JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
June  23,  1900 
.on  4 
The  Improvement  In  Sug'ar  Beet. — It  is  a  well-established  fact, 
says  an  American  writer,,  that  plants  can  be  improved  by  crossing  and 
judicious  selection  quite  as  surely  and  effectively  as  the  breeding  of 
animals.  The  Sugar  Beet  may  be  quoted  as  an  example  of  what 
cultivation  may  do.  The  Sugar  Beet  of  to-day  actually  contains 
about  three  times  as  large  a  proportion  of  saccharine  matter  as  it  did 
a  century  ago. 
The  Value  of  Peat. — There  will  be  joy  in  Ireland  and  Scotland 
over  the  news  that  comes  from  Vienna  of  the  latest  possibilities  of 
peat.  In  the  Vienna  Exhibition  of  last  year  there  was  a  building  in 
which  everything,  from  the  carpets  on  the  floor  to  the  curtains  on  the 
windows  and  the  paper  on  the  walls,  was  all  made  from  peat.  That 
combustible  is  now  made  into  fabrics  which  are  said  to  have  the 
toughness  of  linen  with  the  warmth  of  wool,  and  blankets  and  other 
coverings  made  from  it  excel  in  warmth  and  cleanliness.  We  may 
soon  look  for  thriving  peat  industries  in  the  “  congested”  districts. 
Tlie  Advantages  of  Ivy. — Many  people  refuse  to  have  creepers 
of  any  description  on  the  walls  of  their  houses  on  the  plea  that  they 
bring  insects  into  the  house.  .  It  is  a  distinct  advantage,  however,  to 
live  in  a  house  with  Ivy -covered  walls,  for  the  Ivy  extracts  for  its  own 
sustenance  every  particle  of  moisture  from  the  brick  or  stone  to  which 
it  clings,  and  thus  keeps  them  free  from  damp.  Then,  too,  when  rain 
comes  the  leaves  of  the  Ivy  conduct  the  water  from  leaf  to  leaf  until 
it  reaches  the  ground,  without  the  walls  receiving  any  moisture  what¬ 
ever.  Then,  again,  even  the  most  prosaic  person  cannot  but  admit  how 
much  more  picturesque  and  pleasant  to  the  eyes  is  a  house  covered 
with  Ivy  than  another  with  bare  walls.  Even  the  ugliest  and 
most  inartistic  building  can  be  made  to  look  quite  interesting  if  Ivy 
is  allowed  to  find  a  place  on  its  walls. 
Soaking  Seeds. — Soaking  seeds  in  pure  water  has  its  disadvantages; 
it  dissolves  some  substance  from  the  seeds,  which  is  brown  in  colour  and 
gives  off  the  smell  of  ammonia  under  heat,  showing  that  nitrogenous 
matter,  which  Nature  has  stored  there  to  nourish  the  young  germ,  has 
been  soaked  out.  The  plant  grown  from  seeds  soaked  in  plain  water 
will  be  weaker  and  paler  in  colour  than  from  seeds  not  so  treated. 
Seeds  soaked  in  water  dry  very  quickly,  and  the  evaporation  leaves  them 
drier  than  before ;  therefore  such  seeds  frequently  fail  in  a  dry  soil,  or 
during  a  period  of  dry,  warm  weather.  These  evil  results  may  be  easily 
avoided  by  soaking  seeds  in  a  solution  of  some  chemical  salts  of  a  ferti¬ 
lising  nature.  Such  solution  can  dissolve  little  from  the  seed ;  on  the 
contrary,  it  thoroughly  impregnates  them  with  fertilising  ingredients, 
so  that  the  young  plants  appear  darker  and  decidedly  stronger.  Seeds 
so  steeped  always  continue  moist  in  consequence  of  the  properties  of  the 
saline  substance  they  contain. — (“  American  Gardening.”) 
