570 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ December 29, 1892. 
insects not having jaws. They grip their victims firmly with 
their front pair of legs, and drive the beak or proboscis into the 
body. This beak has rows of tiny spines, which make it a fatal 
weapon, and an Asilus is brave enough to attack and conquer a bee. 
It is only now and then this occurs, however, but the Asili are on 
the whole useful as killers of some insect pests. Most of them 
are of dull colours ; a showy species often seen near the coast has 
been called the hornet fly (A. crabroniformis), nor is it unlike that 
insect, though but two-winged. Its thorax is yellow with two 
black stripes, the abdomen is half black and half yellow. It has 
an odd way of flying if alarmed, rising and dropping as it goes 
along, and is stated to feed chiefly upon caterpillars. While in 
the larval stage the Asili live either in the earth or amongst 
decaying wood, but as larvae, or grubs, they are not believed to be 
A familiar fly of summer and autumn, specimens of 
which may be sometimes noticed resorting to the flowers of 
October is the bee fly, or Bombylius major. Its habits remind us of 
the ways of some of the smaller hawk moths, since it suspends 
itself, apparently, with wings unmoved in the air, obtaining 
the. ectar by its long trunk. If approached it darts off faster 
t lan * eye can follow it. It is furnished with antennae longer 
than those of bees, and its head is smaller than that of a bee. The 
resemblance is in the black, furry body, the upper side of which 
has golden hairs,_ while underneath they are black-and-white. 
IheKupidm, or snipe-flies, have been named from the small round 
head and conspicuous flexile tongue ; they fly around flowers, and 
subsist upon a mixed diet, taking honey occasionally, and also 
seizing any insects they may fancy which happen to be visiting the 
same blossoms. ° 
A group of sma.ll and active flies belong to the genus Dolechops, 
and often by their lively movements and bright, more or less 
metallic, tints, they seem to give an air of cheerfulness to the 
garden as well as to the country scene. They run about over the 
leaves in preference to flying, and it is probable that they prey 
uppn aphides or the scale insects at an early stage. From their 
eeing frequently seen in gardens which contain ponds or are near 
streams some think the larvae are aquatic. So is certainly that of 
or Enstalis tenax, a fly that is a common visitor to 
the Michaelmas Daisy or the Chrysanthemum of October and later. 
It is an insect,’ says one, “ which may be observed by hundreds 
in the autumn sun, making the whole air musical with their merry 
hum, and the very sunlight brighter with their glancing wings ” 
But some people are afraid of this fly, because it has a way of 
working the hinder part of the body in a curious manner, as if 
preparing to sting. No wonder that it is a good flyer, for the wings 
are broad, and though the body is stout there is a good array of 
muscle Many who see this insect about their gardens have no 
idea where it was bred, nor how singular is its history in the maggot 
state, when it was fulfilling its office in nature, not merely°to 
remove what is offensive, but to turn it into what is sweet and 
wholesome. Some who have watched the proceedings of this 
insect have given it the name of the “ rat-tailed maggot,” not an 
unsuitable appellation. Possibly it is less abundant about gardens 
than formerly, since its home is in neglected tubs or butts which 
contain inches of mud beneath the water. Such receptacles our 
modern gardeners, save in a few instances, would not tolerate, but 
they are the home of the rat-tailed maggot, afterwards to become 
t e bright and bustling drone-fly. Like many aquatic creatures, 
air is necessary foi its existence, and when immersed in mud this 
maggot would be unable to obtain this were it not furnished with a 
peculiar and telescopic tail. This is double, and is so contrived 
that the tubes can be lengthened out or drawn closely together 
whenever the maggot chooses ; its length varies in different speci¬ 
mens. Having reached the full size this larva quits the water to 
become a pupa on dry ground. —Entomologist. 
ZONAL PELARGONIUMS IN WINTER. 
