December  19,  1901.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
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filled  with  hay,  which  served  to  attract  the  beetles,  and  from 
which  they  could  readily  be  shaken  and  killed. 
**  Samples  of  beetles  belonging  to  another  genus,  Amara, 
have  also  been  forwarded,  accompanied  by  the  statement  that 
they  were  caught  in  the  act  of  feeding  upon  the  fruit.  These, 
like  the  Harpali,  are  predatory  and  combative,  so  much  so 
indeed,  that  several  of  them  cannot  be  kept  together  in  a  box 
without  a  skirmish  speedily  commencing  amongst  them. 
Popularly  they  are  called  Sunshiners,  because  they  love  the 
sunshine,  and  therefore  differ  from  the  preceding  in  appearing 
Three  Stages  in  the  Life  of  Cetonia  aurata, 
by  day  and  oaly  hiding  when  alarmed.  An  old  superstition  is 
that  ill  luck  or  misfortune  will  befall  a  person  who  kills  a 
Sunshiner  ;  but  in  spite  of  this  the  gardener  must  protect  his 
Strawberries  from  beetles  ot'  such  an  eccentric  taste  if  he  can. 
Trapping  might  be  tried  with  these  also,  as  they  are  supposed 
to  hide  at  night.  Having  wings  of  good  size,  which  they 
readily  put  into  use,  they  are  not  a1  ways  to  be  caught  by  day 
when  they  are  seen.  In  form  they  are  somewhat  squat,  with 
the  thorax  broad  behind,  and  the  wing-cases  striated,  are 
small  in  size;  colour  mostly  blue  or  bluish  green;  some 
individuals  are  bronzy,  or  even  black-  The  larvm  of  all  these 
species  are  supposed  to  be  feeders  upon  oth^r  insects  of  subter¬ 
ranean  habit,  and  therefore  they  may  help  to  check  some  of 
those  which  damage  root-!. 
The  late  Miss  Ormerod,  LL  D  ,  in  her  excellent  “Manual,’’ 
gives  a  prominent  place  to  the  green  or  rose  chafer,  Cetonia 
aurata  (see  figure  on  this  page),  as  a  foe  to  the  Strawberry,  but 
I  do  not  think  it  has  been  often  complained  of  by  the  culti¬ 
vators  of  this  fruit.  The  mature  insect  is  said  to  injure  the 
blossom,  and  from  its  size  and  appearance  could  hardly  fail  to 
attract  notice  where  abundant,  as  I  have  sometimes  seen  it 
hovering  in  parties  about  Privet  bloom  or  It  >ses  in  full  flower. 
From  its  underground  life,  however,  the  larva  or  grub  might 
escape  observation  easily,  or  be  unrecognised  if  turned  up  with 
sundry  creatures  of  similar  habit  June  is  the  month  in  which 
the  beetle  usually  emerges.  On  the  upper  side  the  colour  is 
metallic  green  with  whitish  streaks  resembling  cracks  across 
the  wing-cases  ;  the  under  side  is  coppery,  tending  to  a  rosy 
hue.  The  structure  of  the  thorax  prevents  the  wing-cases 
from  opening  widely,  so  that  although  the  insects  fly  well  they 
cannot  raise  these  when  on  the  wing  in  the  manner  beetles 
commonly  do.  The  clubs  of  the  antennae  are  composed  of  tiny 
flat  plates,  which  are  moveable  like  the  divisions  of  a  fan.  All 
the  older  entomological  works  state  that  the  larva  feeds  upon 
wood ;  in  reality  it  is,  as  noted  above,  very  commonly  a 
destroyer  of  the  roots  of  low  plants  or  shrubs,  but  lives  also  in 
decayed  wood  or  wood  soil.  Resembling  somewhat  the  grub 
of  the  cockchafer,  it  is  rather  thicker  than  that  insect,  and 
clothed  with  short  hairs.  It  is  usually  discovered  lying  in  a 
curved  position,  the  hinder  part  of  the  body  being  thicker 
than  the  head  ;  their  life  as  larvrn  is  reckoned  to  last  about 
two  years.  Rooks  are  reported  to  hunt  them  eagerly,  and  the 
application  of  diluted  gas  lime  or  a  weak  solution  of  paraffin 
has  been  recommended  where  their  presence  is  suspected. 
