1844.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



653 



jomid philosophy. Here is a specimen which I find in 

 the M Spectator" of Sept. 7, copied from the " Notting- 

 barx Review," and which, if a paper of the " Spectator's" 

 character thought worthy of notice at all, ought not to 

 jja^ allowed to go to its readers without denouncing as 

 noasense, all, at least, but the fact : — 



■ On Sunday last a large flock of wild geese passed 

 o/er Chesterfield, on their way, it is supposed, to the 

 fens of Lincolnshire. Such a circumstance at this early 

 period of the season was hardly ever known, and it is 

 considered to forebode an early and severe winter." 

 i Jsot an autumn passes but we hear of such prognostics 

 of a forthcoming hard winter, in spite of our experience 

 of the fact, that five times out of six such prognostics 

 fail; for it is only about once in as many years that we 

 do have a severe winter. The temptation to this affecta- 

 tion of superior knowledge is so strong, that men even 

 who are apparently engaged in the right road of investi- 

 gation, and conversant with the means by which the 

 exact results of meteorological observation are obtained, 

 are led astray by it. 



Articles appear from time to time in the Times, under 

 the head of " London Weather,'' and are advanced by 

 that useful paper with a show of a faithful record of 

 facts, and reasonable deductions therefrom, on known 

 philosophical principles. The author of these papers 

 often betrays a disposition to foretell the chances of a 

 few days prospectively. About a week ago we were told 

 that certain electrical conditions of the atmosphere 

 existed, and that a gale was probably at hand. Now I 

 would challenge the writer to show what are the express 

 electrical phenomena indicative of an approaching gale, 

 which do not frequently exist without any such result — 

 for no great atmospheric changes take place without 

 manifestations of electric agency. The prediction was a 

 tolerably safe one; for who does not know that the 

 equinox is come, and that the month of September 

 seldom goes out without a little foretaste of the agitations 

 of the declining year? 



If we are ever to have anything better than an 

 empirical knowledge of the course of our seasons, it 

 would be better to refrain from such pretensions till they 

 can be warranted by well-grounded deductions from a 

 long series of recorded facts and observations, collected 

 simultaneously (as they must be, to be of any use) at 

 many and widely-extended points. One of the most 

 remarkable instances of the danger of venturing on this 

 species of vaticination I remember to have happened 

 about the years 1814 or 1815. Two or three succeeding 

 summers had been excessively wet and cold, and an 

 article appeared in the " Quarterly Review," in which 

 conjectures were advanced respecting the concomitant 

 existence of a greater than usual extension of the ice of 

 the Northern Atlantic, and with a confident prediction 

 that, as icebergs were still floating in very low latitudes, 

 we must expect to suffer a continuance of the evil for one 

 more season at least. This article had hardly reached 

 the public when there commenced one of the warmest 

 and finest summers ever known, (I think the summer of 

 1816). It begun in May, of which the first part was 

 wet and warm ; it cleared up about the middle of the 

 month, and it continued almost uninterrupted sunshine 

 till after harvest : the Pomegranate was ripened in the 

 south of England, and Melons were raised with no other 

 artificial help than the protection of a handglass. The 

 succeeding autumn was beautiful, and the winter mild. 



in concluding these cursory observations on so im- 

 portant a subject in all the relations of rural life as 

 meteorology, permit me to express a hope that you will, 

 ere long, indulge us with a Paper, or series of Papers, on 

 tne actual condition of our knowledge of this branch of 

 natural history, and of the best means of advancing it— 

 knnJ observe i» meteorology." We shall then better 

 nowour ignorance, and learn toavoid the gross absurdities 



of b- r ^ ? n "~ t0 assign the sim P le facts of the fli g ht 



to th • D assisted °y favouring currents of wind, 



tneir true cause, the everlasting search for food; 



othPr acc,dental profusion of Hips and Haws, and 



of well °* e es ' t0 the im mediate and obvious effects 



do the ! nCd W ° 0d ' and a g °° d bIoomin S time - I wiU 

 farmers 5 ! u" ° f my ac 1 uai ntance, and many of the 



speaking / .J ustice to 8av > that the affectation we are 

 act for *h 18 n0t very P reval ent amongst them ; they 

 are'watrif e i m r Sfcpartj0nthe s P ur of the occasion, and 

 know th.f «! °u lmmediate indications of change : they 

 thevW \ [ hereshaI l be seed-time and harvest," and 



the mar • ' trust ia God l" and ' iQ a better sense than 

 "Don'tMiT* 801106 usedin >" keep their powder dry." 



