November  17,  1898. 
JOURNAL  Of  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
375 
representing  an  admirable  type  for  the  household.  As  perhaps  you  may 
know,  Mr.  Editor,  a  voice  lrom  the  kitchen  makes  itself  heard  at  times 
on  the  subject  of  Onionism,  and  the  mere  male,  largely  though  he  may 
loom  at  the  shows,  quakes  when  he  hears  it. — W.  Pea. 
[Yes,  and  if  cooks  were  the  judges  in  Onion  contests,  the  “  minor  ” 
bulbs  would  win,  not  in  their  view  the  “  wasteful  monstrosities.”] 
FLORAL  DECORATIONS. 
A  few  weeks  since  (page  279)  Mr.  F.  Street  gave  a  description  of 
some  very  elaborate  floral  decorations,  carried  out  at  a  great  house  in  the 
county  ot  Lincoln.  There  is  not  only  the  fact  of  the  size  and  greatness 
of  the  house,  but  the  association  of  great  wealth  conveyed  in  the  treat¬ 
ment  of  the  subject  by  your  correspondent,  so  much  so  that  envy  becomes 
a  prominent  element  when  the  description  given  by'  Mr.  Street  is  taken 
seriously. 
Mr.  Street  says,  “  How  frequently  we  hear  the  assertion  that  tastes 
differ  ;  or  is  it  a  matter  of  taste  ?  ”  Most  certainly  floral  or  table  decora¬ 
tions  do  demand  a  natural  taste,  but  in  many  who  are  called  upon  to  do 
the  work  this  taste  is  not  uniform  or  developed  on  any  fixed  principle. 
There  is  such  a  wide  field  covered  by  taste  in  the  matter  of  decoration  of 
the  dinner  table,  that  it  would  be  futile  lor  anyone  to  lay  down  hard  and 
fast  governing  lines,  because  what  would  please  in  one  instance  would 
probably  be  otherwise  in  another.  What  determines  the  whole  question 
is  that  of  satisfaction  to  those  for  whom  the  decoration  is  done  and  to 
oneself.  If  a  full  measure  of  pleasure  is  derived  from  the  treatment  of 
the  subject  by  the  host  and  guests,  it  does  not  so  much  matter  about  the 
dignity  of  the  taste  of  the  decorator.  I  frequently  find  that  a  simple 
arrangement  of  foliage  and  flowers  affords  as  much  pleasure  as  an 
elaborate  treatment  with  costly  flowers  and  plants.  Anyone  accustomed 
to  and  having  to  carry  out  decorations  can  easily  conceive  what  the 
effect  would  be  in  the  examples  described  by  Mr.  Street,  but  very 
many  have  to  do  without  such  costly  vessels  for  the  arrangement  of 
flowers  and  plants,  and  which  naturally  lend  an  air  of  dignity  to  the 
work  of  the  decorator. 
When  decorations  of  the  kind  under  notice  are  only  requiied  on 
special  occasions  there  is  not  the  same  difficulty  presented  as  that  which 
occurs  to  the  man  who  is  expected  to  do  the  same  kind  of  work  every  day. 
In  both  cases  taste  is  a  stern  necessity,  but  I  think  the  latter  exercises  a 
stronger  demand  than  that  which  comes  from  special  occasions,  such  as 
the  one  in  Mr.  Street’s  mind.  To  carry  on  the  work  of  table  decorations 
nightly  for  weeks  and  months  together  without  intermission  demands  an 
inborn  taste,  and  without  it  the  labour  would  become  painfully  monotonous 
to  the  decorator  and  employer  alike.  With  an  aptitude  for  decorating  it 
is  really  surprising  what  variation  is  possible,  even  on  a  taole  of  moderate 
size,  and  it  is  needless  to  say  that  a  table  laid  for  over  twenty  requires 
very  different  treatment  from  one  for  half  or  less  than  that  number.  The 
quantity  ot  plants  and  the  size  ot  individual  flowers  suitable  for  a  large 
table  need  considerable  modification  when  the  table  is  so  much  smaller  ; 
but,  as  pointed  out  by  Mr.  Street,  lightness  and  simplicity,  with  chasteness 
and  elegance,  are  lessons  that  need  to  be  learnt  in  the  treatment  of  large 
or  small  tables. 
