leaving it like so much thick mortar; lay the whole up to dry for a time, and afterwards proceed to make it up into bricks of about a foot long, 8 inches wide, and 2 inches thick. A wooden frame of that size should be provided for the purpose, and this should be laid on a firm floor and the material rammed into it, first sprinkling a little sand over it to prevent the material from clinging to the frame. Cut the sides off even, and when the required number of bricks are made lay them in an airy place to dry, taking care they do not touch each other. When they are about half dry they are fit to receive the spawn, and for this purpose each brick should be perforated with two or more holes half way through; these holes may be 2 inches in diameter; fill them full of spawn tightly, and add a little of the cow manure plastered over them to keep it in its place. After all is done make up a thin bed of half-spent horse dung on the floor, and upon this pile-up the bricks the same as is done with unburned bricks in a brickyard, and as openly as possible, so that the heat may circulate amongst them. Let the whole terminate in a point, whether the stack is in the form of a ridge or otherwise, then cover with a foot thick of the half-fermented dung; this will give a gentle heat through the pile of bricks, and will set the spawn working through them. They should be frequently examined, and when they have the appearance of white mould they may be taken out and preserved in a dry place to be used as wanted. Take care that the spawn do not get too far advanced, for if it should become developed into numerous white threads visible to the eye, it cannot be depended on for a crop.

The spawn of the Mushroom being obtained, I now come to the cultivation, and this is done upon beds made for the purpose either in a regular Mushroom house heated artificially or in sheds and cellars, also in frames on half-spent Cucumber and Melon beds, and in the open air. For all these different modes, which I will take in the order they are named, the preparation of the materials is about the same. It is this: Collect the necessary quantity of fresh horse dung that has not been previously exposed to wet or fermentation, and clear it of long straw, leaving only a little short litter, which will do no harm; add to the manure about one-fourth of its bulk of half-rotten leaves, and if likely to be too light or spongy, add a small quantity of dry mould, otherwise do not use this; lay these materials under cover to ferment. The heap should be turned about twice a-week till the rank heat has passed off; after that proceed to make-up the bed. This should be done by degrees in layers of 2 or 3 inches each time, and each layer should be well beaten together until the whole bed is formed into a solid mass from 8 inches to a foot thick. Make the surface of the bed as even as possible, and take care that the bed is as firm at one place as another, so that the heating may be regular. Beating the beds firm is a very essential point in Mushroom culture in whatever plan they may be made, for if the bed is not beaten the little Mushrooms will just show themselves on the surface and then disappear altogether.

After the bed is made, thrust a trial stick or two into the body of it, or to some a thermometer would, perhaps, be a safer guide to ascertain the correct heat; when this has declined to between 80° and 90°, and your judgment, from the working, leads you to believe that the heat will not increase, you may spawn the bed. This is done by making holes about 3 inches across, the same in depth, and 8 or 9 inches apart; fill each hole quite half full, or even more, of spawn, and if it is in one solid piece it will not matter; press in the spawn firmly, and fill each hole up with some of the material of which the bed is made. Beat the whole bed over again and make the surface even. About a fortnight after the spawn has been introduced examine it, and if it is found vegetating freely in the bed, it is a good sign that it is going on well; sometimes it will take longer than a fortnight, but seldom less. When the spawn is in full working order cover the bed with 14 inch of rich loam, make it even over the surface, and beat it firm. The soil should not be too wet nor too dry, but in a medium state as regards moisture, so that when beaten it may exhibit a smooth solid surface. If the earth is too dry and of a loose texture it is not so favourable to the growth of the Mushrooms; they are apt to become weakly, of inferior quality, and they cease to appear much earlier than would otherwise be the case.

