AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
115 
and for this reason it i-. not advisable t<> 
shorten-in the young wood, except to pre¬ 
serve the form and symmetry of the plant; 
but all branches that interlace and cross 
each other must be cut out, and the general 
pruning so conducted as to keep the head of 
the plant well open for the admission of air. 
When pruning, look for caterpillar’s nests, 
and destroy them. We prefer to apply the 
manure in the Spring, and fork it in at once, 
using old, well-rotted barn-yard manure. 
The plants must be looked over occasion- 
sionally for insects, and the more frequently 
the ground is stirred the better, if the roots 
are not injured. If large berries are desired, 
thin them out when quite small. We prefer 
an open exposure rather than against a fence, 
which is no place for the gooseberry ; a little 
sunshine and free air will do it more good 
than harm. 
Mulching of various kinds has been rec¬ 
ommended to prevent mildew, but it is not 
always effectual. It is, however, useful in 
other respects, though we have not used it 
on the gooseberry in many years. Our pre¬ 
sent plan has succeeded without it. 
The Lancashire varieties of red, white 
and gieen, are those usually grown under 
the names of Crown Bob,Whitesmith, Roar¬ 
ing Lion, &c. Houghton’s Seedling, an 
American variety, has thus far escaped mil¬ 
dew. The berry is small, but the bushes 
are very productive, and the variety desir¬ 
able. __ 
Tlie Dahlia, 
vVe are of opinion that the Dahlia is usually planted too 
early. The florist is compelled to force his roots in order 
to furnish a large number of plants for sale. The ama¬ 
teur is under no such necessity. We will suppose the 
plants remain in a warm cellar, where they have spent 
the Winter. In the Spring they should be removed to a 
cool place, securely protected from frost. When they 
begin to grow take them out, if the weather is pleasant, 
and cover with a little earth. When the shoots have 
grown a few inches, the roots should be divided,so as to 
secure a tuber, or a portion of a tuber, to each shoot. II 
the tuber is large, cut away one half of it. They may 
then be planted in the spot where they are to grow, or put 
m pots to retard them. We do not'plant till about the 
first of June, and some of the best Dahlias we ever grew 
were not planted till past the middle of that month. The 
proper flowering season of the Dahlia, is the Fall of the 
year, when the air is mol st and most congenial to its hab- 
ii. If planted too soon, it makes a strong growth before 
midsummer, insects attack it, and the strength of the plant 
is exhausted before its proper flowering season arrives. 
Very few perfect blossoms are seen in midsummer. 
The soil of the Dahlia should be enriched by a little 
weil-rotted manure ; if the soil is sandy so much the bet- 
ler The Dahlia requires some pruning. Not more than 
one shoot should be allowed to grow from the same tu¬ 
ber, and the side shoots should be trimmed away from the 
lower portion of the stem, say from six to twelve inches 
from the ground. If the head of the plant sets very thick, 
some of the shoots should be thinned out. If large and 
perfect biooms are desired, the buds must be thinned out 
while they are small, removing the weake-t, and gener¬ 
ally leaving only one or two buds on the same stalk. The 
soil should be stirred occasionally and kept free from 
weeds. 
The Dahlia is a splendid flower, and deserves a promi¬ 
nent place in every garden, it blooms, too. at a season 
of the year when the garden has lost many of its attrac¬ 
tions, and it can illy be spared. 
We append a li-t of 24 choice varieties—12 fancy and 
12 plain: Fancy —Beauty of Bath, yelloiv ; Pre-eminent, 
dark plum; Le Phare, scarlet; Onflamme, orange; Belle 
de Paris, blush; Gem, cherry; Gem ol the Grove, dark 
maroon; Grand Duke, bluish lilac; Hyppolite, plum ; Sir 
C Napier, red; Surnmitof Perfection, plum; Blanchefleur, 
white. Plain— Admiration, white andscarlet; Constancy, 
buff red tip ; Oloire de Kain, maroon, striped and spotted; 
Impe-atrice Eugenie, white andpurple; Triumph de Rou- 
oaix, amber, white tip; Beauty of the Grove, buff, edged 
\iith enm-mn ; Elizabeth, lilac, white tip : Floral Beauty, 
crimson, shaded with pink; Mrs. Hansard, yellow, white 
tip; Roi de Pontille, crimson, tipped with peach; Madame 
Zahler, buff, with crimson tin ; Miss Hentwortli, blush li¬ 
lac, shaded with crimson. 
’flic CSiinese Potato (Dioscorea batatas ). 
