w^ 





^^^ 





THE GARDENERS 



CHHOXICLE. 



-1UIA.U 



mx-iui.1 v .* 1IAM1L 1 ON, Seedsman, fcc , 15G, 



\\ i £ m9 r aA M J ion, will forward J CA.TALOGU . of 

 rLBOCS BOOTS f which he has a large collection*, on 



Gj. and 9 

 id. to 



laptrior sorts, named, ^er dcz. 

 is, rerjr fioe lar*e root*, ejch 

 for early forcing, per dox. 

 mixed, for bcrder, per 100 

 rerj fine named, per 100 



f ingle or double, per 100 



• • « 



« • 4 



* • • 



* • • 



• I • 



• • • 



Terr 



nameJ, per < 

 , mixed, per 



ft. 



• • « 



• • • 



2^. to 



• • - 



1 

 1 

 2 

 '2 

 4 

 2 



B 





 6 

 6 

 6 











€!§«•* 



-p NDLI 3 LIST OF NEW GERANIUMS will 



J\ be (ouni in the columns of this Taper, page 578, in the 

 --ab** for September 13, 1851. 

 Wtt& utt E* Kewdle. Florist to her Majesty, Plymouth, 



FANCY PELARGONIUMS. 



Tt r P. AYRES begs to announce that his Descrip- 



\> • tire Catalogue of Seedling Fancy and other PEL All. 

 WHS, CINEHAKIAS, CALCEOLARIAS &c, will be 

 ■dpiktd in t» few days, and will be forwarded upon prepaid 

 Cpleation. Hi* Seedling Fancy Pelargoniums will be ready for 

 jjjicryon and after the 20th of October, but the siock of some 

 tftfct kinds being limited, early orders are indispensable to 

 the collection. 



klands Nursery, Blacbheath, Oct. 11. 



p ED LODGE NURSERY GROUNDS, North 



X\ Stoneham ; SEED WAREHOUSB and FLORICUL- 

 IXRAL GARDENS, No. 181, High-street, near the Bar Gate, 

 •aitbtmpton. 



* ;BRS, Sen., NURSERYMAN and CONTRACTING 

 PUNTEK. begs to inform the Public and those interested in 

 plating that he intends selling at very reducedprices, the Hue 

 kH of FRL'IT, FOREST, ORNAMENTAL TREES and 

 SHHUB3 (extending over 60 acres of land) in the forthcoming 

 plant*** season, priced catalogues of which may be had, wherein 

 • 4 llb#iaumerated all rhe newly.introducd hardy CALIFOR- 

 landCIlIXEsE SHRUBS, CONIFERS, RHODODEN- 

 DRONS and ROSES, which are added to the stock and 

 .fated as soon as they appear, it being his determination 

 ftat these old-established nursery grounds shall continue to 

 mtri: the patrouage of the nobility and gentry so liberally 

 tottered upon him for the last 40 years. 

 A Gardeners' and Land Stewards' Registry is kept at his 

 in the town, where men of experience and ability may 

 ti aiwavs obtained. 



Tie following will be found particularly fine, and in great 

 shxndance:— Laroh, Scotch Spruce, Pineaster, and Sea Pine, 

 fit, Haxel, Oak Quicksets, Mahonia (for cover), and Rhododen- 

 *#ai of all sizes, from 4 inches, 40s. per 1000, to 2, 3, and 4 

 fctt,;iOj. to 30s. and 405. per 103 ; Abies Douglasii, 2 feet, 30s. 

 air doien, and 2 to 3 inches, 51. p#r 100, or 18s. per dozen. 

 Dame Camellias, 12s. per dozen ; Single Camellias, fit for 

 working, 30s. to 40s. per " 



•troog),6s. per 100. 



from fear that the Grapes will eventually smell of 

 sulphur. 



