i^ow me question arises, if this stock liad 
such a marked influence on every other part of 
the cion plant, why should it not have the same 
on the seed, as regards the embryo of the future 
plant ? If it has, there must certainly be some¬ 
thing in graft-hybridization. G. Marti. 
Houston, Texas. 
when in bloom." Still another arboreal beautj 
the Director is enthusiastic about as an adorn¬ 
ment for those “ Lake Islands!" is one “ not to 
bo excelled for tho grandeur and wealth of its 
bloom, the Jaca rondo. immo.vr-folio, or Rose¬ 
wood of Brazil. 
This tree, judging from the j- - - 
small specimens now in the Botanic Gardens, 
will succeed here quite as well as in the Sydney 
Botanic Gardens, whore a specimen, over 20 feet 
high, is the great attraction in its flowering sea¬ 
son. Its foliage, of a fern-like appearance, la 
exquisitely graceful; and oven when divosted of 
arboreal flora; while in the blooming season the 
blossoms, of a delicate blue, aro so abundant an 
to completely cover the tree, making it from a 
distance, appear as a mass of Cerulean grau- 
deur.” These trees, with the Pampas grass will 
form a contrast which will be the most pleasing, 
and will adorn the lake, giving both interest and 
warmth of color so necessary to finish a perfect 
landscape. 
ho is introduced, will yet 
who cultivate him. 
The Dingfe & Cox aro Co, 
West Grove, Chester Cq.. Pa. 
Fow lovers of Roses have not heard of or had 
progress made by ^ ealill gs with this distinguished aompany. 
- Roses are their groat specialty. Forty houses, 
an immense capital, and a largo force of ski Hod 
operatives are devoted to this one plant. Years 
Rose Growers, 
SELECTION OF VARIATIONS 
It is well known that plants which 
_are propa¬ 
gated by seed from year to year are subject to 
variations greater or less according to the con¬ 
ditions under which they are cultivated. In 
fact, it would be difficult to show that there 
ever were any two things prodneod which were 
exactly alike, no matter whether they bo a pair 
of elephants or a couple of grains of mustard 
seed, variation apparently being a fixed law of 
Nature; still there is a limit which defines the 
boni.duties of variations. Corn is a wonderfully 
variable plant, but we never find it assuming 
the characteristics of the members of any other 
genns, no matter how closely allied, and the 
same may be said of all our cultivated plants. 
To this natural tendency to variation we are 
indebted for much of our progress in horticul¬ 
ture and agriculture, as our most luscious fruits 
and most prolific cereal and vegetable products 
have been wrought out by cultivation from 
rather inferior materials in the beginning ; and 
knowing this, the husbandman may be encour¬ 
aged in endeavoring to make still further pro¬ 
s' 088 - in experimenting with the pladic subjects 
furnished him to work with and upon. The 
farmer is somewhat behind his ally, the horti¬ 
culturist, in watching for and securing new 
varieties which may accidentally or otherwbA 
° uufOHona as to every 
phase of Rose culture—how to grow thorn in the 
open ground : thoir insect enemies; what Roses 
to plant; which to select for bods or masses; 
winter protection, ote., etc.-that can hardly 
fail to instruct all who have not made Rose cul¬ 
ture a close study, 
Vanderbilt Brothers, 23 Fulton St., New 
York.—Seed and Illustrated List; Farm and 
Garden Implements; Garden, Field, Flower 
Ibid, Fruit, and Tree Seeds; Peruvian Guano! 
Superphosphate. Plants, Trees, Shrubs, and 
Roots. 
This house has an 
years standing, 
cation. 
R. H. SiruMWAY, Rockford, Hl.-Annual Ulus 
trated Garden Guide and Seed Catalogue. 
'Ll. W. Goodell, Amherst, Mass.—Catalogs 
of choice selected Flower Seeds mid Bulbs. 
Samuel Kinsey, Dayton, Ohio—Wholes,ah 
price-list of Quinces, Grapes, Small Fruits, Or 
namental. Trees, Shrubs, Plants, etc. 
