October  3,  1901. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER , 
30  7 
was  soon  evidenced  by  our  statutes  Thus,  by  27  Edward  III.,  cap.  5, 
it  was  made  felony  to  forestall  or  engross  this  wine,  or  even  to  have 
an  agent  in  Gascoyo,  before  “  the  common  time  of  vintage  passage;  ” 
so,  according  to  the  mistiken  policy  of  the  period,  private  energy  and 
enterprise  might  not  have  any  a  i vantage  in  purchasing  that  which 
was  so  generally  in  request.  From  the  cir  umstance  of  the  Vine 
being  so  much  more  cultivated  at  that  period  than  it  is  now,  it  has 
been  argued  that  the  climate  of  this  country  must  at  that  time  have 
been  warmer  than  now;  but  a  little  consideration  of  the  taste  and 
habits  of  the  people  will  tend  to  dispel  that  which  has  now  become  a 
popular  error.  Verjuice  was  then  used  to  a  large  extent  in  the  soups, 
sauces,  and  other  dishes  ;  and,  while  in  some  seasons  wine  of  ordinary 
-quality  might  be  made,  in  those  seasons  that  the  Grapes  did  not  ripen 
tney  at  least  furnished  verjuice,  if  they  did  not  wine.  That  the  wine 
made  at  that  time  was  of  inferior  quality  is  evident  from  the  fact  that, 
as  soon  as  Henry  II.  acquired  possession  of  Guienne,  in  right  of  his 
consort,  Eleanor  of  Aquitaine,  vineyards  in  this  country  began  to 
decrease,  and  wine  making  to  be  relinquished,  in  favour  of  the  superior 
produce  imported  from  Bordeaux. 
The  earliest  English  author  we  know  of  who  has  treated  on  the 
subject  of  gardening  is  Alexander  Necham,  mister  of  the  grammar 
school  of  St.  Alb  ins,  at  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century,  and  afterwards 
abbot  of  Cirencester.  He  was  born  about  the  year  1157,  and  died  in 
1217.  His  work,  “  Da  Naturis  Rerum,”  of  which  there  are  two 
manu script  copies  in  the  library  of  the  British  Museum,  is  a  collection 
of  treatises,  both  secular  and  theo’ogical,  many  of  which  relate  to 
gardening  subjects;  but  the  woik  bears  every  appearance  of  being,  to 
a  great  extent,  a  compilation  from  the  Roman  agricultural  writers,  for 
he  treats  of  many  plants  that  are  only  to  be  found  in  southern  latitudes, 
and  which  could  not  have  existed  iu  this  country  even  for  one  year. 
He  seems  to  have  had  some  practical  knowledge  of  the  subject, 
inasmuch  as  he  notices  varieties  of  fruit  which  were  then  cultivated, 
as  the  St.  Regie  Pear  ;  and  he  also  enumerates  Appl-s,  Chestnuts, 
Peaches,  Almonds,  and  Figs  ;  but  when  he  goes  on  to  mention 
Citrons,  Golden  Apples,  Oranges,  and  Pomegranates,  our  faith  fails 
us,  and  we  are  compelled  to  accept  his  narration  with  caution.  From 
him  we  learn  that  the  process  of  grafting  was  then,  as  now,  generally 
practised,  but  he  makes  little  mention  of  the  Vine. 
Fruit  and  Flowers  in  Queensland. 
Half  an  hour’s  stroll  in  the  grounds  of  the  Acclimatisation  Society 
at  Brisbane  will  bring  to  the  view  of  the  stranger  Strawberries, 
imported  from  England,  France,  the  United  States,  and  New 
.Z  aland,  growing  alongside  Pine-apples  which  have  come  from 
Florida,  the  West  Indies,  and  Singapore,  and  many  plants  of  both 
Pmes  and  Strawberries,  the  whole  in  full  fruit.  English  and 
Himalayan  Blackberries,  just  through  with  their  spring  and  eaily 
summer  crop,  standing  within  a  stone  cast  of  Mangoes  from  Bombay 
and  Mauritius,  and  a  Custard-apple  from  Brazil,  all  promising  a 
satisfactory  harvest  for  the  coming  mid  and  late  summer.  Just  on 
the  margin  of  a  large  patch  of  tall  Sugarcanes,  consisting  mostly  of 
Bowen  Park,  West  Indian,  and  Demeraran  selected  seedlings,  can  bs 
seen  Rock  and  Musk  Melons,  maturing  on  the  same  strip  of  land  that 
ripened  Tomatoes  during  the  recent  mild  winter,  and  which  will 
probably  be  called  upon  again  directly  to  carry  an  early  winter  crop  or 
Cauliflowers. 
