20S 
©ORE'S RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
MARSH 23 
$iant of a pluralist. 
DAILY RURAL LIFE. 
From the Diary of a Gentleman near New 
York Cltv. 
THREE BEST HOUSE PUNTS. 
March 12.— Bosk Geranium asks me to 
give her the names of the three best house 
plants. At the very outset l am as much 
perplexed as the Mormon elder who told me 
last summer that he must have been bora in 
the faith because, when a boy, he never could 
tell which one of all the pretty girls of his 
acquaintance he loved the best; and now in 
his old age he found it Just as difficult to de¬ 
cide which wife controlled the greater part 
of his divisible affections. Had my lair ques¬ 
tioner usked for the names of three dozen or 
hundreds of the very best plants most suit¬ 
able for house culture, there would have 
been more sea-room for fair s,'tiling ; but to 
name a trio out of as many thousands, ail of 
which are really beautiful and, under certain 
circumstances, desirable is drawing the bead 
too fine, even for an old marksman. Then, 
how am I to know the peculiar individual 
taste of Rusk Geranium in this matter ? 
For she certainly has one of a decided char¬ 
acter, else she is not u woman ; consequently 
any answer which I may give is mere guess¬ 
work at best. 1 am very fond of roses; in 
fact, they are my first choice, both in doors 
and out; but a neighbor of mine won’t have 
one on his place, although he spends money 
lavishly on his garden and conservatory, but 
geraniums are his especial pets. If I should 
name Safrano, /Ion Silene and MortcMal 
Neil roses as my first choice for three house 
plants, my neighbor would immediately de¬ 
clare that Master Christine, Wellington and I 
Jean Sisely geraniums were altogether pref¬ 
erable, and still we would both be suited ; 
but neither list might suit Rose Geranium, 
or other readers of the Rural New-Yorker. 
In my younger days I made Cacti a specialty 
as house plants, for they were easily managed 
during the winter, requiring little or no care 
in watering or keeping free from insects ; a 
warm, dry room was ali that they required, 
and even a month during the coldest weather 
stored in a cellar did them no harm. As 
spring approached they could be placed in 
the window and water applied, which would 
force them into bloom, and such blooms as 
one never finds on any other class of plants, 
Any person who lias seeu a large specimen 
of Cents *)>ccioxixxiinus in bloom, with flow 
ers six inches broad, the inner petals with 
all the tints of the rainbow’ and more bril¬ 
liant than polished gold, is not likely to forget 
this gorgeous variety. Place beside this a 
specimen of Epiphyllum Aekermanni with 
flowers eight inches in diameter and of a 
brilliant scarlet color, and we have a pair of 
plants difficult to excel. Then, to make the 
trio complete, add Epiphyllum truncatum 
grandiflorum, grafted upon Borne strong¬ 
growing stock in order to give its flexible 
branches an opportunity to show off their 
wealth of rich crimson flow’ers. lean scarcely 
bring to my mind any three plants that are { 
more easily grown or that will repay culture 
with a richer return ; still, it is a long time 1 
since they were in my collection, but why, 1 f 
could not tell if asked the question. * 
There are persons whose taste is for hand- \ 
some foliage plants—something that is con- ' 
tir.ually beautiful is more acceptable than a ! 
gorgeous display at any one time ; to suen I ,] 
would recommend the variegated-loaved ge- C 
miliums ; for they seldom grow’ to a large f 
size and require no extra care. Begonias are 
also beautiful leaf plants, bui do not succeed p 
in the dry atmosphere of ordinary dwelling e 
houses. But it is useless for me to try and f 
come to a decision for others, even could I ^ 
make up my mind to come down to so small ‘J 
a collection for myself, which 1 am pretty L 
certain not to do so long as my senses of see- ri 
iug and smelling remain. 
ai 
SCALE INSECTS OH PLANTS. lo 
March lY.—Aunt Helen writes that some ai 
of her house plants are infested with small, ^ 
flat, brown scales, which she thinks maybe t ti 
insects ; and in this she is no doubt correct sa 
in her conclusions, There are several species " 
of these scale insects which infest house 
plants as well as those cultivated in the open ta 
air. Then there is still another, and even te 
greater pest, called the mealy-bug, (Coccus,) ^ 1: 
which often not only attacks the stems and re! 
leaves of plants, but works down among the 
roots. When these pests have attacked the ' lu 
roots, the best w’ay is to re-pot., shaking off r ® 
all the soil and wash the roots wdth warm ] 
soap" suds, then * put t in (fresh, clean earth. se< 
But for scale on plants, or mealy-bug, I have 1 re] 
never found anything better than syringing 
with hot soap-suds—or even clear w’ater wdll 
do, heated to about l-lo . The plants should 
be laid down on the side and the water ap 
plied with a syringe, rolling the plants over 
and over unt il every part is washed clean. 
