254 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
deptembor  10,  1903. 
the  points  and  tied  over  the  hearts,  but  the  more  effectual 
methods  are  inverting  pots,  or  laying  slates  over  the  plants. 
The  exclusion  of  light  soon  brings  them  to  the  desired  state  of 
perfection,  so  a  few  plants  only,  according  to  the  demand,  ought 
to  be  dealt  with  at  once. 
TURNIPS. — A  liberal  sowing  of  seed  may  be  made  now  in 
rows  nine  inches  apart.  The  ground  should  be  moderately  rich 
and  well  |}ulverised,  working  some  wood  ashes  into  the  surface. 
Form  shallow  drills  with  the  back  of  the  rake,  and  sow  the  seed 
thinly.  Seedlings  from  former  sowings  must  be  thinned  as  soon 
a.s  possible,  carrying  out  the  operation  at  several  times  until  the 
plants  stand  at  a  reasonable  distance  apart. 
BEANS. — Scarlet  Runner  Beans  will  continue  to  produce 
pods  so  long  as  those  of  a  useable  size  are  picked,  and  not  allowed 
to  remain  to  develop  and  produce  seed.  Of  course,  where  depen¬ 
dence  is  placed  upon  home-saved  seed  an  adequate  number  of  pods 
should  be  left  for  the  purpose.  Beans  being  gross  feeders,  the 
ground  on  which  they  are  growing  soon  becomes  impoverished  of 
food  and  moisture.  Plenty  of  water  and  liquid  manure  ought, 
therefore,  to  be  supplied  now,  laying  down  some  manure  as  a 
mulching.  On  this  the  liquid  food  may  be  poured,  as  it  serves 
well  to  convey  the  moisture,  and  also  shades  the  soil,  preventing 
it  being  hard  baked  by  the  sun. 
LATE  PEAS. — Healthy  and  vigorous  rows  of  late  varieties 
should  be  kept  in  that  desirable  condition  by  affording  a  mulch¬ 
ing  of  manure  down  each  side  of  rows.  This  will  conserve  the 
moisture,  and  keep  the  roots  cool.  When  the  pods  have  formed 
and  are  swelling  give  liquid  manure. 
POTATOES. — As  opportunity  offers  from  the  present  time 
the  main  crops  of  tubers  should  be  lifted,  commencing  with  those 
varieties  which  show  signs  of  the  haulm  ripening.  If  disease 
shows  itself  at  all  the  crop  will  be  better  out  of  the  ground,  so  as 
to  prevent  the  disease  spreading.  A  dry  period,  if  it  can  be 
secured,  is  best  for  Potato  lifting,  as  the  tubers  may  then  be 
spread  out  in  the  open  air  to  thoroughly  dry  before  storing.  Sort 
the  tubers  into  sizes,  giving  the  very  smaliest  to  pigs,  or  cooking 
them  to  use  with  poultry  food. 
CELERY. — The  rows  of  well  grown  plants  constituting  the 
main  crops  may  be  'gradually  finally  earthed.  The  leafstalk 
ought  to  be  loosely  secured  before  applying  the  soil,  which  must 
be  thoroughly  broken  up  and  pressed  round  the  plants  with  the 
hands,  avoiding  letting  any  drop  into  the  centres.  At  the  final 
earthing  bring  the  soil  to  a  sharp  slope  on  each  side  the  row, 
carefully  compressing  the  sides  smoothly  with  the  spade  to  allow 
moisture  to  drain  readily  away. — East  Kent. 
Orchids :  The  Week’s  Cultural  Notes. 
As  the  last  leaf  is  completed  on  such  Dendrobiums  as  D.  crassi- 
rode,  D.  Devonianum,  D.  Pierardi,  and  D.  Wardianum,  remove 
the  plant  to  a  lighter  and  airier  position.  This  induces  a  restful 
.state,  followed  in  due  course  by  free  flowering.  Just  at  first  the 
water  supply  must  be  well  maintained,  but  as  the  foliage  turns 
colour  and  falls  a  very  much  smaller  quantity  suffices,  just 
enough,  in  fact,  to  prevent  shrivelling  of  the  stems.  If  left  too 
long  in  the  growing  quarters  the  plants  break  into  a  second 
growth  inimical  to  flowering,  as  it  breaks  up  the  proper  yearly 
cycle  of  growth,  rest,  and  blooming. 
