1844.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



succession of young larvae for a considerable length of 

 time we should need to repeat the cure every other 



week, which would perhaps be troublesome, as well as 

 expensive. From experience, I have found hand-picking 

 the surest plan in the end, if judiciously done. My plan 



j, (hj g: I go round and examine the centre or heart of 



the bush ; by this view of the bush you can easily per- 

 ceive the leaves that are attacked by caterpillars, as they 

 will be seen perforated with small holes, as if pierced 

 with a pin. Yet after these are all off the bush, you have 

 not finished your labour, as there may be a great number 

 of leaves with the caterpillar in the ovum or egg state in 

 hundreds on the back of these leaves, ready to sally 

 forth in a few days and devour the foliage ; therefore you 

 must go round and lift up the branches one by one, and 

 look upward, on the back of the largest and most 

 detached foliage; you may there see the eggs laid in great 

 numbers on the back of the leaves. If one single leaf in 

 this state is pulled off, what a saving of labour and vexa- 

 tion is gained ! Besides, if the caterpillars had been left 

 undisturbed, perhaps for a day or two, you would have 

 hid to seek them throughout the whole, or a considerable 

 portion of the bush. As Necessity is frequently the 

 mother of Invention, I lately fell on a plan which facili- 

 tates the work a great deal ; the plan is as simple as it is 

 successful, and although it may be thought rather a novel 

 method, yet if one once becomes accustomed to it, it 

 will be found of great service in getting a proper 

 view of many parts of the bush that could not be got at 

 otherwise: — Take a common hanJ-mirror, or looking- 

 glass, and with one hand hold it under the leaves of the 

 bush, near the ground, and move it in different directions 

 under the branches, and by looking into the glass you will 

 get a view of the bsck of the leaves on all the bush, 

 where you would not otherwise see under them ; then, 

 while looking into the glass, you will see the eggs on the 

 back of the leaves, while by your eye you can direct your 

 other hand to the proper leaf ; and by picking off the 

 caterpillars on the leaves in this state, what a world of 

 future labour is saved! as I have frequently counted from 

 80 to 150 on the back of a single leaf.— ^. Walker, 

 Muiryfold Grange, Banffshire. 



The Weather.— Many years ago, by constant observa- 

 tion, for almost forty years past, that I have kept a 

 weather journal, I have noticed in settled frosty winters, 

 and in dry winds, that there is a more humid cloudy at- 

 mosphere on the 4th and 5th days after the new and full 

 moon ; and though subject to various modifying causes 

 connected with the phenomena of the weather, I have 

 still been able to trace the existence of more vapours 

 after the subsidence of the great tide of the full and 

 change of the moon. The peculiarity of the present 

 season had induced me, the last change and full moon, to 

 take particu ar notice ; and I predicted, with success, 

 the increased moisture of the air, and sent a communica- 

 tion, s.gned «W." to the editor of the Worcester Journal 

 III * ,g i T 8g ?' and a S ain in the Publication of this 



MeteoroTn -\ ° Ul u iikC t0 hear the °P inion of Iea ™ d 



tank th I H tS ? n * ,a matter * The 8urfa <* of the Great 

 the ,'r ^ K-! ntlC ,° Cean ' as Mr ' Kirwan ha * sa^, is 

 Sol v \1 t6r ° f ° Ur Seasons ' y et no Meteorological 

 2d nf 6S DOtlCe ,° f U ! From the information I have 

 coast of ai f . Unus T ual rains in A ^alusia and along the 

 of the \ R g,erS, i attHbute t0 them the lon S continence 

 Soke of w ,T lnd * 1Q En S land and Fra °<*. When the 

 rnll:\! hn 5 t0n , was in S P ain ' ab out 1809, when his 



weeks previous to the time that the fruit changes^cW 

 The Providence, Enville, and Antigua I never water nor 

 shade six weeks after they have bloomed, and such as 

 the Montserrat, Jamaica, &c, I do not water after seven 

 or eight weeks, as these sorts are longer in ripening. So 

 rapid has been the growth of the three former varieties, 

 that the fruit frequently measured from 18 to 21 inched 

 round m that time, and increased in weight from 16 to 

 20 ounces per week. I have hitherto made it my study 

 by artificial means to surpass a tropical climate, by imi- 

 tating a moist and dry atmosphere in the same house, 

 and at the same season. This I accomplish by so 

 arranging the plants that I can sprinkle and shade those 

 that are growing, whilst those that are maturing their 

 fruit have the benefit of all the light and sun, and thus I 

 effect one of the most important objects of Pine culture, 

 namely, encouraging rapid growth in one set of plants' 

