234 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GARDENEE. 



r September 19, 1865. 



scarcely have enougli of support for their stems ; from 3 to 

 4 inches would be better, in fine, deep-stirred, pulverised land. 

 The chief securities against mildew are deep stirring and rich 

 manuring, the manure being decomposed and sweet, and then 

 sowing some 3 or 4 inches deep in a trench, and the Peas, if in 

 a garden, may be gradually earthed-up a little for support. Our 

 own experience would say, that in general 8 inches would he 

 too deep. But for the deep stirring of the soil previously, we 

 have little doubt it would have been so in the case quoted. 

 The roots must have come up as well as gone down. It is 

 more natural for the Pea to send its roots at once in a down- 

 ward direction. We have traced them to a depth of 3 feet. 

 If the seeds had been sown in ploughed land, not deeper 

 ploughed than 8 inches, we would have expected the Peas to 

 have made jioor headway in the hard fare beneath them. — Ens.] 



THE ACTION OF METALLIC SALTS UrON THE 

 GKOWTH OF PLANTS. 



Sever.il years ago, when I was assistant to Professor Hors- 

 ford, the Professor of Chemistry in Harvard University, he 

 was consulted by one of the parties to an important lawsuit, 

 where chemical principles were largely involved ; and where 

 the main question turned upon the action of copper fumes 

 and scoriaj on vegetation. We made many hundreds of ana- 

 lyses of soil, grass, bark, and moss from the neighbourhood of 

 the copper-works, and finding copper everywhere, we under- 

 took experiments in watering plants with solutions of copper, 

 arsenic, and other metals injurious to their growth. Having 

 kept no minutes of these experiments for my private use, this 

 Bummer I made the investigations in poisoning of plants, which 

 are given beneath. 



A solution of sulphate of iron, of 8 grammes [123.4584 grains] , 

 for the half htre [0.88038748 pint] , was taken as a standard, 

 and solutions of acetate of lead, chloride of tin, sulphate of 

 zinc, sulphate of manganese, sulphate of copper, and bichloride 

 of mercury were made, of such strength that equal measures 

 should contain equivalent {not equal) quantities of the re- 

 spective metallic bases. • 



Seven Triomphe de Gand Strawberry- plants, as nearly alike 

 as possible, and seven small Cauliflower plants were trans- 

 planted into pots of uniform size, and, beginning on the 1st 

 day of Jime, each plant was treated with 15 centimetres of the 

 above-named solutions per day, and all the plants were watered 

 with clear water twice a-week. The following are the results : — 



1st. Strawberry plants subjected to the action of acetate of 

 lead, no change till Jime 10th, slight blackness on stems ; 

 .June 17th, stems a little decayed ; June 23rd, two large and 

 one small leaf remaining ; July 2nd, two half -healthy leaves 

 left. Cauliflowers with acetate of lead seemed wholly un- 

 affected. July 2ud, strong and growing. 



2nd. Strawberry treated with chloride of tin, no change 

 noticeable till June 9th, stems blackened; Jime 17th, stems 

 decaying ; June 21st, stems more decayed ; June 30th, entirely 

 dead. Cauliflower plant treated with chloride of tin in perfect 

 health, July 2nd. 



Brd. Strawberry plant treated with sulphate of zinc, no change 

 noticeable till June lOlh, stems blackened ; June 17th, outer 

 leaves gone ; June 23rd, one leaf remaiuiug ; June 25th, en- 

 tirely dead. Cauliflower treated with sulphate of zinc, no 

 change noticed till June 23rd, leaves shrivelled ; July 2nd, en- 

 tu'ely dead, having decayed rapidly. 



4th. Strawberry plant treated with sulphate of iron, no change 

 observed until June 10th, stem show slight decay; June 17th, 

 outer leaves going ; June 22nd, leaves black and decaying ; 

 June 30th, entirely dead. CauHflower plant treated with sul- 

 phate of iron July 2nd, leaves slightly shrivelled, otherwise 

 healthy. 



5th. Strawberry plant treated with siilphate of manganese, 

 no change perceptible till June 11th, slight blackness on stems ; 

 June Kith, apparently healthy ; June 23rd, several leaves dead ; 

 June 30th, two healthy leaves left. Cauliflower plant with 

 sulphate of mangp.nese, rmchanged tUl June 23rd, leaves 

 shrivelled ; July 2nd. leaves badly shrivelled. 



6th. Strawberry plant with sulphate of copper, unchanged 

 till June loth, stems decaying ; Jime 23rd, three leaves remain- 

 ing; Juno 29th, entirely dead. Cauliflower plant with sul- 

 phate of copper unchanged till June 23rd, considerable decay ; 

 June 30th, rapid decay, almost dead. 