Burying  Roots. — Ill-informed  cultivators  have  only  a  faint  idea 
of  the  reasons  why  trees  should  not  be  deeply  planted.  It  is  not  because 
of  any  injury  to  the  trunks,  but  because  the  feeding  roots  need  the 
oxygen  of  the  atmosphere  in  the  preparation  of  the  food,  just  as  much 
as  the  leaves  do.  So  far  as  the  trunk  is  concerned,  burying  under  the 
earth  is  a  benefit  rather  than  an  injury.  If  it  were  possible  to  have  the 
stems  or  tranks  several  feet  beneath  the  surface,  and  the  roots  only  a 
few  inches,  the  vigour  of  the  tree  would  be  enhanced  thereby.  But 
though  this  is,  says  a  transatlantic  journal,  impossible,  earth  on  the 
surface  can  be  heaped  around  the  trunk  to  advantage,  as  long  as  we 
do  not  bury  too  great  a  root-feeding  surface.  This  was  well  exemplified 
nearly  half  a  century  ago  by  a  Peach  grower,  near  Cincinnati,  named 
Bolmar.  He  had  earth  by  the  cartload  heaped  around  his  Peach 
trees.  His  orchard  had  the  appearance  of  being  covered  by  miniature 
stacks.  The  growth  and  general  health  of  the  trees  were  remarkable. 
It  was  a  grand  object  lesson,  and  he  deserved  some  recompense. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  it  would  be  to  the  advantage  of 
orchardists  generally  to  have  mounds  of  earth  around  the  base  of  their 
fruit  trees,  and  it  is  surprising  that  such  good  practice  is  so  generally 
ignored. 
Corsica’s  Pest  of  Tiocusts. — A  telegram  from  Ajaccio  states  that 
locusts  in  enormous  swarms  have  settled  upon  the  district  south-west 
of  Bastia.  The  whole  adult  male  population  has  turned  out  to  defend 
the  crops.  More  than  1000  persons  are  engaged  in  the  struggle,  but  after 
three  days  of  ceaseless  destruction  the  invasion  remains  unchecked,  and 
an  appeal  has  been  made  for  troops  to  continue  the  campaign.  Had 
Le  Petit  Caporal  been  at  his  native  place  he  would  doubtless  have 
preserved  his  country  from  such  a  calamity. 
VTlien  to  Work  the  Garden. — Cultivating  and  hoeing  in  the 
early  morning  when  the  dew  is  on  the  earth  is  far  preferable,  says  an 
American  writer,  to  doing  it  in  the  heat  of  the  day.  I  arise  at  four 
o’clock  and  breakfast  at  six  in  the  summer  season.  In  the  meantime  I 
devote  from  one-half  to  two  hours  in  the  garden,  hoeing,  weeding, 
cultivating,  and  gathering  cool,  crisp  Radishes,  Lettuces,  Peas,  Beans, 
and  Beet  for  the  morning  and  noontime  meals.  Vegetables  gathered 
when  the  dew  is  on  them  are  of  the  finest  quality.  Early  to  bed,  early 
to  rise,  gives  a  good  appetite  for  breakfast,  and  adds  days  to  our  lives. 
The  Growing  Interest  In  Forestry. — The  interest  manifested 
in  forest  matters  in  the  East  and  Middle  West  within  the  last  two  years 
has  been,  says  “  American  Gardening,”  productive  of  much  agitation 
and  legislation  in  a  number  of  States.  New  York  State  is  about  to 
prepare  working  plans  for  its  Adirondack  possessions,  while  Pennsyl¬ 
vania  has  passed  a  forest  reserve  law  and  is  purchasing  land  for 
reserve  purposes.  In  Michigan  an  Act  was  passed  providing  for  the 
creation  of  a  permanent  forest  commission.  Wisconsin  also  has  been 
agitating  forest  matters  to  a  great  extent,  and  it  is  hoped  that  there 
will  soon  be  an  adequate  law  enacted  for  the  improvement  of  forest 
conditions  in  that  State.  Minnesota  has  enacted  a  law  for  establishing 
forest  reserves  under  a  novel  plan,  from  which  good  results  are  promised 
in  that  State,  while  in  Indiana,  North  Carolina,  Massachusetts,  Connec¬ 
ticut,  and  other  States,  encouraging  progress  has  been  made  in 
awakening  general  interest  in  the  subject  of  forestry. 
