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MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
JUNE U 
XI 
From the Diary of o Gentleman near New 
York City.; 
SOWING FLOWER SEEDS. 
May 26.—Wlille transplanting a quantity 
of annual* to-day J thought how many per¬ 
sona there are at this moment who are com¬ 
plaining of bad seeds and swindling seeds¬ 
men. The small and delicate seeds, such as 
Mignonette, Lobelia and Portulacca, which 
were undoubtedly sown in the open ground 
weeks ago, have probably not as yet made 
their appearance above ground, and of course 
the seeds were bad and the seedsmen to 
blame for these failures. I presume there 
are seedsmen who do mix old seeds with the 
new and cheat their customers in various 
ways ; but they are rare exceptions. T pur¬ 
chase and sow a variety of flower as well as 
vegetable seeds every season, and many of 
them are of the small and delicate sorts; but 
1 seldom obtain any that fail to grow except 
when grossly neglected. 
Long ago I learned that sowing the seeds 
of our more delicate annuals and perennials 
indiscriminately in borders and flower beds, 
resulted in more or less failures, even if the 
seeds were fresh and good, because it is dif¬ 
ficult to give them the proper amount of 
moisture in time of drouths. Such seeds 
must not be sown very deep, consequently 
a few dry, hot days, even after the seeds 
sprout, is likely to destroy the .plants ; and if 
water is applied, t he chances uro we do more 
harm than good by merely wetting the sur¬ 
face, causing it to bake so hard that young 
seedlings cannot break through. 
To avoid failures, I sow everything of the 
kind in shallow boxes ; say about twelve to 
eighteen inches square and three inches deep. 
The soil in those boxes is made very rich and 
of such light, friable materials that it will 
not become hard, no matter how much water 
is applied. The surface of the soil in these 
boxes is made perfectly level by using a 
small piece of board pressed firmly upon it 
at the time of filling. The seeds are then 
evenly scattered over the surface, or sown in 
narrow drill? ; then soil Is sifted over them, 
not thrown on with the hand or garden 
trowel. The boxes are then placed in the 
green-house, hot-bed, or in any warm, pro¬ 
tected situation where the dry winds cannot 
sweep over the surface, carrying oil' the 
moisture almost as fast as it can be applied. 
Copious applications of water are given ev¬ 
ery evening, applied with a watering pot 
having a fine rose. When the plants appear 
they are thinned out if too thick, and if de¬ 
sirable to save all, then transplant into simi¬ 
lar boxes, and set in the shade until new 
roots are produced. 
As soon as the plants are large enough to 
go into the outside borders and beds, they are 
removed from the boxes. Those kinds which 
are very sensitive t o any disturbance of roots 
(as many are) may be lifted in clomps, pro¬ 
vided the soil is well soaked with water be¬ 
fore attempting to remove them. I have 
sown all my annuals in this manner, and not 
a variety has failed this season ; but I dare 
say the seedsman from whom I purchased 
the seeds has been blamed more than once 
this season for the failure of seeds taken 
from the same packages. It costs but little 
to make a fe\w boxes of the kind 1 have 
named, and if put away when not in use, 
they will last for many years. I use the 
same form of boxes for my vegetable plants 
raised in liot-beds, and find them very con¬ 
venient for carrying plants into the field, 
which can be done without disturbing or ex¬ 
posing their roots. The lady readers of t he 
Rural New-Yorker who have such poor 
success in raising verbenas and similar plants 
from seed, should certainly try the box sys¬ 
tem of seed beds. 
GUARDING AGAINST MITES AND MOTHS. 