HOW IT STANDS COLD WEATHER, AND HOW VALUED IN 
EUROPE. 
Those who have read this Journal for two years past 
know the course we have advised in regard to this plant. 
We were, we believe, among the first to warn the com¬ 
munity against investing their money in >t, and we are 
sorry to say that our predictions in regard to it are prov¬ 
ing true We would much prefer that, the plant should 
have turned out to be all its friends claimed for it. During 
the past month, in one of our “ country rambles,” we 
chanced to visit a plot in Flushing—the largest in the 
country, we be'ieve, and as the public had been invited 
to examine it, we took the l'berty to spend an hour with 
the workmen who were digging the roots which had been 
left in the ground over Winter. 
On the plot referred to, which was planted last season, 
we found the tubers varying in size from a pipe-stem to 
an inch in diameter at the bottom, with an occasional 
larger one. The majority of them were not larger than 
our fingers.- It has been claimed for the Dioscorea that it 
would endure the Winter, and continue to increase in 
size from year to year. We found, however, that very 
many of them were badly affected by freezing. Some 
were killed outright, while more of them were frost¬ 
bitten in one-half to three-fourths of their length or more. 
The frozen part resemMqfl a common potato frozen. 
This plot had been supplied with a coating of manure 
during Winter, and we were informed that this had 
smothered them, and been the cause of rotting. On re¬ 
turning home, we examined some roots in our own gar¬ 
den, which had been left in the ground over Winter. 
They were along the east side of a board fence, and 
some" hat protected by this, as well as by a snow-drift for 
most of the Winter. On digging them, we found all be¬ 
low five inches from the surface in a sound condition, but 
the parts above this depth were decayed. Some common 
potatoes left in the same ground, within three inches of 
the surface, came out sound. From these observations, 
and what we hear elsewhere, we think it about settled 
that they are, to say the least, no hardier than our com¬ 
mon potato. We do not yet perceive that they have any 
special claims upon public attention, beyond mere nov¬ 
elty. 
There is still mudh said of their wonderful suc¬ 
cess, and the high value set upon them in Europe. On 
this point, we present the following extract from a letter 
just at h ind, from Wm. H. Brewer, Esq., a reliable sci¬ 
entific gentleman, who is pursuing investigations in agri¬ 
cultural science in Germany and elsewhere. His letter 
is dated at Munich, Bavaria, April 1, 1857. He says: 
_‘-A word on the Dioscorea batatas. I have made in¬ 
quiries when practicable, and find the opinion of it aoout 
the same that prevails among some of you in America. 
Professor Smith, Professor of Botany, and Director of 
the Botanical Gardens at Heidelberg, informed me that 
there, both in the Scientific Department and in the Heidel¬ 
berg department of the Gardens, they had entirely failed 
to get such brilliant results as were heralded from France. 
He was not inclined to think the plant of any considerable 
practical value for Germany.... Professor Von Martius, 
perhaps among the first botanists in Europe, tells me that 
the experiments in the Botanical Gardens attached to the 
University here (Munich) were attended with similar re¬ 
sults, and he was of the same opinion as Prof. Smith.”_ 
Soivu—Seeltinff Western Homes-Goenl 
Advice. 
From a com municationgto the Christain Advocate and 
Journal, by Rev. T. Spicer, referring to questions asked 
by his Eastern friends, we make the following ex¬ 
tract : 
“ The Slate of Iowa is very extensive, its soil is very 
feilile,and its population is rapidly increasing. Inl840, 
its population was 78.00U; it now exceeds 600,000 ; its 
increase last year was 224,000. It is estimated that last 
year, Iowa produced not less than 31,162,632 bushels of 
corn, and 2,014,388 bushels of potatoes. In answer to 
questions respecting the propriety of removing from the 
East to settle here, I have only to say ; that to a young 
man, or a man in the vigor of life, who has a family of 
sons, who are inclined to agricultural pursuits, I think 
this country, especially Iowa, oflers great facilities to 
become comfortably situated, and even independent; 
especially should he happen to locate near where cities 
or villages may hereafter spring up. But such must 
calculate to endure some privations for a few years to 
come. 
But I think a man somewhat advanced in life, and that 
has no sons, or whose sons are not inclined to agriculture, 
who .has a good farm ir. the East, and is doing 
well in his business, may as well stay where he is. 
These immense prairies are generally very fertile, and 
the agriculturist who understands his business, and 
properly attends to it, may become wealthy. He and his 
family may for a season (eel lonely ; but in all probability, 
in a few years there will be gathered around him all the 
comforts and conveniences of his early Eastern home. 
