382 



Garden and Forest. 



[October 



1888. 



streams, and espocially of lakes, so that Gleditscli appropri- 

 ately called it the Water Elm. Almost all our village 

 Elms belong to this species, and in such places it is moi'e 

 common than any other tree, and vies in size and beauty 

 with the Linden. It is a pleasure to see these giant trunks, 

 sometimes of enormous circumference, shading the village 

 streets or standing in the farm-yards, and serving as suppoi'ts 

 for the farmer's tools. In these places the accumulation of 

 animal matter is probably one of the causes of its fine devel- 

 opment. Without its Elms a Brandenburg' village would 

 hardly be conceivable. They are far too plentiful, however, 

 even the oldest among them, for us to fear any marked 

 decrease in their numbers. 



Elm bast was formerly used for tying plants, liut has now 

 been supersedetl by Russian Linden bast, and in many gar- 

 dens by African Replica (?) bast. Yet it is still used in some 

 villages aroimd Berlin for tying beans to the ]iolfs, as it is 

 considered more flexible than any other fibre. 



Even Rossmuellor, in his celel:>rated book on " The Forest," 

 confesses never to have seen any variety of U. effusa. In this 

 respect it forms a great contrast to U. campcstris, which is so 

 rich in varieties. A specimen raised and growing in Berlin, 

 however, has parti-colored leaves. Seedlings have also been 

 successfully raised to form pyramidal trees, which remind one 

 of U. Exoniensis. Specimens of this sort are to be found 

 in the new public cemetery of Berlin, near Friedrichsfelde. 



In measuring the Elms of this species in the province ot 

 Brandenburg, 1 have found the maximum to be a circum- 

 ference of six to seven metres and a diameter of al.iout two 

 metres. Such dimensions permit the conclusion that the age 

 of these trees reaches back into dim anticiuity. 



As an avenue tree, for which it has been most successfully 

 iised for a long time in this comitry, it can be warmly recom- 

 mended to our American friends, more especially as it thrives 

 in very scant soil, provided it is not too dry or too compact. 



Sc-h.nrfenberK, Prussia. C. BoUc. 



[Ulrnus effusa has been considered by some botanists a 

 variety of U. rampcs/n's. Carl Koch, however, whose 

 knowledge of FAu-opean trees was perhaps unrivaled, 

 agreed with our learned correspondent in believing it to 

 be a distinct species (" Dendrologie,'' ii. 419). The oldest 

 published name of this tree, antedating by three yeais 

 that of Willdenow, appears to lie l^. Lei'is, of Pallas 

 ("Flora Rossica," i. 75, /. 48, i. F.), published in 1784. — 

 Ed.] 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir. — The kind notice of the Onteora Chili (the official title 

 of which is " The Catskill Mountain Camp and Cottage Com- 

 pany ") in a recent number of your paper tempts me to write 

 you a few words witli regard to the condition ot the forests in 

 our neighborhood. 



The original growth upon this section of the coimtrv con- 

 sisted of large Hemlock trees. These were robbed ot their 

 l.iark some eighty years ago by the tanners from whom Tan- 

 nersville takes its name, and the ruins of whose long-aban- 

 doned and almost forgotten tanneries may still be seen on the 

 banks of tlie streams in the \'arious ravines of Greene and 

 Ulster Counties. After the tanners had secured all the bark 

 tliey could utilize, whatever of good lumber was left was 

 secured by lumbermen, who rafted it, where possible, into 

 the Mohawk and Hudson Rivers. The mountain streams have 

 perceptibly diminished in size, undoubtedly owing to the reck- 

 less destruction of these large tracts of forest. So many years 

 have passed since this destruction was effected, that a new 

 growth now covers most of the slopes, and there is very little 

 of that nakedness of aspect which so distresses the eye in 

 many parts of the Adirondacks. Yet this new growth is itself 

 in danger of destruction, for many of the mountains are being 

 fast despoiled of their young timber by the chairand furniture 

 factories which now afiound in our vicinity. Our woods con- 

 sist chiefly of Birches, Beeches and Maples, the original 

 Hemlock forest having, in no case, started again in the sec- 

 ond growth. The Beeches seem the most hardy and pertina- 

 cious, growing in some place's in dense thickets so closelv 

 that it is impossible to force one's way through them. 



It is our intention to look after the trees on oiu" own lantl 

 as carefully as we can, cutting out all the dead trees, trimming 

 off dead limbs as close to the trunks as possilile, and watching 

 the undergrowth with a view to its future as part of the forest. 

