228 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



he latter siliceous and swampy ; it plunges its roots into adjacent stagnani 

 water. Succeeds by budding ; plants grow unusually ; must be set out 

 several times. 



Journal de la Societe Imperial et Ccntrale, dHorticultnre, Paris, June, 185&. 



The chemical composition of the soil is of the highest importance to 

 vegetable life, for when a plant does not receive from it, in a state of solu- 

 tion, the necessary nutritive matter, it cannot properly develop© itself. 

 Imperfect nutrition is the essential cause of the laying of the cereals. It 

 has been generally attributed to meteorological causes. The grain stalk 

 is, in general, very rich in silica. Deep culture brings the soil to air, and 

 that gives us silica in solution. The diiSculty begins in the soil — want of 

 organic strength — then comes a legion of injurious insects, then atmos- 

 pheric difficulties, causing the phanerogame parasitic enemy, Oidum Fun- 

 gus, rust, Cryptogami, spores, the gui, Cusanti, the Utile Orobancks ra- 

 mosa, (Philipasramosa Coss and Germ) which attaches itself to hemp and 

 to tobacco at their roots. The Cryptogame (no sex or seed), are more 

 numerous and infinitely more troublesome to us than others. They disease 

 more plants than all the rest together. 



The microscope extends our views and promises to reward us one day by 

 great and useful discoveries. 



REAPING MACHINES. 



The Emperor Napoleon superintended the trial on his farm, Fouilleuse, 

 near St. Cloud. Foreign and French machines were tried. First pre- 

 mium, a gold medal and one thousand francs. Forty-five machines ofi"ered, 

 twenty-two tried. Eleven foreign and eleven French. Burgess & Key 

 foreign two-horse reaped fifteen acres of wheat in ten hours. Second pre- 

 mium to Cranston's of America, improved by Broad of London. 



The McCormick reaper was the one exhibited by Burgess & Key, who 

 own the English patent. 



LONDON 



Is to have a new and splendid garden at the West End, at Kensington 

 Grove, on part of the ground purchased for the exhibition of 1851, out of 

 the surplus profits of it. It is to be in charge of the Horticultural Society 

 of Loudon. It is a parallelogram of about fifty acres. Of which twenty 

 will be the garden. The Queen gives Jive thousand dollars, and Prince 

 Albert twenty-five hundred dollars to aid it. 



Steele's Bee protector against moths is tried and highly approved in 

 California. 



Agricultural Hall at Sacramento — 120 feet by 100 ; for exhibitions ; 

 two stories ; July 15th, 1859. 



Our California gardeners prune melon and tomato, cucumber and squash 

 vines, cutting ofi" unproductive viiies. 



Apricots six and a half inches in circumference, near San Francisco. 