 whilst others are ripening their fruit. By thus deviating 

 from a natural climate, I manage to cut at least eleven 

 months out of the twelve, whereas, if I was to imitate a 

 tropical climate, my fruit would be all produced at one 

 particular season. I have tasted a great number of my 

 Pines every season, and have therefore had an oppor- 

 tunity of attesting the results of my experiments. Some 

 seasons I have never shaded nor sprinkled those in fruit, 

 whilst in other seasons both shading and sprinkling were 

 practised, and the fruit in both cases were equally de- 

 licious ; therefore my opinion is that the flavour does not 

 so much depend on a scorching sun as on the health and 

 vigour of the plant. In this opinion I am borne out by 

 the fact that my largest fruit were invariably the most 

 juicy and delicious in flavour. I may further state, that 

 since I commenced my present system, the flavour of 

 the fruit has been more than ever applauded; and I 

 imagine that the cause of this superiority in flavour 

 arises from the increase of the minute fibres, for the 

 more minute and numerous those agents of absorption 

 are, the more abundantly will the plant be supplied with 

 wholesome food, which will of course aid the swelling of 

 the fruit and lessen the size of the crown. I have cut 

 fruit upwards of 61bs. with tops not more than 3 inches 

 long. While I have been at Thornfield, I have been so 

 unfortunate as to burn the roots twice during the last six 

 years, owing to the valves of the heating apparatus 

 getting out of repair, and any experienced Pine-grower 

 wiil guess the consequence, namely, small fruit with 

 immense tops, and of course inferior in flavour. Fruit 

 of this description may be observed at our Manchester 

 Horticultural Exhibitions, and also in the fruiterers' 

 windows : they resemble men's heads with baby faces, 

 particularly the Montserrats, which rarely exceed 31bs. 

 in that locality. The readers of the Chronicle will thus 

 see how it is that lam considered an enemy to gardeners 

 in that neighbourhood, because in publishing my book 

 their ignorance and indolence are exposed by the state- 



ave grown tac ^.lOntserrai 



373 



were created perfect, and if those who assert that 

 all things proceed from "imperfection to perfec- 

 tion, are to be stigmatised as Atheists, what kind 

 of persons must Florists be ? -for they are not satis- 

 fied with the fair forms of Nature, but by hybridising 

 and cross-breeding have brought into existence thousands 

 of varieties in the vegetable kingdom, which most 

 assuredly were not created when all things were " made 

 perfect ;" and more especially what an Infidel must that 

 man be who, not content with finding fault, must e'en 

 setup "standards of perfection," which Nature must 

 approach before she can be perfect ?— W. P. Ayreu 

 Whitney's Composition.— My experience of Whitney's 

 Composition, and of the effect of covering wall-trees, very 

 nearly agrees with that of your correspondent " Rambler." 

 I did not find the composition go half as far as I was led 

 to expect. I prepared with it one half of a frame, twelve 

 feet long and six wide, dressing the other half with the 

 composition recommended by " Devoniensis," at p. 301 

 of 1813, adding, however, one ounce more of resin and 

 half an ounce of sugar of lead to the quantities he recom- 

 mends. Both halves are equally transparent and equally 

 waterproof ; the only difference is in the expense, which 

 is very greatly in favour of " Devoniensis." The fruit 

 (Peaches and Nectarines) set abundantly and well, and 

 is swelling favourably ; but the leaves are blistered, though 

 not more so than in ordinary seasons. I am much subject 

 to it. I mean to apply the frames again to my trees 

 next spring.— Ligncmont. 



Strawberry.— Observing a notice lately respecting ripe 

 Strawberries gathered at Forton Cottage, Lancaster, on 

 the 26th of May, I beg to say it will, to all appearance, 

 be at least a fortnight before they are ripe in this 

 vicinity, even in the most favoured situations (rubble- 

 stone beds may be an exception). I may also observe, that 

 haying cultivated Myatt's British Queen from the first 

 of its being let out, having at this time between one and 

 two acres of that variety, I have now some single plants 

 not two years old, with an average of 20, some 30 trusses 

 of fruit on each plant, and all, even the smallest runners, 

 producing fruit. I (tt\ confident that, with proper 

 culture, they are as prolific as any Strawberry grown, 

 Prince Albert excepted.— F., Manchester. 



Pea.— On the 7th of December, 1843, I sowed the 

 Prince Albert Pea, Shilling's Early Grotto, and the 

 Old Early May. The Albert was first ready for table. 

 I gathered a good dish on the 20th of May, but the 

 pods were small, with only three or four in a pod. 

