and broad, the natives make the doors of their houses. Cubic foot, 38 lb. 0 oz. 217 gr. 31. Tan careña. Cubic foot, 42 lb. 6 oz. 287 gr. 32. Mata Palo. So called from destroying the trees near it; the wood is hard, but principally used in burning. Specimen wanting. 33. Manteca Colorado. Cubic foot, 57 lb. 3 oz. 186 6 gr. 34. Tuabi. A coarse-grained yellow wood, used for caCubic foot, 34 lb. 13 oz. 144 gr. noes. 35. Chagual. Specimen missing. 36. Druny. A hard wood; I do not know its uses. Weight of the cubic foot, 71 lb. 0 oz. 91 gr. 37. Cedar. Too well known to require description; there are three species which are rather named after the bark than the colour of the wood; the black is most esteemed. Quere, Cedrela odorata? Certainly not a Bignònia. Several Bignonias are called Cedars, as the B. pentaphylla and B. leucóxylon, the timber of which is white, and grain different. The colour of my specimen is red; the grain is similar to that of the Garlic Cedar (Cedrèla odorata), but by no means equally close or fine. Cubic foot, 24 lb. 6 oz. 175 gr. 38. Coosaña.-A hard, durable, and beautiful wood, used in making walking-sticks, &c. Specimen wanting. 39. Palo sangre. So called from its astringent qualities in suffusions of blood; it is a durable and beautifully stained wood; it is also called, from its blossom, Clavelina (Brównea coccinea); it resembles rosewood, and would, doubtless, answer for the same purposes. Cubic foot, 60 lb. 14 oz. 333 gr. 40. Granadilla. A fine wood; the heart is dark and very durable. Specimen wanting. 41. Curabano. Said to be a species of Guayacan; it appears a good wood. Weight of the cubic foot, 50 lb. 7 oz. 321 gr. 42. Roble.-A light wood, but not generally used. Cubic foot, 27 lb. 12 oz. 112 gr. 43. Guayacan colorado. A hard durable wood, next in hardness to the Guayacan Guegaro, and used for the same purposes. Weight of the cubic foot, 70 lb. 10 oz. 294 gr. 44. A variety of Canalèti. Used for the same purposes. Cubic foot, 28 lb. 9 oz. 312 gr. Besides these, there are many others very valuable, among which are 45. Bedoquerà, or Balsamo.—The wood and bark highly scented, and used by the Indians for ornaments for the neck; it yields a pungent aromatic resin. Specimen wanting. 46. Choebar. This is a very magnificent tree, bearing a profusion of purple blossoms; the wood is very hard, and consequently useless to the natives; it is also called Quebra Hacha. 47. Orejuela.—A species of Acàcia, called, in Panama, Curato; it is a very durable wood, and is said to resist the worm both of salt and fresh water. I am, Sir, &c. Oxford Place, Plymouth, Sept. 2. 1828. W. HAMILTON. ART. XIV. On the Propagation of Cape Heaths. By C. L. B. Sir, J. DODDS (Vol. IV. p. 535.) says he was once told by a a great heath-grower, that he, the said heath-grower, had struck twelve hundred cuttings of the Erica vestìta, in one season, from two plants, but declined making known to him his method of treatment. I therefore beg leave to transmit, through the medium of your valuable Magazine, to J. Dodds, or any other person who may stand in need of such information, my mode of treatment. And I flatter myself that I am perfectly competent to come in competition with "the great heath-grower of Acre Lane," without being the least afraid that his "secret art" would give him more plants, from the same number of cuttings, than the one I practise and communi cate. The season for striking heaths, is any time from the first of February to the end of July, when young shoots fit can be obtained; the said shoots, in some kinds, as the Sebàna, &c., can seldom be had more than half an inch in length; others, free growers, as the Pilòsa, &c. a little longer. I seldom, however, put them in longer than an inch. Previous to collecting or preparing the cuttings let the pot or pots for their reception be prepared as follows: fit the pot with a bell-glass that will stand (when filled with compost) a quarter of an inch within the rim, then place two inches of drain at the bottom, fill up to within half an inch or an inch, according to the length of the intended cuttings, with proper heath mould; then fill up the pot with fine river sand, or if that cannot be got, pit sand, washed clean, and mixed with one fourth common white house sand. Give it a gentle watering to make it firm, and let it. stand, for that purpose, while the cuttings are preparing, which is done by carefully stripping off the foliage, at least the half length of the cutting. Lay the root end upon the thumb nail, and, with a sharp penknife cut it through at right angles, as near a joint as possible, and where there is not the least appearance of ripened wood, but at the same time feels firm under the edge of the knife. The nearer the mould the end of the cutting, when planted, the better, that, as soon as roots are emitted they may find their natural food, and are of course sooner fit for potting out. A bell-glass, 6 in. in diameter, will cover fifty of these little cuttings, when neatly planted in rows across the pot, in which way, a number of kinds may be put in, marked with their names, if required. After planting give a gentle watering to consolidate the sand, and, after standing a few minutes to dry, place the glass over them; press it into the sand, so as to exclude the air, and never remove it until the cuttings are struck, save for the purpose of giving water, which must be duly attended to, otherwise the cuttings will become hard, and the emission of roots much protracted, or altogether destroyed. The pots may be placed on a shelf in a warm part of the green-house, or the coldest part of a plant stove, at a distance from the flue. Cover the glasses when the sun is upon them, but by no means set them in a shady situation. Bottom heat is not necessary. I have been the more minute, as I am convinced, from ocular observation as well as report, that there are a great many gardeners still unacquainted with the propagation of that beautiful family of plants. Hence, our green-houses are deprived of one of their greatest and most lasting ornaments. Hence, too, the admirer is induced to sacrifice the enjoyment, from the frequent calls upon the purse, necessary to keep in view the object of admiration. January 7. 