

68 



THE GARDBNEKS 1 CHRONICLE. 



[I'kb. 3 



\ewthelet«, on 



Perhaps 



— r- T-, I I ~i ,, rv {rirh~~ whether that I Ot the.se numbers 3, 4 and 5 are eaciT^i»5 



iher indeed be aiked, a»d ury lair iy,^ ^ntswi ,*:„„:„„ : n thp npiirhbonrhrw* *f t A r* 



double digging in the neighbourhood of Lom^ 

 When an attempt is made to ascertain what ea c k 

 costs or ought to cost, there seems to be as mtick 

 difference of opinion as there is in the names of tU 



Upon this point we have 



jrd%o^o7oT^l^oop*rnu^t union, can would *»r.«^&£ft&.* m . 



S?£l Z icMr ft Apple and the P«." than a vigorous, plant w.th more cop tons fohag* 



To mTSS wnt« MoL in that admirable 8ach a eye would be V^^^ ^ 



tftri* of *«n the cell, of plants', the est Peach and Us Plum stock But * e ^ n°t ^nder 



«Tk!«. VeMtable PhviioWr in any lanenace. stand that to be the point under discussion, any 



V^^TS^St ,. he mLly g .u£ ; M ore than Aether it is possible for t^nrserv = 



^#^1- fan. ««t the manner of outtine them to ripply his customers if he is to trust to so uow 



neterms facts, jet the manner of potting 



of our readers. I«et us see 



ppiy , 



y be new to some of our readers. Let us see a process as layenn.'. -nnrlnwon 



iow fer it goea to settle the matter in dispute Upon the whole it seems to be : a saf < ^cluum 



among our correspoadents. that Rhododendrons are like other ^ plants , that 



It it, we thinC includable, that although two where suitable stocks can be found, there is no good 



plant, of different species may he made to form a reason why they should not be grafted ; an that, 



mutual adhesion by th. ^.ocmof rafting, yet that when stocks are unsuitable, the same bad conse- 



•uch adhesions are seldom if erer permanent, or even ., . . u- M „ *~* „,^ OT 



•dvantarotu to the tfaour of the scion. It is onlv Grafted plants may be as good or better for garden 



wb«T*ri«tfc«ofthe same speeies are worked on each purposes than any others or they may be mucn 



ether, that a perfectly sound and durable union is worse ; all depends upon the stock. 



quences attend the operation as in other cases 



j , 



3. Bastard trenching. 



4. Two spit digging* 



5. Two spit trenching. 



effected ; ind not always even then, as w« e when a 

 bit growing Apple tree is grafted upon a diminutive 

 variety each a* th*? Paradise, If the onion is to be 



What is meant by the term " double digging ?" 

 and what is it orth an acre ? This would seem to 



perfect and the doable or grafted plant to be in all [be a simple question, and yet when the inquiry is 

 respects as healthy as either of its parents the two raised it proves to be sin rounded by as much 

 mast grow si the same rate, must have their sap in mystery as the authorship of Junh In Northamp- 

 actiou at the s.me instant of time, md the quality of tonshire it appears, when the subsoil is unbroken, to 

 their secretions, be they what they may, must be consist of two shallow spits, each about inches 

 identical. This happens when Pear t rets grow on deep, or one 4 inches, and the other 6; after the 

 ?ai rein, or Applee on Apples of similar habits, subsoil rendered loose by gradual breaking up 

 it does not happen in -the same degree where year after year, the double digging becomes deeper 



ins ■ m ■ a • 1 ■ A A ¥ I A ¥ I 



Mm.iw are grafted on Qainces, or Peachee 

 fctuM-*d on the varieties of Plum 



employ such stocks, and with 



are 



1 r although 

 advantage, it 



is expressly because there is so much difference 



till at last the soil is turned over to the depth of 

 20 or even 21 inches. For this the sum of 31. is 

 pairl per acre. On the other hand, in Hertfordshire, 

 the expression is applied to digging 20 inches deep 



m the constitution of the sci I and stock as to at once, and breaking up the 1 itom, for which 10/. 

 diminish the rate of growth of the former ; and an acre is paid the first time and 8/. afterwards. 