After the bed is thus finished-off the temperature may range from 50° to 55°, and the light should be excluded. Maintain this temperature till the first crop attains perfection, when it may be reduced a few degrees till they are gathered, then advance the temperature again to the former standard; and

if the heat is declining very much, place a layer of soft hay or straw over the bed, and a second crop will no doubt appear. Proceed in this way till the bed is exhausted. In the meantime it may be found necessary to apply water. This work must be done with caution in regard to the quantity given, the manner of applying it, and the temperature. If water is applied too freely it will destroy the spawn, and if given cold or in quantity it will be likely to destroy all and render the bed useless. The water used should be of the same temperature as the house, and it should be sprinkled either with a fine-rosed pot or a syringe, and when the beds become dry, as they are liable to do in heated houses, it is much better to apply the water lightly at several different times than to give one heavy watering.

Before going further I may as well say a word or two upon the gathering of Mushrooms. Some say they ought to be cut out, while others say they should be pulled or twisted out. I am of opinion that there is very little to be said in favour of the former practice, excepting where the Mushrooms are in such thick clusters as not to be easily separated. Cutting leaves a portion of the stem to decay and breeds diseases among those remaining, as I have proved it does more than once; but when gathering is effected by a quick sudden twist no injury is done to anything, and the small hole that is left ought to be immediately filled up with dry earth.

For the present I will leave this mode of cultivation and take up that in sheds and cellars. I have before remarked that in whatever place Mushrooms are grown the materials for the beds are the same; but there is this difference-there must be more in bulk to make up both for the absence of artificial heat and the fact that a loss of heat will take place owing to the bed being surrounded by cold air, and from sudden changes in temperature. One advantage of sheds and cellars is, that the season of growing the Mushroom is considerably prolonged beyond that attainable in the open air, thereby offering advantages to those who have no better convenience. Beds in these places should be made up in the shape of a triangular ridge, from 5 to 7 feet wide at the bottom, and from 3 to 5 feet high at the ridge; but other forms will do as well, provided the requisite conditions of temperature and protection are secured. The ridge shape, however, offers the advantage of cropping on both sides of the bed, which other shapes do not. In whatever way they are made, the same attention as to firmness and other details must be bestowed upon them as advised for beds in the Mushroom house. After the bed is made-up a thick layer of straw or other protecting material should be put on, in order to keep it at as regular a temperature as possible. After the spawn is working, and afterwards until the Mushrooms show themselves through the soil, the heat of the bed ought to be examined; and if this and the temperature of the surrounding atmosphere be below 45°, a little assistance should be given in the way of a heap of heating material in the centre of the shed; and if the shed is not constructed to close-up, the open space should be closed by other means. Another advantage in having a ridge-shaped bed is that it can be spawned at two different times.

I now come to Mushroom-growing in Cucumber and Melon frames; and this, I may say, is only attempted in the absence of any other convenient plan for growing them under protection. I have grown them very well in such frames after the Cucumbers were done with, by just taking out the soil to a depth sufficient to hold enough heating material to start the spawn, and the after-treatment was precisely similar to that for house culture. By adopting this method much time is saved in collecting material, and a little crop of this kind often comes in useful on an emergency.

As to the open-air beds the season for them is short; but if they are formed of a good size and length, and spawned at two or three different times, Mushrooms will be produced for a considerable period. The first bed may be made-up in April or May, and two or three others, according to their size, during the summer in proper succession. The great difficulty in out-door beds is to maintain an even temperature, and to protect from wet. The one thing needful is a thoroughly good protection, and plenty of it at hand; this must be worked according to the temperature-off or on, thin or thick, as the case may be; and to protect from wet the addition of mats or boards will be necessary to throw it off, otherwise the same rules must be observed and worked out as regularly as for any other mode of cultivation. Market gardeners are in the habit of growing in open-air beds large quantities of Mushrooms, which have the reputation of being superior in flavour to those

gardens, have not lost their sense of the beautiful; and among our entomologists, some at least are still capable of being roused to enthusiasm by the wonders of form and colour.

