158 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ March 3, 1870. 



cut into three pieces when the cobs are so large. It certainly 

 requires some skill to detach the grains neatly with the silver 

 instrumentH iu use; the popular hut ungenteel way being to 

 eat them off the cobs when these are cut into small pieces. 

 This plan will be always ia vogue with children, and is not. to be 

 despised. The flavour is between that of Asparagus and Peas, 

 with a dash of corn, and considering that these general fa- 

 vourites are past in the autumn, it is no small advantage to 

 reproduce them. As to the nutritious qualities, the comparison 

 remains in favour of Maize, which, indeed, is unsurpassed in 

 its way, and constitutes the food of millions of people as well 

 in the green state as when dried. 



The plants when petted as a row of Hollyhocks would be, 

 are very handsome and fine-foliaged. — T. C. Biiilhaut. 



CONIFERS REPLACING THEIR LEADERS. 



In a late number " C. W. D." mentioned some small Spruce 

 Firs having formed fresh leaders after beheading, and inquired 

 if such an occurrence is common with Conifers of other kinds. 

 For his information and that of others, I may state that some 

 members of this great family appear to submit to partial cut- 

 ting down almost as well as deciduous trees. Certainly none 

 of them will hoar completely cutting off at the collar, but many 

 appear to form fresh leaders of as upright and symmetrical a 

 growth as deciduous trees do under similar circumstances. 

 There is, however, much difference in this respect, the worst 

 sufferers being the cla9s of which the Scotch Fir may be regarded 

 as the type. This includes Pinus insignis, austriaca, ponde- 

 rosa, Ceinbra, and others ; while the Thujas, Biotas, and some 

 of the Cupressuses form fresh leaders with more or less rapidity 

 according to the condition of their health and other circum- 

 stances. Perhaps the be3t of all in this respect is the Welling- 

 tonia, which almost equals deciduous trees in forming fresh 

 branches and leaders, when the situation it is growing in is fa- 

 vourable to its doing so. Some years ago one of the best speci- 

 mens we had, by some means which I could not exactly make 

 out, though I blamed the squirrels for the mischief, had its leader 

 cut off early in summer, 8 or 10 inches being nipped clean off. 

 This, I believe, was in 1801, and the habit and accommodating 

 character of the tree not being so well known then as now, I 

 naturally feared that two or three years' growth might be lost. 

 This, however, was not the case, for the plant speedily formed 

 a fresh upright shoot, and, long before the season was at an 

 end, it was impossible to discover where its former leader had 

 been cut. The same thing happened again two years later 

 with the same result, and in neither instance was anything 

 done with a view to train up a leader from a tide shoot. Still 

 more remarkable instances of this tree acommodaiiug itself to 

 circumstances have come under my notice, for iii the winter of 

 1865-00 we planted out a number of trees of this species that 

 had been standing two years iu a nursery bed, and were from 

 3 to 5 feet high; these, although well rooted, and token up and 

 replanted with care, did not, as a rule, succeed well. Some of 

 them grew without showing a check, while a few died entirely, 

 and a good many died down more or less, some only showing 

 life in a few of their bottom branches ; in fact, the centre stem, 

 with all its branches, died down to within :) or 4 inches of the 

 ground. Being anxious to see the result of this, I left many 

 of them untouched, and their appearance was anything but 

 prepossessing duiiug the whole of the summer of 1800, but 

 towards the autumn I observed indications of fresh shoots 

 from the collar, and the next season three shoots pushed 

 up amongst the dead branches. As I had made up my mind 

 to act on the principle of "non-intervention,"! did not re- 

 move their branches, except in one or two cases, and never 

 tied up nor attempted to train a leader in any shape or way 

 whatever, and the whole of the trees so treated present now as 

 uniform and symmetrical an appearance as on be desired ; 

 moreover, as there were twenty or more of this class, it was not 

 a solitary case. Some of those which did not die down so low 

 as those above described, recovered iu like manner. 



