m 
Journal  of  horticulture  and  cottage  gardener. 
April  9,  1898. 
-  March  Weather  at  Driffield. — Mean  temperature  at 
9 .  A. M.  (corrected),  43-39° ;  wet  bulb,  41 'l?0.  Mean  maximum,  49  35°; 
mean  minimum,  35'43°.  Highest,  65'4°  on  the  25th  ;  lowest,  27  6°  on 
the  13th.  Mean  of  maxima  and  minima,  46‘5°.  Mean  radiation  tem¬ 
perature  on  the  grass,  30'0°  ;  lowest,  20  0°  on  the  13th.  Rainfall,  2  54 
inches.  Number  of  rainy  days,  twenty-two.  Greatest  amount  on  one 
day,  0  72  on  the  13th. — W.  E.  Lovel,  Observer,  York  Hoad,  Driffield. 
-  Weather  at  Hodsock  Priory  in  March. — Mean  tempera¬ 
ture,  Maximum  in  the  screen,  63’6°  on  the  25th  ;  minimum  in 
the  screen,  27°  on  the  31st.  Minimum  on  the  grass,  17  2°  on  the  13th, 
Number  of  frosts  in  the  shade,  7  ;  on  the  grass,  20.  Sunshine,  ninety- 
eight  hours.  Rainfall,  176  inch  ;  rain  fell  on  twenty-two  days.  A 
mild  month,  with  average  rainfall,  but  many  slight  showers.  Vegetation 
forward.  Mean  temperature  for  the  past  quarter  nearly  3°  above  the 
average.— -J.  Mallender,  Worksop,  Notts. 
-  Sussex  Weather. — The  total  rainfall  at  Abbot’s  Leigh, 
Haywards  Heath,  Sussex,  for  March,  was  2’41  inches,  being  0’33  inch 
above  the  average.  The  heaviest  fall  was  0  27  inch  on  the  17th  and 
20th.  Rain  fell  on  twenty  days.  Total  for  the  quarter,  3-42  inches, 
which  is  324  inches  below  the  average.  The  maximum  temperature 
was  64°  on  the  24th  ;  the  minimum,  30°  on  the  15th.  Mean  maximum, 
49°;  mean  minimum,  37‘27°.  Mean  temperature,  43  13° — 2  93°  above 
the  average.  Gooseberries  and  early  Plums  in  the  open  are  in  bloom  ; 
1st  April  showery  and  rather  unsettled. — R.  I. 
-  March  Weather  at  Dowlais. — The  following  is  a  summary 
of  the  weather  here  for  the  past  month  : — Total  amount  of  sunshine, 
eighty-one  and  a  quarter  hours  ;  sunlesB  days,  eleven  ;  total  rainfall, 
6-05  inches  ;  maximum,  0  70  on  the  7th  ;  rain  fell  on  twenty-six  days. 
The  wind  was  in  the  N.W.  and  W.  on  nineteen  days.  With  the 
exception  of  the  last  few  days  it  has  been  a  rough  stormy  month,  the 
wind  on  several  occasions  blowing  a  gale.  There  has  only  been  frost 
on  three  occasions.  The  totals  for  the  quarter  are — Rainfall,  9  20 
inches  ;  sunshine,  195J  hours  ;  sunless  days,  forty  ;  rain  fell  on  fifty-two 
days. — W.  M Abbott,  Gwernllwyn  Bouse,  Dowlais,  Glam. 
-  The  Weather  Last  Month. — March  was  changeable  and 
showery  without  any  large  quantity  of  rain,  and  only  two  frosts  worth 
mentioning — viz.,  on  the  19th  and  31st.  Only  a  very  little  snow  fell 
on  the  3rd,  6th,  20th,  and  29th.  The  wind  was  in  a  westerly  direction 
twenty-four  days.  Total  rainfall  1  87  inch,  which  fell  on  twenty-two 
days,  the  greatest  daily  fall  being  019  inch,  on  the  9th  and  15th. 
Barometer— highest  reading  30  064,  at  9  AM.  on  the  10th;  lowest 
28454,  at  9  A.M.  on  the  4th.  Thermometer — highest  in  the  shade 
62°,  on  the  24th  and  25th  ;  lowest  26°  on  the  31st.  Mean  of  daily 
maxima,  5106°;  mean  of  daily  minima,  37  09°.  Mean  temperature  of 
the  month,  44'07° ;  lowest  on  the  grass  16°,  on  the  31st  ;  highest  in 
the  sun  120°,  on  the  25th.  Mean  of  the  earth  at  3  feet,  42  58°.  Total 
sunshine,  110  hours  5  minutes.  There  were  six  sunless  days. — W.  H. 
