1844.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



443 



H 



riBTUTLTURAL SOCIETY OF LONDON. 



EXHIBITIONS AT THE GARDEN. 





_,_• a MMtinir will take place on Saturday, the 13th of 

 Th e Third 3MW"^. on Hig Gracethe Duke of Devonshire, the 



J«ly. on ww en Society> has kind l y directed the doors of his 

 President <w _,, nre . rounds to be opened for the reception 



Frewoeiii - pleaS ore- grounds 



Gardens^. ^ ghaU have been adm i tte d into the Society's 



43*rden b> '. ^ J^hibition must be |at this Office on Friday the 

 SubjeC at the Garden before half- past 8 o'clock a.m. on the 



d *v of ^j!j g k ° e " s W in be issued in Regent-street on the day of 

 jStion.-Sl, Regent- street. 



Z¥ ©artier*' Chronicle* 



SATURDAY, JULY 6, 1844. 



MEETING FOR THE FOLLOWING WEEK 

 Sattmat, July 13 • Horticultural Gardens 



1 P.M. 



Among the many contrivances by which man has 

 tncceeded in converting the wild productions of un- 



tamed nature into bodies better adapted to his arti- 

 ficial wants, nothing has produced more past advan- 



«*' ° r € S rStotaXp£^S "ZZl *"****•*• can do, is to abandon gardens, and seek 



tendency to a return to its- original stock is increased 

 tenfold in strength. It is not, therefore, likely that 

 natural hybrids will often be long perpetuated, 

 although they may be frequently produced. 



• We mention these things by way of vindicating 

 the hybridisers, who have been accused of attempting 

 to subvert the whole order of Nature by monstrous 

 practices. It is clear that they only imitate the 

 practices of Nature. It is equally clear, too, that 

 the occasional formation of natural hybrids is in- 

 tended as a manifestation to man of one of the 

 sources of power with which he is so largely pro- 

 vided. His reason is to be called upon to turn to 

 profitable account that which, in savage nature, 

 leads to no result. 



Be this as it may, the practice of hybridising is, 

 as the politicians say, a great fact, opposition to 

 which would be fruitless if it were desirable. People 

 have found out how much is to be gained by it, and 

 they cannot be checked in its application by the 

 sighs of Botanists over the dreaded advent of a chaos 

 of species. All that Botanists afflicted with the 



been done in the animal kingdom, but confine the 

 attention of the reader to its effects upon vegetation. 



The practice is regarded as one of very recent 

 date ; and so it is, as an artificial process, applied by 

 rule to definite purposes. But he must be a bold man 

 who dares assign to it historical limits ; on the con- 

 trary, it may be supposed to date from the Creation 

 — or rather, it is in a manner certain that it does. 

 The presence of winds or insects must necessarily 

 from the beginning have produced effects upon plants, 

 which resulted in hybrid productions. 



Hybridising is effected by applying to the stigma 

 of one plant the pollen of some other; the end of which 

 is the generation of a form participating more or less 

 in the attributes of both its parents. Nature, in her 

 wildest state, opposes no insurmountable difficulties 

 in the way of this operation. Insects, bepowdered 

 with the pollen of one plant, plunge into the recesses 

 of another, and thus effectually destroy the purity of 

 races. The natural brush on the body of a bee will 

 convey the subtile powder as well as the trim camel's 

 hair pencil of the artificial operator. 



It is contended, indeed, that this cannot be; 

 because if it were so, all species must, in the lapse of 

 ages, be confounded in one inextricable chaos. But, 

 in the first place, this supposition is of little force, till 

 it is shown that that which is easily done artificially 

 cannot possibly take place naturally ; and secondly, 

 it must be proved that the wild races of plants 

 actually do remain in all their original purity. No 

 Botanist would, we suspect, venture upon such an 

 argument as that. The genera Salix, Rubus, Rosa, 

 and Carex, would make the stoutest advocate of 

 original purity pause before he threw himself into the 

 lists. Nobody, in fact, can possibly doubt that wild 

 hybrids exist, are common, and, perhaps, much more 

 irequent than we think for. We will not stop to 

 quote notorious and proved instances of this, because 

 we regard the fact as being bevond all dispute. 



