18 



The Rorists' Review 



June 18, 1921 



750 square I'cct, thus assuring a con- 

 tinuous It'iiching of material through 

 the soil.'" This remedy is doubtless one 

 of the most jiroinisijig heretofore recom- 

 mended au<l, when used in connection 

 witli the gas, should give excellent re- 

 sults. It requires, however, a good deal 

 of labor and material in quantities that 

 might lie <lif}i(iilt to obtain should this 

 ri'uiedy lie uiii\ersally adopted. 



New Suggestions. 



After many trials, most of them un- 

 successful or partly so, we learned of 

 a means of ccpntrolling this insect, so 

 simple that at first we failed to grasp 

 its full significance. Luckily, however, 

 we recalled it just at the most oppor- 

 tune time for an experiment, and al- 

 though we tried it only in a half-hearted 

 way, it worked so well that we hope, if 

 ai)j)lied with the recpiired care and en- 

 thusiasm, it will solve the beetle prob- 

 lem for us. This ])lan, as described to 

 Us by a prominent grower, is this: A 

 layer of mulch at least one inch deep is 

 applied to tlie rose beds. Then between 

 December l.''i and January l.j, on cloudy, 

 cold days, the bushes should be shaken 

 and then the mulch should be immedi- 

 ately remoNcd and with it will go the 

 beetles. Beetle-tight receptacles should 

 be used and one should be sure that the 

 men entrusted with the work under- 

 stand exactly the why and wherefore 

 of this operation, so that they will do it 

 as carefully as possible. This operation 

 may be rejteated as often as deemed 

 necessary. If mulch is ])ut on only for 

 the purpose of trapidng the beetle, any 

 material may lie used, provided it is 

 neither rej'eilent to the beetle nor in- 

 jurious to the roses, and it )uay be re- 

 moved a day or two after applied. Saw- 

 dust, fine manure, leaf-mold, chaff or 

 dried lawn-dipjiings should be suitable. 



Review Reader's Hint. 



If this jd.'in. contrary to our expecta- 

 tions, should fail or prove insufficient, 

 we have another one in reserve. It is 

 untried, but looks promising, and was 

 suggested t(p us by the tobacco and 

 wood .'islies treatment as mentioned be- 

 fore and also by ;in .article in The Re- 

 view in which a lady florist recommends 

 lye solution for ground insects. We 

 have trie(l !ye on rose ])laiits and ap- 

 plications as strong as one ounce in a 



gallon of water per plant have not yet 

 shown any bad effect on plants that 

 were treated almost four months ago. 



We expect to use the mulch treatment 

 as described this winter, and next 

 spring we shall examine our benches 

 frequently for eggs, larva; and pupae 

 from May 20 to June 10. If we find 

 benches sufficiently infested to warrant 

 the treatment, we shall apply lye, first 

 at the rate of one-half ounce per plant 

 and later with an increased dose if 

 necessary. It was our intention to use 

 lye solution, but that requires elaborate 

 preparation as to tanks, pipes, pumps 

 and so forth. So we are going to try 

 another plan, developed by our Mr. Hill- 

 man. He mixes one part lye with six 

 parts sifted dry soil; he distributes this 

 mixture over the bench so that each row 

 of five plants will get the required 

 amount of lye, and then applies the 

 hose. The first watering should be 

 gauged so that the solution penetrates 

 the soil at least two inches and not 

 much over three inches. By this time 

 next year we hope to be able to report 

 to our fellow rose growers that this 

 treatment has proved successful. 



CAMPHOR SCALE. 



