recently planted vineyards already yielding good wine. This is a singular instance of the establishment of vineyards where no vines were ever before cultivated. (A Spectator in the Netherlands, in the Derbyshire Courier of Nov. 28. 1829.)

POLAND.

A Manufactory of Sugar from Beet-root is in progress on the estate of Guzow, seven German miles from Warsaw, on the road to Posen. The concern will be conducted upon the newest principles. The government have promised to assist it liberally: they wish the manufacture of sugar to become general in the kingdom, and arrangements are made to instruct pupils free of expense in every branch of the business. Besides the above manufactory, there are already several others actually established. A sample of raw sugar has been sent to Warsaw. The estate alluded to is the property of Count Henry Lubienski.-J. L. Warsaw, May 13. 1830.

NORTH AMERICA.

Sweet and sour Apples.— Mr. Bradley mentions an apple which was sweet and boiled soft on one side, and sour and boiled hard on the other (Treatise on Gardening); and the late John Jay of New York notices another sweet on one side and sour on the other. (Comm. Board Agric. vol. i. p. 362.) I can relate a third case of a similar nature. The late Levi Hollingsworth, merchant, who resided for more than sixty years in Philadelphia, and was a man of the highest integrity, informed me, several years since, that when he was a boy, living at Elkton in Maryland, there was a full grown apple-tree, the fruit of which was sweet on one side, and sour on the other on the same limb there grew apples quite insipid, others sweet, and others sour. He mentioned the fact as of his own knowledge to a club of literary gentlemen, who met at a public-house once a week to discuss useful subjects, in the year 1762, in Philadelphia; but the doctrine of the marriage of plants was not familiar to them, and the fact was doubted. This so mortified him, that he went down to Elkton, in company with the late Mr. Samuel Nicholas, who was a respectable citizen, and brought away several of the apples to the club. Mr. Hollingsworth assured me that the tree had never been grafted. —J. M. Philadelphia, Sept. 7. 1829.

Apples and Pears on the same Tree. — “ Mr. John Gage of Upton Union, a few years ago, grafted a pear upon an apple scion in his garden. When it grew up so as to begin to bear, it bore for two years very excellent pears. The third and fourth years its leaves, which formerly were those of a pear tree, changed, by degrees, to those of an apple tree. The fifth year, and ever since, it has borne excellent apples. This has been related to me by at least fifty of the most respectable men on the spot, who personally knew it to be true." (Job Johnston in Long Island Patriot.)-J. M. Philadelphia, Sept. 7. 1829. Unquestionably an error in the observer; the scion in all probability never united properly, and a shoot from the stock was mistaken for it. Cond.

Identity of the Peach and the Nectarine. — In the Linnean Correspondence it is stated (preface p. 1.) that a tree bought for a nectarine produced peaches; the next year it bore nectarines and peaches, and for twenty years after. P. Collinson informs Linnæus (p. 7.) that at Lord Wilmington's a tree produced both nectarines and peaches. Sir J. E. Smith, the editor, says, that several instances of this have occurred; and that he was presented with a fruit half nectarine half peach. It grew on a tree which usually bore nectarines and peaches; but in two seasons, at some years' distance from each other, the same tree produced half a dozen of these combined fruits. Collinson mentions (p. 70.) that he saw both fruits on the same tree close to each other; and (p. 75.) that a peach produced a nectarine from a stone, and not a peach, in his own garden. Without knowing

the foregoing facts, Professor Chapman informed me that formerly, in Virginia, peach trees lived a number of years, and that when they were very old, he had often seen them bear nectarines. The fact is well known, he says, to all old natives of Virginia.-J. M. Philadelphia, Sept. 7. 1829.

AUSTRALIA.

The Swan River, or more properly Western Australia, 25th of Jan. 1830.— 300,000 acres have been located; and there are in all about 1000 settlers. This is evidently a pasturage country, and will only repay by breeding the finest wool sheep. It has been proved that, at the low price at which grain can be imported from Java, it can never answer to grow that article for exportation except in the interior for home consumption. The soil, both as to quality and the facility of bringing it into cultivation, has been overrated by Mr. Fraser, who, though an indefatigable botanist, does not understand agriculture. To a certain extent, the soil is a good friable loam; but it soon cakes, and cannot be broken up for cultivation except after rain. There is great variety of soil; and clay, marl, sand, and limestone all lying convenient. All the productions of Europe, including to a certain extent those palms and that species of sugar-cane which are cultivated in Spain, it is believed will thrive here. A parochial lending library for the working classes has been established; a literary institution has been commenced, with 45 subscribers, 12 candidates, and annual funds to the amount of 1007.; and it is intended to join to this institution a museum, and a botanical garden. (Morn. Chron. July 22.)

