THE GENESEE FARMER. 



183 



w^msmmm^i 



WALKS AND TALKS IN THE GARDEN-NO. H. 



"I HAVE to-day (May 13) been syriuging the 

 gooseberry and currant bushes with a solution of 

 whale-oil soap, to see if it will not keep off the 

 eaw-fly. Perhaps it should have been done earlier, 

 but I have not seen the fly about the bushes as yet. 

 Mr. Robinson, however, whose soil is a little 

 earlier than ours, says they have been about his 

 bushes, and he finds the little bead-like eggs de- 

 posited on the under side of the leaves. He rubs 

 them off with his thumb and finger." 



" It would seem to be a much easier matter to 

 keep the flies away by the application of noxious 

 substances than to kill the caterpillars after they 

 are hatclied out on the leaves. Ellwangee & 

 Baert say that quick-lime dusted on the bushes 

 will kill the caterpillars, and, if so, no easier 

 remedy could be desired. A year or two ago I ap- 

 plied lime to some bushes that were invested with 

 them, but it had little effect. Perhaps, however, 

 the reason was that I did not follow it up. Messrs. 

 E. & B. say that the bushes should be dusted over 

 two or three times a week as long as any cater- 

 pillars remain." 



" Ohick weed (Stellaria) is about as great a pest 

 as the caterpillars. The only consolation about it 

 is, that they say it indicates rich land — or, perliaps, 

 rather, land that has been heavily manured. Prof. 

 Thdrbee says it is found in almost every part of 

 the world. ' In damp, cold soils,' he adds, ' it is 

 sufiicieutly abundant to be troublesome, and some- 

 times occupies the ground to the exclusion of every 

 thing else.' There can be no doubt in regard to 

 the truth of this latter remark ; but as our garden 

 is thoroughly underdrained, it is doubtful whether 

 it is troublesome only on damp, cold soil — for cer- 

 tainly it troubles me considerably. Those straw- 

 berries have been hoed. three times this spring, and 

 yet the chick weed still crops out occasionally." 



"I have sometimes thought tliat chick weed 

 would make a good flower. It has several admi- 

 rable qualities! It is hardy, easily propagated, 



either from seed or by cuttings, comes into flower 

 the moment the snow is off the ground, when our 

 gardens are so destitute of anything to please the 

 eye; it will thrive anywhere, would require no hot- 

 bed or any protection, and no lady would ever 

 complain that the seed was poor! And, joking 

 aside, the little star-like flowers are very pretty. 

 Some of the skilful German seed-growers might 

 easily, one would think, make the flowers come 

 double, and add greatly to the size of the petals," 



"It is curious how our notions have changed in 

 regard to the best method of getting double 

 flowers. Take stocks, for instance. 01c gardeners 

 used to be very particular in raising seed from a 

 stock that stood next to one that had double 

 flowers. They thought the pollen from the double 

 flowers, by impregnating the single ones, would 

 cause the seed so raised to produce plants having 

 more or less double flowers; but it is now be- 

 lieved that this has no influence whatever. The 

 plan adopted by the Erfurt seed-growers is to sow 

 the seed in pots, in the poorest soil, and starve the 

 plants, barely keeping them alive till after the 

 flowers are formed. When the seed begins to form, 

 they stimulate the plants with liquid manure for a 

 few weeks, and then afterward give no water at 

 all, letting the seed ripen on the juices of the plants. 

 Seed from plants so treated produce plants having 

 double flowers. I have never seen any i-eason as- 

 signed for the process, but I suppose starving the 

 plants has a tendency, by dwarfing the plants and 

 checking the growth of stalks and leaves, to in- 

 duce an unnatural and excessive growth of flowers, 

 just as dwarfing the apple and pear throws them 

 into early fruitfulness. By continuing the process 

 a few years, seed is obtained that will, in almost 

 every instance, pi'oduce plants with double flowers." 



" There is something about this matter of dwarf- 

 ing trees that is not very clearly understood. It is 

 laid down as a rule, by Baeet and other eminent 

 pomological authorities, that 'whatever is favora- 

 ble to rapid, vigorous growth, is unfavorable to the 

 immediate production of fruit.' This is undoubt- 

 edly true, and we suppose the opposite princi[)le Is 

 equally true that anything which checks the 

 growth of the tree has a tendency to throw it into 

 fruitfulness. Hence the process of root-pruning. 

 The removal of the roots cuts off a portion of the 

 sap and throws the tree into bearing. So, too, 

 grafting the apple, pear, cherry, plum, &c., on 

 stocks which have a less vigorous habit of growth', 

 dwarf the trees and throw them into early fruitful- 

 ness," 



