Journal of the New York Botanical Garden

              m\ v YOI
** rA*: c
% VROE »
JOURNAL
OF
THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
Vol. 49
No. 586
OCTOBER
1 9 4 8
PAGES
225 — 248
OCTOBER EVENTS AT THE GARDEN
Members' Day Program
3 p. m. in the Members' Room
Oct. 6 " Insurance" For Your Plants P. P. Pirone
Plant Pathologist
Courses of Study
Two- Year Course in Practical Gardening
Cultivation of Trees & Shrubs Six sessions, alternate Thursdays, 8 - 1 0 p. m.
Sept. 30- Dec. 16 Instructor: /. H. Beale $ 10
Designing the Home Grounds
Autumn term Five sessions, Thursday afternoons, 3 - 5 p. m.
Oct. 7 - Nov. 4 Instructor; Alice L. Dustan $ 7.50
Free Saturday Programs Complete schedule mailed on request.
3 p. m. in the Lecture Hall
HARDY CHRYSANTHEMUM DISPLAY AND PROGRAM
In co- operation with the
N A T I O N A L C H R Y S A N T H E M U M SOCIETY
F r i d a y , Saturday, Sunday . . . O c t o b e r 22, 2 3 , 2 4 , 1948
Opening Friday at 2 p. m. — Free to the Public
DAILY
Outdoor Display of Hardy Chrysanthemums 10 a. m. to 6 p. m.
Competitive Exhibits In the Museum Building, Friday 2 p. m. to 5 p. m.
Saturday and Sunday 10 a. m. to 5 p. m.
Chrysanthemum Paintings in the Chinese Manner By Wang Chi- Yuan
On the mezzanine. Museum Building
Professor Wang's exhibit will continue through November 14
FRIDAY PROGRAM
3 p. m. in the Lecture Hall
Chrysanthemums as I Grow Them An informal talk by Ernest L. Bertram
President, National Chrysanthemum Society
Flower Arrangements With Chrysanthemums
A demonstration by Mrs. Loren R. Doason
SATURDAY
Children's Competitive Chrysanthemum Exhibit
In the basement of the Museum Building, Noon to 5 p. m.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
OCTOBER 1948
CHRYSANTHEMUMS, PORTRAYED IN THE CHINESE MANNER
From a gouache painting made especially
for this Journal by Wang Chi- Yuan
THE INDIGENOUS FOOD PLANTS OF W E S T AFRICAN PEOPLES. I. F. R. Irvine 225
A N E W RACE OF DOUBLE- FLOWERED DAYLILIES A. B. Stout 236
HEDGECRAFT IN THE BRITISH ISLES C. Romanne- James 239
THE ROLE OF MULCH IN FOREST AND GARDEN R. R. Fenska 241
NOTICES AND REVIEWS OF RECENT BOOKS 244
NOTES, NEWS, AND COMMENT 248
The Journal is published monthly by The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx Park, New York 58,
N Y. Printed in U. S. A. Entered as Second Class Matter, January 28, 1936, at the Post Office
at New York, N. Y,, under the Act of August 24, 1912. Annual subscription $ 1.50. Single copies
NEW V01K
BOTAN'CAI
QARCEN
JOURNAL
of
THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
CAROL H. WOODWARD, Editor
DL. 49 OCTOBER 1948 No. 586
be Indigenous Food ' Plants
f West oAfrican ' Peoples
By F. R. Irvine
I
" ' H E origin of man's foods in any country is a fascinating study. In
- Africa, much can be learned from early explorers and from a study
the present- day African's food plants and methods of agriculture.
Today the foods most commonly in use are of American or Asiatic
igin, such as cassava, groundnuts, plantains, coco- yams, and maize,
. it there was a time when these were not known, when the original in-bitants
had to depend on their own indigenous plants. Some of these
ants are still used today, though generally not as staples, while some are
Jy used in times of scarcity.
ie Climate and its Effects
Over much of West Africa there is one long dry season, alternating
th one rainy season during which planting is possible. In wetter coastal
ain forest" regions two rainy seasons occur, one of " main rains" and
e of " small rains." These climatic factors largely determine the hunting,
hing, and planting habits of the people. The alternating periods of
3d shortage and abundance are partly counteracted by food storage. In
ars of very low rainfall or plagues of locusts, famine such as is common
primitive man elsewhere sometimes occurs even nowadays. At such
nes, emergency foods are gathered from the wild. These may be
3ts, such as wild yams and others, which sometimes require prolonged
iking, washing, and boiling to eliminate poisonous elements. Sometimes
: y consist of tiny seeds of wild grasses, some of which are parched in
: sun ( 1) * before being prepared for cooking. Wild fruits in their
oper season ( 2) are generally eaten raw, but the many leaves which
: collected for food are cooked. Mushrooms ( 2) of various kinds and
igures in parentheses refer to the list of publications at the end of Part I.
225
226
IN THE NORTHERN PART OF THE GOLD COAST NEAR GAMBAGA
Typical savannah country is shown here as it appears early in the rainy season.
Later, the grass will be much taller. Photograph by courtesy of G. S. Cansdale,
Zoological Society of London.
even gums from acacia ( 3, 5) and other trees may be eaten. But such
famine conditions are much less severe in modern Africa, as food can be
brought much more quickly to famine areas. In earlier times, severe
famines were more common, particularly during intertribal wars, aggra­vated
as conditions often were by the slave trade.
The Food of Primitive Africans
Kolben ( 1731) describes the way in which the indigenous inhabitants
of South Africa followed the hedgehog and baboon to discover their
sources of food, and refused to taste any kind of root or fruit which these
animals did not eat ( 4). Schultze ( 1907) reports that the Namas of South
Africa rob stores of grass seeds collected by black ants, grinding and
roasting the flour they obtain thereby ( 5). Honey has always been widely
used in Africa, where it is generally robbed from wild bees' nests. Primi­tive
beehives are sometimes constructed, however, but the whole colony
is destroyed when the honey is taken. The use of modern beehives is hardly
known at present in West Africa. While in such countries as Senegal
and Gambia it is the beeswax which is exploited, in many other areas
honey is the product sought from the nests or hives. Though it is gathered
principally for food, its use in making mead, an intoxicating drink, is also
known.
The meat diet, being deficient in many districts, has sometimes been
supplemented by animal proteins of insect origin, such as termites ( white
ants), locusts, and certain beetle larvae, while in Rhodesia, certain cater­pillars
are also eaten ( 2).
227
Prehistoric hunters in the largely uninhabited West African rain forests
probably noted, as African hunters do today, which fruits were eaten by
gorillas, chimpanzees, monkeys, elephants, antelopes,. and other animals,
and so learned to eat them too. In more open parts early man probably
used his hands or some primitive tool, such as a digging stick, in digging
up wild roots. It is certain that he discovered only by trial and error which
plants could be eaten; some of his feeding experiments must have ended
in illness, and even in death.
Just as in olden times the more agricultural of the American Indians
did not subsist entirely on their crops, but also gathered certain plants
from the wilds ( 6), so it was in West Africa ( 7). As primitive Africans
took up a more settled form of life and became agriculturists, they brought
numerous plants into cultivation near their homesteads. When clearing
the bush for farms, they would sometimes carefully preserve those trees
which bore edible fruits ( 8).
S A
MAURITANIA
FRENCH WEST
PL
A F R I C A
W. LG
F R. E N c ' h SUDAN
GOLD
COAS
Ught of Benin Fe*% v%
B i'eht of
GULF of GUINEA BUfr*.
CHAD < r
u
c?
Hi UBANGIOSHAR
« J
WEST AFR. ICA
< u
< o
/ ANGOLA
" W^
228
Agricultural Practices
It is known that the sparsely populated rain forest areas were formerly
much more extensive. With the opening up of the country and the planting
of perennial crops such as cocoa, from the Americas, immense areas of
such forest have been cut down.