Here we find an enormous difference in the meaning 



A Gloucestershire correspondent 



although th«- Peach will live I many ears on a 

 Plum, yet all gardeners kn v how great is their 

 tendency to separate. In fact, if an old Peach 

 tree worked on a Plum stock be allowed to dry, 

 and is then so placed horizontally that the joint (of 

 graft and stock) rests without support between two 

 upright post*, and then receives a violent blow, the 

 stock and scion will come asunder, as if no organic 

 nnion had ever been effected. Had the Peach been 



20 acres 



of the expression. 



•ays upon this subject : — 



u I used to cultivate a plot of ground- 

 wholly by the spade. It was for the most part what 

 would be called an adhesive loam. I could get it 

 worked over 2 to 3 inches deep with the Teazel 

 spade, a long, light, narrow tool, used by the bands 

 without the foot, for Id. per perch. The ordinary 



worked on the Peach under equally favourable con- digging by spade cost 2d. per perch : this would be 



ditions, no such fracture would be practicable. — ~ U1 - ~ — k — J *— A ~ A wUk * 1 *~ •'—•*« — 



Wherever we look we are met with evidence to 

 thiflfoct.l 



probably 7 inches deep. And with the ' grafting 



A man may grat i t 'henry on a common 

 fanrel, a Cedar of Lebanon on a Larch, or a Chin 

 Kose upon a Dog- rose, and we all know that saleable 

 plants are thus manufactured. But it will soon 



to be worth the while of the trade to form 



tool/ — a long, straight, narrow spade working 

 10 inches deep— the digging cost 3d. per perch. 

 Trenching or double digging was done by two men, 



operation. Upon this point we nave questioned 

 some of the great London gardeners as well as theu 

 labourers ; and the result is given in the followi^ 

 table, in which A represents Northamptonshire a 

 Hertfordshire, C Gloucestershire, and D to N*^ 

 London informants. 



1. Turning in. — C, \l. 6.?. Sd. 



2. Digging.— B, C, E, H, K, L, M, N, 21. ; d 

 ll.6s.8d.; I, ll.Us.4d. ' 



-A, Zl.\ I, 2Uo2U&.« 

 I, 27. to 21. 13s. Ad. 

 A, 31.; B, 8/. to 10/. 



C, 51. 6s. 8d\; D, 41 13*. 4**.; E, 6/.; F, H, K,4^ 



M, 41. 13*. 4d. to 61. Gs. Sd. 



6. Three spit trenching.— D and N, 11/. 6*. &J • 

 E, 10/. ; H, 6/. 



These enormous discrepancies in one of the mosf 

 familiar operations in husbandry, show how ] e 

 accord there is in even the same parts of the country 

 in settling the mode of executing work, or naming 

 the varieties of work, or paying for it. xj 

 doubt some difference arises from the nature 

 of land, and some from the price of labour; but 

 that explanation is evidently insufficient when it b 

 recollected that all the letters from D to N apply 

 to the well-worked friable land lying on the west 

 of London. 



Would it not be worth our correspondents' while 

 to enable us to compile a large table of prices by 

 communicating to us the rates they pay according to 

 the six modes above described, pointing out the sol 

 which is worked, and the county in which it lies. 

 We would willingly undertake the labour of coa- 

 densing and arranging such returns, in the belief 

 that they would prove of very great general benefit 

 At all events until they Bhall have been collected all 

 our calculations respecting the true cost of spade 

 husbandry must remain in inextricable confusion. 



New Plants. 





