comprehensive, particularly to those who understand 

 algebra ; though, for my own part, I would almost as soon see 

 the A^phis lanigera on an apple tree, as questions on men- 

 suration exemplified by algebra. These or any other works on 

 the subject, with a case of mathematical instruments, may be, at 

 times, obtained second-hand at a reasonable price ; and, as those 

 to whom these remarks are chiefly addressed can ill afford to 

 pay much for books, they should watch for such opportunities, 

 and should very rarely purchase new books, unless they are 



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