weather " t0 me ° f the moons » and of the si S ns of the 

 " what ' 8a ^ S a snre wd old farmer of my acquaintance ; 



you h v y « u cal1 a 8ign of rain one da y> I wiU P rove t0 



addin/ if 6 7 ent ' is a si S n of fine weather another ;" 

 original * l* its com P Iexi on I suspect not to be an 



Almanac v"" 1 am only twelve hours behind the 

 tell •«• " maker J be tells you in the morning what I can 



J » perhaps, more a ccurately at night."— P. P. 



ERttATrM -? ome Corr espondence. 



Rose,*' for« last week 's No., p. 637, col. b, article "Dog 

 Horl' / Ka,yyAV * " read " *•*«*»*»" from x*{xtoe (rough). 



rt\&ttZ l !l U \ al Sodet y °f London >— In the Chronicle 

 respecting *i e is a letter from an exhibitor of fruit 



year. It a Pnzes ° ffered by this Societ y for next 



no a'dflin« I)P i 6arS that 80 lon & as fruit-growers are quiet, 

 grower! Z rc !J ard8 wil1 b e offered, while the P lant- 

 ExhibUinn ^ aU they ask ' Although, at the last June 

 and ereenv,' C i WaS 0n,y one lar ge collection of stove 

 fifteen whi i pUnti 8h0Wn > and one in the class of 



offered in T™ 8 , n0t th ° Ught WOrthy of the Gold Medal 

 ' ln the clas * of six there was not a competitor, 



thus leaving in the classes of stove and greenhouse plants 

 eight medals not awarded. In the classes of Heaths, 



t n° ^ the first prizes were witbheld - Notwithstanding 

 all this, considerable additional rewards are offered for 



next year. The Editor of the Gardeners' Chronicle, in 

 1842, told fruit-growers, in order to induce them to ex- 

 hibit, that the prizes offered for fruit were equal to those 

 offered for plants. There has been a great alteration on 

 the one side since that period ; take, for example, Orchi- 

 daceae, the prizes offered for collections of which, at 

 each Show in that year, amounted to 10/. ; for collec- 

 tions of fruit, 18/. 15*. The prizes offered for collec- 

 tions of the former in 1845, at each Show, amounts to 

 /0/. 15s.; while the fruit remains without alteration, 

 although the fruit tent created intense interest— I think 

 I am justified in saying, even more than those of plants. 

 As far as I paw, there was not a plant of any merit, which 

 had been properly entered, unrewarded, while the fruit- 

 table literally groaned under the weight of meritorious 

 productions, which could not obtain a prize at all. It 

 is well known that one house will produce a collection 

 of Orchidacese for each of the Exhibitions, while the fruit- 

 grower must at least have three houses from which to 

 obtain one collection, each of which requires as much 

 skill and attention as the one house of the former. I 

 think — and I imagine that most of my brother gardeners 

 will agree with me— that the additional prizes have been 

 placed where they were least wanted ; I have no doubt 

 the reason why fruit-growers do not complain is, that 

 comparatively speaking few of them attend personally, 

 and therefore cannot judge of what is going on. Prizes 

 are offered for the best named plants, while the threat of 

 disqualification is held out to fruit-growers in case their 

 productions are not properly named. In conclusion I 

 may add, that as the Society profess to encourage good 

 gardening only, it is absurd to allow fruiterers to exhibit: 

 there can be no merit in showing other people's produc- 

 tions. Here again the plant-shower is to be protected 

 by a new regulation.— M. Henderson, Coleorton Gardens. 

 [Our correspondent forgets the difference between the 

 expense of bringing a box of fruit and half-a-dozen van- 

 loads of plants. If he compares the cost of carriage 

 with the value of medals to be gained, he will find the ba- 

 lance very much in favour of the fruit-growers.] 