Divers,  Belvoir  Castle  Gardens ,  Grantham. 
-  Formation  of  Chlorophyll  and  Starch.— A  very  extended 
series  of  observations  on  the  mode  of  formation  of  starch  grains  and 
chlorophyll  bodies  in  plants  has  led  M.  E.  Belzung  to  the  following 
general  conclusions  : — The  first  process  which  takes  place  in  the  embryo 
i3  the  formation  of  starch,  the  re3Hlt  of  the  activity  of  the  protoplasm 
of  the  young  embryo.  The  substratum  of  the  future  chlorophyll  body 
— leucite  or  plastid — is  always  fully  formed  by  the  time  the  seed  arrives 
at  maturity  ;  the  protoplasm  has  always  a  reticulate  structure  ;  it  is  the 
protoplasm  of  the  amyliferous  vacuoles  which  constitute  the  chromato- 
phore  or  leucite.  Those  starch  grains  which  are  destined  to  constitute 
the  reserve  food  material  in  the  ripe  seed  are  an  exception  to  the  rule, 
and  increase  as  the  embryo  becomes  green  and  the  mass  of  green 
corpuscles  more  abundant,  the  starch  grains  are  resorbed  ;  they  form  a 
part  of  the  material  for  building  up  the  green  chlorophyll  grains.  In 
adult  green  organs,  especially  leaves,  the  starch  grains,  which  are  formed 
in  the  light  in  the  chlorophyll  bodies,  are  the  result  of  the  assimilating 
power  of  these  latter,  being  one  of  the  products  of  the  substance  itself 
of  the  chlorophyll  bodies,  a  kind  of  secretion  from  the  green  substance. 
The  resorption  of  the  chlorophyll — which  in  leaves  takes  place  only  at 
the  period  of  the  autumnal  fall — is,  on  fruits,  effected  almost  entirely 
before  they  ripen.  The  two  essential  phases  in  the  life  of  a  plant — the 
embryonal  phase,  during  which  the  green  cell  is  built  up  at  the  expense 
of  materials  which  it  has  not  elaborated  ;  and  the  adult  phase,  in  which 
its  formative  activity  is  manifested  by  new  embryonal  conditions — 
constitute  a  remarkable  example  of  organic  reversibility. — (Morot’s 
Journal  de  Botanique”  in  the  “  Pharm.  Journ.”) 
-  Santiago  Botanic  Garden. — We  are  informed  that  Mr.  T. 
Sohrens  has  been  appointed  to  the  directorship  of  the  Botanic  Garden 
at  Santiago,  Chili,  he  having  entered  on  his  duties  at  the  beginning  of 
the  present  year. 
-  Chislehurst  Gardeners’  Mutual  Improvement  Asso¬ 
ciation. — The  fifth  winter  session  of  the  above  was  brought  to  a 
successful  close  on  Tuesday  evening,  March  31st,  when  Mr.  A.  Dixon 
read  a  paper  on  the  “  Cultivation  of  Caladiums.”  Commencing  with 
the  starting  of  the  tubers,  the  whole  routine  of  cultivation  for  obtaining 
specimens  both  for  exhibition  and  home  decoration  was  given.  Special 
attention  was  called  to  the  process  of  ripening  the  tubers  after  growth 
had  ceased,  many  being  lost  through  inattention  in  this  respect.  A 
vote  of  thanks  was  passed  to  Mr,  Dixon  for  his  paper. 
-  The  Hessle  Gardeners’  Mutual  Improvement  Society. 
— The  last  meeting  of  the  session  was  held  in  the  Parish  Schoolroom  on 
Tuesday,  March  31st,  when  a  paper  was  read  by  Mr.  George  Wilson, 
gardener  to  Sir  Jas.  Reckitt,  Bart.,  Swanland  Manor,  on  “  Crotons  and  their 
Cultivation.”  Crotons  at  Swanland  being  a  special  feature,  and  well 
known  as  the  beat  grown  plants  in  the  neighbourhood,  Mr.  Wilson’s 
mode  of  culture  could  be  relied  on  as  practical  in  every  way.  Referring 
to  feeding,  the  essayist  remarked,  that  though  this  was  necessary,  still 
he  had  no  particular  ingredient  to  recommend.  Where  success  is  most 
marked  it  can  almost  invariably  be  traced  to  an  untiring  energy  and 
perseverance  to  small  details  rather  than  to  any  special  mixture. 