A Literary and Scientific Society, patron the Lieutenant-Governor, was on the eve of being formed at Hobart Town, in addition to other highly useful and praiseworthy institutions which have been lately established there. (Colonial Times, Jan. 29. 1830.)

Mr. Scott's Garden at Hobart Town. No resident of Hobart Town, either passing or permanent, should omit visiting Mr. Scott, the industrious and well-informed seedsman of Brisbane Street. In his garden there will be found a most interesting collection of almost all the indigenous plants of our island, and many others of foreign origin. A visit to Mr. Scott will be considered a very useful disposition of a vacant hour. Mr. Scott has now a great collection of Mount Wellington plants, dried and preserved, and has succeeded in collecting a quantity of the bark from the pepper tree; which some of the gentlemen of the faculty so highly approve, that we understand they intend to analyse it, in order to discover its virtue. The pepper shrub of this island grows in a close thicket, to the height of from 6 to 10 ft. when in blossom, in the spring months of November and December. The farina of the flower is so pungent, especially if shaken about by the feet of horses or cattle, that it is necessary to hold a handkerchief to the nose, in order to avoid continually sneezing. It has a pretty appearance with its red bark and dark green leaves. The whole of this country is also interspersed with that magnificent shrub called warrataw, or tulip tree, and its beautiful scarlet flowers. (Colonial Times, Dec. 11. 1829.)

Vegetables and Fruit. Potatoes 4s. to 6s. per cwt.; cabbages 10d. per doz.; onions Id. per lb.; shallots 1d. per bunch; turnips 2d. do.; carrots 8d. do.; grapes 6d. per lb.; peaches 4s. per basket; nectarines 6s. do.; apples 2s. per doz.; melons 4d. each. The long continuance of dry weather has made forage unusually scarce. Hay is sold at from 91. to 10/ per ton. High fruit has also been made to ripen too fast, and great quantities have fallen prematurely from the trees. Peaches and nectarines will hardly ripen at all. (Hobart Town Courier, March 6. 1830.)

ART. III. Domestic Notices.

ENGLAND.

STOCKPORT Floral and Horticultural Society.—A Floral and Horticultural Society has been established at Stockport, and a notice of the circumstance in the Stockport Advertiser is accompanied by the following gratifying observations: "Of all recreations, the cultivation of fruits and flowers is the one which ought to be the most encouraged. It is most congenial to civilisation, and conduces very materially to health; attaches men to their homes, consequently in many instances prevents a life of dissipation; inclines the mind to serious thought and reflection; and teaches us to look through nature up to nature's God.

"Every rank of people, from the humble cottager with his favourite auriculas and polyanthuses, to the lady of fashion with her more tender exotics, equally enjoys flowers as a gratification, and nothing more conspicuously bespeaks the good taste of the possessor than a well cultivated garden; and it may be generally remarked, that when we see a neat cottage-border well stocked with plants, the inhabitant is respectable and possesses domestic comfort; whilst, on the contrary, a neglected garden but too frequently marks the indolence and bespeaks the unhappy state of the owner. But what must be the satisfaction, as well as essential profit, which the botanist derives from a closer examination of these beauties of nature! They behold them as the wonderful works of the Creator, and are convinced that vegetation could not possibly be a mere matter of chance, but must be effected by the all-creating wisdom of a beneficent Being. The poets are never more fortunate in their illustrations than when they sing the beauties and virtues of these splendid productions; nor does the artist derive less satisfaction in delineating their delicate and lovely forms with the pencil. Indeed, of all luxurious indulgences, that of the cultivation of flowers is the most innocent, and (except our terrestrial angels, ever bright and fair) they are of all embellishments the most beautiful; therefore, we cannot for a moment doubt that the Stockport Floral and Horticultural Society will meet with such fostering aid, as to place it foremost in the rank of its competitors." (Stockport Advertiser, March 5.)

