No. T
18
1906
HONGKONG..
REPORT ON THE BOTANICAL AND FORESTRY DEPARTMENT, FOR THE YEAR 1905.
Laid before the Legislative Council by Command of
His Excellency the Governor.
GARDENS AND GROUNDS.
Botanic Gardens.-The year was, comparatively speaking, free from serious damage done by typhoons. In August a few trees were blown down and a number of rose bushes destroyed which have now been replaced. During the typhoon season much time was taken up by the staff in making preparations to minimise damage as much as possible. Often the work, such as the moving of pot plants into sheltered positions, proved unnecessary, but it is more economical to move thein ten times than to leave them once and have them blown to pieces. It is hoped, however, that when the office is connected with the telephone system a lot of this work will be unnecessary. The rainfall is tabulated in Table I.
Minor repairs have been done to both sand and concrete walks. Many of the Bamboos forming the roofs of the plant-houses have had to be renewed. These were originally fixed from six to eight years ago. The plant-houses in the Pot Nursery underwent considerable repairs, the wood work in many places having become rotten.
A great feature at the fountain last Summer was the splendid show of Eichhornia speciosa when in flower. This plant was only introduced 3 years ago by Lady BLAKE but it is now to be found in gardens all over the Colony. An interesting conifer in the New Garden bas recently flowered for the first time. This is, bocedrus macrolepis, the seed of which was sown in December, 1900, having been presented to the Gardens by Messrs J. Veitch & Sons' collector, who found it in Yunnan. The tree is now about 8 feet high. Other young trees raised from the same seed and planted in Mountain Lodge Grounds have long since been blown to pieces. One of the most interesting flowering trees in the Gardens is an unnamed Bauhinia growing near the deer pen in the New Garden. The original, tree from which it sprang is still growing on the hillside at Pokfulam close to the remains of an old house, by the tenants of which it had presumably been introduced from abroad. So far as we have been able to ascertain it is unmatched in the Kew Herbarium. It comes into flower in September and remains in good condition for nearly five months.
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In September bulbs of Allium neapolitanum were received from Mr. W. H. WALLACE, Amoy, some of which were planted in pots in the Gardens and the remainder in the rockery at Mountain Lodge. A few of those at the Peak flowered splendidly but those down below absolutely refused to grow. At Amoy these and many other bulbs do remarkably well, but, from some cause or other which it is difficult to fathom, it is impossible to grow them in Hongkong.
The chief recipients of plants and seeds were :-
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Arnold Arboretum (Boston); Assistant Superintendent, Victoria Gaol; Messrs. BARR & SONS (London); Botanic Gardens of Calcutta, Kew, Natal and Singapore; Messrs. BUTTERFIED & SWIRE; Captain Superintendent of Police; Civil Service Club; Dr. CLARKE; Colonel BIRDWOOD (Tonbridge); Mr. R. H. C. CRAWFORD (Nassau); Forestry Bureau (Manila); Miss F. GROTEFEND (Berlin Foundling House); Mr. T. HANMER; Major-General VILLIERS HATTON; Imperial Scientific College (Tokio); Miss JOHNSTONE ; His Honour J. H. STEWART LOCKHART (Wei-hai-wei); Miss J. MULLERY ;. Museum of Natural History (Paris); Police Recreation Club; Police Stations at Bay View, Ping Shan, Sheung Shui and Tai O; Parks and Open Spaces (Shanghai); Miss JOHANNE REINECKE; Southern California Acclimatizing Association; Mrs. SWAN; Messrs. TANG LING TONG and Mr. W. H. WALLACE (Amoy).