1869.] INSECTS. 65 



indispensable part of the yearly routine of garden-work, is really so 

 efficacious as to justify a continuance of such measures. I have a 

 strong impression that with many the subject is a matter of faith, and 

 not of experience ; and that they would only be too glad of an excuse 

 to get rid of their belief, and a labour of the most irksome kind, which 

 can often be ill afforded. At all events, it was while pondering the 

 matter over in this light about three years ago, and making a calcu- 

 lation of the probable time and labour required to clean and dress a 

 considerable range of vineries and peach-houses, and which could not 

 be well afforded at the time, that we determined to disregard all advice 

 and preconceived notions on the subject, and strike out of the usual 

 track, for a season at least, and risk the consequences. The houses 

 were of course washed down with the syringe for the sake of clean- 

 liness, and to remove obstructions to the light; and the Vines and 

 Peaches, early and late, were tied up after pruning without any cleaning 

 or washing whatever. The result was that in the following season we 

 were just as free from spider and thrip as before, and gainers upon the 

 whole to a considerable extent in time and labour. Since then we 

 have never dressed either our Vines or Peaches as a protection against 

 insects, not even cleaning the loose bark off the Vines, except where 

 actually unsightly ; and the result in every case has always been 

 perfectly satisfactory : nor have we any intention of doing so again ; 

 and, I fancy, no amount of reasoning would prevail upon us to alter 

 our determination, so convinced are we of the needlessness of such 

 measures. JSTo doubt it will be argued, as an arithmetical question, 

 that if ten thousand red-spider are destroyed while in the embryo 

 state in autumn, there will be that number less to contend with in 

 summer — a very plausible demonstration, I admit, and one which I 

 am quite willing to leave unanswered. I will only set the practical 

 experiment against it ; but this I will assert, that even although the 

 most rigorous system of cleaning had been adopted, it would be an 

 easy matter to produce the pest with marvellous rapidity. Ked-spider 

 is worse in some seasons than others ; and it might naturally be ex- 

 pected to be worse the season following, but such is not the case, for 

 it as often happens that Vines which have suffered one year are com- 

 paratively free the next. Through the hot summer which we have 

 just passed, our Peach-trees have been wonderfully clean. As a rule, 

 our late vineries are generally quite free from spider ; and in some of 

 our earlier vineries the Vines retain their leaves healthy and green 

 long after the fruit is cut and the wood hard and brown. 



The above remarks apply chiefly to winter-dressing. We are not 

 without faith in some specifics, but after trying a good many nostrums, 

 we have fallen back upon sulphur as our best friend. Applied either 



£ 