Polmaise Heating — I sent two bunches of Black 

 Hamburgh Grapes to the Horticultural Show in Edin- 

 burgh, on the 20th instant, grown in the hothouse at 

 Polmaise, which is heated by means of a circulation of 

 hot air, without either pipes or flues ; each bunch 

 weighed upwards of five pounds, and obtained the prize 

 against eight competitors. The Grapes were much ad- 

 mired, both for size and flavour ; thereby clearly prov- 

 ing that the system I had adopted was completely suc- 

 cessful, and will, I have no doubt, be adopted in future 

 in preference to the old system of flues and pipes — being 

 cheaper and easier managed, requiring less fuel, and in- 

 curring no risk of injury to. the fruit when blossoming, 

 either from cold air or steaming, when flues are watered 

 in too heated a state. Several of the bunches now on 



the Vines are about the same size as those sent to the 

 Show. — Wm. Murray. 



The Polmaise Heating. — I have heard of many strange 

 things in my lifetime ; such as a person setting up a man 

 of straw that he might have the pleasure of knocking it 

 down, and of Don Quixote attacking a windmill, and 

 of Hudibras comparing himself with Caesar ; but none of 

 these things are equal to the hallucination that appears 

 to exist in the mental region of the craniums of persons 

 of the present day, respecting the Polmaise System of 

 Heating. In the name of wonder, where has Mr. 

 Glendinning got the idea that "dirty smoke-flues," 

 or ** any modification of them," are used in the Vinery 

 at Polmaise ? Surely not from anything that has appeared 

 in the Chronicle; and he may rest satisfied that there are 

 neither hot-water pipes nor any modification of smoke- 

 flues employed in heating that Vinery. If he has any 

 misgivings on the subject, he might step on board one 

 of the London and Leith steamers, and from that to one 

 of the steamers that sail between Granton and Stirling ; 

 and when among the beautiful windings of the Forth, he 

 might be landed within a few yards of the Vinery ; any 

 remaining wrong notions will then be quickly dispelled. 

 Mr. G. says, " It is no defence of a system to invoke the 

 crest-fallen appearance of some who considered themselves 

 the best Grape-growers in Scotland." Perhaps not ; but 

 what would he say of the gardener who thought he did 

 well when he grew Pine-apples with six pips in height, 

 and then, when a method was shown him of increasing 

 them to twelve pips, instead of adopting the plan, 

 condemns it before he understands it, and with a mind 

 case-hardened with prejudice prefers his own, which is 

 only some remains of the olden time ? Surely thers is 

 more hope of a progressive being, even though hi should 

 be crest-fallen for a time, who can appreciate the invention 

 of his neighbour, than the instinctive being who has only 

 one way of doing his work. — Peter Mackenzie. 



Destroying Wasps 1 Nests. — In dry seasons, at the 

 place where I was apprenticed, we generally had a great 

 many wasps' nests in the park and immediate neigh- 

 bourhood. We were paid sixpence by the gardener for 

 the destruction of each nest. At first we followed the 

 old method of taking them with gunpowder ; but wish- 

 ing to make as much money by them as possible, we dis- 

 carded gunpowder altogether, and pursued the following 

 plan, which never failed : — Our armoury consisted in a 

 pair of old double-actioned fumigating bellows, fitted 

 with the box and tube ; a basket containing some old 

 dry bast-mat, or brown paper ; and a small bag with a 

 portion of sulphur ; together with a spare basket for the 

 combs, and a spade, lantern, and candle. Thus t 



equipped, when darkness approached we besieged the 

 enemy in the camp. We took off the box from the bel- 

 lows, and put in the bottom of it a little dry bast- mat, or 

 brown paper, on which we dredged a small quantity of 

 sulphur; we then filled and dredged as before, until we 

 thought we had sufficient material for destroying one nest; 

 we then lighted it with the candle, fitted on the box, and 

 proceeded cautiously to work, the person having the light 

 pointing out the hole, to which we applied the tube of the 

 bellows, and puffed away, taking care not to allow the 

 two sentries to escape that were stationed at the entrance. 

 From the exclusion of the air and the effects of the sul- 

 phur, in about three minutes the work of destruction 

 was effected ; the combs were then dug out, the suffo- 

 cated wasps swept back into the hole, which was well 

 trod in the bottom, and then filled up again ; after which 

 a wasp was rarely seen again near the place. In about 

 ten minutes we could destroy the strongest nest ; so that 

 by this cheap and simple method three young men 

 might destroy an incredible number of nests in one even- 

 ing after it was dark.— James Roberts, Hampsthwaite, 



near Harrowgale. Quercus says — " Wherever the 



nest is in a cavity without any other hole or fissure, but 

 the one of ingress and egress, about a wine-glassful of 

 spirits of turpentine will effectually settle them. Pour so 

 much in and stop the hole. Where the ground is such 

 as to crack with drought, connected with a drain, or by 

 any means having other openings or air-conductors to the 

 nest, the spirits are rendered ineffective, and the squib 



of powder and brimstone must then be resorted to." 