 Shilling's Early Grotto was next ; it is by far the best, 

 although five days later : it has a good pod, with five 

 or six Peas in it. The Old Early May, which for 

 cropping is preferable to either, was ready on the 28th 

 of May ; all the three varieties were sown under a south 

 wall, and had the same treatment. — Bath. 



Anecdote of a Tom lit.— About three weeks ago a 



current J ' ? ^corded m my weather journal, a 



Sre^t Precipitation of rain or snow.-John Williams. 



believe t£ ^ ari ° US ex P e "ments have led me to 

 a ew ho«r. P .J all r . "^cepting the rays of the sun for 

 ^onrilJr: in l\t m ! dtI l e ?' 27 b "^tdays, and occa- 

 their growth I p,d . nt . 8 m fruit in the earl 7 sta S es of 

 f^i , ProvideH f. n0t ln J uriousl y a ffect the flavour of the 

 -~-^!!!!g!i^j^ ter is entirely withhe ld three 



to the m°o n ifu? a C f e a Ca , , !l e toa concl «sion that there is an addition 

 ■each full and chanSi f S5 0n the fourth and fifth da >' s aft *r 

 aqueous vapour ?!£„ moon ' and that such addition of 



these days; but thorA.° CCaSl0ns rain ' snow ' or cloudiness on 

 toted by the Great if.thn^ T7- com P"<»ted processes insti- 



J" the atmosphere that^p *» ?*' whichhave ™ influence 



<hfication i n varim,? ° Ve chan & es ar e subject to mo- 



ac /o«Dt,theaddTtnnnf ayS; and » without taki "S th <*e into 

 **«! may not be De rcenH2rA° US Vap ° Ur on the da >' s Ihave ™. 

 0Q e instance £$ Tl\J • a CaSUal observer - I will give 



-*"•«*. I believe »h» fwL, » ""* lure wun a aner at mo- 

 occurring on the dav. i i? * entremarks * have made of moisture 



d « nce of the atmosuh.il> * ^^ l ° be Caused hy the subsi " 

 *ttra Cted b t b^^f" c .great aerial tides, which have been 



Path round the glob ? n *h- " fluence > and **ich accompany her 

 a^ loaded with va Dn 'f re t t 0me P^ion of warm equatorial 

 down towards the nTr. T th ° Se re S ions ' subsides and rolls 

 ? a 7 be right or nTE P ° lar P arts of the earth. Whether I 

 «'7bT' May 22 " 1844 » Co "J ectu re I have no doubt of the 



*ith you 80me j* t0 yo«r recollection the conversation I had 

 *KT' ! n re PlF. I said i* You a " ked my °P ini °n of the wea- 



of 

 wise 



p r»i« C ' and this m™^ . na " at 43 > on Tuesday, it 

 .£m about 6 A \. m o™in e to 56*. it produced a slight fall 



rourhi ? the ««'& of bar? f" 8 ^ that * s ° on dried U P i other. 

 JJJfhl, jetted, the dew a ,?i^ nd ' turn *> ike - roads > &c. beenttio- 



& I iL e baro ^ feU 'l£ n 5 r>°. U i d probabI >- have been ab °™ 

 Sine, fl COnsider , ttomioSS** (r ? m ^ .0 to 29 .go . -, but this 



^lS^ M ' th ^^ine^ SeTrAt > on ' a fair-weather point. 

 rfOaEii? C0nti "ue ?o fXihS VGr ' U has fa,1 ea to 29-88. ; and 



^ bt ^ an abu^a^V^^ 29 ^ ! « b ould then Wattle 



from 6 to 7lbs. and upwards. In conclusion, I beg to 

 state that I shall ever feel grateful for the trouble that 

 has been taken in investigating the truth of the affair, 

 and thereby preserving my reputation and character. — 

 Joseph Hamilton. 



Morphology. — One of the most conclusive proofs of 

 the truth of the doctrine of Morphology, which has ever 

 come under my notice, occurred here last season. Some 

 small branches on an Epacris nivalis flowered to the 

 very extreme point, and in three different instances the 

 pistil or female organ of the most .terminal flower re- 

 verted into a branch, and for months afterwards the cup 

 of the flower might be seen encircling the young branch. 

