GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUKE 



I at once wrote our friend that if he succeeded in 

 getting me some seed I would gladly pay him 50 

 cents for a couple of them ; and I am happy to tell 

 you that on June 21 they came to hand. The seeds 

 somewhat resemble those of the squash, but they 

 have a peculiar shape, somewhat different from any 

 thing else. They were planted promptly, and in just 

 about ten days one of them was up, and is now, 

 July 7, growing quite rapidly. I am afraid the 

 frost will catch mine here in Ohio before the great 

 long fruit is fit to use; but I am going to push it 

 with all my skill. If any of the readers of Glean- 

 ings can tell me any thing more about this Solo- 

 mon's Islands gourd, I should be glad to get it. The 

 clippings our friend refers to were returned or I 

 would give place to them here. Is it not possible 

 that this is another of " God's gifts " to this world 

 of ours ? 



We have already an ornamental bean in Florida 

 with pods over a foot long ; but I am told it is of 

 no value except for the immense flowers it produces. 



DASHEEN TUBERS FOE SALE, ETC. 



In the department of Special Notices in our last 

 issue I copied an advertisement of the Crenshaw 

 Brothers' Seed Co., of Bradentown, Fla. I havo 

 just now learned from them that they have beeu 

 obliged to advance the price of the bulbs to 30 cents 

 a quart; and I presume it will be too late to try 

 growing them here in the North before another sea- 

 son. Below are the directions they send out: 



DASHEEN A RIVAL TO THE POTATO. 



Dasheen is a staple article of food in the tropics. 

 It is related to the ornamental caladium, or elephant- 

 ear, the taros, and to the semi-wild tanier of the 

 Southern States. Its tubers are similar in composi- 

 tion to the potato, but much drier, containing about 

 ten per cent more starch and from fifty to sixty per 

 cent more protein. The flesh of the large tubers is 

 usually grayer violet color when cooked, but this 

 does not affect the flavor. Dasheen should always 

 be cooked before using. When properly baked and 

 served, it is mealy, having a flavor richer thnn that 

 of the white potato — more suggestive of boiled chest- 

 nuts. 



CULTURE. 



The dasheen requires rich, moist, and well-drained 

 sandy soil. For best results mix a liberal amount 

 of well-rotted stable manure with the soil; )f very 

 sandy it is a good idea to add some potash. Plant- 

 ing should be done as early in the spring as possible 

 so as to give the tubers ample time to mature, as it 

 requires from five to six months. Plant the tubers 

 from two to three inches deep, in hills sbout three 

 feet apart, rows four feet apart. Keep free from 

 weeds, and work the soil toward the plant. 



Harv'?sfing should De done oefore frost, and the 

 tubers should be allowed to remain in the su)i sever- 

 al days so as to become thoroughly di'y. 



REDBUGS^ ETC.^ UP TO DATE. 



During the past winter, and along in 

 March and April, the redbug-s were unusu- 

 ally bad in our Florida home. About the 

 same time, by some mishap, chicken lice got 

 among some of our sitting hens; and the 

 two together for a time called for much 

 patience and humility. When Mrs. ©oot 

 asked if my faith was bright enough and 

 strong enough to say, " I am glad to see 

 them," as I said about the squashbugs, I 

 replied that I believed that Providence had 

 sent them in order that I might have a real 

 close acquaintance, and thus be enabled to 

 tell the friends thi-ough Gleanings how to 

 wage a successful warfare. I wrote to the 

 Florida Experiment Station, but did not 

 get much help. I then applied to the Bu- 

 reau of Entomology, at Washingion, and 

 was rejoiced to get a pamphlet of six jDages 

 picturing the little " animal," and giving 



very full directions. The title of the bulle- 

 tin is " Harvest Mites, or Chiggers." From 

 this pamphlet I make the following ex- 

 tracts: 



The mites naturally attack first those portions of 

 the body which are most exposed — those nearest the 

 ground. They crawl into the stockings and penetrate 

 the skin about the ankles, frequently below the shoe 

 tops, and are usually found most numerous below 

 the knee. According to the late Dr. John Hamilton, 

 a physician as well as entomologist, the harvest 

 mites enter the larger sweat tubes or pores of the 

 skin ; and as these tubes are very tortuous, the 

 progress of the mites is necessarily slow, from eigh- 

 teen to thirty-six hours being required for them to 

 reach the end. When the lesions caused by these 

 mites are unusually numerous, tlie sufferer becomes 

 feverish, and sleep is much disturbed. Sometimes 

 the afflicted one becomes frantic, and lacerates his 

 flesh by too vigorous and frequent scratching. Ery- 

 sipelas is known to follow severe attacks, and death 

 resulting from blood poisoning is recorded. These 

 more serious results of infestation are, however, ex- 

 ceptional, and, as with the fatalities which in rare 

 cases follow the ordinarily merely painful or annoy- 

 ing " bites " of many insects, undoubtedly point to 

 an impurity of the blood. 



If a bath is taken in hot water, or water contain- 

 ing salt or strong soap, within a few hours after 

 exposure, no ill effects will be experienced. Alter a 

 longer exposure a bath has practically no effect, and 

 direct remedies are necessary. 



Sulphur is a sovereign remedy for mites, and is the 

 best preventive of attack. When exposure is un- 

 avoidable, and where vegetation is not more than 

 2 or 3 feet high, a sure preventive is found in sift- 

 ing flowers of sulphur into the underclothes from a 

 little above the knee downward and into the shoes 

 and stockings, or it may be rubbed over the legs and 

 ankles. Naphthaline has been successfully used in 

 the same manner in Mexico by Dr. L. O. Howard, 

 and in Cuba by Mr. E. A. Schwarz. While the sul- 

 phur, being inodorous and perfectly effective, is un- 

 doubtedly preferable against harvest mites alone, 

 naphthaline is a safeguard against various forms of 

 man-infesting tropical insect pests. Vaseline, pure 

 or mixed with sulphur, will serve the same purpose, 

 but is not so agreeable on account of its oily nature 

 and the certainty of its soiling the clothing. 



Professor Rolfe, of the Florida Experi- 

 ment Station, informs me that the stiektight 

 flea, often called " chiggers " (that troubled 

 our gTown-up fowls by getting on their 

 combs as well as getting on people) within 

 two or three years have almost entirely dis- 

 appeared. He had not seen one of them for 

 two winters past. My impression is that all 

 these pests, like gnats and mosquitoes, will 

 gi'adually be eliminated, especially if we go 

 at it understandingly. 



I wish to refer to one statement in the 

 government bulletin, to the effect that these 

 things are more annoying and painful where 

 there are impurities in the blood. This 

 probably also accounts for the fact that 

 some people are so much more annoyed 

 than others. Get your system into good 

 robust health by eating only two meals a 

 day of good wholesome food, daily baths, 

 etc., and very soon the chiggers, redbugs, 

 and harvest mites will give you a wide 

 berth. 



