WOODEN TALLIES. 



573 



WORMS IN LAWNS. 



up trees and plants, when treated in the 

 same manner, are similarly preserved. 



Wooden Tallies. 



These are useful for placing by plants in 

 borders, pots, &c., and for suspending to 

 trees of different sorts in order to show 

 their names and to distinguish those of a 

 kindred nature one from the other. They 

 are very cheap if bought in quantities. The 

 following are the approximate rates per 100 

 at which they are sold according to length : 



4 inches 



s. d. 



08 8 inches 



10 9 



1 O 12 



With holes for suspending : 



*. d. 

 jj inches i o 5 inches 



*. d. 



2 O 



3 6 



4 o 



5 o 



I. d. 



i 6 



Woodlice. 



These insects are very destructive, 

 especially to tender seedlings in a frame. 

 They are so numerous in general that 

 they clear a pot in a single night as soon 

 as the seed-leaves appear. Indeed where 

 wood lice abound many persons are often 

 under the impression that the seed has 

 never come up at all, for it requires a 

 magnifying glass to enable us to detect 

 the minute stalks when deprived of their 

 leaves. Woodlice congregate at the 

 bottoms of pots in a hotbed and round 

 the sides of the frame. They should be 

 searched for every morning and destroyed 

 by having boiling hot water poured upon 

 them. 



Worms, Effect of, on Plants in 

 Pots. 



While in the open ground worms are 

 effic'.ent drainers enough, one of the great 

 results of their presence in pots is to 



render all drainage impossible. They first 

 grind down the soil into small particles, 

 and then work this finely comminuted 

 earth down among the drainage. This 

 peculiar process blocks up the outlet for 

 the exit of water, and speedily converts 

 the wet composts into sheer mud. Not 

 only the mechanical texture, but the 

 chemical composition of soils thus water- 

 logged and worm -worked, become so 

 changed as to totally unfit them for the 

 sustentation of plant life. The roots are 

 gorged with crude food, and kept in a 

 dirty bath of muddy water. No wonder, 

 then, at yellow leaves, drooping flower 

 buds, and sickly hues, ending in death. 



Worms in Lawns, to Destroy. 



Take newly slaked lime, in the propor- 

 tion of IO Ib. of lime to about 30 gallons 

 of water. Stir it often, and then let it 

 stand to settle. Draw off this water clear 

 from the sediment, and with a rose water- 

 irg-pot spread it freely over the lawn. 

 The worms will come to the surface, and 

 may be swept up with a broom. This 

 operation is most effectual if performed 

 in damp weather, as the worms then lie 

 nearer the surface. It may be repeated 

 till the worms disappear. 



It should be borne in mind, however, 

 that worms have their use, because they 

 consume decaying vegetable matter mingled 

 with soil, and eject the soil at the surface 

 of the ground in lumps or small heaps 

 known as wormcasts. These wormcasts, 

 being composed of earth, make, as it were, 

 a good top dressing for lawns, &c., and 

 renovate the soil on the surface. Air and 

 rain are enabled to penetrate the ground 

 through the worm holes. Furthe-r, the 

 presence of worms in heavy soil tends to 

 | lighten it by the means explained above. 