Robert C. Reeves, 185 and 187 Water St., 
Now York City.—Descriptive Catalogue of choice 
- mo D6UW . , . ri . eM » and i Flowe i' Seeds, embracing all 
than that of placing U,o “proved varieties of American and 
on «uow which is thus ' K [ rovvtl1 - Alw Agricultural and Hor- 
i sheltered from winds ! , , 11 lm P ,omentft - ^tlizew, etc. The 
*1 melting. It is true a i ?? K ! VOn ** t0 41,6 cllUliro (jf «eeds are 
^ the manure (if manure 1 1 “ d aud »ro worthy of 
;he grass instead of find- i " * " Vl * > eeds are a household word 
« which are cultivated J 1,1 « ve ry town and village. 
m apeak not of mammal r ‘ lco - w - Campbell, Delaware, Ohio.— Pam- 
> tooting the roots from pblot sotting forth the merits of the “Lady” 
'•either, though if tlie bhat this is an excellent, white grape 
iltivated orchards, what ^"‘ r0 ^ n ° doubt. Whether it is the exact 
»din the one case, would, J w >'de grape of which we stand in need remains 
earth immediately out- I i;o 1)0 Been 
MISCELLANEA, 
The Best Protection about Trees.-L ast 
fall, all the manure aud compost which had been 
accumulated was exhausted upon ornamental 
shrubs, trees and flower-beds, so that the young 
fruit, trees three to six years oki were left without 
the usual covering over the roots until after 
heavy falls of snow. Instead then of malting a 
Pile of the manure as it was taken from the 
stable, it. was placed upon the snow about, the 
stems forming bircloa from four to six fed. in 
diameter. The snow was perhaps a foot in depth 
'Mien the manure was so placed. We have had 
much warm weather of Iain im. _ 
enviable reputation of 
Catalogues furnished on 
16. Bnrberis vulgaris (European Berberry). 
17. Anxlolorttia siphn (Dutchman s Pipe). 
18. Niriix rosmarinifolin (Rosemary - leaved 
Willow). 
Hi. Euonyiuus atropurpureu* (Burning-bush). 
20. Ti mm,a radicam (Trumpet Flower). 
21. •Hypericum Kalmianum (Kalin’s St. John’s 
Wort.) 
22. Herbert* vulgaris purpurea (Purple-leaved 
Berberry). 
2 . 1 . Clematis Virginiana (American White' 
Clematis). 
21. Umiecra Tartarica rubra (Red Tartarian 
Honeysuckle). 
25. Mtnisptrmum Canadense (Canadian Moon- 
seed). 
Many prominent shrubs would claim a placo 
in the above list, instead of souio there, but they 
are not hardy here. There aro all t he Roses in 
cultivation Sweet-scented Shrub, Japanese 
Quince, Deutzia, Weigola, Forsythia, Althaea 
Hydrangea, Double-lloworing Cherry, Tamarix' 
most specioa of Clematis, and Wistaria. In fact! 
there is some question about the hardiness of 
some m the above list. Some fine shrubs not in 
the hat are nearly jiardy at ail times, and per¬ 
fectly so during most years. 
[Prof, Beal's list was not included in the 
Rural Election List, for the reason that ho made 
bis selections specially for Michigan.— Ed ] 
be well for the farmers of the Southern States 
to adopt, the same plan and become masters of 
the situation, and fit themselves to be teachers 
and practitioners at the same time. 
Cotton has long been the groat staple of the 
&outhern State*, and doubtless hundreds and 
mousands of varieties are annually produced, 
still it is seldom that one is preserved, named, 
described, aud perpetuated. Now, there can 
scarcely be a doubt that if proper care were 
given to the selection of varieties, some one or 
more might be found wliich would immensely add 
to the yield, and probably much to the value of 
the fiber. Au increase of a half ounce to the 
plant would make a vast difference in the yield 
of one or one hundred acres, and then, there 
are doubtless to be found plants whose bolls 
ripen more early than others, which would 
vastly facilitate picking, and other variations 
which would be an advantage in other respects. 
But these improved varieties will never bo ob¬ 
tained unless there is some one to watch for 
and select and preserve them when fvund. 
W hat is true in cotton is also true lnv^ores of 
other field crops, and a watchful care is required 
to gather aud preserve only the best and those 
adapted to the conditions under wliich they are 
cultivated. A hint to the wise on this point 
should be sufficient at this time. * 
EXCHANGE 
As it is time to make preparations for the 
vegetable and flower garden, I mil give a list of 
the different varieties of seed I have for ex- 
change. I love flowers very much, and were it 
not for the few I cultivate, my homo would be 
lonely indeed; 
t have seed of Antirrhinum (assorted colors) 
Ageratum, White Diantku* Ohlnensi*, Phlox 
+***>' ***~ (finest varieties, 
ncludmg Emperor William), Poppies (double 
beautiful). Wall-flower (fragrant and line for 
house culture). Would like m exchange anW 
the following-named seeds :~Doublo Hollyhock 
Canterbury Bell Evening Primrose, Akmsoa, 
Aotow, Amaranthus, mlicifoUu*, Admi*. 