At all events, it is certain, that if flower of sul- 

 phur is powdered over the dry leaves and berries of 

 • Vines when first attacked, the mildew will be 

 stopped ; and that if it reappears, it may be stopped 

 again by the same means, till at last it disappe; >, 

 and the Grapes ripen. There is no fact more certain 

 than this. But the sulphur must be left on the 

 leaves and berries, rmt dusted on and washed off 

 again like plate powder on a silver fork. It mus 

 remain, and be allowed to act Left alone it will 

 do no harm, washed off it will do no good. It mav 

 remain on the berries till they are ripe and wanted 

 for table. Fine folks need not be alarmed at this ; 

 they will never know that their Grapes have been 

 brimstoned. It is only necessary to syringe the 

 bunches with a very fine rose, so that " the water 

 falls on the berries like heavy mist, and in a short 

 time every particle of sulphur will be washed off; 

 or they may be plunged in water, and drawn gently 

 through it. After this, the?, neither taste nor smell 

 remains, for the sulphur is wholly gone. 



A difficulty has been found 1 some people in 

 dusting their Vines with sulphur ; and as dredgin^- 

 boxes and powder-puffs are apt to act upon the 

 dresser, as well as the dressee, ingenious mecha- 

 nicians have provided, and even patented, their 

 " sulphurators." Rut there is no need of an 

 elephant to drag a dog-cart. A pair of bellows fit! 1 

 with a tin box communicating by holes in tin 

 bottom with a long tube instea 

 of the bellows is as 



100 ; Dwarf Boursault Rose stocks 



E SUPERB HOLLYHOCKS. 



B. BIRCHAM, Hedcnham Rosary, Bungay, 

 • Suffolk, begs to state that his Descriptive CATALOG'S 

 •fine above splendid flowers is now ready, containing all the 

 fcftin cultivation, and including: some first-rate Seedlings. 



^B. U. begs to offer strong ground roots, selected when in 

 •jaaai, from some thousands of seedlings; these are fine 

 iMMeflowera and splendid colours, and will prove a superior 

 cusof fluwerg for the border and shrubbery ; 9s. per dozen. 



1 Descriptive Catalogue of the best Roses in cultivation, 

 ■jMiag upwards of 300 of th j best hardy varieties. R. B. B. 

 wfflbe happy to forward tho above lists on prepaid application. 

 raftafe carefully attended to ; extra plants included, to com. 

 Jiaam for distant carriage. Carriage paid to London per 



JwtfcUi railway. 



I DUTCH FLOWER ROOTS. 



)E5JDLE % S LIST OF DUTCH BULBS will be 

 Wound in the columns of this Paper, front page, la the 

 •ttmbtr for September 27, 1831. The pricus are very low. 



Bweriptiv? Catalogues on application to William E. Rendle, 

 norm to her Majesty, Plymouth. 



Ike Hyacinths arc particularly large and handsome. 

 Mottexcclknt kinds can be had at 6s. wr dn&n 



of the usual pipe 

 good as anything. The sulphur 

 lrops into the tube through the holes, and is 

 driven forward by the blast But as flower of sul- 

 phur is apt to clog, and refuse to fall through the 

 holes in the bottom of the box, an ingenious Fi ich- 

 man thought of a plan for patting, or, if you w^ll, 

 rapping the box, so as to displace the sulphur at 

 every puff of the bellows. For this purpose, he at- 

 tached a long, weak, steel spring to the under-side of 

 the bellows, and secured to the tree end of the spring, 

 next the sulphur-box, a hammer-head, which con- 

 stantly strikes the tube of the bellows, as the bellows 

 are moved in the act of blowing. The result is, that 

 while the bellows say, " Puff, puff, puff," the ham- 

 |mer strikes, " Pat, pat, pat ;" and between puffing 

 and patting, a constant cloud of sulphur is directed 

 to every place where it is wanted. 





Cite enxbtntxit' Chronicle 



SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11, 1851. 