May 27.—I have looked over all my insect 
cases to-day, atid put Into each a few small 
lumps of camphor, to kill as wolf as prevent 
the little mites which frequently destroy such 
collections, doing any damage during the hot 
weather, livery person who has a collec¬ 
tion. or even a few specimens of insects or 
stuffed birds, should take precautionary 
measures against the attacks of antkreni 
which appear to be always about ready to 
take advantage of any neglect on the part of 
those who possess ornothological or entomo¬ 
logical specimens. Camphor, turpentine, cre¬ 
osote or benzine introduced into cases, will 
usually put an end to the ravages of these in¬ 
sidious pests. Winter clothing, especially 
that which is composed in part of fur, re¬ 
quires attention at this season. Of course, 
the ladies are never negligent in attending to 
those articles which belong to their apparel; 
but the men folk sometimes do neglect the 
buffalo robes and horse blankets until it is 
too late to save them. 1 have had mine 
spread out in the sun to-day, the dust shaken 
out and then rolled up and put into tight 
canvas bags. These bags are to be hung up 
in the attic or in my liamess-room in the 
barn. A few lumps of gum camphor or 
some tobacco put into each bag, will keep 
out the moths, should there be any holes in 
the )>ags large enough to admit a moth. If 
the bags are made of tightly-woven cloth, 
there will, however, be no danger from 
moths. 1 have practiced this plan of pre¬ 
serving my sleigh robes and heavy woolen 
hoi's® blankets for many years, and no fur or 
cloth moths have ever reached them. It 
costs less to preserve such articles than to 
purchase new, although one may riot feel 
much interest in fur robes and thick blankets 
when the mercury marks 'JO ' in the shade. 
CUTTING RYE FOR HAY. 
May 28.—Rve is almost as important a 
crop in New Jersey as wheat is in Minne¬ 
sota ; and, as a matter of course, I have to 
sow a few acres every year or be ruled out 
of fellowship among New Jersey farmers. 
Ray appears to be always scarce in my 
neighborhood, and whenever I have to buy, 
the price goes up to about t wenty-live cents 
per hundred above New York City market 
rates. I concluded to see what kind of hay 
green rye would make. This morning, 
when I proposed to cut, the rye, which was 
just merely showing its flowers, John was 
ready to strike ; for such a piece of folly had 
never before been heard of in this neighbor¬ 
hood. The rye, however, is cut, and if the 
weather continues fine it, will be hauled into 
the barn to-morrow. I do not think rve 
hay will equal good Timothy in quality; but 
it, is certainly superior to more than half of 
the stuff called hay sold ill city and count ry 
village markets. Another advantage which 
I expect to gain by cutting before ripe is a 
bet,till growth of grass from the seed sown 
among the rve last fall. If the weather 
riiould continue dry for the next two weeks, 
or until rye is ripe, the young grass growing 
among it must suffer more or less. 
By-the-way, 1 t hink T mentioned the 8*ct 
in my Diary, last fall, that on a portion of 
this field no rye was sown, the grass seed be¬ 
ing harrowed in alone. The result s are worth 
not ing ; for or t hat portion where the grass 
seed was sown alone, I shall get a fair crop 
of hay this season ; but among the rye it is 
too scatt ering and backward to amount to 
anything t his year. Hereafter, when 1 want 
to seed down land, I shall sow the seed alone, 
the same as we sow other grain, either in 
spring or fall. 
DIOSCOREA AS AN ORNAMENTAL PLANT. 
May 2!).—Years ago, when the Chinese po¬ 
tato, or Dioseorea Batata, was first intro¬ 
duced, 1 planted a few roots in my garden, 
where they have remained undisturbed ever 
since. Every year they throw up their 
strong, turning stems, covered with dark, 
glossy, green leaves, and, withal, make quite 
a pretty ornament. The vines will grow ten 
to twenty feet long, either twining around a 
poll- or over shrubs or trees. It was claimed 
by some person that this Chinese potato 
would supersede our common sorts ; but its 
habit of growth is against it, the tubers be¬ 
ing very long and slender and grow perpen¬ 
dicular, the largest, end at the bottom; and 
digging two feet deep, even for the purpose 
of securing a, three or four pound potato, is 
out of the question in this land of high prices 
of labor and low prices for food. T should 
think this Dioseorea would he valuable in 
localities where long drouths are frequent, 
because the roots and tubers go so deep that 
they would find moisture if there was any 
there. Then, ngaiu, if a man had a good, 
large patch of this potato, he need not fear a 
famine, because when once well established, 
it will take care of itself winter and summer, 
and the tubers of each succeeding crop ap¬ 
pear to increase in size for the first, half 
dozen years. 
