3 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
April  It,  1901. 
Insecticides. 
( Continued  from  page  274.) 
liiME.— Freshly  burned  iinie,  slaked  nith  the  smalle.st  quan¬ 
tity  of  water  necessary  to  cause  fall  into  a  fine  apparently  dry 
powder,  is  a  common  dres.sing  for  land  infested  with  ground 
pe.sts,  the  application  being  made  in  autumn,  or  when  the  ground 
is  clear  of  crops,  at  the  rate  of  8  toms  per  acre,  Icwt  per  rod, 
digging  or  ploughing  under  shortly  afternards. 
Of  its  beneficial  action,  especially  on  old  soils,  ^yhether 
pasture  at  breaking  up,  or  land  long  tilled  and  well  manured,  I 
need  not  enlarge.  Mention  of  air-slaked  lime  as  a  dre.ssing  for 
crops  attacked  l)y  slugs  must  also  suffice,  the  lime  being  applied 
in  the  evening,  and  repeated  as  occasion  require.  Likewise  if 
lime-water,  made  by  placing  a  lump  of  quicklime  about  the  size 
of  the  fist  in  a  pail  of  water,  stirring  and  leaving  forty-eight 
hours,  then  using  the  clear  liquid. 
(1)  For  destroying  sings  at  night  just  after  dark  by  .sprink¬ 
ling  on  with  a  rose  catering  can.  (2)  For  applying  to  roots  of 
plants  affected  by  maggots,  giving  as  much  as  in  an  ordinary 
watering.  Then  there  is  the  limewash,  a  great  thing  for  white¬ 
washing  walls  or  boards  of  gla.ss  hoirses,  also  trunks  and  large 
branches  of  trees,  the  lime  being  fre,shly  burned  and  made  into 
a  wash  readily  applied  by  means  of  a  brush,  hot  water  or  cold 
being  used.  A  lime  spray  made  in  a  similar  manner,  only 
thinner  and  .strained  .so  as  to  be  applicable  by  means  of  a  syringe 
to  the  whole  of  a  hmsli  or  tree  until  appearing  as  if  white¬ 
washed,  is  grand  for  addling  eggs,  killing  larvae,  hybernating 
pests,  overgrowths  of  lichen  and  moss  being  annihilated,  and 
birds  prevented  from  eating  the  blossom  buds. 
Methylated  Spirit. 
This  is  spirits  of  wine  to  which  imperfectly  purified  wood 
naphtha  in  the  proportion  of  one-tenth  has  been  added.  It  is 
an  excellent  remedy  for  all  the  scale  iirsects,  including  mealy 
iuig,  being  applied  by  means  of  a  .small  brush  to  the  infected 
parts,  just  a  drop  sufficing  for  a  cluster  of  mealy  bug.  It  is 
also  efficacious  for  woolly  aphis  in  Apple  trees. 
Paraffin  Oil  or  Petroleum. 
This  is  well  known  as  a  volatile  inflammable  liquid  obtained 
l)y  distilling  the  crude  petroleum  oi'  kerosine  from  the  oil  wells 
of  America  and  elsewhere.  It  is  poisonous  to  insects,  and  also 
injurious  to  plants,  yet  ranks  as  the  most  important  of  insecti¬ 
cides  for  sucking  in.sects.  In  pure  state  it  is  seldom  used,  though 
occasionally  emxiioyed  in  a  very  fine  spray,  and  extremely  lightly 
for  dressing  Turnips  to  keep  off  and  kill  Turnip  fly. 
Gardeners  also  sometimes  use  petroleum  in  ordinary  state 
for  freeing  plants  or  Vines  from  mealy  bug,  a  winegla.ssful  being 
placed  in  a  vessel  containing  Sgalls  or  Igalis  of  water,  and  the 
petroleum  forced  into  the  water,  either  by  one  person  syringing 
into  the  ve,s.sel  whilst  another  applies  it  to  the  plant,  or  by  the 
operator  alternating  syringefuls  into  the  vessel  and  over  the 
plant.  The  thus  pure  paraffin  oil  is  distributed  in  very  small 
amount,  and  not  much  if  any  damage  is  done  to  mature  leafage. 
It,  however,  requires  to  be  iLsed  with  great  care  in  the  pure 
state,  therefore,  is  most  frequently  n.sed  when  emulsified. 
