250 
ACACIA ARMATA, 
“ A Constant Subscriber,” who expresses his apprehension 
cf losing a fine plant of this species, has in all probability injured 
it by want of attention to the seasonal nature of the country of 
which it is a native. The Acacias are all legumiiKZ , or podded 
plants ; and they belong to the Polygamia moncecia of the Linnaean 
system. One hundred and three species, forming the sub-genus 
Phyllodinece, are all natives of New Holland, and they are green¬ 
house shrubs. In the seedling state they have leaves, but when 
they come to maturity the leaves disappear, and the dilated 
petioles, which are called phyllodia, are all that remain, ihis 
character of the leaves, or substitutes for them, enables the plant 
to endure the long-continued droughts, and also the peltings or 
rains to w r hich it is exposed in its native climate ; and it is from 
the want of imitating this climate, and partly also the native soil 
of the plants, that they do not answer as window shrubs or as 
inmates of miscellaneous greenhouses. Both the soil and the 
climate of Australia are peculiar. The former contains more of 
decomposed rocks and less vegetable matter than are to be found 
in almost any other soil. The absence of the vegetable matter is 
owing to the want of an annual manuring by leaves; for such 
leaves as do fall are hard and dry, and contain more woody 
matter, and less parenchyma, than common deciduous leaves. They 
are tempered to long seasons of drought, and heavy peltings from 
those rains which disintegrate the rocks, and furnish so much 
mineral or earthy matter to the soil. 
Of course such shrubs will bear the greatest extremes of 
dryness and moisture, and indeed are not healthy unless when 
exposed to those extremes ; but still the exposure must be 
adapted to the habit of the plant as formed by its native climate, 
or, if a departure from this is to be attempted, it must be by very 
slow degrees. 
When the plant begins to show signs of growth, it must be 
well watered, not by continual dripping, but by copious appli¬ 
cations at intervals ; and the soil should be light and porous, so 
as not to retain the water. When the flowers are beginning to 
expand, water should be given sparingly and at intervals ; and 
when the flowers begin to go off, it should be withheld altogether, 
