516 
THE GARDENERS' 
CHRONICLE. 
[ Ave. 1, 
who would caleulate on general successful gardening 
would do well always to commence there. It is the 
place above all others on which the utmost amount of 
our practice and experience should be brought to bear. 
We cannot always see the roots with the naked eye, 
hence we must look at them through the leaves and 
branches ; our ignorance soon becomes apparent—im- 
pure and unsuitable food manifests itself with great 
and growing rapidity ; our success is soon of necessity 
defeated ; our cares and troubles—and gardeners have 
enough of these—gather upon us thick and threefold. 
A Peach tree, be it remembered, is not quite so com- 
pletely under our control as a Pelargonium or 
Caleeolaria ; the roots cannot'be examined with the 
same facility, unless the crop is for the season de- 
stroyed, and what excuse can we have when the de- 
mand is urgent, and the supply cut off? "There are, it 
is true, gardeners who can have no excuse as respects 
the borders; for, had it been necessary to success, they 
might, as far as expense goes, have imported soil from 
Persia ; but, again, there are others (and these are not 
afew), who must content themselves with what they 
eall the worn-out and exhausted soil of the garden. 
Generation after generation must plant upon that soil, 
and to this, failure is attributed. They have no chance 
whatever of planting in maiden loam, cut from an up- 
land pasture, 2 inches thick, full of vegetable fibre, and, 
according to our notions, possessing essential requisites 
to insure healthy growth and fruitfulness; we look 
upon this kind of soil as the very soul of gardening. 
Every gardener values this quite as much as a farmer 
does an abundance of farm-yard manure ; and, like the 
farmer too, he never knows when he has got enough of 
it, and perhaps he is quite right. 
It is true the expense of procuring it is something: 
but, then, who ever heard of things not thriving in it ? 
who ever doubted the success of trees requiring this 
kind of soil flourishing in it, and bearing fruit abun- 
dantly ? indeed it is an axiom in horticulture, and who 
so bold as to dispute it? "There are no conflicting opi- 
nions here—no doubts; it is admitted on all hands. 
Wherefore, then, urge hypothetical arguments to the 
contrary ? why disturb settled convictions ? why place 
ourselyes in a position of doubt when it might be one of 
certainty. In truth, when it is frankly admitted that 
* the sods of an old pasture will never be surpassed"—- 
can they be equalled? But then the fact which pre- 
sents itself to many, is the utter impossibility of pro- 
curing them. His Peach trees canker, the leaves are 
curled and blotched, limb disappears after limb, he ap- 
plies all the remedies that skill and the suggestions of 
his friends offer ; in despite, however, of all precautions, 
whether it be washes, fumigations, or plasters, the 
trees die, others take their places, and the same result 
is anticipated, and in due time realised. Hundreds of 
good gardeners are in this position. Turf from an old 
pasture to them is out of tie question ; they might as 
well think of draining with sovereigns instead of brick- 
bats. To them, then, the secret is an important one; 
it must not be scanned over because one man has tur 
ad libitum, or because another thinks the sterility of 
his border as unalterable as the fixed stars. These, nor 
I, therefore, invite opinions, suggestions, and 
practical results, from everybody who has had to contend 
with these evils, and these comprise nearly every gar- 
dener I know ; no doubt much good must result there- 
from. I shall, for one, be deeply indebted to those who 
boldly come forward to our rescue.— Experto Crede. 
STATE OF THE POTATO CROP. 
(From our own Correspondents.) 
e has made its appearance; but not 
July 98. 
—I live in the midst of Potatoes and hear no 
ID-LOTHIAN.—My seedlings of last year vigorous and healthy, 
as also the crops in the vicinity from sets procured from the 
north and west country, and among them some i 
Janeiro. Many fields look miserable, which have been planted 
with diseased tubers.—G. S. Mackenzie, July 27. 
ieties of Potato affected nearly alike; 
those manured with lime the worst in one instance; disease 
spreading rapidly.—J, Wighton, Norwich, July 29. 
— Several fields much diseased; one of some 
acres, close by the Perth and Dundee road, a perfect wreck; 
several others in the same state ; spreading fast.— Wm. Sharpe, 
Pitfour Castle, July 22. 
