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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
:May  2fi,  1902, 
pepsin.  It  is  gradually  dissolved,  but  chemical  examination  of 
the  liquid  shows  us  that  it  has  not  been  destroyed,  but  merely 
transformed  into  a  new  substance  called  peptone,  which  is  after¬ 
wards  absorbed — namely,  taken  into  the  circulating  blood. 
Between  this  process  and  the  digestion  of  the  leaf  of  the  \  enus’s 
Fly  Tray,  the  resemblance  is  complete.  It  digests  exactly  the 
same  substance  in  exactly  the  same  way— namely,  it  digests  the 
albuminous  constituents  of  the  bodies  of  animals,  just  as  we 
digest  them.  In  both  instances  it  isi  essential  that  the  body  to 
be  digested  should  be  steeped  in  a  liquid  which  in  the  Venus’s  Fly 
Trap  is  secreted  by  the  red  glands  on  the  upper  surface  of  the 
leaf.  In  the  other  case  by  the  glands  of  the  mucous  membrane. 
In  both  the  act  of  secretion  is  excited  by  the  presence  of  the 
substance  to  be  digested.  In  the  leaf,  just  as  in  the  stomach,  the 
seci-etion  is  not  poured  out  unless  there  is  something  nutritious 
in  it  for  it  to  act  upon,  and,  finally,  in  both  oases  the  secretion 
is  acid.  As  regards  the  stomach  we  know  what  the  acid  is^ — it  is 
hydrochloric  acid.  As  regards  the  leaf,  we  do  not  know'  precisely 
as  yet.” 
Drosophyllum  and  Sarracenlas. 
The  Drosophyllum,  or  fly-catcher  of  Portugal,  was  referred  to 
next.  This  plant  the  natives  of  Oporto  are  accustomed  to  use 
instead  of  lime  twigs  to  capture  flies.  An  illustration  of  a  section 
of  a  stem  showed  that  the  glands  secrete  a  gummy  matter,  and 
fall  on  to  more  minute  glands  and  digest  the  insect.  Among  the 
types  of  Pitcher  Plants  mentioned,  the  lecturer  referred  to  one 
of  Borneo  which  is  large  enough  to  capture  a  small  bird.  Nepenthes 
Rajah,  wdiile  an  ordinary  pigeon  would  be  hidden  in  it. 
Sarracenia,  he  said,  was  a  native  of  Eastern  North  America, 
from  Hudson  Bay  to  Florida.  The  leaves  rest  on  damp  earth, 
and  are  formed  into  pitchers.  In  these  pitchers  the  surface  of 
the  lid  is  rendered  attractive  by  honey  glands,  which  also  appear 
on  the  interior  and  gradually  fall  down.  There  are  bristles  at 
the  end,  and,  according  to  Dr.  Millichamp,  the  fluid  secreted  has 
a.  iiarcotic  effect.  An  Amei^calq  insect,  a  moth,  spins  a  web  across 
its  tissue,  and  devours  the  nectar  glands.  The  moth  has  long 
spurs  upon  its  second  leg  joints,  w'hich  cross  the  hairs  and  so 
keep  it  out  of  danger.  The  power  of  digesting  has  not  been 
found  here,  but  it  is  conjectured  that  the  insects  are  macerated 
and  indirectly  support  the  plant.  Views  w'ere  then  thrown  on 
the  screen  showing  sections  of  the  hair  found  in  pitchers  of  this 
class,  and  the  attractive  surface  of  the  lid. 
Nepenthes. 
Mention  was  here  made  of  Nepenthes  Mastersiana,  one  of  the 
best  of  the  hybrids.  The  lid  of  this  plant  is  furnished  w’ith  honey 
glands,  and  the  pitcher  is  a  prolongation  of  the  midrib,  with 
honey  nectaries  also  on  the  rim  of  the  lid.  In  showing  a  section 
of  this,  Mr.  O’Neill  said  it  secretes  a  fluid,  and,  according  to 
the  memorable  paper  of  Sir  Joseph  Hooker  to  the  British  Associar- 
tion  in  1874,  the  fluid  secreted  contains  pepsin ;  and  when  animal 
food  enters,  an  acid  is  formed  which  dissolves  the  meat.  Dr. 
