THE CARNATION IN SCOTLAND. 
357 
The practice of thinning the buds is not by any means 
commonly pursued. For exhibition purposes thinning is, of 
course, indispensable, but many people are not so certain that 
anything is to be gained by it for ordinary purposes. For my 
own part, I thin out both buds and grass, and sometimes even 
the flower stems, and I have no more doubt as to the benefits 
derived from it than I have with regard to thinning grapes and 
vine shoots, or to the planting of any crop thinly. If it were 
possible to lay down axioms in matters horticultural, I am certain 
that the almost universal habit of over-cropping in every shape 
and form would be one of the points mentioned : and an over- 
crop of buds and grass on a Carnation is certainly quite as 
prejudicial as over-cropping is to any other plant. 
The Carnation in Scotland is less afflicted with insect pests 
and plant diseases than in England. The Helminthosporium is 
scarcely ever seen, and, so far as I am aware, the carnation 
maggot is quite unknown. It is, however, much troubled with 
Tust, with the eel-worm, and with green-fly. And, occasion- 
ally, game and small birds do much mischief. Rust appears to 
be largely a climatic disease ; possibly, altogether one of weather. 
The eel-worm one can say very little about, its behaviour is so 
•erratic. There can be no doubt, however, that plants grown 
grossly more frequently fall a prey to its insidious attacks than 
others grown more naturally. But it does not invariably follow 
that the absence of manure secures immunity. I saw a large 
collection of Malmaisons the other day which were badly smitten. 
Two years ago I saw the same plants, and they were then in 
loerfect condition, and I was assured that neither by addition to 
the soil nor by any other means had they ever been treated to any 
kind of manure. The commonly advised recipe to burn affected 
]Dlants is sufficiently drastic and, no doubt, perfectly effective. 
But one is somewhat shy about adopting it when hundreds or 
thousands of valuable plants are at stake, and, above all, when 
there is no certitude that a new stock may not prove to be equally 
infested. What appears to me to be the better course is to layer 
only very short, healthy tips, to pot and plant in pure soil — 
a little peat being valuable, — to employ chemical manures or 
soot only, and to be particularly careful as to watering. Every 
affected leaf should be removed as soon as noticed. 
Green-fly is sometimes very troublesome. The best antidote 
