SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



299- 



Winter Flowering ok Plants. On January 

 I5t, there were flowering in our garden Christmas- 

 roses, violets, stocks, wallflowers, marigolds, Arabis, 

 China and other roses, some in good condition. 

 Filbert-nut bushes were in full catkin. Daisies 

 were and are flowering everywhere around us. — 

 Emily J. Climenson, Shiflake Vicarage, Henley- 



-~ ".amis. 



Colt's-Foot. — It may, perhaps, be worth while 

 recording that the colt's-foot (Tussilago farfara) 

 was in full blossom on February 14th, 1S9S, on 

 the embankment near Grosvenor Road Railway 

 Station. S.W. This is a month before its time, 

 but it is welcome as one of the first harbingers 

 of the "sweet days of spring." — E. A. Martin, 

 69, Bensham Manor Road, Thornton Heath,. 



Early Flowering of Cowparsnip. — In the 

 landslip between Ventnor and Shanklin, I found 

 yesterday a plant of cowparsnip (Heracleum 

 sphondylium) in flower. Two umbels were fully out 

 and others were in bud. The plant was against a 

 paling facing south or south-east. It was a healthy 

 plant about eighteen inches high. I enclose 

 a branch of one of the umbels. — Frank Sich, junr., 

 I, Isle of Wight: February iSth, 189S. 



Early Flowering of Elm. — It may interest 

 some of your readers to put on record that one of 

 the many results of the very mild winter is, that 

 the elm trees [Ulmus campestris) have come into 

 flower in February. This has only occurred once 

 before in my experience during a period of twenty 

 years, and this year they are even earlier than 

 on the occasion noted before, viz., February 6th, 

 1898. as against the last week in February, 1885. — 

 . Turner, Coggeshall, Essex. 



The Mild Winter -The following plants were 

 in blossom in our garden on November 20th : roses, 

 strawberry (with green fruit), broad bean, mari- 

 golds, geraniums, mignonette, wallflower, lobelia. 

 A first sharp frost occurred during the night of 

 ber 25th-26th, but, nevertheless, roses were 

 still in bloom the second week in December. I 

 noticed the first primroses on December 15th, and 

 by January 15th they were well in bloom together 

 with snowdrops. Corse was also out at this date. 

 1 found hazel-catkins in the hedges in the last week 

 in January At the time I write (February 17th) 

 there are some fully-open blossoms on our almond 

 tree, rose trees are covered with new leave . ami 

 buds arc unfolding on the apple and pear trees. — 

 . // C. limit, WeitJean, Winchester. 



Hah -/me of your readers may 



remember that in June laal (ante p. >H) I mentioned 



a large wood owl v. hi'.li for about a month 



:.ty in a cedar tree some twenty yards 



away from our home It left about May 9th, and 



«cn during the summer. In 



Is were seen 



. continued to 



all birds and 



-. am prof It I a . beei 



Intere-- vch the confidence towards us of 



these two birds for some time past. Their place 

 of roosting is less than ten yards from a well- 

 frequented path, leading to the river tow-path — 

 Emily J . Climenson. 



Aquaria in Winter. — The various animals in, 

 my glass jars aquaria, kept on a window-ledge in 

 our drawing - room, have flourished admirably 

 during the past winter. With the exception of a 

 change of water on January 1st, they have been 

 untouched for between four or five months. A 

 little water to compensate for evaporation only 

 has been added to them when necessary. Among 

 the more active inhabitants have been some 

 scarlet and green-brown mites, which have bred,, 

 and I have now some lovely specimens. I have 

 found a few dead willow leaves placed in the 

 water most useful for feeding many of my captive 

 aquatic creatures, which eat out the softer parts, 

 leaving quite a skeleton of the rest of the leaf. 

 Dead poplar leaves have also been equally useful. — 

 Emily J. Climenson. 



Newspaper Natural History. — A corre- 

 spondent sends us a cutting from the "Bristol 

 Daily Press " which is amusingly like that quoted 

 by us last month (ante p. 272), in which butterflies 

 are said to have been fed on cabbage. Our corre- 

 spondent remarks that " it would add to the reputa- 

 tion of the papers if an editorial remark were added 

 to these effusions correcting the error. Probably, 

 however, most of the editors are no wiser than the 

 writers." 



" A week ago (on Tuesday, January 25th) a yellow butterfly 

 found its way into our room here, and again yesterday (Tues- 

 day) another of the same kind came in. We have kept the 

 first in a small box with holes pierced in it, and every time the 

 cover is taken oft the butterfly flies about the room as lively 

 as when it was first caught. When we caught the second and 

 put with the first, it flew round and round, as if glad of com- 

 pany. The only thing our guests have had to eat is a little 

 cabbage, which we pick fresh from the gardtn every day. — 

 C. Howell, 33, Gratitude Road, Lower Easton, Bristol ; 

 February 2nd, 1S9S." 



We quite agree with our correspondent that it 

 is disgraceful such gross ignorance should be 

 perpetuated and spread by the conductors of news- 

 papers, who would feel indignant if it were suggested 

 that they were imperfectly educated. — Ed. S.-G. 



Cleaning Lenses with Pith. — In the " Scien- 

 tific American" is a note recommending vegetable 

 pith for cleaning optical lenses. The medulla 

 of rushes, elders, or sunflowers is cut out, the 

 pieces dried and pasted singly by the side of 

 one another upon a piece of cork. A brush-like 

 appearance is thus obtained, which is passed over 

 the surface of the lens. For very small lenses 

 pointed pieces of elder pith are employed. 



Varying Distance ok the Sun. — Will readers 

 please note that the mean distance from the sun 

 shown under this heading last month [ante p 271) 

 was quoted from the work then being considered, 

 \\/.., "Climate and Time." Of course, since the 

 date of its publication, the mean distance has been 

 shown to be greater, being in fact nearly 93,000,000 

 miles, — Edward A. Martin. 



A Fungoid Pigment.— Mr, David Paterson, ol 

 Rosslyn. N 1'.., writing to " Nature," suggests thai 

 the fungoid disease on oats, known as the "smut," 

 may be used as an artist's pigment. Il< says thai 

 after exposing the pigment on paper, as a watei 



colour, to direct ■■.unliclit lor ■.'■vi-r.tl months, no 



appreciable fading was observable Its deepesi 



ind ll mi.-." . well with 



Chii • bet pigments, 



