- 



LE 



■ * * 



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turn ; the plant 15 inched in height, and is perfectly 

 hardy, the whole stock having stood out of doors 

 during the severe winters of 1848 and 1849 without a 

 single leaf being injured. We purpose to call it R. 

 Stanleyanum, m compliment to the Larl of Derby. We 

 post s manv thousands of hybrid seedlings, crossed m 

 every possible way, and some curious things appear to 

 be among them. Our ambition is to beat the Himalayan 

 species, and we Hatter ourselves that we shall ultimately 

 succeed. Johu Smith, Foreman to Tf«>ma& Whalley,Fair- 

 field Nursery, Liverpool [The flower which accom- 

 panied this letter was 2 inches across ; white, with the 

 exception of a very few small brown dots in the throat, 

 and well shaped. The leaf was seven inches long, and 

 three inche's broad, ferruginous below, bright green 

 above, and stiff and leathery in texture.] 



Galvanised Iron Oreenho es.— We have had them in 

 use here (the residence of J. B. Faviell, Esq.) for 

 these 18 months past, in the shape of a greenhouse, two 

 Peach-houses, and an early forcing-house for Peaches 

 and Nectarines in pots, of which we have a great many. 

 The range is 78 feet long and 21 feet wide, and has a 

 curvilinear roof ; but we have also a span-roofed pit, 

 56 feet long, for Pines and for forcing Strawberries, 

 &c, in. All are glazed with Hartley's patent rough 

 plate glass, and they have answered perfectly ; indeed 

 they have surpassed our expectations. In glazing, the 

 squares must not be put in too tightly . As room must 

 be allowed for expansion and contractionone-eighth of an 

 inch ought to be left on each side of the squares 

 betwixt them and the ribs. Such houses have a neat and 

 clean appearance, and as yet I see no symptoms of cor- 

 roding about them. The following plants are in bloom 

 in them, and look very healthy, viz., Justicia carnea, 

 Begonia, Fuchsioides, B. manicata, Cyrtoceras reflexum, 

 Gardenia tlorida, G. Stanleyana, Inga pulcherrinia, 

 bearing about 30 or 40 bloom-buds, and having at pre- 

 sent eight fully expanded heads of flowers ; together 

 with the scarlet Tropreolum Lobbianum, two Ever- 

 lastings, Camellias, A2aleas, &c. I shall be happy to 

 show our houses to your correspondent, should it be 

 convenient for him to call on me, and give him any in- 

 formation on the subject that lies in my power. J. B., 

 St Ul Parle , Yorkshire. 



