284 
THE FLORIST AND POJIOLOGIST. 
[ December, 
■— m - Baines reports very favourably in the Gardeners’ Chronicle of his 
trial of the Ahijssinian Mixture for killing insects on plants. He commenced by 
using it at the prescribed strength, 4 oz. to the gallon, which killed some of the 
mealy-bugs, but loft many alive. It was next tried at 5 oz. to tbe gallon, leaving the solution 
to di’y on tbe plant ; this left very few alive. It was then applied at 5|- and 6 oz. to the gallon, 
and he has not since seen a single bug about the place. Brown-scale is also reduced to a mini¬ 
mum by simply well washing the plants with the mixture, in the winter, at 6 oz. to the gallon, 
before active growth commences, and once during the summer, at 5 oz. per gallon, on account 
of their young leaves being then more tender. The directions for use on the labels are right 
so far as the destruction of green-fly, thrips, or rod-spider are concerned ; in fact, it will kill 
these insects at 2^ oz. or 3oz. to the gallon; but for bug or scale it requires to be used at the 
greater strength above stated, in all cases leaving the solution to dry on the plants. Every 
j)art of the plant should be thoroughly wetted, by syringing over a trough. The solution does 
not in the least injm’e the roots. 
- ^ new and cheap disinfectant and antiseptic lately brought into notice 
bears the name of Ghloralum^ and is a solution of hydrated chloride of aluminum. 
All fetid and offensive smells are instantly absorbed by this solution, as they would 
be by so much acid ; and many bad smells which carbolic acid might indeed overpower in 
virtue of its own strong odour, but which it cannot destroy, are at once removable by chloride 
of aluminum. Thus the fetid stench from cabbage-water is at once removed by Chloralum, 
but not by carbolic acid. In this respect, Chloralum has some advantages over even perman¬ 
ganate solution, which destroys fetor by oxidizing the fetid substance, but which is almost 
powerless against, or acts very slowly upon, some varieties of malodorous things that have the 
ju’operty of not being very easily oxidizable. Even chloride of lime is hardly so potent against 
some kinds of fetor as is Chloralum. 
- She Alligator Peai\ or Avocado (Persea gratisshnd)^ exhibited for the 
first time in England last year, from the collection of tropical fruits grown by 
R. Hinds, Esq., of Byfleet, is now about 25 ft. high, and has on it another crop 
-of 15 fruits in various stages of development. Another plant of a different variety, growing 
in the same house, is also bearing fruit. 
- the Gardeners’ Examination^ held under the auspices of the Royal 
Horticultural Society, July 12, 1870, the following young men obtained Certifi¬ 
cates of the Second-Class in Floriculture :—G. Haskins, C. Burley, W. Mitchell; 
and the following Third-Class Certificates in Fruit and Vegetable Cultm’e :—G. Haskins and 
C. Burley. 
0bttttars^ 
- Thomas Anderson, F.L.S., died at Edinburgh on October 26. 
He was a devoted student of ISTatural History, and selected the East India 
Company’s Service as likely to afford him opportunities for the prosecution of 
hose studies. When Dr. Thomson left Calcutta, Dr. Anderson was appointed to the temporary 
■charge of the garden there, and he succeeded Dr. Thomson when the latter retired from 
office. He labom-ed successfully in establishing the Cinchona plantations in the North of India. 
Nearly two years ago he was compelled to return to England, on account of dangerous illness, 
from which he recovered sufficiently to enable him to prosecute his botanical work, but a few 
months ago he suffered a relapse, from which he never rallied. 
- Ruprecht, £i Russian botanist, died at St. Petersburg on August 4. 
He was born in 1814, at Prague, where he studied medicine. In 1839 he was 
appointed Conservator of the Botanical Museum of the Imperial Academy of 
Sciences in St. Petersburg, and in the interests of the Academy he i;ndertook several journeys, 
notably in the Caucasian provinces, where he made large collections. For a short period ho 
was Assistant-Director of the Imperial Botanic Garden at St. Petersbiug. 
