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HANDBOOK OF INSECTS

INJUKIOUS TO

ORCHARD AND BUSH FRUITS.

LONDON :

PRINTEn BY WEST, NEWMAN AND CO.

HATTON GARDEN, E.G.

0 '^^Jj

HiNDBOOK OF INSECTS

INJURIOUS TO

ORCHARD AND BUSH FRUITS

WITH MEANS OF

PREVENTION AND EEMEDY.

BY

E LEAN OK A. OEMEKOD,

FELLOW R. MET. SOC,

ADDITIONAL EXAMINER IN AGRICULTURAL ENTOMOLOGY JN TEE UNIVERSITY OP EDINBURGH;

FELLOW ENT. SOC. LONDON ; HON. FELLOW ENT. SOC. STOCKHOLM ; MEMBER ENT. SOC.

WASHINGTON, U.S.A., AND MEMBER ASSOC. OFFICIAL ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGISTS,

WASHINGTON; HON. MEM. FARMERS* CLUB; HON. AND CORR. MEM.

KOYAL AG. AND HORT. SOC, S. AUSTRALIA;

HON. MEM. ENT. SOC. ONTARIO, AND CORE. MEM. FIELD NAT. CLUB, OTTAWA, CANADA;

MEMBER EASTERN PROVINCE NATURALISTS' SOC,

CAPE COLONY ; ETC.

l-^l

LONDON:
SIMPKIN, MARSHALL, HAMILTON, KENT & CO., Ltd.

1898.
[All ri gilts reserved.'^

TO THE MEMORY OF

MY SISTER
GEORGIANA E. ORMEROD,

F.E.S.,

THE FEIEND AND COMPANION OF THE WHOLE OF OUK JOINT LIVES,

AXD
MY CONSTANT KINDLY HELPEK IN ALL MY WORK,

IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED BY

THE WRITER.

September, 1898.

/

/ ^Z 5 P/

PREFACE.

In the present volume I have endeavoured to collect into a
convenient form for reference the most important points of
information which we possess regarding the life-histories and
habits of the insects of which the attacks are commonly
injurious to a serious extent to hardy fruit in this country,
together with notes of methods of prevention and remedy
which have been found serviceable at a paying rate.

Some of the attacks mentioned have long been known of,
but there are few if any of these of which we have not gained
some additional information during the past few years, and
of many of the others we have only lately become possessed
of the whole life-history ; whilst others, again, have lately
shown themselves as perfect scourges (in our present large
scale of fruit growing) which even within the last four or
five years were wholly unknown to us as fruit pests.

In the following pages (as temperatures and weather influ-
ences have great effect on insect life and number of yearly
broods), I have endeavoured, as far as possible, to give the
information from observations in this country sent to myself
during the past twenty-one years, and published as received
in my successive Annual Reports ; these notes being now
condensed into a continuous account of each infestation, but
as far as possible in the words of the various contributors.

In cases where we have not British observations of the
points of life-history, or of preventive measures requisite for
practical use, I have availed myself of published information,
both European and American, but I have endeavoured to

Vlll PREFACE.

ackno^Yleclge the source fully and clearly, and (here I nday
add) gratefully. Some of the infestations which have heen
little (or not at all) known of as injurious until the past few
years — as, for instance, the attacks of the Flat-celled Shot-
borer Beetles {Xylehorus saxeseni = xylociraphus) in Plum wood,
those of the "Ground Beetles " {Geode-phdga of various species)
to Strawberry fruit, or, again, of the Eelworm {Aphelenchus
fragaria) which causes distorted growth of the Strawberry
plant — I have entered on at length, so as to give as much
detail as was in my power.

In addition to the accounts of damage by insect attacks,
observations are also given of a few other kinds of infestations,
such as injuries by Phytoptidse or Gall Mites, and Nematoid
Worms ; and also, and very especially, the infestation known
as Bust or Bed Spider, scientifically as Tetranychus telarius,
of which more information was much needed where it could
be attainable for general reference.

WitJi regard to arrangement, I have placed our ordinary
fruit crops (to which the volume chiefly refers) alphahetically,
giving under the heading of each crop accounts of the insect
attacks to which it is especially subject ; but in the case of
insects which are common infestations of many kinds of trees
and their produce, the observations are placed under the
name of the orchard tree or fruit bush regarding which these
observations were chiefly sent to me. For example, with
regard to the very generally injurious pests the Winter Moths
{Cheimatohia hrumata) and some other allied kinds with wing-
less females, the observations are placed under the heading
of Plum, as it is not to be denied that operations giving
treatment of 80,000 or more trees afford a more "broadscale"
view of treatment and results than is commonly attainable.
For readers who desire information as to the different kinds
of fruit crops which are injured by any special insect, a glance
at the " Alphabetical List " will give all that is required.

Amongst kind friends who have especially assisted me, by
help in researches which were beyond my own power to carry
out fully, I beg to express my grateful acknowledgments to

PEE FACE. IX

Dr. J. Eitzema Bos, Director of the Phyto-pathological
Laboratory at Amsterdam, for kind assistance during many
years in identification of Nematoid Worms, known with us as
Eelworms ; to Dr. A. Nalepa, of Vienna, the distinguished
observer and writer on Phytoptid?e, I am indebted for much
help regarding Gall Mites ; and to Mr. Albert D. Michael,
our own well-known acarinologist, for assistance in study
of various of the Acarina injurious to crops. To Dr. J.
Fletcher, Entomologist of the Department of Agriculture of
the Dominion of Canada, and to other good friends whose
help I have endeavoured fully to acknowledge accompanying
their information, I beg to express my hearty thanks, as
also to Mr. Oliver E. Janson, F.E.S.Lond., for much help
given me, especially in identification of doubtful species of
Coleoptera.

Amongst the illustrations, amounting to somewhat more
than sixty in number, I beg to acknowledge with thanks
those at pages 29, 151, and 246, as being by kind permission
of Messrs. Blackie, of Glasgow ; the moths in the figures at
pages 16, 86, 133, 177, 179, 260, and moth with wings spread
at page 89, are from Newman's ' British Moths ' ; those at
pages 21, 27, 54, 210, and the moth with wings closed and
caterpillar at page 89, are figures of which the use was granted
me some years ago by the editor of the ' Gardeners' Chronicle.'
Of the other figures, a large proportion have been drawn
expressly for my publications by Messrs. Horace and E. C.
Knight, artists on the staff of Messrs. West, Newman & Co.,
54, Hatton Garden, E.C. ; and the others, I hope, will be
found to have been duly acknowledged, either together with
the figure, or in the letterpress accompanying.

The frontispiece is, by permission, from a photo by Messrs.
Elliott & Fry, of Baker Street, London, W.

So far as our experience shows, the protection of our fruit
crops from insect ravage is likely to be an increasing difficulty,
consequently on the increasing extent of the areas in which
one kind of orchard tree or fruit bush is grown year after
year, thus giving every opportunity for the established settle-

X PREFACE.

ment of the insect feeders on that special crop. In the
following pages I have endeavoured to collect the very best
information in my power as to treatment which has been
found practically useful at a paying rate in keeping these
infestations in check, and it would be a sincere satisfaction to
me if thus the observations which many of our horticulturists
and others have been good enough to place in my hands for
our general service may help in some degree to preserve a
fair amount of our fruit crops from insect depredations, and
a fair return to the growers for their great outlay.

ELEANOR A. ORMEROD, F.E.S.

ToRRiNGTON HousE, St. Albans :
September, 1898.

INSECTS INJURIOUS

TO

OECHARD AND BUSH FRUITS.

APPLE.

American Blight (Woolly Aphis).

Schizoneura laiiigem , HaiUsni.

Woolly Aphis ; infested Apple spray, nat. size ; wingless viviparous female
and young clothed with cottony tibres above, and small egg-bearing female
beneath the spray ; pupa with little cottony growth ; all magnified.*

The attack of the Woolly Apple Aphis, commonly known
as " American Blight," may be taken as an example of
orchard infestation which is exceedingly common, very in-
jurious by destroying the health of the tree, and yet at the

* The above figures are acknowledged, with thanks, as after 1 and 3, PlateCV.,
and 2 and 5, Plate CVL, in 'Brit. Aphides,' vol. iii., by G. B. Buckton, F.K.S.
The size of the wingless viviparous female is given (p. 89 of same volume) as
1-77 X 1-39 millimetres, that is, something under a twelfth of an inch in length
by rather less in breadth. — E. A. 0.

B

2 APPLE.

same time is so open to remedy that it may with Httle
expense or trouble be prevented estabhshing itself.

The presence of this " Apple-bark Plant-louse," or "Woolly
Aphis," may be easily detected by the woolly or cottony
growth on the insects, giving the appearance of a white film
growing at the bottom of the crevices where a few of them
are lurking. Where there are many the spot appears as if
a knot of cotton-wool was sticking to the bough, or even
hanging down in pieces several inches in length, ready to be
wafted by the first gust of wind, with all the insects in it, to
a neighbouring bough.

The "BHght" is chiefly to be found in neglected Apple
orchards. Its headquarters are in crevices in the bark, or in
hollows where young bark is pressing forward over the surface
where a bough has been cut off, or broken by accident so as
to leave a shelter of the old dead bark outside ; it may, how-
ever, be found on almost every part of the tree into which the
aphis can pierce with its sucker ; and the harm caused by
the attack is not only from the quantity of sap drawn away
from the bark or j'oung shoots, but also from the diseased
growth which is thus set up. The bark is at first not much
affected by the punctures, but the woody layers beneath
become soft, pulpy, and swollen. The cells and fibres divide
and subdivide, and the bark splits open over the swelling,
showing the tissue beneath, which is thus exposed for a fresh
attack.

At the end of summer these watery swollen growths dry up
and die, and thus form deep cracks. With the return of spring
(as in other cases of injury) a new growth forms round the
dead part, and this soft tissue is ready for the young aphides.
Thus, from the swollen diseased growth caused partly by the
aphides, partly by the natural attempts of the tree to repair
damage, a constantly increasing diseased mass arises, which
shelters the insects in its crannies, and finds food for them in
its young hypertrophied formations.*

The "American Blight" Aphis is stated to have been im-
ported from America in 1787, but whether this is a fact
appears somewhat uncertain. It may be known at a glance
from the common Apple Aphis (scientifically Aphis mail),
which is injurious to the leaves, by the white wool with
which it is more or less covered, and from which it takes its
common name.

The Woolly Apple Aphides are of the shape figured on
p. 1 and p. 3, magnified, with three pairs of legs, and (when
in winged condition) with two pairs of transparent wings ; a

* See paper by M. Prillieux in ' Comptes Eendus ' for April, 1875.

AMERICAN BLIGHT.

head furnished with a pair of anteniife or horns, and for the
most part with a rostrum or sucking-tube, by means of which
the insects (as above mentioned) cause much injury. This

Winged Woolly Aphis, magnified.

rostrum is of enormous proportionate length in the aphides
when first produced, but it is stated to be absent in the egg-
laying female. The " honey-tubes," or cornicles, which are
to be found in the case of most aphides as upright tube-like
organs placed one on each side of the upper part of the
abdomen near the tip, are absent or rudimentary.

The colour differs with condition or sex, but the aphides
may be generally described as of some shade of brown in
their older stages, and of warm brown or red or pinkish in
their earlier condition. The winged egg-producing female is
yellow tinged with red.

The pupte (that is, the aphides before grown to maturity)
are " slightly clothed with down. The insects, when adult,
exude from their pores long silky threads, which curve round
a centre, and form long spiral filaments, under which they
hide." * This wool sometimes shows merely as a film, like a
little white mould in the crannies haunted by the plant-lice ;
sometimes it shows as tufts or patches on the trunks or
boughs, or on leaves or shoots — anywhere about the trees, in
fact, wdiere the plant-lice are allowed to establish themselves.
In these filmy masses the insects shelter themselves, and the
young may be found collected together thus even in severe
cold. I have myself found them in the woolly material
during the winter, and Mr. Buckton records finding the wing-
less larvffi alive and plentiful on Apple branches in December,
when snow was on the ground, and the thermometer stood
at 21° Fahr. Winged specimens may be found in July and
August.

Prevention and Eemedies. — The great harbouring points
of this aphis, and the nooks from which the broods come forth
in spring to infest the trees, are crevices, especially such as
are formed of young bark sheltered under old dead masses.
It is therefore very important to keep up a clean, healthy,
well-trimmed state of the branches, such as will not allow of

* For details of S. lanigera see 'Brit. Aphides,' by G. B. Buckton, vol. iii.,
pp. 89-94.

b2

APPLE.

lurking-places, or, if they do exist, will allow of these points
of attack being carefully watched. Boughs must be removed
in pruning sometimes, and where the Woolly Aphis exists it
is certain to try to effect a lodgment under the ring of young
bark that comes rolling forward over the stump ; but an eye
to this matter, and a few strong soap-suds brushed on the first
bit of wool seen, will keep all right ; whilst on trees with the
boughs maimed by beating the crop off, bad pruning, pieces
torn off by the wind, &c., the aphis gets such a hold in the
rough bark as can hardly be got over.

With regard to remedies : — The colonies of insects remain
in one place, and soon die if their food is cut off or their
breathing-pores choked ; so that anything which will give such
a taint to their harbouring places that they cannot feed will
do good. Soft-soap, tar, or, in fact, anytMng oily, (jreasii, or
sticky tliat can he well rubbed on, and which, by adhering for
a time, will choke all the aphides that it touches, will be of
use, and amongst these applications tar, being often at hand
ready for use, may answer the purpose where nothing else
would be used. But it should always be remembered, though
this application may not do harm where old thick bark pre-
vents it oozing or melting (in sunshine) into the living tissues
of the tree, or, again, might be perfectly safe on the blight-
tumours of old trees, it would probably be very injurious on
young bark that is still living and in an active state.

Amongst the vast number of applications which are on
record as answering for getting rid of this attack, probabl}'
the following recipe, with which I was favoured by Mr. Malcolm
Dunn, writing from The Gardens, Dalkeith, N.B., would be
found to meet all requisites with little trouble or expense : —

'* I find soft-soap an excellent insecticide wherever it can
be applied with safety to the plant ; made into a thick lather,
and applied with a stiff brush to the stems of Apple trees in-
fested with American Blight, it is a certain remedy.

" In the winter, when the trees are at rest, it may be
applied all over the tree, and if the roots are uncovered from
the base of the stem onwards, as far as it is easy to get at
them also, the treatment will go far to stamp out the pest.
Even a thorough soaking of the soil in which the roots run,
with strong soap-suds, repeated a few times during winter, is
a first-rate means of keeping down American Blight. Of
course the soft-soap must not be applied (as above) to green
leaves or bark ; it is so caustic that it invariably burns them,
especially if the sun strikes on the soap ; therefore it must be
used with caution in summer." — (M. D.)

The above recipe is particularly serviceable in cases of
American Blight ibeing established at roots of Apple trees.

AMEKICAN BLIGHT. 5

At one time there was some doubt whether the Woolly Aphis
found on the roots was of the same species as as that affecting
the tree, but now it is considered similar ; and it is advised
also by Dr. Asa Fitch, where Woolly Aphides are found on the
roots, to clear away the soil as much as possible from the in-
fested roots, and pour strong soap-suds in sufficient quantity
to soak into all the crannies or diseased spots, and either to
remove the old soil and replace it with fresh, or to mix ashes
with it.

Another observer recommends partially laying bare the
roots, and following this up by the application of night-soil.
Drainage from stables is said to cure the evil. As the root
aphides in all likelihood pass down from the trunk, it would
probably be a great preventive to put a loose rope of hay
soaked in tar round the tree at its junction with the ground,
placing the band so as to stop passage but not injure tender
bark.

For waslies, or mixtures to be laid on as paint, the follow-
ing ai^plications have been found of service ; but it should be
observed that in the case of tobacco-water it is desirable to try
what strength tender Uafaije will bear without injury : — Take
a quarter of a pound of tobacco, infuse it in half a gallon of
hot water ; when cool enough dip the infested shoots in it for
a few seconds, or wash the infested parts in the liquor. Ee-
peat this in a few days, if necessary, after which the plant
may be washed with clean water. Then dissolve one pound
of soft-soap and one gallon of lime in enough water to make
it about the consistency of thick whitewash. Apply this with
a painter's brush to the stem and all the branches that can be
reached, and sift some lime on the ground.

An application is also recommended of half a peck of quick-
lime, half a pound of flour of sulphur, quarter of a pound of
lamp-black, mixed with boiling water so as to form a thick
paint ; this to be applied warm. In winter, when the leaves
are off, the branches and stems may be painted with this, all
loose hark being first removed. It is very desirable to remove
the soil from the bottom of the stem, down to the main roots,
and paint that part also.

For special applications to nooks and crannies, anything
that is oily, soapy, or greasy will do good, but, as far as killing
the insects is concerned, the thicker it is the better, so that
it may fairly fill up the crevices in the bark, if possible, and
not run off the aphides till it has killed them by choking up
their pores ; but at the same time care should be exercised
not to oil or grease young bark that may be hurt by the
application. A simple lather of yellow soap, laid on with an
old shaving-brush, sometimes does all that is needed without

6

APPLE.

fear of hurting the plants, and soft-soap, well rubbed in,
would probably be a very effective and lasting remedy.

It is also recommended that about the end of February the
trunks and large branches should he scrajjcd, excrescences
cut off, and the whole well scrubbed with soap-suds, after
which a good coating of lime and water is recommended.
Probably the form of " whitewash " that has some " size " in
it would be better than the simple lime and water, as the
" size " makes it stick better, and thus it is more injurious to
the aphides.

Besides the above applications, so many others are men-
tioned as being used with more or less success, it may be
worth while to give the list in some kind of order. It in-
cludes tar, kerosine, paraffin, turpentine (diluted), also resin
(with an equal quantity of fish-oil, and put on warm) ; oils
of various kinds ; soaps of various kinds ; ammoniacal'liquor
from gasworks, and ammoniacal animal fluid, especially
drainings from stables ; tobacco-water ; paints of lime and
soaj) ; lime and sulphur ; whitewash ; oil and soot ; and also
plaster of grafting-clay to stop up chinks with the blight
enclosed.

Of this vast collection of means of remedy, probably the most
serviceable are thorough drenchings of some of the soap-tcashes,
ap2)licd by means of the garden-engine to the tree directly the
attack is noticeable, accompanied by special applications of thick
mixtures of soap, or of any kind known to be desirable to kill
such of the blight insects as may have remained sheltered in
crevices of the bark.

A careful watch, and something done as soon as the ivool
appears, is what is wanted ; but if the small tufts are left
alone, as of no consequence, the insects will soon spread far
and wide, and a thoroughly infested tree may be a serious
injury to a whole neighbourhood.

Apple Aphis (Green Fly). Aphis mail, Fabr.

This kind of aphis is found in great numbers on the twigs
and in the leaves of Apple trees distorted by their attacks,
and likewise to some degree infests Pear trees. Quince, Med-
lar, and Hawthorn ; but the great mischief which it causes as
an orchard pest is by the young aphides puncturing the back
of the Apple leaves with their suckers, and thus causing
them to curl backwards, and form shelters for the insects, in
which they are safe not only from weather, but from being got
rid of by artificial applications.

APPLE APHIS. 7 .

The beginning of the attack is by deposit of eggs in autumn ;
these are at first yellow or green, but gradually become darker,
and may be found in winter, sometimes in very great num-
bers, as oval black shining eggs in crevices of the bark, or on
the young apple twigs. These hatch as soon as the buds
begin to swell in the spring, and the little plant-lice at once
betake themselves to the buds or small sprouting leaves,
where they feed by inserting their suckers and drawing away
the juices.

These plant-lice are females, and reach maturity in ten or
twelve days, when they begin to produce living young, whic'ili
in their turn reach maturity as quickly as their mothers, and
are as prolific. Thus the colony increases as quickly as the
growth of new leaves supplies them with places of settlement.
With advance of the season winged aphides are produced,
which abound most in July, when they spread so widely and
so numerously as sometimes in the Apple-growing districts to
do' most serious mischief by the injury to the leaves ; and the
bark of the trees is (as in various other cases of aphis attack)
blackened by the secretion voided by the insects.

The presence of the infestation is noticeable by the Apple
leaves being twisted and turned back, or otherwise distorted
out of their natural shape and position.

Towards the end of the season males as well as females are
produced, and egg-deposit takes place, which lays the founda-
tion for the attack of the following year.

The winged female producing living young (viviparous) is
of very similar shape to the Apliis pruiii figured under the
heading of Plum Aphis, that is, has six slender legs, two pairs
of delicate wings, slender and rather long horns, and near
the end of the abdomen (one on each side) a pair of cornicles
or honey-tubes. The Apple Aphis, however, differs in the
wings being proportionally longer and narrower than that of
the Plum, and the colouring is rather different.

This species of Apple Aphis is stated to be very variable
both in form and colour. Of the females that produce living
young, the tvingless ones (hatched from the egg first in the
season, which may be called the mother-aphides of the suc-
cessive generations of the year) are globose and soft, larger
than those born from these aphides afterwards, of a dark slaty
grey colour, mottled with green, with short dark grey horns
and legs. The latter viviparous broods are variable in colour,
as green, yellowish, rusty red, &c. The ivinged female bearing
living young {viviparous) has the head, horns, and body be-
tween the wings black ; abdomen green, with dots on each
side ; legs yellowish, with black knees and feet. The wings
are long, and pale green at the base. The wingless egg-laying

. 8 APPLE.

female is almost globose, of a brownish green colour, with a
rusty stain on the head and part of the thorax. The tail and
rings next to it are very hairy.

In the case of this plant-louse, there are wingless males;
whether there are winged ones also, appears not to be certain.
The wingless kind is described as " exceedingly minute, per-
haps one-eighth the size of the female" (of which the greatest
length given is about the tenth of an inch) ; legs long : horns
longer than the body, and sucker almost equal to it in length.

The early stages of this species of plant-louse much re-
semble each other in form ; the pupa, however, has reddish
wing-cases ; also, it is usually of a paler yellow in colour than
the larva, and has three green stripes on the abdomen. —
C Mon. of Brit. Aphides,' vol. ii.).

Prevention and Eemedies. — Scraping the dead bark off the
trees during the winter, and washing them with a solution of
soft-soap reduced to the consistence of a thick paint by the
addition of a strong solution of washing soda in water, is
recommended in Canadian practice as being beneficial by de-
stroying the eggs. Later on washes and syringings of soap-
suds. Soft-soap with a little paraffin incorporated, but not
strong enough to hurt the leafage, and all the usual class of
aphis washes, will be of use where they can be brought to
bear on the aphides.

In the case of this aphis, which blackens the bark and gives
the tree a sickly smell from its excretions, thorough and re-
peated washings that will clean the leaves and shoots, as
well as knock off the aphides, are particularly useful. Where
shoots are still in the first stages of attack, before the leaves
are ruined, good dreuchings applied powerfully by means of
the garden-engine are useful for this purpose, and they may
be of water or of any of the washes mentioned ; but washes
containing soap or anything that will adhere to the aphis,
instead of being repelled by its mealy coat when in larval or
pupal state, are the most useful.

It is desirable to cut off all infested shoots that are past hope
of recovery, or can be spared, and destroy them at once, so as
not to allow the aphides on them to fly or otherwise get about.

The common Blue Titmouse is especially useful in destroying
aphides ; and the Cole, Marsh, Long-tailed, and Great Tit-
mouse ; also the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, the Creeper, the
Nuthatch, and the Warbler are stated to be serviceable in
clearing insects from Apple trees.

CODLIN MOTH,

Codlin Moth. CarjwcajJsa 2}0)nonella, Limn.

Carpocapsa roMONELLA. — Moth, natural size and magnified ; caterpillar ;
injured Apple.

Codlin Moth attack is one of the regularly recurring yearly
troubles of the fruit-grower, and although the " maggotty" or
"worm-eaten" condition of the young fruit, which we know
only too well as causing it to fall in quantities before it is
large enough to be of any use, may sometimes arise from
Apple Sawfly presence, or from other infestations, yet for the
most part the mischief is due to the larva of Carpocapsa
2)omonella.

Other of our orchard fruits are also liable to this infestation.
Pears are sometimes much injured; Quince, Plum, Peach,
and Apricot are sometimes attacked ; Walnuts have been
found to be infested ; * and this species has been recorded as
having been bred frequently from Sweet Chestnuts.

The caterpillar, or larva, when full-grown, is from rather
under two-thirds up to three-quarters of an inch in length ;
at first it is whitish, later on more or less of a pink or flesh-
colour. The head when young is blackish, later on lighter
in colour ; the shield on the segment next the head varies
similarly in colour with age of the grub, and so does the tail
segment. It has "eight little black dots or warts on each
segment, so arranged as to make two rows down the back,
and one row on each side" (Frazer S. Crawford). The cater-
pillar has three pairs of claw-feet ; four pairs of sucker-feet
beneath the body, and another pair at the end of the tail.

The cocoon is given by Dr. L. 0. Howard as " white inside
and greyish outside, and usually covered somewhat with bits
of bark or minute fragments of whatever substance the worm
happens to sr)in on."

* See ' The Entomologist,' January, 1896, p. 2.

10 APPLE.

The moth is about four-fifths of an inch in spread of the
fore wings, of a somewhat brown tint looked at generally, but
the fore wings have a brown patch at the tip, in which are
markings of gold colour, or of golden scales, or streaks of
gold ; and the wing is varied (see figure, p. 9) with irregular
transverse streaks of brown and grey. The brown of the
hind wings is deepest towards the outer edge, but the general
appearance of the moth difiers much in marking, from bright-
ness to dull grey or brown, according to whether it is held in
the bright sunshine or otherwise.

The male moths are distinguishable from the females by
the presence of a narrow long blackish spot on the under side
of each front wing, and also by a very narrow line of rather
long black hairs along the upper surface of each of the
hinder wings.*'

The method of infestation is for the moths to come out
about the time of the opening of the Apple-blossoms, and
when the petals have fallen and the embryo fruit is beginning
to form, the females lay their eggs ; formerly it was supposed
especially at the eye or blossom end of the fruit, but accord-
ing to recent observations it appears that the eggs may be
attached anywhere, — to the surface of the fruit, or to its
stem. (For minute observations of details of egg-laying, &c.,
with authorities given, the reader is referred to the exhaustive
pamphlet of Prof. Slingerland noted below.)

The maggot hatches in about a week or ten days, and
burrows into the embryo Apple for the most part at what
may be called the blossom end (the end furthest from the
stalk), and gradually begins to tunnel a gallery towards the
core, and during the journey their excrementitious matter is
so far as possible thrown out at the entrance-hole, and by
this dirt, especially the brown matter collected at the " eye"
of the young fruit, attention is called to the mischief going
on within. As the grubs grow they feed for the most part at
or near the core, and on the seeds, and at this stage do not
appear to clear out the dirt, so that the centre of the Apple
becomes a discoloured mass, as shown in figure, p. 9.

In about four weeks from the date of hatching the grub is
full-grown, and as a preliminary to leaving the Apple it
gnaws a tunnel to the outside of the Apple (see also p. 9),
and leaves the fruit. This may be in various ways. For
the most part it appears to be by simply crawling out of the
Apples, which have fallen consequently on the injury within,
often (though by no means always) with the maggot still
inside them. Sometimes the larva or maggot lets itself down

* See 'The Codlin Moth,' by M. V. Slingerland; Bulletin 142, Cornell
University Agricultural Experiment Station, U.S.A., January, 1898, p. 13.

CODLIN MOTH. 11

from the fruit (whilst this still remains on the tree) by the
help of a silken thread spun from its mouth ; or, again, it
may simply creep out of the Apple, and make its way along
the branches to the trunk.

But whether by creeping from the fallen Apple along the
ground, or by leaving it in any other manner, the maggot
next makes its way to a neighbouring Apple-tree stem, and
there it shelters itself in a cranny of the bark, or under a
loose piece, and often hollows out a little cavity, and spins a
cocoon, thin in itself, but from being mixed up with little bits
of surrounding material it forms, where I have seen it, a very
substantial protection. From this the moth comes out in
about a fortnight, or in the following spring, according to
whether there is one brood or two in the course of the season.
In England it is considered that this moth is actually only
single-brooded.

The matter of number of broods is important practically,
as in reference to imports from countries — as France, for
instance, or the greater part of the United States of America —
where the Codlin Motii is considered to be double-brooded,
for in such circumstances many of the maggots may be in the
apparently good Apples when gathered, stored, and packed.*
The maggots come out presently, and spin their cocoons in
any convenient cranny of the barrel or other packing-vehicle,
or locality. Thus a large supply of infestation is quite likely
to be imported together with the Apples to their purchasers,
and set infestation on foot where transmitted to fruit-grounds.

Irregularity of development, so that " about the same time
full-grown larvaB, young larvEe, eggs, and pupne will be found,"
is another point to which Mr. Howard draws attention, and to
which, from my own observations of the past year, I think
attention might usefully be given here.

Peevention and Eemedy. — ^Where fruit is found to be falling
prematurely in large numbers, some of it should be split open,
and if infestation of Codlin Moth caterpillar is found inside,
the fruit should be gathered up and destroyed. This should
be done as soon as possible, if it is to do much good ; and
jarring or shaking the boughs of trees which are apparently
much infested, on to cloths, answers well, for thus a good
proportion of the infested Apples can be gathered up before
the grubs have time to get away, and the fruit can be thrown
at once to wet manure or destroyed in any convenient way.

* See "The Codlin Moth, Carpocapsa pomonella," by L. 0. Howard, in
' Eeport of the Entomologist of the United States of America Department of
Agriculture for 1887,' Washington, 1888, pp. 88-115; an excellent and ex-
haustive treatise.

12 APPLE.

In orchard-growing on the very large scale of U.S.A. culti-
vation, it has been found to answer well to feed sheep and
pigs on the ground. These are supplied with requisite amount
of dry food, and from the destruction of the maggots and
trampling and manuring of the ground the infestation was
found to be much lessened, and also the trees to thrive well.
To prevent gnawing of the smaller trees, awash of "a solution
of soapsuds, whale-oil soap, and sheep manure was applied
once a month, and water also given." * In this country the
water might or might not be needed.

But though destroying the fallen Apples gets rid of a great
deal of infestation, it does not help us with regard to the
caterpillars that go down to the ground by threads, and creep
up the Apple trunks ; or creep down to the trunk from un-
fallen Apples on the twigs. For this we need various methods
of treatment of the bark, and the first in order are those for
trapping or stopping the maggots on their ascent (or on their
journey down the tree). A very simple plan recommended
by the late Prof. Eiley, Entomologist of the U.S.A. Depart-
ment of Agriculture, was to wind a hay-rope in three coils
round the trunk of a tree at a little distance from the ground,
and to apply other hay-bands also to the larger branches.
The hay-band was fastened as tightly as it could be pulled ;
and Prof. Ptiley's rules as to its application were as follows : —
" First, the hay-band should be placed around the trees by
the 1st of June, and kept on till every Apple is off tbe tree ;
second, it should be pushed up or down, and the worms or
chrysalids crushed that were under it, every week or at the
very least every two weeks " [this appears to me very impor-
tant, E. A. 0.] ; " third, the trunk of the tree should be kept
free from rough old bark, so as to give the worms no other
place to shelter ; and, fourth, the ground itself should be kept
free from rubbish." f

The point of the above treatment is — have the bands for
trapping the maggots placed early enough, and clear out all
that are captured soon enough ; and remove all other shelters,
so that the maggots have (so to say) no choice but to resort
to those which can be kept under observation.

With a similar object, handing the trees, as especially re-
commended by Mr. Frazer Crawford, may be carried out in
various ways, as follows : — " For this purpose, old sacks, old
clothes (if woollen all the better), or brown paper may be
used, bat the latter is not so good. These should be cut into

* See detailed account, by Mr. J. S. Woodward, in ' New York Weekly
Tribune ' for June 9th, 1880, quoted at lengtli by Mr. L. 0. Howard, p. 96 of
his paper previously referred to.

t See Mr. L. O. Howard's Keport previously referred to.

CODLIN MOTH. 13

strips about eight inches in width, and of a sufficient length
to go round the trees. Each strip should then be folded in
half, and the folded edge again turned down, so as to make
the double fold about an inch and a half wide. The band will
then be about two and a half inches wide. Insert a piece
of cord, or, what is better, wire, in the double fold, and tie
round the trunk of the tree, about six inches from the ground,
taking care that the folds are at the top, nnd the second fold
placed next the tree. . . . The wire can easily be untwisted
to examine the bands, and twisted again to fasten them on.
The bands should be examined weekly as long as there is any
fruit left on the trees, as also on any tree which, having no
fruit, is yet growing near infested trees with fruit on. Rags
or paper should be fastened in the forks of the trees, in order
to trap any caterpillars that may leave the fruit without
reaching the ground, which, of course, should be examined
regularly with the others." *

For a simple and practicable method of scrajniuj the trees so
as to clear away all shelters for maggot infestation, I do not
know of any better plan than that recommended by Mr. Frazer
Crawford in his pamphlet referred to below, therefore I again
quote verbatim, duly acknowledging the source : — " Spread
any old sacks or other suitable material round the tree as far
as any scrapings are likely to fall. Commence on the tree as
far as there is any loose bark, and scrape it carefully off.
Examine and scrape all crevices in the bark, or those formed
in the forks of the tree. Continue scraping until the ground
is reached. Next gather the scrapings carefully off' the sacks,
and burn or otherwise destroy them immediately. This
scraping should be done annually early in the winter.

" Washing the trees. — After scraping the trees a wash should
be applied for the purpose of destroying any larvse or chrysa-
lises remaining in the crannies of the tree." — (F. S. C.)

With regard to washes, it is really impossible to enumerate
the variety that are before the public that would answer the
required purpose. Such preparations as kerosine emulsion; or
the " anti-pest " of Messrs. Morris, Little, & Son, of Doncaster ;
or the soft-soap and sulphur compound of the Chiswick Soap
Company, or many others with a basis of coarse strong-
smelling soap which would fill up crevices and stifle larvas
within them, and an addition of some special insect deterrent
as mineral oil or sulphur would be sure to do good.

To the above precautious should be added (where the large

* ' Eeport on the Fusicladiums and Codlin Moth,' etc., by Frazer S. Craw-
ford, Inspector under the Vine, &c., Protection Act. Published by direction of
tire Hon. Commissioner of Crown Lands. Government Printer, Adelaide,
S. Australia, 188G. Price Is.

14 APPLE,

scale of trade cultivation is concerned) great care as to bringing
infestation into the grounds in cases which may have held
home-grown or imported Apples. As noted at p. 11, larvae
or maggots of the second brood, in some European and many
of the U.S.A. districts, may have been in the Apples when
packed, and may very likely indeed have established them-
selves for change to chrysalis and moth state in crannies of
the barrels, boxes, crates, or other cases used for transmission.
All such packages, or even sacli as have been in contact with
such cases, should be disinfected. Thorough scalding with
boiling water would probably do all that is needed, and this
simple plan would often be carried out where growers would
not care for more trouble. But for those who wish for a
special application, " dipping the cases for two minutes in a
lye of caustic soda of a strength of one ounce to three gallons of
water, or pouring the solution into them," will be found useful.

Spran'ing. — But it has become more and more observable
that something beyond measures of prevention are needed,
which, in localities where the infestation has escaped all
measures for its destruction in its early stages (or more
commonly where nothing has been done to destroy it), may
be brought to bear cheaply, and with good hope of success, at
the time when attack customarily takes place on the young
setting Apples, that is, when the blossom-leaves are faUing,
or rather have just fallen. For this inirpose spraying ivitk
Paris-green* Jias been found to answer ivelL

In the Eeport of Prof. Lawrence Bruner, Entomologist of
the University of Nebraska, U.S.A., bearing date 1894, which
brings the observations fairly up to the present time, he
observes : —

" The best remedy now known, and the only one by which
the first brood is killed and a large percentage of the fruit
saved from their ravages, is the use of one or other of the
arsenical sprays, composed of London-purple or Paris-green
with water. These are to be applied just after the fruit has
* set,' and before it has become heavy enough to droop, or for
the calyx ends to turn downward on the forming fruit. One
or two thorough sprayings at this time will, it has been
proved, save at least seventy per cent, of the loss otherwise
experienced. The ratio of these poisons best adapted for the
purpose has not been definitely ascertained, since this varies
with conditions of climate, latitude, &c." [A caution that
should be carefully noticed. — E. A. 0.] "About four ounces
of the Paris-green or three of the London-purple to the
barrel of water will probably be sufficiently strong to kill the

* LoncloQ-purple would answer the same purpose, but has not as yet been
so much brought forward in this country.

CODLIN MOTH. 15

worms, and at the same time not injure or kill the foliage
during ordinary weather at this time of year." — L. B. (From
' Nebraska State Horticultural Report for 1894.')

The above extract gives date of application, but (to ourselves)
not precise proportion save to those acquainted with the capa-
city of the U.S.A. " barrel." But reports from trustworthy ex-
perimenters name one pound of poison to a hundred and sixty
to two hundred gallons of water as safe and serviceable.

Prof. F. M. Webster, of Purdue University, U.S.A., also a
thoroughly trustworthy authority, recommended Paris-green,
sprayed as a liquid mixture, as a good remedy. " Used in
this form, one pound of the poison to one hundred and forty
or fifty gallons of water, if applied in the form of a spray, by
the aid of any of the machines mentioned, . . . will be found
effective against the Codlin Moth."— (F. M. W.)

