552 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ December 26, 1889. 
of Dr. Eichler, having heen conferred on Prof. Engler, of Breslau, Prof. 
Drban becomes Second Director of the Berlin Botanic Garden; and 
Prof. Prantl, of Aschaffenburg, succeeds Prof. Engler a3 Director of the 
Botanic Garden at Breslau. Prof. Sadebeck, of Hamburg, is appointed 
Director of the Botanic Garden in that town, in the place of the late 
Dr. Reichenbach. Dr. G. von Lagerheim vacates the Professorship at 
Lisbon, to which he was lately appointed, and goes to Ecuador as 
Professor of Botany and Director of the Botanic Garden at Quito. Dr. 
H. Molisch, of Vienna, takes the chair of the late Dr. Leitgeb in the 
Polytechnic at Gratz. Dr. F. Hueppe is appointed Professor of 
Bacteriology at the University of Prague, and is succeeded in the same 
chair at Wiesbaden by Dr. G. Frank, of Berlin. The venerable 
Professor von Naegeli retires from the Directorship of the Botanic 
Garden at Munich. Mr. F. S. Earle, Prof. E. S. Goff, and Prof. L. R. 
Taft have been appointed special agents in the Section of Vegetable 
Pathology in the United States Department of Agriculture. Mr. H. H. 
Rusby has been appointed Professor of Botany and Materia Medica in 
the Hew York College of Pharmacy. 
- OXALIS FLORIBUNDA AS A BASKET PLANT.—The peculiar 
nature and graceful habit render the Oxalis especially adapted for this 
purpose. The brown insignificant little tubers tell no tale of the beauty 
hidden within, nor how, planted in small companies of four or five, they 
are ready in August or September to begin life over again, and from the 
slender drooping stems, with their leaves of Clover shape, to the clusters 
of blossoms, dainty and sweet, to charm everybody the whole winter 
long, and half the spring beside. They vary a little in habit, the yellow 
and rose varieties drooping more in flower and leaf than the white, 
which holds itself rather erect, yet is just as beautiful and as well 
adapted for hanging purposes, while their habit of bloom in all winter¬ 
blooming varieties is equally profuse. Pot as early as possible in good 
sandy loam, and three, four, or five in the same pot. After flowering 
the foliage will turn yellow, and should be allowed to dry gradually, 
when the bulbs can be shaken out and repotted at the proper time. 
While many plants in the window are often chary of bloom, to the 
great disappointment of their owners, the Oxalis has this merit, that it 
is never without flowers in season, and will reward by its abundance of 
bloom the attention bestowed upon it. It will ent ; rely fill any basket, 
to the exclusion of all else, for it is a vigorous grower, and its leaf stems 
are equally profuse with its flowers.—H. K. 
- The American Agricultural Department has been making 
careful inquiry as to the Food op Crows ; and the result, as set 
forth in a report by Mr. Walter B. Barrows, is likely to surprise 
those who have always contended that these birds do very much more 
good than harm. It is not disputed that they destroy injurious insects, 
that they are enemies of mice and other rodents, and that they are 
occasionally valuable as scavengers ; but these services are slight in 
comparison with the mischief for which they are responsible. The 
injury done by them to Indian Corn, Wheat, Rye, Oats, and other 
cereals is enormous. According to one observer, the crow eats corn 
“from ten minutes after planting until the blades are 3 inches high ; ” 
and more than a score of other observers testify that he not only 
pulls up the young plants, but digs up the newly sown seed. His 
depredations extend to Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, Beans, Pea Nuts, 
Cherries, Strawberries, Raspberries, and Blackberries ; and he widely 
distributes certain poisonous plants, the seeds of which are improved 
rather than impaired by passage through his digestive organs. As if 
all this were not enough, it is shown that the crow eats beneficial 
insects, and that he makes himself a most formidable nuisance by 
destroying the eggs and young both of domesticated fowls and wild 
birds. 
- Retarded Germination.— “ E. A.” writes as follows in 
Nature :—“ 1 shall be much obliged to any of your readers who can give 
an explanation of the probable cause of the above phenomenon, which 
I have remarked this year. I sowed a number of patches of seeds of 
various hardy annuals in the garden in the last week of April ; about 
half of them came up after the usual interval strongly and regularly. 
