Domestic Notices : — Scotland. 321 



are aware that the water round my midland allotment is in general within 3 ft. 

 of the surface. To this circumstance, I have no doubt, I am in a great mea- 

 sure indebted for a succession of abundant crops. Where this necessary 

 agent in the growth of vegetables is wanting, or scantily supplied, it appeai-s to 

 me that, in most cases, a copious supply could be procured by well-boring ; 

 by which means even soils that are now but little worth might be made to 

 produce abundant crops. In cases where the water did not rise above or 

 near the surface, perhaps a steam-engine on a small scale might occasionally 

 be applied. — ./. Denson, Sen, Waterbeach, near Cambridge, Feb. 25. 1833. 



The market-gardens in the neighbourhood of London, of Paris, and of 

 Edinburgh, that are most productive relatively to the labour and expense 

 bestowed on them, are those where the water lies near the surface ; for 

 example, the gardens of the Neats Houses, those of the Marais, and those at 

 the bottom of the North Loch. All the cabbage tribe thrive- remarkably well 

 in such situations. The custom of raising water from deep wells, to water 

 the surface of grounds devoted to culinary vegetables, prevails throughout 

 Europe and Asia; and the simplification of the practice by boring, as sug- 

 gested by Mr. Denson, is doubtless a very great improvement. Boring for 

 water is not half so much practised as it might be, though it is on the increase, 

 both in England and in France. — Cond. 



Forced Roses. — Li the York Chronicle for Feb. 26. 1773, it is stated that 

 " forced rose trees were then selling in the seed-shops in St. James's Street at 

 16^;. each! " Flowers of the same sold for 6d. each, in Co vent Garden mar- 

 ket, in Feb. 1835. 



The Banana (Musa sapientum L.) is now in blossom, with thirty-one fruits, 

 and to be seen at Chilton Hall, Clare, in Suffolk, (The Bury and Norwich 

 Post, April 2. 1834.) 



The Comvion Ash Tree of great age, in a decaying state, has had its youth 

 renewed, and become covered with fine foliage at Testwood, near South- 

 ampton, the seat of W. Sturges Bourne. Esq., which seems to favour Pro- 

 fessor De Candolle's theory of the perpetuity of vitality in dicotyledonous 

 trees. The branches were cut in close to the trunk, or to the larger branches, 

 and the rest was left to nature. The same plan applied 'to some old apple 

 trees was not attended with the same good effect. — W. S. B. December 8. 

 1834. 



A Colmar Pear Tree, in the kitchen-garden at Houghton Park, near Ampt- 

 hill, Bedfordshire, which was cut down in the winter of 1833, made a shoot 

 from the stool in the summer of 18.34, 7 ft. 9 in. long, with laterals 4 ft. 9 in., 

 4 ft. 11 in., and the very shortest 1ft. 5 in. — Humphrey Gibbs. Corner of 

 Half Moon Street, Piccadilly, London, Dec. 31. 1834. 



Growth and Fertility of Scions of Pears grafted in the Neighbourhood of Lan- 

 caster. — In March, 1833, Dr. Lingard received from Mr. Saul a scion of the 

 Flemish beauty pear, which has now, March, 1835, eight blossom buds upon 

 it. Five other sorts, grafted at the same time, have respectively three, four, 

 eight, and fifteen blossom buds ; no small encouragement to possessers of bad 

 sorts of pear trees to graft them with good sorts. 



SCOTLAND. 



Return Papers for the Arboretum Britannicum from the Glasgow Distnct, 

 through Mr. Murray ; and from the PertJf District, through Mr. Gorrie. — We 

 are under the greatest obligations to Mr. Stewart Murray, of the Glasgow 

 Botanic Garden, for the exertions he has made to procure us information 

 respecting the foreign trees and shrubs of his district ; and also to Mr. Gorrie, 

 for similar exertions in the Perth district. The energy shown on the occa- 

 sion by these gentlemen is highly gratifying; and we are also very much 

 obliged to the gardeners and others who have sent the information to Mr. 

 Murray and Mr. Gorrie which they have forwarded to us. At the same time, 

 we cannot help observing that some of the gardeners of the Glasgow district 



Vol. XL —No. 63. a a 



