April  15,  1897. 
JOURNAL  OP  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER 
321 
choice  of  white  flowers.  Scilla  sibirica,  wild  Hyacinths,  Chionodoxas, 
Forget-me-nots  (Myosotis)  ;  the  trailing  and  wild  Vetch,  are  among  a 
long  list  of  differing  blues.  Primula  vulgaris,  the  common  Primrose  ; 
Cowslips,  AlysBum  saxatile  compaotum,  a  root  or  rockwork  gem  ; 
Doronicums,  for  moist,  shady  corners,  give  the  yellows.  Then  we  may 
have  the  varied  colours  of  the  cultivated  Primroses.  The  red  hues  and 
modifications  are  supplied  from  Geranium  Robertianum,  which  should 
have  an  exalted  position  ;  the  Fairy  Orange  Moss,  with  scarlet  berries  ; 
the  Mediterranean  Heath,  and  carpets  of  the  various  wild  Thymes ; 
ochre  coloured  Ragworts,  and  numerous  dwarf  herbaceous  plants  with 
distinct  and  telling  colours ;  carpeting  these  throughout  the  grass,  in  and 
about  the  rootery  and  bases  of  the  trees — not  in  isolated  patches,  but  in 
mantles  widespread  in  harmony.  Arabis,  Aubrietias,  Foxgloves,  and, 
oh  !  never  forget  the  Ferns,  so  fresh,  free  and  graceful ;  we  shall  consider 
them  subsequently.  Enough  is  said  at  present  to  make  us  feel  that 
“  Gardening  is  the  purest  of  human  pleasures,  and  the  greatest  refresh¬ 
ment  to  the  soul  of  man.” — A  Young  Scot. 
EXCRESCENCES  ON  PEACH  TREE  ROOTS. 
I  AM  sending  you  some  Peach  tree  roots,  with  excrescences.  The 
trees  were  first  grown  outside  on  a  south  wall,  and  although  they 
have  the  disease  outside,  they  grow  and  bear  good  crops  ;  but  when  I 
bring  them  into  the  Peach  house  they  soon  get  a  great  deal  worse,  until 
the  trees  die  entirely.  The  Peach  house  has  only  been  built  about 
fourteen  years ;  the  border  was  well  qjade  and  drained  at  the  time,  and 
the  trees  grew  well  the  first  seven  or  eight  years.  There  is  a  good  deal  of 
old  lime  rubbish  in  the  border,  which  makes  it  rather  porous,  and  requires 
water  about  once  a  fortnight  in  summer.  It  seems  rather  a  worse  case 
than  any  I  have  read  about  in  books  or  papers.  Will  Mr.  Abbey 
kindly  examine  them,  and  let  me  know  the  cause,  and  if  possible  the 
cure  1 — J.  L. 
[The  roots  are  much  swollen  here  and  there,  the  excrescences  beine 
two  to  three  times  as  thick  as  the  normal  roots,  and  occupy  about  half 
of  their  length.  This  is  a  very  serious  state  of  things,  and  quite  distinct 
from  suckering,  knobs  in  that  case  being  formed  on  the  roots,  adventitious 
buds  produced,  and  ultimately  sucker-growths  appear  in  abundance. 
The  roots  are  quite  healthy  where  there  are  no  excrescences,  having  clear 
stout  bark  and  sound  wood,  and  the  fibres  are  clean,  plentiful,  and 
healthy. 
The  excrescences  consist  of  both  dead  and  living  parts,  having  much 
the  appearance  of  a  bad  case  of  canker,  and  may  not  inaptly  be  termed, 
as  roots  so  affected  have  frequently  been,  root  canker.  In  the  dead  part 
I  first  came  across  some  white  worms,  one-eighth  to  three-sixteenths  of 
an  inch  in  length,  which  are  the  young  of  the  root-hair  sucking  white 
worm  (Enchytrzeus  Buckholzi),  and  common  on  roots  and  stems  under¬ 
going  aecay.  This  worm  has  a  bad  character,  but  it  certainly  was  not 
the  cause  of  the  excrescences  on  the  roots.  The  worms  died  instantly  in 
a  solution  of  aniline,  one  part  in  twenty  parts  water,  not  so  much  as 
once  writhing. 
