Cultural Suggestions 173 



away down into the plant's tender tissues, pumping at its life 

 fluids. But common soapsuds will kill them, happily. It may 

 take a lot of it and the task of spraying it onto them is by no 

 means an easy one, for they tuck themselves craftily away 

 underneath leaves, which then curl around them and make 

 regular little tents, shedding soapsuds as well as rain. 



All plants are liable to suffer from the depredations of these 

 creatures, They are indeed the commonest of the minor insects, 

 living alike on a willow tree sprig or a nasturtium flower, a rose 

 bush or a lettuce head. Some things seem to be ever free from 

 them, but I always have a haunting sense of "no telling" — 

 they may be almost anywhere next time one looks. The main 

 thing is just to look ; getting rid of them is not really hard. 



It should be done promptly, however, and thoroughly, for they 

 soon take all the life from the thing they attack. Use white 

 Castile or Ivory soap, pour on boiling water and work up a 

 strong foam, then cool until the hands can be borne in it 

 comfortably and use at once. Spray twice, on successive days 

 and then watch and spray again after a day or two perhaps. 

 A solitary individual remaining will mean a bush alive with 

 them again within an tmbelievably short time. 



As a last word, let me caution all who buy plants to buy of 

 only the recognized first-class nurserymen. Money is wasted 

 when put into plants from any but the very best stock ; care of 

 the best stock is expensive and good plants cannot therefore 

 be produced at cheap rates. It is better to buy less, if necessary — 

 to extend the planting of a place over two or three years or more — 

 than to buy inferior specimens, whether the inferiority is in size 

 or quality. Make a point too of buying always from a nursery 

 north, rather than south, of your own latitude. 



