September 29. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
WEEKLY CALENDAR. 
493 
M 
D 
D 
W 
29 
Tu 
30 
F 
1 
S 
2 
Son 
3 
m 
4 
To 
5 
W 
SEPT. 29—OCT. 5, 1853. 
Michaelmas Day. 
Bearded Chestnut; wood sides. 
Feathered Thorn ; woods. 
19 Sunday after Trinity. 
Feathered Footman; Wales. 
Barge Sword Grass ; gardens. 
Brindled Green ; wood sides. 
Weather near London in 1852. 
Barometer, [Thermo.|\Vind. 
Inches. 
29.292—29.1/9 
29 . 6 / 4 - 29.470 
29.540—29.436 
29.536—29.342 
29 . 849 — 29.690 
29 . 752 - 29 .OOl 
29.486—28.987 
63—42 
59—42 
55— 45 
59—41 
59—3.3 
56— 49 
56—39 
s.w. 
s.w. 
s.w. 
S.W. | 
w. 
s. I 
w. 
02 
13 
02 
03 
1.06 
10 
Meteorology of thk week.—ac umswick, trom observations during the last twenty-six years, the averaee highest and lowesttem- 
neraturesof these days are 6.3.5° and 44.5» respectively. The greatest heat, 80°, occurred on the 5 th in 1834 ; and thelowestcold^onthe 
5th in 18a0. During the period 88 days were fine, and on 93 rain fell. iowest.com, is , on me 
Sun 
Sun 
Moon 
Moon’s 
Clock 
Dav of 
Rises. 
Sets. 
R. 
&S. 
Age. 
1 
af. 
Sun. 
Year, j 
1 a. 6 
42 a. 5 
1 
4 
26 
9 
45 
| 
272 1 
2 
39 
2 
20 
27 
10 
4 
273 
3 
3 7 
3m 39 
28 
10 
23 
274 
\ 
35 
sets. 
© 
10 
42 
2/5 
6 
32 
6 
a 9 
1 
a 
0 
276 
i 
30 
6 
28 
2 
11 
18 
277 
1 9 
28 
6 
61 
3 
n 
36 
278 
BRITISH WILD FLOWERS. 
(Continued from paye 473.) 
Nasturtium amphibium : Amphibious Yellow Cress; 
Great Water Radish ; Great Water Rocket. 
Description .—It is a perennial. Roots long and stringy, 
; perpendicular, not creeping, hut throwing out numerous 
I fibres, such as proceed Irom the lower parts of the trailing 
or floating, wide-spreading, leafy, grooved, not much branch- 
1 ing, stem. Leaves alternate, generally smooth, but occa- 
1 sionally downy when growing in dry situations; the lower- 
| most on long stalks, deeply comb-toothed under water, 
otherwise elliptic-spear-head, cut, or toothed; upper ones 
stalkless, or clasping, oblong, comb-toothed, saw-toothed, or 
I nearly entire, all varying greatly according to the depth of 
j the water, or strength of the current; on such plants as 
j grow entirely out ol the water, the leaves are smaller, 
; broader, and merely toothed. Flowers small, plentiful, in 
aggregate clusters. Petals bright yellow, always longer than 
the calyx. Pods usually small and abortive, roundish, tipped 
with the style often as long as themselves. 
Places where found .—It is common in rivers, brooks, and 
sometimes on their banks that are seldom overflowed. 
Time of Jlowcrintj .—June to August. 
History .—Although of very pungent flavour, and noticed 
by the older herbalists, yet they preferred employing the 
common garden Radish, which they considered as possess¬ 
ing the same virtues in a milder form. It is one of those 
plants which exhibit, most strikingly, the aptitude bestowed 
upon them to adapt themselves to circumstances. Usually 
buried by the water, though equally capable of living on a 
drier soil, whence its name “ amphibious,” it has a difRculty 
in ripening its seed. To compensate for this defect in the 
usual mode of reproduction, it has an extraordinary facility 
in producing roots, by which it is rapidly and widely pro¬ 
pagated. Then, when it is growing on land its leaves are 
moderately broad, but when growing in flowing water they 
become finely divided, just in proportion to the rapidity of 
j the stream. The intention of this wise provision seems 
; manifestly to be to diminish the broad surface which would 
i give greater hold, and, consequently, uprooting power, to 
! the stream. (Smith. Martyn.) 
The Crystal Palace at Sydenham,— “ The Palace of 
Light,”—is rapidly advancing, and both within its crystal 
walls, and around its terraces, are already gathered 
sufficient of its treasures for the mind to fill up a 
tolerably accurate vision of what it will be when it 
stands forth adorned with all the wealth contributed to 
it by nature and art. 
Even now, when standing beneath its sky-blue arches 
of glass, the spectator feels that it will be an epitome of 
the world—that there will be gathered together the 
products and illustrations of all nations—of all arts_ 
and of all ages. Already does the Egyptian Temple, 
and the statuary of Greece and Rome, give lessons of 
what were the powers and genius of nations and ages 
passed away long even before the Christian Era com¬ 
menced; and works of the middle and later ages are 
following in detail, and serving to show that though we 
have men strong in the arts now, yet that they had 
giants in those days also. 
This gathering together of the products of art, from 
the time of the Pharoahs down through that of the 
architect-Monks of the dark ages to the statuaries of 
modern Europe, bring evidence which all feel of the 
simple truthfulness that dictated the first, and is revived 
in the last; and the littleness that frittered about the 
second. 
Being such a school as this for the public mind and 
taste would demand for the Crystal Palace even more 
than our nation’s support; but still more so, when we 
know that it will be a Museum of Natural Productions, 
shewing their uses in the arts and sciences ; that these 
illustrations will include the arts and sciences of all 
nations; and that its still more comprehensive plan 
embraces emporiums for the supply of all the require¬ 
ments of every-day life. 
That it will meet with the support anticipated admits 
of no doubt, for the age is utilitarian, and no mortal 
mind can conceive a plan so comprehensive of utility as 
1 
1 
I 
i 
No. CCLXL, Vol. X 
