INSECT PESTS AND DISEASES 33 



be taken by keeping plants well sprayed with Insecticide. 

 Quassia extract is a good remedy. 



I once saw some rows of broad beans badly infested 

 with black-fly, while Chrysanthemums standing in close 

 proximity to them were almost free. Both had been 

 sprayed to clear these pests. 



% THRIP 



This is an almost invisible enemy, often escaping the 

 naked eye. It lives in the points of the growths and 

 feeds on the leaves and buds, doing damage which is 

 unobserved at the time, and only when the bud or leaf 

 is almost fully developed can the disaster be ascertained. 

 Malformed leaves and irregular buds are often the chief 

 outcome of the thrip's attack. 



Frequent attention should be given the plants in the 

 growing season for this pest. A pocket-microscope is a 

 useful instrument for this purpose. The same remedy 

 may be applied as in the case of green and black fly, and 

 with a small hand-spray, as previously recommended, the 

 points may be washed out, care being taken not to use 

 too great a force, as the points of the Chrysanthemum 

 shoots are naturally tender and easily bruised. 



EARWIGS 



This is a most troublesome enemy, working iniquity 

 mostly during the night, and there is scarcely a Chrys- 

 anthemum ground in the country that is free from its 

 attacks. It is to be found in nearly all parts of Britain, 

 and being provided with a pair of wings, as well as 

 being most active on its feet, can make a fairly extensive 

 round of the neighbourhood in which it resides. Dahlias 

 and Chrysanthemums are the two plants which he most 



