JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
228 
[ March 15, 1883. 
manure under cover, and moistens it thoroughly with urine. It is 
never allowed to heat violently ; hence it is rich, very rich, in 
nitrogen. No. 2 is careless. His manure is collected in the open, 
where it is spread thinly. When driven out to the fields it is put 
into large heaps and allowed to heat violently. What soluble 
nitrogenous matter escapes the washing of the rain is driven off 
by the heat, hence the manure is poor in nitrogen— “ it is the dead 
body from which the soul has fled.” 
Space will hardly permit us going further into details ; but we 
may say that one successful grower in a neighbouring county 
ploughs in his manure in autumn, and succeeds much better than 
when he used an equal amount in spring. The reason is evident; 
the ra ; ns carry away much of the nitrogen in winter. Another 
finds that on his land—it is good Wheat land—a mixture of 3 cwt. 
of kainit, 1 of superphosphate, and half a hundredweight of sul¬ 
phate of ammonia produce between 12 and 13 tons per acre of 
Magnums. The same mixture produces 10 of Champions, but 
when the ammonia is left out nearly 12 tons result. 
Another gives 6 tons of ordinary manure and 2 cwt. of kainit, 
and the result is something between 10 and 12 tons of Magnums ; 
he does not grow Champions. But we must stop. The evidence 
is overwhelming. Let anyone study the Munster report, and he 
will see that the application of nitrogen was in all cases worse 
than useless in the case of strong-growing Potatoes. Even in 
Messrs. Suttons’ pamphlet evidence of this is found. For instance, 
Mr. Smith reports a crop of 9 tons at a cost of £1 -is. for manure— 
“ 6 cwts. at 4,?.” It must have been kainit, as no other is sold at 
that price. Had Mr. Smith used only 2£ cwts. of kainit, 1 of 
phosphate, and half only of nitrate of soda, the price would have 
been about the same ; but the crop would have been, almost 
without question, heavier by a ton or two. Messrs. Sutton think 
this gentleman’s estimate of cost too low. We think not. 
“J. M. J.’s” expenditure of £12 10s. for farmyard manure was 
followed by the invariable results. 
Nitrogen causes far too much growth on Potatoes already too 
strong. Magnum Bonum, being less robust than Champion, is the 
better with a small amount. Champion had better have none. 
Whether a little manure and the mineral mixture, or the latter 
with nitrates or ammonia, be most economical for Magnums, each 
must determine. 
But for early kinds, producing moderate haulm, a liberal 
application of stableyard manure gives the best results. The 
mineral mixture along with 2 cwts. of sulphate of ammonia we 
have found a good substitute. Too much growth runs away with 
all available supplies ; too little fails to provide for the converting 
of the carbonic acid of the air into Potatoes. Hence the necessity 
for quite different treatment according to the habit of the variety. 
The best crop we ever saw of Magnums was raised by a liberal 
application of wood ashes. Gardeners can take the hint. 
We cannot agree with Messrs. Sutton about our never being 
able to have the market in our own hands in May and June. As 
Magnum is the best late it is also the best early. Kept cool, airy, 
and often turned, it is as good in June as in January. We have 
had it good so late as August; but in June it is vastly superior 
as food to the unwholesome watery rubbish from France. As a 
luxury the inferior Potatoes may continue to be eaten, but since 
there is a better the demand for French Potatoes will surely 
decrease when farmers have learnt to make money by keeping 
this Magnum. Northern farmers should take the hint. 
In closing special attention is drawn to the remarks by Messrs. 
Sutton on selection of seed. One grower, indeed, speaks of having 
so many good Potatoes and so many “good enough for seed.” 
Only the best are good enough for seed ; inferior tubers produce 
speedy deterioration. Proper selection and good cultivation will 
prevent this, hut can do no more. “Improved” Potatoes are 
often improved the wrong way. This is evident in the Munster 
report, where Messrs. Suttons’ seed produced more than did 
“ Improved” Magnum Bonum. 
But the cultivation is most important. Will all the farmers 
who read this experiment on a small scale on the lines we have 
advocated, and next year send reports to the Journal? It is a 
matter of national importance ; of patriotism as much as profits. 
In another paper we will show how to restore the land to fertility. 
—A. H. 
Permanent Pastures. —The edition of Messrs. J. Carter & Co.’s 
treatise on “Laying Down Land to Grass for Permanent Pasture ” is 
now issued, and contains much interesting and instructive matter 
bearing upon that subject. It is in several sections — preparing, 
draining, and sowing being fully treated, together with renovating 
and general management. One very important chapter is that de¬ 
voted to a consideration of the geological formations of soils, in 
which the characters of the various districts are considered under the 
heads of the different soils, such as clays, sand, chalk, and limestone. 
In this portion of the work is contained a large amount of condensed 
information. An elaborate descriptive list of the Grasses used in 
forming permanent pastures, with figures of the most important, is 
also included, and adds to the utility of the work. 
