582 



Garden and Forest. 



[December 4, 1889. 



Such sorts as Avalanche, Edwin Molyneux, Mr. R. Brockle- 

 bank, Boule d'Or, Princess of Wales, Lord Alcester and Mrs. 

 H. Cannell were in splendid form, nothing among the new 

 kinds approaching them. I have a weakness for the Japanese 

 sorts, and Avalanche as a cut flower I consider is the purest 

 and most beautiful of all Chrysanthemums. Amongst colors 

 the king of all is Edwin Molyneux. The most striking of the 

 newer sorts is Etoile de Lyon, of which Mr. Cannell showed a 

 large number of magnificent blooms. It was certificated last 

 year. The flowers sometimes attain a diameter of fourteen 

 inches, and not one of the many exhibited by Mr. Cannell was 

 less than ten inches across. The color varies from white and 

 rose to deep rosy purple and silver. It is a broad petaled and 

 rather Hat variety of the Japanese section. The new kinds cer- 

 tificated were Lady Dorothy (incurved), a large fiower ; color 

 deep bronzy cinnamon and gold. Mr. Cannell, who exhibited 

 it, declares it to be one of the best and most lasting of the sec- 

 tion. Miss Margaret (large Anemone), with rosy ray fiorets 

 and sulphur centre ; John Doughty (incurved), a sport from 

 Queen of England, with the base of Howers pink and a buff 

 centre flushed with pink ; Madame A. Carriere (Japanese re- 

 flexed); Mrs. S. Coleman (incurved), pink, with pale yellow 

 centre; Alice Stevens (Pompon), golden yellow, a fine flower ; 

 Madame Baco (Japanese), remarkable for its size, the narrow- 

 ness of its petals and its delicate color — a rosy lilac. Amongst 

 those which did not obtain certificates were several of consid- 

 erable promise, but not in the best condition. One, named 

 Admiral Sir Thomas Symonds, a very fine yellow Anemone, 

 and fragrant, was shown by Mr. Cannell, to vvhom the Admiral 

 had presented a plant which he had brought from China. 

 Evidently much greater development in size, variety andcolor 

 has resulted from the manipulations of English and French 

 breeders of the Chrysanthemum than in the hands of the 

 Chinese, who are said to be a long way behind. What we 

 want now is hardier kinds, such as will flower well outside in 

 an ordinary season. There is also a tendency to breed taller 

 plants than is desirable. 



The injurious effects of London fog on plants and flowers 

 have been so very markedof late years that the Royal Horticul- 

 tural Society has decided to collect information on the subject, 

 with a view to discovering, if possible, some means of counter- 

 acting it. At present we are unable to decide whether the in- 

 jury done is due to absence of light or to direct effect of some 

 of the components of the fog, though, so far as my observation 

 goes, it is almost certainly the latter. A heavy yellow London 

 tog is a terrible demon. We do not get the worst of it at Kew, 

 but at Chelsea it is often very bad. The Orchids there suffer 

 much from it. Messrs. Veitch and Mr. Bull find it almost im- 

 possible to get flowers, especially white ones, in winter. I have 

 seen a whole houseful of Phatenopsis spikes destroyed in a 

 single day by a fog at Clapton. Not merely expanded flowers, 

 but buds even as small as pin heads, are withered and reduced 

 to pulp, as if they had been dipped in boiling water. The large 

 flowers of Angrccciim sesquipedale suffer just as much as those 

 of the delicate Phalaenopsis. It is not the fact of the flowers 

 being white that causes them to suffer, zs, Masdevallia Candida 

 and Odontoglossiim crispiim were apparently unharmed at 

 Clapton. Bouvardias, both leaves and flowers, turn black, as 

 if they had been scorched ; the leaves of many plants wither 

 and fall off; even such Orchids as Vandas suffer at Chelsea, 

 their lower leaves turning yellow when the fog is severe. 

 Plants under glass suffer a great deal more than those out-of- 

 doors. The fogs in the country do not do any appreciable 

 harm, so far at least as I have been ai:>le to ascertain. Gardening 

 in the immediate neighborhood of the metropolis is growing 

 more and more difficult in consequence of these dirty fogs in 

 winter. The Messrs. Veitch have been compelled to remove 

 the whole of their seedling Orchids to Slough, out of the reach 

 of the London smoke, and Mr. Seden is now able to continue 

 his work of hybridizing and plant-breeding in an atmosphere 

 much more congenial than that of Chelsea. 



Pleiones have been very good here, in spite of early fogs. A 

 delightful bank of P. lagenaria was for a time the most charm- 

 ing feature of the Orchid-house. The plants are grown in 

 pans a foot across, and on some of the pans I counted over 

 eighty expanded flowers. Some plants of Adiantiim cimeatiim 

 were arranged with the Pleiones, producing a pretty effect. 

 These have been succeeded by equally good pans of P. Walli- 

 chiana and P. maculata. After these come P. humilis and P. 