Swamps often made farming difficult, the huge buttressed trees, the
rapid regrowth of woody plants, and the inadequate tools available, all
made clearing arduous. Moreover, the labour in disposing of felled trees
and shrubs is immense. Because of the deadly tsetse fly, which carries
trypanosomiasis ( sleeping sickness), game animals were scarce and
draught animals could not be kept, so that ploughing was impracticable.
The rain forest was probably used for hunting smaller game animals,
edible snails and the like, which fed on fruits and other forest products.
Later, man settled there, making small farms in the drier parts of the
forest and practising shifting cultivation.
An understanding of shifting cultivation is fundamental to any student
of West African agriculture. Areas of primary or secondary rain forest,
or of other types of vegetation, are cleared and burnt over and crops are
planted for a period, generally of two to three years. After this the farm
is abandoned, as the soil has deteriorated, annual weeds have increased,
and woody plants gradually crowd out the remaining crops. The vegetation
which replaces them is of an inferior type to the original forest. It is
known as " secondary forest" and consists of quick- growing and softer-wooded
trees, as well as shrubs and climbers. Such areas of secondary
forest may be cleared again later, perhaps on more than one occasion, to
the detriment of the original rain forest species.
Sources of Staple Foods
There is little evidence that any of man's main staple foods occurred
wild in these rain forest areas. The two most likely indigenous crops
of such regions — some of the yams ( Dioscorea species) and the oil palm
( Elaeis) — are both inhabitants of previously cleared forest land. The
yearly regrowth of yam stems and slow growth of oil palms prevented their
survival in the rain forest. Certain Cola trees, however, really occurred
there, but the main food crops of forest areas today — cassava, plantains
and bananas, citrus fruits, pineapples, papaws ( or papayas ��� Carica
Papaya), coco- yams, sweet potatoes, and maize — were all introduced
from elsewhere. In the drier grassy forest ( savannah) regions, other food
plants such as the locust- bean ( Parkia), beniseed ( Sesamum), the shea
butter tree ( Butyrospcrmum), yams ( Dioscorea), Guinea corn ( Sorghum),
and bulrush millet ( Pcunisctum) occurred.
229
GUINEA GRAINS AND SESAME SEED — TWO OF WEST AFRICA'S EXPORTS
On the left, Aframomum Melegueta is the plant which gave the name to the
Guinea " Grain Coast" of early days. Its spicy seeds, called " Guinea grains" or
" grains of paradise," also " melegueta pepper," were exported to Europe as a flavoring
and medicine.
An ancient plant from tropical Africa, sesame, called " beniseed" in the west, is now
widely grown in many parts of the continent. Oil is pressed from the seeds and the
residue is used as cattle cake. The leaves, also the seeds, which are first ground and
roasted, are put in soups.
Exportable Products
Very few indigenous West African plants, so far, have attracted suffi­cient
attention outside West Africa to result in their exportation. The two
principal ones are the KOLA tree ( Cola), whose fruits provide a flavoring
for beverages in other lands as well as being used as a stimulant in
Africa, and grains of paradise ( Aframomum), a spicy medicament and
flavouring. Of Cola, the most important cultivated species is probably
C. nitida. Kola nuts have been used in Africa from remote times, and
there was early trade in them from rain forest regions to the drier regions
south of the Sahara. When Leo Africanus first described them in 1556, he
aroused a European desire to discover their source. Later, slaves carried
the seeds to the New World, and in the 17th century certain Europeans,
reaching the West Indies, suddenly discovered the kola tree growing there.
Thus, for a long time they believed that it was native in that region.
230
4tH #
DESSERT FRUITS OF WEST AFRICA
The akee apple ( Blighia sapida), above, known as " achee" on the Gold Coast, is
a favorite fruit, but only the aril may be eaten with impunity, as the fibrous portion
below it is highly poisonous.
The West African plum ( Vitex Cienkoivskit), shown below, is reputed to remedy
a lack of vitamins in the diet.
231
The so- called grains of paradise or melegueta pepper ( Aframomum
Melegueta) of the Ginger family, better known nowadays as " Guinea
grains," were formerly exported mainly from what is now the Liberian
coast. The small, grain- like, spicy seeds account for the old name, the
Grain Coast, given to that part of the coast of Guinea on old maps.
Formerly important in European trade, as a spice or medicine, today they
are used outside of Africa mainly in veterinary medicine, domestic
remedies, and in certain alcoholic drinks. Africans themselves use them
in medicine and as a spice in their foods.
The kernels of the fruits of the shea butter tree ( Butyrospermum
Parkii), of the Sapodilla family, are rich in fat ( broker's standard 46%).
This fat, called shea butter, is commonly seen in markets and is locally
used for cooking and other purposes. Generally only the kernels are
exported, the shea oil being extracted from them and made into vegetable
butter and other products. However, locally prepared shea butter itself is
sometimes carried to other countries.
Another valuable oil seed is the African mango, or dika nut ( Irvingia
gabonensis) — which is not a true mango, but a member of the same
family to which the tree- of- heaven ( Ailanthus) belongs. It is cultivated
in Lower Dahomey, a variety with a thick edible pulp being sold in the
markets in Porto Novo. From the kernels, which contain from 54 to 67%
of fatty matter, an almost solid, white or pale yellow fat known as dika
butter is extracted. This has been tried out experimentally in Europe in
margarine manufacture and as a substitute and adulterant for cocoa butter.
For local consumption the kernels are dried and split, ground, heated,
smoked, and made into cylindrical masses known as dika bread or Gaboon
chocolate, to be eaten with meat, fish, or other dishes.
Edible Fruits and Seeds
Naturally, among man's earliest foods, fruits were of particular im­portance.
In West Africa there are well over 100 species of wild shrubs
or trees with edible fruits. These are mainly in the following eight
families: Sapodilla ( Sapotaceae), Soapberry ( Sapindaceae), Dogbane
( Apocynaceae), Grape ( Vitaceae), Cashew ( Anacardiaceae), Spurge
( Euphorbiaceae), Madder ( Rubiaceae), and Garcinia, related to St. Johns­wort
( Guttiferae). It is likely that all these and many others were eaten in
former days. The African still resorts to those places where the fruits
can be gathered as they ripen. He sometimes does some clearing to make
the task of collection easier and to encourage the growth of the trees. Then
follows a feeling of personal or tribal ownership, depending on the organi­zation
of such fruit gatherers. Some trees are thus actually inherited.
If the fruit supply increases with this care, the people stay longer and
sometimes settle in the neighbourhood. This leads to more clearing and
232
WILD AND CULTIVATED FRUITS OF WEST AFRICA
The desert date ( Balanites aegyptiaca), left, is found in dry regions which are
subject to occasional floods. The fruits are a nourishing staple, the kernels being
used in soup and bread- making and as a source of an edible oil. The pulp of the
fruit is edible, bitter- sweet in taste, and is also used, with water, as a drink.
The Assyrian plum ( Cordia Myxa) is often grown at the edge of the forest by
residents of villages. The sticky mucilaginous pulp and also the kernel are edible.
encouragement of growth, also to the special planting of new trees as
the land is opened up.
In the savannah forest regions, similar practices are followed with the
West African locust- bean ( Parkia filicoidea) and the shea butter tree
( Butyrospermum Parkii) — both, incidentally, named after Mungo Park,
the great explorer of the late 18th century. Both trees are abundant; there
are probably more than seventeen million shea butter trees in French West
Africa alone! And the fruits of both are practically everywhere harvested
from trees in a semi- wild condition.
Near towns and villages these trees are often better tended and more
protected from bush fires, consequently they yield higher crops. Other
fruit trees are planted in village areas or specially planted and cultivated
on farms. Among them are several species of Cola, . star- apples ( Chry-sophyllum),
the miraculous berry ( Synscpalum or Sideroxylon ditlcifi-cum),
akee- apple ( Blighia sapida), hog- plum ( Spondias Mombin), Guinea
233
grains ( Aframomum Melegueta), tamarind ( Tamarindus), dika nut ( Irv-ingia
gabonensis), bush butter tree ( Pachylobus edulis), Christ's thorn
( Zizyphus Spina- Christi), sorrel ( Hibiscus Sabdariffa), West African
ebony ( Diospyros mespiliformis), Kaffir orange ( Strychnos spinosa), As­syrian
plum ( Cordia Myxa), Lannea oleosa, and various species of
Solatium.
