October 1(5, 18G0. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAdK CAUDFNKIt. 



291 



dently recommend it as cleanly, neat, durable, and in tho end 

 cheap ; it might bo well applied in the bent form as a support 

 for Hyacinths, or used for pegging Verbenas or layering Pieotccs. 

 For the latter purposes 1 use Hum wire, nml alter Im nding it, 

 stick each end into the pith of short lengths of willow twigs, 

 which serve to hold it fast in the soil. 



I fear most of these thoughts of mine aro trite and sticky, 

 but somo may gain a hint or two, and if so they will not bo use- 

 less.— ii. r. 



THE POTATO DISEASE. 



OBSEBVIlta your remarks to your correspond! ut, " A. I',.," in 

 relation to tho Potato disease, I wisli to state my opinion on 

 tho subject, and though substantially differing from you, I 

 trust you will give my remarks a place. 



For some years I have particularly observed that when we 

 havo a good .Mushroom season, we have also an excessive quan- 

 tity of diseased Potatoes; but when tho season is unfavourable 

 to the Mushroom, we have little or no disease — that is, when 

 Potatoes are planted in a favourable situation, and at tho 

 proper time. I more particularly refer to the later varieties. 



I am of opinion that the fungus is generated in tho atmo- 

 sphere. To illustrate this, two years ago last July I gathered 

 a fine crop of sound Ash-leaf Kidney Potatoes, out of which I 

 selected a number for seed, and laid them on a south border 

 to green ; when examining them about tho middle of August, I 

 was astonished to find one-half of them diseased. This, I con- 

 sider, was occasioned by their being exposed to the atmosphere 

 in which existed the Potato fungus. 



This year I have a fine crop of Tomatoes growing on a south 

 wall, one-half of which is affected with the Potato disease (you 

 say Tomato and Potato blight are not identical). To satisfy 

 myself, I selected eight perfectly sound Potatoes out of a lot of 

 that excellent second early variety, " The King," which was 

 stored away in a dry fruit-room, and spawned them with the 

 fungus taken from an affected Tomato, after doing which, I 

 placed tho eight tubers in different aspects, some outside par- 

 tially exposed to the atmosphere, and others in tho fruit-room. 

 All the tubers so treated were affected with the diseaso within 

 eight days, those placed outside very badly, while those in the 

 fruit-room were attacked with less virulence, on account, no 

 doubt, of the dry atmosphere of the room. 



In conclusion, I will state my experience as to the best 

 method of preventing the Potato disease. About the middle of 

 August last, I planted a quarter of ground with Flukes, the sets 

 being of the soundest character. One-half of these rotted in 

 the ground, and what did grow were of a very weak constitution. 

 To till up the vacancies caused by the failures, in the first week 

 of June I planted some small sets of the same Flukes, which 

 had been lying in the fruit-room, in a very high temperature. 

 The sets resembled shrivelled Pears ; notwithstanding that, the 

 plant3 from them came up with great vigour, which they main- 

 tained throughout the season. I took up the crop thus planted 

 on the 25th of September, when I found that every Potato 

 planted in June produced from six to eight large, sound Potatoes, 

 except two or three which were partially exposed to the atmo- 

 sphere ; whereas the April-planted sets produced nothing but 

 poor and diseased Potatoes, only fit for pigs. — John Soklet, 

 Gardener to Mrs. ZwilcJienaart, Uoselamk, Aigburth. 



[So far from refuting what we stated to be our opinion re- 

 lative to the Potato disease, we consider that Mr. Sorley's ex- 

 perience confirms it. A wet, mild autumn is favourable to the 

 production of Mushrooms, and would, as many have testified, 

 promote the appearance and development of the fungus in the 

 " later varieties," to which Mr. Sorley refers. Our opinion re- 

 ferred to earlier varieties stored before the autumn arrived. 



Greening Potatoes by exposure to the atmosphere has been 

 advocated by many practical men as a preventive of the disease ; 

 but whether it is so or not, quite certain it is that no fungus is 

 " generated " in the atmosphere. All fungi are produced from 

 germs of some kind, and the atmosphere may convey these to 

 the Potatoes, but the most probable course of events is that the 

 embryo fungus being present in the Potato, exposure to the 

 vicissitudes of temperature and moisture promotes the develop- 

 ment of the fungus. 



Wounding the tubers and introducing morbific matter from 

 the Tomatoes would produce an ulcer in the tubers especially 

 favourable to the development of the Potato fungus, but does 

 not prove that this is identical with the fungus of the Tomato. 

