November 27, 1895.] 



Garden and Forest. 



477 



such watering will not produce the same results as a good 

 rainfall, yet it will afford much help to the plants. 



The value of good cultivation also becomes apparent in such 

 a trying season, and mulching also proves its value in retard- 

 ing evaporation. At this late date nearly all the work of the 

 season is completed in the outdoor Rose garden, witli the 

 exception of protecting tender varieties against the sudden 

 changes of our winters, and this operation is best postponed 

 until winter begins in earnest. Plants covered too early are as 

 liable to suffer as those not covered at all. The best winter 

 covering for Roses has been the subject of discussion for 

 many years, and practices widely dissimilar have been advo- 

 cated, but it is agreed that a good nnilcliing with long manure 

 to protect the roots from frequent freezing and thawing, and a 

 light covering of straw to protect the wood from sunshine and 

 dry cold winds are most convenient and satisfactory. In the 

 case of grafted plants, which are more often winter-killed than 

 those on their own roots, the soil should be heaped up about 

 the main stems, especially where the point ot union between 

 the stock and cion was not originally well buried. 



With Roses under glass the critical season is just beginning, 

 and careful management is required to keep both roots and 

 tops flourishing. Mildew is likely to be troul.)lesome now, unless 

 great care is given to the ventilation ; a cold draught is almost 

 inevitably followed by such an attack. Sulphur painted on 

 the heating pipes is a standard remedy, but it has the objec- 

 tion of bleaching the llowers to some extent. I have used a 

 solution of sulphate of lime quite successfully, though its odor 

 is unpleasant and might be decidedly objectionable in some 

 private gardens. Grape dust is another preparation in favor 

 with some large growers, and when applied carefully with a 

 powder bellows is not very unsightly. Syringing, like water- 

 ing, should now be done early in the day — that is, with a rising 

 temperature in the house rather than with a falling one. 



Well-established Roses will now be ready for a fop-dressing 

 of manure, but a light dressing often repeated usually gives 

 greater satisfaction than a heavy one at longer intervals. The 

 character of the soil has much to do with the amount and fre- 

 quency of these applications, and though I have seen a mag- 

 nificent crop of Jacqueminot Roses imder glass, where fully 

 four inches of strong manure had been used as a top-dress- 

 ing, yet I should not like to recommend as much as this for 

 general use. The plants referred to were exceptionally strong, 

 and had been growing in the same beds for several years. 



If early hybrid perpetuals are to be forced, the first crop 

 should now be well under way. Anna de Diesbach and Mrs. 

 John Laingare two of the best varieties for this purpose, and 

 pot-grown or box-grown plants are easier to handle for the 

 first crop than those planted out on benches. In fact, the box- 

 grown plants are more convenient for forcing through the 

 whole season on a small place, for a few plants may thus be 

 brought in as required, and can lie readily removed after the 

 flowers are cut. Strong heat should not be used at first, but 

 the temperature should gradiially be raised until fifty-five de- 

 grees is reached by the time the shoots are well broken. 



Holmesburg, Pa. W.H.Taplin. 



Notes from Baden-Baden. 



SOME thirty years ago autumn-flowering Crocuses were a 

 rarity, even in the best botanical establishments. Mr. George 

 Maw collected, elucidated and figured these little floral beauties 

 in his splendid work on this genus, and afterward liberally dis- 

 tributed living bulbs. Since that time they have become better 

 appreciated, and those flowering in the tall were welcomed 

 because they enliven our gardens at a time when flowers of 

 this class are not common. Among the many species and 

 varieties which have flowered here since August, I may spe- 

 cially mention C. vallicola, flowers white, with faint lines of a 

 dark shade and yellow blotches in the throat. Some varieties 

 flower in August ; some are still in flower the last week of 

 October. C. pulchellus is pretty, and free I v produces its flowers of 

 a color which might be called Crocus-blue. C. longiflorus is a 

 charming species of robust constitution, having flowers 

 of a very delicate lilac-purple. C. sativus Taitii is a variety 

 discovered by Mr. Taif, of Oporto, in Portugal ; the flowers 

 are deeper in tint than those of the type. Close to this come 

 C. Cartwrightianus and its variety albus. Both are close to 

 C. sativus, but differ in color and shape ; the dark red stamens 

 on the lilac and white groundwork are a lovely combination. 

 C. iridiflorus majus is also a very desirable species ; it is nearly 

 twice the size of the type ; the inner segments are pale, the outer 

 deep blue, with a tinge of purple ; it is a l)eautitul variety and 

 different in form from any other. The largest and mostsliowy 

 is C. speciosus Aitchisoni, originally found in Persia by Mr. 



