the division where the rows were at that distance were the most uniform in their appearance. The important inferences to be drawn from this were afterwards shown by the result.

On the 26th of September the whole crop was taken up, freed from mould, and weighed. Where the rows were only 6 in. apart, a number of the new potatoes were partially decayed, and a very large proportion was too small to be fit for use. The most uniform size was obtained from the division where

the rows were 2 ft. apart.

The result of this experiment Dr. Lindley considers "the most interesting yet obtained, for it not only reduces to something like a demonstration the superiority of sets over whole tubers, but it shows that the crop will be greater where the distance between the rows is most in accordance with the average height of the potato stems; and that, if we take the minimum height, which in this variety is 1 ft., although the crop may be the most promising while growing, it will, in reality, be smaller than when the branches are less dense.

"Thus the most uniform crop of stems, in this experiment, was in the division where the rows were 1 ft. apart; but the crop in that division was less by 1 ton 3 cwt. 97 lb. than where the rows were 2 ft. apart, that is, equal to the average height of the stems.”

The neat return of the single eyes, where planted at 2 ft. apart between the rows, was at the rate of 24 tons per acre; at 18 in. between the rows, 22 tons per acre; at 2 ft. 6 in., 16 tons; and at 6 in. between the rows, 16 tons. The produce in the neighbourhood of London, as estimated in different places, is from 12 to 15 tons, the rows being from 22 in. to 24 in. apart, and the distance of the sets in the frame 6 in. to 9 in. The depth at which the sets were planted varied from 4 in. to 8 in.; but 9 in. is the depth that Mr. Knight and Dr. Lindley recommend.

65. Report on the Special Exhibitions of the Horticultural Society of London. By G. Bentham, Esq., F.L.S., Secretary.

This contains a list of the persons who received medals from the year 1832, when the exhibitions commenced, to the end of the year 1834.

VOL. II.

1. Meteorological Journal, &c. By Mr. Robert Thompson.

2. Upon the Causes of the Diseases and Deformities of the Leaves of the Peach Tree. By T. A. Knight, Esq., F.R.S., Pres. Read July 15. 1834. "Every gardener knows that the leaves of peach trees frequently become diseased and deformed, owing to the operation of two perfectly distinct causes; one being obviously the depredations of insects, and the other being generally, I believe universally, supposed to be frost. In the last-mentioned case, the leaves, if suffered to remain upon the trees, continue to grow, and in part to perform their office of generating the living sap of the tree; but the whole, or nearly the whole, of the fluid thus created is expended in their own deformed and morbid growth. In unfavourable situations, such as mine unfortunately is, a large portion of the first-formed leaves is frequently rendered useless, or worse than useless; and I do not recollect a single season in which a very large part, and sometimes all the early foliage of my peach and nectarine trees, which almost wholly occupy the entire south wall of my garden here (Downton Castle), has not been destroyed or rendered useless, previously to the present season.

"In the autumn of the year 1831 a small nectarine tree, which grew in a pot in my peach-house, was removed from it, and planted in the open air, amongst other trees of the same species. A few of the species of scale insect which is the usual pest of the peach-house were then transferred to the peach trees

upon my open wall, on which they increased considerably during the succeeding summer and autumn, and extended themselves over nearly a whole tree on one side, and over nearly half a tree on the other side. In the following winter my gardener applied to the trees to which these insects had extended themselves a mixture of lime and flowers of sulphur, dressing the whole of one tree, and about one half of the other. In the following spring, whether owing to the application above-mentioned, or, as is, I think, more probable, the effects of winter, the insects wholly disappeared: and the following very singular circumstances occurred. The leaves of all the peach trees growing in the situation above-mentioned were almost wholly destroyed in the spring of 1833, exclusive of those of the trees to which the mixture of lime and flowers of sulphur had been applied; whilst all the foliage of one tree, and that of one half of the other presented a perfectly healthy character, as far, precisely, as the dressing above described had extended." In the spring of the present year, when the blossom buds of my peach trees had acquired about the size of hemp seeds, water holding in solution or suspension a mixture of lime and flowers of sulphur and soot was thrown upon all the peach trees above-mentioned, with an engine, in sufficient quantities to wet the whole of the trees and wall, but not materially to affect the colour of the wall. No injurious effects followed, and not a single blistered leaf has appeared upon my trees, which are bearing an abundant crop of fruit, and, present an appearance of health which I have certainly never once before witnessed within the last thirty years.

