336 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
February 26. 
one cannot get at the one without disturbing the other. 
In the pin-eyed varieties, the pistil is above the thrum, 
and therefore it gets fertilized from others, and gives ten 
times more novelty and variety. In fact, we can im¬ 
pregnate them as we like. 
VERBENA CULTURE. 
(Continued from page 321.) 
Insects. —There are two kinds that prey upon the 
verbena, unhappily both familiar enough to any one 
possessing a garden; even a greenhouse or a stove are 
subject to them, for they are hardy enough to bear our 
cold climate out of doors, and can brave the heat of 
our hottest and moistest stove. We need hardly name 
the green fly and the red spider. 
On neglected plants these two destructive pests are 
sure to prevail, even to the death of the plants, whether 
out of doors or under glass. Continued rainy weather 
will, it is true, be inimical to their progress, but the 
return of fine, warm weather will allow them soon to 
get ahead again, provided no means are used to arrest 
their progress. 
The means to destroy the greenfly are simple enough, 
yet certain. In the frames, tobacco-smoke is the old- 
fashioned and least injurious of any yet known; the 
best and simplest way is either by using Brown’s fumi- 
gator or a fumigating bellows, these are much safer than 
any vessel containing fire with the tobacco laid upon it. 
If, however, those instruments are not at hand, then use 
a shallow garden-pot, with holes at the side, and with a 
wire round it, and another wire stretched over it, to form 
a handle; place some red-hot cinders at the bottom of 
the pot, and put the tobacco upon it after you have it 
in the frame, and then watch it closely. If the least 
appearance of flame arises, pluck it out instantly, it is 
the flame that does the mischief of scorching the leaves; 
if no blaze appears, take it out as soon as the frame or 
pit is fairly filled with smoke, shut down quite close, 
and cover up with mats to keep the smoke in as long as 
possible. Next morning examine the insects, and if 
they are all dead, give a smart syringing to wash them 
oft’ the plants. Should any be found alive repeat the 
application of smoke the following evening, and that is 
almost sure to destroy all that may have escaped the 
first dose. 
Plants growing in the open air, and infested with this 
small pest, are more difficult to clear of it. The same 
herb furnishes the means in the shape of an infusion; 
a pound of tobacco will make four gallons of tobacco-tea 
or water. Strong tobacco-water may be procured from the 
manufacturers, but this requires reducing. With this 
tobacco-water syringe gently the verbena plants as they 
are growing in the beds; the best time is during a still 
evening, when there is no appearance of rain. The next 
morning give the plants a smart syringing with clean 
water, this will wash off the dead insects and refresh 
the plants greatly. When the plants are in flower this 
syringing with tobacco-water cannot be applied without 
injuring the blooms; in that case, provide some Scotch 
snuff, and, with a dredger, dust the plants over, avoiding 
the flowers; this, if done dexterously, will have a good 
effect. The syringe must be in requisition the following 
day to wash off the snuff, care being taken not to wet 
the flowers. In very bad cases, it would be desirable 
j to cut off all the flowers, and give the plants a good 
S dressing with tobacco-water, &c., in the same way as if 
there were no flowers upon them. Again, if the insects 
! are but partially present, that is, only upon a plant here 
and there, they might be destroyed by placing a hand¬ 
glass, or any close vessel, over the infected plants, and 
filling it with tobacco-smoke, closing the vessel tight 
I down upon the soil. If the insects are not very nume¬ 
rous, they might even be picked oft’ with the fingers, 
crushed, and destroyed at once. All this may appear 
trifling to the mere grower of flowers; but to him who 
is anxious to bring his flowers to the highest point of 
perfection, no point of culture, however trifling, will 
appear needless to attend to. 
The Red Spider .—Of all the insects that annoy the 
plant grower, there is none so destructive as this, aud, 
what is worse, none, perhaps, so difficult to extirpate, 
especially in the open air, on such plants as the verbena 
with small wrinkled leaves. In the hollows of such 
leaves they dwell in security. Yet, being so destructive, 
they must be checked, or vain will be the effort to grow 
these flowers for exhibition. The most useful aud 
effective remedy for the red spider is long continued 
rainy weather, thus showing that wet is what they 
abhor. This natural remedy, however, is not at our 
command, neither does it apply, or, at least, it cannot 
reach our plants under glass. It is true we can, to a 
certain extent, imitate the showers that fall from the 
clouds, and we can, by means of a bent-nozzled syringe, 
wet the under side of the leaves,—the grand citadel to 
which the enemy retires during the continuance of the 
(to him) pelting storm. No doubt frequent syringing 
will, in a great measure, prevent their increase; but 
when they have become so numerous as visibly to 
injure the health of the plants by turning the leaves 
yellow, and thus debilitating their powers, stronger reme¬ 
dies must be tried. Sulphur is one; but it will not kill 
the insects, it only renders the leaves unfit for food, and 
thus either starves them to death, or causes them to seek 
food in some other quarter. It is, therefore, an useful 
application, and should, whenever any of the leaves 
appear spotted, be dusted upon and under them, as 
much as may appear necessary, or till the leaves where 
the insects lodge are covered with it. In dry weather, 
by way of prevention, use the syringe regularly and 
freely, both to the jflants in pots and those planted in 
the open air. Strong soap-water will ldll them; and 
young plants in pots, that have any of these insects 
upon them, might have their heads dipped in soap- 
water, which would effectually clear them of these tiny 
enemies. It is made by dissolving one pound of common 
brown soap in five gallons of hot water, and should be 
used whilst in a tepid state. This remedy is difficult to 
apply to planted-out plants, and, besides, would be too 
expensive; but for young plants, it is an excellent 
application, of course applying to other plants as well 
as verbenas. We once saw a row of gooseberry trees 
that had been thoroughly wetted with soap-water, and 
were as green and healthy as possible, whilst the ad- 
| joining row, that had not been washed, were as yellow 
j as if in the autumn of their existence. We never wit¬ 
nessed so striking an illustration of the powers of any 
insect-destroyer as that presented. T. Appleby. 
ARTICHOKES AND HORSERADISH. 
Although the Artichoke can scarcely be called hardy, 
yet we seldom see any pains taken to protect it through 
the rigours of our winter, and the consequence is, that 
when severe ones occur, the plant is so far injured as to 
require a considerable part of the summer to recover 
itself, to say nothing of producing useful large heads for 
table purposes. One thing, and that a very important 
one, tends more to its neglect than many others—that 
is, the apathy or unconcern with which it is regarded 
by most people, who have no wish to assume a peculiar 
taste, by patronising what no one else cares for. But 
we by no means wish to disparage this vegetable—our 
purpose is rather directed to the means proper to take 
to promote its growth and utility; aud, beginning with 
that, we may say the artichoke likes a dry, sound, open 
