320 



HORTICULTURE 



March 17, 1906 



Eucharis 



These pretty and useful flowers are becoming very 

 popular and as a florist's flower might be a very profit- 

 able subject. Eucharis grandiflora, better known as E. 

 amazonica, the Amazon lily, is perhaps the most pro- 

 ductive and is under certain conditions very prolific 

 giving three crops of flowers in a year. It loves a rich, 

 somewhat heavy compost, which should be well drained, 

 and never allowed to become sour. 



It may be grown in pots, or may be planted out in 

 benches, but to insure success by planting out a house 

 should be devoted to it alone. Pots are to be preferred 

 as the 'plants do not flower freely until the root area 

 becomes restricted, or under pot culture, pot bound. 

 The plants may be encouraged to grow until the pot 

 or benches become filled with roots, when water should 

 be withheld and the plants kept almost quite dry until 

 the flower spikes appear. The eucharis has a tunicated 

 bull) and, like the haemanthus, which belong to the 

 same natural order, Amaryllidacse, develops the bud 

 which becomes the flower spike while undergoing a 

 period of comparative rest. Water may be freely given 

 from the time the spikes appear until the flower is 

 developed and until the new leaves which follow in the 

 wake of the flowers have matured, then water should 



again be withheld and the same process repeated. While 

 the plants are being watered, fertilizer may be applied 

 freely. A warm house with a minimum temperature 

 of 65 degrees F. will suit them while growing. A good 

 light is beneficial, and almost essential, but the plants 

 should be protected from full sunshine in summer. If 

 the plants can be given a little bottom-heat they will 

 respond quickly and will also dry out quickly when dry- 

 ing out is desired. Thrips and mealy-bug are very fond 

 of eucharis foliage, but the leaf is large and easily 

 sponged. While water is being supplied the foliage may 

 be syringed, but syringing during the drying out time 

 would interfere with this somewhat unnatural method 

 of treatment. If the plants are infested with mite the 

 bulbs and roots should be washed clear of soil and all 

 decayed parts removed, then dipped in a fairly strong 

 kerosene solution which should be allowed to dry before 

 repotting. The plants should not be repotted until it is 

 absolutely necessary, as they do not like to be disturbed. 



Eel Worms or Nematodes 



Growers often experience difficulty in getting at the 

 cause of certain plant diseases, especially those char- 

 acterized by wilting, drooping, loss of leaves, or a 

 stunted growth, if not final death. If these symptoms 

 appear and no reason can be discovered in ordinary 

 pests or in the management of the house, it is well to 

 pull up a plant and examine it for nematodes or eel 

 worms, as they are commonly called, a class of vernes, 

 to which the more highly organized earth worms 

 belong. A zoological and not an entomological or a 

 botanical subject, it has not received much attention 

 in its relation to horticulture. 



Nematodes occur in all soils, especially old sod and 

 decaying vegetable matter, manure being a frequent 

 source of infection. Under the microscope the worms 

 appear as tiny, eel-like animals that pass rapidly across 

 the field of vision with a wriggling motion. Although 

 there are many species, the range of damage, in the 

 northern region, has been limited to one species, known 

 scientifically as Heterodera radicola (Greef.) Mull., but 

 this one species does thousands of dollars worth of dam- 

 age yearly. 



The work of this animal (it is not an insect) is read- 

 ily distinguished through the presence of small galls or 

 protuberances on the roots of the plant attacked, that 

 resemble the nodules of leguminous plants. These are 

 brought about by an irritation to the root cells caused 

 by the entrance and subsequent multiplication of the 

 worms in the soft cortex of the roots. This irritation 

 causes an abnormal growth in the cells, these in turn 

 twisting and distorting the ducts which carry the sap 

 to the leaves, thus shutting off in a greater or less 

 degree the supply of food and causing the symptoms 

 mentioned in the first paragraph. 



The history of the nematodes Heterodera radicola, is 

 interesting. The young worm is hatched from a bean- 

 shaped egg 1-250 in. long, carried inside the female. The 

 worm itself is about 1-75 in. in length, and of course 

 invisible to the naked eye. By means of a boring 

 arrangement it bores into young rootlets until wholly 

 out of sight. Coming to rest it increases in size for 

 a couple of weeks until it assumes a spindle shape. At 

 this point the development differs according to the sex. 

 The male transforms and gradually assumes the old 

 thread-like, typical worm shape emerging fully mature, 

 1-17 in. in length, in about four weeks from the time 

 of entrance. 



In the meantime the female develops but not as 

 rapidly as the male, being still immature when she 

 comes out. Instead of turning worm-like again she 

 continues to expand until pear-shaped, while other im- 

 portant changes occur in the various organs. Immedi- 

 ately after emerging the male seeks his mate, fertilizes 

 the eggs, and dies. The females and eggs continue to 

 develop for a couple of weeks to maturity, when the 

 female dies and the eggs previously hatched start a new 

 cycle. The females when full grown are 1-25 in. long, 

 and visible to the naked eye as small bead-like objects in 

 the galls. The eggs soon hatch after fertilization and a 

 new cycle is started. 



A number of plants are very susceptible to nematodes 

 attacks but unless very numerous the worms can do 

 little harm if the plant is in a vigorous, healthy con- 

 dition. Among these plants are greenhouse tomato, 

 cucumber, muskmelon, begonia, cyclamen, clematis, 

 fern, heliotrope, roses, and violets. In the North the 

 injurious nematodes is confined wholly within doors, 

 being unable to withstand the severe winter unpro- 