It is some consolation to know that one enemy to 



tte gardener is thoroughly subdued. If we cannot 



Janage the Potato disease, at least we can defy the 



n-f Mildew. An exhibitor of excellent mildewed 



wpes declared, at the last horticultural meeting, 



t he cared no more for egg-mildew in a Vinery 



; n fo r green-fly in a Cucumber bed. And he was 



mi. \\ hat tobacco will do in one place, sulphur 



™u ao in another. Smoke your green-fly, brim- 



jone the egg- mildew. Black Hamburgh Grapes 



J2 produced by Mr. Fry, and Black Prince 



jgpes, from the Garden of the Horticultural 



^ety, as well urown, and 



** * well flavoured, in the 



We must again invite the attention of our readers 

 to Mr. Lawes' long and laborious series of experi- 

 ments on the Chemistry of Vegetation, which, as 

 we recently observed, are characterised by Liebig 

 as being of no practical value for the foundation of 

 general conclusions ; a remark probably made in a 

 moment of haste and ill-humour, perhaps even with- 

 out being thoroughly aware of the true nature and 

 aim of the experiments there condemned. In 

 order to explain the matter fully, it will be necessary 

 to advert once more to the so-called mineral theory 

 of Liebig, which is in fact the foundation of the 

 whole discussion, and to which its author appears 

 inclined to adhere with a good deal of tenacity, in 

 spite of all that may be urged against it. 



It is perhaps hardly to be wondered at, that the 

 small quantity of inorganic matter which plants 

 contain was formerly considered as being accidental, 



as well coloured, 



* if u — ~*«**j *" ■*«» midst of mildew, 



A R n °i o malad V were known. Nevertheless 

 ."•Jd c declare that they have killed their Vines 



ttatt i L CUrm 3 them > while E F and G maintain 



bin J! fr r ls of no more use to a Vine than 

 •Jjopathic Pills to an ass. 



je cause of the failures that have taken place is 

 fcleeS ^ l e > the modus operandi not being 

 A B ami n V 0se who are not witnes ses of it. 

 *lphur * howev er, have no doubt fired their 

 thevliat an ln £ en ious process, by means of which 

 Wmt£ e - SC ? ched their Vines > and if we may say so, 



6 





or at least of no real value, and not in any way 

 essential to their growth and prosperity ; at all 

 events, such was certainly the case, and even after 

 the minute and laborious investigations of Saussure, 

 it appears that very little attention was paid to the 

 subject, for Davy evidently thought them of little 

 or no importance, when he wrote his celebrated 

 lectures on agricultural chemistry. Isolated writers 

 have now and then drawn attention to the ex mce 

 of these substances in plants, and have indeed 

 pointed out the necessity of their being present in 

 those plants which serve as the food of animals. 

 ^Thus, for example, it has been long known and 

 admitted that cattle derive a large portion of 

 phosphate and carbonate of lime, the earthy matter 

 of their bones, from the Grass and other plants on 

 which they feed. Liebig was the first to insist on the 

 paramount importance of these inorganic substances 

 to plants, which he asserted were absolutely essen- 

 tial to their growth ; and indeed he went so far as 

 to say that vegetation was healthy and luxuriant 

 just in proportion to the supply of these substances. 

 In accordance with this view he put forth his theory 

 of exhaustion and fallowing, asserting that the sole 

 reason why a plant could not be cultivated year 

 after year on the same soil, was, that the supply of 



matter necessary for the plant 

 1 n °t unl'L- +iT~ Jt #'v ! XLl uum & wmvu uiey I soon became exhausted, and that this loss mi 

 * bavin* 1 h f ° lks who content themselves remedied either by leaving the soil for a year or two to 



^ « s been absent fm m *k<* rw e *«i r>_i„~ recover itself under the agency of atmospheric influ- 

 ence, or by the addition of suitable mineral manures. 

 It is often stated that Liebig discovered the real 



hand, E F and 



dering Vi u 



es 



r mv a v ^th absolute brimstone, and 



has t ately Preferred water in which o 



een steeped ; in doing which they I soon became°exhausted, and that this loss must be 



n g> that at 



^pleti-hrT^ , at an y rate they have seen 



*«*i tm ?? ve e f n there - others > ma y be > have 



^beenV? 6 * Was incurabl e, and some may 



hp*n a i vu ^ as ^curable, and some 



eU deterred from the true method of 



cure 





office performed in the nutrition of plants by these 

 inorganic matters, and hence threw a good deal of ] 





light on the sul ct ; but this is not really the ": 

 for of the true use of the inorganic constitne s of 



-an very ■ little indeed is even' now understood. 



>\ e know that they are e*ential to * „, lmt 



we do not know why or in what manl they act ; 



his still remains to be discovered. 



