July  9.  1903. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
43 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should  be  directed 
to  “  The  Editok,”  12,  Mitre  Court  Chambers,  Fleet  Street, 
London,  E.C.  It  is  requested  that  no  one  will  write  privately 
to  any  of  our  correspondents,  seeking  information  on  matters 
discussed  in  this  Journal,  as  doing  so  subjects  them  to  unjustifiable 
trouble  and  expense. 
BOOK  ON  “INSECT  PESTS  OF  FRUIT  TREES”  (J.  S. 
and  Co.). — We  can  recommend  the  “Handbook  of  Orchard  and 
Bush  Fruit  Insects,”  by  the  late  E.  A.  Ormerod,  price  3s.  6d., 
from  Simpkin,  Marshall,  Hamilton,  Kent,  and  Co.,  Ltd.,  London. 
THE  LAW  WITH  REGARD  TO  CUTTING  TREES,  Ac. 
(Twenty-six  Yea^rs’  Reader). — The  principle  of  law  is  that  “  rvho- 
ever  has  the  soil  he  has  all  right,  even  to  the  heaven  ”  :  that  is, 
he  can  deal  with  everything  that  comes  across  his  boundary 
line,  and  at  whatever  height.  Hence  yon  may  cut  down  a  tree 
leaning  from  jmur  neighbour’s  property  across  your  boundary 
line,  provided  you  keep  well  viihin  your  own  boundary.  If, 
hoAvever^  you  have  a  litigious  neighbour,  and  exceed  your  limit 
by  a  hair’s  breadth,  you  may  become  involved  in  an  action  for 
trespass.  It  would  be  better  to  give  your  neighbour  notice  in 
writing  of  the  nuisance  his  tree  is  causing,  and  a-sk  him  to  abate 
it  himself,  before  proceeding  to  t»xtremities. 
GRAPES  SHANKING  (A.  C.  B.).— As  the  Wnes  have  only 
been  planted  two  years  we  should  lift  them  after  the  crop  is  cut, 
and  place  the  roots  nearer  the  .surface  in  good  loam  with  woocl 
ashes  and  crushed  bones  mixed  therewith,  draining  the  border 
well,  and  surfacing  with  manure.  Placing  strong,  fresh  manure 
in  contact  with  the  roots  and  making  it  like  a  puddle,  as  you 
appear  to  have  done  with  .syringing,  would  cause  the  roots  to 
decay  and  the  Grapes  to  shank.  As  your  house  is  only  small,  you 
could  easily  sponge  the  uuder  surfaces  of  the  leaves  with  a  mix¬ 
ture  of  softsoap  and  .sulphur.  Beat  some  sulphur  into  a  paste, 
then  mix  it  with  the  solution,  which  may  be  made  by  dissolving 
2oz  of  softsoap  in  a  gallon  of  water.  This  applied  to  the  leaves 
as  suggested  and  left  there  for  three  days  will  destroy  the  red 
spider.  The  mixture  should  be  of  the  consistence  of  cream  when 
used. 
MELON  DECAYING  (B.  E.).- — The  Melon  is  affected  by  the 
brown  rot  fungus  (Monilia  fructigena),  and  is  perhaps  the  first 
recorded  instance  of  its  affecting  Melons  at  the  semi-ripening 
stage.  The  affection  has  evidently  taken  place  at  the  eye  of 
the  fruit,  there  causing  a  brownish  discolouration  in  the  rind,  and 
the  outgrowths  of  the  fungus  are  very  pronounced  in  the  netting, 
where  the  aerial  hyphse  has  issued  and  produced  an  innumerable 
number  of  spores.  In  one  place  there  is  quite  a  large  patch  of 
the  outgrowths,  become  as  usual  flesh  coloured,  and  in  parts 
black,  these  corresponding  to  the  sclerotia  by  which  the  disease 
passes  over  from  year  to  year  in  some  cases,  not  in  all,  as  mum¬ 
mified  fruits  of  Apples,  Pears,  or  Plums  remaining  on  trees 
on  ground  give  rise  to  eonidia  in  the  spring,  by  which  the 
disease  is  continued.  We  hope  to  be  favoured  with  an  illustra¬ 
tion  of  the  disease  in  3’our  fruit,  and  further  particulars  of  the 
fungUs  shortly. 
