90 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
July  27,  1599. 
eight  hours  the  bees  will  take  readily  to  her.  If  food  is  scarce 
feed  with  thin  syrup  for  a  few  days.  This  will  encourage  breeding. — 
An  English  Bee-keeper. 
Bee-keeping  a  Nuisance. — The  right  to  keep  bees  in  a  congested 
district  was  contested  in  Bath  County  Court  last  week.  A  Miss  Kerley 
sued  her  next  door  neighbour  for  £50  damages,  caused  her  by  defendant’s 
bees.  She  was  badly  stung  twice,  and  the  bees  frequented  her  garden  to 
such  an  extent  that  she  had  to  let  it  go  practically  out  of  cultivation. 
The  jury  awarded  her  £10,  and  the  Judge  granted  an  injunction  with 
costs  on  the  higher  scale. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should,  until 
further  notice,  be  directed  to  “  The  Editor,”  s,  Rose  Hill  Road, 
Wands  wortb,  S.W.,  and  HOT  to  12,  Mitre  Court  Chambers, 
Fleet  Street.  It  is  requested  that  no  one  will  write  privately  to 
any  of  our  correspondents,  seeking  information  on  matters 
discussed  in  this  Journal,  as  doing  so  subjects  them  to 
unjustifiable  trouble  and  expense,  and  departmental  writers 
are  not  expected  to  answer  any  letters  they  may  receive  on 
Gardening  and  Bee  subjects  through  the  post.  If  information 
be  desired  on  any  particular  subject  from  any  particular 
authority  who  may  be  named,  endeavour  will  be  made  to  obtain 
it  by  the  Editor.  Letters  of  inquiry  must  be  accompanied  by 
the  names  and  addresses  of  the  writers,  but  these  will  neither  be 
published  nor  disclosed  when  initials  or  nom  de  'plumes  are  given 
for  the  purpose  of  replies. 
Correspondents  should  not  mix  up  on  the  same  sheet  questions  relating 
to  Gardening  and  those  on  Bee  subjects,  and  it  is  convenient  when 
each  question  is  written  on  a  separate  sheet.  All  articles  intended 
for  insertion  should  be  written  on  one  side  of  the  paper  only  ;  and 
the  name  and  address  of  each  writer  must  be  known  by  the 
Editor,  though  not  necessarily  for  insertion.  We  cannot,  as  a 
rule,  reply  to  questions  through  the  post,  and  we  do  not  under¬ 
take  to  return  communications  which,  for  any  reason,  cannot 
be  inserted. 
Death's  Head  Moth  (W.  G.). — The  moth  is  the  largest  of  the  British 
kinds,  the  spread  of  the  wings  being,  in  your  specimen,  over  5  inches* 
and  is  called  “Death’s  Head  Moth,”  Acherontia  atropus.  It  is  nocturnal, 
flying  at  night,  and  abstracting  nectar  from  flowers  by  means  of  its  long 
proboscis.  When  alarmed  it  makes  a  sharp  squeaking  plaintive  cry,  not 
unlike  the  squeak  of  a  bat  or  a  mouse.  It  has  also  been  charged  with 
entering  bee  hives  and  sipping  the  honey.  Its  caterpillar  feeds  on 
Potato  tops  or  the  leaves  of  Potatoes,  sometimes  on  common  Jasmine,  and 
also  on  the  “  Tea  Tree  ”  (Lyeium).  It  usually  hides  by  day,  and  comes 
out  in  the  evening  or  at  night  to  feed.  When  full  grown  the  caterpillar 
is  of  great  size,  measuring  4  or  5  inches  in  length.  Hand-picking  is  the 
best  remedy,  the  caterpillar  being  easily  seen  in  twilight  or  even  moon¬ 
light. 
Lady  Downe  s  Grapes  Blackened  and  Shrivelled  (H.  H.). — The  berries 
are  scalded.  It  occurs  generally  when  the  berries  are  more  than  half 
grown,  finished  stoning,  and  just  before  commencing  to  colour.  According 
to  Mr.  Barron’s  “Vines  and  Vine  Culture,”  page  98,  scalding  “is  caused 
through  late  or  imperfect  ventilation  on  some  bright  sunny  morning 
whilst  the  internal  atmosphere,  and  even  the  berries,  are  saturated  with 
moisture.  The  varieties  most  subjpct  to  this  affection  are  Muscat  of 
Alexandria  and  Lady  Downe’s.”  This  accords  with  our  experience. 
