HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF LONDON. 



24:3 



buried. Thu^ the dung- affords a mechanical advantagre that 

 cannot be obtained from liquid or other concentrated manures. 

 It having been mentioned in a former report that some plants had 

 been killed by a solution of Nitrate of Soda, further experiments 

 were instituted, from which it appeared that Peas and Beans are 

 not easily affected by this salt, unless made very strong:, but 

 solutions frequently applied tend to check their growth. A pound 

 of undis-^olved Nitrate wa-; scattered over the leaves of one plant 

 of Sea-Kale ; a slight rain at night nearly dissolved the salt ; and 

 the Sea-Kile, althougrh since exposed to brig-ht sun, does not 

 seem to be in the lea.-t injured. 



An exp>eriraent made in order to try whether the bark of trees 

 will heal over the heartwood of an amputated branch, has not 

 ffiven a favourable result. The bark was raised and turned back 

 and then brought over the end of the stump ; where the lips of 

 the bark came in contact, the union was perfect, hut no farther. 

 The section of heartwood became brown, as also did the inside 

 of the birk that was made to cover it. 



Mr. Fortune reported from the Hothouse Department, that he 

 had been trying some experiments as to the effect of coloured 

 liirht on germination. On the ?5th of March some seeds of 

 Nemophilia insignis were sown in two patches : one was covered 

 with a common hand-glass the other with a blue one. The 

 seeds were above ground on the 3rd of April under the coloured 

 glass, and on the 5th under the common one. The slight 

 difference in the time of germination seemed to be caused by the 

 moisture in the soil which did not evaporate so quickly under the 

 coloured glass as under the other. The plants under the blue 

 glass soon presented a drawn sickly appearance, such as is 

 commonly observed when they are grown in dark shaded situa- 

 tions. 