Many fruits are eaten raw, as dessert fruits, an interesting example
being the akee- apple ( Blighia sapida), named after the famous Captain
Bligh of H. M. S. Bounty. Only the oily yellow aril is eaten, for the danger­ous
properties of the fibrous raphe attached to it have long been known
in West Africa. The tree is also grown elsewhere, particularly in the
West Indies, where its name " akee" closely resembles its Gold Coast
vernacular name, pronounced " achee," from which it is probably derived.
Although the fruit has been commonly eaten in Jamaica, it was a long time
before cases of death resulting from vomiting sickness were traced to akee
poisoning.
Another dessert fruit is the West African plum ( Vitex Cienkowskii),
a black fruit with considerable nutritive value, said to counteract avita-minosis,
especially in children.
Kernels of the " desert date" ( Balanites aegyptiaca), which occurs in
dry regions where inundations occasionally moisten the ground, are some-
AN EBONY TREE WITH AN EDIBLE FRUIT
Diospyros mespiliformis, known as " West African ebony," bears fruit which is
appreciated by Africans, who sometimes ferment it to make a drink or a sweetmeat.
Among its close relatives in other countries are the persimmon, and the other ebonies
which are prized as cabinet woods.
234
times used in making a kind of bread, or they may be eaten in soup.
They also provide an edible oil.
Some fruits, such as garden eggs ( eggplants), especially Solatium
iucanum, can be eaten only after cooking. Others may be either cooked
or eaten raw. The fruits of the hog- plum ( Spondias Mombin) are some­times
stewed, and the arils of the akee- apple fried in oil or butter before
being eaten.
A few fruits, such as the Guinea or African peach ( Sarcocephalus
csculcntus) of the Madder family and Solatium anomalum, are specially
dried for future consumption. Other fruits are pounded and fermented in
order to get a preparation which will keep for a considerable period. The
best example is the West African locust- bean ( Parkia filicoidea), the seeds
of which are boiled for 24 hours, then pounded, cleaned, and allowed to
ferment for two or three days. They are then made into balls, well known
in West Africa, where the itinerant Hausa traders barter them, under the
Hausa name of DAUDAWA. They are very rich in protein and contain also
about 17% of a semi- solid fat. Highly nutritious, they take the place, in
some ways, of cheese in a European diet.
In addition, the yellow powdery pulp in the pods of the locust- bean is
dried and sold as meal or made into cakes or blocks which likewise keep
well. This is a valuable food, which is put into soup or eaten with other
foodstuff's. It is composed of roughly half easily assimilated sugars.
A FAMILIAR FOOD PLANT IN ITS AFRICAN GUISE
" Garden egg" is the name applied to the eggplant in West Africa. Its fruits are
small compared with the eggplants of American gardens. " Brinjal" is another of its
African names.
235
More African Foods
T N a forthcoming Journal, Dr. Irvine will describe more of the indigenous
*- food plants of West Africa, where he lived for many years before return­ing
to the British Isles in 1940. He will tell of the vegetables— roots, fruits,
and greens; of cereals and of the grains and fruits that are used for sweet­meats,
and of spices, seasonings, vinegars, and beverages.
Illustrations in this number and the next have come partly from the
herbarium and collection of drawings at the Royal Botanic Gardens at
Kew, England, and have been made in part with the aid of a grant from
King's College ( Durham University), Newcastle on Tyne, England. Some
of the adapted drawings were made by the author's daughter, Miss Alison
Irvine, a student of the Edinburgh College of Art.
While in West Africa Dr. Irvine was on the staff of the Government
College of Achimota. During that time he produced " Plants of the Gold
Coast" for the Gold Coast Government, wrote text books on local botany
and agriculture which were published by the Oxford University Press,
and initiated the agricultural and botanical work in the college. After
spending a year on the administrative staff for science at Edinburgh Uni­versity,
he is now in London.
The widely distributed Scsamum indicmn was probably originally tropi­cal
African, for it was known in ancient Egypt about the year 1300 B. C.
It is now widely cultivated in tropical and subtropical regions as GINGELLY,
TIL, or SESAME in the eastern tropics, and as BENISEED in West Africa.
The latter name originated in Bambara ( Senegal) and Malinke ( French
Guinea). In West Africa it is grown in pure stands, being mainly culti­vated
for its seeds, which are rich in oil. They are used in the form of
porridge or as thickening in soup, or made into cakes for use on journeys.
The leaves are also added to soups. Beniseed is exported from northern
Nigeria, the oil being used in margarine manufacture and as a salad oil, or
in its lower grades in soap- making. The residue is useful as a cattle cake.
Another species, 5\ radiatum, is generally found growing wild, but is
sometimes specially cultivated. A closely related plant, Ceratotheca sesa-moides,
often found wild, may also be cultivated, the leaves and seeds both
being eaten in soups.
The main oil- producing plant in West Africa is the oil palm ( Elaeis),
which yields a red oil from the outer layer of the fruit. This is greatly
used in African cookery, as well as in world commerce — for example, in
margarine manufacture — while from the kernels another oil, known as
palm kernel oil, is obtained. Kernel oil is used by West Africans as a
pomade for the skin, as hair oil, and as a cooking fat, while in world
trade also it has various uses.
A lingering sweetness of taste is provided by two of the most interest­ing
wild fruits of the region. One is a tall forest herb of the Arrowroot
family ( Thaumatococcus Danielli), from which the soft jelly- like arils
of the fruit are used. The other is the fruit of a shrub or small tree,
236
Synsepalum ( Sideroxylon) dulcificum, which occurs wild in West Africa
but is often specially planted. The pulp around the seeds causes a persisting
sensation of sweetness on the tongue, so that even the acidity of lime juice
cannot be recognized, nor the bitterness of quinine. These curious effects
may last sometimes as long as one or two hours. Africans use them with
certain acid fruits and with palm wine, to sweeten other foods, and
even to disguise the taste of stale food. These two fruits are both known
as " miraculous berries."
REFERENCES
In introductory portion:
1. Denham ( Major), Clapperton ( Capt.) and Oudney ( Dr.) " Narrative of Travels
& Discoveries in Northern and Central Africa," London, 1828. 2: 158- 160.
2. Richards, Audrey, " Hunger & Work in a Savage Tribe" 114. London, 1932.
3. Dornan, S. S., " Pygmies & Bushmen of the Kalahari," London, 1925.
4. Kolben, Peter, " The Present State of the Cape of Good Hope" 1: 202. London,
1731.
5. Schultze, Leonhard, " Aus Nameland und Kalahari" 188- 200 ff. 203- 205. Jena,
1907.
6. Wittrock, Marion A. & G. L., " Food Plants of the Indians'' in Journal of
the New York Botanical Garden, 57. March 1942.
7. Talbot, " The Peoples of Southern Nigeria" 3 : 909.
8. Schweinfurth, G. A., " The Heart of Africa" 1: 266- 268. London, 1873.
The main authorities quoted in the remainder of the article are:
Dalziel, J. M. " The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa," 1937.
Burkill, I. H. " A Dictionary of the Economic Products of the Malay Peninsula,"
1935.
De Candolle, Alphonse. " Origin of Cultivated Plants," 1886.
QA New Race of ^ Double- flowered ' Daylilies
By A. B. Stout
THE accompanying illustration shows flowers of a new race of double-flowered
daylilies ( Hemerocallis) that has been obtained by selective
breeding at the New York Botanical Garden. The type of flower may be
called semi- double, for it is different in character and distinct in origin
from the para- double type of flower of the two old clones of Hemerocallis
that were named KWANSO and FLORE- PLENO.
The character of the semi- double type. In this type of doubleness, as
a rule, there is no increase or reduplication of any of the parts of a flower,
and especially of stamens and petaloids, as there is in para- doubles.*
* For illustration and description of the para- double type see article on " The
character and genetics of doubleness in the flowers of daylilies: The para- double
class," by A. B. Stout, in Herbertia 12: 113- 123, issued in 1947.
