2IO 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 430. 



1,309 species of flowering- plants. It is claimed that West 

 Virginia contains a greater amount of hard-wood timber in 

 its forests than any other state, and the authors are con- 

 vinced that " nearly or quite two-thirds of the state remains 

 uncleared, and by far the greater portion of the uncleared 

 land is still in virgin forests, where the axe of man has 

 never found its way, and where magnificent specimens of 

 forest growth stand thickly side by side and reach a tow- 

 ering height, no finer view of standing timber may be had 

 within the confines of the Union. These splendid forests, 

 covering over sixteen thousand square miles, yield nearly 

 every species found in the north. Here trees grow to such 

 size that ordinary methods will not suffice to handle them, 

 and are frequently so densely compact that the light of day 

 scarce penetrates their shade, and pathways must be cut 

 before the axemen can find room to work." Among the 

 principal timber-trees enumerated are the White Ash, the 

 Beech, the Black and Yellow Birch, the Lindens, the Chest- 

 nut, Wild Cherry, the Hemlock, the Hickory, the Sugar 

 Maple, the White and Chestnut Oaks, the White Pine, the 

 Red Spruce, the Tulip-tree and the Black Walnut. 



Notes. 



More than ten thousand cases of apples reached the London 

 market on a single steamer on the second of May from Tas- 

 mania. Permains and Ribston Pippins were reported of the first 

 quality and evenly graded, and brought at wholesale from $2.50 

 to $3.25 a bushel, and a small quantity from Victoria brought 

 $4-5°- 



New potatoes are coming from as far north as Georgia and 

 South Carolina, as are cabbage, string-beans, beets and carrots. 

 New beets are also coming from Louisiana, and the first pep- 

 pers of the season from that state arrived last Saturday. Peas 

 from Maryland are in the markets, the bulk of supplies of this 

 vegetable coming from Virginia. Cucumbers, from glass 

 houses near Savannah and Charleston, are offered with field- 

 grown stock from Florida. From near-by points, grown under 

 glass and in the open, are new onions, lettuce, cauliflower, 

 beets, sorrel, dandelion, kale, spinach, rhubarb and radishes. 



Huckleberries of good quality, from North Carolina, may 

 be had in this city for thirty cents a quart. The first black- 

 berries, from the same state, were offered here two weeks 

 ago, but these were small and not desirable. The first Peento 

 peaches from Florida reached New York last Saturday and 

 are now selling at retail for $1.50 a dozen, the price asked also 

 for Bidwell peaches. While strawberries have been plentiful 

 enough, those of prime quality are scarce, owing to continued 

 dry weather. This fruit is now coming from as far north as 

 Maryland, and Delaware berries are looked for in a few 

 days. 



We learn from Thomas H. Kearney, Jr., of the Division of 

 Agrostology, in the Department of Agriculture, Washington, 

 that Buckleya distichophylla has been collected by Master 

 Harry Allen, near Newport, Cocke County, Tennessee, about 

 sixteen miles below Wolf Creek, so that its known habitat is 

 greatly extended. It will be remembered that Buckleya is one 

 of the rarest of North American shrubs. It was described and 

 figured in this journal, vol. hi., page 236, and on page 168 of 

 the present year Mr. Kearney gave an interesting account of its 

 discovery at several points near Paint Rock, which for many 

 years was considered the only place where it was found in a 

 natural state. 



A protracted drought so early in the year as this is phenome- 

 nal, but all the country hereabout is now suffering tor lack of 

 water. When pasture-fields in the middle of May look as 

 brown as they do in August, and there is no grass growing in 

 the meadows, and even the Plantain leaves are curling up on 

 the lawn, the outlook tor the farm and garden is not promis- 

 ing. The extreme hot weather forced flowering plants into 

 bloom earlier than usual, but the flowers came all at once 

 when they should have been spread over at least a fortnight. 

 A forced growth is always feeble and the flowers lasted but a 

 little while. The season of Tulips and Daffodils was never so 

 short. Meanwhile, vegetable seeds lying in the ground, which 

 is almost dust-dry, show no signs of germination. These 

 droughts, which now seem to come every year at one season 

 or another, are so destructive that no garden is safe without 

 some appliance for irrigation. 



