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INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

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PLATB I. TBANSF0BAIATI0N9 OF TiiS C£L£RY CATSRPILLAF

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

A Practical Manual

CONCERNING

Noxious Insects and the Methods of
Preventing Their Injuries

CivARENCK Nl. WKKD, D. SC

professor of Zoology and Entomology, New Hampshire College of Agr culture
and the Mechanic Arts

ILLUSTRATED

ttSeOWO (REVISED) EDITIOBf

NEW YORK

ORANGE JUDD COMPANY
1904

By the Same Author

FUNGI AND FUNGICIDES

A Practical Manual Concerning tlie Fungous Diseases of
Cultivated Plants and the Metliods of Preventing their
Ravages. Illustrated. Price, gSl.OO.

SPRAYING CROPS

Why, When and How. Illustrated. Third (Revised) Edl.
tion. Eleventh Thousand. 130 pages. Price, 25 cents.
Orange Judd Company, New York, N. Y.

TEN NEW ENGLAND BLOSSOMS AND THEIR

INSECT VISITORS
Illustrated. Houghton, Mifflin & Co., Boston and New Yorit

Q^iyright 1891 and 1895
av CLARENCE M. WEED

PREFACE

This volume has been prepared for the purpose of
furnishing the farmer, the fruit grower, the floricultur-
ist, and the housekeeper with a concise account of the
more important injurious insects with which they have
to contend, together with a summary of the latest
knowledge concerning the best methods of preventing or
counteracting the injuries of these pests. In its prepa-
ration free use has been made of the information scat-
tered through the literature of economic entomology;
and, as a rule, it has been found impracticable to give
to each author credit for first working out the life his-
tories of the various species. In one way or another the
contributions of uearly every American economic ento-
mologist have been drawn upon ; but especial mention
should be made of the help obtained from the publications
of Dr. C. V. Rile}', recently United States entomologist,
whose remarkable investigations during the last quarter
of a century have placed him foremost among the world's
economic entomologists. Mention should also be made
of the aid derived from the writings of Messrs. Bruner,
Cook, Com:tcck, Fernald, Fletcher, Forbes, Garman,
Gillette, Harvey, Howard, Lintner, Osborn, Packard,
Saunders, Slingerland, and many others.

The illustrations of this volume have also been
gleaned from various sources. I am under obligations
to the authorities of the Department of Agriculture and
various experiment stations, i:)articularly those of Illi-
nois, Cornell University, Colorado, Kentucky, Nebraska,
New^ Jersey and Ohio, — for the privilege of getting du-
plicate electrotypes. The authors to whom each of

V

▼1 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

those figures that did not first apjiear in my own publi-
cations should be credited, are indicated in the following
list:

After Eileyi—Plates III, IV, VI, XII, and figures
1-4, 8, 15, 23-27, 36-45, 59, 61, 63, 67, 69, 70, 72, 74-76,
78«, 79, 81-95, 97-103, 105, 119-121, 123, 124, 127-129,
133-139, 141, 144, 146-149, 150, 155, 157-162, 164-166,
168, 170, 172-176; after Lugger, fig. 5; after Osborn,
figs. 169-171; after Garman, figs. 68, 71, 104; after
Bruner, figs. 13, 14, 62, 80, 145 ; after Miss Ormerod,
fig. 167 ; after Howard, figs. 46-50 ; after Comstock,
figo 141 ; after Lake, plate V, fig. 28 ; after Goff, fig.
132; after Smith, plate XV, figs. 9, 10, 122; after
Slingerland, plates VII, X, figs. 30-34, 52-57, 60, 77,
78, 130, 131 ; after Mailatt, fig. 29; after Saunders, figs.
51, 116; after Packard, figs. 7, 22; after Lintner, figs.
16, 58 ; after Popenoe, fig. 108 ; after Gillette, plate
VIII, fig. 6(j ; after Bailey, fig. 19 ; after Galloway, fig.
18 ; after Forbes, figs. 64, 65, 143, 152-154 ; from Insect
Life, figs. 12, 73 ; after Taschenberg, j^hate II, figs.
109-112.

All the figures are natural size unless otherwise
stated, and wherever a straight line occurs beside a mag-
nified drawing, it represents the length of the specimen
figured.

I have attempted to make the discussions of life
histories and remedies as plain and simp'.: as j^ossible,
omitting, so far as practicable, all technical terms, and
have included only such details as are necessary to a prac-
tical understanding of the subjects treated of. In the
present second edition the book has been thoroughly
revised to date, and the latest available information
incorporated.

C. M. W.

N'ew Hampshire College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arte.
Durham, New Hampshire, April, 1895.

CONTENTS

Fftga.
iBticdaction 9

PART I

Insects Affecting the Laegeb Fruits

Apple 63 Plum 113

Pear 94 Peach.... 121

Cherry 128

PART II

Insects Affecting Sriall Feuits

Strawberry 137 Raspberry and Blackberry 159

Currants and Gooseberries 148 Grape 167

PART in
Insects Affecting Shade Trees, Oenaihental Plants, Ain>

Flowees

ShadeTrees 189 Rose 215

Flowers 218

PART IV

LifSECTs Affecting Vegetables

Tomato 225 Bean and Pea 242

Potato 228 Cabbage 245

Celery 234 Onion... , 261

Squash and Cucumber 235 Asparagus 263

PART V

Insects Affecting Cekeal and Forage Crops

Indian Com 267 Clover 292

Wheat 278 Grass 299

PART VI

Insect Pests of Domestic Animals and the Household

Insects Affecting Domestic Animals 313

Insect Pests of the Household t 326

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

INTRODUCTION

None of the changes modem civilization has made
upon the earth is more evident to the American farmer
than that of the increased difficulty of saving his crops
from the ravages of noxious insects and parasitic fungi.
Many of us have heard from our fathers and grand-
fathers of the apples which once grew in abundance
in yards and along highways, strangers alike to the
codling moth, maggot or scab ; the luscious peaches free
from worms and rot; the plums unmarked by the cur-
culio, and the pears that had yet to learn the secret of
becoming dwarfed, gnarly and cracked ; of the grapes
that knew not how to rot and the potatoes whose leaves
had neither been blighted nor bitten by the Colorado
beetle. Now all is changed : every crop has foes that
often gather the lion's share of the harvest. The enemies
have come from the north and the south, the east and
the west, from- Europe and the islands of the sea, and in
our own midst they have flocked from the forest to the
field, deserting a wild plant for its cultivated congener
or changing their habits to conform to a new environ-
ment.

This increase of noxious insects, however, is the
natural result of the changed conditions of things.
Among the principal factors tending toward it may be

1

2 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

mentioned (1) the massing of crops in limited areas;

(2) the facilities for transporting insects long distances
by vessels and railways carrying agricultural j)roducts ;

(3) the abandoned farms and. orchards that serve as
breeding grounds; and (4) the destruction of forests
and the cultivation of prairies.

Considering each of these factors briefly, we find
that the tendency of the first — that of the massing of
crops in limited areas — toward increasing our insect
pests rests upon the biological law that the increase of
any animal is limited by its food supply. Under the
natural conditions existing on this continent before the
advent of the white man, those insects which fed on wild
plants had as a rule only a limited food supply. The
apple maggot or railroad worm for example is supposed
to have bred originally in the wild haws of the woods.
The parent fly had then usually to find here and there
an isolated tree bearing the fruit in which it deposited
its eggs. Its chances of being caught by a bird or
entrapped in a spider's web while on this search were
very good, so that the scarcity of the food supply not
only directly limited the number of individuals that
could be produced, but by being scattered it increased
the chances of the adult insects falling a prey to enemies.
But in a modern ai)ple orchard all this is changed : the
food supply is almost unlimited, and is so massed together
that the insect runs little risk in passing from fruit to
fruit or from tree to tree. Hence it can multiply indefi-
nitely unless there is some means of checking it. The
same line of reasoning applies to a large proportion of
our injurious insects.

We are indebted to our commerce on sea and land
for many of the most noxious insects. Brought to our
shores from Europe, Asia or Australia by ships, many of
these pests have found a land Avhich for them was flow-
ing with milk and honey, and in which their hereditary

INTKODUCTION b

enemies had not yet gained a foothold. Consequently
they have multiplied without let or hindrance ; and by
natural and artificial means — notably the railroad trains—
they have rapidly overrun the country of their adoption.

The abandoned or neglected fields and orchards all
over the United States have proven a prolific breeding
ground for many insect pests. Too often the efforts of
painstaking farmers have been rendered unavailing by
the proximity of such sources of infection. An orchard
that has outlived its usefulness had better be converted
into firewood than left to die uncared for.

The destruction of forests has compelled certain in-
sects to resort to cultivated crops for subsistence ; and in
some cases a decided change in feeding habits has re-
sulted. So also the bringing of the prairies into culti-
vation has caused many insects which originally fed on
wild grasses to resort to pastures and meadow lands.

The operation of these various causes, together with
the enormous powers of multiplication possessed by the
insects themselves, have led to a constantly increasing
injury to cultivated crops, until to-day these tiny foes
exact a tribute of ten per cent, of the crop products of
American agriculture. '^ They form an omnipresent host
of taxgatherers, taking possession of the farmer's crops
and enforcing their onerous demands without process of
law, unless preventive measures are vigorously prose-
cuted. They are no respecters of persons : like the rain
they fall upon the fields of both the just and the unjust.
^^The authorities best able to judge have estimated
the annual loss in the United States due to these little
pests at nearly half a billion dollars. Noxious insects,
according to Dr. C. V. Riley, recently the distinguished
entomologist of our National Department of Agriculture,
occasion losses in the United States which are ^in the
aggregate enormous, and have been variously estimated
at from $300,000,000 to $400,000,000 annually.' In

4 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

single States and single seasons the damage is often
frightful in extent. During some of the great chinch-
bug epidemics the loss in Illinois occasioned by this one
insect has amounted to over 173,000,000 a year; and in
seasons not marked by an outbreak of such a great crop
pest the injury is much more severe than is ordinarily
supposed. The official entomologist of the State just
named. Professor S. A. Forbes, — after years of careful
field observation and statistical study, — has recently ex-
pressed his belief that/^'the insects of the State of
Illinois derive as large a profit from the agriculture of
this great agricultural State as do the farmers them-
selves.' "*

Fortunately, however, there is an extended silver
lining to this dark cloud of insect injury. If these
creatures have increased on every hand, our knowledge
of methods of controlling them has also augmented with
the passing years. Many of the remedies proposed ten
or twenty years ago seem now foolish and impracticable.
Within the last decade especially the progress has been
phenomenal. It has been shown that many insects can
be checkmated by a proper crop rotation ; that the nat-
ural enemies of others can be used to destroy them ; and
that others are easily killed by improved insecticides.
But the most important advance has been the introduc-
tion of the spraying machine, an apparatus by means of
which insect-killing substances may be easily and rapidly
distributed over the surfaces of trees, shrubs, vines and
herbaceous plants. Its introduction into American hor-
ticulture marks an advance almost as important as was
marked by the adA'ent of the improved cultivators into
our agriculture. Before the latter were introduced the
weeds that infest the soil were fought by the hand hoe,
but now a single team does the work of many men. In

*C. M. Weed, Popular Science Monthly, March, 1893.

INSECT TRANSFORMATIONS 5

the same way, until recently, various laborious and par-
tially effective methods were used in fighting noxious
insects and destructive fungi ; but now many foes of
both these classes are fought on a large scale by the
force pump and spray nozzle, and every season adds
others to the list of those against which this metliod
may be successfully used. With a large class of farmers
and fruit growers, sjiraying has become a recognized
part of the season's operations, and therein lies the chief
promise of the method. When the belief becomes gen-
eral that it is as important to save a crop from destruction
by its foes as it is to produce it ; that fighting noxious
worms must take its place as a farm process by the side of
that of fighting noxious weeds ; that the parasitic plants
which absorb the vitality of leaf and fruit are as danger-
ous to the crop as the plants which dispute with it the
possession of the soil, and when along w^ith this recog-
nition there is placed before the farming community a
cheap and wholesale method of preventing the injuries
of these organisms, — then the vast annual loss now suf-
fered because of insects and fungi will be very greatly
lessened. The pages w^hich follow are devoted to a con-
sideration of the more important of the first named of
these enemies — the noxious insects — and to the methods
of preventing their injuries.

INSECT TRANSFORMATIONS

Insects are distinguished from related animals by
having three pair's of feet, fitted for locomotion, at-
tached to a body divided into three principal parts —
head, thorax and abdomen. A majority of them are
also characterized by undergoing during their develop-
ment a series of well-marked changes, or transforma-
tions. Such insects exist in four distinct stages* namely :
(1) the egg ; (2) the larva or caterpillar ; (3) tlie pupa or
chrysalis ; and (4) the adult or imago. As an example

6 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

of these changes we may take the celery caterpillar, the
transformations of which are illustrated in Plate I. The
adult butter%, a handsome, black creature, with yellow
and blue markings on its wings (Plate I, e, /), deposits
an egg on the underside of the celery leaf, 'l-'his egg
(a) is a small, light yellow object, nearly spherical,
though slightly flattened where it is attached to the leaf.
A w^eek or so after it has been laid there hatches from it
a small caterpillar or ^^worm," less than one-tenth of an
inch long, black, with two transverse white bands — one
across the middle of the body and the other at the pos-
terior extremity — and having the back roughened with
minute, black, projecting points. This little caterpillar
feeds upon the celery leaf, and within a few^ days so in-
creases in size that it becomes necessary to shed its skin,
or molt. For this purpose the skin splits along the
back and the caterpillar craw^ls out, clothed in a new skin
that had been formed beneath the old one. The color
markings are somewhat different on this new covering.
The caterpillar continues feeding and growing for several
weeks, casting its skin at occasional intervals, and chang-
ing considerably in color and markings. When full
grown it is of the form and size indicated at b on the
plate, the general color being pale green, with a series of
transverse bands of black and yellow markings. AVhen
irritated it thrusts out, from a slit just back of the head,
a pair of peculiar yellow Y-shaped organs, that emit a
disagreeable odor. These organs on the caterpillar are
represented at b, and at c is shown a front view of the
head, with them extended. They doubtless serve as a
protection from various enemies.

The full-grown caterpillar becomes restless, and
leaving the plant, seeks some sheltered situation in which
to pupate. "It first spins," says Dr. Harris, "a little
web or tuft of silk against the surface whereon it is rest-
ing, and entangles the hooks of its hindmost feet in it.

INSECT TEANSFORMATIONS

SO as to fix them securely to the spot ; it then proceeds
to make a loop, or girth, of many silken threads^ bent
into the form of the letter U, the ends of which are fast-
ened to the surface on which it rests
on each side of the middle of its body ;
and under this, when finished, it
passes its head and gradually works
the loop over its back, so as to sup-
port the body and. prevent it from
falling downwards. Within twenty-
four hours after it has taken its sta-
tion, the caterpillar casts off its cat-
erpillar skin, and becomes a chrysalis,
or pupa (Plate I, ^ ) of a pale green,
ocher-yellow, or ash-gray color, with
two short ear-like projections above fig. i. chinch bug.
the head, just below which, on the Magnified,

back, is a little prominence like a pug nose. The chrys-
alis hangs in the same way as the caterpillar, and remains
m this state from nme to fifteen days, according to the

temperature.
When this period
is terminated, the
skin of the chrys-
alis bursts open,
*and the butterfly
issues from it,
clings to the empty
shell till its
cramped and

FIG. 2. CHINCH BUG. a, 6, eggs : c, e,/, ^, young drooping W i n g S

bugs, or nmyphs. Magnified. have extended to

their full dimen-
sions, and have become dried, upon which it flies away in
pursuit of companions and food." Besides celery this
caterpillar feeds upon parsley, carrots, and related plants.

8 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The butterjfly is known to entomologists as Papilio
aster ias.

Insects which undergo such a marked series of
changes as those above described are said to have comjMe
transformations to distinguish them from those which
do not undergo so marked a series of changes — those
with incomjMe transformations. In one stage of exist-
ence— that of the chrysalis or pupa — insects of the first
class take no food and are unable to move about. With
these, also, the young or larva differs greatly in form
and appearance from the adult. Thus, caterpillars are
very unlike the butterflies and moths into which they de-
velop, and larval honey bees differ greatly from the
adults ; but with the insects of the second class this
marked difference does not exist. The chinch bug fur-
nishes a good illustration of these transformations. The
adult bug (Fig. 1) deposits eggs (Fig. 2, «, V) about the
roots of grass and grain. From these hatch young bugs
(c) that do not differ in general form from the adults.
They suck the sap from various plants of the grass fami-
ly, gradually increasing in size, and molting at inter-
vals. In a few weeks they become nearly full grown,
but instead of changing to a quiet chrysalis state, they
simply molt again and continue feeding as before. In
these early stages, which correspond to the larva and
chrysalis, they are called nymplis. The older nymphs
{g) are nearly as large as the full-grown bugs, differing
mainly in the absence of wings. In about a week they
again molt and come forth as adult bugs. Grasshop-
pers, crickets, and all true bugs, undergo these incom-
plete transformations.

BITING AND SUCKING INSECTS

Insects take their food in two ways : some insects
bite, others suck. The former, of which the Colorado
potato beetle is an example, are provided with jaws by

ElIEMIES OF INJURIOUS INSECTS

whicli they can gnaw the surface of the food plant. The
latter have, instead, a pointed, tube-like beak which
they can insert into the tissues of their host plant, and
suck out the sap.

On account of this difference in feeding habits some
insects can be destroyed by coating their food plants with
poison — the Colorado potato beetle for example — while
others, like the plant lice or chinch bug, must be treated
with some insecticide that kills by contact.

NATURAL ENEMIES OF INJURIOUS INSECTS

Injurious insects have many natural enemies to con-
tend with. Among the larger animals they are preyed
ujDon by the ^* fowls of the air
and the fish of the sea;" frogs
lick them up with their viscid
tongues, and toads are contin-
ually sending them in search
of the mystic jewel within their
bodies, while snakes, lizards,
moles, skunks, and a host of
other animals are their con-
stant enemies. But more de-
structive than any or all of
these are the foes of their own
class — the predaceous and parasitic insects.

Predaceous insects are those which attack other in-
sects from the outside, devouring them bodily, or suck-
ing out their lifeblood. "" The handsome little lady
beetles, the two-winged robber flies, or the four-winged
dragon flies furnish good exami:>les of this class. So,
also, do the black ground beetles, found everywhere un-
der sticks and stones. Some of the largest of these
are called caterpillar hunters, because they feed upon
cankerworms, army worms, cutworms, and various
other insect pests. One of these ground beetles is shown

a h

FIG. 3. GROUND BEETLE.

a, larva ; h, beetle.

10 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

at Fig. 3, the larva being represented at the left, and the
beetle at the right. Other predaceous insects live in
ponds, lakes and rivers, devouring mosquitoes and re-
lated creatures, while still others burrow tlirough the
earth and devour the insects found therein.

Parasitic insects differ from their predaceous cousins
in that the}^ generally develop within the bodies of their
victims and thus destroy them. These, also, are exceed-
ingly numerous, both in individuals and sj^ecies. A good
illustration of the habits of this class is found in the
small, four- winged, black jfly (shown natural size and
magnified at the right in Fig. 4), that destro3^s the com-
mon grape caterpillar,
an insect closely related
to the familiar tomato
worm or tobacco worm.
This fly deposits a
number of eggs beneath

FIG. 4. CATERPILI.AR WITH COCOONS OF, J ,• . ,, ,

PARASITE. Adult parasite at right; ^ne bKlIl OI UIG Cdtei-

latter magnified. pillar, and thesc eggs

soon hatch into minute worms or maggots that absorb
the body juices of the worm and develop at its expense.
After a few weeks these maggots become full grown, and
burrow their way out through the skin of their hapless
and heli^less host. They then spin their white silken
cocoons (Fig. 4) upon its back. Within these cocoons
they change to the pupal or chrysalis state. About two
weeks later they again change, and the legless little mag-
gots become transformed into heat and pretty black flies,
with four wings and six legs, like the one which a few
weeks before deposited in the caterpillar the eggs from
which they developed.

The borers that live in the stems of plants are gen-
erally attacked by parasites that attach themselves to
the skin on the outside, sucking the juices through the
openings they make. Such are called external parasites

ENEMIES OF IKJtillOUS INSECTS

11

to distinguisli them from the internal parasites ju^t con-
sidered.

But these parasites are not always so successful as
this, for they frequently furnish a partial illustration of
the truth of Dean Swift's oft-quoted couplet:

The httle fleas that do us tease

Have other fleas that bite 'em,
And these in turn have other fleas.

And so it goes ad infinitum.

These parasites are frequently subject to the att?,ck
of a still smaller parasite which destroys them as thay
destroyed their host. In such
cases the first-mentioned spe-
cies is called the primary par-
asite, and the second a sec-
ondary parasite. There are
also foes of another kind from
which injurious insects often
suffer. These are the germs
of contagious diseases, of a
bacterial or fungous nature.
The imported cabbage worm,
for example, is frequently at-
tacked by a bacterial disease
— a sort of insect cholera —
that destroys it in great num-
bers. Similar diseases affect
the army worm, the various
cutworms, and many other
insects. Diseases of a some-
what different nature, due to certain fungi other than
bacteria, also attack many insects. For instance, the
chinch bug is frequently destroyed in great numbers by
a fungus that develops on the surface of the bug as a
dense, white covering. This disease is illustrated at
Fig. 5: a number of dead bugs are shown on a wheat

FIG. 5.

CHIXCH BUGS AFFECTED
BY FUXGUS.

12

INSECTS AllD INSECTICIDES

stalk on the left, while a single bug, much magnified,
covered with the fungus, is represented at the right.

THE ORDERS OF INSECTS

It is frequently supposed that almost any sort of
bugs, worms or spiders that fly or crawl about are in-
sects, but correctly speaking a large
proportion of these creatures are not
insects at all. For example a spider
is not an insect. Neither are the
^^thousand-legged worms" so often
found under boards. In both these
cases the creatures have too many
legs to belong to the insect class.
Spiders have eight legs, and the
'^thousand legs" a great many more,
while as already stated true insects
possess but six. Thus by looking at
Fig. 6 which represents a harvest
sjnder or *' daddy longlegs" the
reader will see that there are -four
legs on each side, making eight in
riG. 6. HARVEST SPIDER all, whilc in Fig. 7 which represents
a centipede there are many more. But each of the fig-
ures of insects shows only three pairs of legs. By count-
ing the number of legs one can generally very easily tell
whether one of these animals is an insect or some related
creatuie.

Insects proper are divided into a number of orders,
the more important of which are briefly described in the
following paragraphs.

The lowest order of the Hexapoda — the class of true
insects — is the Thysanura: it includes the peculiar
minute insects commonly known as springtails, brisMe-
tails and fish moths. These little creatures are wingless
and undergo no tran^fonnations — never getting beyond

THE ORDERS OF INSECTS 13

the larval stage ; some species have an aggregation of
simple eyes on the head, but very few have compound
eyes ; the priiieipal mouth parts are set back in the head.
They inhabit a great variety of situations, being found
abundantly under loose bark and boards lying on the
ground. Some species, like the fish moth, live in
houses or other dry places. ''Many of them have a
curious spring-like appendage attached to the tail, Avhich
is bent under the body, and by means of which the in-
sects are enabled to make leaps that are enormous com-
pared with their

small size. Others ^m//M,

have long jointed
filaments at the end fig. 7. ce^-tipede.

of the body which serve no purpose that w^e know any-
thing about. The insects are rarely seen on plants, but
w^here an overflow occurs millions of them are sometimes
found upon the surface of the water, on w^hich they hop
about as easily as on land. Certain others are some-
times found on the surface of snow, in midwinter. The
species live on dead or decaying vegetable substances and
upon fungi, and in turn furnish food for a great many
kinds of predaceous forms." (Smith.) None of them
are of material economic importance.

The next higher order of insects is called the Pseu-
doneuroptera. It includes the dragon flies. May flies,
stone flies and similar forms. These insects have four
membranous net-veined wings, with biting mouth parts
and incomplete transformations. The life history of
the common dragon fly may serve to illustrate the biol-
ogy of this group. The eggs are laid on the stems or
leaves of aquatic jilants by the adult dragon flies, and
soon hatch into small larvae that live in the water, prey-
ing upon mosquito "w^rigglers" and other aquatic in-
sects. They are provided with a kind of triangular-
shaped jaw, with a sharp pair of scissors at the end ;

THE ORDERS OF INSECTS 15

this is called the mask. It is usually concealed under
the head of the larva, but when an insect comes within
reach it is suddenly thrust out, grasps the victim and
returns to its concealed position. The larva grows
gradually, and finally crawls up out of the water on
some reed, when its skin splits open along the back and
the adult dragon fly appears. These insects are preda-
ceous in all stages of their existence.

The order of insects to which grasshoppers, crick-
ets, katydids and similar creatures belong is called the
Ortlioptera, a word meaning straight-winged.. The
insects of this order have four wings, the first pair being
thickened, and, when at rest, overlapping the second,
which are folded in longitudinal plaits. The transfor-
mations are incomplete, the young resembling the adults
in general appearance. The mouth parts are formed for
biting rather than sucking.

The first important family of the Orthoptera is that
of the cockroaches (BlattidcB), There are many species
of them, the most abundant probably being the oriental
cockroach and the so-called Croton bug. *' Cockroaches
are very general feeders ; they destroy nearly all forms
of provisions and injure many other kinds of merchan-
dise. They often deface the covers of cloth-bound
books, eating blotches upon them for the sake of the
sizing used in their manufacture ; and I have had them
eat even the gum from postage stamps. They thrive
best in warm, damp situations ; in dwellings they pre-
fer the kitchens and laundries, and the neighborhood of
steam and water pipes. They are chiefly nocturnal
insects. They conceal themselves during the day be-
neath furniture or the floors, or within the spaces in the
walls of a house ; and at night they emerge in search of
food. The depressed form of their bodies enables them
to enter small cracks in the floors or walls/'*

«Comstock.

16

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

After the cockroaches follow two families of peculiar
insects. The first iDcludes the soothsayers or praying
mantes, and the second the walking sticks. The for-

FIG. 8. BIRD GRASSHOPPER OR AMERICAN LOCUST.

mer are found especially in warm climates, at least ono
species occurring commonly in our Southern State*

FIG. 9. A KATYDID.

The walking sticks also are most abundant in the trop'
ics, although one species occurs in the Northern States.

THE ORDERS OF Il^SECTS

17

The common grasshoppers or locusts belong to the
family Acrididcs, a large group containing many injuri-
ous species. The hind legs are long and stout, fitting
the insect for jumping. The largest species inhabiting
the United States is the bird grasshopper, or American
locust, represented natural size in Pig. 8. This hand-
some insect might readily be mistaken for a small bird
when it is flying at a distance. It inhabits the Southern
States, occasionally occurring as far north as Central
Ohio. Accounts of other species will be found in the
later pages of this book.

The family LocustidcB includes the long-horned
grasshoppers and katydids. These insects especially
abound during the kte summer and early autumn

FIG. 10. THE BLACK CRICKET.

months, when their familiar sounds greet us on every
side. Most of the insects of this family are green in
color, to correspond with the herbage among which
they live.

The crickets which form the family Gryllidce are
abundant everywhere in fields and meadows, and prob-
ably do considerably more damage than they are usually
credited with. In the Northern States the common
2

18 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

black species generally winter over in the condition of
eggs whicli are deposited in the ground. The climbing
or tree crickets and the burrowing or mole crickets are
abnormal members of this family.

The order Hemiptera includes the true bugs. They
have four wings, sucking mouth parts and incomplete
transformations. Here belong the bark lice, the aphides,
the tree hoppers, the yarious plant bugs and many
others. The most notorious plant-destroying species of
this order is the chinch bug. The appearance of a t3^p-
ical member of this order is represented in Fig. 11.

The moths and butterflies form the order Lejndop-
tera, or scaly- winged insects. Under the microscope
the wings of these are seen to be cov-
ered with minute scales which overlap
one another. They have complete
transformations and, in the adult state,
sucking mouth parts. They are divided
into a large number of families, the
most important of \#hich are the fol-
lowing :

The various families of butterflies
are grouped together under the name -pio. u.

Rliopalocera. The adults are mostly i^esser water bug.
day fliers and the larvae, as a rule, live upon green vege-
tation. The life history of the asterias butterfly already
described is typical of this group.

The family Sphingidm includes a considerable num-
ber of injurious insects, of which the common tomato
worm is a familiar example. The adults of this group
are large-bodied moths, having long sucking tubes, and
strong wings adapted to swift flight. They fly at dusk,
visiting flowers in search of nectar, and depositing eggs
on their various food plants. The larvae are voracious,
attaining a large size, and pupating in a hollow cell in
the soil.

THE ORDERS OF INSECTS 19

The family of silk-spinning moths, Bo^nhycidce, in-
cludes a number of the most injurioci's insects affecting
fruit and shade trees. The larvae of this group are
hairy caterpillars, which feed upon leaves, and when
full grown spin silken cocoons for protection in the
pupal state. The tent caterpillar of the apple and cherry,
the fall webworm, the tussock caterpillar, the cecropia
and polyphemus moths and many similar insects belong

here.

The family of night-flying moths [Nociuidw) in-
cludes a large number of very destructive species. The
cutworms, ^rmy worm, wheat-head worm, zebra cater-
pillar and many other destructive caterpillars belong
here. In general the larvae have smooth skins, and
pupate at or near the surface of the soil. The moths are
of medium size, and as a rule fly only at night.

There is a large family of small moths called Tor-
tricidcB, the larvae of which are commonly known as
leaf rollers. The normal habit of these little caterpillars
is to feed upon the surface of leaves, which they roll
into a protective covering ; sometimes they live singly,
and sometimes a number live together in a common
nest. These caterpillars attack the leaves of nearly all
our fruit and ornamental trees, although as a rule they
do little damage. Some species, like the codling moth,
feed upon fruit.

The family of looping or measuring caterpillars,
Phalaenidce, includes the destructive cankerworm
among its members. Many of the larvae of this group
so closely resemble twigs as to be difficult to detect in
their natural habitat. The adult moths have slender
bodies and comparatively large wings, although some-
times the females are wingless.

To the Diptera belong the two-winged flies ; the
common house fly is an excellent example. These in-
sects undergo complete transformations, have sucking

20

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

mouth parts, and exhibit a great variety in their habits
of life. Many live in filth of various kinds ; others are
aquatic ; others develop in plant tissues, and yet others
are parasitic on the higher or lower animals.

The Coleoptera or sheath-winged insects form the
immense order which includes the beetles. The front
wings are hardened into horny cases
which cover and protect the mem-
branous second pair ; the mouth
parts are formed for biting and the
transformations are complete. In
the larval state the beetles are com-
monly called grubs. Many beetles
are destructive to vegetation, while
a few live upon decaying organic
matter and others prey upon other
insects. Only a few of the more
important families can here be
mentioned.

The tiger beetles form a distinct
family (Cecindelidce) the members
of which devour many other insects,
being predaceous in both the larval
and adult states. These beetles are
often brightly colored and marked
with distinct spots. Their form when magnified is
shown in Fig. 12. They are abundant in sandy situa-
tions, and may commonly be seen running along country
roads or by the side of streams.

The ground beetles of the family Carahidm form
one of the largest groups of this order. The commonest
species of the family are the elongate black beetles found
abundantly under boards and stones, resembling Fig. 3 i
in general shape. These beetles vary much in habits:
some of them, especially those belonging to the genus
Harpalus and its allies, feed largely upon vegetation of

FIG. 12. TIGER BEETLE.

Magnified.

THE ORDERS OF INSECTS

21

various kinds, while others, particularly those of the
genus Calosoma and nearly related genera, are strictly
carnivorous, being excellent examples of predaceous
beetles.

Many insects destructive to cultivated crops are
found in the great family of leaf beetles or Chrysome-
lidcB, which is said to include more than ten thousand
described species. The most notorious Amer-
ican member of this family is the Colorado
potato beetle, but there are many others, such
as the corn-root worms, the various flea beetles,
the striped cucumber beetle, the asparagus
beetle, and others ecpially injurious. The
larvae of this group vary much in life history beetle.
and appearance: some live exposed on leaves, others are
leaf miners, and others live on roots under ground.

A large number of injurious insects are found
amons: the snout beetles of the family Curr.ulionidcB and

its allies. The plum and aj^ple
curculios, tlie bean and pea wee-
vils, the various grain weevils, the
corn billbugs, the wiiite-pine
borer, and many others belong
here. The larvae of these insects
are usually footless grubs, and
have varied feeding habits. The
adults have a habit of dropping
to the ground when disturbed,
drawing tlieir legs against the
<& T» body and remaining quiet for

FIG. 14. CLICK BEETLE. , . i! i_i -i-l

a,iarva(wireworni);6,beetie.some time: many of them thus
Magnified. resemblc particles ■ of rubbish

which commonly occur on the soil surface and thus elude
the observation of birds or other enemies.

The hard cylindrical yellow worms frequently found
in the soil of meadows and grainfields, and commonly

22

INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

called '^wireworms," are the larvae of the click or snap-
■ping beetles of the family Elateridce. These larvae
feed upon the roots of plants and sometimes do serious
damage to young corn and wheat. They are dijBBcalt to
combat by artificial methods.

The common May beetle or June bug belongs to a
family — ScardbeidcB — which contains many other w^ell-
known depredators. This insect is the fully develoj^ed
condition of the white grub or ^^grubworm" so ^ often
found ill pasture and meadow lands. The rose beetle,
the spotted grapevine beetle, the ^^tumblebugs" and
many others belong to this family.

The ants, bees, w^asps, sawflies and various four-
winged parasites combine to form the order Hymenop-

FiG. 15. AN ICHNEUMON FLY. a, larva ; c, pnpa ; d, adult, magnified.

tera. These insects have the jaws fitted for biting while
the other mouth parts are fitted for sucking. The trans-
formations are complete, and there are with few excep-
tions two pairs of membranous Avings having compara-
tively few veins. This order includes some highly
beneficial as well as very injurious species.

PEEVENTIKG IKSECT INJURIES 23

Probably the most important group of parasitic
insects is that comprising the families Braconid^ and
Ichneumonidse of modern entomologists. These little
creatures vary greatly in life habits, but a large propor-
tion of them are primary parasites of injurious insects.
The adults are four- winged flies with slender bodies and.
antennae, and the larvae are soft, fleshy, footless grubs.
Many of the females are provided with long exserted
ovipositors, with which they can reach caterpillars
hidden in trunks of trees or stems of herbaceous plants.
The eggs are usually deposited on or in the body of the
larva selected, as the victim. They soon hatch into
grubs that develop at the expense of the tissues of the
hosts. Some of the grubs are internal parasites, living
beneath the skin of the caterpillar, while others attach
themselves externally. In either case the host is
doomed: it may be killed long before it gets its full
larval growth, or may be allowed to comj^lete that
growth and even spin a cocoon, but sooner or later the
parasites, like the fox in the fable, will gnaw away its
vitals. When the parasitic grubs become fully grown
they generally spin slight silken cocoons within which
they change to pupae to emerge later as adult flies.

METHODS OF PREVENTING INSECT INJURIES

The methods of preventing insect injuries may con-
veniently be grouped together in four general classes,
viz. : (1) Agricultural Methods; (2) Mechanical Methods;
(3) Use of Natural Enemies ; (4) Insecticidal Methods.

The chief agricultural methods by which the in-
juries of noxious insects may be prevented are the
following:

Clean Culture. — There is probably no one general
method by which the farmer can do more to protect his
crops from insect injury than by clean culture. A large
proportion of injurious insects pass the winter under

24 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

rubbish of many sorts the burning of which late in fall
will lead to their destruction. If the rubbish is not
allowed to accumulate such insects will have less chance
to find suitable quarters, and will be more likely to ^Dcrish
from the effects of weather. Clean culture also reduces
the opportunity of feeding and breeding, and enables
one with greater certainty of success to aj^ply insecticides
or other methods of destruction. '^It is a safe rule,"
writes Prof. J. B. Smith, * ^whenever a crop is gathered,
to clear off the remnants and destroy them as comi^letely
as possible. This is contrary to the general practice,
which is to get the croj) and let the remnants take care of
themselves, until the land is prepared for something
else. Melon, citron, squash, cucumber and other similar
vines are simply left in the fields after the crop is gath-
ered, and there many a borer and many a striped beetle
comes to maturity long after the farmer is done with the
plants. The rule should be to gather and burn, either
by fire or in the manure pit with lime.

**In orchards, this recommendation is of especial
imj^ortance. In dead wood, on the tree or on the
ground, many species hide or complete their develop-
ment during the winter. Every dead branch and twig
should be cut, and with the other rubbish hauled out
and burnt. The ashes will make a good fertilizer.
Kubbish is never a source of advantage, and may be the
exact contrary in many instances. Loose bark does not
help a tree much, while it does afford shelter to many
hibernating species. Never leave an old Avood pile in or
near an orchard, especially if the wood is of the same
kind as the orchard trees. Many insects breed preferably
in dead wood ; but when it becomes too dry or too rotten,
they have a sharp instinct that enables them to discover
a weak or sickly tree, and they attack this at once and
ruin it, where otherwise it might recover. Fallen fruit
should always be destroyed. Were this systematically

PEEVEXTING INSECT INJURIES 25

done, there would soon be no further complaint of cur-
culio, and less of codling moth. The fruit should be
fed to hogs, buried deeply, burned with quicklime, or
disposed of in some other way that will prevent its
maturing the contained insects. Field and orchard
should contain, as nearly as possible, nothing save the
crop, and when no crop is on the ground there should be
nothing else — certainly neither rubbish nor remnants."

Crop Rotation. — By a thoroughgoing system of
crop rotation the multiplication of many insect pests is
effectually prevented. This process may act by starving
the pests as in the case of the western corn-root worm,
an insect which deposits eggs in the cornfield in autumn,
the eggs hatching into worms the following spring. If
then no corn is present the worms perish. Or the
process may compel the insect to feed upon scattering
weeds and grasses as in the case of the corn-root louse,
thus giving a decided check to its powers of multiplica-
tion. There are many and cogent reasons for crop
rotation besides those relating to insects, and good
farmers seldom plant a given crop on the same ground
for successive years. ^^Good agriculture" says Professor
S. A. Forbes '^is the first and best insecticide."

Fall Plowing. — The injuries of many insects may
largely be prevented by fall plowing. The pests affect-
ing the roots of grasses and grains are largely subject to
injury by this method which exposes them in one stage
or another to the attacks of birds and other enemies, as
well as to washing and freezing by the elements and in=
jury by other methods.

Fallowing. — Summer fallowing may sometimes be
used to advantage in starving out certain pests, although
its adoption is seldom necessary.

Refraining from Culture. — Sometimes when a
crop pest of the first class — such as the chinch bug — be-
comes overwhelmingly abundant over a wide area, it is

26 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

desirable to refrain for one or two years from the culture
of the crops upon which the insect develops. The suc-
cessful carrying out of this method involves the co-oper-
ation of the farmers of a large district.

Fertilizing. — It is a well-established general rule
that a plane is better able to resist, insect attack when it
is in a thrifty, growing condition than when it is v/eak
in vitality. Consequently such fertilization as will bring
about the healthiest growth of the crop is desirable.
Some fertilizers also have a direct insecticidal value :
kainit, nitrate of soda, and tobacco are good examples.
Root lice are effectually destroyed by these substances.
Professor J. B. Smith, who has paid special attention to
the insecticidal value of fertilizers, makes this recom-
mendation : "Whenever potash is to be put on as a fer-
tilizer, use it, if possible, in the form of kainit and as a
top-dressing as soon as the ground is prepared and before
the crop is in ; use nitrogen in the form of nitrate of
soda, also as a top-dressing, and just when you want
your plants to have it."

Selection of Resistant Varieties. — It has long
been observed that some varieties of fruits, vegetables
and grains are more subject to insect attack than others.
Consequently other things being equal it is advisable to
select such varieties for planting.

Modifying the Time of Planting. — Sometimes
insect attack may easily be prevented by planting the
crop either earlier or later than the customary time. In
such cases a careful study of the lim,its in either direc-
tion may well be made, and all possible advantage taken
of the facts.

Modifying the Time of Harvesting. — Some
species of insects may be controlled by bringing the crop
to maturity earlier or later than usual. A study of time
limits in this case is also advisable and an intelligent pro-
cedure based upon such knowledge may be adopted.

MECHANICAL METHODS 27

Use of Food Plants as Traps. — A number of in-
sect pests may be best destroyed by planting a favorite
food plant near the crop to be protected : the insects
will concentrate upon this and may then be destroyed.
A good example of this is found in tlie practice of sowing
mustard between rows of cabbages in order to attract the
harlequin bug to the former where it may be destroyed
and the cabbages thus be protected.

MECHAiflCAL METHODS

The more important mechanical methods of con-
trolling insect depredations may be summarized as
follows :

Hand Picking. — The simplest way of preventing
injury by many insects is to pick them off by hand and
kill them. Large caterpillars like the tomato worm and
other sphinxes are generally to be located because of the
foliage devoured and are easily destroyed. The tent
caterpillar and orchard webworm are also readily picked
off when the insects are young and their nests small.
In the garden and on the home grounds this method
should be constantly in use, and often in the case of cer-
tain crops it is the cheapest and most effective way of
ridding larger plantations of insect enemies.

Catching by Nets or other Devices. — It is
sometimes practicable to catch injurious insects by
means of a net of gauze similar to the collecting net of
the entomologist. This is simply a gauze bag attached
to a ring on the end of a handle. It has been recom-
mended for use on large cabbage plantations in catching
the early brood of cabbage butterflies and thus prevent-
ing deposition of eggs that would hatch into cabbage
worms. Another mechanical device that has proven
useful is a stiff square of cardboard smeared on each
side with tar. This is used to catch the leaf hoppers
affecting grapevines — the cards being waved through

28

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

the air in which the insects are flying. Another me-
chanical device is the so-called hopper dozer, by means
of which insects affecting grass lands are destroyed.
There are various other similar mechanical means some-
times used in insect destruction.

Excluding by Mechanical Means. — Often the
most practical way of preventing insect injury is to fence
out unwelcome visitors by mechanical devices. The bag-
ging of grapes and the covering of young cucurbitaceous
■vines with netting are good examples of this method.

Catching by Jarring and Beating. — Insects af-
fecting the fruit or foliage of trees may sometimes be
induced to fall to the ground by
sudden jars of the trunk or larger
branches. They may then be
killed in various ways. One of
the commonest methods is to
spread beneath the tree sheets of
cloth, either loose ujDon the ground
or stretched upon yarious kinds of
frames. The plum curculio is the
species most commonly fought in
this way. Sometimes the foliage
of vines may be beaten to dislodge
insect enemies.

Attracting to Light. —
Many insects fly to light ; advan-
tage is sometimes taken of this to
destroy moths or other parents of
noxious insects. This may be
done by lighting bonfires, placing a lantern over a tub of
water, or by a trap similar to the one shown in Fig. 16,
the pan containing water with a film of kerosene on top.

Trapping. — Insects are trapjied in many ways by
means of mechanical devices. Cutworms and squash
bags will congregate under chips or small boards placed

FIG. 16. JLA^^'TEliN TRAP.

THE USE OF NATUKAL ENEMIES 29

in infested fields, and are tlieii easily killed. Codling-
moth larvfe may be entrapped under boards placed loosely
around the trunk of the trees. Chinch bugs and army
worms may sometimes be caught in holes or ditches dug
in their 23aths, and may also be prevented from crossing
into fields by the use of tar so arranged as to form a line
which the insects cannot cross. Tarred paper may also
be put around trees to prevent the ascent of pests like
the cankerworm.

Inundating. — In the case of certain crops it is pos-
sible to prevent insect injury by flooding the field. The
cranberry is the best example of this. It is a simple
and efficient method.

THE USE OF NATURAL Eis^EMIES

An intelligent understanding of the use of natural
enemies in keeping in check injurious insects necessi-
tates a knowledge of certain general biological laws
which govern the case. The most important of these is
probably the one which is commonly stated in this way :
No animal can multiply beyond the limits of its food
supply. The truth of this is obvious ; but it is often
overlooked in discussions concerning the use of parasites
in subduing insect outbreaks. It is so important that
the interrelations of host and parasite be clearly under-
stood that I quote at length from an admirable essay by
Professor S. A. Forbes, in which these relations under
natural conditions are discussed:*

^* Evidently a species cannot long maintain itself in
numbers greater than can find sufficient food, year after
year. If it is a plant-feeding insect, for example, it will
soon dwindle if it seriously lessens the numbers of the
plants upon which it feeds, either directly by eating
them up, or indirectly by so weakening them that they

*0n Some Interactions of Organisms, Bulletin, HI, State Labor^iorjf
of Natural Histqi'y, /, No. 3, 1880.

30 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

labor under a marked disadvantage in the struggle with
other plants for foothold, light, air and food. The
interest of the insect is therefore identical with the in-
terest of the plant it feeds upon. Whatever injuriously
affects the latter equally injures the former, and what-
ever favors tiie latter equally favors the former. This
must therefore be regarded as the extreme normal limit
of the members of a plant-feeding S])ecies, — a limit such
that its depredations shall do no especial harm to the
plants upon which it depends for food, but shall remove
only the excess of foliage or fruit, or else superfluous
individuals which must either perish otherwise, if not
eaten, or surviving, must injure their species by over-
crowding. If the plant feeder multiply beyond the
above limit, evidently the diminution of the food supply
will soon react to diminish its own numbers ; a counter
reaction will then take place in favor of the plant, and
so on through an oscillation of indefinite continuance.

"On the other hand, the reduction of the plant-
feeding insect below the normal number will evidently
injure the food plant by preventing a reduction of its
excess of growth or numbers, and will also set up an
oscillation like the preceding except that the steps will
be taken in reverse order.

*'I next point out the fact that precisely the same
reasoning applies to predaceous and parasitic insects.
Their interests, also, are identical with the interests of
the species they parasitize or prey uj^on. A diminution
of their food reacts to diminish their own numbers.
They are thus vitally interested in confining their dejore-
dations to the excess of individuals produced, or to re-
dundant or otherwise unessential structures. It is only
by a sort of unlucky accident that a destructive species
really injures the species preyed upon.

''The discussion thus far has affected only such
organisms as are confined to a single species. It remains

THE USE OF NATUEAL ENEMIES ol

fco see how it applies to such as have several sources of
support open to them, — sucb, for instance, as feed indif-
ferently upon several plants or upon a variety of animals
or both. Let us take, first, the case of a predaceous
beetle feeding upon a variety of other insects, — eitber
indifferently upon wbatever species is most numerous or
most accessible, or preferably upon certain species, re-
sorting to others only in case of an insufficiency of its
favorite food.

" It is at once eyident that, taking its food insects
as a unit, the same reasoning applies as if it were re-
stricted to a single species for food : tbat is, it is inter-
ested in the maintenance of these food species at tbe
highest number consistent with the general conditions
of the environment, — interested to confine its own dep-
redations to that surplus of its food which would other-
wise perish if not eaten, — interested, therefore, in estab-
lishing a rate of reproduction for itself which will not
unduly lessen its food supply. Its interest in the num-
bers of each species of the group it eats will evidently be
the same as its interest in the group as a whole, since
the group as a whole can be kept at the highest number
possible only by keeping each species at the highest
number possible.'*

Professor Forbes goes on to show that when the
rate of reproduction of a parasite is relatively too great
it causes fluctuations in numbers which are injurious
both to the parasite and its host, and concludes that in
a state of nature ''the annihilation of all the established
enemies of a species would, as a rule, have no effect to
increase its final average numbers."

Such being the case where man has not interfered
with nature, we have next to inquire to what extent
these principles hold good under the conditions of mod-
em agriculture, for these insects which feed upon culti-
vated crops. Evidently a chief element of disturbance

32 li^SECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

of the natural order here lies in the enormously increased
food supjily — an increase so great and so subject to mul-
tiplication by man that it is a rare event for an insect to
reach its limit. If a crop in a given locality is destroyed
by insects, seed from another region is usually planted
the following season, so that while under natural condi-
tions the insect would have been starved out, it is in-
stead given an increased opportunity to develop. In
consequence of this, the law that no animal can multi-
ply beyond the limits of its food supply becomes practi-
cally inoperative.

Given then this condition of a j^lant-feeding insect
with a practically unlimited food supply to draw upon,
we have next to consider what relations it would sustain
to its parasitic enemies. We may take as an example
the common tomato sphinx caterjiilhir {Phlegethontius
celeus) and its microgaster parasite {Apanteles congre-
gatus). The latter is a small, black, four-winged fly,
that deposits eggs beneath the skin of the tomato worm,
especially along the back. The eggs hatch into little
maggots that absorb the body juices of the worm, devel-
oping at its expense and finally coming out upon its
back where they sjnn white, silken cocoons, within
which they change to pupae. Shortly afterward they
again change to flies, that gnaw out of the cocoons, and
fly away to continue the work of destruction. The cat-
erpillar lingers a while in a half-dead condition and
finally dies.

