it was still more brilliant, having, at one time, upwards of twenty heads of its showy flowers expanded at once.

In habit of growth, it much resembles the hortensis; but it makes longer and rather more slender branches, longer jointed, with larger leaves, deeply serrated, and adhering longer to the branches. The flowers are produced at the ends of the shoots; but, instead of being in globular heads, they appear in flat clusters or cymes, the sterile flowers occupying an outer row, while the fertile ones fill up the centre, contrasting prettily, by their bluish tint, with the white flowers of the circumference. Its broad and deep green foliage, and its numerous corymbs of blossoms, render it one of the most conspicuous and beautiful objects of the conservatory.

In a previous volume, (III. p. 63,) we have given the mode of treatment of the Hydrangea hortensis: H japónica requires similar management. It should be potted in a compost of peat and leaf mould, with very little loam, and, when in a flowering state, placed in a half shady situation, and be liberally supplied with water. Our plants, which are yet rather small, in consequence of cutting them for propagation, have received the same care as the common species, and both have been placed in a frame or under the stage of the green-house, until they commenced growing towards spring.

It is readily propagated from cuttings or layers, which, if put in about April or May, in a slight heat, under good treatment, form fine blooming plants the second year : when about six inches high, they should be repotted; and if the plants are very vigorous, they may be shifted into pots 6 or 8 inches in diameter. The second spring, when they commence growing, they should be top-dressed, and in May, if growing rapidly, they may be potted into the next size; stake up the shoots carefully, and in June it will commence flowering, and continue in great beauty for several weeks. Every amateur col

lection should possess a plant of the H. japónica.

It is of recent introduction to English collections, and first flowered, we believe, in the Horticultural Society's garden. In Belgium, it is common in most collections of plants.

REVIEWS.

ART. I. European Agriculture and Rural Economy, from Personal Observation. By HENRY COLMAN. Vol. II. Part VIII. pp. 223 to 370.

MR. COLMAN has now thoroughly taken hold of the subject, and the present number possesses a value which could not attach to any of the preceding ones. The subjects discussed are few, but they are important and valuable to all. They are as follows::

CVI. Crops (continued,) CVII. Flax; CVIII. Live Stock ; CIX. Dairy Husbandry; CX. Manures; CXI. General Reflections.

These subjects are treated upon with that minuteness of detail, which alone can make them useful to any farmer. Actual experiments are recorded, and results given. Under the head of crops, are enumerated all the improved varieties of wheat, &c., and, in the chapter on live stock, the best breeds are described, and a comparison of their value added. The number is illustrated with a fine drawing of a Leicester

ram.

In the chapter on manures, which we wish we had room to copy, Mr. Colman adds the following to what he has previously stated on Guano :

Guano still maintains its reputation. No new facts have transpired respecting it, but old ones have been confirmed. It continues to be applied, at the rate of two hundred pounds, and even four hundred pounds weight per acre, to various crops, with signal success, unless its efficacy is suspended or defeated by drought, or unless it comes in immediate contact with the plant, when it proves fatal. It is never safely applied alone, and the preferred mixture is a very liberal proportion of mould. Its mixture with ashes, strongly recommended by some farmers, is, as I have before observed, of questionable expediency. In Devonshire, I witnessed the most extraordinary effects from it, this year, applied at the rate of about three hundred ponnds per acre upon grass land. The extreme luxuriance and richness of the grass, where it was applied, were most remarkable, especially when seen in contrast with parts of the field not guanoed. Nor is its effecacy limited to one year, but continues for a length of time as yet not determined.

But were its obvious effects limited to one year only, yet the increase of crops, growing out of its use, furnishes in itself the means of greatly enriching the farm. (pp. 358, 359.)

This is just what we predicted of thevalue of guano as tested by our own experience: the general cry was, and even now is, that its effects are only immediate, "leaving the land poorer than before," as some farmers have affirmed; but Mr. Colman now confirms all that has been said of it; and we trust that we shall no longer have so groundless an argument brought up against its use. Two more numbers, we believe, complete the work.

