354) Grisor's Eastern Arboretum. 



"b 



" In order to break the monotony of a continued treatise on the same class 

 of subjects, the reader will be occasionally relieved by general descriptions of 

 such gentlemen's seats as are considered worthy of particular notice ; and as 

 it would be inconvenient and incompatible to treat of trees at length under 

 the head o( Seats, and vice versa, a portion of each number will be devoted to 

 the respective subjects." 



The body of the work now commences with a chapter on " Trees in Gene- 

 ral;" and next follows one on the " Trees of the City" [of Norwich], which 

 is followed by an article headed, " Proposed Public Garden in the City of 

 Norwich." " That the capital of Norfolk should have been so long without 

 a public garden, cannot be attributed," Mr. Grigor informs us, " to a want of 

 taste for flowers among its inhabitants ; for so predominant is this taste, that 

 Norwich is emphatically termed the ' City of Gardens,' or the ' City in an 

 Orchard;' " this fact," he adds, "gives the surer promise that the project 

 will meet with success ; for it would be almost hopeless to expect that a 

 community not fond of those pursuits would see any merit in an institution 

 devoted to them." After various arguments in favour of establishing a Bo- 

 tanic Garden, the author makes the following observations, which we quote 

 as being applicable in the case of towns generally : — 



" But, apart from a botanic garden being a scene of beauty and attraction 

 in itself, it would stimulate all our amateurs in the city to procure those orna- 

 mental trees and flowers hitherto unknown, or not generally cultivated in this 

 quarter, so that all our gardens around would take their tone from this central 

 emporium of taste. It is especially to be regretted that so little attention is 

 given in this quarter to the introduction of the finer kinds of hardy trees and 

 shrubs. Horticulture and Floriculture have their societies, and are flourish- 

 ing ; but any effort to introduce new or rare trees — those magnificent and 

 enduring ornaments of nature — has not yet been made. Around Norwich 

 there are consequently but few novelties to interest the botanical cultivator. 



" Of the beautiful and numerous species of the genus Crat(Sgus, there are 

 only three generally met with — C. punctata, C. Crus-galli, and C. Oxyacantha 

 with its varieties. Of the like numerous and not less beautiful genus of the 

 JEsculus or Pavia, there is only the common JE. Hippocastanum ; and, indeed, 

 so general is this want of novelty, that one cannot but wonder how so few of 

 those fine trees, which have been so long in cultivation, have found their way 

 into our gardens. A botanical collection, open to the citizens, would remedy 

 this ; for to see trees is far more persuasive and satisfactory than a picture or 

 description of them, however elaborate. No one scarcely can walk through 

 the gardens of Chiswick, Hackney, Chatsworth, or any old arboretum, without 

 I'esolving to add to his collection such trees as he does not already possess ; 

 and it is unquestionable, that, if such a stimulus were commenced here, it 

 would soon have the effect of enriching and beautifying our country." 



Mr. Grigor next shows that such a garden " would enable us to distinguish 

 botanically what trees are best worthy of cultivation for the sake of their 

 timber;" and here he quotes from the Quarterly lieview. Sir Walter Scott's 

 story of a bad kind of oak being introduced from the German forests, and 

 propagated extensively in Hampshire and Norfolk, which is known to be, like 

 the same author's story of a kind of Scotch fir imported from Canada, without 

 foundation in fact. It is true, however, that the wood of Q,. pedunculata is 

 generally considered preferable to that of Q. sesiliflora as ship-timber, which is 

 the point Mr. Grigor seeks to establish. (See Arb. Brit , p. 1786. and 2171.) 



The author concludes with expressing a hope in which we sincerely concur, 

 " that the time is not very distant when every town and village shall have its 

 library, scientific institution, museum, and public pleasure-garden, as was 

 proposed in a bill submitted to the House of Commons by Mr. Buckingham ; 

 for we believe that if ever mankind are to be better than they are, it will 

 be through the establishment of the different branches of Natural History 

 throughout the country." 



We cordially recommend Mr. Grigor's work to all our readers, but more 

 especially to those resident in the eastern counties. 



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