The  preparation  of  paraffin  oil  emnlsion  is  very  varied.  The 
oil  readily  amalgamates  with  softsoap  solution,  or  even  with 
that  of  hard  soap,  but  the  soft.soap  emulsion  is  probably  the 
best.  For  home  use  Ijlb  of  softsoap  may  be  di.ssolved  in  a 
gallon  of  water  by  boiling,  and  on  removing  fi'oin  the  fire  add 
one  pint  of  paraffin  oil  and  .stir  briskly,  or  better,  churn  with 
a  small  hand  .syringe  until  thoroughly  amalgamated  or 
emulsified.  This  may  be  diluted  with  five  to  ten  times  its  volume 
of  water  for  use,  according  to  different  insects  and  foliage,  the 
stronger  for  mature  foliage  and  hard-bodied  insects,  and  the 
v'eaker  for  tender  foliage  and  soft-bodied  insects. 
(To  be  continued.) 
• - - 
The  Bee-keeper. 
The  Stewarton  Hive. 
I  have  to  thank  “  E.  E.”  for  his  further  remarks;  but  how 
am  I  to  raise  young  queens  if  I  have  made  up  my  mind  to  pre¬ 
vent  swarming,  and  work  in  the  lines  alreadv  advocated  bv 
“  E.  E  ”  Hexagonal. 
Pupchasingr  Bees. 
Buying  bees  is  like  buying  a  hor.se,  it  requires  a  jierson  of 
experience  to  give  assistance  and  advice,  or  you  may  be  sadly 
cheated.  Some  years  ago  an  acquaintance  of’  mine  believed  I 
knew  all  about  a  horse,  for  he  asked  me  to  give  him  some 
wrinkles  in  hoi’se  buying.  I  simply  said,  “  Find  out  a  man 
accustomed  to  horses,  and  pay  him  to  buy  one.”  The  same 
holds  good  in  the  case  of  bees. 
When  some  persons  have  attended  a  few  lectures  on  bees, 
they  are  anxious  to  commence  bee-keeping,  and  often  on  a 
large  scale.  The  lot  for  sale  which  is  first  heard  of  after  deter¬ 
mining  to  become  a  bee-keeper  is  bought,  and  disaster  perhaps 
follows.  The  man  is  disheartened,  everything  sold  at  a  loss, 
and  he  swears  that  the  bee  lecturer  was  an  arch  deceiver.  Per¬ 
haps  tlie  colonies  were  weak,  or  had  insufficient  stores,  or  worst 
of  all,  they  were  disea.sed.  All  novices  should  make  a  small 
lieginning.  If  the  bees  are  for  sale  in  the  autumn  get  a 
reliable  person  to  examine  them,  and  to  give  yon  an  idea  of 
their  value.  If  in  the  spring  yon  decide  to  commence,  then  it 
would  be  well  to  buy  a  large  swarm — a  skepfui. — Hybla. 
The  Weather, 
Notes  on  the  meteorological  obseiwations  at  Newton  Mearns, 
N.B.  (300  feet  above  sea  level)  for  three  months — January, 
Eehruary,  and  March,  1904. 
The  first  three  months  of  1904  has  been  a  period  in  which 
rain  has  been  lielow  the  average.  There  have  been  fewer  storms 
than  usual,  arid  in  the  month  of  March  the  wind  never  rose  once 
to  a  force  of  a  strong  gale.  The  sunshine  was  irreatly  deficient 
in  the  first  two  months,  but  thei’e  was  a  considerable  improve¬ 
ment  in  the  third  month,  so  that  the  season  so  far  as  it  has  gone, 
shows  a  decided  tendency  towards  more  sunshine,  less  rain,  and 
greater  warmth  than  fell  to  our  lot  last  year.  The  rainfall  for 
the  three  months  recorded  at  Pollokcastle,  Newton  Mearns,  are 
here  given,  along  with  tho.se  of  the  corresponding  months  of 
1903,  which  will  lie  very  intore.sting  to  your  readers  ; — 
1904.  1903. 
.Tamiary . 6-35pn.  .Jariuny . 9'32in. 
February  ..  ..  ..  ..  3  84Jin.  l-'eb.u  ry  . ll'53iii. 
]\I  rch  . 2'59pn.  Warrli . ll-55iiu. 
Total  ..  12-7.  .tin.  Total  ..  32'4'?lin. 
