1913] The Ottawa Naturalist. 7 3 



Aylmer. The district around Queen's Park. Aylmer. was 

 the locality chosen for the excursion of the club, held 

 Saturday afternoon, May 31st. It was necessary to change the 

 place of meeting from Ironsides, owing to wrong information 

 having been received about the train service ; this caused several 

 to miss the outing. The excursionists left the electric railway 

 landing about 3.30, and after walking through the park, along 

 the railway track and through woods for an hour and a half, 

 they took possession of one of the vacant cottages along the lake 

 to discuss the finds of the day. The specimens most frequently 

 encountered, and one which nature seems to have been making 

 a specialty of for two years, was the forest tent caterpillar. These 

 creatures were everywhere, on leaves, in the grass, on the rail- 

 road rails, as well, in fact, as on most of the people, but the other 

 works of nature more than compensated. 



Mr. L. H. Newman, president of the club, presided, and also 

 presented the botanical specimens. The district is not especially 

 rich in wild flowers, although a fair number of specimens were 

 collected. A few lady's slippers were found, a number of violet 

 species, the beach pea, bishop's cap, lousewort, shepherd's purse, 

 pennvcress and the fruit of poison ivy. 



A very interesting talk on the Avild fruits of the district was 

 siiven by Mr. W.T. Macoun. Dominion Horticulturist. Mention was 

 made that in this district there is only one native species of wild 

 plum , the Canada plum, which is hardy, but for many years has not 

 porduced fruit because of the severe attacks of a fungus disease. 

 Some transplanted trees, grown under good orchard culture, 

 are now producing paying crops. This is a striking illustration 

 of the benefits of spraying for the prevention of disease in fruit 

 trees. The native varieties of cherries here are the choke, pin 

 and black. A specimen of the native prickly gooseberry was 

 collected. This species is being used in crossing to breed hardi- 

 ness into the larger cultivated sorts. Specimens of the common 

 wild black currant and the common wild red raspberry were 

 found. The latter is the species from which most varieties of 

 cultivated red raspberries have been developed. Most of these 

 have been produced in southern districts and are, therefore, not 

 hardv in cold climates. At the Experimental Farm work is 

 being done on the plants fotmd in the locality to produce hardier 

 varieties. Nearly all the cultivated varieties of strawberries too 

 have come from one of the two wild species found here; many of 

 them are tender because grown in a southern district and hardier 

 strains are being developed. 



The geology of the district was discussed by Dr. Williams of 

 the Geological Survey. The three distinct types of rock found 

 were blue limestone, sandv shale and 'sandstone. It was ex- 



