84 



THE CANADIAN HORTIOULTCKIST. 



nection between tlie rust in Berberry 

 and wheat or oats. Dr. Smale says 

 his wheat tins year was badly rusted 

 near the Berberries, but not elsewhere. 

 He does not say how his fields are situ- 

 ated. I and many others have noticed 

 that in places sheltered by a belt of 

 trees or otherwise, the wheat was often 

 badly rusted, when parts of the same 

 field where the wind had free access 

 were but little or not at all rusted. This 

 year, on the ridges, we have been very 

 free from rust, whei-eas I have seen a 

 great deal of it in other parts where 

 probably there was not a solitary Ber- 

 berry within miles. As for oats, in 

 former times, before I had any Berberry 

 hedges, we had a great deal of rust. 

 Since we have given up the common 

 black oats for the white, I have not 

 seen any rust at all, although there are 

 Berberry hedges all around. I must 

 also say that there is very little rust on 

 our Berberries at any time, and you 

 must search pretty close to find some, 

 and will not always succeed. I have 

 never tested it personally, but often 

 heard it said in England, that by 

 microscopic investigation you could 

 ascertain that there is no connec- 

 tion between the rust proper to 

 "wheat and to Berberry. In Loudon's 

 (Arboretum et Fruticetum, vol. 1, 

 page 302) ai-ticle. Berberry, I find the 

 plant makes an excellent hedge ; but 

 there exists a prejudice against it 

 amongst the agriculturists fx'om its sup- 

 posed influence in pi-oducing blight or 

 mildew on the corn adjoining it. This 

 opinion, though totally unfounded, is 

 of unknown antiquity. It appears to 

 have been first considered as an errone- 

 ous prejudice by Dr. Hamel, who 

 assui-es us that it is totally void of 

 foundation ; and Broussonnet and other 

 botanists subsequently proved the fact. 

 But the most scientific refutation of the 

 ■error was given by Dr. Greville, in the 

 Scottish Cri/ptogamic Flora. In that ex- 



cellent work. Dr. Greville has shown 

 that the mildew which attacks the Ber- 

 berry [Elcidium Berheridis) is quite 

 different from the fungi which are 

 found on corn ; the Berberry mildew, 

 when magnified, is found to consist of 

 a number of small orange cups, with a 

 white film over each when ripe ; these 

 films burst and the top of the cups 

 assume a ragged, uneven appearance, 

 in which state they look like white 

 fungi ; the cups are filled with innum- 

 erable little cases containing seeds or 

 sporules, and these constitute the bright 

 orange powder which is seen on the 

 leaves and flowers of the common Ber- 

 berry. Among the many beautiful 

 objects that are to be met with in the 

 lower and more imperfect tribes of 

 plants. Dr. Lindley observes : " It is 

 difiicult to find one more worthy of an 

 attentive examination that the HJlcidium 

 Berberidis." The blight on corn is 

 generally a species of Aredo, and does 

 not correspond in botanical character 

 with the Oidium. Still it is an import- 

 ant question, as we must at some future 

 time, owing to the increasing scarcity 

 of timber, have recourse to hedges to 

 enclose our fields ; wire requires posts, 

 is very expensive, and not at all satis- 

 factory. Other hedge plants, even when 

 efficient, require constant attendance, 

 and do not suit every soil. The Ber- 

 berry, when, after a few yeai-s, the 

 stems are about half an inch in diameter, 

 and five or six feet high, surrounded by 

 innumerable suckers, is a fence which 

 no bull or mouse can face, and requires 

 no attendance at all. I never ti-immed 

 or pruned any of mine. It might be 

 barely possible that besides suffering 

 from its own proper rust, the wheat is 

 liable to be attacked by the Elcidium 

 Berheridis when it is blown on it from 

 neighboring plants, this I will take care 

 to ascertain for myself next summer, if 

 any rust is to be found on wheat, and 

 there alwavs is more or less of it every 