SUPERPHOSPHATE  OF  LIME  (T.  J.).— It  is  more  useful 
as  a  manure  than  bones,  because  it  is  more  soluble  than  water. 
If  ye  bur^'  a  bone  it  will  remain  almost  unaltered  for  years ;  but 
if  we  break  it  into  small  pieces  it  decays  much  sooner,  and  if  put 
round  the  roots  of  Cabbages  will  soon  make  them  grow  more  fine 
and  vigorously.  Cabbages,  however,  are  not  the  only  garden 
vegetables  benefited  by  bone  manure,  for  phosphate  of  lime  is 
one  of  the  most  constant  constituents  of  all  plants.  OT  this- 
phosphate,  therefore,  the  soil  is  deprived  by  every  crop  it  bears, 
and  to  restore  this  phosphate  to  the  .soil  is  an  object  with  ever^’ 
cultivator.  It  was  long  .since  shown  bj^  chemists  that  phosphate 
of  lime  is  the  chief  ingredient  in  all  bones,  and  consequently  these 
by  degrees  have  become  one  of  the  mo.st  extensivel.v  used 
manures.  In  everj'  1001b  of  .''beep’s  bones  there  are  701b  of 
phosphate  of  lime;  in  1001b  of  horses’  bones. sixty-eight  of  that 
phosphate;  and  in  the  same  (juantity  of  ox  bones  oolb.  As 
phosphate  of  lime  is  insoluble  in  water,  and  even  bone  dust  is 
slow  in  decaying,  it  was  suggested  that  bj’  dissolving  it  in  a 
strong  acid,  superphosphate  of  lime,  a  substance  soluble  in  water 
would  be  formed,  and  also  all  the  other  constituents  of  the  bone 
be  presented  to  the  roots  of  the  crop  in  a  most  available  form. 
This  process  is  said  to  have  been  fir.«t  adopted  by  Mr.  Fleming, 
of  Borrochan.  N.B.,  in  the  year  1841.  He  employed  muriatic 
acid  (spirit  of  salt)  to  dissolve  the  bones,  but  it  was  subsequently 
found  that  sxdpliuric  acid  (oil  of  vitriol)  was  both  cheaper  and 
better. 
C-\TERPILLAR  ON  LIME  (R.C.).— The  cat,  rpillar  is  that 
of  the  Lime  Hawk  moth  (Smeristhus  Tilise)  about  half  grown.  It 
is  not  a  common  insect,  but  occurs  in  many  localities,  some  near 
the  metropolis.  It  is  distinguished  from  its  brethren  in  the 
family  by  a  curious  horn.v  plate  above  the  tail.  The  food  i.s  also 
Elm  "as  well  as  Lime,  and  after  the  winter  has  been  passed  in 
the  pupal  condition  the  moth  emerges  about  the  beginning  of 
June  and  flies  vigorously  at  dusk. 
CYCAS  FRUITS  (J.). — A  kind  of  Sago  is  produced  from  tho 
pith  of  Cycas  revoluta  in  Japan,  and  the  nuts  are  edible.  (.1. 
circinalis  also  3’ields  Sago,  and  the  fruits,  which  are  of  the  size 
of  an  Orleans  Plum,  are  eaten  in  the  Moluccas  after  being  fer¬ 
mented  and  roasted.  We  mu.st  decline  the  responsibility  of 
advising  you  on  the  question  of  exhibiting  .your  fruit  in  a  col¬ 
lection  for  dessert  purposes,  as  there  is  no  telling  whether  tho 
judges  would  disqualify  or  not,  as,  so  far  as  we  know,  they  have 
no  precedent  to  guide  them  in  the  matter. 
