346 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
April  16,  1903. 
building  is  expected  to  be  able  to  suggest  the  most  fitting  pattern 
of  house  for  the  situation,  and  to  suggest  ideas  which  may  never 
occur  to  the  inexperienced  mind. 
With  lean-tos,  hip-spanned,  three-quarter  spanned,  domed, 
angled,  ridge-and-furrow,  curvilinear,  detached  or  semi¬ 
detached,  and  other  designs,  there  is  quite  sufficient  variety  to 
suit  all  requirements.  A  tenant  purchaser  of  a  greenhouse 
should  make  certain  that  it  is  erected  on  sills  as  “  tenant’s 
fixtures.”  This  latter  point  is  ahvays  to  be  attended  to,  unless 
there  exists  a  special  agreement  in  -writing  with  the  landlord, 
who  may  otherwise  claim  everj^  sort  of  glass  house  or  other 
structure  erected  on  his  ground. 
The  figure  of  the  Portable  Building  Company’s  greenliouse  on 
the  preceding  page  is  typical  of  a  good,  useful  house  for  villa 
gardens.  It  is  at  once  ornamental,  stout,  utilitarian,  well-glazed, 
ventilated,  and  properly  equipped.  In  the  purchase  of  glass 
houses  it  is  of  prime  importance  that  the  wood  be  thoroughly 
sound  and  seasoned,  and  serviceable  houses  after  the  pattern  of 
the  one  here  showui,  are  obtainable  for  from  £20  to  £40.  Tlic- 
Portable  Building  Co.,  Ltd.,  whose  headquarters  are  at  Fleet- 
wood,  have  branches  in  a  number  of  leading  cities,  including 
Johannesburg,  Transvaal.  They  design,  erect,  and  instal  heat¬ 
ing  apparatus  in  all  classes  of  plant  and  fruit  structures. 
- ♦«♦»> - 
Young  Gardeners’  Domain.’ 
An  Insight  to  Bothydom. 
Writing  in  reply  to  “B.  U.  ”  in  your  issue  of  the  2nd  inst.,T 
am  sorry  to  find  his  short  experience  should  have  been  such  as  to 
have  such  a  bad  opinion  of  life  in  the  bothy.  In  my  experience  dur¬ 
ing  the  past  twelve  years  of  bothy  life  I  can  honestly  say  I  have 
never  found  the  bully  he  mentions.  The  young  lad  has  his  duties 
to  do  the  same  as  the  foreman,  and  for  my  part  I  think  the  latter 
is  generally  an  upright  man.  Again,  I  think  the  good  friend- 
ship  amongst  gardeners  in  general  speaks  for  itself.  That  the 
bothy  is  the  home  for  the  young  gardener  goes  without  question. 
One  more  question.  What  harm  can  “  B.  U.”  find  in  the  young 
man  who  is  companionable  to  his  fellow-workers,  and  can  join 
in  a  rubber  at  wMst  or  crib  without  neglecting  the  study  of 
books  and  papers?  I  think  “B.  U.”  will  do  well  to  remember 
the  old  adage  already  quoted  that  “  All  work  and  no  play  makes 
Jack  a  dull  boy.”- — A  Bothyite. 
Seeing  the  encouragement  held  out  in  the  “  Young  Gardener’s 
Domain,”  and  the  well-timed  letter  on  “  An  Insight  to  Bothy¬ 
dom,”  by  “  B.  U.,”  page  303,  one  wonders  if  much  of  what  he  says 
could  not  be  remedied.  If  head  gardeners  and  foremen  took  some 
interest  in  their  lads  the  case  would  be  entirely  different  to  that 
described.  Surely  some  such  responsibility  rests-  on  their 
shoulders  ?  Let  them  give  some  advice  to  help  them  in  resisting 
evil,  and  find  them  also  some  healthy  literature,  such  as  placing 
their  gardening  papers  in  the  bothy.  A  lad  is  generally  what 
you  make  him.  But  no,  he  is  expected  to  take  care  of  himself. 
