xciv PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 



over the plots, and at intervals points projecting do wn wards over the 

 plants were placed ; through the wires a current of electricity was passed. 

 An increase of 80 per cent, in the strawberry crop was reported, and a 

 similar increase in tomatoes; but with broad beans a decrease was 

 shown. 



Colours of Seeds. — Canon Ellacombe also inquired whether it was 

 known if the colours of seeds served any useful purpose in the life of the 

 plant. In certain cases no doubt, as Kerner points out, the bright colour, 

 such as is seen in Pmonia, Magnolia, and Euonymus, serves to render 

 the ripe seeds attractive to birds, and so aid in their distribution, but 

 many cases remain to be explained. 



Oranges from West Indies. — Mr. Worsley drew attention to the fact 

 that there are two well-marked varieties of oranges known as " tange- 

 rines " in this country, that are distinguished by different names in the 

 West Indies, the form of the ordinary orange shape called the " tan- 

 gerine," and a more pyriform variety known as the "mandarin." 



Beech attacked by Scale and Fungi. — Mr. Saunders, F.L.S., reported on 

 some spc- imens from Eccleshall, Notts, as follows : — " The insect on the 

 pieces of b ech bark is Cryptococcus fagi. It is one of the commonest and 

 most destructive of our British Coccida, or ' scale insects ' (but this 

 insect and the mealy bugs and a few others do not form scales). It is 

 widely distributed, being found in Scotland, Wales, in most parts of 

 England, and in one locality, if not more, in Ireland. It only attacks 

 the beech, and has not been found infesting any other kind of tree or 

 plant, but it appears to be spreading rapidly on the beech in many parts 

 of England. The females lay their eggs in July, and the young are 

 hatched in the autumn or in the spring. They do not, as a rule, move 

 far from the place of their birth, but make their way directly into some 

 crevice in the bark and at once begin to feed on the juices of the tree, 

 covering themselves with a white waxy secretion, which forms a felt-like 

 mass round the insect. The stems of trees which have been infested for 

 many years are sometimes covered with this white material which has 

 been formed by many successive generations, to the depth of an eighth of 

 an inch or more. Owing to its waxy nature, the rain has no effect on it. 

 It is a curious fact that, though this insect is so common, the male is 

 unknown. It appears to be remarkably free from natural enemies, and is 

 seldom attacked by parasites, and the birds do not seem to eat it. When 

 the stem of a tree is thickly coated with this insect, the best thing to do 

 is to spread sacking or some similar material on the ground round the 

 base of the stem, to scrape off as much of the coating as possible, and 

 then scrub the stem with a stiff brush dipped in a paraffin emulsion, 

 working the mixture well into the inequalities of the bark. Spraying is 

 of no use, as it cannot be done with sufficient force to break up the felt- 

 like mass. This remedy should be applied as soon p$ any sign of this 

 insect is seen on a tree. If a stem be only slightly attacked, there is no 

 necessity to scrape the bark before scrubbing it." The tree was also 

 attacked by two fungi — a species of gilled fungus which Dr. Cooke said 

 was too immature to even guess at the genus, and by Polyporus 

 spumeus. 



Peach Boots Dying. — Some roots of peach were received which were 

 in a dying condition. No insects or fungi were present, and it was 



