3-42 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[September, 
honor of one JScheveri , who drew Mexican flowers 
so handsomely, must go back to Cotyledon, so 
named from the Greek word for a cavity or cup, the 
foliage forming a sort of leafy cup. Long before 
mosaic planting in our gardens with Cotyledons 
(or Echeverias), and similar things, was thought of, 
the writer had a view of a most complete and ex¬ 
tensive example of mosaic work, which was perfect 
in its way, it being nature’s own planning. In 1852, 
we made an excursion to the Coronados Islands, a 
rocky group rising abruptly out of the Pacific, 
some 30 miles directly west of the beautiful harbor 
of San Diego. It was a difficult matter to make a 
landing, and an equally difficult oue to scramble to 
the top of the rocky cliffs. At the top were a few 
acres of rock, seamed and creviced in every direc¬ 
tion, and wherever there was a seam that would 
give the plants a foothold, there grew, as thickly 
as they could stand, what we may call the “ Pow¬ 
dered House-leek,” Cotyledon pulverulentum, now 
one of the most esteemed and most effective of the 
succulents employed in mosaic bedding. The spe¬ 
cies is called pulverulentum, because the leaves, 
which form a beautiful rosette, appear as if sprin¬ 
kled with some white powder ; there were besides 
this, less numbers of one or two other species. The 
formal shape of these plants, each being an almost 
exact duplicate of its neighbor, their regular dis¬ 
posal in the long lines of crevices, and the fact that 
they made up nearly the sole vegetation of the sur¬ 
face of these islands, formed a scene most weird 
and striking. The surroundings contributed to the 
strangeness of the picture. It was framed in by an 
immensity of ocean, the dash of which against the 
rocks made a solemn diapason, relieved only by 
the shrill cries of the sea-lions disturbed by our 
arrival, and the screams of multitudes of sea-fowls 
unaccustomed to the presence of man. As we 
looked upon this example of nature’s mosaic plant¬ 
ing, we little thought that we should thereafter see 
the same plants contributing to the attractions of 
the gardens of Mr. Huuuewell at Wellesley, or of 
Professor Sargent of Brookline, both in far off 
Massachusetts. With this personal digression we 
come back to our succulents, the Cotyledons. 
Among the species on the Pacific Coast, one ap¬ 
pears to have escaped the attention of cultivators, 
Cotyledon edule, which may be called the “ Edible 
House-leek.” Since seeing it wild on the Pacific 
Coast, we first met with it in cultivation in a small 
but choice collection exhibited at the Centennial 
by Miller & Sievers, of San Francisco, Cal. Since 
then we have received it from a California corre¬ 
spondent, and this summer have had it in flower. 
The plant forms a tuft, a foot or so across, made 
up of numerous short leafy branches, one of which 
is shown in the engraving. The leaves, it will be 
seen, are cylindrical, and are from three to five 
inches long ; they have a peculiar glaucous hue—a 
very pale green—and would be quite as useful in 
producing planting effects as the Kleinia, now so 
much employed. The flower stems are a foot or 
more high, and produce a panicle of whitish flow¬ 
ers, like those shown in the engraving reduced in 
size. This is very unlike in its general aspect to 
any other species of the genus, and its horticultural 
value as a bedding plant has not yet been fully test¬ 
ed. At all events, we find it an interesting plant 
for a cool green-house, and value it none the less 
because it is a native. It was described by Nut- 
tall, who first made it known, as Sedum edule ; the 
specific name was given because the Indians of the 
Coast used the young leaves as food. As these 
Indians eat everything from acorns to grasshop¬ 
pers, we can not, upon their evidence that it is 
edible, add this to our list of garden vegetables. 
Keeping Celery in Winter. 
BY PETER HENDERSON. 
[Last winter was so mild over a large portion of 
the country that great difficulty was found in keep¬ 
ing celery, and the losses were often heavy. Though 
written last January, this article is of more use now, 
when growers of celery are thinking as to the meth¬ 
ods of storing their crops. One would suppose that 
so simple a rule as “ govern the amount of covering 
by the temperature,” would be observed by every 
one. But experience last winter showed that it 
was not, and it seems to be necessary to repeat the 
simplest directions year after year.— Ed.] 
A correspondent from Harrisburg, Pa., writes me 
under date of December 24tli, as follows : “ I have 
followed your instructions, given in “ Gardening for 
Profit,” of how to preserve celery in winter, for the 
past four years, and never failed until this season. 
Can you tell me why it is that my celery is rot¬ 
ting? Please reply in the American Agriculturist, 
as the answer may then benefit others as well.”— 
Yes; the reason is easily explained. In almost 
every section of the country the season has been 
unusually mild—warm, in fact—consequently if you 
covered up your celery in the trenches, at the usual 
time of covering, uothing could prevent it begin¬ 
ning to first make roots prematurely, then to blanch 
or become white, and eventually to rot. In this 
vicinity (Jersey City Heights) we have scores of old 
celery growers, some of them growing half a 
million roots annually, and quite a number of them 
blundered just as the Harrisburg man did. The 
cousequence was that the New York market last 
year was flooded with celery from the middle of De¬ 
cember to the middle of January, so that instead 
of selling at the usual and paying price of 3c. per 
root, it has not averaged lc. per root for all sold 
between these dates, to say nothing of probably 
one-third of it having rotted entirely. Now there 
was no occasion whatever for this loss, for there 
was no necessity to place any covering whatever on 
celery in trenches in this district, until the 28tli day 
of December. 
