512 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ December 10, 1885. 
take care to have little to lose. But let a thoroughly able and 
industrious man feel he has something to gain by the steady increase 
of his holding, and let others see that he gains by his efforts, and 
the whole aspect of things would be changed. At the present 
time the best men are crippled in their endeavours to improve the 
land and their own condition, while the indolent enjoy equal 
privileges to which they have no fair claim. 
In schools, colleges, universities, in trades and professions 
encouragement is given to develope the faculties of the students, 
and rewards are offered for progress achieved. Everything that is 
possible is done to incite to greater attainments, but in allotment 
cultivation bad and good managers have the same privileges by the 
rigid limitation system that now prevails, and which appears to be 
at variance with the sound principles that govern commercial and 
even agricultural life in connection with large holdings. But 
whether a change is instituted of the kind suggested or not—and 
it is almost certain there will be sooner or later—our more immediate 
object is to point out the extreme improbability of a great increase 
in vegetable culture in small patches in agricultural districts proving 
anything like remunerative to the tillers as first-rate crops of roots 
and corn for the sustenance of their families. Fruit can and 
should be profitably grown in home plots, but cannot be regarded 
as certain to be satisfactory in mixed plots in open fields where 
birds and boys would need and obtain a share of the crops. 
NEW PRIMULAS. 
Those specially interested in Primroses will no doubt be pleased 
to learn that important additions are still being made to the host of 
those named and described, whether in cultivation in our gardens or 
not. It is only a year or two since Dr. Watt described a large 
number of new Himalayan Primulas in the Journal of the Linnsean 
Society. The descriptions are fortunately accompanied in this case 
with careful botanical drawings, and which greatly assist in giving an 
idea of their horticultural value. Since that time a few of the new 
species have found their way into cultivation, but in my opinion, 
seeing the almost everyday communication between this country and 
the colonies, it is regretable that a still greater number should not have 
found their way across the water. As represented in the draw¬ 
ings, P. Elwesiana, notably P. Dickeana, P. Kingii, P. Watti, and 
others have all large showy flowers, apparently quite distinct from 
anything hitherto in cultivation, while P. soldanelloides, P. sapphirina, 
P. reptans, P. muscoides, and its variety tenuiloba, P. Hookeri, and 
others are little gems ; and while the former group may be placed in 
the locality of P. Stuarti and sikkimensis, the latter are represented 
in cultivation only by P. Hydei and P. minutissima. Then later still 
we have P. Reedii, found, we believe, by Mr. Duthie in the Kumoan 
district, a very distinct species with large pretty white or cream 
flowers. And later still, indeed only last year, a colony containing no 
less than sixteen species and a variety has been found in or near 
Yun-nan, a district or province of the great Celestial Empire bearing 
that name. It is situated near to Burmah on the one hand, bordering 
Tibet on the other, and for all practical purposes may be designated 
as almost a continuation of the great range of Himalayan Mountains. 
As would naturally be expected, the differences between the new 
species and the old Himalayan ones, with many of which we are well 
acquainted in cultivation, is but little, and it is not at all improbable 
that some of them will be reduced to varieties of these standard 
species if we may judge from the very broad views which some of 
our English botanists take of a large number of the most popular 
genera at present in gardens. 
The plants were gathered by M. Delavay, a missionary travelling 
in those parts, in the early part of last year, and were fully described 
by M. A. Franchet of the Paris Museum in the Bulletin of the 
Botanic Society of France for November. 
All the species, with two exceptions, belong to the section 
Aleuritia— i.e , P. septemloba, M. A. Franchet, which belongs 
to the section Primulastrum, and P. Delavay:, M. A. Franchet, 
for which a new sub-genus has been coined called Omphalogramma. 
Primula septemloba, nov. sp., nearly allied to P. mollis and P. 
geraniifolia ; it seems, however, a good species ; P. bullata, nov. 
sp. ; P. bracteata, nov. sp. ; P. sonchifolia, nov. sp., closely 
allied to P. obtusifolia, but having distinct leaves resembling 
those of Souchus asper ; P. serratifolia, nov. sp. This name 
seems unfortunate, seeing that it is already a synonym of 
P. marginata, and which was taken up and used by Gusmus for a 
cross between minima and another. It is also allied to obtusifolia. 
