13 NOVEMBER 1942, Page 14

COUNTRY LIFE

IN the excellent and excellently well-edited magazine of the Women's Institutes has appeared a little estimate of the values of various woods which, as it seems to me, may diminish the use of a very valuable fuel. Much the commonest tree in England is the elm, a term that covers a number of varieties that have different qualities. Some few, for example, set fertile seed, though most are barren. Some—and this is what concerns the present discussion—split easily while others are intensely cantankerous. All, however, burn well ; and to urge the public to avoid this wood is a wasteful mistake. For myself I have burned little else for years and have enjoyed hot, flaming fires. Up to November 1st no coal was used ; and elm was the sole fuel. Better fires would scarcely have been desired and the grates are small. Elm logs need doubtless some management—they resemble peat in one regard, for they are apt to clog themselves with their own ashes ; and at such times must be poked so as to remove this crust. For the rest any elm kept for twelve months in tolerably dry places is admirable fuel. The thick, often " soggy " bark should be removed (though even this will flame, if quite dry) and a split log is more " gleig in the uptak" than a circular. Elm dispenses perhaps twice the heat of sycamore, for example, and gives a brighter flame than oak. The older the elm the better it burns.

The Perfect Fire

Many doggerel verses exist describing the various wood fuels. Fir or pine are apt to spit and are much more dangerous in this regard than beech, which is almost a perfect fuel, the peer even of ash. All critics condemn willow and poplar, yet poplar is the most widely used fuel in France and, like any other wood, even bark or roots, burns fairly well if split and dried. If at all wet it is actively malefic. The most delightful fires that ever I enjoyed followed the destruction of some very old lilac bushes and laburnum trees. The lilac—which has lilac-coloured streaks through the trunks—gave the scent of cedar, and the laburnum, even when green, burned like a candle. Gipsies and perhaps other caravanners delight in gorse, but the supply must be immense. Nothing makes better kindling than withered gorse ; and in this regard elm twigs are as good as any other twigs. Of course, in regard to logs the standard maxim holds: one log can't burn, two won't, three must and four make a fire.

Raw Parasol

A neighbour of mine the other day met a stranger wandering across the fields, and as he talked with him, the man made a sudden sally, grabbed a mouldering parasol mushroom and thrust it into his mouth there and then. "Delicious," he said, " delicious! " He came from Yorkshire and was therefore courageous. Most of us, perhaps, being more timid and conventional, should be wiser to cook any mushroom— parasol, shaggy cap, boletus, or what not, for what traces of poison may lurk are in several foods destroyed by cookery. Even mandioca, the standard food over huge areas of South America, is said to be poisonous till pounded and heated. It seems that 400 people accepted the offer from South Kensington to identify and vet. any mushrooms sent there. Why so few? Ignorance on the subject is universal in England.

Vanished Wasps

One of the pleasant surprises of this year was the sudden and complete disappearance of the wasps. Nests were numerous and very strong ; but their life came to an end while still plenty of fruit was on the trees. I gather that this experience has been general. This strange lapse in vitality should mean that nests will be few next year. Quantities of queens are usually bred towards the end of the season. So far I have found no hibernators. Bumble-bee nests were full and active singularly late in the season, and the hive bees busy well into October and the drones were allowed a long run.

In the Garden

The attempt to grow more food in the garden has taught me several things which perhaps may be worth while putting down in summary. (r) Broad beans sown early in November are worth while, and are no gamble if cloches are available. Cutting the beans down in spring for the sake of a second crop is hardly worth the waste of space. (2) Kohl rabi may be preserved for a good many weeks after it is dug up. (3) Even small green tomatoes ripen to a rich red if wrapped in paper and kept warm. Those so treated within the house did much better than those kept in an out-house. (4) Decorative barberries, such as Wilsonae, make an excellent preserve. A delightful sample reached me this week, via

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