JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
July  23,  1903 
i  A 
flowers  are  not  seriously  injured  ;  but  the  bite  disfigures 
them.  Again,  on  the  other  side  we  note  that  the  humble 
bee,  if  less  important  than  the  hive  species,  is  designed  by 
Nature  to  aid  in  the  fertilisation  of  many  flowers.  Even 
out  of  this,  though,  may  arise  a  grievance,  since  some  say 
that  by  their  indiscriminate  scattering  of  pollen  bees  damage 
the  strain  of  choice  varieties.  The  sagacity  of  these  insects 
may  well  excite  our  admiration  when  we  watch  their  doings. 
For  instance,  we  may  see  several  humble  bees  standing  in 
line  ;  one  of  them  is  carding  fragments  of  moss,  which  he 
passes  to  another,  and  the  moss  is  sent  on  thus  to  the  nest. 
Sometimes  a  gardener  finds  at  early  morn  a  humble  bee 
sleeping  in  a  flower,  perhaps  having  been  out  late  and  lost 
h.s  latchkey.  Still  more  frequent  is  a  species  which  is 
actually  called  the  sleeper  bee  (Chelostoma  florisomne), 
which  reposes  with  its  head  pushed  in  as  far  as  possible. 
It  exhibits  powerful  and  conspicuous  jaws,  hence  the  generic 
name.  By  means  of  these  it  bores  holes  in  posts  and 
palings,  placing  its  eggs  within  tunnels. 
How  diverse  the  habits  of  bees  are  the  names  given  to 
them  show.  We  have  masons,  carpenters,  upholsterers,  and 
leaf-cutters ;  these  are  not  social,  but  solitary.  Many  of 
them  come  into  gardens  to  get  materials,  even  if  their  work 
is  elsewhere.  Bees  are  sometimes  responsible  for  pieces 
taken  out  of  leaves  which  look  like  the  nibbling  of  cater¬ 
pillars  on  Roses,  Lilacs,  and  Willows  especially.  Most  of 
these  “  busy  bees  ”  are  small,  yet  observable,  as  they  have 
not  the  shyness  of  some  insects.  The  bee  that  snips  our 
Roses  to  make  its  leaf  nest,  stored  with  pollen  and  honey  for 
its  progeny,  is  Megachile  Willoughbiana ;  it  is  black  bodied 
but  covered  with  brownish  down,  the  males  having  fore 
legs  dilated  and  fringed.  An  allied  species  is  handsomer, 
showing  yellow  spots  in  head,  legs,  and  body.  It  is  Anthi- 
dium  inanicatum,  prefers  woolly  leaves  to  line  its  burrow, 
which  is  a  hole,  found  or  made,  in  the  ground  if  need  be. 
Some  of  the  Osmias  bore  into  garden  posts  or  other  wooden 
objects — pretty  little  bees.  A  familiar  one  is  O.  bicornis  ; 
the  female  has  curiously  curved  horns,  the  male  bee  lacks 
these ;  but  both  sexes  are  hairy,  head  and  thorax  brownish, 
the  body  black. 
Many  gardens,  particularly  in  the  South  of  England,  are 
visited  by  the  sand  wasps,  elegant  and  lively  insects,  which 
we  may  well  regard  with  favour,  because  they  are  often 
serviceable  to  us.  A  good  example  is  the  common  species 
called  Ammophila  sabulosa,  a  delicately  formed  insect,  with 
long  spiny  legs.  It  is  a  diligent  hunter  of  small  caterpillars, 
which  are  carried  one  by  one  to  the  burrow  on  some  dry 
bank.  With  each  an  egg  is  placed,  the  burrow  being  then 
closed  by  little  pebbles.  Another  of  these  sand  lovers  is  the 
hairy  species,  A.  viatica,  which  Mr.  Howitt  has  fully 
described  from  many  observations  in  his  Surrey  garden. 
