u 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
July  29,  1897 
liquid  be  clear,  and  not  too  frequently  given  at  first ;  once  a  week 
is  ample. 
As  the  flower  stems  advance  tie  them  out  regularly  to  neat  light 
stakes.  Still  keep  the  plants  cool,  regularly  supplied  with  fresh 
air  according  to  the  weather,  duly  watered  as  necessary,  and  dewed 
over  daily,  except  when  the  conditions  of  temperature  and  atmo¬ 
sphere  render  any  of  these  details  undesirable. 
Before  the  plants  flower  give  them  a  vapourising  to  destroy 
possibly  lurking  aphides,  which  might  increase  and  rapidly  injure 
good  and  floriferous  plants. — E.  D.  S. 
PLUM  TREE  ENEMIES. 
I  HAVE  received  from  “  W.  S.”  specimens  of  fungus-afiected  Plum 
trees  for  examination,  also  insects  which  attack  the  trees,  and  it  will  be 
convenient  to  refer  to  them  separately. 
Brown  Rot. 
Not  BO  much  seems  to  be  known  about  this  destructive  fungui  by 
scientists  in  this  country  as  appears  desirable,  possibly  because  they  have 
not  often  had  materials  for  examination,  and  if  a  “  mere  gardener”  who 
has  examined  many  specimens  can  assist  the  learned  in  a  small  degree, 
he  will  be  grateful  ;  while  if  he  is  wrong,  he  will  be  equally  grateful  by 
being  set  right  on  the  subject. 
The  portions  of  stems  received  range  from  6  to  9  inches  in  circum¬ 
ference.  Both  branches  and  roots  are  infested  by  the  brown  rot  of  stone 
fruits,  as  readily  detected  by  the  discolouration  produced  in  the  tissues 
by  the  mycelial  hyphse  of  the  fungus  (Monilia  fructigena)  which 
traverses  the  alburnous  layer  or  young  wood  last  formed  outside  the 
stem,  branch,  or  twig  next  the  inner  bark,  and  thus  destroys  the 
cambial  layer,  causing  the  collapse  of  the  affected  trunk  or  limb.  The 
mycelial  hyphae  also  attack  the  soft  layers  of  wood,  the  branching 
mycelium  passing  through  the  hard  parts  in  places,  and  the  affected 
limb,  when  cut  through,  appears  to  have  brown  and  whitish  zones 
alternating,  but  not  all  round  the  stem,  or  only  so  in  places. 
On  a  growing  branch  the  bark  is  found  to  be  quite  clear  and  white, 
but  immediately  beneath  the  cambial  layer  and  young  wood  of  last 
year  are  seen  streaks  of  brown,  and  a  longitudinal  section  shows  the 
threads  of  the  fungus.  These  proceed  very  slowly  and  horizontally  of 
the  tissues,  hence  the  branch  does  not  become  quickly  girdled  ;  indeed, 
the  fungus  may  live  in  it  for  years,  yet  sooner  or  later  the  myce¬ 
lium  creeps  round  the  alburnous  tissues  of  the  branch,  when  the  part 
above  dies  for  lack  of  nourishment.  This  usually  occurs  in  the  early 
part  of  summer,  the  leaves  and  fruit  withering.  When  the  fungus 
attacks  a  tender  growth  it  soon  dies,  being  quickly  girdled  beneath  the 
bark  by  the  mycelium.  In  bad  cases  it  attacks  the  roots,  and  the  trees 
die  outright.  The  mycelium  in  this  case  does  not  penetrate  the  woody 
tissues,  but  merely  the  cambial  layer  or  formative  cells  between  the 
inner  bark  and  outer  wood.  Thus  the  life  is  taken  out  of  the  tree,  and 
the  growths  only  push  a  little  in  the  spring  and  then  go  off. 
