f-G-’- 
254 
MOOBE’S BUBAL WEW-YOBKEB. 
APB1L \J 
«§iai[g of a pluralist. 
DAILY RURAL LIFE. 
From the Diary of a Centleman near New 
York City. 
SOME EXCELLENT BUT LITTLE KNOWN SHRUBS. 
April 5. — While pruning some of the 
shrubs in my garden to-day, I was reminded 
of the fact that we have many excellent 
kinds which are seldom seen except in the 
grounds of professional nurserymen, or those 
who aim at something like a botanical col¬ 
lection of ligneous plants. To the man who 
makes gardening a “ hobby ” the shrubs to 
which I shall refer will be “ nothing new ; ” 
but there are hundreds and thousands of per 
sons who never saw any of them in cultiva¬ 
tion, although probably taking considerable 
pride in ornamenting their grounds. Per¬ 
haps one of the principal causes of neglect of 
these shrub* is t hat they are indigenous, and 
there has been no chance for any one nur¬ 
seryman to control the stock and keep up 
prices to an extra profitable point, hence one 
of the inducements for disseminating a 
knowledge of their merits in glowing adjec¬ 
tives lias been wanting. I will name a few 
of the more hardy kinds in alphabetical 
order, without regard to their comparative 
merits. 
Andromeda flnribunda. — This is a hand¬ 
some, low growing, evergreen shrub, native 
of the mountains of the Middle States, but 
to be found under cultivation in most of our 
larger nurseries. The habit of the plant is 
very dense, the loaves small, oblong, pointed 
and deep green, holding their color well 
throughout the winter. The flowers are 
small, pure white, and bloom in a dense ra¬ 
ceme on the ends of the branches early in 
spring. In fact, the flower spikes are pro¬ 
duced during the previous season, and the 
buds only wair, for a few warm days to make 
them open. A branch cut olT in winter and 
carried into a warm room and the lower end 
placed in water, will soon unfold its flowers, 
giving one a handsome winter bouquet from 
tiie garden. We have some half a dozen or 
more species of the Andromeda# which may 
be treated in a similar maimer for producing 
flowers in winter. 
Andromeda Mariana , or as more com¬ 
monly called, Stagger-bush, is another beau¬ 
tiful low growing shrub, but the leaves are 
deciduous, dropping late in autumn. It is 
quite abundant, in the Eastern Htates in low 
grounds and thickets, where the plants are 
usually of quite slender growth and three or 
four feet high; but the habit is much im¬ 
proved when planted out singly and given 
cultivation. The leaves appear early in 
spring and are of a light, glossy green, oval 
or oblong in form. The flowers appear a few 
weeks later in the season; they arc pure 
white, a half inch or more in length and of a 
tubular form, like the true Heaths of the Old 
world, a family of plants to which all of our 
Andromedas belong. These plants may be 
transplanted from their native habitats to 
the garden without difficulty iu making 
them live or thrive, and there are few shrubs 
more deserving of attention. 
Azalea*.—1 have so frequently called at¬ 
tention to these lovely native shrubs that I 
will only say, Do not forget them this spring 
when making the garden. They are far su¬ 
perior 1o many of the Chinese and Japanese 
plants to be seen in almost every garden 
throughout the country, and I could never 
understand u taste which would lead a per¬ 
son to purchase and plant a yellow-flowering 
Forsythia and neglect our purple and flame- 
colored Azaleas, which bloom about the 
same time, or a few days later. 
Clethra alni.folia, or Alder-leaved Clethra, 
is a beautiful late-blooming shrub, with 
spikes of small, white, fragrant flowers. In 
habit it is rather a slender shrub of five to 
eight feet high, with few branches but 
numerous stems opening from the same 
root or stool, thereby forming a dense clump. 
It thrives in almost any soil or situation and 
is as readily and safely transplanted as a cur¬ 
rant push. 
Dirca paluslris, or Leafeherwood, is prob¬ 
ably well known to every boy in the North¬ 
ern border States, as its tough leathery bark 
is a natural source from whence good, tough 
strings can aftvays be obtained when other 
depositories fail. But I am inclined to think 
few boys who have gathered Leatherwood 
bark for strings could tell after they became 
men the color of the flowers or fruit of this 
shrub. Neither, however, are vary showy 
or handsome, the former being small, of a 
pale yellow color, produced in early spring 
before the leaves appear, succeeded by a 
reddish berry ripening late in summer. It is 
also rather a straggling-growing shrub, five 
or six feet high, with oval, alternate leaves ; 
but it is the only representative we have of 
the Mezerenm (Daphne) family, of which 
there are several very highly-prized species 
from Europe and China, 1 think it is well to 
give ours a chance to he seen under cultiva¬ 
tion among its more noted congeners. 