1 12. Geonoma corallifera. Hooker, Bot. Mag., t. 482 



It is to be hoped that the public taste is so far im- 

 proved as to be content to take more pleasure in beau- 

 tiful forms than in merely brilliant colours* If thatreallj 

 be so, it may be expected that the smaller races of Pains, 

 the most graceful of all plants, will become more com 



inch plants, seeing that buyers now generally learn 

 that they an* merely ephemeral curiosities. If an 

 one doubts this let him inquire how many of the 

 thou * ~ " 



or man and boy ; a trench, 3 feet wide, was taken mon in gardenSj and that the i ump ish forms of so maaT 



of our favourite greenhouse shrubs will be diversified ty 

 the perpendicular stems and narrow bright green foliage 

 of plants like this. Sir W. Hooker speaks of that now 



out by the spade some 6 to 7 inches deep, and the 

 earth carted to the side of the field where the digging 

 would end. A man worked in the trench digging 

 the subsoil over 10 inches deep with the grafting 



. tool, taking the full width of 3 feet, and working I before us was received from the Jardin des Plantes,of 



tads of worked Conifers which have come into from end to end of the trench. A lad dug the top- ! Paris, without any locality being given. It does not 



mentioned in the following terms : — u The little Palm 



the 



the market within the last 20 years are still alive 

 It would turn out. we have little doubt, that the 

 only healthy specimens now discoverable are those o 

 varieties of the same species, or closel allied species, 

 worked on each other, as for instance the yellow- 

 berried ^ ew on the common Yew, or the Deodar on 

 the Cedar of Lebanon. Is the Rhododendron an ex- 

 ception to the universal law ? We think not. When a 

 fariety of Rhododendron ponticum is worked on the 

 "w I ponticum it finds itself at home an d grows as well 

 and is probably just as long lived as if it were " on 

 its own bottom." But this does not appear to be 



hen the varieties of catawbiense are pat 

 upon fxmtiam, or of orhorewn and its allies on 

 some Kuropean or North American stock. In 

 saying this, we would by no means assert that very 

 fine specimens of tree Rhododendrons may not be 

 produced by grafting catawbiense on some other 

 stock ; but we certainly cannot admit that they are 

 ever so handsome or so durable as if they found 

 themselves on their own stock ; and this is what 

 we understand our correspondent 4 J. ] to con- 

 tend for. It is not the mere act of grafting that is 

 objected to, but that of grafting upon stocks of 



au-her ipedee; and if this is so? all the remarks 



of Mr. Pjcakon become irreb ant. 



In fact one of our practical correspondents who 

 advocates the cause of grafted Rhododendrons, vir- 

 tually gives up his case when he contends that the 

 •cion roots so quickly into the ground, provided the 

 graft is low enough, that it soon acquires an inde- 

 pendent existence When that happens the plant 

 is no long, grafted, but gets upon its own roots 



It « alleged that J m Rhododendrons grafted 



ik/2? 1 ** ^"f^lY form strong shoots; while 

 tbe seedlings of the same species on their own roots 



Wo doubt such is the fact. I5ut th. 



soil of the next 3 feet division with the common a PP ear to exceed, if it equals, the height of a man; 



spade, throwing the whole of the earth so moved on aUracte attention by the rich, coraldike, simple, thick, 



to the top of the dug subsoil, and so opening a new and flesh y s P adlC€S > almo8t a foot long,— while youn?. 



trench for the man. The lad received 3d., and the f eeu inde 1 ed ^ but A then studded with the red femde 



man 5d. a perch for his work ; the former earned flower * plaCed at cons,derable dances from eack 

 1*. &*., and the latter 2s, 6d. 



a day. 

 generally were 2s. a day." 



In this instance the double digging cost 5£ 6.?. Sd. 



. other. It is evidently a Geonoma, a graceful genus of 



Wages sm all reed-stemmed Palms, peculiar to the tropical parte 



of South America, of which upwards of thirty species 



are described by authors/' 



an acre ; but it was neither the double digging of 



Northamptonshire nor Hertfordshire . The importance 



of the question before us is thus manifest, for it is 



applied in three different ways in three different I .258. Sterility. — Accidental and Organic. 



counties, and the respective values of the expression stigmatic surface or tissue may, however, be more or leas 



VEGETABLE PATHOLOGY.— No. LVIL 

 253. Sterility, 



Tto 



are as 3/., 8<f, or lo/.,and 5/. 6s. 8d. 