In our English experiments, for spraying Apple trees as a
remedy for caterpillar, one ounce of Paris-green to twenty
gallons of water was found sufficient. But in all cases where
the operators are not accustomed to the use of arsenical
poisons, careful experiment should be made as to w^hat
strength can be borne, before spraying on a large scale.

The Paris-green is j)rocurable from Messrs. Blundell and
Spence, Hull, more finely ground than the ordinary powder,
and in a slightly damped condition ; in this condition it
is safer for use, as the powder does not fly about, and is
therefore not so liable to be prejudicially inhaled by the
mixer. Also a smaller quantity is required ; if the same
proportion of this prepared Paris-green is used as of the
ordinary powder, great damage is likely to ensue. Paris-
green is sometimes known in the shops as Emerald-green.

It must be remembered, as was brought forward when the
use of Paris-green was introduced into England by our
Evesham Committee of Experiment in 1890, that this aceto-
arsenite of copper is jioisonous, and therefore should be kept
safely out of the way of children or careless people.

Details of method of application are now fully before the
public, but the main points will be found under heading of
"Paris-green"; and for those who wish to have special ob-
servations on methods of applying the arsenite, and also
precautions in its use, I may mention that I should be
happy to forward gratuitously to applicants coi^ies of my own
eight-page pamphlet on this subject.

The kinds of sj^rayers, whether as knapsack or hand or
horse machines, are being so constantly improved, and they
are in such numbers before the public, that it is unnecessary
to enter on them here.

Our really available remedies against this infestation appear

IG

APPLE.

to lie — first, in destroying infested Apples ; second, in trap-
ping the caterpillars and destroying their shelters ; and
third, on being well on the alert at the time of the blossoming
of the Apple, and by careful spraying preventing the very
beginning of the attack.

Figure-of-8 Moth and Blue-head Caterpillar.

JJiloba cantleocephala, Linn.

'-iMs '^ J!^.

DiLOBA c.EEULEocEPHALA, — Figure-of-8 Moth, and ("blue-head") caterpillar.

The caterpillars of this moth feed on the leafage of various
kinds of orchard trees, especially of Apple and Plum, and also
of Hawthorn and the Blackthorn or Sloe. In some seasons,
especially about 18D0, specimens of these fine larvre were re-
gularly sent amongst samples of the various kinds which were
doing mischief in the orchards, but for some years back they
have only rarely been forwarded.

The Figure-of-8 Moth is about an inch and a quarter in the
spread of the wings. The fore wings brownish or grey-brown,
marked, as shown above, with black lines and white spots,
one pair of which, formed of two small white kidney- formed
figures in the middle of each wing, form the marking like the
number "8," which gives its name to the moth. The hinder
wings are brownish, with darker rays and dark patch at the
hinder angle, as figured above.

The eggs are laid singly in September on the stems and
branches of the trees, or sometimes in clusters of six or eight
at the base of lateral shoots. These are said by some writers
to be green in colour ; but in some observations by the late
William Buckler of eggs of this species taken during the
winter, he mentions that " they were brown and apparently
ribbed, but the ribs could not be counted, as they were so
curiously covered with brown hairs." *

The eggs hatch in the spring at the time of the appearance
of the young leafage, and the caterpillars are full-fed about

* 'Larvae of British Butterflies and Moths,' by W. Buckler (Ray Society),
vol. iii. p. 1.

FIGURE-OF-8 MOTH. 17

the middle of June, when they are very observable from their
comparatively large size, and are also remarkable for the
small head being of a bluish colour, with two round black
spots. The caterpillar is of various tints of green or smoky-
green above, and yellow-green below; one yellow stripe
(interrupted at distances) runs along the back, and one yellow
stripe along each side below the spiracles. The segments or
rings of the caterpillar are spotted with black (see figure,
p. 16), the one immediately behind the head has eight small
spots arranged (on the upper part) in a double transverse row,
and the two segments immediately behind have one row of
larger spots similarly placed. The following segments (till
near the tail) have four spots above. The three pairs of
claw-feet are also spotted with black, and the four pairs of
sucker-feet beneath the body have two black spots on each.
They are, however, very variable in colour ; the young speci-
mens being sometimes nearly white on the back, and when
old they may be of a bluish grey colour along the back.
There are also bluish green varieties.

When full-fed the caterpillars spin cocoons formed of bits
of bark, or apparently anything that may be convenient, — on
twigs or stems, or even on neighbouring walls, — in which the
larva turns to a reddish brown chrysalis, out of which the
moth emerges about September, but also is to be found later
on, and in some cases appears in the following spring.

Prevention and Eemedies. — It is stated by Dr. Taschenberg
that the caterpillars have such sHght hold that in case of a
storm occurring they fall off in great numbers. This fact of
their loose hold may be very serviceably turned to account
by shaking the trees well, and also by heavy washings, and
collecting and destroying the caterpillars that drop to the
ground.

Amongst measures of prevention, scraping and cleaning the
bark of the trees and branches would be serviceable here as
with various other insect attacks, as thus some at least of the
cocoons which the blue-headed caterpillars form on the trees
would be got rid of.

Catching the moths hij means of lamijs. — The moth may be
found from September onwards in the latter part of the year ;
and on November 18th Mr. C. D. Wise reported to me from
Toddington, "We have found and are now catching, by means
of the lamps, the Figure-of-8 Moth." The arrangement used
in this case was by placing a lighted lamp under an open
shed, the underneath part of the roof or boards being tarred
and greased.

The various kinds of washes or sprayings used to destroy

c

18

APPLE.

other orchard moth-caterpillars (for which see Index) would
be equally serviceable iu the case of this attack.

Goat Moth. Cossus Ur/niperda, Fab.

Cossus LiGNiPEEDA. — Goat Moth and chrysalis.

The caterpillars of the Goat Moth are injurious by gnawing
large tunnels in the solid wood of various kinds of orchard
and timber trees, where they feed before turning to the
chrysalis state for three years. Amongst timber trees, they
attack Oak, Elm, Ash, Beech, Lime, Willow, and Poplar ;
and amongst orchard trees, Apple, Pear, and Walnut, — and
I have had specimens showing very injurious amount of pre-
sence of caterpillars sent me from Apple.

The infestation is widely distributed, from the south of
England to the north of Scotland ; and I had notes of an old
Oak cut down on the Brahan Estate, near Dingwall, Co.
Boss, N.B., being found to contain hundreds of the cater-
pillars, from a quarter of an inch to four inches in length,
with empty chrysalis-cases in the bark. The worst attack
which I have myself seen was in West Gloucestershire, where
I helped in taking sixty caterpillars from the stem of a young
Chichester Elm, which was so much injured it had to be cut
down consequently on the presence of the infestation.

The habit of the Goat Moth is to lay her eggs at the lowest
part of the tree, and a badly-infested tree may often be known

GOAT MOTH. 19

by the wood-chips thrown out from the caterpillar-workings,
which lie on the ground close to the trunk, as well as by the
moisture where sap is oozing from the gnawed-out tunnels ;
likewise by the very offensive smell of the caterpillars, which
thoroughly impregnates their tunnels and all about them, and
from which the Goat Moth takes its name.

The eggs are laid about the middle of the summer in
crevices in the bark, and the caterpillars which hatch from
them feed at first in the bark or just below it, and gradually,
as they grow, penetrate into the solid wood, where they live
for three years, and form chambers and galleries of various
size and width, some as large as a man's finger; and from the
great size the caterpillars grow to, likewise the numbers they
are sometimes found in, they do great damage, or sometimes
entirely kill the tree.

Caterpillar of Goat Moth (not full-grown).

The above figure gives the appearance of the caterpillar
when about two-thirds grown. When quite young it is pink,
almost precisely the colour of a boiled shrimp ; when older
it is yellow, with a black head, two black spots on the
ring behind the head, and a row of dark reddish patches
or a stripe of the same colour along the back. When full-
grown the caterpillars are three inches or possibly more in
length.

During the winter they lie quiet, otherwise they feed for a
period of three years, and, when ready to change, form
cocoons of little bits of wood roughly spun together just inside
the entrance of their burrows, in which they turn to a reddish
brown chrysalis. Shortly before the moth is ready to emerge
the chrysalis forces itself partly through the cocoon, where
the empty case remains sticking out from the tree, and is a
useful guide as to timber being infested.

The moth is between three and four inches in the spread of
the fore wings, which are mottled with ashy white, and rich
brown, with many irregular black streaks and markings ; the
hinder wings are of a more dingy colour, with the markings
less distinct ; the head dusky brown ; body between the wings
marked across with dark brown and grey or ochreous ; the
abdomen brown and grey in alternate rings. It is to be seen
at the end of June and beginning of July.

c2

20 APPLE.

Prevention and Eemedies. — The moths are heavy and
sluggish, and may be taken easily by hand as they rest
quietly during the day on the bark of the tree out of which
they hatched.

The caterpillars sometimes leave the trees, and may be
found straying about in May and in the autumn, and in such
case they should always be destroyed ; but generally (as above
mentioned) the}'' change to chrysalids at the entrance of their
burrows, and where trees are known to be infested these
reddish chrysalids should he looked for during June or early
in July, and destroyed where found.

Any mixture that can be laid on the tree, so as to prevent
the moth laying her eggs on the bark, is useful.

A mixture of clay and cow-dung smeared over the bark has
been found to answer well, and has the advantage of gradually
washing or cracking off without injuring the bark beneath it.
Soft-soap has also been found useful applied as follows : —
Several pounds of the soft-soap are mixed in a pail with warm
water to about the consistency of thick paint ; the operator, who
is also supplied with a bag of sand and a coarse cloth, dips
the cloth in the soap and sand and rubs the bark thoroughly,
and then, with a painter's brush, lays on a thick coat.

This treatment is a good means of preventing oviposition,
and also of rubbing off or destroying eggs that may have been
laid on the bark ; but in some cases a good syringing with a
garden-engine, of some of the soft-soap washes with a little
mineral oil in them, might do better, for they would run down
a little way into the ground, and thus deter attack which
sometimes is begun a little below ground-level. In the case
of an attack on some Poplars and Willows near Llanelly,
South Wales, of which specimens were sent me in 1883, the
caterpillars had made their way into the wood at the lower
part of the stems of the trees below the surface of the ground,
and had bored upwards.

Where the caterpillars can be reached, the simplest and
best method of getting rid of them is by killing them in their
burrows by passing a bit of thick strong wire up the tunnel.
A glance at the state of the end of the wire, when it is with-
drawn from the hole, will show whether the caterpillar has
been reached or not. If the end is found to have wet, white
matter on it, the caterpillar has been reached. I have also
seen it answer very well to use a finer wire with the point
turned back, so as to form a hook to draw the caterpillar out
with. A surprising number may be taken out this way.

Paraffin oil, or a mixture of it in soft-soap wash injected by
a sharp-nozzled syringe with as much force as possible into
the holes where the caterpillars are working, is a good

LACKEY MOTH.

21

remedy ; and any fluid poisonous to the caterpillar, or which
would make the wood of its hole poisonous or distasteful to it
for food, would be serviceable, as tobacco-water, &c. The
fluid might also be easily injected by means of a gutta-percha
tube, of which one end was fitted on the nozzle of a syringe,
and the other passed a little way up the hole ; the escape of
fluid may be i^revented by some soft clay being pressed into
the hole round the tube or nozzle and also kept carefully in
place whilst it is being withdrawn.

The fames of siilpJiur blown into the hole were found very
effective by Mr. Malcolm Dunn, of Dalkeith, in destroying the
caterpillars of the Leopard Moth ; and probably this applica-
tion, or a strong fumigation of tobacco, would be equally
serviceable in the case of the Goat Moth caterpillars.

Where a tree is much infested, it is the best plan to cut it
down, split it, and destroy the caterpillars within; as many
as sixty or more caterpillars may be taken from one tree,
and when in this state it will never thoroughly recover, and
it becomes a centre to attract further attack, as well as one
to spread infection.

It has been noted by Prof. Westwood (Life-President of
the English Entomological Society), that "the Green Wood-
pecker preys on these caterpillars, and its stomach on dissec-
tion has an intolerable stench," and the same circumstance is
alluded to in vol. iii. of Macgillivray's ' History of British Birds.'

Lackey Moth.

Bomhyx [Gastercpacha) neustria, Linu.; Clisiocawpa neustria, Curtis.

BoMBYX NEUSTRIA. — 1, clustev of eggs ; 2, caterpillar (about one-third longer
and wider than natural size) ; 3, moth.

The caterpillars of the Lackey Moth are injurious to the
leafage of Apples and other orchard trees, as well as to White-

22 APPLE.

thorn, Sloe, Oak, Elm, Birch, &c. They are very easily known
by their gay colouring, from which they take their German
name of "Livery Cateri^illars," and the moth the name of
"Lackey Moth." "When full-fed (which is about midsummer)
the caterpillars are about an inch and a half in length,
and hairy ; of a bluish grey colour, marked with two black
eye-like spots on the head, two black spots with a scarlet
space between them on the next ring, and three scarlet or
orange stripes along each side, between the two lowest of
which on each side there is a blue stripe ; these gaily-coloured
markings being divided by lines of black, or black spotted
with blue. The eggs are laid in the summer or autumn of the
preceding year to that in which the attack takes place, and
they may be found in winter and spring arranged in a compact
mass, or rather ring-like band on the twigs, exactly as figured
(p. 21). From these eggs small black hairy caterpillars" hatch
about the beginning of May, and immediately spin a web over
themselves, which they enlarge from time to time as needed
for their accommodation. In these web-nests they live in
companies of from fifty to two hundred, and from them the
caterpillars go out to feed on the leaves, returning for shelter
in wet weather or at night. When alarmed they let them-
selves down by threads, either to the ground, or else (after
hanging in the air till the alarm is past) they go up again by
their threads to the tree. When full-grown, which is about the
middle of the summer, they scatter themselves separately, and
do not go doivn into the ground to turn to chrysalids, but spin
cocoons anywhere in reach of their food-trees, as on leaves, or
in hedges, beneath the bars of railings, under roofs of sheds,
or even on the top of walls, where each caterpillar spins a
silken cocoon, mixed with sulphur-coloured or white powder
and with hairs from the skin woven into it, and from the
brown chrysalis in this cocoon the moth comes out towards
the latter part of summer.

The figure (p. 21) shows the shape and size of the Lackey
Moth. The colouring is excessively variable, but the fore
wings may be described as of some shade of rusty-fox,
yellowish, or dark brown tint, with two transverse bars, these
being sometimes of a pale tint on a darkish ground, or some-
times, on the contrary, the ground colour is the paler, and
the bars dark ; and in one specimen before me there is a
transverse band between the two bars, of a deeper colour than
that of the rest of the wings. The hinder wings are also of
some tint of brownish colour.

It is stated that the moths, and especially the females, for
the most part remain concealed by day under leaves and in
long grass, and come out at night.

LACKEY MOTH. 23

The caterpillars seldom do the enormous quantity of mis-
chief with us that they are noted as causing in France, where,
according to the old law, it was compulsory on proprietors to
have the webs on the shoots cut off with shears and destroyed,
in consequence of the ravages of the caterpillars (if left un-
checked) ruining the Apple-leafage over an extent ef miles
of country ; nevertheless their attacks are often the cause of
much loss in this country, and need attention.

Prevention and Eemedies. — Some good may be done by
looking for the rings of eggs on the shoots, cutting these off
and destroying them ; also by destroying any yellow silken
cocoons that may be found about the trees, or near them, but
these methods are tedious, and, though they are of use where
just a few trees can be carefully tended, are of little service
in orchard treatment.

A far better way is to tvatch for the wehs, and, as soon as
they are seen, to carry out the old French method and cut the
shoots through with a pair of nippers and destroy the web-
nests and their contents. But where the plan of destroying
the caterpillars in their webs is adopted, care should be taken
that this is done when the caterpillars are ivitMn them.
It should be done on an overcast, wet day, or early or late,
and it is best for two people to carry out the work. One man
should have a pail with some fluid in it, — water and paraffin,
or fluid mud with a little paraffin, or anything, in fact, that
will prevent the caterpillars that fall in, rambling away. If
the pail is held by one man, so that the web-nest cut off by the
other falls into it, this is an excellent remedy for such part of
the attack as may be in reach. In any case, measures should
be taken to prevent stray caterpillars returning up the stem
of the tree to the leafage.

A less troublesome but less complete method is to shake
the boughs, or strike them smartly, so as to make the cater-
pillars drop, and sweep those that dangle by their threads in
the air down with the hand. These may be trampled on, or
gas-lime, quick-lime, or anything that will kill them, may be
thrown on them ; but it should be done at once.

Spraying the infested trees is of service with this as well as
with other orchard caterpillar attacks ; for observations on
which see notes under the head of " Winter Moth " ; also re-
ferences to " Paris-green," " Soft-soap Washes," &c., in Index.
The Lackey Moths harbour in long grass and leaves on the
ground, and, therefore, keeping the trees clear of a neglected
undergrowth of weeds and rank herbage, such as is too often
seen in uncared-for orchards, is a useful measure of prevention.

To what extent birds should be encouraged is a matter for

24

APPLE.

the consideration of the orchard-grower. It is certain that
some of the mainly insectivorous kinds give help hy clearing
out eggs and small gruhs from nooks which can be got at in
no other way, and that these should to all reasonable extent
be preserved ; but at the same time bird presence should by
no means be encouraged to such an overwhelming extent that
they demolish the very crops they were meant to protect.

In the case of Lackey Moth, a special word may be said for
the Cuckoo as a helper, as this bird in adult state feeds
especially on hairy caterpillars.*

Lappet Moth, Gastropacha quercifolia, Liun.

i^C.K.

Gastropacha quercifolia. — Lappet Moth (the larger the female, the smaller the
male); also caterpillar, and Apple-twig with leaves eaten away. All from life.

* See Yarrell's ' British Birds,' vol. ii. ; and Macgillivray's ' History of
British Birds,' vol. iii.

LAPPET MOTH.

25

The attack of the Lappet Caterpillars to orchard leafage
has very rarely been reported as occurring to an injurious
extent with us, and here, as well as on the Continent of
Europe (where the attack is much more destructive), it is
rather from the great size of the caterpillars than from their
numbers that they are seriously mischievous ; still, as, when
they do occur, they have a capacity of wholly destroying every
leaf that they come across down to the very footstalk (as
shown in the figure, p. 24), a few notes taken from observa-
tions sent me from presence of the attack on Apple in the
neighbourhood of Hereford in the years 1893 and 1894, may
be of useful interest.

The caterpillars of this " Lappet Moth " grow to a length
of from four to five inches (one specimen sent me was some-
what over four inches long), and are cylindrical, slightly hairy,
and grey or brownish in colour, but the tint is variable, and
so also is the pattern of the markings down the middle of the
back. These may be almost absent, or may occur as a row of
somewhat V-shaped dark marks ; but across the back, on the
segments next the head, are two beautifully lustrous, deep blue
or purple velvety bands. These are characteristic markings,
and are especially observable when the caterpillar is in move-
ment ; when at rest they may be hardly noticeable. _ The
caterpillars have three pairs of claw-feet, and four pairs of
sucker-feet beneath the body, besides the pair at the end of
the tail ; and just above the feet, and all along each side is a
row of fleshy warts or appendages with long grey hairs, to
which the name of "lappets" has been given, whence the
name of " Lappet Moth." These " lappets " show clearly on
the segments not furnished with feet or with sucker-feet, but
they are so often not clearly represented, especially above the
sucker-feet, that much care has been taken to give them dis-
tinctly in the figure, p. 24.

When full-grown, which may be in the late spring or early
summer, the caterpillar spins a dark-coloured oval_ cocoon,
apparently in any convenient shelter, as the localities are
variously recorded as being in clefts of bark, or between boards
under eaves, or amongst the lower twigs of the plant on which
the caterpillar fed, or close to the ground amongst grass.

From these cocoons the moths appear at variable dates
from June to July and August, or sometimes even as early as
May. The moths vary a good deal in size ; the females being
sometimes as much as three inches and a quarter in the
spread of the fore wings, whilst the male, as in the specimen
before me, may be no more than two. The colours are rich
brown, marked transversely on the fore wings with irregularly
disposed dark scalloped lines ; the hinder wings are somewhat

26 APPLE.

similarly marked, and the hinder margins of both wings
scalloped or indented at the edge. When at rest, the fore
edge of the hind wings, which is somewhat dilated, projects
so as to be very noticeable beyond, and from under the fore
edge of the fore wing, thus giving an appearance much like a
dead brown leaf to the moth, which probably often secures it
from observation, and from which it takes its specific name
of qucrcifolia, or oak-leaf.

The early history of the caterpillars is recorded as being
hatched in September, and moulting once, and spending the
winter extended on a twig of their food-plant, and in the
following season completing their growth ; and in the ob-
servations sent me from near Hereford it was mentioned:
" Our fruit foreman thinks that the grubs are hatched in the
autumn, for young caterpillars are found on the bark very
early in the spring."

The first notes which were sent of the infestation (on the
8th of May) were accompanied by a fine nearly full-grown
specimen of the caterpillar more than four inches long; and
on the 10th of May in tbe following year (1894) a consignment
of more than a dozen of the grubs was sent me from the same
locality, ranging from an inch and a quarter to two inches
and a quarter in length, but mostly of the larger size, and of
a greyish ground colour. Two or three were of a smaller
size, and these were of a rich brown ground colour.

My correspondents informed me that they had not dis-
covered the attack on their trees until the spring of 1893, nor
was it found in any considerable quantity ; but where it was
found, every leaf was devoured. A few specimen branches
were sent to me to show the extent of the damage, and these
I found, as described, absolutely cleared of leaves, excepting
that in a few instances some small remains of young leafage
in very miserable condition were still existing, these being
almost entirely at the ends of the twigs. For the most part
all had been thoroughly cleared down (as shown in the figure,
p. 24) to a mere stump of even the leaf-stalk. The Apple-
shoots forwarded were from about twelve to seventeen inches
long, and of various ages up to young boughs of from three-
eighths to half an inch diameter.

In this country the attack has been recorded as occurring
on Willow, also Sloe or Blackthorn, and sometimes as being
found on Pear, and also on "Whitethorn. On the Continent
it is known to be often injurious to young Plum trees, and
also Apple, Pear, and Peach trees ; but (as before mentioned)
more from the great size than from the numbers of the
caterpillars.

Under the circumstances, the surest method of getting rid

SMALL ERMINE IMOTH.

27

of the infestation is in all probability liand-iyicking. The
thorough destruction of leafage is a guide to where to look
for the cause, and the size of the caterpillars makes them
observable. From the rarity of the attack and the beauty
of the specimens they are often welcome additions to the
collections of amateur entomologists or to "naturalists" for
sale, and a hint of the presence of the attack in an ap^Dropriate
neighbouring quarter might very likely bring a thorough
clearance without any expense to owner of the infested trees.

Small Ermine Moth.

Hyponomeuta padelius, Linn. ; H. variabilis, Zell.

Hyponomeuta padellus. — Small Ermine Apple Moth, caterpillar, and cocoons,
life size ; and caterpillar, much magnified.

The presence of this infestation on orchard or garden fruit
trees is as observable as that of the Lackey Moth from the
similar habit of the caterpillars of living together in large
numbers and spinning web-nests as a kind of family shelter,
and the same kind of treatment is applicable to each attack.

In 1888 caterpillars of the Small Ermine Moths swarmed
to such an extent on the trees in the Fruit Grounds at
Toddington, in Gloucestershire, that in the early part of the
summer Capt. Corbett (the Superintendent) wrote me they
collected the cocoons by bucketfuls ; and the same kind of
caterpillars also did much injury in that year to orchards in
Herefordshire, some trees being completely stripped.

The moth lays her eggs in roundish patches on the small
twigs, and covers these patches with a kind of strong gum,
which is yellow at first, but gradually changes to a dark
brown, so as not to be easily distinguishable from the brown
twigs. The eggs may be found hatched by the beginning of
October, but the caterpillars (which are then little yellow
creatures with black heads, and only about half a line long)

28

APPLE.

remain sheltered under the patch of gum during the winter,
and do notcome out till the leaves begin to unfold in spring.
Then it is stated (see ' Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond.,' vol. i. p. 22)
that they burrow into the young leaves and feed on the soft
matter within, until they are strong enough to eat straight-
forward at the whole leaf, when they come out from their
workings and thus make their appearance suddenly in large
numbers where none have been noticeable just before. This
part of the attack I have never myself seen, but (without
going into minute details of their earliest life) in the spring or
early summer the caterpillars appear on the leafage of the
attacked trees, and these continue feeding on the leaves and
spinning webs, in which they live together in large companies,
until, in severe attacks, the hedge or tree infested is stripped
of its foliage, and left hung over with a kind of sheeting of
the dirty ragged remains of their deserted webs.

When full-fed each caterpillar spins a light cocoon, in
which it changes to the chrysalis inside the general ivch. The
Small Ermine Moth caterpillars are of a dirty ash or ashy
white colour, spotted with black ; when full-grown, the ground
colour is dirty yellow or lead-colour.

The moths, which come out towards the end of June, are
about three-quarters of an inch in expanse. The fore wings
are usually livid or whitish, dotted with black; the hind
wings livid or lead-colour ; but they are very variable.

The kind or variety figured (p. 27), of which the moths are
distinguishable by the fore wings having the black spots on a
pure white ground, and by the cocoons being opaque, was at
one time considered more especially to frequent the Apple,
and was especially distinguished as Hyponomeuta malivorella,
or " Small Apple Ermine Moth " ; but for all practical pur-
poses the treatment of the attacks (whether there may be a
slight difference in the nature of the "Small Ermines" or
not) may be considered together.

Prevention and Eemedies. — As the caterpillars of this
moth turn to chrysalids in cocoons in their large nests or
masses of web, the simplest method of prevention of future
attack is to cut off these webs and destroy them with the
cocoons within ; also, in an earlier stage, if the w^eb-nests,
full of caterpillars, can be cut off into a pail of anything that
will destroy them (as recommended with regard to Lackey
Moth), or if they can be shaken down and destroyed, this is
very desirable ; but where the ragged webs and small parties
of caterpillars are widely distributed over a tree, it is very
difficult to manage these arrangements. Where a party of
caterpillars are collected together on a bough where the mass

GARDEN CHAFER. 29

can be grasiDed in the hand and thoroughly squeezed, this will
get rid of many very surely and easily.

I have found it answer very well, where there was a good
water supply laid on, to ivash the infested tree well down with
a strong current of water sent through a hose. From the
clinging nature of the web the operation took some time to
carry out completely, but I have myself thus cleared and
cleaned a tree very satisfactorily.

The various washings recommended for remedy of Lackey
Moth attack would be as serviceable for that of the Small
Ermines, and in both cases good drenchings of soft-soap,
mixed as thickly as it could be applied (with a little paraffin
added), well syringed at each web-nest, would have a very
good effect.

It has been observed that the whole brood of moths usually
hatch from the chrysalis at the same time, when their light
colour makes them easily seen, and they are sluggish by day ;
it has therefore been found useful to spread a sheet under the
trees, and by beating or shaking the houghs make the moths
fall into the sheet, and destroy them.

Garden Chafer; Rose Beetle.

Phyllopertlia horticola, Linn. ; Anisoplia horticola, Curtis.

Phyllopeetha horticola. — Beetle, natural size (walking), magnified (flying) ;
grub, also magnified.

The "Garden" or "Eose" Chafer has long been remark-
able for appearing in great numbers occasionally, and doing
much mischief in beetle state to tree leafage, and also, when
in maggot condition, by feeding at the roots of grass, and so
far back as 1844 John Curtis gave dates of some of their
great appearances.* The earliest noted was in 1814, " in
immense numbers," near Swansea. In 1832 Apple and

* See ' Gardeners' Chronicle,' vol. iv. p. 700 ; Curtis, ' Farm Insects,'
pp. 219-222, and p. 509 ; also Curtis, ' Brit. Ent.,' fol. 526.

30 APPLE.

Nectarine trees were very seriously injured ; in 1833 Eoses
were especially noticed as attacked; young Apple trees are
noticed as being occasionally defoliated by them, and at
another time (of which I have not the date, but prior to
18-14) the Chafers are noted by Curtis as being " so abundant
on the Acacias, near Petersfield, as to consume the foliage,
and when the trees were shaken they fell down like a shower
of hail." 1839 and 1840 are mentioned as years in which
the maggots were especially abundant in autumn in Hants
and Gloucestershire, and this great presence of maggots
happened also in 1844 in different localities ; but from 1877 —
the date of commencement of my series of Annual Eeports —
until the year 1892, I am only aware of one note of observa-
tion of presence of this chafer to any remarkable amount
being sent me, namely, on the 18th of July, 1885 (when the
beetles were noticed hying in thousands over the field at a
locality near Nantwich, in Cheshire), but since 1892 the
infestation has been only too frequently injurious, both in
grub and beetle state.

Amongst orchard fruit trees the Rose Chafers are parti-
cularly hurtful to Apples, of which they greatly injure the
leafage, in some years, and also feed on the very young fruit,
and the leafage of Nut bushes is also attacked by them. In
1892 information was sent me of Apple trees near Aberga-
venny being much infested by this beetle, known there as
the "Button Fly"; and in their outbreak at Haslemere
(Surrey) in the same year it was noted that this "Rose
Chafer" badly attacked Apples, Cherries, and Plums. The
Apples were especially injured, the remnants of leaves left on
looking as though they were scorched ; many of the young
Apples were also destroyed. The whole Cherry crop was
consumed. In 1893 notes were sent (amongst other observa-
tions) of the beetles being on the lawns, meadows, and fruit
plantations at a locality near Sevenoaks, Kent, " in greater
numbers than before " ; and in 1896 a correspondent at
Shottermill, Surrey, reported " great harm to the few Apples
and Pears which the Winter Moth caterpillars had missed
when the fruit trees had been stripped bare earlier in the
year."

Taking the above notes together, it will be seen that the
Piose Chafer beetles are injurious to the leafage of Apples and
Pears, also of Plums and Nuts, and as the whole Cherry crop
was noted as being consumed, it appears that the chafers de-
vour this fruit as well as young Apples. Eoses we are well
aware they are excessively mischievous to.

In the larval or maggot condition this infestation does
widespread and serious mischief by feeding at the roots of

GARDEN CHAFER. 31

grass in parks and pastures, and in orchards, and on orna-
mental lawns, also at the roots of corn and a variety of crops,
and though with care and knowledge something may be done
towards getting rid of the beetles, yet any means of destroying
the maggots without also destroying the grass, at the roots of
which they harbour, are (so far as we know at present) next
to impossible to carry out.

The Eose Chafer grubs are very like those of the Cockchafer
i n appearance, though much smaller, and (like them) when
at rest they lie for the most part on their sides, with the head
and tail curved towards each other (see figure, p. 29). They
are whitish or somewhat yellowish in colour, and fleshy, with
chestnut or ochreous-coloured head, furnished with somewhat
rusty-coloured jaws, darker at the tips, and have a pair of
moderately long legs on each of the three segments im-
mediately succeeding the head, and the hinder extremity of
the body is somewhat swelled, and has the appearance of
being of a lead colour, from the food within showing through
the skin.

When disturbed the maggots can straighten themselves,
and use their legs for walking with some rapidity, and creep
along (when I have timed the rate of progress by the seconds-
hand of my watch) at from five to six inches in about half a
minute. From the very great resemblance of this maggot to
that of the Cockchafer [Melolontha vulgaris) there is difficulty
in distinguishing between the two kinds whilst they are still
of the same size ; afterwards, as the Cockchafer grub grows
to fully four times the size of that of the Eose Chafer, the
distinction is plain. For those, however, who wish to be able
to identify the two kinds of larvpe with certainty for scientific
purposes, the fullest descriptions are available in the work 'De
MetamorphosiEleutheratorum Observationes,' by I. Schiodte,
from which, through the kind assistance of Mr. W. Hatchett
Jackson, M.A,, of Keble College, Oxford, who was good enough
to translate and tabulate the distinctive points for me, I give
below the differences between the two. kinds of larvae.*

* " Larva of Phijllopertha horticola. — Vertical suture of head a very fine line.
Epistoma broader by half than it is long. Third joint of antennre of same
length as the first joint. Tibias of legs twice as short as femora. Claws of legs
increasing in size in the successive jiairs. Abdomen cylindrical though some-
what clavate. Anal valves obscurely marked off ; lunate in shape. Spiracles
orbicular.

" Larva of Melolontha vulgaris. — Vertical suture of head deeply countersunk
for a short space behind the epistoma, its margins somewhat raised. Epistoma
three times as broad as long. Third joint of antennje nearly one-third shorter
than first joint. Tibim of legs one-fourth shorter than femora. Claws of legs
diminishing very greatly in size in successive pairs, most markedly and
abruptly in those of third pair. Abdomen clavate. Anal valves sharply marked
off ; upper valve triangular, lower valve trilobed. Anterior spiracles short
ovate, posterior orbicular."

32 APPLE.

Their favourite feeding-ground is, as previously mentioned,
at the roots of grass in pastures, and they also attack the
roots of various kinds of corn and of Clover, and have been
known to attack Mustard. Amongst garden crops they do
not except different kinds of Cabbage ; and amongst harder
rooted plants they are injurious to Hose roots, and have even
been found at Pine roots. They are stated to lie customarily
about an inch below the surface, but when autumn cold comes
on, or when they are about to turn to pupal state, they go
down deeper.

The mischief caused by the feeding of the grubs beneath
the turf may continue certainly up to the middle of October,
and presumably (weather permitting) to a later date. In some
observations which Mr. T. P. Newman was good enough to
make at my request as to whether the grubs were still to be
found in the middle of October, he wrote to me, from Hazel-
hurst, Haslemere, Surrey, on the 14th of October, 1893, that
in the spaces of ground that he examined, the top three inches
contained no grubs at all. Between three inches and six
there were few. Below six inches and down to nine inches
they were plentiful. Below nine inches down to twelve there
were few ; and below twelve inches there was little but stone
and shale, and there were no grubs. This depth obviously gives
a most safe resting-place from all but stringent mechanical
measures.

The grubs turn to a pale-coloured chrysalis in an earth-cell
in the ground, from which the beetles make their appearance
in the following summer.

The beetles, or " Eose Chafers," are of the size of that
figured in the act of walking at p. 29. The head and fore
body are of a glossy bright or dark green, sometimes with a
violet tinge on the under side; the legs greenish black, and
the wing-cases bright chestnut ; the antennae, or horns, rusty
or chestnut-coloured, ending in a three-leaved club or fan of
a pitchy colour.

The beetles appear in May and June, — I believe the earliest
precise note that I have had of their appearance in large
numbers was on the 23rd of May, — and each female is con-
sidered to lay about a hundred eggs in the ground. The
whole duration of life from egg deposit in one year to beetle
development in the next is not more than twelve months,

Peevention and Eemedies. — The simplest and best remedy
turns on the flight time of these Garden or Piose Chafers
being in the sunshine, or heat of the day. This is noticed in
German preventive observation. Dr. Taschenberg observes,
with regard to beating them down, that in this operation it is

GARDEN CHxVFER. 33

to be borne in mind that these little Garden Chafers are more
active than the Cockchafers, and lly about freely in the
sunshine.

The German method of collecting is to beat or shake them
down at whatever time they are found to be most torpid
(whether in the evening, or in the cool early morning hours)
on to cloths, or sheets, or anything spread below the boughs
which will allow of shaking the beetles together and de-
stroying them. An inverted umbrella is particularly men-
tioned as a convenient receptacle. This would be useful on
a small scale of working, as for Eoses or the like ; probably
in orchard work the attendance of the pigs, which are
invaluable in similar operations with Cockchafers, would be
also useful here, and might save the trouble of spreading
anything beneath the trees to collect into. But whatever
method is followed in the detail of beating down, the im-
portant point is that it should be done when the beetles are
torpid.

For the following note of great presence of the Eose Chafers
having occurred for a few days, and of the simple method
used to get rid of them, I am indebted to Mr. T. P. Newman,
of Hazelhurst, Haslemere. Writing on the 20th of September,
Mr. Newman mentioned : — " They swarmed with me for two
or three days only ; we did nothing by day, but acted on your
hint at dusk ; put sheets under the fruit trees, shook the
latter, and picked up hundreds of the beetles, which made no
attempt to escape, and destroyed them in hot water. They
attack the Scotch and Austrian briers much more than any
other Eoses."

Another correspondent, writing from a much infested
localit3% mentioned that he noticed that "these beetles never
fly when the temperature is low, or in the evening. When
the sun goes down you can shake them off the trees easily."
" But," it was also noted, "unless you put a sheet underneath
the trees, you would never find them, as they seem to dis-
appear the mdment they touch the ground."

Yet another observer mentioned : — "We gathered in some
hour and a half (by shaking the fruit trees over a sheet,
rolling it up, and shaking the beetles into a stable bucket)
more than half a bucket of solid beetles. These and most
others, after scalding, we gave to our fowls."

But whether by means of shaking down, or on a small
scale, as with Eoses, even hand-picking, the only remedial
course with regard to the beetles seems to be clearing them
from the infested leafage so that there shall be no chance of
their conveying themselves back again ; and where it may be
impossible (as in clearing hedges, which are sometimes very

D

34 APPLE.

much infested) to spread cloths helow, the help of fowls or
young pigs might prove serviceable.

The observer quoted immediately above, mentioned: — "At
the height of the season I cut oft" the heads of Eoses in -which
^Yere several beetles, and took the flowers and contents to a
family of young pigs. It was amusing to see the pleasure
and excitement of the hunt for the living beetles. I shall, if
I can manage it, place our pigs in the held from which the'
beetles rise next year, and enlist them in the service. If I
can find grubs underground, I shall try turning the pigs
(without rings) into that infested patch, and letting them turn,
it up."— (A. L. B.)

