AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
333 
one of the most beautiful of its species, with 
bright yellow colored leaves and of easy 
culture. 
Begonia sanguinea is one of the finest of 
a tribe of plants well suited to parlor cultiva¬ 
tion ; the leaves are bright red with pure 
white flowers, forming a striking contrast. 
The fuchsioides is a variety of the above with 
a profusion of bright red pendant flowers, 
similar to those of the Fuchsia. Prestonien- 
sis and Zanthina marmorea are new hybrids 
of the same class, the former with cinna¬ 
mon and the latter with straw and pink 
colored flowers in great abundance ; the 
marmorea has fine variegated foliage and 
will bear shade well. 
Medinella Sieboldii, is a plant of great 
beauty on account of its large spikes of 
bright pink wax-like flowers, which are 
abundantly at all seasons of the year. 
Tassiandra splendens is a semi-shrubby 
plant, with fine silky foliage of the richest 
green ; flowers of a dark plum color with a 
peculiar tinge, forming altogether a coveted 
plant.— [Ed. 
NEW-ROCHELLE OR LAWTON BLACKBERRY. 
About half of our plants were killed down 
to the ground, by the severity of the past 
winter. We should like to learn, if this new 
favorite has suffered from the winter in other 
localities, and if it is a hardy plant. Close 
by our plantation was a row of the native 
black-raspberry, which needs no protection. 
These were killed much worse than the 
blackberry. In the neighborhood the Isa¬ 
bella grape vines were badly injured and 
many of them killed to the ground. This 
has not happened before for twelve years ; 
and we doubt if they were ever killed so 
badly. The red cedars all along the ground 
still wear a very brown and somber aspect, 
from the same cause. Many of them are 
dead. Our blackberries were killed alike, 
where they were exposed to the son, and 
where they were on the porth side of a 
fence.— [Ed. 
PRESERVING CANS. 
These are fully advertised in the appro¬ 
priate columns. We have heretofore been 
rather prejudiced against their use, fearing 
that poison might result from the corrosive 
action of vegetable acids upon the metalic 
ubstances. More recent improvements in 
their construction, and. an examination of 
some articles kept in them has overcome 
this prejudice, and we shall use them the 
present season. On the 24th ult. we opened 
a can of Tomatoes put up last August by 
Messrs. Wells & Provost, and found them 
as nice, sweet and fresh as if just picked 
from the vines. Some green sweet corn put 
up by a friend last October, and opened June 
21st, we found in an excellent state of pres¬ 
ervation. 
One word of advice to all who may use 
these cans. Read the accompanying direc¬ 
tions carefully and follow them exactly. We 
think it useless to trust to any screw arrange¬ 
ment for perfect exclusion of air. After 
they are screwed down tightly, cover over 
the top with melted wax in all cases, and 
you are then pretty sure of saving the fruit, 
if it is in a good condition for keeping, and 
the other directions are followed. 
THE CURCULIO A GAIN EXTERMINATED. 
If the curculio had not more lives than a 
cat, we should have heard of its burial long 
ago. We are beginning to despair of any 
remedy, except perhaps that of Dr. Under¬ 
hill, (planting by the side of water) which is 
not everywhere practicable, nor even gen¬ 
erally so. Still we shall watch for any new 
propositions to get rid of this pest. Here is 
about the last, furnished to the Pittsburg 
Post, by Mr. A. H. Gross, who claims to 
have discovered a “ perfect remedy.” He 
says: 
This remedy has been used with decided 
success, by gentlemen in possession of 
large plum orchards, and is also favorably 
noticed by some of the agricultural farmers, 
to which I would add my own experience of 
its being what is claimed for it—an effective 
remedy against the curculio. Take Salt of 
Hartshorn, (Ammonia) 1 ounce; common 
soft soap, 1 pint. Dilute and dissolve with 
three gallons of water. Apply this prepara¬ 
tion with a syringe to the foliage and fruit of 
the tree, in the morning. Repeat twice or 
thrice a week. Fhe curculio makes the 
attacks by stinging the plum and depositing 
its eggs in the wound for about two weeks, 
during which time the remedy should be 
continued. They commence operations 
when the fruit is about one fourth grown. 