SHIRE.—Crops generally affected ; one field a month 
ago flourishing, now a pitiful spectacle; the leaves entirely 
stripped from the blotched and fast-decaying.stems, and the 
tubers near the surface discoloured. Winter sorts presumed to 
be a total failure.—W. M. Rowland, Bishop Castle Vicarage, 
July 21. 
SunxEy.—Disease “prea 
least affected.— Hz, Be 
, CESTER.—I fa) 
>, ta@se on poor soils 
Gi ling, July 28, 
se of 
maston, July 27. 
proceeding rapidly.— 
2 idly " yfosietios which 
ey À de this espe be- 
DEA ES ; second earlies a 
^ rut 
SH: n T! 
ertnight ago soundgs noy: h es withered as in 
ct 
November ; stalks decaying ; tubers all showthe spot. Winter 
Potatoes in full flower ; with no disease discoverable.—JF. H. S. 
Gledstone, Skipton, July 22. 
FANCY TRAINING. 
{Continued from p. 356.) 
No. 11.—The outside stakes should be light to look 
well. The boughs on the ascending stem should be all 
if 
P A 
formed by a descending course of training. The cross 
arms should be about 4 feet long each. 
procured and twisted round 
a hoop about 2 ft. Gin. 
diameter, and about 20 ins. 
from the ground. The said 
six shoots are then run up 
Six wires to an upper hoop 
of the same diameter as the 
lower one, (These hoops 
being in the first instance 
supported in their places by 
a light Larch pole 7 or 8 ít. 
high), two shoots are also 
conducted from the lower 
wreath up the pole, and 
taken from the wreath in- 
stead of the main stem, as 
being not so succulent, and 
of no greater growth than 
the outside ascending 
shoots. It has a good ef- 
fect when finished, and is 
of easy execution. 
No. 12.—Thelower circle isformed:by 6 shoots,'at first 
rennin NY 
No. 13.—Formed at first with stakes and a hoop at the 
top, will support it- 
self ultimately, Should 
represent a vase or 
cup. Diameter 4 feet 
across the top. Height 
2 feet 6 inches from 
the ground. Trained 
with three or four 
leaders, taking the cir- 
cuitous course until 
the figure is finished, 
No. 14.— The effect of 
this is good and easily 
worked. Same height 
as No. 13. Hoop 3 feet 
6 inches to 4 ‘feet 
diameter. 
ON THE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS WHICH CON- 
STITUTE THE NUTRITIVE PORTIONS OF 
THE POTATO. 
By the Rev. Prof. Henstow. 
(Continued from p. 500.) 
Although starch possesses the same composition as 
the tissues of vegetables, there is at first sight a diffi- 
culty in accounting for the manner in which such an 
insoluble material cam eseape from the cells in which 
it has been formed, so as to enable it to afford nourish- 
ment to those parts where no starch océurs. Neither 
can we assert that starch is absolutely necessary to the 
development of vegetable tissue, since some plants 
never contain it. Still al! plants (except some that are 
parasitic) do form organic compounds, which possess 
the same chemical composition as starch, or differ 
from it very slightly indeed. Some of these substances: 
are soluble in water: and starch itself is readily con- 
vertible into one or other of them ; and it is so converted 
before it is rendered available to the nutrition of plants. 
Now, all soluble matters can readily pass and re-pass 
through membranous substances, even though the 
highest powers of the microscope fail in detecting the 
pores or passages through which such transmission is 
effected. When the starch that is stored in one por- 
tion of the cellular tissue is required for the develop- 
ment of the plant, we may readily conceive that it is 
changed to some form in which it is soluble, and that 
it then passes through the cellular membrane, and is 
conveyed to other parts. It is one among the many 
interesting and brilliant discoveries of chemistry, that 
there are substances possessing identically the same 
chemical positi. whic heless differ very 
materially in their physical properties. We bave seen 
that starch may be considered identical with vegetable 
membrane. It is also asserted to be identical in chemi- 
cal combination with dextrine, this substance before 
you, which resembles lumps of gum arabic, and is solu- 
ble in water. Starch is likewise identical in composi- 
tion (according to some chemists) with cane sugar, by 
which they name a particular class of sweet substances, 
capable of being crystallized, for the purpose of distin. 
guishing them from another class called Grape sugar, 
which do not crystallize. These latter differ from the 
former in ining a larger p ion of the elements 
of water (oxygen and hydrogen); and the additional 
equivalents are also conjoined in the same proportion 
as they unite to form water. hus, if cane sugar be 
represented by Ci2 O10 Hio, then Grape sugar is re- 
presented by C12 O12 Hie. 
