80 



JOUKNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ August 4, 1870. 



because they are so thinly scattered as to shade and shelter 

 but not to blanch the graBS. Their saline and organic con- 

 stituents gradually fertilise the soil. 



Let it not be supposed from the quotation with which I have 

 headed these notes, that I consider it still applicable. Those 

 words might have been appropriate two centuries since, but 

 they are used by me only as a striking contrast to a fair de- 

 scription of Redcar, as it is now a thriving, increasing town, 

 supplied with all the requisites of a sea-bathing resort, and with 

 Unsurpassable sands for exercise. On foot, on horseback, or 

 in a carriage, those firm stoneless sands, hundreds of yards 

 ■wide, and more than seven miles in length, may be traversed. 

 Many places of interest, too, are within easily-reached distance 

 on foot, by railway, and by carriage, but at present I must con- 

 fine my notes to one day's stroll. 



That stroll was to Kirkleatham and a few miles beyond, little 

 expecting to find hereabouts monuments — worthy monuments, 

 of a Lord Mayor of London ; yet in the church there rests Sir 

 William Turner, chief magistrate of your city in 1669, one of 

 its most wealthy merchants, and the frequent creditor of 

 Charles II. He founded at Kirkleatham a noble hospital for 

 aged men, aged women, and children ; a museum, a library, 

 and a free grammar school, but this last-named is now rebuilt 

 at Redcar. I presume he was a native of Kirkleatham, and I 

 was well pleased to rest beneath venerable trees whose shade 

 he must have often enjoyed. Not many years since one of 

 their companions was felled, and then rifted for firewood, in 

 doing which the heart of the tree turned out entire, and on it, 

 spirally written, were these two lines — 



" This tree long witness bear, 

 Two true lovers did walk here." 



The portion of the tree with its inscription is preserved in the 

 Turner Museum I have mentioned. The inscription is perfectly 

 legible, and is literally as follows — 



" This tre lovDg time witnes beare 

 Of tow lovers that did walk heare." 



A poet has written on this theme, but I will only quote the 

 first and last verses : — 



" Long the wintry tempests braving, 

 Still this short inscription keep ; 

 Still preserve this rude engraving, 

 On thy bark imprinted deep — 

 ' This tree long time witness bear, 

 Two true lovers did walk here.' 

 On thy yielding bark engraving 



Now, in short, our tender tale; 

 Long, time's roughest tempest braving, 



Spread tby branches to the gale j 

 And for ages witness bear, 

 ( Two true lovers did walk here.' " 



Passing on I soon reached Wilton Castle, a residence of Sir 

 Charles Lowther, Bart. The village is within the park's 

 boundary, and if any one wishes to see model cottages, church, 

 and graveyard, they are there. Never did I see such appro- 

 priate, uniform neatness. The cottages are examples of clean- 

 liness and comfort, they make oue feel how such dwellings must 

 tend to promote a love of home and self-respect in their 

 labourer tenants. To them with truth — would that I could say 

 the same of all in England — may be applied the verse — 

 " The cottage homes of England ! how cheerily they stand, 

 Abodes of comfort and content throughout the pleasant land." 



The gardens of Wilton Castle are of very limited extent, 

 which is fortunate for the gardener, Mr. Henry Reed, for as 

 there is only one small greenhouse, he would be unable to 

 ■winter the bedding-out plants required for extensive flower 

 borders. The great charm of the place, however, is in the exten- 

 sive walks through the wood-clothed hills ; these wide, well-kept 

 walks are delightfully shady in summer, and, facing the south, 

 are sheltered and enjoyable in the fine days of winter. There 

 is a large picturesque waterfall, but the dry summer we have 

 had prevented me seeing it in its full beauty. The Magnolia 

 was in bloom, and the Figs ripening against the south front of 

 the Castle, and an abundant crop of Moorpark Apricots are on a 

 wall having the same aspect in the kitchen garden — it deserves 

 a note that they had no protection of any kind during either 

 the winter or spring, though at this north-east corner of York- 

 shire. The whole are well-ordered by Mr. Reed, and one of 

 your Editors will say he is a man of judgment, for among his 

 books I saw Loudon's " Encyclopaedia of Plants," Lindley's 

 " Theory of Horticulture," and Johnson's " Cottage Gardeners' 

 Dictionary. "— G. 



Dendbobiuji MaoCakthi/E.— This beautiful Orchid is just 

 now in great beauty at Messrs. Veitch's, Royal Exotic Nursery, 



Chelsea, where there is a plant with no less than one hundred 

 expanded flowers. 