“  He  knows  the  way  about,”  as  the  saying  goes.  It  is  then  he 
takes  to  gaming  rather  than  studying,  and  he  chooses  a  half-day 
off  for  a  cricket  or  football  match  rather  than  a  flower  show 
He  is  also  expected  to  know  as  much  as  his  predecessor,  who  has 
completed  his  probationship,  thougb  most  likely  he  only  came 
from  school,  the  same  a.s  the  writer,  who  w'ell  remembers  the  first 
w'eek  spent  in  the  profession.  I  was  told  to  fetch  a  dozen 
crocked  pots,  and  having  searched,  I  found  five,  so  broke  another 
to  make  what  I  thought  wmuld  be  a  respectable  half-dozen.  I 
told  the  foreman  these  were  all  the  crocked  pots  tO'  be  found — 
but  what  a  look !  (instead  of  showing  me  the  right  way  about 
it !  !  !)  But  that  was  only  one  instance ;  I’ve  been  learning  quite 
such  a  lot  of  “  simple  things  ”  ever  since,  and  now  hold  a  position 
w'hich  I  little  thought  of  when  I  broke  that  pot.  Thanks  to 
having  enjoyed  a  parent’s  guiding  hand  longer  than  the  average 
lad,  I  have  not  seen  so  much  ill-conduct  as  “B.  U.,”  but  have 
taken  to  heart  to  do  as  I  should  like  to  be  done  by,  and  to 
strengthen  such  as  seem  to  require  encouragement. — ^Ckick. 
Like  “  B.  U.”  in  your  issue  of  April  2,  I  am  making  my  first 
attempt  in  writing  to  the  “  Young  Gardeners’  Domain,”  and, 
also  like  ‘‘ B.  U.,”  my  subject  is  “Bothydom.”  I  entered 
“  Bothydom  ”  about  eight  years  ago,  and  am  pleased  to  be  able 
to  say  that  I  never  met  with  such  experiences  as  “B.  U.”  and 
“Gradu's”  relate;  nor  have  I  seen  anyone  so  treated.  I  may 
state  that  I  lived  for  two  and  a  half  years  in,  a  bothy,  in  which 
there  were  six  of  us,  during  which  time  I  never  saw  a  pack  of 
cards  inside  the  door ;  neither  have  I  seen  any  of  the  younger 
ones  made  subject  to  the  bullying,  &c.,  to  which  your  corre¬ 
spondents  refer.  I  take  it  that  “  Gradus  ”  refers  to  the  foreman 
w’hen  he  speaks  of  the  chief  and  morally  culpable  “  isater- 
familias.”  I  have  been  under  four  different  foremen,  and  must 
say  that  all  of  them  were  most  anxious  to  heln  the  younger 
ones  in  the  right  direction,  and  counsel  with  them  when  they 
were  apt  to  stray.  Of  course,  there  are  black  sheep  in  every 
flock  more  or  less,  but  surely  in  a  bothy  of  five  or  six  occupants 
there  wull  be  found  one  or  two  ready  to  take  the  part  of  a  young 
“  bothyite  ”  if  he  is  in  danger  of  being  bullied  or  led  in  a  down¬ 
ward  path.  I  have  ahvays  found  it  so,  at  least.  I  am  one  of  six 
bothyites  in  my  present  situation,  and  am  pleased  to  say  that 
not  one  of  my  companions  bears  any  effects,  or  shows  any  signs, 
due  to  the  influences  of  the  rude  bothy  life  to  w-hich  “  Gradus  ” 
alludes.  As  a  rule,  a  young  man’s  moral  character  is  pretty 
well  moulded  before  he  leaves  the  home  circle ;  but,  leaving 
“  Bothydom  ”  out  of  the  question,  if  he  should  be  one  of  the 
“  w'eak  and  wavering,”  I  would  venture  to  say  gardening  is  no 
occupation  for  him,  as  it  takes  self-reliance  and  firm  resolution 
to  make  a  way  in  such  a  crowded  profession  as  gardening. — 
Eristalis  tenax  or  Drone  Fly. 