The  only  preventive  is  to  admit  a  little  air  constantly,  maintain  a  gentle 
warmth  in  the  hot-water  pipes,  so  as  to  keep  the  air  of  the  house  in 
motion,  encourage  evaporation  from  the  berries,  and  prevent  the  deposi¬ 
tion  of  moisture  upon  them.  Then  increase  the  ventilation  early  in  the 
morning,  not  later  than  by  the  time  the  sun  acts  upon  the  house,  and 
have  it  free  during  the  day,  especially  the  early  part.  This  allows  the 
atmospheric  moisture  expanded  by  the  sun  heat  to  escape,  the  berries  to 
heat  equally  with  the  surrounding  air,  and  they  evaporating,  instead  of 
having  moisture  condensed  on  them,  and  afterwards  heated  by  the  sun  or 
surrounding  air,  do  not  scald.  The  liability  to  scalding  only  extends 
over  a  fortnight  or  three  weeks,  for  when  commenced  and  advanced  in 
colouring  there  is  no  danger  of  the  affection — at  least  not  in  the  case  of 
Lady  Downe’s.  The  temperature  from  fire  heat  need  not  exceed  65°  to 
70°  ;  the  chief  point  is  to  give  air,  some  constantly — i.e.,  all  night — and 
increase  it  very  early  in  the  morning,  or  in  advance  of  the  sun  acting 
powerfully  upon  the  structure,  then,  or  on  dull  days,  keeping  moisture 
from  the  berries.  We  have  seen  Vines  syringed  in  the  evening  against 
red  spider,  and  precautions  not  taken  to  ventilate  through  the  night  and 
increase  it  early  the  following  day,  the  crop  on  Lady  Downes  being 
consequently  half  or  more  scalded. 
Book  on  Tomato  Diseases  ( Regular  Header'). — We  are  unable  to  give 
the  title  and  publisher  of  the  best  book  dealing  with  the  diseases  of 
Tomatoes,  and  particularly  the  spot  and  sleepy  diseases.  The  various 
diseases  have  been  from  time  to  time  treated  of  in  our  columns,  and  also 
illustrated  from  affected  specimens.  This  was,  presumably,  before  you 
became  a  “  regular  reader.”  Perhaps  you  have  Mr.  Iggulden’s  manual 
on  “  Tomato  Culture,”  Is.  14d.,  post  free,  from  the  publisher,  12,  Mitre 
Court  Chambers.  Like  others  of  the  most  successful  cultivators  he  does 
not  go  into  a  fright  over  fungoid  and  other  enemies,  but  adopts  the  best 
preventive  measures  with  gratifying  success.  His  routine  is  described  in 
the  manual. 
Bleeding  from  Stems  of  Araucaria  imbricata  (T.  M.). — The  trees  that 
have  had  holes  bored  in  them  with  a  inch  bit”  and  are  bleeding,  or 
exuding  turpentine  or  resinous  matter  very  much,”  will  probably  die, 
especially  if  the  fermentation  be  not  checked.  There  is  no  evidence  of 
any  salt  or  chemical  in  what  you  send.  We  should  eject  methylated 
spirit  into  the  holes  and  stop  them  with  French  polish  and  “tow,” 
forcing  into  the  b  ire-holes  with  a  stick'or  iron  rammer,  and  level  with  the 
outside  of  the  wood,  dressing  externally  over  the  stopping,  and  extending 
slightly  over  »he  bark  with  the  polish,  using  a  brush,  and  giving  two  or 
three  coats  so  as  to  make  all  quite  smooth. 
Muscat  of  Alexandria  Grapes  Diseased  ( Jardincre ). — The  Grapes  are 
both  shanked  and  scalded.  The  shanking  affects  the  footstalks  of  the 
berries,  causing  them  to  wither  and  die,  and  the  berries  cease  swelling — if 
affected  early,  turn  brown,  shrivel,  and  fall.  The  shanking  also  affects 
the  branchlets  of  the  bunch,  causing  the  stem  to  wither  wholly  or  in  part, 
when  the  berries  also  shrivel  more  or  less,  just  as  the  sap  is  cut  off. 
Scalding  affects  a  part  of  the  berry,  not  often  the  whole,  the  flesh  shrink¬ 
ing  and  forming  a  deeply  depressed  patch  on  the  berry,  this  turning  brown 
or  black,  while  the  rest  of  the  berry  remains  sound.  The  shanking  is 
caused  by  defective  root  action,  for  which  there  is  no  remedy  if  the  soil  be 
sodden  and  sour,  but  lifting  and  laying  the  roots  in  more  suitable  material 
near  the  surface,  providing  thorough  drainage.  Of  course,  the  border  may 
be  temporarily  damaged  from  excessive  supplies  of  water,  want  of  lime,  or 
other  cause  of  a  cultural  character.  We  have  known  a  dressing  of  best 
chalk  lime,  air-slaked,  1  lb.  per  square  yard,  make  a  considerable 
difference,  especially  by  encouraging  as  much  lateral  growdh  on  the  Vines 
as  could  have  full  exposure  to  light.  This  procedure  would  not  do  any 
harm  but  good,  therefore  we  should  apply  the  lime  forthwith,  even  if  it 
were  left  on  the  surface,  though  it  would  be  better  lightly  pointed  in,  but 
not  disturbing  the  roots.  The  scalding  is  caused  through  late  or  imperfect 
ventilation,  and  is  fully  referred  to  in  reply  to  “  H.  H.,”  in  this  week’s 
issue.  The  drip  from  the  roof  should  certainly  be  rectified,  the  putty 
being  probably  defective,  or  the  glass  and  woodwork  out  of  repair. 