"The red spider had generally abounded upon my peach trees in the preceding year, and had given my gardener a good deal of trouble; but in the present season very few appeared, and none apparently remain. The dislike of this very troublesome insect to sulphur is well known, and I do not entertain any doubt that, relatively to those, the application of it operated very beneficially; but I am wholly unable to conjecture by what mode of operation it could have acted beneficially in preserving the foliage of my trees; and, whether it did or did not cause their preservation, can only be determined by future experiment."

3. Particulars respecting the Mode of Cultivation, &c., of the Averrhòa Carambòla. By James Bateman, Esq., F.H.S. Read December 3. 1833.

Mr. Bateman having ripened fruit of this East Indian tree for the first time in Europe, has given the following account of his mode of culture; premising that the tree has "an elegant spreading head and light airy foliage, something similar to that of the acacia; it is very prolific and produces fruit three times a year, from the age of three to fifty.

"In cultivation it requires to be plunged, but not in any heating substance. My plant, which I received only last year from Messrs. Lee of the Hammersmith Nursery, has attained the height of about 5 ft., with a naked stem for four fifths of the distance; this as well as all the older branches became covered in July with countless clusters of elegant though minute rosy flowers, a succession of which continued for upwards of three months, and I doubt not, that, had the plant been allowed more pot room, instead of setting only six fruit it would have borne as many dozens. The fruit, from the time of their setting, steadily-advanced in size, never having had (like peaches and most other fruits) any period during which they were stationary.

Nothing could be more beautiful or singular than their appearance as they approached maturity; their colour was intensely golden, and they diffused too a rich aromatic perfume; but the most remarkable feature in the fruit is, the five excessively prominent angles, which present, as far as I am aware, a unique form among edible fruits. Upon trial, it was found that this fruit possessed qualities of the first order when made into a preserve."

It may not be useless to add that this tree is one of the worst known in our stoves for the mealy bug, being worse even than the coffee tree.

4. On the Cultivation of Chlidánthus fràgrans, a hardy bulbous Plant. By R. W. Byres, Esq. Read July 16. 1833.

This elegant and fragrant flower, Mr. Byres finds to be of as easy culture as the narcissus. He first tried it in the stove, and afterwards the frame, but found that high temperature had the effect of fretting the bulb into offsets, and not of enlarging it. Afterwards he planted it under a south wall, in a bed 18 in. deep, in the soil in which he grows his collection of amaryllis (turfy loam, sand, and decayed vegetable matter), planting the bulbs 6 in. deep, and protecting them during winter by mulching. In the April of the next year, Mr. Byres observes, "They began to show themselves; I was satisfied they were getting stronger, as very few offsets appeared and the leaves were more sturdy; hoping for a flower in 1832, I again lifted them undisturbed, but not a bulb threw up a scape, and after they had made most vigorous foliage, and gradually died off, I took up the plants in November, when some very fine bulbs were obtained, nearly as large as Sprekelia formosissima, or four times larger than the original bulb obtained from the nursery.

"I potted seven bulbs, four of which flowered in the green-house in April. The remainder of the bulbs I planted out as before, and one of them in the end of May threw up its scape, and flowered."

5. Upon the Causes of the premature Death of Part of the Branches of the Moorpark Apricot, and some other Wall Fruit Trees. By Thomas Andrew Knight, Esq., Pres., F.R.S. Read June 2. 1835.