Lindera Benzoin, also known by many 
vulgar names, such as Spioebusb, Wild All¬ 
spice, Fever bush, Benjarainhush, etc., etc. 
It belongs, however, to the Laurel family, 
althcugh lmd it been an evergreen shrub this 
name would have no doubt been given it, as 
we have at least a dozen different native 
shrubs called “ Laurels,” not one of which is 
allied to the tme Laurel of this country 
and Europe. But our IAnd,era is a pretty 
shrub, growing six to ten feet high, with 
large, dark green, obovate, oblong leaves 
three to five inches long. The flowers are 
quite email, yellow, and produced in spring, 
succeeded with bright red, oval berries, 
which are quite ornamental. The leaves, 
bark and wood emit an agreeable spicy odor 
when handled. It is a handsome, easily-cul¬ 
tivated shrub, seldom seen in gardens, 
although quite abundant in all our Northern 
swamps. 
Stutirtia pentagynia is common in the 
mountains of Virginia and southward, and 
although long known as hardy in most of 
the Northern States, it is seldom seen in gar¬ 
dens. If a common name was wanted for 
this shrub, “Shell Flower” would be quite 
appropriate; for the half-opened buds re¬ 
semble some of the two-valvcd shells with 
jagged edges, like the common scallops. The 
(lowers are white, slightly tinged with cream 
color, Iho ends of the broad petals being 
scalloped, or what, is termed jagged-edged. 
This species is a very sturdy shrub, five to 
ten feet high, and when given plenty ol 
room will be well furnished with branches 
from the ground upward. Its general habit 
of growth is to produce only a single stem, 
few or no suckers appearing from lateral 
roots. A specimen of this shrub planted ten 
years ago in my grounds has never been in¬ 
jured by cold, even during our severest win¬ 
ters when many of the kinds from a more 
northern climate have suffered severely. 
The above are only a few of the lony de 
sirnble indigenous shrubs which deserve more 
attention than they have received from those 
who are in search of choice shrubs for orna¬ 
mental purposes. 
SHADING PLANTS IN GREENHOUSES. 
April 6.—It is difficult to get the weather 
just right to suit everything and everybody 
under all circumstances. A week or two 
since J had to keep up a roaring fire in my 
greenhouse, night and day, in order to raise 
the temperature up to a growing point; but, 
for the past two or three days “old Sol” has 
sent down rays which fairly scorched the 
tender leaves of some of my most delicate 
greenhouse plants. To prevent this burning 
I whitewash the gluss upon the outside, put¬ 
ting it on only thick enough to obstruct the 
rays of the sun, but not produce a dense 
shade. 1 find that from this time forward 
until the plants are removed for the summer, 
a partial shading docs j o injury, besides 
protecting them from being scorched during 
warm days, when thorough ventilation of 
the house will not keep the temperature 
down to u healthy growing point. I practice 
the same kind of shading witli rny hot-beds, 
and with benefit, as the light which passes 
through whitened glass loses very little of 
its natural powers of producing a healthy 
development of vegetable life. The white¬ 
wash will wear off before the summer is 
past and the glass become clean in time for 
putting iu the plants in fall. 
■-♦♦♦- 
About Water Pipe.—In reply to the in¬ 
quiries of B. on page 188, current volume, I 
will say that for several years 1 have made 
“ water supply” a specialty and with inva¬ 
riably good success ; have laid miles of aque¬ 
duct of various sizes and kinds also in con¬ 
nection with force pumps, hydraulic rams, 
turbine water wheels and steam power. Have 
at my residence water working in ways that 
puzzle the uninitiated. The cure for B.’s 
trouble is very simple. There should be no 
connection between the pipe from his upper 
and lower, springs. He should run the pipe 
from the upper spring directly into the 
lower springs ; then start, the other pipe from 
the lower spring direct to buildings. A half¬ 
inch pipe will furnish ample supply for an 
immense herd of stock, provided a suitable 
reservoir receives the supply. B.’6 lower 
spring should be walled and banked up so as 
to raise a suitable “head.” Lead the dis¬ 
charge pipe from the bottom, within at least 
six inches.—M. p. p. 
harden. 
