Jbly  23,  IHuti. 
JOURNAL  OR  HORTIa^-LTURE  AKU  COTIAGR  GARDENER, 
A  HARDY  PLANTSMAX  IX  IRELAND. 
{Continued  from  page  31.) 
The  railway  journey  from  Newry  to  Dublin  is  not  a  short  one,  the 
speed  of  the  trains  not  beinp  the  swiftest.  This  is  by  no  means  a  disad¬ 
vantage  to  those  who  wish  to  see  the  country,  and  to  whom  it  is  rather 
tantalising  to  be  brought  into  sight  of  a  delightful  piece  of  scenery  only 
to  be  whisked  through  it  in  an  instant.  So  interesting  and  so  attractive 
is  that  on  the  way  that  the  time — almost  three  hours — spent  does  not 
seem  long. 
There  are  lofty  mountains  standing  dark  against  the  brilliance  of 
the  setting  sun,  and  level  bogs  and  marshy  spots  fringed  with  Meadow¬ 
sweet  and  bright  with  green  herbage  and  coloured  flowers  ;  there  are  old 
towers  and  fine  mansions,  towns  and  villages,  some  flourishing  and  others 
showing  signs  of  decay.  We  have  a  glimpse  of  Dundalk,  with  its 
thriving  appearance  ;  of  Drogheda,  inseparably  associated  in  our  minds 
with  the  Battle  of  the  Boyne  ;  Balbriggan  and  Skerries  and  Malahide, 
where  the  fresh  breezes  from  the  Irish  Channel  sweep  into  the  carriage 
and  waft  one  in  thonght  back  to  our 
quiet  home  by  the  sea  in  bonnie 
Scotland. 
Seeing  these  things  speedily  seems 
the  time  to  pass  until  Dublin  is 
reached  about  9.16  p.m.,  and  weary 
but  delighted  with  my  long  but 
enjoyable  day,  I  retire  to  rest  for 
the  first  time  in  the  old  city  so  fuU 
of  interest  to  all  of  the  British  race. 
Next  morning,  before  finding  my 
way  to  keep  an  appointment  made 
with  Mr.  F.  W.  Burbidge,  I  spent 
an  hour  or  so  wandering  along  the 
streets  and  quays,  thinking  as  I 
walked  along  the  latter  what  a  re¬ 
flection  it  is  upon  our  modern  civili¬ 
sation  that  we  can  find  no  better 
way  to  dispose  of  our  sewage  than 
to  pour  it  into  and  defile  such  streams 
as  the  L’ffey,  whose  waters,  above 
80  limpid  and  so  pure,  are  thick 
and  filthy  and  malodorous  as  they 
pass  through  Dublin  ;  and  how  much 
could  be  done  by  planting  trees  on 
the  upper  quays  to  improve  the  old 
city.  What  a  petty  gain  it  is,  too, 
to  reap  by  letting  the  Wellington 
Bridge  for  the  display  of  advertise¬ 
ments  of  patent  medicines  1  This  is 
all  by  the  way,  for  Dublin  is  in  this 
no  worse  than  other  cities,  so  remem¬ 
bering  the  proverb,  “  Ne  sxttor  ultra 
erepidain''  I  digress  no  further  in 
the  meantime.  A  tramway  car  soon 
took  me  to  Pembroke  Road,  and  to 
the  gate  of  the 
TbIEITY  COLLEaE  Gabdens, 
Here  for  the  first  time  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  meeting  in  person  the 
accomplished  Curator,  Mr.  F.  W, 
Burbidge,  whose  services  to  horti¬ 
culture  were  so  fitly  recognised  lately 
by  the  bestowal  of  one  of  the 
Veitchian  medals.  The  freemasonry 
of  plant  lovers  is  proverbial,  and  as  Mr.  Burbidge  is  a  past  master  in 
the  craft  we  were  soon  deep  in  the  examination  of  the  gardens  and  their 
plants.  To  essay  to  tell  of  these  in  full  detail  is,  of  course,  impossible 
even  if  one  confined  himself  to  the  plants  in  sight,  without  taking 
account  of  the  fine  collection  of  bulbs  now  taking  their  summer  rest. 