For destruction of maggots in the ground it has been stated
that to water the infested land in autumn with gas liquor
diluted in the proportion of one-tenth of gas liquor to nine-
tentbs of water does good by killing the grubs without hurting
the grass. But it would be eminently desirable to experiment
on a small scale before risking a general application. For
one thing the strength of gas-water might vary, and it is ver}^
difficult to manage fluid dressings so that they should kill the
grubs at an inch or two deep in the ground, and yet not hurt
the grass.

A correspondent mentioned that rolling with the "heaviest
roller" had the effect of hindering the progress of the grubs
very much, but the Eye had been bitten off by them in such
large patches that it had become necessary to plough up the
crop and re- sow.

Another correspondent mentioned that in the case of soot
being spread over a piece of ground which had been infested
whilst the beetles were flying, that in the following year
the grass was greatly improved, and it was considered that
the soot drove away the chafers, and prevented them laying
their eggs.

Birds of various kinds — as rooks, thrushes, blackbirds, and
especially starlings — have been found to be of great use in
keeping the grubs in check, and should on no account be
driven away. In one locality it was observed that "large
flocks of starlings, numbering several hundreds in a flock,
frequent the fields where these grubs abound, and the soil is
perforated by the birds' beaks." From another locality where
the Phyllopertha had been very prevalent it was reported that
"thousands of starlings are at work in the pasture fields
pulling up the dead grass and turning it off to get at the fat
succulent grubs, and the thrushes are going the same good
work on the lawns.

But we still are in great need of more information as to
how to cope with these maggots, and even from the United

APPLE SAWFLY.

35

States of America, from which we gain constant help in
methods of keeping injurious insects in check, the most recent
information regarding a heetle very similar in its hahits only
gives us the following from the well-experienced writer : —

" Frequent rotation and fall [autumn] ploughing are to be
recommended ; and where grass-lands are infested, heavy
top-dressings of kainite and nitrate of soda have proved
beneficial. Wherever ploughing is done in infested fields,
chickens should be encouraged to follow in the furrow, and
pick up the grubs." — 'Economic Entomology,' by John B.
Smith, Sc.D., Professor of Entomology, Eutger's College
(J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, 1896).

Apple Sawfly.
Hoplocampa testudinea, Cameron ; Tenthredo testudinea, Klug.

HoPLOCAMPA TESTUDiXEA. — Female sawfly and caterpillar, magnified, with
lines showing natural size, after Prof. J. 0. Westwood. Injured Apple and
caterpillar, natui'al size.

Apple Sawfly attack has long been known to be present in
this country. So far back as 18-47 this infestation was
described, from his own observations, by Prof. J. 0. West-
wood ; but it was not until the summer of the year 1891 that
communications were sent me regarding it as an injurious
attack, and I had an opportunity of observing the method of
attack myself.

The sawfly (figured above, magnified) is about a quarter of
an inch in length ; the body is yellow or reddish yellow on the
under side ; a large patch on the top of the head, also the top
of the body between the wings, black, shining, and minutely
punctured ; the back of the abdomen also black. The
shoulders, legs, front and sides of head, and the antennae (or

d2

36 APPLE.

horns) j^ellowish, some of the middle or lower joints of the
antennas being partially marked with brown above. The
wings transparent, with veins dark, or darker towards the
base, and the stigma (or patch on the front edge of the fore
wing) dark but paler, or yellowish at the end nearest the tip
of the wing.

The sawflies appear with the Apple blossoms, and the
females may then be seen on the wing amongst the flowers,
and may be caught in the act of egg-laying within them, the
exact spot for deposit (in instances recorded) being just below
the calyx. In a series of special observations of the habits
of these flies, in which they were first noticed on the 14th of
Maj", the caterpillars were found to be hatching out on the
28th of the same month.

The maggots are pale in colour, and when quite young,
that is, when still only about an eighth of an inch in- length,
the head, and also the plate above the tail, is dark or black ;
but i^resently these are moulted off, and when the caterpillars
are full grown, that is, about half an inch in length, they are
mottled or creamy in colour, with the head pale chestnut, and
the plate above the tail and the cross-band immediately pre-
ceding mottled with grey, and the three first segments have
each a pair of claw or jointed legs. The next segment is leg-
less ; and then comes the marked distinction between these
caterpillars and those of the Codlin Moth, which otherwise
much resemble them. The fifth to the tenth segments of the
sawfly caterpillars have each a pair of sucker-feet, making six
pairs in all, so that with the pair at the end of the tail (which
is possessed by the Codlin Moth also), the sawfly caterpillar
has twenty feet in all, whilst the Codlin Moth caterpillar has
only sixteen. A comparison of the figures of the two cater-
pillars (see pp. 9 and 35) will show this distinction clearly, and
be an important help towards ascertaining which kind of in-
festation is present.

The history of the attack of the sawfly, given shortly, is
that the caterpillars hatch in the very young (embryo) Apple,
and as this grows they grow and feed within, and thereby
cause much damage (see figure), not only to the fruits in
which they were hatched, but sometimes to other neighbouring
fruits, to which they have the power of straying at pleasure.
The injured Apples are not so regularly tunnelled as in the
case of damage from Codlin Moth caterpillars. There are, or
may be, tunnels, but also (see figure, p. 35) much of the
inside of the little Apple may be eaten away, thus causing a
rough blackened cavity, with decaying surface.

Consequently on the internal injury the growth of the Apple
is checked, and it drops ; and attention is drawn (as also in

APPLE SAWFLY. 37

the case of Codlin Moth) to where infestation is present by
the numbers of little Apples which have fallen beneath the
tree. The sawfly grubs fall to the ground in the infested fruit
in June or July, or as soon as the little Apples are so much
injured within that they can no longer adhere to the tree ;
and the sawfly caterpillars then make their way out, to go
through their changes in the ground. There they form their
cocoons, and remain inactive until the following year, when
in May the perfect sawflies make their appearance from the
buried chrysalids.

There does not appear to be any record of the caterpillars
crawling down the stem of the tree to bury themselves, nor is
there (so far as I am aware) any evidence of their dropping
from the Apples. But still, as in experiment they have been
found to drop (when released from the fruit) from a consider-
able height without injury, and as many recently infested
Apples are to be found on the trees without caterpillars
within, it is presumable that some proportion of the grubs
reach the ground by simply dropping themselves down.

In regard to the depth to which the caterpillars go down
into the ground to form their cocoons, this varies according
to the nature of the soil. In special experiment made on this
subject four inches was the depth at which the cocoons were
chiefly found. The first cocoon lay at a depth of two inches,
more were found at three inches, and they lay thickly at a
depth of four inches.* The cocoons, which are in shape like
little balls, and just large enough to hold the caterpillar, may
be found formed about a month after the caterpillars have left
the Apples, possibly sooner. The caterpillar, however, may be
found unchanged within the cocoon, even after the time of
Apple blossom in the following year, when the chief attack
takes place, the stray flies which then appear presumably
depositing on the young Apples when somewhat advanced be-
yond their quite embryo state.

Prevention and Kemedies. — All measures, firstly, to keep
the infestation from going down into the ground in caterpillar
condition, and next to prevent it coming up in winged form,
are most important.

In the first case, the little Apples should be collected as
soon after they have fallen as possible, and burnt. It is little
or no use throwing them to a rubbish-heap, from which
(unless specially treated) the sawflies would probably fly at
Apple-blossom time in the following year to start infestation

* Detailed observations of Life-history of the Apple Sawfly, by Mr. W. Cole-
man, of Cranford, Newport Pagnell, Beds, will be found in my Fifteenth and
Sixteenth Annual Eeports of Injurious Insects. — E A. 0.

38

APPLE.

anew. Where there is much mischief going on it would be
worth while to spread rough cloths beneath the Apple trees,
and jar the boughs well so as to cause the injured fruit to fall,
which thus might be easily collected and destroyed before the
caterpillars had a chance of escaping into the ground.

Where the Apple roots are not so close to the surface as to
make skimming off the surface injurious to the tree, it is a
sure way of preventing much recurrence of attack to find by
examination how deep down the little ball-like cocoons lie,
and then to remove the soil to this depth, and bury it deeply
down, or throw it on rubbish fires. Even stirring the soil
sometimes is beneficial, and the ordinary preventive dressings
would presumably be beneficial.

Whilst attack is going on (the sawfly being quite of a
noticeable size) many of the insects may be killed on the
blossoms by hand-picking, where the trees are either espaliers
or low enough to bring them within reach. Where they are
taller, spraying might be used, presumably with just as good
effect as in the case of Codlin Moth, for observations on which
see page 14.

It also would help much in success of preventive treatment
if a few of the fallen Apples were split open, and the owner
would examine whether the appearance of the damage within
pointed to the attack being that of Codlin Moth or Sawfly
caterpillars ; and make still surer by finding, with the help of
a hand magnifier, which kind of caterpillar was present. In
the case of Codlin Moth attack, it is waste labour to remove
the soil ; in the case of sawfiy attack it is equally labour lost
to scrape and clean chrysalids from crevices in the bark.

Mussel Scale (Oyster-shell Scale, U.S.A.).
Mtjtilaspis pomorum, Bouche ; AspUliotas concliifonnis, Curtis.

Mytilaspis POMOKtiM. — Female Scales Khowing female and eggs ; and also
female shrivelled within the Scale, much maguilied. Infested Apple twig.

MUSSEL SCALE. 39

This species of Scale insect, which may be found at times
so thickly coating moderately young bark of the stem and
branches of the Apple tree as almost to cover the surface,
takes its popular English name with us from its resemblance
in shape to our common mussel-shells. In America and
elsewhere it is known as the " Oyster-shell " Scale, or "Bark-
louse," similarly on account of its resemblance to the shape
of an American species of oyster.

It is very widely distributed, being found in Europe and
North America, New Zealand, &c., and infests many kinds of
trees and shrubs ; and amongst orchard trees and fruit
bushes is to be found on Apple, Pear, Plum, Peach, Apricot,
and Currant ; but with us it is a special infestation of Apple
bark.

The injury is caused by the little Cocci, or scale insects,
whilst still in active life, inserting their suckers, or proboscis,
into the tender bark or young shoots, and thus sucking away
the juices, and also doing harm to the tissues by the number
of punctures.

The shape of the larval scale insects when hatched is of a
lengthened oval, with a spine at each segment, and at the
a,bdominal extremity two long silky appendages, and at each
side two lobes ; and the antennae (or horns) are of noticeable
length.* They are furnished with eyes, six legs, and a sucker,
and run about with great activity for a few days, and then fix
themselves, increase in size, and change to the pupal state, in
which they are known as " scales."

These scales are not the true insects, but are shields, or
puparia, composed partly of fibrous secretion, partly of the
thrown-off insect-skins, and differ slightly in the male and
female form.

The female scales are about the tenth to the eighth of
an inch long, usually brown, but sometimes ash-grey or
even white, of the shape as figured above by myself from
English specimens, elongate, slightly curved, and widened
posteriorly, much smaller and of a rusty colour at the other
end. The male scales are smaller than those of the female,
and straight, or nearly so.

For the most part the scales adhere firmly to the bark of
the infested tree, and on lifting full-grown female specimens
the female itself will be found inside, towards the smaller end
of the scale (sheltered by it, not fastened to it), the larger end
of the scale being filled with fifty or more white oval-shaped
eggs. The female resembles a flat fleshy maggot of a pale
greyish or yellowish colour, elongate or globular, or, as egg-

* See " Essai sur les Cochenilles," collective edit, from ' Annales cTe la Soc.
Ent. de France,' par Dr. Signoret, vol. i. p. 98 (142).

40 APPLE.

deposit proceeds, somewhat flattened, and with lines across
showing a division into rings, that is, segmented, each seg-
ment having on each side two or three strong spines. Abdo-
men ending in two large lobes, with two others much smaller
on each side ; middle lobes trifoliated. After depositing her
eggs she dies, and may be found shrivelled inside the scale.

Male of Mi/tilasjiis 2}0)noriiiii, much maguified.

The male (see figure)* differs entirely from the female in
being active, having six long legs, and a pair of wings ; the
colour is described by Prof. C. V. Eiley as a "translucent
corneous grey," with some portions of the fore bod}^ darker,,
and the legs lighter.

In the United States there is only one yearly brood in the
northern parts, but two in the warmer parts ; with us, so far
as I am aware, there is only one generation in the course of
the year, of which the young insects appear in May, when
they creep out from under the old dead scales and begin
attack.

Prevention and Eemedies. — Scale may be removed at any
time of the year, but the best season for destroying it or
applying dressings is in spring, so as to clear it away before
the young insects which creep out in May, as above mentioned,
have spread themselves abroad.

It may be removed by thoroughly moistening the surface of
the infested bark with lathers of any kind of soap (or any
dressing that may be preferred), and then scraping the surface
with a blunt knife, or rubbing it with pieces of coarse canvas,
or well brushing it, so as to clear ofl' the scale without hurting
the bark.

Scraping with a blunt knife is a good plan, as in this wa}'
the scales, moss, and everything on the surface are mixed up
in a plaster with the soapy lather, and got thoroughly rid of
together ; if brushing is preferred, good drenchings of soap
and water, or of dressings poisonous to the scale, should be

* Keduced from figure in ' Economic Entomology,' by Prof. J. B. Smith.
Philadelphia : J. B. Lippincott Co., 1896, p. 115.

MUSSEL SCALE. 41

given in addition to the first thorough moistening, so as to
wash down or kill all that may have only been disturbed or
may be lodged in crevices.

Soft-soap or common coarse household soap are useful for
this purpose, and the following recipes for dressings are men-
tioned as having been found serviceable, and might be varied,
in proportion of the ingredients, as thought fit.

One ounce of soft-soap, one pound of tobacco-paper, and
four handfuls of sulphur to one gallon of water ; this is to be
applied with a painter's brush, taking care to rub thoroughly;
use plenty of the liquid, and flood every part of the tree.
Three applications in this way are stated to have been always
found a complete cure.

As a means of clearing the scale out of crevices, it is advised
to scrub the trees well at the proper season (that is, during
April or early in May) with soft-soap and water, and then
brush them over with" the following mixture : — Two pounds of
soft-soap and one pound of flour of sulphur, well mixed in
about fourteen gallons of water.

The following mixture has been found serviceable in de-
stroying scale insects, Thrips, and other plant-vermin : — One
hogshead of lime-water (use half a bushel of lime to this
quantity of water) ; add four pounds of flour of sulphur, six
quarts of tobacco-water, and four pounds of soft-soap. This
mixture is to be well stirred and incorporated together, and
applied by dipping the infested boughs or by syringing. The
composition may be allowed to dry and remain on for about
a week or ten days, when it may be washed ofl" with clear
water.

It is also said to answer to get some tenacious clay, dilute
it with water to about the consistency of paint, and to every
gallon of this add half a pound of sulphur ; mix them well,
and paint the trees all over. It is advised to apply two dress-
ings of this, allowing the first to be thoroughly dry before the
second is put on. It requires a fortnight to kill the scale by
this application, and when the clay drops off it will bring the
scale with it.

The following notes (though not referring to this species),
taken from Prof. J. B. Smith's excellent work, mentioned in
note, p. 40, give good advice as to the importance of applying
treatment in good time, before the active larvte have settled
down for pupation under the protection of a thoroughly formed
scale. The passage is as follows : —

" Where winter treatment is inadvisable or impossible,
applications should be made when the larvae emerge from the
eggs, and before they fasten themselves to leaves or twigs.
There is no difficulty in killing the young with either soap-

42

APPLE.

suds or kerosine emulsion, but — and here is the important
point — the appKcation must be made before the insect is pro-
tected by a scale, or when the scale is yet very thin and
newly formed."

In the case referred to it is said that kerosine will not
certainly kill the eggs, "yet if soap-suds be used to dilute the
emulsion, the . . . mass will be so impregnated with the
soap, and become so compact, that the young will be unable to
make their way out. ... In this case dilute three quarts of
kerosine emulsion with one pound of whale-oil soap dissolved
in eight gallons of water."

The above recipes, though not especially advised as treat-
ment for the Apple Scale, would probably be very beneficial,
and mention of several serviceable applications will be found
in the paper on *' Currant and Gooseberry Scale."

Apple-suckers, or Apple Chermes.

Psylla mali, Schmidberger.

PsYLLA MALI. — Apple-suclcers, from life : nat. length, one-twelfth of an inch.
Pupa of Pear-sucker, also magnified (after Prof. W. Saunders).

The minute insects figured above, which are hardly an
eighth of an inch in length from the head to the tip of the
transparent wings, and are usually of a beautiful bright
green colour, sometimes do great mischief by sucking away
the juices of the young Apple buds, and later on in the spring
by similarly sucking away the juices of the stalks of the
blossom or blossom-buds.

The figure above shows this Chermes, or Apple-sucker,
greatly magnified, with its wings spread, and also with them
raised in act of taking flight. The figure of the pupa is
added to give a general idea of its appearance, from that of
the very nearly allied species, the Pear-sucker, as I had not a
specimen of the P. mali in this stage at hand.

APPLE-SUCKERS. 43

The life-history of the infestation (beginning the observa-
tions in September) is that when the Apple leafage begins to
turn yellow the Apple- suckers may then be found in little
parties of five or six on a leaf, especially on a yellowing leaf ;
and at this time of pairing both the German and our own
observations show that the little insects assume most varied
colours ; some may be red, some quite green, and some milky
white ; others may be green with yellowish patches on the
fore body and paler lines on the abdomen, or green with
patches of a reddish tint, or pale yellowish with a red or
brown tint running all along the top of the insect.

After pairing the females leave the foliage, and lay their
white spindle-shaped eggs singly or several together, or some-
times in rows. These are placed in various parts of the tree,
and (where I have seen them) in furrows, or in protective
hollows near the end of shoots. They are also recorded as
being laid on year-old shoots where there is fine hair. In
the specimens sent me, although most of the eggs were
whitish and spindle-shaped, some were more obtuse and
yellower, and in a length of about an inch of shoot I counted
approximately upwards of fourteen eggs.

The eggs hatch early in April, and the young Apple-suckers,
which much resemble their parents in shape, excepting in
being quite wingless, and are of a dirty yellowish colour with
brown abdomen, at once begin to feed, and are especially
noticed as gnawing a way for themselves into the nearest
buds, so as to shelter themselves from cold and wet. After
moulting for the first time the larva protrudes a small wdiite
globule, which remains attached by a white thread to the
body, and in case of this being removed, another ball and
thread is produced. At the second moult a much larger
number of threads are produced, forming altogether an
entangled mass, with which the larva covers up its head and
body. Later on the larva assumes the pupal state, in which
the rudiments of the wings are visible (as shown in the figure
of the Pear Psylla, p. 42), and from this the perfect insect
appears at some time from the earlier part of May to the
beginning of June. If the little insects are observed through
a magnifying-glass, it will be seen that they can run well,
and then with a sudden skip fly away ; also that the eyes are
in como instances very peculiar, being white with a central
black spot, which gives the appearance of their having a
black pupil.

Amongst various observations sent me in the year 1890
regarding the habits of this insect from the orchard-growing
districts near Pershore and Piedditch, it was mentioned as one
which, although " almost unrecognised and certainly little

44 APPLE.

mentioned," was the cause of great destruction to the Apple
crop, and it was remarked : — " The presence of the Psylla on
the Apple is alwa3^s indicated hy small opaque saccharine
globules (vulgarly named ' honeydew') in and about the stalks
of unopened flower-buds ; and if such a sprout be plucked
apart, the young, flat, inert, wingless insect will be found in
numbers sucking the juices of the stems of the blossoms.
The flower-buds, being deprived of their sap, shrivel up, and
no Apples are produced ; and the insect, casting its skin, ap-
pears in a short time, . . . light green, with transparent
wings, active in habit, and leaping all about the tree."

One difference between this and other Apple infestations is
that the Psijlla works so that the mischief may be done before
the results are noticeable, at least to a casual observer, the
sucking away of the juices sapping the strength of the stems
of the blossom-buds, so that, though some may escape, yet
the whole cluster of bloom may die without setting fruit. In
1891 notes were sent from near Eedditch of this attack so
weakening the middle blooms of the trusses, where the
"suckers" could shelter themselves from insecticides, that
the injured part could be shaken down "like chaff," and the
loss was great.

The attack appears to be of only occasional appearance to
a serious extent, and has been only specially reported to my-
self in 1890 and 1891, and again in 1897.

Prevention and Eemedies. — Many of the eggs which are
laid towards the ends of the shoots may be removed by winter
pruning, and to save chance of future mischief it would be
well to burn the prunings. Insecticides such as are sprayed
about flowering time for other attacks would kill the insects
which they reached on the trusses, but would need care both
in selection and strength of application lest they should do
more harm than good by destroying the blossom-bud. Con-
jecturally soft-soap wash, with some mixture of sulphur or
quassia or tobacco, might do good, but the only notes hitherto
sent on of trial of insecticides were tbat they had little effect.

Some good was done in a small scale of growing by shaking
shoots with infested trusses over an old umbrella placed wrong
way up below, and daubed inside with adhesive mixture.
From the habit of the insects of flying out on disturbance,
many fall down and are captured. This plan might be used
on an enlarged scale by placing tarred cloth beneath the
trees and shaking the boughs.

Another method of lessening number of the insects which
was found to answer also by Mr. J. Hiam (who has devoted
much attention to this infestation) in the neighbourhood of

APPLE-BLOSSOM WEEVIL. 45

Eedditch, Worcestershire, was to fasten some pieces of flat
light tin at the end of a Hght wooden lath, about four feet in
length ; this lath being smoothed towards the lower end, so
as to allow of it being comfortably grasped. The pieces of
tin were well greased with some adhesive mixture, and taking
advantage of the Psyllas flj^ing off on disturbance, this simple
implement was waved to and fro amongst them. The result,
as shown by measurement of surface and insects caught to
the square inch, was the very great number of five thousand
in an hour ! Whether it would be so successful in ordinary
working hands may be doubtful, still the observation appears
worth record, with the note that the operation is said to be
most successful in brilliant sunshine.

Apple-blossom. Weevil. Anthonoums pomorum, Curtis.

Anthoxomus pomorum. — 1 and 2, Apple bud pierced by weevil ; 3, maggot ;
4, pupa; 5, weevil; all magnified, with figures showing natural size.

This is one of the regular old-standing orchard attacks
which appear, more or less, every year, and in some years it
is ver}^ injurious. The amount of harm done in some degree
depends on the season, because the beetle does not lay after
the flower bud has begun to open, so that in a warm sunny
season, when the buds form and open quickly, the female
beetle, whose laying operations are slow, has them cut short
before completion by the blossom buds having ceased to be in
a state for laying in.

The method of life of these weevils is for the female to
make a small hole in an unopened flower bud by means of
little jaws placed at the extremity of the long curved pro-
boscis or snout, with which these "long-nosed weevils" are
furnished. She then lays one egg in the hole, and with the
help of her proboscis she closes the opening ; she then goes
on to another bud, and may continue egg-laying for two or
three weeks (according to state of the weather) in Apple or

46 APPLE.

Pear buds. The first appearance of the beetles is recorded as
being in March when the flower buds are swelling, and on
sunny mornings the beetles may be seen in numbers about
the trees. In some of our earlier observations, both British
and Continental, of these weevils, it was considered that
though the males fly readily, that the females for the most
part did not do so, but as a habit crawled up the stem of the
tree, or walked from one bud to another. This point is very
important relatively to preventive measures, and during the
weevil season of 1890, hearing from one of my Kentish ob-
servers (on the 2nd of April) that the Apple weevils were
" active and plentiful, and it was useless to dress the stems
of the trees, as this insect seems to fly as readily as any
other," * I suggested it would be very useful if he would make
sure whether specimens which he saw on the wing were
females by examining whether they contained eggs ; and later
on in the month, on the 25th, Mr. H. C. Staples reported to
me: " I have killed several with wings, which I have found
to contain little creamy- white eggs."

Hatching may take place from the beginning to the end of
April, and if the weather is warm the eggs hatch in about
six or seven days ; and from observations sent me in the
same year from various localities on the 2nd, 4th, and 6th of
June, the change from maggot to chrysalis state and (on the
6th) to the weevil condition, of which samples were enclosed,
was then in progress.

The maggots, which will be found inside the flower buds,
on the contents of which they have been feeding, are of the
shape figured at p. 45, fleshy, whitish, wrinkled across, some-
what curved, with a few hairs, legless, and with a dark horny
head.

Each maggot feeds within its own flower bud, which, there-
fore, instead of expanding, turns brown, and dies ; the maggot
turns to an ochry or rusty-coloured chrysalis of the shape of
the beetle, only with its limbs still folded beneath it (see
figure 4, magnified, p. 45) in the injured bud ; and here,
under the shelter of the brown unexpanded blossom-leaves
the weevils develop from the chrysalids in about a month
from the time when the eggs were laid, and disperse them-
selves over the tree, where they are said to injure the leafage,
but the most important damage is that which they cause to
the flower buds.

These beetles are of the shape figured, p. 45, of a reddish
brown colour, with three indistinct stripes of a paler colour
on the body behind the head ; the wing-cases have a large

* See my Fourteenth Annual Eeport on Injurious Insects, p. 12.

APPLE-BLOSSOM WEEVIL. 47

pitchy-coloured patch, with a pale oblique stripe on it, and
two ochreous spots towards the tip.

They pass the winter in chinks and crannies, or under loose
pieces of the bark, or under clods of earth or stones, and
come out when the flower buds are swelling in spring, when
they may be seen flying round the trees.

Prevention and Remedies. — One good method of preven-
tion is to clear away from beneath trees which have been
infested rubbish of any kind, such as stones, clods of earth,
or bits of wood, which might serve as shelters to the beetles
during the winter. It is also desirable to remove rough and
useless bark, and to keep stem and branches in such a well-
tended condition that there may be as few winter lurking-
places for the beetles as possible in crannies or under broken
pieces.

Where the bark is clean and in good order there will be
few hiding-places on the trees, and it would be of service
to syringe a mixture of any deterrent wash that would not
hurt the bark or leaves on to the trees when the beetles are
beginning to move about in spring. This would lodge in the
crannies where the weevils especially hide, and kill them if
they were there, or if they were moving about on the boughs
would clear many off, and for this purpose soft-soap appli-
cations, thick or thin as the case may be, would be very
desirable. The weevils fall to the ground on being alarmed,
and at egg-laying time many might be shaken down from the
trees on to cloths spread below, and thus got rid of at an
expense which would certainly be remunerative in garden
cultivation, and worth a trial for orchard ground in cases
where seriously bad attack was known to be going on.

The plan of getting rid of the pest ''wholesale," as may be
done by shaking the infested buds down at the date when they
are so far destroyed as to fall to jarring might, I believe, be
followed up advantageously to a much greater extent than at
present. We have found by experiment that early in June
many of the infested buds may be shaken down, but the
chrysalids within, not having reached beetle state, can be
gathered up in the buds (if they are shaken down on cloths)
and destroyed. Where this plan has been carried out in
German experiment on low trees where the infested buds
could be picked off by hand and destroyed, it has been
found to answer excellently as a -prevention of infestation for
years. It is different in its action to the first-named plan,
as in this it is the weevils themselves which it is hoped to
get rid of, and thus lessen the amount of the then present
pests.

48 APPLE.

"Where trees stand in bare ground, stirring the surface in
winter so as to turn the weevils out to the birds would do
good ; and something might be done, at the time of the
appearance of the weevil, bv "grease-banding," as used to
prevent ascent of Winter Moths. At one time (that is, so
long as it was thought that the female weevils used their
wings but little) this treatment was thought desirable, but
though recent observations have made this doubtful, still the
plan might be worth experimenting with, and more especially
to learn whether the female beetles ascended by waUdng in cold
and sunless weather. Where a little time and trouble could
be given to grease-banding the stems of half a dozen trees or
so in an orchard when the weevils were beginning to appear,
the information gained by examination of state of the bauds
might be of very general service.

Observation. — Many kinds of insect attacks besides those
noticed above are also injurious to Apple in common with other
orchard fruit trees. Amongst these, just as a few examples,
may especially be named the AVinter Moth {Clieimatobia hru-
mata) and the Mottled Umber Moth {Hyhernia defoliaria) , and
other allied kinds, distinguishable by their wingless females,
and by the " looper " form of their caterpillars; and amongst
beetle attacks, besides leaf feeders, the " Shot-borer" Beetles,
the Xylehoriis dispar and X. saxeseni, as doing much harm in
the living wood.

But while on one hand it is desirable to class the attacks
(so far as is possible) under the heading of the crops which
they most affect, on the other, as very many of our orchard
insects affect most kinds of our orchard trees, it is very difficult
to make any regular division.

Therefore, to the best of my power, I have placed the notes
of infestations either under the heading of the fruit crop to
which they are especially injurious, or of that in connection
with which the observations were sent to me ; and also in the
course of each account have given the names of other fruit
crops to which the insect under consideration is recorded as
being especially injurious. — E. A. 0.

CHERRY APHIS.

49

CHERRY.

Cherry Aphis.

2Ii/ziis cerasi, Fab. ; Aphis cemsi, Fab., and many writers.

Myzus cerasi. — 1, Nvinged viviparous female ; 2, wingless viviparous female ;
3, pupa : much magnified. After G. B. Buckton, F.K.8.

Infestation of "Cherry Aphis" is distinguishable by the
black masses with which it not only clusters in thousands on
the under side of Cherry leaves in gardens and orchards, but
also in bad attacks extends to the tender shoots, buds, fruit
stems, and even sometimes to the green fruit. It appears in
early spring ; and in Cherry orchards is the cause of great
mischief by the suction of these vast numbers of aphides
drawing away the sap from the parts attacked, and thus
causing the leaves to dry up and wither, and destroying the
young shoots. Likewise from the excretion of fluid through
their " cornicles," or "honey-tubes," everything in reach is
covered by this gummy exudation, the pores of the leaves are
choked, and the infested portions reduced to a filthy mass of
black Plant-lice, excreted matter, and ruined leafage and
shoots.

50 CHEREY.

The infestation may be found from its first appearance in
spring until tlie attack of tlie successive generations ends witli
the appearance of the egg-laying female in autumn, which is
recorded as having been taken as late as the 31st of October.

The general blackness of the infestation is one very notice-
able point. The winged female, producing living young (vivi-
parous), has the body wholly black, the abdomen sometimes
clouded with yellowish green, the honey-tubes also black, and
the wings ample and broad (see figure, p. 49). The expanse
of wings rather more than a quarter of an inch, the length of
body not quite one-twelfth part of an inch.*

The wingless viviparous female, which is also about one
line in length, is black and shining, the legs ochreous, with
the thighs, feet, and tips to the shanks black.

The autumn egg-producing (oviparous) female is dark shining
brown or ochreous brown ; and the male, which also is to be
found in October, is in great part brownish black, but with
the small abdomen ochreous yellow, with five brown trans-
verse bands, and four spots on each side.

The pupa is shining olive green, with resinous j'ellow-
coloured wing-cases ; and the larvte are stated (in quite their
earliest stages) to be dull white or pale yellow, the colour
becoming darker with age.

This species is recorded by Kaltenbach as infesting the
" sweet and the sour Cherry " ; and by Dr. Cyrus Thomas t
as found in abundance both on Cherry and Plum ; and by
Mr. Buckton as having been found in viviparous form on
Black Currant about the end of October.

The means of prevention and remedy for this attack are
the same which are mentioned in other kinds of aphis attack,
for which see Index ; but in this case, from the extraordinary
amount of sticky dirt with which the leafage and shoots
become loaded, it is particularly desirable to apply washes as
soon as possible, and good drcnchings even of water alone,
sent with force so as to wash off much of the infestation and
clean the leafage, are very beneficial.

Large Tortoiseshell Butterfly. Vanessa pohjcJdoros, Linn.

The caterpillars of this fine butterfly, figured at p. 51, life
size, in its three stages, are to be found feeding on Aspen,

* For precise measurements and detailed descriptions of M. cerasi, see
Buckton's 'British Aphides,' vol. i. pi^. 174-170.

t See " Myzus cerasi," in his ' Third Annual Eeport ' as State Entomologist
of Illinois, p. 75.

LARGE TORTOISESHELL BUTTERFLY.

51

"White Beam, Sallow, Osiers, and most esi^ecially on Elm ;
but the infestation also occurs on Cherry, Pear, Apple, and
Quince. In France both the wild and the cultivated Cherry
are recorded as being the trees chiefly selected for attack,
sometimes to the serious extent of whole rows of trees being
stripped of their leaves.

£ cfr.

Vanessa polychlokos. — Large Tortoiseshell Butterfly ; cateriDillar and chry-
salis, natural size ; branched spine from caterpillar, magnified.

This species w^as recorded rather more than fifty years ago
as being occasionally very abundant ; in Stainton's ' Manual '
it is mentioned that it " occurs in the south, but not generally
common " ; but the only fully observed report of mischief
caused by its infestation sent me was in the summer of 1894
from Ossemsley Manor Farm, Lymington, Hants, by Mr. D.
D. Gibb, the first observation of attack being sent me on the
19th of June. Though only occasionally injurious to a serious
extent, the attack has such a power of destruction that it
appears desirable to draw attention to it.

V. polycJdoros, or the Large Tortoiseshell Butterfly, is a
remarkably handsome insect, about two and a half inches
across in the spread of the fore wings, which are marked (as
figured above) on the upper side with black blotches or spots
on an orange red or tawny ground. Of these patches, two,
which are large and squarish, and a smaller one, are placed
along the fore edge of the fore wings, and four somewhat
smaller patches are placed towards the centre and hinder part
of the fore wings. The outer margin (along the tip of the
fore wings) is dark, with an irregular pale line running along

E 2

52 CHERRY.

it. The hind wings are tawny or orange red, with only one
black blotch on each, and the dark border is varied with blue
crescent-shaped markings, as well as by pale colouring forming
a kind of irregular line outside them.

The under sides of the wings are marked transversely with
wavy lines, the basal half being thus of a mottled and of a
brownish tint, succeeded by a broad greyish band, and this by
a dark border at the edge of the wing with a wavy blue band
or line of blue crescents at the inner margin ; in the centre of
the hind wings is a little white spot. Along rather more than
a third of the edge of the fore wings nearest the body (see
figure, p. 51) is a row of long strong bristles, which are a marked
structural characteristic, by which this Large Tortoiseshell
Butterfly may be distinguished from the Small Tortoiseshell
Butterfly, Vanessa urtiae, often very common in our gardens,
and which greatly resembles the larger species in colour and
markings.

The life-history is that the eggs are laid in May, and in
great numbers, on the twigs of the food trees of the cater-
pillars, sometimes completely surrounding the twig, so as to
form a ring much like that of the Lackey Moth (see figure,
p. 21); but, though placed close together, they are stated not
to be " embedded " in glue. The caterpillars soon hatch, and
live until their last moult in companies, spinning a web-
covering for their common use. Their first food appears to
consist of the buds and young leaves, and by day they go out
to feed, and in the evening return to their web. Their head-
quarters are noticeable by the condition of the twigs, which
are nearly or quite stri2)ped of leaves, and also by the dirt
which, falling down, accumulates in a patch beneath the tree.

The caterpillars are at first blackish grey, and strongly
haired, and presently moult to an ochreous brown colour
mixed with black, and beset with numerous branched spines
of a yellow or ochre-brown colour, each spine tipped with
black (see figure, p. 51). When full-fed they are about two
inches in length, and they then disperse, and suspend them-
selves by the tail in any convenient place for their change to
the chrysalis state, from which the butterfly may be expected
to appear in two or three weeks. In this country the butterflies
are recorded as developing from the chrysalids about the
middle of July, and remaining on the wing for about a month,
and then retiring for the winter, reappearing after hibernation
(as before mentioned) to lay eggs in the spring.

The specimens sent me by Mr. Gibb corresponded well with
the descriptions of the damage caused by this attack. Of two
shoots of Cherry sent me on June 26th — these respectively of
about five, and seven and a half inches in length — the leaves

LARGE TORTOISESHELL BUTTERFLY. 53

were in most instances eaten down to the central rib. Of
seventeen or more leaves on the longer twig there were only
four with a fair supply of green remaining. Towards the end
of the longest twig, amongst the stripped and curled mid-ribs,
were many cast caterpillar-skins with some web, giving a good
example of the habit of the caterpillars living in company in
a common web until near full growth. The cast, skins showed
successive moults of the larvae, and also showed the difference
in colour with advance of age. The small cast skins were
black or blackish, and most of these had the branched spines
of a black tint ; but in some instances the spine was tawny
or of an ochre colour tipped with black, as in the adult larvae.
In all the specimens which I examined the heads were set
with short, black, blunt points.

On the shorter twig was a patch of about an inch in length
by a quarter of an inch in breadth of empty egg-shells. These
egg-shells were mere whitish films, globular below and open
above, with about six ribs running some way from the top
down the sides of the miniature bowl. The eggs were fastened
to the twig in about eleven longitudinal rows, the greatest
number in one row being about thirty-three eggs.

