



THE GVllDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



O 



27 



STABL1SHED \7$8. 





MFMHERS 



OF THE 



BOTAL AGRICCL- 



TOKAL 



SOCIETY. 



_^— OF IN LAND AGRICULTURAL AND 



\\ ^ J? it PRO- i:<TABLISqMEXT,f->rthe.u.plv 

 \\ BORT crLl LRA1- * the ^^ Union ftad 



■*»*£ ; t he Station and Termiaus of the South 



S&ft'fjTil E REXDLE and CO., Plymouth, 



tlL h Manure Merchants, by Special Appointment to 

 .■^j; ° A-Ticultnr.l AesoeiaMoo. Warenou.es- 

 ~ S#0 *L SHSrieV Sutton Harbour, Great Western Docks, 

 **Ftt^™*n-i** House, Union Road. 



* *Jm of OCA NO and LAWBS'S PATENT 



J2m> : ROSPHATEdurinri the last Five Years have 

 ■** 111 Thousand Tons, and we have made 



or Two Ttvousand Tom to arrive during 



our extensive purchases, therefore, 



id Sm* 



the infant fronds of Ferns resemble closely some 

 Liverworts. The same haw holds in fungi, an 

 example of which occurs in that most destructive 

 plant to the gardener, the white mildew or Mehlthau 

 (mealy dew) of the Germans. 



It has been long remarked that the white mildew 

 of Peas, Hops, Roses, and many other plan . is 

 uniformly succeeded by species of the genus Ery- 

 siphe. Nothing is more easily verified than the fact 

 of this connection in Pea crops, which are peculiarly 

 liable to be infested by the two parasites. Their 

 intimate connection has been long suspected and 



perithecia s] ng too immediately from the threads, 

 1 form too intim ely a part of them without any 

 solution of continuity to admit of such a suppo- 

 sition. 



Our observations at present have been confined to 

 the Pea mildew. 1 t the matter is too important to 

 pass unnoticed, till full information may be obtained, 

 v caution should perhaps be given to those who 

 wish to repeat the observation in the ensuing season, 

 that from the extreme delicacy of the threads of the 

 mildew, it is far from an easy matter to extricate 

 them, so as to obtain a clear view, and that it would 



even openly expressed, but not without incurring not be wise, therefore, to form a hasty decision from 

 unmeasured blame for such apparently rash asser- want of success at the first effort. 



In very luxuriant patches of Oidium, the vegeta- 

 tive power seems exhausted in producing the fertile 



tions. 



The mildew consists of short white mould-like 



rt9efk t season 



the lowest remunerating prices, and at 



"dk*** *- the strongest evidence we can offer of the 



^TJlnereasing patronage bes wed upon us, for 

 xgr to return our most grateful acknowledy- 



BEST PERUVIAN GUANO. 

 JlA v. th A direct importation of Messrs. Anthony 

 W- T« *nd Son and to be of the most genuine quality. 



6i, ^wg '"patent SUPERPHOSPHATE. 



•~t nr the beet quality, direct from Mr. Lawes'a factory. 

 *V?* *L the twS leading articles of the day, and can be 

 T 7twmniended as superior to aU other Manures at present 





SiLflAVI E RESDLE and Co. have been specially ap- 

 • .i» hv Ur Laweato be the Sole Wholesale Representatives 

 rSTgSe of his Patent Manures for the counties of Devon, 

 &«riLi»d Somerset ; and it cannot be too generally known 

 5— thfcYjre only to be procured from them, or their accredited 

 gfcT * List of whom can always be obtained. 

 PRICE CURRESTS ON APPLICATION GRATIS. 



Our Desc I ahgre of FARM SEEDS ts just 



mMisked and own be had in exchange for One Penny 

 EmsT/' contains a description of all the best varieties 

 Z 7v'"v\ s Carrots, Mangold IVurze/, with prices affix$& 

 to mry article. The List of Grasses is peculiarly coni- 

 uAcnmm, and contains short descriptions of all the 

 r<rii'nrr kinds. Thrre is also some useful advice relative 



fa Sou of Grass Seeds for Permanent Pasture, 



ming which Mr. Kemp, of Birkenhead Purl;, in a 

 l>tter to w, says : " I am glad that you repudiate the 

 practice of sowing corn with Grass Seeds, a custom I have 

 Ufa had to comleit" 



All Orders for Seeds above 21 carriage free. (See Catalogue.) 

 Apply to WILLIAM E. RENDLE and Co., Seed Merchants, 

 Plymouth . 



Meeting of the South Devon Agricultural Association, at Modbury, 



November 15, 1850. 