The  fungus  is  most  malignant  on  the  Plum,  and  chiefly  on  the  robust- 
growing  trees.  It  is  commonly  referred  to  as  dry  canker,  but  there  is 
BO  shrinking  and  destruction  of  the  bark  as  in  canker  caused  by  Nectria 
ditissima  var.  prunaria,  nor  are  there  any  outgrowths  (“  fruits  ”  of  the 
fungus)  as  occur  under  attacks  of  canker  fungus  sooner  or  later.  The 
most  left  of  brown  rot  fungus  attack  on  wood  are  minute  masses  of 
felted  mycelia,  called  sclerotia,  and  from  these  spring  the  conidial  (one 
form)  condition,  by  means  of  which  the  parasite  is  spread.  Its 
commonest  fructifying  state  is  found  on  fruits,  and  this  form  I  have 
not  succeeded  in  transferring  to  Arm  wood  ;  but  the  germ-tubes  of  the 
spores  readily  pierce  the  soft  growths  of  most  stone  fruits,  and  may  kill 
them  in  a  month  to  six  weeks.  Though  the  fungus  attacks  Apples  and 
Pears,  spoiling  bushels  of  fruit  in  some  seasons,  it  appears  powerless  to 
affect  the  wood  of  those  trees.  It,  however,  attacks  the  Apricot,  Cherry, 
Nectarine,  Peach,  and  Plum,  these  being  its  wood-“  hosts,”  and  in  them 
it  lives  by  its  mycelial  hyphae  as  a  perennial.  It  may  lie  dormant 
for  a  long  time,  but  sooner  or  later  it  wakes  up  and  quickly  compasses 
the  destruction  of  the  limb  or  tree. 
The  parasite,  as  a  wood  infection,  can  only  be  got  rid  of  by  removing 
the  affected  part  to  sound  wood  below.  This  is  readily  detected  by  its 
clear  colour — not  being  stained  in  the  rings  by  dark  brown,  as  the  affected 
wood  is  more  or  less  irregularly.  When  in  the  stem  there  is  nothing 
for  it  but  to  uproot  the  affected  tree,  as  the  fungus  will  descend  as  well 
as  ascend  and  destroy  the  roots.  Shrinking  follows  the  destruction  of 
any  part,  but  it  should  be  remembered  that  the  mycelium  is  ahead 
of  this,  therefore  cut  well  below  it  so  as  to  get  the  parasite  clean  out. 
When  the  attack  is  only  on  one  side  of  the  stem  it  may  be  possible  to 
cut  the  mycelium  out  by  making  an  incision  well  into  the  sound  parts 
all  round  the  shrunken  patch  ;  but  this  is  very  doubtful  in  effect,  as  the 
mycelium,  unlike  that  of  canker,  is  not  confined  to  the  cortical  and  imme¬ 
diately  underlying  tissues,  but  strikes  deep  into  the  older  layers  of  wood, 
and  acts  in  a  vertical  more  than  horizontal  direction.  In  such  case 
wash  the  wound  with  a  paint  formed  of  Stockholm  tar  and  paraffin  oil, 
only  using  sufficient  of  the  latter  to  form  an  ordinary  paint  consistency, 
applying  with  a  brush.  Allow  it  to  act  for  a  short  time,  and  then  dress 
the  wound  with  a  composition  formed  of  clay,  dried  and  pounded,  and 
then  formed  into  putty  consistence  with  soluble  petroleum,  making  level 
with  the  bark.  This  is  useful  against  canker,  of  which  there  is  a  scar 
on  one  of  the  stems  ;  but  that  has  not  killed  it,  for  the  tree  was  getting 
the  better  of  the  canker,  as  seen  by  the  new  bark  that  had  formed 
around  the  circumference  of  the  wound,  and  there  was  neither  mycelium 
nor  any  fruits. 
