404 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[June 22, 



^ucc axial. u»ucu euuUMiuou. 1 «"»«»«* £» vu * 



H wri) rotted, and mixed thoroughly with the soil. I 

 a4d, in conclusion, that one great advantage in 



***"' . . « . . • A u. f„.;Ur« tvliifh the. wide 





J*)fc aSord for the operations of cleansing «™W£' 

 ,m) also for picking off the blossom,-ao .operation .that 

 *Vi*d nevsr by any means be owMed.-Jlobeit *r- 



r 



FAMILIAR BOTANY. 

 Morphology. — No. XV. 



^nWlhat will be explained hereafter. Here these 

 carpels and leaves are proved to be the same thing in 



different states. . . 



The last piece of evidence for which I can find room 

 is the following, for which I am indebted to a friend, 



* 



in Ely. ,-, , . • 



Fi°\ 1 represents the carpel of a common Columbine, 



artificially opened along the furrow, but otherwise in the 



ha 



TTho ean recount what transformations, ww « 



»„, D .on!e listen with incredulous ears to the assur- 

 »«th a ra ? each is forced out of a leaf, they do not co„- 

 ?£ what sort of bod, the Peach ... »i.f° J.^. 

 1»W »ot appear so extraordinary that an Apple should 

 composed of leaves, if the nature of the Apple were 

 •MmaiUil before it began to grow into that sort of 



frail. There is no more '^^^"""^/Xn 

 *««ho, the young Apple and the full-grown fr , t than 



tfcere is between the latter and the leaves. It „ not 



uprising that small things should be overlooked by 



thoW who wo'n't use magnitying glasses. He who wou d 



«e more than his neighbours must arm himself with 



The young fruit of a plant is called its carpel. That 

 k what we must look to, if we would judge of the true 

 M Ure of the fruit. To take another course is like 

 at!eai>t.»K to determine the quality of timber after it is 

 covered with paint and varnish. In examining the carpel 

 a hatter subject cannot be taken than the common Cherry. 



The carpel of the Cherry consists of a shining oval 



bright-green case, called the ovary, within which is ia 



«ar?ao teed or ovule ; at its end is a thread called the 



Uyle the termination of which ia a moist expansion 



termed the stigma. On one side of this stigma is a 



notch, and from that notch, down to the bottom of the 



t*ary a deep furrow passes. But although this is the 



usual state of the Cherry-carpel it is not always so. 



Sometimes, especially in double Cherries, the furrow is 



an opening on one side of the carpel, from top to bottom ; 



ami then the sides of the carpel are veined, while the 



edges of the opening are toothed, and the whole texture 



•f the thing is that of a leaf. In fact it is a small leaf, 



folded up, with its end extended into a style, and its 



point enlarged into a stigma ; the only difference is that 



it sometimes carries an ovule on one of its edges ; but it 



aowetimes does not. The carpel of a Cherry, then, is a 



roiled up leaf. Sometimes the Cherry will produce two 



inch leaves, one opposite the other, and sometimes it will 



ra like manner produce two carpels : in both instances the 



part* of those organs bear precisely the same relation to 



aaeh other. 



The carpels of the Whitethorn are two or three, or 

 erea five, placed in a ring, at the bottom of the calyx, 

 and having a little spongy pyramid risiog up between 

 them. Each of these carpels is like that of the \V hitethorn 

 eicept that it is hairy ; and a very moderate search will 

 pioduee instances where, as in the Cherry, the carpels 

 are represented by little leaves; in the double Whitethorn 

 this is very common. Ic is just the same in a Rose, 

 eacept that the number of carpels is very considerable. 

 Each of them is like that of the Whitethorn, and each 

 » very constantly opened on the furrowed side, and 

 spread into a small leaf. The furrow is, in fact, the line 

 where the edges of the folded leaf come in contact. 



The Ranunculus, the Anemone, and the Potentilla, 

 -present endless evidence of the same sort. In a damp 

 aaasen it is more abundant than in a dry one. There are 

 »©w before us specimens of a Potentilla nepalensis in 

 which the ca-pels are, some of them, in their most 

 ordinary condition, some a little opened on the furrowed 

 side, some broad and nearly flat, while many are enlarged 

 and lobed, and veined, and just like common leaves. 

 No doubt, then, can be entertained that the carpel is a 



snail leaf folded up. . 



But I have more illustrations of this at hand. In a 

 letter by Mr. Ayres, lately published, mention is made 

 of a very singular 

 deviation from or- 

 dinary structure in 

 an Epacris nivalis. 