We grew some 10,000 roots ourselves from which 
to raise seed, but allowed it to remain uncovered 
until that date, and it is now nearly as green as 
when it was put away. By taking the precaution 
to have the covering placed along side of the 
trenches in heaps, ready to throw on on the ap¬ 
proach of a cold snap, all danger of being caught 
by frost can be avoided, for a cold snap never 
comes so suddenly but that there is time enough 
to cover up before harm is done. In this matter, 
as in many others in gardening operations, the 
most successful cultivator is the oue wffio does not 
follow blindly any given directions, but who will 
exercise his common sense when the exigencies of 
climate or any thing else require him to deviate 
from the beaten track of the usual practice. 
Winter Bouquets, Grasses, etc. 
As usual, at this season, we have inquiries as to 
the preparation of grasses, flowers, etc., to use for 
winter decorations. In 1874, we published a series 
of articles on this subject in which were given the 
results of our own experience, with such informa¬ 
tion as could be gathered from trustworthy sources. 
Those who have the volume for that year will find 
in the several numbers for August, September, Oc¬ 
tober, and December, an article in which these mat¬ 
ters are treated in full. It is not practicable for us 
to go over the whole ground again, in the same de¬ 
tail, but for the benefit of new readers, we give the 
principal points, referring those who wish for further 
particulars, to the articles in 1874. In Europe, the 
preservation of flowers is a regular business carried 
on in large establishments and employing many 
hands. Great numbers of these flowers are imported 
by our dealers, both made up in wreaths, bouquets, 
baskets, etc., and in bunches or clusters all of one 
kind. Most of the made-up affairs are not of a 
kind that appeal to our taste, the object being, ap- 
apparently, to crowd the greatest possible variety 
of the most positive colors—even to black (!) in 
each design. The effect, as a general thing, is arti¬ 
ficial and tawdry. 
As to Grasses. 
These are largely imported, and of late years 
some dealers have offered many of those collected 
in various parts of this country. These for the most 
part are dyed of various brilliant colors, and look 
to our taste, so thoroughly unnatural, that we are 
repelled rather than attracted by them. The pleas¬ 
ing effect of grasses is in form, rather than in color, 
and when we see specimens which are naturally of 
a soft green or straw color, dyed with the most in¬ 
tense crimson or blue, or of a green, the like of 
which no grass ever presented, the eye is arrested 
by the “stunning” color, and takes no note of 
the beauty of form. Others load their grasses with 
crystals of alum ; and worse yet, others are given a 
metallic appearance by the application of bronze 
powders. We can describe how these things are 
done, but we can not find beauty in them. 
The Time for Collecting: Grasses. 
Each month there will be some grasses in season, 
and though many of the earlier ones have gone by, 
there will be found, during this month and next, a 
sufficient variety, especially of the larger kinds. As 
some of the most pleasing kinds are of no agricul¬ 
tural value, they are not generally known by com¬ 
mon names, and to give tbeir botanical names would 
be of no use except to botanists, who do not need 
them. We therefore simply say, that by road-sides, 
in meadows, and especially in moist and swampy 
land, grasses are to be sought for. Not only the 
more showy kinds, but those which have delicate, 
flue panicles or flower clusters should be collected. 
Secure long stems, and cut away the leaves. In 
most grasses the upper joint that bears the flower 
cluster will pull out readily from the sheathing 
leaf; this will often leave the stem too short to 
make up conveniently, and it is better to take sev¬ 
eral joints of the stem and cut away the leaves. If 
one can choose the time for collecting, the grasses 
should be watched as they develop, and taken 
W'lien in flower, which may be known by the pro¬ 
trusion of the anthers or the feathery stigmas. Some 
grasses if gathered much later than this, will drop 
portions of their flowers, or shed their seeds in an 
unpleasant manner. Still, if one is but temporarily 
at a locality, a desirable grass should be taken in 
the condition it is found at the time. 
Drying' the Grasses. 
Those in which the panicle is graceful and 
drooping, should be dried so as to preserve the nat¬ 
ural form. If such are tied in bunches and hung 
up carelessly, they will be disappointing when dry. 
A handy method is to have a broad and not very 
deep bpx of sand, and stick the stems in this. 
Those kinds in which the flowers are in a close and 
spike-like cluster, may be tied in convenient 
bunches and hung up, heads down ; a little prac¬ 
tice will teach the proper treatment if it be remem¬ 
bered that the form in which the grass is dried can 
not be afterwards changed. Any airy place will 
answer for drying, such as an unoccupied room, or 
an old-fashioned garret. When the stems are quite 
dry, the flower cluster will be so ; and if the dry¬ 
ing place is not quite free from dust, they should 
be put away from dust and from flies, which are 
very fond of collecting upon them. 
Besides the True Grasses 
there are various members of the Sedge Family 
that are worth collecting, especially the Cotton- 
grasses ( Eriophorum ), which show their white and 
brownish plumes in the boggy meadows. Indeed, 
whatever plants ty grace or beauty of form com¬ 
mend themselves to the collector, should be gath¬ 
ered, without reference to botanical relationships. 
Preserving Showy Flowers. 
While grasses are as much flowers as roses and 
camellias, they are not popularly so regarded, and 
in the trade, “ preserved flowers and grasses ” are 
offered. We compromise the matter by calling the 
others “ showy ” flowers, of which a large number 
are prepared abroad. The class of annuals known 
as “Everlastings,” are cultivated by many with a 
view to the use of their flowers in winter decora¬ 
tions. The majority of these require only to be 
picked as they just come into bloom, carefully 
dried and kept from the light and dust until 
wanted. A large number of the imported flowers 
are preserved by means of sulphur fumes, the 
process being precisely that used in bleaching 
straw hats. A box or barrel is provided, which, if 
not tight, may be made so by pasting paper over the 
joints; this should have a small opening near the 
bottom to admit air, which can be closed when 
needed; a few inch and a half holes to be stopped 