As un ornamental plant this Dioseorea will 
rank with many of our more commonly cul¬ 
tivated climbers, such as the Grecian silk- 
vine, Madeira vine, and score? of kinds which 
are valued more for their beautiful foliage 
than flowers. The plants may be grown in 
pots or boxes the same as other ornamental 
■•limbers, if it is desirable to keep them in 
the house as ornamental plantB, but the 
tubers, when compressed in a small space, 
will assume every variety of fantastic shapes, 
and of course their value for cooking de¬ 
stroyed. In propagation, all parts of the 
plants may be used, from leaf to tuber, and 
the latter may be cut up into pieces a quarter 
of an inch spuare and still strong plants pro¬ 
duced therefrom. At the base of every l°af, 
upon strong vines, one or two small bulblets 
are produced, and these may be gathered 
and laid away for seed in addition to the 
tubers produced in the ground. No true 
seeds of this species, T believe, have ever 
been seen in this country, hence the scarcity 
of varieties. If varieties could be produced 
with tubers like the sweet potato, the Dis- 
corea Batatas would certainly become popu¬ 
lar as a food-supplying plant. 
HOW TO MOUNT SMALL BEETLES. 
Please inform me if there is any way of 
mounting very small insects, other than on a 
pin. I have read of entomological pins, but 
nave never seen any. Would you be so kind 
as to iufonn me whether common pins will 
answer the purpose well enough ? -Young 
Naturalist. 
Scarcely any two of our entomologists 
mount their specimens in the same manner. 
Each has his own peculiar notions in regard 
to the styles in which the specimens should 
be mounted ; one cares nothing for appear¬ 
ance Of the specimen beyond knowing that 
they are perfect, while another will be ex¬ 
tremely fastidious in regard to the pose of 
each specimen; every foot, leg, antenna, 
wing, or other member, must be In a particu¬ 
lar posit ion and all correspond, else the value 
is greatly depreciated in his estimation. 
No one will deny that a cabinet with every 
specimen set in a uniform stylo is far more 
attractive and beautiful, even if not more 
valuable scientifically, than one in which 
there is no uniformity of mounting attempt¬ 
ed ; therefore we advise all beginners to 
adopt a style that will show off (lieu- speci¬ 
mens to the best advantage, even if it does 
cost more labor. We will also say that ordi¬ 
nary brass pins should not be used in mount¬ 
ing any entomological specimen. Pins made 
for this purpose, and of various sizes and 
qualities, can be obtained so cheaply that no 
one should think of using any other. Any¬ 
thing that is worth doing at all, is worth 
doing well. 
We will tell how we mount very small 
specimens, and you can adopt the same plan. 
or any other if this does not 
suit yon. Very small beetles, 
bugs, flies and similar insects 
we mount upon small, wedge- 
shaped pallets, cut from card¬ 
board, of the form and size 
shown at a in the figure. The 
size may be varied a little to 
suit the size of the specimens ; 
but they should not be much 
larger than the one shown ; 
for any insect too large to put 
upon this size can usually be 
mounted by thrusting a small 
piu through it in the usual manner of 
mounting those of larger sizes. 
For gumming the insect to the pallet, we 
use gum arable to which is added a little pul¬ 
verized gum tragacanth. Either will answer 
(lie purpose, although we prefer a mixture 
of the two. Dissolve in water, and let stand 
a few days before using. Cut up a quantity 
of the pallets and then spread out the beetles 
or bugs to be mounted upon a paper or board. 
Lay the insects upon their backs with head 
toward you; then, with a small pair of for- 
cepts, take up one of the pallets and dip the 
small end in the gum ; then place it under 
the legs, if possible, of the insect and against 
the abdomen, then reverse the specimen and 
pallet, resting both upon a piece of cork or 
soft wood. Now take a phi and thrust ft 
through the wide end of the pallet, and run 
this and your specimen up to within about, 
three-eighths of an inch of the head, as shown 
at b in the figure. If you pin every one in 
this maimer, each specimen will he on the 
same side and head in the same direction. 
As the mounted specimen stands before you, 
the pallet will point, to the left, with tlic 
head of the insect furthest from you. Our 
thousands of minute specimens of beetles axe 
mounted in this way, without variation, 
each the same bight, consequently their ap¬ 
pearance is very uniform, although variable 
in form, size and color. 
Very minute species of moths may be 
mounted upon pallets the same width at 
both ends, thus giving a chance to hold the 
wings extended. Where it is desirable to 
mount specimens so that both the upper and 
lower surface can be examined, I have found 
nothing better than very thin layers of mica 
cut into pallets of the requisite size and form. 