1829. I am, Sir, &c. C. L. B. ART. XV. Observations on the Improvement of Flower-Gardens. Sir, A FLOWER-GARDEN is a spot which, when tastefully disposed, is calculated to afford some of the purest and most rational of our pleasures. To the sons and daughters of elegance and refinement, to the scholar, the botanist, and the peasant, it is equally a source of amusement and pleasure. The erection of artificial rocks, as an accompaniment of the flower-garden, is a practice as common as it is in many in stances ridiculous. No true taste is displayed in the arrangement; they are always too insignificant: at best they are but an uninteresting assemblage of stones; and I am sorry to have cause to add, that they remind one more of the refuse of a stone quarry, or the heaps which Mr. Macadam has ordered to be laid by the road-side, than as objects capable of yielding the least pleasurable idea. Of all artificial scenery, a flower-garden should be the least disfigured by any kind of ruggedness, unless it be on such a scale as would be respectable in itself, worthy of the talent of the designer, and produce that effect which we often feel in the wilder scenes of uncultivated nature, and which we might desire to imitate. To obtain such effect, I would propose that advantage be taken of any natural mound abutting on the side of the flowergarden; or, if no such thing exist, I would advise forming an artificial mound, by a collection of all kinds of rubbish and earth which may be near the spot. The face of this mound, next the garden, I would make as precipitous as possible, inserting into it as many massive fragments of stone as could be piled thereon, clothing the whole with alpine trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants. To make this feature more complete, I would have water led to the. top by pipes, which might be allowed to trickle over a jutting stone, or ooze out from a crevice of the same, into a pool or basin at the base. Here would be a correct resemblance of what is often seen in the mossy dell, and a suitable habitat for our beautiful alpine and aquatic rarities. I am, Sir, &c. Blandford, Feb. 20. 1827. GEO. M'LEish. ART. XVI. Observations on the Cultivation of Ferns. Sir, By Mr. JAMES HOUSMAN. THE very valuable communication, with a list and figures of ferns, in a former number of your Magazine (Vol. IV. p. 1.), reminded me of something which I had written on the same subject; and, though I could have no wish to interpose any thing of my own in preference to any communication which has had precedence of mine, yet I beg leave to suggest whether the papers might not throw some light on each other, and more fully illustrate the history of Ferns, and bring into notice what I consider a beautiful and too much neglected tribe of plants. VOL. V. No. 18. E It is only within these few years that naturalists were satisfied that ferns could be raised from seed; indeed, some very eminent botanists doubted whether they bore seed; and it was only owing, perhaps, to popular superstition, that we owe our first knowledge of the fact. It was customary, on Midsummer-eve, to gather fern seed for magical purposes, it being considered as an invisible entity! hence Shakspeare's allusion in Henry Fourth, making Gadshill say, "We have the receipt of fern-seed, we walk invisible." Morrison was the first botanist who observed the seeds of ferns to vegetate; but the first account we have of raising plants in pots is by Lindsay. Mr. Shepherd, jun., of the Liverpool garden, has lately raised above sixty species from seed, one of which is named after himself. Among other new species, he raised some specimens from the hortus siccus of the late Dr. John Forster, now in that of the Liverpool garden, and which is about fifty years old. Mr. Shepherd, my much-esteemed instructor, has paid particular attention to this tribe of plants: he excels in the knowledge and cultivation of it, and consequently his collection surpasses all others in the kingdom. From his instructions, and my own experience, I shall state my method of raising and cultivating hardy ferns, which has succeeded to my utmost wishes. Provide middle-sized pots, with glasses to fit just within their rims, and fill them with the following compost:-fine rotten wood, or leaves, and loam, in equal parts, sifted as fine as possible. The pots must be well drained by broken tiles at bottom; and, when filled, level and smooth the surface. Sow the seed by holding the frond over the pot, scraping off the seed, capsules, and all thereon; being careful the wind does not blow away the seeds. Fix on the glasses, and set the pots in pans, which must be kept regularly full of water (none ever being given above), and place them in a warm shady part of the hot-house. In a short time the cotyledons will appear, and not unlike the Marchantia polymorpha. Soon after this, raise the glasses a little, to prevent damping off; and in a few weeks after remove them entirely; and when they have two or three fronds, transplant them into 48-sized pots. Those unacquainted with the seed of ferns (and it is to those only I address myself) must not suppose, that the seed can be gathered and sown like large seeds: they are ripe as soon as the capsules become brown, and if sown as above directed, there need be no fear of failure. Within these few years several of this genus have been divided, many of their names changed, and new genera esta |