292 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[May 4, 1912 



east and west on the summit of the range, 

 about two miles in extent by half a mile in 

 breadth. The centre is occupied by a 

 small lake, with open pasture on both sides 

 for some distance up the slopes, and from 

 the margins of this pasture to the tops of .. • ... . .. „ . 



the low hills, about 1,000 feet higher, which ? ro ™ trough this trouble cahs for a thorough 



BUD-DRIPPING IN PEACH TREE. 



The cause of the dropping of buds from Peach 

 trees in spring has perplexed gardeners for as 

 long a time as I can remember, and the mystery 

 is still unsolved. The serious losses sustained by 



enclose the pass on the southern flank, is 

 Rhododendron forest. 



The foreground is occupied by large 

 matted masses of a dwarf species, possibly 

 R. fastigiatum, of 1-2 feet in height, bear- 

 ing small, deep purplish-blue flowers. 

 Behind are groups and masses of R. char- 

 tophyllum (see fig. 141), which were simply 

 showers of bloom, forming a belt of colour- 

 ing from the palest rose-lavender to almost 

 white. Next a taller species, bearing 

 huge and well-formed umbels of deep rose- 

 magenta flowers, possibly allied to R. argy- 

 rophyllum, and, behind all, to the verge 

 of the Alpine pasture on the summit of the 

 hills, an almost impenetrable forest of tree 

 Rhododendrons, 20-40 feet in height, com- 

 posed of such species as. R. lacteum, 

 lacteum var. macrophyllum, Bureavii, 

 irroratum and others, all in the very per- 

 fection of bloom, with a dense under- 

 growth of dwarf Bamboos. 



Viewed from the pass the surface of this 

 forest appeared almost level; it was an 

 ideal day, and the effect of the brilliant 

 sunshine Dn the dark glistening sea of 

 foliage, interspersed with masses of colour- 

 ing, ranging from the almost pure white of 

 R. lacteum and R. Bureavii and the 

 creamy-yellow of R. irroratum, through 

 nearly every conceivable shade of rose- 

 lavender and magenta to the deepest 

 crimson, was a sight far beyond my powers 



of description. With the greatest reluct- 

 ance I proceeded on my journey ; I could 

 have wished to remain for days to enjoy 

 the beauty of the scene. Truly nature is 

 the great gardener, and man only mocks 



himself in his feeble attempts to imitate 

 her! 



The north flank of the pass, that having 

 the southern exposure, was clothed with 

 an evergreen Oak of 50-100 feet, with 

 dark green spinous foliage, possibly 

 Quercus ilex, interspersed with Rhododen- 

 drons of the largest types, R. lac urn, 

 R. macrophyllum and others ; some I 

 measured were nearly 50 feet in height. 



The lower slopes of both sides of the 

 range, half-way towards the base, were 

 occupied by dense masses of a dwarf form, 

 5-8 feet in height, of R. Delavayi, with par- 

 ticularly bright, light cherry-red flowers. 

 G. Forrest, Rangoon, Burma. 



COLONIAL NOTE. 



A FIXE WHITE HIPPEASTRUM. 

 I am sending you a photograph of Hippeastrum 

 (Amaryllis) " Hathor," a chance seedling albino 

 variety. Amaryllis seed very freely here, so much 

 as to become a nuisance if self-sown seeds are 

 allowed to grow in the garden ; to prevent this I 

 make a practice of collecting the seed about twice 

 a week and throwing it about a piece of waste 

 land. The seedlings grow in the grass, and it 

 was amongst these seedlings that I found the 

 variety Hathor. 



The individual flowers are 4^ inches across 

 the perianth, and one truss that I have out now 

 has 17 pure white flowers, save for a little dull 

 yellow in the bottom of the tube. H. H. B. 

 Bradley, Sydney, Australia. 



investigation into its origin. The complaint ie 

 to be met with wherever the Peach is culti- 

 vated under glass, and it is strange that no 

 one has been able to discover the cause. If 

 bud-dropping were only met with in isolated 

 cases, for instance in tsmall gardens under the 

 charge of amateurs, or of men of limited experi- 

 ence, the complaint might be attributed to cul- 

 tural defects. But, unfortunately, the trouble 

 occurs in gardens where the highest and best 

 form of culture is practised under the direc- 

 tion of well-trained gardeners, and often for 

 year after year. 



It is asserted that the defect is constitutional 

 in certain varieties and practically incurable. 

 This contention has a certain weight of evidence 

 in its favour, for it is well known that many 

 early varieties, and specially those of American 

 origin, such as Alexander and Waterloo, are 

 more prone to bud-dropping than English-raised 

 varieties, although these are by no means im- 

 mune from the malady. Others believe that the 

 trouble arises from dryness at the roots at some 

 period during autumn, winter, or spring after the 

 buds have matured. This much may be said 

 for this contention that no fruit tree suffers 

 injury from neglect in watering sooner than the 

 Peach, and drought may sometimes be the cause. 



An insufficient number or an enfeebled con- 

 dition of the roots is often given as the cause, and 

 especially deficiency of young, active, fibrous, 

 surface roots. These reasons may well have 

 something to do with the trouble, as they un- 

 doubtedly have with other aspects of failure in 

 the culture of the Peach. Some contend that 

 bud-dropping is in consequence of unripened 

 shoots. If this were true one would expect to 

 find all trees exposed to the same conditions of 

 growth affected in the same way, but this is 

 not so; moreover, it is seldom that trees pro- 

 perly cultivated under glass fail to ripen the 

 wood properly. How many of us who have 

 grown Peaches extensively on walls out-of-doors 

 for many years can call to mind any serious cases 

 of bud-dropping in such trees? I venture to say 

 very few. I cannot remember having suffered 

 serious losses at any time from trees grown in 

 this way. Peach trees out-of-doors are subjected 

 to a moist atmosphere and low temperatures, 

 especially at night, throughout the winter and 

 spring, and even until the fruits are well set. 