Diseased  Hawthorn  and  Beech  (Fungus). — The  Hawthorn  is  affected 
in  the  current  year’s  wood,  leaves,  and  “  haws,”  by  the  Hawthorn  rust 
fungus,  Roestelia  Iacerata,  and  one  of  the  worst  cases  we  have  seen.  It 
is  the  cecidium  or  cluster-cup  form  of  the  fungus  called  Gymnospo- 
rangium  clavariseforme,  which — the  teleuto  spore  layers — is  produced  on 
Juni peris  communis.  The  oecidium  form,  Roestelia  Iacerata,  occasionally 
attacks  Apple  growths,  leaves,  and  fruits,  but  is  commonly  met  with  on 
species  of  Crataegus,  and  occurs  abundantly  in  smaller  or  larger  groups 
on  orange-yellow  swollen  blotches,  though  frequently,  as  in  your  case, 
covering  large  areas,  especially  on  fruit  (haws),  and  is  usually  accom¬ 
panied  by  contortions  and  other  deformations.  The  peridia  or  cluster- 
cups,  are  flask-shaped  when  young,  later  cylindrical  cup-shaped,  dirty- 
white,  rupturing  longitudinally  to  various  depths  into  numerous  erect  or 
somewhat  outwardly  inclined  lobes.  The  spores  are  orange-yellow, 
giving  that  colour  to  the  swollen  blotches.  We  should  spray  or  syringe 
the  trees  or  bushes  with  hot  water,  130°  to  135°,  and  follow  in  the 
course  of  a  week  with  a  solution  of  sulphide  of  potassium  (liver  of 
sulphur),  1  oz.  to  3  gallons  of  water.  In  the  spring,  before  or  when 
the  buds  commence  unfolding,  repeat  the  spraying  with  the  solution  of 
liver  of  sulphur,  and  spray  again  with  the  solution  at  a  strength  of 
1  oz.  to  10  gallons  of  water  when  fairly  in  leaf,  again  before  flowering,  and 
again  or  as  soon  as  the  flowering  is  over.  Of  course  an  eye  should  be 
kept  on  Junipers,  and  if  they  produce  “cedar  apples”  or  spumous 
yellow  bodies,  cut  off  the  affected  parts  promptly  and  burn  them.  But 
we  have  repeatedly  observed  Hawthorn  rust  in  great  abundance  in 
places  where  Junipers  were  not  to  be  found  within  a  wide  radius.  The 
fungoid-like  growth  on  the  Beech  is  the  cottony  flocculence  produced  by 
the  Beech  bug  or  scale,  Crytccoccus  fagi,  which  is  very  common  on 
trees  in  some  localities,  and  renders  them  “  white  from  top  to  bottom.”  It 
has  killed  several  large  trees  in  many  places  where  steps  were  not  taken 
to  prevent  its  spread.  In  no  case  of  affection  have  we  known  the  insect 
to  spare  its  victim  or  the  tree  to  master  the  attack.  It  is  often  con¬ 
founded  with  Beech  chermes,  C.  fagi,  but  this  only  produces  patches  of 
white  flocculence  here  and  there  on  the  stem  and  branches,  and,  of 
course,  mostly  infests  the  under  side  of  the  leaves  and  causes  their  pre¬ 
mature  fall.  The  Crytococcus  or  Beech  scale,  on  the  other  hand,  gives 
the  tree  a  white  scurvy  appearance,  and  attacks  every  part,  even  the 
exposed  roots,  of  the  trunk  and  limbs.  If  you  look  at  the  scale  you  may 
perhaps  see  that  the  eggs  exist  in  millions  ;  the  young  hatch  out  from  this 
time  up  to  October  or  later,  and  not  a  few  hibernate  in  the  “shell  ”  until 
the  storms  of  winter  have  come  and  gone.  The  best  cure,  on  a  small 
scale,  is  treatment  with  methylated  spirit,  using  a  clean,  half-worn,  paint 
brush,  and  brushing  down  the  trees  from  top  to  bottom,  so  as  to  wet  the 
insects,  their  eggs,  and  the  bark,  reaching  into  the  crevices.  We  have 
used  this  with  effect  on  small  trees,  and  also  tar  water,  1  part  of  gas 
tar  to  1000  parts  water,  boiling  the  tar  in  a  little  water  for  about  half  an 
hour,  and  then  adding  the  remainder  of  the  water.  On  a  large  scale  gas 