If the earth in the pots is so loose that it is 
likely to fall out during the operation, tie 
some pieces of old sacks down upon It. If 
the scales do not let go freely, they may be 
easily rubbed off when wet with the warm 
soup-suds ; but do not guess at the temper 
uture of the water ; a thermometer is a 
much surer guide than one’s own feelings in 
this matter. If the water does not exceed 
140° to 145°, it will seldom injure even the 
most delicate plant if applied with a syringe. 
SWEET-SCENTED MOSS. 
March 10.—1 notice that the Editor of the 
Rural New-Yorker lias been exposing the 
California Rose man, which calls to mind 
many a similar trick played on innocent pur¬ 
chasers of rare plants in New York. Al¬ 
though these sharpers have been exposed 
hundreds of times, still they And plenty of 
new victims every day, and drive a good 
trade with the “innocents abroad.” One of 
the neatest “sells” that has ever couie under 
my observation and, for aught 1 know, pet 
petrated by the California Rose-man, was 
the selling of a new and delightfully fragrant 
moss which a good old man peddled among 
the aristocrats of Madison and Fifth avenues. 
This pretty little green moss was offered in 
small thumb pots at $2 per dozen, a moder¬ 
ate price certainly for sueli a neat thing and 
so wondrously fragrant withal. 1 know of 
one gentleman who, being ever on the alert 
for new things, »vas so taken by this new 
moss that he not only bought a dozen for 
himself, but fearing that the stock might give 
out before the following evening, lie pur¬ 
chased another dozen for his neighbor Brown 
—who was also fond of rarities—bringing 
them all home with him in a ratln-r incon¬ 
venient. package to carry in a street ear. 
Brown took the package so kindly purchased 
for him by his thoughtful neighbor, but said 
to his wife, when his friend had left, “ Hold 
again ! for cannot anybody see that this is 
one of the most common of our wood mosses, 
sprinkled with lavender water 1” Well ! 
there are some things which We ail have to 
learn from experience, if at all, and purchas¬ 
ing unknown plauts of unknown dealers is 
one of those every-day transactions which a 
vast number of people do not seem to know 
is very uobusiness-like, to say the least. 
INSECTS FROM NEBRASKA. 
Many thanks for the box of insects kindly 
Bent me by Mrs. Minnie Rose of Alda, Hail 
Co,, Neb. More would be acceptable ; for 
bug-hunters are, as a class, like poor Oliver 
Twist, and are not easily satisfied, especially 
when specimens come from a new and not 
thoroughly-explored region of country. 
w hich made an appearance at the leading 
horticultural exhibitions, and the only ones, 
in fact, for which premiums were offered, 
the Scarlet varieties of the horseshoe type 
tllC Pink, such as the old Lucea Rosea; the 
Variegated, such as the old Mangles Varie¬ 
gated ; the Yellow-edged leaved varieties, 
and a few’ uLber forms, were universally 
called Bedding Geraniums, which appears, 
however, to have been botanieally wrong, as 
long previous to this the learned French 
botanist, Mons. L’Hkritier, had detached 
Er odium and Pelargonium from the Lin- 
nean genus Geranium , and the arrangement 
has ever since been recognized by botanists 
in ail parts of the world. The Pelargoniums, 
xvith one or two rare exceptions, are natives 
of tlie Cape of Good Hope, while the Gera¬ 
niums are found in nearly every part of t he 
world, but mostly in Europe. The Pelar¬ 
gonium* are mostly handsome plants, while 
the Geraniums are in mauy eases more 
weeds and of no value as decorative plants, 
except in a few rare species. 
Of Into years extrordinary improvements 
have been made in the Zonale or Hoi-aeshoo, 
as well as in all the variegated sections of 
the Pelargonium ; and in all the leading 
catalogues of Europe we read of Zonale 
Pelargoniums, Nosegay Pelargoniums, Gold 
and Silver Variegated, Gold and Bronze 
Zonale, Silver Edged, Golden-Edged, Ivy- 
Leaved, Show and Fahey, and French Spot¬ 
ted Pelargonium. Moreover, the London 
Horticultural Society has one exhibition 
every season, at which special premiums arc 
distinctly off ered for Zonale, Nosegay, Gold 
and Silver Variegated, and other sections of 
Pelargoniums; therefore, in my recent ur 
tides upon lliissubject I thought it perfectly 
safe to follow the example of the leading 
horticulturists of the dur and call these 
plants by their right names, although 1 fre¬ 
quently mentioned Geraniums, the better to 
be understood by the masses. 
Henry E, Ciiitty. 
EXPERIENCE IN TROUT CULTURE. 
FLORICULTURAL NOTES. 
