THE GARDENERS 



CHRONICLE. 



these 



penetrated the 



ircum«lances the gas , 



and rendered the lime-water turbid. 



Thia experiment, however, is by no means quite un- 

 exceptionable, because the question is not whether 

 ^carbonic acid will pass through the membrane 

 and mix with common air on the other side, but 

 lather whether common air, containing 1 per cent, of 

 carbonic acid, will so pass through to fix with air 

 containing no carbonic acid. It is evident that the 



plant. 



On the one hand, there can be little doubt 



pare 



that in very hot weather these matters must some- 

 times be useful in checking extreme perspiration, 

 and in diminishing for the time the powers of the 

 plant to absorb too much food from the air, or to 

 part with water and carbonic acid too rapidly. On 

 the other hand, the effect of rain must be to wash 

 away a portion of these deposits, and so to favour 

 the perspiration and consequent growth of the plant. 



^ TTO r -f *ti A n^ vc\ h oleaginous or I Lastly, as the more heat a plant is exposed to, the 



gradual fillip up o the pores ^^{"^ mor /> t perspires , and the fester it grows, the greater 

 minoH matter, which deatroj s the power of per | ^ ^ ^^ tQ fiU up its pores . so j t Mows 



that when plants are exposed to great heat m a close 

 house, and not in any way artificially washed or 



mitting endosmosis, does not necessarily also prevent 

 the cuticle from absorbing carbonic acid ; and indeed 



M. Garkf.au says this himself, for he observes that 

 a cuticle which* has lost the power of transmitting 

 water, may still be permeable to that gas. 



The seco 1 division of the paper contains a very 

 valuable and careful series of experiments on the 

 evaporation of water from the two surfaces ot the 

 lea£and on the emission of carbonic acid gas from 

 leases. In those experiments leaves gro g on 

 lealthy plants were selected, a i a circular portion 

 nclosed between two closely fitting glass receiver 

 soarranged that the leaf formed the division between 



the tipper surface was in the one 



the two gl . . . 



glass, whilst the under surface of the leaf was in the 

 other glaw. The uintity of moisture given off was 

 ascerta by placing in each glass a weighed por- 

 tion of dry chloride of calcium, which b< >g hygro- 

 scopic, or very greedy of moisture, would absorb all 



he vapour as fast as the surface of the leaves gave 

 it out- 1 he result of these experiments is that the 

 lower fmrface of the leaves gives off, from an equal 



the 



auant v, three times as much as 



•* d 



upper sur- 

 sometimes the proportion is as high as 



five to one ; and the ratio is quite Independent of 

 he position of the leaf itself. This exhalation of 

 water has some connection with the number and 

 igie of the stomata, but is by no means wholly de- 

 p« *nt on it, as there is evidently a large quantity 

 of wtter given off independently of them. The 

 evaporav is most abundant along the course of 

 the nervei^and in those parts of the epidermis, on 

 which there Kthe least quantity of oily matter 



As by the experiments already mentioned it has 

 been shown that thvtransmission of water is greatly 

 checked by the accusation of oil and resin in the 

 epidermi it might nattily be expected that the 

 perspiration or evaporation t^water would likewise 

 t* hminisbed by the same caufc^ The experiments 

 made with a view of ascertaining^^ correctness oi 

 this suppotit »nsisted chiefly in e^osing leaves 



of different plants, the exact weight o! which is 

 known, to the air, and by h ?quently wV^hing 

 them again, observing the quantity of water wh^h 



syringed, they are placed in an unnatural condition, 

 and the very care of the gardener defeats, to some 

 extent, the object which he has in view. 



MARKET GARDENING ROUND LONDON. 



No, V. Lekks.— These are sown in February or 

 early in March, in rich ground. When the plants are 

 strong, and about 10 inches high, they are planted or 

 dropped into holes 8 inches deep, made by the dibber. 