The follewiojr is an extract from the West of England Con- 

 jlrttKM of : mber 20, 1850 : 



- In the Show Yard we noticed some splendid specimens of 

 Roots, exhibited by Messrs. William E. Rendle and Co.. Seed 

 Merchant*. Plymouth,- They included some fine bu k bs of White, 

 tfeateb. and Swedish Turnips, Mangold Wurzel, White Be'gian 

 Carrots, Parsnips, <fec. ; also a collection of Agricultural Seeds, 

 comprising a great many varieties of Grasses, Clover, Turnips, 

 *c. ; with samples of all the leading natural and artificial 

 Manures. Tne routs were exceedingly tine, and would have 

 dootcredt" to the shows of the Royal Agricultural Society, or 

 the Smithfield flub, and for size, weighs, and quality, we have 

 •ever seen them surpassed— some of the bulbs weighing from 

 II to 20 lbs each. We particularly noticed an excellent variety 

 of Swede Turnip, called the Imperial Purple-top, lately intro- 

 duced by this eminent firm, and is now extensively cultivated 

 by most of the leading agriculturists of the day. It is haudsome 

 ii form, of superior quality and hardness, and stores lorger 

 ten any other Swede. Most of the roots were grown with 



iwes's Patent Superphosphate, a manure greatly used 

 tfcrou^hout the country, and acknowledged to stand very high 

 fcr root crops. The "stall attracted much attention, being- 

 •owded throughout the day ; and great credit is due to W. E. 

 Itadle and Co. for the pains they took in bringing before the 

 Association so fine a collection, thereby adding much to the 

 fcfcreitof the show." 



Cider Mee g of tlie Royal Agricultural Society, in July 1850. 



We also haa an exhibition of Grasses, Seed:*, and Manures, 

 it the great meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society, held in 

 **«ttr, July 1850. Our Btand (No. Ill, as described in the 

 telrtj's Catalogue), was favourably noticed by all the leading 

 owrspapers, at the time. The Grasses were all botanic ally 

 *rsD£ed, and attracted much attention. 



VRENDLE'S PURPLE-TOP SWEDE TURNIP won the 

 fe prize at the great meeting of the Cornwall Agricultural 

 AfcOBtartioo last autumn. 



threads, and no Erysiphe is generated. 



articulated threads springing from the stomata, and 

 sending generally a few creeping, often radiating 

 shoots, over the surface of the leaf; the ultimate 

 articulations of the erect threads at length separating 

 and readily germinating. The^JErysiphe, on the 

 contrary, consists of a globose perithecium passing 

 through various shades of colour, and at length send- 

 ing off from the base filaments which in the parasite 

 of the Pea are simple, with a rather obtuse apex, but 

 which in other cases vary much in structure, and 

 make the different species great objects of interest 

 under the microscope. 



ft 







lite ©artrnttrs' €tix tmitlt. 



SATURDAY, APRIL 12, 1851. 



MEETINGS FOR THE EN8U 



WEEK. 



*owtut, April H [Statistical 8 p.m. 



F L Geographical Sjr.M. 



■ ( Horticultaral 3 p.m. 



__ lh ) Linnean 8 p.m. 



■n 



■Oil, 



V «M1S»AY, 



•tTOaatr, 



i Pathological S r. 



Civil Engineers 8 p.m. 



Microscopical ■ 8 p.m. 



Ethnological ,.8 p.m. 



19-Medical .....8 



16 { 



I s one thing to describe accurately the various 

 ^ m c forms which are presented to us in the 

 wnral world, and another to understand the rela- 



re^Kl * ey bear to one another. The outward 

 2^ e is sometimes very close, and the real 

 Ifr? dually small ; as, on the contrary, highly 

 J* Wnt f °rms are often very closely allied. In- 

 T*£s of this kind occur sometimes amongst higher 

 r^ts, in consequence of the curious repetition of 

 ^me forms in different orders and genera, or 

 l > as in the case of galls, where there is no 

 ™ on of systematic relation : but they are most 

 P^iaily to be found amongst the lower vegetables. 

 £*Mor instance, the young shoots of Mosses and 



the 

 even 



1. Erysiphe^guttata ; 2. E. penicillata ; 3. E. graminis (junior) ; 

 , 4. E. adunca ; 5. E. bicornis. 



It is perhaps inattention to the fact of these fila- 

 ments being developed after the perithecia that has 

 deceived so many observers. If, however, a young 

 patch of the mildew or Oidium be examined, some 

 of the very flocci which give off erect threads, bear- 

 ing at their tips deciduous reproductive cells, after a 

 time present little knots on their surface, very much 

 after the fashion of the tubercular fruit of Stigonema. 