The reproductive rate of the parasite appears to be
somewhat greater than that of the sphinx ; we will sup-
pose it to be one-third greater — that, for example, each
sphinx moth deposits forty eggs and each microgaster fly
sixty. Suppose that in a given locality at a given time,
the sphinx moths are just as numerous as the micro-
gaster flies, — for instance that there are one hundred
moths and one hundred flies. Each of these moths

THE USE OF NATURAL ENEMIES 33

deposits on the tomato plants forty eggs, so that 4,000
caterpillars will shortly hatch. When the latter are
about half -grown, the one hundred flies ^appear among
them and each deposits, in a single caterpillar, sixty
eggs ; they thus doom at once one hundred of the 4,000
caterpillars. Consequently there go into the pupal state
3,900 tomato worms to emerge as moths for the second
generation. There will appear as the second generation
of flies 6,000 specimens. The second brood of moths
will bring forth 156,000 (3,900x40) caterpillars. Six
thousand of these will be destroyed by the microgasters,
leaving 150,000 to go into the pupal state for the third
generation of moths. The third brood of parasites will
consist of 360,000 individuals. In this way the two
species continue reproducing for several succeeding gen-
erations, the microgasters constantly gaining on their
hosts, until finally a point is reached vfhere there are as
many parasites as caterpillars. There will then evidently
be a gi'eat and sudden check upon the latter : all of
those which the parasites are able to find being destroyed,
while only those few which escape parasitism will survive.
In the next succeeding generation there will be very few
caterpillars present — simply the jorogeny of the survivors
just mentioned — while the parasites will be sixty-fold
more numerous than before. At this point, evidently,
all the parasites except a very few would die off without
depositing eggs, so that there would be a great and sud-
den decrease in their numbers. The sphinx caterpillars
then begin another period of increase. In other words,
while the law that no species can multiply beyond the
limits of its food supply is rendered inoperative in the
case of the sphinx caterpillar, it continues to act in the
case of the parasite, because man does not artificially
increase the food supply of the latter. Man's interposition
evidently has the effect of extending and intensifying the
oscillations which would occur under natural conditions.
3

34 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

From this view of the case it becomes evident that
we cannot hope to exterminate any species of noxious
insects by means of its parasites alone. On the whole,
parasitic and predaceous insects are of immense service
to man. Without them many plant-feeding species
would multiply to such an extent that the production of
certain crops would require vastly more effort than it
does now. To say, as has been said, that parasitic and
predaceous insects have no economic value, is to put the
case too strongly. Take, for example, two crop pests of
the first class — the army worm and the Hessian fly. The
history of a century shows that these insects fluctuate in
numbers ; that there are periods of immunity from their
attacks, followed by seasons when they are overwhelm-
ingly abundant. It is universally acknowledged that in
the case of the Hessian fly this periodicity is due almost
entirely to the attacks of parasites, and in the case of
the army worm to the attacks of parasites, predaceous
enemies and infectious diseases. Eemove these checks
and what would be the result ? The pests would keep
up to the limits of their food supply and would necessi-
tate the abandonment of the culture of the crops on
which they feed. Take another case. Professor J. B.
Smith has argued that *^ under ordinary conditions
neither parasites nor predaceous insects advantage the
farmer in the least;" and to prove it cites this instance :
'^ Fifty per cent of the cutworms found in a field early
in the season may prove to be infested by parasites, and
none of the specimens so infested wijl ever change to
moths that will rei^roduce their kind. Half of the
entire brood has been practically destroyed and some-
times even a much larger proportion; but — and the
*but' deserves to be spelled with capitals — these cut-
worms will not be destroyed until they have reached
their full growth and have done all the damage to the
farmer that they could have done had they not been

THE USE OF KATURAL ENEMIES 35

parasitized at all. In otiier words, the fact that fifty per
cent, of the cutworms in his field are infested by para-
sites does not help the farmer in the least." But obvi-
ously it does help the farmer very greatly the next season,
for it reduces by half the number of cutw^orms he will
have to contend with. As a matter of fact, cutworms
fluctuate in numbers in a way quite similar to the army
worm and the fluctuations are largely due to para-
sitic enemies. I have seen regions where cutworms
were so abundant that grainflelds were literally cut off
by them as by a mowing machine, and the following
season the worms were so scarce as to do practically no
damage. Even the plum curculio and Colorado potato
beetle are sometimes so scarce as to require no protection
against them, and the presumption is in fayor of the
parasites as the cause of their scarcity.

But Professor Smith is right in saying that as a
general rule there is too great a tendency to rely upon
natural enemies to subdue insect attack. It is nearly
always safer to adopt effective measures in keeping pests
in check than to trust to the chance of their natural
enemies subduing them. As Dr. C. V. Riley has
pointed out, 'Hhere are but two methods by w^hich these
insect friends of the farmer can be effectually utilized or
encouraged, as, for the most part, they perform their
work unseen and unheeded by him, and are practically
beyond his control. These methods consist in the intel-
ligent protection of those species which already exist in
a given locality, and in the introduction of desirable
species which do not already exist there."

Various special methods of protecting existing par-
asites will be described on the following pages. In gen-
eral it may be said it frequently happens that some
outbreaks of insects — plant lice, for example — which
have reached a point where the enemies are overwhelm-
ingly abundant had better not be treated with insecticides.

36 INSECTS. AND INSECTICIDES

because in such cases the enemies will check the out-
break and not destroy themselves.

The second method of utilizing j^arasitic and preda-
ceous enemies of injurious insects — that of introducing
them to new localities — can sometimes be used to advan-
tage in certain exceptional cases, but its practical value
has been greatly overestimated in recent years by the
general i^ublic. The most remarkable instance of the
use of this method is the famous one in which the
Vedalia lady beetle was introduced into California to
subdue the fluted scale {Icerya j^urcliasi). This latter
insect was introduced from Australia into California.
It there soon became a very troublesome pest because of
"its ability to survive for long periods without food, to
thrive upon a great variety of plants and to move about
throughout most of its life." In its native home this
pest was to a great extent kept in check by its natural
enemies; in America it multiplied enormously with no
checks upon its increase. Through the efforts of Dr.
Riley expert entomologists were sent to Australia to
study the enemies of the fluted scale, and to send to
California such of these as might prove useful. Various
enemies were found and forwarded, but "one of them,
Vedalia cardinalis, proved so effective as to throw the
others entirely into the shade and to render their services
really unnecessary. It has, so far, not been known to
prey upon any other insect, and it breeds with surprising
rapidity, occupying less than thirty days from the laying
of the eggs until tlie adults again appear. These facts
account for its exceptionally rapid work, for, in point of
fact, within a year and a half of its first introduction it
had practically cleared off the fluted scale throughout
the infested region."*

But the very fact that this lady beetle feeds only on

*Riley. ' ' ^ - ' , , •

THE USE OF CONTAGIOUS DISEASES 37

the fluted scale will in the course of time render it less
useful than if it had a slightly wider range of food. For
it will necessitate a fluctuation in the numbers of para-
site and host according to the principle already ex-
plained ; unless, indeed, and this seems a probable con-
tingency, the lady beetles learn to feed upon other insects
and thus greatly extend the limits of their food supply.
One of the most promising methods of utilizing
parasites is that of their distribution from a section in
which an outbreak of a crop pest is reaching its maxi-
mum, and in which, consequently, the parasites are
abundant, to a region where the pest is on the increase
and threatening an outbreak. Such disseminations
would naturally be brought about through the official
entomologists in the various parts of the country.

THE USE OF COi^TAGIOUS DISEASES

It has long been known that at certain periods in
the fluctuations of such insects as the army worm and
chinch bug fatal maladies often appear among them,
destroying them with great rapidity. The idea of culti-
vating the germs of these diseases and then distributing
them in regions where the diseases have not yet appeared
was first scientifically elaborated by Professor S. A.
Forbes, State Entomologist of Illinois, who has devoted
years of the most painstaking investigation to contagious
insect diseases. The subject has also been taken up by
Professor F. H. Snow of the University of Kansas, who
has conducted extensive field experiments in the practical
utilization of disease germs. Without attempting an
adequate discussion of the method, it may here be said
that in general two classes of these diseases are recog-
nized— one being due to the presence of bacteria of vari-
ous supposed species, and the other to certain fungi be-
longing to Entomopthora, Sporotrichum and other
genera,

^4M)^J^

u

>

o <o

1^

*^ pi

9?

THE USE OF Di^SECTICIDES 39

The metliod of utilizing these diseases is to cnltivate
artificially the organism causing the malady, and then to
distribute it in the field. In the case of the chinch bug
the fungus is sometimes cultivated by putting some of
the dead bugs in a box or vessel with a lot of living
healthy ones : the latter become infected and are then
scattered in the fields infested by chinch bugs. Another
and probably better method is to cultivate the germs in
some nutrient solution on a large scale, and then to
spray or otherwise distribute it over the infested fields.

There seems to be no question but that while the
benefits to be derived from this method have been greatly
overestimated in the popular mind, it is capable of
much good under favorable conditions. The chief
trouble found as yet has been due to weather unfavorable
io the development of the disease-producing organism.

THE USE OF INSECTICIDES

In the great majority of cases the most effective
method of preventing insect injuries lies in the intelli-
gent application of insecticides, or insect-killing sub-
stances. These may be broadly divided into two classes :
(1) internal poisons, or those which take effect by being
eaten along with the ordinary food of the insect ; and (2)
external irritants, or those which act from the outside —
closing the breathing pores, or causing death by irrita-
tion of the skin. Besides these, however, various other
substances are used in preventing insect attack — keeping
the pests away because of offensive odors, or acting
simply as mechanical barriers.

The most important insecticides are the poisons.
Of these the most popular are the various combinations
of arsenic known as Paris green, London purple, arse-
nate of lead, and a large number of patent insecticides
sold under various names.

Paris Green is a chemical combination of arsenic

40 IITSECTS AND I]SSECTICIDES

and copper, called aceto-arsenite of copper. It contains
usually from fifty-five to sixty per cent, of arsenic, and
retails at about thirty cents per pound. It is practically
insoluble in water, and may be applied either dry or wet.
In the former case for certain crops it should be well
mixed with some fine powder as a diluent : plaster, air-
slaked lime, flour, road dust, and finely sifted wood
ashes, all answer the j^urpose fairly well, though lime or
plaster is usually preferable. The proportion of poison
to diluent varies greatly with different users — one part
poison to twenty, and even fifty, of diluent, will usually
be effective, if the mixing be thoroughly done. Paris
green is almost insoluble in water ; but there is often a
small percentage of it soluble, and to prevent the injury
this may do to foliage it pays to add a little fresh lime-
water (made by slaking fresh lime in water) to the spray-
ing mixture. It may be used in spraying potatoes, apple
trees, and most shade trees, at the rate of four or five
ounces to fifty gallons of water. On stone fruits, espe-
cially peach, use half this strength, unless lime is added.
In preparing, a good plan is to dish out the poison, then
add to it something more than double the amount of
freshly slaked lime ; then make into a paste with a little
water and add to the whole amount of water, straining
through some suitable sieve.

Paris green is a heavy powder and does not stay
long in suspension ; hence it must be kept constantly
stirred to prevent its settling to the bottom of the vessel.
Buy it in as finely powdered condition as possible, and
get it of a reliable dealer. It can be purchased in cans
holding fourteen pounds or more, at twenty cents per
pound, and ordinarily retails at a slightly higher figure.

The true Paris green (the copper aceto-arsenite) is
known in the arts as Schweinfurt green. Emerald green,
Mitis green and French green. ^'Scheele's green, the
simple arsenite of copper, is frequently confounded with

THE USE OF IN"SECTICIDES 41

Paris green, but is distinguished from tlie latter by its
duller color and the entire absence of acetic acid, which
is a characteristic constituent of a genuine Paris green."*
London Purple is a by-product obtained in the
manufacture of aniline dyes. It generally contains
nearly the same percentage of arsenic as Paris green,
which, howeyer, is often in a more soluble form, and
consequently it is more liable to injure foliage than is
Paris green. It is a finer jDowder than the green, and
hence remains in suspension in water much longer.
It is also cheaper, retailing at about fifteen cents per
pound, and in large quantities is obtainable at ten cents
per pound. It may be used in the same way — as a pow-
der or in water suspension — and the i^roj^ortions given
above answer very well for it. Before using, the soluble
arsenic should be made insoluble by the addition of lime-
water. One of the best ways to do this is to add three-
fourths of a pound of lime to a pound of London j^urple,
and thoroughly mix them in a gallon of hot water, allow-
ing the mixture to stand two hours, and keeping it hot
during this time if it can be conveniently done. In this
way the soluble arsenic will be rendered insoluble, and
the London purple may be used at the rate of four or five
ounces to a barrel of water. Or the London purple may
be added to the water as usual, and about two gallons of
fresh milk of lime (made by slaking lime in water)
strained into the barrel. If allowed to stand an hour,
all the soluble arsenic is more likely to be rendered in-
soluble than if used at once. After London purple has
been thus treated with lime it can safely be applied to
tender foliage at a strength of four ounces to fifty gal-
lons of water. Both London purple and Paris green
may be added to the Bordeaux mixture (four ounces
poison to fifty gallons mixture), as described more fully

* H. H. Boss.

42 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

on page 51, and then tlie treatment with lime is not
necessary.

Arsenate of Lead. — This substance has recently
been used successfully by the Massachusetts Gypsy Moth
Commission for the destruction of caterpillars. Its
chief advantage lies in the fact that it can be applied in
heavy doses to tender foliage without injury to the lat-
ter. Mr. 0. L. Marlatt says : *' This insecticide is pre-
pared by combining, approximately, three parts of arse-
nate of soda with seven parts of acetate of lead. These
substances unite chemically and form a fine, white pow-
der which remains easily in suspension. As now used
by the Commission, ten pounds of the arsenate of lead
are used with one hundred and fifty gallons of water,
two quarts of glucose being added to cause the insecti-
cide to adhere longer to the leaves. Prof. Fernald's ex-
perience and our own ^'ould indicate that from one-
fourth to one-half this strength will answer for most
larvae — the larvas of the gypsy moth proving to be un-
usually resistant to the action of poisons. The arsenate
of lead costs the Commission seven cents a pound whole-
sale, and glucose sixteen dollars a barrel."

White Arsenic is sometimes recommended as an
insecticide but, fortunately, is rarely used. It is much
more dangerous to have around than the highly colored
insecticides, because of the danger of mistaking it for
edible products ; and unless applied as soon as it is
mixed with water it is very liable to burn the foliage.

The principal substances used for killing insects by
contact are the following :

Hellebore is a powder made of the roots of a plant
called Avhite hellebore ( Veratriim album). It is a vege-
table poison, but much less dangerous than the mineral
arsenical poisons, and kills both by contact and by being
eaten. It may be apj^lied as a dry powder or in water,
an ounce to three gallons. It retails at about twenty-

THE USE OF INSECTICIDES 43

Q.Ye cents per pound, and is especially excellent in de-
stroying the imported currant worm.

Pyrethrum is an insecticide of recent introduc-
tion, made from the powdered flowers of plants of the ge-
nus Pyrethrum. There are three principal brands upon
the market, known as Persian insect powder, Dalmatian
insect powder, and Buhach — the latter being a California
product. The greatest obstacle to the use of pyrethrum
has been the difficulty of obtaining the pure, fresh arti-
cle. After long exposure to air it seems to lose much of
its insecticidal value. Hence dealers should purchase a
fresh supply each season, and should keep it in air-tight
vessels. Pyrethrum is used mainly as a dry powder or
in water (one ounce to three gallons); but may also be
used in the form of a tea, or a decoction, a fume, or an
alcoholic extract diluted. For use as a dry powder it may
advantageously be diluted with six or eight parts of flour.
It is especially excellent for clearing rooms of flies and
mosquitoes, and for killing the common cabbage worms.
It is practically harmless to man and the higher animals.

Kerosene and Soap Emulsion. — There are two
methods of j^reparing this in common use, — one origi-
nating with Messrs. Riley and Hubbard, and the other
with Prof. A. J. Cook. Both have their advocates.
According to the former it is prepared by adding two
gallons of kerosene to one gallon of a solution made by
dissolving half a pound of hard soap in one gallon of
boiling water, and churning the mixture by forcing it
back into the same vessel through a force pump with a
rather small nozzle until the whole forms a creamy mass,
which will thicken into a jelly-like substance on cooling.
The soap solution should be hot when the kerosene is
added, but of course must not be near a fire. In case
soft soap is used add one quart in place of the one-haJf
pound of hard soap. The emulsion thus made is to be
diluted before using with from nine to fifteen or twenty

44 INSECTS AKD Us-SECTICIDES

parts of water to one part of emulsion. The amount of
dilution varies with different insects ; plant lice may be
killed with emulsion dihited with fifteen or twenty parts
of water, while hard-bodied insects require a dilution of
only nine or ten parts water. Soft or rain water should
be used in diluting. If this cannot be obtained add a
little lye or bicarbonate of soda ; or i)repare according to
one of the following methods.

Professor Cook has two formulas, — one where soft
soap is used and the other for hard soap. He describes
them as follows :

Cook's Soft-soap Emulsion. — "Dissolve one
quart of soft soap in two quarts of boiling water. Remove
from fire and, while still boiling hot, add one imit of
kerosene and immediately agitate with the pump as de-
scribed above. In two or three minutes the emulsion
w^ill be perfect. This should be diluted by adding an
equal amount of w^ater, when it is ready for use. This
always emulsifies readily with hard or soft water ; always
remains permanent, for years even, and is very easily
diluted, even in the coldest weather and without any
heating. In this last respect it has no equal, so far as
we have experimented. The objections to it are, — we
cannot always procure the soft soap, though many farm-
ers make it, and it is generally to be found in our mar-
kets; and it occasionally injures the foliage, probably
owing to the caustic properties of the soap. We have
used this freely for years, and never saw any injury till
the past season. In case of any such trouble use only
one half the amount of soap — one pint instead of one
quart. It works just as well."

Cook's Hard-soap Emulsion. — "Dissolve one
quarter pound of hard soap — Ivory, Babbitt, Jaxon, or
wiiale oil, etc. — in two quarts of water ; add, as before,
one pint of kerosene, and pump the mixture back into
itself while hot. This always emulsifies at once, and is

THE USE OF INSECTICIDES 45

permanent with hard as well as soft water. This is
dihited with twice its bulk of water before use. The
objection to a large amount of water sinks before the
fact that this secures a sure and permanent emulsion
even though diluted with hard water. This also be-
comes, with certain soaps, lumpy or stringy when cold,
so that it cannot be readily diluted with cold water un-
less first heated. Yet this is true with all hard-soap
emulsions in case of certain soaps. We can, however,
always dilute easily if we do so at once before our emul-
sion is cold, and we can also do the same either by heat-
ing the emulsion or diluent, no matter how long we wait.''

When the undiluted emulsion, however made, is to
be kept for future use, store it in a cool, dark place.
When desired for use measure out the required amount
and mix it with three or four parts of boiling water.
Then add cold water to fill out the dilution.

This emulsion is useful in destroying a large num-
ber of insect pests, such as plant lice, scale lice, chinch
bugs and similar sucking species.

Kerosene and Milk Emulsion. — The kerosene
may be emulsified with milk instead of soap. One gallon
of sour milk is added to two gallons of kerosene, and the
mixture is churned by means of a force pump and nozzle
as directed above. " The change from a watery liquid
to a thick buttery consistency, much thicker than with
the soap, takes place very suddenly after three to five
minutes' agitation. With sweet milk difficulty will fre-
quently be experienced, and if the emulsion does not re-
sult in five minutes the addition of a little yinegar will
induce prompt action. It is better to prej^are the milk
emulsion from time to time for immediate use, unless it
can be stored in quantity in air-tight jars, otherwise it
will ferment and spoil after a week or two."* This is

«aL.Marlatt.

46 lifSECTS AND IKSECTICIDES

to be diluted in the same manner as recommended for
the Eiley soap emulsion.

Iq apjDlying kerosene emulsion to destroy plant
mites like the red spider, it is well to add one ounce
of powdered sulphur to each gallon of the diluted
emulsion.

Through the investigations of Professor E. S. Goff
a modification of the knapsack sprayers has been made
so that kerosene can be used without emulsifying, being
mechanically mixed with water at the moment of appli-
cation. Experiments by Mr. H. E. AVeed of Mississippi
indicate that by means of the attachment "the kerosene
and water are so thoroughly mixed in the act of pump-
ing that the kerosene is as harmless to the foliage as is
an emulsion of the same strength, and it is as sure death
to insects." This seems a very promising advance ; but
recent experiments by Mr. C. L. Marlatt indicate that
there are many practical difficulties encountered in using
the apparatus.

Pure kerosene is frequently a useful insecticide for
certain pests. It is especially valuable in destroying ver-
min in henhouses, and has been successfully applied to
the surface of ponds to destroy the larvae of mosquitoes,
and thus prevent the development of the adults.

Fish-oil Soap. — Professor J. B. Smith and others
report excellent results in the use of this substance
against plant lice and similar insects. This soap is on
the market at about twelve cents a pound, but according
to Professor Smith it can be made much more cheaply by
the following formula :

Hirsh's crystal potash lye, 1 pound.

Fisli oil, 3 pints.

Soft water, 3 gallons.

Dissolve the lye in the water, heat to boiling, and
then add the oil. It should be boiled about two hours,
and when done water can be added to make up for the

THE USE OF li^SECTICIDES 47

loss by evaporation. For use a? an insecticide it is made
into a dilate suds by dissolving one pound of soap in
eight gallons of water. It is less liable to injure foliage
than is kerosene emulsion.

Lime Spray is made by slaking a half -peck or a
peck of fresh lime in water, and pouring into a barrel
nearly full of water, straining the lumps out as it enters
the barrel. By means of this and the spray pump, trees
and vines may be literally whitewashed. It is useful in
mechanically coating plants so that certain insects will
not molest them.

Resin Washes. — ^'These w^ashes have proved of
greatest value, particularly against red scale (AsjncUotus
aurantii) in California, and will be of use in all similar
climates where the occurrence of comparatively rainless
seasons insures the continuance of the wash on the trees
for a considerable period, and where, owing to the
warmth, the multiplication of the scale insects continues
almost Avithout interruption throughout the year.
Where rains are liable to occur at short intervals, and in
the Northern States, the quicker-acting and stronger
kerosene washes are preferable. The resin washes act
by contact, having a certain caustic effect, but princi-
pally by forming an impervious coating over the scale
insects, thereby smothering them. The application may
be more liberal than with the kerosene washes, the object
being to thoroughly wet the bark.

'^The wash is made as follows :

Resin, 20 pounds

Caustic soda, 5 pounds

Fish oil, 2J pints

"Water to make 100 gaUons

*^The ordinary commercial resin is used and the
caustic soda is that put up for soap establishments in
large 200-pound drums. Smaller quantities may be
obtained at soap factories. These substances should be
finely broken up to hasten action and placed, with the

48 IXSECTS AND liq^SECTICIDES

oil, in a large kettle with sufl&cient water to cover them.
Boiling should be continued for one or two hours with
occasional additions of cold water, or until the compound
will mix perfectly in water instead of breaking up into
yellowish flakes. The undiluted wash is pale yellow ;
intermixed with water it becomes dark reddish-brown.
It may be kept in concentrated form and diluted as
required.

*'A stronger wash is necessary for the more resistant
San Josd scale (Aspidiotus 2Jer?iiciosics), and for this
the dilution should be one-third less or sixty-six and
two-thirds gallons instead of one hundred. This stronger
mixture is a winter wash and is only to be applied during
the dormant period ; in the growing season it will cause
the loss of foliage and fruit."*

Hydrocyanic Acid Gas. — ''The hydrocyanic acid
gas treatment of scale-infested trees has hitherto been
exclusively confined to California, but recently has been
introduced in the East by the Department to combat the
San Jose scale. Briefly, it consists in inclosing the tree
with a tent and filling the latter with the poisonous
fumes generated with potassium cyanide and sulphuric
acid. The tents are made of blue or brown drilling or
eight-ounce duck and painted, or oiled with linseed oil,
to make them as nearly air-tight as possible. They are
placed over the trees by hand or with i^oles in case of
small trees, but with trees over ten feet high some sort
of tripod or derrick is used. The outfit for medium-
sized trees — tent and derrick — will cost from fifteen to
twenty-five dollars. A tent for trees twenty-six feet tall
by sixty feet in circumference costs as much as sixty
dollars.

"Commercial fused potassium cyanide (costing in
bulk forty cents per pound), commercial sulphuric acid
(at three and one-half cents per pound), and water are

*C. L. Marlatt, Bulletin U. S. Dept. Agriculture.

THE USE OF INSECTICIDES 49

used in generating the gas, the proportions being one
ounce by weight of the cyanide, slightly more than one
fluid ounce of the acid, and three fluid ounces of water
to every one hundred and fifty cubic feet of space in-
closed. The generator, winch may be any glazed
earthenware yessel of one or two gallons' capacity, is
placed within the tent under the tree and the water,
acid and cyanide, the latter broken np, and put in in the
order named, after which the operator withdraws from
the tent. The tent is allowed to remain on the tree for
one-half hour for large trees, or fifteen minutes for small
ones. The treatment is best made on cloudy days, early
in the morning, late in the evening, or at night. Bright
hot sunlight is liable to cause injury to the foliage, which,
however, may be largely avoided by using tents of dark
material or painted black. Three or four men can
operate six tents at once, and the expense under such
conditions, not counting the cost of the outfit, need not
be more than ten cents per tree.'' [Marlatt.]

Tobacco. — This is a very valuable insecticide for
use against vermin on domestic animals, greenhouse and
other pests. It may be used in the form of a decoction,
a smoke, or dry. The refuse stems and powders from
the cigar factories are very valuable as insecticides and
fertilizers, and frequently, in the Middle Western States,
they may be obtained for little or nothing. The decoc-
tion is made by boiling refuse tobacco stems or dust in
water, or pouring boiling water over them. This gives a
concentrated liquid which is to be diluted with cold
water, until there are two gallons water for each pound
of tobacco used. It is a good remedy for plant lice. A
stronger formula, recommended by Mr. M. Y. Slinger-
land, is to steep five pounds of tobacco stems in three
gallons of water for three hours ; then strain and dilute
with enough water to make seven gallons, when the
decoction is ready to use.
4

50 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

Potash Fertilizers. — Professor J. B. Smith has
shown that kaiuit and muriate of potash appHed as ferti-
lizers have a decided insecticidal value against under-
ground insects. The fertilizer is best applied just before
or during rainfall.

Carbolic Acid, especially in its crude state, is
valuable for various insecticidal purposes. An excellent
wash for preventing the injuries of several tree borers is
made by mixing one quart of soft soap, or about a pound
of hard soap, with two gallons water, heating to boiling,
and then adding a jDint of crude carbolic acid. Carbolic-
acid soaps are largely used for destroying vermin on
domestic animals.

Bisulphide of Carbon. — This colorless, volatile
liquid is used for destroying grain insects, ants, the
grape phylloxera, and other pests that may be reached by
a vapor. On exposure to air the liquid evaporates, and
as the vapor is heavier than air it settles rather than
rises. In fifty-pound cans the bisulphide costs ten cents
a pound, though it generally retails for twice this amount
or even more. It is highly inflammable, and in using it
great care must be taken that no fire in any form comes
near it. It should be stored in tight vessels in outbuild-
ings, securely fastened. It is liable to injure seed grain
treated with it, though it does not affect the milling qual-
ity of the grain. The liquid has a disagreeable odor,
which soon completely disappears.

Benzine is another volatile substance used for much
the same purposes as the last.

Gasoline may also be mentioned in the same con-
nection.

Coal Tar has been largely used in the West for de-
stroying Kocky Mountain locusts, being placed on flat
pans, on which the insects jump and are caught. It is
also employed to prevent the migrations of the chinch
bug. A shallow V-shaped channel is made with the

INSECTICIDES WITH FUNGICIDES 51

corner of a hoe along the borders of the field to be pro-
tected, and tar poured in. So long as the tar does not
dry out, the immature chinch bugs cannot cross it.

OMBINING INSECTICIDES WITH FUNGICIDES

It is often desirable to combine a fungicide with an
insecticide, applying both at the same time and in the
same mixture. The advantages of this are obvious. The
following combinations have been found practicable :

Bordeaux Mixture and Arsenites. — Add four
ounces London purple or Paris green to fifty gallons of
dilute Bordeaux mixture.

''The Bordeaux mixture is made by combining six
pounds of copper sulphate and four pounds of quicklime,
with water to make fifty gallons. The copper sulphate
is dissolved in water (hot, if prompt action is desired)
and diluted to about twenty-five gallons. The fresh lime
is slaked in water, diluted to twenty-five gallons, and
strained into the copper solution, after which the whole
is thoroughly stirred with a paddle. Both the copper
and the lime mixtures may be kept in strong solution as
stock mixtures, but when combined should be promj^tly
used, as the Bordeaux mixture deteriorates on standing."
This is one of the very best combined insecticides and
fungicides. It can be used safely and effectively uj^on a
great variety of crops — such as potatoes for Colorado
beetles and blight, apples and pears for insects and scab,
and plums for curculio and leaf or fruit diseases.

Copper Arsenic Solution. — The Ohio Experi-
ment Station recommends the following combination :
Paris green two ounces, carbonate of copper two ounces,
dissolve in three pints of ammonia, add one-half pound
lime and one barrel of water. It is advised that this be
substituted for the arsenite and Bordeaux combination
for the later sprayings of apples, pears, plums, etc., so as
to avoid the lime coating on the fruit.

b2 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

Care must be taken in combining the arsenites with
other fungicide solutions, as one is liable thus to pro-
duce a compound very injurious to foliage. Paris green
or London purple added to simple solutions of copper
sulphate, or to ammonia compounds without lime, in-
jures foliage vastly more than in simple water mixture.

THE APPLICATION OF INSECTICIDES

The methods of applying insecticides vary according
to the nature of the substance and the insect against
which it is to be used. The dry powders are generally
best applied by means of some powder bellows^ a number

FIG. 17. POWDER Ginr.

of patterns of which are upon the market. An appara-
tus sometimes called the dry-poison duster, which is used
extensively in the south, is described by Mr. H. E. Weed.
*'It consists simply of two bags made of eight-ounce
osnaburg cloth attached to the ends of a pole about six
feet long and two inches in diameter — a hickory pole
being preferred. The bags are made about a foot long
and six inches deep, and are tacked to the sides of the

THE APPLICATION OF INSECTICIDES

53

pole. The dry insecticide is placed within the bags by
means of a hole about an inch in diameter, bored through
the pole, to be stopped up with a removable plug. For
cotton plants this apparatus is operated by holding in
the hands when upon a mule. If the mule goes at a
brisk trot the poison will be distributed evenly and rap-
idly. For other plants, such as the cabbage and potato,
the apparatus may be held in the band and shaken."

In many cases the best way to apply dry insecticides
is by one of the so-called "powder guns," a good form
of which is represented in Fig. 17.

In general, insecticides are most satisfactorily applied
in a liquid state by means of a force pump and spray
nozzle. There are four
general styles of spraying
machines upon the market.
First, we have the small
bucket pumps that serve a
useful purpose where only
a comparatively small
amount of spraying is to be
done ; then come the knap-
sack sprayers, one of the
best of which is illustrated
in Fig. 18, which are espe-
cially useful in sj)raying
small vineyards and crops

•^ \ FIG. 18. THE KXAPSACK SPKAYEB.

where a horse cannot well

be driven ; third, we have what may be called the barrel
class of sprayers, being good-sized pumps to be attached
to barrels mounted in various ways ; and, finally, there
are the large-geared machines working automatically by
horse power. For the general purposes of the average
farmer or fruit grower the barrel machines are much the
most useful. They are also of moderate cost, ranging
from eight to sixteen dollars. They can be used in

54

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

spraying all sorts of crops, and may well be mounted
on separate wheels, or the barrel may be placed in a
wagon when in use.

For work in the nursery as well as many other
places an excellent spraying outfit *'can be made by
firmly fastening a barrel, end up, on a sled made of

FIG. 19. OUTFIT FOR SPKAYING GRAPES.

heavy durable timber. Mount upon the barrel a good,
strong, double-acting force pump provided w\th two-
hose attachments, to each end of which fasten twenty-
five feet of half -inch hose. To the end of each hose
attach a Vermorel nozzle ; then with the necessary gear-
ing for hitching the horse, the outfit is complete. For
operating the machine two men and a horse are required.
One man does the pumping and attends to the horse,
while the other walks behind and directs the spray over
two rows at a time."*

A good outfit for use in the vineyard, recommended

♦ GaUoway.

THE APPLICATION OF INSECTICIDES

55

by Professor Bailey, is illustrated in Fig 19. A barrel
with pump is mounted crosswise on the wagon, ^'and
the driver rides and pumps. Another man walks be-
hind and throws the spray up under the yines and on to
all the clusters by means of a Ver morel nozzle attached
to a half-inch gas pipe. This gas pipe has somewhat
the form of a slim letter S, the nozzle being attached to

FIG. 20. INSECT NET.

one terminal crook, the other crook resting over the
man's left arm. The hose is attached near the shoulder.
The pipe is so long that the operator is not obliged to
stoop, and he can direct the spray in any direction, while
the apparatns hangs easily npon the arm. A globe
valve just below the arm enables the operator to shut off
the stream at will."

The nozzle forms an important part of the spraying
outfit. Tliere are many varieties of these upon the
market ; some of them are better adapted to certain kinds

56 INSECTS AI^TD INSECTICIDES

of work than are others, so that it pays to have several
forms on hand where there is a variety of spraying to be
done. Some of the best forms are the Vermorel, Cli-
max, Eureka, Graduating Spray, Mason, Bordeaux and
McGowen. The latter is very good for orchard
work. For spraying large trees, some method of raising
the nozzle nearly to the top is generally necessary. The
commonest way of doing this is to fasten the nozzle and
hose to a long pole ; but a better way is to use a half-
inch gas pipe or a brass tube, twelve or fourteen feet
long, attaching the hose at one end and the nozzle at
the other, or one of the bamboo extensions manufactured
by some sj)raying firms.

COLLECTING AND PRESERVING INSECTS

The apparatus for collecting insects for study is
neither elaborate nor expensive. One of the first essen-
tials is a collecting net, which is used for catching but-
terflies, moths, bees, flies, wasps, and in fact nearly all
flying insects. To make it, obtain an iron wire about
one-fifth of an inch in diameter, and bend it into a cir-
cular ring twelve or thirteen inches in diameter, leaving
the ends projecting at right angles to the circle, and
welding them together so as to form a spur three or four
inches long. Fasten this spur into the end of a broom-
stick, or any other convenient handle three or four feet
long. Then sew over this wire circle a strip of strong
muslin, an inch or two wide, and to this sew a bag of
mosquito netting, swiss muslin, or some similar fabric,
about three feet deep. For collecting insects in ponds,
a shallower net is needed, and the cloth used should be
of stronger material.

After the insects are caught, some way of killing
them quickly and without injury is needed. For this
purpose most entomologists use what is called the
cyanide bottle. To make this, obtain almost any wide-

COLLECTING AND PRESERVING INSECTS

57

mouthed glass bottle with a tight-fitting cork ; place on
the bottom two or three lumps of cyanide of potassium,
the size of a hickory nut, cover these with plaster of
Paris, and, finally, add sufficient water to moisten the
plaster and make it set. After
it is hard pour off the surplus
water if there is any, and let
the bottle become thoroughly
dry before inserting the cork.
This cyanide of potassium is
poisonous, and of course must
be handled carefully. If de-
sired, the bottles may be pre-
pared at drug stores, at small
cost. After the plaster is set
there is practically no danger,
unless the fumes of the bottle
be directly inhaled, for which
there is no excuse. Keep the
bottle closed except when put-
ting in an insect. The cya-
nide fumes, rising through
the porous plaster, will kill it
almost instantly. This cya-
nide bottle is to be used espe-
cially for moths, butterflies,
bees, wasps and similar in-
sects, but should not be used
for worms and caterpillars,
which are more successfully
killed and preseryed in alco-
hol. A pair of straight, medium-sized forceps is useful
in collecting small insects. A supply of ordinary com-
mercial alcohol, and of various sizes (2, 3 and 4 dram)
of short, homeopathic vials will be necessary if soft-
bodied caterpillars, S2:>iders, thousand-legged worms, etc..

I

FIG. 21. CYANIDE BOTTLE.

58

INSECTS AND IXSECTICIDES

are collected. Empty morphine bottles are yery conven-
ient. An ordinary game bag is an excellent thing to
carry the bottles, forceps and other ''traps" in, while
out collecting.

For rearing insects to study their transformations
and habits, hreeding cages of various kinds are needed.
Almost any box may be used for this purpose, covering
it in part with gauze, and placing on the bottom an
inch or two of moist earth, to prevent the drying of the
atmosphere. Ordinary jelly tumblers are very useful
for rearing small leaf -eating caterpillars, and ''bell
glasses'* or glass shades are quite handy. The cages
should be examined daily, the food frequently renewed,
and the conditions which the insect would have in its
natural habitat should be supj^lied as far as possible.

PRESERVING THE SPECIMENS

The first requisite for j)reserving insects is a supply
of entomological pins, which are longer and usually

more slender than

ordinary pins, an-
swering the i^urpose
m.uch better. What
is known as the
Klaeger pin is the
best made. It can
be purchased of deal-
ers in natural history
supplies. These pins
vary in size, accord-

FIG. 22. SETTING BOARD.

ing to number. No. 2 is used only for very small insects,
while No. 5 is large enough for any of our species. For
the majority of specimens of moderate size No. 4 may
be used. A supply of sheet-cork is also needed. This
costs about fifty cents a dozen sheets, arid may also be
obtained of natural history supply dealers.

PRESEKVING THE SPECIMENS 59

Butterflies, moths, and some other insects require,
fortheir proper preservation, what is called a ''setting-
board," one of which is shown in Fig. 22. It consists
simply of two thin strips of pine board, twelve or six-
teen inches long, nailed to end pieces, wdth a space vary-
ing from one-fourth to three-fourths inch between the
long strips ; a piece of thin cork is fastened to the under-
side of the strips so as to cover this space. The pin on
which the butterfly is fastened is pushed through the
cork until the side pieces are level with the base of the
wrings. The wings are then brought forward until the
posterior borders of the front ones are at right angles to
the body, and they are then fastened in place bv pieces
of cardboard held down with pins, as shown in the illus-
tration. The insect should be left thus fastened until
dry, so that the wings will remain in the position indi-
cated. This usually requires from ten to fourteen days.

Some sort of boxes or cases in wiiich to keep the
specimens are of course necessary. The simj^lest and
cheapest receptacles consist of empty cigar boxes, lined
on the bottom with sheet-cork. Tight wooden boxes of
almost any kind will also answer the puriDose. Shallow
drawers w^ith the bottoms lined with cork are excellent.

The specimens must frequently be examined to see
that museum pests — insects which live on dead animal
tissues of all kinds — do not destroy them. When these
are found, bake the specimens in an oven for an hour,
at a temperature of I-IO"" Fahrenheit.

Moths, butterflies, bees, wasps, and a large number
of similar insects should be pinned through the center
of the thorax, or middle division of the body, the pin
being pushed through until about one-third of its length
remains above the insect. Beetles, however, should be
pinned through the right wing cover, and the true bugs
through the triangular piece at the base of the wings,
called the scutellum.

60 INSECTS AI^D li^SECTICIDES

Any one desiring to learn about the classification of
insects will find '^A Manual for tlie Study of Insects," by
Professor J. H. Com stock, Ithaca, New York, extremely
Yaluable. Professor Packard's books, *^Entomoloo^y for
Beginners," and "Guide to the Study of Insects," which
can be obtained through book dealers, will also prove
helpful.

IP^I^T I

INSECTS AFFECTING ORCHARD FRUITS

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2?

INSECTS AFFECTING THE APPLE

INJURING THE TRUNK

The Round=headed Apple=tree Borer

Saperda Candida

The three later stages of this insect are shown in
Fig. 23. The beetle (c) is easily recognized by the brown
color of its body, and the two conspicuous, longitudinal,
whitish stripes along its back. It appears early in sum-
mer, and deposits its eggs on the tree trunks, in or under
the bark, within a few inches of the ground, frequently
i:)lacing them just above the sort surface, or even below it
where the ground is cracked open so that the beetle can
descend without difficulty. The insect makes a slit-like
opening in the bark (Plate IV, a, b) into which the egg
(shown magnified at d) is pushed. A few days later the
Qgg hatches into a larva or grub, wiiich gnaws its way
into the inner bark or sapwood, where it continues to
feed throughout the season. As winter approaches it
frequently burrows dowuAvard below the surface of the
ground, and rests there until spring, wlien it again works
upward and gnaws the inner bark and sapwood as before.
It rests again the following winter, and in spring gnaws
its way deeper into the body of the trunk, cutting cylin-
drical channels in every direction. Late in summer it
bores upw^ards and outwards to the bark, lining a cavity
at the end of its burrow with dust-like castings (/, g)
and there rests until spring, when it changes to the

63

64

INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

.dormant chrysalis state. The adult beetle emerges from
the chrysalis about a fortnight later, eats a hole through
the bark with its strong jaws, and comes forth to con-
tinue the propagation of the species. Thus three years
are required for the development of the insect.

The place where the larva enters may frequently be
detected, especially in young trees, by tlie sawdust-like
castings that are i^ushed out. The eggs also may often
be seen, and are easily destroyed by pressing on the bark
surrounding them with a knife-blade or some similar in-
strument. The presence of the larva is shown later by
the discoloration of the bark where it is at work.

The full-grown grnb, or larva, of the round-headed
borer is illustrated at a, Fig. 23. It is about an inch

FIG. 2ov ROUND-HEADED APPLE-TREE BORER, a, larva; 6, piipa;

long.

c, beetle.

wholly without feet, whitish, with a chestnut-
brow*~ head and black jaws. The pupa or chrysalis {h)
is lighter colored than the larva, and has numerous
small spines on its back.

Remedies. — The injuries of this insect maybe pre-
vented by applying late in May, or early in June, and
twice later at intervals of three weeks, a stronr soration
of soft soap to which has been added a little crude car-
bolic acid. This mixture may be conveniently made by
mixing one quart of soft soap, or about a pound of hard
soap, with two gallons of water, heating to boiling, and

BOUND HEADED APPLE TREE BORER 65

then adding a pint of crude carbolic acid. It will be
made more effective and permanent by the addition of a
small amount of Paris green and lime. The solution
should be thoroughly applied (a scrub brush is excellent
for the purpose) to the trunk and larger branches of the
tree. If the bark of the trees is especially rough, it
should be scraped before the wash is applied ; and the
soil should be smoothed down about the base of the
trunk, so that there will be no cracks for the insects to
enter to deposit their eggs. Of course the object of this
application is to prevent the laying of the eggs from
which the grubs hatch. As an additional precaution it
is well to examine the trees during the late summer and
early autumn months for eggs and young grubs, which
are readily detected, and can be easily destroyed wdth a
knife. In this way one man can go over an orchard of
five hundred or more young trees in a day. Professor
W. B. Alwood reports excellent results in applying, in-
stead of the w^ash above described, a paint made of pure
white lead and linseed oil, ''about the same thickness as
for outside coating." It is applied with a brush to the
base of the trees in autumn, preventing the injuries of
rabbits and other rodents as well as borers. One appli-
cation lasts a year. A white lead application has been
found to injure some cherry trees, how^ever.

The Flat=headed Apple=tree Borer

Chrysohothris femorata

This insect is very different, both in its adult and
larval states, from the one just discussed. The adult
beetle, instead of being cylindrical in form and brown in
color, is flattened and greenish-black. It appears, how-
ever, at about the same season as the other, and the life
histories of the two species are in general much alike,
the principal difference being that the present species
5

6G

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

requires less time to develop, and attacks the tree higher
wp, being found all the way up the trunk, and fre-
quently in the larger branches.

The front end of the larva, which is illustrated in
Fig. 24, rt, is enlarged and flattened while the rest of the
body is much narrower, and tapers slightly towards the
l^osterior extremity. It is of a pale yellow color and has
no feet. The pupa (b) is at first whitish, but becomes

darker as the beetle develops. As
noted above, the adult beetle (d)
is of a shining greenish-black
color, and has short, stout legs.
It may often be seen basking in
the sunshine in summer, on the
sides of trees and logs. The eggs
of this insect are deposited early
in summer in the crevices, and
under the scales of the bark, being
fastened in place by a glutinous
FIG. 24. FLAT-HEADED P.OR- substance. Li a few days the

ER. a, liiiva; ^^ pupa; c, i , i i i ,1 i

front of larva, lower side; larva hatchcs and borcs through
<7, beetle. the bark to the sapwood, in which

it cuts broad, flat channels, and sometimes completely
girdles the tree. As it develops it bores farther into the
solid wood, and when fully grown again approaches the
surface. When ready to become a pupa it gnaws par-
tially through the bark, and then casts its last larval
skin. About a fortnight later the pupa changes to a
beetle which gnaws its way through the bark, and thus
completes the cycle of develoioment.

Remedies. — The directions given above for the
round-headed borer are also applicable to this insect.

THE OYSTER SHELL BARK LOUSE

67

INJURING THE BRANCHES

The Oyster =shel I Bark Louse

]^ytilas2ns pomorum

A piece of bark covered with the scales of this in-
sect is represented in Fig. 25. If one of these scales be
raised early in spring there will be found beneath it a
mass of yellowish or whitish eggs, which hatch about the

FIG. 25. OYSTER-SHELL BAKK LOUSE.

middle of May into small lice that appear as mere
specks to the naked eye. These move about over the
bark a few days, when they fix themselves upon it, in-
serting their tiny beaks far enough to reach the sap.

FIG 26. OYSTEK-SHELL BARK-LOUSE. 1, egg; 2, young larva; 3, larva
forming scale; 4, young scale; 5, 6, lice with scales removed j 7,
mature scale. Magnified.

Here they continue to increase in size, and by the end of
the season have secreted scaly coveiings like those shown
in the illustration.

i

V

THE WOOLLY A THIS 69

Remedies. — During the winter and early spring
as many of the scales should be scraped off the trunk and
larger branches as possible. On large trees tliis may be
done by first scraping with some instrument like a hoe,
and then thoroughly scrubbing with a scrub brush or
broom, dipped in a solution made by adding one part of
crude carbolic acid to seven parts of a solution made by
dissolving one quart of soft soap, or "one-fourth of a
pound of hard soaj), in two quarts of boiling water.
The bark of young trees is so tender that they must be
scraped carefully, if at all. A scrub brush is the best
thing to use for applying the soap mixture, as the
bristles remove many scales which a cloth would slide
over. Then in May or June, soon after the young lice
have hatched, the trees should be sprayed with kero-
sene emulsion. The emulsion must be thoroughly
mixed, with none of the kerosene floating separately, or
it is liable to injure the foliage. When the lice are
young they are very readily destroyed by this substance.

The Woolly Aphis

Schizoneiira lanigera

There are frequently found on the limbs and trunks
of young apple trees, masses of a white, woolly sub-
stance, similar to that occurring on the limbs of maple
trees infested by the maple-bark louse. If one of these
masses be examined there is found beneath it one or
more small, yellowish plant lice. This is the insect that
has for a long time been popularly known as the woolly
aphis, and is sometimes called the apple-tree root louse.
There are two forms of the insect, one attacking the
roots, the presence of which may be easily detected by
the knotty appearance of the infested rootlets (Fig. 27, a),
and one attacking the limbs and trunk. Like other

70

INSECTS AND li SECTICIDES

aphides, these insects multiply rapidly during the summer
months by giving birth to living young. Most of these
summer forms are wingless, but occasionally winged
ones are found. They all injure the tree by sucking out
its sap through their tiny beaks. They are especially
liable to infest young trees, or those which are un-
healthy. The woolly matter which they secrete as a
covering serves to protect them from the damp earth,
in their subterranean home on the roots, and probably is
a partial protection from enemies above ground. It is

FIG. 27. WOOLLY APHIS. «, rootlet showing galls; 6, wingless aphis;
c, winged apliis ; d-g, structural details; fe-gr, magnified.

not a complete protection, however, as they are preyed
upon by a small parasitic fly, and by ladybird beetles
and their larvae.

The malformations caused by this insect on seedling
apple trees are well represented in Plate V, while Fig. 28
shows healthy roots of similar trees. Trees so injured
are unfit for planting.

Remedies. — Where these insects are upon the roots
of trees they may be destroyed by applying scalding
water, or kerosene emulsion. Eefuse tobacco powder

THE WOOLLY APHIS

71

dug in about the roots will also destroy them. Where
they are upon parts of the tree above ground, they may
be destroyed by spraying with kerosene emulsion. Young

FlO. 28. ROOTS OF HEALTHY APPLE SEEDLINGS. Reduced.

trees from nurseries should always be carefully examined
before planting, and if the roots are malformed by this
insect the trees should either be burned or disinfected by
dipping m kerosene emulsion.

73

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Buffalo Tree Hopper

^ Ceresa hubalus

One sometimes finds the twigs of young apjDle trees
exhibiting a j^ecuhar, scarred appearance lilve that repre-
sented at Fig. 29, e. These are due to the egg punctures
of the above named insect.

The buffalo tree hopper is a small greenish or yel-
lowish insect about one-third of an inch long, which is

FIG. 29. BUFFALO TREE HOPPER, a, adult, magnified and natural
size; 6, fresh punctures; c, rf, eggs; e, scars.

generally rather common during the late summer and early
autumn months. A fair idea of its form, which has been
compared to that of a beechnut, may be obtained from
Fig. 29, a. Its mouth consists of a sharp beak, which
it inserts into the tissues of succulent plants and

THE BUFFALO TREE HOPPER ?3

sucks their sap. The eggs are laid in the ripper part of
the young twigs of apple, pear, maple and various
other fruit and shade trees, mostly during the late sum-
mer and early autumn months. It is believed that a
single female may deposit two hundred eggs. '* The
eggs are placed in small compound groups arranged in
two nearly parallel or slightly curved slits extending in
the direction of the twig about three-sixteenths of an
inch in length, and separated by one-eighth inch or less
of bark." In making the second slit the insect cuts the
bark obliquely in such a way as to leave a small piece
loose ; this causes the bark to die and eventually leaves
a dead space on the twig. These dead spots are favorite
places for wood -boring beetles to oviposit in, so that the
injury by the tree hoppers may be followed by more se-
rious damage by borers. The eggs remain dormant until
the following spring wiien they hatch into small, active,
greenish hopj^ers, somewhat like the adults in appearance.
These feed upon weeds or other succulent plants, gen-
erally developing upon tender annuals in preference to
attacking the tougher tissues of woody plants. They be-
come full grown about midsummer. The eggs of the
buffalo tree hopper are attacked by at least two minute
parasites that serve as important checks upon its in-
crease.

Remedies. — It is always more difficult to prevent
the injuries of an insect that feeds upon a large yariety
of plants, both wild and cultiyated, than one which is
confined for food to the single crop injured. As a rule
it is also more difficult to fight those insects which get
their food by sucking than it is those which bite. The
buffalo tree hopper combines both of these characteristics,
so that from the nature of the case we may expect it to
be a difficult insect to overcome by artificial applica-
tions. The fact however that the insect develops upon
succulent vegetation rather than in the orchard itself.

74 INSECTS AN^D IN"SECTICIDES

and t"he fact that it is most destriicfcive in orchards where
weeds and tender herbage are abundant, indicate that
clean culture will prove an important method of preven-
tion. Mr. C. L. Marlatt, who has carefully studied the
S23ecies, writes : '* The limiting of the amount of foreign
vegetation about and in orchards and nurseries is an ex-
cellent precaution, and little damage maybe anticipated
where the ground between the trees is kejit clean and con-
stantly cultivated. The larvae and pupae under these
conditions will be starved out." The pruning of trees
which are badly infested is also recommended.

