MISCELLANEOUS.

Otago Witness, Issue 1893, 2 March 1888, Page 9

MISCELLANEOUS.

The Committee of tho Dnncdiu Horticultural Society met on Friday evening, and concluded arrangements for the autumn show at the Garrison Hall on the Bth and 9th March. The appointment of judges was confirmed, and a staging committee appointed to make arrangements for the proper display of the exhibits. In addition to a promenade concert to be held each evening, it was decided to have pianoforte selections during the afternoon of both days of the show. The special attention of exhibitors is directed to the dates for making entries ; those for the society's cup being on Ist March, and general entries on the 6th up to 8 p.m.

A French gardener has produced a new and beautiful water lily. The flowers are Oiu in diameter, aud of a Marechal Noil rose colour.

A German paper says that tho azalea will stand 133deg in hot water without injury. At 130deg iusects freqaentiug pot-plants are destroyed.

Here is a wrinkle that will be welcome to many of our readers, the remedy being at hand iv every garden. We are indebted to the correspondent of a contemporary for the extract : — The tomato is credited with almost extraordinary powers in eradicating blight that may attack trees. Attention appears to have first been drawn to this fact in Valparaiso, where a gentleman placed the leaves of the tomato around the branches and trunks of peach-trees which had been attacked, and found to his surprise that not an enemy remained, except where a curled leal prevented the tomato leaf from exercising its influence. Another application baiiished the rest of the blight. An infusion from some tomato leaves steeped in fresh watur sprinkled over roses, oranges, aud other plants completely freed them from insects. The discovery is an important one to those engaged in gardening operations.

The Black Hamburg vine of Kennel, Auchmore, is the largest specimen in the United Kingdom. The Marquis of Breadalbaue, on whose grounds it is situated, has arranged that it may be seen by the public 07ery Wednesday, between the hours of 10 and 2 o'clock. It is now one of tho great sights of the Breadalbane estate, at the western end of Lonh Tay, in Perthshire. This autumn about 500 bunches of luscious grapes were hanging from it, which, at an average of 21b per bunch, means about half a ton of grapes. The yield of this prolific vine in recent years is interesting, In 1879 the yield was 1179 bunches, but 376 bunches being taken off green, 803 were left to oome to maturity. In 1880 the yield was 1274 bunches, 560 taken off, and 714 left to mature. In 1883 the yield was 2102 bunches ; 188-1, 2172 bunches ; in 1885, 2841 bunches ; and in the present year it yielded 2-158 bunches, 500 only being left to mature. It now fills a house 270 ft long, is growing as rapidly as ever, and is remarkably healthy looking. The stem a little way above the ground, before it sends out his branches, measures lft lOin in circumference.

Everyone that has had a ramble along the skirts of the bush in early summer (says a writer in the Southland News) would notice a vine festooning the trees, with large white flowers ; this is the Southern representative of the European " Virgin's Bower," or Clematis. We have at least four varieties of it. Some of them, with small greenish-white flowers, are very' sweet-scented. They belong to the ranunculus family. Of the ranunculuses we have about 20 varieties. They are mostly confined to the mountains and contain many beautiful plants worthy of a place in our gardens. The "shepherd's lily,", ranunculus lyalii, is a magnificent plant, one of the finest of that genera ever discovered. It has large circular serrated leaves ; the stem passes up through the centre of the leaves, which are somewhat cup-shaped ; the flower is about 4m across, pure white ; it gr.ows tb the height of'gft to 4ftf, and is to be' found in swampy places on the Alps' at an altitude of 3000 ft to 5000 ft. ' R. Traversii is smaller in all its parts, and has cream-coloured flowers, while R. Godleyanas grows about lft high and lin thick, with leaves from sin to 7in long ; flower about Hin across, of a deep yellow colour,

R. Buchanani is another pretty plant, about 6in high, with leaves nearly Gin broad, and white flowers from 2in to 3in across. All these ranunculus are found afc an elevation of from 3000 ft to 6000 ft, and are indigenous to our Alps alone.