The camphor scale, which has been 

 the cause of a quarantine laid on ship- 

 ments from the parishes of Orleans and 

 Jefferson, Louisiana, holding up the 

 supply of Ficus elastica cuttings at this 

 time, is characterized by the United 

 States Department of Agriculture as "a 

 new and serious insect pest that may 

 prove a dire menace to the citrus fruit 

 orchards and other cultures of the coun- 

 try unless its spread is checked." This 

 pest first made its appearance in New 

 Orleans, where it threatens to destroy 

 many of the camphor trees used exten- 

 sively for shade along the streets. Local 

 authorities, it is said, are taking active 

 steps to control the pest and have asked 

 the United States Department of Agri- 

 culture to give assistance through its 

 Federal Horticultural Board and the 

 Bureau of Entomology, which has been 

 investigating the situation at first hand. 



While the insect is found attacking 

 more or less vigorously more than 100 

 kinds of plants, including citrus, the 

 camphor trees appear to be most seri- 

 ously injured by it, and for this reason 



the name camphor scale is applied to 

 the pest. How it got into the United 

 States is still unknown, but entomolo- 

 gists believe that it was introduced but 

 little more than a year ago, from its 

 rapid spread during the short time that 

 its presence has been recognized. Thus 

 far the pest has attacked chiefly orna- 

 mentals, owing to the character of 

 plants in the infested area, which at 

 present includes several blocks in the 

 residential section of the city, where 

 many of the camphor trees are begin- 

 ning to show signs of injury, a few of 

 the lower branches dying and a large 

 number of leaves falling off. From its 

 characteristics, however, the insect is 

 said to be an enemy of citrus trees, figs 

 and live oaks, as well as other plants 

 of economic value. 



This is said to be the first establish- 

 ment of the camphor scale in this coun- 

 try. Hithovto it has been known to 

 exist almost wholly in India, China and 

 Japan. Reported occurrences of its 

 presence in the Philippines and Porto 

 Rico are being inquired into as a result 

 of the outbreak in New Orleans. It is 

 described as an insect of semitropic cli- 

 mates and closely related to the San 

 Jose scale, which made its appearance 

 in this country between forty-five and 

 fifty years ago from China. The opinion 

 is expressed that the camphor scale 

 would hardly go farther north than 

 Virginia, on the Atlantic seaboard, if 

 given a chance. 



BOUND FOR THE COAST. 



Not frequently are roses for green- 

 house planting shipped in carload lots. 

 Wholesale nurserymen handle bedding 

 roses in such quantities, but propa- 

 gators of greenhouse roses not often. 

 And never before is it recorded that a 

 firm east of the Rockies shipped into 

 the Golden state so large a quantity of 

 roses for greenhouse planting. The car 

 shown in the illustration on this page, 

 however, has started on its way from 

 Richmond, Ind., to Santa Ana, Cal. The 

 Joseph H. Hill Co. loaded it with Pre- 

 mier, Mme. Butterfly, Columbia, White 

 Killarney and Crusader. Amling Bros., 

 of Maywood fame, will plant the stock 

 in the houses being erected at Santa 

 Ana, Cal., by the American Greenhouse 

 Mfg. Co., of Chicago. The range there 

 will comprise five connected pipe-frame 

 houses, 40 n 400 feet. 



BOSTON'S SPRINO SHOW. 



Carload of Greenhouse Roses Bound for the Pacific Coast. 



List of Bulb Classes. 



The Massacliusetts Horticultural So- 

 ciety will hold its annual exhibition of 

 s])ring bulbs and other spring-flowering 

 jilants at Horticultural hall, Boston, 

 sometime during March, 1922. Prizes 

 amounting to $6,000 will be offered at 

 this exhibition. In order that intend- 

 ing exhibitors may be informed of the 

 varieties required and may provide the 

 bulbs called for, the schedule of classes 

 of Holland bulbs, which is to be the 

 special feature, is sent out earlier than 

 the schedule for the other plants. The 

 classes in the Holland bulb section open 

 to commercial growers are as follows: 



-V first prize of a gold medal and $300 

 and a second prize of $300 will be given 

 for a spring bulb garden to cover 500 

 square feet. Pansies, daisies and other 

 spring flowering plants, or hardy shrubs 

 and evergreens, may be used. 



It is the intention of the committee 



