To William McCrea   16 August 1884

16/8/84

It seems to me best, dear Dr M'Crea, to send you in first instance a copy of my volume on "select plants",¹ which little book I beg you to accept as a private gift for your own library from me. You will see at page 370 the genera mentioned of such plants, as will consolidate loose coast-sands.² To facilitate your selecting the best plants, available here, I draw your attention to Elymus arenarius, which Dr Williams raised at Queenscliff from seeds supplied by me. From the Lighthouse ground doubtless now roots and seeds could locally be supplied, without resorting anew to the introduction of seeds. Then I would advise, to get the so-called Buffalo-Grass, Stenotaphrum Americanum, which I introduced in 1858, and which is now in vast quantity available from numerous lawns, garden-edgings &c almost anywhere. This grass should be planted from rooted shoots. The Cynodon Dactylon could also readily be obtained from nurserymen at a cheap rate, either in seeds or in cut rooted shoots; but the sowing should be effected before hot weather sets in. If seeds of Agrostis alba var. Stolonifera can be obtained from the seedsmen, a good help would be gained in your operation, so far as grasses can be chosen for it, though any other quick growing and vigorous grass might also be tried;— and so is it with a variety of herbs mentioned by me under the generic headings. Cuttings of Tamarix, Poplars, Willows, Buddleyas,³ all cheaply and easily to be got, should be stuck in before the season advances too far. On ground, where the soil is not altogether loose and quite sandy the seeds of the Seacoast-Pines, reared on the European coasts, namely Pinus Haleppensis⁴ and Pinus Pinaster should be sown,⁵ the seeds being now inexpensively got from the thousands of trees now abounding around Melbourne much through my early action. other Pines, mentioned in my work would be available, but their seeds would be far more expensive — Your success will however much depend in this first trial on the operations being entrusted to an experienced and zealous gardener. Indeed it would be recommendable, that such an artisan should be purposely engaged, to carry out not only the operations indicated, but also to watch over the plantations, collect the seeds of the "Sandstay" Bush, Leptospermum laevigatum and others of the best of our native Sandcoast-plants, and to transfer them also in the cool season as seedlings to the bare ground. Furze-seeds and lots of others could be then also at spare time collected in masses, so the seeds of the Golden Wattle, Acacia Pycnantha, which will succeed on sandy coast. The Melaleuca parviflora occurs still in vast numbers near Queenscliff; and it will live where the ground becomes too loose and shifting for the Wattle. The growth of what was sown this spring or planted then would show next autumn, which particular plants should receive preference on a large scale next season, irrespective of additional trials then.

Regardfully your

Ferd. von Mueller

Acacia Pycnantha

Agrostis alba var. Stolonifera

Buddleya

Cynodon Dactylon

Elymus arenarius

Leptospermum laevigatum

Melaleuca parviflora

Pinus Haleppensis

Pinus Pinaster

Stenotaphrum Americanum

Tamarix