*#. 237
FLOWERS FROM THREE NEW SEMI- DOUBLE DAYLILY SEEDLINGS
( About half natural size)
The pair of flowers at the left, in orange, and at the top, with terra cotta tints,
have proved to be among the best selections so far, as the majority of the blooms on
these two plants are semi- double. The attractive flowers at the right are reddish in
tone, but the plant produces only a small percentage of petaloid flowers. Other
promising plants have occurred in breeding plots with larger flowers and in a
variety of colorings.
There is only a transformation of one or more of the six stamens into
petal- like structures. This process and condition have been called PETALODY
and a transformed stamen has been called a PETALOID. In the semi- double
flowers the pistil is usually normal in structure and functional in seed-production
; in the para- double flowers the pistil is absent or sterile. In
both types the three sepals and the primary whorl of three petals are nor­mal
in structure and form in having a flat blade that is composed of a
midrib and two lobes or wings that form the expanse of the entire petal.
The character of petaloids. In the semi- double flowers of daylilies a
petaloid usually has a fragment of an anther near its apex. There are
various degrees of petalody. There may be only one lobe or wing along
one side of the filament of a stamen. There may be two wings with frag­ments
of an anther at the apex of the common midrib, in which case the
238
face of the petaloid is colored as is the corresponding face of a primary
petal. But there are some three- winged and four- winged petaloids whose
wings correspond to the main lobes of the normal anther. Each wing of
a petaloid has only one side that is strongly colored like the face of a petal.
When there are secondary wings the colored side of each meets, and is
continuous with, the strongly colored face of the primary wing that is
adjacent. The secondary wings may be narrow and even reduced to mere
ridges.
In many of the flowers of certain of the seedlings the petaloids have
blades that are crinkled, and when there are six such petaloids the
appearance is as shown in the illustration. Semi- double daylilies of various
colors, including terra cotta, have appeared in our breeding plots.
The occurrence of petaloids in daylilies. The writer has been observ­ing
petaloids in the flowers of daylilies since 1915. At first sporadic cases '
were observed on plants of wild origin, on the clones in early cultivation
( such as LUTEOLA) and on hybrid seedlings. Later as the breeding work
progressed and numerous seedlings were obtained, certain plants had one
or more petaloids in each of several flowers that were open at the same
time, and there were some flowers in which all six stamens were petaloid.
The best of such plants were kept and used in selective breeding.
Most members of the first progenies had no trace of petalody, but those
plants on which some flowers had six petaloids were used as parents in
further breeding, and special effort was made to obtain seeds from the
flowers that had six petaloids — using either pollen of a flower that had
only one or two normal stamens or pollen from an incomplete anther on
a petaloid. Several progenies have been grown of such parentage. Al­though
most of the seedlings showed no trace of doubleness, several had
a noticeable increase in petalody. On three of these plants a large major­ity
of the flowers had six petaloids. Another plant that first flowered in
1947 had ten flowers entirely petaloid ; five flowers with five petaloids each;
one with four; and one with two Thus far, however, no plant has been
obtained which has all stamens petaloid in all flowers.
The selections which have the most petalody, including the three plants
whose flowers are shown in the illustration, are being propagated. They
have been used in intra- breeding and in cross- pollination with para-doubles
( KWANSO and FLOKE- PLENO) to the extent that at least a
thousand seedlings are being grown. When these produce flowers there
will be critical evaluations in regard to possible introductions as horti­cultural
clones.
It is to be recognized that the few plants of the semi- double type here
reported are merely a beginning in the production by selective breeding
of the double- flowered horticultural daylilies of the future.
239
Hedgecraft in the ' British Isles
By C. Romanne- James
IN the United States of America, I am told, you do not plant and grow
hedges as extensively as in the British Isles. Therefore, the subject of
hedgecraft and of competitions in hedging — dating back more than 100
years — may be comparatively new to you.
While the primary object of a hedge over here is to form a boundary
or enclose an area, hedges are found to be further valuable as shelter-belts
for stock and crops ; also as producers of organic manure and as homes
and nesting places for the small birds which destroy caterpillars and in­numerable
other pests. The hedge forms a characteristic feature of
English scenery, particularly in the Midlands, the South of England and
in Wales. Edward VIII when Prince of Wales and paying a visit to
Breconshire, remarked that he had never seen better hedges anywhere
than in that part of the country — his own Wales.
When a hedge is to be made, a row of bushes and small trees is first
planted and allowed to take root firmly. Then this skeleton fence is
trimmed, staked and " layed", until it forms a strong barrier. The
method of " laying" a hedge is this:
When a tree is planted in the ordinary way, it naturally grows up­right.
But in a hedge, upright trees are neither required nor desirable.
So, when the sapling is sufficiently grown to train — say in six, eight
or ten years — it is " layed." This means that it is cut so that its branches
may be bent and trained to grow to the right or left, horizontally. They
are twisted in and out of the stakes and of other branches, and thus they
form the best part of the hedge. It is often as long as ten years before
trees and shrubs that are planted to make a hedge are ready to lay and
fill in.
Trees and bushes employed for the purpose of hedge- making are
many and varied. The only hedges comprised solely of one kind of
tree are those to be found in gardens and parks, where ornamental
boundary plantings are made of, say, yew, holly, sweet- briar, syringa, or
other more or less formal woody plants. All farm and field hedges
are made up of a variety of trees, such as thorn, hawthorn, elder, beech,
maple, etc., according to the kinds which grow best in the district.
Each has its own virtues. Blackthorn, loved of the gypsies, makes a
good hedge, though it is too apt to run to root. Hawthorn, a word de­rived
from the old English for " hedge- thorn," is perhaps the most popu­lar
because of its amenability to pruning, its prickly nature, and the
closeness of its growth which makes it an effective barrier. The same
may be said of holly. Hazel — especially young trees produced from
suckers — is tough yet pliable and for this reason much employed for
240
O ROMANNE- JAMES, who in private life is Mrs. H. C. Aylen, a Fellow
^ - '* of the Royal Society of Arts, writes regularly for a number of British
magazines, among them The Guild Gardener, in which a shorter version of
the accompanying description of " Hedgecraft in the British Isles" first
appeared. She is contributing this article to the Journal of the New York
Botanical Garden, she writes, " as a token of the friendly feeling I, and so
many others in this country, have toward the U. S. A."
Besides being active in numerous horticultural organizations, Mrs. Aylen
is a member of the Society of Authors and is the author of a book entitled
" Herblore for Housewives."
hedge- making in Wales. The purple willow, too, is a favorite hedge-plant
in country places because, the bark being bitter, no rabbit or other
destructive creature will nibble a way through it. Other useful trees and
bushes for hedging are hornbeam, beech, cherry- plum, field maple and the
sycamore ( Acer pseud o- platanus) — the last because of its robust nature
and reputed long life. My own herb garden is enclosed with a hedge of
Lonicera nitida or Himalayan honeysuckle, which is quick- growing, but
has to be continually cut to keep it tidy and within bounds.
Hedge- stakes, to strengthen the fencing, are inserted down the center
in numbers of about twenty- one to every fourteen yards, in order to support
the hedge and keep it shapely. They are made of oak poles, larch poles,
or any other available wood. Each pole is cut into about three pieces for
this purpose, according to its length and the length required. No cord or
anything of the kind is used to hold the hedge in place, though the word
" tying" is employed to signify skillful twisting in of the ends of dead wood
and tree branches.
In Breconshire, Wales, where I am for a time domiciled, hedging
competitions are held every year, as they have been for more than 70
years in this district. The entrants, all young fellows, are the sons of
farmers or farm- labourers who have grown up in the neighborhood, and
from the age of fifteen have learned to take part in the farm work, such
as milking, ploughing, hedging, sheep- shearing and the training of sheep­dogs
to herd in the sheep. Incidentally, competitions in all these farm
activities take place annually in spring or autumn in many country places
in the British Isles.