In  addition  to  clearing  away  the  affected  parts  and  the  dead  trees, 
burning  them,  we  should  apply  a  dressing  of  basic  slag  phosphate, 
10  cwt.  per  acre,  7  lbs.  per  rod,  as  soon  as  all  the  leaves  are  down,  and 
2  J  cwt.  of  kainit  per  acre.  If  lb.  per  rod,  along  with  it  or  separately,  and 
point  in  lightly.  Early  in  spring  apply  2^  cwt.  of  mineral  superphos¬ 
phate,  37  per  cent,  soluble  phosphate  per  acre.  If  lb.  per  rod.  This  has 
been  found  useful,  and  if  a  heavy  crop  of  fruit  set,  promptly  supply 
2^  cwt.  per  acre,  If  lb.  per  rod,  of  nitrate  of  soda,  preferably  at  twice, 
the  first  time  as  soon  as  the  fruit  has  set,  and  the  second  when  about  a 
quarter  grown. 
Against  brown  rot  generally  spray  with  Bordeaux  mixture,  at  a 
strength  of  4  lbs.  of  copper  sulphate,  and  4  lbs.  of  lime  to  50  gallons  of 
water,  just  before  the  trees  come  into  blossom,  again  as  soon  as  the  fruit  is 
well  formed,  repeating  twice  at  intervals  of  about  a  fortnight.  This  is  to 
protect  the  fruit,  but  the  fungus  rarely  attacks  the  fruit  of  the  Plum 
seriously  in  this  country.  Once  spraying  with  sulphate  of  copper,  1  lb. 
to  25  gallons  of  water,  in  the  spring  before  the  buds  commence  swelling, 
appears  all  that  is  necessary  in  this  country  to  keep  the  fungus  from  the 
wood,  where  it  is  most  malignant  in  stone  fruit  trees  in  our  climate.  Of 
course  the  spraying  will  not  cure  the  trees  already  infested. 
The  Plum  Tree  Borer  Beetle  (Xxleborus  dispar). 
There  is  no  doubt  about  the  identity  of  the  ”  insects  ”  sent.  They 
cause  injury  by  driving  their  tunnels  in  the  wood  immediately  beneath 
the  bark,  and  their  attacks  are  a  consequence  of  the  unhealthy  condition 
of  the  trees,  the  stems  having  become  dried  to  a  great  extent,  and  thus 
admitting  of  the  penetrations  of  the  pests.  They  never  attack  quite 
healthy  trees,  as  the  sap  drowns  them  out  as  well  as  their  larv%,  but 
trees  not  vigorous  soon  succumb  to  their  attacks,  as  what  they  do  not 
effect  in  girdling  the  stem  one  year  they  finish  off  the  next. 
The  best  preventive  of  attack  is  to  dress  or  wash  the  stems  with  a 
solution  of  soluble  petroleum  about  the  beginning  of  June — in  forward 
seasons  earlier — and  repeat  occasionally  up  to  about  the  middle  of  July, 
then  again  at  the  end  of  August  and  beginning  of  September  ;  but  there 
are  not  often  two  broods  in  this  country.  Once  the  pest  gets  hold  it  is 
difficult  to  clear  away  from  old  plantations.  It  will  content  itself  for  a 
time  on  old  limbs,  but  if  anything  happens  to  render  the  trees  unhealthy 
they  are  soon  taken  possession  of,  and  may  be  ruined. 
To  clear  the  vermin  out  cut  down  any  trees  that  are  not  wanted, 
divide  them  into  lengths  of  about  2  or  3  feet,  lay  them  on  damp  soil  or 
set  in  the  soil,  doing  this  in  the  spring,  and  leave  until  the  beginning  of 
September,  then  clear  away  and  burn.  If  there  are  any  beetles  alraut 
they  will  find  these  baits,  and  are  easily  got  rid  of.  We  have  not  found 
any  plan  equal  to  this,  but  of  course  the  cause  never  ought  to  arise,  as 
the  beetles  cannot  make  anything  of  trees  full  of  sap  and  vigour.  This 
I  have  proved  by  various  experiments  extending  over  many  years. — 
G.  Abbey. 
ROYAL  HORTICULTURAL  SOCIETY. 
Drill  Hall. — July  27th. 