Where  resting  Orchids,  such  as  Thunias,  Anguloas,*Dendro- 
biums,  and  others,  have  been  placed  outside,  a  watchful  eye  must 
be  kept  on  the  weather.  After  the  first  week  of  September  they  are 
unsafe  without  at  least  the  protection  of  a  frame,  for  the  nights 
are  often  bitterly  cold  even  when  no  frost  occurs,  and  the  first- 
named  Orchids  especially  are  easily  injured.  Ccelogynes  and  Cypri- 
pediums  in  cold  frames  are  best  covered  at  night,  removing  the 
covering  material  the  first  thing  in  the  morning,  but  in  frames 
where  a  little  warmth  can  be  turned  on  at  night  they  will  be 
perfectly  safe  for  a  couple  of  months  yet. 
Preparations  must  now  be  made  for  a  thorough  overhauling, 
CLeaning,  and  repotting  or  surfacing  where  necessary  of  the 
p  ants  in  the  cool  house.  Odontoglossums  of  the  crispum  and 
Pe^atorei  types,  O.Halli,  O.  triumphans,  O.  luteo-purpureum, 
and  others  should  soon  be  emitting  new  roots  from  young  bulbs, 
and  if  attended  to  in  time  these  will  run  freely  in  the  new  com- 
pq.st,  and  .soon  re-establish  the  plants.  U  p  to  the  time  that  they 
fill  the  lesser  60-sized  or  Sin  pots  small  shifts  only  are  necessary 
for  these  plants,  but'  when  strong  and  well  rocted  in  thesei  a 
Somewhat  larger  shift  is  advisable,  using  oin  pots,  but  keeping 
the  compost  very  thin  over  good  drainage.  Good  peat  and 
sphagnum  moss  or  Belgian  leaf  soil  is  the  best  compost. 
As  the  Disas  go  out  of  flower  they  must  not  be  dried  off,  as 
they  commence  growing  again  almost  before  the  old  stems  die 
off,  and  the  j'oung  shoots  want  nutriment.  Thrips  are  very 
troublesome  to  these  showy  and  beautiful  plants,  necessitating 
constant  cleansing.  If  they  have  been  taken  to  the  flowering 
house  to  bloom  they  will  quite  probably  be  severely  attacked. 
The  removal  of  the  old  .st^ems  after  they  have  ceased  to  be  of 
value  to  the  plant  often  li^s  the  effect  of  clearing  many  insects, 
but  this  must  not  be  done  while  they  are  still  green,  or  the 
crowns  for  next  sea.son  will  be  weakened. — H.  R.  R 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should  be  directed 
to  “The  Editor,”  12,  Mitre  Court  Chamber.s,  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  unjustifi¬ 
able  trouble  and  expense.  In  naming  plants  we  only  undertake 
to  name  species,  or  well-marked  varieties,  and  only  si.x  on  any 
one  occasion. 
ABNORMAL  BEGONIA  FLOWER  (Mrs.  C.).— The  form  in 
the  flower  you  send  seems  to  be  owing  to  concentrated  vigour, 
causing  a  multiplication  and  monstrous  growth  of  the  staihens 
and  pistils.  These  essential  organs  are  becoming  metamorphosed 
into  true  petals,  a,s  may  be  seen  in  the  outer  parts  of  the  flower. 
Begonias  often  do  this. 