If he is religious, let him be careful to carry his religion 
with him, and be sure to maintain it, when hegetsthere. 
Let him “ Watch and pray, lest he fall into temptation.” 
I have understosd that many remove into the Western 
country, who, not finding any organized Church, and but 
few professors of religion around them, forsake the as¬ 
sembling of themselves together for worship, aud soon 
backslide Let Christians beware. If you go, “ Let your 
light shine, that others may see your good works, and 
glorify your Father in Heaven.” 
NOTICES TO CORK ES POND ENTS 
AND GLEANINGS. 
Ten articles from regular and transient contributors and 
a multitude of notes, answers to inquiries, gleanings, &c., 
are in type, waiting room. We wish to have all leading 
articles on hand a month, when practicable. We now go 
to press much earlier than formerly, and need time to pre 
pare and arrange articles ; and then the printers, stereo¬ 
typers, folders, stichers, mailers and mail carriers must 
each have a little time to get the paper into the readers 
hands. Do not put off your contributions, queries, &c., 
until just as the paper is going to press. 
Cucumber fSugs.— Dr. Heckerman, of Tiffin, 
writes : Most gardeners are very much annoyed by 
these bugs, which prey alike upon the cucumber, melon, 
pumpkin and squash—the latter being its favorite. Va¬ 
rious plans have been devised for their protection, such as 
soot, &c. A method which I have practiced with nearly 
entire success, is to form a mixture of equal parts of finely 
ground black pepper and wheat flour, and dust the plants, 
while the dew is upon them with this mixture, using an 
ordinary flour or pepperbox. It is a fact generally known, 
that black pepper is so obnoxious to most insects, that 
few will approach or stay in its presence The object of 
the flour is to combine with the pepper, and with the 
water or dew to form a paste, which will adhere lo the 
leaves for many days unless washed off by heavy rains ; 
in which case the application should be renewed. 
SSeai Manure—B. S., of Dutchess Co—Poultry drop¬ 
pings, are without any doubt exceedingly valuable on 
almost all crops. The best three avail,ible manures, in 
our opinion urefinely ground unburned bones, Peruvian 
guano, and hen manure. The latter if kept dry, pulver¬ 
ized and thoroughly mixed with four or five time its 
bulk of muck or earth, with or without plaster, is capital 
for putting into the hill with any seed. Asa general thing 
we would advise the use of poultry droppings, directly 
around the seed. The best results we have witnessed 
were from adding to corn and potatoes a mixture of one 
bushel hen manure, one bushel plaster, one peck of air 
slaked lime. These were worked well together only as 
fast as wanted for use, and a large handful scattered in 
each hill and the seed put upon it and immediately covered. 
Pulverize this and all other manures as much as possible, 
so that they may be diffused evenly through the soil. It. 
may be sown broadcast as a top-dressing, or be dug in 
around the roots of trees and plants. It can be econo¬ 
mized by putting it with the seed, but can hardly 
come amiss, used in any manner. 
'S'lie luanureal value ok' Guano and Yel¬ 
low lupine for barren Soils.— From a letter 
from our Waterloo correspondent, S. W., we make the 
following extract: “ The Count de Goucey, in a letter 
to B. P. Johnson, Secretary of our Stale Society, says : 
Within the last few years by the aid of Guano, four vil¬ 
lages near Cloes, on the Rhine, with a population of 4,000, 
have become rich, expending now about $100,000 a year 
for guano alone. (?) The Baron also tells us that another 
means of growing a crop on poor soils heretofore left un¬ 
cultivated, from very barrenness, is to grow the Yellow 
Lupine, (I suppose Lupinus lutens). yhis plant has been 
cultivated of late wilh great success on the sterile wastes 
of Prussia, producing not only forage, but grain, contain¬ 
ing as much azote (nitrogen) as Horse-beans. I think 
this species of Liguminose would be a desideratum on 
the thin sandy soils of Long-Island, and New Jersey. If 
it will grow on a soil too poor tor clover, it undoubtedly 
collects more food from the atmosphere, and may sup¬ 
ply the place of clover as a manuring crop.” 
CJlip Manure.—II. H. Dean, of Vermont, inquires 
what he shall do with it. It will hardly come amiss for 
any crop It is a good absorbent for other manures in the 
stables, yards and privies. It is a very good dressing for 
fruit trees, and for grass land. 
Guano Experiments.—J. Mosely, of Mass. We 
shall giv* the substance of these in a subsequent number. 
