424 
JOURiVAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
October  29,  1898, 
the  formation  of  the  nodules  or  galls  on  the  roots.  After  a  time  the 
young  worms  come  to  rest,  and  their  bodies  begin  to  enlarge,  the 
posterior  end  becoming  larger  than  the  anterior  portion  (fig.  6).  The 
male,  which  up  till  now  has  been  similar  in  appearance  to  the  female, 
undergoes  various  changes  and  modifications,  ultimately  assaming  the 
eel  tbape  again  (fig.  7),  while  the  female  andergoes  a  transformation 
which  differs  in  every  respect  from  the  ma'e.  The  female,  instead 
of  returning  to  the  eel  shape,  continues  to  enlarge  (fig.  8),  its  tail  is 
cast  off,  and  its  reproductive  organs  are  developed.  The  male,  after 
wandering  about  for  a  time  in  the  tissues  of  the  plant,  or  in  the  soil, 
finds  its  mate  and  pairs,  then  dies. 
The  eggs  begin  to  be  developed  while  the  female  cyst  is  comparatively 
small,  but  it  has  not  yet  been  determined  when  fertilisation  takes  place. 
However,  it  must  occur  long  before  the  female  cysts  are  fully  grown. 
On  an  average  each  female  cyst  produces  something  like  200  eggs.  It 
takes  about  one  month  for  the  eggs  to  develop  into  fall-grown  males  or 
pregnant  females.  The  following  will,  therefore,  give  us  some  idea  to 
what  extent  this  pest  can  multiply,  for  let  us  suppose  that  one  female 
cyst  produces  200  eggs,  allowing  one  half  of  these  to  be  males,  in  one 
month  there  would  be  10,000  female  worms,  in  two  months  1,000,000, 
in  three  months  100,000,000,  and  so  on.  These  figures  must  not  be 
taken  as  what  does  occur,  but  are  only  for  the  purpose  of  illustration. 
A  great  deal  more  might  be  written  on  the  life  history  of  this  pest,  but 
I  think  the  above  ia  sufficient  to  give  those  who  are  troubled  with  it 
some  idea  of  what  they  have  to  deal  with. 
For  remedies  1  would  refer  the  reader  to  a  discussion  now  going  on  in 
the  Journal  of  Horticulture,  but  from  the  brief  description  I  have  given 
it  is  easy  to  see  that  we  can  only  hope  to  eradicate  the  pest  by  taking 
radical  measures  as  soon  as  it  makes  its  appearance.  When  once 
established,  it  is,  as  far  as  my  experience  goes,  impossible  to  get  rid  of  it. 
In  conclnsion  I  have  to  thank  the  Editor  for  allowing  space  for  this  brief 
sketch,  also  Mr.  F.  S.  Hutchason,  Wormley,  Herts,  for  the  use  of  the 
diagrams,  which,  I  may  say,  were  taken  from  living  specimens  we 
examined  under  the  microscope. — W.  Dyke. 
[Miss  Ormerod  has  done  splendid  work  in  many  other  ways  than  in 
giving  the  first  account  in  this  country  of  the  life  history  of  Heterodera 
radicicola,  from  information  largely  supplied  by  Dr.  J.  Eitzema  Bos, 
Prof.  Atkinson,  and  Dr.  J.  C.  Neal ;  but  so  far  as  we  know  the  world  is 
indebted  to  the  late  Rev.  M.  J.  Berkeley  for  its  discovery.  Cucumber 
root  galls,  also  a  cyst  female  with  eggs  and  young  larvae,  were  figured 
by  him  in  the  Gardeners'  Chronicle,  in  April,  1855.  Mr.  W.  G.  Smith 
gave  an  excellent  illustration  of  eelworms  in  Cucumber  roots  in  the 
Journal  of  Horticulture,  January  14th,  1875,  taken  from  the  most 
gigantic  example  of  Cucumber  root  clubbing  we  have  ever  seen.  Mr. 
Smith  was  well  acquainted  with  Mr.  Berkeley’s  female  Heterodera, 
which  was  at  first  taken  for  a  large  vegetable  cell  in  which  the  eggs 
were  encysted.  Professor  Per cival  has  closely  investigated  the  subject, 
and  is  as  familiar  with  eelworms  as  gardeners  are  with  slugs.  Mr.  G. 
Abbey  has  also  been  a  diligent  investigator,  knows  the  pest  well,  and  has 
meritoriously  striven  to  conquer  it.  Mr.  Hutchason  and  Mr.  W.  Dyke 
have  done  good  service  in  making  clear  to  our  readers  the  life  history 
of  the  scourge,  by  delineations  from  original  specimens  as  represented 
in  fig.  76.] 
WHERE  FIGS  MAY  BE  GROWN. 