Lawson  Tait  separated,  many  years  ago,  a  deliquescent  substance 
which  he  gave  the  name  of  Azerin,  possessing  antiseptic  and 
wetting  powers.  The  midrib  is  composed  of  honey  cells  which 
lure  the  unwary  insect.  To  quote  from  Mr.  Wallace,  the  veteran 
Darwinian,  in  his  book  on  “  The  Malay  Archipelago  ”  :  “  We  had 
been  told  we  should  find  water  at  Padanghatu,  but  we  looked 
about  for  it  in  vain,  as  w^e  w'ere  exceedingly  thinsty.  At  last  w'e 
turned  to  the  Pitcher  Plants,  but  the  w’ater  contained  in  the 
pitchers  (about  half  a  pint  in  each)  was  full  of  insects,  and  other¬ 
wise  uninviting.  On  tasting  it,  however,  w'e  found  it  very 
palatable,  though  rather  warm,  and  w'e  all  quenched  our  thirst 
from  these  natural  jugs.”  And  again,  w'hen  at  Borneo,  the  same 
traveller  writes:  “The  w’onderful  Pitcher  Plants,  fonning  the 
genus  Nepenthes  of  botanists,  here  reach  their  greatest  develop¬ 
ment.  Every  mountain  top  abounds  with  them,  running  along 
the  ground,  or  climbing  over  shrubs  and  stunted  trees,  their 
elegant  pitchers  hanging  in  every  direction.  Some  of  these  are 
long  and  slender,  resembling  in  form  the  beautiful  Philippine 
lace  sponge,  which  has  now  become  so  common ;  others  are  broad 
and  short,  their  colours  are  green,  variously  tinted,  and  muffled 
with  red  or  purple.  The  finest  yet  known  were  obtained  on  the 
.summit  of  Kini-balou,  in  the  north-west  of  Borneo.  One  of  the 
broad  sort  will  hold  two  quarts  of  water  in  its  pitcher;  another 
has  a  narrow’  pitcher  20in  long,  while  the  plant  itself  grow's  to  the 
length  of  20ft. 
Mention  having  been  made  of  Nepenthes  bicalcurata,  with  its 
dmvnw'ard  prickles,  to  prevent  a  little  lemur  (the  Tarsius)  from 
robbing  the  pitcher,  and  Nepenthes  Chelsoni,  a  garden  hj'brid, 
the  lecturer,  in  speaking  of  Darlingtonia,  a  native  of  California, 
.said  Ti^sh  gardeners  would  remember  with  pride  the  manner  in 
S-  'j  ^^^,®i'^cken  cultivated  those  plants  in  the  gardens  of  Sir 
Hudson  Kinahan  at  Clonskeagh.  The  plant  w'as  introduced  by 
lorrey  in  1855,  and  why  it  forms  a  helmet  covering  may  be  par¬ 
tially  explained  by  the  absence  of  honey  glands  in  abundance,  as 
its  gaily  covered  head  generally  courts  insects  to  their  death. 
Although  no  digestive  fluid  has  been  detected,  it  is  presumed 
like  the  SaiTacenias  to  use  the  macerated  insects  in  an  indirect 
way.  Like  the  Sarracenia,  the  water  contained  in  the  plant 
becomes  like  manure  water. 
Cephalotus  follicularls. 
Cephalotus  follicularis  is  a  native  plant  of  the  moorlands  in 
Eastern  Australia,  and  is  doubly  interesting,  because  it  produces 
leaves  and  pitchers  in  varying  stages.  The  lip  has  an  edging: 
of  teeth  projecting  downwards,  w'ith  honey  glands,  &c.  A  cross 
section  of  this  pitcher  show’s  a  ledge  with  its  sharpest  edge  down- 
w'ards.  This  is  called  the  conducting  sheef,  the  walls  being  now 
smooth.  The  glands  which  secrete  a  fluid  have  the  power  of 
dissolving  insects.  To  quote  Dr.  Tait:  “In  two  pitchers  I  found 
insects  bathed  in  fluid  with  a  strongly  acid  reaction,  and  thia 
fluid  digested  shreds  of  albumen  exactly  as  I  found  the  fluid  of 
Nepenthes  pitchers  did.  I  conclude,  tlierefore,  that  a  true  diges¬ 
tion  of  its  victims  is  carried  on  by  the  Cephalotus  pitchers.”  Mr. 
