3i6 Notes and Gleanings. 



Propagating Geraniums from Leaves. — Possessing a plant of the ivy- 

 leaved <;eranium L'Elegante, I was desirous of increasing the stock. I accord- 

 ingly struck a number of cuttings. Amongst these I placed in the cutting-pot, 

 as an experiment, a single leaf, with no portion of the main stalk or a bud at- 

 tached. This leaf has struck, and has now become a good-sized plant. But the 

 foliage is totally different from that of the parent plant, which has leaves of a 

 glossy green color, with a narrow white margin. In the plant raised from the 

 leaf, there is no edging to the leaves, and they are entirely green, with the ex- 

 ception of a dark bronze blotch in the centre of the oldest leaves. The plant 

 has not yet flowered, and I shall be curious to see whether the blossom will differ 

 from that of the original plant. Floral World. 



[A lady correspondent of the Journal, in Texas, mentions another instance of 

 propagation of geraniums by the leaves. She says, "In February, as I was 

 putting down some cuttings of geraniums, I stripped off some well-matured 

 leaves of the Nutmeg-scented geranium, and dropped them on the damp ground 

 of the green-house. Several days after I noticed they had not withered ; so I 

 took them up and planted them in a box of potting soil. In a few weeks little 

 plants sprang up from the petioles, which are now growing finely."] 



Bleeding of Grape Vines. — A correspondent of the Gardener's Chronicle 

 recommends as preferable to the method of placing a potato on the freshly-cut 

 end, to stop bleeding in grajDe vines, to use flexible collodion, which has been 

 found so thorough a styptic for wounds of the human body. Two dressings were 

 given with the end of a feather, thoroughly covering the wound twice in the 

 course of a few minutes, the third or final coat being put on about half an hour 

 afterwards, when the cut was completely sealed up, and in the course of a few 

 minutes became quite hard, so that there was not the least sign of any bleeding. 

 In the course often days the vines grew away strongly and vigorously, and have 

 since continued to do so. Some choice pelargoniums were also cut down and 

 dressed twice ; this was quite sufficient to heal the wound, and in the course of 

 three or four days the eyes were starting again, showing great vigor. It was 

 found equally efficient with Aphelandra Leopoldii, Euphorbia jacquinicefiora, 

 and Lucid la gratis sinia. In the treatment of the Euphorbia, and all the tribe 

 of plants that bleed at the same rapid rate, it was found necessary to have a 

 small piece of sponge to wipe off'lhe milky juice, so as to get the collodion to 

 adhere, and they require to be gone over as many times as the vines. 



New Application of Potatoes. — In the Intellectual Observer there is a 

 paragraph relating to a new application of potatoes for knife-handles and similar 

 purposes. The potatoes are said to be first peeled and macerated for about 

 thirty-six hours in water, to which three per cent, of soda is added, and after 

 maceration they are boiled in a solution containing nineteen per cent, soda, when 

 a substance is produced resembling stag's-horn, and which may be used for the 

 purpose above mentioned. It seems also that turnips may be used with similar 

 results, and if an artificial coral is required, carrots may be substituted. Speci- 

 mens, we are told, were exhibited at the recent Paris Exhibition. 



