Horticulture in Foreign Lands. 



239 



front garden laid out in walks and triangular beds, in which are 

 growing several European flowers, such as larkspur, catch-fly, 

 gilliflower and the like, but I fear that this is the only in- 

 stance of the kind in Paraguay. 



I am told that the ants, whose name here is legion, devour 

 the roots of herbaceous flowers, and that they are apt to die off 

 in the sandy soil and under the summer heats, so that it is of 

 little use to sow annual flower seeds, but I am inclined to think 

 that, with a good protection of tree and shrubbery shade, these 

 difficulties might be overcome. Certainly, lawns might easily 

 be made, as there are several indigenous grasses well adapted 

 for that purpose, and rain is common enough in the country to 

 keep them green ; but I do not remember to have seen one. 



In rambling over the country, I come occasionally upon 

 rough garden hedges made of cactus or agaves, or, most com- 

 monly, of a very thorny and bushy shrub which bears a large 

 purple flower, resembling a camellia, here called amapola ; but 

 such regular, close-clipped hedges as those of the arbor-vitae in 

 the States are unknown. The arbor-vitae would not probably 

 live here, but the osage-orange, the buckthorn and other spe- 

 cies employed for hedging at home might do so. Certainly, 

 rose hedges might easily be grown, as the rose thrives admira- 

 bly in Paraguay. The very choicest varieties for color, size 

 and perfume that our conservatories and gardens exhibit will 

 live out of doors all the year, growing into large shrubs, and 

 what is more, this plant does not seem to be attacked here by 

 the slug or any other insect. It is a great wonder to me that 

 the queen of the garden seems to be so little prized in a land 

 so admirably adapted to its culture. 



The most hopeful experiment in the way of parks and orna- 

 mental gardening which has come under my notice is the es- 

 tate of Herr Mangels, for many years German consul in Para- 

 guay. This gentleman has purchased a large tract of land 

 about a league from Asuncion, erected a handsome castle-like 

 mansion upon it, and laid out several hundred acres in a park 

 and gardens. He is experimenting with good success in the 

 culture of various native and foreign fruits, plants and flowers, 

 and although his grounds are still in a rough state and not laid 

 out with much artistic taste, yet they serve to show the possi- 

 bilities of floriculture and arboriculture in this country when 

 skillfully treated. I saw in his garden fine large trees of the 



