ENEMIES OF PLANTS 



written for advice, from whose description of 

 their plants I had diagnosed red spider as the 

 cause of the trouble, that I must surely be mis- 

 taken, for they had never seen such an insect on 

 their plants. But on finding out a little more 

 about the pest they had discovered that he 

 was there, engaged in active and deadly work. 

 Fumigation with tobacco used to be the 

 principal agency employed to fight the aphis. 

 But most women are so sensitive to the dis- 

 agreeable smell of burning tobacco that they 

 prefer to go without plants rather than be 

 nauseated by it, and having its stale, sickening 

 odor clinging to the rooms and everything in 

 them for days after fumigating. Not so very 

 long ago it was discovered that the active prin- 

 ciple of nicotine could be used with far more 

 satisfactory results, when applied in water,^ in 

 the form of a spray. For a time we steeped 

 our tobacco, and extracted its toxic strength 

 in that way, applying the "tea" thus secured 

 to our aphis-infested plants by showering, or 

 dipping. But this was a far from pleasant 

 process, as the odor given off in making the 

 infusion was almost as disagreeable as tobacco 

 smoke. Because of this many persons ne- 

 glected to make use of it, and contented them- 



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