24 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
January  8,  19C3. 
found  that  the  accumulation  of  nitrogen,  which  represents 
the  plant  food,  in  this  originally  rich  garden  soil  is  gradu¬ 
ally  being  exhausted.  The  first  five  sowings  of  seed  gave 
more  than  one  and  a  half  times  as  much  produce  as 
obtained  since,  and  this  reduction  of  produce  and  reduced 
persistence  of  the  plant  has  been  coincident  with  the  re¬ 
duction  of  the  stock  of  nitrogen  in  the  soil. 
A  supply  of  mineral  manures  has  been  added  to  the  soil 
occasionally,  but  no  nitrogenous  manure  ;  consequently  the 
ground  is  getting  poorer  and  poorer  in  fertility,  and  the 
Clover  plant  is  now  very  susceptible  to  adverse  climatic 
influences  and  to  insect  injury.  It  is  interesting,  however, 
to  find  that  on  a  portion  of  the  plot  where  sulphate  of 
potash,  as  manure,  has  been  applied  in  large  quantity  the 
Clover  plant  is  able  to  maintain  its  position  by  far  the 
best. 
In  the  New  World,  where  originally  the  soil  was  most 
productivCj  forests  were  cleared,  and  large  areas  brought 
under  cultivation,  and  cropping  was  continued  without  an 
adequate  retum  to  the  soil  of  the  elements  of  fertility ;  a,s 
a  conseqvxence  it  deteriorated  so  seriously  that  much  of  it 
is  now  noted  for  its  barren  condition,  and  many  of  the 
proprietors  are  searching  for  “  pastures  new  ”  and  for  a 
more  fertile  region.  And  so,  to-day,  in  many  districts  fields 
that  have  once  been  under  cultivation  are  being  returned 
to  nature  for  her  slow  and  sure  restoration,  by  means  of 
forest  growth  and  wild  vegetation,  with  its  annual  deposit 
of  vegetable  matters  in  the  shape  of  leaves,  roots,  fallen 
twigs,  and  other  substances,  that  make  up  the  humus  of 
the  soil. 
It  is  pleasing  to  suppose  that  an  inexhaustible  supply 
of  any  plant-food  elements  exist  in  the  soil  in  an  available 
form.  The  mineral  elements  of  fertility  are  contained  in 
the  select  portions  of  the  earth,  but  are  not  always  avail¬ 
able  for  plant  gro’wth,  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  greater 
part  of  the  soil  constituents  are  locked  up  in  an  inert  con¬ 
dition,  in  which  state  they  for  the  most  part  remain,  until 
united  with  a  solvent  supplied  as  manure.  For  example, 
in  one  of  the  experimental  plots  at  Rothampsted,  which  has 
grown  Barley  for  thirty-eight  years  without  the  application 
of  any  manure  whatever,  the  soil  at  the  end  of  that  period 
was  found  on  analysis  to  contain  in  the  top  9in  as  much 
as  36,604lb  of  potash  per  acre,  and  2,503lb  of  phosphoric 
acid  per  acre.  Of  these  very  large  amounts  of  plant  food 
in  the  soil,  only  911b  of  potash  and  139lb  of  phosphoric 
acid  per  acre  was  in  a  soluble  condition  and  available  to 
plants.  The  addition  of  three  hundredweight  of  super¬ 
phosphate  per  acre  to  this  same  soil,  on  an  adjoining 
plot,  increased  the  solubility  of  the  plant  food  to  165lb  of 
potash  per  acre,  and  to  l,170lb  of  phosphoric  acid  per 
acre. 