Of the caterpillars sent me, some turned to chrysalis state
on the journey, but in the case of one, of which I was able to
watch the transformation, the tints were very beautiful. The
figure (p. 51) shows the shape and the notched ridge running
along the centre of the back ; on each side of the back,
excepting near the thorax, was a row of tubercles, yellow at
the extremity and ringed with black. At the thoracic end of
this row of tubercles they are replaced by three spots on each
side, which at first are very conspicuous from their white
mother-of-pearl-like lustre, contrasting with the reddish sur-
rounding colouring. These six bright spots (three on each
side of the chrysalis) gradually changed in tint, until on the
29th of June they were altering to a golden, and thence to a
reddish tint. In the first colouring, the abdomen was mainly
of an ochrey tint, grizzled with black above ; the thorax much
redder, as also the elevations above the wings. My specimens,
probably from injury on the journey or in early stage, did not
develop ; but on the 28th of July Mr. Gibb forwarded me a
perfectly developed sample of the V. ijolychloros, about two
and a half inches in expanse of the wings, developed from
his own chrysalids. Thus, including specimens of Large
Tortoiseshell Butterfly which had been observed previously in
the spring and seen by Mr. Gibb, we have a complete observa-
tion of the whole life-history of the infestation in one locality.

The attack was mentioned as having been very great in the
neighbourhood on Elm and other trees.

54 CHERRY.

Prevention and Eemedies. — This attack occurs so very
seldom to any seriously hurtful extent that remedial or pre-
ventive measures are rarely called for.

In cases (like that of the 1894 infestation) where the large
butterflies were observed in the spring, it certainly would be
desirable, so far as the safety of the leafage of fruit trees and
of some kinds of timber trees was concerned, to kill all that
could be captured. Probably, as this species is rare as well
as beautiful, a hint given to any neighbouring entomologist
would secure very efficient help in this matter.

If patches of eggs are noticeable, these should be cut off,
and a good watch kept for the webby or spun nest which
makes a head-quarters for the caterpillars in their early
stages. The gnawed leafage and the fallen dirt would be a
guide to the whereabouts of these. On timber trees it would
be hard to get at these nests, but on Cherry or other orchard
trees something might be done by sending a boy up the tree
to nip these off when the caterpillars were found to be within ;
or strong shaking and jarring of the branches to make them
fall and then destroying the larvae would do good.

Spraying with Paris-green would be an obviously useful
method of treatment ; and (where the great spiny caterpillars
were in reach) hand-picking would be still more so, as thus,
when they were full-grown and seeking places to suspend
themselves from the tree for the change to chrysalis, some-
thing might be done to prevent recurrence of attack ; but,
generally speaking, the large and beautiful insects are so
scarce that they might be left uninjured with little fear of
consequences.

Cherry and Pear Sawfly. Selandna atra, Stephens and West-
wood ; Eriocampa liinacina, Cameron.

Selandeia atra. — A, Slugworm and Sawfly, magnified, with lines showing
natural length ; b, cocoon.

The small blackish moist-looking larvfe of the Cherry and
Pear Sawfly, known as slugworms, from their great resem-

CHERRY AND PEAR SAWFLY. 55

blance to little slimy slugs feeding on the upper side of the
infested leaves, are often not recognized as caterpillars from
this very peculiar appearance from which they take their
name. They feed on the leaves of Cherry and Pear, also on
Plum, and sometimes on Peach, and on one occasion they
have been forwarded to me as feeding on leaves of Quince ;
and they do serious mischief by devouring the skin of the
upper side of the leaf, so that the remainder appears like a
net-work of veins, held together by the skin of the lower side,
which is left untouched, and turns to a deep brown colour.

The Sawflies (see figure, p. 54, with lines giving natural
size) are shining black, with the horns rather longer than the
thorax (fore body) ; legs black or fuscous, the front ones
somewhat lighter at the lower parts ; wings stated to be rather
deep fuscous with the apex pale ; nervures and costa (fore
edge) black ; stigma brown, and in the second subraarginal
areolet a small fuscous cloud. From differences of descrip-
tion of colouring of the legs it would appear that this is
variable.

In the case of specimens sent me on the 19th of June, 1893,
by Mr. Cresswell Ward, from Neasham Hill, near Darlington,
I was uble to watch the early stage of the attack, which is so
rarely noticed that I give the observation in detail.

In this case the active stage of the attack to some of the
leaves sent me was only just beginning, the upper surface
of the leaf not being as yet stripped of the cuticle in patches,
but dotted with little n-regularly circular patches, some less
than half a line in diameter.

The places of egg deposit were very observable. These
were noticeable on the upper side of the leaf as little spots,
roundish in shape, and whitish in colour (from the upper
coat of skin being dead), slightly raised in the middle, and of
a somewhat transparent tint just over the contained egg,
which was a soft mass, compressible, thick, and somewhat
circular in outline.

Most of the larvae had hatched out, leaving only the white
skin cracked where the maggot bad effected its escape, but
two eggs still remained unhatched. One of these eggs con-
tained the white sawfly larva curled on itself within, and
sufficiently developed to be of characteristic shape, that is,
with the large segments behind the head, and the hinder
portion of the maggot with the segments much narrower.
In the other egg the contents were not j^et sufficiently deve-
loped to be defined in shape. I did not see any larva in the
act of coming out of the egg, but the smallest of them were
as a general thing of a yellowish colour.

The little white blisters, or patches, of white dead skin

56

CHERRY.

covering the eggs were about one- sixteenth of an inch across,
and on one leaf, where I counted them, over thirty in number ;
on another there were about twenty-five ; all these (with
possibly one exception) showing on the upper surface of the
leaf.*

Shortly after hatching, the grubs — which at first are white,
afterwards yellowish — become covered with a blackish or dark
greenish secretion, from which, and their lumpy shape (see
figure, p. 54), they receive their name of slugworm. When
carefully examined, they will be found to be much the thickest
at the fore part of the body, and to have twenty-two pairs of
feet, — that is, three pairs of claw-feet on the three segments
next the head, none on the fourth segment, and all the rest
of the segments furnished with a pair of sucker-feet. The
pair on the the terminal segment are, however, so small that
sometimes they have been overlooked, or not considered to
exist, and the larva classed as twenty-footed.

When full-grown, which is in five or six weeks, the slug-
worms are about five-eighths or half an inch long, and they
then cast their bottle-green smooth coats, and appear as buff
caterpillars, dry and free from all slime or shininess, and,
instead of being smooth, transversely wrinkled. After this
the caterpillars go down into the ground, where they spin an
oval dark-coloured or black silken cocoon, probably covered
outside with earth, from which the sawflies come out some
time in the summer of the following year. The earliest date
at which I am aware of having received specimens of the
attack is the 14th of June, and the attack may continue till
October.

The destructive work of the caterpillars can be at times
very rapid and complete. In a note of attack sent me
from Worcestershire, a large Pear tree was noted as being
stripped almost completely of its leafage in four days from
the date of first observation, the leaves dying and drying from
the skin of the upper side being eaten off. Somewhat earlier
in the same year, — that is, on the 8th of July, 1896, — speci-
mens were sent me of caterpillars said to be devastating the
fruit trees in a garden in North Devon; "Cherry trees
especinllv, a large one in a week was just a skeleton."

The upper surface of the leaf is removed sometimes wholly,
sometimes in patches ; but the method of destruction, that is,
the attack being to the upper side of the leaf, and the rest
being left as the net-work of veins and thin lower skin beneath
them, is characteristic of the attack.

With us, the damage is mostly observed as affecting Cherry

* See 'Seventeenth Eeport on Injurious Insects,' by E. A. Oimerod, p. 81.

CHERRY AND PEAR SAWFLY. 57

and Pear; but it is mentioned by Mr. P. Cameron that "the
damage done by these ugly brutes to fruit trees is very often
immense ; especially is this the ease during very dry seasons.
They are found on most species of Pyrus, Prunus, Cerasus,
Ruhus, and Amygdalus, as well as Cratcegus, Qaercus, and
Betula:'*

Prevention and Remedies. — The slugworm attack can be
checked by dusting or syringing. The caterpillars, if annoyed
by throwing a caustic powder on them, such as quicklime or
gas-lime, can throw it off at first by exuding a coating of
slime, and thus, as it were, moulting off the obnoxious matter;
but they cannot keep on continuing this process ; therefore a
second application of the powder (of course soon after the
first) takes effect and kills them. If a good time is allowed
to elapse between the dressings, they will have regained the
power to produce the slime exudation, and the dressing will
do little good.

Heavy syringings of the tree with strong soapsuds, applied
by a powerful garden-engine, are very effective in getting rid
of this pest. Tobacco-water will destroy them ; and lime-
water has also been found useful, in the proportion of a peck
of lime to thirty gallons of water ; it is noted that if two
pounds of soft-soap are added, it will improve the mixture.

The sawiiies have been found to fall to the ground on the
tree being shaken, and to remain for a short time motionless ;
consequently it would be a good plan to place boards covered
with wet tar, or cloths, beneath the trees, and shake the flies
down on them early in the morning or late in the evening
(or at whatever time it was found they were collected on the
leafage), taking care that they were destroyed before they
could escape.

The recurrence of the attack, which, when once established,
is a very common circumstance, may be prevented by skim-
ming off the surface of the ground and removing the cocoons.
These may lie below the surface at from one to about four
inches deep, according to the state of soil. If the earth is
stirred over by a competent observer, little balls, probably
much resembling the colour of the earth they are in, will be
found, and may at once be identified by just tearing the spun
case open, when the caterpillar or, later on, the chrysalis
will be found within. When once the observer has found
how deep these cocoons lie, it is easy to have the surface-soil
removed to just below that depth, and by removing this and
destroying it, ivith the cocoons tvithin it, the infestation may

* See 'British Phytophagous Hynienoptera,' by P. Cameron, vol. i. p. 225.

58 CURRANT.

be fairly carried out of the place ; but care must be taken
that the cocoons are destroyed, or otherwise the sawflies that
hatch out of them will fly back to the trees and begin the
attack over again. AVhere this plan is carefully carried out,
there will be little damage to be expected from recurrence of
attack.

But though many kinds of dressings and elaborate care in
their application are recommended by various writers, I have
found in my own personal experience that a good dressing of
lime and soot well mixed up together and liberally applied
answered every purpose, and a thorough washing down of the
leafage on the following day, so as to clean off the adhering
coating, was all that was needed to complete the work.

CUREANT.

Currant Aphis oi- Green Fly. Aphis ribis, Linn.

Currant Aj^hides, or " Green Fly," are injurious by
crowding beneath the under side of the leafage, and b}- their
innumerable punctures and drawing away of the sap giving
rise to the brightly-coloured blistered or lumpy growths so
often seen on the upper side of the leaves of Currants. These
blisters may be red, or brown, or orange in colour, and are
convex on the upper side of the leaf, and concave below, thus
forming hollows, in which the aphides shelter themselves in
great numbers, and in bad attack the whole of the leaf may
probably be distorted and crumpled out of shape.

The attack may be found from April onwards during the
summer months, and affects both Eed and Black Currants.
Often it is of little importance, but where the " Green Fly "
is very numerous, the leaves may be so much injured as to
cause the fruit to be blighted.

By many writers the infestation is simply known as that
of A2)liis ribis, Linn., but consequently on a slight difference
in some of the structural characteristics, the aphides are now
(when minutely considered) separated accordingly as belonging
to two distinct genera, — the genus Rhopalosiphum of Koch,
and the genus Myzus of Passerini. The chief point of these
differences appears to be that whilst in the case of Rhojmlo-
siphum the tubercles on the forehead "are small or incon-

CURRANT APHIS. 59

spicuous " ; in the case of Myziis they are very observable in
the male Aphis.*

The wingless viviparous females are in both species oval,
shining yellow or green, with darker green mottlings; cor-
nicles, or honey-tubes, paler green ; legs also paler green,
yellow, or greenish. R. rihis is a little larger than the other
species, being a tenth of an inch in length.

The ground colour of the winged viviparous female is also,
in both cases, yellow or greenish yellow, but there is some
difference in the markings of the species. In R. rihis the
head, fore body, horns, and feet are black ; and the abdomen
has some dark green patches on the back, and some spots on
the sides ; honey-tubes yellow, and legs ochreous. In M.
rihis the head is pale olive; there are some olive and also
some brown markings on the fore body, and several narrow
irregular bands on the abdomen, with four or five spots on
each edge ; honey-tubes green or olive ; legs green, with
olive feet.

To ordinary observation these little " Green Flies " are so
like one another that it is hard to distinguish them apart ;
but with a magnifying-glass the markings on the abdomen
and the colour of the head are distinguishable. In the pupal
condition R. rihis is green ; Myziis rihis green or shining
yellow, with two spots on the head.

The eggs are black, and laid on the shoots of the year.

The life-history of these aphides (which is similar to that
of the others which belong to the division of the AjMdince)
may be given generally as follows. The wingless females,
which are produced very soon after the males in autumn, lay
eggs ; sometimes singly, sometimes in clusters. From these
eggs, in the following spring (or possibly before), young
aphides hatch, which are all females ; they go quickly through
their changes up to the perfect state, and then they produce
living young, which also are all females. These successive
generations of living young, still all females, some of which
are winged, some wingless, go on until, in autumn, the last
generation occurs, which is of males as well as females ; and
the females of this, as we said before, instead of producing
living young produce eggs, which start the next year's
attack.

The Apple and the Cherry Aphis, previously mentioned,
and also the Plum Aphis {Aphis prmii), are similar in their
life-history to the above, and where kerosine emulsion could
be brought to bear on the eggs during wdnter it appears
probable that it would act beneficially in preventing their

* For details, see 'British Aphides,' G. B. Buckton, F.K.S., vol. i. p. 180
{Myzus rihis) ; vol. ii. p. 9 {Rhopalosiplmm rihis).

60

CUERANT.

development, on which some remarks are given under the
head of Pkim Aphis ; see also Index.

Where much damage is being caused to Currant leaves by
the Green Fly, it is a good plan to break them off and burn
them.

The infestation being beneath the leaves it is difficult to
reach it by spraying ; but in dry weather the application of
jjleiitiful waterijuis so as to keep up good growth of the leafage
is in itself a great check to aphis increase. Where leaf growth
is kept back by drought, aphides, as a rule, multiply much
more quickly than where growth is luxuriant.

Currant Aphis is to be found also on Gooseberry leafage,
and also sometimes on the common or wild Guelder Eose
{Viburnum opulas).

Currant Gall Mite. Phytoptus rihis, Nalepa.

Phytoptus ribis, greatly magnified ; natural length of female 0-23 mm. (by
permission, after Dr. A. Nalepa). Black Currant twig with Mite Galls.

CUERANT GALL MITE. 61

The deformed bud growths, which for many years have
been a source of great trouble to Black Currant growers,
are caused by an exceedingly minute mite, too small to be
seen by the naked eye, — scientifically Pliytoptiis rihis, — which
jDropagates in the buds, and causes an unnaturally large
development of these into spherical or somewhat oval soft
green knobs formed outside of greenish scales or abortive
leaves folding over each other, and inside of the various parts
which would gradually have developed into leaves, flowers,
and fruit, but contorted by the action of the mites into un-
natural condition, and abortive for any useful purpose.

These "knobs" may be found forming during the winter
whilst the healthy buds are still of their natural shape, and
in January may be found up to as much as a quarter of an
inch in diameter, and containing within them numbers of the
mites and some eggs. Later on, growth of the gall knobs
continues until they may at times be found as large as some
specimens sent me from Toddington during the year 1897,
which proved to be for the most part from about three to
four-eighths of an inch in diameter, and, in the case of the
upper specimens on the twig, were dying and drying off into
the condition in which the mites leave them and emigrate to
set up attack in the still embryo buds in the axils of the
leaves.

The first definite allusion to the presence of this Black
Currant bud disease being observed in England took place at
the meeting of the Scientific Committee of the Eoyal Horti-
cultural Society on March 2nd, 1869,* and the investigations
carried on showed that as a very injurious attack (though of
a nature of which the cause was not distinctly ascertained)
the disease had been known in the district of Blantyre, N.B.,
for twenty years before the above date.

The first notes that were sent to myself regarding this
infestation as a serious trouble were forwarded in March,
1885, and since then the attack has spread so widely both in
England and Scotland, and the measures for its extirpation
have proved of so very little more than mere temporary
service, that the matter has become one of grave importance
to all growers of Black Currants, especially where cultivation
is on the scale of field growing.

Life-history. — Phytojytus ribis, or the Currant Bud Mite,
belongs to one of the divisions of the order Acarina, or mites,
but is distinguishable from all the other families by its more
or less elongate, cylindrical, or worm-like shajje, and also by
only possessing four legs througliout its lohole life.

* See reports in ' Gardeners' Chronicle ' for 1869, p. 252, also p. 276.

62 CURRANT.

The mites of the other families of the Acarina — as, for in-
stance, the Pied Spider of the Hop, the Tetranyclms telariiis —
are of a much rounder or more oval shape, hut are especially
distinguishahle hy their greater numher of legs. As a rule,
they possess three pairs when they are hatched and in their
earliest stage, hut, with subsequent moults, as they approach
maturity, they become possessed of four ]3airs.

This point of the number of legs is a very important one to
observe, in order to prevent confusion in identification with
other kinds of mites which may very likely be found on
Currant bushes.

Phytoptas ribis is of the shape figured at p. 60, that is,
long, narrow, cylindrical, somewhat tapering towards the
blunt tail, at the extremity of which, on each side, is one long
bristle, and there are also two other pairs of bristles one on
each side of the body — one pair near the fore part, the other
a little before the middle. The proboscis is short ; the four
legs are plainly jointed, and the abdomen with about seventy
punctate transverse rings. The length of the female is 0*23
millimeter, the breadth 0"04 millimeter- ; the dimensions of
the male are smaller.*

The infestation is to be found on the Black Currant {Rihcs
nigrum) both in Great Britain and on the Continent of Europe.
Likewise occasionally (but not as yet, so far as we are aware,
in this country) on the Ked Currant {Ribes rubrum) and the
"Tasteless Mountain Currant" [Ribes aljnnum). In regard
to R. alpinwn, as this kind grows wild in some localities
both of England and Scotland, some investigation as to the
P. rihis being found on it might be worth while.

From special observation of the habits of the Currant Bud
Mite, and more particularly those of Mr. Piobert Newstead,
referred to below,t we find that mites are present in the
swelled buds in the perfect condition in January, and not
apparently injured beyond being made temporarily somewhat
sluggish by severe frost. Eggs also are then present. In
February eggs may be found in great numbers in the galled
buds in company with the adult mites, and by March 6th
"there were thousands of young forms (nymphs), and eggs
and adults were also present."

* For practical purposes it is enough to mention that the mites are so ex-
cessively small as to be indistinguishable to the naked eye. A millimeter is
the 25th part of an inch, and twenty-three hundredths of this measurement—
that is, somewhat less than a quarter — is scarcely perceptible except when
magnified.

t "Recent Investigations of the Currant Bud Mite (Phyt02}tus ribis),'' by
R. Newstead, F.E.S., Curator of the Grosvenor Museum, Chester, Lecturer on
Economic Entomology for the Cheshire County Council, pp. 5-7. Reprinted
from ' The British l^turalist ' for June, 1894, Price 3d.

CURRANT GALL MITE. 63

On April 19th (continuing to quote from Mr. Newstead)
many of the old and badly infested galled buds of the previous
year had opened out very considerably, but had not produced
nor did they afterwards produce a single leaf. "These and
the rest of the infested buds contained a living mass of the
mites in all stages, completely covering every embryo leaf in
the buds. . . . All the old buds that were examined had
no living mites in them, but the dead white desiccated bodies
of thousands of mites covered the surface of the dead leaves
of the buds."

In May, galled buds which still retained any life in them
(for 90 per cent, of the buds forwarded were dead and dry)
contained "many dead mites, which had undoubtedly died a
few hours previous to my receiving them, as they still con-
tained their colour and outline intact."

Mr. Newstead's next observation is of great practical im-
portance as showing the date at which migration takes place
from the old galls to the embryo (the newly forming) leaf-buds,
and consequently the date and the locality on the bushes,
when and where {if possible) remedial dressings should be
applied. " My next examination was on June 2nd. At this
time the newly-formed shoots had begun to harden, and the
new buds on the first half of them had attained a length of
2J-3 mm., very small, but just protruding behind the leaf-
stalk. Between the base of the leaf-stalk and the buds, at>
the ends of the young shoots, I found both adults and nymphs,
but no eggs ; although these latter were not found in the
situations indicated, they must have been laid there, or the
nymphs would not have been present.

" It is curious to note that the mites occurred near the
terminal buds only; this will account for such buds on an
infested bush being most severely attacked. At this date
(June 2nd) I could only find one of the old infested buds in a
living condition, and this simply swarmed with adult mites.

" On July 17th I again found the mites located between
the leaf-stalks and the buds, and with them many eggs ;
while ten days later (July 27th) newly-formed buds, still
small, were present, but terminal ones were already showing
signs of being infested. On examination these were found to
contain adults, nymphs, and eggs, nearly all of which were
located in the centre of the buds. This was the first occasion
I found the mites within the newly-formed buds. The old
infested buds at this date were everyone of them dried up.

"During the month of August I was unfortunately away
from home, and was not able to resume my investigations
until Sept, 13th. At this date the new buds showed decided
signs of being infested ; they were much swollen, and mea-

M CURRANT.

surecl 2h to 3 lines in length, and contained the pest in all its
stages. I could not, however, find any of the mites behind
the leaf-stalks as previously, so that I concluded they had
taken up their winter quarters for good, and had set to work
in earnest to ruin the crop of fruit while yet in the bud."

From the above observations it will be seen that the mites
first established themselves between the base of the leaf-stalk
and the young buds early in June (June 2nd), but were not
found actually inside them until July 27th.

In my own experiments of the present year (1898), on
opening various Black Currant galls on January 25th and
28th, which I was favoured with, at my request, from the
Woburn Fruit Farm, Piidgmont, Bedfordshire, I found a few
eggs present.

These were oval or ovate when in characteristic condition,
but sometimes irregular in outline, apparently from being
pushed out of shape by the developing mite within ; but I was
not fortunate enough to find a specimen in the very act of
developing (as I have seen in the case of the Phutoptus of the
Birch knots), and thus did not have the opportunity of seeing
(and figuring) the mite coming out of the egg in the four-
legged condition in which it continues through life.

In the case of specimens from Woburn, I was particularly
struck with the large size of the egg in comparison with the
mite, and turning to the observations of Dr. A. Nalepa on
this subject, I find that he notices that "the eggs" [of the
Gall Mites] "are relatively to the minuteness of the creatures
of considerable size. . . . The egg-shell is thin, flexible,
and formed of chitin." The author also remarks : — " In the
latter part of summer and in autumn the mites leave the galls
in multitudes to take possession of their winter quarters —
that is, the buds. This emigration also is of frequent occur-
rence during summer when the previously inhabited buds
dry up."*

Prevention and Eemedies. — The method which is most
frequently tried is breaking off the galled buds and destroying
them, and though it cannot but be that in this way a great
deal of the mite presence is got rid of which would have
otherwise spread infestation, yet the plan is very far from
answering as could be wished.

* ' Die Naturgeschichte der Gallmilben,' von Prof. Dr. Alfred Nalepa,
pp. 15, 18. (Erganzter Sonderabdruck aus dem ix Jahrsberichte des K.K.
Staats-Gymnasium in Wien, iv Bezirk). For technical description of Phijtoptus
ribU, Nalepa, species of llibes (Currant) infested by it, and also figures, the
reader is referred to ' Beitriige zur Kenntniss der Gattungen Pliytoptus,' by
the same author. (Besonders abgedruckt aus dem Ixii Bande der Denkmal
Naturwissenschaftlichen Classe der K. Acad, der Wissenschaften, Wien, 1895).

CURRANT GALL MITE. 65

In the following notes, sent me on April 7th, 1897, by Mr.
C. D. Wise (Manager of the Toddington Fruit Grounds,
Winchcombe, Gloucestershire), it will be seen we have details
of the number of quarts of galled buds gathered in the years
11196 and 1897, with cost of gathering per acre ; and also the
absence of benefit from the outlay : —

" Gall Mites on Black Currants. — We have a very serious
aUack of Gall Mites this spring, as will be shown by the
following statement : —

Field Quantity of Galled ^ost of Picking.

Number. Buds picked per acre.

1 1896 ... li quarts 3s. 6d. per acre.

1897 ... 12 ,, 7s. 6d.

2 1896 ... U „ 4s. 6d.

1897 ... 8 „ 6s. 9d.

3 1896 ... 4 „ 5s. 6d.

1897 ... 16 „ 10s. lOd. „

" Where we have picked the Gall Mites off last autumn,
the attack seems to be quite as bad this spring. You will see
that the cost per acre picking off the galls comes to a very
serious item, but I do not see that there is anything else we
can do ; if you can suggest anything we shall be very glad."

On December 22nd (1897) Mr. Wise reported further :— " I
am sorry to say that the Black Currant Gall Mite increases
with us ; the bushes this autumn are covered with galls."

The plan of cutting off infested shoots to within two or
three inches of ground level or even quite down to ground
level, and in the former case treating the stumps and the
ground round with an emulsion of soft-soap and paraffin oil,
and in the latter liming the stools, has not answered, although
where the emulsion was used the new shoots promised well
for a time. In the other the young shoots were at once
attacked.

Amongst observations of treatment from which some amount
of good resulted was a note sent in 1885 of about half an acre
being affected by the infestation, to which " a dressing was
given of two parts sulphur and three parts lime boiled together
in water (2 lb. sulphur and 3 lb. lime, 3 gallons of water),
which is further diluted at the rate of two or three pints to a
large pail of water, applied with a syringe to the infested
bushes." The effect of this application was that little or no
damage was done, but the remark was made that " it seems
difficult to clear the garden altogether."

Another correspondent mentioned on April 10th (1892) : —
" As you suggested in a letter of last March, we syringed the
bushes twice with the solution of Paris-green, which I pro-

F

66 CURKANT.

cured from Messrs. Blunclell, and gave the soil all under the
bushes a good coatmg of caustic lime. I also gave the bushes
another dressing of the Paris-green. Just when the buds
appeared this spring, I had a boy gathering all the little
knobs of the trees. The result has proved as satisfactory as
I could expect, considering the condition of the trees last
year, and I have every prospect of securing a good half
crop."

Some points, however, in the history of the mites which
have been brought forward during 1897 suggest the time of
year when (//" jjossihle) remedial sprayings should be applied.
It is noted by Dr. A. Nalepa, see p. 64 : — " In the latter part
of summer and in autumn the mites leave the galls in multi-
tudes to take possession of their winter quarters— that is, the
buds. This emigration also is of frequent occurrence during
summer when the previously inhabited buds dry up-." This
season, then, when the mites are straying on the bushes and
as a preliminary to further mischief locating themselves
between the leaf-stalk and the buds, as noticed by Mr. New-
stead (see p. 63), is the time when the mites are open to attack,
but there is the difficulty to meet of the fruit being on the
bushes.

Also the last year's observations have confirmed the sup-
position that "mixed cropping" — that is, alternating lines
(or strips of a few lines) of Black Currants with other crops —
would lessen amount of mite presence. In reply to some
observations of my own on this head, with which I was
favoured in the course of last year by Mr. Malcolm Dunn,
from the Gardens, Dalkeith, N.B., he remarked as follows : —
"I have reason to believe that the usual method of close roics,
in large breaks or quarters of Black Currants, has a good deal
to do with the bad attack of mites so often seen on massed
bushes ; while single rows, with free space of some feet or
yards between them are less infested in the same district.
The close rows naturally afford better shelter and more
breeding ground than detached rows, and hence the partial
immunity of the latter. . . . There is little doubt the
workers rubbing on the infested bushes with their clothes,
when the mites are lively, carry them to clean bushes, and
spread the infestation." — (M. D.)

The following note, sent me on Jan. 20th of the present year,
by Mr. Lewis Castle, Manager of the Woburn Experimental
Fruit Farm, from Eidgmont, Aspley Guise, Bedfordshire,
gives some very serviceable observation on the above point : —

" Upon reflection, I think your suggestion with regard to
planting Black Currants in lines between other crops is
important, and likely to prove beneficial where the plantation

CUKRANT CLEARWING MOTH. 67

was gradually formed, and the bushes may be obtained from
various sources. The fact that ours are all planted in such
lines may have been partially the means of preventing the
more general extension of the 'mite,' which is at present
mainly confined to the one plot of Baldwins, though instances
are observable in other plots, but scattered. Certainly it
should be practised wherever it can be done conveniently, as
bushes and trees of all kinds in single lines alternating with
others ripen both wood and fruit jbetter than when crowded
into dense plantations." — (L. C.)

There are of course points difficult to be met on the scale
of wholesale fruit-growing in the case of strip cultivation, but
the cost would be less than the outlay for treatment (at
present) almost unremunerative.

Other points occur as possibly serviceable, such as grafting
Black Currant on species not liable to attack, and also ex-
perimenting as to whether varieties of Black Currant, which
in special circumstances have been found not to be liable to
the Phjitoptus attack, will continue clean when in Phytoptus-
infested surroundings.

These and other points of carefully considered treatment
are being now carried on, under the direction of Mr. Spencer
Pickering, F.Pi.S. (Director), at the Woburn Experimental
Fruit Farm, Piidgmont, Aspley Guise, Bedfordshire ; and
amongst them are included experimental sprayings with
various chemical applications in carefully detailed proportions,
the successive treatment being followed at specified intervals
by microscopic examination by a skilled investigator of the
contents of the sprayed buds, and of others unsprayed but
otherwise in similar circumstances.

By kind permission of Mr. Pickering, I have been permitted
to insert an account of the experiments now in progress in
the Appendix to my Twenty-first Report, to which the reader
is referred for the details from which this paper is abridged.

Currant Clearwing Moth. Sesia tlpuliformis, Liun.

The attacks of the caterpillars of the Currant Clearwing
Moth (often known as Currant-borers) have long been known
as present, both in this country and on the Continent of
Europe, and sometimes as doing much mischief by eating
their way so as to form a tunnel of several inches in length up
the centre of the shoots attacked. They are also amongst
the species of injurious insects which have been carried to
America, and which have established themselves there.

f2

68

CURRANT.

The infestation is to be found in the shoots of both Eed and
Black Currants (chiefly in the latter in the case of specimens
sent to myself). It has also been recorded as found in Goose-
berry shoots, and according to one observer it has likewise
been found in the Ions; shoots of Nut bushes.

Sesia TiPCLiFOKiiis. — Clirysalis, nat size and magnified ; and section of
portion of tunnelled shoot.

The most serviceable account of the habits of the Currant-
borers which I am acquainted with is that given by Dr. W.
Saunders in his excellent volume on American fruit attacks,*
in which he gives the main points of the infestation as fol-
lows : —

** The female lays her eggs singly near the buds, where in a
few days they hatch into small larvae, which eat their way to
the centre of the stem, where they burrow up and down,
feeding on the pith all through the summer, enlarging the
channel as they grow older, until at last they have formed a
hollow several inches in length.! . . . Before changing to a
chrysalis, a passage is eaten nearly through the stem, leaving
merely the thin outer skin unbroken, thus preparing the way
for the escaie of the moth. Within this cavity the larva
changes to n chrysalis. . . . Early in June the chrysalis
wriggles itself forward, and, pushing against the thin skin
covering its place of retreat, ruptures it, and then partly

* See ' Insects Injurious to Fruits,' pp. 336, 337, by W. Saunders, F.R.S.C.,.
&c. Philadelphia, U.S.A. ; and 16, Southampton Street, Strand, London, W.C.

f The only point of difference between the habits of the larvai in the descrip-
tion above given and those recorded in Europe is continuance of feeding.
Taschenberg, in his ' Praktische Insektenkunde,' notes the larva as feeding from
" July or August until March of the following year." This probably depends
much on difference of weather and climate, and I could not have said with any
certainty that, though some of my larvffi were partially webbed round, they had
ceased feeding, as they were not all full grown.

CURRANT CLEARWING MOTH. 69

thrusts itself out of the opening, when in a short time the
moth bursts its prison-house and escapes, soon depositing
eggs, from which larvae are hatched which carry on the work
of destruction." — (W. S.).

The infestation has only been reported to me in one year
(1894) as seriously injurious, and in that year from the distant
localities of the South of Scotland, and of Kent ; in both
cases the attack was to Black Currants. In the lirst-named
case a large number of specimens of caterpillars and injured
shoots were sent me early in January, and on slitting these
longitudinally I found the pith or centre eaten away for as
much as five or over five and a quarter inches in length from
where it had been cut across, this consequently only giving a
portion of the length of the larval burrow. As in some cases
the upper, and in some the lower part of the severed shoot was
missing, I could not tell precisely how long the entire tunnel
might have been, but it was very neatly and thoroughly
cleared out, stopping abruptly at either end, as figured from
life, p. 68. In this tunnel I found the larva lying, apparently
hybernating, in several instances enveloped in a more or less
perfectly spun covering. In one instance it was lying in a
fairly tiim opaque coating of dirty coloured web, with a deal
of dark brown frass at one end where the grub was lying, and
some at the other end. In another instance it was lying in
what had been its roughly spun opaque covering, until it was
torn open in slitting the shoot ; and in another I found the
grub lying with some rubbish or frass on one side, and a little
web and frass at the other end.

The larva or grub was hardly half an inch long, pale or
yellowish, sixteen-footed (that is, with three pairs of claw-
feet, four pairs of sucker-feet beneath the body, and another
pair beneath the tail), the head palish chestnut, the jaws
darker, and some chestnut marking on the segment next the
head, and also above the tail. These larva were presumably
not quite full-grown, as the full length is given by Buckler at
three-quarters of an inch, and either from this, or from the
conditions of hybernation, the colour of my specimens,
examined in January, was rather lighter in the head and
back of the following segment than the brownish tint men-
tioned both by Saunders and Buckton.

As some writers have expressed doubt as to the method of
entrance of the caterpillar into the Currant shoot, I examined
very carefully, and found no reason to doubt that the entrance
was made at a bud, and that the maggot worked its tunnel
above and below this point. The ends of the tunnel appeared
{as a regular thing) to stop abruptly without any entrance
hole, and without difference in width of tunnelling, which

70 CURRANT.

miglit be expected to be the case if the larva entered when
recently hatched and worked its way onward from one end.
In regard to this point my correspondents wrote, "We have
examined the shoots again, and the hole seems in every case
to have been in the bud." My specimens developed by the
chrysalis pushing through the aperture left for its egress, as
on June 20th I found two pupa-cases fallen down, and another
still attached to the Currant stem. Figures of one of these
are given, life-size and magnified, at p. 68.

The little moth is scarcely more than an inch in the spread
of the front wings ; the body and fore body black with some
narrow yellow lines ; the wings are transparent, whence the
name of "Clearwing," and bordered with black, the fore wings
having also a black bar across, and the tip yellowish with
black veins (see figure, p. 68). The moths appear in June.

In both cases it was stated that the infestation bad not
been noticed before, but, judging by the specimens sent me,
the attack was to be found not only in shoots of the preceding
year, but in those of older growth.

Prevention and Eemedies. — On the large scale of nursery
growing the operation of taking cuttings would show fairly
well where attack was present, and every case where one of
the stems which had been cut through was found to have
been tunnelled up the centre, the lower part of the shoot
ought also to be cut away to below the bottom of the grub
tunnel (so as to insure the removal of the grub), and hotJi
pieces should he burnt. The grub or caterpillar might be in
either of the pieces, and if left, and merely thrown aside in
the shoots might very likely go through its changes to moth
state and set new infestation on foot.

Where a ground has been clear until a lot bought as rooted
cuttings from elsewhere has been found to be infested, it
would be entirely desirable to clear them all off at once, and
destroy them. In treatment of the old standing bushes, one
of the surest jDlans appears to be to take the condition of the
leafage as a guide to where the grub is present witiiin the
stem, and cut off every shoot as soon as fading leafage shows
where the point of attack is.

As tlie chrysalis does not as a regular thing go through its
changes till June, there would be plenty of time to give full
attention to the matter, and cut off and hum all the shoots
where the fading leafage showed presence of grub within, and
thus give timely prevention of the spread of the infestation.

It has been advised to cut off all ends of old shoots which
show a perforation, but in the light of later observations it
does not seem likely that these stumps should be used for

CURRANT SHOOT AND FRUIT MOTH.

71

egg-laying, as the larva would not be supplied with soft pith
for food, nor would it be able to form its tunnel up and down
in the customary manner. It has also been suggested (where
the moths are numerous) that they may be captured and de-
stroyed in the cool of the morning when sluggish ; but for
ordinary purposes the most practicable method of prevention
appears to be (so far as is possible) destroying the tunnelled
shoots, and where attack was very prevalent, it might be
found that a manager, or some one interested, would be able,
by glancing along the shoots, to distinguish by the condition
of the bud, near which the entrance hole had been made (or
possibly by the perforation itself being observable), which
were the maggot-infested shoots.

Currant Shoot and Fruit Moth. Incurvaria capitella, Fab.

Incurvaeia capitei.la. — Moths, magnified and nat. size, from life ;
caterpillar, magnified, after Staiuton.

Incurvaria capitella, figured above, has been known for_ a
good many years as mischievous to Currants by means of its
caterpillars feeding in the buds and also in the pith of young
shoots of Eed Currant; but it was not until the spring of
1896 (so far as I am aware) that we had knowledge of this in-
festation attacking the Black as well as the Eed Currant. The
specimens previously sent to myself had been from Eed
Currant {Rihcs ruhrum), and in the various entomological
records to which I have access no mention is made of the
Black Currant {Rihes nigrum) as attacked, the notes either
referring to Currants without specification of kind, or dis-
tinctly to Eed Currants.

In the year 1891 information was sent me by Mr. C. D.
Wise (Superintendent of the Toddington Fruit Grounds,
Winchcombe, Gloucestershire) of the mischief which had been

72 CUREANT.

caused by this infestation (noticed about April 20th) in young
shoots of Red Currant bushes, and specimens of the moth
reared from these caterpillars (one of which is figured above)
showed them to be /. capitella.