MELON  LEAVES  RUSTED  (W.  S.).— We  examined  the 
leaves  carefully,  but  the  microscopic  scrutiny  was  fruitless,  no 
fungous  or  animal  pest  being  found.  The  plant  was  quite  sound 
in  the  roots,  root-stem,  and  stem  above  ground,  the  leaves  only 
browned  and  died  back  from  the  edges,  the  older  leaves  having 
considerable  traces  of  “  rust,”  which  is  due  to  the  very  per¬ 
nicious  puncturing  of  the  tissues  by  a  mite  (Tarsonymus  sp.)  and 
the  mode  of  reproduction  in  the  cuticular  cells,  this  giving  rise 
to  the  “  rust,”  wdiile  the  nature  of  the  infection  causes  the 
leaves  to  die  back  from  the  edges  and  curving  downwards  pro¬ 
bably  serve  the  purpose  of  protecting  the  mite  or  its  progeny 
from  moisture.  The  mite  is  rather  a  common  pest  in  green¬ 
houses  and  stoves,  infesting  Pelargoniums,  particularly  Ivy¬ 
leaved,  and  Begonias,  while  in  stoves  it  is  often  very  destructive 
to  Gesneras  and  Gloxinias,  the  foliage,  usually  stunted  and 
rusted,  for  the  most  part  ruined.  In  recent  years  the  mite  has 
attacked  a  number  of  plants,  commonly  those  with  fle.shy  or 
hairy  leaves,  and  in  rare  instances  attacks  Melons.  The  only  known 
preventive  and  repressive  means  is  spraying  with  tobacco  water, 
loz  of  the  strongest  shag  tobacco'being  placed  in  a  vessel  and  a 
quart  of  boiling  wnter  poured  on,  covering  up  closely  and 
allowed  to  stand  until  cool,  then  straining  and  spraying  on,  it 
being  important  to  wet  the  foliage  on  the  under  side.  Probably 
in  your  case  the  mite  has  come  from  other  plants,  the  house  being 
more  or  less  infested,  hence  spraying  the.  whole  structure  inside 
would  be  advantageous,  the  tobacco  jufee  of  dealers  diluted  to  a 
safe  strength  being  used.  It  is  necessary  to  repeat  the  spray¬ 
ing  occasionally,  it  being  more  effective  than  tobacco  smoke  or 
nicotine  vapour. 
PEAR  TREES  GOING  OFF  (C.  W.  R.).-From  the  data,  but 
in  the  absence  of  specimens,  I  should  say  that  the  trees  are  in¬ 
fested  by  a  fungus  closely  allied  to,  if  not  identical  with,  that 
known  as  Cherry  Leaf  S.corch  (Gnomonia  erythro.stoma),  a  di.s- 
ease  which  every  now  and  again  proves  destructive  to  the  Cherry 
crop  in  various  parts  of  Europe,  and  I  have  noticed  its  occur¬ 
rence  on  Pear  trees  in  North  Yorkshire  and  also  in  Hertfordshire. 
The  leaves  are  attacked  usually  early  in  June,  iscon  presenting  a 
scorched  appearance,  withering,  but  hanging  on  to  the  tree 
throughout  the  winter  in  the  case  of  the  Cherry,  while  in  that  of 
the  Pear  the  leaves  commence  falling  towards  the  end  of  summer, 
though  in  some  cases  they  hang  on  late;  even  here  and  there 
twigs  are  seen  over  winter  with  the  withered  leaves  still 
adhering.  Long,  slender,  colourless,  curved  conidia  are  first 
produced  in  perithecia  seated  on  discoloured  spots  on  the  leaves. 
During  the  winter  the  ascigerous  form  of  fruit  is  also  produced 
on  dead,  hanging  (or  fallen,  in  the  case  of  the  Pear,  if  not 
Cherry)  leaves,  and  the  spores  liberated  start  the  disease  anew. 
Tf  this  be  the  affection,  all  the  dead,  infected  leaves  hanging 
or  fallen,  must  be  collected  and  burned.  This,  to  be  effectually 
preventive,  must  be  general  throughout  the  infected  district. 
Where  carried  out  thoroughly  for  two  seasons,  the  Cherry  or 
Pear  crop,  which  previously  has  been  completely  ruined,  may  be 
restored  to  its  former  productivene.S3. 
As  regards  the  Pear  trees  being  struck  by  lightning,  I  have 
no  knowledge  nor  can  I  find  record  of  such  occurrence.  Indeed, 
it  hardly  seems  likely,  as  “  C.  W.  R.’s  ”  trees  are  affected  similarly 
to  a  neighbour’s  on  much  higher  ground,  and  I  as'^ume  a  con¬ 
siderable  distance  away.  Lightning  is  local,  seldom  striking 
trees  ,  over  a  wide  area,  the  greatest  I  have  seen  being  with 
Lombardy  Poplars,  and  then  not  more  than  ten  yards,  the 
central  tree  of  three  being  killed  entirely,  and  now  covered  in 
paj;t  with  Great  Bindweed  (Convolvulus  sepium)  beautifully  in 
floivier,  while  the  trees  on  right  and  left  respectively  are  only 
scorched  on  the  side  next  the  killed  tree,  and  most  at  top,  this 
