i88s.] 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



117 



who had experience in hybridizing knew how 

 variable were the results, even from the seed of a 

 single flower. Parkman had obtained in lilies 

 seedlings so exactly like the female parent, that 

 only for the remarkable form from the same seed 

 vessel known as Lilium Parkmani, it might have 

 been doubted if some mistake as to the use of for- 

 eign pollen had not been made. If so little influ- 

 ence could occasionally be found at a remote end 

 of the line, we may reasonably look for an imme- 

 diate influence at the nearer end in some excep- 

 tional cases. But there appeared to be no care- 

 fully conducted experiments on corn recorded 

 anywhere, though the belief in the immediate in- 

 fluence of strange pollen is a reasonable one, so 

 far as general observation goes. It seemed, how- 

 ever, to him, with the specimen of innate variation 

 in corn before us, more careful experiments with 

 corn and other things are desirable. 



Flowering of Brownea grandiceps. — Peo- 

 ple go in crowds to see the Victoria lily, and it is 

 a flower well worthy of a rush to see ; but a much 

 rarer beauty is the Brownea grandiceps, which at 

 this writing (March 9) is showing flower buds in 

 the Fairmount Park conservatory, Philadelphia. 

 Those who want to see a rare and beautiful flower 

 should not miss the opportunity to see it. It is of 

 the pea-shaped or leguminose lamily, crimson we 

 believe, with bunches similar to a Wistaria. 



Influence of the Graft on the Stock. — 

 Among the strongest arguments in favor of the idea 

 that the graft has an influence on the stock is the 

 experienceof nurserymen with apple trees. It is well 

 known that nurserymen can tell a variety by the 

 root. A row of Maiden Blush apples when dug up, 

 presents a very different appearance to a row of 

 Fallawater roots. It was supposed that the graft 

 gave its own character to the root on which it was 

 grafted, and this has been accepted as an undoubted 

 fact. Now comes Mr. Eli Meech, of Shiloh, New 

 Jersey, and tells the Farmer and Gardener that the 

 reason for the difference in the roots is that the grafts 

 send out roots of their own. Now we confess that 

 this is much more reasonable than the older guess; 

 and until we get more evidence are inclined to 

 believe that Mr. Meech has the best of the argu- 

 ment. 



SCRAPS AND QUERIES. 



Yellow Berried Myrtle Holly. — A Wil- 

 mington, N. C, correspondent says; "I send 

 you by this mail a fruiting specimen of Ilex myrti- 



folia with yellow berries. The small tree I have 

 removed to my yard to be able to examine it in 

 flower. All the berries on the tree are yellow, and 

 there is no evidence of red berries except around 

 a few small insect wounds I saw on two or three 

 of them. I thought you would be interested in 

 the first find of a yellow holly." 



[This is the first instance of yellow berries we 

 have had before us of a yellow berried form, in 

 this pretty species of holly. The English holly 

 has yellow berried varieties. — Ed. G. M.] 



Heteromeles arbutifolia. — "Miss Helen 

 C," Benardo, San Diego co., CaL, writes : " With 

 this I mail you a bunch of berries that I picked 

 from one of the many bushes that cover the hills 

 here, and wish you would tell me through the Gar- 

 deners' Monthly what it is." 



[This may be called an evergreen Hawthorn, 

 and was known to the old botanists as Crataegus 

 arbutifolia — the last name from the leaves resem- 

 bling the strawberry tree, or Arbutus Unedo of 

 English gardens. It has also been called Photinia 

 arbutifolia. The name now in use by botanists is 

 Heteromeles arbutifolia. The native name of the 

 California Indians is Tollon. On a journey 

 from Mariposa to Calaveras the fragrance of the 

 white flowers reminded the writer of the sweet 

 Hawthorn hedges of the Old Worid Ed. G. M.] 



Cypripedium insigne with Two Flowers.-^- 

 Mr. John F. Clark, Maud P. C, Pa., sends us a 

 specimen of this orchid with two flowers. They are 

 not twins, but the plant, usually with one flower, 

 has attempted to make a spike. It will be very 

 interesting to botanists as showing that the one- 

 flowered orchids were designed to be spicate, but 

 by some law of arrested development, have not 

 the power in these days to do so. They may in 

 the future, or have had the power in the past. 



A Large Puff Ball This fungus grows to 



an enormous size sometimes — that is, the species 

 known as Lycoperdon giganteum. Prof. R. C. 

 Call found one in 1877 in Herkimer county. New 

 York, 5 feet 4 inches across in its largest diameter. 

 As stated in the Gardeners' Monthly some 

 years ago, when taken young, cut into slices and 

 fried in butter with a little pepper and salt, the 

 puff ball is one of the most delicious vegetables 

 known. 



Diseased Roses. — " F. G. K.," Ottawa, Ills.: 

 Your rose roots are covered with the galls of the 

 root aphis. The branches injured no doubt 

 suffer from the weakened vital power through the 

 trouble at the roots. 