 The soil about the roots of the trees is always 

 moist and often very wet, but it does not remain 

 very long at any time in this condition, as all 

 Peach tree borders, whether inside or out, are 

 thoroughly well drained. Moreover, the soil 

 during these seasons is frost-bound, and these 

 conditions ensure a complete rest for the trees. 

 It is also well to remember the conditions under 

 which out-of-door trees start into growth in the 

 spring. Invariably the development of leaf and 

 fruit buds occur concurrently with the root 

 growth, but top and bottom growth is very slow 

 at the start. 



Peach trees grown under glass are subjected 

 to entirely different conditions, for the supply of 

 moisture at the roots and in the atmosphere is 

 regulated by the cultivator. The question arises 

 do the trees receive a sufficient supply of water 

 at the roots during the resting season? Also, is 

 the atmosphere of the house during this time 

 kept as cool as it should be? The value of 

 a low temperature whilst the trees are at rest 

 is, I am afraid, not generally appreciated, and 

 the key to the solution of the question may 

 be found in this fact. It is a common prac- 

 tice to bring into Peach houses in winter Chry- 

 santhemums and other plants, and the conditions 

 are largely regulated to suit the intruders with- 

 out much consideration to the requirements of 

 the Peach trees. How often it happens that the 



sun bursts into brilliancy when the houses ** 

 insufficiently ventilated causing the temperate 

 to rise many degrees in the course of a few 

 minutes? Again, in cold, frosty weather when 

 the operators are at work pruning, training and 

 tying the trees or washing down the hou* the 

 hot-water system is turned on, causing immedi 

 ately a higher temperature. Is it unreasonable 

 to draw the inference that the subjecting of the 

 trees to these fluctuating changes of extreme heat 

 and cold during their resting period whilst the 

 roots are inactive, stimulating growth and move- 

 ment in the buds when there is no corresponding 

 or sympathetic root action to support them, is a 

 sufficient check to cause bud-dropping? Owen 

 2 7 homas. : 



PLANT NOTE. 



BURCHELLIA CAPEXSIS. 



Amongst the plants just now flowering in 

 warm greenhouses is Burchellia capensis, a native 

 of South Africa. It is a freely -branched, hard 

 wooded shrub, and the sturdy shoots are clothed 

 with ovate, oppositely-arranged leaves, about 

 4 inches long, and of a rich green tint. The flowers 

 are borne in compact, rounded clusters on th 

 points of shoots of the preceding year ; they are of 

 a somewhat inflated tubular shape, a little over 

 1 inch long, and of a deep orange-scarlet colon I 

 Nestling, as they do among the rich green leavea, 

 these brightly-tinted flowers are remarkably 

 effective. Not only do the individual bio?- ins 

 remain fresh and bright for a considerable time, 

 but a healthy specimen will maintain a successi n 

 of them for a lengthened period. This Burcln 1! 

 is not a difficult subject to propagate, as 

 cuttings of the half-ripened shoots 

 readily in a close propagating case with a gt-ntle 

 bottom heat, and the plants grow freely in a 

 mixture of loam, peat and sand. Its popular 

 name is the Buffalo-horn, from the hardness of 

 the wood and, owing to this character, it is some- 

 times known as Burchellia bubalina. W. T. 



root 



NOTICES OF BOOKS. 



Roses.* 



Mr. Wright presents his readers with abund- 

 ance of details, but as in these days one take 

 quinine in its coating of sugar, so his cultural 

 precepts are sweetened with literary, artistic, not 

 to mention moral and sentimental allusions. There- 

 fore, apart from its value as a treatise on Roses, 

 it is a book that one can take up to while away a 

 spare half-hour. Though the exhibitor is noi 

 left out in the cold, it is unmistakably the ama- 

 teur exhibitor who is kept in mind, as in almost 

 every page of the book the amateur and his con- 

 cerns are uppermost. He is advised to buy his 

 Cabbages and Turnips and fill his garden with 

 Eoses. He is led through all the intricacies of 

 budding, planting and pruning, is warned to be- 

 ware of the insidious approaches of greenfly and 

 other enemies ; is told how to destroy thorn ; the 

 appearance of mildew and other parasitic fungi )s 

 described, and means for their eradication pre- 

 scribed. There are many lists of Roses arrangea 

 for every conceivable garden and domestic pur- 

 pose ; long-stemmed Roses for tall vases and >hon- 

 stalked ones for bowls; monsters, if such a 

 name dare be bestowed upon a Rose, for ^r 

 glasses, and small buds for button-holes. ^ vera a 

 pages are devoted to colour arrangements, and 

 lengthy though not a complete list tails off tn~ 

 volume. '. 



The amateur cannot but believe that tre " ch j"° 

 is a source of happiness second only to hoei 8 

 among the Rose bushes, that budding is a jo > 

 and the squeezing of caterpillars between to 

 finger and thumb an occupation of irresist lble \ 

 cination. Mr. Wright entertains no sentime n 

 feeling about cutting Roses^Rather^urge^ 



* Roses ami Rose Gardens, by Walter P. Wright. {London. 

 Headley Bros.) Price 12s. 6d. net. 



BH 