 The microscope alone can determine that ; and from what we 

 know of the two we conclude that they are different genera. 



Using dried sets was recommended long since as a preventive 

 of the Potato disease. We once hud our l>< I, crop of Potatoes 

 from sets planted either at the close of June, or early in July ; 

 but late planting as a rule is to be avoided. 



We hear of tho disease being prevalent in many places, but 

 exclusively among the late crops. A Sample of an earlier crop 

 grown near Barnet, has just been shown to us, surpassingly 

 excellent in condition and size, ono tuber weighed 1 lb. 7 ozs., 

 another I lb. 'J ozs., and the third 2 lbs. II OZS. I 



CONIFERS AT LINTON PARK 



I am glad that Mr. Kent has directed attention to some fine 

 Conifers which c\i i. < i , down, near Maresfield; and I am 

 sure he, as well as others, will Ceel interested in reports from 

 different places as to a class of plant. . iv peetini m 

 mens of which information is always read with interest. When 

 many of tho species were introduced the number of the pur- 

 chasers of novelties was much Bmaller than at present; but 

 those who secured them at that time, and wero favoured by a 

 suitable situation and climate, are now rewarded by the size and 

 beauty of their specimens. 



Amongst private growers who early gave their attention to 

 the cultivation of Coniferte, perhaps none was more enthusi- 

 astic than the late Lady Grenville, whose pinetum at Dropmore 

 has been heard of far and wide, and I believe several of the 

 specimens there aro not approached by anything of the kind 

 in the kingdom. Fancy an Araucaria nearly 50 feet high, a 

 Douglas Pine of nearly 90 feet, a Deodar 50 feet high, a Pinus 

 laricio 63 feet, and Pinus excelsa and ponderosa each about 

 60 feet high, with others not less remarkable. These speci- 

 mens leave most others in the shade ; nevertheless, now and 

 then a tree is found to equal or exceed the Dropmore standard, 

 and I am told that a better Picea pinsapo exists at a place in 

 Cornwall, and some years ago I saw an excellent Abies Doug- 

 lasii growing at Brenchloy in Kent. I believe that there are 

 also good specimens of most of the early-introduced Conifers 

 at Bayfordbury, in Hertfordshire, and I think as good specimens 

 as those Mr. Kent enumerates as growing at Piltdown are to 

 be met with at Bury Hill ; while Mr. McDonald, at page 165, 

 mentions the finest specimen of Cupressus macrocarpa which 

 I have heard of as existing at Woodstock in Ireland. Some 

 years ago, I may remark, I saw in Northumberland a very fino 

 Araucaria upwards of 30 feet high. That certain species may 

 prosper at one place and not in others is easy to conceive, for 

 it is most unlikely that plants brought from the two extremes 

 of the globe shouid alike succeed in the same spot ; the wonder 

 is that they do so well. It cannot, however, be denied that 

 some species will not thrive at one place and succeed well at 

 another, as, apart from important differences in the atmo- 

 spheric conditions, there are those of soil; and if particular 

 notice were taken, some of the species might be found lacking 

 that robust health which they could only exhibit in a situation 

 different from that which they occupy. Such I find to be 

 the case here, at Linton, where we have excellent examples of 

 many of the finest species, yet some of them individually 

 afford unmistakeable tokens that the place does not suit them. 



In the following notes I purpose giving some details respect- 

 ing a few of the most notable coniferous trees growing here* 

 and it is further necessary to premise that the measurements 

 wero taken last December, so that in most cases 2 feet or more 

 may be added for the growth of the present year. As each 

 tree was measured in the same mouth live years previously, 

 the progress made in the interval is also stated. 



Araucaria imbricata, 30} feet high and 20 feet in diameter, 

 has grown 3} feet in the last live years. This tree does not 

 present such a picture of robust health as it did some years 

 ago, some of the lower limbs showing brown foliage, and the 

 branches nearest the ground for about 5 feet are gone, but 

 those above that height hang down and sweep the surface. 

 On the whole the appearance of the tree is good, the outline 

 being more that of a cylinder than of a cone with a rounded 

 top. The upper and greater part of the branches is healthy 

 and fine. The tree is much admired. Last year it produced 

 three cones, which when growing were highly ornamental, 

 being globular, with projecting spines, forming a ball as large 

 as a hedgehog. The seeds, however, were not perfected. This 

 season there are several more cones forming, but being much 

 later than last year there is less hope of their succeeding 

 Several other tine trees, from 15 to 18 feet high and upwards ' 

 exhibit different habits of growth and different degrees of health 



