312 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ October 20, 1670. 



Laving accommodated themselves to the inequalities of the ground, at 

 the request of Dr. Bull the Rev. P. B. Brodie, M.A., F.G.S., gave a 

 very interesting extempore lecture on the geological features of the 

 Woolhope Valley before them, comparing the remarkable features of 

 this district with the more extended one of the Wealden in Susses. 



In the course of this address Mr. Brodie mentioned that when work- 

 ing in the Woolhope district this spring, with his own Field Club, he 

 had been so fortunate as to discover a small and very perfect specimen 

 of Eurypterus, which he had sent for examination to Mr. Henry Wood- 

 ward, of the British Museum. He had just had a letter from Mr. 

 Woodward, in which he stated that it was a new species, and that he 

 had named it the Eurypterus Brodieii, in honour of the finder. It 

 was found at the Purton quarry, near Stoke Edith, and as it came so 

 strictly within the province of the Woolhope Club, Mr. Brodie kindly 

 offered it for illustration in the volume of Transactions, an offer which 

 was very gladly accepted. 



The order was now given to search for Funguses, but although the 

 ■district was most favourable for them, beyond the large tufts of the 

 ubiquitous A. melleus and A. fascicularis but little was found. Many 

 small specimens of the orange Chantarelle, Cantharellus anrantiacus, 

 were gathered ; Mr. Houghton found the Fir-cone Hydmmi, Hydnuni 

 auriscalpium, always so curious and interesting; Mr. Elmes Y. Steele 

 got the graceful green Agaric with its silky veil and stem, A. aerugi- 

 nosas ; several of the Mycena trihe were also gathered, as A. poly- 

 grammus, A. alcaliuus, with one or two near allies, A. epipterygius 

 amongst them. These are suiheient to show how many more there would 

 have been under more favourable circumstances. The drought was 

 too prevalent, and Agarics could only be numbered by units instead of 

 by scores, as fondly hoped for, but as a popular poet has said — 



" We may roam through this world like a child at a feast, 

 Who but sips at a sweet and then flies to the rest; 

 And when pleasure begins to jrrow dull in the east, 

 We may order our wings and be off to the west." 



And so on the present occasion the disappointed fungologists drew off 

 from the wood to the open grotmd on the shoulder of the hill, and 

 visited the two stunted Hawthorns, so oddly called " the Cow and 

 Calf." The view from this sjot is usually most extensive and beauti- 

 ful, but at this time it was enshrouded in mist, and since the Funguses 

 were again absent the descent was made to Old Snfton, where the 

 carriages were waiting to convey the visitors to Hereford. 



The ride home wculd have been very pleasant but for the myriads 

 of aphides which swaimed in the air. It would almost seem true that 

 " The thin-winged flies their transient time employ, 

 Keeling through sunbeams in a dance of joy." 



The Turnip aphis, however, has been terribly destructive this autumn, 

 and a field on the hill was passed smelling horridly from the decaying 

 bulbs of the Turnip plants they had destroyed. 



An examination of the Funguses, at the Green Dragon, brought for 

 exhibition passed the time remaining before dinner very pleasantly. 

 It was an extieinely interesting collection, and the only wonder was 

 that in so dry a season so many could have been produced. 



The most striking specimens were the arborescent Funguses, as 

 might have been anticipated. A huge specimen of Polyporus fron- 

 dosus was placed in the centre of the table, and undoubtedly carried 

 off the palm both for interest and novelty. It weighed no less than 

 14J lbs., and from its creat size, the beauty of its lines, and its grace _ 

 fully overlapping pilei, it proved the chief attraction in the room. 

 This species may be said to he virtually new to Britain, for although 

 its presence has been more than suspected by several botanists, it is 

 not given as British in any of our floras, not excepting Mr. Cooke's 

 recent handbook. It is true that Mr. Berkeley published a species 

 under this name in the English flora, but he afterwards corrected 

 himself and referred his former plant to P. intybacens, leaving out 

 P. frondosus altogether. A specimen of P. frondosus, gathered at 

 Whitfield, was sent by Dr. Bull to the exhibition at South Kensington ; 

 and, besides the grand one brought to this meeting by J. E. Smith, 

 Esq., from near Hay, there was another from Whitfield, and also a 

 very fine one brought by the Rev. W. Honghton from the Wrekin. 

 We Lave now, undoubtedly, in England all the three species of Fries : 

 — Polyporus frondosus, known in addition to other characters by its 

 pore-surface and its flesh turning grey when bruised ; P. intybacens, 

 with its hundreds of pilei tufted together, very much branched, and 

 smelling like mice ; and the P. giganteus, with its large imbricated 

 pilei, turning red when bruised, and smelling horribly like rotten 

 cheese. 



There were also very fine specimens of Polyporus applanatus and 

 P. hispidns, with P. rufescens, P. fumosns, P. varius, P. annosus, and 

 the ever-present P. squamosus. 



The next fungus which created much interest was a fine specimen 

 of the edible Sparassis cri3pa, brought by the Rev. W. Houghton from 

 the Wrekin. It was the size of a Cauliflower, of a bright orange 

 colour, and very pleasant fragrant odour. It is very rare, but has 

 been found this year in several localities, as attested by the Rev. M. J. 

 Berkeley and C. E. Broome, Esq. 



