Evening star., 1900-11-10
HOUSE PLANT ENEMIES
FOES TO BE RECKONED
WITH IN WINDOW GARDENS.
Safe and Easy Ways to Fight Them
Successful Use of Hot
Water.
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star.
The arch enemy of the window garden is
the insect pest. They spoil plants good
looks and lower its vitality until it either
dies outright, or ceases to bloom or make
active growth. Probably not one woman
in twenty takes her plants through win
ter without having them attacked sooner
or later by insects. Once on the spot, and
unmolested, they increase like the hordes
OF Egypt. eating the leaves and sucking the
sap until they quite ruin the little garden.
The reason insects are worse on house
plants than in the garden is because the
first are grown under highly artificial con-
ditions. Living rooms are unhealthfully
hot: the potted plants cramped in root
and subject to water gorge thirst star
walton If the watering pot is in careless
hands. Moreover the atmosphere is sur
charged with dust and coal smoke. And as
insects always attack first weak or dirty
foliage there is a special attraction to them
in every struggling house plant.
Names of the Enemies.
The common house insects are aphis, or
green plant louise; the scale and the red
spider. The aphis is the most common.
The usual recommended kerosense emulsion
will kill them readily enough, but the trou-
BILE is that at the first sprinkle they drop
ready the furry is over to climb
up the stems and go sucking the plants
juices again. To avoid this, lift the plant
from the shelf with great care, so as not
to jar or diSlCdge them. Wrap a cloth
around the top Of the pot, and close to
the plants stems. SO the earth in the pot
can neither tumble out nor the insects tum-
BILE in. Then quickly invert the plants top
into a pau of water, and if the water is
quit ewarm so much the better. Lift the
plant out and shake vigorously. Dip again
in the water, then again shake, and SO con-
tinue until every tiny louise has been dis
lodged. Rinse the top well in clean water
and return to the window. If a thorough
job has been done, there will be no more
trouble, but the plant should be examined
again in a couple of days, and, if need be,
the treatment repeated.
Scale insects stick to the bark or leaves
as though they were glued there. Dis
lodge them with a wooden toothpick, keep
ing a close lookout for them, and finish by
washing the plant well in soapy water.
This must be repeated every few days un-
til no more scale can be found They are
not over common, but a peculiarly stub
born pest
Little MIR. Spider.
Red spider is almost as common as aphis
but so tiny that few know that this is what
is the matter with their plants When
without any apparent reason leaves turn a
sckly color, show little yellow specks
all over them. or begin to curl at the edges.
We may suspect little Mr.. Red Spider, no
bigger than grain of red pepper and
camping with his wife and babies, his par
ents. grandparents. auntS. uncles and cOuS-
ms on the under side of the plants leaves.
Toe hot and too dusty air is the cause of
the red spider There is one sure and sim
pie remedy for him and his. 1t is water
Have it warm and plenty of it, and see that
the under sides of the leaves get as much
Wettng as the upper, and this foe is soon
Vanquished. plant can be dipped in water
as hot as the hand can be borne in, and ii
VIII not hurt 1t in the least. if not kept
longer at a time beneath the water than
two or three seconds. That degree of heat
Kills the red spider quickly. Dip half a
dozen times in the hot water in quick sue
cession. and the work is done
Wash all plant leaves often. A clean
plant is not inviting to insects Kill the
first foe that makes his appearance and
you have solved the secret Of keeping house
plants free from insect nests of all kinds