340 



DOMESTIC NOTICES, 



the city gas-works, unless thoy know it to be :i wrak 

 solution^ II they have any ili)ul>l8 about it, the 

 safest ruurso is to ililutc it witb one-half milk be- 

 fore a])|ilyingf it to the trees. 



If any of our readers have already used coal-tar 

 on tlieir trees, wliioh tliey have reason to fear 

 may be of the powerful kind alluded to, we would 

 advise iheni to remove the same thoroughly fioni 

 the trees \\ith soap ami a hard brush, as soon as the 

 spring oitens, anl before the sap begins to move. 

 It will not be likely to prove injurious so long as 

 the tree is in a dormant slate. 



Peach Stonks from China. — We are indebted 

 to the kindness ofC. N. Talbot, Esq. of New- York, 

 foi- a glass jar of peach-stones, just received by 

 him from China, and which aj)i)ear to be in excel- 

 lent order. They are much smaller than those of 

 our finest peaches; and since small size of the pit 

 usually ileiioles large and succulent flesli, we trust 

 these Chinese seeds may produce some new and 

 valuable varieties. We shall give them every ad- 

 vantage of soil and situation. 



To HOLD UP EMBANKMKNTS OR SLIDING BANKS 



Dear Sir: On the borders of my estate, I have a 

 long ridge of shiftinjf sand bank, continually caving 

 awaj', being at once unsightly, and visibly lessen- 

 ing my ''area of freedom." Can you inform me 

 how I can guard against this mischief, by using 

 any sort of tree or plant ? If so, you will really 

 much oblige, Jin Admirer of your Journal. JS'ew- 

 y^ork, Dec. 16. 



Answkr. — Abroad, the Balaam Poplar, or the 

 Jialm of Gilead Poplar, are, we learn, used with 

 excellent success for lixing and hohling up sliding 

 banks. Cuttings of the young wood, two or three 

 feet long, are struck all over the surface of the bank, 

 a couple of feet apart. This is done in the month 

 of April, and these cuttings soon strike root, and 

 their roots form a thick mass that holds the soil 

 firmly in its place. Their close proximity dwarfs 

 the growth, so that they become bushes rather than 

 trees. We recommend this course to our corres- 

 pondent. These two kinds of Poplar are common 

 in this neighborhooil, and in many jiarts of the 

 Union abound plentifully. Ed. 



Protecting Peach Trees against Frost. — 

 In many districts of the country, where the Peach 

 thrives well, the crop is very uncertain, because 

 the blossoms are frequently ilestroyed by spring 

 frosts. On that part of the Hudson, where we live 

 and on the lake shores, injurious effects of late 

 frosts are pre\ented by the ameliorating inllucnce 

 of the water. Rut in the interior, it is a question 

 of very serious importance, how, if possible, to 

 prevent this mischief, by which the fine promise of 

 whole orchards of blossoms is destroj^ed in a single 

 night. 



Various modes have been tried. The most suc- 

 cessful one, so far as we learn, is to retard the move- 

 ment of the sap in the tree, and thereliy, of course, 

 tne expansion of the blossom-buds, bj' heaping a 

 large quantity of snow around the tree in winter, and 

 covering the same with straw. By this means, the 

 ground continues in a frozen state, and the tree 



dormant, so long that, when its blossoms do ex- 

 pand, the season of frosts is gone by, and all dan- 

 ger is over. 



We desire to call the attention of our obliging 

 correspondents in the interior tr) this fact, now, as 

 we are ilcsirous of obtaining from them the result 

 of their experiments or obser\ations on this inter- 

 esting subject, which, with their i)erinission, we 

 will gladly lay before the readers of this journal. 



Salt atplied to Celery. — Sir: I perceive you 

 and your corresi)ondentH advocate the use of salt. 

 Applied in verj' moderate quantities, it is one of 

 the best substances that can be used, especially in 

 old gardens, long cultivated. 



Salt has for a long time been ajiplicd to aspara- 

 gus beds; the asjjaragus being a sea-beach plant, it 

 is known to thrive wonderfully ujion it. I write 

 you this note, however, to say that I have for two 

 years past used salt in growing Celery, with deci- 

 ded benefit. I apjily a slight sprinkling of salt 

 upon the top of the soil just before each earthing- 

 up, while the blanching is going on. I have dug 

 my crop of Celery, so treated, this fall, with great 

 satisfaction, it being twice as large as that in my 

 neighbor's garden adjoining, which is treated just 

 in the same way, except the use of the salt. — 

 Yours, &c. J. S. Philadelphia, Dec 5, 1846. 



Covering half-hardy Plants. — Please to in- 

 form me how shall I best cover half-hardy plants. 

 Last winter I had some favorite climbing roses, 

 too tender for out* climate, bound up nicely with 

 straw — the straw tied thickly and closely about the 

 stems. When it was taken off in the spring, the 

 wood looked fresh and healthy, but gi-adually it 

 all died off. A hint regarding this, would oblige, 

 A Lady Reader. Albany, Nov. 24, 1846. 



[The straw was no iloubt bound too tightly 

 round the stems, which after being closely shut up 

 from the air and light for several months, suffered 

 on being exposed all at once in spring. Straw or 

 matting, when used for covering tender plants, 

 should be placed rather loosely about them, so as 

 not to exclutle entirely the air or light. It must 

 be borne in mind that, in covering plants in win- 

 ter, the object is not to make them warmer by 

 shelter — for during a period of continued cold the 

 temperature of all cxjjosed objects is nearly the 

 same — but to shade them from the sun, and pre- 

 vent that nudden freezing s^nA thawin'j;, which des- 

 troy all half-hardy plants by bursting their sap- 

 vessels. — Ed. 



Blossoming of Fruit Trees. — We are indebt- 

 ed to Dr. Barrait, of Middletown, Conn., for an 

 interesting little pamphlet, of which he is the 

 author, entitled, " Report on the season of 1846, 

 with a table showing the floivering of Frvit-trees ; 

 also tables of late spring and early fnl' frosts, and 

 observations on the cultivation of the Gooseberry, 

 <^c." Dr. Barratt has noted the weather for sev- 

 eral years in connexion with its effects upon vege- 

 tation. What especially attracted our attention 

 in this pamphlet, is a table of observations tend- 

 ing to prove the injurious effects of heavy rain oc- 

 cur ing during the blossoming of fruit-trees. The 



