198 
ON THE FOEMATION OF THE PINETUM. 
1600 gallons of water must have evaporated from an acre of surface every twenty-four 
hours. 
If a single pint of water in a state of vapour occupies 1400 or 1500 pints, what must 
be the volume of vapour derived from the stupendous bulk of water that is conveyed into 
the atmosphere, by evaporation, from the entire service of the whole globe ? 
About two-thirds are supposed to be precipitated in the form of rain, another small 
portion is deposited as dew ; but admitting these suppositions to be facts, what becomes of 
the remainder of the vaporised water ? Is it decomposed ? If so, what is the decomposing 
agent, and what the products ? The subject is too involved for present discussion. It 
was considered at length in the Domestic Gardener's Manual, from which the above extract 
was taken. Electric agency must be kept in view, and from it we may perhaps hereafter 
derive something approaching to a solution. 
ON THE FOEMATION OF THE PINETUM. 
By Henry Bailey^ Nimeham Park. 
Theee are few pursuits (within a recent period) which have made more rapid advances 
than the art of Gardening. The field which is now open to the amateur and professed 
practitioner, embraces a wide range ; so much so, that it is divisible into several distinct 
sections, each laying open an almost unlimited field for the exercise of taste, ingenuity 
and perseverance, and requiring a considerable amount of cultural, physiological and 
botanical knowledge, to enable those who patronise it to carry it out to the fullest extent. 
Whether our attention is turned to the gorgeous and grotesque family of Orchids, the 
numerous and beautifully designed Melo- and Echino-Cacti, and the singular species of 
the succulent genera allied to them, or whether we cultivate with care the charming 
Calceolaria, the gay and graceful Geraniums ; or, turning our thoughts to the hardier 
denizens of the open air, the lovely family of Rosa, the stately Rhododendron, and its 
congener the elegant and varied Azalea — ^how infinite is the field which lies before us ! 
and what inexhaustible stores of variety and beauty are treasured up in the womb of 
Nature, ever ready to be developed by the exercise of those faculties of reason and 
observation with which we are endowed by an all-bountiful Providence : and which 
exercise ever brings in its train, the purest and most peaceful pleasures, solacing us in 
our trials and troubles by its mild influence, and giving zest to all the gentle amenities 
of life. 
While, however, the culture of exotic flowers can only be fully carried out by the 
possession of adequate structures, and a considerable amount of cultural knowledge is 
necessary to secure satisfactory results, the trees and shrubs which will endure the open air 
of this country, possess great interest for the proprietors of large and small estates, their 
variety and permanent beauty rendering them fitting embellishments and suitable accom- 
paniments both to the grounds of the mansion, and the villa residence. In illustration of 
this, how much interest and variety may be produced in a limited space by the judicious 
distribution of the popular genera, Crataegus, Pyrus, Cytisus, Cotoneaster, Rhododendron, 
Mahonia, Erica, &c., and on a larger scale by the introduction of the hardier foreign 
species of trees. 
Among the trees which are hardy in this climate, the Evergreen Conifers have long 
occupied a prominent position ; the stately Cedar of Lebanon, the Spruce Fir, Scotch 
and Weymouth Pines, with the Pinaster are, however, almost the only kinds found in old 
and characteristic places. By the labours of the ill-fated, lamented, and persevering 
Douglas, and other enterprising travellers, many useful and beautiful species (quite 
hardy) have been added to our once limited collections, and there are now few gardens 
which do not boast of the singular and stately Aruncaria, and the graceful Deodar ; while 
in many places the fancy for collections of this interesting family has been carried to an 
extent which may fairly be called Pino-mania. 