The following very excellent paper deserves the attentive perusal of the young gardener:

"The branches of all trees, during much the larger portion of the periods in which they continue to live, are in their natural situations kept in continual motion, by the action of wind upon them; and of this motion their stems and superficial roots partake, whenever the gales of wind are even moderately strong and I have shown, in the Philosophical Transactions, that the forms of all large and old trees must have been much modified by this agent. The motions of the circulating fluids, and sap of the tree, are also greatly influenced and governed by it; and whenever any part of the root, the stem, or the branches, of a tree are bent by winds or other agents, an additional quantity of alburnum is there deposited; and the form of the tree becomes necessarily well adapted to its situation, whether that be exposed or sheltered. If exposed to frequent and strong agitation, its stem and branches will be short and rigid, and its superficial roots will be large and strong; and, if sheltered, its growth will be in every part more feeble and slender. I have much reason to believe, upon the evidence of subsequent experiments, that the widely extended branches of large timber trees would be wholly incapable of supporting their foliage when wetted with rain, if the proportions of their parts were not to be extensively changed and their strength greatly augmented, by the operation of winds upon them during their previous growth. Exercise, therefore, appears to be productive of somewhat analogous effects upon vegetable and upon animal life; and to be nearly as essential to the growth of large trees, as to that of animals.

"Whenever the branches of a tree are bound to a wall, they wholly lose the kind of exercise above described, which nature obviously intended them to receive; and many ill consequences generally follow; not however to the same extent, nor precisely of the same kind, to trees of different species and habits. When a standard plum or peach tree is permitted to take its natural form of growth, its sap flows freely, and most abundantly, to the extremities of its branches, and it continues to flow freely through the same branches during the whole life of the tree: but when the branches are bound to a wall, and are no longer agitated by winds, each branch becomes in a few years what Duhamel calls usée,' that is, debilitated and sapless, owing apparently to its being no longer properly pervious to the ascending sap. The obstruction

.

to the ascent of this causes luxuriant shoots to spring from the lower parts of the tree; and these are in succession made to occupy the places of the debilitated older branches by the process which the gardener calls cutting in.'

"The branches of the apricot, and particularly of the Moorpark varieties, often die suddenly, owing to the same cause, with much more inconvenience and loss very frequently to the gardener; for trees of this species do not usually afford him the means of filling up vacancies upon his wall, as those of the peach and plum do.

"The pear tree better retains its health and vigour, when trained to a wall, than those of either of the preceding species, or than the cherry tree; but the proper course of its sap is nevertheless greatly deranged; and it is difficult, and in some varieties almost impossible, to cause it to flow properly to the extremities, or nearly to the extremities, of its branches. Much the larger part of it is generally expended in the production of what are called foreright' useless shoots; and the quantity of fruit which is afforded by the central parts of an old pear tree, when trained to a wall, is usually very small.

"The vine alone, amongst fruit trees, appears capable of being bound and trained to a great distance upon a wall without sustaining any injury, its sap continuing to flow freely and abundantly to its very distant branches. Owing to a peculiarity of structure and habit, which is confined to those species of trees, from which nature has withheld the power of supporting their own branches, the alburnum of all plants of this habit is (as far as I have had opportunities of observing) excessively light or porous; and not being intended by nature to support its own weight, or that of any part of the foliage of the tree, does not acquire with age any increased solidity, like that of trees of a different habit, and on this account probably it never, how long soever deprived of exercise, loses in any degree its power of transmitting the ascending sap. The alburnum of those trees which nature has caused to support themselves without external aid becomes annually more firm and solid, and consequently less well adapted to afford a passage to the ascending sap, and as heart-wood it is totally impervious to that fluid. Whenever the branches of such trees are wholly deprived of exercise, too rapid an increase of the solidity of the alburnum probably takes place; and it in consequence ceases to be capable of properly executing its office. I have, of course, never had an opportunity of examining the character of the alburnum of the Glycine sinensis, of which the garden of this Society contains so splendid a tree; but I do not entertain a shadow of doubt of its being extremely light and porous, like that of other trailing and creeping plants, which depend for support upon other bodies."

6. On Forcing Peaches and Nectarines. By Mr. John Mearns, F.H.S., of Welbeck Gardens. Read March 3. 1835.

Mr. Mearns, having reason to believe that his method of cultivating peaches and nectarines, and especially of forcing them, differs from the general practice, has given an account of it, which we give in his own words.

