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M. Hartweg, with narrow, glaucous, and pale flowers." (B. M. R., No. 104., July.)

Asphodelacea.

1046. ALLIUM 28591 azureum Ledebour.

Synonymes: A. cæruleum Pallas, A. cæruléscens G. Don; Bot. Reg. 1840, 51. Commelineæ.

1000. TRADESCAʼNTIA

tùmida Lindl. tumid 34 or 1 S R Mexico 1839. D co. Bot. reg. 1840, 42. A very curious plant from Mexico, with reddish flowers and deep green leaves, which are purple on the under side when young, and which are rolled back in a very singular manner when full grown. The stem is still more remarkable, as the joints are swelled and tumid. It is half-hardy, and “grows freely in sandy loam, but is very apt to suffer from damp in winter." (Bot. Reg., July.)

[of the filaments.) occupy the interior Bot. reg. 1840, 47.

SPIRONE MA (Speira, a spire, nēma, a thread; in allusion to the spiral threads that
fragrans Lindl. fragrant A cu 1 my W Mexico ? 1839. D co.
A very curious rush-like plant, with small but very fragrant flowers. (Bot.
Reg., August.)

REVIEWS.

ART. I. Annales des Sciences Physiques et Naturelles, d' Agriculture et d'Industrie, publiées par la Société Royale d'Agriculture de Lyon. Tomes I. and II., and Livraisons 1, 2, and 3. of Tome III. Lyons and Paris, 1838, 1839, and 1840.

LIVRAISONS 1, 2, and 3. of tome i. are reviewed in our volume for 1839 p. 168., where we have characterised the work as one of the most respectable of the kind published in France. We now, therefore, commence at the point where we left off, and shall notice whatever appears to us of direct interest to gardening, agriculture, and domestic improvement.

At the séance of June 14. 1838, Professor Audouin, of Paris, gave an account to the Society of his Researches for the Destruction of the Pyrale, a species of moth, which is so injurious to the vine in France as frequently to destroy the crop through entire districts. After an extremely interesting history of his experiments, and of the very singular manner in which the eggs of the female are fecundated, M. Audouin states that the mode of destroying the insect which he found most effective is, to place among the vines, in the nighttime, lamps enclosed in glass, and suspended over a saucer of oil, or any greasy or viscous matter. The moth flies to the light, which it is prevented from touching by the glass of the lamp, while, by repeatedly striking against it, in its endeavours to get at the light, it drops down and is drowned or fixed in the oil or greasy matter. One cultivator, in the year 1837, put down in his vineyards, in one night, 200 of these lamps, at 25 ft. apart every way. The lamps burnt for about two hours, during which time an average of 150 moths were fixed in each saucer, making in all 30,000 insects. A fifth part of that number of moths consisted of females, each of whom would have laid 150 eggs, which in a few days would have produced 900,000 caterpillars. August 7th, 180 lamps, placed in the same vineyard, and for the same period, caught each 80 moths, making in all 14,400 insects, three fourths of which were females; but admitting only the half, or 7,200 females, in multiplying this number by 150, the number of eggs that each female is supposed to lay, the total number of caterpillars destroyed will be 1,080,000. Another mode which M. Audouin recommends is, gathering the leaves, or the points of the shoots, immediately after the eggs have been deposited, or when they have been newly hatched. As the eggs are always laid upon the upper surface of the leaf, they are easily detected by women or children. By this process 20 persons, between the 7th and 11th of August, gathered 1840. Ост.

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186,900 nests of eggs, and, as each nest contains, at an average, about 60 eggs, the total number destroyed was 11,214,000.

This subject is, no doubt, of far more interest to the Continental vigneron than to the British gardener; but, still, we think that the latter might adopt both the lamp and the gathering systems among his cabbages and gooseberries. At all events, a knowledge of what has been done in France will tend to enlarge his mind on a subject intimately connected with his profession. This important discovery of M. Audouin is about to be published, under the auspices of the French government, in a work which will be entitled Histoire des Insectes nuisibles à la Vigne, which we shall elsewhere notice. The peculiar merit of M. Audouin as an entomologist is, that he directs his attention in a particular manner to the insects injurious to agriculture, unlike many others who occupy themselves solely with classification and nomenclature.

The Seed of the Orobanche minor, which is very small, and attaches itself to the seeds of clover, hemp, and tobacco, may be removed from these seeds by thorough washing and rubbing in water, and afterwards powdering the washed seed with ashes to render it dry and fit for sowing. (tome i. p. 430.)

