126 Editors Letter- Box. 



Has the tobacco-soap introduced by Mr. Jacques of Boston proved to be a 

 good thing ? — Yes : much more agreeable to use in the parlor or greenhouse, 

 and quite as effective as whale-oil-soap. An excellent article. 



Has the Agriculturist Strawberry met the great expectations of those who 

 bought it at high prices ? — We think not, fully. It is large, some berries meas- 

 uring five and a quarter inches in circumference : it bears very well ; but the 

 quality is second-rate. We are aware that this matter of taste is one that can- 

 not be controlled or argued. Some will declare that Wilson's Albany is the best 

 strawberry that can be had, while others are equally confident that it is not 

 worth raising for home use. We confess ourselves to be among the latter 

 class. 



How can I best keep the birds off my vineyard ? For several years, the 

 robins and other birds have taken all my cherries, a large share of my strawber- 

 ries, raspberries, and other early fruits ; and, when the grapes ripen, they come 

 into the vineyard by hundreds, destroying nearly the entire crop. The law pre- 

 vents my shooting them, and I don't know what to do. Can you give me any 

 advice in the matter ? — The evil complained of by our friend is a serious one. 

 The robins have become very numerous, especially in the States where they are 

 protected by law ; and are really a great nuisance to the fru't-grower. The good 

 they do does not compensate for the damage they cause, in our opinion. It is 

 not well settled how useful the robin is in destroying insects injurious to vegeta- 

 tion ; but the growing opinion is, that they do very little in that direction. This 

 may not be true of the other birds that trouble your early fruit. The robin, we 

 believe, is the only bird that injures the grape crop. If the law prevents you 

 from shooting the birds, the only alternative left you is to frighten them off some 

 way. Strawberry-beds may be protected by nets laid over, so that the birds can- 

 not get at the fruit. The best plan we can suggest in regard to the vineyard is 

 to keep one or more boys, or even girls, that can be hired cheaply, to frighten 

 them off, either by clapping two sticks together, or by the use of a watchman's 

 rattle, that makes a noise they do not enjoy. The owner of a vineyard remarked 

 to us the other day, that he adopted this plain, and it was a good investment of 

 his money. Try it. 



Miss E. A. F., Jackson, Mich. — The enemies of your rose-bushes are of 

 sorts unpleasantly familiar to rose-growers in this country. One is the leaf- 

 hopper, popularly called the thrip ; and the other, the rose-slug. A solution of 

 whale-oil soap is a good remedy. It must be applied thoroughly with a garden- 

 syringe. You had better, however, use Jacques's tobacco-soap instead, as it is 

 less disagreeable, and more effectual. If you cannot get either of these, syringe 

 with strong soap-suds made with common soft-soap. Two or three good appli- 

 cations will kill all the slugs. You must attack the leaf-hoppers on a cold morn- 

 ing, as the warm sun makes them too active. They cannot endure a good 

 wetting with tobacco-soap. 



