94 The Canadian Horticulturist. 



that wherever they abide they destroy a' great number of sparrows and mice. 

 Being birds of prey, they do not come under the category of small birds, there- 

 fore, are unprotected by law. 



They are a convenient target for boys practising with shot guns, and for 

 others who kill merely because killing affords them a pleasure. They breed but 

 slowly ; their nests — generally in a hole of a tree — contain only from two to four 

 eggs. Therefore, they will never likely become numerous enough to combat the 

 evil of the sparrow nuisance. Nevertheless, they are worthy of our careful 

 consideration. 1). Nicol. 



Cataraquiy Froiitcnac Co. 



Hints on Mulching". — Inexperienced gardeners often fail to obtain the 

 best results from mulching, and sometimes do more harm than good by a lack 

 of knowledge of what to use and how to use it. The character of the plant is 

 very nearly a reliable guide, as those which have their leaves at the time of cover- 

 ing, as spinach, lettuce, strawberry plants and others do not need to be covered 

 very thickly or with anything which is likely to become matted under a covering 

 of snow so as to exclude the air. As they breathe through those same leaves, 

 which are the lungs of the plant, they are smothered if buried too deeply or 

 with too close a covering. The more abundant their foliage the less the need of 

 covering. In a locality where the ground is not likely to freeze and thaw very 

 often there is less need of protection than upon a warm southern exposure. It 

 is not the freezing that kills, but the fact that thawing in spring may start a new 

 growth which will be so tender that it will be killed by another freeze. They 

 also need to be protected from the direct rays of the hot sun when the thawing 

 process begins. — Orange Judd Farmer. 



New to Most Fruit Growers. — At the annual meeting of the American 

 Horticultural Association Professor Budd, of Iowa, made a statement that was 

 new to many in the matter of protection and covering as it applies to birds and 

 insects. In this country there is no netting manufactured for the covering of 

 cherry and like trees. In Europe they manufacture a netting for this special 

 purpose, and manufacture it very cheaply. 



The Iowa station the past year imported 1,500 square yards of this English 

 netting, which cost in that country only one cent per square yard. That was 

 the factory price, and the cost of transportation was one-half cent more per 

 square yard. That netting is very durable and will be used at the station 

 grounds over grape-vines and many other kinds of fruits. The netting is made 

 with different sized meshes. — The Farmer's Call. 



Plums should be gathered before fully colored, all wormy specimens and 

 wind-falls discarded, and can be shipped successfully in peck boxes, twenty-four 

 quart berry cases or the above named basket. 



