1869 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST 
19 
The Akebia in Fruit. 
In September last there appeared in the Agri¬ 
culturist an engraving of a beautiful hardy 
climber, the Akebia. Since then Mr. 
Geo. H. Hite, of Westchester Co., N. Y., 
brought us specimens of the fruit of this 
plant, which was quite new to us. Upon 
inquiry of those who have known the 
vine from its first introduction, we find 
that they never heard of its fruiting, and 
if this is not the first instance of its do¬ 
ing so in this country, it is at least the 
first in the vicinity of New York, and 
as such deserves recording. The en¬ 
graving gives the closed fruit of the aver¬ 
age size, and the open one reduced about 
one-third. It is a sort of berry-like pod, 
which is of a purplish-drab color, with 
a slight bloom. At full maturity it splits 
open, exposing the seeds, which are en¬ 
veloped in a pulp and form a gelatinous 
mass. The pod is rather spongy in tex¬ 
ture, and when freshly opened its inner 
surface has a rough iSli appearance that 
reminds one of a half of a cracker. We 
notice that the latest authorities place 
this plant in the Barberry family, for rea¬ 
sons which would not interest the general 
reader. The plant is one of the earliest 
to put out its leaves in spring, and it 
holds them until late in autumn. They 
are of a fine brilliant green, and as the 
vine is a rapid grower, it is very suitable 
for covering trellises. The delightful 
odor of its blossoms makes it very desir¬ 
able near the house. We hope ty see this 
interesting climber more generally cul¬ 
tivated, and we warn the nurserymen to 
provide a stock, as it is well known that 
when the Agriculturist popularizes a 
plant, a demand is quite sure to be made for it. 
It is propagated from cuttings of the old wood. 
Phloxes—The Moss Pink. 
Among the Phloxes are found some of our 
most charming plants. The Drummond’s 
Phlox is not ex¬ 
ceeded in variety 
and brilliancy by 
an} r other annual, 
while some of the 
tall perennial ones 
are late-blooming, 
and some of them 
truly magnificent. 
There is an hum¬ 
ble perennial, one 
which is different 
from others of that 
class. Its prostrate 
stems are furnish¬ 
ed with small, 
prickly leaves, 
and form dense 
tufts or mats, and 
these, in spring, 
are covered with 
flowers so pro¬ 
fusely as to hide 
the foliage. The 
engraving shows 
the form of the 
flowers,th el eaves, 
and the general habit of the plant, but the effect 
of a broad mat of it cannot be given in an illus¬ 
tration. The color of the flowers varies from 
purple to white, the latter being quite rare. 
The Adulteration of Seeds. 
FRUIT OF THE AKEBIA. 
lationships from the pinks proper. It is a Phlox, 
and the species is P. subukila, a name referring 
to its awl-shaped leaves. As it varies somewhat 
in tht) form of its leaves, as well as the color of 
its flowers, several names have been given, such 
as t P. setacea, P. nivalis , etc., but they are now 
regarded as only varieties. The Moss Pink is 
moss pink.— (T. subulo.ta.) 
found growing wild in Southern New York, 
New Jersey, and southward. It does best in a 
light, sandy soil, and is readily multiplied by 
dividing the clumps after flowering time, which 
A committee of the Royal Agricultural 
Society (Eng.), has recently reported its 
investigations upon the subject of seed 
adulteration. As a large share of the 
seeds sold in this country are imported, 
it is a matter of no little interest to our 
cultivators, especially as we are informed 
by the committee that “ It was represent¬ 
ed to the council that as the business of 
seedsmen is at present conducted; the 
purchaser of seeds frequently receives 
neither the kind nor the quality of the 
seeds he pays for.”—The causes of inferior 
seeds are: 1, Keeping seeds so long that 
their vitality is lost. 2, The addition of 
bad seed to good, and mixing old and new. 
3, By the addition of seed whose vitality 
has been killed. This is done with rare 
and valuable seed, killed seed of similar 
appearance being added to increase the 
quantity. What seed comes up is true to 
kind. 4, Manipulating and doctoring 
bad seed to make it look like good, as 
by dyeing bad clover seed, sulphur-smok¬ 
ing bad grass seed, oil-dressing bad turnip 
seed, etc. The committee found that 
there was no sure way to test the value 
of seeds except by sowing. They pur¬ 
chased samples of Cauliflower, Broccoli, 
Carrot, and White and Yellow Turnip 
seeds, from eighteen different wholesale houses, 
and trials w T ere made both at the Society’s 
grounds at Chiswick, and by one of the mem¬ 
bers of the committee separately. One hundred 
each of the above-named seeds were sown, and 
the numbers which came up are reported. We 
will only give the highest and lowest figures. 
Of Cauliflower, 
the range was 
from 86 to 24; 
Broccoli, 86 to 
35; Carrot, 61 to 
14; White Turnip, 
98 to 57; Yellow 
Turnip, 95 to 28. 
The subject is one 
that has caused 
no little excite¬ 
ment among Eng¬ 
lish seed dealers 
and growers, and 
an act which 
shall reform the 
abuse is to be 
presented to Par¬ 
liament. We are 
far from assuming 
that failure with 
seeds is always 
due to the bad 
quality of the 
seeds themselves. 
A want of knowl¬ 
edge in the sower 
often leads to a failure which is ascribed 
to the seeds. The synopsis of the report given 
above shows that the purchaser of seeds, 
as well as of other commodities, should have 
From the manner of growth of the plant and 
the pinlc-like appearance of the flowers, the 
popular name Moss Pink was naturally enough 
applied to it, though it is far removed in its re- 
is in April and May. One of the great merits 
of this plant is its early flowering, and to those 
who love these old-fashioned plants the masses 
of the Moss Pink are always associated with 
their thoughts of spring work in the 
garden.—A French writer recommends 
the Moss Pink for edgings to beds and bor¬ 
ders, and says it is “perfectly ravishing.” 
