CONTEMPORARY WRITINGS. 
189 
of importance to exhibitors. The object in 
growing cucumbers, whether for show or use, 
being not to produce seed, but long handsome 
fruit, it follows that the contact of the pollen 
with the stigma should be prevented, for in 
preventing this, we prevent the rapid decay of 
the flower, and take away the check to 
longitudinal extension, and the tendency to 
unequal lateral protuberation . — M. 
To destroy Aphides. — A very simple and 
effectual mode of killing aphides, where fumi- 
gation is objected to, is to syringe the plants 
thoroughly with a mixture of equal parts of 
clear lime and soot water, with one-sixth part 
of tobacco liquor added. A fine syringe should 
be used to apply it, as the object is to wet 
rather than wash every part of the plant. 
The dead aphides may afterwards be washed 
off with clear water. They may also be 
destroyed by using a solution of poly-sulphuret 
of calcium, obtained by boiling lime and flour 
of sulphur in water, and syringing the plants 
with the clear liquor. Both these methods 
are clean, which is a recommendation in con- 
servatoires and domestic greenhouses. 
The Chocolate Nut. — The chocolate nut 
tree (the obroma Cacao) has recently been 
fruited for the first time in England — proba- 
bly in Europe — in the garden of the Duke of 
Northumberland, at Sion house, Brentford. 
A ripe fruit was exhibited at a meeting of the 
Horticultural Society, on January 19, 1847. 
The fruit is oblong, pointed, and of a bright 
yellow colour, closely filled with large seeds, 
which, when roasted, form the pure cocoa of 
commerce. Whole forests are formed of this 
tree in Demerara. The plant at Sion is 
about four years old and seven feet high. 
Forcing Turnip-greens. — During the 
prevalence of frost, a good addition to the 
stock of vegetables may be made by placing 
some roots of turnips in a slight heat ; in a 
week or two they will afford a good cutting of 
greens. Where there is a vinery, or any other 
warm place at command, a quantity of the 
roots may be set close together. A cellar, 
where a little warmth can be given them, will 
do ; but in this case they will grow blanched. 
When so treated they afford two or three good 
cuttings, and the roots may be afterwards 
given to pigs or cattle. 
Planting out Camellias in Conserva- 
tories. — A most important point to be at- 
tended to in planting out Camellias — or indeed 
any other plants — is to take care that the roots 
are disengaged as much as possible, by break- 
ing the hard ball of earth around which the 
roots are usually matted. Thus the roots 
come in contact with the fresh soil, and strike 
out vigorously ; and the water which is ap- 
plied also reaches the centre of the roots. 
This disengagement of their roots is often 
secured by lifting the ball of earth and letting 
it fall heavily down, repeating this until it 
becomes loose. When they are planted out 
with the old balls of earth entire, the plants 
are likely to suffer, or perhaps die, for want of 
water, the latter not penetrating the hard soil, 
but passing off by the looser medium which 
surrounds it. 
Boots op the Scarlet-runner Bean. — 
The Scarlet-runner Bean (Phaseohcs multi- 
jiorus), produces long irregular tapering fleshy 
roots, somewhat resembling those of the marvel 
of Peru : these, if protected from frost by a 
bank of earth, will break out again in the 
spring, the plant being perennial. In this 
way they may be grown year after year with- 
out sowing fresh seeds. The roots, however, 
are poisonous, and must on no account be 
eaten. 
The Sweet Montmorency Cherry. — This 
is an American seedling, supposed to have 
been raised from the Montmorency cherry of 
the French, an early acid fruit. The fruit of 
this variety is borne in pairs ; it is small, 
nearly round, slightly flattened at the base, 
with a shallow suture on one side, and a dis- 
tinctly indented point at the end; the skin is 
on the sunny side, when mature, of a deep red, 
somewhat mottled and cloudy, and of a pale 
amber in the shade ; the stalk is rather slender, 
about three quarters of an inch long, inserted 
in a small shallow round hollow ; the flesh 
yellowish ; rich and sweet ; the stone small, 
The tree is of upright habit, with a smooth 
clean stem, strong shoots, and medium sized, 
dull green, wavy foliage. The fruit hangs 
well on the tree, and is eaten (in America) from 
July loth to August 5th. It is one of the 
latest sweet cherries. The fruit while growing 
is ordinary, and when ripening very bitter, 
but this passes away when allowed to hang till 
it is fully coloured and ripe. 
Manure for Hops. — Mr. J. C. Nesbit re- 
commends a manure composed of guano, gyp- 
sum, nitrate of soda, and common salt, as being 
best calculated to return to the soil the sub- 
stances extracted by the hop, thus enabling 
it to produce good crops. Trials which 
have been made with this mixture have proved 
to be successful. In one case the proportions 
of three cwt. of guano, one and a half cwt. of 
saltpetre, half a cwt. of gypsum, and one and 
a half cwt. of common salt, were applied, at a 
cost of 70.S. per acre, with great success. 
Propagation of Gloxinias. — These may 
be raised either from seeds, or by cuttings of the 
young shoots, or by leaves. The seeds should 
be sown in shallow pans of sandy soil, on a 
thin bed of silver sand, a little of which should 
afterwards be dusted over them. Place the 
pan in a brisk hot-bed, and cover it with 
a bell-glass until the seeds vegetate. The 