 These gradually increase in size till all trace of the 

 thread from which they originated vanishes, and at 

 length begin to emit from their base new r filaments, 

 differing altogether from the parent threads. The 

 knots which were at first colourless soon assume a 

 yellowish tinge, then orange, and ultimately olive 

 or deep black, growing meanwhile larger ; the 

 threads at their base increase rapidly in length, and 

 eventually terminate in one or more mostly obtuse 

 processes, by means of which the perithecia are fre- 

 quently raised above the surface of the leaf, and 

 by which it is probable that they imbibe the juices 

 of the infested plant, which are requisite to bring 

 to perfection the mass of asci and sporidia which is 

 developed within. 



It is possible that there may be some true species 

 of Epiphytal Oidium, which are never developed 

 into Erysiphe. There are some, at least, in which 

 the cognate Erysiphe has not been observed, as in 

 the case of the Vine mildew. It may, perhaps, be 

 suggested, that the Erysiphe is really a parasite on 



The observations of Professor Mitcherlich, of 

 Berlin, of which we gave a short account at p. 199, 

 are well deserving of a little consideration. The 

 cellular tissue of plants is not only important, 

 because it answers the same purpose in them as the 

 bones do in the bodies of animals, but the formation 

 and nature of this substance is also of interest, in 

 consequence of its mechanical properties, and the 

 many ways in which it is practically employed in 

 the arts, in the various forms of timber, cordage, 

 linen, cotton, and paper. It is often the case, that 

 a number of different substances, though all more 

 or less related to each other, are classed together 

 under the general name of woody fibre ; this, even 

 in common language, frequently leads to mistakes 

 and confusion. There is, in truth, a considerable 

 number of different varieties of woody matter, 

 which may be readily distinguished from each 

 other by their microscopic and chemical properties, 

 but which often occur so closely associated together 

 in the same plant, that it requires some care and 

 attention to separate and recognise them. When a 

 plant is merely crushed, and well washed in water, 

 the soluble substances which it contains, and the 



reater part of the softer green cellular matter is 

 removed, whilst a portion of fibre is left; but in 

 this way we never obtain pure woody fibre, for it is 

 always contaminated with a quantity of various 

 foreign matters ; and on the other hand, if we resort 

 to some chemical process, either employing the 

 solvent power of acid or alkaline solutions ; or, as 

 in the manufacture of Flax, allow the plant to 

 undergo a species of fermentation, then in all such 

 cases, the woody fibre is more or less changed and 



modified by the process to which it has been 



subjected. 



The woody matter, which is formed in a young 

 plant, when examined in the microscope, is found to 

 consist of either cells or tubes, glossy and transparent, 

 but tolerably uniform in structure ; after 

 short time, however, various other 

 formed and deposited in these cells and tubes, lining 

 and incrusting them throughout in a very curious 

 way. The common woody fibre, therefore, which, 

 we obtain by merely macerating and washing any 

 plant is, in fact, a mixture of the pure fibre and 

 these different incrusting substances. From the 

 researches of Pa yen, and other chemists, we learn 

 that there are probably, at least, two distinct 

 varieties of pure woody fibre or lignin, to which 

 the name of cellulose is applied, which differ 

 slightly in their composition, the one being identical 

 in chemical composition with pure staich ; and that 

 these two forms of cellulose, when encrusted with 

 three or four peculiar substances which are gene- 

 rated within the cells of the plants, constitute the 

 different varieties of woody fibre. There is very 

 little doubt not only that these two forma of cellulose 

 are convertible into each other, but also that they 

 are formed from starch, and are again convertible 

 into that substance ; these conversions, and trans- 

 formations, are of the highest interest in connection 

 with the theory of vegetation. The experiments of 



Professor Mitcherlich show the manner in which 

 pure cellulose may be converted into starch, and 

 dextrine or starch gum, by the action of dilute 



contrasted w y ith the similar 



a very 

 matters are 



'-•*<* present the characters of a Cladophora, and, the Oidium ; but if our^observations are correct, the 



sulphuric acid, as 

 changes which take place naturally in growing 

 plants, and in germinating seeds. Thus solutions of 

 sulphuric acid, and also of certain alkaline salts, 

 convert it into starch and gum, whilst strong nitric 

 acid has no action on it ; au*d though under ordinary 

 circumstances it shows very little tendency to 

 change, yet when exposed to the influence of certain 

 sorts of " ferment," it decomposes with the greatest 

 facility, in fact, far more readily even than starch 

 does ; this is shown in a very remarkable manner, 

 in the case of a diseased Potato, in which, owing to 

 the presence of such a ferment, the cellulose softens 

 and is decomposed, whilst the grains of starch, 

 which the cells previously contained, are hardly at 

 all acted on. 



There is also another substance, which a good 



