30 
transparent appearance gave place to a rich solid green, having a darker hue 
than usual. 
Since then, the experiment has been repeatedly tried, and in each case 
with the same happy result. The alteration caused by this simple applica- 
tion is so rapid and marked, that the fact seemed^ in the humble opinion 
of the authoress, to be worth recording for the benefit of others. It 
is hoped, that some of the members present may giv-e some explanation 
of the means by which the effect is produced. 
"When the leaves of a plant which had been treated with tea leaves are 
macerated in strong spirits of wine, a solution is procured, having a very 
much darker green colour than one from a plant, which has not been so treated* 
The writer, supposing that some ingredient in the leaves of the tea plant 
possessed the same constituents as the green colouring matter of plants in 
general, referred to several books on chemistry, but found the information 
given rather puzzling to one not versed in the mysteries of chemical 
science. 
The tea leaves are said to contain an alkaloid and an astringent principle, 
which are dissolved when tea is made. The spent leaves, which are usually 
thrown away, contain one fourth their weight of gluten, which is a substance 
rich in nitrogen, and very prone to decompose into compounds containing 
ammonia. The colouring matter of plants, or Chlorophyl, as botanists call 
it, is a green resin, existing plentifully in healthy plants, and it also has a 
large quantity of nitrogen in its composition The probable explanation) 
therefore, naturally seems to be, that the gluten of the tea leaves, when 
gradually decomposing, furnishes the food most suitable for the formation 
of Chlorophyl. 
It is also recorded, that wheat, grown with manure containing little am- 
monia, yields a flour with little gluten, while those crops, manured with 
plenty of ammonia, yield a corresponding abundance of gluten. This fact 
seems quite applicable to the present case, for the tea leaves, when decay- 
ing, give off a decidedly ammoniacal and sulphurous smell. 
In conclusion, the writer again apologizes for taking up the time of the 
Society, but thought that others would like to hear of so simple and in- 
expensive a method of restoring the vigour and growth of plants, and hopes 
that the remedy may prove as effectual in the hands of others, as in her 
own. 