The  filling  of  one  section  of  the  grounds  is  suggestive  of  an 
extensive  itinerary,  as  here  are  flourishing  examples  of  Rhubarb  from 
Siberia,  English  Apples  and  French  Lavender,  Spanish  Chestnuts  and 
Italian  Olives,  a  Mulberry  from  Constantinople,  Smyrna  Figs,  Persian 
and  Soudanese  Date  Palms,  Henna  from  Egypt,  Coffee  and  Castor  Oil 
from  Arabia,  a  hedge  of  Kai  Apples  from  Cape  Colony  ;  Jackfruit  and 
Tamarinds,  Teak  and  the  Todlv  Palm  from  India ;  Cinnamon  from 
Ceylon,  and  many  East  Indian  representatives,  such  as  Ginger,  Croton 
oil,  patchouli,  nux  vomici,  and  Rice,  Arenga  saccharifera  from  the 
Philippines,  Litchees  and  Tea  from  China,  Central  Asian  Buckwheat 
and  Japanese  Cumquats.  Again  Persimmons,  California  Redwood, 
Rondeletia  and  Monstera  from  Mexico ;  Limes  from  Tahiti,  Taro  from 
the  South  Seas,  Central  Australian  Saltbush,  Flax  from  New  Zealand, 
Mate  from  Paraguay,  and  Green-heart  from  British  Guiana,  with  many 
plints  from  intervening  portions  of  South  America,  including  Cocaine, 
Tobacco,  Guavas,  and  Tapioca,  Granadillas,  Logwood,  Guttapercha, 
and  Mahogany  from  quite  tropical  and  Central  America,  Allspice  and 
Alligator  Pears  from  the  West  Indies,  and  Pecan  Nuts  from  Texas. 
A  flower  border  in  the  same  grounds  further  emphasises  the  lesson, 
for  in  it,  in  their  season,  can  be  seen  in  splendid  flower  Daisies  and 
Hibiscus,  Ranunculus  and  jFrangipangi,  Snowflakes  and  Ipomaea 
Horsfalliae,  Jonquils  and  Gardenias,  Larkspur  and  Poinsettias, 
Geraniums,  Fuchsias,  Hydrangeas,  Wallflower,  Sweet  Peas,  Dahlias, 
Freesias,  Chrysanthemums,  Hollyhocks,  and  English  Ivy,  along  with 
Azaleas,  various  Orchids,  Allamaudas,  Galsemiums,  and  the  Rangoon 
Creepers. 
Without  entering  the  shelter  of  glass  houses,  wherein  it  is  usual 
to  protect  plants  designed  for  the  tropical  North,  such  as  Cocos  and 
Vanilli,  and  pissing  the  packing  shed,  through  which  may  be  seen  in 
the  winter  time  such  plants  as  Cherries  and  other  stone  fruits  destined 
for  the  elevated  inland  portions  of  Southern  Queensland.  Should 
further  evidence  be  required  to  carry. conviction,  one  minute’s  longer 
stroll  over  a  sward  composed  mainly  of  tropical  Buffalo  Grass  and 
English  Clover,  will  take  the  visitor  to  a  pond,  within  which,  flankel 
on  one  side  by  Burmese  Bamboos,  and  on  the  other  by  a  Weeping 
Willow,  can  be  seen  growing  from  seeds  ripened  in  the  open  air,  and 
soon  now  to  be  in  full  bloom  together,  the  British  white  Water  Lily, 
culled  originally  in  a  tiny  Welsh  streamlet,  and  the  giant  Brazilian 
Victoria  Regia  from  the  mighty  Amazon.  All  these  are  included  in 
the  gardens  of  Queensland,  and  must  surely  tempt  many  of  us  at  home 
to  journey  to  this  luxuriant  Antipodean  land. — Scribe. 
Conifers. 
The  Cedar  of  Lebanon  is  the  most  magnificent  and  picturesque  of 
the  Conifers.  It  is  more  remarkable  for  the  enormous  expanse  and 
number  of  its  branches  than  for  its  height.  The  Cedar  is,  in  its 
appearance,  the  most  majestic  of  trees,  especially  when  it  stands  alone 
in  a  situation  worthy  of  it.  There  is  a  firmness  in  the  bark  and  a 
stability  in  the  trunk  in  the  mode  in  which  that  lays  hold  of  the 
ground,  and  in  the  form  of  the  branches  and  their  insertion  into  the 
trunk  not  found  in  any  other  Pine,  scarcely  in  any  other  tree  ;  indeed 
the  very  air  of  the  tree  impresses  one  with  the  idea  of  its  comparative 
immortality.  Tnis  tree  is  so  well  known  that  it  is  hardly  necessary  to 
give  a  detailed  description  of  it.  Unfortunately  its  very  dense  habit 
makes  it  very  liable  to  injury  from  heavy  falls  of  snow.  Mauy  fine 
specimens  up  and  down  the  country  are  sally  disfigured  in  this  way. 
