Rensselaer Union, Volume 1, Number 31, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 April 1869 — The Effect of Charcoal on Flowers. [ARTICLE]

The Effect of Charcoal on Flowers.

A correspondent of the Rmue Horticde says that not long ago he made a bargain for a rosebush of magnificent growth and full of buds. He waited for them to blow, and expected roses worthy of such a noble plant and of the praises bestowed upon it by the vender, but when it bloomed all hto hopes were blasted. The flowers were of a faded hue, and he discovered that he had only a middling mnltiflora, stale colored enough. He therefore resolved te sacrifice it to some experiments which he had in view. Hto atten tion had been directed to the effects of charcoal as stated in some English publications. He then covered the earth ia the pot in which the rosebush was about half an inch deep, with pulverized charcoal Borne days after he was astonished to see the rosea which bloomed of as fine a lively roseAsoloF as he could wish. He determined to repeat the experiment, and therefore when the rosebush had done flowering he took off the charcoal and put fresh earth about the roots and waited ior the next spring impatiently to see the result of this experiment. When it bloomed the roses were at first pale and discolored, but by applying the charcoal as before they soon assumed their rosy-red color; He then tried the powdered charcoal In large quantities upon petunias, and found that both the white and violet colored flowers were equally sensitive to its action. It always gave great vigor to the red or violet colors of the flowers, and the white petunias became veined with red or violet tints; the violets became covered with irregular spots of a blueiah or almost black tint. Many persons who admired them thought they were choice new varieties from the seed. Yellow flowers appear to be insensible to the influence of charco&L