THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, January 24, 1860. 
261 
VARIETIES. 
Azotised Bodies are those substances which contain azote 
or nitrogen as one of their constituents, and which form j>art 
of the living structure of a plant or animal, or are produced 
during its natural decay. The principal members of the group 
are albumen, present in white of eggs, and the juices of plants 
and animals; globuline, or crystalline, a variety of albumen 
found in the lens of the eye; vitelline, another variety of 
albumen, composing the greater bulk of the yolk of the egg; 
paralbumen, a third variety of albumen found in the animal 
system during certain diseases; fibrine, which occurs largely 
in the seeds of cereals and in animal muscle; caseine (or 
cheese matter), present in all milk; legumine, a variety of 
caseine found in Peas, Beans, and leguminous .seeds in general; 
gelatine, which is present in the skin, bones, and other parts of 
animals; clrondrine, a variety of gelatine obtainable from the 
cornea of the eye and the permanent cartilages; isinglass, 
another variety of gelatine manufactured from the inner mem¬ 
brane of the floating bladder of sturgeons and other fishes; 
glue and size, which are secondary forms of gelatine; urea, 
uric acid, and hippuric acid, which are present in the urine of 
the higher animals; kreatine and kreatinine, occurring in the 
juice of flesh; several forms of urinary calculi, which are found 
as stones in the bladder; and the very large and important class 
of alkaloids, including strychnine, morphine, quinine, &c.— 
( Chambers’s Fncyelopcedia.) 
The Botanical Gardens at Melbourne. —Entering by the 
gate near the residence of Dr. Mueller (Curator of the Gar¬ 
dens), the first, and perhaps the most useful, feature presented 
is the section known as the Class Ground. It comprises re¬ 
presentatives of plants indigenous to almost every portion of 
the globe, all of which have been very carefully grouped 
according to their affinity, or similarity of habits and appearance. 
Most of them have been planted nearly two years, but have 
only recently become sufficiently developed to render them 
practically useful to the labours of the student, to which pur¬ 
pose this section of the gardens is especially designed. The 
majority of these plants are now flowering for the first time; 
and the delicate beauty of their blossoms, combined with their 
extreme rarity, in this country at least, cannot fail to render 
them a very interesting feature to the general visitors to the 
gardens. Amongst them will be found a very rare plant, 
recently imported from California, denominated in the abstruse 
phraseology of the botanist, Ceanothus thyrsiflorus. Its blossom 
is of the most delicate blue, and beautifully formed. Its ap¬ 
pearance is elegant in the extreme, and will make it an inter¬ 
esting and welcome addition to the choicest selections of 
exotics. There are two beautiful plants, natives of New South 
"Wales, now for the first time in blossom, called respectively 
Grevillea longifolia and Grevillea linearis. A Chinese grass- 
cloth plant is not without interest; and a plantation of 300 
Pine trees, although now only in its infancy, affords abundant 
promise of future grandeur. Passing to the hothouse adjacent 
to the class ground we notice numerous elegant varieties of the 
Cactus in bloom ; an exceedingly delicate and very beautiful 
flower (blooming for the first time) called the Spiraa larbaia; 
some pretty Begonias, with varieties from India and South 
America; and a Kithnia corifolia ,—a beautiful flower with an 
elegant white blossom, recently received from Wilson’s Pro¬ 
montory. Adjacent to the aviary there is a Chinese plant, 
called the Diervilla rosea; its blossom is very delicate, with 
pink and white leaves. Also, a pretty flower, first discovered 
on the banks of the Murray, named Louclonia Behrii. Entering 
the Palm-house, Ave notice, on its western side, a group of 
native plants, very carefully arranged for inspection, with the 
view to afford visitors the completest possible idea of the Aus¬ 
tralian flora. The assortment comprises many only recently 
discovered, and now for the first time in bloom. There is a 
plant called the Stylidium, gifted with a very acute irritability, 
which Dr. Mueller demonstrated to us to an amusing degree. 
The plant has a “ style,” technically so called, which, on being 
touched, immediately flies up, much in the “style” of a “Jack 
in the box.” It is a native of the Grampians. There is also a 
Goodenia Macmillani, recently discovered in Gipp’s Land; 
another assortment of Begonias ; a beautiful flower with a white 
blossom, called Aphelandra, a native of South America; some 
very prettily-constructed baskets, made with native fruit, and 
now doing duty as the caskets of an assortment of elegant 
Chinese plants; a fine specimen of the Tortoise plants; a mag¬ 
nificent Banana from India, and another from China; a Chinese 
Rice Paper plant, and a large variety of trees, plants, and 
flowers, too numerous to particularise, but all exceedingly inter¬ 
esting and very beautiful. To the aviaries there have been 
some very recent additions of considerable interest. One of 
these, the lyre bird, is a valuable accession, as, independent of 
the beauty of its plumage, we believe it is the first of its species 
that has lived in captivity. Two native and one Californian 
quail, presented by Dr. Sewell, have just been added to the col¬ 
lection. The English and silver pheasants are much admired, 
and appear contented in their confinement. There are also 
in the gardens two white swans, received from England a fort¬ 
night since; and in the zoological department a pure bred 
alpaca, imported from Sydney during the present Aveek. 
