103 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[March, 
Florida and westward, and is the only species 
of Gilia in the Atlantic States, though in Texas 
and westward to California the species are nu¬ 
merous, and some of them of great heauty, 
though none are quite so showy as this. 
The Atomizer in Horticulture. 
A number of years ago, a contrivance for diffus¬ 
ing cologne-water or other perfumes in a fine spray, 
■or rather mist, was introduced by some French 
perfumer. Later the apparatus found an applica¬ 
tion in surgery, for producing a local benumbing 
of the nerves, by use of the spray of ether, or 
•other highly volatile liquids. After a while the im¬ 
plements were used in horticulture, for the applica- 
Fig. 1.—A CHEAP ATOMIZER 
lion of insect destroying liquids to plants. The 
Atomizer, as it is called, requires a blast of air, 
which, on a small scale, may be furnished by the 
mouth, but is usually produced by the squeezing 
•of an India-rubber bag, or by means of a bellows. 
We have figured contrivances, worked by both the 
bellows and bag, which have been found useful in 
Fig. 2.— HOW TO MAKE AN 
ATOMIZER. 
the treatment of greenhouse and 
window plants, and also those in 
the open ground. The superiori¬ 
ty of these over other forms of sprinklers, 
is that they supply the most minute quan¬ 
tities of liquids, and yet thoroughly bedew 
the plant. The Atomizers referred to, are 
rather too expensive for those who have 
need to use one but seldom. A very 
simple and cheap affair has been recently 
introduced by Messrs. B. K. Bliss & Sons, 
which is shown in the engraving. It is 
cheaply made of tin, and is operated by 
the breath, which is not laborious where 
one has but a few plants to treat. Tobacco 
or quassia tea, or whatever liquid is to be 
used, is placed in the reservoir, and by blowing 
through the horizontal tube, it will be thrown in 
an almost invisible spray upon the plants. Any one 
handy at such matters can make an Atomizer, 
although the one figured is so cheap, that there is 
little inducement to spend much time in making 
one. There is an upright tube which dips into the 
liquid, and a horizontal one through which the blast 
is sent. Blowing across the open end of the upright 
tube creates a vacuum in that, and the water 
rises, just as the wind blowing across the top of the 
chimney, causes an upward draft in the fire-place ; 
the liquid that thus rises in the upright tube, is 
scattered in very fine particles, or atomized by the 
blast. The essential point is to have the top of 
the upright tube just half-way over the opening in 
the horizontal one. The accompanying engraving 
(fig. 2) shows how the writer extemporized an 
Atomizer, to replace a broken one. A large cork 
is cut as there shown, and two pieces of glass tube 
inserted at right angles. These fitting tightly in 
the holes of the cork, can be readily adjusted in 
the proper position. If a bottle is used for this, 
the cork should have a groove cut to admit air. 
-O 4 i ma ^- Cw -» 0»- - 
The Rotting of Celery. 
BT PETER HENDERSON. 
“ J. C.,” of Ogden City, U. T., wishes me to tell 
him, through the columns of the Agricultuist, why 
it is that his celery prematurely rots. It may be 
from several causes—some of which he may be, and 
jj others he may not be, able to control. The cause 
a of decay that he may be unable to avert is, that by 
| peculiarities of the season, a rank and succulent 
■growth is made just before it is time to place away 
the celery in the trenches in the fall, and but a slight 
bruise given to the leaves or stems, when in that 
condition, will quickly cause decay. Another 
cause, and one from which even some of our most 
extensive market gardeners in New Jersey have 
suffered the past season is, that at the time of lift¬ 
ing the celery to put it away in the trenches, the 
ground was very dry, and so continued for some 3 
or 4 weeks after, so that the celery in the trenches 
failed to start roots, it consequently wilted, and 
then began to decay, instead of starting to grow as 
it should have done, had the soil not been too dry. 
Now to avoid this cause of decay, as far as possi¬ 
ble, immediately on digging up the celery, it should 
be at once set in the trenches, and the air as com¬ 
pletely as may be excluded from the roots, so that 
they are keot moist enough at the bottom of the 
trench to emit roots. When the ground was suita¬ 
ble, I have allowed some of the soil to adhere to 
the roots of the celery on digging it, this prevents 
the wilting, and is perhaps the best plan if the time 
can be afforded, but it makes the work much slow¬ 
er, as almost every root requires to be handled sep¬ 
arately, instead of three or four at once, which is 
the usual way in placing them in the trenches. 
Another cause of decay, and one of the most 
common, but one that ought to be avoided, is 
in digging too early, or covering up the trenches 
too soon. No date can be given as a rule for 
either of these operations. Each one must use 
his own judgment in the matter, keeping in mind 
that celery should never be lifted until there is dan¬ 
ger of its being frozen ; I do not mean a slight 
frost, such as 5 or 10° below the freezing point, for 
unless very soft indeed, even 10° will not injure it, 
but such a frost as would fasten it in the ground 
so that it could not be dug out. Freezing to this 
degree will kill it. There is no need usually for cover¬ 
ing against frost until 3 or 4 weeks after it has been 
put away, and then the covering should be gradu¬ 
ally applied, and of a kind that will lay lightly, 
such as leaves from the woods, or rough stable litter. 