Let us not, however, infer from this that no 

 natural obstacles are opposed to the indiscriminate 

 mixture of races in plants ; on the contrary, there 

 are barriers which cannot be overleaped. By some 

 mvsenous agency there is a complete bar to all inter- 

 mixture of plants not closely related to each other. 



Zlv . xT m 7 certain] y mix with an Elm, and perhaps 

 wim a JSettie-tree ; but not with an Oak. A Peach 



ThL pei ? We ? ture > cross a Plura J °ut not an Apple. 

 rrmW, I Cles . are ' doubtless, connected with the 

 wh rb f r c ^ nstltuti on of plants, the precise nature of 

 oh t?r\7 • ?° means of examining. . Another 

 a flowlr r S1St u m the obvi °us fact that die pollen of 

 suVrn? tw? }* Uer °PPortunity of falling upon the 



2fdL? at bel ° ngS t0 * than P ollen bnSgllt from 

 taken !ff^ e ' and we kn °w that if pollen has once 

 chaL tn! ' n ° f after - a PPlication of other pollen can 



of wUd nkm SUl Mi In fact > the natural hybridising 

 to r mp P ij ^ ^generally take place when, owing 



confulion^f 1S a s , til! more effectual obstacle to the 

 *e conceive SS'tfr natUral h y Wdisiiig. Although 

 Orally is of m he P roducti ™ of hybrid plants na- 

 supposed it m^ C ? mmon occurrence than may be 

 -ation of thpm ; • rer oembered that the preserv- 

 tree spring un ^ ? n artificial P roce ss. A hybrid 



|«t exceptby ^ e !j Th"? m f ? S ° f mult ^ in S 

 ^tution but h seet * has no stable con- 



edition of nnJV- tendenc y t0 return towards the 

 ^PPears wr.fi 0i ^ ts P"**** J in this way thehvbrid 



? fle »is,barrpn ? 5 C iP arents remain J or [t m *Y> and 

 le *s individual a . nit rema ins as a solitary, child- 



e *P»sed to tit c gain ' a h y brkl herb appears ; it is 

 of P er Petuatinn n* obstacles as the tree, in the way 

 kod towards L - S . ba 7 en ; its seeds of themselves 

 ! n a generation, ? ,ginal st( ? ck ' which is recovered 



^ ** Pouen of Lr ^ *u r L h i y are at once fertilised 

 ^ D ° f one of *c hybrid parents, when the 



bourer; 5th do., 10*., to Theophilus Rovre, shoemaker; 6th 

 do., 10s., to William Watts, labourer -, "th do., 5*., to Thomas 

 Vinton, labourer. 



«• The inspection of the gardens by the subscribers ap- 

 peared to give great satisfaction ; and resolutions were 

 passed, authorising the committee to extend the system 

 into the High Cross Ward as soon as an eligible piece of 

 land of four or five acres can be obtained for the pur- 

 pose ; also to treat for the management of the allotment 

 gardens in Marsh-lane, 56 in number, which, with those 

 in White-hart-lane (76) and the proposed addition at the 

 High Cross or Hall, will together amount to about 200 

 garden*, 1 * 



Here we have evidence of the working of the 

 system ; of its mitigating suffering, preventing 

 crime, and conferring happiness upon that im- 

 portant class with whose welfare that of their supe- 

 riors is inseparably bound up. What a pity it 

 is that those who have wealth and leisure at com- 

 mand should not assemble in every parish to follow 

 the good example thus set by the inhabitants of Tot- 

 tenham ! 



for solace in uncultivated lands. 