It was, not, however, until the careful observations of Dr.
Chapman were carried on in 1892 that we learnt the remainder
of the life-history of the little moth, and also that its attack
is doubly hurtful to the Currants by injuring the fruit as well
as the growth of the leaf-buds.

The main points of the attack from egg-laying in one
summer to development of the moth in the next may be
given shortly as follows : — The moth lays her eggs within the
young fruit, and there the larvae or caterpillars feed awhile,
their presence being indicated by a premature appearance of
ripening. After a time they creep out of the fruit, and each
larva spins a cocoon in some shelter on the twigs, in which it
passes the winter. In the following spring the caterpillar (as
yet only partly grown) comes out, and, boring into the shoots
of the Red Currant, destroys the shoot. It then goes into the
chrysalis state, from which, in Dr. Chapman's observations,
he found moths emerge in time to insert their eggs in the
young fruit at dates of from the 17th to the 20th of May.

The first noticeable sign (in the spring of the year) of the
presence of this attack, is the fading of the young shoots
from the injuries caused by the gnawings of the little cater-
pillars within, which has been thus noted by various authors :
"The larva is very injurious, eating the pith of the young
shoots, and betrays its presence by the withering of the young
leaves ; when quite young it is dark red, but when full-fed it
is greenish white."* Also : " The larvffi " (according to Stainton
and A. Hartmann, of Munich) "live early in May in the
young shoots and buds of the liihes rubrum. These they de-
vour even to the pith of the twig."

In observations sent me in 1891 from the Toddington
Fruit Grounds (before referred to) by Mr. C. D. Wise, he
mentioned that "about the 20th of April we noticed num-
bers of the young shoots of the Red Currant bushes had
withered u-p and drooped. On examination we found in each
a small grub which had bored its way up the stem." In
April, 1896, Mr. Wise wrote further regarding injury to
Black Currants, of which he forwarded specimens on the
27th : — " You will see what an enormous amount of damage
they are doing us, as each bud contains a Currant blossom
which is well formed, but which would not come to per-
fection."

I found the Black Currant shoots very much injured — in

* Staintou's ' Tineina,' p. 42.

CURRANT SHOOT AND FRUIT MOTH. 73

some instances the boring of the little grubs went down to the
old wood of the shoots, and in others I found the grub (or
caterpillar) dead within; but two of these larvfe were still
alive, one within a shoot, and the other straying about, and
both, as customary with this grub for most of its lifetime, of
a reddish colour.

When retiring for hybernation, the caterpillar is noted by
Dr. Chapman as being two millimetres in length,* and that
" it possesses well-developed legs, but the prolegs, though
fairly in evidence, possess no hooks ; it is red in colour . . .
rather orange-yellow ; head rufous, with sundry hairs ; spin-
neret very long ; second segment [that next the head, E. A.O.]
has a plate arched behind, and narrowing to the front ; along
the hinder margins are darker stronger patches, in a central
and two lateral portions, looking at first as if the plate con-
sisted only of these in form of two lunules ; anal plate tri-
angular; several hairs on each segment." In the full-grown
larva it is mentioned that the four abdominal pairs of prolegs
possess hooks, but not the anal pair.

In the chrysalis it is noted that the wing-cases extend to
the middle or end of the tenth segment, but are only attached
as far as the sixth, and that in emergence it forces itself out of
the cocoon.

The moths, which are observable in the latter days of May,
are about five-eighths of an inch across in spread of the fore
wings ; head with a thick tuft of ochrey hair above. Fore
wings dark brownish or fuscous, sometimes with a purplish
satiny gloss, a pale yellow band across the wing at about one-
third of its length from the root, and two patches, also paje
yellow, about half-way between the yellow band and the tip
of the wing ; these two patches are respectively on the fore
and hinder edges of the wing, and the hinder patch is some-
what triangular in shape. The hinder wings are pale grey.

The following extracts are taken from the clear account of
the method of infestation of the young fruit given by Dr. T.
A. Chapman from his own observations in his paper referred
to below, t which I was kindly permitted by the writer and
the editors of the Ent. Mo. Mag. to quote from in my
' Fifteenth Annual Report,' and now again quote with many
thanks. Dr. Chapman commenced his record as follows : —

" Certain moths which I reared from the larva sent me

* One millimetre is the twenty-fifth part of an inch.

t See paper by Dr. Chapman entitled '' Lampronia capitdla,'" in 'Entomo-
logist's Monthly Magazine ' for December, 1892, pp. 297-300. In this paper, for
various reasons there given. Dr. Chapman notes that he thinks it would be
desirable to change the generic name of Incurvaria for that of Lampronia ; but
as I am not aware of the change having been made, I retain the name of
lucurvaria as above.

74 CURRANT.

paired readily in captivity, and, supplying these with a spray
of Eed Currant with berries rather more than half-grown, I
had the pleasure of seeing the moth lay eggs in such Currants
on several occasions. The moths were then sleeved out on
growing Currants, and here also they laid eggs, though I did
not see it done.

" The moth sits upon the Currant, and penetrates it in the
lateral region; on one occasion the process occupied three or
four minutes, on another only about thirty seconds. The
dates were from 17th to 20th May. On examining one of
these Currants, which was rather more than half-grown, and
with seeds still very soft, but about 1*75 mm. in diameter,
two eggs of capitella were found lying free in the ovarian
cavity ; in another the cavity contained two such pairs of
eggs. ... I have little doubt, however, that two eggs are
laid at each penetration." The eggs were nearly colourless,
and somewhat lemon-shaped, about 0'67 millimetre in length,
and 0*37 in breadth.

Continuing Dr. Chapman's account in abstract : no change
was noticeable in the Currants under observation until the
last week in June, when most of the Currants being still
green, some among them had the appearance of being nearly
ripe, and these proved to be infested by capitella. In some
the caterpillar was still present, in others it had escaped, and
in two instances Dr. Chapman saw the caterpillar in the act
of escaping by boring through the juicy substance of the
Currant, and emerging a short way from the summit. " The
food of the larva whilst in the Currant is the interior of one
seed. . . . The buds and fruit spurs of the Currant have at
their bases many dead scales that persist from earlier buds,
and amongst these the young larva buries and hides itself,
spinning a small firm white cocoon in which to pass the
winter."— (T. A. C).

Thus the account is made complete throughout the year,
up to the date when the caterpillars appear from the quarters
in which they have passed the winter, and their renewed
state of activity is made apparent by the fading of the young
Currant shoots under attack (see p. 72).

It may perhaps be of some assistance to those not accus-
tomed to observation of insect-life to draw attention to the
circumstance of the same caterpillars rctirinf/ twice from
active life in the course of the year, once when partially
grown for their winter rest in their cocoons, and again in the
late spring for their change to chrysalis.

Prevention and Eemedies. — One remedy is obviously to
pick off and destroy the infested sJwots which have been

WHITE WOOLLY CURRANT SCALE. 75

bored by the little caterpillars which carae out from the little
white cocoons in which they passed the winter. Thus we get
rid of a great quantity of infestation which would very shortly
have supplied a new brood of moths to infest the Currant
fruit with their eggs, and caterpillars hatched from them. As
Mr. Wise remarked, relatively to the infestation at Toddington
in 1891 : — " The remedy we adopted for this pest was to pick
off the infested shoots and burn them, which of course means
a lot of labour ; but what else were we to do ?"

Dr. Chapman's observations of the young caterpillars which
come out from the fruit, hiding themselves amongst the dead
scales to be found at the bases of buds and fruit spurs, and
there spinning a white firm cocoon in which to pass the
winter, opens out another method of prevention. We could
not very well do anything towards clearing out individually
cocoons spun for the accommodation of a caterpillar only
about one-twelfth of an inch long ("the young larva on
retiring for hybernation is only 2 mm. in length." — T. A. C.) ;
but looking over the bushes, and if little white spots were
seen, clearing out the old rubbish in which the cocoons are
sheltered, would be to some degree practicable. Or an appli-
cation of strong soap and mdpliur would do good.

Whether anything could be done with regard to shaking off
the infested and prematurely ripening Currants does not yet
appear. In some other kinds of attacks in which, as in this
instance, the infesting maggot destroys the seed, the fruit
consequently drops, and if this should be the case also with
our Incurvaria attack, we might get rid of much of the pest
by shaking the bushes, so that the fruit should drop on to
cloths, and destroying this before the maggots had time to
escape and re-establish themselves on the Currant bushes to
form winter quarters.

White Woolly Currant Scale. Pidvinaria rihedoi, Signoret.

The presence of the infestation of the White AVoolly Currant
Scale is not easily overlooked, from the white woolly or
cottony matter which forms the nest of the eggs, and of the
young*^ Scale insects in their earliest condition, gradually
becoming drawn over the twigs in all directions (see figure,
p. 77), so that in the distance the infested branches have the
appearance of being scattered over with whitewash.

This species, the Pidvinaria rihcsice, Signoret, is a kind of
attack which has long been known in France, but which was

76 CURRANT.

not scientifically identified and recorded as present in Britain
until June, 1889, although we then found on investigation
that it had been noticed as present at various places in
England and Scotland during a few years preceding that date.

PuLViNAiiiA raBESi.i;. — 1, female and woolly egg-sac, magnified (natural size
given at p. 77) ; la, female Scale magoified, with line giving natural length ;
2, larva, magnified.

On June 18th specimens of the attack were sent me from a
garden at Wakefield by Mr. S. L. Mosley, of Beaumont Park
Museum, Huddersfield, with a note that "it evidently seemed
at home where it was established, and that the Eed Currant
bushes were terribly affected by it " ; and he drew my atten-
tion to the very great number of eggs in the cottony matter
surrounding the Scale.

The specimens were submitted to Mr. J. W. Douglas, of
8, Beaufort Gardens, Lewisham, S.E., for authoritative iden-
tification, who reported on them as follows : — " The Coccids
are Pidvinaria ribesicB, Signoret (' Essai sur les Cochenilles,'
p. 219), a species found on Pied Currant bushes in France,
and which I have long expected to hear inhabited Britain,
but until now I have not seen it." As this species has not yet
been brought forward here, I append in a note * a translation

* "In its most advanced stage this species, which is nearly allied to P. vitis
and P. oxyacantha, is 4 mm. long by 3 broad, not including in this the white
cottony matter, which may vary in extent according to the state of growth of
the embryos which it contains. The Scale is of a reddish brown, with a line
more or loss raised on the back, which gives it almost the appearance of being
keeled ; on each side of the body it is wrinkled, and faintly pitted : in a dry
state the folds are hardly observable — it might be said to be smooth. It is
nearly allied to vitis, but smaller, thicker, rounder, more heart-shaped, and of a
deeper brown ; ribesia is distinguished from it, especially in the embryo state,
which is longer, with the members thicker, tlie tarsi and tibia? much shorter,
and half less in size in P. 7-ibcsice than in P. vitis, and the large hair which is
observed on the tibia in almost all the species is very much longer in this one ;
the antennas, almost of similar form, have fewer long hairs; thus in the
embryo of Pidvinaria t^tis six are observable, whilst in ribesice there are only
five, of which that of the third article and that of the disc of the last article
are much the longest, the great hair of the extremity of this article being a
good third shorter than these. With regard to the cottony matter which is
observable, it is very abundant in this species, and entirely of the same nature
as that of P. vitis." — 'Essai sur les Cochenilles,' 15, Pulvinaria ribesice nobis,
par M. le Docteur Signoret, p, 219 (vol. i. of ' Collected Essays ').

WHITE WOOLLY CURRANT SCALE.

77

of Dr. Signoret's scientific
description. My own more
general description, from
specimens examined on
June 2nd, is as follows : —

The Scale itself (see fig.
la, p. 76) dark grey-brown,
rather longer than broad
(the specimens measured
from one-eighth to three-
sixteenths of an inch in
length, and over one-eighth
of an inch in width), of a
squarish oval, with the
hinder extremity notched
or heart-shaped, and in
their then dried state the
fore part turned up so
much as to be reflexed; the
keel along the back was
still partly observable, with
slight ridges running down
to the edge of the Scale.

The white cottony or
woolly matter (figured at 1,
p. 76) which forms the
nest of the eggs, and of
the young Scales in their
earliest condition, formed,
where it was undisturbed, a
compact tuft, on the front
part of which the Scale it-
self was raised, sometimes
almost vertically. Whilst
fresh, the Scale and its
white wool formed together
a somewhat oval mass,
which presently became
drawn out in all directions,
so that in the distance the
infested branches looked as
if they were scattered over
with whitewash (see ac-
companying figure, from a
photo kindly taken for me
by Mr. T. P. Newman, of
Haslemere).

Currant branch infested by White
Woolly Scale.

78 CUKEANT.

The almost overwhelmirig nature of the infestation, and the
serious amount of injury caused by it, is better conveyed by
this figure, taken from one of the various samples of attack
sent me, than from mere description.

The egg-like bodies in the wool, when examined at this
date (July 2ud), proved to have hatched, and these orange-
coloured larvae were dispersing themselves in vast numbers
in the box in which the spray of infested Currant sent me by
Mr. Mosley was secured.

These very active young Scale insects (figure 2, p. 76) were
whitish or orange in colour, of a flattened oval shape, broadest
near the head, deeply cleft at the caudal extremity, with a
long hair or filament on each side of the cleft, that is, one
long filament placed on each lobe caused by the cleft, and in
the centre of the cleft a long cylindrical process. The body
somewhat raised along the centre, with slightly indicated
corrugations along it, and side ridges from it, and the surface
slightly sprinkled with white or woolly morsels. Eyes dark
or black. One of the special characteristics by which this
species is known is the number and length of the hairs on
the antennfe, but in the size figured I have only been able to
indicate that hairs are present.

The attack occurred on Bed and White Currant {Eihcs
rubrum) and on Black Currant (Ribes nigrum), and also on
the ornamental species (Ribes sanguineum) ; but with the
exception of presence of the infestation at Wakefield and
Huddersfield, and also at Ballater, which is not very far
inland, all of the attacks were observed on or near the sea-
coast on the East of Scotland, namely, in the neighbourhood
of Banff, Aberdeen, Stonehaven, Arbroath, Edinburgh, and
Berwick-on-Tweed.

In one instance noted by Mr. S. L. Mosley, F.E.S., at
Huddersfield, he mentioned a row of forty good-sized Currant
bushes against a wall, all of which were more or less infested.
" The insects have not been noticed before, and were certainly
not there when the bushes were shifted two years ago."

In the case of specimens of infestation sent me by Mr.
Norman, of Cheviot House, Berwick-on-Tweed, he stated
that the whole of the Currant trees in the garden from which
they were forwarded, whether Bed, White, or Black, were
infested, and many of them thickly studded with the woolly
nest of the Scale insect. The attack had first appeared five
years previously, but was not known to have appeared in any
other garden.

In the observations sent, the species was mentioned as a
new infestation, or as one that had been observed two, or five,
or six years previously, but not in any case as having been

WHITE WOOLLY CUERANT SCALE. 79

noticed before the year 1880, and I have not had any further
reports of observation since those of 1889.

Prevention and Eemedy. — Under the circumstances, mea-
sures of i)revention seem httle called for ; but it may be
worth while to note that the plants, or parts of plants, most
affected were bushes nailed to walls, or not fully exposed to
light and air, or the under side of branches ; consequently,
all measures of good cultivation adapted to keep the branches
or the bushes from being crowded up together or overshadowed
would be useful, as also keeping a watch on Currant branches
nailed to walls, where any infestation which especially affects
the sheltered or under side of branches has every chance of
establishing itself.

With regard to remedies, on July 21st, Mr. William
]\['Kenzie wrote me from the gardens under his charge at
Glenmuick, Ballater, Aberdeenshire, that in 1880 the garden
was visited, by this Currant pest, and as he had never, after
a long experience, seen it before, he first tried the common
application of soft-soap as a remedy. This proved useless, as
also did dilute paraffin oil, which, as Mr. W. M'Kenzie justly
remarks, is an application not generally to be recommended,
as it may do much harm if not judiciously used. These
applications having failed, in the following year (1881) Mr.
W. M'Kenzie " applied a dilution of hot lime in the autumn,
going over the bushes with a brush (the same process as
whitewashing), occasioning the bushes to shed or throw off
the bark, and thus effectually curing them of the pest,
without in the least injuring the bushes." The proportion
used was "two pounds of lime to one gallon of water, being
of the same consistency as is used for whitewashing walls."
This application Mr. M'Kenzie found to be an effectual and
permanent cure, and later on he forwarded me excellent
specimens of both White and Bed Currants, gathered off' the
previously-mentioned bushes, to show that the remedy had
proved thoroughly effective against the infestation, and done
no harm to the plants.

Where only a little of the infestation appears, it would be
desirable at once to use the above or some other serviceable
application, for if soft-soap alone did not answer, probably
some of the common soft-socqj and sulphur applications would
not fail to kill the minute larv?e straying in crowds over the
bushes, and kerosine emulsion has been found a very success-
ful application for destroying the eggs of the allied species,
Pulvinaria innumerabilis.^ But where remedies could not be

* ' Insect Life,' vol. v. p. 103. United States Department of Agriculture,
WasliinDton.

80

EARWIGS.

brought to bear, it would be best to cut off and hum the infested
branches, or to destroy and burn the infested bushes if it
could be done without serious loss, and thus stamp out this
newly-observed pest in good time.

EAEWIGS.

Common Earwig. Forjmda auricularia, Linn.

1, FoEFicuLA AUKicuLAEiA ; 2, F. FORciPATA * ; 3, wiug of F. auricuIarla.
All magnitied.

Earwigs cannot be placed under any one special horticul-
tural heading as being injurious to any one kind of orchard
or bush fruit crop in particular, and the amount of damage
which they cause to fruit is less in proportion than that of
their injuries to garden plants and flowers, as, for instance,
to Carnations, Dahlias, &c. ; or occasionally in years of great
prevalence, as in 1886, to some field crops. Still they are
visitations which occasionally appear in vast numbers, and
which certainly include various of our orchard and more
tender garden fruits in their depredations.

So far back as 1837 it was noted as follows in German
observations by Kollar of the Common Earwig, the F. auricu-
laria:— " In orchards it particularly injures the fruit of trees
which are trained as espaliers, such as Peaches and Apricots,

* The figure of F. forcipata is copied from that by Prof. J. 0. Westwood
pi. xxviii., vol. vi. of Stephens's 'Illustrations of British Entomology' ; but I
understand that doubt has arisen whether it is a distinct species. Further on
will be found descriptions of two variations in shape of the forceps of the male
F. auricularia.

COMMON EARWIG. 81

whicli are often entirely pierced through in warm weather.
Earwigs also attack the other sorts of fruit, particularly Pears
and Apples."

Kaltenbach (in his ' Pflanzenfeinde ') notices of this same
species that " the}^ feed by preference on mellow and sweet
fruit, which they often completely eat through, and do not
despise soft leaves and petals of flowers, and destroy many
caterpillars and pup^e."

Taschenberg (' Praktische Insektenkunde,' pt. iv.) mentions
a little more in detail that " its food consists mainly of
vegetable material, as, for instance, of ripe fruit, when it is
sweet, and more especially what is lying on the ground, or at
any rate is on boughs which are near a wall"; but Dr.
Taschenberg does not consider that the Earwigs climb the
trees ; and in the year 1896, which (as well as 1886) was a
year in which Earwig attack was unusually prevalent, I had
a note from a correspondent near Gloucester, in which he
mentioned: — " My Apple trees are z«/t's^6'(Z with Earwigs. I
do not know whether these insects consume any of the
aphides ; if they do, I should hesitate to destroy them. I am
under the impression they eat the Apple flowers. I fear they
do not interfere with any caterpillar life." — (A. B.)

It would help us very much in keeping Earwig visitation in
check if we had some special observations as to how they
arrive at the infested spots, with identification of the kind
observed. We know that the "Lesser Earwig" {Labia viinor,
Leach), which is the smallest of all the European kinds, will
fly in great swarms in sunshine, but, unless from their capa-
bility of clearing off young plants in frames, this small kind
does not appear to be mischievous.* Also, in proof of some
kinds of Earwigs flying at niglit, it was noted by Prof. West-
wood "that in a small space of eighteen inches square, upon
palings fresh coated with pitch on the previous day, no less
than fifty or more of these insects had been captured, some of
which had still their wings expanded."!

In a note published in ' The Field ' on Sept. 25fh, 1886,
the year of the very worst prevalence of Earwig attack which
has been recorded probably within memory, the correspondent
remarked that (after various investigations mentioned, and
killing as many as eleven hundred of the swarm on the walls
by the light of a lantern) he then took the lantern to a Privet
hedge of about seventy yards in length then in flower, and
found " as many Earwigs as flowers." This, it will be re-
membered, was a year of most extraordinary amount of

* For some observations of habits of L. minor, see my ' Twenty-first Annual
Beport of Injurious Insects.' — (E. A. O.)

t ' Introduction to Classification of Insects,' vol. i. p. 403.

G

82 EARWIGS.

appearance, and Mr. Martin J. Sutton, writing to me on
Sept. 27th, from Dyson's Wood, Kidmore, near Reading,
remarked that he thought, "if possible, the plague at Dyson's
Wood was even worse than that described by ' The Field '
correspondent."

Looking at the above notes, it seems very unlikely that
swarms of Earwigs should have arrived otherwise than on
their wings, which are so eminently calculated to convey
them ; but rather that this species being nocturnal, its move-
ments are not fully recorded.

The life-history of the Earwig may be shortly given as
follows : — Early in the year the female Earwig lays (under
stones, or in a hole in the ground, or amongst dry leaves, or
the like places, but always in some concealed spot) a little
collection of from fifteen to twenty yellowish eggs, by which
she remains, or sits upon them, and collects them together
again if scattered abroad.*

After the lapse of about a month the young Earwigs hatch ;
but still for a while the mother Earwig remains b}^ her white
wingless progeny, "like a hen by her chickens." The young,
which soon become brown, are very like the full-grown insects
in shape, excepting that for some time they have neither
wings nor wing-cases ; after several moults, the shape of the
wings bIiows, and at the last moult, which is towards the end
of August, the Earwig takes its perfect condition of male or
female, with wings and all j^arts complete.

Earwigs are well known by their narrow long shape, with
the tail ending in a pair of forceps (see figures, p. 80).
Forficida auricularia, our commonest kind, is distinguishable
in the males (see figure 1, p. 80) by the forceps being semi-
circularly curved, and with the tips meeting, and a tooth
within at the base f ; in the female they are nearly straight.
The colour is mostly of a dark red brown ; the head reddish ;
eyes black ; the shield-like portion behind the head very dark
or black, with pale borders ; behind this are the wing-cases
(for position in repose, see figure 2, p. 80). These are placed
flat, are very short, and meet at a straight line running along
the middle, and are of a pale red or yellowish brown colour ;
a small triangular pale mark projecting from beneath each
wing-case shows the tip of the " tightly-folded" wing beneath,

* For notes of personal observation of this singular habit, see ' Memoires '
of De Geer, vol. iii. p. 548; also of his own observation of it by Dr. E. L.
Taschenberg in his ' Praktische Insektenkunde,' pt. iv. p. 188.

t In the ' Ortopteros de Espana y Portugal,' por Ignacio Bolivar, p. 29, is
the observation tliat "this species presents some variations, of which the
differences are chiefly based on the form of the pincers of the male, which may
be long and little curved — var. macrolahia ; or short, circumscribing a circular
space — var. cyclolabia.^'

COMMON EARWIG. 83

from which this order takes its name of Euplexoptera, or
" tightly folded wings." At figures 1 and 3, p. 80,* the great
size of the delicate membranous fan-shaped wing when ex-
panded, as comj^ared with that of its little scale-like cover, is
given much magnified. The abdomen is mostly dark red or
rusty black ; legs very pale. The length is from about half
an inch to upwards of three-quarters ; and though by very
far most numerous in summer and autumn, these Earwigs
may be found during the whole of the year.

Their feeding-time is at night, and they shelter themselves
from light by day. This may be under stones, or tiles, or
bits of wood, or rough slabs or pieces of timber, or amongst
withered leaves, or in badly pointed or ruinous walls. They
are also to be found in great numbers in such shelter as is
afforded them on their food-plants, as amongst the petals of
Dahlias and Carnations, in the dried and curled leaves of
Hops, or of Apple trees, or on wall fruit-trees, squeezed in
between the nectarine or other fruit that they may have been
ravaging and the wall, or, again, sheltering beneath fallen
and half-decayed fruit on the ground. It is impossible to
enumerate the variety of their hiding-places out of doors,
from the broadscale shelter of a haystack to the chinks in
a hop-pole; and indoors, in bad Earwig years, beds, boots,
pastry, bread, anything which affords dark shelter, especially
if it unites the convenience of food with it, may serve as a
hiding-place.

Prevention and Eemedies. — So far as attacks to growing
fruit are concerned it seems almost impossible to use any
remedial measures, for jarring the branches when the fruit is
in the ripe state, in which the Earwigs prefer it, would bring
it down.

The only available measures seem — (1) taking care, so far
as may be, that there are no available breeding-places or
shelters ; and (2) such broadscale trapping, as by lessening
the aggregate number of the pests will lessen proportion of
infestation to the fruit.

For the first, in gardens where Earwig attack is a regularly
recurring yearly trouble, much might be done to lessen it, by
disturbance of neglected surface-soils, keeping walls in such
order as to afford no shelter, and even in orchards also some-
thing might be done by clearing the various kinds of rubbish,
as wood, stones, clods of hard earth, &c., beneath which they
hide. If the shelters are removed, the Earwigs will in
ordinary cases be very much reduced in numbers, and as it is

* The expanded wing, figure 3, is from p. 151 of 'Our Household Insects,'
by Edw. A. Butler. (Longmans, Green & Co.)

G 2

84 EARWIGS.

a common habit of Earwigs to lay their eggs under clods of
earth, or in holes in the earth, or similar places, and to take
care of them, all measures of cultivation which would stir the
surface early in spring and disturb the Earwigs and their
progeny would be of service. Taking care that walls should
be in good order and well "pointed," and also tbat house
walls should be free from creeping or climbing plants, would
lessen much shelter for the insects from which they come out
to feed on wall fruit, or to enter our houses.

(2). In trapping, all the measures in use are simply varieties
of plans based on the dislike of the Earwig to exposure to
light, and its consequent habit of availing itself of dry and
dark shelter after its nocturnal ravages. Simply for garden
use probably the most convenient plan is the long known
method of traj^ping by putting a little bunch of hay or straw
in the bottom of a moderate- sized or rather small iiower-pot,
and then setting the pot wrong way up on the top of a stake
to which the infested plant (as a Dahlia, for instance) is
fastened. If the hay is well pressed into the bottom of the
pot, its own elasticity keeps it from falling out whilst the pot
is being turned wrong way up ; and each morning the hay
should be examined, or shaken out over a gravel walk, or
broad board, or some hard smooth surface, so that the
Earwigs which fall down, and would, if allowed, run away
quickly, may be killed before they can escape. The pots can
be examined and the Earwigs killed very rapidly, and a very
useful clearance made.

On June 26th, 1896, I received, per favour of the editor of
the ' Agricultural Gazette,' some communication regarding
much injury that was being done to the Hops of a corre-
spondent by Earwig attack to the leafage, and the following
note (published in the 'Agricultural Gazette' for July 6th)
shows good results from broadscale application of the above
plan : —

"Yesterday I had about three hundred flower-pots, each
with a wisp of straw in it, put on sticks, and this morning
each flower-pot had from live to twenty-five Earwigs in it. I
propose to put up about one thousand flower-pots, and hope
in that way to lessen the attack."

In a bad attack of Earwigs on an experimental plantation
of Tobacco tried by the late Mr. Faunce de Laune, at
Sharsted Court, near Sittingbourne, in 1886, the following
note was sent me regarding the plans being tried to catch
the Earwigs : —

" We have several plans of catching these insects. . . .
The plan I have found to answer best is by hanging old bags
on gates near the Tobacco, or on stakes amongst the plants ;

COMMON EAEWIG. 85

old felt hats also catch a tremendous quantity by placing
them on the top of stakes, and clearing them out daily." —
(A.E.)

Another plan of trapping, which is found to answer well for
field service in Germany, is to leave old field weed baskets
standing (presumably wrong way up) in one place for a day
or two. When these are jarred smartly on the ground in the
morning, even on a smooth clear piece of ground, it is stated
that such numbers of Earwigs fall out, that it is difficult to
trample on them all before some of them escape. In such a
case, shaking them out on to a tarred board would be an
effectual stop to their getting away.

Another German plan is to lay little bundles of Bean or
Cabbage-stalks, or any kind of stems which Earwigs will
frequent, about the infested field or garden bed, and clear
these from time to time. In 1886, the year so especially
remarkable for prevalence of Earwigs, one of my correspon-
dents sent me the following note : — " Small heaps of straw
laid at short intervals and fired on a still evening, after a
few days, will destroy immense quantities of Earwigs and
beetles."— (R. W.)

The following observation by Prof. F. M. Webster, of the
Agricultural Experiment Station, U.S.A., made during a tour
in Tasmania, gives what might be a very useful suggestion as
to methods of trapping Earwigs in this country also, especially
when they are found infesting standard trees unconnected
with others. Prof. Webster notes that there is in Tasmania a
species of Earwig {Forficula sp.) which eats into and destroys
ripe fruit, and remarks : — "It seems to me that these could
be easily trapped, as I found them swarming in orchards and
gardens, under boards and rubbish, and also on the bands on
fruit trees used against the Codlin Moth, which were literally
alive with them." *

Prof. Webster does not mention the special kind of band,
but the kind which is made of a strip of cloth or sacking
doubled several times and tied round the tree by a string or
wire run within the double at the top would appear to make
just the dry warm shelter that Earwigs like. For full de-
scription, see previous paper on Codlin Moth, p. 13.

Other methods of treatment, such as shaking the Earwigs
down at night on light trays well covered on the upper surface
with wet tar, have been found to answer excellently where the
nature of the crop attacked (as Hops, for instance) allowed it
to be carried out ; but for broadscale lessening of amount of
infestation, such treatment, as that of which examples are

* See ' Insect Life,' vol. i. p. 361. United States Board of Agriculture,
Washington.

86

GOOSEBERRY.

given above, which provides the Earwigs with accessible
warm, dark, and dry lodging, out of which they can be
shaken in the morning, is, so far as we know at present, the
most serviceable plan.

GOOSEBEREY.

Dot Moth. Mamestra persicaricc, Linu.

Mamestka persicaei^. — Dot Moth (from life) ; caterpillar, after figure
by Dr. Tascheiiberg.

Mamestra 'persicari(E, or Dot Moth, is very common and

widely distributed in England, as well as in various parts

of the Continent ; but although the caterpillar is a very

general feeder, it has only been in one year (1890) that

observations have been sent of it occurring as a fruit-crop

13est. It does not, however, appear to have been generally

observed as being prevalent in that year, for I do not find any

reference to it in the 'Entomologist's Monthly Magazine';

and the only reference to the presence of this species in the

' Entomologist ' is a short editorial reply to a correspondent,

who inquired whether ivy on which he found the caterpillars

feeding was not an unusual food-plant. The reply mentioned

that the larvae of M. jjeisicarice have been noticed this year

feeding on Ivy, Poplar, Lilac, Plum, Clematis, and Easpberry ;

the bulk of them were some shade of brown.

DOT MOTH. 87

Easpberry, as well as Gooseberry, is one of the recorded
food-plants of the caterpillars of the Dot Moth, and the kind
was noticed by Dr. E. L. Taschenberg as also in the year 1871
being found on orchard trees.

In the latter part of September, 1890, specimens of the
caterpillar were sent me by correspondents near Leicester,
with the observation: — "We have discovered an unusual
visitor at this time of the year in Gooseberry anil Currant
bushes, as a very active and destructive caterpillar which
divests the bushes of all their leaves."

The specimens sent gave good examples of the marked
variety of colouring which sometimes occurs in the case of
this kind of caterpillar. One was rosy brown with brown
markings ; another was rather smaller, and of a green ground
colour.

On Sept. 30th I was favoured with the following notes of
observation of attack by Mr. Oliver E. Janson, F.E.S., of
Perth Eoad, London, N. : — " The larva of M. persicarice has
been exceedingly abundant and destructive to the leafage of
various plants, including Gooseberry, in my own garden this
year; t^ere are still many left, although I have destroyed a
great number. The variation of colour is very striking,
especially the extremes you mention (rosy brown and a beauti-
ful green)." A little later on Mr. Janson further mentioned :
— " The gardens in this neighbourhood have suffered severely
from the ravages of the caterpillar of the common ' Dot '
Moth {Mamestra iiersicarice) , which made its appearance in
extraordinary abundance about the middle of August, and
lasted up to the end of September.

" In my own garden, although I destroyed some hundreds
of them, their numbers seemed in no way diminished, and
almost all plants were attacked by them ; but Lettuce, Parsley,
Mint, Gooseberry, Geranium, and Marigold they appeared
particularly partial to and entirely devoured, and some, which
were kept in confinement in a larva- cage, I found would feed
as readily on Apple and Poplar as any other kind of plant.
The colour of these caterpillars varies very much ; the peculiar
shading of the markings of various tints of green, grey, or
brown render them very difficult to detect when at rest in the
daytime on the stems or leaves of the plants."

The figure at p. 86 gives a good idea of the shape and
markings and the size, when fully grown, of these caterpillars.
The head is pale, and sometimes partly drawn back into the
next segment, which has a dark patch on the back divided
lengthways down the middle, and also bordered on each side
by a white line, and a pale white line runs down the back.
On each side of this line, beginning at the fourth segment

88 GOOSEBERRY.

from the head and continumg to the eleventh inchisive, is an
obhque darkish mark on each side of each segment ; these
slant backwards, so that the pair meeting at the centre of the
back form a series of V-like markings, with the point of the
V directed backwards. The foremost pair of these markings,
as shown in the figure, are the darkest. Beneath these
oblique marks is a wavy stripe running along the side, and
beneath this again are five oblique bands (slanting in the
opposite direction to the uppermost row), of wdiich four run
down the sucker-legs. The length, when full-grown, is an
inch and a half or rather more. It is to be found in summer
and autumn, and when full-fed, which may be towards the
end of September, buries itself in the ground to go through
its changes.

The sudden disappearance of such great numbers of large
grubs, when their time for change to the chrysalis state has
come, sometimes causes some astonishment. On Oct. 2nd
my correspondent at Leicester wrote me that the large cater-
pillars on the Gooseberry bushes had " vanished as if by
magic." But they simply leave their food-plants and bury
themselves to turn to chrysalids in the earth, where they rest
from October until May or late in June in the following year.

The moth is of the size figured at p. 86 ; the fore wings of
a rich dark brown, or black ground varied with chestnut or
rust-colour, and small pale spots or flecks at the tips and near
the hinder edge, and they also bear a conspicuous bright
white patch, or "dot" (of the shape figured near the centre),
from which the moth takes its name. The hinder wings have
the lower half pale, with a broad dark smoky band towards
the margin, and the nervures are very observable. The eggs
are laid up to twenty or thirty on the food-plants of the
caterpillars.

Prevention and Eemedies. — Hand-pickhig is a certain
means of lessening amount, as these large caterpillars can be
easily seen and removed ; and recurrence of attack from the
moths developed from chrysalids which have wintered in the
ground may be prevented, or at least much lessened, by stir-
ring the soil where there have been infested plants, so as to
turn th.e pupae up to the surface. Exposure to weather,
especially to alternate frost and wet, when not in their natural
shelters, may be expected to kill many of them ; and also
birds of various kinds would help much in their removal.

Syringings with soft-soap, kerosine emulsion, and other
similar applications, to which references will be found in the
Index, would almost certainly do good ; and it is very possible
that good drenchings of thorougJdy cold water would do all

GOOSEBERRY AND CURRANT MOTH.

89

that is needed. If the caterpillars fell off with the shock,
many could be killed by being trampled upon, and there
would be a good chance that (with them as with some other
moth caterpillars) the cold water, if applied in hot weather,
would bring on such violent purging that they would very
soon be reduced to mere skins.

Gooseberry and Currant Moth ; Magpie Moth.

Abra.vas ijrossulariatd, Stephens.

Abeaxas geossulariata. — Moth at rest, and with wings spread ;
caterpillar walking.

This pretty butterfly-like moth, known from the peculiarity
of the markings on the wings as the Magpie, and also as the
Harlequin Moth, is one of our most widely distributed garden
leafage infestations, as it is to be found from the Orkney
Islands at the north of Scotland to Kent and Devonshire in
the south of England.

Amongst notes of Scottish localities, observations have been
sent me from time to time of the caterpillars being found on
Gooseberry and also on Eed and White Currant leafage at
Kirkwall Gardens, in Orkney ; also at Dunrobin Castle, in
Sutherlandshire, in the north of Scotland. On Black Currants
at Portallock, in Argyllshire. On Gooseberry and also on
Black, Ked, and White Currant leafage at Colinsburgh, Fife.

90 GOOSEBERRY.

On Gooseberry and Currant also at Dalkeith Gardens, near
Edinburgh, and at Oxenford Castle, in Midlothian.

In England it has been reported from Scotswood-on-Tyne,
Northumberland, and from other localities in Cheshire, Here-
fordshire, Herts, Wilts, Hants, &c., showing the distribution
of the insect over a large part of England.

The common garden food-plants of the caterpillars are, as
mentioned above, Gooseberry, and Eed and White and some-
times Black Currants, and the leafage of Apricot and Plum is
also sometimes attacked. The leafage of the Blackthorn or
"Sloe" (Priinns sj^inosa, L.) is also a favourite food.

