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UNFRUITFUL BLOOMING PEAR TREES. 



BY MR. E. H. SMITH, DEVEAUX COLLEGE, N. Y. 



In the October number of the Monthly I notice 

 my observations on 'Root pruning Pear tree in Eng- 

 land. ' CI have only just received that No.) I also 

 notice your complimentary remarks upon my skill, 

 at page 304. 



I omitted one very important point, which will 

 settle the question of unfi^uitful Pear trees. This 

 Pear tree, in question, — a graft from a very old sort, 

 the Swan's Egg, — was grafted upon a thrifty seed- 

 ling, grew very rapidly, and made more headway 

 than other grafted at the same time. It frequently 

 blossomed, but never produced fruit. It received a 

 most severe root pruning. 



Talk of sharp cuts ! There was not a root but 

 was pounded into mince meat. The parent tree, 

 from which the graft was taken, not only blossomed 

 but brought to perfection a most abundant crop of 

 fruit. 



INFLUENCE OF GRAFT AND STOCK. 



BY YARDLEY TAYLOR, LINCOLN, VA. 



I have been interested in the articles in the 

 Monthly relating to the Influence of the Graft upon 

 the Stock, both by the Editor and by correspon- 

 dents. We, who are Nurserymen, know that we 

 may take stocks of equal size and thriftiness, and 

 graft one with a strong growing variety, and the 

 i other with a slow growing one : the former will 

 i double or treble growth over the latter in the same 

 I time. This may in part, at least, be accounted for 

 by the larger foliage of the former extracting more 

 I sustenance from the air, and thus stimulating the 

 I growth of the roots, and this again acting uj^ on the 

 I foliage, — as there is known to be a reciprocal action 

 between the roots and foliage of a plant, whatever 

 injures one affects the other, and vice versa. 



As to the putting forth of a bud a little below the 

 junction of a graft with the stock of the same kind 

 as the graft, I would explain in this way: — As it is 

 generally admitted that the carbon of plants is ob- 

 tained from the carbonic acid gas of the atmosphere, 

 and as this is believed to be obtained partly from the 

 roots through the sap, partly imbibed by the leaves, 

 and as most of that brought up by the sap is used 

 up in the larger growth near the base of the stock 

 and lower part of the body of the plant, — so that 

 imbibed from the leaves must descend through the 

 upward flowing sap to supply the deficiency from 

 below ; and, from the great affinity of this gas for 

 water, there can be no difficulty in this, as we know 

 that a few drops of acid will difl"use itself through 



any amount of water it may be brought in contact 

 with. The decomposition of this gas and its con- 

 version into carbon takes time in the process, and 

 as this process is going on, it will descend until it 

 becomes fixed in place. Hence, while being con- 

 verted in the body of the graft, it may become 

 tainted, we may say, with the nature of the graft: 

 but moving a little below the junction, before be- 

 coming fixed, carries with it the nature of the graft 

 and thus produces a bud similar to the graft. 



I had cut down, a few years ago, a thrifty Ailan- 

 thus tree, in the midst of summer, and on exam- 

 ining the growth of that year, I found the earliest 

 portion of the growth was firm, — similar to older 

 wood, — while the middle was less firm, and the part 

 next the bark was a jelly-like substance, becomir)g 

 fixed but very soft. 



I have examined sap just beneath the bark early 

 in Spring, and then the sap had a cloudy appear- 

 ance, indicating the presence of matter for growth 

 in the sap while passing up before becoming fixed. 



I know of no influence the stock can exert over 

 the graft, or vice vensa, besides those above indi- 

 cated. I have seen tried the grafting of a very 

 sweet variety of Apple on a very sour one, and saw 

 no difi'erence in the fruit. 



BEDDING GERANIUM, ''Mrs POLLOCK.'? 



BY MR. W. PROVIS, DJ:TR0IT, MICH. 



No class of flowers is more popular, at the pres- 

 ent time, than the Bedding Geranium, and there is 

 not, piobably, in the whole range of novelties which 

 have been introduced within the last four j^ears, 

 one, that has been so immensely successtul as "Mrs. 

 Pollock.' As a pot plant or a bedder, it is equally 

 prized. In winter, if properly managed, it tends to 

 make the greenhouse gay with its brilliant colored 

 foliage ; while, in summer, its appearance as a bed- 

 ded plant is all that can be desired. 



It was raised in England in 1861, and first exhib- 

 ited in London in the Spring of 1862, when it was 

 awarded a first-class Certificate by the Royal Horti- 

 cultural Society. It was generally considered to be 

 a sport, but the raiser, in writing to the Gardeners^ 

 Magazine, says, "it is not a sport, but a seedling 

 and came variegated from the seed leaf. It is the 

 result of a cross with the famous Golden Chain, so 

 long admired and justly appreciated." 



Mrs. Pollock belongs to the class of Golden tri- 

 colors. It has a flat, finely formed, green leaf, zone 

 bright bronze red, belted with crimson and edged 

 with golden yellow. It grows well, has a fine, ro- 

 bust habit, and, when of proper age, flowers pro- 

 fusely. The flowers, which are bright scarlet, are 