There  is  no  great  difficulty  in  securing  the  beetles  by  a 
hand-net. 
When  killing  beetles  amongst  our  Strawberries  we  must 
avoid  injuring  any  species  that  is  beneficial.  Carabus  auratus, 
for  instance,  one  of  the  ground  beetles,  we  are  likely  to  see 
running  eagerly  about  in  search  of  its  prey  ;  it  seizes  cater¬ 
pillars,  snails,  and  other  beetles,  fearlessly  laying  hold  even  of 
the  bulky  cockchafer.  This  insect  is  golden-green,  with  a 
larger  body  than  the  rosechafer,  and  we  at  once  distinguish  it 
from  that  species  by  the  three  sculptured  ribs  on  the  wing- 
cases.  The  blackish  larva  or  grub  is  also  a  killer  of  insects. 
This  only  comes  forth  at  dusk  to  hunt.  There  are,  however, 
other  beetles  that  are  now  and  then  foes  to  the  Strawberry, 
but  which  I  merely  name  here,  as  their  history  belongs  to  that 
of  other  plants  they  visit  more  habitually.  One  of  these  is  the 
bracken,  dock,  or  June  bug,  Phyllopertha  horticola,  an  enemy 
of  fruit  trees  ;  but  the  beetle  has  in  some  seasons  stripped 
Strawberries  of  their  blossoms.  Then  Otiorhynchus  sulcatus, 
also  called  the  black,  or  Vine  weevil,  has  been  taken  on  the 
fruit  of  Strawberries  ;  and  the  grub  of  another,  the  red-legged 
weevil,  O.  tenebricosus,  occasionally  infests  its  roots.  The 
particular  aphis  of  this  plant  is  named  from  it  Siphonophora 
Fragarise.  It  is  a  shining  green  with  long  antenme  and  red 
eyes,  very  like  the  aphis  of  the  Rose.  Some  years  few  are  to 
be  perceived,  in  others  they  cluster  on  the  fruitstalks  during 
May.  —Entomologist  . 
Irish  Notes. 
The  Royal  Horticultural  Society  of  this  country  held  its  annual 
meeting  on  Monday  last  in  tne  Central  Lecture  Hall,  Westmoreland 
Street,  Dublin.  It  was  sparsely  attended,  and  owing  to  the  intense 
bitterness  of  the  day  the  President,  Lord  Ardilaun,  who  has  been 
recently  indisposed,  was  unable  to  take  the  chair.  In  his  absence  Sir 
Percy  (trace  of  Monkstown  was  called  upon  to  preside.  After  the 
usual  formalities  were  proceeded  with,  the  secretary,  in  rendering  an 
account  of  his  stewardship,  said  he  was  pleased  to  show  the  financial 
aspect  of  society  had  improved.  The  executive  of  the  societjr  had 
allowed  themselves  to  drift  into  the  sands  of  insolvency,  and,  as  a 
desperate  cure,  they  desired  to  close  the  spi’ing  show,  but  a  steady 
response  from  the  horticulturists  gave  the  Council  a  sum  of  £70  (?), 
which  enabled  them  to  retain  this  function,  although  the  society  was 
in  debt  to  the  tune  of  close  on  £150.  The  shows,  being  favoured  with 
fine  weather,  have  proved  a  great  success,  and  enabled  them  to  reduce 
the  debt  to  something  like  £14,  which  was  possibly,  if  not  largely, 
aided  by  the  subscription  for  the  spring  show.  Several  members 
were  up  for  re-election,  and  the  resignation  of  one  of  the  former 
Council,  Major  Cusack  of  Abbeyville,  Malahide,  on  the  ground  of 
ill-health,  and  the  one  vacancy  for  a  practical  member  in  the  place 
of  Mr.  P.  Brock,  late  of  Glenmore,  did  not  call  for  a  re-election,  as 
the  remaining  number  on  the  ballot  paper  went  on  automatically, 
being  only  seven,  the  same  number  offering  themselves  for  re-election. 
