172 
THE FLORIST’S JOURNAL. 
delightful subject of vegetable physiology a sealed book to most 
people, and an abomination to the rest. We may, indeed, trace 
it through every region of the world, and through every period of 
recorded history. Nor is this much to be wondered at; for as 
there is no one process in nature, be it the motion of a planet, the 
germination of a seed, the expansion of a leaf, or the blooming of 
the tiniest flower, which any human being can wholly understand; 
and as every one wishes to appear as wise as possible, each one 
fancies a “ something” to help him through the difficulty, and 
make him at least believe that he understands the whole. 
W hen the Almighty clothed the earth with vegetation, He 
made every species after its hind, with its seed in itself; and this 
will remain true until the days of our earth shall be numbered ; 
and these six words, simple as they appear, contain the very 
essence of vegetable physiology. We have all the species created, 
“ each after its kind,” and this puts us in possession of one gene¬ 
ration of the entire race of vegetables. Again, the seed of every 
species is “ in itself,” and this involves the succession of gene¬ 
rations. Therefore, every true species of vegetable is a distinct 
portion of creation; and there is no means of continuing the 
species except by those energies which are in itself, and not de¬ 
rivable from any other source. 
From inattention to this, the classifiers of plants have made sad 
work with the species ; for, as was justly remarked by Mr. Don, 
in our October number, varieties and species are often confounded 
with each other, and an endless jumble of confusion occurs. Now r , 
the distinction of species is as clear as possibly can be:—if two 
plants, however unlike each other in several of their characters, 
produce a fertile progeny by hybridization, they are merely 
varieties ; but if the hybrid is barren, they are distinct species. 
Plants are, however, so obedient, both to differences of natural 
circumstances and to changes brought about by human art, that 
it is extremely difficult to say what is a species according to the' 
theory ; for the same species may be so altered by differences of 
climate and treatment, that their progeny will not be fertile ; and 
the reverse of this may also hold true. In no case, however, 
have we the means of getting a single plant, except out of the 
species to which it belongs; and though observation and ex¬ 
perience have taught us how to treat cultivated plants so as to 
produce the intended effect, they have thrown no light upon the 