Two fine sturdy specimens of A. corticatus were exhibited. They 

 were foand growing on a Beech tree, and possessed considerable in- 

 terest, as well for their great beauty as for the great rarity of their 

 occurrence in this country. Agaricus porrigens, a beautiful snowy 

 white Pleurotus of great rarity and beauty, peculiar to fallen Pines, 

 was sent from the Duke of Argyll's plantations at Inverary. The 

 rare Cortinarius fulgens was there also ; Lactarius deliciosus, rufus, 



torminosus, vellerous, and controversus ; Russula rubra, fragilis, 

 lepida, and alutacea ; Boletus luridus, edulis, and versipellus; the 

 Agaricus Ceciliee, procerus, rubescens, maculatus, rutilans, squar- 

 rosus, rimosus, nudus, tuberosus, gallinaceu*, bntyraceus, lacryma- 

 bundus, iufundibuliformis, &c. ; Fistulina hepatica, Paxillns involutus, 

 Hydnnm udum, H. repandnm, Helotium vergultorium, &c- 



A very puzzling lot of sulphur-coloured Agarics was brought by Mr. 

 Houghton, which seemed to agree with no known group. They were, 

 however, provisionally referred to the rare A. (Flammula) inopus of 

 Bolton, or perhaps A. hybridus of Fries. 



A great variety of common Agarics, which it is unnecessary to 

 mention, were conspicuous by their absence 



There was some little difficulty in procuring sufficient edible Fun- 

 guses for the dinner, but the following dishes were sent round with 

 more or less satisfaction: — Fistulina hepatica fried, and finding its 

 own gravy ; A. deliciosus stewed ; A. procerus and A. rubescens 

 broiled. The novelty of such dishes is now over with the Woolhope 

 Club, and it becomes difficult to take the opinion upon them. Pro- 

 cerus was most asked for again, and may be supposed, therefore, to 

 take the place of honour. 



After dinner the President called upon Edwin Lees, Esq., F.L.S., 

 &c, to read his paper " On some curious Alga, only apparent in 

 times of drought, with notices of those that occur and colour water at 

 seasons of high temperature," and Dr. Trimen, of the British Mu- 

 seum, made some remarks upon it. 



The following papers were also read; — "The Fungi which affect 

 our Forest Trees," by Worthington G. Smith, Esq., F.L.S. ; " Notes 

 on Fairy Rings," by Jas. Buckman, Esq., F.L.S., &c. ; and " Illus- 

 trations on the Edible Funguses of Herefordshire," by Dr. Bull. 

 These papers, with such discussion as they elicited, will be published 

 in full, and it only remains now for us to say that they were of high 

 interest, and gave much entertainment to the members present. 



NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 



Boyal Horticultural Society's Committees. — The next 

 meetings of the Fruit and Floral Committees are to be held on 

 November 2nd, and December 7th ; and not November 16th, 

 and December 21st, as previously announced in some of the 

 early issues of the schedule and almanac. 



American Winter Garden. — Nature announces that the 



United States Congress has granted 30 000 dols. for the erection 

 of a Government Winter Garden, either at New York or 

 Washington, somewhat similar to that at Kew, but on a smaller 

 scale. This will partake partly of the nature of an economic 

 garden, in which useful plants can be raised and then dis- 

 seminated far and wide throughout the States. 



■ Cinchona Cultivation has so well succeeded in the 



English hill settlement at Darjeeling, in the Himalayas, that 

 last year 5000 lbs. of bark were sent to London from Cinchona 

 trees planted in 1862, on one plantation. Tea produced, in 

 1869, 1,319,743 lbs. from 10,769 acres of hill land formerly 

 said and reputed to be worthless, and unsuited to give a return 

 to Englishmen. We shall now hear of Indian bark as well as 

 Peruvian, as we know Indian Tea to hold its own against 

 Chinese. The Cinchona trees are also taking well in Jamaica. 

 Experiments on the culture of American Tobacco in India are 

 being made by the Maharajah of Burchwan, in Midnapore and 

 Cuttack. The last year's experiments with seeds from James 

 Biver, Virginia, were very successful. — (Nature.) 



WORK FOR THE WEEK. 



KITCHEN GARDEN. 



This is an excellent period for laying down the spring Broc- 

 coli. It is best performed by two persons, one at each side of 

 the row. Keep a good trench, and sink all the heads to the 

 north, burying the stems in soil np to, and even amoDgst, some 

 of the lower leaves. This proceeding will protect the heads 

 very considerably against a severe winter — first, by reason of 

 the position ; secondly, by avoiding sudden changes or excite- 

 ment ; and thirdly, by the reduction of succulence. Pull Cauli- 

 flowers before they grow too large, and prepare a shed or pit in 

 which to plant a quantity on the first approaoh of frost. Dwarf 

 Kidney Beans, remove those growing in pots to where they can 

 have the protection of glass. It is no uncommon or new prac- 

 tice for good kitchen gardeners to throw their overgrown Let- 

 tuce or Cauliflower plants on the ground to shrivel before plant- 

 ing them. Plants in this state will endure hard weather better 

 than those in luxuriant growth. Eemove the leaves from Rhu- 

 barb and Sea-kale that you intend forcing very early, and keep 

 a look-out for slugs and weeds. 



FRUIT GARDEN. 



Pay every attention to getting the wood of PeaoLes and 



