BOTANIC AND DOMAIN GARDENS. 
15 
of its contents, I have for a considerable time with one of my assistants 
worked hard. The evening is the only time that I can devote to it. 
The Catalogue will contain a common English name for every plant, 
the compilation of such a book is necessarily an arduous task. When 
finished, however, it will be, I believe, the first work of the kind issued 
in the colonies. It will comprise scientific names with synonyms; the 
order to which each plant belongs, its uses, height, time of flowering, 
suitability for certain soils and situations, native country, &c. ; a plan of 
the Gardens, a Calendar of the seasons, and a complete list of the orders 
of plants represented and unrepresented in the Gardens. Now that 30 
acres (which should be drained) have been added to the Gardens, there 
will be ample space to carry out my idea of forming around the margin of 
the Gardens, Arboretums of the trees of Europe, Asia, Africa, America, 
and Australasia. I suggested this in my last report, and forwarded a 
plan; and hope soon to be in a position to carry it out. The distribu- 
tion of the various orders in classified groups throughout the grounds 
is another work which I have commenced by forming a bed of the 
Amaryllidece • 
Kemodelling a Garden is by no means an easy task, when — as in this 
case — it is of more than 20 years’ standing. It can easily be understood 
that the formation of an entirely new one, would be far less difficult. 
The removal of large trees; and the appropriate blending in groups with 
smaller ones, of others which cannot possibly be removed on account of 
their size (though I have succeeded in lifting some of 40 feet in height) 
are matters requiring much forethought and deliberation. Yet I have 
no hesitation in asserting, that if the necessary means are placed at my 
disposal, the Melbourne Botanic Gardens can be made one of the most 
attractive and beautiful Public Gardens in the colonies. As I have 
previously mentioned the area is nearly as large as the Gardens of 
Sydney, Adelaide, and Brisbane put together; and though much 
remains to be done before the Melbourne Gardens can claim to be half 
as beautiful as these, the grounds have great natural advantages — 
undulating surface, hills and dales, lakes in their centre, and fine views 
of Hobson’s Bay and the ocean. A liberal expenditure for a few years 
would make them unsurpassed by any gardens in the Southern Hemi- 
sphere. And while picturesque effect is created, the primary object of a 
Botanical Garden — namely; the proper botanical classification and dis- 
tribution of plants — can be thoroughly carried out. Indeed, it is far 
better to group the various orders of plants, large and small, throughout 
the Gardens in such a manner, as to aid in producing a pleasant land- 
scape (even in a botanical sense) than to huddle all the orders together. 
