ADVERTISEMENT. 
In an annual address to the purchasers and patrons of a popular 
periodical like the Magazine of Botany, the principal office of the Editor 
is to point to the accomphshment of past promises, and to register new ones 
for future fulfilment ; — to express gratitude for the encouragement already 
afforded, and to state on what resources he depends for perpetuating and 
extending the countenance with which he has been so largely and liberally 
favoured. 
By glancing at the pages of the present volume, the reader will obtain 
a truer opinion of its value than can here be expressed. The admirers of 
that most singular, diversified, and lovely tribe — the tropical Orchidacese — ■ 
have had their taste gratified by the very superior figures of new and beau- 
tiful species which have appeared in most of the monthly numbers ; while 
the comprehensive remarks on their culture must prove serviceable both to 
the amateur and gardener. For those whose fancy attaches them to other 
classes of plants, the greatest possible variety of drawings has been provided ; 
and the lover of really ornamental flowers, who disregards the length of 
time they have been known, will find many excellent representations of 
those which rank among the most meritorious. 
The letter-press comprises a mass of varied and instructive information 
on almost every subject that concerns the floriculturist. The gardener who 
wishes for assistance on such chemical matters as relate to his art, may 
consult the papers which discuss the composition of soils with advantage. 
From the series of articles on Succulents, persons who entertain any pre- 
ference for Cactacese and their congeners, may derive many useful facts, and 
the most conclusive hints on the treatment of the group. The definitions of 
phrases, the descriptions of organs, and other elementary matter connected 