I  cannot  say  that  I  am  wholly  at  one  with  Mr.  Street  in  regard  to 
what  he  describes  as  foreign  foliage.  The  use  of  Lycopodium  and  Ferns 
for  flowers  to  rest  on  are  the  outcome,  he  says,  to  say  ttie  least,  of  a 
depraved  taste.  If  it  shows  bad  taste  to  use  Fern  with  dowers,  then  for 
what  purpose  are  they  grown  ?  And  further,  what  would  Mr.  Street 
advocate  as  an  associate  for  cut  spikes  of  Odontoglossums,  Oncidiums, 
Calanthes,  and  other  Orchids,  and  tor  the  latter  used  in  pots,  flowering,  as 
they  do,  without  foliage  ?  1  must  certainly'  admit  a  dullness  of  intel¬ 
ligence  if  I  am  expected  to  employ  such  flowers  effectively  without  an 
accompaniment  of  some  foreign  foliage.  In  table  tracery  it  would  be 
impossible  to  employ  such  flowers,  or  even  in  small  vases,  if  Fern  fronds 
are  inadmissible.  1  cannot  help  believing  that  even  Mr.  Street  finds  a 
difficulty  in  defining  perfect  taste  or  uniformity  of  treatment.  In  one 
paragraph  he  condemns  the  use  of  Fern  fronds  as  showing  bad  taste  ;  in 
another,  Adiantum  gracillimum,  just  a  frond  or  two  is  admitted  as  a  foil 
to  Lily  of  the  Valley  and  Persian  Lilac.  If  Fern  fronds  are  needful  for 
such  flowers  as  these,  natural  foliage  of  which  can  be  furnished  and 
spared  so  much  more  easily  than  occur  with  Orchids  of  most  kinds,  where 
is  the  line  to  be  drawn  between  a  depraved  taste  and  that  of  a  higher 
class’?  I  am  well  aware  that  flowers  which  produce  foliage  in  sufficient 
abundance  look  better  and  more  natural  without  anything  of  a  foreign 
nature  arranged  either  in  vases  or  on  the  table.  Euphorbia  jacquiniac  flora, 
Poinsettias,  Chrysanthemums,  Begonias,  and  eome  other  flowers  men¬ 
tioned  in  Mr.  Street’s  article  afford  examples  in  which  foreign  foliage 
is  altogether  uncalled  for. 
There  is  undoubtedly,  as  Mr.  Street  puts  it,  an  infinitude  of  con¬ 
ception  arising  from  the  power  to  observe,  to  feel,  and  to  realise  the 
sublime,  beautiful,  and  picturesque  in  Nature  and  in  Art,  and  the  person 
is  yet  unborn  that  can  produce  in  another  such  qualities  by  teaching. 
Unless  they  are  by  nature  inborn,  tastes  which  take  such  varied  forms 
cannot  be  instilled  by  artificial  means.  Taste  in  floral  matters  becomes 
developed  by  age  and  opportunity,  without  the  latter  the  talent  remains 
to  a  great  extent  latent.  Much  could  be  written,  more  might  be  said, 
bearing  on  the  subject,  but  it  is  a  matter  of  such  varying  application,  that 
few  venture  to  give  their  own  views,  or  extol  the  virtues  of  others,  who, 
by  age  and  experience  have  gained  some  mastery  over  such  intricate 
studies.— W.  Stkugnell.  '  ' 
ROYAL  HORTICULTURAL  SOCIETY. 
November  8tti. 
Scientific  Committee.— Present  :  Dr.  M.  T.  Masters  (in  the 
chair)  ;  Rev.  W.  Wilks,  Mr.  Michael,  Prof.  C.  A.  Church,  and  Rev.  G. 
