152 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



July, 1909 



ject B. Introduce the prepared graft 

 into the cut on the face of the tuber, so 

 that it fits perfectly the incision, after 

 which wrap with raffia, as in object C, 

 and carefully cover the margins of the 

 cut with cold grafting wax. This pro- 

 cess finished, place the graft in earth in 

 a pot of a sufficient size for the tuber, 

 and carefully cover to the depth of about 

 one-third of an inch. The pot is after- 

 wards placed in a hotbed, if one operates 

 before the month of April, and later, in 

 May or June, the cold frame will be sOf- 

 ficient. But in each case the graft must 

 be strongly shaded until the wound has 

 completely healed, and covered each 

 evening after sunset. 



"The plants thus obtained grow per- 

 fectly, but make roots instead of tubers. 

 This is why the culture in pots is so 

 satisfactory. The ordinary culture would 

 form such large tubers that the pots 

 would fill up and prevent the growth of 

 the plants. But you cannot count on the 

 grafted plants preserving the varieties 

 for the following year. To stop the 

 growth of the grafted plant, you have 

 only to permit the earth to dry out, and 

 the tubers will have no further value. 

 This also occurs if the graft takes root. 

 If side tubers should form, they could 

 not be utilized for multiplication, if one 

 wishes to keep his collection true to 

 type." 



I have tried the method and find it 

 successful. Blind tubers are the best 

 suited for this purpose. I have not tried 

 crossing the dahlia in this manner, but 

 have used sprout and tuber of the same 

 plant. It may be that a plant can be 

 crossed by taking a sprout of one color 

 or type, and grafting it into a tuber of 

 another color or type, but I do not know. 

 I hope someone will try it, and report his 

 experience. For this reason, I contribute 

 this article and drawing. 



Cutworms on Vegetables 



Dr. C. J. S. Bethnne, in 0. A. C. Bulletin No. 171 



At the beginning of the growing sea- 

 son the gardener often finds in the morn- 

 ing young plants cut off near the surface 

 of the ground that the evening before 

 were strong and healthy. On stirring 

 up the soil near by he may find hidden in 

 the ground a greasy-looking caterpillar, 

 the culprit in the case. Cutworms, so 

 called from this habit, are the caterpil- 

 lars of dull-colored night-flying moths of 

 a great variety of species and varying to 

 some extent in their habits. As a general 

 rule they are partly grown at the ap- 

 proach of winter and hide away in a tor- 

 pid state during the cold weather ; when 

 restored to activity by the warmth of 

 spring, which causes the buds to open 

 and the growth of plants to begin, these 

 worms come out in search of food and 

 attack any kind of tender vegetation that 

 they meet with. They are nocturnal in 



their habits and hide away during the 

 hours of daylight under any shelter they 

 can obtain or just below the surface in 

 the loose soil of newly made beds. Ow- 

 ing to their destructive practice of cut- 

 ting off a whole plant in order to devour 

 a portion of its foliage, they do a great 

 deal of apparently needless damage. 



After they have become fully grown 

 they change to the chrysalis stage in the 

 ground and in early summer the moths 

 apear, many of them making their pres- 

 ence known in our houses by their attrac- 

 tion to light. Before very long another 

 brood of caterpillars comes upon the 

 scene, often more numerous and more 

 destructive than the first. Some of them 

 climb up into fruit trees and destroy the 

 foliage, others attack farm crops, vege- 

 tables, grape vines, the plants in flower 

 gardens, etc., while occasionally a single 

 species appears suddenly in enormous 

 numbers and sweeps like an army over 

 the land devouring everything that comes 

 in its way. 



Happily a very simple and completely 

 effective remedy has been found for these 

 destructive creatures. It is called the 

 "poisoned bran-mash" and is made in 

 the following manner : Mix half a pound 

 of Paris green in fifty pounds of bran (the 

 proportion for larger or smaller quanti- 

 ties is one to 100) ; the poison should be 

 added to the dry bran little by little and 

 stirred all the time till the whole is tinged 

 with the green color, then add water 

 sweetened with sugar, or molasses ,till 

 the mixture is sufficiently moistened to 

 crumble nicely through the fingers. If 

 bran cannot be procured, shorts or flour 

 may be used, and for field work may be 

 distributed dry by means of a seed drill. 

