February 7, 1865. ] 



JOURNAL OP HOKTIOULTURE AND COTTAGE G-AKDENEK. 



107 



gation followed by " Upwakds and Onwabds ;" but it seems 

 difficult to understand how only two abundant waterings 

 could so materially affect the quality of the fruit. Very 

 wisely, he seems to have apprehended the bearings of the 

 old proverb — " It never rains but it pours," and gives a real, 

 heai'ty, wholesome watering when he is at it. One hundred 

 tons per acre is roughly calculated at an inch of rainfall, 

 and each of his waterings slightly exceeds an inch and a 

 half, together exceeding- a full month's natural fall. Twice, 

 however, seems too seldom in the average of summers for 

 fruit which does not begin to ripen till September or 

 October. The secret of his success must lie in the careful 

 selection of the most profitable times at which to apply the 

 sewage — once, he says, just as the fruit is fairly sec, and 

 again when half grown. 



How this sewage watering should affect for the better 

 the flavour of the fruit is worth a little inquiry. I have six 

 Sturmer Pippin Apple trees, dwarfs on the Paradise stock, 

 ■which for some years back I have taken special delight in 

 subjecting to all manner of torture in the way of experiment. 

 The Sturmer does little good with us here (Cheshire), as a 

 standard, and even on a wall, though keeping well, it is never 

 fii-st-rate. In a favourable season it becomes mellow in 

 April or May, but this is the exception ; and I have noticed 

 that in ordinary years the cells of which the fruit is formed 

 are smaller and more compact than in the best of seasons, 

 the fruit being also less in size. The same remark applies 

 to the fruit of such dwarfs, in a dry summer, as I have 

 transplanted the previous autumn. In the latter case the 

 leaves seem to have ripened prematurely, and ceased to 

 nourish the fruit. In specimens of the Sturmer, which I have 

 at present from standard, wall, and from under glass, there 

 is a regular gradation in size, in compactness of cell, and in 

 flavour; perhaps, also, in specific gravity. Now, may not 

 the application of house sewage, as favouring increase of 

 mass, tend to increase of the size of the cells, and therefore 

 increase of their contents, perfecting the fruiL for entering 

 in due time upon the ripening period, when starch, and 

 fibre, and acid, as by the wand of a magician, are trans- 

 formed into that delightful combination of "rich, sugary, 

 and delicious," which the pages of Hogg's "Pomology" 

 taught me, years ago, to loot for in so many of our best 

 varieties, grown where they can be, and as tliey should be. 



The subject is an interesting one ; and if I have been 

 tempted to be too citical, or over-confident in my views, 

 I shall be glad if " Upwards and Onwards," or any one 

 else, will help myself and others to a better understanding 

 of a fact so many must have welcomed, as opening up a way 

 to the increase of the varieties of fruit which the average of 

 soils and situations can produce of really first-rate quality. 

 The subject widens as it is looked upon, and a long array of 

 questions rise up, insisting each upon its answer. How may 

 sewage be best applied so as to avoid the loss of tempera- 

 ture consequent on aU surface u'rigation? Should the liquid 

 be heated before application, and to what degree? and is 

 there any economical means by which its temperature may 

 be elevated, with, in its results, a real profit, calculated in 

 pounds, shillings, and pence ? At what times, and how 

 often, should irrigation be employed, and in what quantity ? 

 Will not each fruit, and each variety, claim a distinct treat- 

 ment for itself ? But, truce to questions ; like every other 

 new idea (and yet, whilst new, a very old one), if there be 

 anything of value in it, discussion, by interested minds, 

 will elicit all that is worth having; and, meanwhile, we 

 may thank "Upwards and Onwards" for suggesting new 

 answers to the now-popular query— "What shall we do 

 with our sewage ?" — Fkuit-bateb. 



THE MODERN PEACH-PEUi\EE. 

 No. 3. 



PHENOMEN.i CONNECTED WITH GROWTH. 

 The substances necessai-y for the Ufe of plants are ab- 

 sorbed by them fr-om the soU, by means of the roots, and 

 from the atmosphere by means of the leaves. De Jussieu 

 calls these last " aerial roots." Their functions, in some 

 degree, resemble those of the human lungs. They absorb 

 from the air the water and carbonic acid which they require. 

