IN SEARCH OF NEW PLANTS. 
399 
most beautiful 6lirubs of northern China, 
which was first met with in the garden of a 
mandarin near the city of Tinghae on this 
island, was this spring loaded with its noble 
rose-coloured flowers. Buddlea Lindieyana 
was also seen this year in great perfection 
growing in the hedges on the hill sides, often 
side by side with the Glycine sinensis. 
" Ningpo is about forty miles west from 
Chusan, and is situated on the mainland. My 
visits here at different times during this sum- 
mer were attended with much less difficulty 
than in the preceding autumn. I was now 
beginning to speak a little Chinese, and was 
perfectly acquainted with the town, and the 
whole of the places where the different 
mandarins' gardens and nurseries were situ- 
ated. This was of much importance, as I was 
able to save so much time which used to be 
formerly spent in fruitless inquiries. The 
mandarins were particularly inquisitive at this 
time about every thing which related to the 
movements of the English, or other foreigners, 
who were likely to establish themselves at 
their port ; and as we were able to keep up a 
conversation in Chinese, I soon found that my 
frequent visits were very agreeable to them. 
The nurserymen too, having found, I suppose, 
that my money was as valuable to them as 
that which they received from their own 
countrymen, were no longer shy, but most 
auxious to sell me any plants which I wanted. 
" The gardens of the mandarins, although 
small, were extremely gay, particularly during 
the early months of the year ; and, what was 
of more importance to me, contained a number 
of new plants of great beauty and interest. 
On entering one of the gardens on a fine 
morning in May, I was struck with a mass of 
yellow flowers which completely covered a 
distant part of the wall ; the colour was not a 
common yellow, but had something of buff in 
it, which gave the flowers a striking and un- 
common appearance. I immediately ran up 
to the place, and to my surprise and delight 
found that I had discovered a most beautiful 
new yellow climbing rose. I have no doubt, 
from what I afterwards learned, that this rose 
is. from the more northern districts of the 
Chinese empire, and will prove perfectly hardy 
in Europe. Another rose, which the Chinese 
call the ' live-coloured,' was found in one of 
these gardens at this time ; it belongs to the 
section commonly called China roses in this 
country, but sports in a very strange and 
beautiful manner. Sometimes it produces 
Belf-coloured blooms — being either red or 
French white, and frequently having flowers 
of both on one plant at the same time— while 
at other times the flowers are striped with the 
colours already mentioned. This will also be 
as hardy as our common China rose. Glycine 
sinensis is often grown on a flat trellis in front 
of the summer-house, or forms a kind of 
portico, which affords a pleasing shade from 
the burning rays of the summer's sun. En- 
twined with one of these trees I found another 
variety, having very long racemes of pure 
white flowers, which contrasted well with the 
light blue of the other. I immediately asked 
permission from the old Chinese gentleman to 
make some layers of this fine plant, an 1 I am 
happy to say that one of these is now alive in 
the garden at Chiswick. 
" After seeing the different gardens and 
nurseries in the town, I generally left Ningpo 
for the hills in the district. The natives in 
this part of the country, as I have already 
stated, are quite a different race from those in 
the south, and perfectly harmless in their dis- 
positions : I have often resided amongst their 
mountains for weeks at a time, and never had 
any reason to complain of the treatment I 
received at their hands. The temple of Tein- 
tung, a large monastic building situated 
amongst the green-tea hills about twenty miles 
trom Ningpo, was a favourite place of resort, 
owing to the peculiar richness of the vegeta- 
tion in this part of the country. Here many 
of the trees and shrubs, which were only 
found in gardens in other places, were wild on 
the hills and in the hedges. The Forsythia 
already named was common on the road-sides, 
and was covered with its bright-yellow flowers 
in early spring. Several species of Viburnum 
of great heauty, and one Hydrangea, were 
also met with here, besides all the other plants 
which have been already noticed as abounding 
on the hills of Chusan. Cryptomeria japonica 
formed one of the most beautiful and stately 
trees which are found on the hill sides ; it 
grows about as tall as a common pine, the 
stems are perfectly straight, its branches hang 
drooping down in a most graceful manner, 
and altogether it is not unlike the Araucarias 
of Norfolk Island or Brazil, but probacy 
much more hardy. The wood possesses great 
strength and durability, and is highly prized 
by the higher classes amongst the Chinese. 
Paulownia imperialis, Lilium japouicum, and 
several other well-known Japanese plants, are 
also indigenous to this part of China, which 
shows that the vegetation of the two countries 
must be very much alike. 
" I arrived at Shanghae this year on the 
j 18th of April, and spent two or three weeks 
there at different times during the season. My 
principal object was to see all the plants in 
the different northern districts as they came 
into flower, and it was therefore necessary 
that I should stay as short a time as possible 
in one place at one time. 1 have already 
mentioned that I purchased a collection of 
live laconics during my first visit in the 
