1-844.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



131 



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CiiM^artrenerg^ Ol^omcle 



SATURDAY, 31 ARCH 2, 1844. 



MEETINGS FOR THE FOLLOWING WEEK. 



IIovdat, March 4 • Entomological . . 

 " a ' _. , . f Horticultural 

 TcMtuit, March 5 \Linnaean 



•VVmxmdav, March 6 Society of Arts . : 



8 P «• 

 3pm 

 8 p M. 

 8 P.M. 



for most assuredly good management will produce 

 well swelled Queens from 3lbs. to 4-lbs. at the same 

 expense as is now incurred in obtaining ill-grown 

 fruit of less than half the weight. 



The man who can grow a crop of six-pounder 

 Queens could never, under any circumstances, pro- 

 duce such things as we now see in too many places. 

 Pine-growers should imitate the florists ; they should 

 place their standard of perfection very high, and 

 should strive to approach it as nearly as they can, 

 without being discouraged if they do not reach it. 



. . FTTEB from a " Manchester Gardener" reminds us 

 that our remarks on Pine growing are not yet brought 

 t a conclusion. The object of his inquiry is to ascer- 

 tain whether the large Pines that have of late excited 

 £ much surprise are as well flavoured as smaller ones. 

 The answer to that question is m the affirmative, as 

 far as regards the Pines obtained at Bicton and Long- 

 leat The latter we saw, and it was impossible to con- 

 ceive Queens more perfect in all respects, fragrance, 

 and therefore flavour, included.. We are informed, 

 upon evidence which we cannot question, that the same 

 eood qualities existed in the fruit obtained by Mr.W. 

 Barnes ; but, as we have repeatedly stated, we have no 

 personal knowledge of the fact. As to other large Pines 

 grown in other places, we have cautiously abstained 

 from alluding to them much, because we understand 

 that in some cases thev have not proved of good 

 quality. It is sufficient to know that the Queens at 

 Longleat and Bicton were perfect ; and on them we 

 rest,°and always have rested, our case. 



And now a word with regard to the general ques- 

 tion. What we have insisted upon is the possibility of 

 growing Pines better than they have been ever grown 

 before, unless in a very few exceptional instances ; the 

 probability of the whole system of cultivating this fruit 

 being affected by the discovery of such a fact ; and 

 the necessity for those gardeners who fancy that they 

 have arrived at the end of what there is to know 

 bestirring themselves to improve their practice, if they 

 would not be outstripped by better growers. The result 

 has been exactly what we anticipated. Sensible men 

 have betaken themselves to consider how far it is 

 advisable or practicable to follow the advice that has 

 been given. They never dreamed of taking to them- 

 selves the sharp remarks of ourselves and Mr. Barnes, 

 for they felt that they in no way deserved them — and 

 they were right. But the foolish drones clapped the 

 cap upon their heads, found that it fitted them 

 exactly, and were prodigiously annoyed at discovering 

 that they could not take it off again. We trust they 

 will continue to wear it, as a mark by which their 

 neighbours may know them. We may possibly here- 

 after offer some other articles of dress for their 

 acceptance. 



Two things should, we think, be obvious. The 

 first, that it may not be always as desirable to grow 

 very large Pines, as it is to know how to do it ; the 

 second, that no one would expect them of a gardener 

 whose master objects to supplying the necessary 



What a gardener should do, is to set before his 

 master the relative expense of growing Queens to the 

 weight of slbs. or 4lbs., and 6lbs. or 7lbs. ; and then 

 to inquire which he prefers. In the majority of 

 cases, he would find his master preferring the smaller 

 size, if well grown; because it is only on special occa- 

 sions that very heavy Pines are really wanted; and 

 always to place on the table a Queen of Gibs, weight 

 wnere one of only 3 lbs. is required would be unne- 

 cessary waste. There is, however, no family where 

 tines are cultivated, in which it is not wished to have 

 «e largest possible fruit occasionally. If it were not 



hav V-° Vldence and Enville Pine Apples, which 

 out nf" i " g 1>Ut size t0 ^commend them, would go 

 carrt CulUvation - Again, the surplus Pines in many 

 " wouTn re re ° ularl y sent t0 market, and in that case 

 fitabl t0 ^ e ascertain ed which is the more pro- 



grown V r ° P ° f Very lar S e ' or of middle-sized, well- 

 garden lneS * And {t is in this wa y tliat market- 

 what hr P ™ bably view the q ues tion- They grow 

 them t\ SUlts the market, and what will produce 



<io be T- 1 profit - The y ma y say that they could 



coulrl U were wortn while; and perhaps they 



marlrpi en ' however > we look at the way in which the 

 comnl are f u PP lied wi th Pines, it is impossible to 

 one JI "?• i e S rowe rs on their skill. Often, indeed, 

 rarely mt r "K 1 ' but an - vthin S very remarkable is 

 what wp ch '™\\ J . and a ,* ar £ e proportion consists of 



When we consider the infinite variety of objects 

 presented to the eye in all the varied scenery to be 

 found on the earth, it becomes clear that man must 

 be endowed with faculties enabling him to derive 

 pleasure from contemplating them. It is not enough 

 that man should perceive there are things present 

 external to himself; he must have power to distin- 

 guish one thing from another. Seeing the necessity 

 of this, it is proper to consider what these powers 

 are, before we think of their exercise in the profession 

 we are attempting to illustrate. This is rather an 

 extensive range of subject, but we shall be brief, 

 studying merely to give useful hints, and leaving 

 those who may feel desirous of deeper research, to 

 satisfy themselves by applying to special sources of 

 information. 



