MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



)75 



stock in pots of fine Ceelar of Lebanon plants raised 

 from the seeds of Mr. Ash's fine tree in Westclies- 

 ter county — the finest in the country. Tliey are 

 about five or six \-ears old, and may easily be re- 

 moved to any part of the country. 



"Wounds in trees. — I have tried a great many 

 compositions and plasters for wounds made in prun- 

 ing, and I have found nothing equal to the exceed- 

 ingly nice and complete mixture recommended on 

 page 32 of your work on Fruits, as the Shellac com- 

 position. The great rapidity and ease with which 

 it is applied, are of themselves strong advantages. 

 But it is also inconspicuous, and occupies no space, 

 adheres firmly, and keeps out the air, while the mo- 

 ment that the lip of new bark is ready to close over 

 the wound, it finds no impediment, as it does in the 

 case of many of the old-fashioned plasters. All 

 farmers should have a bottle at hand at this season 

 of the year. Yours, truly. — X. Y. Z. Baltimore, 

 May. 



Iron for the Pear tree. — Dr. Thomas Close, 

 of Portchester, N. Y., sends us the following addi- 

 tional evidence of the good effects of iron, in a let- 

 ter received from him some time since : 



'' A friend of mine at Olney Park, near Philadel- 

 phia, writes m'e that he has greatly enlarged and 

 improved his Scckel pears by supplying the soil 

 pretty liberally with slag from the iron foundry. 

 My own observation leads me to believe that iron 

 is of great value in protecting the peach tree from 

 the yellows.''' 



Labels. — A word upon the subject of Labels for 

 trees and plants. We want something combining 

 the elements of convenience, durabUity and cheap- 

 ness. The result of my cogitations upon this mat- 

 ter, is as follows: 



1st. The material. Cut strips of Zinc, of an 



elongated triangular form, ten inches long, half an 

 inch wide at one end, and running to a point at the 

 other. 



2d. Mode of Fastening. About four inches from 

 the wide end of one of these strij)s, punch a hole. 

 Bend the pointed end over a twig of tiie tree, and 

 put it one-eighth of an inch through this hole, and 

 clinch it witli the fingers or a small pair of pincers. 

 3d. The Writing. The place for this is between 

 the wide end of the label and the hole for fastening 

 it. The ink to be used is made of — 



Verdigris, (powdered,) - - 2 parts. 



Sal Ammoniac, - - - 2 " 



Lamp Black, . . . . i " 



Water, 20 " 



Mix these ingredients in a mortar, using at first 

 only so much of the water as is sufficient for mixing 

 them, and add the remainder of it afterwards. The 

 ink should be put into a well corked bottle, and sha- 

 ken from time to time. In a few days it will be fit 

 for use. Any druggist or other person can prepare 

 it. When put away, let the bottle stand cork end 

 downward, to prevent the escape of the Ammonia, 

 and the ink may be kept for years ready for use. 

 Write with a cpiill pen. ^ 



It will sometimes hCT^ecessary to remove the label 

 from the twig upon which it is fixed to a smaller 

 one. This can easily be done without the aid of any 

 tool other than the fingers. 



Labels of the above description will last a man's 

 lifetime. But if you know anything better, ])lease 

 do not fail to give }'our readers the benefit of it. 

 As Horace says — (if you permit your correspon- 

 dents to show their Latin) — 



" Si quid iiovisu reclius istis, 



Candidus imperii : si iion, liis ulere mecum." 



I ought to add that nothing of the above is origin- 

 al with me, except the mode of fastening the labels. 

 Very respectfully, &c., Geo. Jaques. Worcester, 

 Mass., 1847. 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



April 17th, 1841.— President Wilder, in the Chair. 



A package of seed was presented to the Socieiy by Mrs. 

 Perriial, and it was 



Voted, That the thanks ot'the Society he presented to Mrs. 

 Percival, and that the seed be placed iu the hands of the So- 

 ciety's Professor of Botany. 



The scions received from A. H. Ernst, Esq.. of Cincinnati, 

 were distributed to the members of the Society. 



May 1st, 1847.— President Wilder in the Chair. 



E. M.Richards, for the committee appointed to fix the days 

 of the annual exliibition of the Society, reported, verbally, 

 that they had decided upon 'Wednesday, Thursday and P'ri- 

 day, the 22d, aid and 24th days of September, next, and it was 



VoterJ, That the report be accepted. 



The following genlleitien were elected Life Members of the 

 Society, viz : 



Jonathan Chapman, Chag. 11. Mills. A. W. Thaxter, Thomas 

 Lamb, J. Eliot Thayer, .T. W. Blodget, Lsnac Hahhiil, 

 Thomas P. dishing and Otis Everett, jr, Boston, Joseph Man- 

 ning, Medford. 



Fifteen gentlemen were elected subscription members. 



May IR/Zi, 1847.— President U ii.der, in tlie Chair. 



A communication was received from Prof Asa Gray, of 

 Cambridge, accompanied with a copy of his Chloris Borcali- 

 Americana, and also a copy of Mr. Ward's Treatise on the 

 " Growth of Plants, in closely elazcd cases," and it wiis 



Voted, That the thanks of this Society be presented to Prof. 

 Asa Gray, for his liberal donation, and that the corresponding 

 Secretary be recjuested to forward him a complimentury let- 

 ter. 



A letter was received from the Antiquarian Society of Wor- 

 cester, expres>ing their thanks for a copy of llie " Transac- 

 tions of the Society." 



A copy of the " Transactions of the Worcester County 

 Horticultural Society," was received from Geo. Jacques, 

 Esq., and it was 



Voted, That the thanks of the Society be presented lo Geo. 

 Jaques, Esq. 



Edward C. R. Walker, Kcc. Sec. 