Medico-Botanical Society. This Society suddenly claimed the attention of the public; its pretensions were great, its assurance unbounded. It speedily became distinguished, not by its publications or discoveries, but by the number of princes it enrolled in its list. It is needless now to expose the extent of its short-lived quackery; but the evil deeds of that institution will long remain in the impression they have contributed to confirm throughout Europe of the character of our scientific establishments. It would be at once a judicious and a dignified course, if those lovers of science who have been so grievously deceived in this Society were to enrol upon the latest page of its history its highest claim to public approbation, and by signing its dissolution, offer the only atonement in their power to the insulted science of their country. As, with a singular inversion of principle, the Society contrived to render expulsion the highest honour it could confer; so it remains to exemplify, in suicide, the sublimest virtue of which it is capable. (Professor Babbage in the Edinb. Jour. of Science for July, 1830, p.76.) Cottage Gardens. · The sensible remarks of R. C. Kirkliston (p. 109.), respecting labourer's cottages, meet with my warmest approbation; they are true and important. I have long noticed that the labourers or mechanics who are attached to their gardens are generally sober and industrious. Every man must have his hobby, and a garden is the best hobby a poor man can have. Thirty years ago, when a Lancashire weaver could live by his honest labour, the neighbourhood of Eccles and Barton, and indeed the entire vicinity of Manchester, were celebrated for neat gardens and clean houses in the occupation of the above class of mechanics. It was, indeed, a

most delightful treat to visit the tulip beds, the gooseberry gardens, or the auricula and polyanthus sheds of some of these intelligent and ingenious men. Of late years many have turned their attention to the culture of apple trees; and, wretched as the situation of the whole of this class of useful men now is, there is still a marked difference in the circumstances and appearance of those who love their gardens. But some there are who do love them, without being able to possess them; many houses being now built in this, as well as other districts, without a garden. This is wretched policy. I find among the few cottage tenants I have here, those with a garden pay the best and the most rent, and seem to live in the greatest comfort. I am glad to find you are going to publish a Manual of Cottage-Gardening, with the model of a cottage, at the moderate price of Is. 6d. I shall direct my booksellers, Messrs. Longman and Co., to send me a few copies when published, and I have no doubt of its being perfectly adapted to insure the end designed, improvement in cottage building. On some future occasion I will, if not intruding too much on your pages, present you with the description of several cottages in the village of Hadnal, near Shrewsbury, with remarks on the advantage of a plot of land being attached to the dwellings of the labouring classes. I am, Sir, &c. - Charles Hulbert. High Street, Shrewsbury, Feb. 24.

Wistaria Consequana. Sir, In my botanical rounds and researches, I find that beautiful climber the Glycine sinensis [Wistària Consequàna] in many green-houses, and in some hot or forcing houses. Now, Sir, as this plant is worthy of every gentleman's garden, for the information of those friends of yours who may, or who may wish to, possess it, I here give them my experience in the treatment of it. Loam and peat I find suit it better than any thing else. The one I have has been with me three or four years; it flowers twice in the year; I have it in a very large pot, and it is from 10 to 15 ft. high. I have kept it out in the most severe frost, nearly unprotected; and that intense frost which we had this spring, after some very warm days, it was out under a south wall, and not at all injured. I have increased it, by layers, with little or no difficulty. It is a plant of such beauty as a climber for a veranda, or any warm situation out of doors, that I would recommend it to every lover of plants, especially of climbers, among which it holds the highest station. I am, Sir, &c.-G. G. Edgbaston, near Birmingham, Aug., 1830.

The Rhodes Grape. - Sir, I send you a specimen of the Rhodes Grape, a seedling, raised at Horsforth Hall, near Leeds, a few years ago. It is, as you will see, a fine large black grape, but rather a shy bearer. It is also a bad setter; the specimen sent was set with Black Hamburgh. I do not consider the bunch sent as the best specimen that could be produced, owing to the wet season and a wet border. In more favourable circumstances, I have no hesitation in saying, that for size of bunch and berry (fig. 116.) it bids fair to be amongst the finest of black grapes. The flavour is not particularly remarkable. I remain, Sir, &c. Thos. Appleby, Gardener at Horsforth. Horsforth Hall, Aug. 4.