The two great facts which Likbio bro M forward 

 in a prominent manner, were, the necesni . of these 



uhstances being present in a fertile soil", sod the 

 fact that different tribes of plants require the 

 presence of different inorganic matters; some 

 requiring phosphate of lime, some needing alkali 

 and some requiring silica. These facts are certainly 



f the very But importance; but it is obviously 

 impossible to arrive at any very satisfactory con- 

 clusion as to the mode in which these sul ances 

 influence vegetation, until we fullv nnden md the 

 office which they perform, and the effects which 

 they produce. It is quite plain that these inorganic 

 matte] nnot in any way serve as i 1, or at least 

 cannot directly contribute to the supply of carbon, 

 nitrogen, Arc; but at the same time there is no 

 doubt swne very simple relation Ml n the 

 absorption of these earthy and saline compounds, 

 and tin* absorption or assimilation of carbonic acid, 

 ammonia, and water. The practi< I problem to be 

 ■olvid was, is it most important to supply inor- 



anic matter, or ahimoni to plants 1 or in other 

 words, must we give plants ammonia, and will that 



enable them to absorb enough inorganic matter 

 from an exhai^ted soil, or most we give them 

 inorganic manures ; and will they tin n be able to 

 absorb from the air and soil all the ammonia which 

 they require ? 



The answer which LlBio gate to this important 

 question was, that inorganic manures were of far 

 more value than those which merely ( lined 

 ammonia ; an assertion based solely on hypothetical 

 conclusions, and therefore, especially when we bear 

 in mind how little is really known of the action of 

 these substances, one which ought to be viev I v. ith 

 the greal t caution and circumspection. A great 

 many persons were at once sai led that Lirbio's 

 view of the subject must be correct, but there v > 

 some who wished to have proofs before they ad- 

 mitt I it, and Mr. Law* was one of those; he 

 accordingly instituted, in conjunction with Dr. 

 GmtEur. a very careful series of experiments, and 

 the result of these experiments is now published, 

 in the Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society. 

 These investigations of Mr. Lawi s far as they 



o, are very satis ictory; and whilst we should be 



the last to admit them for more than they are 

 worth, we feci that the manner in which they have 

 been arranged and conducted is such as to render 

 them wholly trustworthy. They plainly lead to 

 certain conclusions, which we may safely adopt, 

 without fear of being misled. 



At an early period in his experiments, Mr. Lawes 

 was led to the conclusion, that very little real 

 information can be derived from the anal; is of 

 a soil ; because our chemical tests are not delicate 

 enough to detect the less abundant constituent ; or 

 to render evident those changes in its composition, 

 which the growth of one or two crops could po ibly 

 produce. The soil of an acre of ground, supposing 

 it to be 6 inches in depth, would weigh about 

 1,344,000 lbs., and consequently the subtraction of 

 a hundred weight of any one ingredient would 

 only amount to about one 13,000th part of the 

 whole, a quantity far too minute to be satisfactorily 

 determined by analysis. Mr. Lawes, in his experi- 

 ments, therefore, proceeded on a plan in which this 

 difficulty was obviated ; he took a field, the soil of 

 which was thoroughly exhausted by heavy crop- 

 ping, so that without manure it would only produce 

 a poor crop, showing, therefore, that something was 

 deficient ; and dividing it into several portions he 

 manured each separately, giving to some ammoniacal 

 manure, to some inorganic ones, and to others a mix- 

 ture of the two. These experiments were continued 

 on the same fields, and with the same manures, for 

 seven years ; so that the value of each class of 

 manure was fairly tested with different plants ; and 

 the whole of these results are now before us. The 

 paper is well worthy of careful study, and though 

 we shall mention briefly some of the conclusions to 

 be drawn from them, yet we would recommend 

 every one to read the original account of the experi- 

 ments, a^i to judge for himself of their value. 

 * Mr. Lawks found that the ashes of farm-yard 

 maiyire did not , increase the yield of VVhea f on 

 exhausted land at all, whilst a small dressing of 

 sulphate of ammonia increased it 5 b hels per 

 acre ; and when a mixture of inorganic matter and 

 ammoniacal salts was contrasted with the effects of « 

 either taken singly, it was evident that the restoring 

 influence of the latter was far higher than that of 

 the former alone. The practical conclusion, there- 

 fore, to which Mr. Lawes arrives is, that in this 



country the soil becomes exhausted of its ammoni- 



