August 4, 1S97.] 



Garden and Forest. 



303 



Practical experience has proved that treatment at this time 

 is effective. Still this is not a panacea, for if only about 

 eighty per cent, of the worms enter at this point the 

 remainder can abundantly people the orchard in time to 

 get in their work on the winter fruit. What shall be done 

 with this twenty per cent, is the question we are trying to 

 solve ; also what shall be done with the surplus moths 

 which may drift across from the orchard of our neighbor 

 who does not spray. Whether later sprayings, which must 

 depend on clinging to the surface of the apple for their 

 effectiveness, will succeed is an unsettled question. Ordi- 

 nary sprays quickly run off the surface of the apple or 

 gather in little drops, so that they do not form much pro- 

 tection. The addition of lime, soap or a combination with 

 Bordeaux mixture will apparently help this some, but it is 

 impossible to say how much. We hope to be able to 

 answer some of these questions by the end of the season. 

 Still, the fact that the young larva seeks for a sheltered 

 place to begin eating may be of service, for the spray is 

 more likely to cling about the stem or the calyx, or where 

 another apple or a leaf touches the fruit. Another difficulty 

 appears, however. The larger worms simply dig their 

 way into the apple without eating, tearing out and throw- 

 ing down the pieces of apple. Probably the same holds 

 true of the small ones, which makes the fight more dis- 

 couraging. 



Several lines of warfare are open, however, and I am 

 sure that some of them will prove effectual and practical. 

 The eggs are very easily accessible, being laid as they are 

 on the upper surface of the leaf. In a limited way in labo- 

 ratory experiments we have found that kerosene emulsion 

 will destroy these, but we are not yet able to say whether 

 a strength that may be safely used will prove effective in 

 field work. We are also trying Bordeaux mixture for the 

 same purpose. Whether the pupa? can be destroyed by 

 any caustic preparation is a question which may well be 

 asked, though it is doubtful, because they are so well pro- 

 tected with their silken covering. This year the first pupa 

 was found June 25th, and great numbers of them were to be 

 found by the 28th. The larva turns a pinkish color when 

 ready to enter that stage and seeks a hiding-place beneath 

 the scales of bark or similar protected spot, not far from 

 the ground, usually within three feet. The rough places 

 in the forks are favorite hiding-places. Some caustic spray 

 or wash at the right time might destroy many of these. 

 Then, too, I believe that the old method of trapping the 

 pupae with bands has possibilities worth considering. Last 

 year we were able to catch large numbers in this way. A 

 more practical modification of this consists in cutting strips 

 of heavy express paper on a slight curvature, folding it 

 together once and tacking it around the tree. This makes 

 a convenient hiding-place for the insects when ready to 

 pupate. If the loose bark of the tree is scraped away and 

 the trunk kept smooth and clean, these hiding-places would 

 be largely utilized. If applied at the right time they could 

 be left in position a week, quickly gathered up in a basket 

 and burned and replaced by another lot. Two sets ought 

 to answer the purpose and trap nearly all the larva? which 

 escape the early spraying. Unfortunately, this was over- 

 looked at the right time this year, so that we cannot report 

 upon that point for the first brood. The later broods come 

 along so irregularly that we have found practically one 

 continuous stream of them all summer long. 



In confinement we find that the young larva? eat the 

 leaves readily, sometimes remaining on the leaf where they 

 hatch for twenty-four hours, and eating out quite large 

 pieces. They usually eat away one epidermis and the 

 inner tissue, leaving the other epidermis intact. I am not 

 yet ready to say, however, that they eat the leaves in the 

 orchard sufficiently to make this of any importance in 

 fighting them. We are trying to find this out. 



Our experimental orchard is divided into six sections 

 this year. One section is to receive six sprayings, one 

 only the earlier sprayings, one only the later, etc. On June 

 2 1st a careful examination was made of trees which had 



been sprayed previous to that time, as compared with 

 unsprayed trees. The general average of all sprayed sec- 

 tions at that time was about five wormy apples to each 

 tree, as against twenty-seven a tree without spraying. We 

 find our neighbor's orchard the best hunting-ground. 

 Lincoln, Neb. Fred W. Card. 



Foreign Correspondence. 

 London Letter. 



Chiswick. — At a special meeting of the various commit- 

 tees of the Royal Horticultural Society, held partly as a 

 Jubilee commemoration and partly for business, Dr. Mas- 

 ters, F.R.S. , discoursed on the present state of the Chiswick 

 gardens and made some suggestions for their better 

 utilization, especially for educational purposes. Their 

 educational value might, he said, be increased by dis- 

 carding entirely all plants of passing interest or of mere 

 decorative value and cultivating only the principal types 

 of fruits, vegetables and flowers. The best methods of 

 cultivation should be followed and everything possible 

 should be done to make the collection of special interest to 

 horticulturists. Patent and other manures should be 

 tested and reported upon and all the now very numerous 

 insecticides and fungicides put upon the market or recom- 

 mended, chiefly by Americans, should be tried and impar- 

 tially dealt with. The educational side of Chiswick might 

 be made more of by the adoption of the Kew system with 

 regard to young gardeners ; in fact, there was good reason 

 to hope that a plan could be devised by which Chiswick 

 men could attend the lectures, etc., given at Kew for the 

 benefit of the men there, and that the Kew men might 

 enjoy the advantages of Chiswick in return. He was 

 strongly of opinion that progress in horticulture could 

 only come from a scientific study of the principles of hor- 

 ticulture. English gardeners generally worked by rule of 

 thumb. Dr. Masters referred at some length to the 

 experimental and teaching schools recently "established 

 in the United States, the work of which was of con- 

 siderable advantage to horticulture. Sir Joseph Hooker 

 pointed out that these experimental stations in America 

 were state-aided, a condition of things unknown in this 

 country. He thought the efforts being made with a view 

 to affording more scientific training to horticulturists 

 deserved every encouragement. 



Examinations in Horticulture. — I have already noted 

 the annual examinations held all over the United Kingdom 

 under the auspices of the Royal Horticultural Society. It 

 will afford some idea of the character of these examinations 

 if I give the questions set and the report of the examiners. 

 The examiners are mostly young, and many of them are 

 not horticulturists. I know that some of the most success- 

 ful in the list this year know little or nothing of the practice 

 of horticulture, while, on the other hand, some of Ihose 

 who have not done so well are really capable practitioners. 



Questions. — Elementary Principles. — A. 



1. What are the three chief mineral ingredients of a soil ? 

 Name garden plants or shrubs which delight — each kind 

 respectively. 



2. What differences may be expected from growing unripe, 

 perfectly ripe, and long-kept seeds respectively ? 



3. In transplanting, why is it necessary to preserve the ex- 

 treme and most delicate tips of the root-fibrils ? 



4. Why does covering rhubarb redden and lengthen the leaf- 

 stalks and stop the growth of the blade ? 



5. Describe the structure of a Hyacinth bulb, and explain 

 why the Dutch method of slashing or hollowing out the bot- 

 tom induces the formation of bulbils. 



6. What are the essential conditions for successful grafting? 



7. How does the structure of a plum differ from that of an 

 apple ? Explain the origin of each. 



8. Name the natural orders or families to which the follow- 

 ing plants belong: Cyclamen, Rhododendron, Clematis, 

 Stoclc, Pelargonium, Borage, Potato, Onion, Parsley and 

 Turnip. 



Division B. — Horticultural Practice. 



9. Explain the process of cross-fertilization in garden flowers, 



