OCTOBER. 
221 . 
which have been displayed in planting them, and we come to the secret of 
success. 
But although the beauty of the plants at Dropmore taken individually is 
unsurpassed, it is by no means a perfect botanical arrangement, nor could it be 
made so, commenced as it was before the introduction of so many new and 
noble kinds; nor can we even now say that our introductions are complete, 
but we think we must be fast approaching to the end, and that there are 
enough now to warrant the re-arrangement of the whole. 
No greater mistakes have been committed than the attempts which have been 
made to engraft collections of Pines in old first-rate grounds. How often has it 
been my lot to see a tall lanky Pinaster turned out from a small pot with its roots 
all coiled together, and not disentangled or laid out at all, but working with 
every puff of wind like a pestle in a mortar; standing, too, upon that breadth 
of turf which some fine hardy tree requires to show its dignity, and making 
with its meagre growth a miserable comparison to its noble and vigorous 
neighbour. Year after year goes on, the young plant draws up weakly from 
want of air and light, it gets uglier and uglier, and the last stage of it is worse 
than the first. Sorry am I to say that this is not an hyperbolical case, but one 
of everyday occurrence. 
I will now proceed to make some suggestions for forming a Pinetum, which 
shall combine scientific arrangement with picturesque effect, and which shall 
not interfere with the landscape gardener’s art as developed in the place. In 
every large place there are certain episodical bits of land covered as at Drop- 
more with Furze, Thorn, and Fern, and very probably skirted with some Firs; 
and if a little undulated the better. Here upon a deep sandy loam I would 
plant the Pinetum, trenching up good-sized holes, and raising the surface of 
them a couple of feet with the adjoining surface soil. On the top of this I 
would plant the Pines, carefully disentangling their roots; and having made a 
sliced hole with a sharp spade, would carefully select the strongest root and 
shove it perpendicularly down to form a sort of tap root for the tree, the other 
roots should be carefully laid out in different directions, and finally be well 
watered. After this I would mulch the tree with a good layer of Fern, and 
then put on a wire tree-guard as a defence from hares and rabbits. The atten¬ 
tion to uncoiling the roots I hold to be most important, as without this assist¬ 
ance no plant can ever become well and properly fixed. 
Most of the Pinetums w r hich I have seen have unfortunately been planted 
without reflecting on what will be their altered character after the lapse of a 
century. The trees are planted much too closely, and must eventually fail in 
presenting full-sized and perfect specimens of their class. This is a most im¬ 
portant consideration, then, and should be weighed well before commencing. 
On entering this Pinetum I would introduce Cedars of Lebanon, Deodars, 
Mount Atlas Cedars, and Araucarias. At a certain point I would start with a 
true Scotch Fir, and then all its varieties, with the w T hole of the two-leaved 
Pines according to Loudon’s arrangement in the “ Arboretum Britannicum,” 
then should follow the five-leaved Pines, and so on, according to his arrange¬ 
ment to the end. I would make a drive through it, planting the Pines on 
either side of it, and varying it by turns and returns through the central 
part of the plot; thus every tree would in time become a fine object, having 
ample space to display itself. If it was thought desirable, the Thujse, Cupressi, 
Taxacese and allied tribes might be planted in front of the Pines, and masses 
of Khododendrons, Azaleas, and hardy Heaths introduced; while if I could 
get it I -would carefully retain the masses of old Thorn, 'which would be very 
interesting amongst the Pines. Such is the picture w r hich my mind’s eye 
conjures up, and which I think would be beautiful and satisfactory if realised. 