 Koots draw from the soil mineral and saline materials, 



besides the carbon and nitrogen which artificial manures 

 supply. 



The spongioles alone are the absorbing organs of the 

 roots, nutritive substances are introduced by them in the 

 form of liquids, which proves how indispensable water is to 

 vegetation. Fluid nourishment is, therefore, the basis ot 

 the growth of plants. It is elaborated in the leaves, under the 

 influence of the solar rays during the day. Under the name 

 of sap it ascends to the leaf-stalks, passes into the venous 

 ramifications, and from thence into the cellular tissue of the 

 leaf. A portion is returned to the atmosphere, the rest 

 remains to feed the plant. 



The carbonic acid of the air is also absorbed by the leaves, 

 unites with the matter drawn by the spongioles from the 

 soil, and is decomposed in the tissue of the lea%es, in order 

 to become nutritious matter. 



The sap elaborated in this manner takes the name of 

 cambium, and changed in the nature which it had during 

 its ascent, it becomes proper and suitable for the increase 

 of the plant. The sap ascends to the leaves through the 

 outer layers of the alburnum, or young wood, during the 

 day. It descends during the night to the spongioles by the 

 innermost layers (that is, by the newest formed) of the liber, 

 composing thus a new layer of ligneous fibre, and a new 

 layer of liber. This is the manner of growth in trees. There 

 is, however, this difference, that while the ascent of the 

 sap increases the length, the descent of the matured sap, or 

 cambium, increases the breadth of plants. 



In spring, the sap-vessels are ah'eady gorged before the 

 leaves show. Thence arises a pressure on the axils of the 

 buds, which precipitates the young shoot into extension. 

 The cambium descending, on the other hand, solidifies the 

 young shoot by means of the new layers which it interposes. 

 The cambium gives breadth as well as solidity. We can 

 thus readily comprehend how a shoot which has pushed forth 

 in some portion of a tree, deprived of the sun's rays, is un- 

 naturally long, and soft in its component parts. The leaves 

 of that shoot not having been exposed to the action of light, 

 the cambium has not been elaborated in the texture. The 

 sap remains much as it was during its ascent ; the inner 

 portion of the growing shoot is spongy and soft, the cam- 

 bium being the means of hardening it, and the shoot has 

 received little or none. On the other hand, a shoot which 

 springs from that side of the branch which is fully exposed 

 to light is short, and the wood is hard, well coloured, and 

 fruitful. 



The descent of the cambium is by the innermost layers of 

 the liber, and it forms the ligneous layers which cover the 

 medullary canal, and also the new vessels of the liber. 



These ligneous and cortical layers, when formed from the 

 cambium, elaborated in the upper leaves, are placed above 

 those formed by the lower leaves. The ligneous layers 

 are, however, composed from the centre outwards — i.e., the 

 newest layer is that farthest from the centre. But the 

 cortical layers are formed from the circumference to the 

 centre — i.e., the newest layer is the innermost. Bach year, 

 then, a new layer of alburnum covers that formed during the 

 preceding year. When the cellular tissues are filled in they 

 become hard, and of a deeper colour. This is the " heart " 

 of the tree ; but the sap does not pass through these ob- 

 structed vessels any more. This portion, however, is the 

 real support of the tree against violent winds. In like 

 manner each year sees new liber grow, while the oldest 

 layers, now external, possess no longer vitality, and become 

 dry and wrinkled. 



The growth of roots is owing to the descent of the cam- 

 bium, by the addition of new cellular tissue to the spongioles. 

 It is evident, then, how mutilation of these is injurious to 

 the welfare of the tree, and how a healthy equilibrium 

 between root and shoot is a first requisite to its healthy 

 vitality. When these spongioles become obstructed they 

 cannot absorb the materials of the soil, and thus the tree 

 languishes and dies. A portion of the cambium in the 

 autumn does not descend to the roots, but is reserved by 

 nature to feed the young shoots before the leaves expand in 

 spring. In shoots, the inner epidermis is formed by the aid 

 of this reserved cambium. The first action of the spongioles 

 in spring, may also be due to its influence in some measure. 



In like manner we may readily understand the growth of 

 the fruit. Fruit is composed of cellular tissue ; like the 