Eristalis  tenax,  commonly  known  as  the  drone  fly  because 
it  bears  a  very  close  resemblance  to  a  drone  bee  as  it  sits  on 
the  leaves  of  plants,  lazily  enjoying  the  sunshine ;  and  so  close, 
indeed,  is  the  similitude  that  few  persons  wull  venture  to  touch 
the  insect,  mistaking  it  for  a  veritable  bee  w^ell  known  to  have 
a  sting  in  its  tail.  This,  however,  like  a  drone  bee,  has  no 
sting,  and  few  people 
have  opportunity  of 
handling  the  creature, 
for  when  alarmed  it 
darts  with  astounding 
flight.  The  term  or 
specific  title  of  tenax 
is  given  to  this  fly  on 
account  of  the  tenacity 
with  which  it  grasps 
the  object  on  which  it 
places  its  feet.  Owing 
to  change  of  colour  in 
the  rings  of  the  abdo¬ 
men  it  has  been  given 
Eristalis  te.vax,  or  Dro.ne  Fla'.  the  name  of  Chame¬ 
leon  fly,  but  this  is 
equally  applicable  to  the  Hawk  flies,  or  Syrphidse  generally. 
The  greatest  peculiarity  about  this)  fly  relates  tO'  the  larvae, 
which  lives  amid  decomposing  mud,  and  aids  in  destroying 
noxious  substances  arising  from  them.  The  larvae  is  known 
as  the  red-tailed  maggot,  because  it  possesses  a  long  telescopic 
tube,  which  proceeds  from  the  extremity  of  the  body,  and 
enables  it  to  breathe  atmospheric  air  while  its  body  is  deeply 
sunk  in  the  mud.  If  the  observer  c^uietly  visits  a  spot  in  summer 
where  leaves  and  other  vegetable  and  animal  substances  have 
been  decomposed  into  wet,  soft  mud,  and  wull  examine  the 
surface,  he  will  see  a  number  of  little  thread-like  projections, 
which  will  be  wuthdrawn  as  soon  as  a  heavy  footstep  commu¬ 
nicates  a  shock  to  the  surrounding  earth.  These  are  tubes  of 
the  red-tailed  maggot,  and  the  mud  becomes  agitated.  If  the 
creatures  be  removed,  washed,  and  put  into  a  glass  vial  of  clear 
water,  their  beautiful  structure  can  be  easily  made  out  by  means 
of  a  magnifying  glass,  and  the  changing  colours,  due  to  their 
movements,  have  something  of  the  chameleon  character  to  the 
beholders. 
Meteorological  Observations  at  ChiswicL 
Taken  in  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Gai’dens  at  Chis¬ 
wick,  height  above  sea  level  24  feet. 
Date, 
Direction  of 
Wind. 
Temperature  of  the 
Air. 
Rain. 
Temperature  of 
the  Soil, 
At  9  A.M. 
Lowest 
Temperature 
on  Qrass. 
1903, 
April. 
At  9  A.M. 
Day. 
Night 
At 
1-ft. 
deep. 
At 
2-ft. 
deep. 
At 
4-ft. 
deep. 
Dry 
Bulb. 
Wet 
Bulb. 
49 
m 
(D 
bO 
a 
49 
03 
o 
s 
o 
1-4 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
Ins. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
Sunday  ...  5 
N.W. 
45-9 
40-1 
57-6 
38-5 
— 
47-0 
47-3 
47-3 
30-0 
Monday  ...  6 
W.S.W. 
47-7 
44-1 
55-6 
38-2 
— 
47-0 
47-3 
47-3 
280 
Tuesday...  7 
W.S.W, 
50-4 
46-5 
54-1 
47-8 
— 
492 
47-5 
47-3 
44  0 
■Wed’sday  8 
N.N.E. 
45-2 
39-9 
54-9 
39  2 
47-2 
47-8 
47-4 
30-9 
Thursday  9 
N.N.E. 
45-1 
40-7 
49-3 
40-4 
— 
47-2 
47-7 
47-4 
30-2 
Friday  ...10 
S.W. 
45  2 
42-2 
53-6 
33-2 
— 
461 
47-4 
47-5 
23-1 
Saturday  11 
s.w. 
51-5 
47-2 
51*9 
45-2 
0-03 
47-4 
47-4 
47-6 
40  8 
Total. 
Means  ... 
47-3 
43-0 
53-9 
40  -4 
0  03 
47-3 
47-5 
47-4 
32  4 
A  week  almost  Avithout  rain,  and  dull  Avith  cold  drying  winds. 
