Manchester Botanic Garden. 107 
sjired : but as oui* rule was to jtreserve as much as |>osi>iljle the natural 
undulations of the ground, a person on the spot will comprehend the 
reason why we have so dis})osed them. Jt is now only tuo years 
since we commenced tiie ground work, the walls were begun a month 
earlier. Most of the land required draining, by which means a good 
supjjly of water for the aquarium was obtained. This water enters 
the aquarium at the east end, and ))assing by the front of the rock- 
work, it flows the length of the garden. 
On trenching the fruit-garden, much of the subsoil \\as remo\ed, 
the level being very irregular- ; this was a sharp sand, and gravel, 
being very scarce, it was used to till up the walks. In clearing out 
the ditches and removing the old hedges, much good soil was pre- 
served; — this, with vegetable matter frcm} the marl-pits, and good 
loam from the site of the aquarium, furnished an exc^'lleut compost 
for the fruit-garden. 
The dell, which has one part of the rock-work, was formed by ta- 
king out sand for the bricklayers, ^^'hich was found to be excellent for 
the purpose. 
The other dell, which has the principal rock-work, was formed 1)\- 
excavating to receive the overflow water. It will be perceived by the 
Plan, that we have a considerable quantity of grass-plat ; this of course 
will be diminished in time, as more clumps are required for the arbor- 
etum, and many choice arboretum plants will be put out singly on the 
gi'ass, as our means of shelter increase. At the commencement, many 
good plants of common shrubs were given us, most of which form 
belts and clumps for shelter, (as marked. No. 13 in the Plan,) and are 
put in by the mixed way of planting: but they are so mixed, that at 
the proper time for thinning, groups can be left for the principal species 
of the same genera to remain. 
Mr. Loudon, in his last number of the Gardener's Magazine, speak- 
ing of our small plants, says, that " they are composed of one common 
mixture throughout the garden." In this particular we must beer 
leave to observe there is a mistake ; a great many groups are planted 
with the common trees of their ov,ni genera, as the Chesnut, Fir, 
Pine, Alder, Ash, Acacia, Sorbus, Pyrus, &c. Many shrubs and trees 
have no plants near them, but those of their own family, as the Rhus 
Ribes, Spirea, Berberis, Ilex, the collection of Salix, Cistus, with the 
whole order of Caprifolise, &c., &c., while such as the Ulmus, Tilia, 
Acer, Fagus, Betula, &c. are principally nursed with common kinds of 
their own genera. A few plants of other sorts, which we had at the 
time of planting, were here introduced, but were not intended to 
remain. 