INJURING THE BUDS AND LEAVES

The Bud Worm

Tmetocera ocellana

There is evidence to show that this insect was intro-
duced to America from Europe early in the present cen-
tury. It now occurs over a large portion of Canada and
the United States, and sometimes is very destructive
over wide areas, occasionally becoming the most serious
orchard pest of the season. As soon in spring as the
buds begin to open, the iittle caterjoillars may com-
mence work upon them, gnawing the miniature leaves
and blossoms, but the attack is more likely to begin after
the buds about half open. The larvae then eat out the
centers of the buds, where the leaves and flowers are
least developed. The caterpillar forms for itself a pro-
tecting case by using silken threads to bind together the
leaves. As the season advances some of the leaves are
killed, become detached at the base, and turn brown ;
the blossoms also are more or less webbed, so that the
smaller branches present an appearance similar to the
accompanying illustration. (Fig, 30. )

THE BUD WORM

75

The life history of this insect may be summarized
as follows : Tlie moths appear in the orchard early in
summer; during daylight they rest upon the bark of
trees or other shelter ; at night they fly about and de-
posit their eggs, one in a place on the underside of the
leaves. About ten days later these eggs hatch into
small green larvae, which feed upon the epidermis of the

Fia. 30. WORK OF BUD WORM AMONG OPENING LEAVES.

leaves, each making for itself a silken tube and a thin
layer of silk for protection and concealment. In a day
or two the green color changes to brown.

^^As the larva increases in size and the area over
"which it feeds becomes larger, the tube is enlarged and
lengthened along the midrib, sometimes becoming nearly

76

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

one inch in length. The silken web under which the
larva feeds covers the entire field of ojierations, but is
so thin near the edges where the larva has last fed as to

be scarcely visi-
ble. The excre-
ment of the larva
being retained by
the web appears
as little black
pellets scattered
here and there
over the feeding

FIG. 31. APPLE LEAF SHOWING WORK OF YOUNG ground."* TllC

BUD woKM. gj.gg^ portion of

only one side of the leaf is eaten, the veins and veinlets
being left untouched ; these and the green on the oppo-
site side die and turn brown, and thus become conspicu-
ous (Fig. 31).

Late in summer or early in autumn the half-grown
caterpillars desert the leaves and crawl upon the twigs,
where they form

little silken cases, )&

generally near the
buds or in creases
m the bark.
(Fig. 32.) In
these they remain
tliroughout the
winter. The fol-
lowing spring
they emerge to feed upon the opening leaves. They
again make tubes, which serve as protective cases. After
feeding six or seven weeks they become full-grown ; then
they form silken cocoons, generally in a rolled leaf or

FIG. 32. Twig showing the position of tlie win-
ter homes of the larvae at a, a, and h, natural
size.

*M.V. Slingerland.

THE BUD WORM

77

between two leaves, in which they change to pnpse, to
emerge a short time later as moths.

The full-grown larvas are cinnamon brown in coloi
with the legs, head, and shield behind dead black. Thej?

FIG. 33. BUD "WORM, a, pupa, front view; 6, piipa, back vieM'; c, larva.

Magnified.

are about half an inch long and of the general form
shown in Fig. 33, c. The moth (Fig. 34) has a general
resemblance to the common codling moth. It is dark
ashen gray with .creamy
white blotches on the
front wings, which expand
a little more than half an
inch.

Remedies. — T h e s e fig. 34. bud-wokm moth.
little pests can most successfully be destroyed by spraying
with the arsenites early in spring when the buds are
opening and the larvae just beginning the season's work.
It is advisable to use the Bordeaux mixture and Paris
green combination in order to prevent injury by apple
scab or other fungous maladies as well as by insects.

78

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Apple Aphis

Aphis mall

During spring and early summer, one often finds
the leaves and tender twigs of apple trees covered with
small green lice or aphides. These are the insects known
as the apple aphis. They injure the trees by sucking

the sap through their tiny
beaks. So far as we now
know it, the life history of
these insects is as follows :
The lice hatch from eggs in
spring as soon as the leaf
buds begin to expand, and
increase with marvelous ra-
jndity, so that almost as fast
as the leaves develop there
are colonies of the plant lice
to occupy them. They con-
tinue breeding on ajDple until
July, when they largely leave the trees and migrate to
grasses and other plants. Here, apparently, they con-
tinue breeding above ground until autumn, when they
return to the apple, and the winged females may be
found establishing colonies of the wingless, egg-laying
form upon the leaves. The males are apparently devel-
oped on grass, along with the winged females. The
small, oval eggs are now laid on the twigs and buds, and
the cycle for the year is complete.

Remedies. — These lice have various natural ene-
mies that destroy them — especially the ladybird beetles
— but it is often necessary to spray infested trees with
kerosene emulsion, fish-oil soap, or a strong tobacco de-
coction to get rid of them. The earlier the application
is made the better ; the best time is just after the aphi-
des have hatched from the eggs in spring.

FIG. 35. APPLE APHIS.

magnified.

Much

THE CANKEEWORM

79

The Cankerworm

Anisopteryx pometaria

Apple orchards are occasionally infested in spring by
a looping caterpillar, or '* measuring worm/' that feeds
uj)on the parenchyma of the leaf, leaving the network
of veins, so that the foliage looks brown and scorched.
These are cankerworm s, of which, according to Dr.
Biley's observations, we have two distinct species. But
both are similar in habits and injuries, and for the
present purpose only one will be discussed. This is
called the fall cankerworm.

If, during the winter or early spring months, one
examines the branches of apple trees in orchards where
this insect has been at
work, he will find com-
pact masses of a hun-
dred or more small,
cyhndrical eggs like
that shown at e, Fig. 36.
About the time the
leaves begin to come
out, these eggs hatch
into small, looping cat-
erpillars that feed upon
the foliage. They con- ficx. 36. cankekworm. «, male moth;

,. r> T T 6, female moth; c, eggs; f, larva; cr, pupa.

tmue feeding and grow-
ing for several weeks, when they become full-grown,
and look like /, Fig. 36. They are about an inch long,
quite slender, and vary from a greenish-yellow to a dark
brown color. The cankerworm then either crawls down
the tree to the ground, or lets itself down, spider-like,
on a silken thread. There it burrows idto the soil three
or four inches, where it spins a silken cocoon, within
which it changes to the pupal or chrysalis state {g), re-
maining in this condition until autumn, when it emerges
as a moth.

80 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The two sexes of these cankerworm moths differ
greatly. The male (a) has large, well-develoiDed wings,
while the female (b) is wingless. The latter is of an
ashy gray color. When she emerges from the chrysalis
state she crawls to the base of the tree, and ascends the
trunk some distance. Here the male finds her, and after
mating she begins the deposition of eggs. These are
placed on the twigs or branches of the tree.

The other cankerworm {Anisopteryx vernata) is
similar to this in habits, but most of the moths appear in
the spring rather than autumn. Hence it is commonly
called the spring cankerworm.

Besides apple, these insects feed upon elm, cherry,
plum and various other fruit and shade trees.

Remedies. — There are various natural enemies
that prey upon these cankerworms ; these include both
birds and predaceous or parasitic insects. The simplest
artificial remedy is to spray the trees, soon after the
worms hatch, with Paris green or London purple — a
pound to two hundred gallons of water, or stronger if
lime is added. Or the ascent of the egg-la3dng moths
may be prevented by api)lying tar, or printer's ink, or
some such substance, about the base of the tree — putting
it on a band of paper if there is fear of injuring the tree
by applying it directly to the bark. There are also vari-
ous collars of metal that are manufactured to place
around the tree and j^revent the moths going up. But
spraying is simpler and more effectual than any of these.

THE APPLE TREE TENT CATERPILLAB

81

The Apple=tree Tent Caterpillar

Clisiocampa americana

One often finds in May or June, on the limbs of
apple and wild cherry trees, compact silken nests, or
tents, containing a considerable number of handsome
caterpillars. These are the insects which have been

"'X.

FIG. 37. TEXT CATERPrLLAR.

a, 6, larva; c, eggs, with covering removed; d, cocoon.

known for many years as tent caterpillars. The eggs
are deposited during July, in compact masses of two or
three hundi-ed each, upon the twigs, as shown at c, Fig.
37. After they are laid the parent moth covers them
with a viscid liquid, which dries into a sort of varnish
that completely coats them. The insect remains in this
6

83 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

egg state from July until the following spring, when the
little caterpilltirs emerge from the eggs and begin feed-
ing upon the tender foliage of the buds about them. In
a few days they begin to make a silken tent, utilizing
generally, for this purpose, a fork of the branch. As
time goes on the nest is enlarged. Tlie cater2)illars
retire to the tent at niglit, and during cold and wet
weather, and when not feeding. They have regular
times for their meals, leaving and returning to the nest
in processions. They become full-grown in about six
weeks, being extremely voracious during the latter part
of their development. They are then nearly two inches
long, with a hairy body ornamented with a distinct
white stripe along the middle of the back, on each side
of which are numerous short, yellow, longitudinal lines,
rather irregularly arranged. The sides are partially
covered with paler lines, spotted and streaked with blue,
while the lower surface of the body is black. The full-
grown caterpillar is represented at a and b, Fig. 37.

Most of the caterpillars leave the tree where their
nest is, as fast as they become full-grown, and crawl

about in search of a suit-
able shelter to pupate in.
Having found this — ^be-
neath a board, or in the
cracks of a fence — they
spin an oval, silken cocoon

FIG. 38. MOTH OF TENT CATERPILIiAR. /^\ yelloW wllCU COm-

pleted, within which they change to the pupal or chrys-
alis state. In two or three weeks another change takes
place, and from the cocoons come forth reddish-brown
moths, the females of the size and form rejiresented at
Fig. 38. These moths pair and in a short time deposit
the clusters of eggs, after which they soon die. Thus
there is but one brood each season.

Remedies. — It is usually easy to destroy the nests
of this insect, either by cutting and burning the infested

THE LESSER APPLE LEAF ROLLER

83

branch, or using a torch made by saturating a piece of
cloth, tied to the end of a stick, Tyith kerosene. In
either case the operation should be performed early in
the morning, before the insects have left the tent, or in
the eyening after they have returned. Spraying with
Paris green is also an effectual remedy. There are cer-
tain parasites preying upon this insect that aid greatly
in keeping it in check.

The Lesser Apple=leaf Roller

Teras miniita

This is a greenish-yellow, slightly hairy worm,
about half an inch long, affecting the young leaves of
the terminal twigs, with which the insect forms a pro-
tective case. It is especially injurious in nurseries and
young orchards.

This species is remarkable in that two of the three
broods of moths which appear during the year are of a
bright orange color, while
those of the third brood are
reddish-gray. It is an ex-
ample of wiiat naturalists
call dimorphism.

The eggs are laid in
the spring on the unfolding
leaves of apple, cranberry,
whortleberry and possibly
other plants, the larvae soon
hatching to devour the ten-
der foliage, some of which
they roll into a protective covering. Here they continue
feeding for about a month, when they pupate within the
folded leaves, and a week or so later emerge as small,
orange-yellow moths. These moths lay eggs for another
brood of larvae, the imagos from which appear in August,

FIG. 39. LESSER LEAF ROLLER.

a, larva; &, pupa; o, moth; d, roUed
leaf.

84

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

being also of the same orange color. These in turn lay
eggs for a third brood of worms, which develop during
September, and emerge duriug October as glistenmg red-
dish-gray moths, which pass the winter in rubbish heaps,
fence corners and similar places of concealment, and
deposit eggs on the unfolding leaves of the various food
jolants of the larva the following spring. Thus this
remarkable cycle of insect life is completed.

Remedies. ^In fruiting orchards that are regularly
sprayed with the arsenites to prevent codling moth in-
jury, this insect is not likely to prove troublesome, but
in nurseries and young orchards it is frequently quite
destructive. Spraying with the arsenites is probably as
promising as any general remedy in these cases, though
the experience of nurserymen has shown that on young
nursery stock the insect may advantageously be destroyed
by hiring boys to crush the larvae within their caseSv

The Yellow=necked Apple=tree Caterpillar

D at ana ministra
During the latter part of summer the orchardist
occasionally finds one or more limbs of his ap[)le trees

FIG. 40. YELLOW-NECKED CATERPILIiAK.

a, larva; ft, moth; c, eggs; <?, magnified e^.

entirely denuded of their foliage by a troop of large,
striped caterpillars, like the one shown at Fig. 40, a.
These are the progeny of a set of eggs (c, d) laid during

THE LEAF CRUMPLER 85

June or July by a large moth (d) with a chestnut-brown
thorax, and light-brown wings striped with brown of a
darker shade. The very young larvae feed only upon the
parenchyma of the leaf, leaving a network of bare veins,
but they soon grow large enough to eat veins and all.
They are gregarious, feeding together and denuding the
limb as they go. When at rest or alarmed they assume
tlie peculiar position shown in the figure. They become
full-grown in about six weeks, when they descend to the
ground and burrow into the soil three or four inches,
where they change to the pupal state. They remain in
this condition until the following summer, when they
emerge again as moths. Consequently there is but one
brood a year.

Remedies. — Birds and various insect enemies prey
upon this caterpillar to such an extent that it rarely be-
comes injurious. When it does, however, it may easily
be destroyed by spraying the infested trees with Paris
green in water mixture, or by cutting and burning the
twigs on which the larvae are feeding.

The Leaf Grumpier

Phycis incligenella

One often finds during the winter months upon the
twigs of various fruit trees, masses of dry, brown leaves
that, when pulled apart, are seen to surround a long,
tubular, horn-like case. If one of these cases be care-
fully cut open it will be found to contain a brownish
worm or caterpillar, about half an inch long. This in-
sect is the leaf crumpler, and it often becomes one of
the most injurious of orchard pests.

The adult insect is a small grayish moth (Fig. 41,
d) that appears during June or July, and deposits eggs
on the various trees that serve as food plants for the
larvae. These include the apple, cjuince, and possibly the
peach, as well as both the wild and cultivated varieties

86

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

of the cherry, phim, and crab apple. From these eggs
there soou hatch small, brownish worms that construct
tubular, silken cases (a) within which they remain con-
cealed when not eating. As they grow larger they draw
about the openings of their abodes many partially eaten
leaves, so that by autumn there is quite a bunch sur-
rounding each case (b). At the aj^proach of cold weatlier
the cases are attaclied to the twigs Dy means of silken
threads, the larva? frequently gnawing away the tender
bark to insure a firm hold; and thus the winter is passed.

FIG. 41. LE\F CRUMPLEK.

a, larval case; b, larval case witli dead leaves; c, front part of larva;
d, moth, magnified.

As soon in spring as the leaves begin to appear, the laryae
attack them, frequently eating out the floAver buds as
well. They continue feeding and growing until some
time ill June, when they become pupae, pupating within
the cases. About a fortnight later the moths emerge,
and thus the life cycle is completed.

THE APPLE LEAF SKELETONIZER

87

There are several species of parasites that prey upon
the leaf crumpler, which greatly assist in keeping it in
check.

Remedies. — In young orchards the larval cases
are easily picked off during the winter. They may be
burned, or what is probably better, carried to a consid-
erable distance from their food plants and left on the
ground, thus allowing the parasites to develop and
escape. The insect is also liable to destruction by spray-
ing with Paris green or London purple, and may easily
be held in check in this way. Where orchards are
sprayed for the codling moth the leaf crumplers present
will also largely be destroyed.

The Apple=leaf Skeletonizer

Pempelia hammoncU

This is a brownish or greenish larva, one-half inch
long, with short, scattered hairs upon its body, which
spins a web upon the upper
surface of the leaf, and eats
the parenchyma, giving the
toliage a scorched appear-
ance. It is frequently very
destructive to apples, espe-
cially to young trees, either
in the orchard or nursery.

The life history of this
insect may be briefly sum-
marized as follows : The
small purplish moths (Fig.
42, d)f having two light
bands upon the front wings, fig. 42. leaf skeletoxizer.

and exJDanding scarcely half «. Jarva; b, part of back, magnl-
1 ^ l.^ • 1 fied to show markingrs; c, head

an inch, lay their eggs, prob- ^^^^ ,,^,,, ^^^^ ^^ 1^^,^;^ ^^g,^j.
ably, on the leaves or tender fied -, d, moth, magumed.

88 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

twigs of the apple, late in spring, or early in summer.
The larvae soon batch and begin to eat the parencbyma
of tlie leaves, and as they grow older they spin a sliglit
protective silken web on tbe upper surface of the leaf,
beneath which they continue their destructive work.
When full-grown (a) they vary from an olive or pale
green color to brown, are about half an inch long, and
have four black shining tubercles on the back, just be-
hind the head. About midsummer these larvai pupate
in slight cocoons, formed usually on tbe leaf, and two
weeks later the moths emerge. Eggs are laid by these
for the second brood of larvae, which form cocoons before
winter sets in, and hibernate as pupae, the moths from
them emerging the following spring.

This sjoecies is very irregular in its development, it
being easy to find larvae of nearly all ages almost any
time during the season. The second brood is usually
much more numerous than the first, and consequently
the injury is most noticeable in September and October.

Remedies. — Like so many other orchard insects,
this pest may bo destroyed by sj^raying with the arsenites
— tliree or four ounces of Paris green, or London purple,
to fifty gallons of water.

INJURING THE FRUIT

The Codling Moth or Apple Worm

Caiyocaj)sa pomoneUa

This is the most generally injurious apple insect,
and is probably known wherever the fruit is grown.
The small, chocolate moth (Fig. 43, ^, /) deposits its
eggs in spring in the blossom end of the young apple (J)
before the latter has turned down on its stem. From
the Qgg there hatches a minute worm or caterpillar,
which nibbles at the skin of the fruit and eais its way
toward the core. Here it continues feeding as the apple

THE CODLIIhG moth OR APPLE WORM

89

develops, increasing in size , until at the end of three or
four weeks it is about three-fourths of an inch long, and
appears as represented at e. It has now finished its
caterpillar growth and, lea\'ing the apple, finds some
crevice in the bark where it spins a rather slight silken
cocoon, in which it changes to a pupa. It remains in
this condition about
a fortnight, when it
emerges as a moth
like the one by
which the original
egg was laid. Thus
the hfe cycle is com-
pleted. There are
at least two broods
in a season in all but
the most northern
localities.

Remedy . —
The best remedy for
this insect is that

„ . . , , FIG. 43. CODLING MOTH, a, injured apple;

01 spraying with the h, place where egg is laid; c, larva; d, pupa;
arseniteS — Paris *> ^-ocoon ; g,f, moth ; h, head of larva.

green or London purple — in spring, soon after the blos-
soms have fallen off, when the apj^les are from the size
of a pea to that of a hickory nut, and before they have
turned downward on their stems. A second application,
ten days or two weeks after the first, is generally advis-
able. The poisons may be used in the proportion of one
pound to two hundred and fifty gallons of water, or bet-
ter, combined with the Bordeaux mixture. The spray-
ing should be done with some kind of spraying pump
and nozzle.

Besides destroying the codling moth, spraying at
the times indicated will largely prevent the injuries of
the various leaf-eating caterpillars and the plum and
apple curculios.

90 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Apple Maggot

Trypeta po?noneUa

The injury of this insect is at once distinguished
from that of the codling moth by the fact tliat while the
latter is largely confined to the region of the core, the
apple maggot feeds indiscriminately through the pulp of
the fruit, burrowing in every direction. The larvae
themselves are also different, that of the codling moth
having six legs, while the apple maggot is footless.

The adult of the apple maggot is a two- winged fly
that appears early in summer and dei^osits eggs in the
partially grown apples. These eggs are inserted, one in
a place, through the skin of the fruit. In a few days
they hatch into maggots, that tunnel the fruit in all
directions, becoming full-grown in five or six weeks,
when they are whitish or greenish white, and about a
quarter of an mch long. They then leave the fruit, and
generally go into the soil an inch or less, where they
change to the j)upal state. They remain in this condi-
tion until the following summer, when they emerge as
flies ao:ain.

Remedies. — This insect is an exceedingly difficult
pest to contend with. Fortunately, as yet, it is only
seriously injurious in comparatively few States. As a
rule, having, however, many exceptions, it seems to be
more liable to infest early than late varieties of apples.
The only thorough-going remedy is that of destroying
mfested fruit, especially windfalls. Observations made
in Maine by Professor Harvey show that the flies travel
little from tree to tree, or orchard to orchard, so that
''the checking of the pest is largely an individual mat-
ter, to be worked out independently in each orchard."
Unfortunately this insect cannot be destroyed by spraying.

92

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Apple Curculio

Anthonomous quadrigibus

This insect in its adult state is represented magni-
fied at Fig. 44, c showing a hack view and h a side view,
while the natural size is represented by the small figure

a at the left of h. This is
a beetle related to the plum
curculio but having a longer
snout. It is dull brown in
color and has four tubercles,
or liumjos, on the hinder por-
tion of its back. Before the
general cultivation of the
improved varieties of apple,
it bred in wild crabs and
haws. The adnlt beetles
drill holes in young apples, both for food and the depo-
sition of eggs. The latter are laid at the bottom of the
cavity, and soon hatch into grubs or larvae that feed upon
the pulp of the fruit.
They usually penetrate
to the core, where they

1

if o

FIG. 44. APPLE CURCULIO.
Magnified.

continue feeding four or
five wTeks. They then
become full-grown as
larvae, and appear when
magnified like Fig. 45, 5,
being footless, whitish
grubs,
where

FIG. 45. APPLE CURCULIO. a, pupa;
h, larva. Magnified.

The larva pupates within the cavity of the apple
it has developed, the jDupa being re2:)resented,
magnified, at Fig. 45, a, and two or three weeks later it
again changes, this time emerging as a perfect beetle,
which gnaws its way out through the fruit. There is
but one brood each year, the insect hibernating in the

OTHER APPLE INSECTS 93

beetle state. The fruit attaclved by this and other cur-
culios becomes dwarfed, gnarly and ill-shapen, as shown
in Plate VI.

Remedies. — The feeding and egg-laying habits of
the adult of this insect render it liable to destruction by
poisoning. Consequently spraying with the arsenites,
as for the codling moth, appears to be a sufficient
remedy.

Other Apple Insects

The apple is subject to attack by many insects be-
sides those discussed in the foregoing pages, which, how-
ever, include the most injurious pests. The trunk and
branches are occasionally infested by the scurfy bark
louse (which will be found described on a later page as a
pear insect) ; the leaves are sometimes eaten by yarious
caterpillars beside those mentioned, and the fruit is at-
tacked by the plum curcuiio as well as by the three
species we have discussed. But the treatment recom-
mended will keep in check not only the insects included
in our list, but also nearly, if not quite, all of these
various other pests.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE PEAR

INJURING THE TRUNK

The Pear=tree Borer

Aegeria pyri

The adult of this insect is a small, clear- winged moth,
purplish or bluish black in color, and having three pretty
golden-}' el low bands across the abdomen. Its eggs are
deposited upon the bark of the trunk, and thelaiTae feed
upon the inner bark or sapwood. The latter are very
similar to the grubs of the peach-tree borer, but are con-
siderably smaller. When full-gi'own they gnaw almost
through the outer bark, leaving an extremely thin layer
to protect them, and then cliange to the chrysalis state
within the burrow. A short time afterwards the chrysa-
lis wriggles through the burrow to the outer membra-
nous bark, through which it pushes its front end. The
fully developed moth then crawls ont of the chrysalis,
and, after drying its wings, flies away in search of com-
panions and the nectar of flowers upon which it feeds.

Remedies. — This insect is rarely present in injuri-
ous numbers, and consequently usually requires little or
no attention. The larv« are said to throw out fine, saw-
dust-like castings, by w^hich their presence may be de-
tected. When this happens they should be carefully cut
out with a sharp knife. Painting the bark with the
soft soap and carbolic acid mixture mentioned on Page
64 is also recommended,

94

THE SAN JOSE SCALE 95

INJURING THE BRANCHES

The Scurfy Bark Louse

Chionaspis furjurus

During the winter months the bark of pear and
apple trees is frequently more or less covered by small,
flattened, whitish, oval scales, beneath which are numer-
ous minute purple eggs. These are the scales of the
female scurfy bark louse, an insect that seems to be
more destructive in the Southern and Central States
than at the North. It is probably a native of America,
having been known to the earliest American entomolo-
gists, and is supposed to have fed on wild crab apples
before the introduction of improved fruit trees. The
scales of the male louse are much narrower than those
of the female.

During May or June the eggs beneath these scales
hatch into small purplish or reddish-brown lice, that
crawl about over the bark for a few days, and finally
insert their tiny beaks to suck the sap. Having thus
fixed themselves they gradually develop, until by fall
the females have become very broad and flat. The eo-o-s
are deposited beneath the scale, and remain in this posi-
tion until the following spring.

Remedies. — The treatment recommended on a
previous page (p. 69) for the oyster-shell bark louse, is
equally applicable to the present species.

The San Jose Scale

Aspidiohcs perniciosus

This insect is related to the common oyster-shell
bark louse, but can at once be distinguished from the
latter by the characteristic round scale — ^as shown at d.
Fig. 46.

96

INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

It infests practically all kinds of deciduous fruit
trees and if unmolested is liable to kill them. It was
introduced into California from Chile about 1870, since
when it has spread over a large portion of the Pacific

CL.

FIG. 46. SAN JOSE SCALE,
a, pear, moderately infested— natural size; b, female scale— enlarged.

slope ; and has lately appeared in the Eastern States,
where it threatens to do much damage.

Mr. L. 0. Howard describes the San Jose scale as
''perfectly round, or at most very slightly elongated or
irregular. It is flat, i)ressed close to the bark, reseni-

THE SAN- JOSE SCALE

97

bles the bark of tlic twigs in color, and when fully grown
is about one-eighth of an inch in diameter. At or near
the middle of each scale is a small, round, slightly elon-
gated black point ; or this point may sometimes appear
yellowish. When occurring upon the bark of the twigs
or leaves and in large numbers, the scales lie close to
each other, frequently overlapping, and are at such
times difficult to distinguish without a magnifying glass.
The general appear-
ance which they pre-
sent is of a grayish,
very slightly rough-
ened scurfy deposit
(Fig. 47). The nat-
ural rich reddish
color of the limbs of
the peach and apple
is quite obscured
when these trees are
thickly infested, and
they have then every
appearance of being
coated with lime or
ashes. When the
scales are crushed by^T^- d? oa^ t^^.^ o/^axt,. * i v.

J FIG. 47. SAN JOSE SCALE. Apple branch,
scraping, a yellowish with scales in st^?t— natural size; en-
Oily liquid will ap- larged scales above, at left.

pear, resulting from the crushing of the soft yellow
insects beneatli the scales, and this will at once indicate
to one w^ho is not familiar with their appearance the
existence of healthy living scales on the trees."

The young scale lice come out from beneath the
female scales, in spring, soon after the unfolding of the
leaves. They are minute yellowish creatures, resembling
Fig. 48 when highly magnified ; they crawl about over
the bark a short time, and finally fasten themselves to

98

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

it, generally on the new growth, where they secrete a
scale and there develop. Some of them mature into
little two-winged creatures, resembling, when magnified.
Fig. 50 ; these are the males ; othej-s develop into fe-
males, which do not become winged but remain on the
bark in a fixed position. In the bodies of these the
young are produced, as shown in Fig. 49.

When the San Jose scale occurs upon older trees, it
is most likely to be found on the twigs and smaller

FIG. 48. SAN JOSE SCALE. «, yoiing larva — greatly enlarged; i, an-
tenna of same— still more enlarged.

limbs, but upon young trees it may occur over the whole
surface. But it does not confine its attacks to the bark,
for the leaves and fruit are often infested; upon the
latter there is a very characteristic purplish ring around
each scale. These rings are well illustrated in Fig. 46.
'* Upon the leaves the insects have a tendency to collect

THE SAN JOSE SCALE

99

along the midrib, on the n.i^pcr side of the leaf, in one
or more quite regular rows, and also to some extent along
the side ribs. The infested leaves turn brown, but do
not have a tendenc}^ to fall as a result of the damage."

This pest is most likely to be introduced into new
localities upon nursery stock imported from infested
regions. This is believed to be the way in which it was

0

FIG. 49. SAX JOSE SCALE.
c, adult female containing young— greatly enlarged; d, anal fringe of

same — still more enlarged.

first brought to the Eastern States. It is also likely to
be carried upon fruit sent to market. In a given local-
ity the insects are most likely to be carried from tree to
tree and orchard to orchard by the young lice crawling
upon insects and birds and then crawling off after they
have lit upon other trees. They may also be blown
about by the wind.

100

INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

The young lice are easily destroyed by spraying with
kerosene emulsion. But in cases where the insect is
first introduced to a new locality, the infested trees
should be burned to check the outbreak.

Concerning this, Mr. L. 0. Howard, entomologist to
the United States Department of Agriculture, says: "The
principal mode of spread is by commerce in nursery stock,
cuttings and fruit. The time will come in the immedi-

FIG. 50. SAN JOSE SCALE. Male adult— greatly enlarged.

ate future^when some kind of quarantine regulations will
have to be established by States or by large fruit-growing
districts. Should this species already have obtained the
firm foothold in the East which we suspect, Xew York,
Michigan and other States in which the pomological
interests are great, should immediately, by act of legis-
lature, establish quarantine regulations similar to those
in force at the present time in the State of California.
In the meantime no orchardist should admit a single

THE PEAB TKEE SLUG 101

young fruit tree, or a single cutting, or a single bud,
from a distance into his orchard, without first carefully
examining it and satisfying himself absolutely that it
does not carry a single specimen of the San Jose scale.
If this plan is adopted by every one interested, and with-
out exception, the rate of spread of the species can be
limited to the natural spread by crawling, by winds, and
by the aid of other insects and birds.

" We wish particularly to impress upon the minds
of fruit growers that as soon as this insect is found to
occur in an orchard the most strenuous measures must
be taken to stamp it out. No halfway measures will
suffice. The individual must remember that not only
are his own interests vitally at stake, but those of the
entire community in which he resides. Trees badly in-
fested should be instantly burned, as previously stated.
The individual may think that he cannot bear the loss,
but the loss in consequence of the slightest neglect will
be much greater. The fact, too, that there is a commu-
nity of interests among fruit growers in this matter must
not be lost sight of. Fruit growers must be mutually
helpful in an emergency like this."

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Pear=tree Slug

Selandria cerasi

The leaves of pear, cherry, quince and plum trees
are frequently attacked during June and July by a green-
ish-black, slimy slug, that eats the parenchyma off the
upper surface. This is the pear or cherry slug. It orig-
inates from eggs laid early in June, in the leaf, by a four-
winged black fly (shown slightly magnified at Fig. 51).
The eggs hatch about two weeks after they are deposited,
and the larvae become full-grown in four or five weeks.
They are then nearly half an inch long, and of the form

102 INSECTS AND INIECTICIDES

represented at Fig. 51. They now shed their slimy skins,
appearing in a clean yellow suit that is not sticky, and
shortly afterwards leave the tree. Having reached the
ground they enter the soil two or three inches, and form
an oval cavity in the earth, which they line with a glossy
secretion. The larval skin is now cast, and the insect
becomes a pupa. About a fortnight later it again
changes, this time to a four-winged fly, that escapes to
continue the propagation of the species. There are two

FIG. 51. PEAR-TREE SLUG.

broods each season in the Northern States, the first
brood of larvae appearing in June and the second in
August. The winter is passed in the cocoons.

Remedies. — This pear slug is very easy to destroy,
and should be checked as soon after it begins operations
as possible. Spraying with the arsenites, or pyre thrum,
or hellebore, is a simple and effectual remedy. Or these
substances may be dusted on with a powder bellows.

The Pear=Ieaf Mite

Phytoptus pyri

The leaves of the pear are sometimes noticed in
spring to have small reddish spots upon their upper sur-
face. As the season advances these spots become darker
colored, and finally appear almost black, the tissues of
the leaf where they are being dry and dead. This dis-
ease is called the pear-leaf blister and is caused by the
pear-leaf mite, an extremely minute creature, related to
the red spider found in greenhouses.

XCAJUF

THE PEAR WAF MITE 103

Mr. M. V. Slingerland describes in detail the symp-
toms of tlie malady as follows: ''The disease appears
on the pear leaves before they are fully expanded from
the bud in spring, in the form of red blister-like spots an
eighth of an inch or more in diameter. During this red
stage of the disease the spots are more conspicuous on
the upper surface of the leaves. About June first the
spots gradually change to a green color iiardly distin=
guishable from the unaffected portions of the leaf ; this
change takes
place on the lower
side of the leaf
firsthand the sjiots
may thus be red
above and green
below. In this

green stage, which fig. 52. pear-leaf mite. Magnified.

seems to have been overlooked, the badly diseased leaves
present a slightly thicker, corky aj^pearance ; otherwise
the disease is not readily apparent, especially where not
severe. This green stage lasts about a week or ten days,
and about June fifteenth the spots may be found chang-
ing to a dark brown color, beginning on the lower side
of the leaf. The tissue of the diseased parts or spots
then presents a dead, dry, brown or black, corky appear-
ance. The spots are also more conspicuous on the lower
side, and remain unchanged until the leaves fall in the
autumn. They occur either singly, scattered over the
surface of the leaves, or often coalesce, forming large
blotches which sometimes involve a large portion of the
leaf."

The authors of this mischief are extremely minute
eight-legged mites which resemble when magnified Fig.
52. Mr. Slingerland who has studied the species most
carefully thus describes its life history : "The exceed-
ingly minute oval grayish eggs are laid by the females iu

P4

H

Em
O

O
H

O

THE PEAR LEAF MITE

105

the spring mthin the galls that they have formed, and
here the yonng are hatched. How long they remain
within the gall of their parent has not been ascertained.
But sooner or later they escape through the opening in

FIG. 53. PORTION OF LOWER SIDE OF INFESTED LEAF, SHOWING
GALLS CONSIDERABLY MAGNIFIED.

it, and seeking the healthy part of a leaf, or more often
crawling to the tenderer leaves of the new growth, they
work their way into the tissue, and new galls are thus
started. In this manner the galls on a tree are often
rapidly multiplied during the summer. The mites live

106

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

within the galls, feeding upon the plant cells, nntil the
drying of the leaves in the autumn. They then leave
the galls through the openings and migrate to the Avinter
buds at or near the ends of the twigs. Here they work
g their way beneath the

two or three outer
scales of the buds
where they remain
during the winter.
Fifteen or twenty
may often be found

FIG. 54. SECTION OF T.EAF SHOWING GALL -, '111

IN KED STAGE. nrM.oimal leaf; o, open- ""f^er a Single bud

iiigof gall; e. eggs. (After Sorauer.) SCalc. Ill thlS posi-

tion they are ready for business in the spring as soon as
growth begins ; and they doubtless do get to work early,
for their red galls are already conspicuous before the
leaves get unrolled.

**The mites instinctively migrate from the leaves as
soon as the latter become dry. Whenever branches were

FIG. 55. SECTION OF THE LEAF SHOWING STRUCTUKE OF GALL IN
AUTUMN, g, gall; ii, normal leaf; o, opening of gall.

brought into the in sectary, as soon as the leaves began
to dry the mites left them and gathered in great num-
bers in the buds. It is impossible to accurately estimate
the number of mites that may live in the galls on a single
leaf. Sections of galls made while in their red stage
would seldom cut through more than two or three mites ;
but sections of the brown galls often showed four or five
times as many. Thus on a badly infested leaf there is
without ^oubt at least a thousand of the mites."

THE PEAR TREE PSYLLA 107

Remedies. — Until recently tMs pest has been diffi-
cult to fight. So long as it remains in the tissues of the
leaves it is beyond the reach of insecticides, and as it
deserts the leaves before they fall, gathering and burning
them in autumn will do little or no good. It has lately
been demonstrated by Mr. Slingerland, however, that
the pest may be successfully kept in check by a single
spraying in winter with kerosene emulsion diluted with
five to seven parts of water. The trees should be
thoroughly treated.

The Pear=tree Psylla

Psylla pyricola

This is an extremely minute insect, which during
recent years has done great damage to pear orchards in
several Eastern States. It was apparently introduced
into Connecticut early in the present
century ; since then it has spread west
to Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois, south
to New York and New Jersey, and
probably over much of New England,
though here it has been reported as de-
structive only in Massachusetts and
Connecticut.

The adult pear psylla is a small,
jumping louse about one-tenth of an
inch long, resembling, when magnified, fig. 56. pear
Fig. 56. It has four nearly transparent ^^ylla. Magnified.

wings, and is reddish with transverse dark stripes on
the abdomen. There are two distinct forms. The sum-
mer broods are much lighter in color than the brood
which passes through the winter. This difference is so
great that the two forms were considered distinct species
until the life history was carefully worked out by Mr.
M. V. Slingerland.

108 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The dark form passes through the winter in some
sheltered situation about the tree, such as heneath loose
bark or in the crevices between the branches. In early
spring they come forth from their hiding places and de-
posit their eggs about the buds and on rough bark.
These eggs are very small, and of the extraordinary form
represented in Fig. 57. When first deposited they are
yellowish, but turn dark soon afterwards. The eggs
hatch in three or four weeks, the time depending largely
on weather conditions. The young psyllas, which during
their immature stages are called nymphs, crawl to the
stalks of the unfolding leaves, in which they insert their
tiny beaks to suck out the sap. They grow rapidly,
occasionally molting or shedding their skins to provide
for their increase in size, and in the course of a month
become mature.

The first summer brood thus developed deposits
eggs on the undersides of the leaves. These eggs hatch
ten days later, and mature in about
three weeks. The insects of the sec-
ond brood suck the sap from the
FIG. 57. EGG. Magnified, leavcs. Thcrc are several of these
summer broods, the number varying with the locality
and length of season. In early autumn the dark, hiber-
nating winter form is developed.

The sap which passes through the bodies of these
little creatures is ejected on the foliage, and forms the
so-called "^honeydew." Where the insects are very
numerous this becomes very abundant, falling in show-
ers when the branches are disturbed. After the honey-
dew has been present for some time a peculiar black
fungus develops upon it, and gives the tree a sooty
appearance.

Mr. Slingerland makes the following statement con-
cerning the indications of the presence of the pest :
•'Among the first indications that pear growers, who

THE PEAR MIDGE 109

suffered from this pest in 1891, had of its presence, was
the noticeably lessened vitality of their trees early in the
season. Old trees, especially, put forth but little new
growth. Where new growth started, in many cases the
shoots began to droop and wither in May, as if from a
loss of sap. A little later whole trees put on a sickly
appearance ; the leaves turned yellow and the fruit grew
but little. By midsummer nearly all the leaves and
half -formed fruit fell from many trees."

Remedies.— This insect can be destroyed by spray-
ing in spring, after the eggs hatch out and before the
first brood matures, with kerosene emulsion diluted with
twenty-five parts of water. This is a simple and satis-
factory remedy; if applied soon after a shower has
washed off much of the honeydew, it is more effective.

INJURING THE FRUIT

The Pear flidge

Diplosis pyrivora

This insect appears to have been introduced into
America about 1877, being first noticed in Connecticut.
It has since spread into a number of neighboring States,
and has become in many localities the most destructive
enemy of the pear. The adult is a small mosquito-like
grayish fly (Fig. 59, c) having a slender body, long legs,
and a long ovipositor projecting from the end of the
abdomen. These flies appear in the pear orchard in
early spring, even before the blossoms open, and con-
tinue present about ten days. As soon as the blossoms
open sufficiently for the insect to insert its ovipositor,
the eggs— often nearly a dozen in number— are depos-
ited inside the blossom envelopes. Three or four days
later the eggs hatch into little maggots which enter the
open ovary of the embryo fruit, where they feed upon
the growing tissues, gnawing and rasping it in such a

110

IlfSECTS Ai^D INSECTICIDES

manner as to destroy the core and seeds, and cause the
fruits to become dwarfed and deformed. Such pears are
ill-shai^en in outer appearance, as shown in the series
represented in Fig. 58. The midge maggots at first are
whitish in color, but they soon become orange or reddish.
They become full-grown early in summer ; they are then
^'about one-sixth of an inch in length, pointed towards
each extremity, yellow in color, with a brown, horny
breastbone on the underside just behind the head.

FIG. 58. PEAR MIDGE INJURY, a, Uninjured young pear; 6, infested
pear cut open to show midge larvae; c, d, e,f, outlines of infested
fruits.

The segments of the body are well marked, and when
removed from the infested fruit they move about quite
rapidly, bending themselves quite double by drawing the
tail forward until it touches the head, and then jerking
or springing upward and outward several inches at a
time. When they are full-grown they remain in the
fruit until there comes a rain, which causes a raj^id
decay and a cracking open of the infested fruit.
Through the openings so made they emerge and drop to
the ground."* They then enter the soil an inch or two

*J. B. Smith.

THE PEAB MIDGE

111

where somewhat later they make oval cocoons of silk
mixed with particles of earth or sand ; in these cocoons
they remain apparently unchanged until the following
spring when they become pupae and shortly afterwards
again change to adult flies.

These midges appear to have decided preferences
among yarieties of i^ears, the Lawrence being the favorite.

Remedies. — The only stage at which this insect is
liable to injury without detriment to the trees is when
the larvae are in the ground. Professor J. B. Smith of

FIG. 59. PEAR MIDGE, a, larva ;&, ptipa ; c, parent fly. Magnified.

^ew Jersey has found that they then can be destroyed to
advantage by the application of kainit, applied about tJie
middle of June to the ground beneath the trees, at the
rate of 1000 pounds to the acre. This is dissolved by
the soil moisture and causes the death of the naked
midge larvae. In case an orchard is generally infested
Professor Smith recommends the following practice :
"Cultivate as usual, or if the orchard is in grass or
clover, plow under after June loth, as soon as may be.
Top-dress with kainit, 1,000 pounds to the acre, to

113 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

iDenefit trees as well as to kill insects. As soon as proper,
say early in August, sow crimson clover. This will use
up the potash not required by the fruit trees, and will
store nitrogen, as well as occupy the ground. Early in
the following spring turn this sod under as deeply as
may be proper. It should be done before the pear buds
are developed, in order to head off and destroy any
midges then in the pupal state near the surface of the
soil."

The Codling Moth and Plum Curculio

In most regions these pests are the worst insect
enemies of the fruit of the pear. To the first is due the
'^worminess" that spoils so large a portion of the crop,
and to the second a large part of the gnarly, knotty fruit
that is so often seen. Spraying with Paris green is for-
tunately an effectual j^reventive of the injuries of both.

Other Pear Insects

The trunk of the pear tree is subject to attack from
both the round-headed and flat-headed apple-tree borers.
The remedies mentioned as aj^plicable to the apple are
equally so to the pear. The branches are sometimes in-
fested by the oyster-shell bark louse, the pear-tree bark
louse (Lecanium- pyri), as well as the pear-blight beetle
(Xylehorus pyri), and the fruit-bark beetle (Scolytus
rugulosus). The leaves are also liable to attack from a
great variety of caterpillars, which, however, are seldom
seriously injurious.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE PLUM

INJURING THE BARK

The American PIum=tree Borer

Euzophera semifuneralis

Plum trees are occasionally attacked by small, dusky
caterpillar-like borers, having reddish heads and being
sparsely furnished with long hairs. They are most
likely to infest the upper portion of the trunk and the
bases of the larger branches. It is the larva of a small
moth that appears in May and June, and probably de-
posits its eggs on the bark. The eggs hatch into larvae
that feed in the tissues of the inner bark, sometimes
causing the death of the trees. The insect remains in
the larval condition through the winter and pupates in
May, to emerge a little later as a moth.

It is probable that applying to the trunk and larger
limbs the washes recommended for the apple borer will
prevent the injuries of this pest.

The plum is also subject to attack by the peach-tree
borer and another closely related species {Sannina picti-
pes) that breeds in wild cherry. The soap washes are
believed to prevent their depredations also. When the
borers are present they may be cut out with a sharp
knife.

113

lU

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Plum Scale

Lecanium sp.

In several widely sej^arated localities attention has
been called to a large scale insect affecting plums, which
in some regions has become quite destructive. The ap-
pearance of the insect on the branches is well shown in
the lower part of Fig. 60. Beneath each of these scales

Fig. 60. Plum branch showius young scales in hibernation near large

mother shells; leaves with young scales along veins, as they

appear in summer.

there are deposited early in summer a large number of
small white eggs — each female being said to lay a thou-
sand or more eggs. A month later these eggs hatch into
tiny creatures that wander to tne leaves, where they in-

THE PLUM TREE APHIS 115

sert their beaks and suck out the vegetable juices ; some
of tliese young lice are represented in the upper part of
Fig. 60. They produce a great amount of the so-called
'Mioneydew " while on the leaves. Early in autumn they
migrate to the undersides of the twigs, where they pass
the Avinter.

Remedies. — ^' The way to combat this pest is to
spray the infested trees several times, at least twice in
winter or before April, first with kerosene emulsion
(standard formula) diluted with four j^arts of water.
Always bear in mind that each little scale must be hit
with the liquid. Do not let the pest get started in force
in April ; if it does you cannot fight it effectively until
about July first. Then the young are hatching, and
while they are wandering about on the branches for a few
days, they can be successfully destroyed by the emulsion
diluted even six or eight times. If these young scales
get established on the leaves in July, they will be beyond
control Avith a spray until November. But the moment
the leaves fall, begin the work of destruction on the ten-
der hibernating scales then exposed on the bark. Thor-
oughness must be the watchword if this new and most
serious enemy is to be checked." — [Slingerland.]

The Plum=tree Aphis

Aphis 2)runifolii
The leaves of plum trees are frequently crowded in
spring by small, dark-colored, soft-bodied insects that
suck out the sap, and give the terminal portion of the
twigs a malformed appearance. These are aphides or
plant lice. Two or three species are known to infest the
plum, one of which has been shown by Dr. C. V. Riley
to migrate during summer to the hop plant. The life
histories of the others are not very well known. In a
general way they are similar to the apple aphis described
on a previous page.

116 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

Remedies. — Spraying with kerosene emulsion is
the most effective remedy for this insect. The applica-
tion should be made with a force pump and spray noz-
zle, and as soon after the insects are noticed as possible.

Plum=leaf Caterpillars

There are several kinds of caterpillars that occa-
sionally attack the plum, but they rarely occur in suffi-
cient numbers to do serious injury. Of these we may
mention the plum catocala {Catocala uUro7iea), the poly-
phemus moth {Telea ])olyi)liemus), the horned span-
worm (Xematocampa Jilainentaria), the plum sphinx
(Sphinx drupiferarum), the gray dagger moth [Apatela
Occident alis), and the disippus butterfly (Limenitis dis-
ippus). These insects are all open to destruction by
spraying with the arsenites, and are not likely to become
injurious in orchards regularly sprayed for the plum
curculio.

INJURING THE FRUIT

The Plum Curculio

Conotrachelus nenupliar

This insect, the worst foe of the plum grower, is
the cause of the " worminess" and premature dropping of
the fruit with which so many orchardists are familiar.
Besides plums, it breeds in peaches, nectarines, apricots,
cherries, pears and apples.

The adult insect (Fig. 61, c) appears in spring
about the time of blossoming, and feeds upon the foli
age and flowers until the fruit is well *^set." It then at-
tacks the young plums, gnawing at them to satisfy its
hunger, and cutting crescent-shaped marks in the skin
to deposit its eggs (d). In a short time these eggs hatch
into little grubs that feed upon the pulp of the fruit,
gradually working toward the pit. In a few weeks they

THE PLUM CURCUUO

117

become full-grown (appearing when magnified like a), by
which time the infested plums have generally fallen to
the ground. The larvae then leave the fruit, and enter-
ing the soil a short distance change to pupae (b). A
few weeks later they again cliange, aud come forth as
perfect beetles. But some of them enter the ground so
late that they hibernate as pupae, emerging the following-
summer. There is but one brood each season. A sinj^le
female is able to deposit
one hundred and fifty to.
two hundred eggs, ten fre-
quently being laid in a sin-
gle day. Certain parasites
prey upon this insect, and
are occasionally sufiiciently
numerous to prevent its in-
juries in certain localities.
Remedies. — Ento-
moloo-ists have been di-^_ ^,

° . . . FIG. 61. PLOTI CITECITI.TO. «, larva;

Vlded m OpmiOn as to b, pupa; c, beetle— magnified; <?,
whether this insect can Pl^^^^ showing crescent mark.

successfully be destroyed by spraying with the arsenites,
but the evidence in hand indicates that under usual con-
ditions this is the best way to fight the pest, especially
in large orchards. It has been conclusively proven that
a majority of the curculios in a sprayed orchard will be
killed by the poison, but the effect is not immediate.
Consequently there may be opportunity for a certain
amount of oviposition before the curculios die. When a
heavy crop of fruit sets, it is desirable that a portion of
it should be thinned, so that the injury of a small per-
centage of the plums is no disadvantage. It is advisable
to use the Bordeaux-arsenite combination, thus avoiding
the injury which sometimes results when Paris green
or London purple alone is applied, and also i3reventing
damage by fungous diseases— such as the leaf spot and

118 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

plum rot. Three or four sprayings are advisable, the
first just before the blossoms ojDen, the second soon after
the blossoms have fallen, the third about ten days after
the second and the fourth about fifteen days after the
third. If Paris green alone is used (four ounces to fifty
gallons water), lime should be added, as some varieties
of jilums are very easily injured by the arsenites.

The other method of fighting this insect is that of
"jarring." This takes advantage of the fact that when
a limb on which the curculio is at work is suddenly jar-
red, the insect drops to the ground. A large sheet is
placed beneath the tree, and the latter is jarred by
striking the trunk and larger branches with a padded
mallet. The curculios fall upon the sheet, and are
then collected and destroyed. Instead of a sheet, most
commercial growers use a sort of inverted umbrella
mounted on wheels, which is run beneath the tree. It
has sloping sides down which the insects roll into a re-
ceptacle in the center, where they are caught. There
are many patterns of these catchers in use in different
sections of the country. The insects are most easily
caught in the morning when the atmosphere is cool. In
case only a small crop of fruit sets and curculios are
abundant, jarring is more certain to save it than sj^raying.

