224 



GARDENERS' MAGAZINE 



Orchid Roots with Fungus. 



demonstration. "The flowers," said the Eastern sage, "tell all their 



secrets to the stars," but their whisperings in many cases fail to reach _ - — » .™iu 



the ears of men. Meal on the leaves is always in association with farina of R.H.S. Scientific Committee, Dr. W. G. Smith, of the Yorksh 

 the petal edges ; though the converse does not always hold good. No 



m -A ■ a^a V V ^ ^ I * • I a I _ av .a& -— — _J A. B - - _« ^ — - ■ - JL * - aw — — -a^k ~ — — - A 



v,vmu * VVW *^ — — — With reference to th#» 

 fungus attacking orchid roots in a damp atmosphere, referred h. IV* 1 "* * 



on 



range 



l WO Vdl ui any v/i*^ J » o" — o - ., . -i » , ;j 



of the section appears somewhat narrowly limited in the schedule of pro- ™ders it ^possible to identify the parasite. 



Deities laid down by the florist, yet it is possible to raise a large number P ,ant f s leaves) would be required to ascertain ( 



of dealings "eve^ one of which will be found to possess some difter- Th f ^\TT T ?7 ^ 11 



oi seeanngb, cvcy u» c ^ and final Iv kills the roots. A disease havW cAm MM 



ence of pattern in its leafy dress, and yet none depart in general fashion 

 from the familiar type.'* Superficial observers, seeing a collection of 



— a ^ a * 



them, and has killed some already. The absence of an* live,Q| 



? -j. / Io ™ of reproduce 



rti <>ns of disease 

 W of the fW* 



plants of Mauritius. 



P °y the plan; 

 effects has bea 



The San Jose Scale, 



auriculas in bloom, are apt to think there is much sameness; but the measure prohibiting the importation into the Dominion X^^P^t 

 crrr,^. w hn lrnnw* rh* varieties well, observes in them sharolv defined from the United States indicates that there is considerable appr^sf* 



the Dossibilities for mischief of the San Tn<^ c^i* t„ r?* ensi °n regard 



grower who knows the varieties well, observes in them sharply defined 

 lines of distinction which are as familiar to him as the notes of a music 

 score to an instrumentalist. The greatest diversity is shown in the self 

 class of the florist's auricula, because the range is greater. A deep 

 maroon or velvety black, or a rich blue, provided all other parts of the 

 flower be equally good, usually have the highest value ; while in the case 

 of the commoner alpine type, the marginal colour, the exterior band 

 lying beyond the white or golden centre, may and should be shaded, the 



separated from the fruit-belt of Southern Ontario by Lake Erie the m *■ 

 duction of the scale is traced to two nurseries in New Jersey, die pe* fc£ 

 gained access to the latter state through a consignment of plum trees from^ 

 San Jose valley, California. As late as the spring of last year infested stock « 

 in two cases sent into Ohio, through carelessness. In the one case tk 

 infested plant was Cotoneaster frigidum, a close ally of a native English Arab- 



peach 



basal tint shading away to a paler one; the margin of the true self ^ tth ^ was destroyed^ before being transplanted on extensive private ground 

 auricula must be unshaded, without the least tendency to pale towards 

 the petal edges or on the surface. This gives a sharp and striking con- 

 trast to the zone of white meal surrounding the golden tube in the centre 



were conaemnea ana uesiruyea on tneir Demg lound to be infested with tie sale. 

 The extreme minuteness of this insect, its close resemblance to other less harmful 



approaching red, provided it is unshaded, are also acceptable, and even 



or under the leaf-buds, all add to the difficulty of its detection, especially when k 

 is present in only small numbers. The Ohio authorities take a view of the 



^L^tS^M "°i r i n !i,5^i.r.r„. there }. s some : » ">« **, -no, but -x^ ; 



thing in the combination of white and gold that fascinates. Green is 

 such an uncommon colour in flowers, that it is, perhaps, not to be 

 wondered at the florists placing the green-edged auricula in the highest 

 rank. Truly has the auricula been termed a "fascinating flower," and it 

 may further be said of it that at all seasons of the year it assumes aspects 

 which are always interesting. The beauty of its plumage of leaves in the 



height of their development, and in the absence of flowers, has a powerful destruction to the fruits of this country, the Secretary of Agriculture should htn 



authority to protect each and every state from such introductions, to the extent of 



enorts 01 people in otner countries who adopt or advocate a similar line of 

 action. In a recent bulletin they remark— and it is evident that they speak far 

 the whole of the United States—" It would seem but justice to ourselves, as 1 

 nation, that whenever it shall appear that a destructive insect or disease is bam 

 introduced into this country, in or upon a particular kind of fruit, brought froa 

 some particular locality, and that such insect or disease is likely to cant 



attraction for the cultivator. 



localities 



I 9 



such destructive insects or diseases are known to exist." 