A hedging contest does not concern itself with the making of a new
hedge. On the farm chosen for the contest, hedges which have gaps or need
extensive repairs are selected and 14 yards are marked off for each
candidate, according to the number of entries. Each 14 yards is numbered
and each candidate draws a number, which determines on which piece of
hedge he shall work.
The judges, who watch and time the competitors from beginning to end,
give points for banking up the hedge, for staking, tying and for the
241
" laying in," or filling up of gaps with what is known as " dead wood"
selected for the purpose. Dead wood is wood which has been cut in long
lengths or sticks, has no roots, of course, and therefore does not grow.
Pliable dead wood is used in the case of hedge- making to thread in and
out to fill in gaps and help support the layed branches.
On a recent occasion, when I was invited to watch a competition — the
seventieth in the district —, the lads concerned had a special incentive
to do their very best, to show off all they knew, for a camera- man arrived
at the farm to take photographs for a film. The competitors were shown
at work; a piece of newly layed hedge was photographed; and finally
the judges were pictured explaining, with illustrations, why full points
were given to the winner and where and why others had failed in certain
of the necessary operations.
The record time for laying fourteen yards of hedging, as here described,
was five hours. Full marks were acquired and the successful competitor
won the championship of the district as an expert hedger, in addition to
congratulations from the judges.
If those lads who " hedged" were thrilled at the idea of being filmed, I,
as an onlooker, had the same feeling, but for another reason. On a lovely
day, in ideal and peaceful surroundings, I had been allowed the privilege
of watching a country craft of long standing, performed with patience,
skill and ingenuity. I had seen seven or eight lads, keen as knife blades,
working to the best of their ability. And I had also learned that there
is more to the making of a hedge than at first meets the eye.
The Role of cJWulch
In Forest and Qarden
By R. R. Fenska
EVERY forester knows the important function which the mulch in the
forest performs in the silvicultural aspect of his profession. This
blanket of debris which covers the ground consists of the accumulated
and partially disintegrated litter in the forest: leaves, bark, and twigs.
Mulch retards evaporation and helps to maintain the degree of soil mois­ture
that is required for plant growth. It insulates the ground against
extremes of heat and cold and thereby maintains a more uniform condition
for activities of the soil fungi, bacteria, and microscopic forms of animal
life which are the factors that break down the litter into humus which
becomes incorporated in the soil.
The humus, in turn, improves the soil texture and its physical condition;
it makes the soil mellow and porous and enables it to retain moisture during
242
a drought. Also, as the litter and forest debris decay, the mineral nutrients
and nitrogen which have been withdrawn from the soil by the trees
and plants in their growth are returned to it. Thus the fertility of the
soil is maintained.
On a hillside or slope a mulch will also prevent erosion or washing of
the soil. When trees are growing on a lawn an excellent mulch may be
maintained without its being unsightly, with the help of a ground cover,
such as pachysandra. As the leaves accumulate underneath the tree they
are covered by the pachysandra and thus made inconspicuous. This is
one of the best means of maintaining healthy shade trees on well kept
lawns. When the trees are fed, the holes made for applying the tree food
may be left open and yet remain out of sight.
A mulch is as important to perennials in the home garden as it is to
forest trees. In the garden it also greatly reduces, or even eliminates, the
growth of weeds. Those that do come up are easily pulled out of the loose-textured
soil. Many of them succumb for lack of light and air.
There are other materials besides forest litter which may serve as a
mulch. Some of those in common use are peat moss, sawdust, hay or
straw, animal manures, or specially prepared paper or burlap held down
on the ground over the plants during the winter and early spring. The
latter are usually left on the ground until they disintegrate.
Snow is an excellent mulch when it really covers the plants that need
protecting. Here is an example of its effect.
In 1911 or 1912 the state forester of Wisconsin set out several thousand transplants
of western yellow pine on the cut- over and burned- over areas in the state reserve.
The ground always freezes early up in northern Wisconsin and the freezing is fol­lowed
by quantities of snow.
The first two years, while the little trees were completely covered with snow, they
came through the winter in good condition. When the snow melted in the spring
the pine needles looked green and healthy. But during the third year the trees had
grown so much that the snow of that winter did not entirely cover them. Their tops
stood well above the snow- line.
The following March when the snow began to disappear it was still apparent where
the snow- line of that winter had been. Every pine in that plantation began to show
a red top where it had been above the snow- line, while the rest of the tree below the
snow- line was as green as a healthy pine could look. The ground had frozen hard
before the snow came. As long as the snow protected the tops, well and good, but
when they were exposed to the winter winds they could not replace the moisture
evaporated from the pine needles when their roothairs were in hard frozen ground.
Later, as those roots reached down below the frost line, some of those pines finally
became established. Others died out because of the injury known as " winter- killing,"
which is the cause of more damage to evergreens in the northern latitudes than any
other factor.
If there is not sufficient snow in a region, a mulch is highly desirable
for evergreens, for their leaves keep on functioning all winter while the
deciduous trees rest; but they simply can not get the water that they
need when the soil is a solid frozen mass. Whenever the sun shines, water
is constantly being evaporated from their ever- active green leaves. If the
f p
243
roots can not replenish this water, serious burning and eventual death
of the branches' extremities will result. If a mulch is applied early enough
to keep the ground from freezing at the level of the feeding roots, it may
save the life of an evergreen tree or shrub.
Deciduous trees also sometimes suffer when there is no mulch on the
ground. Frozen soil is responsible for the actual " freezing to death" of
many feeding roots on shallow- rooted trees, such as beech. Lack of
debris on the ground exposes the soil to all the unfavorable climatic activi­ties,
such as alternate freezing and thawing with resultant heaving of the
soil. Heaving tears loose the root- hairs of the plants and exposes them
to the severe elements of late winter and early spring.
There are those who maintain that a mulch should be applied only after
the ground is frozen over. The argument is that the mulch is not to keep
plants warm but to keep them cold. They recommend that you permit
the ground to freeze hard enough to bear a team and a wagon. But this
is not nature's way of using mulch. Nature puts it down in the fall when
the foliage drops and keeps it there until it has disintegrated to form the
humus in the soil. It is true that a mulch placed after the ground is frozen
will keep it frozen during the early spring when alternate freezing and
thawing may heave small plants or recently planted trees out of the
ground and expose their roots. But this is one of the special circumstances
where this practice may be of some benefit.
When there are bulbs or small fruit trees or ornamentals to be protected,
it is again advisable to apply a mulch after the ground is frozen. An early
mulch would invite moles to burrow in the nice soft warm earth beneath,
making tunnels which the little field mice would use to gain access to
the tender bulbs and roots that they like for winter fare. I have seen
small fruit trees and dogwoods and magnolias girdled at the base by field
mice gnawing away the tender bark during the winter months under the
protective cover of the mulch at the base of the tree. And I have known
of tulip bulbs that have never sprouted because the mice, running through
mole tunnels, feasted on them over winter.
Therefore, a hard and fast rule can not be given that will hold good
for every condition. Sometimes an early mulch would be the logical proce­dure,
while in other instances it may be better to let the surface freeze
before a protective covering is applied.
On my strawberry beds I have used a perennial mulch of grass cuttings
for several years with good results. Each spring the mulch of the previous
year is forked into the top layer of soil before any new material is placed
on the beds. The result has been a friable soil with a good texture, almost
free of weeds.
In the forest we grow the " King of the Plant World" successfully with
a natural mulch. We would do well to imitate this method in the produc­tion
of our agricultural and garden crops.
244
NOTICES AND REVIEWS OF RECENT BOOKS
Scientist's Point of View
On Tobacco Culture
THE PRODUCTION OF TOBACCO.
Wightman W. Garner. 484 pages,
illustrated, indexed. Blakiston,
Philadelphia, 1946. $ 4.50.
As director of tobacco investigation of
the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils and
Agricultural Engineering of the United
States Department of Agriculture from
1908 until recently, Dr. Garner has long
been in close touch with improved methods
for the production of tobacco. This vol­ume
may therefore be regarded as the
work of a specialist. No such compre­hensive
study has appeared since 1897
when J. B. Killebrew and Herbert Myrick
published their valuable " Tobacco Leaf:
Its Culture and Cure, Marketing and
Manufacture."