I have been tempted into these somewhat discursive remarks because before me are some pupa of insects, dark-looking, and almost, it might be said, unsightly objects. I could not but think how difficult it is to conceive how an insect which when it has emerged seems thrice as large as the shell that once contained it, could have been packed in so little compass, and equally strange is it to notice the varied colours displayed by a moth or butterfly only a few hours after it has appeared full-winged, whereas the pupa if cut into shortly before would have shown a structure of a uniform grey or brown. Similar

aleo on Galium verum, also common there. Of late years search for it in that district has proved useless, and the nearest localities to London where the Elephant Hawk turns up appear now to be about Plumstead and Erith in Kent. There are some counties where the insect is plentiful enough, especially towards the south coast, where at twilight the moth, with a penchant for sweets of the best quality, deserts the flowers of the hedgebanks, and whirrs about the garden, or enters the conservatory at evening's dusk; sweeping off, if annoyed, with a hawk-like rapidity, though the moth is not at all elephantine in proportions, that name applying properly to the caterpillar. This insect, which does not vary much as do some, has the fore wings of olive green and pink, with white hairs along the

Fig. 1.-Cherocampa Elpenor."

instances the gardener is well acquainted with, seen in the buds of leaves and flowers, only there the transmutation is more gradual. I have known a gardener so much astonished and pleased at the curious sight of the expansion of a moth's wings as to kill no insects for-one day at least! But in truth it is satisfactory to know that a certain number of our horticulturists, consisting of men of all grades, are beginning to take a hearty interest in the doings and appearances of insects, and not merely because they are regarded as enemies or doubtful friends.

A rather favourite moth with young collectors is the large species placed by Linnæus among his Sphinxes, and called the Elephant Hawk, scientifically Cherocampa Elpenor (fig. 1, 2, and 3) -not an insect, I believe, as common in England as formerly,

Fig. 3.-Pupa of Cherocampa Elpenor.*

inner edge, the hind wings being of a deeper shade of pink, black at the base. The body is rose colour with bands of green, and the tongue long and spiral, while the eyes, should the moth be seen when engaged upon the flowers, sparkle like lamps in miniature; and through the insects being thus attracted to gardens it comes to pass that the eggs are sometimes deposited on the Vine and the Fuchsia, plants very different indeed, yet both to the taste of the caterpillar of Elpenor, so it is asserted; and with regard to the Vine, verified by specimens I have seen taken feeding upon it. Yet it is not by any means sufficiently numerous to be deemed an insect enemy-in fact, the natural food, in Britain at least, is evidently the wild plants named. This rather curious caterpillar has been thought to taper from the middle of its body

perhaps because it has some liking for marshy localities-at least in the larval state, and our better drainage has diminished the number of spots where grew the plants, such as the various species of Epilobium (Willow-herbs), on which the "Elephants" formerly fattened. Or does this fat and rather showy caterpillar fall frequently a prey to the insatiable sparrows? Years ago worthy old insect-lovers, such as Haworth and Ingpen, used to trudge over to Barnes on a summer evening from the west of London to capture upon that Surrey common the hovering Elpenor, which was attracted by the fascination of the flowers of the Ragged Robin. Probably at that time the larva fed freely on the plants still growing on the banks of the Thames not far off, such as the species of Epilobium aforesaid, and

Fig. 4. Sesia Apiformis.*

to the head, so as to resemble the trunk of the elephant. To some individuals the creature has a hog-like aspect, hence the Latin name. And in France this and the caterpillars of kindred species are called Cochonnes, from the way in which they draw back the two segments of the body next the head. The conspicuous spots on the side of the fourth and fifth segments are so beautiful, being black edged with violet, that they might well give it special distinction among its brethren. Green or brown is the ground colour of the body, the tail being adorned with a short horn pointing backwards. This caterpillar, occurring in August mostly, feeds up much more rapidly in

From Cassell's edition of Figuier's "Insect World."

to a leaf, and the moth comes out in about three weeks after. -J. R. S. C.

