3 o3 



Garden and Forest 



[Number 440. 



Cynara Scolymus is but a cultivated form of C. Cardunculus, 

 and is not known in a wild state. The latter is the Cardoon of 

 gardens, and differs but little in appearance from its relative; 

 it is cultivated, however, the same as Celery and cooked when 

 the tender heart is blanched. It is seldom seen here, and is 

 rarely used except by French cooks. In France great atten- 

 tion is paid to the cultivation of both these vegetables, and it 

 is safe to say that nowhere else are such fine heads or such 

 highly improved varieties to be seen. The Messrs. Vilmorin, 

 of Paris, have done much toward bringing about this desira- 

 ble result, and last summer they showed heads in London that 

 created much comment in English journals. This improve- 

 ment is largely the result of careful selection, together with 

 good culture. " One plant, one flower" is a maxim there, and 

 no doubt this is sound advice, as we have proved this season. 

 The side shools produce heads of inferior size and flavor, and 

 they are rarely large enough to send to table, especially after 

 larger ones have been used. 



Another reason why we have missed perfection is in trust- 

 ing wholly to seed for our plants, for it is possible to treat Arti- 

 chokes as annuals, saving one good head for seed to raise 

 another year under glass. These will all (lower the first sea- 

 son if sown early in the year, and we have such plants now 

 showing flowers. But the objection lo this practice is that 

 seedlings vary, and the tendency is too often to revert. The 

 variation is quite marked in the individual plants. Sometimes 

 a specially good form will make its appearance, and here is 

 the opportunity for the cultivator to lift the plant in fall, winter 

 it over in the greenhouse, and carefully divide it as often as 

 offsets are produced, with portions of root attached. All these 

 should be set out in favorable spring weather. It is not wise 

 to trust to seed for reproduction of these plants. 



Artichokes will thrive here in any soil that is naturally well 

 drained in winter. They can be protected from the cold with 

 success, but moisture is fatal when the plants are dormant, 

 though they need a large amount in the growing season. We 

 set the young plants at least three feet apart. It would be 

 better to have the rows five feet from each other to prevent 

 damage to the leaves when walking between the rows. The 

 soil is made very rich to start with, and the surface covered in 

 summer with a mulch of some non-conducting material, such 

 as lawn clippings or straw from the stable. This answers 

 another purpose in keeping down all weeds. We find that a 

 top-dressing of salt also helps to keep down weeds, and is be- 

 sides a good fertilizer for the plants. Many growers use seaweed 

 for this purpose, as the Artichoke is of maritime origin. 



In young plants of the first year it is well to cut off the 

 flower-stem as soon as the head is cut ; we find that the effort 

 to flower is sometimes too much, and the plant dies without 

 making any buds for its reproduction next year. Individual 

 plants sometimes act as if they were annuals, and if these die 

 out a gap is left in the beds. When cold weather sels in they 

 must be protected for winter. We have tried various plans 

 with greater or less success ; if superfluous leaves are cutoff 

 and the plants tied up closely to the tops and the earth banked 

 up to this height, or a few inches above, just before the arrival 

 of frost, there is no danger of their dying from cold. To make 

 sure to keep out moisture we nail two boards together and 

 place these along the ridge of the bank to effectually throw off 

 snow and water. In very severe sections it may be well to 

 place leaves or straw about the banks of earth to help protect 

 the plants. We have found it better not to do this until hard 

 frosty weather has set in, so that the field mice that will most 

 surely be attracted to this harbor will not be able to penetrate 

 the earth and devour the hearts of the plants ; they are very 

 partial to these morsels, and seem to scent them from afar, 

 but if the soil is well frozen on the outside the covering will 

 tend to prevent its thawing, and the plants are safe from all 

 danger. We have lifted the plants and put them in a cellar to 

 winter over ; also placed them in an unheated structure, but 

 in each instance the results were unsatisfactory, owing to the 

 loss from damping off of the crowns. Cold will arrest this in 

 the open ground, and if they are uncovered in spring as soon 

 as the weather favors the removal of the cover there will be very 

 rapid growth and an abundance of fine flower-heads, provided 

 the side-buds are picked off. It should be added that, when 

 tying up the plants previous to covering them with earth, a 

 stake should be placed to each one. This will materially assist 

 in the operation and will be valuable in indicating where the 

 crowns are when opening them up in spring. Otherwise some 

 are sure to be injured. Before uncovering we put in a lot of 

 rich manure in the trenches, and this is covered up with the 

 earth as it is leveled. 



