July 8, 1875. ] 



JOUENAL OF HORTICULTUBE AND COTTAGE GAEDENER, 



31 



interior of the tree and the air to circulate freely round the 

 branches. — J. C. Bahnham. 



SUTTON'S RED-SKINNED FLOURBALL 

 POTATO. 

 In answer to " W. H. A.," who asks what is the parentage 

 of the Red-Bkinued Flourball Potato, I believe it to be of 

 American origin. In support of my opinion I may state that 

 a friend of mine had a few Potatoes sent from America four 

 years ago before the Flourball was sent out by Suttons ; some 

 he gave to a gardener in the neighbourhood, and the remainder 

 he kept growing by the side of the Flourball, and they each 

 fail to discover any difference, nor can I who have noticed 

 them the past two years. I may add that my friend having 

 received hia from America without name, called his the Tus- 

 carora. — W. Bark, 



PEACH BLISTER. 

 We have recently received from one of our correspondents 

 (Mrs. Carlisle) , some specimens of Peach blister with the fungus 



here and there be detected on the red blister, and this bloom 

 when magnified one thousand diameters linear is seen as 

 shown at e. It is excessively minute as compared with the 

 thickness of the leaf and its component cells ; the latter magni- 

 fied to the same scale are seen at c. The fungus consists of a 

 stratum of fine threads, which throw-up a series of small 

 flask-like bodies (asci) filled with spores, the flasks beinf; 

 mixed with necklace-like growths d, which are clearly a second 

 form of fruit. Each ascus, or flask, contains eight spores, 

 which at certain moments open at the top, as at e, and dis- 

 charge their spores (which are analogous with seeds), into the 

 air to continue the existence of the species elsewhere. — W. G. 

 Sjiiih. 



SUMMER PRUNING.— No. 1. 

 The object of all pruning is the origination of now partr, 

 diverting the sap from au over-vigorous to an enfeebled part, 

 and the reduction of barren and the production of fruitful wood. 

 By the first we secure the form in part of the present and 

 ultimate specimen ; by the second its symmetry ; and by the 

 third the highest ciuality of produce. Fruit-bearing trees 

 naturally have no pruning other than the browsing of herbi- 



Fig. 6.— Peach blister with ACcojiPAsnsa fd.N'ohs (ascomtces deformans). 



(AEComyoes deformans) which is said to cause it, in such 

 unusually good condition that we are induced to give an illus- 

 tration of the latter as seen under the microscope. An 

 editorial opinion has recently been expressed in these columns 

 that the blistering is caused by spring frosts rupturing the 

 Bap-vessels, and that the fungus lives upon the extravasated 

 sap. When Mrs. Carlisle's specimens were exhibited before 

 the Scientific Committee of the Royal Horticultural Society, 

 Mr. Smee, who is well acquainted with the disease, expressed 

 his belief that the blistering was caused by au injury inflicted 

 by an aphis, and he has expressed an opinion elsewhere that 

 the fungus is seldom really seen with the blister, but that the 

 aphis is an invariable accompaniment. De Bary, however, 

 and Berkeley say the blister is caused by the fungus, and the 

 former has published a figure of the mycelial threads as seen 

 inside the leaves amongst the cells before the perfect fungus 

 appears upon the surface. However this may be, we must 

 confess that our views range on the side with Mr. Berkeley, 

 and we imagine the reason why the fungus is not invariably 

 seen is simply because in its early condition it is confined to 

 the interior of the lamina of the leaf, and its life may possibly 

 be brief in its perfected state on the exterior. The spawn of 

 the fungus, like the spawn of the Potato disease, is corrosive, 

 and changes the green colouring matter of the cells from tho 

 usual healthy hue to a deep blood red. 



In the accompanying cut, a shows the Peach blister as com- 

 monly seen ; when the fungus is present a white bloom may 



vorous animals, therefore cultivated and natural tree 5 are not 

 in this respect analogous. Orchard trees are not to be admitted 

 natural, for they at least have a certain amount of time ex- 

 pended upon them in pruning — in giving disposition to the 

 branches, and some occasional after-care in the thinning, 

 otherwise we readily grant orchard trees are the nearest 

 ! approach to Nature of anything cultivated, and as such are 

 ! not subject matter for summer pruning. Our remarks, there- 

 I fore, apply to trees cultivated in gardens as pyramids or bushes 

 i trained to walls or espaliers. Limited to space as such trees 

 are, the necessity, if they are to be kept to it in a fruitful 

 state, for pruning arises. It is not in any sense an imitation 

 of nature, but of restraining — causing the trees to conform to 

 j the requirements of the cultivator. There is not, perhaps, a 

 more interesting or important operation than summer pruning, 

 forming such a pleasant contrast to winter pruning, which 

 only those having had feet feeling hke ice— it may be chil- 

 blains—and fingers cold and benumbed, can thoroughly appre- 

 ciate. I know it will soon be " dog days," when it is hoped 

 any having an hallucination for winter pruning will lose it. 



Fruit trees have three descriptions of shoots : leaders, the 

 continuation of stems or branches ; side shoots, originated 

 from the branches ; and spurs, mainly producing the fruit. 

 We have also laterals, which mean literally any side shoot, 

 but in gardening phraseology laterals are side shoots from 

 growths of the current year. Foreiight shoots, which arc 

 those proceeding from the front of a branch and at right angle? 