Primula  mollis. — Introduced  about  fifty  years  ago  it  was  then 
prophesied  that  this  would  be  cultivated  to  a  large  extent  for  green¬ 
house  work ;  that  it  has  never  found  for  itself  the  place  in  the  affections 
of  horticulturists  that  its  introducers  wished  is  very  evident  from  the 
few  places  where  it  is  successfully  grown.  Probably  the  reason  it  is 
not  more  frequently  seen  is  that  it  often  does  not  grow  well  as  a  pot 
plant  and  so  disgusts  the  cultivator.  It  is,  however,  possible  to  grow 
it  well  in  a  cool  house,  and  it  then  makes  a  striking  object.  A  good 
plan  is  to  raise  seedlings  in  April,  and  when  they  have  five  or  six  leaves 
prick  then  out  in  a  border  of  peat  and  loam  or  light  sandy  loam.  After 
planting  they  should  be  given  plenty  of  room  with  abundance  of  air  and  ‘ 
water  until  the  end  of  October,  when  they  should  be  kept  on  the  dry 
side  until  growth  recommences  in  spring.  When  growth  is  active 
plenty  of  water  must  be  given.  Under  these  conditions  it  is  possible 
to  grow  plants  18  inches  across,  with  leaves  5  inches  in  diameter  and 
flower  spikes  15  inches  high,  bearing  five  or  six  whorls  of  rosy  purple 
flowers.  If  when  planted  they  can  be  so  placed  as  to  be  partially 
shaded  by  some  taller  plant,  so  much  the  better. — Kewite. 
Reasoning'  Po'wer  of  Plants. — Do  plants  reason?  This  seems 
a  strange  question,  but  it  is  asked  by  the  daughter  of  a  prominent 
Mexican  planter  who  has  been  making  a  series  of  experiments,  and 
publishing  the  results  in  a  Mexican  newspaper.  Among  the  many 
experiments  made  by  this  young  lady  naturalist  of  Mexico,  the  most 
suggestive  was  with  a  Morning  Glory  plant.  This  young  lady 
drove  a  nail  in  the  wall  some  distance  from  the  tendril  of  a  Morning 
Glory  plant.  The  tendril  at  once  began  to  grow  toward  the  nail. 
The  nail  was  shifted ;  the  tendril  shifted  its  course.  Five  times  the 
nail  was  shifted,  and  five  times  the  tendril  shifted  its  course.  Finally 
a  cord  was  hung  up  to  tempt  the  tendril,  and  it  shifted  its  course 
toward  the  cord  and  left  the  nail  which  it  had  five  times  persisted  in 
following.  The  young  lady  asks  :  How  did  the  plant  know  that  the 
nail  was  there?  And  how  did  it  know  that  the  nail  was  shifted? 
When  the  cord  was  stretched  at  an  equal  distance  away,  how  did  it 
know  the  difference  between  the  cord  and  the  nail  ?  She  also  asks  : 
Why  do  the  tendrils  of  the  Morning  Glory  prefer  a  cord  or  continuous 
support,  such  as  a  cord,  wire,  or  lath,  or  rail,  rather  than  a  peg  or  nail, 
which  does  not  give  this  continuous  support  ?  Why,  when  presented 
with  an  equal  choice  between  the  two,  will  they  invariably  choose  the 
continuous  support  ?  After  asking  a  series  of  questions  logically 
springing  from  the  facts  cited  and  others,  she  concludes  by  asserting 
!  that  plants  really  reason. — (“  Indian  Gardening.”) 