We ean readily change starch into both dextrine and 
Grape sugar by artificial processes; and the like 
changes are naturally effected by the growing plant, 
and the germinating seed, Asan example of the latter, 
I will notice to you the manner in which Barley is eon- 
verted into malt. It is first wetted and laid on the 
floor of a convenient building erected for the purpose, 
where it soon swells and puts forth a little root; the 
germination is then suddenly checked by exposing the 
Barley to a heat suficient to kill it, and when it has. 
become thoroughly dry, it is called malt. This malt 
possesses a sweetish taste, owing to the starch in the 
Barley having become partially changed to Grape-sugar.. 
This change was brought about by another change, 
which had been effected by the process of germination, 
upon that substance to which I have already alluded, 
termed gluten, which is another organic product always 
intermixed with the starch in this grain. I shall pre- 
sently explain more particularly the nature of gluten ; 
but I will now state that it changes (during germina- 
tion) to a particular substance, or rather assumes a par. 
ticular condition, which is termed diastase. Now, this 
diastase is a sort of ferment, which, by some unexplained: 
process, causes the starch also to change its nature and 
pass first to dextrine, and then to Grape-sugar. The 
inating plant appropri: the elements of the 
sugar to the development of its own tissues. But as. 
the brewer’s object is to secure as much of this sugar 
as possible, the germination of the Barley is stopped in 
the way I have mentioned, and the grain being than 
conveyed to the mash-tub, the diastase soon effects the 
change of still more of the starch into Grape-sugar. 
This sugar being allowed to ferment, its elements be- 
come re-arranged, so as to form two new compounds— 
alcohol and carbonic acid ; the latter of which escapes 
as a gas, whilst the former, being liquid, remains in the- 
tub, and gives the beer its intoxicating properties. lt: 
is easy to verify the fact of this passage of starch to- 
sugar. The sample before you was prepared by myself 
from a pound of starch, manufactured from very bad 
Potatoes. When starch is boiled, it passes to the state: 
of a transparent jelly-like mass ; but, if a little malt ig 
added. to it, the jelly soon becomes liquid; for the 
diastase in the malt has now converted the starch to: 
extrine, which is soluble. If the jelly is dried, it 
assumes the appearance of isinglass, and in this state 
the starch is termed amadine; but it has not yet lost 
the property of tinging iodine blue—in short, it is not 
yet dextrine. By continuing the boiling of the dissolved: 
dextrine, the liquid gradually becomes sweet, and, by 
evaporation, will form a thick, dark syrup, looking like 
treacle, This syrup, upon standing for a few hours, 
granulates to a sweetish brown sugar. This conversion 
of starch into Grape-sugar may also be effected by long 
boiling it with a little sulphuric acid alone. In the 
former method, if the malt is not very good, an addi- 
tion of a slight portion of sulphuric acid seems to me 
to quicken the process, though I am too little skilled 
in such chemical manipulations to say whether this i$ 
really the case. When sulphuric acid is used, the 
saucepan must be enamelled on the inside, other- 
wise the iron will be attacked by it; and after the 
process has been continued long enough to effect the 
change to sugar, the sulphuric acid must be removed 
by adding chalk to the mixture. Chemists tell us 
there is as much free acid at the end of the process as 
there was at the beginning. After it has attacked the 
chalk, we shall have gypsum instead, which must bs 
removed by filtering. The specimen of sugar berora 
you was prepared without any particular attention D 
the best proportions that should have been observe d. 
the process, and I believe a certain degree of bitternes 
in the sample must be attributed to the malt having 