P. secundiflora, nov. sp., resembling P. sikkimensis ; P. calliantha, 
nov. sp., allied to the above ; P. amethystina, nov. sp., with foliage 
like Beilis perennis and flowers resembling those of P. Kingii ; 
P. bella, nov. sp., allied to uniflora, hut with different leaves ; 
P. yunnanensis, nov. sp., allied to the above ; P. spicata, nov. sp., a 
remarkable species different from all other Primulas iD having a 
spicate inflorescense, quite a novelty, the flowers being much larger 
than P. uniflora ; P. glacialis, nov. sp., allied to P. nivalis and 
P. Fedtschenkoi, both Turkestan species ; P. dryadifolia, nov. sp, 
resembling Dryas octopetala, the leaves and bracts giving it a distinct 
character ; P. pinnatifida, nov. sp., allied to P. Wattii, flowers re¬ 
sembling Erinus alpinus, but very much larger ; P. cernua, nov. sp., 
near to P. capitata ; P. Delavayi, nov. sp., sub-genera Omphalo¬ 
gramma ; P. aaiicuhita var. polyphylla, which is very remarkable as 
being a Siberian species, and also three Himalayan species—namely, 
P. denticulata, P. Stuarti, on Mount Che-tcho-tza, &c., and P. 
sikkimensis, on the glaciers of Li-kiang.—M. 
A CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF TRANSPIRA¬ 
TION UNDER THE DIFFERENT RAYS OF THE 
SOLAR SPECTRUM. 
A paper on the above subject by Rev. Professor Henslow was 
read at the Linnean Society on Thursday last, December 3rd. The 
experiments described were undertaken to test the results of 
Wiesner, who found (contrary to the opinion of others, who thought 
that the brightest rays of the spectrum were the chief cause of 
transpiration) that it was mainly due to the rays which are absorbed 
by chlorophyll. The spectrum of that substance reveals seven 
absorption bands, the most powerful of which are in the red, blue, 
and violet, and when plants were grown under coloured glasses Mr. 
Henslow found just as Wiesner had done, that transpiration attains 
to a maximum under the monochromatic red glass and under the 
blue and violet as well, while ordinary colourless glass gave another 
maximum. On the other hand yellow and green gave a minimum. 
Wiesner’s interpretation is that light thus absorbed by chloro¬ 
phyll is converted into heat, and then it raises the temperature of 
the tissues, and so causes the formation of aqueous vapour. If this 
be true it would seem to account for Deherain’s discovery that 
plants can transpire in a saturated atmosphere, and as a corrobora¬ 
tion Wiesner found that light which had been first transmitted 
through a solution of chlorophyll w r as almost powerless to cause 
transpiration. A fact which Mr. Henslow could not account for 
was that while the red glass which admitted no other rays gave a 
maximum, the yellow glass, which transmitted red and green rays 
besides yellow, gave a minimum. It would seem as if yellow had 
actually a retarding effect upon the other rays. 
The method adopted by Mr. Henslow was to grow small 
Lettuces and other plants in miniature pots, and by wrapping them 
up in a gutta-percha sheeting tied round the base of the stems all 
loss of moisture from the earth was prevented. Then he weighed 
the whole day by day after its having been under each coloured 
glass for twenty-four hours in succession. He thus ascertained the 
per-centages of the losses, the means of which gave the results 
mentioned above. 
Mr. Henslow also drew attention to the importance of dis¬ 
tinguishing between transpiration and evaporation, the former 
being a vital action, the latter purely physical, and will take place 
from dead and living substances, but is modified or held in check 
to some extent by the latter. Thus if a leaf be cut in two, and 
one half suddenly killed by scalding, it will be found that this one 
rapidly dries up, while the other loses water much more slowly. 
Again, thick leaves and older ones absorb more heat than thin ones 
and younger ones respectively, yet the transpiration is greater from 
young leaves and deciduous, contrary to what one would expect if 
transpiration depended solely upon heat. 
LADY BEATRICE LAMBTON PINE APPLE. 
This fine Pine Apple has now been a long time before the public, yet 
we seldom hear of it being exhibited at any of our shows. This is much 
to be regretted, as it is a noble-looking fruit and reckoned of superior 
flavour. It has, in my experience, however, one fault, which may account 
for its being so little heard of—viz , its liability to get discoloured at the 
base, the juice oozing out as the pips ripen. It is of a very juicy nature, 
and large fruits are most liable to go bad in this way, which detracts from 
their appearance and prevents their appearing upon the exhibition table. 
No doubt, like some of our best varieties of GrapfS, this Pine requires 
some special treatment. My endeavour to find such is the object of 
writing these lines. If any of your readers have known and overcome 
this evil, by giving their mode of treatment through the Journal they 
will do good ervice to many besides myself.—D. B. 
ICE HEAPS. 
I have somewhere seen an account and figure of storing ice in the 
form of a thatch-covered heap, and shall be glad to be directed how to 
proceed in keeping ice in some such way as suggested. Our ice-house is 
not large, and we wish a supplementary store for use early in the season, 
