NOTES AND ABSTRACTS. 
225 
attacks the leaves and corm, forming brownish areas more or less circular in 
outline. In the leaves these areas after a period decay and sometimes drop 
out, giving a shot -hole appearance to the leaves. 
The causal organism is Septoria Gladioli Passer, and produces pycnidia. 
It is able to survive the winter. 
To control, soil disinfection is suggested, and destruction by fire of infected 
plants should invariably follow the discovery of the disease. 
A short bibliography is given. — A. B, 
Grafting in Victoria. By E. E. Pescott {Jour. Agv. Vict. Sept. 1916, 
p. 574). — The most useful method of re-working old trees is to cut the head right 
off, leaving only the stump. The old method of cleft-grafting has been super- 
seded by the bark or crown graft. The latter method does not cause any damage 
to the wood, and thus with care no rotting can take place. The best method of 
bark-grafting is the saddle graft ; the graft being inserted in the bark, and a strip 
of bark is carried right across the trunk and inserted in the bark on the opposite 
side. This method takes more time than the ordinary bark graft, but it ensures a 
much quicker healing over of the old stump. — C. H. H. 
Grapes, Inheritance of Certain Characters of. By U. P. Hedrick and R. D. 
Anthony {Jour. Agr. Res. iv. pp. 315-330 ; July 1-915). — This interim report 
on about 10,000 seedling grapes demonstrates certain of their unit characters. 
White is pure and is recessive to both black and red. No black or red variety 
has proved pure for colour. Self-sterile varieties usually have reflexed stamens, 
but breeding from upright stamens only will not eliminate, though it will decrease, 
the number of seedlings with reflexed stamens. Nearly 3,000 seifed varieties 
were grown, but they proved uniformly lacking in vigour, and were lower in 
quality than crossed seedlings. No definite conclusion was arrived at as to the 
form of the berry, but the size seems to be determined largely by the parentage, 
there being no indication of dominance. The season of ripening of the parent 
influences the season of the offspring. — F. J. C. 
Greenhouse, Some Important Insect Pests of the. By R. D. Whitmarsh 
(U.S.A. Agr. Exp. Stn., Ohio, Circ. 154 ; May 1915 ; 10 figs.). — The Circular deals 
with fumigating with cyanide for white-fly, mealy-wing, and snowy-fly, spraying 
for red-spider and fumigating and spraying for aphids. 
Minute details are given for cyanide fumigation. — V. G. J. 
Helianthus, A New Hybrid Race of (Jour. Soc. Nat. Hort. Fr. vol. xvii. p. 121, 
Aug. 1916). — MM. Cayeux and le Clerc have produced what seems to be a most 
valuable strain of Helianthus — the progeny of a cross between H. cucumerifoltus 
var. purpureus and H. annuus var. gaillavdioides. The flowers show an enormous 
variety of colour and the plants bloom abundantly. — M. L. H. 
Herb Industry. By Muriel E. Bland (Irish Gard. xii. pp. 40 and 41).— 
On the great possibilities of the herb industry in Ireland. Makes a strong plea 
for the co-operative cultivation of herbs rather than encouraging the individual 
to cultivate any or every herb his fancy may select. Undoubtedly herb-growing 
in Ireland has made a very good start, and there seems no reason why it should 
not become a lucrative industry after the war. — E. T. E t 
Home Grounds, The. By E. G. Davis and R. W. Curtis (U.S.A. Exp. Stn., 
Cornell, Bull. 361, June 1915 ; figs.). — With a shifting and pioneer population such 
as that in many parts of America, it seems that there is still scope for argument 
and suggestions on the advantages of flower gardens and ornamental planting. 
This bulletin contains both — a statement of first principles as applied to the 
art of landscape gardening, some diagrams showing how these principles may 
be applied to small holdings, and concludes with carefully classified lists of suitable 
trees, shrubs, roses, creepers, bulbs, annuals, shrubby and herbaceous perennials. 
M. L. H. 
H juse-fly Control : A Maggot Trap. By R. H. Hutchison ( U.S. A . Dep. A gr., Bull, 
200, May 4, 1915, pp. 1-15 ; 3 plates, 4 figs.). — Describes a method of destroying 
the maggots of the house-fly by means of barnyard manure heaped on a wooden 
platform over a specially constructed concrete basm. Larvae migrating from 
the manure drop into water in the basin and are drowned. The results seemed 
to show that at least 98 per cent, of the larva? breeding in the manure were 
destroyed. Among the advantages claimed are (1) comparatively small cost, 
(2) small amount of time and labour required, (3) the ease with which wagons 
or manure-spreaders can be loaded from the platform, (4) its adaptability for use 
VOL. XLIII. O 
