THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



167 



sian apples, but it is hardier than the 

 Fameuse. — Rural New Yorker^s Report 

 of the American Pomological Society. 



WITH DRAIN 



I5LANCHING CELERY 

 TILE. 



BY FRED. GRUNDY. 



The experience of another season 

 lias served to confirm my faith in this 

 practice. It is certainly superioh to 

 the laborious banking process when in- 

 telligently managed. 



Celery intended for early use should 

 be set in trenches about three inches 

 leep, which should be kept open in all 

 subsequent cultivation of the ground. 

 When ready for blanching, all the 

 small outside stalks are removed, be- 

 cause they are of no value whatever, 

 leaving but three or four stalks around 

 the heart. Three or four-inch tile are 

 then set over the plants, and the earth 

 banked up Jigainst them about eight 

 inches Ingh. This banking must be 

 done to prevent the tile from becoming 

 too hot in the sun, which they will do 

 to the great injury of the confined 

 plants. Later on, when the weather 

 becomes cooler, banking with earth is 

 not required. The celery blanches per- 

 fectly inside the tile, and comes out 

 clean, white and crisp. 



Our family is small, and a few stalks 

 are all we require for a meal. To get 

 them I lift the tile, break off as many 

 as needed, in the same manner as 

 rhubarb stalks are broken, replace the 

 tile and the plant continues to grow 

 •ind supply fresh, nutty stalks, until 

 tlie ground freezes. Fifty good plants 

 set in rich soil give us a full supply of 

 this delicious vegetable, from the time 

 it tastes good until Christmas. At the 

 beginning of freezing weather the 

 plants are taken up with some roots 

 and earth adhering, set in a long, nar- 

 row box, containing about four inches 

 of sand, and placed in the cellar. 



I find Golden Heart Dwarf and 



Crimson Dwarf the most suitable va- 

 rieties for this section, and I grow 

 them exclusively. . I use them with 

 tile one foot long for bleaching. For 

 the tall varieties of celery, tile eighteen 

 or twenty inches long can be procured. 

 — Philadelphia Weekly Press. 



MEALY BUG. 



We have tried various emulsions of 

 kerosene oil for this pest, but with in- 

 diff'erent results. Alcohol, which is 

 the basis of most insecticides for mealy 

 bug, will do the work, but it is too 

 ex})ensive for general use. The im- 

 ported preparation known as " Fir-tree 

 oil " is by far the best and most econ- 

 omical remedy we have yet tried. It 

 kills the bug and its eggs, and does no 

 practical injury to the plants. In 

 using tlie fir-tree oil or similar insecti- 

 cide, it is better, when practicable, to 

 dip the plants in the preparation. In 

 my experience one dipping is as good 

 as ten syringings, and much more 

 economical, A common error in the 

 use of all insecticides is the want of 

 persistence in their use. It is much 

 better to use a weak application of any 

 insecticide frequently than a stronger 

 dose of it at less frequent periods. For 

 example, we have always found it more 

 effective and safe to fumigate with to- 

 bacco smoke our house twice a week 

 lightly, rather than once a week and 

 more heavily. — (^has. Henderson, in 

 the Country Gentleman. 



AUTUMNAL COLORED FOLIAGE. 



All the gaylussacias and vacciniums 

 (huckleberries, cranberries, etc.,) turn 

 so brilliantly that for this reason alone 

 they are worth a place in ornamental 

 plantings. V. corymhosum (swamp 

 blueberry) is sometimes ten feet high 

 and six or eight feet in diameter. It is 

 attractive in flower. The fruit is 

 beautiful and tastes better than it 