Henslow,  lion.  Sec. 
Potatoes  with  Scab. — With  reference  to  some  diseased  tubers  received 
some  time  back,  Prof.  W.  G.  Smith  reports  as  follows  :  — 
Almost  simultaneously  with  receipt  of  specimens  from  the  Scientific  Com¬ 
mittee  other  specimens  were  received  from  “  The  Gardeners’  Chronicle.”  Both 
sets  of  material  showed  a  well  marked  form  of  “  scab  ”  involving  the  tip  or 
growing  end  of  every  tuber.  Freshly  cut  sections  showed  a  mycelium  inside 
the  tubers,  both  in  discoloured  and  normally  coloured  parts.  The  first  result 
of  cultivation  was  an  abundant  crop  of  a  mucor  (white  mould),  which  soon 
passed  into  the  zygospore  resting  stage.  An  abundant  crop  of  bodies  of  a 
fungus  nature  were  also  present  about  this  time  in  active  growth.  Later 
several  other  fungi  appeared.  The  rotten  parts  showed  the  presence  of  bacteria, 
white  mites,  and  nematode  worms.  Phytophthora  was  not  met  with  in  course 
of  the  examination. 
The  “scab  ”  disease  has  been  ascribed  to  (1)  various  fungi ;  (2)  bacteria  ; 
(3)  nematode  worms;  (4)  mites;  (5)  an  organism  of  a  slime-fungus  nature 
(P-eudocommis).  The  mateiial  examined  was  not  suited  to  discriminate  the 
actual  cause  of  the  disease,  because  four  of  the  above  agencies  were  present  in 
company.  The  presence  of  a  fungus  mycelium  in  freshly'  exposed  sections 
inclines  me  to  give  the  precedence  to  some  fungus.  In  the  cases  examined 
moss  litter  from  a  stable  was  used  largely  in  one  case  ;  the  other  had  also  been 
manured  with  moss  litter  manure,  but  the  source  and  quantity  are  not  stated. 
This  would  seem  to  indicate  that  such  manure  offered  good  nourishment  to  the 
fungus.  Comparing  ray  results  with  other  cases  recorded,  I  am  inclined  to 
think  that  the  fungus  (another  cause)  came  from  the  soil. 
Investigations  on  Potato  scab  have  been  often  made  in  the  United  States, 
Belgium,  Germany,  and  France.  No  definite  cause  has  as  yet  been  fixed  on, 
but  experiments  in  preventive  treatment  have  been  fairly  successful.  Of  the 
latter  the  following  have  been  tried  in  the  United  States  and  in  Europe : — 
1,  Corrosive  sublimate — the  favourite  treatment  in  the  United  States.  When 
seed  tubers  are  treated  before  planting  out  with  1  part  sublimate  in  1000  of 
water  for  one  to  two  hours  good  results  gene  ally  follow,  although  some 
experiments  on  badly  infested  land  were  negative. 
2,  Sulphur  — also  an  American  favourite.  The  seed  tubers  are  thoroughly 
dusted  with  flowers  of  sulphur  before  planting.  One  authority  speaks  highly 
of  good  results  from  300  lbs.  sulphur  per  acre  applied  in  the  open  row,  like 
artificial  manures,  from  a  drill  distributor.  The  same  writer  is  also  in  favour 
of  a  mixture  of  sulphur  and  kainit  at  the  rate  of  300  lbs.  per  acre. 
3,  Kainit,  for  application  to  land  known  to  be  infested.  This  seems  to  me 
a  safe  cure,  and  it  is  favourably'  reported  on. 
Akebia  quinata. — Foliage  and  ripe  fruit  of  this  Berberidaceous  climber 
were  received  from  the  Dowager  Lady  B  iwman.  They  were  grown  in 
the  open  at  Joldwynds,  near  Dorking.  It  is  a  native  of  Japan,  and  as  a 
rule  does  not  perfect  its  fruit  in  this  climate. 