Turning to other Conifers, I may observe that many trees of 

 this class that are liable to lose their leaders, are difficult to 

 coax into the condition of remaking one. Among these are the 

 family of Picea — the Silver Fir itself not being very ready to 

 do so. Generally when it does, several rivals of equal vigour 

 appear, and two or three tops are not uncommon, the con- 

 trolling influences of this tree to limit its leaders to one not 

 being 60 great as in the Welliugtonia, neither is its power of 

 forming one so perfect, as we often enough see young plants 



for years at a standstill, with no leader whatever. This is 

 especially the case with young plants of Picea Pinsapo, and 

 some plants of Y. cephalonica are not much better; but it 

 often happens that a plant after remaining three or four years 

 in a stationary condition will suddenly make a rapid growth, 

 and continue that growth for years if the situation and other 

 circumstances be favourable to its doing so. One of the most 

 remarkable instances of this kind we have here occurred some 

 years ago. A tree of Picea nobilis, which I believe was planted 

 about 1845, lost its leader two or three years afterwards, or 

 failed to form a perfect bud to furnish one, and for eight or 

 nine years this tree resembled a low spreading shrub, not 

 more than '.i feet high. Eventually, however, two leaders were 

 formed, and as there was some uncertainty whether a like 

 misfortune might not befall the tree again, both were left 

 to grow for two years, when the taller of the two was ascer- 

 tained to have made a growth of a little over 8 feet, the other 

 only an inch or two less — tolerably good work, it may be said, 

 for two years ; and this growth, I may remark, was not without 

 side branches. Oae of these leaders was subsequently re- 

 moved, and the growth has continued to be almost equally 

 rapid ever since, the tree being now upwards of HO feet high, 

 and, doubtless, would have been more, only the last three or 

 four years it has borne heavy crops of fruit. The growth, I 

 may add, is as symmetrical as it is possible to be, the leader 

 being as upright as a flagstaff, and although not so densely 

 clothed with branches as some other trees, they are by no 

 means thin. 



I will now mention, among other instances of Conifers pro- 

 ducing leading shoots without the artificial aid ..f tying up a 

 branch to make one, Taxodinm sempervirens, which, however, 

 like the Picea nobilis, has a tendency to produce several heads 

 when only one is wanted ; but of course these can easily be 

 reduced in number. 1 may here observe that the plan I have 

 adopted with the young shoots of this plant and that of some 

 Thujas and Cupressnses, where there is a greater number than 

 is wanted, is to tie a string tu the tips of those not wanted, bend 

 them downwards, and tie it to the stem lower down or to some of 

 the branches. Such treatment converts a leader into a branch, 

 without the hurtful operation of cutting, and it is easy to see 

 how all the tiibe of Arbor- Vitro mny be treated in this way. 



I cannot close this article without detailing another case, 

 perhaps more remarkable than any of the above, where a 

 Conifer was induced to form a fresh leader under treatment 

 different from that to which such trees are usually subjected. 

 In the conservatory here a fine Araucaria excelsa occupies a 

 central position, and is about 25 feet high, with a uniform 

 spread of branches 18 or 19 feet iu diameter. The growth of 

 this tree of late yenrs being more rapid than was required, 

 especially during 1808, towards the autumn of that year I cut 

 off about 18 inches from its leader, and was agreeably surprised 

 to find that last year it furnished another as upright and 

 symmetrical as before, and with a line tier of branches in the 

 usual whorl fashion of rive branches. I may add that last year 

 the upright growth was scarcely less than in the preceding 

 year, notwithstanding the check it must have received at start- 

 ing; but as greater height is not desirable, we have subjected 

 the tree to further amputation to the extent of a foot, and I 

 hope a similar result will follow. I wish the same check could 

 be given to the growth of the tree in a lateral direction, but I 

 fear that to shorten its branches would destroy that beauty of 

 form for which the tree is admired. — J. Robson. 



THE ROYAL ASHLEAF POTATO. 

 I believe I was one of the first favoured few to receive the 

 Royal Ashleaf Potato after it came into Mr. Eivers's hands. 

 Mr. Rivers in a letter informed me of its private history, - and 

 not long afterwards the Rev. W. F. Kadclyffe did me the same 

 act of kindness. James Ashwin, Esq.. of Bretfortou Hall, near 

 Evesham, had not then been long dead ; and delicacy in conse- 

 quence of what Mr. Rivers wrote always prevented me mention- 

 ing otherwise than privately the true name of the raiser of the 

 Royal Ashleaf. The very first person to whom I sent the 

 Potato in the spring of 1803, along with other sorts for her to 

 grow for distribution amongst her cottage parishioners, at 

 Wotton - under - Edge, Gloucestershire, was the late Lady 

 Georgiana Oakley, and soon after that I sent it to a gentleman 

 at Bath. In one sentence:— to whomsoever I have privately 

 presented the sort, I believe I have always told its private 

 origin up to this day. Once more, I am happy to find that Mr. 