, FE ^ P lan - S are more thoroughly useful for supplying brilliantlv 
co oured flowers during the dark days of winter, when bright bits of 
colour are so much appreciated, than the many grand varieties of Zonal 
Pelargoniums which are now universally cultivated. Given good plants 
f? S ^ r l wlth) the who . le , secret of success in their winter management 
lies in the proper regulation of heat, air, light, and water g 
A light span-roofed house or pit, well heated and provided with the 
means of giving constant ventilation, should if possible be demoted to 
^fu Te>f V he ^ ntS Wil1 not flower freely unless they aresur- 
rounded by a rather dry and warm atmosphere. Neither will the colour 
of the flowers be so vivid unless these conditions are maTntained We 
mana n e to keep up a constant supply of these showy flowers during the 
eW^ 0ur . Pl^ts are arranged in two pits ; they are kept as 
weather less artificial heat is used than when cold winds or frosts pre- 
vai . A tree circulation of air is provided continually by tilting the 
lights. During ordinary weather these are raised at both front and back 
by means of boards. No alteration is made in ventilation for a few 
degrees of frost, but instead of reducing the air the heat in the hot- 
water pipes is increased. During sharp frosty nights the front air is 
taken off and about an inch of space is left open at the back. Our aim is 
to give the plants plenty of heat and an abundance of air. By these means 
we secure short-jointed shoots and abundance of brightly coloured 
flowers. I know of no other way by which these plants can be induced 
to flower thus freely in winter and at the same time have their growth 
kept sturdy. 6 
, are man 7 grand winter flowering varieties in commerce, and 
the list; of good ones is being continually added to. Among the older 
inds, those which I find most suitable for the purpose are—Singles : 
Dtna, crimson scarlet; John Gibbons, rich scarlet, large truss ; Vesuvius, 
bright scarlet, small trusses produced in great abundance ; Rosalie, 
sa mon pink; and White Perfection, truss compact, colour pure. Doubles : 
t *, -“ as P ai l a fld Wonderful, both scarlets, and Candidissima, white, 
i And the singles are more generally admired than the doubles, and the 
ditfacuity about the petals falling may be easily overcome by dropping 
a little floral cement with the aid of a pointed stick into the centre of 
each flower.—D. 
PLANTING BANKS AND SLOPES. 
Ip you can allow space in your Journal I should like to recommend 
two ways in which banks may be planted with very good effect, 
frequently such positions in gardens have to be dealt with, and it is 
generally necessary to so occupy them that the minimum of attention is 
required to keep them in order when planted. 
My first suggestion is simple and suitable for most aspects—viz., to 
plant Cotoneaster microphylla thinly as a general covering, and fill in 
ail available space with the tall growing Narcissus ; by a judicious 
se ection of varieties a good succession of bloom could be extended over 
at least two months in spring. N, poeticus especially should be planted 
in large numbers. The blooms will grow up through the Cotoneaster, and 
o e protected from being broken down by strong winds and rain, 
second method is an adaptation of the rock garden principle, usiDg 
the larger growing plants and shrubs, and arranging them as informally 
as possible with any large stones or tree stumps—that may be procurable 
1Q terspersed. I append a selection of suitable plants which may be 
established in a groundwork of St. John’s Wort and Variegated 
.Periwinkle :— 
Acanthus latifolius. 
„ mollis. 
Berberis Darwini. 
„ stenophylla. 
Cotoneaster microphylla. 
„ rotundifolia. 
Funkias. 
Forsythia suspensa. 
Iris germanica. 
Phormium tenax. 
» „ variegata. 
Eetinospora plumosa aurea. 
„ ericoides. 
Saxifraga cordifolia. 
„ crassifo.ia. 
Sedum spectabile. 
Veronica Traversi. 
Yucca filamentosa. 
Many other plants and shrubs are also suitable, and will suggest 
themselves in a general way.—W. H. L. 
WQRK/OilTHE WEEK. 
FRUIT FORCING. 
Vines —Earliest Forced .—The Vines that were started early in 
November, whether in pots or planted in the borders inside, will now 
have the root action excited by the development of the foliage. Great 
care is required at this stage to avoid chills, such as those resulting from 
cold currents of air and watering with cold water or liquid manure. 
Ihe temperature about the pots should be kept steady at 70° to 75° 
pressing down the fermenting material, and adding fresh, but sweetened’ 
as required, it being a good plan to keep a heap of leaves and stable 
manure in reserve, from which the supply may be drawn as needed. 
Disbud and tie down before the shoots touch the glass, not being j n too 
great a hurry in stopping. When two leaves are made beyond the 
bunch the laterals of pot Vines should have their points pinched off at 
that point of the shoots, but those planted in the borders, and there 
being space, may be stopped three or four joints beyond the fruit, and 
,.en extend the growth so as to secure as much well-developed foliage 
all over the house as can have full exposure to light, taking care to avoid 
overcrowding Superfluous bunches should be removed as soon as choice 
can be made of the best, leaving those for the crop that promise to be 
the best shaped and most compact; and it is better to have the Vines 
under rather than overcropped. The night temperature should be 
maintained at GO to Go , and ,0° to 75° by day, with an advance of 5°, 
7 no\° r v-o frot ? s ? n heafc ‘ When the flowers open keep the temperature 
r fl° 75 regularly, and maintain a rather dry, but not arid, condition 
of the atmosphere ; and when the fruit is well set return to the 
temperatures previously named. Vines in pots should, as soon as the 
