SUBSEQUENT CARE OF THE PLANT 173 



279fl. On the subject of the struggle for existence in the 

 tree top, consult, Observation iv. in "Lessons with Plants," and 

 Chapter i. in "Pruning-Book." The philosophical bearings of 

 this fact of competition are presented 

 in Essay iii., "Survival of the Unlike." 



281o. Other things being equal, the 

 closer the wound to the branch, the 

 quicker it will heal. The smoother the 

 wound, the better and quicker it will 

 heal. Figs. 66 and 67 illustrate right y. 

 and wrong methods. For full dis- 

 cussion of the healing of wounds, read 

 Chapter iii. in the "Pruning-Book." 



284a. An antiseptic dressing is one 

 which prevents germs or microbes from 

 growing on the surface of the wound ; 

 for the decay which follows wounds is 

 the work of germs and fungi. In gen- 

 eral, the best dressing for wounds is 



Fig. 68. Work of the bud-moth 



lead paint. Wax is not durable enough, i arva ,_ a chewing insect, 

 nor is it antiseptic. Bordeaux mixture 



is good for its antiseptic properties, but is not durable, and it 

 affords little protection from the weather. 



285a. The principles of pruning are discussed under twenty 

 heads in Chapter iv. of "Pruning-Book." 



291o. The chewing or biting insects eat up the parts upon 

 which they prey. Fig. 68 is an example of such work. The 

 sucking insects do not eat up the part, but they often leave dis- 

 tinct marks of their work, as in Fig. 69. A plant-bug is shown 

 in Fig. 70. The true weevils and curculios are biting insects, 

 although they have snouts (Fig. 71). 



292a. A fungus is a plant. It is destitute of chlorophyll or 

 leaf-green. It lives on living organisms (or is parasitic), or on 

 dead or decaying matter (or is saprophytic, as mushrooms and 

 toadstools). Some kinds, as toadstools, are large and con- 

 spicuous ; others, as molds, are small and fragile ; while still 

 pthers are nearly or quite microscopic. The plural of fungus i* 



