jftnc  4,  1£03.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER.  503  J 
PLAN  AND  PLANTS  FOR  A  C.ARPET  Bf:D  (W.  S.  S.). — 
The  plan  herewith  should  have  accompanied  our  reply  to  your 
qiiei’y,  given  in  our  last  issue,  hut  was  omitted  by  a  mistake. 
We  furnish  two  arrangements,  either  to  be  used  at  your  discre¬ 
tion.  No.  1  arrangement  :  1,  Pyrethrum  or  Kcheveria,  common  ; 
2,  Aloe,  green;  3,  Herniaria,  green:  4,  F.cheveria,  metallica  or 
Pachyphytum  bractcosum ;  o,  Kleinia  repens;  0,  Echeveria 
rosea;  7,  Oxalis  purpurea;  8,  Santolina  incana ;  9,  Crassula, 
green;  10,  Echeveria  farinosa  or  Mesembryanthemum  var. 
No.  2  arrangement;  1,  Alternanthera  paronychioides  aurea  ;  2, 
Aloe,  green,  or  Pachyphytum  bracteosum;  3,  Herniaria  glabra; 
4,  Echeveria  metallica;  5,  Kleinia  repens;  0,  Alternanthera 
paronychioides  magnifica  ;  7,  Oxalis  purpurea,  better  Alternan¬ 
thera  anicena;  8,  Santolina  incana;  9,  Alternanthera  versicolor 
grandis  or  Oxalis  purpurea ;  10,  .  Echeveria  farinosa  or  E. 
seeunda  major  on  raised  edge  of  bed. 
CUCUMBERS  AND  MELONS  GOING  OFF  (J.  R.  F.).— 
Would  you  kindly  inform  me  the  cause  of  our  Melons  and 
Cucumbers  going  off  at  the  stem?  The  plants  look  healthy  and 
well  in  pots  until  planted  out.  We  had  a  slight  attack  last  year 
in  one  liouse,  but  not  before  the  ripening  stage  was  reached, 
which  I  put  clown  to  canker.  This  year  I  mixed  “  Veltha  ”  with 
the  soil,  thinking  pi’obably  it  might  be  a  fungoid  disease. 
[The  Melon  plants  are  affected  by  the  “•  sleeping  ”  disease, 
and  is  the  same  parasitic  fungus,  Fusarium  lycopersici.  that 
infests  the  Toiuato,  Potato,  and  many  other  plants,  though  some¬ 
what  varied  in  the  different  host-plants,  and  is  probably  a 
form  only,  of  the  vei-y  common  Fusarium  solani.  The  disease  is 
indicated  by  the  dull,  not  shining,  colour  of  the  leaves,  Avhich 
commence  to  droop  or  die  back  from  the  edges,  and  this  is 
quickly  followed  by  a  collapse  of  the  stem,  hence  the  name 
“  sleeping  disease.”  Sometimes  it  does  not  occur  until  the 
irlants  are  in  fruit,  and  this  may  even  ripen,  the  plant  and 
even  fruit  not  showing  externally  material  evidence  of  the 
disease.  The  root  stem  is  invariably  attacked  first,  the  fungus 
being  eitlier  present  in  the  seed  or  gaining  an  entrance  through 
the  radicle  or  younp;  rootlets,  gradually  extending  up  the  stem, 
in  whicli  its  presence  is  indicated  to*  the  unaided  eye  by  a  brown 
discoloration  of  the  ‘‘nerves,”  or  vascular  bundles;  and  when  this 
'is  reached  the  plant  droops,  or  “  sleeps.”  Shortly  after,  or  at 
this  stage,  a  very  delicate  white  mould  appears  on  the  stem 
just  above  the  ground,  and_  consists  _of  fruiting  branches  or 
conidiophores,  bearing  conidia  or  spore.s  at  the  tqis  of  the 
whorled  branches.  This  is  the  first  or  Diplocladium  stage  of  the 
fungus,  which  is  quickly  followed  by  the  second  or  Fu-sariuiu 
condition,  formed  from  the  same  mycelium,  and  producing 
spindle-shaped,  curved  spores  in  great  abundance.  The  stem 
then  dries  up,  but  not  until  a  third  form  of  fruit  is  produced 
on  the  strands  of  mycelium  in  it  or  the  soil  adjacent,  and  these 
are  resting  spores,  which  remain  dhrmant  for  a  season,  and  then 
germinate,  forming  a  mycelium  which,  after  a  time  of  sapro¬ 
phytic  existence,  is  capable  of  attacking  the  rootlets  of  Cucum¬ 
bers,  Melons,  Potatoes,  Tomatoes,  and  many  other  plants, 
especially  those  grown  under  the  extreme  of  forcing  conditions 
of  soil  and  atmosphere.  Possibly  the  fungus  is  an  ordinary 
saprophyte  become  parasitic  through  the  condition  of  the  plant 
favouring  its  induction.  We  therefore  say  to  the  cultivator,  as 
Virgil  to  Dante;  “C-onsult  thy  knowledge,  that  clecide.s  that,  as 
each  thing  to  more  perfection  grows,  it  feels  more  sensibly  both 
good  and  pain.”  Consider  that  your  soil  is  of  a  very  fibrous 
natiu-e,  full  of  the  debris  of  the  previous  vegetation,  and  the 
very  “pink  of  perfection,”  suited  for  the  saprophytic  life  of  the 
fungus.  In  the  old  time  there  was  no  such  thing  as  "sleeping” 
disease,  or  very  rarely,  and  the  turf  was  not  tiscd  until 
thoroughly  reduced,  and  after  being  stacked  a  considei'able  time, 
along  with  soot  and  lime,  the  material  being  mainly  in  a  mould¬ 
like  condition,  and  its  constituents  practically  of  no  use  except  to 
green-leaved  plants,  the  organic  matter  being  suited  only  to 
them.  Then  the  atmospheric  conditions  are  much  more  close  and 
moist  than  formerly  obtained,  and  we  are  forced  to  the  deduction 
that  most  diseases  are  induced  by  faulty  cultural  methods  and 
the  high  perfection  the  subjects  have  been  brought  to.  This  par¬ 
ticular  disease  is  a  case  of  the  saprophyte  becoming  parasitic, 
and  the  only  preventive  is  to  destroy  that  saprophytic  mode  of 
life.  We  advise  mixing  with  turf  one  part  to  twenty-eight 
parts  of  a  mixture  of  eight  parts  basic  cinder  phosphate  and 
three  parts  kainit,  lib  of  the  mixtui'e  to  281b  of  turf,  stacked  up 
at  least  three,  and  better  six,  months,  or  even  a  year,  in 
advance  of  using,  and  then  cutting  down  the  heap  perpendicu¬ 
larly  and  mixing  top  and  bottom  together.  This  we  have  found 
effective  as  preventive  of  “sleeping”  disease,  and  also  of 
clubbing,  as  occasioned  by  eelworms  introduced  in  the  soil. 
