June S7, 1«65. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTUliE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



480 



Now, let us go into a few details of practice, all based on 

 the facts alluded to above. Here is a nice little plant green 

 and flourishing, but the stems are rather too flabby, and 

 lead you to suppose it has had too much moisture. The 

 drainage, therefore, is examined, a quantity of the old soil 

 taken away, and a nice clean pot given. No plants are more 

 careless of soil. Sandy loam, loam and peat, loam and lime 

 rubbish will grow them adrah'ably, but my preference as to 

 compost would be equal parts of sandy loam, brick rubbish, 

 and old, sweet, dried cowdung. After potting — say in June, 

 water and give all the sun you can to the plant, keeping it 

 inside of the house or window. Water on till August when- 

 ever the plant wants it, as you would do a Geranium, not 

 watering when the plant does not require it, nor yet allowing 

 the stems to shrivel or shrink in the least. If the autumn 

 is bright and sunny place the plants outside the window by 

 the middle of August, or in front of a fence or wall facing 

 the south. Keep giving a little water until the middle of 

 September, but a skiif over the stems will be better than 

 much at the roots. From the middle of September I would 

 give all the sun possible, and noc a drop of water unless the 

 plants showed signs of distress, and then I would damp the 

 stems instead of the roots. By the middle of October the 

 plants should be placed in-doora, and if the temperature 

 ranges only during winter from 38° to 45°, they wiU rarely 

 need any water all the winter. The atmosphere at that 

 temperature will supply them with enough of moisture. 

 When you wish them to grow and bloom syringe the stems, 

 give them a rise in temperature, and as soon as there is the 

 appearance of a pin-head of bloom, give a little water to the 

 roots, increasing the quantity gradually as the buds swell. 

 After flowering again follow the above process and success 

 . will be obtained. 



Considering their beauty and the very little trouble they 

 give, these succulents deserve to be extensively cultivated 

 by those who have little time to spare, and who from their 

 avocations cannot give that regular attention which most 

 other plants require. Let the above leading principles be 

 kept in view, and extra heat, and extra cold, provided there 

 is no frost, and a little excess of moisture or of dryness now 

 and then, will never injure these beautiful and accommodat- 

 ing succulents. — R. Fish. 



THE PLEASURE GEOUNDS OF PARIS. 



(Concluded from page 384.) 



Eetttbning now to the entrance at the end of the Avenue 

 de rimp^ratrice, and following the road which lies before 

 us, we arrive in ten or twelve minutes at the extremity of 

 Lake Inferior, which here presents a dazzling perspective. 

 This extensive sheet of water, covering an area of 14 acres, 

 ia 1272 yards long, 113 wide, and from 3 to 6 feet deep. 

 Above its surface rise two small islands of which the united 

 area is about Gi acres ; the larger, to the north, containing 

 3a. 3r. 12p. and being 457 yards in length ; and the smaller, 

 to the south, is 366 yards long. These two islands are united 

 by a rustic bridge, which in summer is covered with various 

 climbing plants, and harmonises weU with the chalet or 

 Swiss cottage which stands close by under the shade of a 

 clump of old Pine trees, which cover the upper part of the 

 larger island. The chalet is a sort of tavern, comprising a 

 small theatre, in which are acted some minor pieces during 

 the summer months. 



Lake Superior is divided by a road under which the water 

 passes, as required, througk several rocky passages into the 

 deep and sinuous end of the lower lake. The upper lake 

 has a surface of nearly 4 acres ; length, 455 yards ; mean 

 width. 60 yards ; and depth, from 3 to 5 feet. In 1855, 

 50,000 young salmon and trout artificially hatched were 

 put into the lakes ; but most if not all have since died i'rom 

 the want of current. The water for the lakes is taken in part 

 from the Seine, by means of force pumps placed at the Quai 

 de la Conference, and in part supplied by the artesian well 

 lately opened near the Grille de la Muette, where the water, 

 after rising 1600 or 1700 feet, gives a temperature of 37" or 

 38'' Fair. The water enters at the Gi.ile de la Muette, 

 and is conducted to the Butte de Moiiimartre, where it 

 enters the southern extremity of Lake Superior, forming 

 a cascade. 