 The mash should be scattered about the 

 plants that are liable to attack in the 

 evening, and strange to say the worms 

 will devour it in preference to their ordin- 

 ary vegetable food. When they begin to 

 feel the effects of the poison they wander 

 off to find a hiding place or burrow in the 

 ground and there die. Their dead bodies 

 will be readily found in the morning just 

 below the surface of the ground, often in 

 surprising numbers. Young plants, such 

 as cauliflowers, tomatoes, etc., may be 

 protected when set out by wrapping a a 

 bit of newspaper around the stem be- 

 tween the root and the leaves and reach- 

 ing a little below the surface of the 

 ground. The worms will not attempt to 

 bite through or climb over it. 



Pointers on Celery 



John N. Watti, Portimonth, Ont. 



In planting out celery plants many 

 growers put manure in the trench (which 

 calls for a large amount of extra work) 

 instead of manuring: all the land. This 

 plan I have tried but find it only works 

 well in certain seasons ; that is, if the 

 summer should be showery. 



There is no better system than to plant 

 about three feet apart and have a shal- 

 low furrow or what some may term sur- 

 face planting. The plants should be 

 carefully lifted with a fork out of the 

 bed from which they have been trans- 

 planted, so as to insure a good supply of 

 new roots which, -when well moistened, 

 are ready to set in the trench. 



The trench is much improved by mak- 

 ing a return trip in the furrow with a 

 one-horse fine-toothed cultivator, which 

 gives plenty of fine soil to pack around 

 the plants. If the weather is dry, a lit- 

 tle water should be given to insure suc- 

 cess. 



After the celery has started a good 

 growth, it should have a good hoeing 

 with the common hoe, after which the 

 cultivator should be kept moving through 

 it once a week until it has reached the 

 size for market. 



My plan for blanching is with boards 

 which always gives a fine clear head of 

 white celery and is quickly applied. Tht- 

 celery is kept in position either by the use 

 of a small stake driven down outside the 

 boards, or by tacking on a small strip 

 of lath which answers the purpose. 



In harvesting, I aim to secure my 

 crop before it gets a hard frost as this 

 destroys its keeping quality. I always 

 guard against having any wilted heads 

 when digging them out as they some- 

 times get too much sun before they are 

 put in the root house. In trimming the 

 green celery, I usually strip off all the 

 leaves from all the stalks but a few of 

 the centre ones, as they rot and drop 

 down in the heart of the plant and necess- 

 itate the crop being overhauled. 



In reply to"R.T.W." 's question in the 

 June issue regarding broad beans, I have 

 successfully grown them by (a) sowing 

 the seed early in spring (before April 20) 

 in upturned sod in a cold frame ; and (b) 

 pinching off the top of each plant when 

 over twelve inches high as soon as it is 

 in blossom. — Rev. J. Fisher, Port Elm- 

 ley, Ont. 



To Kill Spiders 



I am anxious to hear of some mixtur* 

 which is sure death to, or which would 

 drive away, spiders and which could be 

 sprayed on the eaves of the house and 

 into the gables and crevices. It would not 

 do for the mixture to injure paint. This 

 question may not be in your line, but I can- 

 not think of a better authority to write to 

 as you are well up on sprays for destroy- 

 ing insects on trees and plants. ^N.L. P., 

 Midland, Ont. 



We know of no experiments that have 

 €ver been tried to kill these beneficial ani- 

 mals. Their food consists largely of nox- 

 ious insects and can dp harm only by 

 spinning unsightly webs. If pyrethrum 

 powder is dusted about the affected 

 places the insects and spiders will be re- 

 duced to a minimum. 



