70 MUSTARD, 



which otherwise could not be apphed, may thus be thrown on the crop 

 without injury to it by breaking it down. 



Tliis is such a very important consideration that it deserves special 

 notice, for in 1886, when througli the courtesy of the late Prof. Herbert 

 Little, of Coldham Hall, Wisbech, and Mr. William Little, of Stag's 

 Holt, March, I had the opportunity of personally examining some of 

 the Cambridgeshire Mustard crops relatively to feasible methods of 

 clearing the beetle, the closeness of the Mustard plants was considered 

 to make such measures impracticable. 



The circular of Messrs. Colman includes also some serviceable 

 observations on the "Flower Beetle" (the Mdigethes aneus), together 

 with figures of this and the common Mustard Beetle. The circular 

 was largely distributed gratuitously last spring, and probably would be 

 obtainable still through the courtesy of Messrs. Colman on application 

 to themselves.* 



During the past season, a really surprising number of mixtures, or 

 powders for dressings, and sprayings to be applied by various forms of 

 implements, were suggested for experiment, but of most of these (if 

 tried) we still need to know results. Some, as mentioned above, were 

 tried and failed. One class of application, however, I should myself 

 have great hope would be successful, namely, Paris-green. In such 

 liuiited and mere laboratory experiment as I was able to try myself 

 (see p. 65), it answered excellently in poisoning the Mustard Beetle 

 grubs, and from the very near relationship of our Mustard Beetle to 

 the Colorado Beetle of America (both being Chrysomelidte), there would 

 appear to be every reasou to hope that Paris-green, which has so long 

 been a general accepted method in America of clearing the Colorado 

 Potato Beetle, should be equally serviceable here. 



But whatever might or might not occur as to possibility of clearing 

 the Mustard Beetles by application of dressings, a very important 

 advance towards a method of keeping them in check was made last 

 season in the invention, by Mr. Cole Ambrose, of Stuutney Hall, near 

 Ely, of a machine suitable for field use, which proved on trial excel- 

 lently successful. 



Of this, Mr. H. L. Leonard, of Hull, who, with other gentlemen per- 

 sonally interested in Mustard growing, or connected with our chief Mus- 

 tard manufacturing firms, were present at a field trial of the machine, 



* ' The Mustard Beetle,' a four-page circular issued by Messrs. J. and J. Colman, 

 108, Cannon Street, London, E.G. ; and Carrow Works, Norwich. Coincidently with 

 Messrs. Colman's circular, I also issued a four-page leaflet, of which I should be 

 happy to send copies gratuitously to any applicant. But this was on a much 

 smaller scale, being more especially intended to place figures of the four common 

 Mustard pests (given above at pp. 60 — 62) in the hands of those who might have 

 difficulty in distinguishing the different kinds of insects. 