Aitchison, Surgeon-General of the English expeditions in Af- 

 ghanistan. It is a very large, free-flowering variety, and shows 

 to best advantage when planted closely. I must not forget the 

 bright and deep purple-flowered C. medius, from the Mediter- 

 ranean region. 



Galanthus Olgre Reginse has been in flower since 15th 

 September, and must be considered the earliest autumn-flow- 

 ering Snowdrop, for, owing to adverse weather, it seems to be 

 later than usual. G. nivalis Octobrensis, which has hitherto 

 been considered the earliest, is just showing buds. Kniphofia 

 Nelsoni is still full of flowers. Opinions differ as to its deco- 

 rative value, but, in my estimation, it is the very loveliest of 

 all Kniphofias as yet introduced. The elegant narrow spikes 

 show different shades of bright scarlet more intensely colored 

 than those of K. Mackowani. 



Baden-Baden. Max LeicJitlin. 



Correspondence. 



Golden-rod Killing Horses. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — An article under the above heading has appeared in 

 several newspapers, and, perhaps, the presentation of the facts 

 of the case may not be uninteresting to your readers. 



During the past four years a large number of horses have 

 died in the northern part of this state from the ravages of a 

 disease which has baffled the skill of veterinarians, and I have 

 been called upon to make investigations as to the cause and 

 nature of the malady. At first it was thought to be anthrax, 

 and samples of the blood and sections from the spleen and 

 other internal organs were sent to the Bureau of Animal 

 Industry and to Dr. Russell, of the State University, for bac- 

 teriological examination. Numerous bacteria were found, but 

 the bacillus anthracis was not present. 



The horses affected were in the majority of cases heavy 

 draught horses from the lumber camps. These animals were 

 brought from the woods in the spring, usually in good condi- 

 tion, and turned out to pasture. Most of them were fed grain 

 while on pasture. On the farm of Mr. C. F. Reynolds, Hay- 

 ward, Wisconsin, over seventy horses have died during the 

 past four years from this peculiar malady. Tlie pasture con- 

 tained about four hundred acres, three hundred acres of 

 which had been broken and seeded to Timothy. Adjoining 

 this was one hundred acres of "slashings," or land from 

 which the timber fiad been cut, but which had never been 

 broken. This was thickly covered with Golden-rod. On one 

 side of the farm is a lake with a clean gravel bottom and shore. 

 The lake is fed by springs. There is no marsh or low land on 

 the farm. Upon investigation I became convinced that the 

 cause of the trouble was to be found either in the food or 

 water, and watched the horses closely for several days, and 

 savv them eating the Golden-rod greedily — some of them, 

 especially those affected, seeming to prefer the plant to any- 

 thing else. 



I also visited the farm of Peter Truax, near Eau Claire. 

 There is no Golden-rod to be found on this farm and the dis- 

 ease has not made its appearance. During the past summer 

 Mr. Truax placed ten horses in pasture near by, where the 

 plant was plentiful, and eight of them died during the summer 

 and the remaining two are affected. When the healthy horses 

 are taken from the pasture in the fall the disease disappears. 

 None of the animals attacked by the malady have recovered, 

 and medicuial treatment does not seem to produce any bene- 

 ficial eftect. 



Symptoms : The animal appears dull, ears drooped, temper- 

 ature elevated, ranging from 103'' to 107°, Fahrenheit, during 

 the entire course of the disease. The visible mucous mem- 

 branes are pallid. On the mucous membranes of the vulva 

 small petechial spots are seen. Occasionally the legs swell 

 and cedematous enlargements appear under the abdomen. 

 The appetite remains fairly good during the entire course of 

 the disease. Emaciation takes place rapidly as the disease 

 advances. Loss of coordination with staggering gait. Death 

 takes place .in froniNwo weeks to two months from the onset. 



Post mortem : On cutting open the body the blood appears 

 to be completely disintegrated, resembling ordinary blood 

 serum. Intestines bloodless, with numerous petechial spots 

 on the mucous membrane. Spleen enlarged, weighing from 

 six to ten pounds. No structural changes apparent to the 

 naked eye. The lungs and kidneys apparently normal. The 

 brain and spinal cord were not examined. 



I am fully convinced that this disease is due either to some 

 poisonous principle in the plant or some parasitic fungus 

 upon the surface of the same. It is now too late in the season 