In general, " Tobacco Leaf," which is
chiefly the work of Killebrew, might be
termed a summation of the body of
knowledge on the production of tobacco
amassed by farmers, while Dr. Garner's
study relates chiefly to the work of scien­tists
along the same lines.
As a result this volume represents a
new departure. It is therefore unfortunate
that Dr. Garner did not include informa­tion
relative to the work of scientists of
the United States Department of Agri­culture.
A chapter on the methods of
Milton Whitney, an energetic disciple of
Ira Remsen and the first Department of
Agriculture scientist to outline a program
for improving the production of tobacco,
would have enlivened a work obliged by
its very nature to be heavy.
In Part I Dr. Garner describes the bo­tanical
characteristics of the tobacco
plant, explains the technical classification
of leaf tobacco, and gives the historical
background on which the tobacco indus­try
rests. Part II is concerned with ap­plied
production of the different classes
and varieties of leaf tobacco and should
be of especial interest to farmers. Scien­tific
aspects of tobacco culture, including
the findings of agronomists, biochemists,
physiologists, and geneticists, are sum­marized
and explained in Part III.
To the scientifically untrained mind o
the reviewer some of the explanation:
in Part III are slightly hazy, althougl
the general conclusions are clear anc
definite. The assembling of the essentia
features of tobacco production, togethei
with analyses of specialized studies intc
one convenient volume, has placed those
interested in the subject in great debt
to Dr. Garner.
Some of the author's views in regard
to the historical background of the to­bacco
industry seem doubtful. There is
no clear statement that the colonists at
Jamestown failed to become successful
in the production of tobacco until after
they had obtained seeds of Nicotiana
tabacwm from South America as a sub­stitute
for the undesirable Nicotiana
rustica, native to the Jamestown area.
It is doubtful that the early production
of bright tobacco was " practically
stopped" by the Civil War as Dr. Garner
maintains ( p. 42) ; effects of the war
served rather to shift the area of pro­duction
southward. The statement that
the cigarette machine was invented in
1872 and that several years were required
to perfect it ( p. 468) is misleading. Un­doubtedly
many cigarette machines were
invented during the 1870' s and numbers
of them were not patented, but the Bon-sack
machine, which was first to in­fluence
production, did not appear until
1880. Five years were then required to
render it efficient.
The chief value of cloth covers on seed
beds lies in preventing attacks of flea
beetles rather than in conservation of
warmth and moisture, as Dr. Garner
seems inclined to think ( pp. 126- 127).
One variety of flue- cured leaf cited as
noteworthy ( p. 74), " Pinckney Arthur,"
received general condemnation from leaf
buyers during the First World War and
was scon forced off the market. These
and similar small errors in the historical
background of the industry, however,
are relatively unimportant in a work con­cerned
with the production of leaf to­bacco.
Unfortunately the author's style leaves
much to be desired. Split infinitives
245
Gawmmd'NEW FLOWERS
p plus Wayside's Guarantee* of Quality
Autumn planting time is here. For an even lovelier
garden— grow these new flowers! You'll see these
and many more in Wayside's new autumn catalog:
THE NEW 1949 ROSE SELECTIONS
Here are the two All- America honor winners for
' 49— available now!
Forty- niner— a flash of Chrome Yellow and vivid
Orient Red. Tall and vigorous.
Tallyho — soft rose red inside . . . shaded cardinal
red outside. Long- stemmed, fragrant.
Proved best in ' 48: Cardinal red Nocturne, carmine
rose and gold Taffeta, capucine buff Butterscotch,
pink and buff Hill Top.
NEW IMPORTED BULB VARIETIES
Daffodils— Duke of Windsor, Leviathan and Brookville excel in size and
shapeliness anything yet seen.
New Tulips — exquisite new colors. Choice bulbs imported from Holland. Order now.
DECORATIVE TREES AND SHRUBS
Clarke's Giant Lilac— largest lilac in existence. Gentian blue clusters 12 inches
long, 8 inches across. Individual florets IY2 inches across.
Tree Wisterias — guaranteed to bloom. Lavender- blue.
Christmas Rose— a dwarf- growing hardy plant with white bell- like flowers
blooming in late winter.
See these new flowers and many others in the . . .
World's Finest Book- Catalog on Autumn Planting
Just off the press: 124 pages. Superb color illustrations,
accurate descriptions and cultural instructions. We've
spared no effort to make this a valuable reference book on
bulbs, roses and flowering shrubs. To be sure you get your
copy, it is necessary that you enclose with your request
50c, coin or stamps, to cover postage and handling costs.
* Our guarantee, fully stated in our catalog, 19 a clear ex­pression
of our policy, well known to Wayside customers.
NEW ROSE FORTY- NINER
Wax| xicle LI Gjajrlerw
51 MENTOR AVENUE MENTOR, OHIO
246
abound; adjectives are frequently and
most peculiarly used as nouns; awkward
phraseology often renders meaning ob­scure;
and repetitions of portions of
sentences are tiresome and unnecessary.
There are many typographical errors and
other instances of inadequate editing.
The bibliography is generally excellent
although such works as the following
are omitted: The study by Killebrew and
Myrick, J. C. Robert's " Tobacco King­dom,"
and Jerome Brooks, " Tobacco, Its
History Illustrated by the Books, Manu­scripts
and Engravings in the Library
of George Arents, Jr." Obviously all
of them were consulted. In the bibliog­raphy
not only did the stout old con­quistador,
Bernal Diaz del Castillo, who
accompanied Cortes in 1519, have his
name misspelled but also an article on
cigarette tobacco which appeared in 1936
is attributed to him ( p. 490)!
NANNIE M. TILLEY,
East Texas State Teachers College.
Physician, Patriot, Naturalist
THE SELECTED WRITINGS OF
BENJAMIN BUSH. - Edited by Dago-bert
D. Runes. 433 pages, illus­trated,
indexed. The Philosophical
Library, New York, 1948. ? 5.
Since Benjamin Rush is described as
" a great physician and naturalist," it is
disillusioning to learn that he wrote only
one paper of botanical importance and
disappointing to find that this one, his
noteworthy account of the sugar maple
in the United States, is not included in
this volume of selected writings. ' A
man with his alert power of observation
and ability to express himself clearly
might have made many a valuable con­tribution
to natural science in America,
outside of his many papers emanating
from his practice and teaching of medi­cine.
His influence in this field, however,
was not small; but his name was known
especially in political and what came 10
be sociological fields, particularly at the
time leading up to the American Revo­lution.
His discourse on the sugar maple, an
original copy of which is in the New
York Botanical Garden's library, was
written as a letter to Thomas Jefferson
and was " read in the American Philo­sophical
Society on the 19 of August,
1791, and extracted from the Third
Volume of their Transactions, now in
the Press."
CAROL H. WOODWARD.
For All Saintpaulia Fans
THE AFRICAN VIOLET. Helen Van
Pelt Wilson. 191 pages, illustrated, in­dexed.
M. Barrows & Co., New York,
1948. $ 2.50.
This is the book for which all African
violet fans have long been waiting.
There has been so much contradictory
information published on the subject, that
growers will warmly welcome a book by
a noted author which contains reliable in­formation
and explicit cultural directions.
By following these directions, it will be
possible for every housewife to have a
display of Saintpaulias that is second to
none.
The book is well illustrated with draw­ings
of many varieties and contains a
brief description of flower, leaf and plant
forms. Many will be able to name their
plants after a study of these chapters.
I especially like the listing of the dif­ferent
sources of supply; also the clear-cut
directions given for packing and
mailing plants and leaves. Many people
do not know that leaves, if properly
packed, can travel from one side of this
continent to the other, and produce new
plants as quickly as freshly cut leaves.
Plant pests and remedies are fully
covered in another chapter; you will also
find information on propagation, soil
mixtures, fertilizers, methods of combat­ing
insects and the various diseases that
affect these plants.
