EOD GSR PRI) E--ED 6 AEDES - IEE S--SS EO-S 
Q. Last summer I put some of my violets out 
under a shrub and something chewed on them. 
Ate large holes in the leaves and the flowers. 
What could this have been? Mrs. F.T., Tennessee. 
A. Could have been rabbits, mice, or grass- 
hoppers. You might coat them with a dusting of 
arsenate of lead if you want to do it again next 
summer. 
Q. On the stem, usually starting close to the 
crown, on some of my largest plants, there are 
small white specks. At first I thought it was 
mealy-bug, but they are too small. Have treated 
these places with alcohol, but no results. Mrs. 
M.M.L., North Carolina. 
A. Have known of at least one instance where 
an African Violet was attacked by Euonymous 
Scale. Pretty rare, though, evidently. This might 
be what you have. Can warn you that it will be 
pesky to get rid of. Repeated (REPEATED, THAT 
iS) sprayings with nicotine sulphate might clear 
it up. 
Q. What is NNOR dip? Mrs. H.J., Kansas. 
A. NNOR is an insecticide with a rotenone 
content. It clears up most violet pests without 
burning leaves or foilage. Because it is so diffi- 
cult to reach every little nook of an African Violet 
plant by spraying, many collectors mix the spray in 
a pail, and dip the entire plant in the solution. 
Keep the plant in a shady place until it is 
thoroughly dry. We have the six-ounce size of 
this insecticide at $1.00. 
. Can garden fertilizer be used in the pot- 
ting mixture? Mrs. O.T., Virginia. 
A. Sure. Remember that a lot of those 
chemical fertilizers are awfully strong, though. 
@. I have a Blue Boy that is just loaded with 
buds, they get just big enough to open and then 
fall off. It has never hada blossom. What could 
I do to get it to blossom? Mrs. E.M.N., Iowa. 
A. Probably needs a more humid atmosphere. 
Arrange your plants in trays of damp sand. Or 
take the tip of Mrs. E.L, of Kansas City. She 
keeps her pots on flat blocks of wood in~the 
ahaa and keeps water up to the top of the 
blocks. 
Q. Is the amount of light and sun given what 
causes the deep color underneath the leaves? Is 
“Spooned Neptune” a different variety, or should 
any Neptune spoon under some conditions? Does 
the content of the soil cause the deeper color or 
spooning? Mrs. W.L., New Mexico. 
A. Light has a tremendous effect on the color- 
ing of foliage. Doubtless the soil has something to 
do with it, also, but to what extent I couldn’t say. 
Spooning seems to be a lot like foliar variegation. 
It doesn’t propagate through leaf cuttings. Nobody 
seems to be sure just what causes it. One theory: 
‘If a plant has a hard time coming up, it will 
spoon.” 
