JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
August 19, 1880. ] 
173 
Grubs on Pear Tree (1/. F. S.). —Tour trees are attacke 1 by the Pear 
sawfly, Selanciria rethiops, which attacks the upper surface of Pear tree leaves 
during the months of July, August, and September. The description and 
habit of the insect are as follows :—The grubs are nearly half an inch long, 
cylindrical, but thicker towards the head than at the other extremity. The 
whole body, except at the time of skin-casting, is covered with a sticky, greenish 
black matter, and from this they have been named. Whilst feeding, the fore 
part of the body is so swollen that the vermin looks somewhat like a small 
tadpole. If the slimy matter is removed from the body this is found to be a 
grub or caterpillar with twenty feet, and of a pitchy brown colour. At. the 
last-but-one casting of its skin the sliminess no longer appears, and the grubs 
become of a clayey colour. They finally form a brown cocoon about October, 
and remain in the pupa state until the following June or July, when the perfect 
insect comes forth. This fly is shining black, and the tips of the legs yellowish. 
The female lays her eggs on the upper surface of the leaves. The slime on the grub 
is of a peculiar nature, not being dried by exposure to the hottest sunshine. Dust¬ 
ing the tree with freshly slaked lime is the remedy for destroying these grubs. 
Propagating Vines (.4 Subscriber). —If you take a piece of firm young 
wood after the leaves have fallen and cut it smoothly across just under a joint 
or eye, and shorten it to the eye above, and insert the cutting in soil either in a 
pot or in the garden, just leaving the top eye visible, that cutting will grow if 
the soil is kept at the right degree of moisture. The “eye” of a Vine is the bud 
that forms in the axil of the leaf. If the portion of the stem bearing the bud is 
cut out about half an inch above and below the bud, cutting from the back of 
the stem and slanting from the bud, then paring the bark off behind the bud, 
and insert the portion so prepaied in light loamy soil in a heated frame in early 
spring, growth will start from the buds and roots from the wood, and a young 
Vine will be the result. We trust we have made the matter plain enough for you. 
Names of. Fruit (If. B. Fisher). —The Nectarine is the Boston, an 
American variety. 
Names of Plants (M. M .).—The specimens are insufficient. If you will 
send others in a small box packed so as to arrive in good condition we will 
endeavour to name them. Sprays simply enclosed in letters generally arrive so 
much dried and crushed that it is impossible to identify them. (M. //,).—2, 
Lysimachia vulgaris ; 3, Silene Armeria ; 4, Erigeron purpureum. The other was 
too much withered to be recognisable. Send another specimen. ( A.Boyh ■).— 
The specimen was much crushed by being sent in a letter, but it appeared to be 
Briza maxima. ( Rev. IF. Ager). —Leycesteria formosa. (./. Boyes). —1, Thalic- 
trum alpinum ; 2, Monarda didyma; 3, Unrecognisable; 4, Lysimachia vulgaris ; 
5, Much withered, but resembles Espatorium purpureum ; 6, A Verbascum, 
but too withered for us to identify the species. {Rhyl). —1, Chrysanthemum 
coronarium ; 2, Lonicera tartarica ; 3, Monochfetum sericeum ; 4, Quite in¬ 
sufficient for identification ; 5, Hypericum perforatum ; 6, Sedum Ewersii. 
{A. B. C) —3, Eurya latifolia variegata; 4, An Adiantnm, but was too small a 
specimen to be identified ; 1 and 2 were totally insufficient for recognition. 
{K.A. //.).—Adiantum formosum. (IF. Begbie). —1, Polygonum minus; 2, Seneeio 
Jacobasa; 3, Medicago Iupulina. 
POULTRY, PIGEON, AND BEE CHRONICLE. 
ROTATION OF CROPPING- FOR HEAVY OR MIXED 
LOAMY SOILS. 
{Continued from p age 151.) 
We propose to further illustrate this subject by introducing a 
rotation upon certain strong soils to be found in various districts 
of the kingdom. The land has been cultivated, and permitted by 
both leases and custom to be so managed, in consequence of the 
land being made more valuable to both owner and occupier by a 
privileged system of cropping. The reason why we refer to it 
specially is because it is only permitted upon soils of unusual 
fertility and of proved capacity for producing valuable crops of 
corn and pulse in quicker succession than is common to strong 
soils. We will again take a farm of 200 acres of arable land, and 
refer to the rotation which we fmd has been in operation from 
time immemorial—viz., by taking alternate crops of cereals and 
pulse, with a long fallow made once in seven years. Under that 
arrangement 100 acres of Wheat or part Oats would be taken 
after a fallow ; the following year crops of Beans, Peas, and 
Vetches would be taken upon 100 acres ; and this is the old- 
fashioned system, by which it was reckoned that a higher rent 
could be afforded than by any other known rotation. Our object 
in proposing an alteration to some extent is to show the home 
farmer a plan of cultivation whereby he may obtain the full 
advantage of close cropping of saleable produce, and at the 
same time largely provide food for cattle. 