Having  by  this  manurial  application  brought  the  inert 
mineral  constituents  of  the  soil  into  a  condition  of  solu¬ 
bility,  the  addition  of  nitrogen  in  the  form  of  ammonia  salts 
as  manure  to  this  same  land,  raised  the  produce  to  double 
the  quantity.  These  important  facts  teach  us  that  agri¬ 
cultural  science  comes  to  the  aid  of  the  gardener  and  the 
farmer,  and  furnishes  him  with  means  and  appliances  of 
relief  attainable  in  the  soil  and  in  the  atmosphere  by  which 
he  is  surrounded.  Further,  that  the  chief  office  of  manure 
is  to  furnish  assimilable  food  for  the  immediate  use  of  grow¬ 
ing  crops,  and  that  these  combine  with  and  supplement  the 
natural  fertility  existing  in  the  soil.  When  it  is  said  that 
certain  constituents  of  plant  food  are  lacking,  it  does  not 
always  mean  that  the  soil  does  not  contain  them  ;  but  that 
it  does  not  supply  to  the  growing  plants  as  much  as  they 
need.  It  is  not  so  much,  therefore,  because  soils  have  been 
worn  out  of  plant  food,  but  rather  because  the  food  is 
locked  up  in  such  combinations  that  the  plant  roots  cannot 
get  at  and  use  it,  that  an  artificial  supply  of  soluble  food  in 
manure  becomes  necessary. — J.  J.  Willis,  Harpenden. 
- «•«> - 
Ants. 
Having  seen  a  good  many  disquisitions,  scientific  and  other¬ 
wise,  on  the  ants,  but  no  feasible  remedy,  observes  a  writer  in 
an  exchange,  I  will  .suggest  one  that  will  kill  the  ants.  Mix 
brown  sugar  and  Paris  green  into  a  paste,  and  apply  it  with  a 
brush  along  the  edges  of  benches  and  at.  the  foot  of  the  posts.  If 
this  is  persi.sted  in  it  will  eraaicate  all  ants.  I  don’t  know 
whether  this  remedy  is  original  or  not,  but  it  is  effective. 
Cleansing  Fruit  Trees. 
Though  insects  which  infest  fruit  trees  generally,  and  do  much 
harm  in  the  course  of  the  year,  are  not  so  prominent  at  this  dull 
season,  yet  the  time  is  most  appropriate  to  take  measures  for 
destroying  them,  and  preventing  further  attacks.  The  eggs  and 
larvae  of  the  majority  may  be  found  snugly  ensconced  away  in 
cracks  and  fissures  of  the  bark,  and  angles  of  the  branches.  Good 
work  done  now  in  cleansing  the  bark  and  wood  will  assuredly 
prove  of  much  service.  It  requires  persistent  effort  to  rid  trees, 
old  specimens  especially,  of  many  pe.sts  after  the  latter  become 
firmly  established.  Among  the  worst  are  American  blight,  red 
spider  and  scale  insects,  and  moss  and  lichen  of  fungoid  growth. 
Moss  AND  Lichen. 
These  are  parasitical  growths  which  attach  themselves  to  the 
trunk  and  branches  of  fruit  trees,  and  especially  old  trees  in 
exposed  or  indifferently  drained  positions.  Where  the  latter  is 
the  main  cause,  the  remedy  is,  of  course,  draining  the  ground. 
In  ordinary  circumstances,  however,  the  pest  can  usually  be 
subdued  by  a  thorough  winter  dressing.  First  of  all  remove  the 
thickest  encrustations  by  means  of  a  scraper,  doing  this  when  the 
branches  are  thoroughly  wet,  so  that  it  will  come  off  easier.  Hot 
lime  is  an  excellent  remedy  to  destroy  these  growths,  and  in  bad 
cases  a  mixture  of  lime,  soot,  and  cow  manure  may  form  a  pre¬ 
liminary  dressing  to  all  but  the  smaller  branches,  these  being 
dusted  well  with  fine  lime  on  a.  wet  or  foggy  day. 
Trees  not  so  thickly  coated  with  moss  or  lichen  may  advisedly 
be  dressed  with  a  thinner  solution  of  insecticide,  one  that  can  be 
applied  in  a  thin  spray.  The  best  dressing  for  this  purpose  is 
that  well-known  concoction,  potash  and  soda  solution,  which  is 
made  as  follows  :  — Dissolve  lib  of  caustic  soda  and  lib  of  crude 
commercial  potash  in  hot  water  separately ;  mix,  and  add  more 
hot  water  to  make  ten  gallons  of  solution,  which  may  be  applied 
with  a  spraying  apparatus  at  a  temperature  of  120deg. 
American  Blight. 