The Plum Qouger

Coccotorus prunicida

The plum gouger is most injurious in the region
west of the Mississippi river, being rarely or never found
in the Eastern States. But in Iowa, and probably also
in adjacent States, it frequently is more destructive than
the plum curculio, from which it differs considerably in
history and habits. The adult gouger is a small snout
beetle, about the same size as the curculio, but with a
smooth back, and of a yellowish or brownish color. It

THE PLUM GOUGER 119

appears about blossoming time, and soon after the fruit
sets begins operations nj^on it. Instead of cutting a
crescent-shaped mark in which to h\j its egg, it gnaws
out a little cavity beneath the skin, in which the egg is
deposited. A few days latei* the larva hatches, and bur-
rows through the pulp to the pit, gnawing through the
soft shell to the ^^ meaty" portion inside. Here it con-
tinues to develop, feeding upon
the contents of the pit, rather than
the pulp surrounding it. After ^j^ T'^^N.--^
several weeks it becomes full-
grown ; it then gnaws a hole
through the hardening wall of the
pit, so it can escape after complet- fig. c2. plum gouger.
ing its transformations, and chang- ^*' P""ctures on fruit,
es to the pupal state inside. A short time afterwards it
again changes, this time to the adult, and the beetle
gnaws its way to the outer world, hibernating in this
condition. It is single-brooded.

Like the plum curculio, the adult plum gouger
gnaws pits in the fruit for food. It also has various
natural enemies that help to keep it in check.

Remedies. — One would suppose, from the feeding
habits of the plum gouger, that the adults were liable to
destruction by spraying with the arsenites, but experi-
ments made in Iowa by Prof. C. P. Gillette do not con-
firm this opinion. How^ever, the matter seems not to
have been thoroughly tested on a large, commercial
scale. If spraying is ineffective, recourse must be had
to the jarring method.

120 INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

Other Plum Insects

The base of the trunk of the phim tree is occasion-
ally attacked by tlie peach-tree borer ; and the upper
portion of the trunk is sometimes infested with the flat-
headed apple-tree borer and the fruit-bark beetle. The
leaves are attacked by a large proportion of the cater-
pillars that feed on the foliage of the apple, as well as
tiie pear or cherry slug, the grapevine flea beetle, and a
number of other insects. But spraying is a safe specific
for nearly or quite all of these defoliators.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE PEACH

INJURING THE ROOT

The Peach =tree Borer

Sannina exitiosa

The peach-tree borer k a soft, whitish caterpillar,
with a reddish-brown head and sixteen leers. It hatches
from eggs laid during the summer months by a hand-
some, day-flying moth, upon the bark of the trunk, at
or near the soil surface. After hatching, the young
larvae burrow through to the inner bark and sapwood of
the larger roots, upon which they feed, causing a gummy

a b

Fig. 63. PEACH-BOEER MOTH, «, male ; b, female.

exudation that betrays their presence. They continue
feeding in this way for nearly a year, being interrupted
of course during the winter months, when they become
full-grown as larvge. They then usually approach the
top of the ground within an inch or two of the soil sur-
face, and construct cocoons of tlie gummy exudation,
their castings, and silk. Within these cocoons they
change to the pupal state, and three or four weeks later
again change to moths. The two sexes of the moths

121

12"3 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

are represented, natural size, in Fig. 63, a representing the
male, and h the female. These moths are present more
or less all summer ; although there is but one genera-
tion a year, the larvae reach maturity at such different
times that they keep up a nearly constant supi)ly of the
imagos. On this account one can find larvae of various
sizes in the roots at almost any time. This insect also
occasionally infests the plum.

Remedies. — One of the most generally practiced
ipethods of preventing the injuries of this insect is that
of cutting out the larvae in the fall or spring, or both.
To do this the earth is removed from about the base of
the tree, and wherever the gummy exudation indicates
that a borer is at work, a sharp knife or wire is inserted
to kill it. It is often necessary to open the larval chan-
nels for some distance before the depredator is found.
Instead of digging the larvae out, some growers destroy
them by applying scalding hot water. With this method
the earth is removed as before, and the gumm.y exuda-
tions scraped away before the water is applied.

Some growers prevent the deposition of eggs by
mounding the soil up about the base of the trunk a
foot or more, late in sj^ring, removing it in September,
The chief objection to this method appears to be that it
is liable to make the bark too tender to stand the winter.
Others protect the base of the trunk by fastening paper
or straw around it, so as to cover the bark. In Virginia
good results have been reported from painting the
trunks with paint made from pure white lead and linseed
oil, about the thickness for ordinary use. This is ap-
plied in autumn and lasts a year, the earth about the
base being scraped away in order to apply it below the
usual soil surface. A similar mixture, however, has
been reported to injure cherry trees, and I would advise
that it be used cautiously, if at all.

THE BLACK PEACH A I'll IS 12o

The Black Peach Aphis

Aphis persiccB-mger

This is a shining black aphis that occurs in great
numbers upon the roots, twigs and leaves of the peach in
the Atlantic States. The root-infesting specimens seem
to be especially injurious, causing an enfeebled condition
of the tree that has sometimes been mistaken for the
disease known as the ''yellows." These insects repro-
duce yiviparously, or by giving birth to liying young,
and consequently, like other aphides, they are able to
multiply with remarkable rapidity. There are two forms,
one wingless and the other winged, both having shining
black bodies, and sucking out the sap of the tree through
their tiny beaks.

Remedies. — The best results seem to have been at-,
tained in fighting the underground form of this insect by
digging into the soil about the roots refuse tobacco, either
in the form of powder or stems. Kainit is also said by
New Jersey peach growers to serve a similar purpose.
The aerial specimens are o^^eii to destruction by spraying
with kerosene emulsion.

INJURING THE TRUNK AND BRANCHES

The Fruit=bark Beetle

Scolytus rugulosus

This is a small beetle which attacks apple, pear,
quince, cherry, plum and peach trees, by boring small
holes through the outer bark and then forming burrows
in the inner bark. It seems to jn-efer the stone fruits,
and more often seriously injures them than the apples
and pears. Many entomologists believe that these beetles
attack only diseased trees, but the observations of Pro-
fessor Forbes, who has studied the species most carefully,
indicate that ** while these insects clearly prefer weakened

124

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

trees, and will continue to breed in them to some extent
even after they are nearly or quite dead, they neverthe-
less may attack such as are really healthy and in which
the flow of sap is temporarily restrained by transplanting
or a relatively unthrifty growth."

I am indebted to Professor Forbes's writings for the
following account of the injuries and life history of this
fruit-bark beetle. The upper portion of the trunk and
bases of the larger limbs are most commonly attacked,
but the injury often extends to the branches and smaller
twigs. **The first conspicuous evidence of injury to the

FIG. 64. TWIG AND BARK SHOWING PUNCTURES.

twigs is a withering of the leaves and a shriveling of the
bark similar to that caused by blight ; but if the trunks
and larger branches be attacked, damage to the bark may
go on for some time without manifest effect upon the
general appearance of the tree." By closely examining
the bark where the insects are at work one will sec that
it is blackened, and will always find "minute round punc-
tures half or twO'thirds the diameter of the head of a
common pin. If the bark is cut away these openings are
seen to penetrate it, commonly, to the wood, the chan-
nels usually running vertically inward ; and if the tree

THE FRUIT BARK BEETLE

125

be badly infested the under surface of the bark will be
almost completely eaten out and marked by a network of
channels of about the same diameter as the small holes
already meiitioned." Most of these grooves run length-
wise of the stem, and fur-
row both the bark and the
surface of the wood (Fig.
65). "More critical ex-
amination will show here
and there a broader bur-
row ; and from this cen-
tral larger channel a great
number of much smaller
ones will pass out to the
right and left as closely as
they can be placed, in- l//v)V^
creasing in size as they s'o, vA /'o;'
and i^resently changing h -- ' ^
direction, so that those at to
first running crosswise of

the stem become lonoi
tudinal." At the end of
these smaller channels one
may often find a small
footless grub, the laiwa of
the beetle.

These peculiar bur-
rows are made in the man-

FIG. 65. CHANNELS OF FKUIT-BAKK

ner thus described : " The beetles.

female beetle, resorting to the tree, burrows into the
bark directly inward, and then, turning lengthwise of
the bark, digs a channel from half an inch to an inch
and a quarter long, —the larger burrow described above,
called the breeding chamber,— laying eggs to the right
and left as she makes her way. As these eggs hatch, the
young larvae, very small at first, eat outward iu all direc-

12Q IKSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

tions, forming the closely placed radiating cliannels
already described, enlarging the burrow of course as they
increase in size themselves ; and finally, when they have
reached their growth, each sinks itself into the sapwood
to a depth scarcely greater than its own thickness, stop-
ping the channel behind it with a little mass of wood
fiber, and there it changes to the pupal stage. This
terminal cell is consequently called the pupal chamber.
In this little harborage the adult beetle appears and eats
its way out through an opening similar to that by which
the mother entered in the beginning."

The fruit-bark beetle is a small black insect, with
the tips of the legs and wing covers russet-red. The
larva is whitish with a brown head. Both stages meas-
ure about one- tenth of an inch in length.

Remedies. — The fact that this insect attacks un-
thrifty and diseased trees indicates the advisability of
keeping trees thrifty and healthy by careful cultivation
and fertilization. The insect passes the winter in the
larval state within the burrows, so that burning infested
trunks and branches at that season will destroy the pests
within. It is also probable that spraying with some
adhesive poisonous mixture — such as the Bordeaux-
arsenite combination — when the beetles are penetrating
the bark to deposit eggs, would kill them. In Indiana
trees sprayed in spring with this combination escaped
injury.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Peach Aphis

Myzus persiccB

This insect is much like the black peach aphis, with
which, in fact, it has frequently been confused, but it
appears to be distributed over a much wider area, being
found in nearly all portions of the United States where
peaches are grown. Like other aphides, it damages the

OTHER PEACH INSECTS 127

tree by sucking out the sap through the leaves or ten-
der twigs. It is a soft, blackish little creature that,
during the spring and summer months, reproduces by
giying birth to living young. The species winters over
in tiny, black eggs, laid in September or October, upon
the twigs aboi t the buds.

Remedies. — Spraying with kerosene emulsion is
the best method of destroying these little pests.

INJURING THE FRUIT

The Plum Curculio

Conotraclielus nenuphar

This insect, whose life history has already been
treated of on page 116, breeds in peaches, as well as in
plums, cherries, apples and other fruits. It is especially
liable to injure ])eaches when there is a failure of the
apple crop. It is more difficult to prevent its injuries
on this crop than on the apple or plum, because ordi-
narily it is imj^racticable to jar peach trees, and their
foliage is so easily injured by the arseiiites that spraying
must be done with great caution, if at all. Probably
the safest way is to spray witli the Bordeaux-arsenite
mixture. One or two sprayings, soon after the fruit sets,
will probably help greatly in preventing curculio injury.

Other Peach Insects

The trunk of the peach is sometimes infested by the
flat-headed borers of the apple and cherry, though not
often. The branches are subject to the attacks of the
peach-tree bark louse {Lecanmm j^crsicce) and the New
York weevil [Itliycerus noveloracensis) ; while the leaves
are more or less affected by a great variety of caterpillars
which, however, rarely do any serious injury.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE CHERRY

INJURING THE TRUNK

The Flat=headed Cherry=tree Borer

Dicerca divaricata

This insect is closely related to the flat-headed ap-
ple-tree borer, to which it is similar in life history and
habits. The adult, a handsome, brassy- or copper-colored
beetle, about four-fifths of an inch long, deposits eggs
during the summer on the trunk of the wild and culti-
vated cherry. These eggs hatch into larvae that bore
through the bark to the sapwood, upon which they
live. They gradually grow larger until, when full
grown, they pupate, and shortly afterwards again change
to the beetle state.

Remedies. — Fortunately this borer is rarely seri-
ously injurious. Should it become so, the treatment
recommended for the flat-headed apple-tree borer would
be also applicable in this case.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Cherry Aphis

Myzus cerasi

The twigs and under surface of the leaves of the
cherry are frequently thickly infested during May and
June by small, shining plant lice that suck out the sap
and deform the leaves. This insect is the cherry aphis.
It winters over on the twigs in the egg state. Early in
spring the eggs hatch into young aphides that crawl

128

THE MAY BEETLE 129

upou the bursting buds, inserting their tiny sap-sucking
beaks into the tissues of the unfolding leaves. In a
week or ten da}s they become full-grown, and begin
giving birth to young lice, which also soon develop, and
repeat the process. In this way they increase with mar-
velous rapidity. Most of these early spring forms are
wingless, but during June great numbers of winged lice
appear, and late in June or early in July they leave the
cherry, migrating to some other plant, although we do
not yet know what that other plant is. Here they con-
tinue developing throughout the summer, and in autumn
a winged brood again appears and migrates back to the
cherry. These migrants give birth to young that de-
velop into egg-laying females, which deposit small, oval,
shining black eggs upon the twigs about the buds.

Remedies.— Lady beetles and certain predaceous
and parasitic flies prey upon these little pests in great
numbers, and often aid materially in checking their
injuries. The best artificial remedy is that of spraying
with kerosene emulsion, early in the season.

The May Beetle

Lachnostei^na fusca

The leaves of cherry and other frait trees are some-
times eaten early in summer by the common May beetle
or June bug. This insect is the parent of the
mischievous white grub, that is so frequently destructive
in meadows and pastures. The beetles feed upon the
foliage at night, and sometimes appear in suflBcient
numbers to do much damage before their presence is
discovered.

Remedies.— Spraying the infested trees with the
arsenites, Paris green or London purple, is the most
promising method of preventing thei'^- injuries.

130

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Cherry=tree Leaf Roller

Caccecia cerasivorana

One occasionally finds the leaves of a cherry twig
fastened together in a large, com23act nest, inhabited by
numerous yellow caterpillars, that feed upon the inclosed
leaves. This is the cherry-tree leaf roller. The adult

FIG. 66. CHERRY TREE ON WHICH OPENING BUDS WERE DESTROYED

BY LEAF ROLLERS.

is a small brown moth which deposits a large number of
eggs upon the twig. The caterpillars on hatching fasten
the leaves together and develop within the tent thus
formed. They become full-grown about midsummer.

FLATS VIII. APPLE TWIG SHOWING WORK OF LEAF BOLLEB3.

k, young apples gnawed by larvae.

132 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

and pupate within the nest. In a week or so they
are ready to change again, and the pupae work their way
out until they are nearly free from the nest, remaining
attached by the hinder portions of their bodies. The
skin then splits along the back and the moths come out.
Remedies. — These nests are so conspicuous that it
is a simi^Ie matter to cut and burn the infested twigs,
thus ending the career of the pests.

The Fruit=tree Leaf Roller

Coccecia argyrospila

This is a widely distributed insect that appears to
be most destructive in the West. In general its life
history is similar to that of the species last described.
The way in which the larvae, which feed on many kinds
of trees, roll the leaves is well shown in Plate VIII.
The amount of injury the insect sometimes does is shown
by Fig. 66, which represents a cherry tree defoliated by
the pest. Spraying with the arsenites is the best
remedy.

The Pear=tree Slug

Erio campa cerasi

This insect is probably as destructive to the cherry
as to the pear, under which we have already discussed it.
Its life history on the two fruits is similar, and the
remedies are the same in both cases.

INJURING THE FRUIT

The Plum Curculio

Conotraclielus nenupTiar

This insect, which has already been discussed under
the plum (p. 117), is also exceedingly injurious to cher-
ries. The latter, however, usually do not fall off when

THE PEAR TREE SLUG 133

infested by the curculio larv«, but remain on the tree
until the fruit ripens. The remedial measures suggested
in connection with the plum are equally applicable to this
fruit.

Other Cherry Insects

There are a large number of caterpillars that feed
upon the leaves of cherries, but they rarely do noticeable
i^ji-ii'jj and spraying with the arsenites will keep nearly
if not quite all of them in check.

t

%

PLATE IX. A GROUP OF I<SAF BOPf ££S. Magnified.

Insects affecting small fruits

INSECTS AFFECTING THE STRAWBERRY

INJURING THE ROOT

The Strawberry = root Worms

Paria aterrima, GrapJiops ptcdescens, and Scelodonta

nehulosiis

In the larval stage the three species of beetles named
above feed upon the fibrous roots of the strawberry, often
doing a great deal of damage. They are quite similar in
life history and habits, all depositing eggs about the base
of the plaut, that hatch into small whitish grubs. The
grubs feed upon the strawberry roots, increasing gradu*
ally in size. When fully grown they are small six-legged
grubs, with brown heads. They pupate in earthen cells
in the soil, and soon after emerge as small beetles that
feed upon the foliage of the strawberry, often doing a
noticeable damage. The injury of these insects in the
larval state is frequently mistaken for that of the straw-
berry-crown borer — an entirely diiferent S23ecies.

Remedies. — These little insects are difficult to
deal with on account of the underground habits of the
larvae, and the different times of development of the
adults. Professor Forbes recommends spraying or dust-
ing the foliage with Paris green or London purple occa-
sionally, after the fruit is harvested, to destroy the leaf-
eating beetles. Badly infested fields should be plowed
up soon after the crop is gathered. Old unused straw-
berry fields should not be left as breeding grounds for
these and other strawberry pests.

137

138 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Strawberry=crown Miner

Anarsia Uneatella {?)

This is a small, reddish caterpillar that bores the
strawberry crown, making irregular channels through it
in all directions. It becomes fully grown early in sum-
mer, and changes to the chrysalis state, to emerge two
or three weeks later as a small, dark gray moth. Eofgs
are deposited by this moth upon the crown of the plant,
and soon hatch into minute larvae that bore the crown
again, becoming partially grown before winter, and hi-
bernating within their burrows. This is the life history
of the species in Canada ; probably farther south there
may be two broods a year.

Remedies. — T^o successful remedy for this insect
is known. Badly infested fields would probably have to
be plowed up, and this should be done preferably in the
fall or early spring.

The Strawberry^crown Borer

Tyloderma fragarim

This insect has been known for many years as one
of the most destructive enemies of the strawberry in the
great small-fruit fields of the Mississippi Valley. The
larva (Fig. 67, a,) is a whitish, footless, yellow-headed
grub about one-fifth of an inch long, that lives in the
crowns of strawbeiTy plants, frequently hollowing them
out so much that the vines are weakened or destroyed.
The adult insect is a small, dark-colored snout beetle
about a fifth of an inch long, and of the form repre-
sented at Fig. 67, hy c. It is unable to fly, because of
the rudimentary condition of its membranous wings.
According to Professor Forbes, " the eggs are laid on the
crown in spring, being pushed down among the bases

THE STKAWBEREY CKOWN BOREB

139

FIG. 67. STRAWBERRY-CEOWX BORER.

a, larva; b, beetle, side view; c, beetle, back

of the leaves. The larvae penetrate the crown soon after
hatching, and excavate the interior all summer, nntil
they get their growth. A single larva does not wholly
destroy a plant, as it matures about the time a quarter or
a third of the substance of the crown is devoured. Fre-
quently two or three or more beetles will attack a single
stool, and they then
leave behind them
only a hollow shell
to which the roots
are attached. Still
in its subterranean
cavity the worm
transforms to a
pupa, and in the
same safe retreat
effects also the final change to the mature beetle, this
last transformation occurring all the way along from
August to October, during a period of about two months.
The beetles all escape from the crowns in autumn, but
are not known to lay any eggs until the following year.
They pass the winter as adults in the fields infested by
them as larvae. It feeds while a mature insect upon the
tissues of the plant."

Remedies. — This insect is especially liable to in-
jure old strawberry fields, or those which are replanted
to this fruit without some other crop intervening. On
account of the inability of the beetle to fly, it is not
likely to pass from one plantation to another to de^Dosit
eggs, and the isolation of new plantations from old ones
is consequently to be desired. If the plants for the new
field must be taken from an infested patch, they should
be dug up as early as jDossible, to guard against trans-
porting eggs or larvae with them. It is probable that
spraying the fields with the arsenites late in summer will
lead to the poisoning of many of the beetles, and that

140

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

burning the fields after picking 'will prove beneficial.
In case infested patches are to be plowed under, this
should be done late in June or early in July, to destroy
the half-grown larvse then present in the crowns.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Strawberry=leaf Roller

Phoxopteris comjHana

This is a small, brownish caterpillar that folds the
leaflets of the strawberry by bringing the ujoj^er surfaces
together and fastening them by silken cords (Fig. 68),

FIG. 68. STRAWBERRY LEAF FOLDED BY LEAF ROLLER.

and feeds upon their substance till they look brown and
scorched. It is sometimes exceedingly destructive, and
has been considered by some entomologists the most in-
jurious of the insect enemies of the strawberry. It prob-

THE STRAWBEERY LEAF ROLLER

141

ably occurs in nearly all the Northern States ; and is also
found in Europe, where, hoAvever, it does not proye
troublesome. It hatches from eggs laid in spring upon
the strawberry plants by a small, reddish-brown moth,
which is accurately represented slightly magnified at
Fig. 69, c. The larva attains its full growth in June,
when it is nearly half an inch long, of a brownish or
greenish color, with a shining, yellowish-brown head.

It is represented
natural size at Fig
69,05; the head and
anterior segments
of the body are
showm at h, and

FIG. 69. STRAWBEREY-LEAF ROLLER. «, larva, , , .

natural size ; h, front of larva ; c, moth ; d, hind tUO J)OSteriOr CX-
encl of larva ; h, c, and d, magnified. trcmity at d of the

same figure. The larva pupates within the rolled leaf,
and about midsummer emers^es as a moth. These moths
deposit eggs for a secona brood of caterpillars that feed
upon the leaves late in summer, changing to pup?e early
in autumn, and, passing the winter in that condition,
emerge again as moths the following spring, thus com-
pleting the cycle of the year. In the Southern States
there are three, and possibly four, broods a year.

Remedies. — The best way to destroy this pest is to
mow the field soon after the strawberry crop is gathered,
and after leaving it a day or two to become dry, burn it
over. This will destroy the leaf rollers as well as several
other kinds of insects, and the spores of fungous diseases.
It is sometimes necessary to scatter a little straw over the
field where the leaves are not thick enough to burn well.
The plants will not be damaged, but will soon send up a
new lot of leaves that will grow rapidly, and be free from
insect and fungus attack. If for any reason this
method is not desirable, the insects of the second brood
may be destroyed by spraying or dusting the plants in
August with some poisonous insecticide.

142

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Strawberry Slug

Emphytus maculatus

The transformations of this insect have been well
represented by Dr. Riley at Fig. 70. The four-winged
fly (3) appears in spring and deposits its eggs within
the tissues of the leaf or stem. The larvae hatch in a
short time, and feed \x\)on the leaf, gnawing small, cir-
cular holes at fii*st, like those eaten out of currant and
gooseberry leaves by young currant worms. They de-
velop in five or six weeks into pale-green worms (4, 6)

FIG. 70. STRAWBERRY SLUG. 1,2, pupa; 3, 5, fly; 4, 6, larva; 7, cocoon;

9, egg, magnified.

about three-fourths of an inch long. The larvae now go
shghtly beneath the surface, where they form cocoons
(7) within which they change to the pupal state (1, 3),
and later emerge as flies. In the Southern States there
are two broods each season, while at the North there
appears to be but one.

Remedies. — The strawberry slug is especially liable
to injure young, non-fruiting plantations, where it may
easily be destroyed by spraying or dusting with Paris
green. On fruiting plantations this method may be used

THE TARNISHED PLANT BUG 143

in localities where a second brood of larvae appears after
the fruit is gathered. Pyrethrum or insect powder may-
be used in such cases on the first brood. It is probable
that burning the fields over early in summer after the
crop is gathered will help to hold this insect in check.

INJURING THE BLOSSOMS AND FRUIT

The Tarnished Plant Bug

Lygus j^ratensis

This is a small yellowish-brown or yellowish-green
bug, more or less mottled with dusky, about one-fifth
of an inch long (Fig. 71), which is extremely common
in nearly all parts of the United States. It attacks a
great variety of plants, subsisting upon the sap, and is
especially destructive in the strawberry
field on account of its injuries to the
young fruit, the growth of which it
checks, causing an irregular, malformed
appearance known as ^' buttoning. ^^
According to Professor Forbes, "the
adults pass the winter under rubbish
and matted vegetation in a variety of
situations. With the earliest warm

-, „ . i 1 , i. i 1 n FIG. 71. TAKNISHED

days 01 spring they venture forth and plant bug. Mag-
collect upon whatever tender vegeta- aified.
tion of tree or shrub offers them a supply of sap within
the reach of their rather slender beaks. On their food
plants they lay their eggs. The young soon apj)ear,
mingled with the adults, as early as the latter part of
April and the first of May (in Southern Illinois), and
feed with them side by side. By the middle of May the
older individuals have matured, and tlien all stages may
be found together upon the same plants; but the
winged forms scatter widely, and in June and July are
generally distributed wherever suitable food occurs."

144

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

There are two, and perhaps more, broods each season. In
autumn the adults are to be found abundantly upon golden-
rods, sunflowers, asters, and various other fall flowers.
Remedies. — As these bugs obtain their food by
sucking, they cannot be destroyed by coating their food
plants with poisons. The application of pyre thrum (in-
sect powder) has proven the most successful remedy. By
means of a powder gun it can be applied quite readily.
Kerosene emulsion also destroys them, and it is claimed
that the bugs can frequently be collected in insect nets
with profit.

The Strawberry Weevil

Antlionormis signattis

This is a small black snout beetle of the form shown
magnified at Fig, 72, a, which deposits eggs in the

FIG. 72. STEAWBEERY WEEVIL.

a, beetle magnified ; b, strawberry spray covered with beetles.

buds of strawberries and blackberries, and then gnaws
partly through the stems a short distance below the buds.

THE STRAWBEKRY WEEVIL

145

causing the latter to wilt and droop (Fig. 72, a, V), The
iigg hatches into a little grub that develops in the bud,
becoming full-grown in a few weeks, when it resembles,
greatly magnified, Fig. 73, d. It pupates in the bud,
emerging as a perfect beetle about five weeks after the
^gg is laid. The beetles then migrate to other flowers.

FIG. 73. STRAWBERRY WEEVIL.

a, ■work in bud and stem; c, egg; r/, larva; e, head of larva; g, blossom

showing location of egg on left, and holes made by beetle;

/, pupa; c-g, magnified.

soon after which they disappear for the season. There
are several species of parasites which assist in keeping
this insect in check.

Remedies. — Upon this point Dr. C.V. Riley writes :
*'The first requisite is clean culture. All old strawberry
beds and blackberry plants, wild and cultivated, in the
10

146 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

neighborhood of the bearing vines, should be destroyed.
The parasites may be encouraged by collecting the in-
jured buds and confining them in a box or barrel covered
with fine wire gauze or bobbinet of a mesh small
enough to retain the weevils, but of sufficient size to per-
mit the escape of the parasites. A few rows of early
flowering, staminate varieties might be planted among
beds of later-beariug plants to serve as traps for the
hibernating brood, which could then be destroyed by
beating them from the flowers into pans of water to
which a few drops of kerosene had been added. A per-
fect preventive may be found in completely covering the
beds with frames of muslin or some similar light mate-
rial. This covering will not only exclude all other inju-
rious insects but is a positive benefit to the berries, which
ripen a week or ten days earlier, being superior in size
and quality. In addition it secures against frost."

Other Strawberry Insects

The strawberry is subject to attack by a large num-
ber of insects besides those discussed above. The roots
are often eaten, especially when new plantations are
made on land jjreviously in grass, by white grubs ; and
the stems are sometimes severed by various species of
cutworms. The blossom is occasionally attacked by a
small thrips {Thrips tritici) that prevents the fertiliza-
tion of the fruit, and by certain caterpillars that devour
it. As to the enemies of the foliage, their name is
legion : spanworms, leaf rollers, army worms, plant lice,
etc., all help to swell the list. And the fruit is not
neglected ; it caters to the dainty appetite of various
ants, myriapods, bugs and beetles. But the pests that
are most generally and commonly injurious have been
included in the previous pages.

Summary of Treatment.— Strawberry planta-
tions should be rotated with other crops every three, oi

OTHER STRAWBERRY INSECTS 147

in some cases possibly four, years, and old plantations
should never be left unplowed to serve as breeding places
for insect pests. It is generally advisable to mow and
burn over the field soon after the crop is gathered, a
method by which many insect and fungous foes may
be held in check. Other treatment must be regulated
according to the insects present and the circumstances
accompanying the attack.

INSECTS AFFECTING CURRANTS AND
GOOSEBERRIES

INJURING THE STEM

The Imported Currant Borer

Sesia tipuliformis

This insect is a small, whitish larva that burrows
up and down the stems of currants, weakening them so
that they are checked in growth and appear stunted
and unhealthy. It hatches from eggs deposited singly,
on the young stems near the buds, early in summer, by
a beautiful, clear-winged, wasp-like moth, with a bluish-
black body, and three golden-yellow transverse bands
across the abdomen. It measures from tip to tip of the
expanded wings nearly three-quarters of an inch. The
wings are transparent except at the borders, where they
are brownish-black.

A few days after the egg is deposited it hatches into
a small larva that gnaws through the stem to the cen-
ter, where it feeds on the pith. It continues so to do all
snmmer, making a burrow several inches in length.
When full grown, the larva eats nearly through the stem
wall, leaving only the membranous outer bark, and then
changes to a chrysalis within the burrow. When the
chrysalis is ready to transform it wriggles partially out
of this opening, bursting through the layer of membra-
nous bark. It then rests halfway out, its skin splits
open in front and the moth crawls out, leaving a mere
shell behind. The moth dries and expands its wings,

148

THE IMPORTED CURRAXT WORM

149

and flies away. There is but one brood a year. The
gooseberry is only occasionally attacked by this pest.

Remedies. — Cutting and burning infested stems
in the spring before the moths emerge, is the onlj^
practicable remedy that has yet been suggested.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Imported Currant Worm

Nematus ventricosus

This insect is supposed to have been imported into
America from Europe about 1858, since when it has

FIG. 74. CURRAIs'T-WORM FLY.

a, male ; 6, female. Magnified.

FIG. 75. CURRAXT LEAF WITH EGGS
OF CURRANT WORM.

spread over a large portion of the United States, and
has become the most destructive currant insect.

Early in spring the foar-winged flies (Fig. 74)
emerge from the tough brown cocoons in which they
have hibernated, and deposit rows of small, whitish,
glassy eggs on the principal veins of the undersides of

150

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

the lower leaves (Fig. 75, 1). In about ten days the small
worms hatch and eat circular holes in the leaf, as shown
at 2 and 3, Fig. 75. At first these larvae are whitish in
color ; they soon change to green, then to green with

numerous black
spots, and at last
back again to a
plain light green,
with a tinge of
yellow at the
sides and ends.
They are shown
at different ages
at Fig. 76. The
full-grown larvae
spin tough brown
cocoons, beneath
the leaves and
rubbish at the

FIG. 76. CURRANT WORMS EATING LEAVES. SUrf aCC Of thc

ground, within which they change to pupae. From these
cocoons the flies emerge early in summer, to lay eggs for
a second brood of worms. As before indicated, the
winter is passed within the cocoons, beneath the bushes.
Remedies. — Hellebore is the best remedy for this
pest. It may be applied as a dry powder, or in water —
one ounce to three gallons. The bushes should be
treated soon after the small holes appear in the lower
leaves, and again about ten days later.

THE OUERANT APHIS 151

The Currant-leaf Hopper

Empoa dlbopicta

This is a small, pale-green insect, about one-tenth
of an inch long, that occurs upon the under surfaces of
the leaves of currants and gooseberries during May and
June. They suck out the substance by means of their
tiny beaks, which causes
white spots to appear on
the upper surface of the
leaf. This same insect
also occurs upon a large

number of other plants, #IWII% I

sometimes being quite in-
jurious to young apple
trees. The chief damage
is done by the first brood, no. 76a. curkaxt-leaf hopper.
the insects leaving the Magnified,

bushes early in the summer, probably preferring at this
time the more succulent foliage of other plants.

Remedies. — Spraying or dusting infested bushes
with pyrethrum or insect powder will destroy these little
pests, provided it is done before they acquire wings.
Tobacco powder is also said by many horticulturists to
be an eflScient remedy.

The Currant Aphis

Myzus ribis

This is a small, yellowish aphis that is found on the
undersides of curled and blistered currant leaves early in
summer. Such leaves are generally tinged with red
above. The insects apparently migrate to some other
plant during the summer, returning to the cuiTant in
autumn, and depositing small black eggs upon the
stems, especially about the buds.

153

INSECrrS AND IKSECrriCIDES

Remedies. — On account of the deformed condition
of the infested leaves, these insects are difficult to reach
with insecticides. In garden patches the leaves attacked
may be pulled off and dropped into a vessel holding
water, with a film of kerosene on top. Spraying with
kerosene emulsion quite early in the season, before the
foliage has become conspicuously curled, would probably
destroy a majority of the aphides then present upon the
leaves.

The Four=Iined Leaf Bug

Pcecilocapsus lineatus

This insect is a widely distributed pest which for a
number of years has done great damage to currants,
gooseberries and other plants. Its life history has re-
cently been worked
out by Mr. M. V.
Slingerland of Cor-
nell University ; to
his excellent dis-
cussion of the spe-
cies I am indebted
for the figures and
information that
follow: In the
Northern States
the four-lined leaf
bug generally first

FIG. 77. FOUB-LINED BUG. Natural size rep- appears " about the
resented in smaU figure at the right. middle of Mav OU

the newest, tenderest terminal leaves. The insects are
then SO small and active in hiding themselves that they are
not apt to attract attention. Their work, however, soon
becomes apparent. Minute semi-transparent darkish
spots appear on the terminal leaves. These spots are
scarcely larger than a common pin's head, and are round

THE FOUR LINED LEAF BUG

153

or slightly angular in shape, depending upon the direc-
tion of the minute veinlets of the leaf which bound
them. The insect has inserted its beak into the leaf
and sucked out nearly all of the opaque green pulp or
parenchyma of the interior within a small area bounded
by the little veinlets." These spots later turn brown
and die ; and eyentually, as the insects increase in size
and destructive power, the leaves become withered and
dead, as represented in Plate X, h, '^When all the
tenderest leaves have succumbed,
the insect continues its attack on
the older leaves lower down. Dur-
ing its lifetime a single insect will
destroy at least two or three cur-
rant or gooseberry leavep. This
accounts for the fact that the injury
wrought often seems much out of
proportion to the number of insects
at work.

''When the insects are very
numerous, the growth of the shoots
is often checked, they flroojD, wither
and die. Some have thought that
this blasting of the growth was
caused by a poisonous saliva which
the insect injected into the wound fig. 78. section of cur-
made by its beak. However, it is Tog/™ "0^^.™

more probable that tlie shoot dies e, egg, greatly enlarged.

or its growth is checked on account of the death of its
breathing organs — the leaves. On the currant, goose-
berry, and many other plants the insect confines its
attacks to the leaves, but on some ornamental plants,
as the dahlia and rose, the most frequent point of attack
seems to be the buds."

Mr. Slingerland has, for the first time, traced the
annual cycle of this pest. He finds that ''the nymphs

154 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

appear in the latter part of May upon shrubby plants,
where they continue to feed upon the tender leaves for
two or three weeks, undergoing five molts. The adults
appear early in June and often spread to different sur-
rounding succulent plants. Egg laying begins in the
latter part of June, the eggs being laid in slits cut in
the stems of shrubs near the tips of the new growth.
The adults disappear in July and the insect hibernates
in the egg. Only one brood occurs each year in New
York."

The eggs are deposited in the stems, several being
placed side by side in a longitudinal row (Fig. 78). The
egg clusters as they appear on the surface of the young
shoots are represented in Plate X, a.

The four-lined leaf bug shows an extraordinary
range of food plants, fifty-four species being listed as
attacked by it. **Botanically considered, these lists are
of interest, as they show an exceedingly wide range of
food plants for a single species of insect. Rarely do we
find an insect attacking indiscriminately so many differ-
ent plants with such widely different characteristics.
The fifty-four species of plants represent forty-nine gen-
era in thirty-one different families of the flowering
plants. The gymnosperms, like the pine, etc., are not
represented, and but one genus {HemerocalUs) of the
monocotyledons. Fourteen of the plants are useful for
food or medicine ; twenty-nine are ornamental ; while
but eleven are wild species. Thus the beneficial results
from the attack, rarely severe, of the insect upon the
weeds, so termed, is slight compared with its frequently
very injurious attacks upon the cultivated plants."

Remedies. — Mr. Slingerland has shown that tlie
nymphs may be killed in May by spraying with kerosene
emulsion diluted with five parts of water. The insects
may also be destroyed by jarring them into a pan con-
taining water and a little kerosene. This can be done

a

rUaU X. INJUBXES of FOUR-LIliED LEAT BUO.

156

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

at any time of day. The development of the pests may
be effectually prevented by priming and burning, some-
time between August and the following May, the tips of
the branches in which the eggs have been laid.

The Currant Spanworm

Eufitcliia rihearia

This insect is well illustrated in its different stages
in Fig. 78 a. The mischief is done by the looping cater-

FIO. 78a. CURRANT SPANWORM.

pillar that hatches from eggs laid on the twigs by the
slender-bodied, broad-winged moths. There is only one
brood each season.

THE GOOSEBERKY FRUIT WORM 157

As a rule this insect is not nearly so common as the
imported currant worm, but it has occasionally been
known to become seriously destructive. The worms are
easily destroyed by white hellebore applied in the same
way as for the imported species.

INJURING THE FRUIT

The Qooseberry=fruit Worm

Dakruma convolufella

The fruit of the gooseberry, and occasionally of the
currant also, is often attacked by a small worm that eats
out the substance, leaving only the skin. This is the pro-
geny of an Qgg laid on the fruit when it was quite small
by a spotted, pale-gray moth. Soon after hatching from
this Qgg the larva bores into the berry, and feeds npon
the jiulp. After it has eaten out one berry it fastens an-
otlier to it by silken threads, and devours it« contents,
continuing the process until by the time it is fully grown
it has formed a cluster of six or eight injured berries.
At this time it is a pale-green caterpillar, three-fourths
of an inch long, with a small, brown, horny-looking
head. Shortly before the fruit ripens it lets itself to the
ground by a silken thread, and concealed among the
fallen leaves and rubbish, spins a thin, silken cocoon
within which it changes to a brown chrysalis. It re-
mains in this condition until the following spring, when
it comes forth as a moth ; consequently there is only one
brood of the larvae each year. . .

Remedies. — The fruit injured by these caterpillars
is so conspicuous that hand picking is a practical remedy.
This must be done lapidly as the larvae wriggle out of
the cases and drop to the ground quickly when disturbed.
If chickens are allowed to run over the ground after the
fruit is gathered they will scratch up and devour many
of the pupae. So also will many be destroyed if the

158 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

fallen leaves and rubbish are raked together and burned
in autumn.

Other Currant and Gooseberry Insects

There are a number of other insects that occasion-
ally attack these fruits. The stems are sometimes in-
fested by the currant-bark louse [Lecanium rihis) and the
American currant borer {Pse7iocerus supernotatus) j the
leaves are attacked by various caterpillars, and the fruit
is liable to injury from numerous insects, especially the
currant-fruit worm (Biqnthecia intejTUjjtofasciata)^ the
currant fly {Epoclira canade7isis) and the gooseberry
midge (Cecidomyia grossularice). But these species are
rarely sufficiently numerous to require special remedial
treatment.

Summary of Treatment. — About the only regu-
lar treatment currants and gooseberries require is that of
spraying or dusting with hellebore, soon after the leaves
expand, to destroy the imported currant worm. Stems
which at that time show by tlieir drooping foliage and
weak appearance that they are probably infested by
borers, should be cut and burned.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE RASPBERRY
AND BLACKBERRY

INJURING THE ROOTS

The Raspberry-root Borer

Bemhecia marginata

The stems of raspberries aud blackberries are some-
times injured by a whitish caterpillar with sixteen legs,
that bores the root and base of the stem. This is the
raspberry-root borer, and the caterpillar hatches from an
egg deposited by a clear-winged moth upon the cane, a
few inches above the soil surface. The larva, after
hatching, eats into the center of the stalk, where it de-
vours the pith, working downward toward the root. It
spends the winter in the root, feeding upon its substance,
and in spring works upward again, generally in an-
other cane than the one in which it descended. A few
inches above the ground it gnaws almost through the
stem wall, leaving the thin outer membrane intact. It
then pupates inside the cane, near the partial opening.
A short time later the pupa wriggles through the hole,
bursting the outer membrane, and stops when about
halfway out. Then the skin splits open and the moth
comes forth. Canes attacked by these borers often
wither and die, and the injury is sometimes attributed
to "winterkilling."

Remedies.— No other remedy than that of cutting
out the larvae, or pulling up and burning the infested

159

160 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

canes, has yet been discovered. Fortunately tliis insect
is rarely sufficiently numerous to do serious injury. It
occurs in wild as well as cultivated sorts.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Raspberry Slug

MonopJiadnus ruhi

The raspberry sing or raspberry sawfly is a four-
winged black fly with a reddish abdomen, which deposits
its eggs during spring in the raspberry leaf. The eggs
soon hatch into small whitish worms that feed upon the
soft tissnes of the tender foliage. In a few weeks they
become full-grown. They are then about three-fourths
of an inch long, of a dark green color, and have the body
thickly covered with spinose tubercles. The slugs now
descend to the ground and construct rather firm cocoons
slightly beneath the soil surface. They remain in these
cocoons until the following spring, when they come forth
as the adult flies.

Remedies. — These insects can easily be destroyed
by dusting or spraying the infested bushes with pow-
dered hellebore. In spraying, use from one-half to one
pound of hellebore to fifty gallons of water.

INJURING THE CANES

The Raspberry=cane Borer

Oherea himaculata

The adult of this insect is a slender-bodied, black
beetle, with a yellow collar just behind the head. It ap-
pears early in summer, usually during June in the North-
ern States, and deposits eggs in the green canes of rasp-
berries and blackberries. The process of oviposition is
pecnliar ; the beetle makes two transverse rows of punc-
tures about half an inch apart in the cane, towards the

THE SNOWY TREE CRICKET 161

tip, and midway between these she deposits the egg.
The rows of punctures make up a kind of girdling which
causes the tip of the cane to wither. A short time after
the egg is deposited it hatches into a small cylindrical
larva that boi'es downwards through the pith. By
autumn they have frequently reached the bottom of the
cane, where they chauge to pupae, and the following June
emerge again as beetles.

Remedies. — Soon after the canes are punctured by
the beetle they wilt ; consequently, if they are examined
about midsummer, affected canes can easily be distin-
guished, and they should then be cut off below the lower
ring of punctures and burned. If the injury is noticed
later, the whole cane should be pulled up and destroyed
to be sure to get the larva.

The Snowy Tree Cricket

OecantMts niveus

Serious damage is frequently done in raspberry plan-
tations by a small white tree cricket, wiiich deposits its
eggs in longitudinal rows in the green canes. One of
these rows as it apjiears when the insect has completed
its work is represented at Fig. 79, a, and the cane split
open to show how the eggs are inserted is shown at h of
the same figure. ' At c may be seen one of the elongated,
slightly curved, yellow eggs, considerably magnified,
with an opaque, granulated cap at the upper end; d is a
more highly magnified view of this cap. The eggs hatch
early in summer into young crickets bearing a general
resemblance to the adults, though without wings. They
feed upon plant lice and other insects during their
entire existence, being consequently in this way friends
rather than foes of the fruit grower. By the latter part
of summer they become fully grown. They are then of
11

162

INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

a pale, whitish-green color, about four-fifths of an inch
long, and nearly of the form represented at Fig. 80,
which is a closely related species. The
female cricket deposits her eggs in
the tender, growing canes of raspber-

PIG. 80. TREE CRICKET.
Magnified.

ries, blackberries and grapes, and the
twigs of maple, willow, catalpa, and
several other species of trees. The
injury thus done often causes the
raspberries to die beyond the punc-
spurSpeli to s^how tures, or else the damaged canes are
eggs ;c,egg magnified; b^okeu off during the wiutcr.

rf, egg cap, more mag- o

nifled. Remedies. — Trimming out and

burning during fall or winter the canes containing the
eggs is about the only practicable remedy known.

FIG. 79. EGGS OF SNOWY
XKEE CRICKET, a, egg

THE RED KECKED AGRILUS

163

The Red=necked Agrilus

Agrihis ruficollis

One may often find near the base of the canes of
raspberries and blackberries a peculiar gall formation
resembling Fig. 81, a. If such a gall is cut open it will

be seen that the form is due to
the excessive growth of the bark.
This injury is caused by a slender
whitish worm that hatches from
an Q2.g laid in summer by a small
elongate beetle (c) in the axil of a
leafstalk usually not far from the
soil. The young larya burrows
through the inner bark, some-
times penetrating to the pith, and
frequently girdling the cane. Its
presence causes the abnormal
growth manifested in the forma-
tion of the gall. In autumn the

a

FIG. 81. RED-NECKED AGRILUS. «, gall ; c, beetle, magnified.

larva enters the central pith, burrowing up or down in
it some distance. The following spring it pupates and
early in summer emerges as an adult beetle, which is
about one-third of an inch long, "somewhat tapering
toward the end of the body, bronze brown in general
color, but with a coppery -red or brassy neck or thorax.

164 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

whicli makes it easily recognized and gives the name to
the species. It is found during bright sunshiny days
in late May, all of June and half of July, on the upper
surface of the leaves, eating little round holes, but not
doing any perceptible injury in this stage. The beetle
is quite active, and flies readily, or if surprised, it will
fold its legs and drop to the ground, remaining quiet
until the danger is over."

Remedies. — Upon this point Professor J. B. Smith
writes : ^'The mode of checking and avoiding future
injury by this species is obvious, and requires only a
little additional work when trimming. As early in the
spring as may be, and certainly by the middle of April,
the canes should all be carefully examined and cut
away below the galls. If these are at or near the sur-
face of the ground, the entire cane must be sacrificed.
It might possibly bear some fruit ; but it would certainly
mature a beetle whicli would destroy a dozen other canes,
and this would be poor economy. As the plants are all
pruned each spring in any case, it means simply a little
more care and judgment exercised in the work at a
somewhat greater expense of time. After the cutting,
all the twigs and other rubbish should be raked out,
and at once burned. If the cut canes are left in the
field, the beetles will mature as well as if no cutting had
been done, and nothing is gained. Every gall sliould be
cut out and destroyed before the beginning of May.
This will prevent maturing of the beetles, and the field
will be exempt from further injury unless specimens
come on from other sources. This fact makes it impor-
tant that growers should co-operate in the work, and
that, as already suggested, some means should be pro-
vided to compel all engaged in blackberry culture to
prevent their land from becoming a nuisance to their
neighbors."

THE PITHY BLACKBERRY GALL

165

The Pithy Blackberry Gall

Diastrophus nehulosus

The peculiar large galls represented in Fig. 82, a,
are sometimes found on blackberry canes. These are
caused by a small fly which deposits eggs in the cane.

FIG. 82. PITHY GALL. 6, cut open; c, larva; d, pupa; c, d magnified.

The eggs hatch into small grubs that cause the mal-
formed growth ; they feed upon the tissues, each making
a little cell in which they finally pupate, to emerge later
as adult flies. The holes through which they come are

166 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

seen at a; the larva — natural size and magnified — at c,
and the pupa magnified at d. Certain parasites prey
upon these insects, wliich are seldom sufficiertly abun-
dant to do noticeable injury. Cutting and burning the
galls is an easy remedy when necessary.

Other Raspberry and Blackberry
Insects

Raspberries and blackberries are subject to attack
by various insects besides those discussed in the fore-
going pages. Certain galls are sometimes found upon
the roots, due usually to the raspberry-root gallfly
{Rliodites 7'adicu'm). The foliage is sometimes eaten by
various caterpillars or beetles, and the fruit is occasion-
ally infested by the flea-like negro bug, or the raspberiy
span worm {Synchlora ruMvoraria). But these various
insects as a rule only do an incidental injury, and are
rarely sufficiently numerous to require special remedial
treatment.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE GRAPE

INJURING THE ROOT

The Qrape=root Borer

Sciapteron polistifGrmis

The roots of grapes are sometimes fonnd to be
attacked by a whitish, cylindrical caterpillar with sixteen
legs, which bears a strong general resemblance to the
peach-tree borer. This is the insect named above.
*' When full-grown," according to Dr. Riley, *^the larva
measures from an inch to an inch and three-quarters, and
it then forms a pod-like cocoon of a gummy sort of silk,
covered with little bits of wood bark and dirt. Within
this cocoon it becomes a chrysalis, which in due time, by
aid of rows of minute teeth with which it is furnished,
works its way out of the cocoon to the surface of the
ground and gives forth the moth. As with the peach
borer, this insect requires a year to develop, and is found
in its different states of larva, chrysalis and moth,
throughout the summer months, and it doubtless also
passes the winter as a larva." The moth is a wasp-like
creature, black, with bright yellow bands across the
abdomen.

Remedies. — This insect is rarely seriously injuri-
ous. When a vine shows by its weak or drooping ap-
pearance that it is suffering from an injury at the root,
the earth should be dug away and the borers searched
for, as is done with the peach borer. It has been sug-
gested that mounding about the base of the vine with
earth would prevent the deposition of eggs.

167

1G8

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Grape Phylloxera

Phylloxera vastatrix

The grape phylloxera is the worst insect enemy of
the yineyardist. Its ravages have riimed thousands of
acres of grapes in France and other European countries,
and much damage has been done by it in America.
There are two forms of it, one inhabiting the roots (rep-
resented in its various stages in Fig. 85), and one in

FIG. 83. PHYLLOXERA GALLS ON GKAPE LEAF.

habiting the leaves (Fig. 84), upon which it forms mi-
nute galls (Fig. 83).

Entomologists and horticulturists are indebted to
Dr. 0. V. Eiley for the elucidation of the life history of
this curious insect, which, in his Seventh Report as
State Entomologist of Missouri, he has summarized as
follows: *'It hibernates mostly as a young larva tor-
pidly attached to the roots, and so deepened in color as
generally to be of a dull brassy-brown, and, therefore,
with difficulty j)erceived, as the roots are often of the

THE GRAPE PHYLLOXERA.

