Proceedings of the London Horticultural Society. 579 



came in contact with the masses of turfy peat, in which the majority of 

 Orchidaceae thrive. Having learnt from Mr. Skinner that the plant was 

 usually found at a considerable elevation, and remembering those very plants, 

 when first imported, were quite interwoven with a number of thorny twigs, 

 I determined to try whether by placing a plant of the species for half the 

 year in a vinery, and attaching it to a sort of basketwork formed of small 

 oak branches, I could not restore it to its pristine health. The spike now 

 sent for exhibition, which is double the strength of the one which the same 

 plant produced last year, is the happy result of my experiment." 



From M. Rene Langelier, nurseryman at St. Heliers, Jersey, a collection 

 of pears, upon which the following note was made by Mr. Thompson. The 

 most important variety in this collection is a pear called Van-Mons Leon- 

 Leclerc, raised by M. Leon-Leclerc, of Laval. It is a fruit of an oblong form, 

 about 4 in. in length, and nearly 3 in. in diameter. The eye is shallow, small, but 

 open ; the stalk rather more than 1 in. in length, moderately strong, and inserted 

 obliquely ; the skin yellowish, everywhere profusely sprinkled with brown, which 

 near the stalk amounts to a sort of russeting. The flesh is yellowish white, but- 

 tery, and melting, with a very rich sugary flavour. It proves a pear of first- 

 rate excellence, combining the properties of large size, handsome appearance, 

 and rich flavour. Should it attain equal perfection in this climate, it will be 

 surpassed by none in its season, which will probably be the beginning of De- 

 cember. The Fortunee Beige is the same as the Fortunee ae Parmentier. 

 The Beurre d' Aremberg is the Glout Morceau, and this is the case with this 

 sort in the Jersey collections very generally. Beurre magnifique is the 

 Beurre Diel. Belle de Jersey is the Uvedale's St. Germain. Epine d'Hiver 

 is false, and proves the Bergamotte de Paques. Delices d'Hardenpont is 

 different from the various sorts which have, perhaps, incorrectly borne that 

 name in the collection hitherto received by the Society ; it partakes much of 

 the nature and appearance of the Doyenne blanc, from which it has probablv 

 originated, as many other varieties appear to have done, some of which (as 

 the Colmar Neill) even surpass the above newly received sort in flavour. 

 Mollet's seedling Chaumontel bears considerable resemblance to the old 

 Chaumontel both in appearance and flavour. 



January 15. 1839. — Ordinary Meeting. A communication was read from 

 Sir George Stuart Mackenzie, Bart., upon the result of some experiments he 

 had made upon the cultivation of the potato. The first experiment related 

 to the difference in productiveness between the point, the middle, and the base 

 of a potato. Three different varieties were taken, and every eye but one was 

 carefully removed from the sets. The results were, — 



Point. Middle. Base. 



No. L produced 41b. 4 lb. 6 oz. 3 lb. 8oz. 



2. produced 5 lb. 6 lb. 3oz. 3 lb. 8oz. 



3. produced 5 lb. 8oz. 7 1b. 8 oz. 71b. 8 oz. 



Total 141b. 8 oz. 18 lb. 1 oz. 141b. 8 oz. 



It, therefore, appeared that eyes from near the point and base of a potato 

 should be rejected by the planter, and the middle eyes only used. In another 

 experiment, exactly the same quantity of the tuber was taken with a scoop, 

 from each of the above three sorts, so that each set formed a hemisphere of 

 about half an inch in diameter. Under these circumstances, No. 1. yielded 

 4 lb. 9 oz. ; No. 2., 2 lb. 4 oz. ; the result of No. 3. was considered doubtful. 



Exhibited. From the Hon. W. F. Strangways, cones from Naples of Pinus 

 Pinaster, maxima, and minor. One of them belonged to the plant considered 

 by Italian botanists to be the true Pinus Pinaster, while that cultivated in 

 England, an intermediate variety, has been considered the Pinus marftima of 

 Duroi, and hence two supposed species have been created out of one. It 

 appears, however, that M. Tenore, who sent the cones to England, is now 

 aware of all the forms really belonging to one species. 