 These branches, or if you please, elongated pistils, re- 

 mained fresh until the branches were gathered, at which 

 time they were from four to ten inches long ; and I be- 

 lieve that had they been left upon the plant, they would 

 have continued fresh until the present time. Now, 

 although anti-morphologists admit, that by a proper mo- 

 dification of external agencies, it is in the power of the 

 cultivator to make a plant produce either flowers or 

 branches, yet they contend that when the flower buds are 

 once formed, they never revert into branches. Here, how- 

 ever, is a proof of the contrary; and as the same plant has 

 produced a number of similar examples this season, some 

 of which I forward with this communication, I shall be 

 proud, for the furtherence of science, to allow any one 

 who may think proper to call at this place, to examine 

 for himself as to the truth of this statement. On one of 

 the specimens sent are two flowers with the young 

 branches, each about an inch long, and on the other 

 several branches are just peeping from the flowers, and in 

 others some of the pistils are in the transition state, with 

 the first leaves of the future branch just per- 

 ceptible. Another singular proof of the truth of Mor- 

 phology came under my notice a few days back, on a 

 plant of Fuchsia Venus Victrix, one branch of which was 

 so transformed as to produce some of the flowers half 

 leaves, and other leaves half flowers, with petals at the 

 top of the stamens, and another at the top of the petals, 

 and a number of flowers metamorphosed into one. Now 

 if these things do not prove that leaves and flowers are 

 one common organ, and that fruit are stunted branches, 

 how does it come that the flowers of the Fuchsias were 

 part leaves, and some of the leaves part flowers ; and that, 

 in the case of the Epacris, the very part that would have 

 formed the fruit reverted into branches, of which I have 

 now about twenty growing specimens upon the plant ? 

 There is no disease here, and the plant from which the 

 specimens are taken is as healthy as a plant can be, and 

 the flowers were in every respect perfectly, formed before 

 the metamorphosis took place. Can anti-morphologists 

 explain this, not by mere assertion, or declamation, but 

 by sound reasoning ? If, as they assert, all things 



niilt 





are hourly put in, and taken out twice & dsy. Three 

 times was it taken out ; the fourth time she was allowed 

 to have her own way, and has now four young ones going 

 out and in regularly at the hole where the letters are put 

 in. The post-office stands close to the school in Framp- 

 ton, the property of R. B. Sheridan, Esq., and is on the 



main road leading from Dorchester to Taunton. Wm. 



Brewis, gardener to R. B. Sheridan, Esq. 



Prolific Cowslips. — This season these have produced 

 prodigious heads of full-blown flowers upon single stems. 

 In Forton Cottage Garden I was induced to count the 

 number of full-blown flower-pips upon two separate 

 stems ; upon one of them there were 108 pips, and on 

 the other were 120 pips, and several of them were double 

 pips, similar to the one here inclosed ; and there has been 

 one grown in the Rectory garden, at Standish, with 146 

 pips upon it ; another, in the garden of Mr. Smith, of 

 Preston, produced the surprising number of 158 pips. 

 These numbers far exceed any I have ever met with 

 before — Facile. 



Paper for Drying Plants. — I have had an oppor- 

 tunity of trying the new paper for drying specimens of 

 plants, manufactured by Messrs. BentalI,of Halsted, and 

 advertised at p. 293 of the Gardeners' Chronicle, and 

 find it to be excellently suited for that purpose. It is 

 well deserving of the attention of botanists who desire 

 to possess well dried specimens, retaining the colour of 

 their flowers and foliage. — Charles C. Babington. [We 

 quite agree in this opinion. The paper is as good as 

 possible.] 



Bees and their Nightcaps. — I send a glass of honey 

 in the comb, and beg the opinion of the Editor of the 

 Gardeners' Chronicle as to its quality. The weight is 

 six lbs. I also send with it a short account how it was 

 procured. On the 14th of May, 1844, this glass of 

 honey in the comb was taken from a hive of bees, from 

 an apiary about 10 miles from London. I was induced 

 to take it from observing, on the day previous, several 

 drone bees flying about in front of the hive, rolling 

 their eyes about ; one in particular winked one or both 

 eyes, which I took to signify that he meant to taste it. 

 As ail Entomologists know that the eye, in the bee tribe, 

 is a fixture, this rolling their eye about was quite enough 

 to raise my suspicion. This was seen through a Wro- 

 tham telescope. The peculiar flavour of this honey is 

 easily accounted for, that is, if we readers of the Chro- 

 nicle have not been misinformed. The bees have col- 

 lected the honey from the flowers of the Polyanthus, 

 Roses, Pinks, and Lilies— I forget which of the Lily 



tribe— perhaps the Lilies of the Valley. This can be 

 known by referring to the catalogue of bee flowers fur- 

 nished by "Apius." Another, and to me rather a 

 remarkable thing is, that the honey was not collected by 

 slave or factory bees j none of the bees work more 



