Domestic Notices. 137 



Art. II. Domestic JVotices. 



Annual Exhibition of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Socie- 

 ty. — The next annual exhibition will be held in Philadelphia, on Wednes- 

 day, Thursday and Friday, the 18tli, 19th and 20th of September, next. 



Horticultural Society of the Valley of Genessee. — This society 

 held its annual meeting on the 4th of February, 1850, at Rochester, and 

 elected the following officers for the ensuing year : — 



President, Levi A. Ward, Rochester. 



Vice Presidents, 1st, Samuel Miller, 2d, M. G.Warner, Rochester, 3d, H. 

 P. Norton, Brockport, 4tli, J. J. Thomas, Macedon, 5th, Asa Rowe Sweden. 



Corresponding Secretary, D. M. Dewey. 



Recording Secretary, J. A. Eastman. 



Treasurer, J. H. Watts. 



Committees on Fruits, Trees, Shrubs, and Flowers, Vegetables, Botany, 

 &.C. &c., were also elected, [JVew Yorker). 



New Mode of Preventing The Potato Rot. — Dr. A. A. Hayes, of 

 Boston, recently communicated a letter to the Hon. W. B. Calhoun, President 

 of the Legislative Agricultural Meetings, upon a new mode of preventing 

 the spread of the potato rot, after the crop had been harvested. Mr. Hayes 

 states, " that the rapid decay which continues after the roots have been removed 

 from the soil, is often of the most remarkable character, and aside from its 

 economical bearing, is a subject of scientific importance. During the last 

 season, I made trial of some chemical agents, which specifically arrest all veg- 

 etation, hoping to discover an application which would enable us to preserve 

 the diseased potatoes fi-om further changes. Early in the course of the ex- 

 periments, it was noticed that a reduction of temperature by exposure to cold 

 air, greatly diminished the rapidity of decay, while a slight increase of tem- 

 perature hastened it ; moisture being present or not. 



Heat in a moist atmosphere increased the destruction, and samples whicli 

 had been cooled, and thereby partly protected, readily passed tlirough all 

 the changes when again exposed to warm and humid air. After using sev- 

 eral substances by direct contact with diseased parts of potatoes, I soon 

 found that the mixture of sulphurous acid, nitrogen and common air, such as 

 exists when sulphur is burnt in closed vessels, would prevent the further 

 progress of the disease in tubers already affected, and when exposed in con- 

 tact witli tubers, passing through all stages of the disease, no further change 

 in the prepared ones was induced. 



The trials were varied, and the uniformity of the results has led me to 

 conclude, that the fumes of burning sulphur, flowing in contact with potatoes 

 partly diseased, will arrest the further progress of the disease and prevent 

 decay. It is proper that this conclusion should be received as an expression 

 of fact, under the circumstances of experiments on a small small scale, and 

 with no more than two varieties of potatoes ; but I confidently expect that 

 the importance of the application will be seen in the largest exhibition of 

 its effects. 



VOL. XVI. NO. III. 18 