O’Neill  then  went  to  deal  with  the  Butterwort,  the  leaves  of 
W'hich,  he  said,  are  filled  with  small  glands,  and  secrete  a  juice 
similar  to  the  gastric  juice  of  animals.  The  main  components  of 
this  gastric  juice  are  tw’o — an  acid  and  a  ferment,  similar  to 
pepsin — and  not  only  do  they  dissolve  the  soluble  part  of  the 
prey,  but  solvent  discharged  by  the  glands  themselves.  Tlie 
remarkable  similarity  existing  betw’een  the  animal  stomach  and 
the  leaves  of  the  Butterw’ort  has  been  turned  to  practical  account 
by  some  farmers.  If  fresh  milk  is  poured  over  the  leaves  a  tough 
mass  is  formed,  called  the  Tatmiolk  of  the  Laplanders,  and, 
according  to  Linnaeus,  the  father  of  modern  classification  in 
botany,  a  favourite  dish  in  Northern  Scandinavia,  whilst  W’e 
are  all  perfectly  aw’are  that  the  shepherds  of  the  Alps  use  the 
leaves  as  a  remedy  for  sores  on  the  udder  of  cows. 
Growing  for  Exhibition :  Peaches  and  Nectarines. 
In  a  recent  issue  of  the  J uurnal  of  Horticulture  (page  357), 
I  dealt  with  several  points  connected  with  the  culture  of  these 
important  fruits.  My  present  notes  I  'will  devote  principally 
to  the  consideration  of  watering  and  feeding,  and  I  doubt 
not  that  many  growers  will  agree  w’ith  me  when  I  state  that 
the  character  of  the  fruit  grown  depends  upon  the  way  in 
which  these  tw’o  points  of  culture  are  attended  to,  more  than 
upon  anythino-  else.  Take,  for  instance,  two  equally  healthy 
trees  of  the  same  variety  growing  side  by  side.  Attend  to- 
each  in  the  same  way  in  regard  to  disbudding,  stopping,  and 
tying,  and  leave  the  same  number  of  fruit  per  square  yard 
on  each  ;  then,  by  giving  one  tree  special  attention  in  regard 
to  watering  and  feeding,  and  the  other  what  may  be  termed 
ordinary  treatment,  the  weight  of  fruit  produced  in  the- 
former  case  will  frequently  be  almost  double  that  in  the 
latter.  The  amount  of  water  which  may  with  advantage  be 
given  to  trees  varies  considerably,  and  is  regulated 
by  the  texture  of  the  soil,  its  condition  in  regard 
to  drainage,  and  by  the  condition  of  the  W'eather- 
each  season.  When  the  soil  of  a  border  is  porous, 
and  good  drainage  has  been  provided,  I  have  know’n 
trees  during  the  active  growing  season  to  need  watering 
every  two  or  three  weeks  ;  but  when  the  soil  is  stiff,  and  no- 
-  special  attention  is  paid  to  drainage,  not  more  than  two 
waterings  can  be  safely  given  during  one  season,  and  yet  I 
have  groivn  fine  fruit  under  each  of  the  two  sets  of  condicions 
described.  The  great  point  is  to  see  that  water  is  required 
before  giving  it,  and  then  to  apply  it  copiously.  In  some 
instances  the  surface  of  a  border  will  tell  the  practised  hand' 
when  to  water;  in  others  it  is  necessary  to  test  the  soil  to 
a  considerable  depth  bv  means  of  a  pointed  stick  or  one  of 
the  specially  advertised  “testers.” 
When  the  borders  receive  their  winter  dressing,  the  exact 
condition  of  the  soil  in  regard  to  moisture  is  easily  ascer¬ 
tained.  I  am  a  great  believer  in  the  efficacy  of  steamed  bone 
flour  as  a  winter  dressing  for  Peach  trees.  After  the  sUrface- 
soil  has  been  removed  add  a  layer  of  it  at  the  rate  of  6oz 
per  yard,  then  cover  with  an  inch  or  two  of  fresh  loam,  -with 
which  a  little  lime  has  been  mixed.  Tread  firmly,  then 
loosen  the  surface  slightlv  with  a  rake,  and  after  a  few  days’ 
top-dress  with  fresh  horse  manure  which  has  been  turned 
a  few  times.  No  other  feeding  will  then  be  necessary  till 
after  the  fruit  has  been  set  and  thinned.  I  always  like  to 
water  as  soon  as  possible  after  the  fruit  is  set,  provided  the 
soil  is  in  the  I’ight  condition,  as  the  ultimate  size  the  fruit  is 
to  attain  is  regulated  to  some  extent  by  the  foundation,  or 
“  framework  laid  ”  while  they  are  making  their  first  swelling, 
and  a  moist  yet  sweet  condition  of  the  soil  favours  swelling 
to  the  fullest  extent.  After  the  first  stoning  is  completed, 
and  as  soon  as  the  fruit  begins  to  swell  again,  a  liberal  appli¬ 
cation  of  liquid  manure  should  be  given,  and  from  that  time 
onward,  till  they  are  almost  ripe,  liquid  or  artificial  manure^ 
