164 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ February 28, 1884. 
Although in my experience the use of spring water has not hitherto 
been attended with perceptible injury to fruit trees, including Vines and 
Peaches, to the cultivation of which the glass structures here are devoted, 
I should not be surprised to know that there are instances in which its use 
is followed by less favourable results. In some localities the access of 
surface water from shallow drains neutralises the injurious properties of 
spring water. 
Another word here. I have often felt it not a little tantalising to see 
the rain water from hundreds of yards of roofing finding its way into the 
waste pipe, which with ample and convenient cistern accommodation 
would prove an invaluable boon to the gardener, besides facilitating many 
of his most important operations.—D. Mackie, Ayrshire, 
CURRANT-BUD MITE. 
With this I send a branch of Black Currant, which you will see is 
very much affected by a disease known here as “ knotted.” There are 
many trees so affected in this neighbourhood (Liverpool), and all my 
gardening friends are, like myself, at a loss either to account for its 
presence or to cure it when once established. I was totally unacquainted 
with it till I came here nine years ago, and as the trees here were very 
old I thought age was the cause. I therefore propagated a fresh stock, 
which should now be doing some good, but which, I am sorry to 
say, are nearly all more or less affected. If you or any of your 
readers know of any remedy and will kindly publish the same you will 
confer a great benefit on many besides myself. I scarcely need add it 
is useless to expect any fruit from such diseased buds.—T. W. 
[We have had two other letters from Lancashire and one from 
Scotland of the same purport as the above, and they indicate that the 
Currant-bud Mite is spreading and seriously injuring plantations of 
the Black Currant. One of the sprays sent to us we have had figured, 
and we know from experience that bushes that arc covered with 
similarly enlarged buds can produce no fruit, The subject is therefore 
one of considerable importance. The knotting is caused by an insect 
which we fear is not easy to extirpate. 
The Currant Mite (Pbytoptus Ribis) belongs to a rather extensive 
group of minute creatures, which are by some naturalists placed amongst 
Crustacese, and by others classed with insects. Present opinion, how¬ 
ever, rather tends to put them, with sundry allies, in a group called 
Aptera, insects the wings of which have somehow disappeared, and legs 
and transformations are apt to vary considerably. Those in the genus 
Phytoptus either make galls upon leaves or secrete themselves in the 
buds of plants, which then become “ puffy ” or else contorted and 
shrivelled. A good deal of notice has been attracted recently to the 
proceedings of P. Ribis, more especially in the case of the Black Currant. 
Owing to its minuteness and its mode of life the species doubtless passes 
unseen in many instances. 
The Rev. M. J. Berkley, a well-known physiologist, had specimens of 
a Currant damaged by some Phytoptus forwarded to him in 1869, and 
this seems to have been the first time this particular pest was noticed in 
England, but several of the gall-producing Phytopti had been known 
years before. A description of the insect and its presumed habits was 
published by Professor Westwood in the Gardeners' Chronicle of that 
year, and the matter came also before the Committee of the Royal 
Horticultural Society. Afterwards the species was definitely named 
P. Ribis, although much discussion arose as to whether these Phytopti 
were really distinct species, several naturalists arguing that they were 
young examples of another group of mites. But these insects have now 
been examined in all stages of growth and their position established, 
yet much remains doubtful as to their habits. The young of P. Ribis 
have when very juvenile but one pair of legs ; they gradually increase 
to the number of six, or occasionally eight, some think. These are very 
bristly, the body is smooth and rather egg-shaped. It is difficult to 
discern them, even as adults, unless the eye has the aid of a magnifier. 
There is ample proof that this mite is lurking within the Currant 
buds by November, if not earlier. It is, however, during the spring that 
our attention is called to them, when by their feeding between the 
young leaflets, abstracting their sap, they effectually stop the develop¬ 
ment of flowers, leaves, and twigs. As Mr. Andrew Murray remarks, 
“ the buds attacked are seen to languish and decay, or to assume a 
rounded swollen form without pushing out (‘ knotted,’ some corre¬ 
spondents style it). On tearing open one, hundreds of very small semi¬ 
transparent moving things may be seen by a lens. All the surface of 
the leaflets on which they are scattered has a moist raw-like appearance ; 
in fact, the Phytopti have browsed on it until they have flayed it to the 
quick.” Close and severe pruning is the method suggested by this 
author for the diminishing of their numbers, but he scarcely thinks their 
extirpation can be thus brought about. Syringing or washing the bushes 
with one of the many solutions or compounds that are efficacious for the 
destruction of insects might clear some of them out of the expanding 
buds in spring, but would not save the buds from dying off. Then the 
bushes where the mite has been observed might be also syringed in 
the autumn, since there may then be a migration from bud to bud. 
It seems to be most frequent in the northern division of this island, 
where we have seen many bushes attacked, and some ruined. It 
may, however, be present also in the south. Bushes infested with this 
destructive mite should never be propagated from. Young trees should 
be procured that are perfectly clean and healthy, and be planted as 
far distant as possible from those affected. We have seen perfectly 
healthy bushes and others seriously knotted in plantations less than 
30 yards apart, and we have cut down affected bushes entirely, burning 
the branches, the resulting growths from the “stumps” of the de¬ 
capitated trees being quite free from the pest; but if the mite exists on 
one plant it soon spreads through a plantation. 
Fig. 32 (page 165), for which we are indebted to the courtesy of the 
Editor of the Gardeners' Chronicle, represents in the left-hand figure the 
bud highly magnified, with the outer scales partially opened, showing a 
few of the mites, which on an average are individually not more than 
l-200th of an inch in length. The centre figure represents one of the 
insects very highly magnified, as seen when crawling along, the right- 
hand figure representing a very young example lying on its side in a 
state of inactivity. 
If any of our readers have succeeded in extirpating this small mite, 
yet great Currant enemy, they will do good service by making their 
method known.] 
SEED TIME. 
From the steady continuance of mild weather it is probable that 
we shall be favoured with a forward spring, and among the many 
matters pressing upon our attention at that busy season of the year 
none is more important than the timely and careful sowing of vege¬ 
table and flower seeds. Seed time, in point of fact, has already begun, 
for are not our first crops of Peas and Beans already “ up ” and grow¬ 
ing freely ? and are we not turning up every patch of soil in the 
kitchen garden in readiness for the general sowing of crops that are 
soon to follow? For the first spring crops all heavy tenacious soil 
should have been broken up roughly last autumn; but soils differ 
much, and well would it be for gardeners if a common standard of 
excellence could be adopted for all garden soils, whereby they could be 
brought into such an open friable condition as to be always ready for 
the seed. Impossible, do you say ? Well, I cannot agree with you, 
