298 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 281. 



this last condition any of the weaker fungicides are either 

 washed away entirely or are so greatly diluted as to be ineffec- 

 tive at just the time when their protection is needed. In gen- 

 eral, the Potato crop is saved or lost during only four or five 

 days of warm rainy weather, and against this brief, but trying, 

 attack we need our strongest defense. When we add to its 

 fungicidal value the further fact that Paris green can be so ad- 

 vantageously applied with Bordeaux mixture, it leaves this 

 mixture as the only fungicide tested that can be generally 

 recommended for Potato-blight. It is, however, to be hoped 

 that some substance will yet be found — possibly soap, as sug- 

 gested by the New York station— the addition of which will 

 increase the adhesiveness of this mixture, and by so doing 

 make it still more valuable. 



Experiment Station, Burlington, Vt. L. R. JotieS. 



[With this article Professor Jones sent several cuts which 

 will be used to illustrate his report when it is published. 

 One of them shows a single hill from each plot in the field, 

 selected and photographed on the loth of September as a 

 fair sample of that plot. The appearance of these plants 

 furnishes a reliable index of the relative value of these fun- 

 gicides when applied to Potatoes, and a glance at the illus- 

 tration shows at once that onl}'- four of the plots were in 

 good condition at this time — that is, the plots treated with 

 the four fungicides first named in the list above. More 

 interesting, however, to the general reader are the cuts, 

 which we give. Fig. 43, page 297, is from a photograph 

 taken early in September, and shows the difference be- 

 tween contiguous plots, one of which was treated with the 

 Bordeaux mixture and the other untreated. Fig. 44 shows 

 the entire yield of tubers in one plot treated M'ith the mix- 

 ture, and Fig. 45 shows the yield of a plot of the same size 

 which was untreated. In the first case the yield would be 

 more than 350 bushels to the acre, and in the other about 

 100. From this it seems clear that the much-dreaded rot of 

 potatoes can be controlled by a proper use of the copper 

 mixture. — Ed.] 



The Vegetable Garden. 



TDEETS should always be had in succession, as they soon 

 -^ get woody after reaching maturity. Many growers do not 

 plant their main crop until the first week in July, the object 

 being to have the roots good and tender for winter use. It 

 will hardly do to sow Edmands', Dewing's or any of the larger 

 varieties as late as the loth, but Dwarf Egyptian sown as late 

 as the second week in July matured nicely here. The last 

 sowing of dwarf French Carrots may be made now. For home 

 use these are superior to any of the larger kinds. Being of 

 small size the rows may be planted closely, while less thinning 

 is required. They attain a nice size and may be cooked whole, 

 making a better appearance on the table than larger kinds do 

 when sliced. Those who like turnips in winter may sow their 

 Ruta-bagas now, and common globular white and yellow 

 fleshed varieties two weeks later. Purple-top Milan can be 

 sown as late as thesecond week in August and matures nicely. 

 The yellow-fleshed varieties are the best winter keepers. 



Radishes we sow every week the season long, using mostly 

 French Breakfast and Ne Plus Ultra. So also Lettuce, though 

 we do not always get it to head as it does in spring-time. All- 

 the-year-round and Dutch Butter we find good summer vari- 

 eties. Toward the end of July we shall sow "Satisfaction," a 

 variety which has done us very good service for late summer 

 use. Drought and mildew affect Peas in midsummer, and in 

 consequence they are a very uncertain crop if sown later than 

 the first week in June. We, however, sow in succession, 

 sometimes with very fair results. American Wonder is the 

 most reliable of any we have grown, and for private use is one 

 of the best in cultivation ; the rows may be sown as closely as 

 two feet and need no bushing. We have sown this Pea as late 

 as the loth of August and picked peas until the 2Sth of Octo- 

 ber. To have Snap-beans young and tender at all times a row 

 or two should be sown every two or three weeks, until the 

 first week in August. We sow as late as the second week, 

 but do not always get a crop before frost. 



The last sowing of Sweet Corn should be in now. Stowell's 

 Evergreen, for late, is the variety in most general use, but is 

 being rapidly displaced both for market and private use by 

 Potter's Excelsior. The ears are medium in size, kernels 

 small, deep, close, plump and sweet. It is rather late for sow- 

 ing Cabbages, Brussels Sprouts, Kale and some varieties of 

 Cauliflower. Plants of these can generally be had of the regu- 



■lar dealers, and should be set out at once. It is not too late, 

 however, to sow Erfurt Cauliflowers. Seed may be sown 

 thinly in rows where the plants are to stand, and thinned out 

 there rather than in the seed-bed to be transplanted. Those 

 who have frames at their disposal may sow as late as the first 

 week in August for heads to be had under glass about Thanks- 

 giving. Celery, if not already planted, should be put in with- 

 out delay, and a plentiful supply of water given until well 

 established. 