The  tallies  showed  the  collection  of  Narcissi,  in  the  knowledge  of  which 
we  know  Mr,  Burbidge  is  facile  princeps,  and  besides  these  there  are 
other  bulbs  here,  there,  and  everywhere — Croci,  Snowdrops,  Anemones, 
and  many  others. 
One  noticeable  feature  about  the  gardens  is  that  though  they  are  in 
the  city  it  is  almost  shut  out  by  trees  and  shrubs.  There  are  few  of  the 
path!  from  which  the  city  can  be  seen  in  summer.  So  skilfully  and 
yet  so  naturally  grown  is  everything  that  one  would  think  they  were 
in  a  country  garden,  and  in  the  grounds  of  a  country  house.  As  was 
pointed  out  to  me,  the  gardens  (which  were  acquired  at  three  different 
times)  are  perfectly  flat,  and  the  walks  are  all  in  straight  lines.  Every 
care  is  taken  to  counteract  anything  which  would  obtrude  this  np>ou  the 
observer,  and  shrubs  and  trees  and  herbaceous  plants  are  so  grown  and 
so  combined  that  the  eye  is  delighted  with  the  effect,  while  the  diversions 
as  shown  by  and  through  the  door  have  a  picturesque  effect  (fig.  13). 
Another  feature  of  the  gardens  is  the  number  of  climbing  plants, 
especially  good  being  Solanum  crispum,  of  which  there  are  two  forms  in 
the  gardens,  one  being  considerably  brighter  than  the  other.  There  are 
also  the  graceful  and  seldom  seen  Asparagus  verticillatus,  the  leafy  form 
of  Rubus  australis— that  commonly  seen  being  the  leafless  one — Clero- 
dendron  fcetidum,  the  curious  Colletias  horrida  and  cruciata,  Mahonia 
glumacea,  Smilax  latifolius,  the  curious  and  pretty  Menispermum  cana- 
dense  (the  Moon  Creeper),  the  attractive  Berberidopsis  corallina,  and 
FIG.  13. — TRINITY  COLLEGE  GAREENS—ENTRANCE. 
others  of  more  or  less  rarity  too  numerous  to  detail.  There  are  numbers 
of  other  shrubs  in  the  gardens,  and  many  of  these  are  very  interesting 
and  beautiful.  The  trees,  too,  do  wonderfully  well  to  be  so  surrounded 
by  houses. 
The  herbaceous  plants  had  suffered  considerably  from  the  drought, 
which  had  been  more  severe  in  Dublin  than  further  north.  Some  of  the 
Pseohies,  of  which  there  are  a  large  number,  had  been  unable  to  open 
their  buds,  but  the  large  collection  of  Flag  Irises  had  flowered  unusually 
well.  English  Irises  had,  as  was  to  be  expected,  suffered  very  much, 
and  were  not  flowering  so  well  as  usual.  Among  those  in  bloom  was  the 
pure  white  Mont  Blanc,  the  finest  of  its  class.  Fine  masses  of 
Kniphofiacaulescens,  the  singular  Yucca-like  Flame  Flower,  were  grown, 
and  Dracaenas  have  formed  large  picturesque  -  looking  plants.  The 
pretty  Clematis  alpina  was  growing  well,  and  the  fine  Telekia  grandi- 
flora  was  very  conspicuous.  Acipbylla  sqoarrosa  was  doing  well,  and 
the  brilliant  Gladiolus  Ardens  was  very  effective  on  the  borders.  The 
Martagon  Lilies  were  very  fine ;  the  white  one,  which  seems  plentiful 
in  Ireland,  being  accompanied  by  a  rather  rare  double  one,  and  by 
L.  dalmaticum,  the  nearly  black 
form. 
There  were  a  number  of  Dianthi 
of  various  species  and  varieties. 
Many  of  these  are  grown  on  the  tops 
of  the  walls,  and  these  had  suffe  red 
much  from  the  drought.  The  source 
of  the  garden  Carnation  from  the 
walls  of  Rochester  Castle,  and  origi¬ 
nally  from  Normandy,  looked  well 
on  the  walls,  with  its  sturdy  erect 
habit  and  its  bright  single  flowers. 