Throughout the gardens there are dispersed an excellent as¬ 
sortment of Roses v'hicli very much increase the prevailing 
beauty. An American Aloe is expected to bloom in the course 
of two or three iveeks, and will become a decided attraction.— 
(.Melbourne Herald .) 
LAWSON’S GARDENERS’ KALENDAR. 
This handsome broad-sheet is, this season, illustrated with a 
view of a “ domical conservatory,” designed by Mr. Charles 
McIntosh, and printed in colours. The typographical matter is, as 
usual, beautifully got up, and consists of a great deal of informa¬ 
tion useful to gardeners. The “ Notes on Guano ” are very full, 
and will be found interesting to those who are consumers of that 
article as a manure. 
TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 
A General Catalogue of Nursery Stock grown for Sale, by 
James and John Fraser, Lea Bridge Road, Fssex, A.A.—This 
is a most comprehensive catalogue of all sorts of nursery stock, 
extending to seventy-four pages of closely printed matter, and 
containing concise descriptions of the greater portion of the 
plants offered for sale. 
A Triced Catalogue of New and Genuine Seeds for the year 
1860. Sold by Milne Sf Co., Wandsworth Road, London. —This, 
also, is a very nice, concise catalogue, containing an abundance 
of useful notes on the various articles. 
A Spring Catalogue of Seeds, Sfc., offered for Sale, by James 
Hunter Sf Co., 29, Clare Street, Bristol, embraces a well selected 
enumeration of the seeds of such crops as are usually cultivated 
in the garden aud farm. 
Seeds for the Kitchen Garden, the Flower Garden, and the 
Farm. Offered by Charles Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough .— 
This is an excellent catalogue, abounding in many new things. 
TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
Feower Garden Plan(C'. G.). —Your flower garden plan is, without 
an exception, the A’ery best planted of all the plans that ever were sub¬ 
mitted to our judgment. It qAiickens our perceptions of the beautiful in 
this art, and will cause us to be careful lest we should make a. slip when 
treating on the subject. Your Fuchsia is certain to be at the light pitch by 
the time you mention ; but have it in the exhibition-pot by the last day in 
March, and if the roots are very much crowded by the middle of May give 
it very liberal waterings, a damp atmosphere, and not much sun until 
about ten days before the show. 
Various (TV. T.).~ Burnt straw will be of little use in a Chrysanthe¬ 
mum compost. Never put the soil in loosely when potting. Night soil 
will not do for the compost. Your September-planted Rose-cuttings 
should not be removed until the end of the flrst groAving season— about the 
end of next October. 
Many Questions (IT. 7?.).— -We must “cut” the answers according to 
the number, thus :—“How am I to cut (prune, my Deutzia gracilis for 
forcing?” Never cut it when you begin to force, but after it has done flower¬ 
ing. “ Pots very full of October cuttings of Calceolarias, when shall I 
pot them out? ” At once, if the pots are very full of roots ; at the end of 
February, if riot. “ Shall I place them on heat for a time? ” Yes, if you 
can spare room, but not strong heat, or over 60 °, and only for two weeks. 
“ A shady bank to a ditch I intend planting with Water Cress. I suppose I 
must not put in the cuttings till April ? ” Better if you never put them in, 
it will be dry in summer. A level bed on the north side of a wall is better 
than a running ditch, or rather better for the stomachs which cannot digest 
the eggs and spawn of all manner of water imps and kelpies, for growing 
clean, clear, wholesome Water Cress. “ I am potting my summer cuttings 
of Dielvtra in a compost-pit for florists’ Pelargoniums. Is that right?” 
Just the very thing. 
CoA r ERiNo a Wald avitii Ivy (J. F. C.).—Mr. Wells was in such a hurry 
that we could not catch the meaning of the construction of his trans¬ 
planting machine ; but for an Ivy-wall to be a model of perfection, every 
inch of it must be covered with Ivy, and not one leaf to shade another, or 
be farther from the Avail than another, and be as free from dead leaves and 
litter as the lawn in front of the drawing-ioorn vyindows. Also, birds are 
never allowed to make their nests in models of this kind. The first thing 
to do for covering an unsightly wall with Ivy quickly is a thorough good, 
rich, deep border, well drained. The better the border the faster the Ivy 
