19:5 
THE HORTICULTURE OF INDIA. 
It occurs to us, that the Government and 
Horticultural Societies are alike unmindful of 
some very essential points in the various 
designs for encouraging science ; and that 
we may learn something from our friends in 
India, who, so along ago as 1836-7, enter- 
tained much better notions than we appear 
to possess, even at the present day. There 
was, even at that period, and perhaps before 
it, some idea of employing the most effectual 
means of disseminating useful horticultural 
and agricultural knowledge. Let us consider 
whether we could not take a lesson from the 
Indian Agricultural and Horticultural So- 
ciety's proceedings. In 1837, while Lord 
Auckland was governor-general, we find the 
first prize in. their schedule was two thousand 
rupees for the best work on Indian agriculture, 
founded on experience in the country. The 
second, was one thousand rupees for the best 
work on the agriculture of Bengal. The 
third was one thousand rupees for the best 
work on the horticulture of the Western Pro- 
vinces. And the condition of receiving these 
premiums or prizes was, that the authors 
should publish the work within six months 
after the receipt of the prizes ; or, if not, the 
Society should have the option of doing so. 
Subsequently, in the same year, however, Ave 
find a member of the Society proposing to offer 
one thousand rupees to any person who would 
compile, in English, an Indian Gardener's 
Manual, and that the Society do subscribe for 
two hundred copies of the translations in the 
native languages, which proposal was referred 
to the committee : all these things indicating 
the extreme anxiety of the Society to make 
use of that most powerful and important 
engine, the press, to further their objects, well 
appreciating the influence commanded by pub- 
lications. It may be remarked, perhaps, in 
defence of England, that there are already too 
many, rather than too few, works on Agri- 
culture and Horticulture. The Royal Agri- 
cultural Society does not think so, so far as 
they are concerned ; for they very properly 
offer handsome premiums for essays on par- 
ticular subjects, which are pointed out, and on 
which information is wanted. But, to return 
to our friends in India ; we see that, on the 
presentation, by Mr. Millet, of six musk melons 
to the Horticultural Society there, with a 
paper on the mode of culture, the Society 
voted a silver medal and two hundred rupees 
for the exertion and expense which the ex- 
periment of growing them, undertaken by 
Mr. Millet, caused. This kind of acknow- 
ledgment keeps everybody upon the qui 
vive, and goes further than rewards actually 
promised for competition. Now, we are of 
opinion, notwithstanding the great number of 
gardening works, that many are far beyond a 
moderate man's compass ; that many more are 
useless, and that premiums for papers on 
subjects but imperfectly understood, could not 
fail to gain the attention of those who are able 
to write very excellent practical matter, 
whereas a great majority of what is now 
published, is either upon subjects with which 
we are well acquainted already, or is devoid of 
anything new upon those matters but indiffer- 
ently understood. Premiums do not always 
stimulate clever men, but premiums which 
carry honour and credit with them do ; and 
we can say, from experience, that in India 
vast strides have been made in the sciences of 
Agriculture and Horticulture, through the 
earnest manner in which those who knew any- 
thing useful were invited and induced to 
publish it. The Society devoted to these 
objects — the Agricultural and Horticultural 
Society of India, whose transactions we may 
hereafter notice, has made rapid strides, and 
done much good, by the judicious manner in 
which they have distributed their premiums, 
so as to carry with them great credit and 
honour to the receiver ; and it is a pity so 
much is so ill distributed in England, for 
want of sound judgment at the head of those 
institutions which are established for the 
purpose of promoting the true interests of 
science. We have principally referred to the 
year 1836-7, because Lord Auckland was 
evidently bent on forwarding the interests of 
science generally, and especially whatever 
related to the improvement of the soil and 
its profitable appropriation. His lordship, 
being a great lover of plants, well knew the 
importance of giving encouragement to horti- 
cultural pursuits. 
PRACTICAL GARDENING. 
OPERATIONS FOB MAY. THE FLOWER GARDEN. 
Tender Annuals, not yet changed from 
the first to their second pots, should have a 
shift to the pots they are to bloom in, it hav- 
ing been found that, where there is room, and 
proper accommodation, they will answer very 
well to put actually from their seed-pan into 
the pots they are to be pertected in, because 
the roots fill the pot by the end of the season, 
and in the mean time they suffer nor. In this 
respect annuals are different from shrubby, 
green-house, or stove plants of a more perma- 
nent nature, which, having filled a pot with 
R 