Hitherto the operation of hybridising has been 

 mainly confined to gardens. But see what advan- 

 tages have come of it there. What were our Roses 

 in 1789, when the first China Rose reached Eng- 

 land? and what are they now? The China Rose 

 hybridises so freely with almost every other, that 

 there is hardly an ancient species to which it has not 

 lent some part of its rich foliage, gay colours, and 

 abundant blooming. Can anything be more striking 

 than the effect of hybridising upon Pelargoniums, 

 Heaths, Gloxinias, Verbenas, and Gladioli ? By this 

 process we have given to the hardy Pears of the north 

 all the richness and delicacy of those of the south ; 

 to watery Grapes the perfume of the Muscat ; to 

 the pale-faced but hardy Rhododendrons of Caucasus 

 and America the rich and glowing colours of their 

 tender brethren of India ; to the gaudy Azalea of 

 Pontus the crimson of the small-flowered fragrant 

 species of the United States. 



Such striking consequences of the very first ope- 

 rations in hybridising have excited a universal desire 

 to vary and extend them. Everybody now, who 

 cares for his garden, asks himself in the first place 

 what he can do to get new seedlings ; and to hy- 

 bridising he looks exclusively for assistance. If a 

 fine new species of an ancient family appears, its 

 good points as a " brood plant" (forgive the innova- 

 tion) are among the first things discussed ; and its 

 value is much determined by its fitness for hybrid- 

 ising. Nor is it to be wondered at. Hybridising is 

 a game of chance played between man and plants. 

 It is in some respects a matter of hazard ; and we all 

 know how much more excitement is produced by 

 uncertain than by certain results. What increases 

 the charm of the game is, that although the end of it 

 may be doubtful, yet a good player can judge of the 

 issue with tolerable confidence, and that skill and 

 judgment have in this case all their customary value. 



What the principles are to which the hybridiser 

 should look, and where the fields lie in which his 

 operations can be best conducted, we shall endeavour 

 to show next week. 



Wa have so often urged upon our readers the im- 

 portance of turning their serious attention to the 

 establishment of Garden Allotments, that we are 

 induced, notwithstanding the extreme pressure of 

 other matter, to give a prominent situation to the 

 following Report, lately (June 24) made to the 

 Garden Allotment Society of Tottenham by their 

 Committee : — 



w Your committee congratulate you on the amount of 

 good which your subscriptions have enabled them to con- 

 fer upon a considerable number of industrious labourers, 

 artisans, and mechanics, in the allotment of garden 

 ground to them, sufficient to occupy the spare time of 

 themselves and families. Out of 76 gardens, 70 were 

 let ; the remainder could have been let to small trades- 

 men, but your committee reserve them for the class for 

 whose benefit they were originally designed. Your com- 

 mittee therefore confidently appeal to the good feeling 

 of their fellow-parishioners, and proudly ask, In what 

 parish, having a population approaching to 9000, is 

 there less suffering and less crime than in this ? which, 

 as your committee confidently believe, arises in a great 

 measure from the assistance thus afforded. Your com- 

 mittee do not pretend to offer you an exhibition of floral 

 productions, but they cannot doubt that you will derive 

 pleasure from viewing the handiworks of the labourer, 

 displayed in the production of various roots, and almost 

 every variety of vegetable, useful for culinary purposes. 



"Prizes of the value of 30s., 20s., 15s., 10s., and 5s., 

 and two extra prizes, given by the Rev. the Vicar, of 

 10s. each, in seeds, tools, clothing, or articles of house- 

 hold furniture, were awarded by the Judges as follow: — 



'<To the tenant whose garden shall be the neatest, most 

 free from weeds, best cropped, and in the general best 

 state and condition, viz. — 



" 1st prize, 30s., to Richard Richardson, labourer ; 2d do., 

 20s., to Edward Burton, journeyman tinman; 3d do., 15s., to 



Simon Brown, labourer; 4th do., 10$., to Charles Warren, la- 



FRENCH CULTIVATION of the PELARGONIUM. 



{Continued from page 427.) 



