110 
THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGIST. 
sica, from Mr. Bull, considered by Dr. Boyle 
to have been the Mustard tree of Scripture, 
but Mr. Berkeley said be bad his doubts as 
to this being the plant referred to in the 
parable, for it was a rare plant in Palestine, 
and the officinal Mustard (Sinapis nigra), also 
attained the dimensions of a small tree, and 
was to be found all over the country. Some 
remarks having been made by Mr. Wilson 
Saunders on the treatment of the Aloe family, 
Major Trevor Clarke, in whose stoves at 
Daventrv there is nearly every known kind 
of Cotton, gave a short lecture on its culti¬ 
vation in this country, remarking in conclu¬ 
sion that several of them made pretty stove 
plants. 
Boyal Botanic Society. — The second 
spping Show was held on the 8th of last 
month, and as usual at the Begent’s Park, 
there was a gay display, of which Azaleas, 
Boses, and spring bulbs were the chief com¬ 
ponents. In Azaleas, Mr. Turner maintained 
his pre-eminence with plants in splendid 
bloom, which distanced all competitors. In 
Boses, fine collections of plants in pots were 
shown by Mr. W. Paul and Messrs. Paul 
and Son, for which equal prizes were awarded. 
By the former, the new yellow Tea Bose 
Marechal Niel, was shown, and from the size, 
colour, and fragrance of the flower it will, 
doubtless, become a general favourite : the 
Judges marked their appreciation of its merits 
by granting it a first-class certificate. Another 
new Bose, a Hybrid Perpetual, called Prin¬ 
cess Mary of Cambridge, pale rose with a 
flush of pink in the centre, came from Messrs. 
Paul & Son, but not in a condition for its 
merits being positively decided on, as much 
better examples were shown a few days later. 
The Amsterdam Horticultural Exhibi¬ 
tion opened on the 7th of April, and was at¬ 
tended by nearly three hundred botanists and 
horticulturists from all parts of Europe. On 
the opening day there were about 8000 visi¬ 
tors, and upwards of 11,000 on the second 
day. "We had intended to have given some 
account of the objects exhibited, but from want 
of space must defer doing so till next month. 
A French Soldiers’ Garden.— One day 
last summer, on going through Fontenay-le- 
Comte, I passed by the new barracks, where 
a detachment of the 44th regiment of the line 
have been quartered for the last ten months. 
All at once I heard cheers, and songs, and 
the rattling of glasses, and I asked the reason 
of this rejoicing. The soldiers, I was told, 
are eating to-day the first salad produced in 
their garden—it is a peaceful triumph, but 
one for which they have worked hard. When 
they first came they found a large piece of 
waste ground; and the Captain having ex¬ 
amined it, and finding it could be turned into 
a garden, said, “ Let us trench and dig it, 
and we will plant it with Potatoes and salads 
for our own use,” This was done, and in a 
month it was laid out in quarters and planted. 
The summer was dry, and watering was 
necessary, but they did. not lose courage, two 
old wells which had been discovered were 
cleared out, and men were told off night and 
morning for watering. 
My informant being unable to answer my 
other questions I succeeded in introducing 
myself to the paymaster, who gave me every 
information. We went together to the 
garden, and I can affirm that the ground was 
well prepared, that all the quarters were 
planted or sown, and that the crops were 
varied and fine. I observed flowers along the 
borders, Tomatoes, Melons, Cucumbers, Egg¬ 
plants, &c. But my object was to know the 
results of the garden in a moral and physical 
point of view. The officer informed me that 
he had kept an account of the expenditure 
since the garden had been made, and of the 
value of the produce, and that though the 
strength of the detachment was only from 
thirty-five to forty men, the mess expenses 
were easily provided for, that the rations of 
meat had been increased to 11 ozs. a-day, 
leaving 6±d. clear to each soldier. Now, 
military men know that the weaker the force 
of men the more difficult is it to meet the 
mess expenses, and in the case of a small de¬ 
tachment, such as his, without the garden, it 
would have been almost impossible to have 
had such a surplus as the above. In addi¬ 
tion to what they got at the mess the men 
had Badishes, Salads, Melons, and Tomatoes 
frequently served out to them, and doubt¬ 
less, in course of time, added my informant, 
we shall be able to improve both the quantity 
and quality of the produce. But this was 
not all—the soldiers were more happy, more 
obedient, and the service did not seem so 
hard. They considered it a favour to be told 
off to work in the garden > and they took a 
pride in its productions.—(F. Boncenne, in 
Revue JSorticole.) 
Soldiers’ gardens are yet in their infancy 
in this country, but the Boyal Horticultural 
Society have taken the subject up and have 
stated their intention of awarding prizes to 
soldiers in the course of the summer. 
obituary. 
Sir Bobert Schomburgk, celebrated for 
his scientific explorations in South America, 
and by whom the seeds of that magnificent 
Nymphal, the Yictoria regia, were first sent 
to this country, died at Berlin, on the 11th 
of March. 
Mr. H. W. Schott, director of the Im¬ 
perial Gardens, at the Schonbrunn, near 
Vienna, and author of various publications on 
Aroideoe is also recently deceased; and in our 
own country 
Mr. J. Johnstone, gardener to the Duke of 
Wellington, at Strathfieldsaye, where he had 
been for many years ; and 
Mr. Ogle, gardener to the Earl of Aber¬ 
gavenny, at Eridge Castle, Tunbridge Wells. 