Following  up  the  dead  tissue  to  the  living,  I  found  there  a  host  of 
mites  nestling  on  the  living  tissue  in  the  crevice  formed  by  the  bark  and 
wood.  To  seize  two  between  the  tweezers  and  place  them  in  a  drop  of 
aniline  solution  was  the  work  of  a ‘moment,  and  looking  through  the 
eye-piece  of  a  small  microscope  enlarging  25  diameters  I  had  them 
represented  f-inck  long,  female  and  f-inch  long,  male.  They  never 
moved  after  being  placed  in  the  solution  of  aniline,  1  in  20  parts  water. 
This  was  very  satisfactory,  for  I  do  not  care  to  see  even  microscopic 
creatures  writhe  and  suffer  as  I  have  seen  in  the  case  of  eelworms, 
therefore  have  striven  to  get  hold  of  something  that  would  render  them 
as  "  still  as  mice.” 
The  excrescences,  then,  are  caused  by  the  root-mite  Rhizoglyphua 
robini,  Ciaparede,  which  is  only  distinguishable  from  the  bulb-mite, 
R.  echinopus,  by  the  female  having  a  very  thick  and  clumsy  third  pair 
of  legs,  thus  throwing  the  fourth  pair  further  back.  The  specimens, 
however,  are  only  in  the  six-legged  stage.  They  are  whitish  grey, 
pellucid,  and  appear  like  a  speck  of  jelly  with  an  ordinary  pocket  lens 
say  magnifying  6  diameters.  The  very  interesting  creatures  belong  to 
the  family  of  the  cheese-mite,  Tyroglyphidte. 
The  root-mite  causes  the  excrescences  by  biting  and  sucking  at  the 
cellular  tissues  of  the  roots,  killing  some  cells,  and  the  tree  on  its  part 
producing  new  ones  to  exclude  the  parasite,  hence  the  excrescence 
gradually  enlarges,  and  this  goes  on  year  by  year  until  the  dead  tissue 
surrounds  the  roots  attacked,  then  the  tree  dies.  This  may  not  occur  for 
years,  but  the  affected  trees  become  sickly  and  go  off  by  degrees.  It 
affects  trees  both  outdoors  and  under  glass,  and  is  very  widespread.  I 
have  found  it  on  nearly  all  leguminous  plant  roots  that  have  been 
examined  for  nitrogenic  nodosities,  and  is  frequently  associated  with 
eelworms.  In  pursuing  my  investigations  I  was  led  to  seek  for  some¬ 
thing  that  would  kill  the  mites  and  eeiworms  without  prejudice  to  the 
«  bacteroids  ” — the  micro-organisms  that  convert  free  into  assimilable 
nitrogen,  and  have  succeeded  in  doing  the  best  possible  for  the  suffering 
p’aut. 
The  substance  is  aniline  (C6H7N).  As  an  insect  killer  nitro-benzole 
(C5H5NO2)  would  perhaps  suit  the  purpose  as  well,  but  there  are 
“  agonies  ”  in  it,  whereas  in  aniline  solution,  1  in  20  parts  water,  there  is 
nothing  of  the  kind  with  micro-animals,  and  even  such  large  creatures 
as  black  ants  die  in  one  minute.  The  solution  is  as  clear  as  water,  hence 
cannot  stain  foliage,  and  does  not  injure  the  most  delicate  leaves.  Any 
lady  may  use  it  in  the  drawing-room,  as  it  is  not  in  the  least  offensive, 
but  on  the  contrary,  a  faintly  pleasant  smell.  The  finest  possible  film 
from  an  atomiser  kills  thripB  and  all  of  that  ilk ;  indeed,  what  in 
the  insect  way  it  will  not  kill,  including  mites  and  eelworm,  I  do  not 
know,  but  anyone  giving  it  a  trial  can  convince  the  Editor  and  myself 
by  sending  specimens  to  the  former.  Send  ’em  alive,  neatly  packed  in 
a  little  damp,  not  wet,  mots,  and  I  may  perhaps  send  a  good  account  of 
them  in  return. 
