Xl PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Scientific Committee, February 18, 1913. 



Mr. E. A. Bowles, M.A., F.L.S., F.E.S., in the Chair, and ten 

 members present. 



Abies bracteata fruits. — Mr. Gordon, V.M.H., showed fruits of 

 Abies bracteata from the garden of R. Barclay, Esq., Bury Hill, 

 Dorking, where it is now fruiting for the first time. The tree was 

 planted in the early part of the second half of the last century. Abies 

 bracteata was discovered by Douglas on the high mountains of Columbia 

 growing at an elevation of never less than 6000 feet. W. Lobb later 

 obtained seeds, and the species was introduced in 1853. The tree at 

 Bury Hill was one of the first to be planted in this country. The 

 large cones are borne in clusters, and are easily recognized by the 

 long, pointed, recurved bracts. In the specimens exhibited drops of 

 resin had exuded on both the bracts and the leaves, giving the whole 

 a very singular appearance. 



Grubs on roots of Trollius, &c. — Mr. Bowles showed, from a garden 

 in Sussex, grubs of the Ghost Moth, Hepialus humuli, which had been 

 feeding on the roots of Trollius and Helleborus. They frequently 

 attack Paeonies and other fleshy-rooted plants. 



Smilax with curled leaves and variegation. — Specimens of Smilax 

 were received from Guernsey with curled and variegated leaves, with 

 a full report on experiments which had been tried with the object of 

 eradicating the complaint. Mr. Bescoby, who has been investigating 

 the matter, ascertained that in some of the soils where the disease 

 occurred the amount of damage done was considerable, as much as 

 10 per cent, of the crop being affected. The Committee were of 

 opinion that the trouble was a physiological one, and not in any way 

 due to the attack of any organism. The remedy, therefore, lies in 

 the alteration of some cultural details, and the fact that the treatment 

 of the soil with boiling water had effectively prevented its occurrence 

 in plants subsequently grown in the soil pointed to that being a 

 suitable method to adopt. 



The report sent by Mr. Bescoby is as follows : — 



" In the early part of 1912 attention was called to a house of Smilax 

 at St. Andrew's, Guernsey. The house had been planted with Smilax 

 in September 191 1, following on the removal of a Tomato crop. It 

 had apparently never grown well, and at the time of examination the 

 plants showed much variation in height, while on many of them the 

 leaves showed a curious ' variegation,' and were curled as though some 

 insect pest had been at work, or the water supply had been deficient. 

 The patches in which the chlorophyll was absent were irregularly 

 distributed and appeared too general to be due to any insect trouble. 



" Examination revealed the presence of red spider (Tetranychus 

 telarius), and the appearance of the leaf suggested that some chemical 

 had been used of excessive strength for the purpose of combating this 

 pest. The tissues elsewhere were quite healthy and normal. Good 