On the Improvement des Fosses d'Aisances; by Dr. Bottex. This is a very scientific paper, in which the subject is first treated chemically, and next the progress of improvement in this department of architecture and domestic economy is traced from the year 1786, when the architect Giraud of Versailles proposed certain changes, to the invention of M. Caseneuve in 1818, which was exhibited in London, in Gerrard Street, Soho, in the year following. The chloride of lime is recommended as the best disinfecting substance, and it is also stated, that stercoraceous matters may be disinfected with river mud carbonised, with peat-ashes, with sawdust, with tan, or with various other substances; in short, it is only necessary to carbonise a mixture of argillaceous soil with fæcal matter, in order to obtain a perfect disinfected powder. Hence the vapours from all manner of dunghills, when too near a house, may be rendered innoxious, by covering or mixing them with loamy soil, and more particularly with cleanings of ditches or ponds.

To preserve Corn for several Years, sink it in the earth, where it will not undergo change of temperature, and where the temperature will be so low as not to admit of hatching the eggs of insects. Air and moisture must also be completely excluded. (tome i. p. 473.)

Report on the Domain of M. Nivière, a scientific farmer, who keeps his farm in the very best order, and is remarkably exact with his accounts.

Morus Seringeana (in compliment to the director of the botanic garden of Lyons) has been raised from seed of Morus multicaúlis, and is considered preferable to that variety, from its hardiness and the largeness of its leaves. The fruit is small, and of a dark violet colour.

A hybrid Chrysanthemum, between the Chinese species and Chrysánthemum leucanthemum, and a specimen of a double-flowered Melon Plant, were presented to the Society. All the flowers of the melon plant, from which the specimen was taken, were double and sterile. (p. 492.)

Flat Clay Roofs have been formed in Germany, and described in a pamphlet published in Brunswick in 1837, entitled, Der Bau der Domschen Lehmdächer &c., and the essence of which is here given. Clay, tan, coal tar, Burgundy pitch (résine de Bourgogne), and sand, or powdered bricks, are mixed together and beaten till the entire mass is homogeneous, and may be readily spread by the hand or a trowel. It is then spread on the roof, or on balconies or terraces. Owing to the lightness of the timbers which may be employed, this kind of roof is found to be much cheaper than one of tiles, and the experience of six or eight years seems to show that it will be durable. (p. 503.)

Morus multicaulis was killed to the ground in the neighbourhood of Lyons, and in various places in Languedoc, during the winter of 1837-8. (p. 536.) Theory and Application of Labours on the Soil. This is an excellent paper, and well worth translating for an agricultural journal. After describing the different kinds of labour, such as those for turning up and mixing the soil, viz. digging and ploughing; those for stirring the surface or destroying weeds,

such as hoeing and raking; and those for deepening the soil, such as trenching and double ploughing; he treats of the different modes of performing each, and the advantages and disadvantages of different modes of performance; taking into consideration manure, climate, crop, &c. He strongly recommends deep digging and ploughing, which in fact is the greatest improvement wanted in France, owing to the dryness of the climate, both in agriculture and gardening. (tome ii. p. 11.)

Manure given to Vineyards is found to injure the quality of wine made from the grapes, more particularly horn shavings, which are used in the immediate vicinity of Lyons. Some contend that the odour of the dung is absorbed by the pellicle of the fruit; others by the leaves, of which opinion M. Seringe is an advocate; and others by the root. (tome ii. p. 101.)

Rhizoctonia Medicáginis Dec., a fungus which infests the roots of lucern, is described by M. Seringe as extending in a circle all round the plant, so as to attach itself to the roots of the others which it meets in its course. R. Crocòrum Dec. infests the roots of the saffron crocus in England. (tome ii. p. 105.) Cuscuta minor is also very injurious to lucern in France, as the C. europæ a frequently is to the hop in England.

A new double mould-boarded Plough, invented by M. Reverchon, is examined by a commission and favourably spoken of. The chief object is to save time in changing the mould boards at the ends of the furrows, for which purpose there are as it were two ploughs, one placed exactly over the other; and the business of the ploughman, at the end of the furrow, is simply to turn the plough upside down before he reenters it. The name given to this implement is Charrue jumelle, twin plough. (tome ii. p. 167. t. 5.)

