I notice in the January number of the Horticulturist, a communication from R. B. Warren, in which he says:

"In preparing the ground for setting them "(Pear trees), "I put into the holes a half bushel of the sweepings of a blacksmith's shop, mixed with cinders and ashes from the forge," etc. "I have two very fine trees, five years old, which have never produced half a dozen Pears; they bloom profusely every year, but set no fruit." The sweepings and cinders from a blacksmiths shop would probably have the same effect on trees as charcoal My wife scatters pulverized charcoal over the earth around her house-plants, which causes them to bloom very profusely, and the flowers to assume much brighter colors than they usually wear.

We tried the experiment on our Cucumber vines; they blossomed a fortnight earlier than the others; in fact the vines were completely covered with flowers, but no Cucumbers were produced. I tried the same experiment on an Apple tree; it blossomed a week earlier than any other tree in the orchard, but did not bear a single Apple.

A moderate use of charcoal, or sweepings and cinders from iron workers* shops, may be beneficial to garden vegetables and fruit trees, though my experiments have not been extensive enough to satisfy me whether they may be successfully applied or not. H. L. Spencer - Cas~ tleton, V't.