The Rev. George Henslow has succeeded in convincing the scientific mind by an elaborate series of experiments that plants do absorb moisture by their leaves and it is now acknowledged that the belief entertained by gardeners for long enough that they could feed their plants, to some extent, through their leaves, is based upon sound principles. It is perhaps not worth while inquiring how gardeners became possessed of the notion that leaves absorb moisture - a question which "has been a subject of controversy " among botanists for 150 years; but we think there is little doubt that, like Boussingault, they have some time or other been "fortunate in proving that plants in nature, wilted by intense heat and drought, recovered on exposure to dew and rain, but without the water reaching the roots," and hence concluded that they might copy nature in their garden practice. It must be amusing to a gardener to read - in the face of the fact so familiar to him, that detached leaves or bits of leaves revive, after being allowed to droop, when moistened with water - that "along series of cut leaves and shoots were gathered at 4 p.m. one day last September," by Mr Henslow, "then exposed to sun and wind for three hours, then carefully weighed and exposed all night to dew.

At 7.30 a.m., after having been dried, they were weighed again, and all had gained weight, and quite recovered their freshness, proving that slightly wetted detached portions do absorb dew".

Twenty years ago we knew a noted Pelargonium grower who was in the habit of regularly syringing his plants overhead with weak soot and guano-water, in the conviction that they "took it in," as he expressed it. "But, James," said a neighbour to him one day, "you know scientific authorities say that plants do not absorb moisture by their leaves." "I ken that fine," said Jamie, "but I dinna beleev't." It will gratify gardeners of James's persuasion now to know that after one hundred and fifty years' controversy and experiment, scientific authorities have pronounced in their favour.

According to the 'Gardener's Monthly' (America), the Rhododendron occidental is one of the grandest flowers ever seen. It is a native of California (and consequently hardy in this country), where it grows along the streams of crystal water in thickly wooded districts throughout the state. The finest examples are found in the Sierra Nevada around the silver creeks, where they are covered with snow for four months in the year. Rhododendron occidental is a shrub growing 3 to 6 feet high, with large and handsome shining green foliage that makes a most charming setting for the large and conspicuous flowers, which are from 2 1/2 to 3 inches long. The corolla is usually snow-white, with the upper lobe yellow inside, but varieties are sometimes found with rosy-tinted flowers. The flowers are borne in large clusters of from 10 to 20 each, and the writer in your American contemporary thinks it will be found the best flower which California has yet supplied, as well as one of the hardiest, as it grows where the snow lies on the ground four or five months in the year, and yet where the sun in summer will send the thermometer over 130°.

One would hardly expect to find the largest and most prolific Pear-tree in Great Britain in the Highlands of Scotland, but, according to the ' Journal of Forestry,' it is so. A correspondent writing from Forres says there is to be seen in the prosperous little village of Garmouth a Pear-tree of enormous size, belonging to Mr James Spence, merchant there. It is known to be over a hundred years old, and is of the following dimensions: height, about 40 feet; circumference of trunk, 5 feet; diameter of space underneath the branches no less than 14 yards, which gives the enormous circumference of 126 feet. The huge branches are supported by means of planks running along the top of eleven immense wooden pillars. The Pears are not large, but are very sweet, and are known by the name of Golden Knot, or Golden Ball. I counted a single cluster, which numbered no less than 300. The happy owner of this, perhaps the largest and most prolific tree of its kind in Great Britain, informed me that three years ago he had the curiosity to count the Pears it yielded. When gathered they then reached the enormous number of 28,600. At that time a large portion of the tree did not yield fruit, and since then very little has grown on it.

None of the Pears are as yet taken off this season they hang in clusters like Grapes: a prettier sight one could not imagine, and it is confidently expected that this season they will number considerably over 50,000 ! No doubt this is the variety described by Hogg as the Golden Knap, and as being "a prodigious and constant bearer, but otherwise of no great merit." It is said also to be grown extensively in the Carse of Gowrie.

