[1880, 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



263 



the Garden of Plants in 1812 bj' Michaux, with 

 the remark that " this is true," but it was given 

 to Michaux by Leroy, who brought it to Paris in 

 his voyage of 1811. We must regard its origin 

 as still obscure, for we cannot think it referable 

 even as a variety to any known American 

 species. Among other things, Styrax laevigata, 

 Jeffersonia diphylla, Pyrus coronaria, Epigsea 

 repens, the Isabella grape " from Baltimore in 

 1838," many oaks, seem to have been the in- 

 troductions of Leroy to France. The Osage 

 orange was introduced by him through seeds 

 given to him by Captain Lewis, through an 

 "American botanist, McArran." McArran's 

 contemporary, McMahon, has hitherto, we be- 

 lieve, had the sole credit of distributing this 

 original seed. "Leroy cultivated the seeds in 

 the vicinity of Baltimore in 1815, and after being 

 satisfied that it was a new species he dedicated 

 it to his botanical friend Maclure." Fruit was 

 sent in 1820. In 1823 three seeds grew in Paris, 

 and in 1824 some grew in England. Thus credit 

 is claimed for France one year before England 

 in the introduction of the Osage orange. We 

 find also from this sketch that Michaux had the 

 double Chinese Wistaria in 1837, from a speci 

 men given him by Leroy on his return to France 

 in 1831, — so that this plant probably originated 

 in the hands of some florist on American soil. 

 By the aid of Victor Leroy, Michaux had an 

 American forest planted in the Bois de Bou- 

 logne. The biographer says in 1873, when he 

 commenced to make his notes, he visited the 

 forest, and found it nearly destroyed through the 

 German invasion of Paris. In the park of the 

 Chateau d'Harcourt, however, a young planta- 

 tion has been made. 



SCRAPS AND QUERIES. 



Landscape Gaedemng. — M. P. D , Zanesville, 

 Ohio, writes : — " As we subscribe to your val- 

 uable Gardener's Monthly and Horticultu- 

 rist through our news-dealer, we thought we 

 would address you about some books advertised 

 in the Monthly. 



Do you consider F. R. Elliott's Hand-book of 

 Practical Landscape Gardening complete and a 

 reliable work, or can you recommend a better 

 work on this suVyect ?" 



[For a cheap work Elliott's work is a very 

 good one. If one wants to go into the matter 



very intelligently Downing's Landscape Garden - 

 ing, or Scott's Suburban Home Grounds will be 

 very useful. Though an English work, Kemp's 

 "How to lay out a Garden," will well repay 

 perusal. — Ed. G. M.] 



Grass for Lawns. — M. P. D., Zanesville, Ohio : 

 "What variety of grass seed would you use to 

 make a close, firm sod on lawns and small yards 

 in the city? By answering this question you 

 will confer a great ftivor." 



[For your section of fhe country you will need 

 nothing better than simply Kentucky Blue 

 Grass — Poa pratensis. — Ed.] 



AiMPELOPSis Veitchii. — A , Geneva, N. Y.^ 

 writes: "We wish to call your attention to what 

 seems a great injury to the Ampelop.sis Veitchii. 

 On the residence of George S. Conover, Esq., is 

 one of the largest plants in the State. It covers 

 the south, east and north side of his brick house, 

 with its fine clinging tendrils, covered with the 

 small leaves peculiar to the young growth and 

 the large branches covered (interspersed) with 

 its larger leaves and longer stems. 



The vine at its ends last winter on the south 

 side was winter killed two to four feet from the 

 ends. But the free growth of an established 

 plant soon overcomes the slight winter killing. 

 Recently, on all sides of the house, many 

 branches of this fine plant have died — the wood 

 dies and the leaves wilt. It seems like blight. 

 Has any one seen the same, and is it going to 

 condemn this varietj' ? The same thing has not 

 appeared on .three or four year plants." 



[The excessively warm days, and sudden low 

 temperature of last November, injured many 

 very hardy things last winter, Ampelopsis 

 Veitchii among the rest. The conditions were 

 so extraordinary that we may not look for an 

 early repetition of the injuiy. The other is a 

 more serious matter. It is the first instance of 

 the kind that we have heard of. If allied to the 

 fire blight in the pear, it can be readily ascer- 

 tained by examination. In the fire blight, the 

 fungus which causes the disease does not occupy 

 more than an inch or two of space, and its work 

 can be readily traced at the base of the dead 

 branch. There where the bark and wood is ac- 

 tually killed by the fungus it is dark and dry; 

 above the fungus-girdled spot the wood dies 

 rather for want of moisture, and is of a greenish 

 brown. An examination of the Ampelopsis will 

 show how it is. — Ed. G. M.] 



