Evening star., 1934-07-29

{ WAtEf N&AQtttAlk Is hSI AEApS Tie S&lH-
( plest type of culture. There are no
weeds, there is no watering, plants
never suffer from drought. even II
the owner goes away for a few weeks
Properly planted and equipped with
goldfish to destroy the mosquitoes
the small pool becomes a center OF
attraction for all members OF the
family. 1t is surprising. too, the
number of lily blooms that may be
obtained from few plants in the
course Of a growing season.
Plant Diseases.
DR. FREEMAN WEISS of the United
- States Department of Agriculture,
in a mimeographed circular entitled
General Methods of Plant Disease
Control for Florists and Gardeners, %
points out that the first essential in
disease prevention is TO give plants
the most appropriate conditions for
growth. Included under this heading
is the cleaning up and destruction of
plant remains. weeds and other litter
that tend to accumulate in gardens
Decaying plant refuse affords a fertile
breeding ground for various harmful
organisms and as such should be care
fully removed from the garden proper
Almost without exception. articles on
the control OF specific diseases. such,
for example, as crown rot Of larkspur.
stress the desirsbility of destroying
plant remains at the close OF the
growing season.
Practically all the sprays and dusts
applied to plants to protect them from
their fungous enemies depend either
on copper or upon sulphur as the
active killing agent. Sometimes it
makes little difference which material
is used. Again, as with the peach, the
copper sprays will cause dropping of
leaves, whereas sulphur in proper con-
centration Is effective and harmless
to the host. DR.. Weiss, in the PAM
phlet mentioned, asserts that bordeaux
mixture, a copper-lime combination,
is the best general purpose killing
agent for leaf-spot diseases of the
garden and green house plants. The
most serious objection to bordeaux is
that it deposits blush gray coating
on the leaves that causes no harm
but does affect appearance However,
when 1t comes to a choice between
saving the foliage and discoloring it
somewhat, there can be no question
with most people The best-known
sulphur spray is lime sulphur, used
very generally for spraying fruit
plants by both the suburban and the
commercial gardener. Lime sulphur
Is effective also for control of scale
insects when applied in strong solu-
ton during the dormant season. This
spray is likewise effective for control
ing scales on Japanese ounce, on
Morrow's honeysuckle and many other
ornamentals. OF late years colloidal
sulphur is becoming popular as a sub
stitute for bordeaux mixture in the
garden-spraying program. Colloidal
sulphur has the advantage over bor-
deaux mixture of checking certain in
sectS, such as red spider, as well as
controlling diseases, and is making
something of reputation as a con-
troll Of black spot of roses.
Unfortunately, all plant diseases
cannot be controlled by spraying or
dusting. There are forms which
enter the roots from the soil and
there are also the so-caIled virus
diseases which, for the most part,
are carried to the plants by insects.
So it is little wonder that there has
been built up a science of plant path
ology with carefully trained workers
deVoting their lives to this work.
Many times plant disease will have
just one brief stage in its life in
which 1t can be successfully COM
bated or perhaps the host plant a
brief time when 1t can be safely
sprayed
Gladiolus Novelties.
CAPT. MERLE DAVIS of the Ia
koma Horticultural Club presented
the following list of gladiolus novel;
ties to his fellow members as worthy
of trial: Louis Hemon, bright yellow
and red; Chamelean, smoky; Rhod-
erick Dhu, Tobersun, yellow; Nimrod,
dark red; John T. Pirie, smoky
Sword of Mahomet, dusky brown red;
Brown Wings, brown and tan; The
Orchid; Persia, very dark red, and
Copper Bronze.
The list of names would indicate
rather strongly that breeders are hav-
ing difficult time in finding unused
names for their favorites. There are
upward of 1000 named varieties of
gladiolus. some, of course, no longer
obtainable and it Is not so easy to
select an appropriate and attractive
name.
The GladiOlus Thrips.
I UNDOUBTEDLY the worst enemy Of
v the gladiolus, this minute sucking
insect caused damage all over the
Washington area last year and is
certain to be present again this Sum-
mer, to some extent even in the very
best sprayed gardens. c. A. Weigel
H. H. Richardson and F. F. Smith
Government entomologists. Summar-
ized the situation very thoroughly in
an article appearing in the Florists
Exchange and Horticultural Trade
World of Mach II, 1882, when they
! stated that the pest may cause COM
plete loss of the flower crop in either
large or small paintings. The insect
attacks the gladiolus throughout the
entire year, feeding on green parts of
the plant in Summer and on the
CORN or bulb in the Winter. Tenn
! peratures which will conserve the
| gladiolus seem also to favor the
thrips The young are usually con-
cealed in protected places, such as
within the leaf sheaths or beneath
| the scales of the CORN.
Obviously, treatment of the over
wtntering bulbs stands out as the logi-
cal method of control but, unfortunate
| ", does not appear to be fully adequate
in city gardens at least, where there
are untreated plants nearby. One of
the simplest and safest Winter treat
ments for the home garden use is said
to consist in mixing in one ounce Of
napthalene fakes per each 100 coruS
in a paper sack or box. No injury
was observed on the corns after an
exposure of six weeks to napthalene.
A fully alright container. such as a
tin can, is not recommended. With
the napthalene treatment. all eggs,