Notice on the Species of Calceolaria, cultivated in the Royal Flower-Garden at St. Cloud, by M. Charles Gondouin. M. Gondouin arranges the calceolarias in two sections; the first containing C. plantagínea and C. pinnata; and the second C. rugòsa, C. arachnöidea, and their numerous varieties, crossbreds, or hybrids, amounting to sixteen, which are described. M. Gondouin recommends the seeds of calceolarias to be sown in pans of light earth, and placed in a hot-bed in February, when, if properly treated, they will flower vigorously the same autumn, and the expense of keeping them through the winter will be avoided, or rendered much easier than that of preserving seedlings sown in autumn. (tome ii. p. 173.)

The Roots of Enothera biennis L. (Onagre, French) are eaten in Germany like those of scorzonera, and the points of the shoots may be used in salads. The herbage would form a good forage for cattle, which are very fond of it. (tome ii. p. 180.)

Les Sommeliers, a new variety of potato, is recommended by M. Pepin, who has propagated the London leek (Poireau gros-court) for several years without seeds, by cutting it over 6 or 8 lines above the plate from which the roots spring, and planting the suckers which are in consequence produced. (tome ii. p. 182.)

Essai sur la Théorie de l'Aménagement des Forêts; by M. Noirotbonnet. By aménagement is meant such an arrangement as, in the case of any given forest, will insure an equal produce every year while the forest lasts. The first point to ascertain is, the number of years which the wood of the forest requires to attain its most profitable age; and the next point is, to divide the forest into a corresponding number of portions. It is evident that the great difficulty is to determine the profitable point, all the circumstances being taken into consideration, of markets, reproduction, &c. In his first chapter the author treats of the increase of timber, and he arrives at the conclusions following: - Hard woods, such as oaks and beeches, may be most profitably cut down at an age between 140 and 160 years. Resinous woods, such as spruces and silver firs, 110 to 120 years; and such as pines and larches, 70 to 80 years. White woods, such as maples, sycamores, ashes, and elms, 100 to 110 years. Soft woods, such as birches and alders, from 55 to 65 years. This supposes, which the author believes to be the case, that it is in the

state of timber, and not in that of coppice wood, that forests give their maximum of produce. As we contemplate an abridgement of this most excellent article, we shall take no farther notice of it at present.

M. Seringe, who had thought that the appearance of Cytisus purpureus on C. Laburnum was the result of some trick, is now convinced that this singular anomaly is in nature, but he gives no explanation. (tome ii. p. 377.)

The idea of procuring silk directly from the bark of the mulberry, which Olivier des Serres had discovered and published in 1603, is discussed; and also that of forming woollen cloth by means of strong pressure of wool on a base of caoutchouc. (tome iii. p. 8.) This has been done in England by Mr. Calvert, formerly nurseryman at Rouen.

Diluted sulphuric acid has been found equally efficacious with gypsum in the culture of clover. (tome iii. p. 15.)

Seeds of Péganum Hármala L., Rutàceæ, a herbaceous perennial plant, a native of the Crimea, which produces a dye thought to rival that of the cochineal, were received from Professor Mirbel of the Jardin des Plantes, in order to be distributed among the more zealous and enlightened cultivators. (tome iii. p. 27.)

On the Organisation of the Anthers of Mosses, &c.; by M. Seringe. (tome iii. p. 229.)

ART. II. Icones Plantarum rariorum Horti Regii Botanici Berolinensis. Figures and Descriptions of rare Plants in the Royal Botanic Garden at Berlin. By H. F. Link, Fr. Klotzsch, and Fr. Otto. Part I. 4to, pp. 16, 6 coloured plates. Berlin, 1840. Price 1 rix-dollars; about 4s. 6d.

The following address will show the intention of the authors of this new pictorial botanical periodical :

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"Our work will only treat of such new or rare plants as are remarkable for their beauty, which have not yet been made known or figured; and each number will contain so many details, that, by a single glance at a plate, and without even looking at the text, the natural order, the class and order of the Linnæan sexual system, and the genus and species may easily be known. The text will be in the Latin and German languages, in which the essential characteristics of the natural orders, tribes, genus, and species will be given; also those that are nearly allied to them, with a full description of the latter, the most suitable method of cultivating each plant, its native country, by whom discovered, &c."

In an address by the publisher, he states that the names of Link, Klotzsch, and Otto guarantee the excellence of the work; that Professor Kunth has also kindly promised his assistance, and that the "celebrated artist" Schmidt, who makes the original drawings, has also undertaken the superintendance of the lithography and the colouring.