Mr. Wighton adds, M I have lately tried, with success, 

 destroying wasps' nests with spirits of turpentine. In the 

 evening I pour about a common wine-glassful of the spirit 

 into the holes from a long-necked bottle, and close them 

 immediately with a ' bit of turf, beating it firm with the 

 heel.' I dig out .the nests on the following morning. 

 With regard to the quantity of spirit required, much 

 depends on how the nests are situated ; if in loose dry- 

 soil, and their entrances ascend, or if they are horizontal, 

 more is required. In such cases a small squirt, as sug- 

 gested by Professor Henslow, must be of great use. It 

 must, however, be the smell that is the cnuse of death ; 

 for if the entrance is not closed immediately after the 

 turpentine is poured in, many of the inmates will survive, 

 especially if the nest is situated as already noticed. But 

 though the spirit causes death, and at times even in the 

 larvae, still those in the pupa state, being defended 

 by their cocoons, may dig their way out ; consequently 

 the nests ought to be dug out and destroyed, for the 

 brood reared in autumn are drones and queens, males and 

 females, to insure a future race. There need be little 

 fear of an attack from such of the wasps as are shut out, 

 and which remain about the closed entrance, for they 

 soon lose their courage, and are easily smashed with a 

 spade. I once gave some wasps' nests a dose during the 

 day, and left the entrances open for a while ; I found all 

 was silent within, and few or none would enter ; in 

 short, many of them dropped down when within range of 

 the holes. I turned out the nests and the paralysed 

 wasps, without being attacked ; my only defence was 

 having previously rubbed my hands and face with tur- 

 pentine. I may observe that there seems to be truth in 

 Mr. Knight's remarks, viz. : — ' That if a nest of wasps 

 is approached without alarming the inhabitants, and all 

 communication suddenly cut off between those out of the 

 nest and those within it, no provocation will induce the 

 former to defend it and themselves. But if one escapes 

 from within, it comes with a very different temper.' " 



1 cannot understand how M H. P." has failed in 



destroying his wasps' nest with the turpentine-bottle ; 

 I have destroyed more than seventy nests by it since 

 I read of the method. The way in which it was used 

 was to rince each bottle (at the time of using) with 

 spirits of turpentine, and insert the neck of the bottle 

 into the mouth of the nest, covering round the hole 

 with any kind of earth. In two or three days afterwards 



I have proved them to be all dead. Last week one of 

 my men brought me a nest, the combs of which, I am 

 sure, would fill a bushel, and not one wasp or young one 



alive in it. — J. H. 



The Thrip The following is a simple and effectual 



mode of destroying this troublesome pest: — I fill the 

 house, pit, or frame, that contains the plants infested, 

 with steam and Tobacco smoke. By this means I give 

 the plants, pots, and stands, and every part of the house 

 a regular dressing of Tobacco water, which completely 

 destroys these insects, and does not in the least injure 

 the plants, not even the most delicate of them. My 

 mode of using it is this :— For a house 43 feet long and 



II feet wide, I take 1 lb. of Tobacco, and having an old 

 wire basket, containing a few hot cinders, I put the 

 Tobacco on them and hang the basket up in the house ; 

 I then blow it with bellows until it is well lighted, when 

 I turn on the steam from a small apparatus that I have 

 for the purpose of steaming the plants. The Tobacco 

 will keep burning until it is all consumed. The steam 

 is kept on for about an hour, in which time the plants 

 are covered with dew, which is well mixed with Tobacco 

 smoke. This I repeat on the following day, using only 

 half a pound of Tobacco ; and since then I have not seen 

 one thrip in the hoase. Those who have not got the 

 means of steaming the house from a boiler, will find a 

 trough, with small holes pierced in the bottom, fixed 

 over the hot-water pipes or flues, a very good substitute. 

 Enough of steam will be generated in this way in one 

 hour to cause a fine dew on the plants; if the house or 

 frame can be covered during the operation, so much the 

 better, as it will prevent the steam from condensing on 

 the glass, and also keep the Tobacco smoke from escap- 

 ing through the laps in the roof.—/?. G. 