A  rock  bed  contains  a  number  of 
interesting  alpines,  and  a  good  many 
of  the  Primula  spec'es  I  observed 
growing  well  in  several  places  in 
the  garden. 
Quite  a  feature  in  Trinity  College 
Gardens  is  the  wall  gaidening,  into 
which  Irises  are  a^so  introduced. 
These  grow  well  on  the  trps  of  some 
of  the  w’alls  where  a  few  inches  of 
soil  can  be  provided  for  them.  A 
wall,  constructed  to  bide  a  yard  In 
which  are  frames  and  other  neces¬ 
sary  but  not  ornamental  articles  in 
a  garden,  has  been  made  to  assume 
an  exceedingly  pretty  appearance 
by  the  ingenious  idea  of  making  ii 
double  with  earth  in  the  centre,  but 
bound  together  by  large  cross  stones. 
Flowers  are  planted  in  this,  and  such 
plants  as  Finks,  Carnations,  Andro- 
SRCC  lanuginosa,  Erinus  alpinus,  and 
Ramondias  thrive  very  well  with 
occasional  waterings  in  dry  weather. 
The  Ramondias  had  seeded,  and 
several  self  -  sown  seedlings  had 
assumed  respectable  proportions, 
even  on  parts  of  the  wall  one  would 
have  thought  they  would  not  have 
grown  on. 
The  usual  arrangement  of  plants 
according  to  their  natural  orders 
occnpies  a  considerable  space  in  the 
gardens,  but  presents  a  le?8  formal 
and  “  weedy  ”  appearance  than  is  generally  seen.  The  beds  are  of  a  size 
proportioned  to  the  number  of  plants  included  in  the  order,  and  there 
were  many  pretty  or  distinct  looking  flowers  which  I  cannot  now 
detail. 
To  me,  however,  the  most  striking  and  attractive  part  of  the  garden 
was  the  pond  surrounded  by  Gunneras,  Irises,  Willows,  and  other 
moisture-loving  plants,  and  occupied  by  some  of  the  best  of  M.  Latour- 
Marliac’s  Water  Lilies.  On  the  first  day  of  my  visit  there  were  150 
flowers  open,  ranging  from  the  pretty  yellow  ones  of  Nymphsea  chroma- 
tella  to  N.  sulphurea  and  candidissiraa  ;  and  the  bright  rose  flowers  of 
N.  Lajdekeri  rosea  to  the  softer  tints  of  N.  carnea.  Every  now  and 
again  a  golden  carp  would  appear  among  the  fine  leaves  and  exquisite 
flowers  on  the  surface  of  the  pond,  giving  a  fitting  finish  to  the  scene 
of  almcst  tropical  beauty,  which  was  in  no  way  lessened  by  a  splendid 
plant  of  Gunnera  manicata,  some  of  whose  great  leaves  had  bent  over 
and  touched  the  water.  Of  these  I  must  tell  again.  In  the  meantime 
Mr.  Burbidge  looks  cool  and  happy  with  his  gun  in  the  shadow  of  one 
of  them  (fig.  1 1). 
I  cannot  fitly  tell  of  the  houses,  with  their  treasures  of  plant  life, 
carefully  and  well  grown.  Some  of  these  are  especially  interesting, 
from  having  been  formed  by  Mr.  Burbidge  .when  travelling  in  Borneo 
and  the  Sulu  Archipelago.  To  me  many  of  the  plants  were  most  interest¬ 
ing,  but  when  we  have  “  E,  K.,  Dublin,”  to  tell  of  them,  why  need  a 
hardy  plantsman  show  how  little  he  knows  of  stove  and  greenhouse 
plants  by  expatiating  upon. them  ?  One  might  spend  long  enough  among 
the  Orchids,  the  Palms,  the  Caladiums,  the  prettjf  little  Fern  house,  and 
the  other  fernery.  There  is,  however,  a  limit  to  everything,  and  a 
Botanic  Garden  like  that  belonging  to  Trinity  College  is  so  full  to 