■ • 



issue 



Public Park and Museum at Dulwich.— Mr. F.J. Horniman, M.P., 



h .* 



The Royal Caledonian Society is holding its spring show as we go to . tl0ned . that ° hl ° app,es can on,y gain admission int0 British Columbia *" 



press, and our Edinburgh correspondent wires that it is a remarkably successful ^ *™ d . ^he^ larvae ^of the codlin ^moth ; also, to 



display. Hyacinths, tulips, narcissi in variety, cut roses, roses in pots, and . ^J? nUr ~ 

 tables of plants are the most prominent features, and attract a large number of mt0 ^ a ^ ^ on y- 

 visitors. Prizes are offered to the extent of ^272, and the society provides " 

 music of the highest order, consequently both exhibitors and visitors are 

 numerous. 



Starch in Potatos. —Professor E. S. Goff, of the Wisconsin Agricultural 

 College, has been investigating the various conditions 'affecting the amount of starch 

 in potatos. In the course of these he found that, in different varieties of potatos, 

 when grown under precisely similar conditions, the feeding value may vary to the 

 extent of one half, or even more ; while with regard to their percentage of starch, 

 this was also found to vary considerably under the same conditions of cultivation- 

 In the case of different tubers of the same variety, under the same cultural con- 

 ditions, this variation in the starch content amounted to about a third or more, a 

 difference which did not seem to Professor Goff to be due to heredity. Tubers 

 growing deepest in the soil contained the greatest amount of starch. Mr. Goff 

 also found that potatos which had turned green owing to exposure to sunlight, 

 must not necessarily be considered as containing less starch than others ; while 

 he found no relationship to exist between the size of the potatos and the amount 

 of starch they contained. It is, however, well known on this side of the Atlantic 



that excessively large tubers, produced as the result of a too liberal application of flower as this 



the collections of curios and natural history objects more elaborately than tk 

 house they have occupied at Forest Hill (also presented by him) will allow. T 

 this end the Homiman Free Museum is now being built, with galleries, courts, ub 

 a large lecture theatre ; special provision will be made for zoological and entomo- 

 logical specimens. This museum Mr. Homiman will present to Dulwich and 4l 

 neighbourhood, together with fifteen acres of surrounding land, which he taw* 

 to convert into park and recreation grounds. A library and rooms for soot* 

 clubs will be provided in a mansion already on the estate. 



Bees and Fertilisation.— Professor B. Barrows has given an addkk||j 

 reason for not spraying fruit trees while in ilower. Wetting the flowers pie** 

 proper pollen distribution, and the use of arsenites injures the dchcat ^^ 

 organs. The learned professor, referring to the importance of bees m ferato* 

 flowers and the recently discovered fact that nearly all varieties of apples, ««? 

 Baldwin and Greening, are self-sterile, and depend upon other varieties to »ptf 

 pollen to fertilise their flowers, said the same was true of pears, plums, and p^)» 



smaller 



ipecially 



starch 



medium size grown under ordinary conditions. An interesting point elicited was 



lavour of the potato does not depend on its percentage of 



ore starch it contains the sooner it cooks, and the more it 

 swells in the process. 



The Salt Water Flood in Essex during November last did a vast 

 amount of damage, and unfortunately its influence has not yet been spent. Some 

 fifty thousand acres in this county were flooded during the gale and high tides, 

 some tracts being under water for seven or eight days. Mr. T. S. Dymond, staff 

 th° tU r r ^ chemistr y to the Technical Education Committee of Essex, states that 

 fl m ] t% ordinar y c °n<iition, contains only 'oi per cent, of salt, whereas the 



flooded land is found by analysis to contain '20 per cent., equal to two tons an 



SL ^ t0P 'i* inChCS ° f This excess of salt is in J uriou s to vegetation, 

 reas and tares have suffered »- — * - » - — - V. . b 



germinated does not seem to have he^n Aflfcrt-#»d The 



will be much more effective if done a week later. 



An*. KTa»42_._ rt. a __, 1 1-™am nc theV should 



present 



the infor 



they possess to an audience in the most acceptable manner. Judgiflgr ^ 

 by the reception accorded to Mr. W. W. Pettigrew, head gardener to 

 Corporation, when he lectured upon this interesting subject a ^°*^^ 



was given in a most interesting manner. The lecture was illustmti 

 views, many from photographs taken in Koath Park, Cardiff. 



Phosphatic Manures. -An experiment directed to ^J^ff *** 

 phospho ric acid in mineral phosphates could be rendered avaiiao j 



conducted at the Wisconsin Agr 



ana wnerethe seed had nnf «.w /jj T „ — ■ P hat e was mixed with farmyard manure at the rate of fifty P ou; 



r,n th- a„^„. ™ j* rm * nent effect, however, is due to the effect of the salt in a elass i». th* t s -i.w thicknesses of canvas, and tw j- 



pbospb* 



the ^Trnlm!^ th ^ ^mS, ^ ic h af ter the flood w«c iuunu strewn upon tne surface ot 



w __ r . four rooat» 

 MdSe end of the 



1* 



The 



ana mZ S%Z*t£ «*- - soil „„ iM 



necessary 



earthwor 



been 



in the middle of a fermenting manure heap, where 

 phosphoric acid soluble in citric acid at the beginn 

 ment was determined. The mixture of farmyard mai 

 commencement of the experiment contained '237 P er 



241 per cent., thus showing that little (if any) of the 

 endered available by the process of fermentation, since fc ^ ^ 



ionths 



pbosphc*; 



ha t*0* W ' 



water early in the century. of analysis. 



figures might easi 