 After they are planted, hoes are sent through them, to 

 loosen the ground. In this operation mould drops 

 down upon the roots, and the next hoeing fills the holes 

 up loosely, which is what is wanted, for the soil must not 

 be pr.jssed tightly round the stem, as that would prevent 



its thickening. 



White Cos Lettuce. — This variety is grown by the 

 million, and is highly esteemed by every body. The 

 seed is sown from the 10th to the middle of October, in 

 frames, which are filled with soil to within 6 inches 

 of the top, giving a slope of one foot in four, the 

 length of the lights, winch always face the north. 

 As soon as the seeds are sown the sashes are removed, 

 and a man is placed in this department, to keep off the 

 Sparrows, give air, and shut up in case of rain ; the 

 gnat secret bring t<» keep them as dry as possible, and 

 to let them have all the air they can get. They are 

 planted out in February, or early in March, in rich well 

 trenched ground (after Celery), one foot apart each way. 

 • rentlemen's gardeners buy the same seed, but owing to 

 their mismanagement during winter, and the poor state 

 of the ground, they cannot grow such fine Lettuces as 

 the market gardener. Some of the latter are, however, 

 too greedy in regard to crops ; for instance, they have 

 often three crops in the ground all coming forward one 

 after the other ; but the best cultivators do not do this ; 

 it tramples the ground, and does not give any crop fair 

 play. The rapid growth of a Lettuce depends much 

 upon hoeing or stirring the soil. When well grown no 

 tying is required ; but badly managed plants have to be 

 tit -l up a fortnight before they are sent to market. 



Ridge Cucumbers. — I have seen 14 acres of these in 



one mans ground ; they are germinated under glass, 

 hardened oft", and planted out 6 feet asunder, and 10 

 feet row from row : hand-glasses are put over them. 



i 



of 



they had lost, and consequently the rate at which r When they begin to grow, the ground is well mulched 



they were able to give off water. It was found in 



very case that cleansing, or washing the leaves with 

 •oap and water, increase i their power of evaporation 

 to a ftry < tble extent. 



The emission of carbonic acid by the leaves of 

 plants, under certain condition is first ascertained 

 by iS\us8URE. but since his rirst experiments, made 

 half a century ago, no one has attempted to measure 

 exactly the quantity of this gas which leaves give 

 out ; the careful and exact experiments of M. Gar- 



kau on this point are, therefore, of great value. 



Ife employed the same sort of apparatus for this 



pose, which has already been mentioned, as being 



used in estimating the evaporation of moisture from 



he upp*r and lower surfaces of leaves, namely, two 

 circular glass vessels, which being applied respec- 

 tively to the upper and under sides of the leaf, en- 

 closed a circular disk of the leaf between them, 'in a 

 .- very convenient for the purposes of the ob- 



erver. In these experiments, however, in place of 

 using dried chloride of calcium, a portion of lime- 

 water was used, and the chalk formed in it by the 

 •Sorption of carbonic acid subsequently weighed. 

 The general results of these experiments are, that 



n the shade or diffused daylight, no carbonic acid 

 k evolved by the leaves ; that in the night it is 

 giv^i out by both surfaces, but in greater quantity 

 from \he lower than from the upper surface ; and 

 that wn^^poged to the influence of a very bright 

 and hot sdKW so that the rate of evaporation is 

 very rapid, calw ac i d is likewise given off. In 

 the latter case, tr* ..... » _ 



wWi straw, to keep the earth moist and the fruit clean, 

 (ilurkms are sown in the open air at once, in well pre- 

 pared _: round, at the above distances ; and I have known 

 one party to cut in one day 200,000 fruit, which were 

 all bespoken by oil merchants. Ever since the com- 

 mencement of the Potato disease, however, Gherkins 

 will not grow round London. 



Scarlet Runners.— These are very often sown 

 amongst Lettuces, 6 feet apart, about the 1st of April ; 

 but by far the best plan is to sow in beds thickly, and 

 transplant by means of the dibber. No plant lifts better, 

 and the moving makes them show flower much sooner. 

