The Pests of Garden Plants 



Unfortunately, these destroyers are only effective in fine weather. In 

 rainy seasons, or when a crop is rising, it is necessary to resort to 

 trapping, and many kinds of vegetable refuse make tempting baits 

 for Slugs. Pieces of Orange peel, suitably placed, are soon covered 

 with the vermin, especially in the winter during intervals of frost. 

 Cabbage leaves, sliced Turnips and Potatoes, or almost any waste 

 vegetable may be employed ; even sawdust will attract Slugs. The 

 traps should be scattered about at dusk, and be gathered up in the 

 morning, and buried in pits, or destroyed by fire. It should be 

 borne in mind that a Slug slightly touched by lime or salt has the 

 power of throwing it off by means of the slimy exudation with which 

 the creature is endowed. But if again and quickly assailed in a 

 similar manner death is certain to follow. Therefore, if one salting 

 or liming does not answer, a second is likely to prove effectual. 

 Another mode of using quicklime is to put a quantity in a large tub, 

 which should be filled with water. Stir the mixture, allow the lime 

 to settle, then draw off the clear liquid for watering any spot infested 

 with Slugs. It is deadly to the vermin and advantageous to the 

 crops. 



Wasps are a terrible scourge in some gardens. They spoil a large 

 quantity of fruit, and jeopardise the remainder by forcing the harvest 

 before the crops are ready for gathering. When the localities of 

 the Wasps' nests are known, it is a simple task to dispose of them. 

 Turpentine, gunpowder, and tar have their advocates, especially 

 among the younger members of the community, to whom a spice of 

 danger is an attractive element in the fun. But these are clumsy 

 methods of destruction after all, and will not compare with the far 

 easier remedy of poisoning the colonies by means of cyanide of 

 potassium. Dissolve one ounce of the drug in a quarter of a pint of 

 water. This will be sufficient to destroy several nests, but it is a 

 deadly poison, and must be kept in a place of safety. Soak a piece 

 of rag in the fluid, and lay it over the entrance to the nest. There 

 is no occasion to run away ; not a Wasp will venture out, and those 

 which return from foraging will not lose their tempers and find yours, 

 but at each successive attempt to enter their home they will become 

 feebler, until they fall near or beneath the drugged rag. After an 

 hour or two the nest may be dug out, when every insect, including 

 queen and pupae, will be found dead. 



If the colonies lie beyond your frontier, or their positions cannot 

 be ascertained, the enemy must be disposed of by stratagem and in 



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