NOTES AND ABSTRACTS. 



513 



C. collina, C. Zoysii, C. crenulaia, C. irichopoda, C. chinensis, C. Balfouriana, 

 C. Morreliana, and various hybrids. — F. J. C. 



Capsid Bugs. J. C. F. Fryer, M.A. {Jour. Bd. Agr. xxii. No. io, Jan. 1916; 

 4 figs.). — A long and valuable paper giving a summary of our knowledge of 

 the injury to apple trees and fruit generally ascribed to plant bugs of the family 

 Capsidae. The insects - puncture the young leaves, causing first scattered red 

 or brown spots, while later, owing to the death of the punctured areas, only 

 an undersized and ragged leaf is left. The shoots are stunted, and the fruit is 

 injured in various ways. In mild cases it is deformed owing to parts failing 

 to develop, while other parts are stimulated abnormally, causing scattered 

 pits and pimples. In severe cases the apple is almost shapeless ; cracks 

 appear, sometimes penetrating to the core ; the surface is often rough and corky, 

 and the flesh underneath shrivelled. Many of the fruits fall off at an early 

 stage, but even then it is not uncommon for from 20 to 30 per cent, of the mature 

 fruit to be useless. 



The varieties of apples attacked are mentioned, and experiments to deter- 

 mine the insects responsible are described. A full account of the life-history 

 of Plesiocoris rugicollis is given, with references to Ovthotylus marginalis, which 

 has a similar history, these being the two green bugs which probably cause 

 most of the damage. — G. C. G. 



Carex physodes. By E. Gadeceau {Le Jard. vol. xxix. pp. 287, 288 ; 1 fig.) — 

 Carex physodes is an attractive curiosity for the alpine garden. It is a native 

 of the sandy steppes of the Transcaspian, and of the deserts of Afghanistan 

 and Turkestan, where it is exposed to extremes of temperature. The plant 

 is remarkable for its reddish-brown seed-vessels. — S. E. W. 



Carnations, Rust. By A. Rolet {Le Jard. vol. xxix. pp. 266, 267). — 

 The rust of carnations is a difficult disease to contend with. It is favoured by 

 a warm, damp state of the atmosphere, excessive moisture in the soil, and by 

 the use of nitrogenous manure. The tissues are rendered more resistant to the 

 attacks of the fungus by the addition of potash, lime, and phosphates to the 

 soil. Plants attacked by rust should be burnt. As a preventive, spray 

 with one of the following solutions towards the end of September : Bordeaux 

 mixture, potassium permanganate, 1 in 1,000; or potassium sulphide, 5 in 1,000. 



S. E. W. 



Cellulose, The Destruction of, by Bacteria and Filamentous Fungi. By 



I. G. McBeth and F. M. Scales {U.S.A. Dep. Agr., Bur. PI. Ind., Bull. 266).— 

 Cellulose-destroying bacteria and moulds occur in all cultivated soils. Thermo- 

 philic bacteria, which are also present, are extremely active agents under 

 favourable temperature conditions such as occur in fermenting manure heaps, 

 but they soon lose their power of destroying cellulose in artificial media. 



The authors of this bulletin isolated fifteen distinct species of bacteria, 

 which proved to be different both morphologically and physiologically from 

 the hydrogen and methane ferments described by Omelianski. 



Five of the above-mentioned species of bacteria are fully described and 

 figured, including Bacillus cytaseus. The principal products by some species 

 consist of the lower fatty acids ; with other species only traces of the fatty acids 

 occur. No aldehydes, ketones, alcohols, or reducing sugars were produced by 

 the species examined. In artificial media, in the case of bacteria, it was found, 

 with few exceptions, that the sugars, starch, and higher alcohols were broken 

 down with the production or more or less acid. 



The authors consider that filamentous fungi play a much more active role 

 in the destruction of cellulose than is generally recognized. The cellulose- 

 destroying moulds act differently towards different kinds of cellulose. To give 

 one instance, Penicillium africanum and P. pinophilum will dissolve precipitated 

 cellulose actively, but will not attack rye straw, cherry wood, or cedar shavings. 

 Several forms of Aspergillus, which are also active cellulose-destroyers, behave 

 in the same way. 



An historical review of previous investigations of the destruction of cellulose 

 is given, also a good bibliography of numerous papers, but the subject is one 

 of extreme complexity, and still requires a prodigious amount of careful scientific 

 investigation. — D. M. C. 



Cereus peruvianas. ByL. Pichenaud {Le Jard. vol. xxviii. p. 233; 1 n>.). — 

 A fine specimen of Cereus peruvianus growing in the open air may be seen at the 

 Villa Antoinette at Cannet, near Cannes. It has reached a height of 30 feet, 

 flowers every year in June and July, and sometimes in September. — S. E. W. 



