March 29, 1804 
237 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
at 6.30, or at latest at 6 p.m., to arrive at Covent Garden at six, 
or seven, or eight next morning after shunting and jarring about 
at sixteen stations all night ; while similar foreign fruit from 
Southampton is conveyed by the South-Western Railway altogether 
quicker and cheaper. 
7, One of our most delicious fruits—viz , Raspberries—people 
far from the growers seldom have, except as an occasional luxury, or 
as a little “ flavouring ” to a pie, as they might add essence of lemon 
or some expensive sauce. Surely the country which makes tinplate 
to send to America for the Californian grower to pack his fruit in, 
might manage a tin or box or basket for fresh Raspberries ! I and 
my family purchase Raspberries all through the four or five weeks’ 
season, and have as many as we care to eat for breakfast daily 
for four people for an average cost of 1 Jd. per head per diem. 
IIYBERNATED CATERPILLARS. 
We can quite understand how caterpillars can live and thrive 
during the winter months if buried deeply in the earth, or even near 
its surface, and also how they can defy the weather when they are 
encased in the wood or bark of trees. But the existence of other 
hybernating caterpillars that pass the months from the autumn to 
spring is more surprising, for they run the risk of frosty winds and 
of moisture, which is still worse to them ; then the perils of being 
devoured by hungry birds is one to which they are liable, and if 
they are of a species that is injurious to cultivated plants, to meet 
their death from the hand of man. As a rule, the hybernating 
caterpillars exposed to the weather eat nothing for six or eight 
months, and furnish instances of patience and endurance. During 
such a wet and stormy season as that we have been passing through 
many of these caterpillars must have been killed, which is quite as 
well for gardening interests. Even those that construct winter 
nests to protect themselves do not escape the influences of heavy 
rains, which produce a kind of fungoid disease upon their bodies. 
I observed a notable proof of this a few years ago in the case of 
broods of the brown-tailed moth (Liparis chrysorrbma), the cater¬ 
pillars of which feed chiefly on Whitethorn and Blackthorn, and 
being gregarious make a silken abode for their winter habitation. 
For many years they occurred upon several lines of hedge near 
Chalk in Kent, but one rainy winter destroyed all their colonies in 
the locality. It may be esteemed a fortunate circumstance that 
this species, once such an enemy to English fruit trees, now leaves 
them alone, preferring other food, but abroad it is still troublesome, 
and miis,ht easily become so here. I have advised my friends who 
own orchards to keep watch for nests every autumn lest the cater¬ 
pillars should re-apoear on Apples or Pears, and it is then really 
easy to extirpate them if discovered. Also it is advisable to clear 
off the showy black, white, and scarlet caterpillars in summer should 
they occur on Hawthorn bushes near fruit trees. 
Some of the caterpillars that hybernate are hairy or downy, 
and so are protected, partially ; the common caterpillar of the 
moth, called the drinker, is a good example. It is clothed with hair, 
even to the feet; we find it in the spring upon grassy banks, seldom 
about gardens. In them, especially amongst vegetables, keeping 
through the winter on or near the soil, we may see the caterpillars 
of the great tiger moth (Arctia Caia) ; possibly they feed a little in 
low plants when the weather is mild. Apparently many of these 
die from some cause or other, perhaps through parasites, since 
the female moth deposits about 700 or 800 eggs, but in its numbers 
the species keeps to an average most years. Or it may be that the 
brightly coloured, sluggish moths frequently fall victims to birds. 
We know it from other garden “ tigers ” by the long hairs of silky 
grey which rise above the black ones, and it is a caterpillar which 
feeds early in the spring, rather voraciously. It is partial to 
Lettuces, and also attacks Strawberry plants ; in flower borders it 
has been observed to infest young Hollyhocks. Is not, I may 
remark, this a serious objection to the sufferance of weeds amongst 
fruit trees or shrubs that they may, and often do, supply food to 
caterpillars and other insects which are liable to damage our crops ? 
We have a prominent instance in the case of the troublesome 
aphides, some species of which live for a time each year upon 
various weeds, and afterwards migrate to trees or taller plants. 
The larvte or caterpillars, which we call “ loopers ” from their 
peculiar way of travelling over objects, are some of them hardy 
enough to brave the winter, smooth-skinned though they are. 
One of the largest of these that we observe in gardens is that 
of the swallow-tailed moth. Its angularity might deceive a bird, 
but it takes the precaution of getting into some hollow or crack, 
not stirring till spring is well on, when it feeds on several shrubs, 
and will often descend for change of diet to eat the Forget-me- 
not if accessible. Much more troublesome is the caterpillar of 
the Currant or Gooseberry moth, which emerges in the apiitumn and 
attracts no notice then amongst the fading leaves, being small and 
dingy. The localities it chooses for wintering are various. Many of 
them make a slight hammock in the bushes from a dry leaf and some 
silken cords, others retire to the earth and repose under a pebble, 
others hide in anything handy, such as an empty flower pot. If 
the bushes are examined and pruned the buds will suffer little 
from this pest, and subsequent sprayings may be unnecessary ; as a 
final step the scraping off the surface soil is advisable. Cater¬ 
pillars wintering on the bushes get aislodged by the winter winds, 
and they, with stragglers about the earth, may then be destroyed. 