The bunch contained 84 berries, and weighed 1 lb. 7 oz.; and the flavour was very nearly as good as that of the Black Hamburgh.- Cond.

Large Pumpkins.- Sir, Seeing in your Magazine of December last, No. 23., an account of a pumpkin grown by Mr. Thomson, which weighed, when ripe, half a hundred, I beg to inform you that I grew one in the garden at Broomhall, near Oswestry, the seat of H. P. T. Aubrey, Esq., in 1819, weighing 92 lbs.; in 1820, one weighing 113 lbs. ; and in 1821, one weighing 136 lbs. I am, Sir, &c. - Geo. Davenport, Gardener. June, 1830.

Large Melon.- A Cantaloup melon has been raised by Edward King, gardener to John Buckle, Esq., of the Wildlands, near Chepstow, measuring 34 in. in circumference, and weighing 15 lb. 2 oz. (Newsp.)

Large Cucumber. - A cucumber (the Bloor's White Spine) was cut on the 8th of June, in the garden of W. Hardman, Esq., of Chamber Hall, near Bury, of the following dimensions:- Length 26 in., girth 11 in., weight 5 lbs. 83 oz. It did not appear overgrown, but in a proper state for the table. (Morn. Chron., June 23.)

SCOTLAND.

Promenade, &c., in the Caledonian Horticultural Society's Experimental Garden at Inverleith, July 10. The garden is about ten English acres in extent, and commands from every part a superb view of the city. It is divided into compartments suited to the different kinds of plants raised in it; the chief of these compartments being the arboretum, the orchard, the nursery, the hot-houses and stoves, and the kitchen-garden. The arboretum is formed of the numerous species and varieties of trees and shrubs, and extends round nearly three sides of the garden, besides intersecting it in the form of two raised belts. The orchard contains upwards of 600 sorts of apples, collected with great care, and at considerable expense, and many new seedling varieties. The pears amount to 350 sorts, the plums to 100 sorts, the cherries to 80 sorts, and the filberts to about 10 sorts. Of gooseberries there are 350 varieties; and the distinct kinds of strawberries are about 100. The nursery is filled with fruit and forest trees and shrubs in various stages of growth, intended chiefly for distribution among members. The hot-house establishment is not yet complete, but the collection of pine-apples amounts to about 20 sorts, and that of grape vines to about 100 sorts. The culinarium, or kitchen-garden department, is richly stocked with rare culinary plants and herbs. The whole garden is under the management of Mr. Barnet, and never did we see a place of the kind in better order. Not a weed was to be seen; and, still more marvellous to be told, not a bush appeared deranged, nor a bed furrowed by the deluges which had poured down daily for a month before from the weeping skies. The turfwalks were shaven so closely, that they seemed to the eye, and felt to the feet, like a carpet of velvet.

In the centre of the garden a large tent was erected, supported on pillars gaily festooned with evergreens and flowers. Under this awning two tables were placed, capable of accommodating about 500 people. The tables were profusely covered with all the fruits of the season, interspersed with confections, and beside each cover a nosegay was invitingly deposited. At each end of the tent was an elevated platform, supporting a variety of magnificent exotic plants, the exhibition of which was one of the principal features of the entertainment. The collection was as numerous as many of the specimens were splendid. It included the Nepenthes distillatòria, or pitcher plant of China, from the garden of Professor Dunbar, bearing pitchers 10 in. long; the Opuntia Tuna, or prickly pear, in fruit, from the conservatory of Mr. P. Neill; a splendid specimen of the Cactus speciosíssima, in flower; from the botanic garden, the Alstromèria pulchella, trícolor, and Pelegrina; a large Cycas revoluta, and Latània borbónica; Hibiscus Ròsa sinensis, Kálmia latifòlia (splendid), Erythrina laurifolia (property of garden), Gladiolus cardinalis, Pròtea nigra, Lilium japonicum, Maurándya Barclayana, Sarracènia rùbra, Calceolària purpurea; Verbèna Melindres, Pimelèa ròsea; and a vast variety of ericas, or heath plants, among which the most remarkable, both for size and beauty, were specimens of the perspicua, ventricosa, erécta, flórida, álba, pilòsa, tricolor, præ'gnans, metulæflora, radiata, spùria, élegans, and jasminiflòra. The manner in which these superb plants were arranged showed them off to the greatest advantage.