MUSHROOM CULTURE. 
A Germantown Gardener writes to the 
Germantown Telegraph as follows ; 
Take of horse-droppings, clean of straw, as 
much as you think will make a bed of the 
desired size ; turn it over every other dt.y 
unt il the rank heat has passed off. Then to 
every ten bushels of the dung mix three 
bushels of fine loamy earth ; turn t ne whole 
over and mix it well together. Then if you 
have a green house you can make the bedm 
under the staging, and if convenient make 
it on top of the flue or hot water pipes, as far 
from the furnace as possible. The bed should 
not be less than two feet deep, and the 
warmth of the flue or pipes will keep a 
gentle bottom heat all the time. On top of 
the bed put about one inch of line soil; then 
thrust a stick down in the center of the bed 
and by pulling it out you can tell 
when tbs bed is cool enough to spawn. Great 
care must bo taken not to spawn while there 
is too much heal, for the heat will burn the 
spawn. 
When your bed is flt to spawn, which will 
be when you can hold the stick m your hand 
with comfort, break your spawn (“bricks”) 
into lumps as large as a walnut, and deposit 
them over the bed about six inches apart. 
One briek will do about three square feet. 
Then cover it all over with two inches of 
lino, loamy earth, and give it a gentle 
watering with warm water and cover with 
newspapers ; and in from six to eight weeks 
you will have mushrooms and plenty of 
them, if the spawn was good. If not, you 
can make your own spawn out of the same 
bed, by making holes in the bed with a 
round stick nearly to the bottom, and pour 
hot water in and let it soak away. Repeat 
as often as the bed gets dry, and in the 
course, of six or eight mouths you will have 
a bed full of fine, healthy spawn, which, if 
taken care of, will last for years. 
Mushrooms can be grown in any cellar 
free of rats in a temperature of 55 or 60 
degrees ; but bottom heat is very essential 
to grow good mushrooms. 
To the above the Editor adds :—YVehare 
been eating mushrooms since the first of the 
year, with asparagus, grown by our own 
gardener somewhat after the above plan,and 
can therefore endorse it. They are the first 
that, after many attempts, and after all the 
recommended modes of France and England, 
we have succeeded iu raising, 
-<*♦•*- 
CARROT AND PARSNIP SEED. 
More complaints reach us every year of 
the failure of carrot and parsnip seed than of 
any other two kinds of vegetables. Doubt¬ 
less there are large quantities of old seed sold 
which has lost its vitality ; but as this ii 
generally mixed with good, fresh seed, a 
total failure will seldom occur if the proper 
precautions are taken in preparing the soil 
for its reception. Plants of either the above- 
named roots ure quite delicate when they 
first appear above ground and quite liable to 
be injured by drouth, heavy rains or smoth 
ered by weeds. If the soil is of u very com¬ 
pact nature, the surface becoming hard and 
baked after showers, the young plants fre¬ 
quently perish in their attempts to break ! 
through the crust. To avoid failure, all these I 
conditions should be taken into account in 
preparing a seed-bed, and the surface made 
of as light and friable nature as possible, all 
lumps being broken down with harrow and 
roller. To avoid all hard feelings against 
seedsmen, it is well to test a dozen or two of 
the seed in advance of sowing in the garden. 
A flower pot or small box filled with fine soil 
and then placed in a warm room, where it 
can be watched and watered when necessary, 
will usually enable a ma:i to lay the Mam j 
for garden failures just where it belongs. W a 
think that auy man who will sow a half-acre 
or more of ground with any kind of vege¬ 
table seeds without knowing positively in 
advance whether the seed is good or not, is 
very likely to become a victim of misplaced 
confidence in other matters as well. 
Of course, it is an uncomfortable state of 
mind to be always thinking that everybody 
is dishonest but your own dear self : still, it 
is quite safe to practice something of the 
sort in business matters, especially when it 
is so easy to know you are right before going 
ahead, as in this instance of testing seeds. 
Soaking the seed for a few horn's, then mix¬ 
ing with dry ashes or plaster, will also hasten 
germinuliou and very frequently sufficiently 
to enable us to hoe or cultivate befo:o the 
weeds have made much show in the same 
ground. Another point worthy of attention 
is to avoid covering the seeds too deep, es¬ 
pecially on heavy soils. A half-inch of soil 
is abundant covering. 