The moths known to entomologists as the Clearwings form a very singular family. Some species, such as the Currant Clearwing (already figured in these pages), and the Red-belted Clearwing, are too well known to the horticulturist by the mischief done by the larva to the Currant, Pear, and Apple. Differing in size as do these insects, the same circumstance belongs to the external appearance of all-namely, that they resemble other insects, chiefly of the order Hymenoptera. Whether this mimicry is designed for the protection of the species from the attacks of birds and other foes is a question, and various explanations may be devised to account for mimicry in this and similar instances. However, these insects not only resemble hornets, bees, and flies in appearance, but also in habit, being invariably on the wing in the bright sunshine, and when resting on the leaves and stems of plants they move about with an elegance and quickness unusual among the Lepidopterous insects. The two Hornet Clearwings (S. Bembeciformis and Apiformis), if reposing on tree trunks will move the abdomen up and down quite in the manner of a wasp or hornet, as pointed out by Mr. Wood. The latter (fig. 4), is perhaps the commoner visitant to gardens, appearing there in June; and should one of them be caught by the hand, the soft feel of the moth plumage at once distinguishes it from the hardcased hornet. But probably it is the wiser thing not to seize one in this way lest a Tartar be caught-i.e., a hornet by mistake, though the virulence of the sting of the latter insect has been much exaggerated. These Clearwings have an artful trick of suddenly dropping and not flying up should a net approach them when they are settled, so the best plan to take them is to strike from below. The wings in this species expand nearly 1 inch, being transparent like those of bees, only having an edging of brown; the thorax is also brown, with two bright patches of yellow; the head and body are of that colour, only the latter has also two brown belts; the legs are reddish. Though the caterpillar is an internal feeder, this moth can scarcely be said to be an injurious species, the numbers not being large, and the caterpillar affecting the Aspen and Poplar, but rarely or never killing the trees unless they are previously in an unhealthy state. This pale, rather grub-like larva is also rather different from those of the Lepidoptera we best know, but they have the usual array of legs, though not very visible, and also small hooks on the segments, by which they wriggle themselves up and down the galleries they have mined. Many an entomologist is working away just now, cutting the stumps of the Willow, Poplar, and Alder, for this and the allied species are now to be found in the chrysalis state awaiting emergence; and not unfrequently the searcher is disappointed through the fancy some of the caterpillars have for leaving their wooden abode and spinning a cocoon on the ground some distance off. To the Lilac, on the verge of coming into blossom this spring month, has been given the honour of providing half the name of one of the most beautiful of British moths, though but of moderate size. This insect is a garden species in all its stages, and through May and June the larva is to be found feeding on the Elder, Privet, and especially the Lilac; or it may begin to feed at an earlier date, as it lives through the winter. The Lilac Beauty (Pericallia syringaria), displays a variety of tints which cannot well be explained in words, nor would an uncoloured figure be of much help to one who has never seen it. Suffice it to say, that the general colour of the wings is a pearly grey, clouded over here and there with red and yellow, while on the ground there are arranged various patches and lines of white, yellow, and brown. The head and thorax are brown, and the antennæ feathered. On the wing in July, the moth seems as if it were affected by the heat of the season, for it keeps very quiet during the day, and hence often escapes from the eager insect-hunter seeking such prizes, and at night it takes no heed of the sugary bait that beguiles some. Should the horticulturist find amongst "the common herd" the caterpillar of the Lilac Beauty, he might know it from the rest by its peculiar aspect. The body, which is grey or tinged with rose colour, has six warts or processes on the back placed in twos, the last pair being larger than the rest and curved backward; also sprinkled over the body there are a number of whitish points. The chrysalis is placed in a cocoon attached

SOCIETY.

THE question of voting by proxy at the Royal Horticultural Society is again to be raised, and in accordance with a declaration made by the President at the last annual meeting, a special meeting is to be called to submit the question to the Fellows.