I was much disappointed that the dif­ferent
varieties were not photographed
in color, as color is the keynote in class­ifying
African violets.
There is a variety of useful informa­tion
on all phases of culture contained in
this book, which will deserve a place on
every flower lover's book shelf— whether
the grower is a beginner with African
violets as a hobby, or a specialist inter­ested
in developing new varieties and
propagating them for profit.
JESSIE J. CRAWFORD.
( With an article published last December,
Mrs. Crawford was winner of the first award in
Home Garden magazine's African violet contest.)
247
Rose- Growing Made Easy
ROSES FOR EVERY GARDEN. R. C.
Allen. 218 pages, illustrated, indexed.
M. Barrows & Co., New York, 1948.
$ 3.50.
There is no doubt that the rose has
universal appeal and so we welcome this
book which writes of this favorite flower.
Anyone may read this book with much
profit but it is especially useful for the
less experienced amateur since it aims to
show that " Growing roses quite well is
an easy business."
The author has covered his subject
very well. Opening chapters cover the
various classifications of types of roses,
making plain their differences. Adequate
lists of varieties in each class are given.
The cultural requirements such as loca­tion,
soil preparation, planting, watering,
fertilizers, pruning and winter protection,
disease and insect control are clearly
discussed. Additional chapters contain
information on propagation and hybridiz­ing—
good encouragement for the amateur.
Included also are helpful points for
the gardener who takes pleasure in ex­hibiting
at flower shows and for the
gardener who likes to use his roses cut
for decoration. The color plates and
black and white line drawings add much
to the enjoyment and understanding of
the text.
ALICE B. DOSCHER.
Legend Brought to Life
JOHNNY APPLESEED: A VOICE IN
THE WILDERNESS. Edited by Leslie
Marshall. 76 pages. Swedenborg Press,
Paterson, N. J., 1948. $ 1.25.
John Chapman, the man so dwarfed
by his legendary shadow, died in 1845.
As a centennial tribute, authorities on
his life have prepared this short account
of the man— a pioneer and eccentric evan­gelist—
a dedicated man, who moved West
with the frontier through the wilderness
of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.
Whatever else, John Chapman was a
nurseryman by trade. He did not scatter
seeds helter- skelter, but set out acres of
nursery stock. Moving west, Chapman
left an agent to sell his stock or he would
return periodically to care for his seed­lings.
Chapman was alert enough to the
westward movement to get his nursery
started one step ahead of settlers, but as
an itinerant preacher, the commercial
aspects of his nurseries were not upper­most
in Chapman's mind. His nickname,
Johnny Appleseed, became a byword dur­ing
his lifetime and the Appleseed legend
grew as men moved westward.
Few have made as unique and unselfish
a contribution to our country in its gawky
years as this humble preacher who won
men's goodwill with his apple trees.
HERBERT S. ZIM,
Port Ji^ ashington, N. Y.
A Hundred Ferns
GUIDE TO EASTERN FERNS. Edgar
T. Wherry, 252 pages, illustrated, in­dexed.
University of Pennsylvania
Press, Philadelphia. Second edition,
reprinted 1948. $ 2.
This useful little book is again avail­able.
Amateurs everywhere have valued
its authoritative text and instructive com­ments.
Each fern ( about 100 species in'
all, including the fern- allies) is illustrated
by line drawings ( some of which were
redrawn for the second edition) which
are often somewhat stylized, but which
do permit the ready identification of
specimens. Identification is also facili­tated
by a 19- page key, omitted in the
first edition.
C. V. MORTON,
Smithsonian Institution.
Bobbink & Atkins
1898 - 1948
" 50 Years of Growing"
Our Golden Anniversary
Most of the unusual Roses, Trees and
Shrubs not obtainable elsewhere will be
found growing in this great Establishment
. . . one unique in the Annals of American
Horticulture.
Visitors Always Welcome
A copy of our 60 page Golden Anniversary
catalogue " Garden Gems" will be mailed
upon request if you mention this publica­tion.
Bobbink & Atkins
Nurserymen and Plantsmen
Paterson Ave., E. Rutherford, N. J .
248
Notes, News, and Comment
President. During the meetings of the
newly organized American Institute of
Biological Sciences in Washington, D. C,
in mid- September, Dr. W. H. Camp was
elected President of the American Society
of Plant Taxonomists. Others from the
Garden's staff who attended the botanical
meetings included Drs. H. A. Gleason,
F. W. Kavanagh, H. W. Rickett, D. P.
Rogers, and F. J. Seaver.
Assistant. Richard S. Cowan came to
the Garden September 1 from the Uni­versity
of Hawaii as Technical Assistant,
to carry on research on tropical plants
while working for a Ph. D. degree at
Columbia University. Mr. Cowan is a
graduate of Wabash College. During the
war he served with the " Seabees" on
Tinian where he did some botanical col­lecting.
Later he obtained his Master's
degree ( 1948) from the University of
Hawaii, meanwhile collecting plants on
several of the Pacific Islands.
Herbarium Staff. Joseph Monachino,
who has been botanist for Merck & Co.,
working at the Garden under the super­vision
of B. A. Krukoff, Honorary Cura­tor
of Economic Botany, since 1941, has
been named Associate Custodian of the
Herbarium at the New York Botanical
Garden, effective September 1. For sev­eral
years previous to his appointment
with Mr. Krukoff, he worked in the
Garden's herbarium. Mr. Monachino is
co- author with Mr. Krukoff of extensive
papers on the genus Strychnos. He has
also published in Phytologia, Lloydia,
Torreya, Tropical Woods, Brittonia, and
the Caribbean Forester, describing new
species of plants from Brazil, Venezuela,
Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, the West Indies
and Mexico. He is a life member of the
Torrey Botanical Club, for which he has
been leading field trips for more than ten
years.
Visitors. Brother Alain of the Colegio
de la Salle in Havana came to the
Garden August 17 to study Cuban plants
in the herbarium in preparation for a
second volume on the Flora of Cuba.
Dr. N. Prasad, a graduate student in
plant pathology at the University of
California, visited the Garden August 6
Before coming to this country he was
mycologist for eight years at the Agri­cultural
Research Station at Sakrand in
Sind, and is now returning to India.
Mrs. Edward A. Belsterling ( Louise
Babcock) of Dallas, Texas, a grand-niece
of the botanist John Torrey, was
a visitor at the Garden August 20. Her
mother was a daughter of John Torrey's
brother Edward.
Vladimir C. Asmous, now in the Slavic
department of the Harvard College Li­brary
at Cambridge, spent a week at
the Garden in mid- September investigat­ing
Russian botanical literature of the
past ten years.
Maxwell S. Doty of Northwestern
University worked on the Clavariaceae at
the Garden for ten days in August.
Polypores of Washington were studied
at the Garden for a week by William
Bridge Cooke of Washington State Col­lege
at Pullman.
Among other late summer visitors were
Mr. & Mrs. Kendal Morton of Coral
Gables, Fla., authors of " Fifty Tropical
Fruits of Nassau;" Lafayette Frederick
of Rhode Island State College, a former
student of Dr. Donald P. Rogers at the
University of Hawaii; F. G. Walsingham
of the Atkins Garden and Research
Laboratory at Cienfuegos, Cuba; Wayne
E. Manning, Bucknell University, Lewis-burg,
Pa.; Ronald J. Mann, University
of Florida; Geneva Sayre, Russell Sage
College; Charles H. Driver, Fulton
County Botanical Garden, Atlanta, Ga.,
William Irwin Illman, National Research
Council, Ottawa; and two students, Paul
Wilson Pitman, University of North
Carolina, and Rodolfo Moreno from
Mexico City, now in the agronomy de­partment
at Cornell University.
Poliomyelitis. Drs. William J. Robbins,
I. N. Asheshov and Robert S. de Ropp
attended the first International Poliomye­litis
Conference at the Waldorf Astoria
Hotel in New York July 12- 17.
Volunteer. Ruth P. Ehrlich, a student
at the University of Vermont, worked as
a volunteer in the library, herbarium and
horticultural department at the Garden
during July and August.
THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
Officers
JOSEPH R. SWAN, President
JOHN L. MERRILL, Vice- President CHARLES B. HARDING, Vice- President
ARTHUR M. ANDERSON, Treasurer HENRY DE LA MONTAGNE, Secretary
Elective Managers
SHERMAN BALDWIN MRS. ELON HUNTINGTON FREDERICK S. MOSELEY, J R .
WILLIAM FELTON BARRETT HOOKER FRANCIS E. POWELL, JR.
HOWARD BAYNE MRS. ALBERT D. LASKER MRS. HAROLD I. PRATT
EDWIN D E T. BECHTEL CLARENCE M C K . LEWIS WILLIAM J. ROBBINS
HENRY F. DU PONT E. D. MERRILL EDMUND W. SINNOTT
REV. ROBERT I. GANNON, ROBERT H. MONTGOMERY CHAUNCEY STILLMAN
S. J. OAKLEIGH L. THORNE
Ex- Officio Managers
WILLIAM O'DWYER, Mayor of the City of Nezv York
ANDREW G. CLAUSON, JR., President of the Board of Education
ROBERT MOSES, Park Commissioner
Appointive Managers
By the Torrey Botanical Club: F. J. SEAVER. By Columbia University:
MARSTON T. BOGERT, CHARLES W. BALLARD, MARCUS M. RHOADES,
SAM F. TRELEASE.
THE STAFF
WILLIAM J. ROBBINS, P H . D . , SC. D. Director
HENRY DE LA MONTAGNE Assistant Director
H. A. GLEASON, P H . D . Chief Research Associate and Curator
FRED J. SEAVER, P H . D . , SC. D. Head Curator
P. P. PIRONE, P H . D . Plant Pathologist
THOMAS H. EVERETT, N. D. HORT. Horticulturist
H. W. RICKETT. P H . D . Bibliographer
BASSETT MAGUIRE, P H . D . Curator
DONALD P H I L I P ROGERS, P H . D . C urator
HAROLD N. MOLDENKE, P H . D . Associate Curator
W. H, CAMP, P H . D . Associate Curator
E. J. ALEXANDER, B. S. Associate Curator
E. E. NAYLOR, P H . D . Associate Curator of Education
F. W. KAVANAGH, P H . D . Associate Curator of Laboratories
IGOR NICHOLAS ASHESHOV, M. D. Bacteriologist
ROBERT S. DE ROPP, P H . D . , D. I. C. Assistant Curator
MARJORIE ANCHEL, P H . D . Research Associate
ROSALIE WEIKERT Technical Assistant
MARY STEBBINS, M. A. Technical Assistant
RICHARD S. COWAN, A. M. Technical Assistant
ELIZABETH C. HALL, A. B., B. S. Librarian
CAROL H. WOODWARD, A. B. Editor of the Journal
G. L. WITTROCK, A. M. Custodian of the Herbarium
JOSEPH MONACHINO Associate Custodian of the Herbarium
OTTO DEGENER, M. S. Collaborator in Hawaiian Botany
ELMER N. MITCHELL Photographer
JOHN HENDLEY BARNHART, A. M., M. D. Bibliographer Emeritus
BERNARD O. DODGE, P H . D . Plant Pathologist Emeritus
A. B. STOUT, P H . D . Curator Emeritus
INEZ M. HARING Assistant Honorary Curator of Mosses
JOSEPH F. BURKE Honorary Curator of the Diatomaceae
B. A. KRUKOFF Honorary Curator of Economic Botany
ETHEL ANSON S. PECKHAM Honorary Curator, Iris and Narcissus Collections
A. C. PFANDER Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds
To reach the Botanical Garden, take the Independent Subway to Bedford Park Boulevard
station, use the Bedford Park Boulevard exit and walk east. Or take the Third Avenue
Elevated to the Botanical Garden or the 200th Street station, the New York Central to the
Botanical Garden station, or the Webster Avenue bus No. 41 to Bedford Park Boulevard.
HHHBHHBB
PUBLICATIONS OF THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
Books, Booklets, and Special Numbers of the Journal
An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada, by Nathaniel
Lord Britton and Addison Brown. Three volumes, giving descriptions and illustra*
tions of 4,666 species. Second edition, reprinted. $ 15.
Flora of the Prairies and Plains of Central North America, by P. A. Rydberg.
969 pages and 601 figures. 193 2. $ 6.
Plants of the Vicinity of New York, by H. A. Gleason. 284 pages, illustrated.
A handbook especially compiled for the beginner. 1935. Second edition 1947. $ 2.
The Bahama Flora, by Nathaniel Lord Britton and Charles Frederick Millspaugh.
695 pages. Descriptions of the spermatophytes, pteridophytes, bryophytes, and
thallophytes of the Bahamas, with keys, notes on explorations and collections,
bibliography, and index. 1920. $ 6.25.
North American Cariceae, by Kenneth K. Mackenzie, containing 539 plates
of Carex and related plants by Harry C. Creutzburg, with a description of each
species. Indexed. 1940. Two volumes, 10% x 131/ 2 inches; bound $ 17.50. Foreign
postage extra.
Keys to the North American Species of Carex by K. K. Mackenzie. From
Vol. 19, Part 1, of North American Flora. $ 1.25.
Plants of the Holy Scriptures, by Eleanor King, with a check- list of plants
that are mentioned in the Bible, each one accompanied by a quotation. Revised from
the Journal of March 1941. 23 pages, illustrated. 1948. 25 cents.
Food and Drug Plants of the North American Indian. Two illustrated articles
by Marion A. & G. L. Wittrock in the Journal for March 1942. 15 cents.
Vegetables and Fruits for the Home Garden. Four authoritative articles reprinted
from the Journal, 21 pages, illustrated. Edited by Carol H. Woodward. 1941. 15 cents.
The Flora of the Unicorn Tapestries by E. J. Alexander and Carol H. Wood­ward.
28 pages, illustrated with photographs and drawings; bound with paper. 1941.
25 cents.
Catalog of Hardy Trees and Shrubs. A list of the woody plants being grown
outdoors at the New York Botanical Garden in 1942, in 127 pages with notes, a
map, and 20 illustrations. 75 cents.
Succulent Plants of New and Old World Deserts by E. J. Alexander. 64 pages,
indexed. 3 50 species treated, 100 illustrated. Bound in paper. 1942. Second
edition 1944. 50 cents.
Review of Juniperus chinensis, et al by P. J. van Melle. A study of the many
varieties and forms of Juniperus which have been commonly included in the concept
of J. chinensis. 108 pages, illustrated, bound in paper. 1947. $ 2.
Periodicals
Addisonia, devoted exclusively to colored plates accompanied by popular descrip­tions
of flowering plants; eight plates in each number, thirty- two in each volume.
Now in its twenty- second volume. Published irregularly. Subscription price, $ 10 a
volume. Not offered in exchange. Free to members of the Garden.
Journal of The New York Botanical Garden, monthly, containing news, book
reviews, and non- technical articles on botany and horticulture. Subscription, $ 1.50 a
year; single copies 15 cents. Free to members of the Garden. Now in its 49th volume.
Mycologia, bimonthly, illustrated in color and otherwise: devoted to fungi,
including lichens, containing technical articles and news and notes of general in­terest.
$ 7 a year; single copies $ 1.50 each. Now in its fortieth volume. Twenty- four
Year Index volume $ 3.
Brittnnia. A series of botanical papers published in co- operation with the
American Society of Plant Taxonomists. Subscription price of volumes 1 through
5, $ 5 a volume ($ 4 to members of the Society). Now in its sixth volume. Price,
$ 7.50 ($ 5 to members of the Society).
North American Flora. Descriptions of the wild plants of North America,
including Greenland, the West Indies, and Central America. 96 parts now issued.
Not offered in exchange. Prices of the separate parts on request.
Contributions from The New York Botanical Garden. A series of technical
papers reprinted from journals other than the above. 25 cents each, $ 5 a volume.
Memoirs of The New York Botanical Garden. A collection of scientific
papers. Contents and prices on request.