His  Majesty  the  King  has  kindly  consented  to  become  the  Patron 
of  the  above  society,  whilst  the  executive  have  determined,  or  rather 
committed  themselves  to  a  promise,  to  hold  the  winter  show  in  a 
centre  nearer  the  metropolis.  It  certainly  does  not  sound  absurd 
why  such  a  society  cannot  erect  a  hall,  and  carry  on  the  duties  of  a 
real,  active  horticultural  society.  At  present  the  desire  to  raise  the 
standard  of  horticulture  has  not  passed  beyond  mere  idle  chatter  for 
fear  of  endangering  its  reputation  of  being  a  show  for  the  eclectic. 
Owing  to  a  want  of  courtesy  on  behalf  of  the  Royal  Dublin  Society 
I  have  been  unable  to  forward  a  report  on  their  winter  show,  likewise 
a  note  on  the  inauguration  of  an  Irish  Arboricultural  Society,  which 
has  assumed  a  permanent  shape.  Many  of  our  leading  landowners 
have  signified  their  intention  of  joining.  They  intend  to  diffuse  a 
love  for  sylviculture  throughout  the  country,  the  channels  to  be 
utilised  being  the  chief  educational  establishments  and  the  model 
farm  at  Giasnevin.  Where  the  study  of  forestry  has  been  initiated, 
without  dealing  further  with  their  prospective  programme,  it  seems  a 
waste  of  energy  in  discussing  the  fact  that  our  cultivators  require  a 
mental  drilling  in  the  study  of  forestry  and  its  economic  benefits  ;  our 
growers  are  tired  listening  to  advice.  What  we  want  is  a  practical 
scheme,  wherein  the  reclothing  of  our  land  (largely  boggy)  can  be 
reclaimed  ;  the  kind  of  trees  to  cultivate,  the  formation  of  effective 
screens,  the  best  means  to  obviate  insect  and  fungus  attacks,  and 
danger  of  woodland  fires  due  from  sparks  by  passing  trains.  A  plan 
embracing  these  points  would  lead  to  the  education. 
This  country  is  purely  an  agricultural ;  the  replanting  of  woods  is 
desirable  to  aid  our  cultivators.  It  would  largely  control  the  climate 
and  enable  larger  returns  to  be  made  from  the  land,  a  fact  at  the 
present  hour  of  our  experience  that  does  not  call  for  proof.  “  It  is  a 
well  known  fact  that  in  both  Canada  and  the  United  States  the  yield 
of  the  Wheat  crop  gradually  diminishes  as  the  forests  are  cleared, 
and  that  the  heaviest  crops  of  this  cereal  are  found  on  land  sheltered 
by  woods  ” — (from  the  second  last  edition  of  The  Forester,’’  by  James 
Brown,  page  8  of  my  copy).  This  would  show  that  the  proper  course 
would  be  to  plant  with  this  view,  though,  strictly  speaking,  this  would 
be  a  restricted  one,  yet  it  would  be  capable  of  public  expression  based 
on  the  following  rule — To  aim  at  shelte.  ing  the  fields  where  tillage  is 
in  progress.  Thus,  if  our  new  society  would  select  sites,  the  forma¬ 
tion  of  woodlands  might  not  be  a  giant’s  task,  but  if  they  aim  in 
trying  to  make  it  a  timber-producing  centre,  the  labour  of  finding  a 
means  to  carry  it  throngh  may  be  retarded.  However,  the  starting  of 
such  a  society  is  a  necessity  t  and  if  not  too  ambitious  good  should 
accrue  to  their  well  intentioned  efforts. — A.  O’Neill. 