169

same color. With the renewal of vine growth in the
spring, this larva molts, rapidly increases m size, and
soon commences laying eggs. These eggs in due time
give birth to young, which soon become virginal, egg-
lacing mothers, lit. e the first ; and like them, always
remain wingless. Five or six generations of these par-
thenogenetic, egg-bearing, apterous mothers follow each
other ; when — about the middle of July, in this latitude
— some of the individuals begin to acquire wings.

FIG. 84. GKAPE PHYLLOXERA, LEAF FORM. «, 6, liewly hatched

nymphs, dorsal and ventral view; c, egg; d, section of gall; e,
swelling of tendril ; /, g, h, mother of gall louse, lateral, dorsal and
ventral views; i, her antenna; j, two-jointed tarsus. Natural size3
indicated by small dots or figures.

These are all females, and, like the wingless mothers,
they are parthenogenetic. Having issued from the
ground, while in the pupal state, they rise m the air
and spread to new vineyards, where they deliver them-
selves of their issue in the form of eggs or egg-like bodies
— usually two or three in number, and not exceeding
eight — and then perish. These eggs are of two sizes,
the larger about 0.02 of an inch long, and the smaller
about three-fifths of that length. In the course of a

170

INSECTS A"N^D INSECTICIDES

fortnight they produce the sexual individuals, the larger
ones giving birth to females, the smaller to males.
These sexual individuals are born for no other purpose
than the reproduction of their kind, and are without
means of flight, or of taking food, or excreting.

"They are quite active and couple readily, one male
being capable, no doubt, of serving several females ;
the abdomen of the female, after impregnation, enlarges

PIG. 85. GRAPE PHYLLOXERA, ROOT FORM. «, infested lootlets; 6, hi-
bernating larva; c, d, antenna and leg of same; e,f, g,more mature
form; ?i, granulations of skin; i, tubercle; j, transverse folds at
border of joints ; k, simple eyes.

somewhat, and she is soon delivered of a solitary egg,
which differs from the egg of the parthenogenetic
mother only in becoming somewhat darker. This im-
pregnated egg gives birth to a young louse wliich be-
comes a virginal, egg-bearing, wingless mother, and thus
recommences the cycle of the species evolution. But
one of the most important discoveries of Bolbiana is
that, during the latter part of the season, many of the
wingless, hypogean mothers perform the very same func-
tion us the v/inged ones ; i, e., they lay a few eggs which

THE GRAPE PHYLLOXERA 171

are of two sizes and wliicli produce males and females,
organized and constructed precisely as those born of the
winged females, and like them producing the solitary
impregnated egg. Thus, the interesting fact is estab-
lished that even the winged form is by no means essen-
tial to the per2:)etuation of the species ; but that, if all
such winged individuals were destroyed as fast as they
issue from the ground, the species could go on multi-
plying in a vineyard from year to year. We have, there-
fore, the s^^ectacle of an underground insect possessing
the power of continued existence, even where confined
to its subterranean retreats. It spreads in the wingless
state from vine to vine and from vineyard to vineyard,
when tliese are adjacent, either through passages in the
ground itself, or over the surface. At the same time it
is able, in the winged condition, to migrate to more
distant points. The winged females, as before stated,
begin to appear in July, and continue to issue from the
ground until vine growth ceases in the fall. Yet they
are much more abundant in August than during any
other month, and on certain days may be said to literally
swarm. Every piece of a root a few inches long, and
having rootlets, taken from an infested vine at this sea-
son, will present a goodly proportion of pupae ; and an
ordinary quart preserve jar, filled with such roots and
tightly closed, will furnish daily, for two or three weeks,
a dozen or more of the winged females, which gather on
the sides of the jar toward the light. We may get some
idea, from this fact, of the immense numbers that dis-
appear through the air to new fields, from a single acre
of infested vines, in the course of the late summer and
fall months. If to the above account we add that occa-
sionally individuals abandon their normal underground
habit, and form galls upon the leaves of certain varieties
of grapevine, we have, in a general way, the whole
natural history of the species."

172 INSECTS AXD INSECTICIDES

Remedies. — In America comparatively little lias
been done in a practical way in fighting this insect, be-
cause its injuries here are usually not serious. But in
Europe a great deal has been accomplished in preventing
its injuries. According to Dr. Eiley the means em-
ployed there * ^consist in (1) methods which avoid the
necessity of direct treatment, comprising the use of
American stocks and planting in sandy soils ; (2) the
employment of insecticides (bisulphide of carbon, sul-
phocarbonate of potassium, and the kerosene emulsion);
and (3) submersion."

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Grapevine Flea=beetle

Graptodera clialybea

This is a small, steel-blue beetle (Fig. 86, d) that is
often very destructive to grapevines. It hibernates as
an adult. As soon in spring as the buds begin to swell
the beetles come forth and attack them. The ::>jury at
this time is often great, because the immature leaf and
flower buds are so easily destroyed. The beetles continue
feeding for three or four weeks, during the latter part
of the time depositing small orange-yellow eggs in clus-
ters on the undersides of the leaves. They then die,
and in a few days the eggs hatch into small, dark-colored
larvae that feed upon the foliage. As they grow older
they gnaw irregular holes in the leaves, giving them a
ragged and unsightly appearance (Fig. 8G, a). When
fully grown (three or four weeks after hatching) they
are about three-tenths of an inch long, brown in color,
with six legs, and four or five black dots on the back of
each ring or segment of the body. The head is black,
and there are numerous hairs on the body. One is shown
somewhat magnified at I, Fig. 86. When fully grown

THE GRAPEVINE FLEA BEETLE

173

the larvse leave the vines, and, entering the soil, forra
eai'then cocoons (c), within which they change to pupag.
A few wrecks later tbey again transform and emerge as
perfect beetles. These also feed upon the foliage and
lay eggs for a second brood of larvae.

FIG. 86. GEAPEVTNE FLEA-BEETLE, a, leaf infested by larva; 6, larva,

magnified; c, cocoon; d, beetle, magnified.

Remedies. — Spraying with Paris green (three
ounces to fifty gallons water) is probably the best remedy
for this pest. They may also be destroyed by pyrethrum
or insect powder. On cool mornings the beetles are
quite sluggish, and may be collected by jarring them on
sheets*

174

UiSECIS AlHD I2^S£CIICIJ>£S

The Rose Chafer

Macrodactylus suhspinosus

This insect has been known for nearly a century as
a serious enemy of the horticulturist. It is distributed
over a large portion of the United States, but ajopears to
be injurious only in certain localities where areas of low,
sandy bottom lands offer unusual oj^portunities for it to
multiply. It feeds in the beetle state upon a very great
variety of trees and plants, often being exceedingly inju-
rious to the flowers or foliage of apples, j)ears, plums,
peaches, roses, raspberries, blackberries, grapes and
other plants.

The adult rose chafer, rose beetle or rose bug, is a
hard, brown insect, not quite half an inch long, of

the form rejoresented at Fig.
87, c. It makes its appear-
ance early in summer, about
the time grapes come into
blossom, and feeds upon the
flowers, foliage or fruit of
the plants already men-
tioned. After pairing, the
6, pupa; c. beetle. sHghtiy mag: females deposit thh'ty or
nified. more eggs an inch or so be-

neath the soil surface, preferring for this purpose, accord-
ing to Dr. Riley's observations, '^ow, open meadow land
or cultivated fields, particularly where the soil is hght
and sandy." In two or three weeks the eggs hatch into
grubs that feed upon the roots of grass, and possibly
other plants, and become fully grow^n {a) in autumn.
As winter approaches they go deeper into the soil, com-
ing to the surface again in spring, and making for them-
selves rude, earthen cells in W'hich they change to the
pupal state (J). Three or four weeks later they again

FIG. 87. KOSB CHAFER, a, larva;

THE ROSE CHAFER 175

change, and the perfect beetle comes forth. Thus there
is but one brood a year. The insect lives in the beetle
state about a month.

Remedies. — There is, perhaps, no fruit insect so
difficult to combat as this. As yet no practicable
method of destroying it in its breeding grounds has
been found, and the success attending tbe various pre-
ventives of beetle injury has been by no means universal.
Spraying or dusting with pyrethrum or insect powder
has been found to stupefy the beetles temporarily, and
will occasionally prove useful in protecting fruits. A
single rose bush or grapevine may be covered with mos-
quito netting, but of course this is impracticable on a
large scale. In regions where the beetles are not over-
whelmingly abundant, thorough spraying of grapevines
and fruit trees with a wash made by adding three or
four pecks of freshly slaked Jime and a quart of crude
carbolic acid to fifty gallons of water, has been reported
by several fruit growers to be successful, although on
the other hand, some who have tried it in a smaller way
say it did little or no good. A better method, which
has been reported successful in Rhode Island, is to
spray the buds before the blossoms open — in the State
named the spraying was done the first week in June —
with one pound Paris green to fifty gallons Bordeaux
mixture. In parts of New Jerse}^, hand picking has
been resorted to as the only sure method of extermina-
tion, the insects being collected in the cooler hours of
the day. They may be destroyed also by hot water,
provided it is hot enough when it touches them. On
the whole the arsenited Bordeaux mixture seems the
most promising remedial measure for most localities
'^'here the beetles are not overwhelmingly abundant.

176

INSECTS AIs'D IXSECTICIDES

The Spotted Grapevine Beetle

Pelidnota jpunctata

This insect has been known for years to attack grape-
vines, but it has rarely been reported to do really serious
injury to them, j^robably because it usually is present in
such limited numbers that its depredations are insignifi-
cant. The larva (Fig. 88, a) feeds on the decaying roots of
various trees, and resembles somewhat the common white
grub of meadows — the larva of the May beetle. Its gen-
eral color is whitish, with the head chestnut-brown. It

FIG. 88. SPOTTED GRArEVINE BEETLE.

a, larva; h, pupa; c, beetle.

is supposed to require three years to complete its de-
velopment. When full-grown it forms a sort of cocoon,
within which it changes to the chrysalis or pupal state, to
emerge about a fortnight later as an adult beetle.

The general color of the upper surface of the beetle
is a dull yellowish -brown, but the thorax is darker and
somewhat bronzed, and the under surface is of a bril-

GRAPE SPHINX MOTHS

177

liant metallic greenish-black hue. There are three dis-
tinct black dots on each of the wing covers, and also one
on each side of the thorax. The beetle usually feeds
upon the foliage of wild and cultivated grapevines, and
also on the Virginia creeper, but sometimes attacks green
grapes, biting holes through the skin and so ruining the
fruit.

Remedies. — The only practical remedy so far pro-
posed IS that of collecting the beetles by hand and de-
stroying them. As they fly especially just at dusk, this
is the best time for accomplishing the work.

Grape Sphinx Moths

The grape forms the favorite food of several species
of large and handsome sphinx motlis. As there is not

FIG. 89. THE ACHEMON SPHINX.

space to discuss each of these, we will take the achemon
sphinx (Fhilampehcs aclmnon) as an example. The
adult of this species is one of the most beautiful of the
hawk moths. It measures three and a half inches across
12

178

INSECTS AXD IJS^SECTICIDES

its expauded Avings, and is brownish gray in color with
lighter brown variegations and deeper brow^n spots ar-
ranged on the front wings, as shown in the figure. The
posterior wings are pink, more reddish toward the mid-
dle, and having a wide grayish border along the hind
margin, on the front edge of which is a row of dark

FIG. 89a. LARVA OF ACHEMON SPHLNX.

spots. These moths make their appearance during June
and July, flying about grapevines and various flowers at
dusk, and depositing tlieir eggs on the undersides of the
leaves of grape and Virginia creeper. Within a few days
these eggs hatch into little larvae that feed upon the
foliage, growing so rapidly that by September they are

FIG. 896. PUPA OF ACHEMON SPHINX.

nearly four inches long and as thick as a man's finger
(Fig. 89«). At this time different individuals vary
greatly in color, some being straw yellow and others red-
dish brown. There are six cream-colored spots along the
sides, and numerous little dots scattered over the body.
The head and first two body segments are smaller than
the rest, allowing the caterpillar to draw them partially
inside the next one back.

THE ABBOT SPHINX 179

The fully grown caterpillar descends to the ground,
and entering the soil several inches forms a smooth oval
cell, within which it changes to a dark, sinning brown
pupa or chrysalis. It remains in this condition until the
following year, ^vhen it emerges as a moth again.

The green grapevine sphinx {Darapsa myron) and
the pandorus sphinx {PJiilampeliis pandorus) are closely
related to the achemon «

sphinx and similar to "^ "^

it in life history and
habits. All three spe-
cies are subject to the
attacks of a small par-
asitic fly that spins oval ^,^. g^. caterpillar with cocoons of

cocoons upon the backs parasite. Adult parasite at right ; lat-
of the caterpillars, as ^er magnified.

shown at Fig. 90, which represents the larva of the
green grapevine sphinx so infested. The life history of
these little creatures has already been described in the
Introduction (p. 10).

Remedies. — Fortunately these sphinx larvae seldom
become sufficiently numerous to do serious injury. They
are so conspicuous both on account of their size and the
defoliated condition of the branches upon which they
are at work, that hand picking is usually a sufficiently
simple and practical remedy.

The Abbot Sphinx

Tliyreus aUbotii

This is a comparatively rare species, and has never
been known to do serious injury in vineyards. The moth
(Fig. 91), a handsome, chocolate-brown insect, measuring
two and a half inches across the expanded wings, appears
in spring, and deposits eggs upon the grapevines. The
larva soon hatches, and feeds upon the leaves, becoming

180

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

fully grown during the latter part of summer. It is then
about two and a half inches long, yellowish or reddish-
brown in color, and of the form represented in the upper
illustration of Fig. 91. It now descends to the ground,
where it forms a loose cocoon, within which it changes

FIG. 91. ABBOT SPHINX. Laiva and moth.

to the chrysalis state, remaining in that condition tintil
the following spring, when it emerges as a moth again.

Remedies. — Unless this insect becomes much more
numerous than it has been heretofore, it can easily be
held in check by a little hand picking.

The Qrapevine=leaf Hopper

Typhlocyba vitis

This little insect is frequently called the grape
thrips, but its more proper name is the one given above,
as it is not a thrips at all, but a true leaf hopj^er. It is
a beautiful little creature, about one-tenth of an inch
long, yellow with bright-red markings, and of the form
represented at Plate IX, Fig. 5 (p. 136). " They make
their tirst appearance,^' says Dr. Harris, ''on the leaves

THE GRAPEVINE LEAF HOPPER

in June, when they are very small and not provided with\
wings, being then in the larval state. During most of
the time they remain perfectly quiet with their beaks
thrust into the leaves, from which they derive their
nourishment by suction. If disturbed, however, they
leap from one leaf to another with great agility. As tbey
increase in size they have occasion frequently to change
their skins, and great numbers of their empty cast skins,
of a white color, will be found throughout the summer
adhering to the undersides of the leaves, and upon the
ground beneath the vines. When arrived at maturity,
which generally occurs during the month of August,
they are still more agile than before, making use of their
delicate wings as well as their legs in their motions from
place to place ; and when the leaves are agitated they
leap and fly from them in swarms, but soon alight and
begin again their destructive operations. The infested
leaves at length become yellow, sickly, and prematurely
dry, and give to the vine at midsummer the aspect it
naturally assumes on the approach of winter. In
autumn the leaf hoppers desert the vines, and retire for
shelter during the coming winter beneath fallen leaves,
and among the decayed tufts and roots of grass, where
they remain till the following spring, when tliey emerge
from their winter quarters, deposit their eggs upon the
leaves of the vine, and perish."

Remedies. — If the vines are dusted early in the
season, before the leaf hoppers have acquired wings, with
pyrethrum (insect powder) or tobacco dust, by means of
some apparatus like Leggett's powder gun, the pests will
be destroyed by the million. This appears to be the
most promising remedy for them. Some vineyardists
catch them on a sheet saturated with kerosene or covered
with tar, the sheet being stretched on a frame which is
carried along one side of the row, while somebody goes
along the other side of the vines and frightens the insects
toward it.

182 IlSrSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Qrapevine=leaf Roller

Desmia maculalis

This is a slender, somewhat flattened, yellowish-
green caterpillar, measuring when full-grown about
three-quarters of an inch, that rolls the leaves of grape-
vines, fastening the sides together by silken threads. It
hatches from an egg laid on the leaf by a pretty little
dark-brown moth, expanding nearly an inch, and having
several conspicuous white spots on its wings. The larva

FIG. 92. GRAPE-LiEAF HOLLER, 1, larva; 2, head of same, magnified;

3, pupa; 4, 5, moth.

usually pupates within the folded leaf. There are two
broods each season, the first brood of larvae pupating
about midsummer, to emerge as moths shortly after-
wards, and the second pupating in autumn and hibernat-
ing as chrysalids.

Remedies. — This insect is seldom suflBciently nu-
merous to require remedial treatment. The larvae may be
crushed within their cases, or the cases picked off and
burned late in autumn, before the leaves fall off, if they
threaten to become seriously destructive.

THE BEAUTIFUL WOOD NYMPH 183

The Beautiful Wood Nymph

Eudryas grata

This is a very handsome insect, both in its imma-
ture and adult stages, xhe moth (Fig. 93, g) measures
nearly two inches across its expanded front wings,
which are of a glossy creamy- white color, beautifully
marked with purple, brown and green. It lays its eggs
on the underside of the leaves. The larvae soon hatch

FIG. 93. BEAUTIFUL WOOD KYMPH. a, larva; e, f, egg, magnified;

g, moth.

and feed upon the foliage, developing rapidly, so that by
the latter part of summer they are full-grown («), the
body being of a pale bluish color, crossed by bands and
lines of orange and black. The larvae now leave the
vine and seek some concealed situation in which to pu-
pate. They pass the winter in the chrysalis state, and
emerge the following spring as moths.

Remedies. — This insect is rarely injurious, prob-
ably because it is kept in check by certain parasites. It
can be destroyed if it should become too numerous by

184

Ils^SECTS A XI) 1XSECTICIDE3

hand picking, or by spraying or dusting the infested
Tines with pyrethruni or hellebore.

INJURING THE FRUIT

The Qrape=berry Moth

Eudemis hotrana

Grapes are frequently injured by having their sub-
stance eaten out by a small, whitish worm that fastens
three or four berries together with silken threads, and
devours the contents of each. This insect is the larva or
caterpillar of the grape-berry moth, a species imported
many years ago from Europe, where it has long been
known as an enemy of the vine. The adult is a small,
bluish moth that deposits its eggs late in June or early in

FIG. 94. GEAPE-BEKRY MOTH.
a, moth; 6, larva; d, injured fruit.

July. The very young caterpillar is found within the
skin of the grape, devouring the contents. When it has
finished one it gnaws its way out and enters a neighbor-
ing berry, fastening the two together witli silken threads
(Fig. 94, d). In this way three or four berries are fre-
quently destro^^ed by a single larva, which, when fully
grown, is about a quarter of an inch long, of a dull green
color tinged with red, and covered with a few short hairs.
It pupates on the leaf, first cutting out a crescent-shaped
flap which it binds down by means of silken threads,

OTHEE GEAPE INSECTS 185

forming a snug, tight cocoon. About a fortnight later,
in southern latitudes, the moths appear, to lay eggs for a
second brood, which hibernates in the pupal state.

Remedies. — The only remedies as yet suggested
are those of gathering and burning the fallen leaves in
autumn or early winter, or picking and burning injured
fruit, being sure to get the larva with it.

Other Grape Insects

The grape is subject to attack by many insects be-
sides those discussed in the preceding images. The roots
are sometimes bored by the gigantic larva of two species
of Prionus — the broad-necked Prionus (P. laticollis)
and the tile-horned Prionus (P. imhricornis) — but these
insects usually infest only graj^evines planted on new
land and are seldom injurious in older fields. The
branches are attacked by a variety of species, including
certain tree hoppers, the maple-bark louse, the red-
shouldered Sinoxylon (aS'. basilare). and certain gall-
making insects. The enemies to the foliage of tire grape
are legion, and include insects of varied habits and nat-
ural orders. The fruit is sometimes injured by the larva
of a small snout beetle called the grape curculio {Crapo7i-
iusinwqiiUs), and also by a very minute larva that occurs
inside the seed, the grape-seed maggot (Isosoma vitis).
But these insects are seldom really injurious.

Summary of Treatment. — The grape is subject
to attack by so great a variety of insect enemies that it is
di2icult to give any general directions for the season's
treatment. It must largely be regulated according to
the insects present. Clean culture, however, is always
advisable, as it lessens the opportunities for many species
to survive the winter successfully.

JPJLIEtir III

Insects affecting shade trees,

Ornamental plants, and

Flowers

FIATE XI. THE WOOLLY ALDER APHIS.

INSECTS AFFECTING SHADE TREES

INJURING THE TRUNK

The Sixteen=legged Maple Borer

Sesia acerni

In many portions of tlie Union, especially througli-
out the Central States, maple trees are often seriously
injured by a small whitish larva that burrows through
the sapwood and inner bark. Unlike the ordinary wood-
boring grubs, this 'insect has sixteen legs and resembles
a small caterpillar. It is about half an inch long; the
head is yellow and the legs are reddish. The burrows
are filled with brownish castings. It hatches from eggs
laid on the bark, nearly always where the latter is
cracked, braised or otherwise injured ; the attack of this
species often follows that of the flat-headed borer. The
egg-laying parent is a small handsome day-flying moth,
haying clear wings and the general form represented in
Fig. 95, c ; the head is reddish, the thorax yellowish,
and the abdomen bluish black more or less marked with
yellow and having a reddish tuft at the hind end. The
front wings are bluish black blotched with yellow. The
larvae feed upon the sapwood and inner bark for several
months, often girdling the tree, before they become full-
grown. They then burrow almost through the outer
bark, leaving a thin layer untouched ; next they form
slight oval silken cocoons {b) within the burrows, and
inside of these they change to chrysalids. When ready
for the final change, each chrysalis wriggles forward,

189

190

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

ruptures the thin layer of bark and pushes itself about
halfway out of the opening ; then the chrysalis shell breaks

open and the moth emerges,
leaving its empty chrysalis
case behind it, as shown in d
of the accompanying figure.
The moths emerge early in
summer and soon after de-
posit their eggs.

Remedies. — Keeping
the bark smooth and free
from cracks or other inju-
ries is an important preven-
tive of the attacks of this
insect. It is also stated that
their injuries may be pre-
vented by applying to the
trunks early in summer a
mixture of lye and soft soap,
it being more effective if a
a, ca ei- j.^^-^^ Paris green is added.

Spraying the trunks thor-
oughly with the Bordeaux mixture and Paris green com-
bination might prove an effective preventive.

INJURING THE BRANCHES

WiIlow=twig Aphides

Melanoxanthus sp.

The various species of willow are particularly sub-
ject to the attacks of aphides or plant lice. No less
than nine of these insects have been described as preying
upon them. No part of the tree, except possibly the
root, is exempt from attack, and the bark and twigs
receive the exclusive attention of at least five species.
Some of these often become seriously injurious/ and

FIG. 95. Maple borer
pillar; b, cocoon ; c, niolli ; </,pupa
case.

WILLOW TWIG APHIDES

191

more frequently, perhaps, tlieir presence is extremely
annoying where they occur upon shade or ornamental
trees in private grounds or public parks.

The aphides most commonly found upon willow
twigs belong to the genus Melanoxanthus. Three Amer-
ican species of the genus are known. The willow-grove
aphis (M. salicti) is probably the commonest in the
Eastern and Middle States. It is similar in appearance
and habits to the nearly related flocculent willow-twig
aphis, represented in Fig. 96. This insect lives over in
the egg state on the bark of willow twigs. Early in

F, Detmerst deL

FIG. 96. FLOCCULENT WILLOW APHIS, a, ovipaious female; 6, head
and antenna; e, eggs on bark.

spring the eggs hatch into 3'oung plant lice which insert
their tiny beaks into the tender bark and suck out the
sap. They grow rapidly, and each one soon becomes
the mother of several young aphides. The generation
from the Qgg are all wingless, but those of the second
generation probably develop into both winged and wing-
less forms, w^hich are also viviparous. Successive broods
continue to appear throughout the entire summer, all

192 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

being vi\iparons, and some having wings while others
have none. By midsummer they have often increased so
enormously as to cover all the twigs of infested trees,
making them appear filtliy and unsightly, as well as
impairing their vitality by extracting the sa]). A single
one of the ajihicles hatched from the egg in spring may
become the ancestor of many millions before autumn.
But in October a true sexed generation develops, the
males being winged and the females wingless. By the
union of these two, the true eggs are obtained.

The wingless forms, whether viviparous or ovipa-
rous, do not differ materially in appearance. The ovi-
l^arous, or egg-laying, form is about one-fifth of an inch
long, bluish black in color, with a glaucous bloom. It
has a distinct white longitudinal line along the middle
of the back, and a row of white spots along each side.
The cornicles, or honey tubes, are bright orange-yellow.
The male is one-fifth of an inch long, with a wing ex-
panse of one-third of an inch. The body is bluish black,
with the wings transparent and their veins yellowish
brown.

The oviparous females congregate for the purpose
of depositing their eggs in one or a few places on the
tree, where they cover the bark with them. The egg is
about one-twentieth of an inch long and oval in form ;
when first laid it is covered with a liquid which on' ex-
posure to the air dries into a thin, grayish, irregular
covering, suggestive of felt.

Remedies. — Spray with kerosene emulsion; cut
off and burn the limbs on which the eggs are laid.

THE WHITE PINE APHIS 193

The Toothed Willow Aphis

Laclinus dentatus

This is tlie largest of the aphides affecting the wil-
low, being in fact one of the largest known species of
this family. The wingless forms are one-fonrth of an
inch long. Its life history is much like that of the
spotted willow aphis described above, except that it pre-
fers the trunk and larger limbs to the twigs. The sexed
individuals appear in autumn, and the eggs are probably
laid upon the bark. The species is characterized by a
large tooth-like tubercle on the middle of the back of
the abdomen.

Remedies. — A strong kerosene emulsion sprayed
upon the bark will destroy these creatures.

The White-pine Aphis

Laclinus strohi

This insect is a widely distributed species, and on
account of its egg-laying habits it is liable to be intro-
duced everywhere with pine trees from nurseries. It
frequently becomes so numerous as to do serious injury
to white pines in ornamental grounds.

Like most plant lice, this species rej^roduces vivi-
parously, or by giving birth to living young, during the
cummer, but on the approach of cold weather the sexual
individuals are produced. During October these are
usually the only forms present, the oviparous females
being congregated in great numbers upon the bark of
the smaller branches, with their heads nearly always
directed towards the trunk of the tree. When disturbed
they move about rapidly, usually attempting to conceal
themselves on the other side of the branch. At such
times they also have a curious habit of waving their
13

194

IXSECTS Ai^D liiTSECTICIDES

long hind legs in the air, probably for the purpose of
frightening away predaceous or parasitic enemies.

The oviparous female is represented, much magni-
fied, at Fig. 97. It is nearly one-fifth of an inch long,
shining black more or less tinged with brown, and orna-
mented with spots and stripes
of white. The wingless yivipa-
rous females do not differ essen-
tially from this form. The
winged male is about one-eighth
of an inch long, with a wing ex-
panse of a quarter of an inch.
It is blackish, with a slight
glaucous bloom, and a whitish
longitudinal line along the mid-
dle of the back. The wings are
subhyaline, with the veins dark
brown, and the stigma almost
black. The antennae and ]e^s

FIG. 97. WHITE-PINE APHIS. -i i • rm

Oviparous female. Magni-^^re quitc haUT. Ihc CggS are

fied. deposited during October and

November, on the leaflets, in rows. Each egg is not
quite one-tenth of an inch long, elongate-oval, brow^nish
when first laid, but becoming black in a short time.

Remedies. — Kerosene emulsion is the most effec-
tive insecticide w^ith which to combat this insect. It
should be sprayed upon the infested trees early in the
season, before the aphides become too abundant. The
best time to apply it wonld be just after the young lice
hatch from the eggs; they are then very tender and
easily killed.

THE WOOLLY ALDER APHIS 195

The Woolly Alder Aphis

Pemiiliigus tessellata

In the Eastern States one may often see npon the
branches of alders a peculiar white woolly growth, re-
sembling that shown on Plate XI. This white sub-
stance develops upon the bodies of a peculiar plant louse
that liyes upon the alder stems. Like other aphides
these insects reproduce by giving birth to living young,
by which means they are able to increase very rapidly.
In autumn vast numbers of young are born ; they crawl
down the stems to the ground where they congregate in
enormous numbers in the crevices between the base of
the trunk and larger roots and the soil, or beneath the
fallen leaves or other rubbish at the soil surface. Here
they remain until spring, when they take advantage of
the first warm days to crawl up the trunk to the twigs,
where they estabhsh colonies on the young growth.
Each aphis inserts its beak into the bark and sucks out
the sap. At the same time they produce on their backs
a white pulverulence which forms a protective covering.
In a week or two they mature and begin giving birth to
living young, and thereafter during the season one gen-
eration is produced after another until cold weather.
No sexual forms of this species have yet been found.

There are usually to be found associated with the
colonies the peculiar black excrescences represented in
Plate XL This is due to a fungus which develops on
the abundant juices — the so-called honeydew — excreted
by the aphides.

Remedies. — In case it was desired to get rid of
these insects on alder in parks or private grounds it
could easily be done by spraying the bare stems and the
ground beneath in early spring with a strong kerosene
emulsion.

— ■»^i^

INSECTS AFFECTING SHADE TREES

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Cecropia Emperor floth

Platysamia cecropia

People are often puzzled during winter over large,
peculiar, grayish-brown cocoons (Fig. 99) that occur
not infrequently on the limbs of maple, apple, pear,
';herry, and a great variety of fruit and shade trees.

riG. 98. CECROPIA CATEKPII.LAR.

These are the cocoons of one of the largest and hand-
somest American insects — the cecropia emperor moth,
illustrated, natural size, at Plate XII. This moth often
measures six or seven inches across the front wings, the
ground color of all the wings being a grizzled, dusky
brown, with the hind margins clay-colored; near the
middle of each wing there is an opaque, kidney-shaped,
dull-red spot, having a white center and a narrow black
edging, and beyond the spot there is a wavy, reddish
band bordered internally with white. The fore wings,

197

198

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

next to the shoulders, are dull red with a curved, white
band, and near the tips of the same is an eye-like black
spot within a bluish-white crescent. The upper sides of
the body and the legs are reddish ; the fore part of the
thorax and the hinder edges of the rings of the abdo-
men are white ; the under surface of the body is check-
ered with red and white.

The moths come forth from the cocoons in June
and deposit their eggs on the various kinds of trees upon
which the larvae live. About a week later the eggs
hatch into small, spiny caterpillars, that devour the
foliage and rapidly increase in size. They are very vora-

FIG. 99. COCOON OF CECROPIA MOTH.

cious, and reach maturity late in summer. They are
then (Fig. 98) often over three inches long, as thick as
a man's thumb, and have, along the back, rows of large,
coral-red tubercles. Early in autumn they spin their
silken cocoons, within which they change to dark-brown
pupae, remaining in this condition until the following
summer, when they come forth as moths to lay eggs for
another brood.

There are several species of parasites that prey upon
the cecropia caterpillars. On this account they only
occasionally become injurious.

Remedies. — By spraying with the arsenites, or
hand-picking the larvas or cocoons, this insect may be
easily checked when it threatens to become destructive.

THE WHITE MARKED TUSSOCK MOTH 199

The White=marked Tussock Moth

Orgyia leucostigma

This insect is one of the most destructive leaf-eating

caterpillars, and during recent years has done much

damage in many cities and villages. The larva feeds

upon the foliage of a great variety of fruit and shade

V trees.

If the trunks or larger limbs of maple, apple, elm,
or any other of the trees infested by this insect, be ex-
amined any time in autumn or winter, after the leaves
have fallen, one may find scattered here and there upon
the bark thin gray cocoons, many of which will be cov-
ered with large bunches of spherical white eggs, fastened

PIG. 100. CATERPILLAR OF WHITE-MARKED TUSSOCK MOTH,

together by a protecting froth-like mass. In May, soon
after the leaves come out, these eggs hatch into small
caterpillars, which at once begin eating the foliage about
them. They continue to devour it for six or seven
weeks, when they become full-grown. They are then
very handsome (Fig. 100) and measure a little over an
inch. The general color is bright yellow. The head
and two tubercle-like projections on the hinder portion
of the back are of a bright coral-red. There are four
cream-colored tufts of hair along the back. Two long
black plumes project forward from just behind the sides
pf the head, and another projects backwarcl from the

200

IJSrSECTS AND IJS^SECTICIDES

posterior end of the body. About the middle of July
the caterpillars spin thin, whitish cocoons upon the
rougher bark, and about a fortnight later come forth as
moths. These lay eggs for a second brood, which com-
pletes its transformations before winter sets in. The
l^upa of the female (Fig. 101, c) is larger than that of
the male (d). The male moth differs greatly from the
•female moth, the former being winged (e), while the
latter is wingless («). The female crawls upon the top

PIG. 101. WHiTE-MAiiKED TUSSOCK MOTH. «, female moth on cocoon;
6, young larva hanging by thread; c, female pupa; <Z, male pupa 5
e, male moth.

of the cocoon {a) as soon as she emerges from the pupal
state, where, after mating Avith tlie male, she deposits
her eggs in a single mass and dies.

Remedies. — The increase of this insect is greatly
checked by several parasitic enemies, nearly a dozen
species of two-winged and four- winged flies being known
to prey upon it. The caterpillars may be destroyed by
sj^raying the infested trees with the arsenites — Paris
green or London purple ; or the egg masses may be
picked off the bark in winter.

THE FALL WEBWORM

201

The Fall Webworm

Hyphaatria cunea

The work of few insects is more universally known
than that of the fall webworm. Late in summer and
early in autumn the cousi^icuous, unsightly webs of this
pest may be seen in nearly every orchard and hedgerow
over a large portion of the United States. The adult is
a pretty, white moth (Fig. 102), which deposits eggs on
the leaves of various trees early in summer. These soon
hatch into young caterpillars that begin at once to spin
a protective web.
The young worms
are of a pale yellow
color, sparsely cov-
ered with hairs, and
have a black head
and two rows of
black marks upon
the body. They
feed upon the par-
enchyma of the fo- FIG, 102.
liage, leaving the
network of veins, and grow quite rapidly, enlarging the
web as they develop. By the time they are full-grown
a single lot of them will destroy the foliage of a good-
sized branch, making it very conspicuous on account of
the web-like covering. At this time the larvae are a
little more than an inch long («), with the body densely
clothed with yellowish hairs. They now leave their
nests and descend to the ground, where just beneath the
surface, or under some suitable shelter above the surface,
they spin slight, silken cocoons within which they
change to the chrj'salis state. At the North there is
but one brood each year, but in the Southern States
there are two.

FALL WEBWOEINL

c, moth.

a, larva; &, pupa;

203 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

Remedies. — The webs of this insect are so con-
spicuous that it is an easy matter to cut them off and
burn or crush the larvae. This is a simple remedy, and
the earlier it is done the better. The pest may also be
destroyed by spraying with London purple or Paris
green when the larvae are young.

The Imported Elm=Ieaf Beetle

Galeruca xanthomelwna

During the recent years this insect has been exceed-
ingly destructive in many cities of the Eastern States to
that loveliest of shade trees — the elm. It has long been
known in the Old World, having been especially injuri-
ous in France and Germany, and is supjoosed to have
been imjoorted into America during the early 2:»art of the
present century. The eggs (Fig. 103, a) are laid on the
underside of the leaf in two or three rows, each group
consisting of from five to twenty eggs. At e in the fig-
ure they are shown considerably magnified, and as will
be seen they are very close together, and fastened se-
curely to the leaf. In about a week the larvae hatch and
begin eating the leaves, causing them to look as if rid-
dled with fine shot. They become fully grown {g) in
two or three weeks, when they descend to the ground,
and, finding some convenient shelter, change to j)up8e
(j). Ten days later the perfect beetles (^, natural size;
k, magnified) come forth and eat the leaves, although
the damage done by the insect in this beetle state is
much less than that done by the young, growing larvae.
There are three or four broods each season, and the
beetles pass the winter in whatever shelter they can find,
especially congregating in hollow trees, and under old
leaves.

Remedies. — This pest can be held in check by
spraying with London purple or Paris green (4 ozs. to

THE IMPORTED ELM LEAF BEETLE

203

50 gals, water). The application should be made when
the eggs are being laid, in order to kill the larvae before
they have done any damage. The addition of a little

FJG. 103. ELM-LEAF BEETLE. «, eggs; 6, larvse; c, beetle— aH natural
size; e, eggs; g, larva; j, pupa; A;, beetle; e to & magnified.

flour to the poison mixture seems to render it more ef-
fective. To reach the tops of high trees a pump of con-
siderable power is required.

204:

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Bagworm

Thy ridop teryx epli emerceformis

The twigs of various deciduous and coniferous trees
are often infested during the winter months by small
bags or sacs (of the form shown at Fig. 104, e) suspended
to the leaves or branches. If one of the larger of these
bags be cut open, there will be found within it a brown,
membranous shell (the pupa case of the moth) filled

FIG. 104. BAGWOKM. a, laiva; 6, male pupa; c, female moth; rf, male
motli; e, bag and pupa case cut open to show eggs; /, full-grown
larva with bag; g, young larva? with their conical coverings.

with many small yellow eggs (e). In this condition the
bagworm or basket worm passes the winter. Late in
spring the larvaa hatch, and at once form little cases of
fragments of leaves fastened together by silken threads.
Beneath these cases (g) they feed uj^on the foliage, en-
larging them as the larvae develop, and during later life
using bits of twigs or stems in their construction, in-
stead of leaf particles. The full-grown larva is repre-
sented in its bag at f, and without it at a. When fully

THE BAGWOEM

205

developed the worms descend to the earth by means of
silken threads, and crawl about until they reach the
bases of other trees, which they ascend. This is the
way the species migrates. The larva? pupate within the
cases, and about three weeks later change to moths.

FIG. 105. BAGWORM CASES ON TKEES. a, red cedar; b, maple; c,
arbor viise; d, spruce; e, Avliite pine.

The two sexes of the moths differ greatly, the male (104,
d) having well-developed wings, while the female {c) is
wingless. The latter deposits her eggs in the empty
pupa case from which she has emerged, and falls to the
ground, where soon afterward she dies.

206 . IJS SECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The bagworm feeds upon a great variety of trees,
and apparently prefers coniferous to deciduous sorts.
Red cedar and arbor vitae are especially subject to attack.
Its injuries are sometimes very severe on shade trees in
city streets and public parks. There are several para-
sitic insects that prey upon the larvae.

Remedies. — The simplest remedy for this insect is
that of spraying with London i)urple or Paris green.
This should be done in early summer when the worms
are young. Effective work also can be done, according
to Dr. Riley, ''during the winter time or when the trees
are bare. The bags which contain the hibernating eggs,
and which are very easily detected then, may be gathered
or pruned and burned. This work may be so easily
done that there is no excuse for the increase of this spe-
cies. Where intelligent action is possible, the bags
were better collected and heaped together in some open
enclosure away from trees, rather than burned. By this
means most of the parasites will in time escape, while
the young bagworms, which will in time hatch, and
which have feeble traveling power, must needs perish
from inability to reach proper food."

The Qreen=striped Maple Worm

Anisota ruMcu7ida

In many Western States maple trees are regularly
defoliated by a large caterpillar, alternrtely striped with
light yellowish-green and dark-green, having two long,
black horns on the second segment behind the head,
and other similar but shorter horns on the posterior seg-
ments (Fig. 106, a). This is the green-striped maple
worm; It is the larva of a handsome, yellowish-pink
moth (c), sometimes called the rosy Dryocampa. These
moths appear early in summer, and lay their eggs on
the undersides of the maple leaves in clusters varying

THE GREEN STRIPED MAPLE WORM

207

from forty to eighty each. The larvae hatch in a week
or ten days, and feed upon the foliage, being gregarious
at first, but gradually spreading as they grow older. In
a few weeks they become fully developed as larvae, hav-
ing molted four times, when they descend to the
ground, where, just beneath the soil surface, they change
to dark-brown pupae (b). About a fortnight later they
come forth as moths again. These moths, which usu-
ally appear during July or August, lay eggs for a second
brood of larvae that develop during late summer or early

FIG. 106. GREEN-STRIPED MAPLE WORM, a, larva; 6, pupa; c, moth.

autumn, and pass the winter as pupae, emerging as moths
the following summer.

The second brood of larvae are much more numer-
ous, and consequently more destructive, than the first.
Although maple forms the favorite food plant of the
insect, it is occasionally found upon oaks and a few other
trees. The larvae are preyed upon by various insectiv-
orous birds, and by several insect parasites.

Remedies. — Spraying with London purple or
Paris green early in the season, just after the worms
hatch, is the most effective remedy for this insect.

208

INSECTS AXD I2s"SECTICIDES

The Walnut Caterpillar

Datana angusii

The leaves of "walniit and butternut trees are fre-
quently eaten during summer by a large, blackish cater-
pillar. This is the larva of a good-sized moth that
makes its appearance from the middle of June to the
first of July, and deposits its eggs, seventy to a hundred
in a place, on the under surface of the leaves. In a

FIG. 107. YELLOW-NECKED APPLE WOKM. a, iarva; 6, moth; c, eggs—
aU natural size ; d, egg, magnified.

short time the larvae hatch and begin feeding upon the
foliage. They increase rapidly in size, and in a few
weeks attract attention on account of the defoliated
twigs where they have been at work. They are gregari-
ous in habit, and at the times of molting, or casting of
the skin, they migrate in a body to the trunk of the tree,
frequently descending nearly to its base, and, piling
themselves one upon another, remain m a solid mass
until the process is completed. Then they crawl back
to the twigs and begin feeding again. AVhen fully grown
as caterpillars, they go to the ground and change to the
pupal state, just beneath the soil surface. Here they
remain until early the following summer, when they
emerge as moths to lay eggs for another brood.

THE WOOLLY MAPLE BARK LOUSE 309

A fair idea of tlie appearance of the walnut cater-
pillar and its moth may be obtained from Fig. 107,
which re]Dresent3 a closely related insect — the. yellow-
necked apple-tree caterpillar. When at rest or alarmed
the larvae assume the peculiar position represented at a.
These caterpillars are jDreyed upon by certain birds,
notably the blue jay and red-headed woodpecker, and by
various species of insect parasites.

Remedies. — These defoliators may be destroyed
by spraying their food plants with Paris green or London
purple, or the larvae may be crushed when gathered into
heaps on the trunk at molting time.

The Woolly Maple=bark Louse

Pulvinaria innumeraiilis

The presence of this insect is manifested in the
spring and early summer by the occurrence upon the
twigs of maple trees, especially on the underside, of a
brown, circular, leathery scale, about one-qnarter of an
inch in diameter, beneath w-hich is a peculiar, fluffy,
cottony mass (Fig. 108, a). In the spring there may be
found in each of these masses great numbers (from 700
to 1000) of small, white, spherical eggs. Early in sum-
mer these eggs hatch into young lice, which scatter over
the trees, wandering about on the twigs and leaves for a
few days, and, finally, fixing themselves njDon the lower
leaf surface, insert their tiny beaks and suck out the sap.
They remain in this position several weeks, when a few
of them become fully developed winged males. These
mate with the remainder, which are females, and soon
die. But the females remain upon the leaves until
nearly time for them to fall in autumn, when they de-
sert them and migrate to the twigs, attaching themselves
by inserting their beaks into the bark. Here they re-
14

210

INSECTS AifD INSECTICIDES

main until the following season, the eggs gradually de-
veloping and being deposited during spring.

These insects sometimes do great damage to maple
trees. They excrete or secrete a peculiar liquid which
falls upon the leaves and the ground beneath the trees,
and which is sometimes called "honeydew." There are
a large number of parasitic and predaceous insects that

FIG. 108. MAPLE-BAKK LOUSE, a, cottony scales on twigs; 6, back
view of scale, magnified; c, ventral view of scale, more magnified.

prey upon this species, and suppress its periodical
uprisings.

Remedies. — In cities where a stream of water from
hose connected with waterworks is available, the trees
can be largely cleared of the pests by repeated drench-
ings. In the spring before the eggs hatch, and also
"while the young lice are crawling over the tree, soon
after hatching, is the best time for this work. The

THE BOX ELDER BUG.

211

young lice may also be easily destroyed by spraying witli
kerosene emulsion. This should be done in June, soon
after they hatch.

The Box=elder Bug

Leptocoris trivittatus

In the region west of the Missouri riyer this insect
is extremely abundant, causing serious injury to the
box elder, and occasionally, also, to ash, maple, and
other trees. The adult (Fig. 109) is a dull>black bug
about haK an inch long, having blood red ocelli, and
various red markings on the wings and
body. ''During the winter," according
to Professor E. A. Popenoe, who has
studied the insect carefully, *^the adults
are hidden in sheltered nooks and cor-
ners everywhere, but are especially abun-
dant in crevices of stone walls and angles
of stone buildings, on the south sides of
which they appear, singly and in clusters,
every warm day during the season. As
soon as the increasing warmth of spring
allows, they leave these shelters and seek
the trees attacked by them. The eggs
are laid in creases of the bark, on the trunk and twigs.
After midsummer their gregarious tendency is manifested
in the flocking of bugs of all sizes and in great numbers,
in lines up and down the trunks and branches, the com-
pany including larvae of all sizes, pupas, and fully ma-
tured individuals. This habit persists more or less com-
pletely until October and November, or until the trees
are bare. During the warm days of Indian summer the
bugs fly everywhere, flocking to the warm sides of the
buildings, and entering houses, where, though otherw^ise
harmless, they become troublesome through their abun-

FIG. 109, BOX-
ELDER BUG.

Magnified.

212 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

dance and proj^ensity to fall clumsily into pails of water,
crocks of milk, and other articles of food left uncovered."

This insect, like all true bugs, is active during its
entire existence, and gets its food by sucking sap through
a sharp-pointed beak which is inserted into the bark of
the succulent twigs, and also into the leayes. It has
coraparatively few natural enemies.

Remedies. — These bugs may easily be destroyed
when gathered in clusters on trees or walls by pouring
boiling water, gasoline or kerosene upon them.

The Gypsy Moth

Ocneria dispar

The gypsy moth is one of the most troublesome in-
sects in Europe. It feeds on an extraordinary yariety

of plants, attacking almost
eye ry thing, and is difficult
to destroy by natural or
artificial means. As is well
known, it was introduced
into the yicinity of Boston
twenty-fiye years ago and
• has since become yery de-
FiG. no. GYPSY MOTH. Male, structiyc in that region.
In 1891 the legislature of Massachusetts established a
commission for the extermination of the insect, and
has since appropriated a large amount of money
to carry on the work, which has already checked
the outbreak to a remarkable degree. It is much
to be hoped that the work will be continued unabated
for seyeral years.

. There is an idea somewhat prevalent that this insect
could be exterminated by importing parasites, but this
is fallacious. In my opinion it would be a great mis-
take to abandon the work of extermination and leave it

THE GYPSY MOTH

213

to be done by parasites. Under the most favorable con-
ditions there could only result a long series of oscilla-
tions in the numbers of the moths, in which periods of
destruction would alternate with periods of immunity.

FIG. 111. GYPSY MOTH. Female.

The later stages of the gypsy moth are illustrated
in the accompanying figures. The male moths are
much smaller than the females. ^^The full-grow^n cat-
erpillar is about an inch and three-fourths in length.

FIG. 112. GYPSY-MOTH CATERPILLAR.

very dark brown or black, finely reticulated with pale
yellow. There is a pale yellow line along the middle of
the back and a similar one along each side. On the
first six segments folloAving the head there is a bluish

214

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

tubercle, armed with several black spines on each side
of the dorsal line, and on the remaining segments these
tubercles are dark crimson-red. In the middle of the
tenth and eleventh segments there is a smaller red tuber-
cle notched at the top. The whole surface of the body

FIG. 113. CHRYSALIS OF GYPSY MOTH.

is somewhat hairy, but along each side the hairs are
long and form quite dense clusters."

Various methods of controlling this pest are in use
in Massachusetts. The most important are those of
spraying with arsenate of lead to kill the young cater-
pillars, and the mechanical destruction of the eggs.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE ROSE

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Rose Slug

Monostegia roses

This insect is familiar to most loyers of the queen
of flowers, and is justly dreaded on account of its serious
injuries. But no one should allow it to prevent the
planting and enjoyment of roses, for it is easy to keep
the pest in check.

The rose slug is the young or larva of a four-winged
sawfly, related to the parent of the pear-tree slug and
the imported currant worm. It bears a general resem-
blance to the adnlt pear-tree slug. The larvae shown in
Fig. 114 will serve to illustrate the appearance and
mode of work of the rose slug. According to Dr. Har-
ris, the parent sawflies, in the latitude of Massachusetts,
*'come out of the ground at various times between the
20th of May and the middle of June, during which season
they pair and lay their eggs. The females when about
to lay their eggs turn a little to one side, unsheath their
saws, and thrust them obliquely into the skin of the
leaf, depositing in each incision thus made a single egg.
The young begin to hatch in ten days or a fortnight
after the eggs are laid. The period of their existence in
the caterpillar state probably does not exceed three
weeks. They have a small, round, yellowish head, with
a black dot on each side of it, and are provided with

215

216 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

twenty-two short legs. The body is green above, paler
at the sides, and is soft aud almost transparent, like
jelly. The skin of the back is transversely wrinkled, and
covered with minute elevated points ; and there are two
small, triple-pointed warts on the edge of the first ring,
immediately behind the head. These gelatinous and
sluggish creatures eat the upper surface of the leaf in
large, irregular patches, leaving the veins and skin be-
neath untouched ; and they are sometimes so thick that
not a leaf on the bushes is spared by them, and the

whole foliage looks
as if it had been
scorched by fire and
drops off soon after-
wards. They cast
their skins several
FIG. 114. PEAK-TREE SLUG. tlmcs, Icavins^ them

extended and fastened to the leaves ; and after the last
molting they lose their semi-transparent and greenish
color, and acquire an opaque, yellowish hue. They
then leave the bushes and burrow an inch or more in
the earth, where each one makes for itself a small, oval
cell of grains of earth, cemented with a little gummy
silk." They remain in these pupa cells until the fol-
lowing season, when they emerge as flies.