The Butte de Montmartre is an artificial elevation which 

 has been formed with the earth obtained by the excavation 

 of the lakes and rivulets ; it is the highest point in the Bois 

 de Boulogne, being from 32 to 40 feet above the surface of 

 the lakes. From here we gain glimpses of the heights of 

 Issy, Meudon, Bellevue, Saint Cloud, Suresnes, and Mont 

 Valerien. The full view of this magnificent and picturesque 

 landscape has been intentionally shut out by clumps of the ■ 

 old wood, which are here rather too artificially arranged. 

 The slope from here to the Porte Boulogne is very bare, the 

 walks so superbly constructed everywhere else being here 

 very diminutive, and the trees are too far fi'om the edges. 

 Even the grass here is coarse and Ul kept, and the various 

 beauties of the lakes are indistinctly seen ; but these slight 

 defects are very likely soon to be removed, and are well com- 

 pensated for by about twenty minutes' wallc to the grand 

 cascade ; and the road we shall select, although a little 

 tedious, is certainly the most interesting. On descending 

 the magnificent walk which follows the lakes, a full view 

 is obtained of the lakes and islands, every step presenting' 

 some new beauties. We aiTive in a few minutes between 

 the lakes — this chosen spot around which all the luxurious 

 grandeur of the place lies profusely spread. The slopes are 

 here often abrupt, sinuous, and vxndulated, but covered to 

 the waters brink with a verdant carpet of well-kei)t grass, 

 planted here and there with clumps of the finest Coniferse, 

 shrubs, and in summer with isolated plants, such as Aralia 

 papyrifera, Caladium esculentum and odorum, Ficus elastica, 

 Musa rosacea, Wigandia uren.^, Gunnera scabra, Erythrina, 

 Nicotiana wigandioides, Bambusa aurea and metake &c. 



There are some specimens of Araucaria imbrioata, Wel- 

 lingtonia gigantea, Taxodium distiehum, Dacrydium cupres- 

 sinum, Cedrus deodara, Abies Douglasii, and Abies pinsapo ; 

 but Coniferaa do not grow so well here as in England. 



There is a small walk forming a kind of edging around 

 the lower lake and its islands, leaving a small margin ot 

 grass between it and the water, where stand some fine 

 examples of Gynerium argenteum, Weigela rosea, Fraxinus- 

 pendula, F. ornus, and Salix babylonica, with the beautiful 

 Dauben tenia magnifica. Among these run numerous walks, 

 leading to bowers, and mounds, and little valleys, now kiss- 

 ing the clear waters where close by grows the Pampas Grass, 

 in the shadow of whose plumes rests leisurely the heron or 

 duck, and again rising gradually to rockwork clad lightly 

 with Ivy. On the water everything is gay and living; 

 thousands of beautiful-feathered birds skim to and fro, 

 prattling their different languages, while the swan, more 

 conscious of his beauty, may be seen arranging hia white 

 plumage in the mirror of the water. 



On arriving at the northern extremity of the lakes, where 

 the water is on a level with the surrounding banks, but is 

 kept from overflowing by a shallow outlet allowing the sur- 

 plus to fall gently into the mouth of a rivulet already men- 

 tioned, this divides into three — the two minor ones to the 

 right go, one towards the Jardin d'Acclimitation, the other 

 towards Madrid; and the third, the longest and most 

 winding, we shall accompany till we arrive at the Grand 

 Cascade of Longchamps, where it tumbles about 20 feet 

 over a large semicircular surface of projecting blocks of half- 

 decomposed limestone, which have been brought here from 

 the Forest of Pontalnebleau. Underneath the falls is a 

 cavern, on the roof of which may be seen some examples of 

 fantastic stalactites. This water is received in a large bason 

 which furnishes the numerous little rivulets and lakes which 

 spread over the plains below. 



The plains of Longchamps have been purchased by the 

 city, and were annexed to the Bois de Boulogne in 1854 j 

 there 200,000 trees and shrubs have been planted in isolated 

 clumps, so as to harmonise with the surrounding landscape. 

 A portion of these plains is set apart as a race-course and 

 for holding reviews. Returning to the summit of the rock, 

 which forms a sort of arch above the water, we behold these 

 verdant plains stretching down to the Seine, while beyond 

 are the hamlets of Suresnes, Saint Cloud, and NeuUly; a 

 little to the left may be seen the old town of Boulogne ; 

 while close by to the right, on the main road to Suresnes, 

 may be seen the habitation of the Prefect, standing on the 

 ancient ruins, and close to the tower of the famous Abbey of 

 Longchamps, which was established by Isabelle of France. 



Bois de Boulogne is laid out with that rare taste and 