IVi nter Treatment — In October the plants should be 

 taken into the greenhouse, where they ought to have 

 free ventilation during the winter, and as much light as 

 possible ; and it is desirable that they should be kept by 

 themselves, or at least with plants that require the same 

 treatment. The months of November, December, and 

 January are'eritical for plants which during these months 

 are, as it were, in a state of torpor — a state in which 

 their vegetation ought not to be forced by any artificial 

 means. Heat is to be avoided, and watering, except in 

 extraordinary cases : they ought to be watered only when 

 the earth can be easily reduced to dust with the fingers, 

 and the leaves of the plants are on the point of withering. 

 The water used on c to be of the same temperature as 

 the greenhouse. The withered leaves, diseased stems, 

 and weeds ought to be carefully removed. 



Spring. — In February, the plants will commence to 

 vegetate, and during the first fortnight of this month 

 (though any part of it is seasonable for the operation) 

 the Pelargoniums should be repotted with fresh earth, 

 and the plants that require removal put into larger pots. 

 To do this properly, the earth must be shaken entirely, 

 or nearly so, from the roots. On examining these, the 

 fibres will be found either entirely or partly dead, and 

 must be separated from the large roots with the finger, 

 which is preferable to a knife : that ought to be used 

 only to trim the latter, if dead or decayed. The new 

 soil used for potting should have been under a shed 

 a few days previously, or it will be too damp. All the 

 plants will require stakes rather higher than themselves, 

 to which they should be tied with very flexible strings, 

 but so that the branches be not attached too closely 

 together. This done, they may be put back into their 

 winter habitation. The fresh soil will not require imme- 

 diate watering, especially if the weather is cloudy ; but 

 in case of bright sunshine, it will be right to shade the 

 greenhouse for a day or two, and to water the leaves, in 

 order to repair the loss they will experience from per- 

 spiration. The roots having lost their spongioles, the 

 plants will not begin to grow until new roots have been 

 acquired ; therefore, to facilitate the growth of these, a 

 watering-pot with very small holes must be employed. 

 About the middle of April the plants will have formed 

 new fibres, when they may be taken out of the green- 

 house, and put in a sheltered part of the garden, where 

 they may remain until the beginning of May, but so 

 arranged that they may be covered in case of a late frost. 

 The plants having thus passed about a month exposed to 

 the free air, will be robust and free from insects, which 

 are destructive to them on account of an unctuous secre- 

 tion with which they cover the leaves, and which prevents 

 perspiration and absorption : besides, it is to the pre- 

 sence of those insects that the attacks of ants are attri- 

 butable ; by destroying the former, therefore, the latter 

 will be kept away. In the month of May, or towards 

 the end of April, the plants should be placed where they 

 are to flower. The precaution of covering the greenhouse 

 with canvass from 10 o'clock in the morning until 

 about 4 in the afternoon, will be necessary to preserve 

 the flowers in bloom ; or if the plants are placed under 

 a shed well lighted and exposed to the east, they will 

 receive the light of the rising sun, and have shade during 

 the remainder of the day. 



Soil for Pelargoniums. — Two barrowfuls of fresh, 

 soil, such as the decomposed sods of a good pasture- 

 field ; one barrowful of cow-dung, one of horse-dung, 

 (both being reduced by decomposition as much as pos- 

 sible), and the same quantity of garden-mould. This 

 compost should be left for a year, but turned several 

 times with a spade and fork. W r hen perfectly reduced 

 and blended, it may be used, and if it be too heavy, a 

 barrowful of common sand or river gravel may be added, 

 or a bed of rich kitchen-garden mould will make a good 

 soil for Geraniums, if well stirred during two or three 

 months, and thus exposed to the influences of the atmo- 

 sphere. It should be passed through a riddle before 

 being used. Plants, with thick fibrous roots, like those 

 of the Pelargonium tricolor, will grow better in good heath 

 or peat-earth. 



ENTOMOLOGY. . 



Lampyris noctiluca (the Glow-worm). Aowaru * 

 the end of last year an opportunity offered of illustrating 

 the history and habits of the Italian Fire-fly, when 1 



promised to communicate the economy of our native 



