The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1850-06-04 00:00:00

MISCELLANEA

Gleanings for Gardeners.—ln " Pepy's Diary" he re-
cords that he brought home 100 asparagus from Fen-
church-street, which cost him one shilling and sixpence;
and that he had a treat in the first dish of peas, May 22d,
1668, which were " extraordinary young and pretty ;"
one pound of cherries on the 2d of June cost two shillings;
and he treated some 1• lies at the theatre with oranges
that cost him sixpence each.—An article on agriculture
and science contains the following as the results of chemi-
cal research :—Oats contain more muscle-forming matter
than wheat ; whole meal or flour, with bran in it, is better
than fine flour ; cabbage, when compared with other
kinds of food, as wheat, oats, bran, &c., is found to be
richer in muscular matter than any other food we grow ;
wheat contains 12 per cent, beans 25 per cent, cabbage 30
to 40 per cent, of protein compounds, or muscle-forming
matter; cabbage is found to be an exhausting crop, as
wheat will not grow after it on some soils.—Tussac grass
found in the Falkland islands is equal in muscle-forming
matter to the best samples of wheat, oats, or barley.—
Edinburgh Review, No. 182 (Oct. 1849).

Rezoil.--It is well known that the patience and labours
of the horticulturist are frequently rendered unavailable
by the appetite of some insects. For preserving their
flowers from these enemies, gardeners have adopted
several plans, not one of which appears to be effective,
more especially against the earwig, which is most to be
feared as the flowers approach maturity. How many
show Dahlias are thus " cut off in their bloom !" With
the hope that the following receipt will offer some
check to these marauders, I send it to you, assured
that its cheapness and easy application will render it uni-
versally appreciated. Take of common resin, 111 b ;
sweet oil, lib ; place them in a pipkin over the fire until
the resin is melted, stir the materials together, that they
may be well blended ; when cold the substance formed,
which I call " rezoil," will be of the consistency of trea-
cle. To use the rezoil it should be spread w!t!f a bru,h
upon threads, or any fitting material, and wrt pded round
the stem of the plant ; if any support is used that should
be brushed over also. No insect can possibly, or will
attempt to cross this barrier; the rezoil never dries. but
always remains sticky and clammy—its action as a trap is
therefore obvious. To preserve grapes and other wall
fruit we have only to nail a strip of list upon the wall,
round the entire plant, and then paint it well with the
rezoil, on both sides, if it can be managed, to keep in-
sects from crawling under as well as over. Other modes
of application will suggest themselves without my here
enumerating them. Birds, cats, and mice equally avoid
soiling themselves with this substance.—Septimus Piesse,
40, Molyneux-street.—Gardener's Chronicle.

On the Growth of Oats.—Knowing that before grain
ripens, much of its nutritive power remains in the stem,
and having this unpropitious climate to deal with, it
occurred to me that, if oats were cut and made into hay
some six weeks before the ripening of the grain, I should
have a valuable product, avoid the risks of a late harvest,
get the crop off the land in time to sow a second, or
stolen crop, and last, but not least, make a larger money
return from my oat crop than if I allowed the grain to
ripen. I therefore cut a certain acreage of oats before
any part of the straw ceased to be green and succulent ;
it was made into hay, not as hay is generally made, by
exposing it to the bleaching and destructive action of sun
and rain, but by putting it up into small stocks, as is
done when the grain is ripe. It thus dried without ex-
posure. This oat-hay was (of course not threshed) given
in the winter to sheep, cattle, and horses, and put in
their racks side by side with the best clover-hay, The
animals invariably preferred it to the clover-hay, leaving
that untouched ; they throve well upon the oat-hay ; and
its high nutritive power is confirmed by chemical analysis.
I carefully weighed from the same field a like acreage of
ripened oats and its straw, and the money produce of both
kinds is as follows per Scotch acre :
An acre of ripened Oats gave 36 bushels of Oats, pre-
sent value, say 2s. per bushel £3 12 0
150 stone of straw, at 24 lbs. to the stone, 3d. 1 17 6