336 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 391. 



propagation in the usual way by means of cuttings of 

 young side shoots is quicker than in the case of most other 

 species of Pandanus. A strong fibrous loam and firm pot- 

 ting is to be recommended. As a ]3lant for table decora- 

 tion and similar purposes it is unsurpassed. 



Cultural Department. 



A New Method of Using the Ferrocyanide Potas- 

 sium "Test. 



DURING the worli of preparing the Bordeaux mixture, both 

 at Cornell and in various parts of New York state, special 

 attention has this season been directed toward the behavior of 

 the ferrocyanide of potassium test. The method of using the 

 lest, as commonly described, is as follows : Add the milk of 

 lime to the solution of copper sulphate until no discoloration 

 appears, when a few drops of a solution of the ferrocyanide of 

 potassium are added to the mixture ; as long as an insufficient 

 amount of lime is present a dark reddish brown precipitate is 

 formed, but this is no longer produced when enough lime has 

 been added. 



The above directions, which I believe are correctly, thotigh 

 tjriefiy, stated, are apparently very simple and easily followed, 

 yet they liave undoubtedly been misunderstood by many, and 

 tor this reason much of the mixture prepared in accordance 

 with them has not been properly made. The point wliich it is 

 necessary to decide is this : Does the test clearly show the red 

 color as long as more lime is needed, or in the discoloration 

 present, yet obscured by the surrounding mass so that it can- 

 not be distinguished ? In case it is present, but practically 

 invisible, we at once have an explanation of some of the 

 injuries which have followed the use of this fungicide. 



All who have had experience in preparing the Bordeaux 

 mixture must have noticed the different shades of color which 

 appear as the proportion of lime in the mixture is increased. 

 After the copper sulphate solution has become turbid a dis- 

 tinct greenish color may be seen ; but as more lime is added 

 this tint is replaced by a deep and intense blue. Upon the 

 addition of more lime this color becomes more pale, although 

 the blue is still plainly visible, and the greater the amount of 

 lime the lighter will be the shade. If the test solution is added 

 to the mixture while the green tint is present a clearly marked 

 discoloration will t.ike place. If, however, the solution is 

 added to the mixture while it has the deep blue appearance, it 

 requires sharp eyes to discover any change in color other than 

 the faint yellow of the solution added ; and the same is also 

 true when the mixture is tested after considerable cjuantities of 

 lime have been used. 



But let the operation of the mixture l.)e reversed. Instead of 

 adding the solution of ferrocyanide to the mixture, let some of 

 the mixture be added to the solution, and then carefully watch 

 the changes. Chemically the reactions are probably the same, 

 but practically there is considerable difference in the apparent 

 result. Before much lime has been added to the sulphate solu- 

 tion a marked discoloration takes place when the test solution 

 is added to it ; but upon the addition of more lime the brown 

 color becomes less distinct, and when the mixture has assumed 

 the deep blue color, practically no further discoloration can 

 lie discerned. But if at this time a drop or two of the test 

 solution be placed upon a smooth white surface, as in a saucer 

 for example, and then an equal amount of the mixture be 

 added, it will be found that an abundant red precipitate is 

 formed, for it can plainly be distinguished against the clean 

 white of the porcelain. But when tlie solution is dropped into 

 the mixture no change seems to take place, for, although the 

 precipitation occurs, the brown particles are so internungled 

 with the mixture that they become lost to view. By the use 

 of the new method the precipitate is retained where it may be 

 seen with ease. When the mixture is tested in this manner it 

 will be found that lime must be added until the dark blue 

 color is changed to a considerably lighter shade before the 

 ferrocyanide fails to produce a discoloration. The time to 

 allow for the reactions to take place in the saucer need not 

 exceed a minute, and if after that time no red sediment is 

 seen it is safe to say that the mixture is ready for use. A con- 

 siderably larger quantity of lime than was formerly supposed 

 is necessary, and it is believed that some of the unsatisfactory 

 results from using the Bordeaux mixture may in this manner 

 be explained. It is to be hoped, at least, that such is the case, 

 for when much spraying is to be done the use of some accu- 

 rate method of determining the amount of lime to use is a 

 ijreat convenience, especially when the preparation of the 

 rnixture is entrusted to unskilled hands. 



Cornell University. 



JZ. G. Lodemaii. 



The Vegetable Garden. 