Success with growing crops depends much on the attention 

 given to hoeing and weeding. Stirring (he soil frequently 

 helps to keep down weeds, admits light and air, thereby 

 keeping the soil sweet and in condition to receive the full bene- 

 fit of summer showers, which is too often lost when the sur- 

 face of the soil is smooth and sun-baked. Asparagus, epecially 

 new beds, is better for being staked. Without the protection 

 afforded where a mass of plants are grown together, as in an 

 old bed, they are constantly being twisted one way or another 

 by every change of wind and beaten down by rain-storms. 

 Staking helps the bed the first year, more the second year, and 

 brings it in condition for cutting earlier, and stronger. It also 

 helps the plants to pick off the seeds. The Asparagus-beetle, 

 where prevalent, can be kept well under control by the regu- 

 lar Potato-beetle mixture of Paris green and plaster, which 

 latter is an excellent fertilizer for this crop. 



Wellesley, Mass. T. D. H. 



Correspondence. 

 Rockport, Texas. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — The Texas State Horticultural Society had its last an- 

 nual meeting at Rockport, a town situated on Aransas Bay. 

 My first impressions of the appearance of the country were not 

 favorable. Like all the Texas coast-region, the country stretches 

 away in a uniform level of white sand or thickets of dwarf 

 shrubs. Everything is stunted, and no trees of^any size can be 

 seen. Such trees as there are all lean toward the north under 

 the influence of the ever-present southern breeze, which some- 

 times swells into a hurricane. The soil by the sea is sand 

 and shells, and farther inland the sand is more or less mixed 

 with black loam. The climate is generally very dry. 



But, although poor in appearance, the country is in reality a 

 remarkably promising one for horticulture. The few persons 

 who have planted Grapes and vegetables have been rewarded 

 with splendid results. Those sands, so arid in aspect, hide an 

 ever-present dampness, whether rain falls or not, and on 

 the coast the presence of phosphate gives to vegetation an 

 extraordinary stimulus. The grapes grow there to perfection ; I 

 had never before seen such large bunches and so many together. 

 Vines, three years old, often carried more than half a bushel 

 of grapes. Such varieties as Lenoir, Black Morocco, Malaga, 

 Niagara, Muscatelle and Chaselas were perfectly ripe at the 

 time of our visit, the 23d of June, and some of the bunches 

 weighed four pounds and over. 



Young orchards of Pear-trees have been planted, and are 

 growing splendidly. Melons and Tomatoes are doing very 

 well ; one man told me he had raised 2,300 watermelons on 

 one acre ! I have seen some Italian onions measuring very 

 nearly a foot across, and sweet-potatoes of prodigious size. 

 Oleanders grow everywhere in the gardens without protec- 

 tion, and reach the height of fifteen feet, forming immense 

 clumps ; they were a perfect mass of bloom. There is no 

 doubt that the Orange and Lemon would grow here without 

 protection. Altogether, those coasts seem to present a great 

 field for horticultural enterprise and experiment. 



All kinds of game are abundant, especially water-fowl, in win- 

 ter, and the sea teems with a large variety of fish. Rockport 

 is the head-quarters of the sea-turtle-industry. 



A hasty glance at the botanical wealth of the country revealed 

 to me, on the coast, among the thickets of Live Oak, Colubrina 

 Texensis, Ilex Cassine, Schaefferia cuneifolia, Lycium Berlan- 

 dieri and two or three others not well determined by me. I 

 noted among those thickets the pretty climber Antirrhinum 

 maurandioides, the Erythrina herbacea, with bright red pea- 

 shaped flowers ; Lantana amara and the wild Fuchsia (Malva- 

 viscus Drummondii). 



In the interior the thickets are mostly formed of the 

 ever-present Live Oak, the Red Bay (Persea Carolinensis), 

 and also, though much more sparsely, of a kind of Huckle- 

 berry, Vaccinium arboreum, I think. Climbing everywhere 

 can be seen the Centrosema Virginiana, a plant deserving a 

 place in aU gardens, and the prairie is red with Phlox 

 Drummondii. I also noticed Tigridia buccifera, a very fine 