NAMES  OF  PLANTS. — Correspondents  loliose  queries  are  un¬ 
answered  in  the  vresent  issue  are  res'pectfully  requested  to  consult  the 
folloicing  number,  (A.  F.). — 1,  Brodiiea  laxa;  2,  Allium  moly ;  3, 
Dianthus  petrreus  ;  4,  Polygonum  saeehaliense.  (A.  W.). — Erigerbn 
philadelphicus.  (H.  J.,  York). — Alyssum  maritimum  (the  Sweet 
Alyssum). 
- - 
Meteorological  Obseryations  at  CWsiici. 
Taken  in  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Gardens  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  Grass,  - - 
1903. 
June 
and 
July. 
At  9 
A.M. 
Day. 
Night 
At 
1-ft. 
deep. 
At 
2-ft. 
deep. 
At 
4-ft. 
deep. 
Dry 
Bulb. 
Wet 
Bulb. 
■ts 
CO 
0) 
tt} 
5 
0 
0 
J 
Sunday  ...28 
Monday  ...29 
Tuesday  ...30 
Wed’sday  1 
Thursday  2 
Friday  ...  3 
Saturday  4 
S.W. 
W.N.W. 
W,N.W. 
W.8.W. 
S.E. 
w.s.w. 
w. 
deg. 
74.7 
64-7 
66.5 
64-9 
74.7 
65  4 
€2-2 
deg. 
66  5 
57-0 
56  9 
57-0 
61-5 
56-0 
53-6 
deg. 
84'7 
72  5 
73-4 
77-2 
81-7 
69- 5 
70- 5 
deg. 
58-9 
54-5 
52  5 
51-8 
50-3 
58-8 
49-5 
Ins. 
deg. 
65- 8 
66- 3 
65-8 
65-3 
65- 5 
66- 3 
64-5 
deg. 
59- 5 
60- 8 
61- 3 
61-6 
61-8 
62- 0 
62-0 
deg 
54  6 
55  0 
55- 5 
559 
56- 2 
56  6 
56-8 
deg. 
52-i 
48-4 
44-6 
43-8 
4M 
52-1 
42-0 
Means  ... 
67-6 
58*4 
t  ■ 
75-6 
53'8 
Total. 
65-6 
61-3 
55-8  ^ 
46-3  ■ 
A  week  of  bright  sunshine  with  drying  winds. 
The  “Royal”  Show:  The  Inevitable. 
To  prophesy  after  the  event  is  to  put  oneself  outside  the 
pale  of  the  true  seer.  We  never  had  that  faith  in  cheerful 
prognostications  of  some  of  our  fellows,  and'  we  felt  we 
could  not  join  with  them  in  their  bright  visions  of  a  suc¬ 
cessful  “Royal.”  We  have  been  doubtful  about  the  move¬ 
ment  from  the  first.  Well  aware  as  we  were  that  the  exhi¬ 
bitions  were  carried  on  at  a  loss,  we  could  suggest  no 
scheme,  recommend  no  panacea,  but  we  felt  that  the  estab¬ 
lishment  of  a  permanent  show  ground  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  the  metropolis  was  a  step  in  the  wrong  direction.  We 
wish  to  be  distinctly  understood ;  we  do  not  think  the 
acquisition  of  the  property  to  have  been  a  mistake,  for 
possibly  it  will  turn  out  a  valuable  asset  ;  but  Avhat  we 
think  is  the  mistake  is  the  confining  of  the  show  to  one 
neighbourhood  year  after  year,  and  that  neighbourhood  not 
an  agricultural  one — essentially,  we  may  say,  a  “  desirable 
residential  district.  ’  '  .  j  ,  i. 
We  always  understood-  one  great  object  of  the  show  was 
education — to  show  to  the  untaught  and  uninitiated,  by 
means  of  a  huge  object  lesson,  what  were  the  best-  and 
highest  types  of  all  the  endless  varieties  of  live  stock, 
brought  together  by  the  most  celebrated  breeders,  and  exhi- 