After the perception of the presence of an object, 

 — its occupation of space — perhaps we regard the 

 secondary one to be its magnitude in comparison to 

 our own dimensions, or to those of other objects. We 

 have, therefore, a faculty to perceive magnitude or 

 size, and a faculty to compare one magnitude with 

 another. ^ The next perception may be that of the 

 boundaries or outline of the object — that is, its form, 

 or shape. Here we speak merely as if the object were 

 flat. When an object is not flat, but a solid, we are 

 enabled to discover the entire form by the assistance 

 of light and its degree of dilution ; in ordinary lan- 

 guage, shade. Though shade be essentially shadow, 

 it is a useful conventional term to distinguish when it 

 relates to the parts of form which it brings out to the 

 eye ; while shadow is employed to denote the effect of 

 interruption of light by an entire mass of matter inde- 

 pendently of every part of its form except the outline. 

 The ascertainment of form by the sense of touch we 

 need not consider ; for, Landscape Gardening has to do 

 only with perceptions excited through the eye. We 

 have, then, a mental faculty, enabling us to distin- 

 guish forms which are of endless variety, made up of 

 lines and surfaces, straight and curved. Outline 

 depends on form ; and, therefore, when agreeable out- 

 lineJs required in a landscape, selection is to be made 

 of objects having forms suited to produce it. But it 

 must be observed, care should be taken in selecting 

 forms for an outline, that they are in other respects 

 suitable to the position in which they are to be placed, 

 and not disagreeable in themselves individually. 

 Hence, this faculty of form must be possessed in a 

 high degree by the Landscape Gardener ; so that this 

 perception may be quick in regard to the supply 

 of what may be wanting, and . to the removal of 

 what is unsuitable. There is, besides, a perception of 

 harmony required — of suitableness — of fitness, inde- 

 pendent of simple form. There is, in the combina- 

 tions of forms that which may be pleasing, and that 

 which may be offensive. Indeed, in this consists the 

 chief power of a Landscape Gardener who is fitted by 

 nature to follow the profession. Metaphysically 

 speaking, it is probable that this perception of har- 

 mony may belong to the faculty of form. It may be 

 a faculty independent of it, but it is claimed by others 

 also, and on that account seems to be an adjunct, or 

 even an integral part of each. The phrenological 

 faculty of ideality scarcely seems to embrace it, 

 though it may assist the function ; and without fur- 

 ther discussion we hold it for the present as belonging 

 to the faculty of form — but not exclusively. 



It is obviously necessary to the Landscape Gar- 

 dener to have an acute perception of the relative posi- 

 tion of objects. This is undoubtedly a special faculty, 

 and to it belongs the memory we have for places, and 

 the power of finding our way. In grouping, objects 

 may be placed incongruously in relation to each other, 

 however agreeable their forms may be individually. 

 If we feel pleased with one mode of grouping a cer- 

 tain number of objects, and displeased with another 

 mode, it is obvious we possess a peculiar faculty dif- 

 ferent from simple comparison — one which enables us 

 to derive satisfaction of a distinct kind from the per- 

 ception of a particular arrangement. 



There is another faculty connected with arrange- 

 ment, and meriting special attention, and with which 

 we will for the present conclude. We refer to the 

 faculty of Order, or we may, perhaps, rather name it 

 Symmetry. The disposition to keep things in order, 

 that is, in their proper places, is not what is meant; 