The Blue Gum—Eucalyptus globulus. 
BT P. J. BEIiCKMANS, AUGUSTA, GA. 
Every horticultural journal issued on this Con¬ 
tinent has, during the past two years, repeatedly 
given notes on the species of Eucalyptus, but, if we 
may judge from the many inquiries which we re¬ 
ceive from the Northern and Middle States, this 
genus has not been correctly brought before the 
average amateur tree planter. Last summer a New 
York paper, in mentioning the Blue-gum, Eucalyp¬ 
tus globulus, remarked that, as the trees are said to 
drive away musquitoes and fevers from their neigh¬ 
borhood, this desideratum is not to be overlooked 
by the inhabitants of New Jersey ; to which a New 
Jersey paper replies, by recommending this tree for 
the fiats of Long Island. From this it is evident 
that the character of the genus is misunderstood. 
The most important requisite, its hardiness, is ig- I 
nored altogether, and as regards this, we would re¬ 
mark that neither the Eucalyptus globulus, (Blue- 
gum,) or any of the thirty or forty other species of 
the genus are hardy in Middle Georgia, conse¬ 
quently any experiments tending to acclimate these 
trees in New Jersey or New York must prove un¬ 
successful. Many kinds were cultivated in Eng¬ 
land as early as 1790, but every tree was killed dur¬ 
ing the winter of 1829. Since then the genus has 
been discarded in England from the list of hardy 
trees. Our first experiments were made in 1858, 
when we planted several species in a sheltered spot 
in the center of a large tract of wood. Among the 
lot were E. pulverulenta, E. amygdalina, E. populi- 
folia, E. saligna, E. Jloribunda, E. virrdnalis, E. data, 
and E. globulus. Their growth was very rapid dur¬ 
ing four or five years, except E. amygdalina, saligna 
and viminalis, which did not survive the first win¬ 
ter. Iu March, 1863, our last plant died ; this was 
E. pulverulenta, which resisted the longest and 
showed more tenacity of life than any of the others, 
as it was killed to the ground several times and 
threw up new and vigorous shoots the following 
spring. The specimen had attained a hight of some 
twenty feet, when it finally gave up the attempt. 
In 1865 a particular friend and zealous amateur hor¬ 
ticulturist sent us from North Australia some 15 
species of Eucalyptus, which gave us opportunity 
to further test the relative hardiness of these newer 
species. During the spring of 1866 some forty 
plants of the different kinds were set out, but every 
one was killed outright by the first frost the fol¬ 
lowing November. Again, in 1867, the experiment 
was repeated with the same results ; this was suf¬ 
ficient to warrant us iu foregoing any further at¬ 
tempt with this genus in this latitude, at least with 
the object of testing its value for timber trees. 
It is well known that the influence of the sea- 
breeze has marked effects upon certain plants, thus 
many varieties of Figs, which seldom escape being 
more or less scorched by our winters when planted 
here in open field, remain perfectly uninjured near 
Norfolk, Ya., when planted on the immediate sea¬ 
shore, although the thermometer there falls some 
20 degrees lower than it does here. For this reason 
some of the Eucalypti will doubtless stand the 
winter several degrees further North, when having 
the full benefit of the sea breeze, than they will if 
planted inland. In the vicinity of Charleston, S. C., 
and Savannah, Ga., some species of Eucalyptus are 
reported as successful, but the plants are yet too 
young to prove their hardiness. I am, however, 
safe in saying that it is doubtful if any of the spe¬ 
cies will succeed in the Atlantic States, beyond the 
zone of the Orange ; and further, that the narrow¬ 
leaved species are more tender than those with 
broader leaves. The success of our California 
friends with this genus as high as the 38th degree, 
must not lead us here to the belief that we can do 
likewise in a similar latitude in the Atlantic States. 
Although latitudes may be similar, the isothermal 
lines and liygrometric conditions are not. 
It is much to be regretted that these trees can 
never be expected to grow in the Eastern and Mid¬ 
dle States, so far as to make permanent plantations, 
but they, or at least some of them, may be made 
useful for ornamental purposes. The Eucalyptus 
globulus is perhaps the most desirable, as its growth, 
when planted in suitable ground, is remarkable. 
When young and in thrifty growth, its foliage is 
very luxuriant and of a blueish glaucous tint, hence 
its name of Blue-gum, but if stunted, it soon be¬ 
comes rusty and unsightly. Young plants may be 
used in the same manner and for the same purposes 
as Cannas, Ferdinandas, Wigandias, Brugmansias, 
or other large-leaved ornamental plants, now so 
much appreciated in sub-tropical gardening. The 
seed should be sown in the fall, using seed-pans 
and covering very thinly; it germinates freely 
within a week, if fresh, and the plants must be pot¬ 
ted off at once. If properly treated during winter, 
plants will be of sufficient size the following May 
or June, to be set in open ground, and by fall will 
have made a large growth, and give a fine effect 
in the flower garden. 
If our fever and ague districts must for a while 
remain as they are, producing musquitoes and 
shakes, because of the impossibility of growing 