Supports for Climbers .—We have standing 
in flower beds on our lawn two rustic sup¬ 
ports for flowering vines, roses and the like, 
that are so pretty, cheap, easily made and 
efficient, that; I thought some of your many 
readers might, perhaps, like to make some¬ 
thing of the kind for themselves. Ours are 
made of red cedar bean poles, ten or twelve 
feet long, simply nailed together where, they 
cross each other. Very likely they may be 
made different from either of these, and be 
equally pretty. They look well on a lawn in 
winter, w’heu, of course, they are naked ; 
but, when Clothed with brilliant flower* in 
summer, they are beautiful— Country Gen 
tlenuvn. 
- Hybrid Perpetual Roses.-W ill Hybrid 
-- ■ Perpetual roses succeed in this part of the 
/vt| ♦ tj t country ? If they will, please inform me if 
{ IT 1 i f! 111 Til It/T there are white and red varieties, aud where 
(\FjlU » U|UUIW[IU* can they be obtained 7 Would April be a 
------good time to procure them ? Will Begonia 
— chelsoni and Can nabifolin succeed in this part 
PELARGONIUM vs. GERANIUMS,; of the country, and what will plants of each 
- cost ? Can they be sent by mail ?— Mrs. Mary 
You will oblige me by defining, distinctly. ^ A GONER, 
the difference between the Geranium and Yes; Hybrid Perpetual roses succeed very 
the Pelargonium, or are the terms synony- i„ ..... . , f 
mous ? By referring to their Greek originals, . . 1 , and you can, ithout doubt, 
1 find that the former means crane’s-bill aud obtain any variety you desire of the nursery- 
the latter Stork’s-bill; aud it would there- men and gardeners in Toledo or the vicinity ; 
fore seem that t here can be but little differ- also the Begonias, which well have to be cul- 
***f -e net l»rd y . 
it seems to tend to confusion ; and I am often v 18ir J° u > home nurseries and see what they 
puzzled to understand what is meant. For have for sale. 
f find that the former means crane’s-bill aud 
the latter slorkVbifl ; aud it would there¬ 
fore seem that t here can be but little differ¬ 
ence in their signification. Ami vet, different 
writers use the two words so differently that, 
it seems to tend to confusion ; and I am often 
puzzled to understand what, is meant. For 
instance. Williams, in his “ Window Gar¬ 
dening,” although he says that the Zonale 
Geranium can never equal the flower of the 
Pelargonium, still classes the Christine as a 
Zonule Geranium ; while Mr. Ciiitty, Huper- 
iatendenl of the Bellevue Nursery, in one ol 
his recent articles in the Rural New-Yokk- 
er, classes the Christine among the Improved 
Pelargoniums. Ho also, Williams calls the 
Lady Cullum, Mrs. Pollock and others, Tri- 
colored Geraniums, w bile Cuitty ranks them 
as Improved Pelargoniums. Again, Wil¬ 
liams ranks the Ivy leaved varieties us Ge- 
rauiums, and UiUTTY ns Pelargoniums, 
I fiud the same difference m Classification 
among professional florists ; and in a cata¬ 
logue recently received, all “ Pelargoni ums” 
are termed “ Lady Washington Geraniums,” 
as if those names were synonymous. The 
publisher of the catalogue remarks of them 
that “The plant is, in appearance, much the 
same as the common scarlet. Geranium,” 
which is certainly different from what I had 
supposed to be the fact. Now, Messrs. Wil¬ 
liams aud Chitty may perhaps both be 
taken as equally good authority in such mat¬ 
ters ; but “ Who shall decide when doctors 
disagree ?” Will you, or some of your cor¬ 
respondents, attempt it ?—Clinton' 
I see you occasionally give your readers, 
through the Rural New Yorker, an article 
on Pisciculture. Thinking that my three 
i years’ experience in trout raising might be 
interesting to some of your readers, I will 
give it:—About three years ago I chanced to 
get hold of an agricultural report issued by 
the G over ament, which spoke very highly of 
fish culture, narrating what Mr. Seth Green 
and others had done, and what fortunes 
could be made by those who hod suitable 
places, <fce., <fce. There being a fine place 
near by, myself and three others leased the 
ground for tit) years and proceeded, as we 
thought, to make our fortunes. After fitting 
up our .grounds, making our ponds, fencing 
in 15 acres of woods, 1 started to Albany, N. 
Y., to attend a meeting of the Fish Culturist 
Association, where I supposed 1 could hold 
converse with the sages in that line and come 
home filled with wisdom and knowledge and 
proceed to the raising of brook trout by the 
ton, all of which we could sell at one dollar 
per pound, without any trouble or incon¬ 
venience. On the Ttli of February, 1872, 1 
met the sages in council at Albany, among 
the rest the old pioneer, Hetu Green, to¬ 
gether with about fifteen or twenty others. 