The caterpillar is commonly of a creamy or yellowish colour,
with a row of transverse squarish dark grey or blackish marks
along the back ; a row of little black spots along each side,
and beneath these a row of larger black markings, beneath
these an orange-red or reddish stripe, with again a stripe of
black marks lower still along the sides of the caterpillar.
Beneath the cateri^illars there are also two narrow continuous
black lines. Head and claw-feet black ; the single pair of
sucker-feet beneath the abdomen and the caudal pair of
sucker-feet blackish outside.

Besides the orange or reddish stripe along each side, the
segment next the head, and the under side of the third and
fourth, and also of the four segments at the tail extremity,
are of the same reddish colour. The colouring, however,
sometimes varies in amount of black marking, even to
being entirely black, without any mixture of yellow or other
colour.*

These caterpillars are what are called " loopers," from the
figure which they assume in walking (see p. 89). Besides the
three pairs of claw-feet behind the head, and one pair of claw-
feet at the end of the tail, they have only one other pair of
claw-feet beneath the body (not four, as is the case with a
large proportion of moth caterpillars). Consequently, as they
have to bring this pair up to the claw-feet in order to steady
themselves in progression, they form an upright "loop" in
walking, and by this, as well as by their colouring, and by
having only one pair of sucker-feet heneatli the hodij besides the
caudal pair, they are easily distinguishable from the cater-
pillars of the almost more destructive Gooseberry and Currant
Sawlly, often occurring in company with them.

When full-fed the caterpillar spins a light transparent
cocoon attached to twigs, or palings, or in crevices of walls ;
and in this it changes to a chrysalis, yellow at first, but

* See ' Larvo3 of British Butterflies and Moths ' (Ray Society), vol. vii. pt. i.
p. 151.

GOOSEBEERY AND CURRANT MOTH. 91

afterwards shining black, with orange-coloured rings, from
which the moth comes out about midsummer or rather later.

The perfect insect, which in its lightness of make and gay-
colouring more agrees with the general idea of a butterfly than
a moth, is variable in colouring, but when regular m its
marking is easily known. Commonly it has a black head,
yellow body between the wings, with a large black spot in the
middle ; the abdomen also yellow, with five rows of black
spots. The wings are white spotted with black, and the fore
wings have a yellow blotch at the base and a yellow band
across them. There are, however, almost endless varieties of
markings, from black of different shades to white ; some have
the upper half of the wing white and the lower black, or the
reverse ; some have the ground colour of the wing (instead of
merely a band) yellow ; and in some cases the hinder wings
are striped with black. It is noteworthy, however, that, as
recorded by Mr. Robson, the black variety of larvfe observed
by him near Newcastle-on-Tyne only produced the common
form, not the especially black marked varieties of the moth.
(See reference to black larvae, p. 90).

The life-history of the insect is that the eggs are laid, one
or more as the case may be, on the leaves of the attacked
plants, " not only in the evening, but even in the middle of a
warm summer's day."* These soon hatch, and the cater-
pillars may be found in August and September, and feed for a
while, but, it is stated, rarely longer than for four weeks.
Before winter they (in some cases) prepare a shelter by spin-
ning the sides of leaves together, in which they may rest, and
also spinning the leaf fast to the twig, so that w^hen it fades
the caterpillar still hangs securely in the hung-up leaf, but in
others the caterpillars merely drop down and shelter them-
selves in the fallen leaves below the bushes. In these situa-
tions they pass the winter, but with the appearance of the
leaves in the following spring they come out again, and feed
on leafage until some time during May, or towards the begin-
ning of June. Then they spin their light transparent cocoons
attached to twigs, or palings, or in crevices of walls, or possibly
on the ground, from which the moth comes out towards the
middle of summer.

The duration of the whole life of the insect — that is, the
time included in the egg condition in summer, subsequent
caterpillar state in autumn, winter, and following spring, and
chrysalis, from which the moth comes out towards midsummer
— is about a year.

Prevention and Remedies. — The habit of the caterpillar of

* Newman's 'British Moths,' p. 99.

92 GOOSEBERRY.

wintering in spun-together leaves still hanging on the bushes,
or sometimes lying amongst any shelter on the ground
beneath, is the special habit to be acted on to get rid of it
thoroughly. At pruning time the bushes should be very
carefully gone over, and also examined afterwards to be sure
that there are no leaves which may hold a caterpillar in the
spun-together fold left on the bushes. Also, where the bushes
have several stems so placed that infested leaves or insect
vermin might lodge, it is particularly desirable that such
lurking-places should be cleared out, or some trustworthy
insecticide poured in. Where Currant bushes are trained on
walls, search is especially requisite. It should also be borne
in mind that the longer the pruning can be deferred, the
more sure it is to be a good remedy. If the caterpillars have
either not become thoroughly torpid, or the weather is
sufficiently open for them to re-establish themselves, many
will escape by creeping away and sheltering themselves again
at the surface of the ground.

Pruning and dressing under the hushes should not take place
until the time for the fall of the leaves is quite past.

This precaution applies also to date of dressing away
possibly infested rubbish from beneath the bushes, which, as
well as pruning, is a very desirable preventive. All the
prunings and clearings from beneath the bushes should be
collected and burnt, in order to avoid any chance of the
caterpillars, which would otherwise survive in them till spring,
coming out and crawling back to the bushes.

I have had notes from localities where caterpillar attack
was customarily bad, and as far as I could judge it was the
non-complete removal of the infestation consequently on the
early autumn pruning and dressing of the ground beneath
the bushes which was the reason. But if the bushes and the
ground beneath are properly cleared, respectively by pruning
and removal of hanging leaves, and by removal of surface
shelter below, the pests are so ahsolntehj cleared out that there
is nothing left to continue attack in the spring.

Eemoval of the transparent cocoons from any places, as
palings, walls, crevices, or boughs, towards the end of May or
beginning of June, would of course be very desirable, for thus
we should get rid of the coming brood of moths ; but when
the leafage on bushes and walls is in full early summer
luxuriance, it is not likely the cocoons will be noticeable
unless the infestation is to a quite unusual amount.

Amongst mechanical remedies, hand-picking, if the attack
is taken in time, and a good number of workers put on so as
to carry through the clearance at once where the Currant and
Gooseberry growing is on a large scale, has been found to

GOOSEBERKY AND CURRANT MOTH. 93

answer well. Also (as a preventive), where this conspicuous
moth is seen in large numbers, it would be worth while, and
quite possible from its day flying and quiet habits, to lessen
its numbers greatly by use of a common butterfly-net, or
sometimes even with the hand.

Placing pieces of canvas or sheets below the bushes, and
shaking or jarring the boughs sharply so as to dislodge the
caterpillars, and then gathering them up in the cloths and
destroying them, has been found good treatment.

For dustings or sprayings powdered hellebore is one kind
of eftective application so far as killing the caterpillars is
concerned ; but it is so very poisonous, and the effect would
be so dangerous to all who partook of the fruit, unless it had
been washed quite free from the dressing, that I cannot take
upon myself to advise it.

Flour of sulphur dusted on the leaves wlien the dew is on so
that the powder would adhere, or a liberal application of soot
similarly used, are serviceable remedies and quite safe.

Paris-green sprayings, though these to succeed proj)erly
should be in such minute quantity of the arsenite contained
that they would be {demonstrably) j^f^rfectly without any cause
of risk to the consumers of the fruit, yet might raise a pre-
judice against it injurious to the seller. But the well-
known "kerosine emulsion" would do much good without
danger, and the "anti-pest" of Messrs. Morris, Little & Son,
of Doncaster, which is almost the same as the " kerosine
emulsion" of the United States of America in constituents,
but is sold ready mixed in a semi-fluid state at a very cheap
rate, would probably save much trouble and damage, from
(respectively) the difficulty there usually is in mixing the
"emulsion" so that the kerosine and soft-soap wash may
unite permanently in the operation of mixing, and the great
harm to the leafage in case the mineral oil separates, so that
the kerosine (or paraffin) remains undiluted on one part of
the leaves, and the soft-soap remains, not doing all the good
that it was meant to do, on the other.

All the measures which are found serviceable in checking
infestation of Gooseberry Sawfly (and of which notes are given
under this heading) will be equally serviceable in lessening
damage from caterpillars of the Magpie Moth, which are
easily kept in check by moderate care.

94

GOOSEBERRY.

Gooseberry and Ivy Red Spider. Bryohia pratinsa, C. L. Koch.
Also Bnjobia ribis, u. sp., of Dr. Friedrich Thomas.

5^^

Beyobia pr-etiosa, from life ; B. speciosa (outline figure after Koch) : both
magnified. Leaf infested by " Bed Spider," natural size.

During the spring and early summer of 1893 Gooseberry
leafage was infested to a very unusual extent by a small
Acariis, or "mite," commonly known as "Ked Spider." This
mite is of a different species to the well-known "Red Spider"
of the Hop, and is very commonly to be found on Ivy leaves ;
but in this year, without apparently being less present on
Ivy, it extended its infestation to Gooseberry leafage to an
amount causing serious loss to growers in many localities.

This very unusual prevalence was almost certainly owing
to the very unusual drought, which, as we all know, is favour-
able in various ways to increase of "Red Spiders," and
demonstrably so from a great number of these mites not
being washed off, or otherwise injured, by soaking moisture,
or heavy driving rain-storms.

In the following year (1894) this " Red Spider " infestation
reappeared as early as the 24th of February, but passed away
much earlier than in the preceding year, no observations of
its presence being sent me after April, whereas in 1893 pre-
sence of the pest was reported up to the 21st of June.

In 1895 the infestation again appeared in some considerable
quantity, with some hot bright weather, but disappeared
again (in the localities reported) with the occurrence of cold
and wet, and (excepting where no means were taken to keep
the attack in check) it was neither so widely spread nor so

GOOSEBERRY AND RTT RED SPIDER. 95

serious as in the two preceding years, and has not since
(as well as before) these three years been reported as of
importance. But as an infestation which in favourable cir-
cumstances of drought and heat may suddenly develop into
a cause of much loss to growers, it may well take a place
amongst "bush-fruit" pests.

This Acarus, or "mite," propagates by laying eggs ; when
first batched it has only six legs; when full-growai it has eight.
The length cannot be distinguished without a magnifier, but
at full growth this is about the thirty- second of an inch (that
is, about a quarter of the eighth of an inch). The colour is
variable, commonly of different shades of red from bright
brick to duller tints, or sometimes of a bright brick or
vermilion along the back, and darker at the sides.

This Ivy and Gooseberry "Eed Spider" is distinguishable
from the Hop "Eed Spider" by the greater length of its two
front legs (see figure, p. 94), and on submitting specimens to
Mr. Albert D. Michael, F.L.S., that we might be perfectly
certain as to the species, he was good enough to examine
them, and to reply : — " They belong to the genus Bryohia,
and are the Bryohia pnetiosa of C. L. Koch, but I very much
doubt this species being different from the Bryohia speciosa
of the same author ; you might really call them by either
name; but this variety is Koch's ' prcetiosa.' The creature
swarms in millions on Ivy in gardens at this time of the
year." At the heading of this paper a magnified figure is
given of B. pratlosa (taken from life), together with a copy of
Koch's outline figure of B. speciosa. These give the general
form, and especially the great length of the front pair of legs,
which is a characteristic of the Bryohia (Koch).

The prevalence of the Gooseberry " Eed Spider " was re-
ported in 1893 from localities over a large area of country ;
from various places in Kent and Sussex, and from near
Lymington, in Hants ; in Hertfordshire it was present in m}'
garden at St. Albans, and also at Watford. Special observa-
tions of the "mite" as a most destructive pest were sent from
various places in Cambridgeshire, notably from near Wisbech,
Histon, Meldreath, and Great Eversden, near Cambridge, and
from grounds of growers up to as many as three hundred
acres. More westerly, it was noticed as troublesome at Per-
shore, also at Evesham, in Worcestershire, and was observed
as being present in great quantities near Cirencester by Prof.
Allen Harker, of the Eoyal Agricultural College, and (passing
on to the most northerly locality noted) it was present to a
great amount up to the early days of June in the neighbour-
hood of Perth, N.B.

The following notes give a few observations of appearance

96 GOOSEBERRY.

(^Yitb date of day of month) to show various pohits in the
method of hfe of the " Eed Spiders." On the 17th of March
specimens were to be found moving quite actively on the
leafage of the Gooseberry twigs sent me, which were about
four or five inches long, with the leafage well forward, and a
little of the blossom bud showing.

On the 19th of March, in a communication from a large
Govent Garden firm, it was mentioned : — " We notice the
Spider congregates in the crevices of the bark, and when the
sun is out seems to get on the leaves ; towards nightfall,
again going back to the wood. Some pieces of the wood are
literally painted with them. This is on a plot of about fifteen
acres, which has been heavily manured every year."

About the same date in April, amongst specimens sent me
from Piifour Castle, Perth, N.B., I found the same kind of
"Bed Spiders" in great numbers; some bright red and
active, and others congregated in the axils of the veins of the
leaves close to the origin of the leaf from the leaf-stalk. This
appeared to be a favourite position.

On the 23rd of May Mr. Francis Nixon (fruit-grower), of
Great Eversden, near Cambridge, to whom I was indebted for
much careful observation of the infestation, wrote me that
he "had seen hundreds of acrec looking ruined by this
troublesome pest," and remarked : — "I have been into every
fruit-growing district in Cambridgeshire, and everywhere it is
the same. Not a single plantation have I found entirely free
from it, whilst the ravages in most have been terrible."

On the '27th of April Prof. Harker, of the Eoyal Agricul-
tural College, wrote me from Cirencester regarding the same
infestation in a vast appearance on Ivy : — " To-day my boy
and I found an amazing phenomenon on the leaves of the wall
Ivy, on all the roads and gardens around here. Thousands,
millions, of spinning mites ! One leaf, not very big, had over
one hundred specimens, and every leaf for almost acres had
some. ... I think I never saw such an army of living
things."

_ Later on. Prof. Harker kindly sent me the following addi-
tional note relatively to observation of web spun on the
infested leafage, which, whilst the attack was only just
beginning, I had scarcely been able to find, even doubtfully,
and usually not at all, on the sample leaves forwarded to me.

Prof. Harker wrote me : — "After some weeks the enormous
numbers of mites gradually diminishod ; but they left behind
them what had not at first been visible, their common webs,
covering the whole of the Ivy for quite one or two hundred
yards, from the ground to the top of the six-feet wall, and as
these webs caught the dust and wind-borne debris of the

GOOSEBERRY AND IVY RED SPIDER. 97

roadsides they became thick and matted, and quite disfigured
the whole Ivy. Up to middle of August a few of the mites
were still occasionally found." — (A. H.)

Eeports from different localities in the course of the various
observations noted the attack as "very severe," "destroying
the bushes," "committing havoc among the Gooseberry trees
in the south of Sussex," and otherwise showed the mischief
caused by this minute leaf infestation.

Other Allied Species. — In connection with the appearance of
the above-mentioned mite to an unusual extent on Gooseberry
bushes in this country, it is of interest to note that another
species, Bryohia nohilis, C. L. Koch, was observed by Dr.
Fr. Thomas, of Ohrdruf, in Germany, as very prevalent on
Gooseberry bushes (where it had not previously been observed
iis an infestation) in 1893 and 1894. Of this he remarks,
fifter some preliminary observations on weather influences : —
" I am of opinion that the increased amount of appearance
of the small red mite of the Gooseberry bushes, which was
observed in the course of the year 1893, and especially in
the spring, was a result of the abnormal dryness of that
year, a condition which was repeated in April and May of
1894."

So far as I am aware, our infestation (so to call it) resembles
in all points of its life-history and means of prevention of its
ravages, the species, ver}^ fully described with all points con-
sidered, in the paper on the ' Eed Gooseberry Mite ' (' Die rote
Stachelbeer Milbe ') previously cited,* and here also the points
of distinction between the above species of Bryohia and other
very similar kinds, turning much on numbers of pairs of
scales (Schuppen) on the back or elsewhere, will be found at
pp. 493-495.

But for practical purposes for ordinary observers the fol-
lowing short report given by Dr. Fr. Thomas at Miilhausen,
in Thuringia, later on in 1894, will be found to contain plain
and useful information. In this Dr. Thomas spoke on the
injury to Gooseberry bushes caused by B.rihis, n. sp., a small
red-brown mite of about two-thirds of a millimetre in the
length of the body, and demonstrated the extent of these
injuries by specimens which he had taken just before the
meeting from a garden in Miilhausen. These specimens had
become whitish on the upper side from the suction of the
mites, and the small remaining leaves had not power to
provide a sufficiency of nourishment ; the fruit dropped
prematurely, and so did the leaves in autumn.

" The mites live from March and April until the beginning

* ' Die rote Stachelbeer Milbe, Bryohia nohilis, C. L. Koch (?),' von Prof. Dr.
Fr. Thomas, in Ohrdruf (aus Wittmack's ' Gartenflora,' 43 Jahrgang, 189-1).

H

98 GOOSEBERRY.

or middle of June, and in the early part of the spring may
be successfully combated by plentiful sprinklings of the
Gooseberry bushes with water, or occasionally with weak
soap-wash.

"In May and June the mites la,y small shining red eggs,,
which are plainly observable, with the help of a weak mag-
nifyiug-glass, on the twigs, and especially on, and between,
the remains of the old bud-scales. These eggs remain un-
changed during the remainder of the year, and it is not until
the following spring that the young mites escape from them.
With regard to methods of prevention by killing the eggs, no
information has been brought forward.

" Of the hitherto described species of Bryohia, the Goose-
berry Mite, B. nohilis of C. L. Koch, comes the nearest ;
however, according to Koch's drawing and description,
characteristic differences are present which clearly permit
venturing identification of two species.

"As hitherto no notice has been given in German serials,.
or books of instruction, or in statements in known literature,
of this increasing, and in dry years very dangerous, enemy of
Gooseberry growing, the report in Wittmack's ' Gartenilora '
of the year 1894, containing a fully detailed communication
on the subject with figure accompanying, was published." —
(P. T.)*

Prevention and Eemedies. — One important point is to take
the attack in time, — firstly, that if even a single bush is
infested it should be cleared so as not to make a centre of
infestation for the following season ; and secondly, when Eed
Spider is found to be in possession, remedies should be applied
without delay. The necessity for immediate attention was
strongly urged by various well-qualified observers.

For attacks of this nature there are no better applications
known than sjirayiuf/ with soft-soap wash, or mixtures of soft-
soap with mineral oil, or with sulphur. A home preparation
of soap and suljihur mixture may be made in proportions of
sulphuret of lime four ounces, soft-soap two ounces to each
gallon of hot water. The soap and sulphuret well mixed
before the hot water is poured gradually on, and the whole
stirred into an even fluid, and applied at strength to be tested
for safety after cooling. This, however, takes so much trouble
that I have generally advised for a " soap and sulphur com-
pound " that sold by the Chiswick Soap Company, Chiswick,

* ' Aus dem Sitzungsbericht der Friihjahrs Haiiptversamnilung 1894 (zu
Miilhausen, in Thuringen). Sonderabdiuck aus Mittheiliingen des Thiir. Bot.
Vereins,' Neue Folge, Heft vi. 18'.l4, Seite 10 u. 11. Foi- both his detailed pajjer
and this leaflet I am indebted to the kind courtesy of Dr. F. Thomas. — Editor.

GOOSEBERRY AND IVY RED SPIDER. 99

Middlesex. This is procurable on application to the manager
(I believe) at the same price as ordinary soft-soap, and I know
it to act well as a remedy for various insect or mite attacks,
and in a bad infestation of Eed S^jider on Lime trees it
cleared it thoroughly.

" Kerosine emulsion " has been found in the United States
to be a thoroughly effective remedy for a very similar kind of
"Eed Spider" infestation, especially "when a small quantity
of flowers of sulphur has been added."

For this preparation there are various formulae, but one of
the American Department of Agriculture recipes is as fol-
lows : — Add one gallon of water, in which a quarter of a
pound of soft-soap (or other coarse soap if preferred) has been
dissolved, boiling or hot, to two gallons of mineral oil ; then
churn the mixture by action of a syringe or pump for about
ten minutes to the consistency of cream, and if this is properly
done the ingredients will not separate after standing. For
use as a wash or syringing the "emulsion" must be diluted
with at least nine gallons of water to each gallon of emulsion.

Of this mixture Mr. J. Masters, of Evesham, the well-known
fruit-grower, wrote me : — "We have found here that nothing
has proved more effective than the ' kerosine emulsion,' as
recommended in your ' Manual.' . . . We have found
that it is best to apply the preparation to the bushes hot, say
80 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. We boil the water, in which
we put the emulsion in the proportion recommended ; in this
state we cart it away to our gardens in a barrel, and apply it
to the bushes by the knapsack pump as soon as possible.
The test is for the preparation to be as hot as the men can
endure it to their backs. The results have been very satis-
factory,— death to the Spiders without injury to the foliage.
It should be done on a sunny day, as the Spider is then on
the upper surface of the foliage, so that the spray comes
immediately in contact with them."

This point of the Spiders collecting on the leafage, and the
desirableness of spraying whilst the sun is on, was noted by
various contributors, and amongst other observations in a
leaflet of directions for treatment written by Mr. Nixon, before
mentioned. In this it is mentioned, at p. 3: — "Bushes should
always be syringed when the leaves are dry, after 9 a.m., and
preferably when the sun is shining, as then most Spiders are
on the surface of leaves, where they can be the most easily
got at, taking care to wet all the foliage. If it is likely to be
a frost, the syringing should cease about 4 or 5 p.m. in order
to allow the foliage to dry before the frost comes on."

Should there be difficulty in thoroughly mixing the in-
gredients of the emulsion so that they remain permanenthj

h2

100 GOOSEBEKRY.

incorporated, a preparation sold by Messrs. Morris, Little &
Son, Doncaster, under the name of "anti-pest" will answer
well and save much trouble, as, being sold ready mixed in
semi-fluid state, it only requires diluting. The ingredients
are similar in nature to those of the emulsion mentioned
above.

Dry dressings, such as soot or slaked lime, have been
reported to me as useless, as also the application of paraffin
oil, much diluted, but without soap added.

From various observations sent it is shown that amount of
"Eed Spider" presence is increased by hot weather, and
greatly lessened when, on the contrary, the weather is cold
and wet. On April 8th I was favoured by one of the fruit
salesmen of Covent Garden Market with the following com-
munication : — " I found about a fortnight ago, when we had
two or three hot days, that my Gooseberry bushes seemed
almost covered with Red Spider, and at once provided myself
with the wash. But the bud then was so tender that I
hesitated to use it, and since the wet colder weather of the
last fortnight the pest seems to have disappeared. I hear
greatly the same report from Kent. Is it possible that the
Spiders, developing before the leaf, have been killed by cold
and wet? I hope so."

This characteristic can be utilized practically, for in Dr.
Friedrich Thomas's publication, referred to in note, p. 98, he
mentions that the continued application of moisture partially
stupifies the " mites " ; that it causes a lethargic condition,
from which they recover on being dried by surrounding
circumstances, but in which if continued for some days they
waste. From this it would appear that if the infested surface
of the ground was turned down and thoroughly well wetted
(especially if some soft-soap mixture was added, which would
still further choke their breathing apparatus) that it would do
much towards destroying whatever Bed Spider might be on
or in the earth.

From practical observations it is obvious that well washing
down the bushes with whatever mixture may be preferred as
soon as ever the first beginnings of ''Eed Spider" presence are
noticeable is very important.

Other means of lessening the amount of the Gooseberry
Red Spider lie in cleaning and scraping rough bark (especially
during winter), so as to remove shelters for these mites or
their eggs, also in pruning off as much rough wood as could
be spared ; and running soft-soap into angles between the
branches would also be of use.

The fact of the eggs heing found in the crannies of rough hark
during winter, and of the mites similarly sheltering during the

GOOSEBEKRY AND CURRANT SAWFLY,

101

season of their fulhi- developed 2)resence, points directly to the
advantage of scraping off and getting rid of rough bark as far
as can be managed, and also of removing gnarled and rough-
barked boughs ; also, and very particularly, of syringing and
running soft-soap washes down the stems so as to fill the
crannies and angles of the branches, and thus choke up the
lurking-places, and stifle the mites within them.

Gooseberry aud Currant Sawfly. Nematus ribesU, Cameron."

Male sawfly, caterpillars, and cocoon ; all magnified. After figures in Reports
of the Entomological Society of Ontario. Dimensions given below.

The attack of the Gooseberry and Currant Sawfly is perhaps
one of the most destructive that bush-fruit growers have to
contend with, on account of the frequent recurrence of the
infestation, its prevalence in the island from its most northern
to its most southern counties, and its great powers of ruining
the leafage of the attacked bushes, even by scores of acres. _

When very young the sawfly caterpillars are green, with
black heads, and with minute black points on their bodies.
When full-grown they are about an inch in length; the
ground colour green or pale-green ; the segment next to the
head and a little of the next one orange-coloured ; so also are
the tail segments, but with such a large black mark above,

* This species is the one fully treated of in notices in the Reports of the
Entomological Society of Canada under the synonym of Nematus ventricnsiis,
Klug, and I have added the name of " Cameron," as above, to the name of
Nematus ribesii, as it is the specific designation chosen by him in his ' Mono-
graph of British Phytophagous Hymenoptera ' ; and at heading of his paper on
this insect — vol. ii. p. 168 — will be found a list of its various appellations.

102 GOOSEBERRY.

with smaller dots at the side, that the tail is sometimes de-
scribed as black. They are furnished with a pair of black
claw-feet on each of the three segments next the head ; the
next segment is legless ; and on the succeeding six segments
is a pair of pale-coloured sucker-feet, and there is another
pair beneath the tail, making twenty pairs in all. The
caterpillar is sprinkled with dots or jmtches of black, until its
last moult, when these are thrown off with the skin, and the
caterpillar becomes of a pale-green, but still orange behind
the head and on the tail ; the head also is paler. This change
of colour with the last moult is particularly to be noticed, as
otherwise it may be supposed that two species of caterpillars
are present on the leafage. The number of feet should also
be particularly noticed.

After their last moult the caterpillars go down into the
ground, where they form a yellow-brown cocoon of a gummy
secretion, in which they turn to a green or yellowish green
pupa, orange on the thorax and ajjex of the abdomen. From
this the sawfly comes out in about three weeks during summer;
in the case of the late broods the grub remains uuchanged in
the cocoon during winter, and does not turn to the chrysalis
till spring, in time for the Gooseberry Sawfly to make its
appearance as the Gooseberry and Currant bushes are coming
into leaf.

The general colour of the sawflies is yellowish ; the mouth
pale testaceous ; the thorax with some large black marks in
the female, in the male all black excepting one yellowish
mark ; abdomen yellow or orange, but in the male the back
of abdomen black excepting at tip. Legs pale testaceous,
parts above the femur or thigh white ; black tips to the
posterior shanks and feet (these sometimes wholly black) ;
anterior feet also tipped with brownish or black. The four
wings transparent and iridescent ; stigma (mark on the fore
edge of the fore wings) black. The length is from a quarter
to a third of an inch, and the expanse of the wings is about
half an inch in the male ; rather more in the female.

The life-history is that the female sawfly appears about
May (or earlier), and lays her eggs beneath the Gooseberry
or Currant leaves, inserting them in the skin of the leaf very
slightly by the side of the largest veins. The grubs soon
hatch, and begin feeding on the leaf on which they are placed,
which they soon pierce full of holes, and continue to feed on
until it is partially or wholly devoured, excepting the mid-ribs.
Thus they continue their work of destruction, moulting from
time to time until they are three-quarters of an inch long,
and may be seen scattered round the edge of a partially
devoured leaf, holding on by their fore-legs with their tails in

GOOSEBERRY AND CURRANT SAWFLY. 103

the air. After the operation of casting the skin for the last
time they rest awhile, and then go down into the ground and
bury themselves, to turn to the pupal state, from which, as
mentioned above, the sawflies come out in three weeks in
summer, or, in the case of the late broods, in the following
spring or earl}^ summer.

The following observation (taken from manjO, which was
sent me on the 15th of May, 1895, from Shalford, near
Guildford, gives a notable example of the great and rapid
<Iestruction of leafage which can be caused by this infesta-
tion : — " I have sixty acres of Gooseberries attacked by the
sawlly caterpillars. . . . The ravages committed within
the past three daj^s are perfectly astounding, desj^ite the fact
that every available hand has been put on spraying with
quassia and soft-soap, whilst others follow and spread slacked
quick-lime on the creatures as they lie under the trees. We
are picking the fruit as fast as possible where we have not
used the sj^ray, but with such a big ground there appears
little hope of stopping the mischief." — (E. E.)

Prevention and Remedies. — Autumn or winter removal of
surface-soil from under the hushes.

For prevention of all attack, excepting what may be borne
on the wing by stray sawflies blown from elsewhere, I believe
the above plan to be the most certain.

The caterpillars go down in autumn a little below the
surface, the depth varying from about two inches to some-
what more, according to nature of ground. There they lie in
small brown cocoons, like little pellets of earth, during the
winter ; and when the leafage comes out in the spring, so do
the sawflies from their cocoons under the bushes, and lay
their eggs to start attack on the leaves. If the earth is
removed, with the cocoons in it, and got rid of in any way,
the amount of attack is enormously lessened.

Amongst communications sent me during several years
(whilst this sawfly infestation was under special observation)
by superintendent horticulturists and others regarding reme-
dial measures which were found practically serviceable, the
following are so plainly stated, and so trustworthy, that I
repeat them again as they stand in the second edition of my
' Manual,' with the names of the contributors appended.

" For twenty years Gooseberry Sawfly caterpillars have not
occurred in the gardens under treatment in any quantity.
The surface-soil under the bushes is annually removed in
winter, a deep hole is dug in one of the quarters, and in this
the removed soil, with ivliatever may he in it, is buried. The
soil under the Gooseberry bushes is replaced by that out of

104 GoosEEEimy.

the hole, with the addition of some manure."' — (Alex. Ander-
son, The Gardens, Oxenford Castle, Dalkeith, N.B.)

" When there is reason to fear an attack" [i. e. when there
has been bad attack the previous year (Ed.)] "the soil should
be removed to the depth of two inches round the bushes in
the early spring, and a good sprinkling of lime dusted round
each bush ; by this means the caterpillars are cleared away
and destroyed." — (George McKinlay, The Gardens, Kilcon-
quhar House, Fifeshire.)

" Caterpillars not nearly so injurious as last season.
During the winter I removed all the surface-soil from under
the bushes." — (John Matheson, Addington, Winslow, Bucks.)

" Gooseberry bushes in my garden, from beneath which
the earth had been scraped a few inches deep in the previous
autumn and replaced by manure, &c., were free from attack,"
— (E.A. 0.) _

I also received a note from a gardener in the district near
Isleworth where Gooseberries are largely grown, that one
method of treatment is to scrape all the surface from beneath
them in the autumn and to form it into a line between the
rows of Gooseberry bushes, and there dig it in.

In this way a great amount of attack is prevented, but it is
necessary to be careful as to having the scraped-off surface-
soil dug in very thoroughly. On one occasion I saw the first
part of the operation carried out on a large scale, — the earth
was scraped from under the bushes and formed into lines
between them, — but there work stopped; consequently the
cocoons lay just as safely as if nothing had been done, and
when spring came the Gooseberry leaves were again riddled
by the caterpillars. The plan advised above by Mr. Alex.
Anderson, of digging a deep hole and burying the infested
earth safely away, is much more secure.

This complete removal of the soil with the cocoons is quite
worth while wherever Gooseberry caterpillar is prevalent ;
but, in case of the surface-soil not being removed, a layer
of unslacked lime, well mixed with the soil as deep as the
cocoons are, would be highly beneficial. Gas-lime also would
be of service, well sprinkled on the surface, if fresh, or lightly
pricked into the surface-soil beneath the bushes after it had
been aired for a few weeks, taking care not to let it lie against
the stem.*

The following notes refer especially to use of lime or gas-
lime as above mentioned. Mr. George Brown, writing from
Watten Mains, Caithness, N. B., mentioned : — " Year after
year these attacks occur, and nothing in the shape of pre-
vention is ever attempted ; dressing with quick-lime, and
* For references to method of use of gas-lime, see Index.

GOOSEBERRY AND CURRANT SAWFLY. 105

clearwfi aicay the earth heneath the hushes, seems to be the
best and surest measure."

Mr. Arthur Ward, writing from The Gardens, Stoke Edith
Park, Hereford, noted : — " Currants and Gooseberries out in
the open garden have kept quite free from caterpillars (on
the open gromid) ; this, I think, was owing to the trees being
dressed with lime early in spring. We have had very fine
crops, and the flavour is excellent. Currant trees on the wall,
which were not dressed with lime, were attacked. The attack
commenced on the bottom of the tree on the leaves nearest
the ground."

At Callendar Park Gardens, Falkirk, Mr. T. Boyd men-
tioned: — "I dress over all my Gooseberry ground with gas-
lime in early spring before forking over the soil, and have
not seen one of these caterpillars for three years." And Mr.
Thomas H. Hart, of Park Farm, Kingsworth, Kent, also
reported : — *' I am now satisfied that I have benefited by the
application of gas-lime between my bushes. Grubs there
certainly have been, but, whilst they have almost stripped
other bushes of their leaves, those on the dressed ground are
little the worse for the attack."

When the caterpillars are observable on the bushes, hand-
picking, or shaking down and destroying, syringing, or dusting
with various dry dressings, sulphur more especially, have all
been found to answer.

Hand-jncking has been especially recommended, or the less
tedious, though less complete, way of shaking the caterpillars
down ; or syringing, and then shaking and destroying the
grubs by trampling, or throwing hot lime on them. The
plan of having freshly tarred boards placed below the bushes
to retain them as they fall, or beating down on to cloths
and collecting the vermin and destroying them, also answers
well.

For syrinfiinr/, the following mixture has been recom-
mended : — Three gallons of warm soap-suds, half a pound of
soda, half a pound of salt, and a handful of soot ; the bushes
to be syringed on a still day when the sun is off them. Half
an hour after the application the plants should have clean
water dashed over them. It is stated that this mixture does
not injure either the young fruit or leaves, and soap-suds by
themselves syringed on the bushes have been found useful.
In short, anything that annoys the caterpillar, and makes
the leafage distasteful to it without injuring the leaves, will be
of service ; but at the same time the fluid applications are
hardly practicable on the large scale of fruit farming.

Dry dressings are more easily applied on a broad scale, and
amongst these flour of sulphur has been especially recom-

lOG GOOSEBERRY.

mended, dusted on the leaves ■when the dew is on, or if in dry
weather after Avatering.

Mr. W. J. Goodwin, of Winfield House, Crouch, Sevenoaks,
reported that he considered "the hest remedy for Gooseberry
caterpillars is to give a liberal sprinkling of fresh, good soot
early in the morning when the trees are damp, two or three
large haiidfuls to a good-sized tree, so as to make it quite
black witli soot. It is of no use unless it is done when the
trees are danip, so that it sticks on ivell. If it comes off by
rain coming shortly after, it must be done again. It acts, of
course, as a first-rate manure afterwards, causing the trees to
make good wood for another year."

Another recipe for a good broadscale remedy found to work
well was sent me from White Hall Farm, Chewstoke, near
Bristol, as follows : — " It may be of interest to you to know
how I have exterminated the ' Gooseberry Sawfly ' and * Ked
Spider ' from my garden. For several years my Gooseberries
were completely spoiled by these pests. I made a couple of
hogsheads of strong lime-water, and thoroughly spra^yed the
bushes with it early in the morning * I had an assistant to
pull the bushes over, so that the liquid might reach the under
part of the leaves as well as the outside. After about five
minutes of this, I had the bushes violently shaken, when
nearly every insect dropped off; to complete their discom-
fiture, directly I had done shaking the bush I had the surface
of the ground freely dusted with air-slaked lime. I had this
done three times, at intervals of two days, and now I have
not the slightest trace of either in my garden. I find this
treatment is far better in the early morning than when it is
used at mid-day." — (E. W.)

London-purple as an insecticide. — The following detailed
notes of method of (and also success of) ai^plication of
London-purple for getting rid of the sawfly caterpillars are
well worth attention, not only as a cheap and simple method
of getting rid of this s[)ecial pest, but also because, if properly
used, it is as serviceable for use as an insecticide as the better
known Paris-green. Bot]t, of the chemicals are jjoisonoits. The
Pariii-f/rcen is an aceto-arsenite of copper, the London-purple is
an arsenite of lime ; both therefore require care in use, as has
been specified before.

The great difficulty in the first use of London-purple was
that in the U.S.A. (from whence, as well as in the case of
Paris-green, we first learnt its value) it was thrown out as a
waste product of such various strength that nothing but
special trial of extent to which it might need diluting made
its use safe. Here, however, we can procure analysis which

* 1 add the italics, as this is a very important point. — Editor.

GOOSEBEERY AND CURRANT SAWFLY. 107

saves successive trials. I have at this minute that of Messrs.
Hemingwaj^ of Mark Lane, London, before me.