The  exhaustive  article  from  Mr.  Iggulden’s  pen  on  page  333  was 
instructive,  and  would  cause  the  reader  interested  in  Figs  to  examine 
it  closely  in  order  to  find  out  some  peculiar  place  or  aspect  for  grow¬ 
ing  them.  The  credit,  however,  of  originality  in  Fig  cultivation 
devolves  on  that  well-known  and  able  gardener,  Mr.  W.  Nash,  at  Bad¬ 
minton,  a  man  who  has  among  the  Journal  readers  a  host  of  friends. 
A  large  supply  of  all  kinds  of  fruit  is  naturally  expected  from  the  one 
in  charge  of  such  an  establishment  as  Badminton,  and  judging  from  the 
unusual  course  taken  in  the  matter  Figs  must  be  in  large  demand. 
I  fear  Mr.  Iggulden  will  fail,  eloquent  an  exponent  as  he  is,  to  secure 
many  converts  to  the  inclusion  of  Figs  as  general  stove  “  climbers,”  and 
especially  where  these  structures  are,  as  they  should  be,  reserved  for 
decorative  purposes,  rather  than  as  a  source  of  profit.  The  Fig,  as  Mr. 
Igguldeii  points  out,  is  a  noble-growing  plant— or  rather  it  has  a  noble 
bearing  in  its  leafage,  and  this  is  almost  a  sufficient  reason  for  its  exclu¬ 
sion  from  such  structures,  except  in  extreme  cases  such  as  the  one  cited. 
No  doubt  Mr.  Nash  would  have  hesitated  to  provide  for  the  freedom  he 
did  were  the  fruits — which  seem  to  have,  in  his  case,  justified  the  course 
taken — not  esteemed  beyond  their  ordinary  value,  although  probably  he 
may  derive  some  satisfaction  from  the  fact  that  he  has  been  able  to 
prove  what  may  be  done  under  exceptional  circumstances  even  with 
Figs.  Apart  from  the  utility  of  the  course  of  action,  there  is  undoubtedly 
much  interest  centred  in  the  experiment,  and  the  record  of  it  in  such 
explicit  terms  may  be  useful  to  some  other  readers,  if  not  at  the  present 
at  some  future  time, 
I  suppose  neither  Mr.  Nash  nor  Mr.  Iggulden  would  advocate  the 
adoption  of  the  plan  of  growing  Figs  on  the  roof  of  plant  stoves  without 
some  very  pressing  need,  and  it  is  quite  certain  that  few  owners  of  such 
houses  would  care  to  have  their  plants  shaded  by  the  dense  leafage  from 
Figs,  nor  the  aspect  so  greatly  changed  by  the  dual  occupation  of  fruit 
and  ornamental  plants.  Where  the  course  is  most  likely  to  find  accept¬ 
ance  is  in  small  gardens,  where  the  greatest  amount  of  variety  produced 
from  glass  structures  give  a  corresponding  amount  of  pleasure,  and 
where,  too,  utility  is  regarded  as  of  the  first  principle  in  importance. 
To  such  the  hint  may  be  acceptable,  and  may  probably  be  acted  upon 
in  due  course. 
As  ordinarily  grown,  outdoor  Figs  may  require,  as  Mr.  Iggulden 
intimates,  an  acquired  taste  ;  but  in  such  a  warm  summer  as  the  past 
one  has  been,  outdoor  Figs  have  been  gathered  “cracking  the  skins, 
exuding  dewdrops  at  the  points,  and  so  tender  as  to  require  very  careful 
handling,”  a  sore  indication  of  perfect  flavour  and  delicate  fleshy  pulp 
beneath  the  skin.  In  too  many  instances  Figs  are  left  severely  alone, 
pruning  being  either  unknown,  or  poorly  attempted  at  in  winter  or 
summer,  and  the  trees  from  their  natural  rampant  growth  become  a 
mass  of  foliage,  among  which  it  is  impossible  for  the  sun’s  rays  to 
penetrate.  Trees  kept  thinly  trained,  duly  stopped,  and  neatly  nailed 
to  the  wall  can  be  made  profitable  in  many  places,  but  a  warm  and 
sheltered  spot  is  desirable  to  insure  success.  A  restriction  of  the 
roots,  too,  is  a  matter  of  much  importance,  and,  as  is  so  frequently 
advised,  a  liberal  allowance  of  lime  refuse  incorporated  thoroughly  in 
the  soil. 
I  can  quite  endorse  all  that  Mr.  Iggulden  advanced  in  favour  of  the 
Brown  Turkey,  and  I  think  this  to  be  the  best  for  outdoor  cultivation. 
At  many  summer  exhibitions  the  larger  Brunswick  and  Negro  Largo 
figure  more  often  in  collections  of  fruit,  and  when  these  are  staged  in 
their  best  form  they  add  considerable  weight  to  the  exhibit.  It  seems 
strange  that  at  so  few  provincial  exhibitions  are  classes  provided  for 
these  fruits,  notwithstanding  that  they  are,  as  pointed  out  in  the  article 
under  notice,  equal  in  point  of  merit  to  Peaches  or  Nectarines,  and 
they  certainly  deserve  more  general  recognition. — W.  S. 
