February 27.] 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
331 
larger than a goose’s egg, and if sent out of Europe in Octo¬ 
ber or November, they would travel from country to country 
without taking any harm for the next five or six months. A 
friend of ours, with whom we had seen the plant in flower, 
said, “ These very roots were detained at Vera Cruz, under 
the French blockade, nearly two years, hut began to exhibit 
signs of vitality in a short time after they were placed in a 
hot-bed, and here they are in flower the same season.” The 
word Jalap is a corruption of Xalapa, which the Mexicans 
pronounce Jalapa, the province of Mexico, where it is a 
native of, or, at least, whence it has long been sent to Vera 
Cruz for exportation. 
Dr. Schiede procured it from a different locality, on the 
eastern declivity of the Mexican Andes, at an elevation of 
(1000 feet. The reason why the true plant, which supplied 
the Jalap of commerce, remained until a few year’s back 
without being accurately determined, was this : Michaux, a 
French botanist, who travelled in America, named an 
Ipomcea, with a very large root, Macrorhiza, which grows 
near Vera Cruz and other parts of the country, as well as in 
the Floridas; and the drug being exported from Vera Cruz, 
naturalists rested satisfied that the source of the Jalap was 
this large rooted Ipomcea, and hence the idle stories about 
Jalap roots weighing 501b or (10 lb. 
Pharbitis limb ala belongs to the Natural Order Bindweeds 
(Convolvulacem), and to H-Penlandria. 1-Monogynia of the 
Linnsean system. It is a twining annual; stem clothed with 
bent-back hairs ; leaves heart-shaped, but with three pointed 
lobes, and hairy; flower-stalks single, one-flowered, and half 
the length of the leaf-stalks; calyx sepals four, long, narrow, 
bristly at the base, and hairy at the top. B. J. 
quire attention at times, in this way; all apples, pears, 
plums, cherries, &c., which appear exhausted by heavy 
cropping, will he benefited. It is quite interesting, at 
this period, to observe the early action of the black 
currant roots ; where top-dressings are annually applied, 
they will be found in a most active state now, close 
beneath the surface. 
Insects.— We must here allude more especially to 
the apple blight, and the Apricot scale. By the latter, we 
mean the scale of the Narrow’-winged Red-bar Moth, the 
Pccdisca angustiorana, an account of which will be found 
at page 81, of vol. iii- The former, termed the American 
blight, may, by persevering in the use of spirits of tur¬ 
pentine, be totally eradicated The scale is a most 
serious pest to the apricot, and should be hunted out 
now, on the old stems of the apricots, where the eggs 
will be found at this period just beginning to enlarge, 
preparatory to their hatching into caterpillars. They 
are in patches, and appear like oval daubs of paste. 
These we assiduously destroy, for it will be remembered 
that such produce the caterpillars, that are almost sure 
to make their appearance with the young leaf, which 
they so mutilate and roll up, as seriously to damage 
both the present and the prospective crop, and also 
paralyze the system of the tree. There can be little 
doubt that the usual soft soap, lime, and sulphur dress¬ 
ing, as applied to peaches, would destroy them, if ap¬ 
plied betimes ; but this we have never proved. 
We recommend those who are desirous of having 
THE FRUIT-GAKDEN. 
“ Delays are Dangerous.” —Although much has to 
be advised shortly, both as to in-door and out-door fruits, 
yet we feel inclined to stir up the memory of our readers 
as to some important matters concerning hardy fruits. 
The weather has been so unusually mild for several 
weeks, that the blossom-bud is now, in what we must 
term, a most alarming state, for the pears and goose¬ 
berries here (Cheshire), are half developed in some cases; 
and, indeed, the peaches, &c., too much advanced. We 
much fear, therefore, a great destruction; for who can 
expect the whole spring to run on in so unusual a w T ay. 
Let every one, who can command evergreen boughs, 
whether ofspruee, or other firs, holly, laurel, privet, Ac., 
immediately stick them, as we have done during the last 
three days, through all the best gooseberries, pears, and 
other forward things ; for if they do no good, they can¬ 
not possibly do harm. Ours are simply laid over the 
tops of the fruit-trees, and if any happen to become dis¬ 
placed by a storm, why a man in a couple of hours re¬ 
adjusts them. 
Pears, here, being mostly trained horizontally, or, as 
low bushes, are covered with great facility, and we shall 
make a point of taking the boughs off for three or four 
days in about three weeks time—seizing a period free 
from frost for the operation, with the barometer steadily 
in our favour. 
Root-pruning. —Those who have such operations still 
to perform, must see to their completion without a 
moment’s delay; and, remember, that the operation 
should scarcely be so severe now, as when performed in 
November, for the roots, doubtless, not only commence 
to cicatrice during winter, but either produce new fibres, 
or prepare the very germs of them. 
Top-dressing. —Whenever this is needed, let it be ap¬ 
plied forthwith. As we never dig over the surface of 
our fruit borders, we apply a thin dressing annually (the 
moment the bushes are primed), to all gooseberries, 
raspberries, black currants, &c. One barrowful, gene¬ 
rally, suffices for two or three trees. This is spread in 
a circle round the bush, and then a little soil strewed 
over to prevent loss by drying. Other fruits, too, re¬ 
healthy crops of that most useful fruit, the black currant, 
to water or syringe their trees over, forthwith, with the 
strongest soap-suds of the laundry. We would give them 
a second application, if possible, before the buds unfold. 
This will prove, in a great degree, antagonistic to those 
ruinous aphides, which annually do so much mischief: 
and will, moreover, be almost equal to a manuring. 
Indeed, the old plan, as practised by the celebrated 
Speedily, in his day, of pouring soap-suds constantly 
over the walls containing particular fruits, during the 
rest season, is well worth introducing to modern practice. 
We should always do so, but that over amount of labour 
will not bear us out, unless we have every confidence in 
its utility. 
Peaches and Nectarines. —These of course will be 
all pruned and trained by the time this advice reaches 
our readers. Let us advise that the application of 
the sulphur paint be not forgotten. Beat up three 
ounces of soft soap with each gallon of tepid water; add 
four liandsful of flower of sulphur, and, if necessary, 
add some soot to subdue the tone of colouring imparted, 
which, without the latter, is a lively lemon colour. 
We generally add some thick clay water, making the 
whole the consistence of ordinary paint. Let this be 
applied by a brush to every space between the shoots, 
and if a little should perchance touch the shoots, it will 
not harm them. 
Grafting. —This will probably have to be performed 
earlier this spring, and we advise those who have pear- 
trees of some size, which do not give satisfaction, to 
insert as many grafts as they can find time for, of truly 
good kinds adapted to the locality. Wherever such 
“ take,” the spray of the original tree may be pruned 
away in the following autumn, and the shoots from the 
grafts tied down in their places, or otherwise trained. 
Ample directions for grafting will be found at page 220 
of the volume for 1848-0. 
Plums, cherries, apples, &c., may be served in a 
similar way, and were this plan more frequently prac¬ 
tised, there would seldom be occasion to totally destroy 
established trees. 
A Nursery. —Our readers must not feel alarmed at 
such a heading; we do not wish them to enter into 
business in this way, but merely to hint, that where an 
amateur has room, and desire for severe economy, and 