 but the arrangement of objects according to size and 

 I form. For example, let us take four objects of the 



them we may set down a tall one, then two short ones, 

 next to them two tall ones, then two short ones, and 

 lastly a tall one, Irillul ; or, two tall ones, four short, 

 and two tall, 11m ill; or two short, four tall, and two 

 short, nllllii ; or one short, two tail, two short, two tall, 

 and one short, illnlli ; all these are symmetrical. But 

 other arrangements, such as mlilil, Hhnh, nnllll, and 

 so on, are not symmetrical. The faculty which leads 

 us to observe symmetry is more necessary in Archi- 

 tecture than in Landscape Gardening ; but still it is 

 necessary, if for no other reason, in order to put the 

 practitioner on his guard against stiffness, which is the 

 resuk of too great a predominance of the faculty. The 

 Landscape Gardener, however, ought to be able to per- 

 ceive it, to make use of it where it may be proper, and 

 avoid it where it would be absurd. Some of our 

 readers may know the anecdote of a worthy Gardener 

 who had this faculty in a high degree. It happened 

 that the stocks were placed at a corner where one road 

 branched off from another, not far from the residence 

 of the gentleman whom he served. They had long 

 been disused ; one morning, for the first time, our gar- 

 dener saw a man locked into them, rendering the 

 whole thing very conspicuous. Towards evening his 

 master happened to pass that way, and was surprised 

 to see stocks on the other side, and a man in them 

 also. He asked the gardener if he knew the cause of 

 this, when he replied that he had considered it very 

 awkward to have a man in the stocks only on one 

 side, and that he had caused the carpenter to make 

 another, and hired a man to stand in it, for the sake of 

 uniformity. — G. 



"Iia IV P 1 6 I \JVI\JL ll\J Li tWIIOIOW V*. 



th an that f U 0t consider tit for an y other purpose 



Bothincr h r confectioner. This arises from l iorm. ror example, lee us iaKe iou 



o out want of skill on the part of the growers ; \ same height, and four that are taller. In arranging 



ON THE DISEASES OF PLANTS. 

 A large class of the diseases which affect plants, and 

 that a very formidable one, both as regards number and 

 their disastrous consequences, is attributable to the attacks 

 of various species of Fungi. To them, no less than to the 

 minuter insects, are due many of the appearances which, 

 are known and dreaded by cultivators under the name of 

 Blight, though frequently without the slightest suspicion 

 as to their nature or origin. The noxious parasites them- 

 selves are many in number, and various in structure. There 

 is no part or organ which is not, during some period of its 

 growth, subject to their ravages. The leaves, the flowers, 

 the anthers, the germen, the seed, the softer portions of 

 the stem, or even occasionally the woody twigs and smaller 

 branches ; the roots, and finally the harder internal tissues, 

 are in their turn affected by some one or more of these 

 enemies, and in many cases totally destroyed by their 

 agency. Nor are their attacks confined, as has been often 

 supposed, to unhealthy organs or individuals, though there 

 may often be a morbid condition of the plant predisposing 

 it to such attacks ; for it has been shown that where, under 

 favourable atmospheric conditions, the spores, or reproduc- 

 tive organs of these productions have germinated, they 

 have in many cases a power of establishing themselves 

 upon the most healthy living tissues, and this not only in 

 the vegetable world, where it, perhaps, may not appear 

 surprising, but even in animals in full health and vigour. 

 Mr. Hassall has shown, in a series of papers read before 

 the Microscopical Society of London, and in specimens 

 handed round at one of the meetings of the Linnean 

 Society, that perfectly sound fruits are soon completely 

 destroyed if inoculated with certain species of mould ; and 

 these observations t have since been extended by him as 

 regards Lettuces, and other vegetables, as were pub- 

 lished in Aug., 1843, in the "Annals of Natural History. n 

 Effects like these had previously been produced by Mes- 

 sieurs Audouin, Bassi, and Balsamo-Crivelli, especially 

 the former, whose papers in the " Annales des Sciences 

 Naturelles " are well worth attention, by the inoculation 

 of the mould (Botrytis Bassiana), which commits such 

 ravages in silk-worm establishments, both before and after 

 the spinning of the cocoon. And not only were the ca- 

 terpillars of the silk-moth affected by this inoculation, but 

 those of other moths ; and, in some cases, other species 

 of mould were developed from their internal tissue when 

 exposed to the air. A familiar instance of this living 

 death may often be seen in autumn in the case of flies, 

 which, under the attack of some species of Fungus at pre- 

 sent imperfectly understood, glue themselves by their 

 proboscis to the ceiling, to leaves, pieces of string, or 

 other objects that fall in their way, and then patiently 

 wait for the consummation of their disease. Dr. Han- 

 noon also, as recorded in * Muller's Archives for Anatomy 

 and Physiology," succeeded in inoculating living sala- 

 manders, some of which died in consequence of the deve- 

 lopment of the mould. As this Fungus is very easily 

 raised in a glass tube without any organic matrix, pro- 

 vided the air within the tube be of the proper degree of 

 moisture, as has been shown by Dr. Montagne, it is not 

 improbable thai; it would establish itself likewise on vege- 

 tables ; but I am not aware that any experiments have 

 been made on this point. And this would be the more 

 likely, if, as Dr. Montagne supposes, it may possibly be 

 the same species with Botrytis diffusa, though I am my- 

 self inclined to think that the latter species has a far more 

 complicated structure. The subject, indeed, is one which 

 deserves far more attention than it has hitherto received, 

 and which is likely to repay well the labours of any 

 patient and accurate observer ; and though the spores of 

 Fungi may not be so injurious as might be supposed from 

 an opinion which I heard maintained by persons of con- 

 siderable scientific attainments in France some years since, 

 when the influenza, or, as it is called there, la grippe, 

 was so prevalent and fatal, that it arose from the mutti* 