There are two other species of slugs affecting the
rose, and in some places these are more abundant than
the one here described. An account of their habits may
be found in the Report of the U. S. Department of Ag-
riculture for 1892, p. 161. The same remedial meas-
ures apply to all three species.

Remedies. — In cities where a stream of water from
a sprinkling hose is always available, the simplest plan
of keeping these pests away is to spray the bushes forci-
bly every day or two, to frighten away the flics and
wash off the larvae. If this process is gone through

THE ROSE LEAF HOPPEB

21^

witli sufficient force and thprouglmess, it is the neatest
and best remedy. The slugs also may be easily killed by
spraying or dusting the infested bushes with hellebore
or insect powder.

The Rose=leaf Hopper

Typlilocyta rosce

Owners of rose bushes are frequently annoyed by
finding the lower sides of the leaves covered with a small
white insect that sucks out the cell contents and gives
the upper surfaces a
peculiar white-spot-
ted appearance.
This is the rose-leaf
hojDper, a species that
has been known to
injure these lovely
ornamental plants for
nearly a century.
The adult, shown
considerably magni-
fied at Fig. 115, a, a b
is a little more than fig. 115. rose-leaf hopper, a, adult; »,
one-tenth of an inch p"^-''- ^^^smned.
long, with a yellowish-white body, and white, semi-trans-
parent wing covers. In common with other leaf hop-
pers this insect has long hind legs, by means of which it
is enabled to make tremendously long leaps when dis-
turbed. The fully grown nymph (b) is also whitish, and
its back is well protected by numerous long spinous hairs.
There are said to be several broods each season.

Remedies. — These little pests are much easier to
destroy before they are fully developed than afterwards.
Spraying or dusting the infested plants with pyrethrum
or insect powder is a simple and efficient remedy. To-
bacco, in the form either of a powder or a decoction, is
also good ; and kerosene emulsion will destroy the pests.

INSECTS AFFECTING FLOWERS IN THE

WINDOW GARDEN AND

GREENHOUSE

INJURING THE LEAVES

Plant Lice or Aphides

There are many different species of aphides, plant
lice, or ^^ green flies," affecting the various flowering
j)lants. But all are quite similar in life history and

habits, and the same
remedies apply to
each. They all mul-
tiply with marvel-
lous rapidity on ac-
count of their habit
of giving birth to
living young, with-
out the presence of
male aphides. They

a, wingless form, magnified; ^^^^^^.gi^l^^^^
b, winged form, magnified; c, same, nat- *- -^ '

uraisize. obtam food by in-

serting their pointed beaks into the stem or leaf, and suck-
ing out the sap. There are generally two forms of them,
one being winged (Fig. 116, b, c) and the other wing-
less (a). These insects are the commonest pests of
flowering plants.

Remedies. — Tobacco is the great specific for these
insects. It may be used in various forms, but generally
the most satisfactory form is that of the refuse powder
. - 218

FIG. 116. APHIS

THE RED SPIDER 219

of the cigar factories. This should be nsed freely as a
mulch for low-growing i3lants, such as the daisy ; and if
blown upon infested plants, having first sprayed them
with water, by means of a powder bellows or Leggett's
powder gun, it will clear them readily. In greenhouses
tobacco stems are commonly used to' smoke the plants.
A few live coals are put upon a shovel, or into a metal
bucket, and refuse tobacco stems are laid upon them.
The house is then tightly closed and the smoke allowed
to remain several hours. The greatest objection to this
method is that tender j^lants are liable to be seriously
injured by an overdose of the smoke. The tobacco
may also be used in the form of a decoction, made by
pouring hot water on the stems, allowing it to cool, and
then drawing off the liquid. This may be sprayed upon
the plants, or, where not too large, the plants may be
dipped into the liquid. For window gardens this is per-
haps as satisfactory a method as can be suggested.

The Red Spider

Tetranychus telarius

Greenhouse plants are often seriously injured by
mulritudes of very minute reddish mites that congregate
on the lower leaf surface, spinning a very fine protective
web, and sucking out the juices of the plants through
their infinitesimal beaks. These little creatures are
commonly called red spiders. They are distantly related
to ordinary spiders, and like them have, when fully de-
veloped, four pairs of legs. They multiply beneath their
silken webs, Avhere one may find colonies of individuals
(so small as to be scarcely visible to the naked eye) in
all stages of existence. The young liave but three pairs
of legs. The egg is very small and spherical, being
nearly colorless. The infested leaves assume a yellowish
hue, and many of them finally drop off.

220 INSECTS AXD IXSECTICIDES

Remedies. — The red spider flourishes best in a
dry atmosphere. It is seldom troublesome in green-
houses where the air is kept saturated with moisture and
the plants are sprayed with water every day. In window
gardens the plants should be sprayed with soapsuds,
tobacco decoction or kerosene emulsion, or dusted with
fine tobacco powder or insect powder, as soon as they
show signs of the presence of this pest.

Mealy Bugs and Scale Lice

Mealy bugs are among the commonest and most
yexatious greenhouse pests. They occur upon a great
yariety of plants, and reproduce freely throughout the
year. There are two or three species commonly found
in this country, the most destructive, perhaps, being the
sjDCcies called by entomologists Dactylopius aclonidu^n,
which is distinguished by two long, white, cottony
threads extending backward from the last segment of
the abdomen. Another common species is called Dac-
tylopius destructor.

Mealy bugs derive their common name from a pe-
culiar yellowish-white substance, resembling flour or
meal, which they throw out from numerous minute
pores along the sides of their bodies. This serves both
as a protection from enemies, and also as a place of con-
cealment for the eggs of tiie insects.

Woody greenhouse plants, such as the oleander,
orange, abutilon^ etc., are also often infested with scale
insects that occur upon the stems, sucking out the sap
and so absorbing the vitality of the plants. These be-
long to the same family of insects as the mealy bugs, to
which they bear a general resemblance in life history
and habits.

Remedies. — AVhen a plant is once badly infested
with either of these pests it can be cleared only by thor-

MEALY BUGS AITD SCALE LICE 221

ough and careful work. As many should be rubbed or
bruslied off by hand as possible, and then the plant may
be sprayed with kerosene emulsion, which, however,
should be used with caution on the more tender varie-
ties of greenhouse plants. It is not necessary to treat
the whole plant, but only tlie parts infested by the in-
sect. In case only a few mealy bugs are present they
may be killed by dipping a small brush in alcohol and
then saturating the colonies of the insect with it. Or
the affected part of the plant may be washed with a
forcible stream of water till all signs of the insects or
their eggs are removed. Professor Comstock reports an
experiment in which equal parts of smoking tobacco and
flowers of sulphur were ground together in a mortar
until thoroughly mixed, and the compound thus formed
was dusted over wet infested plants, and the mealy bugs
destroyed.

Out of doors, and to a certain extent in the green-
house also, these mealy bugs and scale insects have vari-
ous natural enemies to contend with. Chief among
these are the little ladybugs and certain parasitic flies.

Insects affecting vegetables

INSECTS AFFECTING THE TOMATO

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Tomato Worm

Protoparce celeus

This insect in its larval state is familiar to every
one who has owned a garden. The moths, which be-
long to the' handsome sphinx family, appear early in
summer, and fly about just at dusk, sipping the nectar
from various flowers through their long tongues or suck-
ing tubes. Their general appearance is well illustrated

FIG. 117. PUPA OF TOMATO WORM.

at Plate XIII. The ground color of the body and wings is
gray, and there are various dots and stripes of different
shades. On each side of the abdomen are five orange-
colored spots. The female moths lay the eggs in the
evening on tomato plants, where they soon hatch into
green worms that feed voraciously on the foliage. These
caterpillars grow rapidly, and in a few weeks become
three inches long and nearly as thick as a man's finger.
They are light green, with several oblique, whitish stripes
along each side of the body ; sometimes brown specimens
are found. Early in September, in the Northern States,
these caterpillars complete their larval growth, aaid bur-
15 225

22Q

INSECTS A2^D INSECTICIDES

row into the ground some distance, where they form
oval cells in the soil, shed their larval skins, and change
to pii238e. The pupa or chrysalis (Fig. 117) is of chest-
nut-brown color, with a long and slender tongue case
bent over like the handle of a jug. They remain in this
state until the following summer, when they come forth
as moths. Besides the leaves, the caterpillars often feed
upon the green fruit of the tomato, as well as upon the
foliage of the potato and tobacco.

There is another species similar to this one, and
often confounded with it. The life history and habits
of the two are much alike. The moth of the other one

FIG. 118. TOMATO WORM WITH COCOOITS OP PARASITE.

is called the Carolina sphinx (Protoparce Carolina), In
the Southern States, and even as far north as Central
Ohio, there are two broods each season.

The tomato worm is subject to the attacks of a
small, four-winged black fly that deposits eggs beneath
its skin along the back. The eggs hatch into little mag-
gots that absorb the body juices of the worm, develop-
ing at its expense, and finally coming out upon its back,
where they spin white, silken cocoons (Fig. 118), within

THE TOMATO WORM 227

which they change to pupae. Shortly afterward they
again change to flies that gnaw out of the cocoons and
fly away to continue the work of destruction. The cat-
erpillar lingers awhile in a half-dead condition, and
finally dies.

Remedies. — Hand-picking the worms is the most
effective remedy for garden patches. Their depredations
are so conspicuous that it is generally easy to find them.
The moths may be destroyed (and consequently the de-
position of eggs prevented) by smearing flat boards in
various parts of the field with molasses mixed with stale
beer, to which a little fly poison has been added. The
boards should be a foot or two from the ground. Another
method which is especially recommended for killing the
moths in tobacco fields, is to plant, at occasional inter-
vals in the field, seed of Jamestown weed {Datura stra-
monium) about the time the tobacco is put out. These
will come in blossom when the moths appear. If a little
fly poison, mixed with sweetened water and whiskey, be
poured in the long blossoms each evening, the moths
that sip the liquid will be killed.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE POTATO

INJURING THE STEM

The Potato=stalk Weevil

Tricliolaris trinotata

Potato stems are sometimes infested by a whitish or
yellowish- white, footless grub, about a quarter of an
inch long, which burrows in the heart of the stalk, espe-
cially near the ground, and causes the plant to wilt and
die. This is the larva of a small, grayish snout beetle,
called the potato-stalk weevil, the females of which de-
posit their eggs, singly, in a slit made for the purpose

in the stem, slightly
above the soil surface.
In a few days the egg
hatches into a little
gr u b that burrows
down the center of the
stem toward the root.

FIG. 119. POTATO-STALK WEEVIL. A fCW WCCks latcr, Stlll

a, larva; 6, pupa; c. beetle. Magnified, ^.-^l-^jj^ ^1^3 g^^|]. ^^^

slightly below the surface of the ground, the larva pu-
pates, and late in summer or early in autumn it emerges
as an adult weevil. This weevil passes the winter under
whatever protective covering it may find, and the follow-
ing season starts another generation by depositing its
eggs in the potato stalks.

The injuries of this insect are sometimes quite se-
vere. In Iowa, during the season of 1890, Professor
C. P. Gillette estimated that seventy-five per cent, of

228

THE COLORADO POTATO BEETLE 229

the potato plants were infested by it. It is a widely
distributed species.

Remedies. — According to Professor Gillette, "the
only remedy at present known is to pull the vines as
soon as they are fonnd wilting and burn them. If the
tops are left until it is time to dig the potatoes many of
the beetles will have matured and escaped, and these
will live over winter and lay eggs for another brood."
But even late pulling and burning w-ill destroy many of
the pests, and in regions where this insect is known to
be at work, the vines should be burned when puUed up
in harvesting the crop.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Colorado Potato Beetle

Doryphora decemlineata

This insect originally lived upon a wild, variety of
Solanum (the genus to which the cultivated potato be-
longs) in the West, near the base of the Rocky Moun-
tains. It was not known as an injurious species until
about 1860, when it attacked potatoes in the gardens of
settlers in Kansas and neighboring States, and thereafter
gradually spread eastward until it finally reached the
Atlantic coast, and. was carried, across to Europe, becom-
ing extremely destructive wherever it appeared.

The adult Colorado potato beetle (Fig. 120, d) is
too familiar to American gardeners to need description
here. Its orange-colored eggs {a) are deposited in
masses, varying in number from a dozen to fifty or more,
on the under surface of the potato leaf, and occasionally
also upon the leaves of grass, smartweed, or other plants
in the potato field. They hatch about a week later into
peculiar little grubs {h) that feed upon the foliage a few
weeks. They then descend to the ground, where just
beneath the eoil surface, or under rubbish above it, they

230

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

change to pupae (c). About ten days later they emerge
as perfect beetles. There are from two to four annua]
broods, the number varying with the latitude, and the
insect hibernates in the beetle state.

Like most other insects, the Colorado potato beetle
fluctuates greatly in numbers and destructiveness. In
any given locality it will be very destructive for a period

Fig. 120. COLORADO POTATO BEETLE, a, o, eggs ; 6, b, larvae; c, pnpa;
d, rf, beetles; e, Avingof beetle, magnified.

of years, and then there may be several seasons when its
injuries will hardly be noticed. This oscillation is prob-
ably due to the various natural enemies of the insect.

Remedies. — The standard remedy for this pest is
that of spraying or dusting with some form of arsenic,
such as London purple, Paris green, slug shot, etc.
All of these take effect both upon the larvae and beetles.
London purple or Paris green may be dusted or sprayed
on with a perforated can or a powder gun, or sjiraying
machine. If used as a powder, the poison may well be
diluted with several times its bulk of plaster, finely

THE STRIPED BLISTER BEETLE 231

sifted aslies, or flour. In spraying nse six or seyen
ounces of London purple or Paris green to fifty gallons
of water. For this purpose London purple seems pre-
ferable on account of its cheapness and finely powdered
condition. The application should be made as soon as
the beetles appear, in order to kill off the first brood,
and it must be repeated as often during the season as is
necessary to keep the pests in check. It is better to use
the arsenite and Bordeaux mixture combination, thus
preventing both beetles and blight. By many growers
hand picking of the beetles and eggs, especially early in
the season, is resorted to instead of the use of poisons.
This method is effectiye if thoroughly carried out.

The Striped Blister Beetle

Eidicauta vittata

This insect is sometimes called the old-fashioned
potato beetle, because it was known as the ^'potato
beetle" before the introduction of the more modern, as
well as more destructive, Colorado spe-
cies. It is a foe to the farmer only in its
adult condition, for as a larva it feeds
upon the eggs of various grasshoppers,
forming one of the most efiicient nat-
ural checks upon the increase of these
pests. The adult blister beetle (Fig. 121)
is a slender-bodied, rather long-legged stJjped^blis-
insect, measuring from one-half to three- ter beetle.
fourths of an inch in length, with alternate stripes of
black and yellowish-brown upon the back. It feeds vo-
raciously on the leaves of potatoes and various other veg-
etables. These beetles are generally gregarious, feeding
in good-sized flocks, and when disturbed take to flight
readily. The females deposit their small eggs in masses
of a hundred or more, in the soil just below the surface.

333 Ilf SECTS AND IISSECTICIDES

In about ten days the eggs hatdi into curious little laryee
that burrow through the earth in search of the eggs of
grasshoppers. A large proportion of them probably per-
ish because they can find none, but those that are suc-
cessful feed upon the eggs and go through a curious
series of changes, which have been admirably described
by Dr. Riley, finally going into the pupal state and
emerging later on as beetles. In the South there are
apparently two broods each season. On account of the
dependence of the larvae upon grasshopper eggs, the
beetles are much more likely to be destructively numer-
ous during seasons following those in which grasshoppers
have been abundant.

There are several other species of blister beetles
with habits similar to this one, that are frequently found
upon potatoes. The commonest is probably the black
blister beetle {Epicauia yennsylvanicci).

Remedies. — It is sometimes stated that these in-
sects are not destroyed by eating Paris green, but this is
probably a mistake. The application of this substance,
however, seems often to be of no avail, probably either
because it does not act immediately upon the beetles, or
else because they continue to invade the field from the
outside. A few years ago a favorite method of destroy-
ing them was to drive the flocks of beetles upon loose
hay or straw spread upon the ground near where they
are at work, and then burn the hay, lighting it at several
different plaoes, so that it ^will burn rapidly. Hand
picking can often be resorted to advantageously. It is
doubtful policy, however, to destroy these insects excej^t
when they threaten to do serious damage, because of the
grasshopper-egg-feeding habits of the larvae.

THE IMBRICATED SNOUT BEETLE 233

The Imbricated Snout Beetle

Epiccerus imbricatus

This is a small beetle about half an inch long, sil-
very white in general color, with yarious darker mark-
ings upon its back. It feeds upon a great variety of
vegetation, from the twigs and fruit of apple, cherry
and gooseberry to the leaves and stems of onion, radish,
melon, beans, beets, corn and potato. It often does
very serious injury in the vegetable garden, but not-
withstanding its commonness and destructiveness, its
life history as yet has not been traced. Professor Forbes
has found the eggs deposited between pear leaves fas-
tened together, and "Dr. Riley has conjectured that the
jarv^e will be found to feed externally on the roots of
one or more of the food plants of the beetle. When
alarmed the beetles feign death, resembling in this
respect the plum curculio, and fall to the ground.

Remedies. — When these insects infest plants to
which Paris green or London purple can safely be ap-
plied, the potato for example, they may easily be de-
stroyed by such applications.

INSECTS AFFECTING CELERY, PARSNIP
AND CARROT

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Celery Caterpillar

Pajnlio asterias

The life history of this insect has been discussed at
some length in the Introduction (pages 5-7) in connec-
tion with Plate I, where its different stages are illus-
trated. The larvae are handsome and quite conspicuous,
-and feed upon the foliage of the various members of tiie
parsley family, including the carrot, celery, parsnip,
etc., sometimes doing considerable injury when left un-
molested. The caterpillars often become the victims of
certain parasitic insects, but it is said that neither birds
nor domestic fowls will eat them, probably because of
the disagreeable odor emitted from the peculiar yellow
horns situated on the body, just behind the head. The
adult butterfly is one of the most beautiful as well as
one of the commonest of its family.

Remedies. — When young these caterpillars may
be destroyed by dusting them with insect powder or
buhach. Ordinarily, however, they are not so abundant
but that a little hand picking will readily hold them in
check.

234

INSECTS AFFECTING THE SQUASH,
• MELON AND CUCUMBER

INJURING THE ROOTS

The Squash=vine Borer

Melittia ceto

The roots and stems of cucurbitaceous plants are
frequently infested with a whitish larva that feeds upon
the inner substance, often doing so serious a damage as
to cause the plant to wilt and die. The parent of this
squash-vine borer is one of the Aegerian moths. It is a
handsome insect (Fig. 122), about half an inch long,
with an orange-colored body ornamented by several
black spots upon the back, and having olive-brown front
wings and transparent hind ones. Eggs are deposited
by this moth from the first of June until the middle of
July, upon the stems of the young plants, often near the
roots, and the larvae resulting burrow into the center
and feed upon the succulent interior. They remain
here several weeks, gradually increasing in size. Toward
the end of summer they become full-grown (<?), when
they measure about an inch in length, and are whitish
with brown heads. They now leave the stem or root,
and going into the ground an inch or two form cocoons
by fastening particles of soil together with gummy silk.
They then change to pupae, and remain thus until the
following season, when they emerge as moths. Occa-
sionally in the North a moth emerges the same season,
while in the South the insect appears to be normally
two-brooded.

235

236

Ils^SECTS AND INSECTICIDES

Remedies. — Professor J. B. Smith, who has stud-
ied this insect carefully, makes suhstantially the follow-
ing recommendations, in growing squashes for market :

(1) Fertilize heavily and evenly; not in the hills alone.

(2) As early as may he plant summer squashes on the
laud to induce the moths to deposit eggs in them. A

FIG. 122. SQUASH-VINE BORER. CT, b, nioth, wings expanded and at
rest; c, larva, from side and from above; f?, cocoon, from which
pupa skin is extended. Natural size.

few rows in the field are sufficient, unless it is desired to
produce a market crop. (3) Plant the Hubbards, mar-
rowfats or other main crop as late as advisable without
risking the crop, making the hills between those of the
early varieties. (4) Keep a lookout for the moths, and
when they are noticed, go over the field every evening
during the twilight and kill all that are found sitting on
the leaves. A little practice will enable one to cover
three rows at one time without missing a specimen, and
in less than an hour a large field can be cleared of moths.
(5) When the late varieties need the ground, the crook-
necks will have made at least a partial crop, even if

THE CUCUMBER FLEA BEETLE 337

badly infested by borers, and the 7ines can be taken out
and removed, leaving the ground to the later varieties.
This should be done carefully, so that all the borers re-
main in the vines, and the latter should be thoroughly
destroyed in some way that will kill all the contained
larvae. (6) As soon as the late vines begin to run w^ell,
they should be covered at the fourth joint, or even be-
yond it, and the ground should be kept in such condi-
tion that it can readily send down suckers from all the
joints. This will enable it to resist injury and to ripen
fruit eveii if it becomes infested by a few belated borers ;
hut there must he plant food enough where these joint
roots are sent doivn, for that in the hill may he cut off,
(7) When the crop is made, the vines should be at once
removed and destroyed, as were those of the summer
squashes, so as to prevent the maturing of any borers
then in them.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Cucumber Flea=beetie

Crepidodera cucumeris

This is a small, blackish, punctate beetle about one-
sixteenth of an inch long, with yellowish antennae and
legs, that appears early in spring, and as soon as the
squash or cucumber plants are up, attacks them, eating
off small, round patches of parenchyma from the upper
surface of the leaves. Like all flea-beetles, they are quite
active, hopping readily when disturbed. The larvae are
said to mine the leaves. The insect does not confine it-
self to squashes and cucumbers, but feeds upon a great
variety of other plants.

Remedies. — Powdered tobacco has been found to
be the best preventive of the injuries of flea-beetles.
When used against the striped cucumber beetle, it will
take effect upon the present pest as welL

238 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Squash Bug

Anasa tristis

The squash bug is too familiar to gardeners to need
a detailed descrij)tion here. It is a rusty-black, flattened
bug, about half an inch long, with the underside ochre-
yellow, and has a very repulsive *' buggy" odor. This
insect winters over as an adult, beneath boards, logs,
leaves, or other protective covering, and appears in the
squash patch late in spring or early in summer. The
females then deposit their brownish-yellow,
spherical eggs on the undersides of the
leaves in patches varying from three or four
to a score or more. In a few days the
young bugs, or nymphs, hatch, and insert
their pointed beaks into the leaf and suck
out the sap. At first they are more or less
FIG. 123. gregarious, the bugs from a single lot of
SQUASH BUG. ^^.^^ fecdlug togcthcr, but as they grow
older they gradually disperse over the plants, casting
their skins occasionally during their development.
Like all true bugs, the transformations of this species
are incomplete. The young bear a general resemblance
to the adults, and the insect remains active in the stage
corresponding to that of the pupa. Leaves attacked by
the bugs become sickly and yellow, and if the pests are
numerous the whole plant may finally be killed.

Remedies. — Hand picking appears to be the most
practicable remedy that has yet been tried. This should
be done during the cooler hours of the day, when the
bugs are sluggish. The young may also be destroyed by
spraying with kerosene emulsion. Professor Cook records
good success in placing pieces of boards among the plants,
under which the bugs collect at night, and where they
may easily be found and destroyed. Mr. Benjamin Ware

IHE STRIPED CUCUMBER BEETLE

239

reports good results from setting shingles in the soil at
an angle of 45°. The bugs collect under these and are
easily destroyed.

The Striped Cucumber Beetle

Dialrotica vittata

This is the small, yellow beetle (Fig. 124, b) with
black stripes on its back, that so commonly attacks
squashes, cucumbers, melons, and other cucurbitaceous
plants, soon after they
come up in the spring.
It feeds upon the leayes
and stems, and in
many parts of the
country is so destruc-
tive that these plants
cannot be grown un-
less preventive meas-
ures are taken to guard
against its injuries.
The female beetles de-
posit eggs in the soil
about the stems of the
plants, and the larvae
resulting feed upon

the roots. They reach fig. 124. cucumber beetle, a, larva; 6,

maturity in a couple ^^^^i^- ^^lagniSed.

of months, having iDupated within the soil. The larvae
(Fig. 1^4, a) are whitish, cylindrical worms, not quite
half an inch long, with three pairs of legs at the front
of the body, and one pro-leg at the posterior extremity.
The insect winters over in the beetle state, under leaves,
logs, and rubbish of various kinds.

The beetles usually appear suddenly, often coming
to the squash or melon field in great numbers within a

a

240 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

few hours. Consequently a watch must be kept to pre-
vent tlieir doing damage before discovered.

Remedies. — There are probably few injurious in-
sects for which more remedies and preventives have
been suggested than for this. But a large proportion of
these methods are worthless. Good success has been
obtained by applying liberal quantities of refuse tobacco
powder to the hills. A shovelful thrown upon the

hills has been found largely to
prevent the damage. The ap-
plication should be repeated
occasionally, w^hen wind and
rain luive removed the powder
'^\ from the plants. The tobacco
— ^'^ acts not only as a repellent
FIG. 125. VINE PKOTECTOR. to thc bectlcs, but also as a
mulch and fertilizer to the plants. Similar, though less
liberal, applications of phosphates, bone dust, and other
commercial fertilizers, are also recommended by some
authorities.

For the kitchen garden the most satisfactory method
is that of protecting the plants by some form of gauze
netting. A simple method of doing this is illustrated at
Fig. 125. The ends of half a barrel hoop are placed in
the earth at the sides of the hill, and a square strip of
thin plant cloth or cheese cloth is then laid over it, the
cloth being drawn taut, and the edges covered with loose
earth. This excludes the beetles, and at the same time
permits access of air, moisture, and sunshine. Squash
plants are able to grow until they get four or five leaves,
and cucumbers and melons even more, before they are
crippled by contact with the cloth. Wire may be substi-
tuted for the half barrel hoop. A single piece may be
used, or two may be crossed like the center arch of a
croquet ground, as represented at Fig. 126. Good results
are also obtained by simply placing the cloth over the

THE TWELVE SPOTTED CUCUMBER BEETLE 241

plants without any support, and covering the edges as
described. By loosening the clotli occasional!}^, the plant
will lift it, and get several leaves before it need be
removed. A modification of this method, which has
been successfully used, consists of two end boards one-
half inch thick, about fifteen inches long by six or eight
inches wide. On the middle of each of the these is nailed
a piece of pointed lath at right angles to the long way of
the board. The lower end of each lath projects below
the edge of the board, and is
stuck in the ground a few ^.^,
inches. Before the lath are put ^'"''^V-^-^-^'''^"''
on, the end pieces are connected ^ fi^ .
with each other by a piece of ^'^|jTjt£^'£_-j— ^-^
plant cloth about 16x27 inches, fig. 126. vine pkotector.
the ends being tacked to the top and sides of the boards.
This protector has many advantages. It can be stored
in very little space. When it is desired to cultivate the
hills, it is only necessary to pull up one end, stir the
earth, and put the end back in position.

Gauze-covered wooden frames are sometimes recom-
mended to prevent the injuries of this insect, but they
are objectionable because they exclude a great deal of air
and sunshine, causing the plants to grow tall and slen-
der, rather than short and stocky.

The Twelve=spotted Cucumber Beetle

Diah'otica 12-ptmctata
This insect is similar in appearance and habits to
the one treated of last, the adult having twelve black
spots upon a yellow background, instead of being striped.
The larva of this species bores the roots of corn and
other i^lants. The remedial measures recommended
above apply equally well to this insect. Its life history
will be found more fully discussed on a later page, where
it is treated of as the Southern corn-root worm.

16 , ,

INSECTS AFFECTING THE BEAN AND

PEA

INJURING THE SEED

The Bean Weevil

Bmchus ohtectus

One often finds beans with numbers of excavations
in them, like those shown at Fig. 127, h. Such beans
are affected by the bean weevil — an insect that is widely
distributed over the United States, and often does very
serious damage.

The adult weevil is represented natural size in the
upper middle portion of Fig. 127, and enlarged at a of
the same figure. It is a small,
brownish insect that very much
resembles the nearly related pea
weevil. The eggs are deposited
inside the pod, the mother
beetle gnawing a narrow slit
through the suture on the lower
side of the pod and pushing

her long Ovij)OSitor thrOUghtle, magnified; 6, infested bean.

this opening to lay a cluster of eggs inside. The beetle
normally oviposits in green pods of good size. The eggs
hatch in about a fortnight into larvae which feed upon
the beans for three or four weeks, when they pupate,
and about ten days later emerge as adult beetles. These
insects are also able to develop in dried beans, the vari-
ous periods lasting longer in winter than in summer.

242

FIG. 127. BEAX WEEVIL, a, bee-

THE PEA WEEVIL 243

The larvae gnaw out cells in the beans, several often oc-
curring in a single bean, and are said at the time of pu-
pation to leave the cells in which they have developed
and to excavate another to pupate in. The adult beetles
liave been observed to feed upon the parenchyma of the
growing plant.

Remedies. — Beans infested by these pests should
be inclosed in tight vessels, into which a little bisulphide
of carbon, benzine, or gasoline has been placed. The
fumes of these volatile substances will destroy the
beetles. Of course care must be taken that no particle
of fire comes in the vicinity of the treatment. Late
planting of the crop has been found a good way to pre-
vent injury, by an extensive Illinois farmer living in the
latitude of St. Louis, Missouri, who for a number of
years has planted his field beans from June 20th to
July 10th, with good results. If the beans, as soon as
ripe, are heated to 145° Fahrenheit, the partially grown
larvae will be destroyed without injury to the germinat-
ing qualities of the seed. This will prevent much of
the damage that would be done were the larvae left to
complete their growth.

The Pea Weevil

BrucJius pisi

As already stated, this insect is very similar to the
bean weevil in life history and habits. The adult beetle
deposits its yellow eggs on the outside of the young pods
early in summer. On hatching, a few days later, the
larvae bore through the pods into the peas, which they
enter and eat out the substance, leaving the radicle or
germ untouched. On this account "bnggy peas" will
germinate, but as the young plants are deprived of the
proper nourishment they make a less healthy growth

24A

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

than do those resulting from uninjured peas. When
full-grown the larva eats a hole on one side of the pea,
leaving only the thin, outer covering, before entering
the pupal state. Some time afterwards the insect again

changes to the perfect beetle,
a portion of which emerge
the same season, but most of
them remain in the peas
until the following spring.
Remedies. — Themeas-
^ 1^ ^^'1^^ jl i^i-es mentioned as remedies

for the bean weevil are equally
FIG. 128. PEA WEEVIL, a, beetle, applicable to this pest. That

magnified; 6, infested pea. of heating the peaS to 145°

Fahrenheit as soon as gathered, seems especially advis-
able in the case of the pea weevil, for at the time oi
ripening a large proportion of the weevil larvss are only
partially grown.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE CABBAGE

INJURING THE ROOTS

The Cabbage=root Maggot

Pliorhia hrassicce

The cabbage-root maggot is one of the most vexa^
tious enemies of the gardener. The adult (Fig. 129, c)
is a small, two- winged fly, somewhat like the common

FIG. 129. CABBAGE MAGGOT. «, larva; 6, puparium; c, fly.

house fly in general appearance, which appears in the
cabbage field soon after the plants are set out, and de-
posits its eggs about the stems at the soil surface. The
little, whitish maggots soon hatch, and work their way
downward to the roots, which they attack, feeding upon
the outer surface and thus making grooves, or boring
into the interior and hollowing put cavities. They
sometimes cause the roots to thicken up and become
malformed, producing an effect similar to that of the
fungus causing the disease known as *'club root." In
two or three weeks the maggots become full-fed {a), and

245

246

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

they change to the pupal state within hard hrown pn-
paria (5), to emerge fifteen or twenty days afterward as
adult flies. There are probably two or three broods
each season, and the insect apparently hibernates in
each of its three later stages. These insects infest tur-
nips, rutabagas and radishes, as well as the cabbage, and
also breed in wild cruciferous plants.

Remedies. — A large number of unsatisfactory rem-
edies have been proposed for this insect. In some cases

FIG. 130. CABBAGE ROOTS INJURED BY MAGGOTS.

immunity from attack may be had by planting the crop
each year a considerable distance from where it was be-
fore, although .the fact that the insect breeds in wild
cruciferous plants S9me times causes the insects to attack
cabbages on land not previously planted to this crop.
In special cases where only a few cabbages or radishes
are to be raised, the flies can be kept out by growing in
cold frames covered with cheese cloth or fine netting.

THE CABBAGE ROOT MAGGOT

247

The most satisfactory preventive method that has
been used on a large scale is that of protecting the
plants by tarred paper (one-ply tarred felt) cards, in a
way similar to that shown in «, Fig. 131. The method
of making and applying these cards is described by Pro-
fessor Goff as follows : - '*The cards are cut in a hexag-
onal form, in order to better economize the material,
and a thinner grade of tarred paper than the ordinary

FIG. 131. TARRED PAPER CARDS OX BASE OF PLANTS. «, COTTectly

put on ; 6, carelessly put on.

roofing felt is used, as it is not only cheaper, but being
more flexible, the cards made from it are more readily
placed about the plant without being torn.

"The blade of the tool, which should be made by
an expert blacksmith, is formed from a band of steel,
bent in the form of a half hexagon, and then taking an
acute angle, reaches nearly to the center, as shown in
Fig. 132. The part making the star-shaped cut is
formed from a separate piece of steel, so attached to the

248 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

handle as to make a close joint with the blade. The
latter is beveled from the outside all around, so that by
removing the part making the star-shaped cut, the edge
may be ground on a grindstone. It is important that
tlie angles in the blade be made perfect and that its
outline represents an exact half hexagon.

**To use the tool, place the tarred paper on the end
of a section of a log or piece of timber and first cut the
lower edge into notches, as indicated in Fig. 132, using
only one angle of the tool. Then commence at the left
side, place the blade as' indicated by the dotted lines,
and strike at the end of the handle with a light mallet,
and a complete card is made. Concinue in this manner
across the paper. The first cut of every alternate course
will make an imperfect card, and the last cut in any
course may be imperfect, but the other cuts will make
perfect cards if the tool is correctly made and properly
used.*

**The cards should be placed about the plants at
the time of transplanting. To place the card bend it
slightly, to open the slit, then slip it on to the center,
the stem entering the slit, after which S2:>read the card
out flat, and press the points formed by the star-shaped
cut snugly around the stem." At «, in Fig. 131, is
shown a card properly applied to the stem of a geranium ;
b shows a card carelessly put on.

Another way of preventing the injuries of the cab-
bage-root maggot is by the use of a carbolic acid emulsion.
Mr. Slingerland recommends that it be made by the
following formula: *'One pound of hard soap or one
quart of soft soap dissolved in one gallon of boiling water,
into which one pint of crude carbolic acid is then poured
and the whole mass agitated into an emulsion, which

* It is stated that these cuttins: tools can be bought of P. J. Diepold,
Marlison, Wis., for $2.50 each.

THE CABBAGE ROOT MAGGOT

249

will remain in this condition for a long time. In treat-
ing the plants, take one part of this standard emulsion
and dilute it with thirty eqnal parts of water; it prob-
ably can be used stronger without injury to the plants.
If the emulsion is cold and semi-solid use several parts

><

0

FIG. 132. a, outUne of paper card, two-thirds natural size; b, diagram
showing how tool is used ; dotted line shows position of edge of
tool; c, tool for cutting cards (reduced).

of warm water at first. Begin the treatment early, a day
or two after the plants are up, or in the case of cabbages
and cauliflowers, the next day after they are set in the
field, and repeat it once each week or ten days until about

250 INSECTS AKD linSECTICIDES

May 20 in New York. While we have little faith in the
preyentive effects of the early treatments, we do believe
that the emulsion will then kill many of the eggs and
recently hatched maggots. If it could be applied with
some force through a syringe or force pump, it might
not be necessary to go to this trouble of first removing
some of the earth from about the plants. It must be
remembered that its success will depend on the eggs or
maggots being hit with it. None of the cabbages in our
experiment were injured in the least by an application
containing nearly twice as much of the acid, and there
is but little danger of its injuring the tenderest foliage
of radishes, turnips or onions; if any injury manifests
itself on these crops, dilute the emulsion with forty or
fifty or more parts of water, instead of thirty. A knap-
sack or a wheelbarrow sprayer would prove a very useful
instrument in applying the emulsion on a large scale."

The use of carbon bisulphide, applied with a spe-
cially devised injector, has also given good results. For an
account of this and other remedial methods the reader is
referred to Bulletin 78 of the Cornell University Experi-
ment Station. In some localities the growers search
regularly about the bases of the stems for the bunches of
whitish eggs, and claim it to be the best method of
checking the injuries of the pest.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Imported Cabbage Worm

Pieris ra^JCB

This insect was imported into America from Europe
about 1857, since when it has become exceedingly destruc-
tive over a large portion of the United States and Canada.
The adult is a common white butterfly, the female of
which has two black spots upon each of the front wings
(Fig. 133, c), while the male (Fig. 134) has but one.

THE IMPORTED CABBAGE WORM

251

The former deposits, singly or in clusters of two or three
each, small, fusiform, yellowish eggs upon the cabbage
leaves, which soon hatch into little, green larvae that feed
upon the substance of the foliage. In about two weeks
they become full-grown (Fig. 133, a), when they gener-
ally leave the cabbage plants, and, finding some suitable
shelter — beneath a board or under the coping of a fence
— change to chrysalids (Fig. 133, b). They remain in
this condition about ten days, when they emerge as but-

EIG. 133. Imported Cabbage Worm : a, larva; 6, chrysalis ; c, female

butterfly.

terflies, to lay eggs for another brood of worms. The
winter is passed in the chrysalis state. There are several
generations of larvae each season, the number varying
with the climate and latitude.

This insect has numerous natural enemies with
which to contend. The larvae and pupae are preyed upon
by certain parasitic and predaceous insects, and the but-
terflies are often captured by insectivorous birds, as well
as by a predaceous bug known to entomologists as Phy-
mafa tvolffii. The larvae are often destroyed by thou-
sands by a bacterial disease — a sort of insect cholera —
that has lately aided greatly in checking the injuries of
this pest.

253

INSECTS AND IJsSECTICIDES

There are two or three species of native cabbage
worms — notably the Southern cabbage butterfly {Pieris
protocUce) and the pot-herb butterfly (P. oleracea) closely
related and similar to this imported worm, that were
formerly quite injurious to cabbage, but since the intro-
duction of the alien sj^ecies they have been largely
crowded to the wall, and are seldom destructive.

Remedies. — Pyrethum (insect powder or buhach),
hot water and kerosene emulsion are the substances tliat
can most successfully be used in fighting the imported

cabbage worm. The
insect powder may be
diluted with six or eight
times its bulk of flour,
and dusted on with a
powder gun or bellows,
or it may be mixed
with water in the pro-
portion of one ounce to
four or five gallons of water, and sprayed upon the
plants. Dr. Eiley gives preference to hot water as a
remedy for this insect. He states that *' every worm
visible upon the cabbages may be killed by the use of
hot water at the temperature of 130° Fahrenheit. The
water may be boiling hot when put in the watering can,
but it will not be too hot when it reaches the cabbage
leaves." Kerosene emulsion can advantageously be used
when the plants are young, though there would appear
to be danger of tainting the heads if applied to the fully
developed plants. Whichever method of treatment is
adopted, it should be carried into practice at frequent
intervals, thus keeping the worms well in check. If the
plants are dusted with insect powder once a week during
the time that the worms are present, they will cause
little or no trouble.

FIG. 134. raiPORTED CABBAGE BUTTER
FLY. Male.

THE CABBAGE PLFSIA

253

The Cabbage Plusia

Plusia brassiccB

This insect, illustrated in its three later stages at
Fig. 135, has been known for years to do serious injury
to a number of garden crops. While it is especially
injurious to cabbage, it also attacks celery, turnip, tomato,
clover, cauliflower, lettuce, dandelion, dock, and several
other plants. The adult (shown at upper part of Fig.
135) is a handsome, dark-gray moth, with a silvery spot
near the middle of each front wing. The females deposit
their pale, greenish-yellow eggs singly or in clusters, on

FIG. 135. CABBAGE PLUSIA. a, larva; b, pupa in cocoon; c, moth.

the cabbage leaves, usually on the upper surface. The
larvae soon hatch and devour the leaves as they develop,
boring small, irregular holes in the cabbage head. When
full-grown {a) they are about an inch long, of a general
pale-green color, with longitudinal lighter stripes; the
head is small, and the body gradually enlarges from the
front backward. In motion the body assumes a looping
position, as shown in the figure. The full-grown larva

254 INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

spins a slight, white, silken cocoon on the cabbage leaf,
generally on the lower surface, and within this changes
to a brownish pupa (Z»). In a short time it emerges as
a moth. At the South, where this insect is ordinarily
more destructive than at the North, there are several
broods each season. The moths are nocturnal or crepus-
cular, but in cloudy weather are sometimes seen flying
during the day.

The larvge of the cabbage plusia are subject to the
attacks of many enemies; they are devoured by birds,
destroyed by certain parasitic insects, and often become
the victims of a fungous disease.

Remedies. — This insect is more difficult to destroy
than the imported cabbage worm, but it will sucgumb to
pyrethrum if not diluted with more than three times its
bulk of flour, and may also be killed with the kerosene
emulsion applied in a spray.

The Zebra Caterpillar

Cer arnica picta

This caterpillar is at once distinguished from other
larvae feeding upon cabbage by the brilliant yellow and
black markings upon its body. It originates from small,
spherical eggs, laid in clusters upon the cabbage leaves
by a handsome, purplish-brown moth (Fig. 136, h), that
appears early in summer. At first the larvae are very
dark, and feed together gregariously, but as they develop
they become lighter colored, and disperse over the plant.
When disturbed they roll up and drop to the ground.
They beqome full-grown {a) in three or four weeks,
when they are about two inches long, with a wide, longi-
tudinal, velvet-black stripe upon the middle of the back,
and two bright yellow stripes upon each side, which are
connected by fine, yellow, transverse lines. The cater-
pillars now construct, slightly beneath the soil surface.

THE WAVY STRIPED FLEA BEETLE

255

loose cocoons composed of particles of earth fastened
together by silken threads, within whicli they change to
pupas. About a fortnight later the moths emerge, and
deposit eggs for a second brood of larvae, whicli develop
early in autumn, pupating before winter, and hibernating
within their cocoons.

PIG. 136. ZEBRA CATERPILLAR, a, laiva; 6, moth.

Remedies. — When young the larvas are congre-
gated together upon one or a few leaves, and may then
easily be checked by hand picking. Later they are open
to destruction by the application of hot water, insect
powdei', or kerosene emulsion.

The Wavy=striped Flea=beetle

Pliyllotreta vittata

This little pest does not by any means confine its
depredations to the cabbage, but attacks turnip, mus-
tard, radish, and various other plants as well. It is
represented in Fig, 137, a, and is a small, shining black
beetle, one-tenth of an inch long, with a broad, yellow.

256 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

wavy, longitudinal stripe on each wing cover. It feeds
upon the surface of the leaf, gnawing out little pits.
The females deposit their minute, oval, whitish eggs
upon the roots of various cruciferous plants, such as
radish, cabbage, turnip, etc., and the larvae which hatch
from them feed upon these roots,
sometimes doing serious damage in
this way. The full-grown larva {b)
is about one-fourth of an inch long,
with a yellowish-white body, and
brown head. There appear to be

FIG. 137. WAVY-STRIPED ^ ^

FLEA-BEETi^E. a, bee- two or more broods each season.

tie; b, larva; c, pupa. Remedies. — Tobacco powder

is the best remedy for these little pests. If applied
freely to the plants, it will drive them away. In seasons
when the beetles are not too thick, dusting the plants
with dry, un leached wood ashes, or lime or plaster, will
also keep them off, and tobacco decoction is a good
remedy.

Cabbage Cutworms

The cabbage is subject to attack by nearly a dozen
species of cutworms, nearly all of which, however, are
similar in habits and history, and may well be treated
01 collectively. They are all larvae of medium-sized,
night-flying moths, and are rather thick, naked worms
of the general form of Fig. 138, a. They curl up when
disturbed. The eggs are deposited generally on the
branches of trees and shrubs, the larv^ descending to
the ground in search of food as soon as hatched. Most
of them feed upon grass or clover when young, becom-
ing about half-grown by winter time, when they seek
the shelter of some log or stone, or burrow into the soil.
Here they hibernate, and in spring come forth in search
of food. They now attack a variety of young plants.

CABBAGE CUTWORMS

257

biting off the stems and feeding npon the leaves. Cab-
bages, tomatoes, turnips, squashes, melons, and various
other garden vegetables are all liable to their attacks.
They become full-grown in spring or early summer,
when they pupate beneath the soil surface, and three or
four weeks later emersre as
moths. The larva (a) and
moth (b) of the variegated
cutworm (Agrotis saucia)
are represented, natural
size, at Fig. 138. Some
species have two or more
broods each season, while
others have but one. Cut-
worms are especially'likely
to do damage in fields and
gardens close to grass
lands, and to crops imme-
diately following grass.

Remedies. — Of the
dozens of methods of destroying cutworms, there are
three which are of special merit. They are :

(1). The liaison method. This consists in killing
off the worms before the crops are planted, by strewing
over the soil bunches of fresh clover or cabbage leaves,
which have been treated with Paris green or London
purple, either by dipping into a solution of the poison,
or dusting it on dry. The half-grown worms prowling
about in search of food eat of the baits thus set, and are
destroyed before doing any harm. This method has
proved a practiced success with many gardeners, and is
well worth trying where there is likety to be trouble
from these pests. Of course care must be taken that
chickens or stock do not get at the poisoned leaves.

(2). Using hoards as traps. This method consists
in placing boards on the ground in and about the ffar-
17

CC — - .CZJ*
FIG. 138. VARIEGATED CUTWOKM.

a, larva ; h, moth.

258

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

den, and collecting in the morning tlie worms iliat will
congregate beneath them during the night.

(3) Digging out the worms where plants have been
cut off. This is practicable in most gardens, and is
well worth doing, thus preventing further damage.

The Harlequin Cabbage Bug

Murgantia histrioiiica

The injuries of this insect were first noticed in
Texas and other States at the far South, but it has grad-
ually spread northward, especially along the Atlantic
coast, until now it is seriously injurious as far north as

Delaware. It feeds
upon a variety of cru-
ciferous plants, includ-
ing cabbage, radish,
mustard, turnip, etc.
The insect "derives
its name from the gay,
theatrical, harlequin-
like manner in which
the black and orange-
j, yellow colors are ar-

/ 9

FIG. 139. HARLEQUIN CABBAGE BUG.
nymphs; c, eggs; /, adun ; g, adult with ranged upOU its body"
wings extended— aU natural size; ^^^ (T^\„ iqq n h f n\
eggs, side view; e, eggs, view f roni V G* p' ' ' ' J f iJ )'

above,— f7, e, enlarged. According to Dr. G.

Lincecum, in Texas, "the perfect insect liyes through
the winter, and is ready to deposit its eggs as early as
the 15th of March, or sooner if it finds any cruciform
plant large enough. They set their eggs (c, cl, e) on
end in two rows, cemented together, mostly on the under-
side of the leaf, and generally from eleyen to twelve in
number. In about six days in April (four days in July)
there hatches out from these eggs a brood of larvae, re-
sembling the perfect insect, except in haying no wings.

THE CABBAGE APHIS 259

This brood immediately begins the work of destruction
by piercing and sucking the hfe sap from the leaves,
and in twelve days they have matured. They are timid,
and run off and hide behind the first leaf stem, or any
part of the plant that will answer the purpose. The
leaf that they puncture soon wilts, like the effects of
poison, and soon withers. Half a dozen grown insects
will kill a cabbage in a day." At the South there are
several broods each season.

Remedies. — According to Mr. Howard Evarts
Weed of the Mississippi Experiment Station, ''there is
but one efficient remedy for this insect, which is, to
destroy the brood which lives over winter, when they
congregate upon the mustard or radish plants. Here
they can be destroyed very easily by the application of
kerosene (not emulsified) by means of a hand force
pump or common watering bucket. If the insects are
thus destroyed early in the season, it will almost wholly
prevent injury later. The insects fly but little, and are
thus not apt to come from a neighboring field." Those
bugs or eggs which may be seen on cabbage, should be
picked off and destroyed. Clean cultivation and the
burning of all rubbish are important preventive meas-
ures. In spring and autumn many of the bugs may be
trapped by laying cabbage or turnip leaves between the
rows: the insects will harbor under these, and maybe
collected each morning. It is especially important to
destroy the earlier broods of this pest, because otherwise
it increases so rapidly as to be almost unconquerable.

The Cabbage Aphis

Ajjhis hrassicm
Next to the imported cabbage worm this species is,
perhaps, the most injurious insect enemy of the cabbage ;
and it also infests various other cruciferous plants, in-
cluding turnip, radish, field cress, and shepherd's purse.
It appears to have been originally a European species.

260

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDBS

and was probably introduced into America at an early
date. It is probable that it is now found in this country
wherever the cabbage is extensively grown.

The cabbage aphis is a small, greenish insect, gen-
srally covered with a whitish, mealy coating, that occurs

F. Dettners* dd*

?IG. 140. CABBAGE APHIS. «, male; ft, head and antenna of same;
c, female; tZ, head and antenna. Magnified. '

in great numbers on the leaves and in the heads. Dur-
ing the summer months it reproduces viviparously, but
in autumn true males and females (Fig. 140) are devel-
oped, eggs being deposited by the latter upon the cab-
bage leaves. Except in the North the insect winters
over in the adult condition.

Remedies. — Kerosene emulsion is the most etfec-
tive insecticide that can be used against this insect.

INSECTS AFFECTING THE ONION

INJURING THE BULBS

The Onion Maggot

Phorhia ceparum

The onion maggot is closely related to the cabhage
maggot, to which it is similar in life history and habits.
The adult is a two-winged fly, which deposits its small
white eggs on the bulbs or lower leaves of the young
plants. About a week later the eggs hatch into young
iaryae that bore into the bulbs, absorbing the succulent
substance. When one bulb is consumed they pass on to
another. The full-grown larvae are nearly half an inch
long, of a dull white color, and pointed at the mouth or
front end. They complete their larval growth in about
two weeks, and then leave the onions and enter the sur-
rounding earth, where they change to the pupal state
within brown puparia. A fortnight later the flies
emersfe to lav e^o's for another brood.