 The subjoined cut 

 represents this 

 ease. The Epacris 

 has, in its usual 

 state, 5 cupels, 

 which are soldered 

 together where 

 tbey touch. But 

 m Mr. Ayres's 

 specimens some of 

 them are merely 

 aasoldered, gome 

 are thinned and 

 opened into little 

 leaves, while others 



are so entirely like 

 leaves that you 

 cannot distinguish 



them, and. in cer- 

 tain instances, they 



actually stand on 

 the surface of a 



aaaach which has lengthened from between t'-isao, in a 



sumed all the beauty and purity of its youth, which in- 

 duced me to write against it " Acquitted." Cathcart, 

 when it first bloomed, was a white ground, beautifully 

 mottled with crimson ; now it frequently comes with only 

 a crimson spot ; but in good seasons it will displav all 

 the beauties of its youth. Sometimes the flowers will be 

 as green as the grass of the plants from which they grow. 

 Some of the finest seedlings are weak, and therefore die 

 in a few years ; though for a short time they had great 

 renown; such has been the case with Abbe' St. Andrew, 

 Quixos, Viol le vrai Noir, Grand Berger, and Rose In- 

 comparable, and some others of later date. But there 

 are others of first-rate character which are remarkably 

 strong, and increase abundantly, such as Attractor, 

 .Felix, Saladin, Edgar, Eureka, Victor, and many others. 

 If the last season was very propitious for the Ranunculus, 

 the present 1844 has been altogether as adverse, espe- 

 cially for the early-planted roots. The frosts by night, 

 and the drought by day, have done much injury, and 

 many have died. These are circumstances which try 

 the patience and baffle the skill of the ardent florist; but 

 let him persevere through all the diversity of seasons, 

 aud his efforts will be sure to be crowned with .success. 

 I have during the last twenty years raised many 

 thousands of seedlings, out of which I have selected 

 about two hundred; amongst them is one yellow-edged 

 seedling called Edgar, which is so perfect in every 

 respect, that the London florists pronounced it "a model 

 flower," and many others of them have at exhibitions 

 borne away the palm from their far-famed predecessors. 

 I generally grow from 20 to 30 large beds, planted at 

 various seasons ; but the best time to secure a good 

 bloom is to plant in the last week in February or the first 

 in March.— Joseph Tyso, Walling ford. 



ordinary condition. But my correspondent found a plant 

 of this species with its carpels in all sorts of changes, even 

 into that of lobed leaves. In tig. 2 we have a carpel with 

 five lobes on its sides ; in figs. 3 and 4 it is spread quite 

 flat and lobed along almost the whole of the edge, from 

 end to end. At the same time, the ovules, which at 

 fig. 1 stand in rows upon each edge of the opened fur- 

 row, have wholly disappeared. To this curious case I 

 shall again refer for another purpose. 



I now conceive that the carpels of the Cherry, the 

 Hawthorn, the Rose, the Epacris, and the Columbine, 

 have been sufficiently shown to be leaves, and therefore all 

 carpels must be so considered; for what is physiologically 

 true of a given organ in one plant, is true of the same 

 organ in all other plants, as has been already stated. — 

 R.E. 



THE RANUNCULUS. 



So much has been written on the culture of the Ra- 

 nunculus, that the young florist has ample means of 

 knowing how to manage this lovely flower with the fairest 

 hopes of success ; but I apprehend that a few remarks 

 on the habits of this class of plants may not be unaccept- 

 able to your readers. From the experience of 40 years, 

 I am prepared to say that the Ranunculus delights in a 

 moist soil and a rainy season. Last year was the most 



congenial to this class of plants I ever recollect of. anu u» iuuuuuuuuu » uatvu — 



Indeed so prosperous was it, that many of the old va- here mentioned as a native of " Algarbia. 

 rieties, such as Naxara, Variat, La Tendresse, Brelange 

 des Beautes, and several others, sent up fine pericarps, 

 commonly called eyes, from which, by impregnation, 

 good seed has been saved. The frequent showers of 

 1843 induced most of the best seedlings which have for 

 some years maintained a high character as good show- 

 flowers to yield large seed-vessels, so that many of the 

 flowers were unfit for exhibition ; but for this trick of 

 youth, they have amply compensated by producing a 

 greater abundance of prime seed. The showing of the 

 eye may be thought by many a great drawback on the 

 value of a flower ; yet it should be remembered that no 

 flower shows such a perfect crown as one whose petals 

 are supported by the seed-vessel; though it is well 

 known that they will not do for exhibition after the pe- 

 ricarp is developed. But it is also certain that those that 

 are semidouble will come perfectly double in a few years ; 

 and many that produce large seed-vessels in a congenial 

 season, will, in a dry spring, be entirely destitute of them, 

 but generally inferior both in size and colour. 