THE EGG. 
The woodcut on page 227 is taken from Le Poussin , M. 
Lemoine’s new weekly paper. It represents more clearly than we 
remember to have seen elsewhere the composition of the egg. 
M. Lemoine has kindly permitted us to reproduce the woodcut for 
the benefit of our readers. 
The dark line at the outside represents the shell marked A. 
Next to this come two membranes or skins marked B and c. The 
outer one, b, adheres or lies close to the shell throughout. The 
inner one, C, also follows the line of the shell except at the larger 
end of the egg, where the two membranes are apart, and form the 
air vessel, D, 
Next to the lining membrane, C, is the white. This is in three 
layers, E, F, and G. In the inner layer of white, G, the yolk is 
suspended by the chalazas H H. These are spiral springs of more 
deuse albumen, and extend from the middle layer of white to the 
membrane of the chalazas, I, which surrounds and almost touches 
the vitelline membrane, J. This membrane encloses the yolk, 
which again is composed of an outer layer of white yolk, K, which 
does not harden even in cooking, and inner concentric layers of 
yellow and white yolk, a, b, c. The yolk when the egg is perfect 
is suspended by the chalazas, and floats rather towards the upper 
part of the egg, as it is less dense than the white. It is curved 
on all sides round the utricule (latebra), N, at the entrance to 
which the germ, L, floats close to the vitelline membrane, and not 
far from the shell. The constituents of the egg are as follows :— 
The shell is composed of carbonate of lime, phosphate of lime, 
and gluten. The white consists chiefly of albumen, which chemical 
analysis has shown to contain carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, azote, 
phosphorus, and sulphur in varying amounts. The yolk is made 
up of albuminous matter, organic salts, vitelline colouring matter, 
phosphoric acid, and a fatty phosphoric substance. 
The shell is porous, thus admitting a renewed supply of air to 
the embryo chick, which by process of incubation is produced 
from the germ and white. Shortly before its exit from the shell 
the embryo absorbs the yolk which forms a large proportion of its 
support during the first week of its existence outside the shell. 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
Sunflower Culture (C. A. II .).—Notes on the culture of Sunflowers in 
fields will be published in a future issue in time to be of service to you and 
other cultivators. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
Camden square, London. 
Lat. 51° 32' 40" N.; Lons. 0° 8 0” W.; Altitude, 111 feet. 
DATE. 
9 A.M. 
IN THE DAY. 
i ?! 03 
Hygrome- 
P . 
c-g j 
Shade Tem- 
Radiation 
0 
1883. 
5 > 
ter. 
£ a 
cL— 1 o 
perature. 
Temperature. 
d 
P5 
March. 
§ k’Si-j 
In 
On 
iaS 3 
Dry. 
Wet. 
O o 
r-i 
Max. 
Min. 
snn. 
grass. 
Inches. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg 
deg. 
deg 
deg. 
In. 
Sun. 4 
30.722 
37.4 
35.8 
N.E. 
41.0 
50.3 
30 2 
80.8 
27.1 
— 
Mon. 5 
30.630 
341 
34.1 
N.E. 
40.3 
54.8 
31.3 
83.8 
25.7 
_ 
Tues. 6 
30.205 
39.8 
35.6 
N. 
40.7 
48 2 
33.7 
87.5 
32.5 
_ 
Wed. 7 
30.028 
33.0 
32.7 
N. 
39.6 
89.5 
29.1 
86.0 
26.4 
0.143 
Thurs. 8 
20.770 
30.6 
30.4 
N.E. 
38.5 
37.3 
25.2 
86.8 
27.8 
0.056 
Friday 9 
29.993 
30.3 
30.1 
N.E. 
37.8 
37.8 
23.7 
83.7 
25.1 
_ 
Satur. 10 
29.899 
28.8 
28.0 
N.E. 
37.4 
37.0 
23.4 
83.9 
21.* 
— 
30.179 
33.4 
32.4 
39 3 
43.5 
28.1 
84.6 
26.5 
0.199 
REMARKS. 
4th.—Bright cold day. 
5th.—Misty early, blight cold day. [wind. 
6th.—Sleet at 8 A.M., snow occasionally during the day, with high very cold 
7th.—Very cold gusty wind, showers of soft hail and snow. 
8th.—Thick snow in early morning, and driving snow showers, with intervals 
of bright sunshine during the day. 
9th.—Very bright and cold. 
10th.—Fine and cold. 
A week of truly wintry weather, the mean temperature lower than in any 
week for more than a twelvemorth, except the second week in December, 1882, 
and the mean minimum without parallel during that time. The lowest point 
reached in the shade, 23'4° on 10th, has been exceeded in March since 1858 only 
in the following years—1862, 21-3° ; 1865, 23-2° ; 1866, 22'5° ; and 1874, 21-9 0 .— 
G. J. Symons. 