This  insect  stows  away  grey  spiders  for  its  young,  and 
captures  then  successfully,  being,  he  says,  “all  velocity  and 
fire.”  With  each  spider  one  or  more  eggs  are  placed,  and 
the  hole  is  carefully  filled  up  ;  more  than  that,  the  wasp 
finishes  it  off,  so  as  to  leave  on  the  ground  no  sign  of  it. 
A  common  insect  akin  to  the  preceding,  black,  banded 
and  spotted  with  yellow,  is  Mellinus  arvensis.  It  comes 
about  our  gardens  in  May,  seeking  flies,  and  though  not 
rapid  in  movement,  succeeds  in  taking  them  by  artifice. 
Another  May  insect  of  this  tribe  is  a  good  friend  of  ours, 
pretty  and  useful,  having  a  large  head,  long  legs,  and  slim 
body.  This  is  Mimesa  bicolor;  seeks  for  prey  the  detest¬ 
able  cuckoo-spit,  and  contrives  to  drag  this  from  its  frothy 
envelopment. 
Then  to  the  same  order  belong  the  hosts  of  Ichneumon 
flies,  various  species  of  which  abound  from  the  spring  till 
late  in  autumn.  They  deposit  eggs  upon  other  insects,  and 
especially  upon  caterpillars,  whose  numbers  are  greatly 
reduced  through  their  agency.  Some  have  brightly 
coloured  bodies ;  the  wings  often  large  and  beautifully 
veined,  are  remarkably  nimble,  yet  strong.  Some  of  them 
are  vocal,  the  yellow  Ophion,  for  instance.  Not  unfrequently 
this  insect  enters  our  houses  during  the  summer,  flying  up¬ 
wards  with  force.  It  is  an  inch  long,  having  a  sickle-shaped 
abdomen. 
The  cuckoo  bees  are  a  remarkable  family,  parasitic  in 
the  nests  of  other  bees,  social  or  solitary.  Some  of  them 
have  been  called  wasp  bees,  their  nearly  bare  bodies  and 
wasp-like  adornment  of  black,  red,  and  yellow,  suggested 
the  name.  These  belong  to  the  genus  Nomads.  There  are 
also  exceedingly  pretty  species  of  Melecto,  more  or  less 
glossy  black,  but  with  stripes  upon  the  body  of  creamy  or 
yellow  down. — Entomologist. 
Good  Potato  Crop. 
Some  of  the  early  crops  of  Potatoes  have  been  got  in,  and  the- 
yield  has  been  a  good  one,  averaging  five  to  six  tons  to  the  acre.. 
Moisture  is  now  wanted  by  the  main  crops. 
Edinburgh  Women’s  School  of  Gardening. 
Misses  Morrison  and  Barker  have  removed  their  School  of 
Gardening  for  Women  from  Inveresk  to  Corstorphine,  their 
grounds  adjoining  the  new  nursery  of  John  Downie  at  Belgrave 
Park. 
"Underground  Irrigation.” 
This  is  part  title  of  a  pamphlet  by  John  Grant.  The  full  title 
of  the  little  work  is  “  Underground  Irrigation  in  the  British  Isles-- 
and  in  India,”  and  is  to  be  had  from  the  author,  8,  Belmont 
Grove,  Lee,  Kent,  on  receipt  of  Is.  Drainage,  rather  than  irri¬ 
gation,  is  required  in  the  British  Islands. 
Appointments. 
Mr.  Wm.  Jas.  Penton,  for  .six  years  head  gardener  and  Orchid 
grower  at  Bowden  Hill,  Chippenham,  has  been  appointed  head 
gardener  and  instructor  at  Studley  Castle,  in  connection  with 
The  Lady  Warwick  Hostel,  now  removing  fro'm  Reading,  and 
commences  his  duties  on  August  the  6th  inst.  *  *  Mr.  Mark 
Huntley,  for  the  past  four  and  a  half  years  general  foreman  in 
the  gardens  at  Normanswood,  Farnham,  has  been  appointed  head 
gardener  to  The  Lady  Muriel  Paget,  Dower  House,  North  Cray, 
Kent,  and  commences  his  duties  on  September  the  28th  inst. 
