The plant of which the illustration is given is one of those fine specimens which has made the collection of J. Lawless, Esq., The Cottage, Exeter, famous all over the south and west of England. It is only one specimen among a considerable collection of hard-wooded plants which are cultivated and trained in first rate style by Mr. George Cole, the gardener, one of the most successful plant growers of the day. The plant was in the winning collection of Mr. Cole exhibited at the late spring show held at Plymouth.--_The Gardeners' Chronicle_. [Illustration: ERICA CAVENDISHIANA.] * * * * * PHILESIA BUXIFOLIA. We figure this plant, not as a novelty, but for the purpose of showing what a fine thing it is when grown under propitious circumstances. Generally, we see it more or less starved in the greenhouse, and even when planted out in the winter garden its flowers lack the size and richness of color they attain out-of-doors. It comes from the extreme south of South America, which accounts for its hardihood, and is a near ally of the Lapageria: the latter is remarkable for withstanding even the noxious fumes of the copper smelting works in Chili, and as the Philesia has similar tough leaves, it is probable that it would support the vitiated atmosphere of a town better than most evergreens. In any case, there is no reasonable doubt but that, if cultivators would take the necessary pains, they might select perfectly hardy varieties both of the Lapageria and of the Philesia. As it is, we can only call the Philesea half-hardy north of the Thames, while the Lapageria is not even that. The curious Philageria, raised in Messrs. Veitch's nursery and described and figured in our columns in 1872, p. 358, is a hybrid raised between the two genera. For the specimen of Philesia figured we are indebted to Mr. Dartnall.--_The Gardeners' Chronicle_. [Illustration: PHILESIA BUXIFOLIA--HARDY SHRUB--FLOWERS, ROSE PINK.] * * * * * MAHOGANY.