Market Qard> i round London. — I am obliged to 

 u Pedes" >r his pointing out an error in these papers 

 which had escaped my notice. I stated that the women 

 who carry Strawberries to market on their heads make 

 three journeys from Isleworth to London during the day, 

 which would be 48 miles, but it should have been only 

 two ; for I find the middle journey is performed by 

 different women, and this is what led me inadvertently 

 into error. The same women, however, sometimes walk 

 from 38 to 40 miles a day, not bad work, I consider, for 

 the softer sex. James CuthilL 



Tfie Spanish Chestnut. — Some years ago, I was ex- 

 tensively engaged in the timber trade, and being a buyer 

 of all kinds of wood, the English Spanish Chestnut was 

 occasionally purchased. This, however, only happened 

 when some originally well planted park or grounds, 

 some " Evelyn's Sylvan" was disrobed to make way for 

 the advances of man. The uses to which the timber 

 was applied were these ; it was sawn into boards of 



thickness, from three-eighth of an inch to an 

 inch and a half, put up in the racks to dry, and then 

 sold, chiefly to the cabinet or furniture-makers ; it 

 was, in fact, considered a " cabinet-makers' wood," and, 

 for these reasons, it is usually very straight-grained, 

 and nice working wood, and when dry, not liable to 

 twist or warp much, which quality to a cabinet-maker 

 is desirable ; but it has this very serious objection, viz., 

 it is horribly shaky wood, that is, it is very liable to 

 split in drying, and when dry, and this is very mor- 

 tifying to a workman, who, when he has cut his piece to 

 its proper size, and begins to make his small mortice 

 and dovetail, finds his wood to " fly," as he calls it ; the 

 Spanish Chestnut, therefore, was always looked upon 

 rather shyly by the cabinet-makers, and was never pur- 

 chased except at a low price. I should not pronounce 

 the wood worthless, but the tree is certainly not worth 

 growing in this country and climate for the value of its 



timber. /. CM., L i rpooL For Hop-poles, the Spanish 



Chestnut may be considered about equal to the Larch as 

 respects durability, and it is extensively cultivated for this 

 purpose in the middle of Kent. In regard to its timber 

 full three-fourths of the trees which attain a size to 

 yield 30 cubic feet of wood and upwards, are what is 

 called in the trade heart-shaken ; and this very serious 

 defect w not indicated by any outward signs, as is the 

 case with certain kinds of Elms, which are affected in a 

 similar way ; on the contrary, the baric is often smooth 

 and unbroken, and even in the butt end there is often 

 nothing to denote the evils which exist further up th 



such to be the case. The roof of Westminster Abbey was 

 long supposed to be the Sweet Chestnut, but you have 

 lately told us it is Oak ; now, without wishing to re-open 

 the question, if there be no documentary evidence 

 to prove the fact, I can hardly think that any examina- 

 tion of the timbers now can set the matter at rest. Sweet 

 Chestnut much resembles Oak at all times, but the 



resemblance is increased with age. An Old Sawyer. 



I have grown Spanish Chestnut for Hop-poles, being the 

 most durable of any wood, and it is planted in Kent 

 solely for that purpose. I have also used it in the 

 place of Oak for posts and ground-sills ; and from what 

 1 have seen of it I have no doubt it will last as long. 

 The best use I have ever made of it is for floor-boards, 

 for which I believe there is no English timber equal to 

 it ; the only fault I have ever found is, that it is very 



be shaky and cuppy. 27., Watford. 



as to the 



Perhaps the only way of 





bole, 

 you 



After the saw has been passed a few times up, 

 will, however, begin to discover its fraudulent 

 character, for you will most likely have more pieces 

 of timber than you expected. Rents in occasional or 

 partial concentric rings, as well as in the shape of 

 others radiating to the centre, will exist to such an 

 extent as quite to disqualify the timber for most of the 

 purposes for which it would otherwise be used. These 

 evils are to be regretted, for the wood in all other 

 respects is equal to Oak, which it resembles. Trees of 

 smaller size are less liable to be heart-shaken, but 

 they are too small for many purposes. It is difficult to 

 account for such defects ; it would appear as if the 

 longitudinal fibres forming the trunk were more 

 numerous or more effective (?) than those of a trans- 

 verse kind ; and the fact of the timber rending 

 so easily for laths, palings, shingles, &c, would imply 



pt to be shaky ana cuppy 

 The contradictory accounts that are current 

 value of Spanish Chestnut timber are easily reconciled 

 The fact is, I believe, that the timber is of excellent 

 quality — hard and durable. Unfortunately it is very 

 liable to be (what is called) cuppy, that is, there is a 

 singular want of adherence between the annual rings 

 of wood, so that the timber falls to pieces under the 

 saw. This defect is so very prevalent, that aniong 50 

 trees you will hardly find one that is free from it. Of 

 course such trees are utterly worthless as timber. Dorking. 

 — — About the year 1 805, 1 well remember a conversa- 

 tion which passed between my father, a devoted botanist 

 and arborist, and a very intelligent Scotch gardener, 

 named Gregory, who was the manager of the woods and 

 plantations for many years (and, indeed, until his 

 decease), at Milton Abbey, in Dorsetshire, then the 

 seat of George Damer, Earl of Dorchester. The dura- 

 bility, I had almost said the indestructibility, of Spanish 

 Chestnut wood, was instanced by Mr. Gregory in the 

 fact that they had been removing some railing that had 

 been put up with Spanish Chestnut poles, 30 years before, 

 to protect some fences round the plantations in the 

 demesne, and it was with difficulty they could either draw 

 the nails or cut the rails, except with the saw ; Mr. 