We therefore propose to autumn-fallow by steam power 100 acres 
as soon as the land is cleared of the Wheat or other cereal crops. 
Such soils as we now have under consideration, unless by great 
neglect, are not troubled much with couch, but oftener with the 
water grass, -which roots only on the surface. In consequence 
surface culture is only required and the grass and weeds being 
removed, after which it may be ploughed and lie exposed for the * 
winter months. If, however, the land is a perfectly clean corn 
stubble winter Beans and winter Vetches may be grown, either 
separate or mixed ; but as this will only apply to a portion of the 
pulse line we shall treat it as the exception, and refer to the mode 
of cropping we propose after the land has laid fallow during the 
winter. As we have 100 acres to crop we propose that 20 acres 
should be sown with Broad Clover and Giant Saintfoin in the 
Wheat or Oats; 20 acres to be sown with winter Beans and 
Vetches mixed if the season is favourable, otherwise in the 
spring ; 20 acres to be sown with Early Mazagan Beans at 
30 inches apart in the lines and summer tares mixed ; 20 acres 
of Beans of the ordinary Tick variety and Partridge Peas mixed ; 
and 20 acres Early Mazagan Beans planted at 4 feet apart be¬ 
tween the lines, and a line of Mangold between. This double 
culture of roots, such as Cabbage, Kohl Babi, Mangold, or Belgian 
Carrots, may be extended by removing the tares or Partridge Peas 
from the seeding, because they would spread their haulm across 
the intervals and injure the growth of roots. Now, this rotation 
oilers the opportunity for the home farmer to grow a large crop 
of roots as well as pulse crops, for we consider Beans are an un¬ 
certain crop, and therefore we grow either tares or Peas with 
them, or otherwise root crops at intervals, thus never trusting 
entirely to the Beans alone. After the Beans and other pulse 
and root crops are removed the land should be scarified by steam 
power, surface-cleaned, and manured for Wheat, or part Oats, 
either with yard dung or artificials according to the season. The 
20 acres of Clover lea after having borne a crop of hay and seed, 
or two crops of hay, will qome in for Wheat or Oats, whichever 
may be advisable in accordance with the season or other circum¬ 
stances. Under this rotation we have 100 acres of either Wheat 
or Oats, and 100 acres bearing a crop of Clover hay or seed, a 
mixed crop of Beans and Peas, and a mixed crop of Beans and 
roots grown in various proportions, according to the requirements 
of stock and the extent of grass land attached to the farm. Before 
leaving this rotation we beg to say that we have often grown 
25 tons of Mangold per acre, and Cabbage &c., in the same pro¬ 
portion in the intervals between the rows of Beans ; and for 
further information on this subject we refer the reader to the 
article on the cultivation of Beans dated March 13th, 1879, in this 
Journal. 
There is one more system which is exclusively applied to strong 
land ; it is, however, at present an exceptional one, and we allude 
to the practice of continuous corn-growing as carried out by two 
gentlemen—viz., Mr. John Prout of Sawbridgeworth, Herts, and 
Mr. Edward Middleditch of Blunsden, Swindon, Wilts, who have 
each helped materially to solve some of the difficulties of clay 
farming. Mr. Prout, who was the first to attempt the system 
commenced in 1862, and has continued it up to the present time, 
and the only deviation from the growth of corn crops has been a 
few acres of Mangold, Cabbage, and Clover, and occasionally a 
few acres of Italian Bye Grass or tares. This, however, does not 
interfere with his general system of corn crops, and it may do so 
in a still less degree by laying down a small portion in permanent 
grass or Lucerne ; we wfill therefore consider the subject as 
headed above has been practically shown to have grown cereals 
profitably on the same land for a number of years successively, 
and continued yearly by disposal of the whole produce, including 
straw, upon the land by auction on the eve of harvest. We wish 
the home farmer to understand that these striking results have 
been obtained from cultivation by steam power and the applica¬ 
tion of artificial manures only. Now, this system was originally 
