314 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ October 2, 1884. 
in full bloom with me, and the flowers of this variety are deliciously 
fragrant, and it is a valuable bedding variety. Countess of Kintore and 
Mrs. Dr. Hornby, two lovely light purples with white blotches, will be 
everybody’s Vio'as, and they are most attractive in the garden.— 
W. Dean, Florist, Walsall. 
THE INSECT ENEMIES OP OUR GARDEN CROPS. 
THE BEET AND THE MANGOLD. 
As the plants above named are nearly related, it is no wonder 
that their insect foes are the same. If there be any difference, 
I think it might be shown that the Beet, in the usual course, is 
less infested than the Mangold, but the reason may be that the 
Beet is the one more carefully looked after where it is cultivated. 
Though the Mangold crop has become now of considerable im¬ 
portance, the circumstances under which it is generally grown 
forbid its receiving such attention as can be given to vegetables 
of which the crops are small. A few of the insects that resort 
to the Turnip are also visitors to the Mangold, nor would it be 
astonishing if most of the Turnip species appeared upon that 
plant. Such, however, does not seem to be the fact. Thus the 
wireworm—that is to say, the grub or larva of some one of the 
beetles in the genus Elater, especially E. lineatus, which is very 
hurtful to the Turnip, has been reported as attacking the Man¬ 
gold. It would not be extremely improbable, since the taste of 
the insect varies; yet, some years ago, when Miss Ormerod took 
much trouble in collecting and tabulating reports concerning the 
wireworm, made from places widely distributed, no complaints 
were made of injury done to the Mangold. Possibly the insect, 
which some gardeners have referred to by this name as causing 
occasional damage, is one of those that have been called false 
wii’eworms, more particularly the species of Julus and Geophilus, 
otherwise styled millipedes and centipedes, and which pursue a 
similar mode of life to the true wireworm. Their strong long 
bodies might entitle them to the name, but they are many-footed, 
while the beetle grub has only six feet. Moreover, though less 
in size than the millipedes, it is guilty of a greater amount of 
mischief wherever it appears. 
The caterpillars of two moths that are notorious enemies to 
our Turnip crops are likely to be found every year upon the 
Mangold. The first of these, Agrotis segetum, is a very abun¬ 
dant species; popularly called the Turnip Moth. It is, in the 
larval state, a feeder upon many vegetables, and also, occasion¬ 
ally, on corn and Grasses. That of the second species, A. excla- 
mationis, which, from markings upon the wings, is named in 
English the Heart-and-Dart,” is not quite so promiscuous a 
feeder. The two caterpillars are in shape and colour nearly 
alike, greenish grey or brown, with pale lines and dark spots, but 
that of A. sejetum is rather shorter and stouter. In their habits 
there is a difference noticeable. The parent moths of A. segetum 
deposit eggs during June upon the young Mangolds, and the 
newly hatched caterpillars feed above ground for a month or 
perhaps longer, then descend to the roots, attacking these and 
the bulbs through the autumn. Some of the moths come out in 
November; the greater part of the annual brood remain as 
caterpillars till the spring, and enter the chrysalis state in May. 
With A. exclamationis the order is similar, with this exception, 
that the caterpillars hide beneath the earth during the day 
certainly, but leavm their retreats at night to devour the stems 
and leaves, hence a thick coat of soot applied to the soil is very 
serviceable with this species; for the other it is needful to 
employ poisonous solutions or decoctions, which, however, the 
caterpillar will often evade by dexterous delving. 
2 The beetles of the genus Silpha, one group of the carrion 
beetles, used to be considered harmless in gardens, or even 
friendly to horticulture, as living upon decomposing animal or 
vegetuble substances and living insects. For instance, the four- 
spotted S. qiiatuor-punctata, which reminds us of the ladybirds 
(Coccinelhe) in its appearance, goes from tree to tree in search 
of caterpillars, and the smooth-backed S. laevigata boldly attacks 
and conquers various insects much larger than itself. About 
forty years ago. however, the discovery was made almost simul¬ 
taneously in France and in Ireland that the grub or larva of 
S. opaca could devour the leaves of the Mangold and produce 
mischievous results. During that year, and several years follow¬ 
ing, the Irish crops of Mangold were much affected ; but, so far 
as we know, only a few stragglers were observed upon English 
plants. Some persons attributed this plague of beetles to the 
free employment of putrid manure. That might indeed account 
for the appearance of the insect, yet scarcely explains why it 
should desert what is presumed to be its natural food. In shape, 
though not in colour, the grub of S. opaca resembles the tribe of 
woodlice. It is squat and rounded above, the edges of the seg¬ 
ments being saw-like, and the surface black and shining. It was 
noticed that the attack was made upon the leaves only, from the 
middle of Ma.y to the middle of June, when the grubs cha-nged 
to pupcc in the earth. The beetles came forth in July. They 
are blacldsh or brown, with numerous small indentations on the 
wing cases, half an inch long, the thorax much broader than the 
head, which has large oval eyes and club-shaped horns. We are 
not in a position to say positively how this grub could be effec¬ 
tually got rid of should it damage young plants of Beet or 
Mangold. Probably the customary applications for the Turnip 
beetle or fiy wmiild be of utility, and the substitution of some 
artificial manure for that of the farmyard or stable. 
