8 



as follows : — " Visitors are requested to keep to the paths, and 

 any person sliding-, running or walking up or down the grassed 

 embankments will be liable to be expelled from the Gardens." 



" The indiscriminate use of butterfly nets is probibited, 

 but permission to use such nets may be obtained from the 

 Director or Curator, and will be available for the day of issue 

 only. This permission will not be granted on Sundays, and 

 may at once be withdrawn if the privilege is abused." 



It must also be remembered that the Nurseries and Forcing 

 Houses are open to the public on business only, and on Sundays 

 and Public Holidays they are closed altogether to visitors. 

 The upper Nursery has now been enclosed, the portion adjoining 

 the Gardens near the Conservatory with Karri wood palings 

 and double gate, the remainder with barbed wire. 



The cultivation of the fibre-yielding planis Fourcroya 

 gigantea, the " Mauritius Hemp " and Agave rigida, var. 

 sisalana, the " Sisal Hemp " is now receiving much attention 

 and numerous inquiries have been received on the subject. 

 Large areas of the first named species have already been 

 planted, but bulbils or plants of the " Sisal " are not obtainable 

 in quantity. 



In the year 1889, we leceived by parcel post from the 

 Royal Gardens, Kew, twenty plants of the " Sisal." These 

 were at once planted out, and we scarcely lost a single plant; 

 shortly afterwards we received a larger consignment, but on 

 arrival these were all found to be dead. These plants or their 

 progeny ha/e been in the Gardens ever since, and have pro- 

 duced thousands of bulbils for which there was no demand in the 

 colony, and which have therefore been wasted. During the 

 last few months the demand for them has greatly increased, 

 and many hundreds of bulbils and root cuttings have been 

 supplied to applicants, but we are not in a position to supply 

 them in very large quantities, but many more will be sent out 

 in the Spring months. During the month of March, Mr. 

 Wylie left on the usual annual collecting trip, obtaining a large 

 number of plants for exchange with other Botanical Institutes, 

 and also a good collection of dried specimens for our own 

 Herbarium, amongst them being a number of rare species, 

 and one at least which is new to the colony. He also brought 

 two large trunks of an Encephalaitos of a rather rare variety ; 

 these plants were found by myself in Zululand many years 

 ago, the largest trunk being about 18 feet in height. Some 

 years ago Mr. Wylie brought three trunks of this variety about 

 3 to 4 feet in height, which we planted here ; after remaining 

 for more than two years without putting out any leaves, all of 

 them commenced to grow, and a photo of one of them is here 



