200 FRUITS AND VEGETABLES UNDER GLASS 



than mealy bug if allowed to go on unchecked. This white scale usually 

 appears on sickly plants, or is caused by too dry an atmosphere, or the two to- 

 gether favor its rapid spread. But with initiatory methods that are disagree- 

 able to insect life there should be little trouble in keeping the plants free from 

 these pests. I^ed spider will also play havoc with careless management. The 

 best way to fight these pests is never to allow them to establish themselves. 



A good preventive against mealy bug, red spider, etc., is a spray once in a 

 while with any of the insecticides recommended for that purpose. The pine- 

 stove, to be successful, must be kept free from all noxious insects, and this will 

 be an easy matter if taken in hand in time. 



VARIETIES 



Although there are quite a number of varieties under cultivation, it is not 

 necessary for the individual grower to have a large assortment. About half a 

 dozen of the kinds best adapted for hothouse work is sufficient. The stock should 

 also be selected with a view to pot or bed culture, for some varieties are stub- 

 born to handle, especially when the foliage gets large. Where the Pines are 

 planted in beds, the spiny margin of the leaf does not matter so much as in 

 potting, but it is not very pleasant to repot a plant with rough, jaggy foliage. 

 However, some of the varieties with the spiny margin leaf are excellent for fruit- 

 ing under glass. 



One of the best for pot work and easiest to handle is Smooth-Leaf Cayenne, 

 which is very fine either for growing in pots or planting out. Unfortunately, 

 it is very shy in producing stock, often refusing to throw out suckers. But 

 Queen Pineapple will always produce an abundance of excellent stock. Both 

 of these kinds have been grown for many years, and are still as good as any for 

 fruithouse work. 



Charlotte Rothschild has been classed as an extremely large Queen; I have 

 known it to produce fruit weighing from seven to ten pounds each. Although 

 it bears the Rothschild name, its history is somewhat doubtful; it is supposed 

 to have originated in Baron Rothschild's garden near Paris. 



Lady Beatrix Lambton is a variety raised at Lambton Castle, Scotland, 

 about i860; it also has produced some very large fruit. Mr. Hunter, while 

 gardener at Lambton Castle, is said to ha\e picked a fruit of this \aricty weigh- 

 ing over eleven pounds ! 



The following list gives a sufficient assortment and may be relied upon for 

 forcing purposes: Queen, Smooth-Leaf Cayenne, Lady Beatrix Lambton, 

 Charlotte Rothschild, En\ ille, Lord Carrington, and Black Jamaica. The two 

 best among these are Queen and Smooth-Leaf Cayenne. 