This remedy is not difficult to apply, and 
we advise to give it a trial.— Ed. 
AN ERROR IN ASPARA GUS CULTURE. 
A correspondent asks some information, 
touching the cultivation of this plant, and 
among other things he says : 
“ The other day speaking with a neighbor 
about an Asparagus bed, he said that he had 
a large bed, and that in the center of it the 
Asparagus was always best, and grew better 
than in the rest of ihe bed. Some time after, 
having occasion to dig a cellar in this bed, he 
found a large rock exactly in the center of 
it, and near the surface. He supposed the 
reason of the Asparagus growing better in 
this particular spot was, because the rock 
caused the roots to stop in their downward 
course, and so causing more of the strength 
and life of the plant, to go into the top. 
One of these days wont you give us an 
article on this in your paper 1 ? or at least 
your opinion of it?” Geo. W. Taylor. 
A rock is a very good foundation for a 
house, but a very poor one in our opinion for 
any species of vegetable. We have had as 
much to do with rocks, as any of our breth¬ 
ren of the plow, and our motto has long been 
“ Dirt bottom for every thing that grows.” 
If there was a better growth of Asparagus 
in that bed, over that rock, (a statement 
that we should want to see demonstrated 
by weight and measure,) it must have been 
for some other reason, than because the 
rock was there. Yet the idea is a very 
common one, that a rocky bed furnishes the 
best foundation for this plant. Most trees 
and plants have roots in proportion to their 
tops. If we wish to increase their tops we 
must give a wider and deeper breadth of soil 
to their roots. We do not think Asparagus 
is any exception to this principle. 
In preparing a bed we lay a foundation of 
loose cobble stones, oyster shells, or bones, 
not for the purpose of hindering the growth 
of the roots, but to foster their growth by 
drainage, above the draining material, there 
should be two feet of manure, and rich 
mold. If a portion of it it marsh mud, it 
wil be all the better. It wants a good deal 
of manure both spring and fall. With a 
good dirt bottom, in well drained land, and 
a heavy dressing of manure twice a year, 
you will have good stout Asparagus. Rocks 
are very good in their place, but the further 
off from the roots of plants the better. 
Every Asparagus plant when set should have 
four square feet of surface to grow in. Set 
the plants two feet apart each way. If you 
want giant Asparagus, give more room and 
make the soil richer.— [Ed. 
HYBRIDIZING OF PLANTS—FACTS VS. THEO¬ 
RIES. 
Editor American Agriculturist : 
In your paper for the present month, the 
substance of your remarks on potatoes in 
respect to hybridizing implies that two va¬ 
rieties will not mix except in a new produc¬ 
tion through the seed. 
As my experience conflicts with your theo¬ 
ry, I offer it for your consideration. 
A few years since my brother planted the 
white kidney next to some red potatoes. 
The result was that many of the kidneys 
were streaked with red. 
Again. Some four or five years ago I saw 
the Yam potatoes planted next to the com¬ 
mon black. The cross proved to be a black 
potato in form about half way between the 
two kinds planted, and in quality perfectly 
worthless for the table. 
And a third instance, which 1 have partic¬ 
ularly noticed, is that in which my brother 
planted Early Sovereigns, three or four years 
in succession, adjoining Mercers, and at the 
end of that time there was not a single Sov¬ 
ereign true to the original. I. R. 
Pelham, N. Y., June, 1856. 
Remarks :—We give place to the above 
instances of supposed crossing of different 
varieties of potatoes, because similar facts 
are quite common, and almost every atten 
tive observer has noticed similar appear¬ 
ances. It is however unphilosophical to in¬ 
fer from these facts, that there is any hy¬ 
bridizing, or new variety originated, that 
would perpetuate its kind. 
We should account for these facts by a 
different theory. In regard to case No. 1, 
we had a similar case upon our own potato 
patch last season. We planted some long 
red California potatoes. In digging them 
we noticed quite a number of white potatoes 
among them, having all the characteristics 
of the Californias, except the color. Upon 
inquiry we found that this variety. It is no 
uncommon thing for plants, especially high¬ 
ly cultivated plants like the potato to pro- 