-N.  R. 
Weather  in  Penthshine. 
The  finst  ten  days  of  April  have  been  extemely  unpleasant. 
Almost  incessant  high  winds  have  prevailed,  I'ising,  as  on  the 
mornings  of  the  (ith  and  9th,  to  a  gale.  Very  heavy  rain 
showers  have  been  frequent  during  both  day  and  night,  and  out¬ 
door  work  has  been  brought  to  a  stand.  Saturday  was  perhap.s 
the  most  tempestuous  day  for  many  months,  pelting  showers  of 
sleet  and  hail  following  in  close  succe.ssion.  Monday  was  calmer, 
with  a  good  deal  of  sunshine. — B.  D.,  S.  Perthshire. 
The  Weather  at  Hamilton,  N.B. 
It  is  hard  to  make  Ijondoners,  who  have  been  basking  in 
sunshine  I  believe  for  .some  time,  understand  the  difference 
between  the  two  districts  separated  by  such  a  comparatively 
short  distance.  Yet  we  here  have  not  had  weather  enough  to 
engage  in  any  important  garden  work  in  March  ;  certainly  not 
to  undertake  seed  sowing  on  a  large  .scale.  The  tempest  of  to¬ 
day  and  yesterday,  assisted  with  the  indifferent  quality  of  the 
greater  part  of  this  year’s  seeds,  should  indeed  seal  the  doom 
of  what  seeds  are  in.  The  wind  and  rain  to-day,  April  2,  are 
phenomenal.  The  wind  is  blowing  with  the  force  of  a  gale,  and 
the  rain  (cold,  sleety  rain)  is  falling  in  sheets.  Fields  and 
ploughed  land  have  their  myriads  of  lakelets.  Ye.sterday  the 
elements  in  turn  pelted  rain,  hail,  and  snow;  there  were  also 
some  peals  of  thundei-.  Yes,  truly,  this  part  of  the  country  has 
experienced  a  far  worse  spring  than  last  year,  bad  as  it  really 
was.  No  seeds  ai’e  in  the  ground,  and  the  precious  .season  is 
flitting  by  as  stealthily  as  a  ghost. — D.  C.,  Hamilton. 
Maneh  Weather  at  Be-lvoir  Castfe,  1904. 
The  prevailing  direction  of  the  wind  was  north-east,  total 
8  days.  The  total  rainfall  was  1.98in.  This  fell  on  23  days, 
and  is  0.42in  above  the  average  for  the  month  ;  the  greatest 
daily  fall  was  0.28in  on  the  28th.  Barometer  (corrected  and 
reduced)  :  highest  reading  30.431in  on  the  23rd  at  9  p.m.  ; 
lowest,  29.242in  on  the  29th  at  9  p.m.  Thermometers:  highe.st 
in  the  shade  b8deg  on  the  20th  ;  lowest  23deg  on  the  iz,cn  ;  mean 
of  daily  maxima,  4.5.45deg ;  mean  of  daily  minima,  32.58deg ; 
mean  temperature  of  the  month  39.01deg,  which  is  2.67deg 
below  the  average ;  lowest  on  the  grass  18deg  on  the  12th ; 
highest  in  the  sun  102deg  on  the  19th;  mean  temperature  of 
the  earth  at  3ft,  39.G4deg.  Total  sunshine,  uo  hours,  which  is 
9hrs  8min  below  the  average  ;  there  were  9  sunless  days.  Every¬ 
thing  here  is  very  late  in  coming  into  flower  this  spring.  Fruit 
trees  are  showing  blos.som  buds  abundantly,  and  being  so  late 
we  hope  they  will  escape  injury  by  frost  this  season.  The  first 
Apricot  flowei's  opened  on  March  2G,  thirty  days  later  than 
last  year!  — W.  H.  DiyERS. 
:\[r.  Chas.  IMason,  C.E.,  a  director  of  iMe.ssrs.  Foster  and 
Pear.son,  Limited,  Horticultural  and  Heating  Engineer.s,  of 
Beeston,  Notts,  has  been  elected  a  member  of  the  sub-committee 
of  the  Engineering  Standards  Committee  now  meeting  at  W  est¬ 
minster  to  discuss  the  question  with  relation  to  cast-ii'on  pipe? 
1  for  heating,  ventilation,  and  drainage. 