7th. Strawberry plant with chloride of mercra-y, no change * 



perceptible until June 7th, stems blackened ; June llUi, stems 

 rapidly decaying; June 17th, outer leaves dead; June 19th, 

 whole plant entirely dead. Cauliflower plant with chloride of 

 mercury, no change observed until June 17lh, somewhat af- 

 fected ; June 25th, badly decayed ; June 28th, entirely dead. 



These experiments are interesting from one jioint of view as 

 showing how much better Cauliflower ]'lauts can resis-t poison- 

 ous agencies than Strawberries, and what is true of the Cauli- 

 flower will probably hold true of all plants of its class. 



The action of the corrosive sublimate was most raijid, as 

 may have been foreseen, but how a Cauhflower can gi'ow when 

 daily watered with a strong solution of sugar of lead is mys- 

 terious. 



The action of the iron and copper salts was about the same, 

 although it might have been supposed that copper would act 

 more energetically than iron. 



The first signs of decay were blackening of the stems, then 

 the stems wilted, and last of all the leaves shriveUed. The 

 base of the stem in all cases was affected first. The roots were 

 black and dead. I trust some reader of the " Horticulturist" 

 will continue these experiments on other plants and give us his 

 results. I should suggest the use of weaker solutions, so that 

 the experiments might occupy a longer time, and slighter 

 changes in the health of the plants be noticed. — (J. M. Mekeick, 

 JUN'., IValpule, Mass., in Hurticultnrist.) 



GROUND VINERIES. 



" J. N." (page 187), by introducing a door at the apex of each 

 span would provide a current, particularly when the smi was 

 fully upon these narrow ridges of glass. I do not think, be- 

 sides, that a small board attached to the top, with hinges and 

 a hasp to keep it up to any poiut, would be more expensive 

 than the end ventilation, and it would be more easy to let this 

 down at once than going to each end of the cases. In my 

 notice it reads, " Take them off,"' but my meaning was to take 

 the air off at midday when the rise of temperature could do 

 no injury. Mr. Heywood's Vines are trained as suggested by 

 "J. N.," but in my opinion a gi'eat deal more is to be done 

 by ha\'ing no direct air whatever, but introducing it by any 

 of the geothermal systems now so well known, and thereby 

 using the air as a heating medium. I hmted that allowing the 

 air to pass through brick rubbish woiild be an advantage, but 

 the further it travels through this in reason the warmer it wiU 

 becotoe. I have seen Mr. Eivers's Vines and those of several 

 others since I wrote that notice, and none of them are so 

 successful with their Grapes as Mr. Heywood, who has them 

 by the stone and himdi-edweight. — J. F. 



PORTRAITS OF PLANTS, FLOWERS, AND 

 FRUITS. 



LiPAKis ATKO-puBPCEE.i (Dark-purple-flowered Liparis). Nat. 

 ord., Orchid.acea?. Linn., G}-nandria Monandria. — Terrestrial 

 Orchid. Not showy. Native of Ceylon. — (Bot. Muo., t. 5529.) 



PH.iL.^Norsis SCHILLEEI.4N.4 (Schiller's Phala?nopsis). Nat. 

 ord., Orchidace;:'. Linn., Gynandria Monandria. — On high 

 elevations in the I'hilippine Islands. White, rayed with pink. 

 —{Ibid., t. 5530.) 



AxsTECEMERiA DENSiFLOEA (DensB-flowered Alstroemeria). 

 Nat. ord., AmaryUidacea;. Linn., Hexandria Monogynia. — Na- 

 tive of Peru, at elevations of from 6000 to 11.000 feet. Flowers 

 scarlet, in an umbel. — {Ibid., t. 5531.) 



HiEMANTHUs iscARNATUS (Flesh-coloured Hsmanthus). Nat. 

 ord., AmaryUidacese. Linn., Hexandiia Monogynia. — Native 

 of South Africa.— fZiiV/., t. 5532.) 



Lankesteria Barter: (Mr. Barter's Lankesteria). — Nat. ord., 

 AcanthaceiE. Linn., Diandria Monogynia. — Native of Western 

 Africa. Flowers yellow, in spikes. — illiid., t. 5533.) 



EuPHOKBLA MoNTEiRi (Mr. Monteu'o's Euphorbia). Nat. 

 ord., Euphorbiacea>. Linn., Monoecia Monandria. — Native of 

 South-west Africa.— (76(d., t. 5534.) 



Pelaegoniujis. — William Hoyle. — The darkest Pelargonium 

 ever yet raised. Lower petals deep brownish crimson, white 

 throat ; upper petals deep maroon edged with crimson. Charles 

 Turner. — Brilliant scarlet, white throat ; upper petals dark 

 maroon, with a broad rim of scarlet. Both the above were 

 raised by Mr. Hoyle, of Reading, and are in the hands of Mr. 

 Turner, of Slough.— {Floral Map., pi. 257.) 



Rose Princess Mary of Cambridge. — Raised by M. Granger 