The  cure  (if  any)  for  these  mites  is  chemical  manures.  I  do  not 
recommend  any  in  particular.  There  is  Thomson’s  (long  proven), 
Pearson’s  (a  canker  cure),  and  no  end  of  others  advertised.  They 
contain  the  essential  mite-killers,  nitric  acid  and  chlorine,  and  the 
essential  food  of  the  higher  plants.  I  may,  however,  refer  to  dissolved 
bones,  3  parts  ;  muriate  of  potash,  2  parts  ;  and  nitrate  of  soda,  1  part ; 
mixed,  using  2  to  4  ozs.  per  square  yard  as  a  suitable  application  in  this 
case.  For  directly  killing  the  mites  Little’s  soluble  phenyle,  1  in 
96  parts  water,  or  1  gill  (quarter  pint)  to  3  gallons  of  water,  or,  if  your 
correspondent  likes  to  keep  up  with  the  highest  pace  and  beat  the 
record,  he  can  use  aniline,  1  in  20  parts  water,  or  perhaps  it  would  act 
quite  as  well  on  root-pests  in  the  proportion  of  1  in  100=  1  lb.  aniline 
to  10  gallons  water.  This,  however,  is  subject  for  experiment. 
— G.  Abbey.] 
ROYAL  HORTICULTURAL  SOCIETY. 
Drill  Hall,  April  13th. 
These  gatherings  seem  to  become  more  popular  every  week,  and 
the  one  of  this  date  must  have  made  a  record.  The  Floral  and  Orchid 
Committees  had  a  large  number  of  superb  exhibits  before  them,  while 
with  the  Narcissus  and  Fruit  Committees  quality  took  the  place  of 
quantity.  Herewith  we  note  a  few  of  the  most  prominent  exhibits. 
Fruit  Committee. — Present  :  P.  Crowley,  Esq.  (in  the  chair)  ; 
Rev.  W.  Wilks,  and  Messrs.  T.  Francis  Rivers,  J.  Cbeal,  W.  J.  Empson, 
W.  Pope,  T.  Fife,  W.  H.  Divers,  G.  Reynolds,  J.  Smith,  C.  Herrin, 
W.  Bates,  J.  Willard,  W.  Farr,  J.  A.  Laing,  G.  T.  Miles,  A.  F.  Barron, 
A.  Dean,  and  J.  Wright. 
The  excellent  tables  of  vegetables  and  fruit  formed  the  chief  feature 
of  the  meeting,  and  they  were  certainly  most  creditable  to  the  exhibitors  ; 
very  few  products  were  placed  on  the  Committee  table.  Mr.  John 
Crooke  sent  from  Forde  Abbey,  Chard,  highly  coloured  Dumelow 
Seedling  Apples,  also  very  good  Sturmer  Pippin,  and  a  vote  of  thanks 
was  awarded.  Mr.  B.  C  Harris  sent  from  Jersey  five  Pears  of  11  Belle  de 
Jersey  ” — Uvedale’s  St.  Germain  (vote  of  thanks).  Sir  Trevor  Lawrence, 
Bart.,  sent  a  sample  of  Anserinus  Bonus  Henricus — really  a  bunch  of  the 
Lincolnshire  Mercury,  known  also  as  Good  King  Henry,  A1  good,  and 
other  names — Chenopodium  Bonus  Henricus  of  LinDseus.  Mr.  Divers 
remarked  that  the  plants  grew  wild  around  Belvoir,  and  undoubtedly 
Mercury  beds  have  occupied  a  portion  of  hundreds  of  cottage  gardens 
in  Lincolnshire  aud  surrounding  counties  for  generations.  The  vegetable 
is  also  known  as  Perennial  Spinach,  and  grows  like  a  weed. 