Tlie following note was sent me on May 10th, 1895, by Mr.
Nixon, from Great Eversden, near Cambridge: — "With re-
gard to the London-purple, I have used it for the last five to
sis years, and at the outset made sad havoc amongst my trees
and foliage, in fact I killed numbers of trees by giving too
strong an application. I am wiser now, and have found out
the proper proportions in which to mix it. Nothing appears
to me so good, cheap, or easy of application. I use Heming-
way's, and mix in the proportions of 1 lb. of purple to 200
gallons of water. The purple itself should be mixed to the
consistency of paste before finally mixing with the bulk of
water, and this bulk must be well stirred every time the
spraying-machine is filled, otherwise the purple will be all at
the bottom, and the water at the top, the effect of which is
that in some places the caterpillars are not killed, and in.
others the foliage is scorched (I am speaking of Gooseberry
bushes).

"Our No. 86 spraying-machine, manufactured by Messrs.
Boulton & Paul, of Norwich, is an excellent implement for
spraying this insecticide for the reasons that for this purpose
I have a return-pipe attached to the pump, so that a strong
jet of the mixture is continually forced through the bulk which
the tank of machine contains, thus keeping the whole, as it
w^ere, boiling and well mixed up.

"The caterpillars are not killed the same day the application
is made. The day after some will be found dead ; the second
day, a good number; and the third da}^ as a rule, the bushes
will be cleared. Many people make a grave error here. They
expect the insects to be killed in a few hours after the appli-
cation, forgetting that they must have time to eat the poisoned
foliage, and that it must have time to do its work. Conse-
quently they will apply a stronger mixture, which is certain
to scorch the foliage, and thus they complain that purple can
only be effective at such a strength as will likewise burn the
foliage. This is entirely wrong, for after years of experience
I can confidently guarantee that, mixed and used in the
proportions and way I have named, London-purple will kill
almost every caterpillar that may be present. I am proving
this every day in my own orchards." — (F. N.)

To the above, Mr. Nixon added that he sent me a few
Gooseberry leaves with the caterpillars on them, as he wished
me to see exactly how they died. These had been syringed
with London-purple in the way described at noon on the
previous day (that is, just twenty-four hours from time of
writing). Mr. Nixon noted that they were not quite dead

108 GOOSEBEKKY.

when he put them into the hox, but supposed they would be
when they reached me, which proved to be the case ; all the
specimens — that is, the caterpillars of the Gooseberry Saw-
fly — were dead when I received them on the following day.

From the importance of the Gooseberry crop, and also on
account of the prevalence and the destructiveness of the
Gooseberry Sawfly, it has seemed desirable to give more than
usual space to methods which have been found serviceable in
combating this infestation, but a line or two may be added as
to where (judging by communications addressed to me) re-
medial measures especially fail.

One point that should be more attended to is destruction of
the cocoons. If they are only scraped from beneath the bushes
and thrown aside, little good will probably have been done.

Another point is that powder dressing should be thrown so
as to adhere, that is, when naturally or artificially the bushes
are damp.

And also, thirdly, sufficient attention is not always paid to
the lime being hot.

The "Allied" Sawfly.'" Nematus consobrinus, Y oil.

In the year 1882 Mr. Taylor, writing from The Gardens,
Longleat, Somerset, observed that, besides the common
Gooseberry Sawfly caterpillar, with which he was familiar,
he had noticed a smaller kind, which appeared a month or
six weeks later. Like N. ribesU, this laid its eggs, and the
caterpillars fed, on the leaves ; but though in some seasons
they were as numerous as those of the common kind, usually
only about three hatched on each leaf.

The sample of the small green sawfly caterpillar sent me
corresponded with the figure and description of the somewhat
rarely observed Nematus consohrinus. Of this species Mr. P.
Cameron t observes: — "The larva feeds in early summer on
the leaves of the Gooseberry. It has a green head, marked
more or less with little black points, and bearing soft hairs.
The body is green, shining ; the skin beset all over with
transverse rows of black tubercles, each bearing a hair ; the
second segment, and more or less of the last, and the sides
over the legs, yellow. . . . When young the head is black,

* As we appear to be without any English name for this species, of which
one characteristic is its great likeness to the N. ribesii, perhaps the word
"allied," which fairly represents the "cousinship" of the scientific specific
appellation, may be admissible.

t See ' Monograph of British Phytophagous Hymenoptera,' vol. ii. pp. 131-
133; and figure of larva, vol. i. pi. vii. fig. 5.

GOOSEBERKY AND CURRANT SCALE. 109

the body green with black points; at the last moult it loses the
black tubercles, and becomes of a bright green colour, yellowish
behind the head and on the last segment." — (P. C.)

When young, and at the final moult, the caterpillars much
resemble those of N. ribesii, but (intermediately) comparison of
description will show that there are characteristic difl'erences.

The sawfly is given (see references in note, p. 108) by Mr.
Cameron as 3-3^ lines in length ; nearly one-quarter less in
length than that of N. ribesii, which is 3-4 lines.

The head is black, roughly punctured, covered with short
pale down ; portion of front of face (clypeus) white ; antennae
black, more or less dull brown on the under side ; thorax
black, pale fulvous in front ; abdomen pale fulvous, basal half
black above ; legs also pale fulvous, but with various markings
of black and white. The above are a few of the main points
observable in typical specimen as described at length by Mr.
Cameron with notes of variations in colouring.

There is considered to be only one brood yearly in this
country, and the cocoon is stated to be spun in the ground ;
but in the observations sent me from Longleat, Mr. Taylor
mentioned that, unless the locality was just under the surface
close to a wall or other dry place, he considered that the
caterpillar preferred nail-holes in a wall, or holes in wood, for
spinning up its cocoons.

Prevention and Eemedy. — The means are the same as
those for the common Gooseberry Sawfly, and from the great
similarity of the caterpillars of the two kinds, this species
may very likely often be present together with N. ribesii with-
out the difference being noticed.

Gooseberry and Currant Scale. Lecanium rlbis, Fitch.

For several years preceding 1893 notes were sent to me
from time to time, with specimens accompanying, of a brown
scale insect which was found to infest branches of Gooseberry
bushes to an injurious extent. It was not, however, until
that year (1893) that, through the assistance of Mr. J. W.
Douglas, F.E.S., I was able to ascertain the precise species
of this Lecanium.

On the 7th of March Mr. Douglas wrote me as follows
regarding the specimens which I had forwarded to him for
examination: — "The scales on the Gooseberry are certainly
Lecanium ribis, Fitch. They are familiar to me, for when I
lived in Beaufort Gardens they were gregarious on the Pied
Currant bushes, and sometimes on the White Currant ; but I

110

GOOSEBERRY.

never found they did much appreciahle harm. Yet in some
places they are very injurious. I have known bushes to be
quite exhausted by them, and once I saw an entire bush of
jRihes sanf/idneum (the red fiowerinj:;; kind) killed by them. I
never saw or heard of them on Black Currant. The male of
the species is unknown. ... I sent examples to Signoret,
and he agreed that they were L. rihis, Fitch. I doubt, how-
ever, if the species has ever been fully described ; i. e. ouly
the external characters have been given." — (J. W. D.)

H.C.K.

Lecaniubi ribis. — Currant Scale, female, showing side and upper surface; larval
scales, with legs still visible: all niagnitled. Infested Gooseberry twig.

The following is the short original note of observation given
by Dr. Asa Fitch, of Albany, U.S.A. : — " Currant-bark Louse,
Lecanium rihis, n. sp., Hoinoptera, Coccidce. A hemispherical
scale of a brownish yellow colour, about 0'30 in diameter,
adhering to the bark of the garden Currant ; its margin finely
wrinkled transversely. . . . This is quite common in some
gardens, and I suspect has been introduced into this country
with the Currant, although European authors have made no
mention of a scale insect as belonging either to this shrub or
the Gooseberry. It will be most readily found before the
leaves put forth in the spring." *

In this country this species of scale is to be found on Black,
Ked, and White Currant, as well as on Gooseberry bushes,
and sometimes is very injurious by sucking away the juices

* See ' Third Report of Noxious and Beneficial Insects of the State of New
York,' by Asa Fitch, M D., Albany, 1859. This account is also quoted by Dr.
Signoret in his 'Essai sur les Cochenilles ' (collective edition), vol. ii. p. 624
(4G2) ; and this scale insect is just alluded to by Prof. J. H. Comstock in his
• Second Iteport of the Department of l<]ntomology of Cornell University Ex-
periment Station, 1883,' in which, at p. 135, he refers his readers to the Trans.
N. Y. State Agricultural Society, 1856, 427.

GOOSEBERRY AND CURRANT SCALE. Ill

from the branches. In my own garden at St. Albans I have
found it only too plentifully present on the stems of all the
above-named bush-fruits. — (E. A. 0.)

The method of life of the scale insect may be described
generally, but sufficiently for practical purposes, as follov?s.
When the soft whitish or pale-coloured lobed female, which
lies without power of moving within the thin brown covering
scale, is matured, she produces a multitude of minute eggs, as
small as fine dust, which may easily be observed by detaching
the sheltering scale. From these eggs there hatch little
flattish oval maggots, or larvae, which at first have six legs.
These disperse themselves actively abroad on the boughs, and
feed by inserting their rostrum, or proboscis, and sucking
away the juices; presently they lose the power of locomotion,
turn to the pupal state, and (to common observation) change
in external appearance to the chestnut-coloured hemispherical
lumps, which are commonly known as " scale insects." This
thin flexible brown covering shelters the female within ; and
the sequence of life-history is well given in the following note
of observations sent me, on the 15th of July, from Seaford
Grange, Pershore, by Mr. Wm. F. Gibbon : —

" I have closely watched the habits of the ' Red Scale ' this
season, and have verified my observations of last year. The
young scale emerges from the egg early in the spring; I
found them hatched out early in February, at first almost
transparent, and walking with freedom on six legs ; but they
soon became of a chestnut colour, and assumed the shape of
a small wood louse, flat and oval, and then secured a position
by inserting their beak into the bark, and speedily increasing
in size. When about three-fourths grown their covering
appeared very shiny and sticky, and, later on, dry and harsh.
In May I found the scale matured, and eggs deposited ; and
on the 18th of June the eggs hatched, and the young are now
on the move, and it is at this stage of their existence to apply
washes for their destruction. The young now wandering
about will soon afiix themselves to the bark, assume a hard
covering, and mature ; by autumn deposit eggs, which will
hatch next spring. There are consequently two generations
in a year."— (W. F. G.)

The earliest date at which specimens were sent me in 1893
was on the 8tli of February, when infested Gooseberry twigs
were forwarded from near Pershore, on which were numbers
of the female scales, and also of the little flat, dull reddish,
six-legged larvse already in active state.

About a month later, that is, on March 10th, I found the
same species (both in female and larval condition) very pre-
valent on Gooseberry bushes in my garden at Torriugton

112 GOOSEBERRY.

House, St. Albans. The female scales were numerous on the
old wood, and mainly beneath the branches, where they were
sheltered from weather, and especially where the bark was
often split, or had peeled away so as to expose the under
surface ; but (up to this date) the infestation was not notice-
able on shoots of the preceding year's growth, although the
larvae and (therefore necessarily) the female scales had for
some time previously been observable on the bushes.

The larvfB (or maggots) were so small as to be almost
invisible to the naked eye, narrowly oval in shape, with six
legs, and a pair of horns (see figures, p. 110). The colour
was various, but of some shade of puce, or reddish, or ochrey
tint, and the body somewhat raised along the middle so as to
form a slight keel ; the abdomen of the larvae, as well as the
female scales, showing a more or less noticeable caudal cleft.

The female scales were hemispherical in shape, sometimes
curved slightly outwards at the lowest edge ; the colour some
shade of nut brown, or rich brown; the size variable, ranging
from an eighth of an inch to rather more ; the width about
equal to the length, and the height about one-twelfth of an
inch, or rather more in the middle. In the best defined
specimens the border was finely ribbed transversely ; the rest
of the surface was so irregularly varied, according to age or
condition of scale, as to make it impossible to give a precise
description.

Later in the season (on the 6th of June) the female scales
were plentiful on the old wood of some Gooseberry bushes
which had not been particularly attended to, and in most
instances were full of eggs. Sometimes the old skin of the
mother scale was almost empty, but in others the quantity
of eggs was astonishing, the exceedingly small oval-shaped
bodies falling like a shower of white dust, which might be
said to cover a space of half an inch square, and well sprinkled
about an inch. The scales, which frequently contained the
lobed, fleshy, greyish female Lecanium within them, were now
of diflerent sizes, and of various colour and condition, some
being shrunken, so as to show transverse corrugations, and
some plump and rounded.

About a month after (on the 11th of July) a few females
were scattered on the old branches, some long dead and
flattened against the boughs with the colour faded, others
still bright brown and shiny. Beneath them, in some in-
stances, eggs were still noticeable, but commonly empty egg-
shells were the most observable presence, together with some
eggs still unhatched, and some recently hatched or hatching
larvae. And towards the end of July, though I found little
larval presence on the Gooseberry bushes, I found, at the

GOOSEBERRY AND CURRANT SCALE. 113

same date, a piece of Gooseberry branch, -which had been cut
and kept under cover for some time, was sprinkled over with
multitudes of the young larval scales. These were scattered
in scores, or rather in hundreds, over every part of the
branch excepting the withered leaves, but were then dead from
the branch having ceased to supply requisite sap. The marked
difference in amount was presumably from the young scales
being washed off in out-of-door circumstances, or destroyed
by rain, and also being preyed on by small insect-feeding
beetles, &c., as there were plentiful remains of egg pellicles.

Prevention and Kemedies. — Looking at the manner in
which the scales shelter themselves where ragged bark is
peeling back on old wood, it is obvious that robbing them of
these head-quarters so far as could be managed could not fail
to be of service ; and next to this, such treatment of the
bushes as would allow of not only spraying the infested
boughs, but of wash being run down them to lodge amongst
rough bark, and would also allow of the oldest of the infested
parts, where there was no fear of rubbing off buds, being well
brushed with soap mixtures.

Much might thus be done by well considered pruning ; but
at the same time the pruned-off branches should be most
carefully removed and burnt. The little larval scales, though
hardly discernible without a magnifier, are actively on foot as
early as February, and may perfectly easily wander back from
the removed branches if these are left beneath the bushes.

Where Currants are trained in long rods on walls, these
require attention, and perhaps a rod occasionally taken out,
down to the root. In my own garden I have found the scales
in patches at intervals on a length of several feet of White
Currant.

In a communication from one of my correspondents, he
mentioned (writing on the 20th of February) that he had
had his infested Gooseberry bushes sprayed with " Chiswick
Compound," and found it effectual; and in a further com-
munication, a little more than a month later, he added, "I
found the Chiswick Compound very effective in destroying
scale." Probably this would be as serviceable an application
as could be found, as it is a mixture of soft-soap and sulphur,
which act well against these kinds of bark infestations, and
it has the advantage of the sulphur becoming soluble (so as
to be completely mixed with the wash) in from sixteen to
twenty-four hours after the requisite amount of hot water to
dilute the mixture to a safe strength has been added.

The mixture is procurable from the Chiswick Soap Com-
pany, Chiswick, Middlesex, and is very similar in composition

114 NUT.

to a mixture used with success in South Australia (under the
name of " Bur ford's Soft-soap and Sulphur Compound")
against several kinds of bark attack, as Aphides, Keel Spider,
&c. Probably any of the common soft-soap washes, especially
those that are mixed with sulphur and mineral oil, would be
of use, and if a stronger application was needed, the following
recipe for " Burford's No. 1 Kerosine Soap" might be of
use : — " Take equal weights of kerosine and soft-soap and
stir together in a convenient vessel, which should be placed
in the sun in summer, or in a bucket containing hot water in
the winter time. In from ten to twenty minutes' time the
two ingredients will coalesce, when it can be diluted as re-
quired " ; * probably in this country the hot water would be
more to be trusted to than the heat of the sun at any time
of year.

To the above suggestions of preventive or remedial treat-
ment may be added, with regard to date of clearing infested
boughs in winter pruning, that it is desirable this should be
done, and the scale-infested boughs cleared from the ground
and burnt before the time when the larval scales will be
hatching and dispersing themselves about bushes. It should
he done quite by the commencement of February. Also it is
desirable, after the prunings have been gathered up, to stir t
the surface of the soil under the bushes, and to throw a little
quick-lime, or any preventive mixture preferred, on the soil
just round the stems to prevent the little scales making their
way back to the branches.

NUT.

Hazel and Filbert Bud Mite. Phytoptus avellmm, n, sp., Nalepa;
P. vermi/ormis (Vallot, Targioni-Tozzetti, Nalepa).

The mite bud-gall attack of Phyto2)tiis avellana to the Hazel
and Filbert is so very similar both in appearance of the

* The above, and other useful recipes, will be found in the ' Eeport on the
Fusicladiums (Black-spot, Scab, and Mildew Diseases), Codlin Moth, etc.,' by
the late Frazer S. Crawford, Inspector under the Vine, &c., Protection Act,
South Australia. E. Spiller, Government Printer, Adelaide.

t In mentioninji; that stirring the surface-soil and throwing on quick-lime is
useful, I most particularly wish to observe that I do not advise " deep digging "
under the bushes as a preventive measure for this or any other Gooseberry
attack. As far as I am able to form an opinion, such a measure would be
injurious in the extreme to the roots of the Gooseberry bushes. — (E. A. 0.)

HAZEL AND FILBERT BUD MITE. 115

Phytoptus which causes it and also in that of the abortive,
swollen, and mite-infested buds to that of P. ribis, figured at
p. 60, that it is unnecessary to give a sjDecial illustration.
Like it, the mite is too small to be distinguished by the naked
eye. The life-history of the two sj^ecies is similar.

It belongs to the great order of Acarina, but, together with
the others of the genus Phytoptus, is distinguishable by its
cylindrical shape gradually lessening towards the tail ex-
tremity ; and also by only possessing throughout its life, from
the time of hatching from the egg, two pairs of legs placed
near the head extremity behind the somewhat conical-shaped
feeding-apparatus. The above peculiarities distinguish the
genus Phytoptus clearly from others of the Acarina, of which
the Ked Spider of the Hop may be taken as an example,
which have a more or less oval or rounded shape, and, as a
rule, four pairs of legs during all their life, excepting in the
earliest stages, when they have three pairs.

The shape of the female and larva is cylindrical ; that of
the males, when arrived at the stage of sexual development,
not unfrequently spindle-shaped. The length of the female
may be as much as twenty-one hundredths of a millimetre
(0"21 mm.) ; of the male eighteen hundredths (0*18 mm.) ; the
breadth from four hundredths of a millimetre to much less
(0'04-0"065 mm.) ; and a millimetre being a twenty-fifth part
of an inch, it is commonly more by the characteristic deformed
growth of the buds than by identification of the species of the
mites that the attack is known.

As in the case of the Black Currant infestation the develop-
ment of the bud lengthways is checked, and it forms a more
widened spherical growth, with an abnormal number of bud
scales and abortive leaves ; these, consequently on the ab-
normal development of the cellular tissue, are thickened and
more or less sprinkled with hairs or other excrescences.
These deformed buds may be found early in the spring, even
before the Hazel leaves show themselves, and at this time the
leaves, or scales of the buds, are already for the most part
plentifully sprinkled with Phytoptus eggs. Later on the buds
dry up, and fall, having been previously deserted by the Gall
Mites, which are now mostly to be found in the newly formed
leaf-buds.

With the second growth of the shoots of the Nut bushes in
July and August, a second growth of deformed buds is again
observable, distinguishable by their remarkable size and green
colour.

This infestation has been so rarely reported that I have
had little opportunity of studying it myself, and the above
observations are chiefly taken from those of Dr. A. Nalepa,

I 2

116 NUT.

given in the work referred to below, in which will also be
found detailed descriptions of P. avcllance, together with
references to the bibliography of the subject and various
synonyms given by different writers.*

In the few cases which I have myself seen of presence of
Gall Mite infested buds on Filberts, one of the worst instances
was where the bushes appeared to have been neglected for
some years, and were overhung by trees. Also the galls were
numerous some years ago on Hazels on a hedge in a very
damp locality near St. Albans, with a Willow-ground and
stream close by, and much overshadowed by trees.

Pkevention and Eemedy. — The means would be the same
that are being tried in the case of Black Currant attack, and
especially destroying infested shoots or bushes.

Nut Weevil. Balaninus nucum, Linn.

Nut Weevil, magnified ; natural length 3-5 lines ; pupa, natural size ; maggot,
natural size and magnified ; bored Filbert.

The trouble of " maggotty " Nuts, which is only too well
known both to growers and to eaters, is caused by the larva
of Bcdaninus nucum, commonly known as the " Nut Weevil."
This is a small beetle, of the shape figured above, and only
about a third of an inch in length, including the proboscis.
The colour varies a good deal, but it may be generally de-
scribed as of a tawny brown colour, densely clothed with short
depressed hairs, or greyish or yellowish down ; the proboscis,

* ' Beitriige der Systematik der Phytopten,' von Dr. Alfred Nalepa, pp. 15-18,
pi. ii. figs. 1, 2, 3, and pi. iii. fig. 3; Wien, 1889. Information will also be
found I'egarding the infestation under the synonym of Phytoptus cori/liriallarum,
Targ., in the ' Prospetto dell' Acarofauna Italiana ' of Prof. Giovanni Canestrini,
parte v. p. 611, tav. 52, fig. 9 ; Padova, 1892.

NUT WEEVIL. 117

which is a third or more of the length of the beetle, is fine,
arched in shape, and of a bright chestnut colour, with one of
the pair of elbowed antennae on each side, and furnished at
the extremity with jaws. The colours are very variable, but
the great length of the proboscis is a marked distinction.

These beetles, or weevils, may be seen about the Nut bushes
early in the summer, the females usually creeping along the
twigs, the males often on the wing. Whilst the Nuts are
still young the female pierces a hole through the soft shell
by means of the jaws with which she is furnished at the end
of her long snout. In this hole she lays one egg, which
hatches in about ten days. The maggot feeds inside the
Nut, consuming a large part of the kernel. When full-grown
it is of the shape and size figured at p. 116, fat, fleshy, and
cylindrical, slightly attenuated in front, and curved under at
the tail extremity ; of an ochreous white, with round horny
chestnut-coloured head, furnished with strong black jaws ;
without legs, but supplied with muscles inside the large
transverse folds or wrinkles, which enable it to draw itself
through the earth.

When full-fed the maggot eats a hole through the Nut
shell, sometimes whilst the Nut is on the bush, sometimes
after it has fallen to the ground in the premature ripening
which appears to follow on the maggot-attack. It then buries
itself, forms a cell in the earth, and " frequently rests there
during the winter, and only changes in the following spring
or later " to a pupa or chrysalis of whitish colour, like the
future weevil in shape, but lying quiescent with its limbs
folded against it.

The weevils may be found as early as May, at which time
development from the chrysalis has been recorded, but it is
stated that some of these beetles do not develop till July or
August, and it is still open to observation whether some of
these do not hybernate and appear with those newly out of
the chrysalis in the following May.

Prevention and Eemedies. — Very few observations have
been contributed with regard to this attack, or means of
prevention and remedy ; but one regular method of treatment
which has been recommended when weevils are abundant on
Nut bushes, is to heat them down, but this should not be done
on a sunny day, or they will speedily take flight and escape ;
and (saving for treatment of a bush or two) probably the only
way to carry out the plan of beating serviceably would be
either to put tarred boards, or for one man to throw a
sprinkling of quick-lime or gas-lime under the Filbert trees
whilst his companion beats down the weevils.

118 NUT.

It is desirable to remove all Nuts that fall before their
proper time and hum them, so that the maggot inside may
thus be carried away and destroyed before it has bored its
way out ; and also, looking at the powers of flight of the
weevils, it would be well not to have many Hazel Nut bushes
in copses adjacent to Filbert ground.

But probably with this infestation the best methods of
prevention lie in the regular measures of good cultivation. It
is stated the Filbert likes a Hazel loam of some depth, which
should be dressed every year, as the Filbert requires a con-
siderable quantity of manure. Also that " in Kent the Nut
grounds are well manured every other year with rags, shoddy,
fish, or fur waste, and are always cultivated by hand, and
kept scrupulously clean."

This course of treatment, that is, treatment which involves
stirring the surface-soil as well as giving additions wholly
foreign to insect nurture, is suited to expose some of the
chrysalids and bury others deeper, and is generally useful for
insect prevention, but especially as regards the Nut Weevil,
which (in instances observed) has been found to be so tender
at the time of its transformations as to require eight or nine
days to gain its colour and hardness, and also strength enough
to force its way up through the ground. Looking at these
points, it seems likely that if the chrysalids were buried a
little beyond the natural depth many of the weevils from them
would not be able to come up at all.

Nut Leaf- Weevil. Strophosomus coryli, Fab.

On May 15th, 1889, a large number of beetles were for-
warded to me by Mr. A. L. Y. Morley, from Great Brington,
Northampton, with the observation that Lord Spencer's
forester had just brought them as specimens of insects which
were doing considerable damage in that neighbourhood to
plantations of young Larch, Scotch Fir, and Corsican Pine.
Amongst these the Pine Weevil {Hylohius ahietis) was present,
but also there were numbers of a little brownish short-nosed
weevil, only about the fifth of an inch in length, and marked
with a little black stripe running from the base of the wing-
cases half-way along the suture.

On examination, these small beetles proved to be Stropho-
somus coryli, Fab., of which Dr. Taschenberg remarks as
follows (see ' Praktische Insektenkunde,' pt. ii. p. 103) : —
"This beetle appears in many years in great numbers, not
only on Hazels, as might be inferred from its scientific name,
but also on Birch, Oak, Beech, Scotch Fir, and Pine, where

NUT LEAF- WEEVIL. 119

from May until the middle of June they feed on the buds and
leaves and the bark of the young shoots, and in various
localities have destroyed young trees of the above-mentioned
kinds. In the middle of June pairing takes place on the
plants. The larvae live in the earth ; any injury caused by
them is, however, still unknown." — (E. L. T.)

As this little beetle is hardly the fifth of an inch in length,
a figure would not be of much assistance for general purposes;
but it maj^ be described as not unlike the nearly allied Pea
and Clover Leaf- Weevil (Sitones) in general shape ; black in
colour, but so closely covered with grey and brownish scales
as, excepting where these are rubbed off, to be mostly of a
brownish colour ; rostrum short ; antennre elbowed and rust
red ; legs also rust red ; wing-cases with stripes of punctures
and rows of bristles between them, stripe at base of the suture
of the wing-cases black (this is an important characteristic) ;
wings none.

The above is the only occasion on which S. corijli has been
sent me as an injurious infestation ; but in Stephens's
' Manual ' (p. 245), it is mentioned as occurring in this
country "on Hazel; generally distributed " ; and Kaltenbach,*
in his German observations, notes that " this injurious weevil-
beetle appears in the spring for the most part in great numbers,
and gnaws the leaves of Hazels," &c. Therefore it seems
worth while to note its presence, and more particularly as
some doubt has been expressed as to the kind infesting Pine
being more probably the smaller species, S. ohesus, Marsh.,
than S. coryli. But though the kinds are very similar, there
are distinctive characteristics, and in those sent me from the
Coniferae near Northampton, the kind being S. coryli, Fab.,
was not open to doubt.

Eemedy. — The only remedial measure known appears to be
beating down the beetles and destroying them.

Observation. — In the ' Arboretum et Fruticetum Britanni-
cum ' of the late J. C. Loudon the Nut is mentioned as being
attacked by numerous species of insects. Amongst these, the
attacks of caterpillars of about thirteen species of moths,
seventeen beetle attacks, and various others, as of Plant-bugs,
Aphides, &c., are mentioned by name ; but from whatever
cause (possibly from improved methods of cultivation allowing
less shelter to the insects) so very little complaint is sent
regarding insect infestation to this crop, that it seems fair to
suppose that the injuries are not now to such an extent. —
E. A. 0.

* ' Die Ptianzenfeinde,' p. 590.

120

PEAR.

PEAR.

Pear Gnat Midge. Diplosis pyricora, Kiley; Cecidomyia nigra ! ,
Meigen and Sclimidberger ; C. pyricoJa?, Nordlinger.

DiPLOsis PYKivoRA. — Female, magnified ; lines showing nat. size. Larva and
pupa, magnified. Abortive Pear. Gnat and pupa, after Prof. Pkiley.

The Pear Gnat Midge is a very frequent trouble to Pear
growers from the damage caused by its httle legless, yellowish
white maggots living in numbers inside the young Pears in
their very early condition. Consequently on the maggots
feeding within, the growth of the young Pears is checked and
stunted, the centre decays, and the fruit cracks or dies, and
drops off.

This attack was first reported to me in 1883, with good
specimens of Pears having their growth aborted by the infesta-
tion sent accompanying, some of which I was favoured with
on June 15th by Lord Walsingham from one of his farms in
Norfolk. These consisted of small abortive Pears, then in
process of being eaten away by the small white legless
maggots within, and information was sent with these samples
of attack that every Pear on the trees from which they were
taken was infested by them.

Amongst various characteristics of these larvse, the faculty
of skipping (like cheese-maggots) in every direction — a power
which they make use of in springing from the Pears on which
they have fed to the ground — was very noticeable.

A little earlier in the same year (on June 4th) an account
of a similar attack (also mentioned as not previously observed)
was sent me, with specimens accompanying, from Llanina,
New Quay, South Wales, by Mr. C. K. Longcroft, with the
observations: — "I have sent you some specimens of Marie
Louise Pears, of which there was a splendid promise of a crop

PEAR GNAT MIDGE. 121

on two trees, but they are all attacked by grubs within. ^ If
you cut one open you will see the culprits. The same thing
happened last year, causing the destruction of a crop, as
well as in addition having destroyed a fine crop of Beaune
Bachelier. ... I have not heard of a similar case in this
neighbourhood, and during my previous experience of many
years I never met with or heard of their appearance here." —
(C.E.L.).

This Pear attack has long been known on the Continent,
and is described in Kollar's ' Insects,' published in 1837 in
Vienna (English translation, with notes by Prof. Westwood,
published in 1840) ; but with one exception of some affected
Pears noticed by Mr. H. Eeeks, of Thruxton, in 1874 or 1875,
the attack does not appear to have been noticed in Britain
until the observations sent me in 1883, of which Mr. K. H,
Meade, F.E.S., remarked that my article on the Pear Midge
in my ' Eeport of Observations of Injurious Insects for 1883 '
was, so far as he knew, "the first recorded notice of the insect
in this country."*

Still, though the attack was well known in Germany, and
had become known here, there was great uncertainty as to
the technical entomological appellation which was to be
accepted for this Pear Gnat Midge ; and we were greatly
indebted to the careful observations of the Rev. E. N. Bloom-
field, of Guestling, near Hastings, who in 1885 enabled us to
clear up what was wanting in the life-history to determine
the name.

From consultation over Mr. Bloomfield's specimens by
skilled referees, amongst whom I may mention the well-
known entomologists, Mr. R. H. Meade, Mr. Peter Inchbald,
and Mr. E. A. Fitch, there was no doubt that our newly-
observed Gnat Midge was identical with the species first
recorded as injurious in the U.S.A. in 1884, and determined
by Dr. C. V. Eiley, Entomologist of the Board of Agriculture
of the U. S. A., as Diplosis })yrivora.

This attack is considered to have been imported into
America on Pear-stocks from France in 1877, and so far as
evidence points was also a foreign importation to this country.
Here, however, it is only occasionally complained of as
troublesome, whilst in the U.S.A. its spread was extra-
ordinarily rapid, t

The "midge" which causes the mischief is a very small
two-winged gnat-like fiy, only about one line (the twelfth of

* See Diplosis injrivora , Eiley ; " The Pear Gnat," by R. H. Meade, F.E.S.,
the 'Entomologist,' vol. xxi. pp. 123-131.

t See, for much useful information on this attack, "The Pear Midge
{Diplosis injrivora, Piiley)," Bulletin 99 of New Jersey Agricultural College
Experimental Station, April 4th, 1894.

122 PEAR.

an inch) or a little more in length of body ; the general
appearance greyish or black. More in detail, when seen
much magnified, and as described by Mr. Meade from his
own very complete observations, the head is black, with a
patch of yellow hairs, on the top of which some come forward
over the eyes. Antennae (horns) yellowish brown, in the male
about one-fifth longer than the whole length of the insect, in
the female " about two lengths of the insect without the ovi-
duct." Thorax (body between the wings) black, and, like the
face, with grey reflections ; and seen "from before the hind
part looks ash-grey, while the front part appears divided into
three wide black stripes or patches, of which the middle one
is triangular in shape, with a broad base in front, and taper-
ing to a point behind where it joins the scutellum." On each
side between the central and side black patches is a row of
bright yellow hairs ; but " viewed from behind, the whole
thorax looks grey." A long tuft of
yellow hairs is placed above and in
front of the root of each of the wings,
and the front edge of the thorax is
covered with short yellowish hairs.
Wing of D. purivora, Abdomen dark brown clothed with

magnitied. long whitish hairs. Halteres (poisers)

with yellowish stalks and clear white
knobs. Wings dusky, clothed and deeply fringed on the hind
margins with black hair. Legs brown, clothed with white
hairs, more dense on the under surface.*

I have never seen deposit of the eggs myself, but the method
of operation is stated to be when the Pear blossom-buds are
so far advanced as for a single petal to show itself, for the
Pear Midges to deposit their eggs within by piercing the petal
with the ovipositor, and laying their white longish eggs, up to
as many as ten or twelve in number, on the anthers within
the still unopened blossom-bud. They were also seen by
Schmidberger, the chief authority on method of egg-laying, to
pierce the outside of the blossom with the ovipositor. The
eggs are stated to be so quickly hatched in warm weather that
the little larvae from them may be found on the fourth day
after deposit. They bore into the core of the embryo Pear,
where they separate and devour in different directions.

The maggots are about one-sixth of an inch in length,
narrow, legless, smallest at the head and tail, with a small
horny appendage, known as the breast-bone, or (from its form

* For full and very clear descrij^tion of the imago or i^erfect Gnat Midge of
the D. pyrivora, from which I have, with many thanks, extracted the above few
points, see paper on " Dii}losis pijrivoni," by R. H. Meade, in the ' Entomologist,'
vol. xxi., previously referred to.

PEAR GNAT MIDGE. 123

in some of the Cecidomyiae larvpe) as the "anchor process,"
beneath the fore part of the body near the head end. In the
Pear gnat-maggot this process consists of a narrow stalk
attached at its base to one of the segments of the Httle larva,
and pointing forward at the free end, which is enlarged to
nearly twice the width of the stem, and slightly notched at
the flattened or convex end. The anchor process is of a
horny texture, and brownish or pink in colour.

The maggots have a wonderful power of jumping by bending
so that head and tail meet, and then taking skips in all
directions, a habit which is very noticeable if they chance to
be under examination on a coloured tablecloth.

Within the young Pears the growing Cccidomyia maggots
live and feed till they have attained their full size. This will
be somewhere about the beginning or middle of June, by
which time much of the inside of the little Pears will have
become black and decayed, consequently on their ravages, and
the fruit stunted in growth, and probably cracked. The in-
fested Pears may often be known by their knobbed irregular
growth, but not always ; some that I have had have not
shown characteristic damage outside ; also the size that they
may grow to varies. In the eight figures now before me,
given in the paper by Prof. John Smith on this infestation,
none of the Pears are as much as an inch long, but they may
reach as much as one or two inches in length.

At this stage the Pears crack or fall to the ground, and the
maggots leave the fruit by way of the open cracks if it
remains on the tree, or if it falls without cracking, may
remain for some weeks within. In either case they bury
themselves in the ground, and (quoting again from Prof. J.
B. Smith as, I believe, our most recent observer) go down to
a depth " varying somewhat with the condition of the soil,
from one-half to two inches, and there they lie for some time
unchanged. About midsummer the larvae make oval cocoons
of silk covered with grains of sand, and in these they lie un-
changed until early spring." — (J. B. S.). There appears to be
a difference in date of time of the maggots forming cocoons,
and turning to pupal or chrysalis state within them, possibly
from not being in quite natural circumstances ; but in regular
course, whatever the exact date of pupation may be, the gnat-
midges come up out of the ground in spring ready to attack
the blossom -buds of the Pear,

During the present year (1898) the attack, judging by
amount of enquiries sent, appears to be more than usually
prevalent ; and about the 28th of May, whilst these notes
were passing through press, I received specimens and some
observations of a remarkably bad attack in the neighbourhood

124 PEAR.

of Evesham, the crop heing consequently (from hoth the
earher and later hlossoms) a complete failure.

The specimens sent me consisted of bunches of little Pears,
about from three to five in a bunch ; the size of the largest
of the Pears about five-eighths of an inch across by three-
quarters long. Many if not all of the Pears were distorted in
growth, some lumpy or knobbed, some swelled on one side
and contracted on the other, so that the " eye " was quite
drawn to one side. Of these I cut open fifteen or more which
showed infestation. The maggots within w^ere of various
sizes, from about two-thirds to apparently full grown, and
were lying in the gnawed and blackened middle part of the
Pear, which was not as yet eaten away, but chambered by
their galleries. The centre round the core and the part
between this and the calyx end was the portion infested, but
not the part towards the stem end.

It was difiicult to count the number of maggots with
certainty that might be in one Pear, but by careful ex-
amination I found up to about a dozen in the half of one
Pear cleanly separated from the other part. The maggots
were in very active condition, and dispersed themselves freely
on the paper on which some of the Pears were laid, as if
endeavouring to bury themselves.