We have heard so much lately about the advantages and the disadvantages accruing from the exercise of the privilege of proxy-voting, we think this is the time for deliberately weighing these and endeavouring to come to a rational solution of the question. What strikes us in the first instance is, why the Fellows of the Royal Horticultural Society should ask to possess a privilege which no other society possesses. There are many older and as important societies as this, in which questions of great moment have been and are discussed, the Fellows of which have never even mooted the question, and surely it is reasonable to suppose that if any advantage arose from the exercise of such a privilege it would long ago have been discovered. It is a remarkable fact, that it is only since the distressing squabbles and contentions between the Royal Horticultural Society and the Royal Commissioners have cropped-up, that anybody thought it worth while to ask for a power which may any day be used for or against the object it was intended to serve. There is no security to either party, and there is no permanent power obtained by the establishment of proxy-voting; but there is a manifest and dangerous wrong which may be and is inflicted where proxy-voting exists. There were instances of it in the late meetings of the Royal Horticultural Society, where the privilege is restricted to the lady Fellows. Not a tithe of the lady Fellows, any more than a great majority of the Fellows generally, understood the merits of the questions which were so agitating the Society. They were applied to in urgent terms by representatives of the rival parties to entrust their proxies to them, and, without even the nature of the contention being explained to them, they sent the proxies as requested, in many cases, as we know, without knowing how they were to be used. In this way a hundred or two of proxies were placed in the hands of a single individual, enabling him to vote just as he pleased. This is a power which ought not to be permitted to exist.

Instead of extending the privilege it ought to be abolished altogether, even in the case of ladies, who are as free to exercise their privilege at the meetings as gentlemen are, and who do exercise it very freely when the questions under discussion are of sufficient interest to secure their presence. There are well-known instances in which the lady Fellows have exercised this privilege rather too freely. At some of the recent meetings, after having given their proxies to gentlemen to exercise the privilege of voting for them, they have been present and voted personally as well-an abuse of privilege and power which we can only account for by believing it was done through ignorance.

A great deal has been said about the deprivation it is to country Fellows not being able to vote on questions that agitate the Society, without they have the privilege of voting by proxy. From our knowledge of country Fellows, who, we are sorry to say, are not nearly so numerous as they were formerly, there are very few of them who take much interest in those questions which are not purely horticultural that have agitated the Society in these latter days; and for those of them who do take an interest in them, the mere expense of a return ticket by railway to give their vote is as nothing to the expense and time that Fellows in and around the metropolis expend on the affairs of the Society. It rarely happens that a country Fellow need make a visit to London exclusively to exercise his privilege of voting on some important question affecting the interests of the Society, when he may not also at the same time do something for his own interest as well. We know some people who make it an excuse to come to town "to get their hair cut," an operation which may very well be performed in a country town for a small charge; but the haircutting is only a mild form of saying they have gone on a holiday.

No doubt there are individual cases in which, from various causes, it may be a hardship for a Fellow to come to town to exercise his privilege of voting; but there is no rule and no law which equally suits everybody, and so in this, as in all

other cases, the interests of the few must yield to those of the majority.

We trust that the good sense of the Fellows will not only check the further increase of proxy-voting, but take timely steps to abolish it altogether.

ORCHARD HOUSES-PRIMULA NIVEA. AFTER gathering the fruit I have hitherto placed potted Peach trees in the open air until the end of September. The advantages are more room in the houses, freedom from red spider, and the power of keeping the atmosphere within sufficiently dry to enable the later fruit to ripen-off with good flavour. But I have often had reason to complain of the unhealthy look of the trees when they broke in spring. Buds which were plump enough in autumn shrivelled and fell off. The leaves were often sickly, though, as the summer advanced, they regained their health. I thought these defects arose either from the autumn dressing, or from the roots getting dry in winter. Experiment, however, has shown that neither of these is the true cause, and I am led to believe that the wood is imperfectly ripened in consequence of exposure to the open air so late in the year. Last summer I housed the trees earlier -namely, the first week in September, but the summer was not a genial one, and the present state of my trees is such, that if it were not for the following circumstances I should doubt as to the real cause of their sickly look. But I have a tree of a scarce and favourite sort, Abel's Malta, a seedling from the old Malta, and, like its parent, a very shy bearer. Last year, in order to encourage it, I kept it entirely under glass. It has rewarded me by breaking well and setting a fair crop. Hence I infer that if trees are placed out of doors they ought to be housed before the 1st of September. I may remark that trees which were started in heat in February, 1873, and had plenty of warmth up to June, though turned out of doors with the rest, have generally broken well, and show a good crop.

I wish that any of your readers who has had success with Primula nivea, generally miscalled nivalis, would communicate his mode of culture. I treat mine just as an Auricula, but though it lives it does not flourish. Elsewhere I see it in the same state. There used, however, to be an old nurseryman in this neighbourhood with whom the plant grew very vigorously in pots under glass, but it does not succeed with his son: so if he had any secret it has died with him.-G. S.