-- 
THAT WILD CUCUMBER. 
The Editor of the Colorado Horticulturist 
offers a package of “ YY f ild Cucumber seed” 
to ail who subscribe and pay for his paper. 
We do not know but this is better than a 
cliromo ; still, our curiosity is aroused in re¬ 
gard to the “Cucumber,” which the Editor 
ie above new claimant for favors says is 
“The most handsome climber we have ever 
seen.” 
Seriously, friend Foster, this will never 
do for you to dodge behind the curtain in 
that way and say, “ YY'e know no other name 
for it,” because ignorance is inexcusable in 
this case, there being plenty of men who 
could give the true name of the plant had 
you desired the information 
YY T e shall not rest iu peace until this mo¬ 
mentous question of the identity of that 
“Wild Cucumber” is settled, because the 
morals of so good a town as Greeley, Colora¬ 
do, may be forever injured by the dissemina¬ 
tion of this child of the desert before being 
properly christened at some fountain of bo¬ 
tanical science. This running after unknown 
gods is a bad tiling to do even in Colorado. 
(Montolamral 
DESTROYING THE COLORADO POTATO 
BEETLE. 
I noticed an article commenting on “ Prof. 
Le Conte’s address before the American 
Academy of Science on the subject of the 
me of Paris green in connection with the 
ravages of the Colorado Potato Beetle,” 
Said article has prompted me t) send my 
expei ience with the beetle. I have tried 
Paris green and found it very effective, but I 
tried another plan which worked equally as 
well and is much cheaper and takes less 
time. It Is as follows :—In the spring of 
1872 I planted about three-quarters of an 
acre of Peach Blows, in rows both ways, the 
same distance apart as corn. 1 cultivated 
them well and kept the ground free from 
weeds and paid no at tention to the beetles 
until the first installment of eggB were 
hatched and the young were well under 
headway ; then, one day, the ground being 
dry and quite hot, and the vines well 
covered with bugs, I, with au assistant, 
armed each with an old broom, “went for” 
those bugs and brushed them on to the 
ground into the furrow in the centre of the 
row, unci iL was encouraging to see them 
craw 1 a few inches toward a potato hill and 
then turn over on their backs, lie there a 
short time and then they would burnt open ; 
and in half an hour you could not see the 
sign of a bug, except a few that fell near the 
vines and got into the shade before they 
were overcome by the heat. Two applica¬ 
tions of the broom in the middle of very 
hot days saved my potatoes, and the bugs 
were as thick on the vines the first time, I 
think, as I ever saw them. I have not tried 
the plan since. In 1873 the bugs did not 
bother rny potatoes, and in 1N74 I was in 
Kansas where grasshoppers were more 
numerous than potato hugs. If you see 
proper to publish this do so, for it may save 
some poor man's potatoes this year who 
cannot get Paris green ; for I know there 
arc such in Kansas. A. L. Skeel. 
Republic Co., Kansas. 
--♦♦♦- 
ENTOMOLOGICAL NOTES. 
"lnseetifuyal Plant*.— This is the term 
by -which M. Van Hulle, in a Belgian 
horticultural journal, designates certain 
plants which fire noxious to insects. He 
remarks that all plants exhale varies gases, 
and some are well known for their power¬ 
ful fragrance. This odor is sometimes very 
attractive to animal®, us in the case of 
Nepela cat nr la, Teucriurn marum , and the 
common valerian, so attractive to cats. He 
further tells us that on visiting an orchard 
iu East Flanders, he was informed that 
apple trees might be protected from the on¬ 
slaught of “American blight” by simply 
sowing seeds of Tropoeolum mains and 
allowing the plants to twine up the stem. 
In some parts of Belgium it is the custom 
to put here and there among the cabbages 
a plant or two of hemp, to ward off cater¬ 
pillars. At LootenhuUe, M. Van Hulle saw 
in a vinery some pfiauts of tomatoes against 
the walls between the vines. These tomat oes 
had been placed in that situation not so 
much for the sake of the fruits as for the 
purpose of keeping off wasps. 
Chinch Bug and Flax.—S. T. Kelsey says 
Chinch bugs never feed on flax aud that they 
have never been known to pass through a 
field or strip of flax. If this is so, other 
crops maybe protected by surrounding them 
with a strip of flax. 