To hold the mioa pallets firmly upon the pin, 
small pieces of cardboard, cut out with a 
small punch, such as used by shoemakers, 
can be placed above and below, close up 
against the mica. There are also many other 
styles of mounting microscopic specimens, 
but those we have named will answer very 
well for ordinary work, especially for the 
novice in entomology. 
INSECTS DESTROYING THE PEACHES. 
The peach growei-s of Delaware are 
alarmed at the appearance of a very de¬ 
structive insect which is destroying the buds 
on their trees. A correspondent, of the News 
and Advertiser, Milford, Del., says: 
I send you some specimens of u worm that 
does the mischief, if you examine a leaf 
bud that is just beginning to wilt, you will 
find deep In the bud a small cavity contain¬ 
ing a brown worm about 3-16 of an inch long. 
He must leave very soon after doing the mis¬ 
chief, lor although I examined a great many 
buds that were dead and found the cavity, 
the worm was gone. When the mischief is 
done on a thick shoot or terminal bud. the 
damage is slight, but when a number of buds 
are affected on a small shoot, i't»s invariably 
killed will) the fruit that is on it. 
Now, suppose some one should ask the 
farmers and fruit growers of Delaware if 
they would give one dollar each, annually, to 
pay some good Entomologist to study the 
habits of noxious and beneficial insects of 
the .State, and be ever ready to impart to the 
masses just such information as is now re¬ 
quired in regard to this pest which is destroy¬ 
ing the pouch orchards, would they give it ? 
We do not believe they would give twenty- 
live cents towards supporting a State Ento¬ 
mologist ! No doubt a little practical ento¬ 
mology would be quite acceptable just at 
lliis time, but to have the article always at 
hand when wanted is more than the masses 
are prepared for, hence their aversion to any 
study or science which deals with things as 
common as insects, plants, stones, shells and 
other familiar objects. 
Will some of our readers, residing in Dela¬ 
ware, send us some specimens of this worm 
which is doing so much damage, carefully 
. inclosing them alive in a small box with 
leaves and buds ? 
-- 
WORKS ON ENTOMOLOGY. 
I want the best American work on insects, 
(whose cost is not oA’er six or seven dollars) 
that is published. 1 do not. wish a book con¬ 
taining a long description of the different 
orders, as 1 have enough of that, but a book 
containing the most American species, their 
names, and illust rated as much hs possible, so 
that 1 could probably find nearly all North 
American Insects which are large enough to 
lie impaled on a pin.—N. E. L. 
There is no such book or books to be had, 
and wc fear will not be in your lifetime. To 
give the information you desire would require 
not less than a hundred volumes of a thou¬ 
sand pages each, which would cost a good 
deal more than nix dollars. If you are not 
satisfied with such works us Packard’s Guide, 
Harris’ Noxious and Beneficial insects, Trans¬ 
actions of the American Entomological So¬ 
ciety, Say’s Entomology, and similar books, 
we cannot help you. We have not, as yet, 
been able to learn all that is given in these 
books, and think there are many pretty good 
entomologists in the same fix. Our advice is 
that you take one order and devote your life 
to its study; for it is impossible for any man 
to know more than the species that belong 
to one, and know them well. 
ofurm Jnijilcmcnt.'i. 
REVERSIBLE PLOWS. 
A Correspondent in Rural New-Yorker 
of May 81, makes an Inquiry about Swivel 
Plows. ,1 have used one for the last ten 
years, and I would not go back and use a 
landslide plow for any consideration what¬ 
ever. In the first place, land plowed, with 
a Swivel Plow presents a smooth surface to 
the mowing maeliine, tedder and rake, and 1 
think they will last longer than where they 
are driving in and out of dead furrows. 
Corn will do better where it is ull smooth 
than where the land is in ridges, for the row 
next the furrow will dry up, and then you 
can begin on one side of your piece, and 
plow as much or little as you like. What is 
left is in good shape, and what is plowed lias 
no baulks in it, providing you have a good 
plow, I think it easier for the team; you 
want to know where you can get one, and 
at what price; if you want the best, get the 
No.jl Hodge Patent Reversible Plow, and you 
will use no other. I know of some fifteen 
different plows, and I think this the best; 
price, complete, $16. 
