MISCELLANEOUS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2076, 7 December 1893, Page 4

MISCELLANEOUS.

Honeysuckles.— A very sweet honeysuckle has been flowering ' constantly with us for the past four months, and promises to continue through the autumn ; it is named Semperflorens. It does not apparently differ from the old sweet honeysuckle of our gardens, except for tbis precious quality of lasting bloom. Another honeysuckle that goes on blooming for months is the red trumpet kind of America. It has no scent, but is very striking in colour. —Field. Night Growth. — Plants grow much more in the night than in the daytime, as can be proved any time by measurement. Measure a vine at night, then measure it again in the morning and the next night, and it will be found that the night growth is two or three times that accomplished during the day. During the day the plant is very busy gathering nourishment from various sources ; and during the night this raw material is assimilated into the plant life. Growing Camphor.— The cultivation of camphor is an important industry at Hiogo, Japan. Some of the larger and older trees have a diameter of 15ft and a reputed age of 300 years. About 5,000,0001b of camphor 13 sent out of Japan every year. One-fourth of this goes to the United States, and the rest, except the little India takes, goes to Europe. The plantations owned by private persons have been cut down to such an extent that they will disappear in a few years altogether ; but the State forests have been better cared for, and are estimated to be able to maintain present supplies for another quarter of a century. A satisfactory yield is considered to be lib of crude camphor from 1201b of chips. In one village there stands 13 trees reputed to be 100 years old. "Which is the Most Permanent Colour in Flowers P — Yellow. It is a curious fact that animal and vegetable yellows should be so much more permanent than all other colours. The yellow of the petals of flowers is the only colour which is not discharged by the fumes of sulphurous acid. If a flower — hearts-e ase (Viola tricolour), for instance — be exposed to these fumes, the purple tint will immediately disappear, but the yellow will remain unchanged ; the yellow of a wallflower will continue the same, though the brown streak will be discharged. The yellow pigment forms an insoluble compound with fatty matters, and is termed lipochrome. According to the density of this deposit, the colour is either a pale yellow or a deep one known as orange. In connection with the colour of flowers, Sir John Lubbock has made experiments, and found that bees display a decided preference for blue over all other hues. White is the prevailing colour among flowers ; out of 4000 selected species, no fewer than 1193 were white. The Belladonna Lily.— Can any of your readers solve the following problem ? Some five years ago, on coming to my present living, I found a largo and beautiful garden, full of treasures. I'our years ago. just at this time of the year, I noticed some spikes without leaves and with curious snake-like heads coming up in front of thedrawingroom and dining-room windows. In course of time these beads opened, and proved to be Belladonna lilies, with their beautiful clusters of pink blooms. Alady of rnyacriuaiutance was so struck with their beauty that she asked me to giye her three or four bulbs. This I did, the bulbs being carefully taken up. Those that were removed flourished in their new home, but in vain as each year came round I looked for my own to appear. At last, after an interval of four years, they have corue up in larger numbers than before. Is this a freak of nature or is it the natural consequence of their beinjr disturbed?— W. H. ER, Jervis, Vicar of Bures The Semperflorena 1 Begonias.-In the principal parks of England this year the varieties of B sernperflorens are very striking. Whilst the ordinary tuberous kinds have been in a state almost pf collapse, these have flowered with remarkable freedom, making rich sheets of staking colour We have seen many fine bods of them, chiefly of the variety called crimson gem, which goes extremely well with the variegated Dactylis. Ihe leaves are brownish chocolate in colour, a very deep shade, and the flowers intense crimson,

forming a very effective contrast. This is the finest kind, but there are others, some white, or white margined with pink, but scarcely so effective in the garden. If the plants are lifted before frost comes, they will continue to bloom under glass during a great part of the winter. The Semperflorens begonias associate well with a large number of beautiful things, and form a good groundwork to beds filled with taller plants. The great point is not to overdo this type of begonia, but use it in moderation. —