ART. II. 1. The Young Gardener's Assistant, in three parts, containing catalogues of Garden and Flower Seed, with practical directions, under each head, for the cultivation of Culinary Vegetables and Flowers; also, directions for cultivating Fruit Trees, the Grape Vine, &c. 12th Edition, By THOMAS BRIDGMAN, 1 vol. 8vo. New York, 1847.

2. The Florist's Guide, containing practical directions for the cultivation of annual, biennial and perennial Flowering Plants, &c. 1 vol. 12mo. pp. 174.

3. The Fruit Cultivator's Manual, containing ample directions for the cultivation of the most important Fruits, &c. 1 vol. 12mo. pp. 189.

4. The Kitchen Gardener's Instructor, containing a catalogue of Garden and Herb Seed, with practical directions, under each head, for the cultivation of culinary Vegetables, Herbs, &c. 1 vol. 12mo. pp. 181. New and improved Editions. 1847.

THESE are the titles of four books which the author has placed in our hands, the first containing the same information as the other three, but which are sold separately to those who only wish to acquire knowledge in one department. It is scarcely necessary for us to add any thing to what we have said in their favor in our reviews of former editions: the best evidence of their value is the fact, that the public have called

for the 12th edition. This we are glad to add, however, has been greatly improved, and new lists of flowers, fruits, and vegetables added, to bring them down to the latest date. Mr. Bridgman is indefatigable in his exertions in the cause of Horticulture; and it is gratifying to us to have an opportunity to commend the plain common sense, and practical work of the author, to all cultivators, and especially to those who wish for elementary information in the several departments of the gardening art.

ART. III. Experimental Researches on the Food of Animals, and the Fattening of Cattle, with Remarks on the Food of Man, based upon experiments undertaken by order of the British Government. By ROBERT DUNDAS THOMPSON, M. D., Lecturer in Practical Chemistry, University of Glasgow. From the last London edition. 1 vol. 12mo. pp. 172. New York. 1846.

THIS is the title of a very useful work, which should be in the hands of every individual interested in the breeding of stock, and, indeed, we might say, in the hands of every one desirous of obtaining a physiological and chemical knowledge of animal diet. It is the result of an extensive series of experiments undertaken at the instance of the British Government, the original object of inquiry having been to determine the relative value of barley and malt in feeding cattle.

The volume is neatly republished, and we commend it to the notice of all who are interested in the health and comfort of mankind.

ART. IV. Chemical Essays relating to Agriculture. By E. N. HORSFORD, A. M. Pamphlet, 12mo. pp. 68. Boston. 1846.

SINCE the publication of Liebig's valuable works, there have been several contributions to the chemistry of agriculture,

and, of the more recent ones, the essays which are now under notice. The pamphlet is an analysis of the grains and vegetables, distinguishing the nitrogenous from the non-nitrogenous substances, for the purpose of estimating their separate value for nutrition. It concludes with a letter to Prof. Webster, on the action and ingredients of manures.

Mr. Horsford has lately completed his studies in Geissen with Dr. Liebig, and has quite recently been elected Rumford Professor in Harvard University; and we are gratified to learn that the services of one whose studies are so intimately connected with the progress of our agriculture have been selected. The work should be in the hands of every intelligent agriculturist.

ART. V. The Hasty Pudding; a Poem in three Cantos, written at Chancery, in Savoy, January, 1793. By JOEL BARLOW, Minister Plenipotentiary to France. With a Memoir on Maize, or Indian Corn. Compiled by D. J. Browne, under the direction of the American Institute. Pamphlet. 12mo. pp. 56. New York. 1846.

AN amusing poem in flowing rhyme, depicting the delicious qualities of hasty pudding,-a favorite dish with the author, but not to be procured either in London or Paris, at the time it was written. To this poem, Mr. Browne has added a complete history of the Indian corn, in which he asserts and proves its American origin. Brief descriptions of all the principal varieties are given, and the pamphlet concludes with a great number of recipes for cooking it, in various ways, either green or dry.

ART. VI.

The Rural Register and Almanac for 1847. Pamphlet. 12mo. pp. 143. Philadelphia, 1847.

A gardening almanac upon a new plan, in which, besides the usual calendarial information of the weather, upwards of