Horticulture Has Been Attended In Some Places With Tolerable Success.
At Rose Hill I Have Seen Gardens Which, Without The
Assistance of manure,
have continued for a short time to produce well grown vegetables.
But at Sydney, without constantly dressing
The ground, it was in vain
to expect them; and with it a supply of common vegetables might be procured
by diligence in all seasons. Vines of every sort seem to flourish.
Melons, cucumbers and pumpkins run with unbounded luxuriancy,
and I am convinced that the grapes of New South Wales will, in a few years,
equal those of any other country. 'That their juice will probably
hereafter furnish an indispensable article of luxury at European tables',
has already been predicted in the vehemence of speculation. Other fruits
are yet in their infancy; but oranges, lemons and figs, (of which last
indeed I have eaten very good ones) will, I dare believe, in a few years
become plentiful. Apples and the fruits of colder climes also promise
to gratify expectation. The banana-tree has been introduced
from Norfolk Island, where it grows spontaneously.
Nor will this surprise, if the genial influence of the climate be considered.
Placed in a latitude where the beams of the sun in the dreariest season
are sufficiently powerful for many hours of the day to dispense warmth
and nutrition, the progress of vegetation never is at a stand.
The different temperatures of Rose Hill and Sydney in winter, though only
twelve miles apart, afford, however, curious matter of speculation.
Of a well attested instance of ice being seen at the latter place,
I never heard.
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