This  is  a  dreadful  pest  on  Apple  trees  and  most  difficult  to  get 
rid  of  when  once  firmly  estahlished.  It  is  not  so  much  in  evidence 
at  the  present  time,  but  in  summer  the  white,  cotton-like  cover¬ 
ing  which  hides  the  actual  insects  can  only  he  too  plainly  seen. 
It  is  best  to  attack  these  insects  whenever  seen,  by  applying 
some  fairly  strong  insecticide  direct  upon  them.  The  winter 
season  is,  however,  the  best  time  to.  make  a  thorough  attack  on 
the  nooks  and  crannies  of  the  stems  and  branches  ivhere  the 
insects  are  hidden  away.  A  mixture  formed  of  carbolic  soap,  or 
softsoap  and  petroleum,  will  form  an  excellent  wash. 
Dissolve  the  soap  in  two  gallons  of  hot  w'ater,  11b  of  soap  suf¬ 
ficing.  Then  add  a  gallon  of  petroleum,  first  mixing  this  in  well, 
and  finally  make  up  to  ten  gallons.  Work  the  mixture  while  hot 
into  all  infested  parts.  Gishurst  compound  and  several  other 
proprieta,ry  insecticides  are  valuable  because  of  their  being 
readily  prepared  for  use. 
Red  Spider. 
Much  may  be  done  towards  averting  attacks  of  red  spider  in 
summer  by  dressing  over  the  trees  now.  The  insects  are  very 
small  and  not  easily  discernible,  but  they  may  be  found  in 
colonies  at  the  angles  of  the  stem  and  branches.  The  trunks  and 
larger  branches  may  be  dressed  over  with  soap  and  petroleum 
emulsion,  following  by  spraying  the  whole  trees  or  bushes  with 
the  potash  and  soda  solution.  Wall  trees,  owing  to  their  posi¬ 
tion  and  the  liability  of  the  rooting  medium  to  become  dry,  are 
subject  to  red  spider,  which  is  very  injurious  to  the  foliage  in 
summer.  Sulphur  is  another  good  remedy,  and  a  mixture  of 
this  with  soot  and  softsoap,  thickening  tO‘  the  consistency  of 
paint  with  the  addition  of  clay,  forms  an  ex^llent  dressing  for 
Plums  and  Cherries  on  walls.'  Thorough  moistening  of  the  soil 
in  which  the  roots  ramify  must  also  be  carried  out. 
Scale  and  other  Insects. 
These  adhere  very  closely  to  the  smaller  branches  and  stems 
of  fruit  trees  on  walls  and  in  the  open.  It  is  a  good  plan  to  re¬ 
move  a  number  of  them  with  a  brush  or  a  blunt  scraper  of  wood. 
Then  paint  over  with  a  mixture  of  softsoap,  sulphur,  soot,  and 
lime.  Young  wood  with  buds  must  be  carefully  treated,  working 
so  as  not  to  injure  them  by  drawing  the  brush  upwards. 
Bushes  when  affected  with  the  Black  Currant  bud  mite  have 
the  buds  swollen  to  an  abnormal  size  owing  to  the  presence  of 
the  mites  in  the  buds,  where  they  feed  on  the-  embryonic  leaves 
and  flowers.  The  best  remedy  is  to  pick  off  the  infested  buds 
and  burn  them,  unless  there  are  so  many  that  it  would  necessi¬ 
tate  destroying  them  all,  when,  of  course,  the  whole  bush  or 
bushes  should  be  pulled  up  and  at  once  burnt.  Plant  fresh 
bushes  in  another  situation.  Bushes  which  have  been  cleared  of 
a  small  number  only  of  infested  buds  may  afterwards  be  sprayed 
over  with  a  softsoap,  soda,  and  sulphur  wash,  made  by  dissolving 
in  ten  gallons  of  water  51b  of  softsoap,  4lb  of  caustic  soda,  l^lb  of 
sulphur,  then  boil  thoroughly  for  half  an  hour,  and  add  another 
fifteen  gallons  of  water.  Spray  on  the  bushes  at  a  temperature 
of  90deg. — E.  D.  S. 