Turning  to  the  side  tables,  Mr.  G.  Wythes,  Syon  House  Gardens, 
had  an  extensive  and  highly  meritorious  collection  of  vegetables,  not  large 
bulky  produce,  but  in  the  majority  of  instances  models  of  table  quality. 
These  included  all  kinds  of  root  and  green  crops,  including  firmly 
hearted  Cabbages,  Sutton’s  Favourite,  much  admired  ;  Cucumbers, 
New  Potatoes,  Beans,  Seakale,  Asparagus,  and  Mushrooms,  as  well  as 
excellent  La  Grosse  Sucrde  Strawberries  and  St.  John’s  FigB.  A  silver- 
gilt  medal  was  granted  unanimously. 
Mr.  W.  J.  Empson  furnished  a  table  admirably  and  artistically  with 
fruit  and  vegetables.  A  row  of  Carter’s  Early  Morn  Pea  in  pots  at  the 
back  :  in  front,  Royal  Sovereign  Strawberry  in  pots,  also  splendid 
gathered  fruits,  very  noticeable,  as  well  as  Carter’s  Early  Cabbage 
and  Perfection  Broccoli,  excellent  Seakale  and  Radishes  also  being 
represented  (silver  Knight  an  medal). 
Mr.  W.  H.  Divers  sent  from  Belvoir  thirty-six  dishes  of  well  kept 
Apples,  a  worthy  contribution  from  a  private  garden  at  this  period  of 
the  year  (silver  Banksian  medal). 
Mr.  W.  Farr,  gardener  to  A.  Pears,  Esq.,  Isleworth,  sent  a  small  but 
very  interesting  exhibit  consisting  of  a  cemral  basket  of  fine  Strawberries, 
surrounded  by  new  Grapes,  perfectly  co’oured  and  old  (shrivelled), 
splendid  Mushrooms,  and  good  Dwarf  Beans.  Considering  the  larger 
exhibits,  aud  the  medals  awarded,  a  bronze  was  mentioned  for  the 
smaller  but  scarcely  leBS  meritorious  assortment ;  but  eventually,  and  as 
it  proved  far  more  acceptable  to  the  exhibitor,  a  cultural  commendation 
was  unanimously  awarded. 
Veitchian  Fruit  Prizes. — The  competition  was  not  great.  For 
Apples  the  first  prize  was  awarded  to  Mr.  C.  Ross,  Welford  Park, 
with  Lord  Burghley  ;  second,  Mr.  C.  Herrin,  Dropmore,  with  Sturmer 
Pippin.  No  prize  was  awarded  for  Pears.  A  dish  of  Bergamotte 
Esperen  arrived  in  the  Hall  after  the  Judges  had  left. 
Floral  Committee. — Present:  W.  Marshall,  Esq.  (in  the  chair); 
with  Messrs.  H.  B.  May,  H.  Herbst,  J.  Fraser,  J.  H.  Fitt,  R.  Owen, 
J.  Jennings,  J.  T.  McLeod,  R.  B.  Lowe,  C.  J.  Salter,  C.  Jeffries, 
J.  D.  Pawle,  C.  E.  Shea,  E.  Mawley,  G.  Gordon,  C.  E.  Pearson,  J.  W. 
Barr,  H.  J.  Cutbush,  J.  Laing,  H.  J.  Jones,  D.  B.  Crane,  E.  Beckett, 
J.  Walker,  W.  Bain,  R.  M.  Hogg,  J.  Fraser,  T.  W.  Sanders,  J.  Hudson, 
G.  Paul,  C.  Blick,  H.  Turner,  and  R.  Dean. 
Mr.  Mallender,  gardener  to  Miss  Mellish,  Hodsock  Priory,  Notts, 
sent  a  small,  though  pleasing,  collection  of  Narcissi,  and  Mr.  Aitkin, 
gardener  to  G.  Webb,  Esq.,  Sittingbourne,  showed  some  well-berried 
branches  of  Aucuba  japonica.  Mr.  Bain,  gardener  to  Sir  Trevor 