We proceed to mention another insect, smaller, and belonging 
to the liy order, which may prove a serious foe to the Mangold in 
the future, although it had been very little noticed previous to 
1880. Curtis had described some time before a Beet or Mangold 
fly (Anthomyia Betse) the maggot of which lived in the^ leaves 
of those plants, making those attacked by it dry and withered, 
while the healthy progress of the vegetable was apt to be checked. 
In the above year it was complained of throughout England, and 
as far north as Dumfries. The counties most infested were 
Cumberland and Westmoi’eland, probably because the early 
brood of the maggots in those districts happened to be very 
abundant, for two attacks were noted, the first when the Man¬ 
golds should have been ready for thinning, and the second during 
August. There were in some districts no signs of the maggot at 
all observable until that month, and then the vigour of the plants 
seemed to throw off the injury. Elsewhere the June attack was 
so severe that the Mangolds were not left to run the chance of 
another, but were cleared away. At Sparham farmers found 
flies on the wing in September, and later on infected leaves were 
gathered having young maggots. 
These facts point to the occurrence of two or three broods m 
a season. Doubtless the start is made by flies _ which emerge 
during spring from pupse that have wintered in the_ ground. 
Both sexes are ashy grey, with dark lines and hairs, two¬ 
winged ; the males have large eyes and a narrower abdomen 
than the female fly. The minute white eggs are laid in patches; 
twenty or more have been counted on a single leaf, though all 
evidently do not hatch, or, if they do, the maggots die young, 
in part, perhaps, owing to a parasite which may help to check 
the increase of the species. When adult, these maggots are 
nearly a third of an inch long, yellowish green, without feet, and 
thickening from the head to the tail. Some of the pupae have 
been discovered in the leaves, but usually the insects quit these 
at the period of change, in order to enter the earth, where they 
go to the depth of 2 or 3 inches. During the summer season 
they remain only a week or two in that state. The last orood 
winters under ground, or nearly all at least. A few flies naay 
hybernate some years, hence the obvious advantage of turning 
over the land thoroughly in the winter months, so as to subject 
the pupae to the influences of the weather and place them in 
reach of birds. The soil may also be dressed with some one or 
other of those applications which are destructive to subterranean 
insects. While the maggots are feeding, little can be done, but 
sprinkling with a solution of petroleum has been tried, and 
dusting quicklime over the leaves.— Entomologist. 
THE PRIOllY, WELLINGTON, SOMERSET. 
In my notes on the Taunton show I mentioned the very fi.ne stands of 
Gladioli exhibited by Mr. S. Dobree of the above place. Fora period of 
many years I had been in the habit of seeing his spikes of bloom, and, 
seeing how good they w’ere, had been anxious to see them growing ; and 
having last year received from him a courteous invitation to go there this 
season, I was enabled to avail myself of it, and was greatly delighted 
with all I saw. 
The Priory was a small cottage, hut Mr. Dobree on coming into pos¬ 
session of it built largely on it, and it now contains some very large and 
handsome rooms, while the gardens lie all aroun 1 it. Mr. Dobree is one 
of those amiteurs who, like my friend Mr. Banks, like to take up one 
flower at a time and do it thoroughly. Thus at one time Dahlias were 
his fancy, and he was a leading and successful exhibitor. ^ At another he 
went in for Vei’benas, at another for Roses, in both of which he was also 
very successful; now Gladiolus is king, and I hope will Ions: remain so, 
although there was a certain ominous hankering after herbaceous plants, 
which seemed indicative of a cooling of Icve. Of course I do not mean 
that there is nothing else grown; there are some fine Camellias and 
Azaleas, the greenhouses were filled with Pelargoniums, there was a 
certain amount of bedding-out, bnt the culture is the Gladiolus, and from 
what I saw here, as well as my knowledge of other places, I should now 
place (since Mr. Banks has abandoned their culture) Mr. Dobree as our 
foremost amateur, both as to the extent of his culture and the success 
which has attended him as an exhibitor. _ 
Mr. Dobree lias been a successful raiser of seedlings, and some of his 
flowers are of a high order of merit, so that a very large portion of ms 
beds is filled with seedlings. He also gi’ows the best of the French van*- 