The cost of spade husbandry must necessarily 

 be considered the first element in any calcu- 

 lation of its economical value ; and it is obvious 

 from what has been said, that such cost is very far 

 f'-om being represented by terms in common use a-*- c *u - x* 

 The language of digging i s 'almost as vagueTthat of **"* -*- ^ atmos P here - 

 mensuration, which calls "rod" the 





remain weak 





160th part of 

 an acre in one county and the fourth in another. Let 

 us see if there is no means of reducing the facts 

 into better order. 



There are six kinds of digging generally practised, 

 and no more. These are — 



1. Turning in, or flat digging, which is merely 



turning over the surface by an oblioue thrust of the . * — - — — - v — i 



spade, so as to bury weeds, and to level the surface S . 10n of the b,08som present a dark brown or U^ 

 This may be taken as 4 inches. ' *"** ~^' 1 *— - - - 



2. Digging properly so called, or one spit 

 digging, in which the spade is forced into the 

 ground nearly perpendicularly, so as to break 

 the soil to 9 or 10 inches. 



3. Ba I trenching is the same 

 xcept that the bottom 



injured by outward agents. Its peculiar secretion whici 

 favours the development of the pollen tubes may be 

 washed off by constant rain ; it may be dried up ty 

 sudden heat succeeding a low temperature, as after a 

 thick fog ; * or the tissue itself may be destroyed 1/ 

 frost, or ^ decay prematurely by reason of uugenial cob- 



The tissue may be affect 



either before or after impregnation ; but in either case 

 the consequence is equally, though not so immediate!* 

 fatal. The injury again may take place either before or 

 after the expansion of the blossom. In springs such a* 

 we have experienced for some years the pistils of Pe^ 

 for example, are often affected before the blossom 

 expands, the cold being sufficient to destroy their delict 

 tissue, though it does not immediately affect the v i tali 

 of the envelopes. In these cases the styles on the exp» 





up 



tint, which extends frequently to the base, 

 dark tint is not, however, confined to the 

 but penetrates into the internal tissues, 

 centre of the placental column is more faintly ting* 

 and even the ovules themselves, probably from *» 



It is asserted in a late article in the " Household Wot* 



,i, ., , - a as the last. 



that the bottom "crumb" is thrown 

 forward as we] as broken up. Depth, 10 inches „ 



1 WO spit digging, when one spit is f «f a "d this agrees with the statement of Keon 



f » _casc i word, however, is applied, as the word blig 



question at issue is not wh her plants will « tak* » 



but whether they will" stand," to um The lw™ r „, ^.t — ~ — »P« 



*jm mips ; and if they do stand, whether S ZSliffllfc T\ t^— f ° rked U P- T «» is ™ re ' » *■ <STEuii£ l S*SmZfc* ™ <<- n *° 



Will retam their vigour when dd i! 22 so ™ et ^ es Ch l}* d (lo,1 7 ,, . Ie digging near London. Jesiccatlt* of th. fruit, ^ !'SS • wSJsMs P" * 



wmcli must have been written by someone acquainted witt 

 h rench vineyards that the disease called by the French c;» 

 the abortion and dropping off of the blossom, is thus t 

 4 " n the subject. 



It 

 rnmtfln «f tha Anatomy and Phyat. v . 



«•»; trswtotsd by Hiww/ 8 ro. VVir >^sr! 18& 



6. Tivo spit trench i >, namely 2 



vt>if9 *nA n 1 tlm 1 pr0 ^» 80 . fstonin K»' P'ums, Apricots, Ac. Tho pl«» 



.K,. Crumb, or 2<» inch a!«o caIIpH ,)• m j" . and a . f» tl 'e;'U.ctionary of the Academy "refer . tlris sse»*«J 



| 6. Time spit trenching, or 30 inches andamimh ' eninir A e .-" Tlie f »» of « S and fruit may aiiko sn« «* 



" «Hwav.iumo. many difterent causes. 