 The usual practice is to take the heads off all the plants, 

 leaving them a foot high, and to keep topping all the 

 summer, which induces them to bear heavy crops ; 

 but the way of getting them to bear earliest is to save I 



missing this branch of our subject, my obligationTta 

 very many kind subscribers to the Gardeners' ChronicU 

 for u strengthening my hands" from week to week by 

 their written expressions of approval of what my p^ 

 has jotted down. Also, for their unsolicited confirm^ 

 tion of the truthfulness and great practical utility of mv 

 remarks in connection with the general subject. It jl 

 no less encouraging than it is surprising, to have given 

 satisfaction to so large a mass of readers ; nor will a 

 knowledge of this, fail to give new life to what has to 

 follow. 



* A change now comes o'er the spirit of our dream." 

 We turn from the " land of liberty," and have hence- 

 forward to speak of those little prisoners only whose 

 fate " for better for worse" is more immediately in the 

 hands of a master, a mistress, a servant, or a child 

 Before proceeding one step further, I beg again mos: 

 earnestly to protest against any song bird being entrusted 

 to the tender mercies of the two latter. Servants in 

 particular, are notoriously thoughtless, careless, and 

 indifferent ; children (as we all know but too well) are. 

 in addition, too often remorselessly cruel. 



Most of our pet birds owe their immediate death to 

 neglect. To speak within compass, one-half of them 

 at least, perish from starvation. Herein lies a great 

 moral evil, which cannot be too loudly nor too frequently 

 spoken against. If people would but * reflect" for a 

 moment, they surely would never be guilty of such a 

 sin — for sin it is. Verbum, sat. 



Before entering on the universally-interesting subject 



m Cage Birds," and speaking of each, individually, I 

 wish to offer one or two passing observations which 

 deserve attention. 



In the first place, I would suggest that, before pur- 

 chasing any cages, due regard should be paid to their 

 being of a proper size, and in every respect adapted to 

 the comfort and convenience of the intended occupant. 

 This is a most important consideration. I have very 

 frequently seen birds hung outside a window, with an 

 open top, and with open sides to their cages — admitting 

 not only the scorching rays of a meridian sun, but strong 

 eddies of wind, and drenching showers. Many a bird 

 falls sick from such gross neglect ; and however fine his 

 song may have been, it will, if he be thus exposed, soon 

 be for ever silenced or ruined. 



In no one instance is this unpardonable neglect more 

 observable than in the case of the sky-lark — the very 

 prince of our songsters. He unfortunately has the 

 reputation of being a " hardy" bird, and therefore is 

 hung out of the window, as we may see daily, the first 

 time the sun shines ; and in a cage with open wires on 

 both sides ! The currents of air passing the live-long 

 day through the cage, over his head, and against his 

 breast (the pressure of which he frequently cannot 

 withstand) — are enough to ruin his constitution and his 

 song for ever. The natural consequence of this ex- 

 posure is — the bird gets puffy, and his voice becomes 

 wiry, husky, and hoarse. He may rather be said to 

 shriek than to sing ; melody there is none. It is truly 

 wonderful to observe the almost universal practice pre- 

 vailing in this matter. It is no less impolitic than it 

 is 'cruel. 



Nothing can be more easy than to obviate all this* 

 If one side of the cage were of wood, projecting the entire 

 length of the front, and the other of wire, the birds 

 would get plenty of air, and be snugly protected from 

 the wind. If it were considered necessary to make them 

 " hardy," by leaving them out in all weathers — a hideous 

 fallacy— they would then find a sheltered corner in which 

 to take refuge from the storm. 