The  Cedar  seldom  yields  cones  before  it  is  forty,  and  sometimes  not 
before  it  is  one  hundred  years  of  age,  and  it  is  not  until  the  tree  has 
produced  several  crops  that  the  seeds  can  be  depended  on  to  vegetate. 
It  is  a  native  of  Mount  Lebanon  in  Syria.  The  exact  date  of  introduction 
into  this  country  cannot  be  fixed  with  certainty,  but  it  was  shortly 
after  1664,  There  is  a  variety  with  glaucous  foliage  named  argentea. 
Cedrus  atlantica,  the  Mount  Atlas  or  African  Cedar,  does  not  appear 
to  differ  much  from  Libani  in  its  young  state.  The  tree  is  somewhat 
stiffer,  the  branches  shorter,  and  the  leaves  are  also  shorter,  thicker, 
and  more  prickly.  It  is  also  of  more  erect  pyramidal  habit  than  the 
Cedar  of  Lebanon. 
Cedrua  Deodara. 
Tne  Deodara  or  Indian  Cedar,  although  differing  in  habit,  presents 
no  essential  characters  which,  in  the  opinion  of  some  eminent 
botanists,  ought  to  sep irate  it  from  C.  atlantica  and  C.  Libani. 
Indeed,  the  rauk  of  a  separate  genus  has  been  denied  to  them  by 
many  authorities.  The  Deodar  is  a  native  of  India,  and  in  the 
Himalayas  attains  a  height  of  150  feet,  with  a  trunk  30  feet  in 
circumference.  The  leaves  are  either  solitary  or  tufted,  and  very 
numerous,  larger  than  those  of  the  Cedar  of  Lebanon,  and  of  a  dark 
bluish  green,  covered  with  a  light  glaucous  bloom,  as  are  the  young 
branches.  It  grows  more  rapid,  and  its  habit  is  more  symmetrical 
and  graceful  than  the  Lebanon  Cedar.  The  Deodar  is  quite  hardy, 
and  is  deservedly  a  universal  favourite.  For  ornamental  purposes  it 
grows  in  any  good  soil,  but  appears  to  thrive  best  in  sheltered 
positions.  It  may  be  pruned  into  shape  if  desirable  ;  if  injured  by  a 
severe  winter  or  other  causes,  a  new  leader  and  fresh  branchlets  are 
readily  formed.  The  pendulous  leader  of  the  Deodar  changes  its 
direction  every  year  ;  it  makes  a  complete  revolution  in  three  years, 
and  so  ascends  like  a  screw. 
The  wood  is  very  valuable,  and  much  prized  in  its  native  country. 
It  is  accounted  sacred  by  the  Hindus,  and  is  generally  met  with  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  their  ancient  temples.  It  is  also  used  in  building 
houses,  bridges,  and  in  other  ways,  and  is  very  strong  and  durable. 
Thuiopsis  dolabrata. 
This  is  the  Japanese  Thuya,  or  the  Hatchet-leaved  Arbor  Vitae.  Its 
habit  is  of  the  most  elegant  character,  and  its  foliage  is  so  nicely  cut 
aud  so  regularly  disposed,  that  it  looks  as  well  as  many  of  the  Club 
Mosses  that  are  cultivated  indoors.  As  an  ornamental  tree  it  takes  a 
high  rank ;  its  growth  is  at  first  rather  slow,  but  when  well  established 
in  a  suitable  soil  and  situation  it  makes  a  beautiful  tree.  In  its 
native  country  it  attains  a  height  of  40  to  50  feet.  It  is  much 
thought  of  by  the  Japanese,  and  is  cultivated  by  them  in  pots. 
Thuiopsis  is  quite  hardy,  and  makes  a  good  vase  plant ;  it  bears 
pruning  well  and  makes  a  capital  bush,  and  in  this  form  is  suitable 
for  the  foreground  ot  the  shrubbery,  or  for  planting  on  banks  in 
company  with  common  Savin,  being  of  a  different  green. — PiNUS. 
