Foreign Notices : — France^ Belgium. 5S7 



than one or two of half a dozen buds ; the fact as to the potatoes is merely 

 the operation of the same law, which, by a sufficiently extensive generalisation, 

 ought to have been known before. Take the young shoot of a gooseberry or 

 currant, say a foot long, and containing, say, a dozen bulbs, and insert it in the 

 soil, at the proper season, as a cutting : probably only the bud at the extremity 

 of the shoot will push ; but, had the same shoot been cut into a dozen pai'ts, 

 each having a bud, a dozen plants would have been produced by these buds. 

 This case, and that of the potatoes, are exactly analogous. 



Art. II. Foreign Notices. 

 FRANCE. 



The Horsechestnut Trees, near the basin, in the garden of the Tuilleries, 

 are of great beauty, and strikingly ornamental in this particular position. 

 These trees, about the middle of May of the present year, were in the fulness 

 of their bloom. One tree was markedly distinguished beyond all its neigh- 

 bours by its comparatively greater number of flowers. They were thickly 

 studded upon every branch, and, in a degree, obscured the foliage. The 

 observation was made to me that this tree was of some historical interest, as 

 connected with Napoleon's arrival in Pai'is (March 20.); for, on his entry 

 from Elba, it furnished to him and his friends foliage for their personal deco- 

 ration, being the only tree then in the garden in such a forward state. It is 

 a curious fact, that, with this invariable precocity, it should also display such a 

 floral propensity. — F. Huthwaite. London, June, 1835. 



The chestnut tree must be the one alluded to by Mr. Blaikie, in his Return 

 Paper of trees in diiferent parts of France. Under the head of JS'sculus 

 Hippocastanum, he says, " a variety in the Tuilleries gardens is always a fort- 

 night earlier than the others." It will be too late when this reaches Paris to 

 send over cuttings for budding ; but though this could not be done in time for 

 budding, we trust shoots wUl be sent over during winter to be grafted next 

 spring. — Cond. 



True Service Tree (Vprus domestica). — This is found so abundantly in some 

 parts of France (Loiret, for example), that cider is drawn from its fruit, which 

 is very much esteemed. It is a curious characteristic of the liquor, that it 

 exhales an odour powerfully offensive, whilst the potation itself is so very 

 delicious. — F. Hidhiuaite, London, June, 1835. 



Gladiolus natalensis has remained uncovered all last winter, and is now grow- 

 ing with great luxuriance, equal to, if not better than, those bulbs of it which 

 were taken up in the usual way. — Id. 



BELGIUM. 



The Humbeque Nursery, near Brussels. — The Humbeque Nursery is si- 

 tuated on the Brussels canal, three leagues from that city and five from Ant- 

 werp. Good boats leave Brussels at seven o'clock in the morning, and get 

 to Humbeque at half past eight in the summer ; they also leave Brussels at 

 half past ten in the morning, or at seven in the evening. Passengers going to 

 the nursery must be set down at the second sluice. The boats leave Antwerp 

 at seven o'clock, and get to the nursery, in summer, at half past ten ; and they 

 pass again at half past four. The communication is also easy by land ; the 

 nursery being only one league and a quarter from Vilvorde, on the high road 

 from Brussels to Antwerp. In this nursery a great number of American 

 forest trees have been raised from seeds, and nearly 300 American fruit trees 

 have been exported. Every year a list of the new plants is added to the cata- 

 logues published by the proprietors of the nursery, and sent to the persons 

 with whom they are in correspondence. Letters may be addressed (post 

 paid) to M. Haverhal's, Jardinier en chef, chez M. Sterx, Directeur des Postes 

 a Vilvorde. 