Such were Calendula Pongei, Convolvulus minor, Lavatera trimestris, 
Collinsia bicolor, Iberis (white and red), Specularia speculum, Linum 
rubrum, &c. Then there were some of which a few scattered seedlings 
made their appearance at this time, and after an interval of about six 
weeks the greater part of them also came up ; among these were Eutoca 
viscida, Nigella damascena, Sphenogyne, and Clarkia pulchella. Thirdly, 
there were some of which I quite despaired. Mignonette, however, 
appeared thinly about the end of June, and at intervals till August; 
and in the middle of June a few plants (in proportion to the seed sown 
a few) of Linaria bipartata, Madia elegans, and Xeranthemum came up, 
one consequence being that the last-named did not flower. Some of the 
seeds were obtained thi3 spring from seedsmen, some were my own 
collection of the last year or two ; of the latter were Calendula, Lava¬ 
tera, Convolvulus, Specularia, Eutoca, Nigella, Sphenogyne, and Migno¬ 
nette, so that cannot be said to give any clue. The conditions for 
germination and growth were favourable, and the season also. I have 
never remarked before any annuals so long in appearing above ground, 
though in some herbaceous plants I have noticed it— c.g., Gaillardia, 
Myosotis alpestris, and Anemone coronaria.” 
- School Allotments.—A t the little town of Sherborne, in 
Dorsetshire—which, by the way, possesses a public school, not nearly 
so well known as it should be—there has been for many years past a 
system of small allotments amongst the parochial school children. It 
was inaugurated so far back as the year 1857, when the Abbey National 
Schools were founded. Each allotment is stated to be about 3J perches, 
or lugs as they are called in the west country vernacular, this being the 
forty-sixth part of an acre, to a plot, for which a rent of 2s. is paid. 
Mr. Gordon, the Government school inspector, in reporting on the 
subject, says that the little garden patch has fitted boys to gain their 
own living to some extent, and he attributes to it the exceptional 
success of the allotment system generally in the neighbourhood of 
Sherborne. The gardens also furnish a healthy exercise for the boys, as 
well as a relief from school duties. More than that, they have been 
found to promote increased attendance at school, for, apart from the 
boys, the parents who derive a benefit from the produce take an interest 
in the system. Most people will agree with Mr. Gordon in wishing to 
see the example of the little Dorsetshire town followed more generally 
elsewhere, so far as the system is concerned, although there seems to be 
no good reason why so high a rent should be charged. Half the amount 
would be much more reasonable, and more likely to conduce to the 
successful introduction of the plan in other places. In fact, in the only 
other instance we have heard of, the allotments are given to the boys 
rent free. This is at the British Schools at Elby, in Gloucestershire, 
where ever since 1840 there have been about twenty school allotments 
of 2h perches each, distributed amongst the boys in the order of 
seniority or merit, which, a correspondent writes, are always eagerly 
sought after and highly appreciated, as well as exceedingly well culti- 
vated,iby those who are fortunate enough to obtain them.—( Agricultural 
Economist.') 
- The usual monthly meeting of the Royal Meteorological 
Society was held on Wednesday evening, the 18th inst., at the Institu¬ 
tion of Civil Engineers ; Dr. W. Marcet, F.R.S., President, in the chair. 
Thirty-nine new Fellows were elected. The following papers were 
read :—1, “ Report of the Wind Force Committee on the Factor of the 
Kew Pattern Robinson Anemometer.” This has been drawn up by Mr. 
W. H. Dines, who has made a large number of experiments with various 
anemometers on the whirling machine at Hersham. Twelve of these 
were made with the friction of the Kew anemometer artificially 
increased, seven with a variable velocity, and fourteen with the plane of 
the cups inclined at an angle to the direction of motion. In discussing 
the results the following points are taken into consideration—viz., the 
possibility of the existence of induced eddies, the effect of the increased 
friction due to the centrifugal force and gyroscopic action, and the 
action of the natural wind. The conclusion that the instrument is 
greatly affected by the variability of the wind to which it is exposed 
seems to be irresistible ; and, if so, the exact value of the factor must 
depend upon the nature of the wind as well as upon the mean velocity. 
There is evidence to show that during a gale the variations of velocity 
are sometimes of great extent and frequency, and there can be but little 
doubt that in such a case the factor is less than 2 - 15. The one point 
which does seem clear is that for anemometers of the Kew pattern, the 
value 3 is far too high, and consequently that the registered wind 
velocities are considerably in excess of the true amount. 2, “ On Test¬ 
ing Anemometers,” by Mr. W. H. Dines, B.A. The author describes the 
various methods employed in the testing of anemometers, points out the 
difficulties that have to be encountered, and explains how they can be 
overcome. 3, “ On the Rainfall of the Riviera,” by Mr. G. J. Symons, 
F.R.S. The author has collected all the available information respect¬ 
ing rainfall in this district, which is very scanty. He believes that 
the total annual fall along the Riviera, from Cannes to San Remo, 
is about 31 inches, and that any difference between the several towns 
has yet to be proved. 4, “ Report on the Phenological Observations 
for 1889,” by Mr. E. Mawley. This is a discussion of observations 