I have had sky-larks in full song for 1 4 years ; and 1 

 have always treated them in this way. People have 

 said, they could not possibly imagine how I got my birds 

 to live so long. The fact is, they would not take anf 

 trouble about their birds ; nor would they think to* 

 best they might contrive to keep them well, and mate 



the roots in autumn, pack them away like Dahlia roots t . hem ha PPy m tneir confinement. When they died, as 



sum 



is comparatively 

 of it is given off by th 

 It also appears that the 

 OT*n off by different 



to the number and size 



uantity of the gas thus evolved 



by far the larger portion 



ver surface of the leaves. 



ion of carbonic acid 



leaves 

 of 



closer relation 



proportion of water which the leaves 

 evaporate does. 



than 

 able 



teac 



and to transplant them again in March, 6 inches root 

 from root, in rows 5 feet apart. It should be borne in 

 mind, that if Beans are left to ripen, the roots will not 

 be near so strong as they otherwise would be. 



French Beans.— The best are the Negro, on account 

 of the Beans being all green, and not marked or blotched 

 like some others. They are also all one breadth, very 

 narrow and handsome, and they are very dwarf and 

 first-rate bearers ; they are generally sown amongst 

 Lettuces, Cauliflowers, &c, to succeed the standing crop- 

 but the best way is to give them a piece of gro°und to 

 themselves. The French Bean transplants nearly as 

 well as the Scarlet Runner ; therefore it might be 

 treated in the same manner ; they would also come in 

 much earlier and grow less robust. The crop would not 

 be quite so heavy ; but earliness is everything for the 

 London market. 



Paksley.— The main winter crop is sown in April and 

 — and thinned out to 6 inches asunder, and a foot 

 apart m the row. In picking, all the large or oldest 

 portions are removed first, the head is never cut off at 

 once, but not one bit is allowed to pass perfection 

 Parsley pays well for the attention it receives. James 

 CiUhiUy CamberwelL 



May, 



the saying is, * there was an end of them," and their 

 places were quickly supplied with others. Miserable 

 bird-fanciers, these ! 



Nor is due attention to the proper sizes of your cages 

 the only thing required. The birds' perches must h 

 well arranged, and so fixed as not to interfere one with 

 the other. By no other method can you keep them, and 

 consequently your birds' feet, clean. The water, too, 

 must be changed in summer twice daily ; and the seed 

 looked to every morning. The gravelly sand, also,m^ 

 be changed thrice weekly, and the birds' claws W 

 neatly cut. 



In the matter of food, I should recommend a constat 

 variety, in addition to the regular diet — such as egg 

 boiled hard ; Lettuce, Chickweed, Groundsel, &e. ; W 

 no sugar. A little German paste, now and then, m^^ 

 with grated stale bun, is an agreeable change for p& 

 canaries, goldfinches, and linnets. 



A u reste,— let your good sense be in active exerc# 

 day by day. Observation will tell you what your bir 

 like, and what deranges their stomach. They are &f. 





All these experiments of M. Garreau 



this fact, that under ordinary circumstaiii _ 



growth of a plant can s the formation and depo- 

 sition of c an substances, which in time fill up its 

 pores, check perspiration, and consequently interfere 

 with the nourishment and further growth of the 



No. XVI. 



On 



nothing 

 wish unsaid. 



It is no more 



BRITISH SONG BIRDS. 



-All needful matters connected with an 



^have now been minutely and fully discussed. 



ack upon what has been written, I can find 



nothing to add, and nothing I could 



. . a „ They are 



pleased, and as readily tamed. If you study them 

 will study you. Above all, remember to keen ft*® % 

 every respect as clean, and give them as mu^ han ? 



air and scene, as you would your oww-ctnldren. 

 will render you, in return, the affection of a child. 

 experto. William Kiddy New-road, Hammersmith' 



The? 



than 



to acknowledge, before dis 



VILLA AND SUBURBAN GARDENING- 



Next to proper planting is a consistent arrange^ 

 of the plants employed in embellishing villa residency 



Than this, no part of decorative gardening is m 