— F.  L.  T. 
-  The  Three  Cold  Days  of  May. — “  S.  S.”  tells  us  (April 
2nd,  page  298),  “  The  May  frosts  may  come  after  a  long  spell  of  mild 
weather  in  the  winter  simply  from  a  change  in  the  direction  of  the  air 
currents.”  Proctor  wrote  in  “Longman’s  Magazine,”  December,  1882, 
“  The  occurrence  of  certain  spells  of  exceptionally  cold  weather  in 
February,  April,  and  May  is  probably  owing  to  the  earth  passing  into 
meteoric  shadow,  and  having  streams  of  meteors  passing  between  it  and 
the  sun.  Not  in  every  year,  but  so  often  that  the  fact  is  recognised  by 
others  than  the  scientific  observer,  the  temperature  tails  from  February 
7ch  to  9th,  April  10th  to  14th,  and  May  10th  to  14th.”  If  this  meets 
the  eye  of  the  President  of  the  Meteorological  Society,  possibly  he  may 
favour  us  with  an  ex  cathedra  utterance  on  the  subject. — A.  C. 
-  Wine  from  the  French  Vineyards.— Nearly  600.000,000 
gallons  of  claret  and  Burgundy  will  probably  seem  to  most  persons  a 
fair  result  of  the  industry  of  the  French  wine  growers  last  year  ;  but 
this  quantity,  stupendous  though  it  appears,  contrasts  unfavourably 
with  former  years.  To  speak  more  exactly,  last  year’s  yield  was,  in 
round  numbers,  587,000,000  gallons,  or  272,000,000  gallons  less  than  in 
1894,  and  about  88,000,000  gallons  less  than  the  average  of  the  last  ten 
years.  The  diminution  is  attributed  almost  entirely  to  the  unfavourable 
weather.  The  growers  are  finding  consolation  in  the  fact  that  the 
average  value  per  gallon  of  last  year’s  wine  is  officially  estimated  at  a 
higher  figure  than  that  of  the  previous  year’s  vintage ;  but,  as  our  Consul 
at  Bordeaux  observes,  the  correctness  of  this  estimate  remains  to  be 
proved; 
-  Wakefield  Paxton  Society. — Mr.  J.  G.  Brown  presided  at 
a  meeting  of  this  Society  held  on  the  28th  ult.,  and  Mr.  H.  8.  Goodyear 
was  Vice-Chairman.  Mr.  J.  Eastwood,  Stanley,  read  a  paper  on  “  The 
Compost  Heap.”  A  gardener  without  compost,  he  Baid,  was  like  a  general 
without  an  army.  He  had  great  confidence  in  natural  manure,  but  not 
much  faith  in  chemical  manure.  There  were  many  ways  of  making 
compost,  but  the  most  important  materials  were  (1)  animal,  (2)  excre¬ 
ment,  (3)  vegetable,  and  (4)  mineral  substances.  Dead  animals  were 
sometimes  used,  for  Vines  especially,  in  a  raw  state,  but  carcases  should 
be  decomposed  and  mixed  with  earth  to  render  their  manurial  value 
easily  assimilable.  Nightsoil  properly  mixed  with  loam  formed  one  of 
the  richest  fertilisers.  Chemical  manures,  he  thought,  tended  to  exhaust 
the  s  >il,  besides  being  expensive.  All  vegetable  refuse  in  gardens  should  be 
collected  in  heaps,  covered  with  earth,  and  allowed  to  rot  before  use.  Lime 
was  also  a  valuable  manurial  agent,  not  of  itself,  but  mixed  with  peat  and 
fibrous  loam,  and  burnt  earth  and  sods,  mixed  with  soot,  burnt  hedge- 
clippings,  and  drenched  with  house  slops.  Mr.  Eastwood  also  spoke  of 
sugar-boilers’  refuse,  and  ground  bones  as  valuable  fertilisers.  Ground 
bones  should  be  soaked  with  water  and  by  adding  sulphuric  acid  and 
coveiing  the  heap  with  earth,  a  rich  compost  for  Turnips  and  Potatoes 
would  be  produced.  Great  Btress  was  laid  by  Mr.  Eastwood  on  the 
necessity  of  preserving  all  compost  from  the  rain  and  weather,  otherwise 
its  manurial  value  would  be  seriously  depreciated.  A  very  animated 
discussion  followed  the  reading  of  the  paper. 
