lO 



IRISH GARDENING 



JANUARY 



The Reader. 



Thk Laikst on Si'Kavim;. — Tlu- pivsiMii Ivcpoit' is 

 of a technical naluri', as it ilcals oiitiri'ly with tho 

 chemical nature anil physiological effects of copper 

 funfficides, haseil upon laboratory research and ex- 

 tensive trials at the experimental fruit j^rouiuls at 

 W'oburn. t'ompounds of copper still occupy the 

 premier position as effective funjficiiles at the disposal 

 of fruit jjrowers. As the authors point out. a fimj(^icide, 

 to be effective, must be soluble In w.itcr, cIm- it could 

 never succeed in 

 passinij throuifh the 

 vejfctable cell w.iU 

 and so reach the 

 livinif protoplasm of 

 either the root plant 

 or the att;ickinjr 

 fungfus. If the cop- 

 per preparation is 

 already soluble it is 

 too easily washeil 

 off with rain ; there- 

 fore, the most effec- 

 tive are those that 

 are insoluble when 

 applied and slowly 

 become soluble 

 throui^h the action 

 of atmospheric 

 moisture and car- 

 bonic acid gfas. 

 Copper sulphate 

 used alone is sol- 

 uble, but when made 

 up as in Bordeaux 

 mixture and copper 

 carbonate, or as in 

 Soda Bordeaux, we 

 get a practically in- 

 soluble material, 

 and hence increase 

 its value as a spra}-. 

 Bordeaux mixture, 

 as all practical meu 

 know, is made up 

 of copper sulphate 

 and lime. When 

 these two sub- 

 stances are broug-ht together in solution in water 

 certain complicated chemical actions take place 

 resulting in the formation of various new chemical 

 compounds, the characters of which depend upon 

 the relative proportions of the two substances 

 used. The art of making a high-grade fungicide 

 depends upon knowing the exact relative quantities 

 to use. as the more lime we use the greater is the 

 risk of forming copper compounds that will resist 

 conversion into soluble products through atmospheric 

 agency. A mixture containing what the authors be- 



lievi- lo he 1 1 

 lime, :inil kn 

 as follows : 



[ifoportioM of copper sulpli.ite ;ind 



I he W'obuiii Borileaux. is made up 



Or.lin^.rv ..r Wc.-.k 



N..riiK.I Itordcaux 



J O/. I oz. 



1 3 '2 pints 6^4 pints 



q>2 galls. g'/i galls. 



Copyright 



Lopper sulphate 

 Limi'-w.Ui'r 



W'.iter (soft) to make up to 

 It is claimed that Hoidi'aux uiade up according to this 

 formula has greater i-fliciency than the ordinary Bor- 

 deaux, greater by al least 1 j 10 1. The author's work- 

 ing in association uilli llu- lirni of Walter V'oss & Co., 

 Ltil., h.ivi- proiluced, and now place on the market 

 a i^ordeaux of simi- 

 lar efticiency to the 

 W'oburn formula, 

 Inil in the form of a 

 jiaste. which simply 

 rei|uires to be mixed 

 with water at the 

 rate of 15 lbs. to 100 

 gallons of soft water 

 to produce the high- 

 est grade fungicide, 

 and it is stated at a 

 cost considerably 

 below the cost of 

 the materials for a 

 similarly efficient 

 tiuantity of ordinary 

 Bordeaux mixture, 

 and without the 

 trouble of making it. 

 A considerable por- 

 tion of the report is 

 taken up in record- 

 ing experiments 

 upon the scorching 

 and f u n gi c i (.1 a I 

 actiiin of copper 

 compounds, and the 

 conclusion arrived 

 at is " that no direct 

 fungicidal action is 

 possible without the 

 risk, and, indeed, 

 almost the certainty 

 of some damage 

 to the plant." and 

 that, therefore, 

 scorching to some 

 spra}ing. 

 By W. D. Drury. 



Lav.\tera Splendens Rosea 



• Eleventh Report of the Woburn Experimental Fruit Farm. The 

 Duke of Bedford and Spencer U. Pickering. London: The Amalga- 

 mated Press, Ltd. 4s. 3d , post free. 



extent is a necessary evil 11 

 " PoHi LAR Bulb Culti re. " 

 London : L. Upcott Gill. Third edition revised and 

 enlarged. is. The subtitle of this attractive little 

 manual — a handy guide to the successful culture of 

 bulbous plants both in the open and under glass— indi- 

 cates its scope and character. It is essentially a hand- 

 book for amateurs, and any possessor of a small garden 

 wishful to know something about the kinds of bulbous 

 plants available for use in such gardens, as well as to 

 learn how to set about growing them, will find this little 

 work extremely useful and interesting. The plants are 

 arrranged alphabetically according to genera. The 

 book consists of 123 pages and contains 84 illustrations. 