A correspondent in writing of the Flower Carnival in San 

 Jose, California, which was one of the earliest towns in the 

 northern part of that state to revive the old Spanish custom, 

 says that the town was filled from the sixth of May to the ninth 

 with great crowds from every direction. More than one hun- 

 dred acres of flowers had been planted in vacant lots about the 

 town and cared for by the organization which prepared the 

 pageant, and, besides these, car-loads of material were brought 

 in from other places, and the entire Santa Clara valley was laid 

 under contribution for flowers used to decorate the innumera- 

 ble floats and vehicles which made up the grand parade or to 

 be strewn about lavishly in this Battle ot the Roses. The 

 streets were decorated with arches and the houses with flowers 

 and boughs of Douglas Spruce and Redwood, while the gray 

 moss which streams from the White Oaks was largely used in 

 mural decorations. The procession was three miles long, and 

 some of the floats were considered wonders of art. Among 

 the leading participants were the school children from the city 

 and other points in the valley, each school competing for a 

 prize for the most beautiful and original design. 



A bulletin lately issued by the Agricultural Experiment Sta- 

 tion of Pennsylvania gives an account of the phosphate 

 deposits in Juniata County which were discovered last year. 

 It has long been known that there was a narrow belt of unus- 

 ually fertile soil along the two central ridges of this county, 

 and it was in this belt that the discovery was made. Along 

 the outcrop of the Oriskany sandstone, between this and the 

 overlying Onondaga limestone, is a decomposed mass of marls 

 and sands in which the phosphate material is found. The 

 seams lie conformably with the stratification of the country and 

 can be easily traced. Trenches give evidence of a persistent 

 belt of phosphate which can be easily mined, is accessible to 

 railroad, and encloses valuable material enough to constitute 

 an industry. The material is not of a grade equal to that of 

 the southern phosphate, but it will bear transportation to a 

 moderate distance. What renders the discovery of special 

 interest, however, is the fact that almost exactly similar geo- 

 logical conditions exist in many parts of the state, so that there 

 is warrant for the belief that further explorations may develop 

 phosphate deposits in various parts of the commonwealth, 

 and it so this may result in an important addition to the agri- 

 cultural resources of the state. 



In regard to the sale of American apples in England, Messrs. 

 J. C. Houghton & Co., of Liverpool, who deal in high-grade 

 apples at wholesale, write that early in the season fine King 

 apples always sell well, and last year they brought as high as 

 $5.62j^ a barrel, although this fruit generally ranges at whole- 

 sale at from $4.00 to $5.00. As the season advances King 

 apples become softer, and Baldwins, which are always appre- 

 ciated in the English market, take their place, in a measure, 

 at prices of from $3.00 to $4.25. Greenings are usually in good 

 demand for culinary purposes, but not being used for dessert 

 do not command the prices paid for more attractive-looking 

 red apples. York Imperials last year were in high favor, and 

 sound large fruit brought from $4.25 to $5.63 a barrel. Ben 

 Davis, Winesap and Spitzenbergare all well known and appre- 

 ciated, and bring about the same prices as Baldwins. Golden 

 Russets usually sell for low prices while other apples are 

 coming forward freely, but in the spring, when most varieties 

 are exhausted, they frequently command full prices, and sales 

 have been recently made at from $4.25 to $5 40 a barrel. New- 

 town and Albemarle Pippins are regarded there as the very 

 best American apples, and during last season they brought 

 at auction as much as $S.37, but when arrivals were heavy, 

 prices ruled at from $3.75 to $5.25. Of course, these prices 

 apply to selected fruit, for small and inferior Albemarle and 

 Newtown Pippins bring less than other varieties. In fact, it is 

 hardly worth while for Americans to export small apples to 

 compete with those from the European continent and English 

 orchards. Where the Americans have the advantage is in the 

 size and color of their fruit and in the convenient form in 

 which it is packed — that is, in barrels. Only the larger and 

 best-colored apples of any variety should be sent if good prices 

 are to be assured. 



The death is announced of the Abb£ Delavay, for many 

 years a missionary in Yuri-nan, the south-western province of 

 China, where he made large collections of plants, discovering 

 in one small region moreundescribed species than have fallen 

 to any other one botanical collector of this generation. Among 

 the plants discovered and introduced into Europe by him are 

 numerous species of Primula, Rhododendron and other plants 

 destined to keep green the memory of this brave, zealous and 

 indefatigable priest. 