 Gregory's expression was, that they turned the edge of 

 the axe. Having been a great admirer, as well as a 

 planter of this picturesque and beautiful tree, I remem- 

 ber the more distinctly this account of its properties ; 

 and, I believe, it is still a matter of doubt, after much 

 controversy at different times on the subject, whether 

 the magnificent, and yet undecayed roof of West- 

 minster-hall, be not actually of Spanish Chestnut. The 

 extensive woods at ^Milton Abbey are to a great extent 

 interspersed with Spanish Chestnut, much of which is 

 regularly cut for hurdles and poles, with the Hazle and 

 Oak. The soil is a cold flinty loam, on chalk, and hilly ; 



but the Chestnut thrives alt the better in sheltered spots. 

 -AT., Dorchester. 



Malformed Leaves, — Perhaps the circumstance of two 

 leaves forming a union (of which I enclose a specimen 

 from a Fuchsia in my possession) may not be rare in 

 the experience bf amateur growers of more extended 

 practice than I have had. The question I feel disposed 

 to ask concerning it is, whether this is (as I suspect) 

 an instance of imperfect development owing to insuffi- 

 cient vitality in the plant — or is it a monstrous forma- 

 tion of a merely accidental character ? It seems pro- 

 bable that some attention paid to such deviations from 

 the ordinary habit of growth might tend materially to 

 elucidate important facts connected with the laws of 

 vegetation. There are other leaves on the plant in a 

 rudimentary state, which seem also to be growing 

 double. A few words upon the subject would greatly 

 oblige, K. [These cases are not at all uncommon ; and 

 have been frequently mentioned in our columns. The 

 leaves in question are naturally grafted together by some 

 accidental cause, the history of which is now obliterated.] 

 Rain. — We have had the large quantity of 6.245 

 inches of rain here in the month of January, 1851, and 

 30 days on which rain was found in my gauges. The 

 above quantity is the mean between two gauges, one on 

 the top of a tower, 42 feet 6 inches from the ground, 

 which showed 7.201 inches, and the other, 5 feet 

 6 inches from the ground, 524 feet east of the other, 

 but equally exposed, which had only 5.290 inches. 

 This great difference does not seem to be accountable 

 by any perceptible cause. It may, perhaps, serve to 

 show how very partial rain is sometimes. During the 

 same month, at Bowness, Windermere, 13.288 inches 

 have fallen in fewer wet days, viz., 23. In February, 

 1348, at Bowness, 13.404 inches fell. T. 8. P., Pem- 

 broke Dock-yard, Feb. 5. 



Parsnips,— On referring to page 223, for 1850, I find 

 the " Turnip-rooted " and « Le Batard Yellow " Parsnips 

 mentioned. I would thank you much if you could 

 inform me whether they are desirable sorts to grow, 

 and I should be likely to get true seed ; for I find the 

 expense of trenching for, and 





taking 



. . - v U P* the longer 



varieties so great that they are hardly worth growing ; 

 and, in a wet autumn, there is great injury done to the 

 clay land. W. T. B. [The Batard or Siam Yellow you 

 will probably not be able to obtain. Any seedsman 

 ought to be able to supply you with the Round or 

 Turnip-rooted, which appears to be the one most suit- 

 able for you ; it is an early sort, therefore you should 

 have some of the Hollow-crowned for late use ] 



Twigs of Spruce Fir (see p. 182).- A correspondent 

 complains that his Spruce Firs shed their 

 branches. I have no hesitation 

 your opinion and 



young 



m corroborating 



., , m 8tatin S that squirrels are the 

 cause ot the evil, for I have frequently observed the 



depredators at work ; they first gnaw out the voum? 



young 



buds when the latter begin to swell, and then they bite 



off the twig. 



mischief is to shoot 'the m^ten wL? 1 *** 8 * 

 get at them. /. P. y Stoke RochjM neUever *** 



Conifers, more especially the Deodar —? h 

 the remarks on Conifers, by « p inus 6louceS^ 

 page loO ; and in reply to his invitation Z a ^ * 

 formation which may interest him and 'nthL*** *■ 

 « J. H,» who writes to you on DeXs,^ 1 ^* * 



sheath, I have a Pinus patula with three and i« , 

 in one sheath on the same branch : though 1 h 

 observed this to be the case in any other Pin * 

 r k^ i^L- ^u^ion^and soil i no ft' 



I have examined. 



