344 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
I pr’l 18, 1896. 
Range after range of light span-roofs from 5 to 10 yards in length, and 
from 7 to 12 feet in width, some sloping to the ground, others resting 
on brick walls about 3 feet high, and ranging from 20 to 60 yards in 
length, and void of all outside ornamentation, and some of them without 
a fence or tree to block the sight; such is a market-growing establish¬ 
ment ; but when we look inside the houses we see how well they are 
constructed, how well they are heated, and how instantaneously perfect 
in ventilation; that the plants themselves seem to know what is reqnired, 
and are matchless only with themselves. It may be a houseful of 
Genistas, Ferns, Cyclamens, scarlet Pelargoniums, Fuchsias, Marguerites, 
or splendid Mignonette grown in long narrow pits, heated of course, but 
so that the lights can be taken off on all favourable opportunities. The 
culture of all and sundry leave nothing further to be desired. 
When we come to consider that the number of such growers may be 
counted by the hundred, for they are not only in Kent, but located 
round and round the outer zone of the metropolis, we can well believe 
the business transactions to be of no little magnitude ; indeed, it may be 
said that the business done in plants and cut flowers shows the healthiest 
increase of any other profession that can be mentioned ; and if the love 
of flowers as beautiful adornments to civil life be any criterion to go by 
we may certainly say that the cultivation of plants need have no fear 
for the future. 
Though some of the best market growers may be found located in 
many parts of Kent, yet excellent produce comes from Clapton, 
Edmonton, Tottenham, Southgate, and Finchley, but the smoke fiend is 
fast finding them out. The Londoner himself has to encompass a 
distance of fifteen miles before he can be sure of beholding the sun in 
all its brilliancy. Botanists, as they ascend some of the mountains of 
the world, pass through belts or zones of vegetation, and the higher they 
travel members of the vegetable kingdom become more dwarf and hardy, 
and are lost sight of, giving place to mere lichens. Such we may com¬ 
pare the metropolis of the British Empire to one of those mountains, the 
City being the apex. We find vegetation extremely vacant, yet on 
examination we find on buildings, such as sacred edifices, the 
Liverworts, but so covered over with carbon that they might well be 
termed Sootworts. In moving out from the heart of the City the horti¬ 
culturist recognises a cosmopolitan in the Aucuba japonica, but in a 
weakly state. Then he comes to the zone of Plane trees struggling to 
get to the tops of the houses, but never will. A little further come the 
Limes, Lilacs, and Laburnums, and the under shrubs, such as the 
Aucuba, the Euonymus, looking terribly sickly and dilapidated, while 
for a covering to the walls the Virginian Creeper seems to be the only 
plant to thrive, and it is not until we get to Acton or Ealing that a zone 
can be found where vegetation may be said to be fairly healthy and 
vigorous, and a type of what it ought to be. 
Nevertheless, for all the drawbacks against plant life in towns a 
certain amount of good springs out of the black evil in the atmosphere. 
Innumerable plants of the commoner kinds, such as red and white 
Daisies, Arabis, Pinks, and a host of others not annual by nature are made 
so by the vitiated atmosphere, and thus a great number of small growers 
who propagate and cultivate such plants for market find a comfortable 
living.—A. M. 
(To be continued.) 
VIOLETS IN WINTER. 
I WAS quite pleased to read the article by your very able and 
energetic correspondent, Mr. E. Molyneux, on page 289, and I heartily 
endorse every word he writes in the praise of sweet Violets. As to their 
being neglected, I am pleased to say such is not the case in this 
neighbourhood, for there are Violet frames in most good gardens, and 
in a few they are quite a speciality. One young lady boasts of never 
appearing in public without her bunch of Violets when it is possible to 
procure them, and in the garden here we are expected to have Violets 
from October to May in a small but continuous supply—a task more 
formidable than your correspondent would have us believe, especially if 
a little artificial heat is not at command. Let us consider the very 
severe winter through which we have just passed. We had six weeks 
continuous hard frost, many times the thermometer registering over 
30°, and on two occasions 37° of frost. Our Violet frames were never 
opened during this spell of severe weather, and if we had not had a 
frame which we could enter, with hot-water pipes sufficient to keep out 
king Frost, where would have been our continuous supply of Violets 1 
I do not wish to imply by these remarks that Mr. Molyneux was not 
able to keep up the supply of flowers without fire heat, for I know he is 
one of those men who are difficult to be beaten by anything ; but I do 
wish it to be understood that it is much easier of accomplishment when 
fire heat can be employed if required, and I maintain that fire heat is 
an advantage in winter Violet culture if properly applied. 
The frame I mention above is really a three-quarter span pit, about 
60 feet by 10, in three divisions, with a path along the back, where we 
root and winter our Chrysanthemums. One of these divisions was 
filled with Violet plants—Comte de Brazza and Marie Louise, both of 
which flowered splendidly just when most wanted. One hint is neces¬ 
sary here—do not fumigate Violets if you can avoid it, as they do not 
like tobacco srpoke. We had some Pelargoniums on shelves in the same 
division which required smoking. The Violets were covered with news¬ 
papers during the operation, but it did not save them. Almost every 
tender leaf was marked more or less, while the Pelargoniums were unin¬ 
jured. With the experience of last winter fresh in our minds we have 
decided to erect new frames for our Violets, into one section of which we 
hope to arrange pipes according to the sketch enclosed,—A. Haggaet, 
Ludlow. 