*  *  Mr.  W.  Page,  late  of  Kew,  as  Orchid  grower  to  G.  F. 
Moore,  Esq.,  Chardwar,  Burton-on-the-Water,  Gloucester. 
Notts  Horticultural  and  Botanical  Exhibition. 
This  society  held  its  summer  show  in  the  grounds  of  the  Not¬ 
tingham  Arboretum  on  Wednesday  and  Thursday,  the  15th  and 
16th  inst.  The  entries  were  in  excess  of  last  season,  plants  and 
cut  blooms  being  well  represented,  but  on  account  of  the  adverse 
sason,  outdoor  fruits  and  vegetables  (with  the  exception  of  Peas) 
were  poorly  represented.  For  a  group  of  plants  200  super  feet 
there  were  four  exhibits,  the  first  prize  having  again  been  secured 
by  Mr.  J.  Thompson,  gardener  to  the  executors  of  the  late  G.  R. 
Turner,  Esq.,  of  Derby,  the  leading  feature  being  the  highly 
coloured,  single-stemmed  Crotons,  faultless  in  shape,  and  quite 
8ft  in  height.  Mr.  Wagg,  gardener  to  W.  E.  Denison,  Esq., 
Ossington  Hall,  secured  the  second  place,  and  Mr.  W.  Vause,  of 
Leamington,  the  third,  the  competition  between  the  second  and 
third  group  being  very  close.  In  the  smaller  group  of  120  super 
feet,  for  which  five  prizes  were  offered,  there  w’as  only  one  entry. 
In  the  different  classes  for  stove  and  greenhouse  plants,  most 
of  the  prizes  were  secured  by  Mr.  A.  Vause,  of  Leamington.  In 
the  class  for  one  specimen  Fern  the  first  award  was  secured  by 
Mr.  Orgill,  of  Nottingham,  with  a  specimen  Nephrolepis 
exaltata  (Aspidium)  quite  7ft  in  diameter.  Collections  of  out¬ 
door  cut  flowers  w’ere  well  represented,  the  first  place  being 
secured  by  Mrs.  T.  Rothera,  Burton  Joyce,  with  a  clean,  well- 
growm  collection  of  most  of  the  leading  herbaceous  plants,  inter¬ 
spersed  wdth  Roses  and  annuals.  Sweet  Peas  -were  a  strong 
class,  Mr.  F.  M.  Bradley,  of  Peterboro’,  secured  the  first  award. 
A  gold  medal  was  awarded  to  Mr.  Goodacre  for  a  splendid  collec¬ 
tion  of  Malmaison  Carnations  in  pots. 
The  following  awards  were  made  for  trade  exhibits :  —Gold 
medals:  Messrs.  C.  J.  Mee  and  Son,  for  a  collection  of  foliage 
plants ;  Mr.  J.  H.  White,  Worcester,  for  an  exhibit  of  herbaceous 
flowers.  Silver  medals :  Mr.  F.  M.  Bradley,  Peterboro’,  for  am 
exhibit  of  Carnations  and  Sweet  Peas;  Mr.  W.  L.  Patterson, 
Shrewsbury,  for  a  collection  of  Pansies  and  Violas;  Mr.  W. 
Waters,  Birmingham,  for  a  collection  of  Violas;  Miss  A.  Stanley, 
Manchester,  for  a  display  of  skeletonised  leaves.  Bronze  medal: 
Mr.  W.  Bardill,  Stapleford,  for  Nectarines  in  pots.  The  best 
trade  exhibit  in  the  show  was  a  splendid  collection  of  Rose.s 
staged  by  Messrs.  J.  Merry  weather  and  Sons,  Limited,  South- 
well,  which  must  have  been  inadvertently  overlooked  by  the 
judges  when  making  their  awards. 