But  the  “sleeping”  disease  also  goes  over  with  the  seed,  that 
of  diseased  plants  producing  diseased  seedlings.  For  this,  pro¬ 
bably  steeping  the  seeds  for  fifteen  minutes  in  water  at  a 
temperature  of  130deg  to  135dog  would  destroy  the  disease 
plasma;  but  on  this  point  we  have  no  definite  data,  and  our 
experiments  are  not  conclusive,  but  still  encouraging,  and  is 
alluded  to,  so  that  cultWators  may  also  experiment  and  favour 
us  with  the  results. 
CURRANT  BUD-MITE  (J.  Todd).- — Yes,  the  shoots  are  in¬ 
fested  with  bud-mite.  See  page  409,  Jnurnal  of  Horticulture, 
May  7.  The  flowering  shrub  is  Daphne  Cneorum. 
EARLIEST  AND  BEST  RHUBARB,  ALSO  ASPARAGUS, 
FOR  MARKET  (W.  B.). — Hawke’s  Champagne  is  the  best 
quality  Rhubarb,  being  of  good  colour  and  early  ;  but,  all  points 
considered,  Kershavve’s  Paragon  is  the  earliest  and  best  variety 
for  general  use  and  market  work.  Of  A.sparagus,  Early  Giant 
French,  or  Argenteuil,  is  the  earliest  and  best.  A  good  strain 
cf  Giant,  or  Battersea,  however,  is  most  generally  grown,  and 
when  well  done  is  excellent  for  general  use  and  marketing. 
REMEDY  FOR  DRY  ROT  (A.  C.).— When  the  wood  is  in 
such  an  advanced  state  of  decay  as  that  you  sent  us  very  little 
can  be  done  to  preserve  it,  as  though  the  fungus  might  be 
destroyed,  the  substance  of  the  wood  cannot  be  restored.  Dry 
rot  is  due  to  the  attacks  of  several  species  of  Polyporus  and 
Melulius  lachrymans,  and  one  of  the  best  means  of  iDreventing 
their  appearance,  where  possible,  is  providing  abundant  ventila¬ 
tion.  Wood  dressed  with  creosote  is  not  attacked  by  these 
destructive  fungi,  and  as  a  remedy  when  they  have  made  too 
great  a  progress  a  strong  solution  of  corrosive  sublimate  is 
frecpiently  applied,  and  has  been  found  efficacious  in  checking  the 
injury.  It  is  important  to  employ  thoroughly  seasoned  wood 
only  in  situations  where  it  is  likely  to  be  attacked  by  dry  rot. 
NAMES  OF  PLANTS. — Correspondents  luliose  queries  are  tin- 
answered  in  the  present  issue  are  respectfulh/  requested  to  consult  the 
following  number.  (S.  P.). — Your  Fern  was  Struthioptei-is  germanica. 
a  fertile  frond.  (G.  E.). — The  Dendrobium  is  D.  mosehatum, 
(F.  L.). — 1,  Robinia  pscudo-Acaeia ;  2,  Chelidonium  majus;  3, 
Populus  canescens ;  4,  Magnolia  acuminata ;  5,  Abies  Smithiana. 
(J.  F.). — 1,  Cornus  Mas ;  2,  Cornus  Spilthi  aurea. 
The  Farmer’s  Year;  The  Opening. 
When  does  the  fanner’s  year  begin?  This  question 
would  be  answered  by  fanners  in  such  a  variety  of  ways  that 
it  must  certainly  be  considered  one  worthy  of  further  dis¬ 
cussion.  The  usual  custom  is  to  commence  the  year  from 
the  date  of  entry,  and  balance  books  at  the  end  of  twelve 
months.  In  theory  this  is  good  enough,  but  it  does  not  work 
out  too  well  in  joractice.  Too  much  latitude  may  easily  be 