 We shall also use our best endeavors to infiuence local public 

 opinion with regard to forest preservation ; and I may note, 

 as a matter of minor interest, that we ha\'0 alreadv planted 



long stretches of ro^idsidc with sh.idr liees, choosing the 

 indigenous Maples for this purpose. Dunham IVkcflcr, 



Siipt. " Calskill MDuntain Camp aii'l Cottatcp Co." 

 iisE.ist r«eiil>-lliiiflSli-ei-l. Ne«' S",.rl<. 



To the Editor of Garden an)3 Forest: 



.Sir. — Burr Oak grows in the bottoms in this region, tint I have 

 never seen it cultivated. Its timber is valuable and we would 

 like to plant it on tree claims, but do not know how to take 

 care of it. Will \n\\ kindlv inform us ? A. S. 



Jameslown, D. '1 . 



The Ihirr ( )ak grows in Dakota. I have examhicd it on 

 the Red Ri\er, the James, and on the Missouri, in Dakota, 

 but from ofiservation and after diligent inquiry, I have 

 learned that it is brittle and of little value compared with 

 Burr Oak timber from further south, where this is quite a 

 rapidly growing tree. In northern Dakota it grows ver)' 

 slowly, much too slowly, where I have noticed it, to nirake 

 it a profitable tree to plant. Even the acorns of the Burr 

 Oak, near Jamestown, are not as large as hazel nuts, while 

 further south, where this tree is fully developed, the acorns 

 are quite as large as hickory nuts. 



Collect acorns as soon as they fall from the tree in 

 autumn, and keep them in moist sand or earth during 

 winter. Sow thickly in drills, and let the seedlings stand 

 one, or not more than two, years, in the drills. Shorten the 

 tap-roots before planting. Many writers claim that tap- 

 rooted trees vs'ill never reach their greatest development 

 unless the root is preserved. Experience teaches, however, 

 that the root-pruned tree will soon make a larger and more 

 symmetrical tree than the seedling which has not been 

 transp)lanted. Examine the stumps of native Oaks ten 

 years old, or those that are fully grown, where they have 

 been extracted by a stump-pulling machine, and you will 

 see that the trees which depended the shortest time on 

 their tap-roots have the best balanced roots, and conse- 

 (]uently grew into the best specimens. Robert Douglas. 



Recent Publications. 



The Tuberous Bes^onia ; its historv and cultiiiation. Illus- 

 trated. Edited by 15. Wynne. 



This is the first of a series of popular works upon subjects 

 directly connected with gardening, which the proprietor of the 

 Gardening JJ'ortd, a London periodical, annoimces. The im- 

 nrovement of the Tuberous Begonia is certainly one of the 

 most interesting achievements of modern gardeners. It 

 seems only yesterday since these plants were first made 

 known, and yet the flowers of no other class of plants, per- 

 haps, liave ever been so essentially modified and so im- 

 proved from the florist's point of view at least, in such a 

 short space of time. It was not until 1864 that the first of 

 these plants was discovered in Bolivia by Mr. Richard 

 Peai-ce, a collector of the Veitches ; and it was not until three 

 years later, at the Paris Exposition, that this plant was ex- 

 hibited and subsequently described as Begonia Boliviensis. In 

 1865 Mr. Pearce discovered, in Bolivia, the yellow-flowered 

 species which liears his name. Two years later this indefa- 

 tigcTble and successful collector discovered, in the mountains 

 of Peru, at an elevation of more than 12,000 feet. Begonia 

 Veitchii. Unlike B. Botiviensis, which has small, drooping, 

 narrow-petaled flowers, the Peruvian plant had flowers much 

 more nearly round in outline, and as the progenitor of the 

 modern varieties with the much prized circular flower, its 

 introduction was important. Begonia roscefora, a native of 

 the Andes of Peru, reached Engiand in 1867. This species, 

 although one of the parents of some of the early varieties, has 

 never played a very important part in the improvement of 

 these plants. Begonia Davisii, discovered lay a Mr. Davis 

 while collecting in'Peruforfhe Veitches, did not flower in Eng- 

 land until 1876, and did not appear in commerce until nine years 

 ago. It is a dwarf species with bright scarlet, erect flowers, 

 and smooth and glossy foliage, characters which, when it is 

 crossed with strains derived from B. Veitchii ox B. Boliviensis, 

 it has succeeded m transmitting to its offspring; and it is said 

 that nearly all the newer sing'le-flowered varieties, as well as 

 the new race of dwarf, upright, double-flowering varieties, 

 owe their best qualities to /)'. Davisii. Begonia Clarkei is only 

 known from a plant discovered in an English green-house, 

 but is believed to be originally from Peru. It is less hardy 



