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PURCHASED. 



Supplement to Nicholson's Dictionary of Gardening. 

 Icones Plantarum, Vol. 27, 

 Indian Gardening, Current Nos. 

 Gardener's Chronicle, Current Nos. 



Indigo. — In the early days of the Colony, I think during 

 the 60's, there arrived in Natal from Java a gentleman named 

 Van Prehn, who came with the intention of growing Indigo, 

 and I understand that he brought with him seeds of the species 

 of the plant which was used in Java for the purpose of extract- 

 ing the pigment; this species was probably either Indigofera anil 

 or I. tinctoria. Mr. Van Prehn entered irto partnership with 

 late Mr. A. K. Murray, of Pinetown, and Indigo in small the 

 quantities was grown and manufactured near that place ; 

 experiments were also made with some of our indigenous 

 species of Indigofera, with the result that one species was found 

 to be well adapted for the purpose. After a short time, how- 

 ever, the manufacture was abandoned, and Mr. Van Prehn 

 returned to Java, taking with him seeds of the Natal species 

 which had been found to yield the pigment in payable quanti- 

 ties. Since that time, so far as I am awaie, nothing has been 

 done in Natal to produce the drug commercially ; in small 

 quantities, however, it has been manufactured by Dr. Addison, 

 sen., and probably by some other persons also, but only as 

 samples of what might be done. Many years ago I was in- 

 clined to advocate the culture of this plant in the Colony, but 

 was advised by a correspondent at Home, in whom I had confi- 

 dence, not to do so, as he said that Indigo had already been 

 manufactured artificially, and that it was only a question of 

 time as to how soon it would put the real article quite out of 

 the market. In the Report of Kew Gardens for 1880 an article 

 appeared describing the manner in which the artificial Indigo 

 was produced, and the article concludes thus: " It is difficult 

 to avoid the conclusion that artificial indigo will most seriously 

 interfere with, even if it does not within very few years 

 altogether displace the natural article." 



Since that time artificial Indigo has been placed on the 

 market and proves to be identical with the Indigo extracted 

 from the cultivated plant, but the expense of producing it is so 

 great, that it is now thought that so far as price is concerned 

 it will not be able to supplant the naturally produced article. 

 The growth of Indigo has, therefore, received an impetus that 

 has led the planters to make enquiries as to the Natal plant, 

 which is said to be much superior to the one formerly in use. 

 Seed was obtained from Java, but in most if not in all cases 