"I do not approve of the Dutch method of resting the trees every alternate year; the practice is a bad one, as the tree once forced, when due attention has been paid to the roots, is in the best state for early excitement again; a tree taken direct from a wall not so, as it is excited two or three months before its natural season. If a judicious attention be paid to the roots, the same tree is far more successfully forced for a great many years. A late gardener to Lord Stafford, on seeing my practice, informed me some years ago of an amateur clergyman near Norwich, who had successfully forced the same trees for more than thirty years. His practice was to take them up every season as soon as they had done growing, and to plant them against a northern aspect till the end of November; and in the mean time to clear all the soil from his border, and fill it again with well prepared compost. His usual time to commence forcing was the beginning of January.

"I had a small house erected for the experiment at Shobdon Court many years ago to try the practice, and followed it up for two years with success ; but the removal of the trees is unnecessary, as, with a due attention to the roots, the following method answers better, and is attended with much less trouble and expense than the above.

"There are few gardens that have so much north walling to spare, and a better end is obtained without the sacrifice.

"I confine the roots of my trees for forcing within a walled border of from 4 ft. to 6 ft. wide, according to the extent of surface which is desired for my trees to cover, and from 16 in. to 18 in. deep. The soil which I use to plant my trees in is nothing else than the perfectly fresh turfy top from a good mellow loamy pasture field, coarsely chopped up; and, if the trees are of a proper age, the crop will be as fine the first season as at any future period.

"I water plentifully, but judiciously, in the swelling season; but more plentifully in the last stage of swelling, and then the fruit will swell off to a fine size, if the following attentions be paid.

"As soon as the fruit begins to change colour I leave off watering the roots almost entirely, and none over the leaves and fruit till all is gathered; at the same time exposing them as much as possible to the direct action of the sun's rays and atmospheric air, till all is gathered; and, that I may lose no time in my forcing by so much exposure to the atmospheric air and direct rays of light, I allow the house to be very hot in the morning before I give air; and then I give it by degrees, till the roof is completely thrown open; and again, unless rain falls, I do not shut up till late in the day, and then in sufficient time to allow of having a high temperature, either with fire or sun, so as to accelerate the forcing, till I commence gathering; at which period, if I have enough for my demand, I keep all as open and exposed as possible, only sheltering from rain to the last. When I remove the lights, I wash the trees several times, powerfully, and give a good soaking to the roots with soft, rain, river, or pond water.

"I renovate the roots every three or four years, by taking off 6 or 8 inches from the top of my border, not even sparing the small roots; and also 1 ft. or 18 in. from the extremity of the border, so as to clear away all the roots matted against the wall, and fill up the trench as at first with fresh turfy soil, and forking a portion in amongst the roots over all the border, so as to raise it a little above its former height; by this practice the trees are sufficiently renovated for three or four years more, and do not receive such a check as by the Dutch practice. It is astonishing to see the extraordinary accumulation of spongelets which have ramified through every part of the fresh soil by the time the fruit has stoned.

"No tree will thrive, whatever the soil may be, if insects and moss are suffered to harbour upon them; and the best time to remove them is just when the winter pruning is over; I then go over every tree about the houses and walls, in the most careful manner; first scraping off all possible extraneous matter, after the trees are taken from the trellis or wall. My composition is as follows:

"The strongest drainage of the farm-yard, 1 gallon; soft-soap, 1 lb.; flowers of brimstone, 1 lb.; mix: let all stand for several days, stirring the mixture three or four times a day; get ready some finely sifted quicklime, and stir into it, till of the consistence of good stiff paint, when it is ready to be applied. Its effects are certain and excellent.

The tools I lay it on with are painters' sash-tools, of different sizes. I coat over carefully every part of the tree, so effectually that not a bud, chink, or crevice, escapes the mixture. I use the whitest lime for my hot-houses, as, when dry, I can see any axil of a bud or crevice that may have escaped the first dressing, and, to make sure, I go over them two or three times. After such a dressing I find all animalcules so completely destroyed, that neither green fly, thrips, scale, or red spider is to be seen during the season.

"I am indebted to our excellent and indefatigable President for the above recipe, with some little alteration.