According to a contemporary, Mr Macagno, in a paper "devoted to the consideration of the physiological functions of the leaves of the Vine," declares, as the result of his experiments, that the principle juices of the Grape berry - viz., grape-sugar and cream-of-tartar - are first elaborated in the tissues of the leaves, and appear at a later period in the berries. These two elements, we are informed, are found in greatest proportion in the young leaves, above the bunches, and in less proportion in the leaves which do not bear bunches, and in the leaves below the bunches. Hence Mr Macagno assumes, though it is not very clear why, that the removal of the leaves above the bunches must interfere with the proper nutrition of the latter. This, it need hardly be mentioned, has also long been the common opinion of gardeners, and has been generally acted upon in practice; but it has of late years been proved conclusively enough that the removal of the leaves beyond the bunch does not interfere with the proper nutrition of the fruit, so long as healthy foliage is on the Vine and in the neighbourhood of the bunch.

Mr Macagno's experiments simply-proved the correctness of the views entertained by all Grape-cultivators, that a healthy development of the foliage of the Vine is absolutely essential to the production of fruit of good quality.

A curious fact, says one of the London dailies ('Globe'), is recorded in connection with some experiments lately made, by direction of the Paris Acclimatisation Society, with some grains of wheat received from Japan. Very little spring sowing of wheat takes place in France, and as the small landowners who till their own land single-handed are frequently occupied in various avocations during the day, they have very little opportunity for paying proper attention bo their farms at seed-time. The uncertain weather, again, prevailing in October and November, is a great drawback to all agricultural operations, and especially to such as are conducted in this desultory manner, often, indeed, forcing the agriculturist to sow the inferior "spring" or "summer" wheat when he has been unable to prepare his ground for the more desirable "winter" variety. A suggestion, however, from a correspondent in Japan has resulted in the discovery that Japanese wheat, planted in April or May, is ripe and ready for the harvest quite as early as European-grown wheat sown some five or six months earlier, and that the yield is equally large with that produced from any of the varieties of European wheat.

The great advantage derived from the cultivation of the corn in question is in the additional time available for ploughing and preparing the land, instead of these operations being performed hastily under the uncomfortable and disadvantageous circumstances of wet, uncertain weather. These benefits would be thoroughly appreciated in such a climate as our own. In cases where labour is abundant, the additional period thus available before seed-time could be probably turned to account in the cultivation of other crops in the interval; or, if this is not done, the land would benefit by lying fallow for three or four months longer than would otherwise be the case. Unfortunately, no particulars are given to enable any opinion to be formed as to whether the "Japanese wheat" is a new variety of corn, or whether its characteristics have been developed in European wheat by any peculiarity in the soil, climate, and position of the locality whence the particular specimen referred to was derived. We give the facts, however, as they are reported by the Paris Societe d'Acclimation, in the hope that any benefits that may be derived from the alleged discovery may be fully realised in this country.

At one of the late Chrysanthemum Shows in England, a misguided young man, but "a young man of great promise," nevertheless, with a more accurate conception of the capacity of the judges than of the vigilance of his opponents, constituted flowers up to the standard degree of excellence by parting and pinning two or three inferior flowers together. The judges awarded him the first prize (!), but another exhibitor, more suspicious than his neighbours, made a critical examination of his opponent's flowers and discovered the fraud, at which stage of the proceedings that "young man of great promise" disappeared from the scene, feeling no doubt that he had not the fortitude to receive the shower of compliments that awaited him as a "dresser of florets of flowers," but we should say his services will nevertheless soon be secured elsewhere. The "manufactured " blooms were removed to the Secretary's chamber, and there, amidst a crowd of righteous exhibitors and bystanders, with the hair of their head standing erect, no doubt, like that of Sandy M'Grattis when he saw the ghost, the awful nature of the offence was revealed.

One of your contemporaries has, it appears, received more letters on the subject than it can find room for - all invoking vengeance on the head of the culprit, we apprehend but the same paper, while repudiating the conduct of the delinquent in strong terms, hints that after all is said and done, making up "Chrysanthemum blooms " in the way described and "dressing" Carnations and Picotees, as is the custom among exhibitors, are practices which may not differ greatly under certain circumstances. We are of opinion that the party who discovered the fraud did a real service in exposing the same to the Secretary, but having done that, and drawn attention to it in the press once, his duty ended there. To the delinquent we say, as 'Punch' said, "Good boy, don't do it again." Reader.