REMEDIES AGAINST MOSQUITOES 217 



The Castor-oil Plant. 



A great deal was said in the newspapers during the 

 winter of 1900-01 about the planting of the castor-oil 

 plant to prevent mosquitoes. These notes were all based 

 upon a consular report from Captain E. H. Plumacher, 

 United States Consul at Maracaibo, Venezuela. The dis- 

 patch, which was taken from Consular Keport No. 246, 

 March, 1901, reads as follows : 



A simple remedy against mosquitoes has been employed in sev- 

 eral places in South Africa, and is equally well-adapted to the 

 temperate zone. It consists in planting the castor-oil plant {Rici- 

 nus communis), or *'Palma Christi," around the house and 

 premises. 



In cold and temperate climates the castor-oil plant grows to a 

 height of four or five feet ; in these countries, it becomes a tall 

 tree and is perennial. It seems that the smell of the plant is dis- 

 agreeable to mosquitoes and other insects, and it is an acknowl- 

 edged fact that where these plants grow, few mosquitoes will be 

 found. 



My personal experience bears this out. My residence is sur- 

 rounded by plantain and banana trees, and I have been much 

 troubled in the past by the great number of mosquitoes which 

 gathered between the leaves. Following the example of old 

 settlers in the country, I planted the castor-seeds, which grew 

 up in profusion, and there are now no mosquitoes to be 

 found among the plaintain and banana trees, although I keep 

 the ground well irrigated. By keeping the branches and the 

 seeds of the plant in rooms, the mosquitoes are driven awjjy from 

 the latter. 



There are several varieties of the castor-oil plant. In this coun- 