Remedies. — Professor Cook states that the most
practical method of preventing the injuries of this in-
sect is to change the position of the onion bed every
year, putting it each time some distance from where it
was the preceding season. Wherever the conditions are
such that this can be done, this is probably the best
preventive measure. Miss Ormerod reports that in
England, if the bulbs are kept covered with earth, they
are not attacked by the maggots. Mr, J. J. H. Greg-
ory says that the best remedy is "a hen and chickens.

261

262 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

Allowing a couple of broods to an acre, confine the hen
in a small coop near the middle of the piece, and give
the chickens free exit. They will soon learn to catch
the fly while in the act of laying the egg which produces
the maggot." The insecticides recommended for the
oabbage maggot may also be used for this pest.

INSECTS AFFECTING ASPARAGUS

The Asparagus Beetle

Crioceris asjparagi

This insect was introduced into America from
Europe about thirty years ago, and at once became very
destructive to asparagus in the region of New York city.
It has since spread over a large area,
being reported in 1890 as far west
as Ohio. According to Professor
Comstock its life history may be
briefly summarized as follows:
"Upon the appearance of the plants
in early spring, and just before the
cultivators are ready to begin bunch-
ing for the early market, the beetles
come forth in great numbers from
their hibernating quarters — under
sticks, stones, rubbish, and especial- c'
ly under the splinters of wood on
fences and under the scaly bark of
trees — and commence gnawing the
tops of the young plants. They
pair and lay their eofo^s very soon. ^^^- ^^^- aspaeagus

£, /-n- ^ ^-. t 1 BEETLE, a, e^gs on stalk;

Ihe eggs (±ig. 141, a) are oval and^.iaiva; c, beetle j tand
are placed endwise on the plant, '^ "'-'^s'"^^*^*
usually in rows of two to seven. In from seven to ten
days the young larvae begin to make their appearance.
In form they bear a close resemblance to the Colorado
potato-beetle larvae. The general color is grayish olive

264 INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

with shining black head and brown legs. "When full-
grown {d) they measure a little over three-tenths of an
inch.'* The larvae feed upon the outer bark of the aspar-
agus, and develop iu about two weeks from the time of
hatching. The}^ then descend to the earth where,
slightly beneath the surface, or under rubbish above the
surface, they change to pupae. About ten days later
they emerge as beetles to feed upon the plants and de-
jDOsit eggs for another brood. The beetles (c) are very
jDretty little creatures, with head, legs and antennae of a
shining metallic greenish-black hue, a reddish-brown
thorax ornamented with two conspicuous black spots,
and lemon-yellow wing covers, marked with a longitu-
dinal black strij^e and a transverse black band. There
are two or more broods each season.

Remedies. — The plan most successfully adopted
by Long Island gardeners to prevent the injuries of this
insect is that of destroying, by hoeing or other cultiva-
tion, all volunteer growth of asparagus, leaving only the
shoots designed for market for the beetles to lay their
eggs upon. These shoots are cut and removed so often
that there is no opportunity for the eggs to hatch in the
field, and thus the increase of the pest is effectually pre-
vented. The beetles are greedily devoured by domestic
fowls, and in kitchen gardens these can sometimes be
advantageously used against them. Of the artificial
insecticides, pyrethrum will probably give the best re-
sults. In small patches it has been found practicable to
rub 0^ the eggs from the growing shoots.

IPj^I^T "V"

Insects affecting cereal and
Forage Crops

TULTE ZIV. THE STRIPED HARVEST SPIDBS*

INSECTS AFFECTING INDIAN CORN

INJURING THE ROOT

The Corn = root Aphis

Aphis maidi-radicis

This is a small, bluish-green aphis, or louse, which
occurs on the roots of corn, from the time it comes up
in spring until it is cut in autumn. Its general form,
when magnified, is well
shown at Fig. 142, which
represents a closely related
species, the apple aphis.
There are two forms found
upon the roots, one having
wings and the other not, the
latter being much the com-
monest. Both forms are
always attended by the com-
mon, small brown an t ( Lasiu s
alienus), which cares for fig- 1*2. apple aphis. Magnified,
them as tenderly as it does for the eggs and young of
its own species. Eggs are laid by the aphides during
Sejitember and October, in the subterranean galleries of
the ants, and are collected by the latter and cared for
all winter. In spring, when the lice are beginning to
hatch, the ants tunnel about the roots of corn, or various
weedy plants, and transport the little aphides to them.
The lice feed upon the sap of the plant, sucking it
through their tiny beaks, and multiply viviparously, or
by giving birth to living young. They continue devel-

267

268 INSECTS AisD INSECTICIDES

oping in this way until fall, when the egg-laying brood
is produced.

The presence of these lice upon the roots can easily
be determined by carefully pulling or digging up plants
supposed to be injured. The aphides, if present, will be
seen crowding the roots as small, bluish-green particles.
The affected plants generally appear yellow and sickly,
growing slowly or not at all.

Remedies. — Professor Forbes summarizes the
economic results of years of study of this pest by recom-
mending :*^ (1) That the fertility of the ground should
be maintained as a general safeguard, and that cultiya-
tion should be so managed — especially that of the lower
parts of the field — so as to prevent so far as practicable
the seeding of pigeon grass and smartweed among com ;
(2) that infested fields should be plowed deeply and
thoroughly, harrowed late in fall or during some suitable
early winter interval ; and (3) that a somewhat rapid
rotation of crops should be systematically followed, corn
usually being allowed to grow on the same ground but
two years in succession."

The Northern Corn = root Worm

Dmbrotica longicornis

in Illinois, Kansas and other Western States, the
roots of corn are frequently eaten off, during June and
July, by a slender white worm, a little less than half an
inch long, and about as thick as a common pin. It has
a small, brown head, and three pairs of short legs near
the front end, as shown at Fig. 143, c. It attacks
the roots from the outer ends, burrowing beneath the
surface, and eating its way toward the stalk. Shortly
after midsummer it becomes full-fed, and deserting, the
root, pupates in the surrounding soil. The pupa {d) is
about one-fifth of an inch long, and white in color. A

THE NOKTHEEN CORN ROOT WORM

269

few days later it again transforms, and emerges as a
grass-green beetle of the form represented at Fig. 143,
e. " The beetle climbs up the stalk/' according to
Professor Forbes's account, ^Miving upon fallen pollen,
and upon the silk at the top of the ear, until the latter
dries, when a few-of the beetles creep down between the
husks and feed upon the corn itself, while the others
resort for food .to the pollen of such weeds in the field as
are at that time in blossom. In September and October
the eggs (a) are laid in the ground, upon or about the
roots of the corn, and most of the beetles soon after dis-

riG. 143. CORN-ROOT WORM, o, egg; 6, smaU section of egg, greatly
magnified; c, larva; d, pupa; e, beetle. Magnified.

appear from the field." They feed for awhile upon vari-
ous fall flowers and gradually die off, the winter being
passed by means of the eggs deposited in the corn ground.
The eggs hatch the following sj^ring.

Remedies. — As the eggs of this insect are depos-
ited in autumn in corn ground, rotation of crops furnishes
a simple method of preventing its injuries. If the land
is planted to some other crop the year following, the
larvae, on hatching, will be deprived of suitable food,
and consequently will perish.

270

INSECTS AKD INSECTICIDES

The Southern Corn=root Worm

Diahrotica 12-pu7ictata

The four later stages of this insect are represented
at Fig. 144. The larva (d) is a slender, whitish worm,
about half an inch long, resembling the Northern corn-
root worm, to which in fact it is closely related. It
feeds promiscuously upon the roots and base of the stalk

FIG. 144. SOUTHERN CORN-KOOT WORM. «, egg; &, larva; c, corn stalk
showing punctures; rf, pupa; e, beetle. All but c magnified.

of corn, pupating in the soil about the roots, and emerg-
ing shortly afterwards as a yellow beetle with twelve
black spots upon the back (e). There are two broods
each season, eggs for the first brood being deposited by
the female beetles in spring about the roots of young
corn, and the second brood of larvas generally develop-
ing upon the roots of certain wild plants, especially those
of the Composite family. The insect hibernates as an

WIREWORMS

271

adnlt, and the beetles feed upon a great variety of vegeta-
tion, often doing serious damage to cucumbers, squashes,
melons, and other garden vegetables.

Remedies. — No practicable remedy has yet been
found for this insect in its corn-infesting stage.

Wireworms

ElateridcB

Sprouting kernels of corn are often attacked by a
hard, slender, yellowish worm, commonly called the
wireworm, which eats out the substance of the seed or
attacks the young roots. These are the young or larvae
of various species of brown, flat-
tened, elongate beetles, called

click beetles, snapping bugs, or^

145. WIREWORM
CLICK BEETLE.

AND

** skipjacks," on account of their ^
habit of snapping upward in the |ij
air when placed on their backs.
Eggs are laid by these beetles in
grass lands especially, and the
larvae that hatch feed, presumably
for two years, upon the roots of
various plants. They finally
transform during autumn in hol-
low cells in the earth into pupae,
and shortly afterwards again change to beetles. They
do not all however, leave their pupa cells at once, but
many remain in them until the following spring. Pro-
fessor J. H. Comstock has found that in breeding cages,
if these cells be broken open in the fall, the beetles die.
Remedies. — On account of the fact just mentioned,
fall plowing has been recommended as a preventive of
wireworm injury, the supposition being that the cells in
which the beetles are resting will thus be broken open
and the insects perish. A rotation by which clover will

272 tBTSEOTS AND INSECTICIDES

come in between grass and com is suggested as the best
way of preventing injury in cornfields.

INJURING THE STALK AND LEAVES

The Stalk Borer

Gortyna nitela

The terminal leaves of growing com plants are some-
times observed suddenly to wilt and wither. If pulled
upward it will be seen that they have been cut off inside
the stalk, where there will generally be found a striped.

FIG. 146. STALK BORER. 1, moth ; 2, larva.

brown worm, of the form represented at Fig. 146, 2.
This is the stalk borer, so called because of its habit of
borrowing the stalks of various plants, such as the potato,
tomato, cocklebur, etc. It hatches from an Qgg laid by
a brown moth (1), and pupates beneath the soil surface.
The moths appear late in summer or early in autumn,
and the insect apparently hibernates in its adult condition.
Remedies. — The only general measure that can be
recommended against this insect is that of clean farming.
The species largely develops in wayside weeds, and con-
sequently these should be destroyed. Wherever the larvse
are found at work they should, of course, be killed.

THE GARDEN WBBWOEM

273

Cutworms

KoctuidcB

The general life history of the yarious species of cut-
worms has already been described on Page 2bQ. These
pests are especially liable to injure corn planted on sod
land, but such damage may easily be prevented by using
the poison traps described in connection with remedies
for cabbage cutworms (p. 257). The field to be planted
should be strewn with poisoned cloyer or grass, or cab-
bage leaves, before the crop is put in, altliough if not
done then the baits may be placed between the rows
afterwards.

The Garden Webworm

Eurycreon rant all s

This insect occasionally becomes destructive over a
wide area, and damages a great variety of crops, although
corn usually suffers most.
The adult is a small grayish
moth (Fig. 147, /), expand-
ing about three-quarters of
an inch, the females of
which deposit their eggs
upon the leaves or stems of
various plants. Soon after
hatching the young larvae
begin to spin a protective ^^^- i-i7. gardex webwokji. «,

° . ^ . ^ larva; f7,inipa, both twice natural

web, which is enlarged as size;/, motli.sUghtly enlarged.

the insects develop. Beneath this they feed upon the
foliage, eating at first only the surface substance, but as
they grow older they devour the whole leaf. The larvae
become full-grown in about a fortnight, when they spin
thin, brownish cocoons on the ground, and change to
18

274 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

pupge, to emerge ten days or two weeks later as moths.
There are two or three broods each season.

Remedies. — Spraying or dusting infested plants
with London purple or Paris green is the most practical
remedy for this insect that has yet been suggested.

The Corn=leaf Aphis

Aphis maidis

The leaves and stalks of corn are often infested by
colonies of a small bluish aj^his or plant louse, the ma-
jority of which are wingless and the rest winged. This
is the corn aphis. It has been for a long while consid-
ered the aerial form of the corn-root louse, but the latest
inyestigatious indicate that the two are distinct species.

The full life history of this insect is not known. It
is probably the summer form of some species that passes
the fall, winter and spring upon a tree or shrub. The
winged viviparous females appear upon the corn early in
summer and start colonies of young lice which develop
rapidly and continue to multiply viviparously until the
approach of cold weather in autumn. Then a winged
brood appears and leaves the corn, migrating, doubtless,
to some other plant. But where it goes, and where the
winged females that start the colonies in early summer
come from, is not known.

These plant lice have many natural enemies with
which to contend. Chief among these are certain mi-
nute four-winged parasitic flies, the lady beetles and the
harvest spiders or daddy longlegs. The first-named of
these enemies are true parasites, developing within the
bodies of the aphides, but the rest are predaceous insects.
There are several species of lady beetles that, both in
their larval and adult states, prey upon the corn aphis.
It is probable, also, that great numbers of the aphides
are destroyed by the harvest spiders which abound upon

THE COEN WOBM OE BOLLWORM

275

corn plants during summer. One of the commonest of
these — the striped harvest spider — is shown, natural
size, at Plate XIV.

Remedies. — It seldom becomes necessary to resort
to artificial remedies for this insect. Whil^ it could
readily be destroyed with kerosene emulsion, the appli-
cation generally would not pay in field culture.

INJURING THE EARS

The Corn Worm or Bollworm

HeliotMs armigera

In the Southern States this insect is called the boll-
worm because it feeds upon cotton bolls; but at the

PIG. 148. CORX WORM, a, b, eggs, side view and top view, magnified;
c, larva; d, pupa, in cocoon; e, moth witli wings expanded; /, moth
with wings closed.

North it is known as the corn worm from its habit of
eating the kernels of ripening com. On this account it
has come to be recognized as one of the most vexatious

PLATE XV. CORN mjUBED B7 COBN WOBU.

THE CORN" WOEM OR BOLLWOEM 277

insect enemies of tliis crop, and no thorongligoing rem-
edy that is practicable on a large scale has as yet been
devised for it. The parent is a good-sized, greenish-
yellow moth (Fig. lis e, f) with a conspicuous black
spot near the middle of the front wings, and various
olive or nifous markings. These insects deposit their
eggs among the silks of the young ears. The larvae
soon hatch and eat through the husk to the succulent
kernels beneath, which they devour greedily for several
weeks, gnawing irregular channels along the cob (Plate
XV). When full-grown (148, c) they are an inch and a
half long, of a j^ale green or dark brown.color, ornamented
with longitudinal darker stripes. They now leave the
ear, and, entering the soil a few inches, form loose
cocoons of silk with particles of soil intermixed, within
winch they change to chestnut-brown pnpge (148, d),
emerging about a fortnight later as moths. At the North
there are two broods, a third one occasionally developing
in exceptionally long seasons, while at the South there
are four or five. The first brood is especially likely to
infest early sweet corn in gardens.

Remedies. — Hand picking is the only remedy that
has been suggested, except that of catching the moths
by light traps. The silk of infested ears shows the pres-
ence of the larvae by being prematurely dry or partially
eaten, and the larvae may be readily found and crushed.
In garden patches of sweet c«?rn, at least, this method is
worth using. In fields, fall plowing will help to reduce
the amount of damage by destroying the pupae, either
directly or indirectly, by exposing them to the weather
and birds.

INSECTS AFFECTING WHEAT

INJURING THE 5TALK AND LEAF

The Hessian Fly

Cecidomyia destructor

This is one of the oldest and best-known insect pests
of American agriculture. It has ranked as a destructive
species for more than a century, and has probably been

introduced 11 early every-

f where that wheat is
grown. The adult is a
small, two-winged, mos-
i^ ^^~^:^ii-^ ^^^^=^11:^:^ quito-like fly (Fig. 149,

%j]^ ^^"'"'"p'^^^^^^^^ d), the females of which

deposit their eggs on the
uj^per surfaces of the
wheat blades early in
autumn. In a few days ,
^ ^ the larvae hatch, and

FIG. W9. HESSIAN FLY. «, iar\4; 6, each descends the leaf

pupa; c, injured stem; d, fly. ^^ ^^^ y^^^^ ^f ^^^ sheath,

where it attaches itself, head downwards, to the stalk,
and proceeds to absorb the life sap of the plant. As the
latter grows the young larva becomes imbedded in the
stalk, where it remains stationary. When full-grown
(which occurs in three or four weeks from the time of
hatching) the larva is a soft, white, footless maggot of
the form represented at a. Its outer skin now becomes
hard and brown, and separates from the rest of the body,

278

XBE HESSIA2Sf FLY 279

altbongh it stili snrronnds the latter, forming a sort of
cocoon, or, as it is more correctly called, puparium
within which the insect changes to a pupa (5). This is
the *' flaxseed'' state, so called because of the resemblance
of these brown puparia to flaxseeds. The winter is usu-
ally passed in this condition, and in spring the flies
emerge from the flaxseeds to lay eggs for another brood.
The larvae of the fall brood affect the young wheat
plants just above the roots, between the stalk and sheath-
ing base of the leaf, but the spring generation are
formed a little higher up, at the joints an inch or more
above the soil surface. This second generation completes
its transformations before harvest, and there is often, if
not always, at least as far north as the latitude of 40°, a
third brood, which develops during summer in volunteer
wheat; and Professor Forbes has shown that there may
occasionally be even a fourth brood during the year. But
the chief damage is done by the fall and spring broods.

There are several species of insect parasites which
attack the Hessian fly, so checking it that in most localities
it only occasionally becomes injurious.

Remedies. — The most promising method of pre-
venting the injuries of this insect appears to be that of
inducing the flies to deposit their eggs in young wheat,
and then destroying it. Where a third brood develops
in volunteer wheat this end may be accomplished by
turning under this volunteer growth when the Hessian-
fly larvae are about half-grown ; or in case no such brood
develops in the volunteer wheat, a few strips in the field
may be seeded to wheat a few weeks before the regular
planting time, and the flies will lay their eggs in these,
which are afterwards to be plowed under. Ih^'s the
main crop of wheat will escape infestation.

^0

JK8ECTS A2XD I^fSECTICIDBS

The Chinch Bug

Blissus leucopterus

The chincli bug and the Eocky Mountain locust have
long been known as the arch enemies of Western agricul-
ture. They have each destroyed millions of dollars' worth
of property, and have often caused great destitution over
large areas. The chinch bug flourishes best at the South,

FIG. 150. CHINCH BUG. «, 6, eggs ; c, e, /, young ; gr, nymph or pnpa ; h,

adult. Magnified.

but occasionally occurs in destructive numbers as far
north as New York and Minnesota. Like other injurious
insects it is subject to periodical uprisings, which usually
continue one, two, or three seasons before the various
natural checks upon its increase reduce its numbers below
the danger line.

The adult chinch bug (Fig. 150, h) is a small black-
ish insect, slightly less than one-fifth of an inch long,
with the legs dark yellow, and their tips black. The
young (<?, e, f) do not differ in general form from the
adults. When first hatched they are pale yellow, but
they soon become red ; this continues to be the prevail-
ing color until the pupal or last nymph stage {g) ^s

THE CHINCH BUG 281

reached. The insect is then grayish or brownish-black.
The eggs («, i) are quite small, being about 0.03 inch in
length, and amber colored. Short-winged varieties of
the adult chinch bugs are sometim.es found.

Professor S. A. Forbes has summarized the life his-
tory of this insect as follows : ''The chinch bug passes
the winter in the adult winged state (a few black wing-
less individuals occasionally occurring) under rubbish in
or around the fields, in corn shocks and straw piles,
under boards and among dead leaves in the woods, most
abundant, usually, around the edges of the fields and in
thickets, and around the borders of woods. From these
lurking }3laces such as survive the winter emerge in
April and May (possibly sooner, if the season opens
early), and, after pairing, lay their eggs in May and
June, in fields of spring and winter wheat, barley,
rye, oats and corn — chiefly in wheat and barley — most
of the eggs being deposited in or near the ground, on
the lower parts of the plants. Many of those hibernat-
ing around fields sown to wheat and barley make their
way in on foot, thus attacking the outer edges first ; but
others take wing and scatter freely wherever suitable
food invites them.

"By July most of the old bugs will be dead, and
the new brood will be nearly full-grown, — far enough
advanced by harvest to abandon the wheat fields for the
nearest available food — oats or corn, if these are adja-
cent ; otherwise and more rarely, grass. Making their
way in on foot, only the borders of these fields will be at
first attacked ; but later, by the 1st of August at the
farthest, the bugs not already located will begin to fly,
and so will become generally disseminated through fields
of corn. Here the eggs are laid behind sheaths of the
lower leaves, and under the protection of this retreat the
young hatch and mature, only coming out upon the
exposed surfaces of the leaves when they become super-

282

INSECTS AN"D INSECTICIDES

abundant or when they get their growth. The full-
grown bugs fly freely, singly but not in swarms, w^hen-
ever their food fails them where they are. Earely we
find in the southern part of Illinois some trace of a third
brood in a season, the young of these appearing in Sep-
tember in the corn — but these are in too small numbers
to haye any practical importance. The broods are
mainly two, one breeding chiefly in wheat, and the other

almost wholly in corn, the
adults of the latter brood
passing the winter as above
described. Each female is
believed to be capable of lay-
ing about five hundred eggs.
**The chinch bug is
practically confined for food
to the great family of grasses
(GraminecB) which contains
all the cereals and grasses,
tame and wild. Some of
these, however, it feeds upon
with reluctance, if at all ;
and among the ordinary ob-
jects of its food it has its very
decided preferences. Among
the crop plants, wheat, barle7
FIG. 151. CHINCH BUGS AFFECTED and ryc, sorglium, broom
BY ENTOMOPHTHORA. ^j^m aud ludiau corn, millet
and Hungarian grass are its favorite foods, with oats
clearly second to these ; while among the wild grasses
its preference is for foxtail grass and * tickle grass '
{Setaria and Bragrostis)."

The chinch bug is subject to the attack of yarions
predaceous insects and vertebrate enemies. Of the for-
mer the ladybugs furnish a good example, and of the
latter certain birds, especially the quail, may be men-

THE CHINCH BUG 283

tioned. But these enemies are insignificant so far as
concerns their effects upon the numbers of the bugs,
when compared with certain fungous or bacterial dis-
eases to which these pests are liable. These diseases
sweep them off by the million, and are usually the most
potent factor in checking their outbreaks. One of these
is a fungus that develops on the surface of the bug as a
dense white covering. This disease is illustrated at Fig.
151 : a number of the dead bugs are shown on a dead
wheat stalk at the left, while a single bug, much magni-
fied, covered with the fungus, is represented at the right.
This fungus belongs to a genus of plants called by bot-
anists Entomophthora.

Remedies.— Professor S. A. Forbes has divided
the remedial and preventive measures applicable to the
chinch bug into three general classes, namely : (1) Ag-
ricultural methods ; (2) barriers against migration ; (3)
direct destruction. Under the first of these heads are
included (1) clean farming, especially the cleaning up of
refuse that may serve as protection for the bugs during
winter, and the destruction of the grass-like weeds upon
which they feed ; (2) diversified farming and the culture
of crops not affected by the chinch bug; (3) the tem-
porary abandonment, in corn districts, of small grains,
especially wheat and barley ; and vice versa, the similar
abandonment of corn in small grain districts ; (4) heavy
fertilization to enable the crops better to withstand
attack ; (5) the use of suiplus seed, or the mixing of
clover or timothy seed with small grains when sowed, to
produce a heavy growth in which chinch bugs do not
like to work ; (6) plowing under the bugs and their eggs
whenever this is practicable.

Under the head of barriers against migration are
included : (1) plowing and harrowing at harvest time
around infested fields, or plowing one or two deep furrows
around the field ; (2) pouring coal tar along the ground

284 INSECTS AND IXSECTICIDES

just outside the infested fields and digging holes occasion-
ally on the inside of the tar line for the bugs to fall into ;
(3) planting strips with crops not subject to injury by
the chinch bug.

But the most satisfactory class of remedies consists of
those by which the insects are killed outright, and in
future outbreaks these will probably play a much more
important part than in the past. The bugs are easily
destroyed by kerosene emulsion, and by means of the
improved sj^rayiug machines now upon the market this
substance can advantageously be used against them. Dur-
ing fall, winter and spring, all infested grasslands, and so
far as possible, wood lands, should be burned over to
destroy the hibernating bugs. Remarkable success has
also lately been attained in spreading, artificially, the
funo-Qus diseases of the chinch bug.

The Grain Aphis

This insect occasionally becomes destructive to wheat
and oats over large areas. It is a small greenish or

FIG. 152. WHEAT IXFESTED BY GRAIN APHIS.

brownish aphis, with or without wings, which breeds
upon wheat, oats, and various other plants of the grass
family. It obtains its food by inserting a pointed beak
into the leaf or stem and sucking out the sap. As the
wheat gets ripe it migrates to the more succulent oats,
and when these ripen goes to various grasses. It brings
forth living young, and its rate of multiplication is very
great, it being estimated that a single louse in spring

THE WHEAT BULB WOEM

285

may become the ancestor of millions before autumn.
The true sexecl forms have not yet been found. The
injury of these insects is chiefly
manifested by the shriveling of
the grain in infested fields.

Fortunately this insect has
many natural enemies with
which to contend. Chief among
these are little fonr-winged par-
asitic flies, and various species
of lady beetles. These natural
enemies are undoubtedly the
means of preventing this pest
from overrunning grain-fields
every year.

Remedies. — As yet no
practical artificial remedy for
the grain aphis is known. Ker-
osene emulsion will destroy
them, but the difficulty of reach-
ing them with it when they
occur on the under surface of
the leaf, makes the remedy
hardly practical. We must or-
dinarily rely upon the weather wheat head. Magumed.
and its various natural enemies to hold it in check.

FIG. 153. GEAIX APHIDES ON

The Wheat=bulb Worm

Meromyza americana

This insect has attracted the attention of economic
entomologists only during com^^aratively recent years.
The adult is a handsome two-winged fly (Fig. 154, d),
having two longitudinal yellowish stripes along its back.
The females deposit eggs in the fall on the young wheat
plants, and the larvae, on hatching, feed upon the central

286

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

portion of the stem, just above the bulb of the plant.
They remain here through the winter, becoming full-
grown in spring. They are then footless cylindrical larva9
of the form shown at b. They pupate in the spring and

a fortnight later
emerge as flies. After
mating, the female
flies of this brood de-
posit eggs for larvaa
which work into the
straw, just above the
last joint, thus cut-
ting off the sap sup-
ply from the head
and causing it to
wither and dry up. These larvae complete their trans-
formations during July, when they are on the wing as
flies. Early in July eggs are deposited by this brood of
flies on volunteer wheat, and the transformations of
these are completed in time for the adults to lay their
eggs in the fall wheat. Consequently there are three
broods each season. Besides wheat this insect breeds
in oats and various grasses.

Remedies. — The destruction of volnnteer wheat
after the worms have got started in it, and the early
planting of strips to induce them to oviposit, are the
best remedial measures for this insect.

FIG. 154. WHEAT-BULB WORM. OU, egg; 6,
larva; c, puparium; d, fly. Magnified.

Wheat Jointworms

Isosoma hordei and /. fritici

There are two nearly related species of minute four-
winged flies (Fig. 155) which deposit eggs in wheat
stems that hatch into the so-called jointworms. Ac-
cording to Mr. F. M. Webster, '^the females push their
ovipositors into the stems of growing wheat and deposit

WHEAT JOINTWORMS

287

fcheir eggs singly, but often several in each straw. This
is done during the early spring, and again during June,
in the latitude of Central Indiana, the young larvae feed-
ing upon the substance of the stem; but, being secure
from ordinary observation, they are seldom noticed.
We have found five of these larvae at work on a single
stem. These worms do not usually wither the straw.

flGk. 155. JomxwoBM. a, galls at joints; &, female fly. Magnified.

and the effect of their work is only to be observed in the
shorter and more slender stem, shorter heads and smaller
and less plump kernels.

*^ The larvae are almost invariably found below the
upper joint, and hence, by cutting the grain a little
high, they can be left in the field, and as they pass the
winter as pupae in the same situation, by burning the
stubble any time between harvest and the following
March they can be destroyed. As the adults emerging
from the old straws in spring are almost invariably
wingless, they cannot travel about very rapidly. And
hence changing the grain from one field to another, or
rotating the crop, is often quite effectual in keeping
them in check. Those adults appearing in June from
the growing plants are provided with well-developed

288 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

wings, and can travel about from field to field with the
utmost freedom/'

INJURING THE HEADS

The Wheat Midge

Cecidomyia tritici

This insect is closely related to the Hessian fly. The
adult is a small, two-winged, yellow or orange colored
fly that appears in the wheat fields a few weeks before
harvest time, and deposits its minute eggs in the crev-
ices between the chaff of the wheat heads. These eggs
soon hatch into little footless maggots that attack tlie
young germ or kernel, blasting it. About three weeks
later they become full-grown ; they then leave the heads
and enter the ground, where they pupate. There is but
one brood each year. Besides wheat, the midge is said
to breed in rye, barley, oats, and possibly grass.

Remedies. — Early-maturing grains are less liable
to be infested by this insect than those ripening later.
Consequently farmers in regions where it is present plant
such varieties early, with general high culture. Many
of the insects will be destroyed by the deep plowing of
the infested fields.

INJURING STORED GRAIN

The Grain Weevil

Calandra granaria

There are several species of beetles infesting gran-
aries, the habits and life histories of which, however,
are quite similar. As an example we may take the im-
ported grain weevil, the larva of which is represented at
Fig. 156, a. The parent insect being a small, dark-red-
dish snout beetle (h), deposits its eggs upon the grain.
The eggs soon hatch into legless little larvaa that eat out

THE GEAIK WEEVIL 289

the substance of the kernels, and become full-grown (a)
in a few weeks. They then change to pupae and soon
afterwards again transform to adult beetles. There are
several broods each season. All sorts of stored grain,
such as corn, oats, wheat, barley, etc., are attacked by
these insects.

Remedies. — Bisulphide of carbon appears to be
the best insecticide to use against grain weevils. The
vapor of this substance is poisonous to insect life, and
as it is heavier than air it will
descend between the kernels
of grain, destroying all the
weevils which it reaches. Dr.
C. V. Riley has lately called ^W.
attention to the following / ^i
method of using il, premis-
ing with the statement that
one and a half pounds of bi- j a

sulphide is sufficient for each fig. ise. grain weevil, a, lar-

ton of grain : "A ball of tow va; b, beetle. Magnified.

is tied to a stick of such a length that it can reach the
middle of the vessel containing the grain. The tow
receives the charge of bisulphide like a sponge, and is
at once plunged into the vessel and left there, the mouth
or opening of the vessel then being tightly closed.
When necessary, the stick may be withdrawn and the
charge (of 1 ounce to 100 pounds of grain) may be
renewed. The action of carbon bisulphide lasts in ordi-
nary cases six weeks, after which period a fresh charge
is required. The bisulphide does no harm to the grain
as regards its color, smell, or cooking properties, and
the germinating power of most seeds is not appreciably
affected, provided that not too much is used, nor its
action continued for too long a period."

19

290

INSECTS AlHD lisSECTICIDES

^

^,1

[■^-sM--^

^S jO *!

4}^

FIG. 157. COKN IXJURED
BY GliALN KOIH.

The Angoumis Grain
Moth

GelecMa cerealella

This insect derives its com-
mon name from the fact that it
was first carefully studied in the
province of Angoumois, France.
Ifc has long been known as a pest
of extraordinary destructive power,
and both in Europe and America
has caused enormous losses. It is
more injurious in the warm climate
of the South than in the North.
Mr. F. M. Webster has summa-
rized its life history in these words :
"The insect passes the winter in
the larval state, pupates in the
spring, and the moths appear in
May or June. These pair imme-
diately and deposit their eggs on
the young grains of the new crop
in the field, if they are allowed to
escape, or, if not, on the grain in
the bins where they originated.
These eggs hatch in from four to
seven days, and the larvae burrow
into the grain and themselves
transform to moths, about August,
or often during the latter part of
July. These moths deposit their
eggs after the manner of the previ-
ous brood, and the larvas from
these, nearly if not quite all, reach
maturity during the fall and trans-
form the following spring. The

THE ANGOUMIS GRAIN MOTH 291

number of broods and the time of appearances vary
greatly with the climate and season ; in warm countries
broods follow each other in rapid succession during tlie
entire year." The easiest way of killing these pests is
by means of the carbon bisulphide treatment described
in connection with the i^rain weevil.

INSECTS AFFECTING CLOVER

INJURING THE ROOT

The Clover=root Borer

Hylastes trifolii

This insect was originally a native of Europe, from
whence it was introduced into America not very many

years ago. The adult is a
small, brownish-black, punc-
tate beetle (Fig. 158, d), not
quite one-tenth of an inch long.
It deposits eggs during spring
in the crown of the clover
l^lant, four or five eggs being
laid on each plant. Shortly
afterwards the larvae hatch
and burrow downward through
the larger roots {a, a) feeding
upon the inner substance, and
filling the galleries behind
them with their sawdust-like
excrement. Late in summer
the larvae become fully grown
{h), when they are one-eighth
of an inch long, wdtli a whitish
body and yellow head. They

FIG. 158. CLOVEK-KOOT BOKEK. *' •' / \ •<! • i1

a, infested plant; b, larva; c, chanffC tO pupae ic) Wlthlll thO
pupa: d, beetle: b,ccl, uiagni- , ■,-,,/( ii i

fied. tunneled roots {a,a), and short-

ly afterwards emerge as adult beetles. The species gen-
erally passes the winter in the beetle state, but occasion-

292

THE CLOVER LEAF BEETLE 2d'd

ally hibernates as a larva or pupa. Tlie injuries of this
insect are frequently yery serious, whole fields of clover
often being destroyed. Fortunately its ravages are as
yet confined to a comparatively few States, but it is
likel}' to spread over a large portion of the country.

Remedies. — In regions infested by this insect it
has been found necessary to rotate the clover crop more
frequently than before, mowing the seeded land but
once, and pasturing or plowing under the abundant sec-
ond growth. In this way the crop is turned under
before the injuries of the borer become manifest. Ac-
cording to many of the most successful farmers, this
frequent rotation is deemed desirable anyhow, so that
the insect, in their opinion, is a means of compelling
the adoption of an improvement in farm management.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The CIover=leaf Beetle

Pliytonomus punctatus

Like so many other of our injurious insects, the
native home of this species is Europe, from wdience it
was probably introduced into America many j^ears ago,
although it has only been seriously destructive here for
a conq^aratively few years. It was. first noticed in New
York State, and as yet has not spread to very many other
States, although it is likely to do so.

Dr. C. V. Riley, who first worked out the American
life history of this species, has admirably illustrated this
insect and its injury at Fig. 159. The adult (t, /, k) is
a dark-brow^n snout beetle, not quite half an inch long,
which feeds greedily upon the clover leaves at night,
remaining concealed among the rubbish on the soil sur-
face during the day. The female beetles deposit their
eggs in irregular clusters in the hollow leaf or flower
stems or between the leaf bracts at the base of the plant.

294

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

Tlie eggs are very small, oval, smooth, and yellowish-
green. Each female is capable of depositing 200 to 300
eggs. In about ten days the larvae hatch and begin
feeding on the leaves. They are legless little grubs of
the form shown at c. They continue feeding and grow-
ing {h, i, l) for seven or eight weeks, increasing much

FIG. 159. CLOVER-LEAF BEETLE. 6, h, b, b, larvEe feeding; /, cocoon;
i, beetle— aU natural size; a, egg; c, youngi larva; r/, meshes of
cocoon; Jt, pupa; k,j, beetle, back and side views — magnified.

in size and molting three times during the period.
The larvae, like the beetles, are mostly nocturnal in their
habits, and ordinarily remain concealed during the day.
The full-grown larvae form pale-yellow cocoons, consist-
ing of a coarse network of silk (/, g) in the soil, just
beneath the surface. They pupate (h) within these

THE CLOVEE SEED MIDGE

295

cocoons, and a month later emerge as beetles. There is
apparently but one brood each season, although it is
possible that there may sometimes be two. During the
early summer months (May and June) it is mostly in its
immature stages. It ordinarily hibernates as an adult,
but may also occasionally pass the winter in the other
stages of its existence.

Remedies. — The only remedy yet suggested is
that of plowing under infested fields during May or
June, thus destroying the immature stages.

INJURING THE HEAD

The Clover=seed flidge

Cecidomyia legumi7iicola

The clover-seed midge is a small orange-colored
maggot that deyelops in the clover heads at the expense
of the young seeds. It
hatches from eggs laid
by a very small, two-
winged fly (Fig. 160, a),
similar to the Hessian
fly in appearance. The
female is provided with
a long ovipositor with
which she pushes her
eggs in among the young
flowers. When the lar- »| # \-\ &

va is full-grown \b) ltj,_j^^ jgQ^ clover-seed midge, a, fly;
wriggles its way out of 6, lai-va. Magnified.

the head and falls to the ground, where at or just be-
neath the soil surface it forms a slight cocoon, within
which it changes to the pupal state. About ten days
later the flies emerge to lay eggs for another brood. In
the Northern States there are two broods each season,
while at the South there are at least three, and possibly

296 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

more. Clover fields infested by this insect are at once
distinguished by the unnatural condition of the heads at
time of blossoming ; instead of being red with bloom,
the heads are green and dwarfed on account of the unde-
veloj^ed florets.

Remedies. — The best preventive of the injuries of
this insect yet suggested is that of mowing the field
about the middle of May (in the latitude of Central Ohio)
when the green heads are just forming, and leaving the
partial crop thus cut on the ground as a mulch and fer-
tilizer. A new crop of blossoms is then produced, which
comes. between the regular crops, and also between the
two broods of the midge. This method has been tried
for several years by some of the best farmers of Ohio,
Avith excellent results. The other remedies ordinarily
recommended are early cutting of the first crop — about
ten days earlier than usual — and pasturing the fields in
spring. But there are serious objections to both these
methods.

INJURING THE STEM

The Clover=stem Borer

Languria mozardi

This insect has been frequently discussed in ento-
mological literature as an enemy to clover, but no record
has yet been made siiowing that it ever seriously injures
this crop. Until lately it was sujoposed to develop exclu-
sively in clover, but recent observations indicate that it
breeds more freely in other plants, especially certain
weeds of the Composite family, than in clover. The
adult insect is a small, elongate beetle, about one-fourth
of an inch long, with the thorax yellowish-red, and the
wing covers shining bluish-black. The larva is a slender,
cylindrical creature, witlr tlirce pairs of jointed legs on
its under surface near the head, and a pair of pro-legs at

THE CLOVER HAY WORM

297

the posterior extremity. The pupa is nsually of a yel-
lowish color.

The eggs of this insect are eyidently deposited in a
great variety of plants, in the stems of which the larvae
develop, feeding upon the pith of the stalk. So long as
there is a plentiful supply of wild plants, it is doubtful
if it becomes of economic importance.

INJURING THE HAY

The CIover=hay Worm

Asopia costatis

Clover hay that has been standing in the mow or stack
for some time is often infested by numerous small brown
worms which w^eb the dried stems and leaves together
and feed upon them.
This is the insect
named above, and
its various stages are
represented, natural
size, at Fig. 161.
The adult is a very
pretty little purple
and golden moth
(5, 6) which depos-
its eggs upon such
clover hay as it has
access to. Some-
times the eggs are
deposited in the clover heads in the field. The eggs
soon hatch into small brown worms that become full-
grown (1, 2) in a few weeks. They then spin silken
cocoons (3) within which they change to chrysalids (4),
to emerge soon after as adult moths. There are two or
more broods each season.

FIG. 161.

CLOVER-HAY WORM. 1, 2, larva;
cocoon ; 4, pupa ; 5, 6, moth.

298 INSEOTS AND IKSECTIGIDES

Remedies. — ^It will readily be seen that these insects
are liiore likely to prove troublesome when old hay is left
over from season to season for them to breed in. Conse-
quently haymows should be thoroughly cleaned out each
summer, and new stacks should not be put on old founda-
tions until all of the leavings of the previous season are
removed. Hay which is thickly infested by the worms
should be burned*

INSECTS AFFECTING GRASS

INJURING THE ROOTS

The White Grub

LacJinosterna fusca

This notorious pest is the young or larva of the
eoip^mon May beetle or June bug. Its life history may
be briefly summarized as follows: The brown beetles,
shown at 8 and 4, Pig. 162, appear during May and June,

FIG. 162. MAY BEETLE. 1, pupa; 2, larva; 3 and4,adalt.

and feed at night upon the foliage of various fruit and
shade trees. They deposit small whitish eggs among
the roots of grass. These eggs hatch into small, brown-
headed grubs, that feed upon the roots about them.
They continue feeding for two seasons, when they are

299

300 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

full-grown and resemble 2, Fig. 162. They then form
an oval cell in the soil and change to the pupal state, and
soon after transform into beetles. The change to the
pupal and beetle states generally occurs in fall, the beetks
remaining in the ground until the following spring, so
that they are often turned up during late fall or early
spring plowing.

Remedies. — This insect is one of the most difficult
pests to fight of its class. It breeds especially in grass
lands, and often ruins pastures and meadows, while crops
planted on sod land are very frequently destroyed. There
is much evidence to prove that with high farming and
short rotations its injuries may largely be prevented.
The parent beetles may be destroyed by spraying the
trees on which they feed with London purj)le or Paris
green. It will often pay, when land infested by these
grubs is to be planted to strawberries or other crops
which they are liable to injure, to have boys follow the
' plow and collect the grubs as they appear in the furrow.
In this way a large amount of damage can frequently be
prevented at very slight expense. The grubs in infested
meadows may be destroyed by turning swine in the field.

The rieadow Haggot

Tipula bicarnea

Meadows are sometimes injured by large, dark-
colored, legless grubs of the form represented at Fig.
163, a, which feed upon the roots just beneath the
surface. These are the larvae of crane flies, the large
two-winged insect represented natural size at c of the
figure. The adults appear in spring, often in great
numbers, and deposit numerous eggs in gi-ass lands. In
a short time these eggs hatch into small blackish grubs
that feed upon the roots of grasses and other plants.
They continue feeding for some time before becoming

THE MEADOW MAGGOT

301

fall-grown, — their food including much decaying vegeta-
tion as well as the living roots, — when they are about an
inch long, and of a dirty grayish-black color. They now
change to pupae, one of which is represented at l, and
about a fortnight later the flies emerge with their long
legs and slender wiugs. The larvae are commonly called
leather jackets or meadow maggots. In England the

VIG. 163. CRAKE FLY. a, larva; 5, pupa; c, adnlt.

crane flies are called daddy longlegs, although in this
country this name is usually applied to the harvest
spiders, a common species of which is represented at
Plate XIV (p. 266). There are a great many species of
these crane flies in America, and the later stages of one

302

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

of the largest of them are represented in the accompany-
icg figure.

Remedies. — In America these insects rarely become
sufficiently injurious to require remedial treatment.
When they do, the most successful plan yet tried is that
of driving a flock of sheep or herd of swine over the field
to kill the larv99 by their trampling.

INJURING THE LEAVES

The Army Worm

Leucania unipuncta

This is one of the most noted insect enemies of
American agriculture. It occasionally does great damage

to a variety of cereal
and forage crops, al-
though during recent
years its irruptions ap-
pear to be growing less
frequent. The worm
itself is closely related
to the cutworms, to
which it is similar in
life history and habits.
It hatches from eggs laid
by a handsome brown
moth (Fig. 164, «), be-
tween the sheaths of
grass blades. The
FIG. 164. ARMY WORM. a,moth; 6,iarva.young larv8e hatch in a
week or ten days, and are at first green, but later become
ornamented with longitudinal stripes of yellow, gray,
and black (5). The larva feeds upon the leaves of grass,
wheat, oats, rye, etc., and becomes full-grown in about
a month from the time of hatching. Ordinarily it re-
mains concealed about the bases of grass or grain, feed-

THE ARMY WORM 303

ing there unnoticed, but occasionally the larvae become
so numerous that they exhaust their food supjilies, and
then they are forced to seek other feeding grounds. At
such times the " armies " appear, and moving in solid
masses sweep all grasses and cereals before them. The
full-grown larvae enter the ground and jnipate in earthen
cells, emerging a fortnight later as moths. In southern
latitudes there are two or three broods each season, while
at the North there are one or two. The insect hiber-
nates both, as a moth and larva, although the latter
doubtless predominates.

The army worm has a great many enemies with
which to contend. It is j^reyed upon by birds, as well
as by predaceous and parasitic insects, and is subject to
the attacks of certain bacterial diseases that often sweep
the larvae off by millions. These various natural enemies
are the chief means of keeping the pest in check.

Remedies. — The burning of pastures and meadows
during fall, winter, or spring, especially the latter, is
very often recommended as a remedy for the army worm,
and large numbers of the larvae may thus be destroyed.
The migration of the worms from field to field may be
prevented by plowing deep furrows with the perpen-
dicular sides away from the worms, or by setting fence
boards on edge, leaning a little toward the worms, and
smearing the upper edge with coal tar. With the
improved appliances for distributing Paris green and
London purj^le now in use, these poisons will no doubt
be more largely used in suppressing future outbreaks of
these worms than in the past. It is quite jirobable also
that we may before long be abL* to fight them by means
of the germs of the contagious diseases to which they are
subject.

304 INSECTS Ai^^D II^SECTICIDES

Grasshoppers

Acrididce

The family of locusts or short-horned grasshoppers
— commonly called simply grasshoppers — contains many
species which are more or less injurious in pastures and
meadows. The hind legs of these insects are long and
strong, enabling them to make the leaps or hops which
has given them their common name. Tiie largest species
of this family inhabiting the United States is the bird
grasshopper or American locust {AcricUum americamim),
represented natural size at Fig. 1G5. At a little distance,
when flying, this handsome insect might easily be mis-

FIG. 165. BIRD GRASSHOPPER OR AMERICAN LOCUST.

taken for a small bird. It inhabits the Southern States,
but occurs rather commonly as far north as the fortieth
degree, of latitude.

The Eocky Mountain locust or Western grasshopper
{Mekmoplus spretus) is the most destructive American
insect of this famil}^ Its stages of growth are shown at
Fig. 1C6. The eggs are laid during the late summer or
early autumn months, in masses of twenty or thirty each,
in the soil just below the surface. They remain over
winter in this condition, hatching in spring into wingless
little hoi^pers as shown at a, a. They gradually increase
in size, and ca^t their skins after a short time, when they

GRASSHOPPERS

305

resemble J. They acquire wing pads in the stage imme-
diately preceding that of the adult, as shown at c, and
finally become full-fledged (f?). They are active during
their entire existence. The native home of this species
is in the high and dry table-lands of the Rocky Mountain
regions, where it breeds year after year. Occasionally it
becomes so abundant in these regions that the food
suj^ply is exhausted, and it is compelled to seek by flight
green pastures. It is at such times that these insects
migrate in vast swarms to the fertile fields of the Missis-
sippi valley, destroying every vestige of greenness in
their path. Fortunately,
however, they are unable
to breed permanently at
these lower levels, and
although eggs are depos-
ited by these invading
hordes, the young hopi^ers
hatched from them seldom
attain a healthy develop-
ment.

The commonest grass-
hopper in the Northern nc. lee. kocky mofntaix locust.

o,, , . 11 T ,1 T «» &i young nymphs; c, fiiUy de-

btates IS called the red- veloped nympU or pnpa; (/, adult.

legged locust {Melanoplus femiir-ru'bru'm). It is closely
allied and very similar to the Rocky Mountain locust.
It frequently becomes seriously destructive in restricted
localities, but never does the widespread damage of its
Western congener. The life history of this sj)ecies has
been summarized by Professor S. A. Forbes as follows :
*^ These locusts are single-brooded; they hibernate in
the egg, hatching in midsummer ; pass through five suc-
cessive molts, gaining their full size, and with tliis their
wings, in August, and commence to lay eggs in September.
The females deposit these in the earth, boring cylindrical
holes for the purpose with the abdomen, and laying the

306 IKSECTS AN"D liiTSECTICIDES

eggs in a symmetrical mass within the burrow thus
formed. With the egg mass is extruded a quantity of
mucus, which soon hardens and forms a sort of case or
matrix, in which the eggs are imbedded. The upper
part of the hole is also filled with this mucus. The fe-
male is commonly busied from two to four or five hours
in the deposit of a single egg mass, and lays, ordinarily,
from two to four such masses in different holes, upon
different days, commencing the process of ovi position,
as a rule, about a month after she has acquired her
wings. After this process is completed the exhausted
females soon perisli. They select by preference, for
oviposition, hard and dry ground, roadsides and pastures
being especially favorite localities. Meadows and pas-
tures are commonly resorted to by the mature females,
especially the latter, as the eggs seem not to be laid
ordinarily on ground covered by luxuriant vegetation.
I have never known them deposited in cultivated earth.

''The food habits of these locusts are extremely
simple, and consist in eating nearly everything that
comes in their way. They are quiet at night, and indeed,
as they mature, they select elevated positions as roosts,
climbing to the tops of stems of grass in meadows, to
the tassels of the stalks in cornfields, and even deserting
fields of low herbage if they can find more elevated roost-
ing points near by. When very abundant, and wlien the
weather continues dry, they occasionally swarm like the
Rocky Mountain locust, but rarely flying continuously
to any great distance, or indeed taking any definite
course."

Fortunately there are a considerable number of
species of animals that depend, to a greater or less extent,
upon grasshoppers for subsistence. Some of these are
predaceous, others parasitic, but all combine in keeping
the pests in check. Prominent among those efiBcient in
this work are the species that live upon or within the

GEASSHOPPERS 307

eggs of the locusts, as the latter exist in that state for
the longest period of their lives, and are also then the
most helpless and susce^^tible to injury. The common
blister beetles {Epicauta) live, so far as known, in their
larval state, exclusively upon the eggs of locusts, and are
thus of immense benefit to man. Small red mites, which
are frequently seen attached to the bodies of the mature
locusts, are also of benefit, in that while young they suck
the life juices of the locusts, and later, puncture their
eggs and extract the contents. The larvae of the common
black ground beetles {CaraUdce), which are to a great
extent carnivorous, also feed upon the eggs, and, as they
are everywhere abundant, contribute not a little to lessen-
ing their numbers. Certain species of two-W'inged flies
(Dij^ftera) are also knowm to be parasitic upon the eggs
as well as upon the adults.

