NOTES AND ABSTRACTS. 



509 



NOTES AND ABSTRACTS. 



Abutilon Moth, The. By F. H. Chittenden, Sc.D. (U.S.A. Dep. Agr., Bur. 

 Entom., Bull. 126, December 1913 ; 5 plates). — The following is the formula used to 

 spray Abutilon attacked by the larva of the Abutilon moth (Cosmophila erosa 

 Hiibn.) : 



Nicotine sulphate, 40 per cent. . . . . . | oz. 



Whale oil soap . . . . . . f lb. 



Lukewarm water ........ 5 gallons. 



The plants were sprayed in the morning while some dew remained on them. 

 Two days after treatment 95 per cent, of the larvae were found dead. — V. G. J. 



Aeanthopanax leucorrhizum (Bot. Mag. tab. 8607). — Central China. Family 

 Araliaceae. Tribe Panaceae. Shrub 6-10 ft. high. Leaves deciduous 3-5- 

 foliolate. Flowers yellowish-green, y\ in. across. Fruit purplish-black, globose, 

 £-f in. long. — G. H. 



Acer. By F. Dufour (Le Jard. vol. xxix. pp. 336-338; 5 figs.). — The following 

 members of the large Acer family are the most suitable for the garden: — A. 

 eriocarpum or dasycarpum Wieri laciniatum, deeply cut foliage ; A. e. pulveru- 

 lentum, A . Negundo foliis marginatis elegans, A. N. f. albo variegatis, A. N . f. aureo 

 marginalis, and A. N. odessanum foliis aureis. Acer platanoides globosum, a small 

 tree, is strongly recommended. A. p. Reichenbachii, rich purple in autumn. 

 A. p. Schwedleri is the most decorative variety ; the new shoots are red and the 

 old foliage is bronze in colour. The best of the Sycamores are A . Pseudoplatanus 

 Leopoldii, A . P. Simon Louis, A . P. foliis atropurpureis, and A . P. Voorlii with 

 golden yellow leaves. A. campestris, the English Maple, A. car pint folium, A. 

 creticum, A . macro phyllum, A . monspessulanum, A . nikoense, a charming Japanese 

 variety, A . pennsylvanicum, with beautiful bark. A . rubrum, the Scarlet Maple, is a 

 beautiful ornamental tree with scarlet fruit and flowers. It likes a moist soil. 

 A. saccharinum, the sugar Maple. 



The most beautiful of the Japanese varieties are A . japonicum atropur- 

 pureum, A . j. aureum dissectum and A . j. Parsonii, A . palmalum crispum, and A . 

 p. sanguineum. — S. E. W. 



Aciphylla latifolia. By P. Hariot (Le Jard. vol. xxix. p. 312). — Aciphylla 

 lati folia is an umbelliferous plant from New Zealand. Only the male form 

 is known in cultivation. It attains a height of 4-6 feet, and the stem has a 

 diameter of four inches at the base. The leaves are thick and leathery. The 

 flowers are purple, and the umbels multifloral. — 5. E. W. 



Alkali Salts in Soils, Effect on the Germination and Growth of Crops. By F. S. 



Harris (Jour. Agr. Res. v. pp. 1-54 ; Oct. 4, 1915). — A very large number 

 of experiments upon the effect of alkalis on plant-growth, are recorded. Only 

 about half as much alkali is required to inhibit the growth of crops in sand 

 as in loam. Crops vary greatly in their tolerance of alkali salts, barley being 

 resistant, sugar-beet much less so. The results obtained by testing the toxicity 

 of a salt in water culture are not always similar to that obtained when the salts 

 are applied to soils. The percentage germination, the number of leaves borne 

 by a plant, the quantity of dry matter, and the height of the plants are all 

 affected in about the same ratio. The period of germination is considerably 

 lengthened by the presence of soluble salts in the soil. The acid radicle, not the 

 basic, determines the toxicity of alkali salts in the soil, chloride being the most 

 toxic. The toxic effect of the salts was not found to be in all cases proportional 

 to the osmotic pressure of the salts. The toxicity of soil-salts was found to be 

 in the following order : sodium chloride, calcium chloride, potassium chloride, 

 sodium nitrate, magnesium chloride, potassium nitrate, magnesium nitrate, 

 sodium carbonate, potassium carbonate, sodium sulphate, potassium sulphate, 

 magnesium sulphate. Salts added in a dry state do not have so great an effect 

 as those added in solution. Land containing more than the following percentages 

 of soluble salts are probably not suited without reclamation to produce ordinary 