Tuere is also in the Ranunculus what is by florists 

 called a sportive character — that is, they run from their 

 original colour ; though this defect is not so glaring as 

 in the Tulip and Carnation, yet it causes great disap- 

 pointment to the ardent florist. Some that have yellow 

 grounds delicately spotted will come plain yellow, and 

 some red and white striped will come plain red ; some- 

 times the colours will mix, and the flowers will become 

 dingy. I have a beautiful modest flower which some 

 years ago obtained a first seedling prize ; I called it '* In- 

 nocent ;" but the year before last it came so foul, that I 

 wrote against it "Guilty." Last year, however, it re- 



Home Correspondence. 



Rose Budding.— I strongly recommend all amateurs 

 who are desirous of avoiding disappointment in budding 

 Roses, to leave a small piece of wood as a protection to 

 the bud when cut from the branch. By adopting this 

 plan, I have succeeded in propagating all descriptions of 

 Roses, even in the driest weather, both late and early in 

 the season. I always use white worsted, instead of bast, 

 for tying up, which I find answers much better ; it keeps 

 the parts more closely together, and they unite in a 

 shorter time. A very small portion of wood is sufficient 

 to preserve the root of the buds. My stock, on which I 

 operate, is the Bengalensis, free and rapid in its growth. 

 The crimson Boursault also makes a good parent, and is 



easily struck. — Falcon. .... 



Sowing Seed.— I have had no difficulty m bringing up 

 my seeds, during this unusually dry weather, by pur- 

 suing the following system .-Dig and pulverise the 

 earth well, soak it with water (not immediately from a 

 spring,— it should be exposed for some time to the air;, 

 fine the top. sow the seed in shallow trenches, which is 

 far preferable to broad-cast, and then sift over the bed 

 a coating of rich compost ; in a few days the appearance 

 of green leaves will reward your trouble. In this way * 

 coax Parsley above the ground in three * e « s -^ *™7; 



Statice P leudo-armeria.-m™s been a considerable 

 time familiar with the Armeria latifolia, a notice o which 

 as a new plant is quoted, in your Number of Jun L£ 

 from •« Paxton's Magazine," under the name of ! Stat ice 

 pseudo-armeria, and having received some acwunt otitt 

 history from Dr. Bell Salter, of Ryde, I Uhethe 1 iherty 

 of offering some remarks respecting it. S°*^L 

 a supposed new Statice were given by Ash urs t M«en*e, 

 Esq., of Hedingham Castle, Essex, and Caen >' n f° 9 

 mandy, to several persons in Ryde in the ™ ter ^ "^J 

 and John Vaux, Esq., (my formei -esteemed ^empl 

 succeeded in flowering it last year, but most of the pl« ^ 

 produced did not flower until this year. As soo 

 flowered it was at once recognised as the Armer _ 

 folia, of which a sufficient description and a character ^ 

 cut are given in » Loudon's Encyclopedia of Plan* 

 and its introduction is dated as far back as um> 

 here mentioned as a native of " Algarbia. ^J. 

 jendie received his seeds from a French officer ser g 

 at Bona, in Africa, of which place and district rt :* 

 tive. I have not " Paxton's Magazine to refer , 

 I see by your extract that it was received in iij ' 

 Messrs. Rollisson, from the Jardin des ^ antes \ . this 

 accompanied with any memoranda of its insi j . ^ 

 deficiency, I believe, I can fortunately supply, i • 

 jendie presented seeds to the Jardin des F iantes the 

 considerable time previously to his doing so ■ u , ^ 



plants from that quarter are, therefore, ?? ^ naBBe ly, 

 same origin as those growing in this slana .^ 



from Bona; and Mr. Majendie has lately mention ^ 

 Ryde that in France they have given to his i plan ^ 

 name by which Mr. Paxton mentions that ne to 



them. Some of the Ryde plants were given » las' £ 

 Sir We. Hooker for the Kew Garden ; he : confirm i 

 being the Armeria latifolia, and conside red the p ^ 

 to be a re-introduction, supposing it had been ic ' u 



country. Of this, however, I 1™ reason to e ^ 

 very strong doubts, there being now in the garoe ^^ 

 my care (namely, that of J. Percival, Esq., oi f- 



lands, near Ryde), a plant which has been there ^ . fc 

 derable period. I have every reason to oew to be 

 was obtained in London at far too early a pen ^^ 

 of Mr. Majendie's source, and therefore have c _ 



oft its being from the old stock of the original » ^ ^ 

 tion. In conclusion, I can bear ample testimo y tj> 

 beauty and desirableness of the plant, and am i mv^ 

 be able to confirm Mr. Paxton's auggestion ast fl 



mitting early forcing and also to be able = to ad 







the authority of Mr. Majendie and from , my o 



Nation, that it will bear the winder in this country 