Cyclamen  europceum  icith  Long  Rhizomes. — Some  plants  were  sent  by 
Rev.  W.  Dod,  showing  how  this  plant  can  produce  its  tuber  several  inches 
below  the  surface,  by  means  of  a  long  rhizome  penetrating  vertically 
through  the  surface  soil.  At  the  base  of  the  rhizome  was  the  globular 
tuber.  Perhaps  this  may  have  resulted  from  the  prolonged  drought,  so 
that  the  tuber  might  be  produced  away  from  its  influence. 
Teasel  Head  Proliferous. — Dr.  Masters  exhibited  a  specimen  in  which 
the  bracts  of  the  summit  became  foliaceous.  An  examination  of  the 
tissues  showed  the  presence  of  the  fungus  Sclerotinia  Libertiana,  both  the 
Sclerotia  and  the  Botrytis  form  being  present.  The  probability  is  that 
the  fungus  has  stimulated  the  bracts  into  their  abnormal  growth. 
Apple  Trees  Cankered. — He  also  exhibited  branches  of  Apples  swollen 
by  Mistletoe,  but  within  cracks  of  the  bark  there  was  present  the  fungus 
Nectria  dicissima.  He  remarked  that  through  loosening  the  soil  about  the 
roots  by  forking  it  over,  and  by  applying  manure,  the  canker  had 
disappeared  from  the  trees  so  treated. 
Lavender  with  Dimorphic  Leaves.  —  Dr.  Masters  called  attention  to 
sprays  of  Lavender  on  which  the  majority  of  the  leaves  were  small,  greyr 
with  stellate  hairs,  and  with  inrolled  margins,  these  characters  being 
acquired  by  many  plants  frequenting  arid  and  hot  regions.  Some  of  the 
leaves,  however,  were  much  larger,  dark  green  and  flat,  such  being 
characteristic  of  plants  in  a  moister  climate.  The  different  appearance 
of  the  latter  is  caused  by  there  being  much  fewer  hairs,  and  these,  instead 
of  having  long  and  very  slender  branching  rays,  have  only  extremely 
short  ones,  with  scarcely  any  branches  ;  consequently  they  scarcely  over¬ 
lap  each  other  and  so  reveal  the  green  chlorophyll  below  and  between 
them.  With  regard  to  the  stomata,  they  are  about  equally  and  very 
sparingly  distributed.  They  occur  on  both  sides  of  the  leaves. 
Potatoes  Blackening  when  Boiled. — Mr.  Rd.  Morse  forwarded  raw  and 
cooked  Potatoes,  to  show  the  difference  in  those  cooked  as  grown  in  a 
field  and  in  the  garden.  The  latter  were  much  blackened,  but  not  the 
former.  They  were  the  variety  Windsor  Castle.  The  soil  of  the  field 
sent  was  very  red  with  the  presence  of  iron,  consequently  there  was 
very  little  doubt  that  the  tannic  acid,  being  liberated  by  boiling,  united 
with  some  salt  of  iron  imbibed,  producing  tannate  of  iron,  the  usual 
ingredients  of  ink.  Beyond  being  somewhat  unsightly,  nothing  of  a 
deleterious  character  was  present.  Mr.  Michael  observed  that  it  was  of 
common  occurrence  in  the  peaty  soils  of  Skye,  and  even  preferred  by  the 
local  inhabitants. 
Begonia  Monstrous.  — Dr.  Masters  showed  a  male  flower,  in  which  tl  e 
central  axi9  was  prolonged  into  a  small  funnel-shaped  structure  on  a 
slender  pedicle.  Similar  structures  are  not  uncommon,  as  foliar 
excrescences  on  the  ribs  of  Cabbage  leaves,  and  the  ovules  of  Mignonette 
have  been  transformed  into  similar  funnels  or  cups,  as  described  by  the 
late  Rev.  Prof.  J.  S.  Henslow. 
