412 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
May 28. 1904 
for seeds that float, in water, even when, good, are of a very 
doubtful quality, although in some cases they may grow, 
especially when they sink at first. But of all others, the 
surest test is to sow a small quantity under favourable condi¬ 
tions., and take the percentage of seeds germinated. 
In storing seeds the greatest care is necessary, for, if' badly 
stored, the seeds, however perfect, become unpaired before the 
time of sowing comes! on. For kitchen garden seeds, canvas 
bags, varying in thickness' and closeness of texture, usually 
give satisfaction, though the greatest care must be. taken to 
make sure the bags are perfectly clean and free from all insect- 
life and fungi, and this applies to> boxes', paper bags, or what¬ 
ever is used for storing. For finer seeds, a. good brown-paper 
bag is hard to beat. The place- in which seeds are stored should 
be chosen, where it is possible to keep a fairly even temperature. 
A cool temperature is best for not causing premature germina¬ 
tion, although, of course, no frost must penetrate, so that the 
temperature should not be lower than 40 F., and it is well to 
bear in mind that it always pays thei best to nurse seeds well. 
We all know that there are three important things necessary 
for successful germination—namely, moisture, air, and a cer¬ 
tain temperature is essential, although perhaps not always 
absolutely necessary. Heat alone will not grow seeds—tliey 
simply bake. Moisture alone would merely rot. seeds. If seeds 
are sown too thickly or too deep there is insufficient air, and 
the shoot has not strength to penetrate upwards. Sown and 
not properly covered, the seedlings merely lie dying on the 
surface. Seeds which are kept dry will not germinate, although 
the amount of moisture required varies considerably ; for 
some seeds, such as Beans and Peas, are capable of absorbing 
more water than their own weight—indeed, they will ger¬ 
minate in water alone. 
Thei best temperature for seeds in an ordinary way to spring 
up in is from 60 to 80 deg. F., and the highest temperature 
that seeds, can exist in water is 95 deg. F. if prolonged for 
twenty hours, and when in sand or earth at 103 deg. F., when 
prolonged for the same' time. So we see that seeds can. stand 
a dry atmosphere better than a, moist one when at high tem¬ 
perature, and, as the main firelife for promoting germination is 
oxygen, it is as well to consider the beet depth to sow seeds. 
(To be continued .) 
The Eucalyptus. 
California, seems to have the various climates that suit the 
different varieties of Eucalyptus. This wonderful family of 
trees' wasi introduced from Australia, over forty years ago', and 
their wonderful adaptability to this state soon made itself mani¬ 
fest. The common blue' gum, E. Globulus, is the best.' known 
and most widely planted of the specie's, and many hundreds 
of acres are planted out. annually for fuel. They .are easily 
grown from seed, and a six-year-old tree will measure 50 ft. 
high and yield half a. cord of wood. They grow very straight and 
symmetrical, and when cut. down immediately grow again from 
the root, and in fivei years attain another 50 ft. in height. In 
our warmer section of the country this variety is- planted largely 
on account of its malaria, destroying qualities, and from its 
leaves is prepared a liquid used in the removal of boiler incrus¬ 
tations. It has great virtue as a. specific for rheumatism, and 
the industry of extracting the essential oils is. considerable. 
The variety next best known, is E. rostrata., the red gum 
of southern Australia. Although it does not grow quite so 
rapidly as the sort. I have just described, it reaches the height 
of 150 ft,, and the wood is very durable. It makes a, very 
showy tree, and is planted here considerably. 
- E. amygdalina, the well-known. Pepper Gum, is said to attain 
the height of 500 ft. in southern Australia, It makes a beau¬ 
tiful shade tree, and is used somewhat for .avenue planting. 
E. rohusta is the swamp Mahogany Gum of New South 
Wales. I have found that it flourishes well in situations 
that have a great deal of moisture, but is. not of rapid growth. 
The flowers, resemble those of E. Globulus, but are: larger and 
of a pure white colour, contain a. great, deal of honey, and are 
much sought, by the bees. 
I have several specimens of E. citriodora., the lemon-scentec 
variety. The foliage has tjie same odour as the Lemon Ver¬ 
bena, and makes a, very pretty shrub. The plant is not ven 
hardy when small, and ha.s to be protected from the frost J; 
is a very interesting tree, and bears a pure white bloom. 
The finest garden variety, however, is E. ficifolia, the Grim- 
son-flowered Gum. This beautiful shrub has very large, dark 
green leaves, and produces a profusion, of large panicles of dark 
crimson flowers. It is very showy, both in and out- of bloom, 
but is not a. rapid grower, as are most of the Eucalyptus! 
family. It- is a native of West Australia, where in attains a 
considerable size, but with us it. appears to adopt a dwarfish, 
shrubby habit. 
E. stewartiana., the Apple-scented Gum, has the same habit 
of growth Sa.s the kind I have just mentioned, but. is much, 
hardier. The leaves have the odour peculiar to Rose Geranium, 
and, like most, of the' family, it is a. profuse bearer of creamv- 
white blooms .—“ G.” in “ The Weekly Florists’ Review.” 
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. 
Under-gardeners and the Gardeners’ Association.” 
T'o. the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir,—Your correspondent J. P. Dickson voices the opinion 
of others beside under-gardeners, when lie says: “ Let us look 
after our own interests.” 
An important question for gardeners of all classes is: 
“ Ought we to continue to look on ‘ the living wage ’ and better' 
conditions of employment generally as impossible ideals ? ” 
If landscape gardeners in Berlin can secure 8d. per hour, 
thanks to. efficient organisation, why should not British gait 
deners attempt to improve their position by the same legiti¬ 
mate means? 
One thing is certain; without some intelligent combination 
among ourselves improvement is impossible. For this reason 
let every thoughtful craftsman see to it that, the “ Gardener's' 
Association ” has his moral and financial support. 
Sans Culotte. 
Ducks in the Garden. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir,—There is nothing better in clearing all classes of mol- 
lusca from a garden than young ducks, providing they are, 
dispensed with before they get too heavy and sluggish. Then 
they are apt to trample and bask upon the cooling beds of 
Lettuces, etc., spoiling them, and also nibbling anything else. 
Ducks beat all dustings with lime, soot, and other caustics, 
which lose their influence after a, few days. The main thing 
is to let, thei ducklings have the run of the garden at early 
dawn as well as late at night, when the slugs and snails come 
out to feed. 
Wei havfc had sad years of struggling with slugs, because of 
so much wet, and noi doubt there will be vast numbers of eggs 
hatched out which can be detected only by the quick eyes of 
domestic waddlers, In The Gardening World, Vol. II. for 
1885, page 132, these were then advocated, and I have not, 
found anything yet to supersede them. B. Lockwood. 
The British Gardeners’ Association. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir,-—Will you kindly allow me to inform your readers who 
are interested in the proposal to form an association of pro¬ 
fessional gardeners, to include all sections of horticulture, that 
the Provisional Committee will submit a definite! scheme for its 
immediate formation at the meeting to be Held in the Essex 
Hall, Strand, at 6 p.m. on June 1st, The committee have had 
assurances of support from many gardeners of all classes, in¬ 
cluding nurserymen, seedsmen, park superintendents, etc., and 
there is now every pro-spect that the association will be a 
success. There is seating accommodation for 600 only in, the 
Essex Hall, and as it is hoped that the proceedings will begin 
at 6 o’clock, those who desire to get a seat should be in time. 
W. Watson. 
(Hon. Sec 1 . Provisional Committee.) 