Celery. — All late plantings should now be completed. I have 

 often seen growers setting out plants early in September, but, 

 while Celery makes rapid growth during that month and part 

 of October, it has not sufHcient time to form good heads, at 

 least in this section. From an early lot of Golden Self-blanch- 

 ing and White Plume we have been using well-blanched heads 

 since July 20th. Except for the very late crops, we use boards 

 instead of the usual earthing-up process, and this method is 

 superior in every respect. The Celery does not rot at the 

 heart ; it can be watered while being blanched ; it is ready for 

 use quite as early as when earthed up ; it lifts much cleaner 

 and more easily, and is of equally fine flavor. Complaints are 

 made of early sorts rusting badly, especially of the Golden 

 Self-blanching. We make a point not to allow our plants to 

 become dry at the root at any time, and have never been 

 troubled with rust. If the plants can be kept moist at the root 

 and steadily growing, rust will be rarely seen. We take advan- 

 tage of copious rainfalls to go over our trenches and soak 

 them with sheep or cow manure, watering while the ground is 

 moist. Liquid stimulants should not be given while the 

 ground is dry, unless a watering with clean water has been 

 first given. Plants being blanched should be looked over 

 weekly, and any signs of rot on the stems removed. The 

 ground about the plants must be kept well stirred; a little 

 special Celery fertilizer can advantageously be worked in 

 among them. 



Onions. — The main crop of onions is usually ripen^^d enough 

 to pull up here about August 25th. Some varieties, such as 

 Giant Rocca, are about a month longer in maturing. There 

 can be no doubt that where fine bulbs are desired, sowing the 

 seeds in flats and transplanting in the open ground at the end 

 of A|:)ril or beginning of May gives far the best results. 

 Onions treated thus are fully halt as large again, on an aver- 

 age, as those sown in the open and thinned, and they mature 

 from two to three weeks earlier. Giant Rocca gives some 

 bulbs eighteen inches in circumference ; Dan vers Yellow and 

 Wethersheld, occasional ones twelve inches, and Cranston's 

 Excelsior, a very superior English kind and an excellent 

 keeper, thirteen to fourteen inches. As a rule, those 

 raised from seed sown outdoors do not exceed from eight to 

 eleven inches, but for 'many purposes they are preferable to 

 the larger ones. To have large onions the ground requires 

 to be heavily manured, to be kept well soaked with water 

 all the growing season, constantly cultivated and clear of 

 weeds. Stimulants should be given every ten days from the 

 beginning of July until the middle of August. Our finest 

 onions are produced on heavy clayey ground ; those on light 

 soil mature earlier, but with the same treatment fail to give as 

 fine bulbs as the heavier land. 



Tomatoes have now almost covered the six-feet trellises we 

 grow them on. We look over these once a week to remove 

 laterals, cut off decaying, foliage and tie up the shoots. 

 Trellises need well supporting from now onward, as they are 

 very heavily laden with fruit; a strong gust of wind is apt to 

 play havoc if this is not attended to. Out of eighteen varieties 

 we are growing in the open tliis year the following are the 

 most satisfactory : May's Favorite, Ham Green Favorite, 

 Eclipse, Paragon, President Cleveland, Comrade and Acme. 

 Ladybird, a new English variety, has a very fine Havor, but the 

 Iruit is too irregular. Our earliest batch for winter fruiting are 

 now ready for a shift into six-inch pots ; these we grow out- 

 doors until the middle of September to secure stout, stocky 

 plants. A successional sowing made at once will give ripe 

 fruit in January. 



Cucumbers of the English frame varieties require frequent 

 syringings and copious supplies of liquid stimulants. Decaying 

 foliage and weak shoots should be removed every few days, 

 and the shoots pinched at the second or third leaf beyond the 

 fruit. Unless a Cucumber-house is at command, it is difficult 

 to have a regular winter supply. We generally plant a few at 

 the warm end of a Rose-house at the end of August, and these 

 give us a supply until Christmas ; a temperature ten degrees 

 higher is needed, however, to do them justice. Varieties 

 fruiting outdoors need looking over occasionally, and any fruit 

 ripening must be cut off. 



Peas and Beans. — The main Pea crop is now past ; the brush 

 used for these, if new the present year, will serve another 

 season. The best of the newer I^eas we have tested this sea- 

 son are Juno, Evolution, Cox's Improved Stratagem, Heroine 

 and The Queen ; the first named, being the most satisfactory, 

 we think is destined to become a standard variety. The pods 

 are generally produced in pairs, ,ire thick and broad-backed. 