 Hookeriana. The Pleiones are amongst the easiest of plants 

 to manage. As a rule, they fail through excessive heat. They 

 are alpine plants, requiring cool or green-house treatment, 

 except during the period when growth is most vigorous. 

 This is usually about the end of March or in April and 

 on until June, an intermediate temperature with an abund- 



ance of moisture being then most suitable for all of them. 



We are promised a considerable increase in the number of 

 great plant exhibitions to be held next year in London. The 

 Royal Aquarium, Westminster, caters for the public by pro- 

 viding attractions of a very varied nature, from white kanga- 

 roos to cannibals and Samsons. The success of the Chry- 

 santhemum exhibitions held there has no doubt determined the 

 authorities to compete with the Crystal Palace, the Botanical 

 Society and the Royal Horticultural Society next year in the 

 matter of exhibitions of plants generally. They propose to 

 hold an exhibition on each month from March to November, 

 and offer substantial prizes. Flower shows are supposed to 

 foster a spirit of emulation among the crowds who go to see 

 them, and perhaps they do a little good to horticulture by 

 showing what has been or can be done — a kind of reporting 

 progress. But it is easy to overdo this kind of thing; and we 

 are not quite sure that shows which have gate money as their 

 sole object are not to be condemned on that account. You do 

 not appear to hold many plant exhibitions in America. Is it 

 because the people do not believe in them, or because you 

 have not time ? 



Chatsworth. — The very interesting notice of this famous 

 ducal residence which appeared in a recent number of Gar- 

 den AND Forest has been read with pleasure here. English 

 horticulturists are proud of Paxton and his works, and Mr. 

 Downing did not say one word more in praise of Chatsworth 

 and its gardener than they deserved. You may be interested 

 to learn that Paxton was what is known as a "Chiswick lad," 

 for it was at Chiswick that the Duke of Devonshire saw and 

 liked him and finally engaged him as gardener. I believe his 

 wages started at twenty-five shillings per week. After he was 

 knighted, Paxton was member of Parliament for Coventry. 

 Chatsworth is still a grand garden; but it is not the only one, 

 as it was, perhaps, when Paxton was its head. So far as I 

 could judge when I saw it a year or two ago, the keep of the 

 gardens was first-rate, and the cultivation of some things ex- 

 ceptionally good. The present gardener, Mr. Owen Thomas, 

 is known as a man of exceptional ability. Chatsworth may be 

 looked upon as aJtind of Kew for the Midlands, as it is open 

 to crowds of visitors at almost all times. Cheap trips to Chats- 

 worth from Sheffield, Chesterfield, Lincoln, Derby, and other 

 towns, are often arranged, and many hundreds of people are 

 allowed to walkthrough the grounds, the houses and the palace 

 on certain days. W. Watson. 



London. 



Cultural Department. 



Copper Sulphate against Fungi. 



■pXPERIENCE during the summer of 1889 encourages the 

 ■^ belief that we have in the Solutions of copper sulphate 

 a defense against many of the fungus pests which so seriously 

 threaten the prosperity of our agriculture. In 1888 the effi- 

 cacy of what is known as the Bordeaux Mixture as a prevent- 

 ive of mildew and Black Rot of the Grape was fully proved. 

 This year experiments have taken a wider range, and many 

 of the so-called diseases of plants have been successfully 

 treated. The Apple-leaf rust {Rcestelia pyrata) succumbs to an 

 occasional spraying with the Bordeaux Mixture. The Quince 

 blights {Morthiera Mespili and Hendersonia CydonicE) are like- 

 wise prevented, and the fungus which causes the blight of 

 leaves and cracking of fruit of the Pear may now be regarded 

 as under the control of the copper splutions. 



The prevention of this Pear fungus, Entomosporium macu- 

 latiim, is, perhaps, of greater advantage in the nursery than in 

 the orchard. Where the disease is epidemic in the nursery 

 it places a veto upon the budding and grafting of young Pear 

 stocks. The leaves are destroyed just when their aid is essen- 

 tial to the vitality of the bud or cion. By spraying the nursery 

 rows every three weeks during the season of growth with the 

 Bordeaux Mixture the leaves are preserved in health and the 

 success of the grafter's labor is assured. 



But in addition to this use of the copper solution it is found 

 to be preventive of the Tomato blight {Macrosporium Solani), 

 and (which is of far wider importance to our agriculture) it 

 prevents the Rot. of the Potato, Phytophthora infestans. In 

 treatment of this disease of the Potato-plant some of our 

 experiment stations have this year been quite successful. 

 My experiments in this line have had gratifying results. For 

 many years in this region of southern New Jersey every 

 attempt to grow the Peachblow Potato has been a failure. 

 At about the time the plant is in blossom and the tubers 

 are say one-fourth grown, this deadly blight invades the Po- 

 tato field and sweeps over it like fire. I have had an acre of 

 Peachblows showing every sign of thriftiness and giving 