I opened my ears for knowledge, expecting 
to hear each member tell how many tons of 
brook trout he had shipped daily through 
the trout season, but could hear of nothing 
but spawn, young fry, hatching houses, &c.; 
“nary” word about trout for the market. 
At last 1 ventured to ask if any present had 
ever raised trout for the market. The an¬ 
swer was, “No.” All had been engaged in 
selling spawn, small fry, Ac., as they <could 
do better by that than by raising trout. I 
purchased Mr. Green’s book on fish culture 
and proceeded to learn how to hatch and 
raise trout. Out of tills book I learned bow 
to make ponds, hatching houses, how to strip 
trout, distribute eggs and hatch little fry, 
&c.; but when 1 came to learn how to feed, 
I found that Mr. Green said that “nearly all 
of them died from actual starvation or some 
other cause.” 
The first year, it being late when I com¬ 
menced, was a failure. The second year I 
raised 4,000 trout and have them now, all in 
fine condition, some of them svven inches 
long. This year I have a full stock of little 
fry and they are doing well. I have never 
used a hatching-house or anything of the 
kind, but have prepared the stream and let 
the trout do their work in their own way. 1 
believe 1 have surmounted all difficulties, and 
that I shall succeed in making trout culture 
a complete success. Any one doubting, can 
come and see for themselves. I do not wish 
to have it understood that it is an easy mat¬ 
ter to fiud out all the difficulties in the way 
of preparing the stream, holding the small 
fry from escaping, protecting them from 
their enemies, <fcc. It would take pages to 
enter into detail on these subjects; but after 
these things are understood, the way is an 
easy one. A. B. Sprout. 
Nursery Trout Ponds, March 9,1874. 
■-♦♦♦- —— 
PISCICULTURAL NOTES. 
We sent the foregoing to Mr. Chitty, and 
have received from him the following, in 
response: 
In days gone by, when the show and fancy 
sections of the Pelargonium were the only 
representatives of the very extensive genus 
Botanical Riddles. — “ A Subscriber, ” 
Bridgeport, Conn.,must send us better speci¬ 
mens and more carefully dried and packed 
if he wishes names. But we do not propose 
to determine exotic florists’ plants from dried 
specimens or ferns, as this belongs more par¬ 
ticularly to florists who are continually work¬ 
ing among such plants. We do not know of 
my botanist in this eoUuuy who will under¬ 
take to name suuh plants, especially from 
unfertile fronds or crumpled leaves. 
Ants in Greenhouses. —A correspondent 
of the Garden has found lumps of soft putty 
to be excellent traps for ants. He lays them 
around where the ants most frequent, and as 
soon as the lumps are stuck full of them, he 
works the putty over, ants and all, and re-sets 
hia traps. 
Self-Soum Verbenas.—I think much of the 
Verbena, and have the best success with 
self-sown seed that comes up thickly in last 
year’s beds. They grow more thriftily and 
bloom sooner than those that I start in boxes 
in the house.— Mrs. D. M. J. 
Leaf for Name.. — Mrs. L, E, K. T.—We 
cannot give the name of the plant from 
which you picked the leaf sent us. We must 
have flowers as well as leaves to enable us 
to determine plants with any degree of cer¬ 
tainty. 
Fish-Breeding Inquiry.— “ There is in this 
vicinity a good running stream and a dam, 
at the lower end of what, to all appearance, 
was long ago a pond, which probably cov¬ 
ered about two acres. Will you or, some of 
your readers, please state if you think this 
could be improved for the purpose of raising 
fish profitably ? What would be the modus 
operundi, in preparing this for the purpose 
named f the best kind of fish and how pro¬ 
cured ? The passage where the water passes 
at the darn is about ti or 7 feet. There are 
also standing in the basin small willow and 
ocher small trees, scattered around. There 
are at times pretty heavy freshets of water 
which enlarge the stream considerably and 
which of course would overflow the dam. 
There could be a depth of water at the deep¬ 
est points from 4 to li feet. Any information 
would be thankfully received.—L. H,, Kent 
Co., Md. 
Trout in an Artesian Well. — At San 
Buenaventura, Cal., a well was sunk to the 
depth of 143 feet, and the water spouted 30 
feet high and was utilized. One day the men 
round the well noticed fish in the waste 
water, and on examination the well was 
found to be filled with young trout, thousands 
of them being thrown out at every jet. These 
trout were all the same size (about two inches 
long) and perfectly developed. The eyes 
were found perfect. There is no stream 
nearer than the Santa Clara River, several 
miles distant. Could these fish, then, it is 
asked, have come from its head waters by 
some subterranean outlet? There are no 
trout in the lower portions of the stream 
The temperature of the well-water is ©4° Fah. . 