It is not too much to predict that if more care is taken in the 

 cultivation of this fine vegetable there will be a much greater 



demand for it. Where it is necessary to produce a large 

 quantity of vegetables for home use, of as much variety as 



possible, the Artichoke will be found a desirable change, an 

 it is not, on the whole, difficult of cultivation if a few requirt 



id 



re- 



nients are borne in mind 



South Lancaster, Mass 



E. 0. Orpet. 



Floating Plants.— Among the aquatic floating plants — that is, 

 those which grow with their foliage lying on or above the 

 water and their roots submerged — which are well adapted for 

 growing in company with the more pretentious Nympheeas 

 and Nelumbiums, are several which alter their appearance 

 according to their surroundings to such an extent that they are 

 sometimes taken for distinct species. The leaves of Salvinias, 

 for example, when allowed to float on the surface of a large 

 tank or pond, have a flattened-out appearance, and the plants 

 are weak compared with specimens grown in the full sun in a 

 confined space where the sun does not reach the root-like pro- 

 cesses in the water. When grown in this way, the leaves — ■ 

 that is, the upper ones — are almost folded together, and very 

 large, the plants crowding each other, in some cases two or 

 three inches above the line of the water. In a confined space 

 the spore capsules are produced most abundantly, while they 

 are seldom seen on plants which float about in the open water. 

 Azolla pinnata is another plant which behaves much in the 

 same way. Pistia stratiotes, when the plants are crowded 

 together so that the sun does not reach the roots, form very 

 thick leaves and flower abundantly ; but if the plants are 

 grown singly in a tank so that the sun has access to the roots 

 they soon turn sickly. 



Clerodendron fcetidum. — This plant, better known as Clero- 

 dendron Bungei, is one of the showiest among the many fine 

 species of this genus. It is a native of China and has been in 

 cultivation for a long period, unfortunately as a stoye or green- 

 house plant. It has been reported lately from a good source 

 to be one of the finest hardy plants for the southern states. It 

 is hardy in most winters, even as far north as Baltimore. The 

 plant may be said to be herbaceous, as it throws up annual 

 stems to a height of from three to four feet, each stem crowned 

 with a very large corymb of bright pink flowers. When in 

 full bloom a colony of plants in a suitable place in the garden 

 makes an effective display. The leaves are large, heart-shaped 

 and opposite to each other on the stems. As a greenhouse 

 pot-plant it is not successful, since a plant in a six-inch pot 

 does not have sufficient root room to throw up a fair-sized 

 growth; moreover, when the plant is sickly it is a favorite one 

 for mealy-bug and scale insects. Propagation may be effected 

 either by cuttings of the young growths or by dividing the 

 plants. If wanted in large quantities the thickest of the roots 

 should be washed free from the soil, cut up into pieces about 

 an inch in length and placed one inch deep in boxes of sand. 

 They will sprout within two weeks if kept in a growing tem- 

 perature. 



Botanic Garden, Washington, D. C. <>• W. Oliver. 



Correspondence. 



Edible Barberries. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest: 



Sir, — I see that the nurserymen's catalogues enumerate 

 several varieties of edible Barberries, some white, some red, 

 some violet. Will you tell me which of the species bear the 

 best fruit ? 



Asbury Park, N. J. W. 



[Most persons do not find Barberries very grateful to 

 the taste, and they are generally neglected when other fruit 

 can be had. However, when made into jams and jellies 

 they are considered by many both wholesome and pala- 

 table, and the acid berries themselves without any prepara- 

 tion are relished by some persons. The fruit most used is 

 that of the European Berberis vulgaris, and this varies very 

 much on different plants in shade and size and flavor. By 

 cultivation and selection varieties with black, purple, violet, 

 yellow and white fruits are now offered for sale, and there 

 is a so-called seedless variety. All of these are forms of the 

 common European Barberry, and, perhaps, the fruit which 

 most nearly approaches the normal red color may be gener- 

 ally regarded as the best for culinary purposes, as the pale 

 or whitish fruits are often poorly developed. B. vulgaris has 

 become so common and so thoroughly naturalized in our 

 eastern states that is often regarded as a native plant. No 