PRACTICte  WITH  LIME. 
With  reference  to  lime  I  may  say  that  having  a  failure  with  Lettuces 
in  120-feet  run  of  frames,  and  finding  it  was  caused  hy  root  eelworm,  I 
decided  on  applying  an  inch  thickness  of  quicklime,  slaked,  and  spread 
while  hot.  When  that  was  done  the  lime  was  mixed  with  the  soil  to  the 
depth  of  the  tines  of  a  fork,  and  the  lights  left  off  until  the  frames  were 
required  for  Melons.  These  were  grown  without  heat  except  that  of  the 
sun,  and  they  gave  three  and  four  good  and  well-flavoured  fruits  per 
light  in  August  and  September.  The  Melons  were  followed  by  Lettuces, 
and  these  gave  heads  from  the  end  of  March,  and  were  even  more 
esteemed  than  the  Melons.  This  was  the  practice  for  about  fourteen 
years,  and  eelworm  only  occurred  on  one  occasion. 
How  came  the  eelworm  ?  Considering  that  the  double  croppihg 
must  exhaust  the  soil  we  applied  a  dressing  of  turfy  loam  after  the 
Melons,  and  the  Lettuces  all  went  off  in  the  following  spring,  splendidly 
knotted  at  the  roots,  indeed  they  were  all  roots  and  no  heads.  We  had 
a  stack  of  the  same  turfy  loam ,  pared  off  a  pasture  2  inches  thick,  and 
mixed  with  it  10  per  cent,  of  freshly  burned  lime,  slaked.  This  heap 
was  used  for  both  Cucumbers  and  Melons,  and  also  Tomatoes.  There 
was  no  root  eelworm,  and  all  the  plants  for  which  the  loam  was  used 
throve  well.  The  turf  stack  was  formed  in  the  early  autumn  in  an  open 
situation,  lying  high  and  dry.  The  lime,  according  to  an  analysis  by 
Dr.  Voelcker,  consiited  of  : — 
Carbonate  of  lime 
...  94-70 
Sulphate  of  lime  . 
Carbonate  of  magnesia . 
...  l-7o 
*  •  • 
•  •  • 
>«• 
...  0-43 
Oxide  of  iron  and  alumina 
... 
... 
...  0-90 
Silica  . 
•  •• 
•  •  • 
... 
...  1-57 
Moisture . 
... 
... 
... 
...  0-65 
100-00 
The  lime  (stone)  contains  a  high  percentage  of  lime,  an  appreciable 
quantity  of  soluble  silica,  sulphuric  acid,  and  a  “little  phosphoric  acid” 
(Dr.  Voelcker).  On  slaking  it  falls  to  a  fine  powder,  and  is  excellent 
as  a  purifier.  The  analysis,  of  course,  refers  to  the  limestone  before 
burning,  but  “  W.  D.”  will  no  doubt  be  able  to  tell  what  its  constituents 
are  when  freshly  burned.  This  is  the  best  lime  I  have  used,  and  came 
from  Settrington,  Yorkshire.  Ten  tons  per  acre  used  on  the  farm  were 
sufficient  to  cure  land  of  “  Clover  sickness  ”  on  over  100  acresi'  Farm¬ 
ing  and  gardening  are,  however,  somewhat  different,  and  special  cases 
require  particular  treatment,  root  eelworm  infection  needing  drastic 
measures  for  eradication. 
“  W.  D.”  refers  to  a  dressing  of  5  bushels  of  quicklime  per  rod 
800  bushels  per  acre,  proving  injurious  to  plants.  What  plants  I  Well, 
no  matter.  What  is  the  weight  of  6  bushels  of  Hertfordshire  chalk 
lime  and  of  5  bushels  of  best  (stone)  land  lime,  both  fresh  from  the 
kilns  ?  Make  no  mistake  about  the  lime.  Let  us  know  what  it  is  thkt 
does  the  mischief,  and  what  is  effective  and  what  is  non-effective  againit 
eelworm,  also  beneficial  or  otherwise  to  the  plant. 
Once,  and  only  once,  was  the  word  of  a  very  clever  person  in  recom¬ 
mendation  of  a  certain  lime — a  plant  poison  in  certain  cases.  Giving 
the  worst  results  in  crops  I  ever  had,  I  determined  to  know  in  future 
what  the  stuff  used  was  composed  of  before  having  anything  to  do  with 
it.  1  found  out  afterwards  what  was  the  matter,  as  shown  by  the 
annexed  analyses. 
Before  Burning, 
After  Burning. 
Carbonate  of  lime . 
...  64-20 
Lime . 
...  68-40 
,,  magnesia  ... 
...  45-00 
Magnesia . 
...  38-60 
iron  ...  ... 
Alumina  and  ferric  oxide 
...  0-30 
Iron . 
...  1-40 
...  0-30 
Silica . 
...  0-50 
...  0-20 
Carbonic  acid,  icc . 
...  1-10 
100-00 
100-00 