ence the habit of any tree ; but can th^ causft , 

 tar as to change the number of leave 

 I thi ■ 



freaL 



wL 4 



0>* 



^vs rotne she* 

 variation is ratU 

 u « • a * D .eodars mentioned bv'jSl 



show the influence of sod and situation T iJu * 



from 



ln iprc* 



in 



whetfcj 

 gro*f 



being some 



«J t IT 



there are any large trees near them • as I "h?** 

 Deodar about 10 feet high, which 'is ■ l 



which was a garden about 60 years a>o 

 wliinh n™ ws mU ch in the way he describe* 'iw 



large trees near it, made me'thh? 

 was "running away" from them, but now I am nil! 

 inclined to attribute its habit to the richness of th2f 

 The main stem of the Deodar will not run awayfrZ 

 the wind, though it may become a little onesided £2 

 the young shoots slashing together to windward *U 

 there is a prevailing wind playing on it, as I have W 

 to be the case here, where the west and south-west^ 

 prevail. As we are speaking of the Deodar, I wiujg 

 a question, which I am curious to have answered h 

 the tree, which is commonly called the Deodar with m. 

 the same tree as the natives of its habitat call fr 

 Deodar, or the name answering to it \ A geatleaa 

 who was many years resident in the HimalamTS 

 assured me that there quite another tree is caUd 

 the Deodar, the timber of which is worthless. ]fc 

 timber of the tree we call the Deodar is much' valued 

 there, and plantations are made of it, for the purpoawb 

 which we use Larch in tins country. In compline 

 with " J. H's." wish, I send the following dimenaaatf 

 Deodars, and also of a few other Conifers. 



Name. 



Cupressus Thurifera 

 Abies Deodara 



Pinus excelsa .... 



P. patula 



Abies Deodara 



Pinus insignia 



I find that Pinus Austriaca, to which ''- P. G 

 terensis" refers, is placed among the "BinaV' "law* 

 generally two in a sheath," in Knight and Perry's cata- 

 logue, which is a very useful little publication. As mnv 

 will now be putting out Conifers, I hope you will wan 



them against merely turning out the plants (if inp*) 

 without spreading the roots. Many, I think I may say 

 most growers, are in the habit of leaving tie 

 roots of the young tree coiled up in a ball, tfc 

 shape and size of each pot it is changed from, fc 

 the tree is allowed to remain in this state, till tbe 

 roots become too stiff to be straightened out in j» 

 degree, the unhappy amateur, after giving peA^P 3 

 a pound for the specimen, sees it, after growing M* 

 riantly for the first summer or so, turned over by tbe 

 high winds in autumn or spring. Then comes some 

 kind advice : " Put a good strong stake to it { but toe 

 roots, though unable to support the tree, from their 

 being in a wisp about it, nevertheless give a #*** * 

 crease of vigour, having been turned out of ^ ie ? ^J^ 

 into the fresh earth, so that the tree goes ahead, in^ 

 stake does its duty well for some time ; that is, tf g 1 . 

 the stem an artificial steadiness, so Nature neg lec *?™ 

 part, and the tree becomes top heavy. The en 

 comes; either the stake rots and breaks ^V 

 some gale, when down comes the petted ■^ r ^ 

 teeted plant, or else the tree grows till "B 6 ^ 

 large and heavy to be supported. The on) 

 tiial remedy in such cases is to head down w 

 till the part left can support itself, when i^ ^ 

 throws out a new leader. I am glad to see tuat ^ ^ 

 Waterer professes to move his plants every yew '> ^ 

 ever, people at a distance must get trees in P ^ 

 which case I would advise them to get themyoun 

 turn them out in an enclosed bit of ground } us 

 enough to plant in their final situation. Finus n r; 



1 have planted many Deodars in various si i ^ 



some of them have made hardly any g^ u ^ 

 years. Would superphosphate of lime, appw < ^ 

 roots, be of service to them, and in what I r ^ 

 should it be used I Newstede. [We h*y e n ® , d L tried 

 in favour or against it with Conifers ; it sl ^ u ' fro* 



experimentally.] Having raised many £e ^ ^ 



seed, I find that they are invariably P en( ™' ld ffe* 

 leadiusr shoot until the latter is nearly a) ear^ ^^ 



the last year's shoot is just now beginning 



* Tim tree was cut down by frost in ihe moM 

 t Leader cut off by Hyiurgus piniperda £ '*»• 



i This had a leader of 5 feet cut off in I*** 



to nse, 

 of 18*** 

















