I do not believe that Providence did anything of the sort.  The fault was my own; and I have no right to attempt to shift the responsibility.  And it was not want of knowledge either.  We, none of us, do as well as we know how.  Our failures are mostly the results of sheer neglect.  Mistakes, we incline to call them.  Let us call them sins, and repent of them; and not endeavor to do as Aaron did, pack them off into the wilderness.  When we bring ourselves to thus correct our mistakes, our crops will be increased threefold, and Providence will no longer be made a scape-goat for us.

T.G.

PRUNINGS.

The strawberry was introduced into England from Flanders in 1530.

Gardeners in London, England, are always ready to buy toads.  The regular market price for them ranges from $15 to $25 per hundred.

Soap-suds are a valuable fertilizer for all forms of vegetation; especially serviceable for small fruits, and in the fruit garden proper will never be wasted.

An Italian claims to have discovered that by drenching the foliage of grapevines with a solution of soda the filaments of the mildew fungus will be shriveled, while the leaves will remain uninjured.  A Wisconsin nurseryman, however, advises the use of flowers of sulphur, which he believes a good remedy, also, when applied to the vines and when added to the soil surrounding them.

A correspondent of the Germantown Telegraph says that he has found salt a valuable remedy for rust on blackberry vines, and concludes:  “I have applied two or three handfuls on the surface of the ground, immediately over the roots, when the plants were badly rusted; in two or three weeks the disease had disappeared, and the plants had made a good growth.  I believe moderate applications of salt, sown broadcast over a blackberry patch, would be of great benefit as a fertilizer and health renewer.”

Gardener’s Monthly:  In the discussions on forest culture, little is said of the willow, which forms a very interesting department.  The white willow, Salix Candida, is often used for coarse work.  S. Vinnunatis and S. Russelliana, are the most commonly used in the Eastern United States, under the name of Osier, or basket willow, and S. Forbyana, a variety of S. rubra, or the red willow is often used for fine work.  In the Editor’s recent visit to the Northwest a number of fine species were noted which would evidently be worth introducing for basket-making purposes.

The Germantown Telegraph says:  “To grow good crops of blackberries the soil should be good and especially deep, for the roots run down wonderfully when possible for them to do so; and as the growing fruit requires its greatest nourishment in the usually dry month of August, it is an advantage to have deep soil for the roots to draw a supply from.  A deep, sandy soil will generally grow the best crop of berries, while a clay soil tends to produce rust.  Good cultivation, good soil, and a judicious use of manure make stout and vigorous canes, with a crop of berries in increased ratio.”