•SfijfeS 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, September 28,1858. 
painting ; and, wishing to have the latter thoroughly dry before 
putting them on, I gave the bullfinches, &c., a chance of a feast 
on the buds, and they did not lose the chance, having swept 
off all on the upper side. The consequence was, that, although 
I had a splendid crop, the fruit was all underneath ; and as 
they varied in size, from nine inches to eleven inches and a 
half in circumference, their sockets connecting the fruit with 
their stalks could not support their weight. A score, if not 
more, on the floor one morning, gave me proof that some¬ 
thing must be done, as I have not the Crystal Palace Com¬ 
pany, but Covent Garden to do with. Tying on again, like 
the potters, would be a losing game. Therefore, I lost no 
time in having those on the trees tied up with tape, strips of 
flannel, about one-third of an inch in width,*&c. The flannel 
did very well, but elastic bands better. Keeping, of course, to 
one-third of an inch in width, and, for the fruit of established 
trees, about ten inches to fifteen inches in length, with a 
small buckle at one end ; and, judging by what I have seen 
at the exhibitions, four inches to eight inches would do very 
well for the potters. It may be thought that these bands will 
not allow full play for the swelling of the fruit, and will leave 
their marks. No such thing. Thin flannel, or, what I have 
said is better, elastic bands, which, of course, can be made 
almost transparent, if buckled or tied on,—say, a fortnight 
before the fruitis ripe,—gives way, and will hold on the fruit 
till it drops to pieces. If this plan is adopted, farewell to 
complaints, under proper management, of fruit falling. Fare¬ 
well to nets, loads of hay, moss, and other comfortable beds 
for earwigs, and other vermin. Besides, in gathering the 
fruit, these bands have only to be unbuckled, the fruit placed 
either in the basket or box, and sent with them, which does 
away with the necessity of touching them with a finger. As 
these bands will do again and again, and last many years, I 
hope some firm will take it up, and let us have them cheap, 
by the hundred or thousand. There is a field open for 
hundreds of thousands,—aye, millions,—when they come to be 
known. 
I hope, after this, such deplorable sights and plights as are 
to be seen amongst the potters on exhibition mornings, before 
they tie on their fruit, will, henceforward, belong to the past; 
and that they will thin out the fruit on their pet trees in a 
'practical manner, tie them up a fortnight before they are ripe 
with Ferguson’s Elastic Bands, leave them on till placed on 
the exhibition tables, and then, and not till then, unbucklo. 
—D. Ferguson, Stowe, Buckingham. 
ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY’S MEETING. 
The August Meeting of the Entomological Society was 
held on the 2nd ult. The chair was occupied by J. O. West- 
wood, Esq., M.A., Vice-President. Amongst the donations 
were specimens of the rare Limnacea phragmitacea , presented 
by Mr. Sealey. 
Mr. Knaggs exhibited a box of insects from Demerara. which 
had been prepared with a weak solution of bichloride of 
mercury and arsenic. 
Mr. Waring exhibited a new and beautiful addition to our 
native list of Moths, namely, the elegant Notodonta bicolor , 
a specimen of which had been taken in the winged state, on 
the 1st of July, by Mr. Bouchard, near Killarney. The larvae 
of this beautiful insect feed on the Birch. 
Mr. Joseph Hunter exhibited two rare British Moths, 
Spilodes palealis and Trochilium chrysidiforme, recently taken 
at Folkstone. 
Dr. Wallace exhibited an apparently now species of Moth, 
belonging to the genus Nola ; also specimens of Hepialus 
lupulinus , of which he had taken great numbers. The ma¬ 
jority were, however, males,—not more than one female out 
of fifty individuals having been secured. 
Mr. Francis Walker read the descriptions of numerous new 
exotic species of Neuroptera, contained in the collection of 
Wm. Wilson Saunders, Esq. 
Mr. Stainton exhibited specimens of Camptogrammafluviata 
and gemmata; the former of which proved to be the males, 
and the latter females of the same species. 