[The sketch represents a three-quarter span brick pit, 9 inches above 
ground on one side, and about 2 feet on the other. The upper part of 
the walls are 4^ inch (no doubt to be set in cement), for affording a 
ledge for a flow and return 2 or 3 inch pipe. The pit is 6 feet wide, 
there is a depth of 2 feet for fermenting materials, and a flow and 
return pipe for bottom heat is also provided. The desire is to afford 
ladies an opportunity of gathering Violets in the winter, where litter 
for covering frames is objectionable. The “ American Florist ” gives an 
illustration of a span-roofed Violet house with a central sunk path and 
side beds, heated by a pipe at the base of the rafters. In such a 
structure ladies could gather Violets with ease and comfort in winter.! 
FUNGOID DISEASES OF PLANTS.* 
The importance of devoting more searching and systematic attention 
to the diseases of plants has been gaining ground in late years. This is 
evidenced abroad by the establishment of experimental stations and the 
publication of detailed and explicit reports, but, unfortunately, in this 
country very little has been done, and that solely by individual effort. 
It is true that we have a Government Department, which corresponds 
to a Department of Agriculture, but the very meagre reports are only 
additional evidence of the indifference which characterises the “ higher 
powers ” in all which concerns the diseases of plants. How disastrous 
these diseases may be has been exemplified by the damage done to corn 
crops in Australia, Apple crops in parts of the United States, to Coffee 
in Ceylon and Mysore, to the Opium Poppy in India, the Cocoa-nut 
Palm in the West Indies, the Tobacco crops in Australia, the Vine 
industry in parts of Europe, and now to the Sugar-cane in the West 
Indies. In nearly all these cases it was not until the diseases became 
established and a vast amount of injury was done, that any effort was 
made to combat the disease. There is no reason to doubt that it is 
possible to check the spread of these diseases if effort is made in time, 
but the great desideratum is a more extended knowledge of the nature 
of the parasites, and the methods of remedy which have been applied 
in similar cases when any one of these inflictions becomes a disaster and 
a large industry is threatened with ruin, and not till then, do we hear 
the cry for scientific investigation, and suggestions of remedies. 
Those who are practically conversant with horticulture will be ready 
to admit that diseases in plants may have several causes. They may 
result from the attacks of insects of various kinds ; they may be- 
consequent on the incursions of parasitic fungi; they may result 
from external injuries; in some cases disease may be as hereditary as in 
the animal subject; and in a great many cases we venture to think 
that they are the result of bad or mistaken cultivation. It is not 
flattering to the culturist to be informed that any failure is due to- 
bad culture, and very few would believe it if they were told ; but 
undoubtedly, speaking from a large experience, we are bound to confess- 
that it is not uncommon to meet with cases in which plants in a 
diseased condition have been supposed to be infested with fungi, and 
treated as such, in which no trace of fungi could be found, and the 
diseased condition could only be attributed to bad cultivation. 
It is not our intention to occupy your time with allusion to any other 
of the diseases of plants than those produced by the attacks of fungi; 
but before making those observations to which we desire chiefly to direct 
your attention, we might offer a suggestion or two on a closely related 
subject. We will suppose for a moment that microbes and ferments are- 
not fungi, but very close relations ; yet there cannot be the slightest 
doubt that they are intimately associated with diseases in animals, and 
possibly, more than we think, with the diseases of plants. It is not so- 
many years since the discoveries in connection with anthrax determined 
the question of the presence of bacteria in certain diseases of animals^ 
whilst every year adds further knowledge, which leads to the conclusion 
that bacteria are not only present, but are the primary cause of many 
forms of animal disease. 
In past times we spoke of zoology and of botany in terms which led 
to the inference that life in animals and life in plants were quite 
different things, whereas nowadays we are in the habit of speaking of 
biology, and thus tacitly confess that, in all essentials, life is the same 
in plants and in animals. Such being the case, and there are more 
analogies than we commonly admit, then there may be great similarities 
between the diseases of animals and those of plants. This was pointed 
out, on a memorable occasion, by Sir James Paget, and experience 
strengthens the views he then enunciated. There have been of late years 
some startling revelations as to the presence and infectious character of 
microbes in plant diseases; some of these have been, and others are- 
waiting to be confirmed. Only to mention two or three we may instance 
the Californian Vine disease, that prevalent North American disease,. 
“Peach yellows,” another disease called the “Pear blight,” and a rotting 
disease in Melons and Cucumbers. In the last instance experiments 
proved that the disease could be communicated to healthy plants by 
inoculation with the juice of diseased Cucumbers. Admitting all this to 
be substantial, we are face to face with a new aspect of plant disease 
corresponding to diphtheria, scarlatina, typhoid, and other zymotic 
diseases of animals, and a question to which horticulturists would do- 
well to keep open ears and observant eyes. 
In the case of diseases in the human subject, we know how much 
* Lecture lay Dr. M. 0. OooxB at the Horticultural Club. 