The plants figured in the first Number are: - Pùya Altensteíni, Bromeliàceæ, from South America, not yet introduced into England, we believe. Lobèlia díscolor from Mexico in 1838, not yet in England. Olínia capénsis Klotzsch, Myrtaceæ, a Cape shrub which has been many years in Germany under the name of Cremastostèmon capénsis Jacq., but neither of which names occurs in British catalogues. O'xalis Ottonis Klotzch, sent by Edward Otto, the son of the director, from Cuba, and figured in 1837 in the Floral Cabinet as 0. geniculata Kn. et W., and recorded under this name in the Supplement to our Hortus Britannicus: on comparing the figures there can be no doubt of their being the same plant, and hence the Birmingham name must take precedence of the other. Micróstylis histionántha, Orchidàceæ, sent from La Guayra to Berlin in 1836. Oncídium carthaginénse Swartz, Orchidàceæ, sent from Maracay to Berlin in 1837 (Bot. Mag., t. 777.), introduced into England in 1791. The figures are accurately and artistically drawn and exquisitely coloured. Nothing of the kind, as it appears to us, can be more perfect.

The plants which will be figured in Part II. are, Begònia punctata, Asterotríchion sidoìdes, Malvacea; Hohenbérgia strobilàcea, Sisyrínchium majàle, Spiránthes Lindleyana, Lennèa umbellàta, Pittosporaceæ.

ART. III. A Pocket Dictionary, comprising the Names, History, and Culture of all Plants known in Britain; with a full Explanation of technical Terms. By Joseph Paxton, F.L.S., H.Ś., &c., assisted by Professor Lindley, Ph.D., F.R.S., &c. 8vo, pp. 354. London, 1840. Price 15s.

In order to give our readers a clear idea of what this book is intended to be, we shall quote from the preface; and afterwards, in order to show what it is, we shall give a specimen page.

It is certainly a great comfort to a conscientious author, when the book he produces does not interfere directly with any other work of the kind already in circulation. Hence Mr. Paxton observes: "When an author offers to the public a work, the greater part of the information contained in which is already available in detached fragments or other forms, his first duty is to exhibit the propriety of its publication; and prove, beyond question, that he has been instigated to his task by no unworthy desire of fame, but by a distinct and certified persuasion of its demand and utility.

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Happily, in the present case, we are enabled to court scrutiny into our motives, being fully prepared to explain and justify them. During the numerous interviews enjoyed by us with the leading patrons of floriculture, the want of a pocket companion, such as that now furnished, has ever been especially and forcibly urged. There are, it is true, catalogues, encyclopædias, lexicons, and cultural directories, all highly valuable in their respective spheres; and essential adjuncts to a gardener's or amateur's library; but they are too elaborate, verbose, technical, or uninteresting, to be readily and thoroughly appropriated. The expense, also, of several is necessarily enormous, and beyond the means of the great majority of those who thirst after botanical and floricultural literature; and no single one, much less set, embracing all the subjects of this Dictionary, is conveniently portable, or can even be carried, without discomfort, beyond the porch of the proprietor's domicile.

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Comprehensive compendiums, in which scientific and popular details are abridged, combined, and thus brought within the pecuniary reach as well as easy examination of those whose income and time are subjected to many other more pressing exactions, are highly commendable if attentively and clearly arranged; but their usefulness is in proportion to the precision and accuracy of the manner in which they are compiled.

"THE POCKET BOTANICAL DICTIONARY, then, has been prepared solely as an instant resource, and standard of consultation; and, for this purpose, will be found invaluable to the professors and lovers of horticulture, in all its branches, and of every grade. Within its columns is compressed all the most important information, relative to admired plants, which its small size and avowed design would admit. With this in his pocket the possessor or cultivator of plants may perambulate his own garden, visit those of his friends or public establishments, and attend floricultural exhibitions, in the full assurance that if any particular object engage his attention, he may at once derive every fact of interest respecting both it and its congeners, which is yet known in this country, and form an idea of the facility or difficulty, and consequent expense, attending its conservation. Such is, cursorily, the prime purport of this publication, and the aim of its author." (p. vi.)

We are indebted to the publisher for the following specimen page, in which the reader will observe how effectively Mr. Paxton and Dr. Lindley have attained their object, and how truly useful this Dictionary will be to an immense number of persons. We have not a single objection to the work, unless it be that the type, notwithstanding its clearness, is somewhat too small for our eyes.

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