Remedies. — The time w^hen grasshoppers can most
successfully be fought is when they are either in the egg
or young larval states. Shallow plowing and harrowing
during autumn of fields where they are deposited, will
break up many of the egg pods, exposing them to enemies
and the weather. The methods by which young locusts
may be destroyed have been classified by the United
States Entomological Commission as follows : (1) burn-
ing, (2) crushing, (3) trapping, (4) catching, (5) use
of destructive agents. By the first method old hay
or straw is scattered ^'over and around the field in heaps
and windrows, into which the locusts for some time after
they hatch* may be driven and burned." "W^hen the
weather is cold and damp the locusts will seek the shelter
of the hay or straw, and may easily be burned before
escaping. This method is well adapted to upland pas-
tures, where the eggs are usually deposited in the greatest
numbers.

For the successful application of the second method
mentioned above, it is necessary that the surface of the

308 IXSECTS Ais-D INSECTICIDES

fields on wliicli it is applied should be smooth and hard.
Here, again, the upland pastures present unusually favor-
able opportunities for successful work. Dr. Eiley states :
"Where the surface of the ground presents this charac-
ter, heavy rolling can be successfully employed, especi-
ally in the mornings and evenings of the first eight
or ten days after tlie newly hatched young have made
their appearance, as they are generally sluggish during
these times, and huddle together until after sunrise."

The third head given above, that of trapping,
includes ditching, trenching, and the use of pans covered
with coal oil, or coal tar. In the first two processes,
ditches or trenches are dug in favorable situations, into
which the young insects are driven. Probably the use
of pans covered with coal oil will be as simple and adyis-
able a method, unless we excej^t that of rolling, as can
be employed in most infested districts. A small pan
which is well adapted for the purj^ose is described as
follows : "A good and cheap pan is made of ordinary
sheet iron eight feet long, eleven inches wide at the bot-
tom, and turned up a foot high at the back and an inch
high at the front. A runner at each end, extending
some distance behind, and a cord extending to each front
corner, completes the pan, at a cost of about $1.50."
The upper surface of the bottom is wet with kerosene,
and the pans are palled rapidly through the field by
boys who take hold of the ropes.

The use of destructive agents, such as London purple,
Paris green, and the like, has not been attended with
any very great success when applied on a large scale.
But for limited areas, doubtless a great many of the
locusts may thus be easily destroyed. A mixture which
has been successfully employed consists of *' arsenic,
sugar, bran, and water, the proportions being one part,
by weight, of arsenic, one of sugai^, and five of bran, to
which is added a certain quantity of water. The ai'senio

GRASSHOPPERS 309

and bran are first mixed together, then the sugar is
dissolved in water and added to the bran and arsenic,
after which a sufficient quautifc}^ of water is added to
thoroughly wet the mixture. About a teaspoonful of
this mixture is thrown upon the ground at the base of
each tree or vine (in gardens or orchards) and left to do
its work. The poison works slowly, seldom killing its
Tictim within eight or ten hours after it has been eaten."

INSECT Pests of domestic animals

AND THE HOUSEHOLD

PLATB XVI.— THE SCBBW WOKSL

INSECTS AFFECTING DOMESTIC
ANIMALS

The Screw Worm

Comi^somyia macellaria

The screw worm, so far as its injuries are concernecl,
is a Southern insect. Until recently little or no damage
from it had been reported outside of Texas, but lately it
has been injurious in Louisiana, Mississij^pi, and other
Southern States. The fly, however, occurs throughout
America **froni Canada to Patagonia," probably breeding
in northern latitudes in decaying animal and vegetable
matter. Although in the South cattle are especially
liable to the attacks of this insect, it is by no means con-
fined to them, for horses, mules, hogs, sheep, dogs, and
in some recorded cases even men, suffer on account of it.

'^In all animals alike," according to Dr. M. Francis,
who has studied this insect carefully, '^the eggs, after
being laid by the fly, hatch into larvae, or so-called
* worms.' The exact length of time this r-equires seems
to vary with circumstances. My present opinion is that
if the eggs are laid in a moist place and on a warm day,
it requires less than one hour ; whereas if laid in a dry
place, they seem to dry up and lose their vitality. The
young larvae, when first hatched, are small and easily
overlooked. If they are hatched on the surface in a drop
of blood from a ruptured tick, for instance, they attempt
to perforate the skin, and if hatched in wounds they at
once become buried out of sight. They seem to attach

313

314 INSECTS AlfD LtfSECTICIDES

themselves by their heads, and burrow their way under
the skin, completely devouring the soft flesh. Occasion-
ally a few are seen moving from one place to another,
but usually they remain fixed at one point. The worms
grow steadily in size, and the hole in the flesh becomes
larger every day. Sometimes the worm makes tunnels,
but not to any depth ; they usually stay on the surface.
They evidently produce considerable irritation, for the
part is always swollen and constantly bleeding. This
swollen, gaping appearance of the wounds, together with
the constant discharge of blood, are characteristic of the
presence of worms. It seems to require about a week
for the worms to become fully grown. At that time they
are about five-eighths to six-eighths of an inch long.
They then leave the sore and go into the ground, where
they pass the pupal state, and hatch out as flies in from
nine to twelve days."

In the accompanying plate (XVI) the eggs are shown
at a and h, the first representing a single ^gg, greatly
enlarged, and the second a bunch of eggs, also enlarged ;
the larva is represented at c, and the puparium at d aud
e, the former showing the mode of exit of the fly, which
is represented at/ and g.

The ^gg of this insect is one-twenty-fifth inch long,
whitish, and cylindrical, T>'ith a longitudinal ridge on
one side. The full-grown larva is one-fifth inch long by
one-sixth inch in diameter. It is a whitish, footless
grub, with transverse rows of stiff, black bristles at each
articulation. The puj^arium is brown, and two-fifths
inch long. The imago is described as follows : Length,
two-fifths inch ; wing expanse, four-fifths inch ; color,
metallic bluish -green, with golden reflections ; thorax,
with three black, longitudinal stripes ; liead, except
central portion of eyes, yellow ; legs, black ; wing veins,
black ; wings, transparent, except near base, where they
are slightly clouded; entire body furnished with long.

THE OX WAIiBLE OR HEEL ELY

315

black, spinose hairs; proboscis of medium length, with
dilated tip.

Remedies. — According to Dr. Francis, the treat-
ment usually employed consists simply of killing the
hirvae with cresylic ointment, calomel, chloroform, or
carbolic acid. Inasmuch as the insect is able to develop
freely in decaying animal and yegetable matter, it is
important, as a preventive measure, that all refuse be
promptly buried or burned.

The Ox=warble or Heel Fly

Hy2)oderm,a lineata

During the spring and early summer one may often
find along the middle of the backs of cattle, just beneath
the skin, a hard lump, usually having in the center an

c d

FIG. 167. AN OX WARBLE, a, larva ; 6, pupa ; c, fly ; d, section of warble.

opening, which sometimes is more or less of a running
sore. These are the *^ warbles," and the lump is caused
by the presence of a whitish or grayish maggot of the
form represented at «, Fig. 167, which represents a species
closely related to the one here considered. The life

316

IITSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

history of this insect is remarkable. The eggs are laid
in spring by the flies on the hairs of cattle, especially on
the hinder portion of the body and about the heels.
"The cattle licking themselves remove the eggs and
hairs, for this is the shedding season. The eggs hatch
by virtue of the warmth of the mouth, and the newly
hatched larva, provided with a number of s23inous points
and anal hooks, penetrates tlirough the walls of the
oesophagus. It then molts, looses the spines, and becomes

almost entirely smooth
with the excei^tion of some
very minute spines around
the anal portion. Its skin
is underlaid with strong
muscular bands, fitting it
for pushing its way
through the tissues. In
this stage its development
is very slow, and it grad-
ually works its way through
the subcutaneous tissue,
traveling for nine or ten
months, until it has
™.^ iPQ ., , . reached a favorable point

FIG. 168. AMERICAN OX- WARBLE FLY. ^

Magnified. upon the back, where it

molts again, assuming the familiar, sj^iny appearance of
the mature larva, becomes encysted by virtue of the
inflammation of the tissue, and from this inflammation
and from its own growth forms a decided lump under
the skin. After another molt the skin of the animal is
penetrated, and eventually the larva issues through this
hole and falls to the ground to transform to the pupa."*
In about a month it emerges as an adult fly (Fig. 168).
The ulceration caused by these larvae is not only dis-

♦C. V. EUey

THE OX WARBLE OR HEEL FLY 31?

tressing to the animal, but injures the hide and beef,
and, in the case of dairy animals, lessens the quantity
of milk produced.

The beef beneath these warbles has a peculiar, dis-
eased, sickening appearance, and is commonly called
*' licked beef." Such beef always commands a lower
price than that which is unaffected.

Remedies. — Every warble maggot destroyed before
it escapes to the ground to pupate, means that one
less fly will be present to lay eggs for the coming
brood. This should be carefully borne in riiind, for
from it the conclusion is obvious that if all the maggots
present in the backs of cattle of a given neighborhood
are killed, the egg-laying brood of flies will be extermi-
nated, and there Avill be no injury the next season.
There is perhaps no other important injurious insect
whose nunibers can be so readily controlled ; and the
experience of English farmers shows that by concerted
action and the continuation of the treatment, the amount
of warble attack may be very rapidly lessened.

Perhaps the simplest remedy is to squeeze the
maggots out of the warbles. When* they are nearly full-
grown this can be done with little trouble. A pair of
medium sized forceps is often helpful in removing them.

Another simple remedy is to apply to the opening a
little oil or grease, which closes the breathing pores of
the maggot, thus causing it to die. Kerosene applied to
the warbles either in autumn, winter or spring also
destroys them, as does indeed the application of almost any
oily or fatty substance. Train oil or fish oil is especially
commended in England. Dr. C. V. Eiley says that
smearing the animals' backs with this substance '*is the
simplest and easiest method of destroying the warbles,
which it does by closing the breathing pores on the pos-
terior end of the body. The destruction of the larvas in
this way may be effected by one or two applications in

318 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

autumn, and is the most satisfactory method of cou-
trolling the pest."

Cattle Lice

There are three species of lice infesting cattle. Two
of these belong to the group of sucking lice and the third
is one of the biting lice. They are called (1) the short-
nosed ox louse, (2) the long-nosed ox louse, and (3) the
biting ox louse.

The short-nosed ox louse {HcBmatojnnus euryster-
nus) is rejoresented considerably magnified at Fig. 169,
a. Full-grown females of this species are one-sixth of
an inch long, and the males are somewhat smaller. The

beak or rostrum is provided
with little hooks by which it
may be firmly attached to the
skin, and within these hooks
^1 there is a slender sucking
tube having a piercing extrem-
a c 5 ity which the insect pushes

FIG. 169. LICE, a, b, sucMng j^Uj,f.^. ry'l^ 4-],p oVin ni if« lincif
ox lice; e, biting horse louse^"^^"&" ^^^^ ^^^'^ "^ "^ ''^^^^^

Magnified. and sucks the blood. The

eggs are glued to the hairs of the cattle, and the young
lice do not differ essentially in appearance from the adults,
except, of course, in size. These insects generally infest
the neck and shoulders of cattle.

The long-nosed ox louse {Hcematopinus vituU) is
represented magnified at Fig. 169, h. As will be seen,
it differs materially in appearance from the other species,
being at once distinguished by its longer and more slen-
der body. It is about one-eighth of an inch long, and
obtains its food by suction.

An idea of the form of the biting ox louse (Trich-
odectes scalaris) may be obtained from Fig. 169, c, which
represents a closely related insect infesting horses. This
species differs also in color from the sucking cattle lice,
being of a reddish hue. Its eggs axe glued to the hairs

THE HORN FLY

319

of the cattle. It is very abundant in all parts of the
world where domestic cattle are found.

Remedies. — The best method of destroying lice on
cattle and other domestic animals is to apply a thorouglily
prepared emulsion of kerosene and soap, made as directed
in the Introduction (page 43). If this is well made it
can be applied to cattle and horses, hogs and sheep, with
no danger of injury to them, while it will destroy all the
lice with which it comes in contact. Professor 0. P.
Gillette, who first gave this method a thorough trial,
recommends applying it with a force pump and spray
nozzle, rubbing it in thoroughly with the finger tij^s at
the same time. It kills the lice and leaves the hair of
the animal in good condition. The lice may also be
destroyed by treating with a strong tobacco decoction — a
pound of tobacco being boiled in two gallons of water —
or a wash of carbolic-acid soap. But the first-named
remedy is best.

The Horn Fly

Hoematohia serrata

This is an imported insect which has lately attracted
much attention in the Eastern States, It is called the

FIG. 170. a, horn fly, magnified ; h, cow horn with band of resting flies,

reduced.

horn fly because of the peculiar habit the flies have of
gathering in clusters uj^on the base of the horn, as repre-

320 INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

sen ted in Fig. 170, h. They light here to avoid being
disturbed by the heads or tails of the cattle, but do not
pierce tlie horn or do any serious injury to it. On the
body, however, where they light when feeding, they
insert their beaks into the skin, injecting at the same
time a little poisonous secretion which causes irritation
and inflammation, and a flow of blood to the spot. This
blood is then sucked into the stomach of the fly. Cow^s
thus attacked become restless and irritable, and, if the
flies are very numerous, they lose flesh and give less
milk.

The eggs of the horn fly are deposited in freshly
dropped cow dung in which the larvae develop, and
pupate in the soil beneath. There are four or five broods
each season. During hot weather the transformations
of the insect — from Qgg to imago — may be completed
within two weeks.

Remedies. — Two classes of preventives may be
used against this insect. The injuries to cattle may be
prevented by applying to their bodies, by means of a
sponge, fish oil to which has been added a little carbolic
acid. Only the tips of the hairs need be wet, and the
application should be repeated every four or five days.
This will keep the flies off the animals though it does
not kill them. They may be killed, however, by the use
of tobacco powder, dusted on the cattle, especially on
the back, tail, neck, and base of the horns. Professor
J. B. Smith recommends the use of the carbolated fish
oil on the belly, udder, and other parts of the body where
the tobacco cannot well be applied, and the apj)lication
of the powder to the other parts. The larvae also may
be destroyed by spreading out the cow droppings each
morning, so that they will dry up, and thus prevent the
development of the eggs or maggots, or by mixing plaster
with the manure in the stable or field.

UCE lifFESTIKG HOKSBS

321

Lice Infesting Horses

Three species of lice infest the horse. The first is
the sucking horse louse {Hcemafopinus asini) which is
represented, considerably magnified, at Fig. 171, a. It
is somewhat similar to the sucking ox louse, to which it
is closely related, but is easily distinguished from that
species by the shape of the head. It is the rarest of the
three species iufesting the horse, the next commonest
one being the rarer biting horse louse (Trichodectes
pilosus) represented at Fig. 171, i, which, as its name

indicates, is less abundant than the
third species — the common biting
horse louse {Triclioclectes parum-
pilosiis), which is shown at Fig.
169, c. This last is the most abun^
dant and annoying, and is espe^
cially liable to infest colts or horses
that have been in pasture for some
^ ^ time. It occurs mostly about the

FIG. 171. a, sucking horse head, mauc, and tail; and is ffen-

louse; b, biting horse ,, ,i • i , • • Tm

louse. Magnified. crally thickest m spring. Ihe

front part of the body is brownish, and the abdomen is
yellowish white, with eight transverse dark bands upon
the back.

Remedies. — The remarks concerning remedies for
cattle lice are equally applicable to these species.

XL

INSECT PESTS OF THE HOUSEHOLD

Cockroaches

Cockroaches are among the most omnivorous as well
as omnipresent of the insect pests of the household.
Their flattened bodies especially fit them to dwell in
cracks and ci*evices, in the walls of houses in cities, and
beneath the loose bark of fallen trees in the woods. Here
they find congenial retreats and flourish abundantly.
They take a great variety of food. In dwellings they
destroy provisions of every kind, although, as a j)artial
recom]3ense, perhaps, they are also said to prey upon
bedbugs.

As has been so often the case with our injurious
insects, ^ve are indebted to Europe for the cockroaches
that are most obnoxious. The American cockroach
{Peri2:)laneta ameiHcana) occurs commonly in the fields
and woods, and occasionally is found in houses. But
the oriental cockroach [Penplaneta orientalis) and the
Croton bug or German cockroach {Fhylloclromia ger-
manica) — both imported species — prefer the city dwell-
ing, where, around the steam and water pipes of the
kitchen, laundry or bathroom, they can run about undis-
turbed. They are nocturnal in their habits, remaining
concealed during the day, and sallying forth in search of
food during the night.

The life history of the Croton bug has been admirably
portrayed by Dr. C. Y. Riley at Fig. 172. The eggs are
laid in a pod or Qgg case (/, g) from which the )"oung
roaches hatch. They pass through various molts as

32^

COCKEOACHES

333

represeiiLed at a, h, c, d, and do not acquire wings until
full-grown {e, f, h), when they are nearly two-thirds of
an inch long. The other roaches develop in a similar
way.

Remedies. — The best remedy for these pests is a
good quality of insect powder, such as bnhach. In
recommending this, Dr. Eiley says : '^ Just before night-
fall go into the infested rooms and puff it into all crevices.

FIG. 172. CROTON BUG. a, first stage; 6, second stage; c, third stage;
df fourth stage; e, adult; /, adult female with egg case; g, egg
case — enlarged; h, adult with wings spread— all natural size
except g.

under baseboards, into drawers and cracks of old furni-
ture— in fact wherever there is a crack — and in the
morning the floor will be covered with dead and dying or
demoralized and i^aralyzed roaches, which may easily be
swept up or otherwise collected and burned. With clean-
liness and persistency in these methods the pest may be
substantially driven out of a house, and should never
be allowed to get full possession by immigrants from
withouL"

3U

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

The Buffalo Carpet Beetle

Anthrenus scrophulari(B
The buffalo carpet beetle is supposed to haye been
introduced into America from Europe about 1876, since
when it has done great damage and spread over a large
portion of the Eastern and Central United States. The
adult beetle (Fig. 173, d) is about a quarter of an inch
long, black, with white spots, as shown in the figure, and
has a red stripe along the middle of the back. Eggs are
laid by these beetles, probably upon carpets themselves.

FIG. 173. CARPET BEETLE, a, larva, back view ; 6, larva, view of Under
side; c, pupa; cl, beetle. Magnifled.

and soon hatch into larvae that feed upon the carpets.
It is in this larval stage that the damage is done. The
larvse cast their skins occasionally as they develop, and
the time required for them to become full-grown varies
according to the temperature and food supply. "When
full-grown they are peculiar, hairy creatures of the
form represented at a and h of the accompanying figure.
They now hide in a crack or crevice, and change to pupae
{c) inside the hairy skin. In a short time they again
change to the beetle state, the beetles emerging through-
out the fall, winter, and spring. There is probably, in
ordinary cases, but one generation a year, at least in the
Northern States.

♦ THE BEDBUG 3Q5

Remedies. — In Europe this insect does very liUle
damage, because rugs are used instead of carpets. Rugs
are taken up and shaken so often that the insects have
no opportunity to multiply. The use of rugs should
therefore be encouraged in regions where the insect is
troublesome.

Perhaps the most practical way of really destroying
these insects in carj^ets without taking them up, is to lay
two or three thicknesses of wet cloths on the carpet, and
iron with hot flatirons. Steam will thus be generated,
which will permeate the carpet and kill the insects. The
pests may readily be killed in furniture or garments by
the use of benzine or gasoline, applied as a spray by some
sort of atomizer, always remembering that these substances
must not come in contact loith fire in any shape. *'At
housecleaning time," says Dr. Riley, ^'as many of the
rooms should be bared at once as possible, and the house-
keeper should go carefully oyer the rooms, removing all
dust, and with a hand atomizer charged with benzine
should puff the liquid into all the floor cracks and under
the baseboards until every crevice has been reached.
The carpets themselves, after thorough beating, should
be slightly sprayed with the same substance, which will
quickly evaporate, leaving no odor after a short time.
The inflammability of benzine, however, should be remem-
bered, and no light should be brought near it."

The Bedbug

Acantliia lectularia

A short account of this notorious pest will be suffi-
cient for the present purpose. Many people will rec-
ognize the peculiar flattened creatures represented at Fig.
174, as former acquaintances, and those who do not so
recognize them are to be congratulated. The eggs of

326

I2^SECTS AND IKSECTICIDES

these insects are laid in the cracks of walls and bedsteads,
and the young (a) do not differ essentially, except in
size, from the adult (b). Bedbugs are able to exist a

long time without food, and
on the other hand, when
food is abundant they mul-
tiply with remarkable ra-
pidity.

Remedies. — Spraying
the cracks of walls, beds,
etc., where these insects

FIG. 174. BEDBUG, a, voung; 6, -^i i, • • xi

adult. Magnified. occur With bcnzine IS the

best manner of destroying them. This substance kills
the eggs as well as the adults. Great care, of course,
should be taken to prevent their ingress to the house.

Clothes rioths

There are three closely related insects in the United
States which may properly be called clothes moths.
They are quite similar in appearance, but the larvae
differ somewhat in feeding habits. The commonest one
probably is the case-making clothes moth {Tinea pelli-
onella), the life history of which Dr. Eiley has thus
summarized: "The small light-brown moths, distin-
guished by the darker spots at intervals on the wings,
begin to appear in May and are occasionally seen flitting
about as late as August. They pair and the female then
searches for suitable places for the deposition of her eggs,
working her way into dark corners and deep, into the
folds of garments, apparently choosing by instinct the
least conspicuous places. From these hatch the white,
soft-bodied larvae, each one of which begins immediately
to make a case for itself from the fragments of the cloth
upon which it feeds. The case is in the shape of a hollow
vqW or cylinder and the interior is lined with silk. As

CLOTHES MOTHS

327

they grow they enlarge these cases by adding material to
either end and by inserting gores down the sides which
they split open for the purpose. Tlie larya reaches its
full growth toward wintei-, and then crawling into some
yet more protected spot, remains there torpid through
the winter within its case, which is at this time thickened
and fastened at either end with silk. The transforma-
tion to pupa takes place

within the case the fol-
lowing spring, and the
moths soon afterward
issue. The larva feeds
in all woolen cloths, and
also in haircloth, furs
and feathers." ^^^ ^^- clothes moth, a, moth; 6,

Remedies. — Under larva;c, web. Magnified.

this head we cannot do better than to quote the follow-
ing remarks by Dr. Rile}^, who lately published an ad-
mirable series of articles, first in Good Househeeping and
afterwards in Insect Life, to which we are largely in-
debted for the information and illustrations on this sub-
ject. He says: ^^ During the latter part of May or
early in June a vigorous campaign should be entered
upon. All carpets, clothes, cloth-covered furniture, furs
and rugs should be thoroughly shaken and aired, and,
if possible, exposed to the sunlight as long as practicable.
If the house is badly infested, or if any particular arti-
cle is supposed to be badly infested, a free use of benzine
will be advisable. All floor cracks and dark closets
should be sprayed with this substance. Too much
pains cannot be taken to destroy every moth and
every Qgg and every newly hatched larva, for im-
munity for the rest of the year depends largely —
almost entirely — upon the tlioroughness with which the
work of extermination is carried on at this time. The
benzine spray will kill the insect iu every stage, and it

328 INSECTS AN^D INSECTICIDES

is one of the few substances which will destroy the egg<,
I would however repeat the caution as to its inflamma-
bility. No light should be brought into a room in which
it has been used until after a thorough airing and until
the odor is almost dissipated.

"The proper packing away of furs and winter cloth-
ing through the summer is a serious matter. A great
deal of unnecessary expenditure in the way of cedar chests
and cedar wardrobes and various compounds in the way
of powders has been urged by writers on these pests.
But experience fully proves that after a thorough treat-
ment in May or June, garments may be safely put away
for the rest of the season with no other protection than
wrapping them closely in stout paper, to preclude infec-
tion through some belated female. My assistant, Mr.
L. 0. Howard, tells me of an excellent plan which he
has adopted. He buys for a small sum from his tailor a
number of pasteboard boxes in which they deliver suits,
and his wife carefully folds and packs away all clothing,
gumming a strip of wrapping paj^er around the edges of
the cover so as to leave no crack. These boxes Mill last
for a lifetime with careful use. Others use for the same
purpose ordinary paper flour sacks or linen pillowcases,
which answer well. The success of these means depends
entirely on the thoroughness of the preliminary work.
Camphor, tobacco, napthaliue, and other strong odorants
are only partial repellants. and without the precaution
urged are of little avail.

*' Cloth-covered furniture which is in constant use
will not be harmed, and the same may be said of cloth-
lined carriages. Where such furniture is stored away or
kept unused in a dark room, or where the carriages are
left in a dark coach house through the summer, at
least two sprayings with benzine, say once in June and
once about August flrst, will be advisable. Anotlier
plan which will act as a protection in such cases is to

ANTS 329

sponge the cloth linings and covers both sides where pos-
sible, with a dilute solution of corrosive sublimate in
alcohol, made just strong enough not to leave a white
mark on a black feather."

Ants

Ants frequently become one of the most annoying
kinds of household pests by getting into and running
over everything. The species most generally troublesome
is the little red ant {2Io7iomorium p7iarao7iis)f which is
worldwide in its distribution — although it is said to have
been originally a native of Europe. The worker of this
ubiquitous pest is represented at Fig. 176, a ; and the
female at h, of the same
figure. The nests are
made in almost any con-
cealed position about the
house — under floors, be-
hind baseboards, between
walls, or in the walks or
grass about the house.

^ ,1 I ii <? FIG. 176. LITTLE RED ANT. a, worker:

irom these nests the for- 6, female. Magnified.

aging parties sally forth and overrun the house, devour-
ing or carrying off particles of food of all descriptions,
getting into everjrthing in sight, and often becoming an
intolerable nuisance.

Remedies. — The first essential to a successful fight
with these insects is to find the location of the nests.
If they can then be reached it is easy to destroy them by
means of benzine, gasoline, bisulphide of carbon, or even
hot water — anything in fact, that will kill them. If any
inflammable or explosive substances are used, of course
great care must be taken to keep away fire in any form.

There are certain larger ants that are frequently
troublesome on lawns, by making their nests above the

330 INSECTS AlfD INSECTICIDES

surface of the grass, and thus disfiguring them. A
simple way of destroying these is recorded by Dr. Eiley,
as follows : A number of holes are punched in the nest
by means of a pointed stick ; a teaspoonful of bisulphide
of carbon is then poured down each hole, and a damp
blanket is thrown over the nest for a few minutes — then
the blanket being removed, the bisulphide is exploded at
the mouth of each hole by means of a light at the end of
a pole. The slight explosions drive the poisonous fumes
down through the underground tunnels, killing off the
ants in enormous numbers.

The little red ants may be trapped by means of
small sponges, saturated with sweetened water, and then
occasionally dropped into boiling water. But this is a
much less satisfactory method than that of destroying
them in their nests.

INDEX

P^e

Abbot sphinx 179

Acanthia lectularia 324

Acridium americanum 3()4

Acrididse 17, 304

Aegeria pyri 94

Agrotis saucia 257

Agrilus ruficollis 163

American cockroach 322

" locust 304

Anarsia lineatella 138

Anasa tristis 238

Angoumis grain moth 29P

Anisota rubicunda 206

Anisopteryx pometaria 79

" vernata 81

Anthonomous qiiadrigibus 92

" signaliis 144

A nthrenus scropliulariae 324

Ants 21, 329

Apanteles congregatus 32

Aphides 218

Aphis, apple 78

" black peach 123

" brassicae 259

•' maidis 274

" niaidi-radicis 267

«• mali 78

" persicae-niger 123

" prunifolii 115

Apple, Insects affecting 63

" aphis 78

" caterpillar, yellow-
necked 84

" cnrcnlio 92

" leaf roller, lesser 83

" leaf skeletonizer 87

" maggot 2,88

" tent caterpillar 81

" tree borer, flat-headed . 65
" " " round-headed 63

" worm 88

Array worm 302

Arsenate of lead 42

Asopia costatis 207

Asparagus beetle 263

Aspidiotus perniciosus 95

Bacterial diseases of insects. .. 37

Bagworm 204

Bean weevil 242

Beautiful wood nymph 183

Bedbug 325

Beetles 20

Pape

Bembecia marginata 159

Bird grassliopper 16, 304

Blackberry, insects affecting.. 159

gallfly 165

Blissus leucopterus 280

Blister beetle, black 232

" " striped 231

Bollworra 275

Bouibycidae 19

Box-elder bug 211

Braconidse 23

Bruchus obsoletus 242

" pisi 243

Bud worm 74

Buffalo tree hopper 72

" carpet beetle 324

Cabbage, insects affecting 245

" aphis 259

" maggot 245

'♦ worm, imported 250

" plusia 253

" cutworms 256

Cacsecia cerasivorana 130

" argyrospila 132

Calandra granaria 288

Cankerworm 79

" fall 79

" spring 81

Carabidse 20

Carpet beetle 324

Carpocapsa pomonella 88

Cattle lice 318

Cecidomyia destructor 270

" legiiminicola 295

" tritiei 288

Cecropia emperor moth 197

Cecindelidae 20

Celery caterpillar 6, 234

Ceramica picta 2.54

Ceresa bubalus 72

Cherry, insects affecting 128

" aphis 128

" tree leaf roller 130

Chinch bug 11, 280

Chionaspis furfurus 95

Chrysobothris f emorata 65

Chrysomelidse 21

Clisiocanipa americana 81

Clothes moths 326

•' •' case-making 326

Clover, insects affecting 292

*' hay wonu 297

331

332

DTSBOTS AND INSECTICIDES

Page
Clover-leaf beetle 293

•♦ rootborer 292

** seedmidge 295

** stem borer 297

Cockroaches 322

Coccotorus prunicida 118

Codling moth 88, 112

Compsomyia macellaria 313

Conotraclielus nenuphar 116,127,132

Corn, insects affecting 2C7

" aphis 274

" root apliis 2C7

*' " worm, western 268

" stalk borer 272

" wornj 275

Crepidodera cucumeris 237

Crioceris asparagi 2b'3

Croton bug 322

Cucumber,, insects affecting 237

*' flea beetle 237

" beetle, striped 239

«' " twelve-spotted 241

Currant, Insects affecting 148

" aphis 151

*» borer 148

** leaf hopper 151

** span worm 156

** leaf bug 152

" worm, imported 149

Cutworms 273

Dactylopius adonidum 220

" destructor 220

Dakrimia convolutella 157

Datana angusii 208

" ininistra 84

Desmia maculalis 182

Diabrotica vittata 239

" punctata .241, 270

" longicornis 2G8

Diastrophus nebulosus 1G5

Dicerca divaricata 128

Diplosis pyrivora 109

Diptera 19

Diseases of insects 37

Doryphora 10-lineata. 229

Dragon flies 13

Elateridse 22, 271

Emphy lus maculatus 142

Empoa albopicta 151

Epicserus imbricatns 233

Epicauta pennsylvanica 232

" vittata 231

Eriocampa cerasi 132

Eudemis botrana 184

Eudryas grata 183

Eufitchia rebearia 156

Eurycreon rantalis 273

Fall webworm 201

Four-lined leaf bug 152

Fhited scale 36

Fruit-tree leaf roller 132

" bark beetle 112, 123

Galeruca xanthomeloena 202

Garden webworm 273

Gelechia cerealella 290

Germau cockroach 322

Page
Gooseberry fruit worm. ...c... 157

Gortyna nitela 272

Grain aphis 284

" weevil 288

Grape, insects affecting 167

" berry moth 184

" phylloxera 168

" rootborer 167

" sphinx moths 177

" vine beetle, spotted — 176

" " flea-beetle 172

" «' leaf hopper 180

« «• leaf roller 187

" " sphinx, green 177

Graphops pubescens 85

Graptodera chaly bea 172

Grass, insects affecting 299

Grasshoppers 304

Green-strii^ed mai^le worm — 206

Gryllidaj 17

Gypsy moth 21 2

Hsematopinus eurysternus 318

" vituli 318

" asini 321

Haematobia sei*rata 319

Harlequin cabbage bug 258

Heel fly 315

Heliothis armigera 275

Hellebore 42

Hemiptera 18

Hessian fly 278

Hexapoda 12

Horn fly 319

Horse louse, sucking 321

" " biting 321

Hydrocyanic acid gas 48

Hylastes trifolii 292

Hymenoptera 22

Hypliantria cunea 201

Hypoderma lineata 315

Ichneumonidse 23

Icerya purchasi 36

Imported cabbage worm 250

" currant worm 149

" elm-leaf beetle 202

Insects, collecting and pre-

serving 56

Insects, orders of 12

•' parasitic 10

Insecticides, applying 52

" the principal 39

Isosoma liordei 286

'* tritici 286

Kerosene 43

Kerosene emulsion 43

Lachnosterna fusca 129, 299

Laclinus dentatus 193

" strobi 193

Languria mozardi. 296

Leaf beetles 21

Leaf crumpler 85

Leaf skeletonizer, apple 87

Lecanium persicoe 81

" pvri 112

ribis 102

Leptocoris trivittatus . 2i:

JUDEK*

333

Page

Lepidoptera 18

Leueania unipuncta 302

Lime spray 47

Little red unt 329

Locustidae 17

Loiulon purple 41

Lygus pratensis 143

Macrodactylus siibspinosus.... 174

Maple borer 189

May beetle 129

Meadow maggot 300

Mealy bugs 220

Melanoplus f emur-rubrum 305

" spretus 304

Melanoxanthus 190

" salicti 191

Melittia ceto 235

Meroinyza americana 285

Moiiom'orium pharaonis 329

Monophadnus rubi o 160

Monastegia rosse 215

Murgantia histrionica 258

Mytilaspis pomorum^ 67

My zus cerasi 128

'" persicse 126

" ribis 151

Natural enemies of injurious

insects 29

Nematus ventricosus 149

Noctuidse 19

Northern corn-root worm 268

Oberea bimaculata 160

Ocnerea dispar 212

Oecanthiis niveus 161

Onion, insects affecting 261

" maggot 261

OrgA,na leucostigma 199

Oriental cockroach 322

Orthoptera 15

Oyster-shell bark louse 67, 112

Ox-warble fly 315

Ox louse, long-nosed 318

" " short-nosed 318

" «« biting 318

Papilio asterias 16, 234

Paris green 39

Pea weevil 243

Peach, insects affecting 121

" aphis 126

" " black 123

" tree bark louse 127

" •' borer 121

Pear, insects affecting 94

" blight beetle 112

♦' midge 109

" tree bark louse 112

« " borer 94

" " psvlla 107

" " shig 101, 132

Pelidnota punctata 176

Pempelia hammondi 87

Perphigus tessellata 245

Periplaneta americana 322

" orientalis 322

Phaloenidae 19

Fhlegethontius celeus 32

Page

Phorbia ceparum 261

Phoxopteris comptana 140

Phveis indigenella 85

Phyllotreta vittata 255

Phyllodromia geimanica 322

Phylloxera vastatrix 1G8

Ph y tonomtis piinctatus. . i 293

Pliytoptus pyri 105

Pieris rapae 250

" oleracea 252

« protodice 252

Pithy blackberry gall 165

Plant lice 218

Platysamia cecropia 197

Plum, insects affecting 113

" aphis 115

" curculio 112,116, 132

" gouger 118

" tree borer 58

Plusia brassicse 253

Poecilocapsus lineatus 152

Potato-stalk weevil 228

" beetle, Colorado 229

Protoporce celeus 225

Pseudoneuroptera 13

Psylla pyrieola 107

Pulvinaria innumerabilis 209

Pyrethrum 43

Raspberry, insects affecting... 159

" cane borer 160

" root borer 159

« slug 160

Red-legged locust 305

Red-necked agrilus 163

Red spider 219

Resin washes . . . .- 47

Rhopalocera 18

Rocky Mountain locust 304

Rose, insects affecting 215

" beetle 174

« leaf hopper 217

«' slug 215

Sannina exitiosa 121

San Jose scale 95

Sesia tipuliformis 148

Saperda Candida 63

Scale lice 220

Scarabeida? 22

Sehizonetira lanigera 69

Sciapteron polistiformis- • 167

Scolytus rugnlosus -..112, 123

Screw worm 313

Scurfy bark louse '...• 95

Selandria cerasi 101

Sesia acerni .. 189

Shade trees, insects affecting.. 189

Siphonophora avenae 284

Snout beetles 22

Snowy tree cricket 161

Southern corn-root worm 270

Sphingidae = .•• 18

Spotted cucumber beetle 241

Squash, insects affecting 235

" vine borer 235

« bug 238

Strawberry, insects afteGtiug«. 137

334

INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES

Strawbeny crown borer 138

•* crown miner 138

•• leaf roller 140

** root worms 137

*« slug 142

*• weevil 144

Tarnished plant bug 143

Tent caterpillar, apple tree.... 81

Teras miiuita ... 83

Tetianychus telarius 219

Thyreus abbotii 179

Thyridopteryx epliemeraefor-

mls 204

Thysanura 12

Tiger beetles 20

Tniea pellionella 326

Tipula bicarnea 300

Tnietocera ocellana 74

Tobacco 48

Tobacco worm 32

Tomato worm 225

Toothed willow aphis 193

Tortricidge 19

Trichobaris trinotata 228

Trichodectes scalaris 318

** pilMus 821

Page

Trichodectes palumpilosus 321

Trypeta pomonella 90

Tyloderma f lagarise 138

Typhlocy ba rosse 217

" vitis 180

Variegated cutwoi-m 257

Walnut caterpillar 208

Wavy-striped tlea-beetle 255

W^heat, insects affecting 278

" bulb worm 285

" joint worms 280

" midge 288

White arsenic 42

White grub 299

White-marked tussock moth. . . 199

White-pine aphis 193

Willow-grove aphis 191

Willow-twig aphis 190

Wireworms 271

Woolly aphis 69

Woolly alder aphis 195

Woolly maple-bark louse 209

Xyleboriis pyri 112

Yellow-necked apple-tree cat-
erpillar 84

Zebra. caterpiUax 364

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authority. Illustrated. 164 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $0.50

Talks on Manure.

By Joseph Harris, M. S. A series of familiar and
practical talks between the author and the deacon, the doctor,
and other neighbors, on the whole subject of manures and
fertilizers ; including a chapter especially written for it
by Sir John Bennet Lawes of Rothamsted, England. 366
pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . • * • %l'ffi

9

biANDARD bO^KS.

Practical Forestry.

By Andrew" S. Fuller. A treatise on the propagation,
planting and cultivation, with descriptions and the botanical
anci popular names of all the indigenous trees of the United
States, and notes on a large number of the most valuable
exotic species. Illustrated. 300 pages. 5x7 inches.
Cloth $1.50

Irrigation for the Farm, Garden and Orchard,

By Henry Stewart. This work is offered to those
American farmers and other cultivators of the soil who, from
painful experience, can readily appreciate the losses which
result from the scarcity of water at critical periods. Fully
illustrated. 276 pages. ^y.y inches. Cloth. . . $1.00

Irrigation Fanning.

By Lute Wilcox. A handbook for the practical applica-
tion of water in the production of crops. A complete treatise
on water supply, canal construction, reservoirs and ponds,
pipes for irrigation purposes, flumes and their structure,
methods of applying water, irrigation of field crops, the
garden, the orchard and vineyard, windmills and pumps,
appliances and contrivances. New edition, revised, enlarged
and rewritten. Prc/*Lisely illustrated. Over 500 pages. 5x7
inches. Cloth. ....... $2.00

Ginseng, Its Cultivation. Harvesting, Marketing and
Market Value.

By Maurice G. Kains, with a short account of its history
And botany. It discusses in a practical way how to begin with
either seed or roots, soil, climate and location, preparation,
planting and maintenance of the beds, artificial propagation,
manures, enemies, selection for market and for improvement,
preparation for sale, and the profits that may be expected.
This booklet is concisely written, well and profusely illus-
trated, and should be in the hands of all who expect to grow
this drug to supply the export trade, and to add a new and
profitable industry to their farms and gardens, without inter-
fering with the regular work. New edition. Revised and en
larged. illustrated. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . . $0.50

Truck Farming at the South.

By A. Oemler. a work giving the experience of a suc-
cessful grower of vegetables or "garden truck" for northern
markets. Essential to anyone who contemplates entering this
profitable field of agriculture. Illustrated. 274 pages. 5x7

inches. Cloth. $I.CXJ

4

STANDARD BOOK'S.

Henderson's Practical Floriculture.

By Peter Henderson. A guide to the successful propaqpa-
tion and cultivation of florists' plants. The work is not one
for florists and gardeners only, but the amateur's wants are
constantly kept in mind, and we have a very complete treatise
on the cultivation of flowers under glass, or in the open air,
suited to those who grow flowers for pleasure as well as those
who make them a matter of trade. New and enlarged edition.
Beautifully illustrated. 325 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $1.50

Mushrooms. How to Grozv Them.

By William Falconer. This is the most practical work
on the subject ever written, and the only book on growing
mushrooms published in Amerivia. The author describes how
he grows mushrooms, and how they are grown for profit by
the leading market gardeners, and for home use by the most
successful private growers. Engravings drawn from nature
expressly for this work. 170 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $1.00

Play and Profit in My Garden.

By E.' P. Roe. The author takes us to his garden on the
rocky hillsides in the vicinity of West Point, and shows us
how out of it, after four years' experience, he evoked a profit
of $1000,/ and this while carrying on pastoral and literary
labor. It is very rarely that so much literary tastt and skill
are mated to so much agricultural experience and good sense.
Illustrated. 350 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . $l.OG

Fumigation Methods.

By Willis G. Johnson. A timely up-to-date book on
the practical application of the new methods for destroying
insects with hydrocyanic acid gas and carbon bisulphid, the
most powerful insecticides ever discovered. It is an indispen-
sable book for farmers, fruit growers, nurserymen, gardeners,
florists, millers, grain dealers, transportation companies, col-
lege and experiment station workers, etc. Illustrated. 313
pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . . • . $1.00

Fungi and Fungicides.

By Prof. Clarence M. Weed. A practical manual con-
cerning the fungous diseases of cultivated plants and the
means of preventing their ravages. The author has endeav-
ored to give such a concise account of the most important
facts relating to these as will enable the cultivator to combat
them intelligently. 90 illustrations. 222 pages. 5x7 inches.

Paper, 50 cents; cloth $1.00

S

STANDARD BOOKS.

Insects and Insecticides*

By Clarence M. Weed, D. Sc, professor of entomology
and zoology, New Hampshire college of agriculture. A practi-
cal manual concerning noxious insects, and methods of
preventing their injuries. Many illustrations. 334 pages.
5x7 inches. Cloth $1.50

Hoiv Crops Grozv. ' 1

By Prof. Samuel W. JohnSon of Yale college. New and
revised edition. A treatise on the chemical composition,
structure and life of the plant. This book is a guide to the
knowledge of agricultural plants, their . composition, their
structure and modes of development and growth; of the com-
plex organization rf plants, and the use of the parts; the
germination of seeds, and the food of plants obtained both
from the air and the soil. The book is indispensable to all
real students of agriculture. With numerous illustrations and
tables of analysis. 416 pages, ^^xj inches. Cloth. $1.50

Tobacco Leaf.

By J. B. Killebrew and Herbert Myrick. Its Culture
and Cure, Alarketing and Manufacture. A practical handbook
on the most approved methods in growing, harvesting, curing,
packing and selling tobacco, with an account of the opera-
tions in every department of tobacco manufacture. The
contents of this book are based on actual experiments in field,
curing barn, packing house, factory and laboratory. It is the
only work of the kind in existence, and is destined to be the
standard practical and scientific authority on the whole subject
of tobacco for many years. 506 pages and 150 original en-
gravings. 5x7 inches. Cloth $2.00

Cob urn's Szvine Husbandry.

By F. D. CoBL^RN. New, revised and enlarged edition.
The breeding, rearing and management of swine, and the
prevention and treatment of their diseases. It ij the fullest
and freshest compendium relating to swine breeding yet
offered. Illustrated. 312 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $1.50

Home Pork Making.

The art of raising and curing perk on the farm. By
A. W. Fulton. A complete guide for the farmer, the country
butcher and the suburban dweller, in all that pertains to hog
slaughtering, curing, preserving and storing pork product —
from scalding vat to kitchen table and dining room. Illus-
trated. 125 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . , . $0.50

6

STANDARD BOOKS.

Harris ou the Pig.

By Joseph Harris. New edition, ReviseJ and enlarged
by the author. The points of the various English and Ameri-
can breeds are thorovighly discussed, and the great advantage
of using thoroughbred males clearly shown. The work is
equally valuable to the farmer who keeps but few pigs, and
to the breeder on an extensive scale. Tilustrated. 318 pages
5x7 inches. Cloth. . . • $1.00

The Dairymen s Mamial.

By Henry Stewart, author of "The Shepherd's Manual,"
"Irrigation." etc. A useful and practical work, by a writer
who is well known as thoroughly familiar with the subject
of which he writes. Illustrated. 475 pages. 5x7 inches.
Goth $1.50

Feeds and Feeding.

By W. A. Henry, This handbook for students and stock-
men constitutes a compendium of practical and useful knowl-
edge on plant growth and animal nutrition, feeding stuffs,
feeding animals and every detail pertaining to this important
subject. It is thorough, accurate and reliable, and is the most
valuable contribution to live stock literature in many years.
All the latest and best information is clearly and systematically
presented, making the work indispensable to every owner of
live stock. 658 pages. 6x9 inches. Cloth. . . $2.00

The Propagation of Plants.

By Andrew S. Fuller. An eminently practical and use-
fi'l work describing the process of hybridizing and crossing
species and varieties and also the many different modes by
which cultivated plants may be propagated and multiplied,
Illustrated. 350 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . $1.50

Gardening for Pleasure.

By Peter Henderson. A guide to the amateur in the
fruit, v^egetable and flower garden, with full descriptions for
ihe greenhouse, conservcitory and window garden. It meets
ihe wants of all classes in country, city and village, who keep
a garden for their own enjoyment rather than for the sale of
products. Finely illustrated. 404 pages. 5x7 inches.
Cloth $1.50

STANDARD BOOKS.
Prise Gardening.

Compiled by G. Burnap Fiske. This nniqiie book shov,
how to derive proiit, pleasure and health from the garden,
by giving the actual experiences of the successful prize win-
ners in the American Agriculturist garden contest. Every
line is from actual experience bas:d on real work. Hie result
is a mine and treasure house of garden practice, comprising
tJie grand prize gardener's methods, gardening for profit, farm
gardens, the home acre, town and city gardens, experimental
gardening, methods under glass, success with speci-^lties. prize
flowers and fruits, gardening by women, boys and girLs, irriga-
tion, secrets, etc., etc. Illustrated from original photos. 320
pages. 5>7 inches. Cloth. . . . - • $1.00

Gardening for Profit.

By Peter Henderson. The standard work on market and
family gardening. The successful experience of the author
for more than thirty yecrs. and his willingness to tell, as he
does in this work, the secret of his success for the benefit of
oth-Lrs, enables him to give most valuable information. The
book is profusely illustrated. 376 pages. 5x7 inches.
Cloth $1.50

The Windozv Flozi'cr Garden.

By Julius J. Heixrich. The author is a practical florist,
and tliis enterprising volume embodies his personal experience
in window gardening during a long period. New and enlarged
edition. Illustrated." 123 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. $0.50

Market Gardening and Farm Notes.

By Burnett L.\ndreth. Experiences and observation for
both north and south, of interest to the amateur gardener,
trucker and farmer. A novel feature of the book is the calen-
dar of farm and garden operations for each month of the year ;
the chapters on fertilizers, transplanting, succession and rota-
tion of crops, the packing, shipping and marketing of vege-
tables will be especially useful to market gardeners. 315 pages.
5x7 inches. Cloth $1.00

The Study of Breeds.

By TH0M.A.S Shaw. Origin, history, distribution, charac-
teristics, adaptability, uses, and standards of excellence of all
pedigreed breeds of cattle, sheep and swine in America. The
accepted text book in colleges, and the authority for
farmers and breeders. Illustrated. 371 pages. 5x7 inches.
Qoth. ... ..... $1.50

8

STANDARD BOOKS.

^Animal Breeding,

By Thomas Shaw. This book is the most complete and
comprehensive work ever published on the subject of which
it treats. It is the first book which has systematized the subject
of animal breeding. The leading laws which govern this
most intricate question the author has boldly defined and
authoritatively arranged. The chapters which he has written
on the more involved features of the subject, as sex and the
relative influence of parents, should go far toward setting at
rest the wildly speculative views cherished with reference to
these questions. The striking originality in the treatment of
the subject is no less conspicuous than the superb order and
regular sequence of thought from the beginning to the end
of the book. The book is intended to meet the needs of all
persons interested in the breeding and rearing of live stock.
Illustrated. 405 pages. 5x7 inches. Cloth. . . $1.50

Forage Crops Other Than Grasses.

By Thomas Shaw. How to cultivate, harvest and use
them. Indian corn, sorghum, clover, leguminous plants, crops
of the brassica genus, the cereals, millet, field roots, etc.
Intensely practical and reliable. Illustrated. 287 pages. • 5x7
inches. Cloth. ....... $t.oo

Soiling Crops and the Silo.

By Thomas Shaw. The growing and feeding of all kinds
of soiling crops, conditions to which they are adapted, their
plan in the rotation, etc. Not a line ie repeated from the
Forage Crops book. Best methods of building the silo, filling
it and feeding ensilage. Illustrated. 364 pages. 5x7 inches.
Cloth $1.50

Stewart's Shepherd's Manual.

By Henry Stewart. A valuable practical treatise on the
sheep for American farmers and sheep growers. It is so
plain that a farmer or a farmer's son who has never kept
a sheep may learn from its pages how to manage a flock
successfully, and yet so complete that even the experienced
shepherd may gather many suggestions from it. The results
of personal experience of some years, v^ --th the characters of the
various modern breeds of sheep, and the sheep raising capabili-
ties of many portions of our extensive territory and that of
Canada — and the careful study of the diseases to which our
sheep are chiefly subject, with those by which they may even-
tually be aftlicted through unforeseen accidents — as well as the
methods of management called for under our circumstances,
are carefully described. Illustrated. 276 pages. 5x7 inches.

CJoth. $1.00

9

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