THE EVERGREENS OF CALIFORNIA. 



Perhaps no country in the known world has been more 

 liberally favoured with all that is grand and beautiful in 

 vegetable life than has California. Whether we are particularly 

 interested in the smallest plants with their gorgeous flowers, 

 in ligneous shrubs clothed in attractive foliage, and emitting 

 delightful fragrance, in deciduous trees with a semi-tropical 

 aspect, or, lastly, evergreens of the most imposing and elegant 

 forms — the Sierra Nevada range of the " Golden State " cannot 

 be surpassed in richness. 



I purpose to call attention exclusively to the various mem- 

 bers of the order Coniferas, and especially to those which I have 

 studied in all the glory of their native haunts. 



In the Pine family proper, I will commence with the Pinus 

 contorta, Douglas (Twisted-branched Pine). — A medium-sized, 

 tree, rarely growing more than 50 feet in height, but forming 

 one of the most beautiful and compact specimens I have ever 

 seen. They are never found in the valleys, but always near 

 the summits of the higher ranges, especially surrounding some 

 level plateau, where the soil is damp and cool. In such situa- 

 tions it is of moderately rapid growth, very dense in structure, 

 bright glossy green in colour, and regularly conical in outline. 

 It is closely allied to the P. inops (Yellow Pine) of the Atlantic 

 coast, although far superior to the latter as an ornamental 

 tree. 



Pinus Fremontiana, Endlicher (Fremont's Pine) — Is found at 

 high elevations on the mountains, and is another of the smaller- 

 sized trees, which will undoubtedly prove very attractive in our 

 collections. The leaves of this species present a very curious 

 feature, being almost entirely monophyllous— e. <?., one leaf in a 

 sheath on the younger shoots, and of a bright bluish green in 

 colour. The branches, although not so numerous as in the 

 preceding, are nevertheless sufficiently so to form a moderately- 

 compact head, and when viewed in conjunction with the very 

 attractive foliage, leave little to be desired. The cones are 

 small, and of a greenish tinge on the surface ; when open, dis- 

 playing a few large edible seeds ; these are in great request by 

 the Indians, and are very nutritious and agreeable to the taste. 



Pinus cdulis, Engelmann (Edible-fruited Pine) — Closely 

 resembles the foregoing, the distinctive feature being in the 

 size and shape of the cone. Young plants of this species have 

 proved quite hardy in the Eastern States, and I trust we shall 

 thereby secure a valuable addition to our collection. 



Pimis fionderosa, Douglas (Heavy-wooded Pine) — Is seen soon 

 after commencing the ascent of the mountain range, and is one 

 of the most numerous species until we approach the summit, 

 when it ceases to be met with. In passing through the almost 

 interminable forests that clothe these regions, we see many 

 thousands of the Heavy-wooded Pine of all ages and sizes, from 

 the handsome-shaped specimen of 8 or 10 feet in height, to the 

 old scarred veteran towering up at least 150 feet. In the case 

 of the latter, the rough, deeply-seamed bark presents a curious 

 appearance. Indeed, the whole tree forcibly reminds one of a 

 vigorous specimen of the Austrian Pine (Pinus austriaca), but 

 much coarser in growth than the latter species. As a strictly 

 ornamental tree, it will, therefore, never prove popular, but in 

 our larger plantations, on rocky eminences, and for distant 

 belts and masses, it will be available and useful. One of the 

 largest specimens I have seen was growing in the beautiful 

 valley of the Yo Semite, and measured 21 J feet in circumference 

 5 feet above the ground. I frequently met with trees from 

 15 to 18 feet in girth, and, in fact, the larger portion of them 

 were at least 4 feet in diameter, with their huge bodies destitute 

 of limbs for at least one-half their height. 



Pimis Jeffreyi, Hort. (Jeffrey's Pine) — In size and appear- 

 ance of tree presents all the characters pertaining to P. ponde- 

 rosa. The cones, however, are very different, and herein alone 

 exists the specific distinction. Occasionally I have noticed a 

 chance specimen with more slender leaves, but this peculiarity 

 is not constant. It is hardy, a rapid grower, and would make 

 an admirable shelter. 



Pinus Sabiniana, Douglas (Sabine's Pine)— Belongs entirely 

 to the Foot Hills at the base of the mountains, and in conse- 

 quence will prove of doubtful utility with us. Indeed, I do 

 not know of an instance where it has proven successful ; but, 

 nevertheless it is remarkably elegant when young, present- 

 ing one of the most charming examples of the delicate graceful 

 type of Conifers to be met with. The foliage is about 12 inches 