Mr. Westwood called the attention of the members present to 
the great advantages to be derived from carefully extending the 
legs of Lepidopterous insects as well as their wings. Not only 
409 
in an artistic point of view, but also as exhibiting important 
generic characters, it was desirable that the legs should be 
set out in the position of walking. Mr. Westwood also read 
letters from Mr. Neitner and Mr. Thwaites, from Ceylon, 
addressed to Mr. Spence, announcing the discovery of a 
Strepsipterous insect within the body of an ant, of that island. 
Drawings of the insect had been prepared by Mr. Westwood, 
who read a description of this new parasitic insect, which he 
named Myrmecolax Neitneri. 
CONCLUDING NOTES ON SEA FLOWERS. 
(Continued from page 397.) 
If the reader will refer to page 354, of Yol. XIN. of 
The Cottage Gardener, he will there find representations 
of several of the most popular of the families of Sagartia and 
Bunodes, together with some descriptive remarks and di¬ 
rections on management. Making the same reference myself, 
for the purpose of avoiding repetition, I find that the num¬ 
bers have not been attached to the block correctly, and I 
will, therefore, beg the reader to correct as follows :—1 and 2 
are correct; mark 3 opposite the small Anemone on the ex¬ 
treme left, at the foot of the branched Algse ; 4 alter to 5 j 
6 correct; 7 alter to 5; and write seven under the dark¬ 
faced, starry Actinia, the second from the left-hand at the 
bottom. Above those two in the foreground, on the left- 
hand, is one hi the distance fully expanded, against which 
mark 4, and read the description again. 
Sagartia anguicoma. —Represented to perfection by Mr. 
Sowerby, in his admirable work; also delicately touched on 
wood by Mr. Yoyez, in my own “Book of the Aquarium.” 
One of the heartiest of the tribe, almost always expanded, and 
perpetually changing its form. Relishes a shred of mutton 
now and then, and looks plumper after it. The usual colours 
are light buff and creamy white, broken by soft lines of brown. 
There are five rows of tentacles, very long and snake-like. 
Hence it is called the Snaky-locked Anemone. This some¬ 
times lets go, and floats about; so that if the water is agitated, 
it may spin away into a cranny among the rockwork, where it 
will again take hold. Indeed, it seems to like the dark, and 
will frequently shift its position, to get under the shadow of 
an arch. The longitudinal plates are very distinctly visible 
in this species when it stands upright, and is moderately dis¬ 
tended, and an experienced eye will also detect the bundles of 
filaments coiled up between them. 
Sagartia bellis. —This, the Daisy Anemone , is easily ob¬ 
tained, and as easily preserved. It is very pretty, though 
generally of a quiet colour; and the density of its fringes of 
tentacles, and the distinctness of the open mouth, give it a 
close resemblance to a double Daisy. It does not bear hand¬ 
ling, and is sure to perish if the water continues foul for any 
length of time. There are several varieties, of which two 
occur most frequently. In one of these the prevailing colour 
is a warm chocolate, with the disc regularly striped with 
crimson or scarlet, and the lips tinged with bright purplish 
blue. The tentacles are brown, varied with shades of white, 
and sometimes with a bluish-grey and slate. The Daisy is a 
capital feeder, and will eat almost any food — fish, meat, 
oysters, worms, &c.; but care must always be taken to re¬ 
move any particles that are not taken, to prevent putrefaction. 
The best means of removal is the dipping tube. The best 
picture I have yet seen of the Daisy, is that in Gosse’s 
“Rambles on the Coast of Devon.” In the “Book of the 
Aquarium,” the character is truthfully given, but there is a 
want of detail. 
Sagartia troglodytes. — This takes its classical name 
from the Troglodytes , the Icthyophagi of Herodotus, who 
dwelt in caves along the Arabian Gulf. It hides in holes, and 
sometimes buries itself in sand, showing its head and frills 
of tentacles above the surface. It is easily obtainable, and 
lives long in the tank. This and the Daisy, and the common 
“ Mea,” have been most prolific with me, scattering their 
young about the vessels in profusion, and giving the rockwork 
the appearance of being covered with animated pellucid beads. 
Sagartia dianthus. —This is the Blumose or Carnation 
Anemone , and the grandest of the whole tribe, and the queen 
of the tank. Those who are familiar with its splendid ap- 
