3G8 



THE GARDENER'S Mo ST II LY 



\ December, 



until it is thoroughly dry. Be careful it does not 

 licat. "When Sumac is properly cured it is of a 

 bright groon color.' 



The editor of the Shoe and Leather Reporter, 

 New York, writes as follows : ' The leaf and leaf 

 stems only are used, and all large stems should he 

 thrown out, as only the leaf stem has any tanning 

 strength. It should be gathered in this way; 

 Break oft' the parts of the bush containing the 

 leaves, but do not gather the blossoms or berries. 

 Some gatherers allow the Sumac to wilt a few 

 hours in the sun, while others convey it immedi- 

 ately into the shade or under cover. Cure it 

 under shelter, to preserve its color and strength. 

 When dried, by spreading out, it should be 

 thrashed with a tlail, when the leaves and stems 

 will break up fine, and all the large stems should 

 be raked out. As to the use of and demand for 

 the article, we can only say that it has been a 

 staple product for the past ten years, the prices 

 varying with the amount of production and the 

 quotations for Sicily Sumac, with which it is 



always a competitor to some extent, although it 

 brings usually only about three-<iuarter8 the price 

 of the latter. T^arge quantities of Sumac are 

 used in Lvnn, Mass.' " 



SC/<.U\S .L\7) (H'liRIES. 



The Si'ECiosA Cat.\lpa.— E. J. M., Egg 

 Harbor City, N. J., writes : "I see you think the 

 so-called new Catalpa of the west is different from 

 the eastern one, because the seed vessels are so 

 much larger. Please tell us whether that Spe- 

 ciosa will beat the one I enclose, which is our 

 common kind here." 



[The seed vessel is twenty inches long — still 

 wanting three inches in length of a specimen 

 sent us by Mr. Douglas, of what they call their 

 new variety. Xew Jersey must try again. Still 

 it shows well for the little sand-bank State. — Ed. 

 G. M.] 



Natural History and Science. 



COMMUNICA TIONS. 



CARNIVOROUS PLANTS. 



BY PETER HENDERSON, JERSEY CITY HEIGHTS, 

 NEW JERSEY. 



'■^Carnivorous Plants. — Mr. Francis Darwin has 

 proved very conclusively the truth of his father, 

 Charles Darwin's position, that the so-called 

 carnivorous plants do make use as food of the 

 plants they catch. A large number of plants 

 were fed on meat, and as many on what they 

 could get from the earth as best they could, and 

 the ditference in growth and final product were 

 very much in favor of the meat-fed plants." 



The above I cut from a contemporary Journal. 

 Resolving to fairly test the correctness of Mr. 

 Darwin's theory, I last season procured in 

 March, from Keenansville, North Carolina, a 

 large number of Dioncea muscipula (Carolina 

 Fly-trap). The plaHts arrived in fine condition, 



and I resolved to test fairly, on a large scale, 

 the correctness of Mr. Darwin's conclusions. 

 Selecting from the lot two hundred of the strong- 

 est plants, I thoroughly rinsed them again and 

 again in water, so that every particle of soil and 

 all other matter foreign to the plants was re- 

 moved. I then procured two boxes, three feet 

 by three feet, and three inches deep; these were 

 filled with Moss (Sphagnum) and sand mixed, in 

 about the proportion of four parts Moss to one 

 of sand, forming a soil somewhat similiar to 

 that wliich they had been growing in naturally ; 

 this compost had been also subjected to the rins- 

 sing process so as to clear it from impurities. 

 One hundred of the Fly-traps were planted in 

 each box, the plants selected being as nearly 

 alike as possible. After planting, the boxes 

 were each copiously watered with pure water and 

 placed in a cool and partially shaded green- 

 house. One box was covered with a wire net- 

 ting, as fine as could be procured, so as to 