I have also a few sweet horbs-Caraway, Cori¬ 
ander, Camomile, Lavender-and would like m 
return, Balm, Sweet Basil, Sweet Marjoram 
Hyssop. Mrs. c. Cox, North Bass Mat*, Ot¬ 
tawa Co., Ohio. 
NOTES, 
1UK. rETER Henderson gives in the Agricul¬ 
turist a new (?) method of propagating certain 
plants by which the percentage of loss is remark¬ 
ably small. It consists in snapping the shoot to 
be propagated so nearly in two that it hangs on 
to the plant only by a “ shred of bark.” 
.Slight as this strip of bark appears to be,” 
he says, “it is sufik'ient to sustain the cutting 
without material injury from wilting, until it 
forms the callus which precedes the formation 
of roots. The cutting or shoot may be detached 
in frouMUo 12 days after it has been broken in 
the tnAuiro^^cribed aud then potted iu 2 or 3 
iuch pots.” k 
Mr. Henderson, last fall, propagated in this 
way nearly 10,000 plants of the Tricolor Pela* 
goniums with a loss of but oue per cent.; where¬ 
as, had he adopted the ordinary method, his ex¬ 
perience has been that a loss of at least 50 per 
cent, might have beWxpeeted. We know pet- 
sons who have p.-actice^his method for many 
NORTH, CAROLINA NOxfe. 
Our correspondent, Mr. M. B. PruNmNbf 
Ridgeway, instead of his usual welcome commu¬ 
nication writes in a private letter the following 
unwelcome intelligence which wo take tho liberty 
of extracting therefrom :—“On the night of the 
sixth nit., the grand old Eloomsburg mansion 
was burned to the ground. It was a largo house 
covering more than 2,500 square feet of ground 
two stories high and attic, built almost entirely 
of the long leaf, or as it i B called hero, hard 
Pine, every part xs sound and firm as when 
erected, which was, tho main building about 
seventy-fiye, and the other forty-flve years ago. 
^t has been sadly abused since the surrender. 
We discovered tho lire at just 8 o’clock P. M. 
and in thirty minutes we could not enter the 
milding at any point. I have witnessed 
fires, but nothing to Coual this for raoidilv 
Sriiorintltural 
SELECT LIST OF TREES AND SHRUBS. 
JThk following is a select list of Ha.IWDecidu- 
oumjaved Trees and Shrubs (twent?%fc. of 
eaoh/^rornamental groundsill Lansing, M^lN 
arranged nearly iu order of merit by Prof. W J 
Beal. * * * 
V >J£EES. 
1. minus Americana (American Elm) 
Pe '“ MaU ‘ Cint ° ta C^t-taved 
•S. Ola/lraslU tinctoria (Yellow Wood) 
(sou- 
EUCALYPTUS FICIFOLIA. 
Australians speak very highly of the Eucal- 
yptus Ficifolia, which blooms much earlier than 
the E. globulus, now so much talked about, a«*ho 
great Australian “ fever tree.” The annual re¬ 
port, of the Director of the Melbourne Botauic 
Garden, in referring to improvements iu por¬ 
tions of the grounds, says that several speci¬ 
mens of the gorgeous scarlet flowering Eucalyp¬ 
tus Ficifoliu aie there planted, and then enthu¬ 
siastically adds: 
“ This magnificent plant, from B.-Jken Inlet. 
W astern Australia, produces its flowers at J^picli 
earlier stage of growth tbau any other species^ 
the genus with which I am acquainted: its bloom 
resemble* a ball of fire more than anything else 
to which l coni 1 compare it. I have seen the 
1-lam, In,, t lil.awarra, aud the brilliant sear- 
let masses of Erythrina la uri folia on the banks 
0 , " a * n : but neither surpasses the effect 
produced by llie fipra] dispkn ui this Eucalyptus, 
CATALOGUES, 
West Chester, Pa.—Catalogue No. 4.— 
ouse and Bedding Plants. 
) are tew catalogues that we look over 
lore interest than those^tA this expe¬ 
trustworthy establishment. T%> * • gon- 
ectiou" is full of good plants, correctly 
||d carefully described, aud six pages 
novelties. Among these, and not 
t meritorious, if the plant is worthy of 
e, is a new Rose “ Thomas Meehan,” that 
H., B. A T. take great pleasure! in intro- 
o tho public. He is a seedling of Prince 
lie Jiohan, though more compact and 
ran his parent. He is an exceedingly 
mier. the flowers beautifully imbricated 
i, deep crimson color, with a charming! 
appearance, and remarkably fragrant. 
‘ that “Thomas Meehan,” favorably as 