FOUNTAINE'S VINERY AT BLENHEIM. An article in the Journal upon the gardens at Blenheim Palace mentions the vinery erected there upon my principle, which, by-the-by, is erroneously called an orchard house. It states that in a portion of the house trees are planted-out, and "involve much less labour in watering." If this is stated seriously as a fact, I fear the principle on which and for which the house was erected is not clearly understood. The trees ought to be out of the house through the summer months almost entirely, and exposed to the rains and dew both day night. Under such circumstances it is impossible they should require more watering than trees kept entirely under the cover of the house; indeed, in wet seasons they require very little watering at all, and should, especially at the full ripening period, be placed in the house to avoid too much moisture. This house is erected, not for forcing, but as a cold autumn vinery, and constructed so that the principle of the moving trees may be applied to it, and the centre of the house (all but useless in an ordinary vinery) utilised for growing stone fruit, which, from the facility of placing it in the open air, is very superior to that grown in a common orchard house. Peach trees planted as fixtures in this house may, close to the ventilating lights in front, produce a small proportion of fairly-good fruit; but I do not hesitate to say that the fruit from trees if so placed in the centre of the house would not be worth gathering, especially if there are a certain number of Vines, as intended, upon the close-spur system overhead. Hot-water pipes are necessary for frost in spring, and to keep the Grapes dry in wet autumns.

I subjoin the official report of 1873 sent to me in the winter from the Royal Horticultural Gardens at Chiswick, where a house exactly similar to the one at Blenheim was erected to test the system with all the other houses in the gardens; one of these is a splendid orchard house filled with trees both planted-out

|

The

and in pots. Of course the house is managed on my principle, but I believe the hot-water pipes are not yet added, as the Society had so many great expenses to contend with. The whole report is as follows:-"We did not have a very fine crop of Peaches anywhere this season. Those treated after your principle were, without doubt, the highest-flavoured. Grapes, especially the Madresfield Court, in your house have been superb, and have won the admiration of everyone." A gentleman in the south of England, for whom a larger house than the one at Blenheim was erected, writes to me that he is more than ever pleased with the house, and that he had taken the first prizes both for Peaches and Grapes at some very large there must be some misapprehension of the object and manageexhibitions. Under these circumstances I venture to think ment of the principle at Blenheim.-JOHN FOUNTAINE, Southacre Rectory, Brandon.

MR. WILLIAM PAUL'S ROSE MANURE.

THIS manure was brought under my notice in the spring of 1872, and having, by the kindness of Mr. W. Paul, received a sample for trial, I am glad to be able to pronounce it a boon to amateur Rose-growers, and especially to those who, like myself, have to grow Roses in a soil anything but favourable to the well-being of the plants or the perfection of the flowers. Judging from the result of the trial during one season only, I have confidence notwithstanding that by a simple and inexpensive process-that is, according to the directions supplied to those who use, or will use, this manure, a vast amount of trouble will be saved, and not an inconsiderable degree of disappointment avoided. The mode of procedure is plain and easy.

In a plantation of Roses on the Manetti stock, the rows being about 2 feet apart, with an interval of 20 inches between the plants, I selected a single average row for experiment. After the spring pruning, and as the plants were starting into growth, I scattered the manure around the plants to half the distance, both sides, to the next rows, afterwards loosening the soil with the points of the prongs of a small spud. The flowers produced by this row were good and abundant, full, of correct form, with petals firm and well coloured; on the whole decidedly better than the generality of the flowers in the remainder of the plantation; at the same time vigorous growth began to manifest itself in most of the plants of the row. Towards the end of July a second dressing of the manure was applied in the same manner, and by the end of the growing season the plants had acquired a strong and healthy appearance, with shoots varying from 3 to 5 and 6 feet long. These is, in the summer of last year.-ADOLPHUS H. KENT, Bletch shoots produced excellent flowers in the following season-that ingley, Surrey.

THE WALNUT TREE.