The  exhibits  at  the  Drill  Hall  on  Tuesday  were  very  bright,  though 
not  particularly  numerous.  The  finest  exhibits  were  those  of  Messrs. 
H.  J.  Jones  and  J.  Veitch  &  Sons,  who  exhibited  a  group  of  plants  and 
a  collection  of  Gooseberries  respectively.  Orchids  were  by  no  means 
numerous. 
Fruit  Committee, — Present :  Phillip  Crowley,  Esq.  (in  the  chair)  ; 
with  Messrs.  J.  Cheal,  A.  P.  Barron,  T.  J.  Saltmarsh,  J.  H.  Veitch, 
G.  W.  Cummins,  A.  Dean,  W.  Bates,  W.  Farr,  G.  H.  Sage,  G.  Wythes, 
J.  Smith,  F.  Q.  Lane,  W.  J.  Empson,  R.  Fife,  and  J.  Willard. 
At  the  last  Drill  Hall  meeting  Messrs.  J.  Veitch  &  Sons,  Ltd., 
Chelsea,  sent  trained  Gooseberry  plants.  On  this  occasion  no  plants 
were  in  evidence,  but  instead  a  superb  collection  of  fruit  comprising 
one  hundred  varieties.  The  specimens  were  in  splendid  condition  and 
made  a  most  interesting  display.  Amongst  the  varieties  were  noticed 
Whinham’s  Industry,  London  City,  Surprise,  Rock  wood.  Admiral  Boxer, 
Progress,  Telegraph,  Ironmonger,  Duke  of  Sutherland,  Yellowsmith, 
Leader,  Conquering  Hero,  Champagne,  Railway,  Safety,  Tiger, 
Traveller,  Gipsy  Queen,  Rough  Red,  Bobby,  Pretty  Boy,  Criterion, 
Leviathan,  Crown  Bob,  Random,  Drill,  Beauty,  High  Sheriff,  Broom 
Girl,  Lancashire  Lad,  Whitesmith,  Keepsake,  Candidate,  Golden  Drop, 
Lord  Scarbrough,  Glory,  and  Trumpeter,  The  same  firm  also  sent 
Morello  Cherries,  Currants  La  Constante,  Haughton  Castle,  Red  Dutch, 
La  Versaillaise,  Warner’s  Grape,  White  Dutch  and  White  Transparent, 
with  a  dish  of  Figs  Negro  Largo,  and  Nectarines  Pr4coce  de  Croncels 
and  Early  Rivers  (silver-gilt  Knightian  medal). 
Mr.  G.  Wythes,  gardener  to  Earl  Percy,  Syon  House,  Brentford, 
sent  French  Beans,  Veitch’s  Early  Favourite  and  Wythes’  Early 
Mohawk.  The  plants  were  staged  to  show  their  earliness  and  cropping 
qualities  when  grown  in  the  open  air.  The  seeds  of  the  first  named 
were  sown  on  May  3rd,  and  pods  were  ready  on  June  15th,  and  the  latter 
were  sown  on  May  2l8t,  and  ready  on  July  10th.  Both  varieties  have 
been  honoured  by  the  Society,  and  are  excellent.  Messrs.  Kelway  and 
Son,  Langport,  sent  a  dish  of  Duke  of  Albany  Pea  and  Bunyard’s 
Exhibition  Longpod  Bean,  each  in  capital  condition. 
Melon  Hardwicke  Beauty  was  staged  by  Mr.  J.  Taylor,  Hardwicke 
Grange,  Shrewsbury,  and  specimens  of  the  Wineberry  came  from  Mr. 
Cundey,  The  Warren  House,  Cobham,  Surrey.  Mr.  J.  McAinsh,  The 
Gardens,  Leeds  Castle,  Maidstone,  send  six  splendid  fruits  of  Sea  Eagle 
Peach,  and  Messrs.  W.  J.  Stokes  &  Sons,  Trowbridge,  pods  of  a  Pea 