Sundry caterpillars of the thorn moths are hybernators, but they 
are dwellers in plantations or shrubberies mostly. 
A garden visitant, however, is the Lilac Beauty moth (Pericallia 
syringaria). In our clearing for spring operations we may come 
upon this caterpillar, also expectant on a twig or wall rather 
worse for wear, yet exhibiting several tints of bright colour which 
will be brighter when it has thrown off its winter jacket. The 
leaves of Lilac or Elder furnish for d, but the species is not plentiful 
enough to do damage. When clipping Ivy or adjusting its twigs 
we come upon the dingy and stick-like caterpillar of the Willow 
Beauty. Apparently it only n sorts to this creeper as a protector 
from the cold, and as soon as the buds open comes forth to eat the 
leaves of the Rose or Plum. On the Hawthorn and Apple, 
occasionally on the Pear or Plum, winter small parties of the 
little ermine moth, snugly bidden upon the twigs, under a layer 
of gum which the parent spreads over the eggs. The caterpillars 
hatch late in the autumn, buc remain under their covering and do 
not emerge till the leaves are expanded, when they burrow into 
them, keeping near each other. About May they have so far- 
increased in size that they can begin to cover the trees with those 
webs which aggravate the mischief. As the brown gum, which 
shelters them at first, is very much the colour of the twigs, it 
passes unnoticed, but by spraying or syringing with water of 
sufficient temperature to dissolve it, yet not injure the trees, many 
may be destroyed, and a solution of soap or of Gishurst compound 
is still more efficacious. 
The angle-shades moth (Phlogophora meticulosa) is common on 
garden walls and palings by day twice in the year—June and 
September. The caterpillar is one of those hybernators that feeds 
occasionally, eating chickweed or groundsel. It is a leech-like 
velvety creature, green or greenish biown, with some dark lines and 
numerous white dots. Early in the spring it changes its diet and 
feeds upon the young leaves of Chrysanthemums, also of Primroses, 
Violets, and other garden plants. Also resembling a leech in its 
front segments, and with curious stripes and lozenge-shaped mark¬ 
ings, there comes forth in March the caterpillar of the old lady 
moth (Mania mauva), which has slumbered through the winter. 
It attains a good size by devouring the leaves of fruit trees till 
May ; sometimes it descends to the ground and feeds upon those of 
the Strawberry. The caterpillars of the bordered gothic moth, 
which in the autumn feed upon fruit trees gregariously, when cold 
nights come descend and hide individually amongst Box or wherever 
they can till spring rouses them, and they complete their growth by 
eating herbaceous plants.— Entomologist. 
DECORATIVE BRITISH FERNS. 
The Buckler Ferns (Lastreas.) 
{Continued from page lOi.) 
The family of Buckler Ferns is fairly well represented in Great 
Britain, no less than ten species existing, all but two or three of which 
are very common in many parts of the country. These species are the 
Hard Male Fern (Lastrea pseudo-mas), the Soft Male Fern (L. filix- 
mas), the Intermediate Male Fern (L. propinqua), the Broad Buckler 
Fern (L. dilatata), the Spiny Buckler Fern (L. spinulosa), the Crested 
Buckler Fern (L. cristata), the Mountain Buckler or Lemon-scented 
Fern (L. montana or oreopteris), the Marsh Buckler Fern (L. thelypteris), 
the Rigid Buckler Fern (L. rigida), and the Hay-scented Buckler Fern 
(L. mmula). Of these undoubtedly the commonest of all is the Soft 
Male Fern, while the rarest are L. thelypteris, L. cristata, and L. rigida, 
regarding which, as they have produced practically no decorative 
varieties, we refer our readers to any of the handbooks on our native 
species, the others demanding all our space for their just treatment. I 
may mention, however, that a neatly tasselled form of L. rigida has 
been found, hut died, its capacity for sporting is therefore manifest. 
It is to Mr. G. B. Wollaston that we are indebted for exact definitions 
of the three forms of Male Fern, all of which were lumped as one until 
he established their distinctive characters. L. filix-mas, fronds and 
pinnae convex, shining pale green, partially deciduous, indusium 
evanescent, texture papery, pinnules serrate. L. pseudo-mas, fronds 
and pinnae flat, shining deep green, evergreen, indusium persistent, 
texture leathery, pinnules smootb-edged. L. propinqua, fronds and 
Tiinnae concave, dull pale green, indusium persistent, texture soft, quite 
deciduous, pinnules doubly serrate. 
Its evergreen character therefore entitles L. pseudo-mas to the first 
consii’eration from the decorative point of view, especially when taken 