But perhaps the most interesting point observable was the
gradual development of the marking of external discoloration
of the skin, which appeared to be the gradual advance of in-
jury to the cracking open, often accompanying the completed
stage of destruction of the young Pear from this attack. In
the first stage the markings were merely of little black or
blackish patches on the outside {not as far as I could see
connected with internal injury), but gradually the patches
became roughened on the surface, and small splits appeared
across them, which in the more advanced specimens were
deepening into small but decided cracks, which it might be
presumed were the beginnings of the deep fissures often
occurring in the fully destroyed Pear, and through which
many of the maggots make their escape to the ground. The
black spotting would be well worth practical observation, as a
guide to which Pears were in an early stage of infestation
and might be destroyed before there was any chance of the
maggots within escaping to cause recurrence of mischief.

Prevention and Remedies. — For preventive measures it
does not appear that any are more available than the following
methods of treatment : —

In cases where the crop is in reach, to pick ofl" and destroy
(not merely throw aside) the little stunted Pears, and also to

PEAR GNAT MIDGE. 125

pick up, as soon as possible, and destroy the small fallen fruit.
To this the treatment of giving a thoroughly good shaking
and jarring of the boughs of the infested tree, so as to shake
down as much of the infested fruit as possible, as soon as
Xtossihle, would probably be a very serviceable addition. Also
if previously tarred cloth, or any rough cheap material, was
spread under the boughs of the tree, so that the infested fruit
and the maggots which escaped from it might all be gathered
up together and burnt, or well shaken out together into a hole
and well covered down, this would save much escape of the
maggots. Also spreading a coat of quick-lime on a dry day
beneath the infested tree, and then slaking it, might have a
very good effect, and the lime would kill many of the escaping
maggots.

Where Pears are grown in grass orchards, a deal of the
fallen infested fruit would be cleared off by having sheep on
the ground ; and where the ground below the trees is free of
crop, and the Pear roots not too near the surface, the plan of
skimming the surface and destroying the surface earth with
its contained infestation would answer well.

The depths given for presence of the cocoons are half an
inch to two inches, and this might (I believe) often be safely
removed ; but I would on no account whatever advise the
treatment which I see at times recommended in this country
with regard to clearing infestation from soil under trees or
fruit bushes, namely, that of digging the ground. Such treat-
ment is absolute destruction to the surface roots, a large pro-
portion of which lie much nearer the surface of the earth than
a spade's dejDth ; and also, although some of the cocoons may
be buried down so as to be put out of the way of doing mis-
chief, yet a large proportion are only scattered about in the
soil, and the insects develop from them as safely as I have
known them to do where the infested skimmings from under
Gooseberry bushes were laid in rows between the rows of
plants.

It should perhaps be noted with regard to this attack that
the only connection it has with the Pear tree is with the
blossom-buds for the purposes of egg-laying, and with the
young fruit, in which the maggots feed until, at their maturity,
they quit the fruit and bury themselves in the ground to go
through their changes to the complete gnat-midge. Therefore
the w^ashings, or lime dustings, or scrapings of the trunk of
the tree, which are so very serviceable in cases of various
other Pear or Apple attacks (notably that of Codlin Moth) are
of no use at all with this infestation.

In the observations sent me on May 25th, 1896, by a
correspondent of a bad attack of the midge-maggots on bis

126 PEAE.

young Pears at Carnforth, Lancashire, he mentioned that he
had dusted the trees with Hme, and also spra.yed with Paris-
green, without any good effects ; but relatively to the latter
application, it has been suggested that where attack is very
bad indeed, so as almost certainly to involve losing all the
young Pears, that it might be worth while to spray so strongly
with Paris-green, or some other arsenite, as to blast the fruit,
and thus prevent the contained maggots coming to maturity
and continuing the attack. This would be a point for con-
sideration of the grower.

The best remedy of which we have information at present
appears to be (as reported by Prof. J. B Smith) application of
kainite to infested ground. In an observation on infested
Pear orchard land in New Brunswick, U.S.A., a heavy top-
dressing of kainite was applied in late summer, and under the
infested trees it was api3lied at the rate of over half a ton per
acre. The result was that in the following year scarcely any
of the fruit was found to be infested ; whilst in another orchard
close adjoining, in which the ground had not been treated, on
close examination, it was found that of one kind especially
grown fifty per cent, were "midged," and of the other kind
named not one could be found to have escaped.

In laboratory experiment Prof. Smith found that where
nitrate of soda was sprinkled in quantity that would represent
a fair top-dressing in ordinary field use, on sand in which
maggots had gone down, that not ten per cent, of the larvre
were alive (so far as examined) in their cocoons ; and where a
double quantity of the nitrate was applied, a still lesser pro-
portion of the maggots were found to be alive.

Muriate of potash in about the same quantities showed
results of respectively nearly one-half or three-quarters of the
maggots dead in their cocoons.

But in the case of sprinkling with a small quantity of
kainite, only three per cent, of living larvfB were found in the
cocoons examined ; and where double quantity was used, " not
one-third of the larvae in the jar had ever formed cocoons, and
those that did seemed all of them to be dead." — (J.B. S.).

The experiment is given in minute detail in the Bulletin
previously referred to,* the period from commencement to
final examination ranging from June 10th to Oct. 6th, and I
believe may be of great assistance to us in checking attack of
this destructive gnat-midge.

Addendum (June 7th, 1898). — For further observations,
taken from examination of advanced stage of attack, see
Appendix.

* See note, p. 121.

PEAR LEAF-BLISTER MITES.

127

Pear Leaf-blister Mites. Phytoptus pyri, Nalepa.

Phytoptus pyei. — Female, nat. length circa 0-2 mm. ; left leg of the first pair
of P. tristriatus, and (smaller figure) of P. tristriatus var. carinea, magnified
550 times — all after Dr. Nalepa. Infested Pear leaf.

The Pear-leaf disease, known as " blister," which is caused
by a minute cylindrical four-legged mite (or acarus), figured
greatly magnified above, does great harm to Pear leafage in
some places in this country, and likewise on the Continent of
Europe, and in the United States and Canada.

The disease shows itself in the form of blister-like spots
somewhat raised on each side of the leaf, and in the middle of
each little blister beneath the leaf is a little hole, which gives
access to the central cavity, and also gives passage out at
pleasure to the mites. The spots or blisters may be found on
the Pear leaves whilst they are still quite young ; but later on,
when the leaves are expanded, is the period at which they are
most noticed. They may be red or green, or red on one side

128 PEAR.

of the leaf and green on the other ; and later on, presumably
from death of the diseased tissues, the blisters turn blackish
or brown in colour.

Some confusion is apt to arise between these blisters and
the small discoloured patches of mere vegetable disease often
found on Pear leaves, and sometimes known as Pear Scab ;
but a little examination with a hand-magnifier, so as to dis-
tinguish the swelling of the blister on both sides of the leaf,
and the central hole below, and if a section is cut, the dis-
organized tissue with something of a cavity between the two
sides of the blister, with very possibly the cylindrical gall-
mites within, will show the difference.

Witli regard to the Phytoptus miri, the Leaf-blister Mite, or
gall-mite, which causes this attack, it is almost or quite
invisible to the naked eye, being very much less than one
millimetre in length,* and its breadth only about one-fifth or
sixth part of its length. The greatly magnified figure at
p. 126, copied by kind permission of Dr. Nalepa from one of
his excellent figures, shows the shape perfectly. It is cylin-
drical, tapering at the tail, with a strong slightly curved
proboscis, and four legs, which are distinctly jointed ; the
terminal claw, variously known as a "holding-claw" or
"feather bristle," is four-branched. The abdomen is uni-
formly ringed, and rather finely punctate. Without very
strong microscopic power, far beyond what most of us possess,
it is impossible to identify one from the other the different
species of Phytoptus ; but with this Pear Leaf-blister the
attack may for all practical purposes be identified by the
existence of the blister ; and with moderately strong magni-
fiers the mites may be distinguished as gall-mites, or as of
the subfamily of Phytoptida, from others of the order Acarina
— to which they belong— by their narrow cylindrical shape,
and by having throughout their lives only two pairs of legs.
They are hatched from the egg with two pairs, placed as
shown in the figure at the fore part of the body, and they
never have more. This is a most important point to be
attended to, as, for want of knowledge of this fact, observa-
tions are at times hopelessly confused as to what kind of
infestation is present, and consequently what treatment
needed.

This Pear-leaf infestation is not often enquired about, but
personally I have had it more or less under observation since
the year 1876, and whenever I needed specimens have been
able to find them on the Pear leafage in the garden I occupied
for some time near London, and later on here at St. Albans.

In the year 1893, in which mite-galls caused by Phytopti

* As previously mentioned, one millimetre is the 25th part of an inch.

PEAR LEAF-BLISTER MITES. 129

were unusually observable, enquiries were sent from various
correspondents regarding this attack, and in the following
year enquiries were also sent from localities respectively in
Kent, Surrey, and Somersetshire ; but, excepting the observa-
tion that in one instance even the very young leaves which
had not yet uncurled appeared affected on the two trees
examined, the notes gave no additional information as to
appearance of the attack.

The following notes, taken partly from Canadian and partly
from German observations, give the life-history of the in-
festation in short plain form, available for practical service.
The first is by Dr. J. Fletcher, Entomologist of the Depart-
ment of Agriculture, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada : —

"Pear Leaf-blister Mite, Phytoptus 2)yri. — An insect
which is giving a considerable amount of trouble in Canada
at the present time [1892] is the Pear Leaf-blister Mite. . . .
The mites, which are hardly visible with the naked eye,
emerge from the scales of the leaf-buds early in spring, and
attack the tissues of the unfolding leaves. The blisters soon
begin to show as small red spots, each of which has a small
central hole on the lower side of the leaf. The eggs are laid
inside these blisters, and the young, escaping through the
central opening, at once form new galls, until sometimes the
greater part of most of the leaves is rendered unfit to perform
its functions.

" When mature the galls are brown and spongy in texture,
and are raised perceptibly above the surface of the leaf.
Before the leaves fall the mites leave the galls, and secrete
themselves beneath the scales of the winter buds, where they
remain throughout the winter." *

All of us who are troubled by these blisters on our Pear
leaves can see for ourselves that the attack may go on
spreading throughout the summer, but the following notes by
Dr. E. L. Taschenberg give special details. He observes that
the "sexually developed mites move about fairly nimbly on
the under side of the leaves. They are found throughout the
whole year, from May onwards, of various ages, and have
many broods ; so that multiplication continues uninterruptedly
until the winterly season. They disperse themselves, both as
larvte and developed mites, in the leaf- and flower-buds of the
one-year-old twigs, embedded in the felt-like layer of hairs on
the inside of the outer bud-scales." t

And again, with regard to their condition during winter,
Dr. Taschenberg mentions : — " This they pass as larvae, or as

* From " Report of the Ontario Fruit Growers' Association," p. 113, pub-
lished in the ' Annual Report of Dept. of Agriculture of Ontario for 1892.'
t ' Praktische Insektenkunde,' von E. L. Taschenberg, pt. v. pp. 159, 160.

K

130 PEAR,

sexed inclivicluals mixed together in the leaf and flower-biids
of the one-year-old shoots, embedded in the layer of hair or
downy felt inside the outer bud-scales, commonly many
together ; Herr Sorauer has found as many as seventeen."
(See loc. cit.)

Prevention and Eemedies. — Where there are only a few
leaves infested, or the trees are small, it is well to pick these
leaves off and hum them as soon as attack is observed. Also,
looking at the observation of Dr. Taschenberg that the in-
festation has been found to begin its yearly course on the
lower leaves of the twig, whilst the upper are still free, it would
appear that if special attention was directed to clearing these
leaves it would very much help in checking attack.

In Dr. J. Fletcher's paper, quoted at p. 129, it is mentioned
that up to that date kerosine emulsion seemed to be the only
application which had given promising results as a remedy ;
and amongst reports sent to myself I had the following good
note of success of use of kerosine emulsion in checking Pear
leaf-blister damage, sent me early in May, 1894, from near
Southampton. My correspondent wrote that he had lost no
time in applying some kerosine emulsion to the injured trees
by means of a knapsack Strawsonizer. " This has certainly
arrested the damage on those trees that were only slightly
affected as yet, and I am in hopes it ma}^ yet save the four
horizontally trained Pear trees, which on receipt of your
letter had hardly a sound leaf left, the tender young leaves
being all rolled up ; for the new leaves that have formed since
the application of the emulsion are so far looking healthy." —
(F.K.).

In my own garden I have had thoroughly good success in
checking this attack by having " antipest," which is a pre-
paration very much of the nature of kerosine emulsion (see
Index!, on the blistered leafage. But for broadscale service,
in destroying the mite when it is in its winter quarters, the
treatment of effect of kerosine emulsion as carried out at
Cornell University Agricultural Station, New York State,
U.S.A., proved so satisfactory that I insert the following
summary of the operations. The experiments Avere carried
on in 1892, and repeated for verification in 1893, and the
main points regarding the treatment, which proved very
successful, and the life-history of the pest, were embodied in
the pamphlet mentioned below, which may be strongly
recommended to all interested in the subject.*

* Bulletin 61, December, 1893. Cornell University Agricultural Experiment
Station. By Mark Vernon Slintjerland. Published by the University, Ithaca,
New York, U.S.A. Procurable through Messrs. W. Wesley & Son, Essex Street,
Strand, London, W.C.

PEAR LEAF-BLISTER MITES. 181

After various experiments at Cornell University Agricultural
Station, two trees were chosen, of which one was treated with
kerosine emulsion diluted with two and one-third parts of
w^ater, the other tree left untreated as a check. "In the
spring the mites appeared in force on the check tree, hut
upon the treated trees* not more than a dozen galls ap-
peared during the season, the pest having thus been nearly
exterminated!"

This was looked on only as a guiding experiment, and
carried on in the following j^ear on a larger scale, as follows : —

"In September" (of the first year of observation, 1892)
"we found sixteen quite badly infested trees in the Horti-
cultural Orchard here at the Station. These were then
labelled, and on March 10th, 1893, all but two (which were
left for a check) were sprayed with kerosine emulsion diluted
with from three to ten parts of water. The trees were
standards varying from six to fifteen feet in height ; but it
was found that it required only about one and a half quarts
of the diluted emulsion, and about two minutes of time,
to spray a tree thoroughlj^ from all sides with a knapsack
sprayer.

" July 10th, 1893, the trees were examined, and it was
found that the four sprayed with the emulsion diluted with
three parts of water w'ere practically free from the disease.

" The four trees sprayed with the emulsion diluted five
times, and the four on which the emulsion diluted with eight
parts of water was used, showed a very few galls — not one per
cent, of the number on the trees the preceding year.

" Two trees which had been sprayed with the emulsion
diluted with ten parts of water showed nearly as many galls
as before.

" The two check trees were as badly infested as they were
the year before."

From these experiments it appears, as summarized by Mr.
Slingerland, that the Pear Leaf-blister Mite can be nearly
exterminated by one spraijing of the Pear trees (at any time
after the leaves have fallen off in the autumn, and before the
buds have begun to swell in the spring) with kerosine emulsion
diluted with not more than five to seven parts of water —
the tree being sprayed thoroughly from every side, taking
especial care to hit ever}^ terminal bud, for this is where most
of the mites congregate. — (M. V. S.).

* "Trees": two trees were dressed with undiluted kerosine, and nearly
killed, thus showing the necessity of being very careful in the use of kerosine ;
but as the dozen leaf -galls mentioned above were all to be found on the three
trees, the modified strength given in the emulsion answered well. " The only
apparent effect upon the trees treated with the emulsion was a slight retardation
in the unfolding of the leaves in the spring." — (M. V. S.).

k2

132 PEAR.

Observation. — The figures of the left leg of Phytoptu^
tristriatus and of P. tristriatiis var. carinea, magnified 550
times, at p. 127, are given in order to show the form of the
"holding-claw" or " feather-hristle " of the Phytoptus on
somewhat larger scale than it is shown in the figure of P.
pijri ; and whilst I refer readers desiring complete description
and perfect representation of the gall-mites to the works
mentioned below, I desire to record my sincere thanks to Dr.
Nalepa not only for his permission to make use of his figures
in my more detailed papers in my Annual Eeports for 1893,
1894, and 1896, but also for being so very good as to identify
for me all the specimens I sent over, and to assist me with
valuable instruction as to the anatomical and structural
formation of Phijtopti.

Those who wish to study the most recent publications on
Phytoptal observation in Austria, Italy, or France, ^>'ill find
a list of these in the ' Katalog der bisher beschrieben Gall-
Milben ihrer Gallen und Nahrpflanzen, nebst Angabe der
einschliigigen Literatur und kritischen Zusatzen.' Zusam-
mengestalt von Prof. Dr. Alfred Nalepa, in Linz-u.-Donau.
Abdruck aus der Zoologischen Jahrbuchern (Gustav Fischer,
in Jena).

The publications by Dr. Nalepa, from which I have quoted
in the preceding paper, are : the ' Beitriige z. Syst. d. Phyt.,
Sitzgsb.,' 1889, 98 = 'Beitriige zur Systematik der Phytopten,
in Sitzungsber. d. Kais. Akad. d. Wiss. in Wien,' 1889.
Bd. 98, 1, 1889; also, 'Zur Syst. d. Phyt. Sitzgsb.,' 1890,
99=' Zur Systematik der Phytopten, in Sitzungsber. d. Kais.
Akad. d. Wiss. in Wien,' 1890. Bd. 99, 1.

The first-mentioned in the two above paragraphs are separ-
ate impressions from the Eeports of the Imperial Natural
History Society of Vienna, to which the reference follows
each title, and I give both references, as the cost of the
pamphlets — 3s. 6d. or thereabouts — is very considerably less
than that of the volumes of the Reports or Transactions of
the Imperial Society. — E. A. 0.

Wood Leopard Moth. Zeuzera asciili, Linn.

The caterpillars of this moth feed in the live wood of many
kinds of trees. They are to be found in Pear, Apple, Plum,
and Walnut; also in Ash, Beech, Birch, Elm, Holly, Lime,
Oak, and others, besides Horse Chestnut {^■Esculus hippocas-
tanum), from which the moth takes its specific name, though
not appropriately, as it rarely attacks this tree.

WOOD LEOPARD MOTH.

133

The moth is said to be native of almost all Europe, and is
"widely distributed in this country, and specimens of this
attack, chiefly in caterpillar stage, are not unfrequently sent
me, but it is very rarely mentioned as being prevalent. In
1879 it was more common than usual near Maldon, in Essex;
and, during severe weather in the winter of that year, a few
specimens of caterpillars were brought to me in small boughs,
or rather in thick twigs, at Isleworth (near London), quite

Zeuzeka ^sculi. — Female, head of male, and caterpillar.

uninjured by the cold. In 1880 it was noticed as very
numerous at Craighall, Blairgowrie, Perthshire, many empty
pupa-cases being observable in young Poplars at the water's
edge ; and it was also observed in that year as very injurious
in fruit and timber trees at West Ham, in Essex (so that
measures were taken to destroy the caterpillar) ; but excepting
these observations no notes have been sent of it up to the
23resent time as a serious infestation.

The moth is large and handsome ; the female from about
two and a quarter to two and three-quarter inches in spread
of the wings, the male much smaller. The wings are some-
what transparent, and are white with blackish or blue-black
spots, the spots being darkest on the fore wings, which also
have yellow veins. The body between the wings is white
spotted with black, and the abdomen grey, or grey banded
with black.

It is stated that the female moths appear somewhat later
than the male, and may be found until the end of August.

The eggs are laid during July, or later in the summer, in
crevices of the bark, and on the branches as well as the trunk
of the trees ; these eggs are oval and salmon-coloured, and as
many as three hundred have been seen laid by one moth.

134 PEAR.

The caterpillars, which soon hatch, feed at first in the bark,
but not long afterwards they make their way into the live
wood, where they bore galleries rather wider than themselves,
and as much as a foot in length. When full grown they are
about an inch and a half long, whitish, or yellow, or ochry,
with a black horny plate on the segment behind the head, and
the tail segment also is partially black and horny. The other
segments have each four raised black spots on each side, and
the head is black, or has two black spots.

They feed (or feed at intervals) through the winter until
May or June (statements are made that they live for two
years), and, when full-fed, they spin a web, or form a case of
wood-dust, in which they change to an ochreous brown, long,
cylindrical chrysalis. This web is usually woven just inside
the bark, near the entrance of the boring, so that when the
time for development is come the chrysalis forces itself through
the opening, and, by means of the fine prickles with which it
is furnished along the back, it is held firmly in the web whilst
the moth frees itself, and leaves the empty case projecting
from the tree.

Prevention and Remedies. — The caterpillars may be de-
stroyed (like those of the Goat Moth) by drawing them out of
their burrows with hooked wires, or by running a strong wire
into the hole, and thus crushing the caterpillar within to
death. If the wire, when withdrawn, is found to have wet
whitish matter on it, such as would result from having crushed
the larva, or again, if gnawed wood should have been passed
out of the burrow up to the time of the operation and no
more appear afterwards, it may be supposed the creature is
killed ; otherwise the operation should be repeated.

Syringing is also of service in getting rid of these cater-
pillars. For this purpose a gutta-percha tube with a sharp-
pointed nozzle may be fitted to the syringe, and thus, by
placing the point of the nozzle well into the hole, it may be
filled with strong tobacco-water, soft-soap, or any mixture
that may be preferred, such as will make the hole too un-
pleasant or poisonous for the grub to remain in, even if it is
not killed by the application.

The fumes of sulphur blown into the holes are also very
efl'ective in destroying the caterpillars ; and tobacco-smoke
has been suggested for the same purpose.

This moth is preyed on by bats.

COMMON VAPOURER MOTH.

135

Common Vapourer Moth. Orgyia cmtiqna, Linn.

Okgyia antiqua. — Caterpillar (after Taschenberg) ; male moth ; female moth,
with abortive wings.

This infestation is not as well known as it ought to be on
account of the destructive nature of the caterpillars, which
appear, as circumstances may suit them, to prey on almost
every kind of leafage, whether of Pear or Plum, or other kinds
of fruit trees. Hawthorn or Sloe, Roses or other garden plants,
or even Fir. The attack is very common, and to be found
both in town and country, and in orchard houses, as well as
out of doors.

From the circumstance of the female moth having only
abortive wings, and laying her eggs on or near the webbed-
together leaves or spun cocoon from which she came out, the
attack (if not looked to) may be expected to increase yearly,
but at the same time this circumstance may be turned to good
account remedially.

The male moths are of various shades of brown or chestnut,
with the fore wings clouded with darker colour, and with a
white, somewhat moon-shaped mark near the hinder angle.
The females are grey, not quite half an inch in length, and
have only abortive wings.

The life-history is that when the female moths come out
from the chrysalis they creep on to the outside of the yellowish
grey somewhat oval cocoon, and there pairing takes place.
The female very soon begins depositing her eggs on the
surface of the cocoon and in the immediate neighbourhood,
and then dies.

It was recorded by Edward Newman ('British Moths,' p. 40)
"that these eggs do not hatch all together, like those of moths
in general, but come out a few at a time over a period of ten
weeks, so that the caterpillar, chrysalis, and moths are all
found together throughout the summer and autumn." The
eggs of the late moths, which remain unhatched through the
winter, have been seen (when under special observation) to
hatch out their caterpillars about the 23rd of April.

These fine caterpillars, which vary in length from about an
inch and a quarter to two inches when full grown, are dark

136

PEAR.

grey spotted with small red tubercles, and easil}' distinguish-
able by having four large tufts of yellowish or brownish hairs
on the back, and also five pencils or bunches of long dark
pin-headed hairs disposed — one on each side behind the head,
pointing forwards ; one on each side of the fifth segment ;
and one on the back of the penultimate segment, forming a
kind of tail-hke appendage (see figure, p. 135). By the above

Cocoons of Orpijia antiqiia, respectively covered with eggs and showing
chrysalis within.

characteristics the caterpillars are easily known from shortly
after hatching.

When full-fed, which may be from May to August, they
spin their cocoons (see figures above), mixed with hairs, on
the twigs amongst the remains of the leaves on which they
have been feeding, or on trunks of trees or palings, and in
these the caterpillar changes to a dusky yellow chrysalis,
from which the moth appears in summer in about a fortnight.

The excellent specimens shown above were sent me during
November, 1890, from Croome Court, Severn Stoke, Wor-
cestershire, by direction of the Earl of Coventry, and figured
by his kind permission, and show the great number of eggs
quite coating over the outside of the cocoon, and. thus point
out that the starting point of what would be much future
mischief if neglected might be very easily got rid of where
these egg-covered cocoons are in reach.

Specimens of the attack have not often been sent me, but
I have had them in 1886 and again in 1890 from widely
separated localities, as from Linton-on-Ouse ; Porchester
Terrace, London, where they did a deal of mischief ; also

PEAR LYDA ; SOCIAL PEAR SAWFLY.

137

from Worcestershire ; and from the South of Ireland : and
amongst fruit leafage attacked that of Pear and Victoria and
Greengage Plum was especially mentioned.

Prevention and Piemedies. — Where infestation is known
to be present the cocoons should be carefully searched for on
all boughs in reach from the ground, or other observable
localities, and these should be destroj^ed with the contents, or
with the egg-deposit outside, as the case may be. Where the
twigs are out of reach of common measures, the use of a pair
of small sharp hawk's-bill nippers placed at the end of long
handles would be desirable. I have myself found a form with
light handles about five feet long very convenient.

Syringings with soft-soap mixtures, Paris-green, or other
applications, such as are customarily used for leafage attacks,
would be equally serviceable in the case of this infestation.

Pear Lyda; Social Pear Sawfly.

Lijda pyri, Schrank ; L, clypeata, Ivlug ; L. fasciata, Curtis and

Westwood ; Pamphilhis flaviventris, Cameron.

Lyda pyei. — Web-nest with caterpillars, after Taschenberg ; sawfly, female,
magnified, and larva, full size, after Cameron.

The Pear Lyda, or Social or Web-spinning Pear Sawfly, as
this species is variously named, is, so far as I am aware, not
at all a common infestation in this country. Specimens of
the attack have never been sent to me, excepting in the

138 PEAR.

year 1896 ; and with regard to prevalence of this insect,
Mr. Cameron only says : " Probably common in gardens in
England. I have not found it in Scotland." With regard to
plants infested, he mentions that the " larva lives on Pear,
Plum, and Cherry trees, also on the Whitethorn (JMespilus)
and other rosaceous shrubs, feeding with many others under
the shelter of a common web in June and Jul3^"*

On June 25th (1896) an excellent specimen of a web-nest
of this species of Lyda with its tenants was sent me from
Hextable, with the observation: — "As you see, it is on a Pear
shoot. I found a batch on the same row of trees last year,
and this season only one. Last season's batch were older,
and of a bright orange colour ; they would not feed in confine-
ment, but lived about three months without appearing to
feed, and then gradually shrank to very small dimensions.
I have not found this insect on any other tree in the
locality."— (C.B.)

The caterpillars sent proved, both in appearance and habits,
to agree excellently with the description of the kind which is
still perhaps most frequently known by its old name of Lyda
pyri, or the Social Pear Sawliy. They were as yet (as noted
by the sender) not full grown, being hardly half an inch long,
the length attained at full growth being three-quarters or
nearly an inch. The colour of the caterpillars reddish or
reddish orange ; they are very smooth and shining, and
somewhat cylindrical. The head very shining black, with a
pair of pointed antennae, ringed black with a little white ;
rings apparently about seven,! but difiicult to count with
certainty. On the segment behind the head were some small
black markings. The three pairs of claw-feet were of the
orange colour of the body, and there were no ventral or
sucker-feet ; but on each side of the terminal segment was a
pale antenna-like process (see figure of larva, p. 137), each
about as long as the space across the top of the segment
between the lowest joints of this pair of horn-like processes,
which pointed slightly backwards. There was some variety
in colour in the caterpillars, according to whether they had
been lately feeding ; in this case the devoured matter from
the Pear leaves gave a greenish tint through the transparent
skin. My specimens were obviously only about half-grown ;
but (as noted by Prof. Westwood I) this kind does not, like
many sawfly larvae, change colour at different ages, but young
and old are similarly coloured.

* See 'British Phytophagous Hymenoptera,' vol. iii. p. 97.
t Mr. Cameron says, " with long seven- to eight-jointed anteunte " (' British
Phytophagous Hymenoptera,' vol. i. p. 53).

I See ' Gardeners' Chronicle ' for 1851, No. for January 18th, p. 36.

PEAR LYDA ; SOCIAL PEAR SAAVFLY. 139

The web-nest, in which the caterpillars lay, was three
inches long, formed of threads spun from their mouths to the
Pear leaves on which they were feeding, and when received
(very likely a good deal injured in transit) was an irregular
piece of webbing about three-quarters of an inch less or more
in width. The earliest spun part, which was black with
decay and dirt of various kinds, was deserted, and the cater-
pillars lay for the most part in two clusters, one of about
twenty-two or more grubs, one of not so many. These were
closely packed together in their web, but reached out from it
to feed on the Pear leaves, which they greedily devoured,
starting at the edge, and made great havoc with. In one
instance they had eaten away about two-thirds of a leaf up
to the mid-rib, leaving only part of some of the chief side
veins.

The spinning powers of the caterpillars were very noticeable
in endeavouring to reconstruct a shelter for themselves when
a Pear leaf, which had partly covered over a large party of
them, had been removed,

A little later, on July 21st in the same year, a friend and
neighbour mentioned to me having observed a web-nest,
estimated at about three inches across, on a Pear tree in her
garden in Piomelands, St. Albans. This contained about fifty
shining, reddish orange, "worm-like" caterpillars, which were
doing so much damage that the nest had been cut off and
destroyed before I heard of it ; but from the description
(though without personal insiDection) I do not think it could
be other than one of the social collections of caterpillars of
Lyda pyri.

The above are the only instances in which the attack has
been brought under my own notice ; but, looking at the bright
shiny orange colour of the many caterpillars feeding together
in a web several inches in diameter, and the devastation to
the spun-up leafage, the infestation is one calculated to attract
so much attention from the most unobservant, that it may be
conjectured if often present it would be much more enquired
about.

The main points of the life-history as given by German
and English entomologists are as follows. The female sawfly
lays (towards the end of May) from forty to sixty eggs, mostly
on the under side of the Pear leaves. These eggs are longish
in shape, yellow, and look as if smeared with grease, and are
laid with great regularity in rows. The caterpillars, which
hatch out in a few days, are at first of a whitish yellow
colour, but become darker after the first moult, and begin
immediately to spin a loose web, in the threads of which they
climb to and fro. This web is enlarged, as requisite conse-

140 PEAR.

quently on the ragged and filthy condition which it acquires,
or to enlarge the feeding-ground, and the caterpillars drag
themselves about within it by holding on to the threads, and
in four or five weeks attain their full growth.

They then let themselves down to the ground, and bury
themselves as much (it is said) as four inches deep, or deeper
still, in the earth, in a smoothed cavity, but without spinning
a cocoon. Here they change to the perfect sawfly, which,
according to recorded observations, may appear in the follow-
ing spring, or in the spring next but one to date of going into
the ground.

The figure at p. 137 shows the form of the fly and the
neuration of the two pairs of wings. The fly is four to five
lines in length of body, that is, from a third of an inch to
rather more ; the expanse of the wings somewhat under an
inch ; the colour chiefly black, but the abdomen tawny
towards the extremity, with a triangular yellow mark in each
segment ; ventral segments banded with yellow. The base of
the antennae and also the legs yellow ; the four hindermost
of the thighs black at base. Wings hyaline, with a broad
smoky band below the stigma. In the male the abdomen
from the second segment is reddish yellow.*

Prevention and Eemedies. — The simplest and most effectual
plan would be, as with other web-living infestations, wherever
the webs are in reach, to cut them off and destroy them with
their contents. But a little care must be taken in order to
secure all the caterpillars, as on alarm, when nearly full
grown, they may let themselves down by their threads, and
so escape into the ground. This might easily be prevented
by holding a pail below the nest with some sticky fluid in it,
soft-soap wash for instance, which would effectually prevent
stray caterpillars getting away ; and indeed the best method
of operation would be to cut the nest itself and its contents
off into the pail of soft-soap wash, and thus make quite sure
of none escaping.

Where the nests are out of reach, syringing soft-soap or
soft-soap and paraffin wash at them, so as to sodden the web,
would be good treatment, taking care, as before mentioned,
to have something placed below to secure such caterpillars as
might let themselves down.

Various observers have mentioned difficulty in rearing this
sawfly in artificial circumstances, and perhaps the following

* For description of fly (imago) see ' British Phytoijhagous Hymenoptera,'
by P. Cameron, vol. iii. p. 97 ; and for figure of tij, vol. ii. of same work,
plate G ; and of larva and tail processes, plate 12 of same volume. These
tigures I beg to acknowledge with thanks as having been copied in my own
figure, p. 137.

LEAF WEEVILS.

141

plan, wliich I have found answer well, though I have not tried
it with this special infestation, might help those who wish to
observe the life-history of this somewhat rare attack. I took
a wire or pierced metal dish-cover, such as is used for pre-
venting flies getting at meat in larders, and placed this on
the ground over the larvas and their food, or where the larva?
had buried themselves of which I wished to secure the perfect
insects. Thus the grubs were left undisturbed in perfectly
natural circumstances, and all that was necessary was to look
frequently when the time of development drew near, lest, in
case of Lepidoptera (i. e. butterflies or moths), the specimens
should have had time to injure their plumage by beating on
the metal cover. With specimens of this nature it is well to
have a few twigs firmly set in the ground under the dish-cover
for the newly-developed insects to crawl up and rest on whilst
spreading their embryo wings to full size.

"Oblong Leaf Weevil"; "Downy Brown Leaf Weevil."

Phyllobiiis obloiKjus, Linn. ; P. (XeDiuicus) ohlongus, Stephens.
Green "Leaf" Weevil. Phyllohius macidicomis, Germ.

1 and 2, Phyllobius oblongus ; 3, P. maculicorxis : magnified and
natural size.

The PJnjllohius beetles taken together are described as
" beetles feeding on the leaves and buds of trees and bushes,
and of wliich many kinds are injurious to fruit trees." But,
though widely distributed, as much attention has not been
given either to their life-history or to remedial measures as
is desirable, and of the very few reports which I have received
of their appearances, those given below may be of service as

142 PEAK.

showing the mischief that two of the species have been noticed
as causing, and also the recurrence of the attack year by
year when once estabhshed.

The Brown Leaf Weevil, figured at p. 141, is a common
kind in this country, and sometimes very destructive, but is
not generally so much noticed as the bright kinds of Phyllo-
hiiis (the genus to which it belongs), of which one species,
P. maculiconns, did damage over hundreds of acres in May,
1888, by devouring the leafage of various kinds of orchard
trees, as of Apples, Plums, Cherries, Nuts, &c.

These Brown Leaf Weevils, P. oblong us, are of the shape
figured magnified at p. 141, only about the sixth of an inch
or a little more in length, and somewhat elongate or parallel -
sided in shape. The head and thorax are usually black ; the
wing-cases variable in colour, pale dull red or brown, with the
margins often black, or sometimes they may be entirely
pale, — my own specimens, from Kent, have been with reddish
wing-cases and black borders, also I have them with reddish
brown, and yellower brown elytra, without borders ; the head,
thorax, and wing-cases are covered more or less with a rather
long grey pubescence ; wings present. This grey down dis-
tinguishes this species from the other PJnjllohiHs weevils,
which are for the most part beset with green scales. The
antennae (horns) are twelve-jointed and elbowed, the club
elongate-ovate ; the rostrum (or proboscis) short ; eyes rather
prominent ; the legs yellowish or brown.

In the early summer of 1896 observations were sent me of
great damage being done to orchard trees by these beetles
at localities in the south-east and south-west of England.
Specimens were sent on the 18tli of May from Kent, with the
observation that the Pear and Apple trees of the sender were
so infested that at the time he hacl " the ground and trees full
of them." A little later on specimens were sent from another
locality, with the observation: — "I may say that they have
done me very great damage for years past. They appear
about the first week in Ma}', and eat the young buds of the
Apple trees, &c."

In continental records this Brown Leaf Weevil is stated
to appear in some years " in astonishing numbers." The
devastation of the orchard trees begins with the appearance
of the leafage, and first of all the buds are attacked, and
where development takes place slowly a great part are de-
stroyed. Grafted plants in nursery gardens are noted as
especially liable to attack.

We do not appear (so far as I am aware) to have any
English observations as to the life-history of this beetle in
its early condition ; but the following notes are given by

LEAF WEEVILS. 143

Kollar* from Canon Schmidberger's observations: — "It makes
its appearance very early in spring, and is seen on the leaves
when it has scarcely completed its develoj^ment. It particu-
larly prefers young trees, to which it is very destructive. No
kind of fruit tree is secure from its voracity ; the leaves of
the Pear, Apple, Plum, and Apricot, and particularly those
of the Peach, it considers delicious food. It generally selects
only the best part of the leaf, and leaves the mid-rib and the
petiole. . . . Pairing follows. ... In June the female
enters the earth to deposit her eggs there ; and the grub that
is produced from the egg feeds on the roots of different kinds
of plants, passes the winter in the earth, and appears again
transformed into a beetle in spring." f

Prevention and Eemedies. — Beating the beetles down in
the early morning, or on dull days, is one way of lessening
their numbers, bearing in mind that as they are ivinged the
various precautions always advised should be taken against
the disturbed beetles flying away and coming back to the
trees.

Likewise washings or sprayings (for which see Index) of any
insecticide poisonous or destructive to the beetles, and harm-
less to the leafage, could not fail to be beneficial.

To protect grafts, it is recommended to smear grafting-wax,
or a mixture of clay, which might keep off the beetles. (I
have no experience of this treatment myself.)

For winter treatment, anything done to the bark would
presumably be quite useless, as, so far as appears, the larvae
and chrysalids are never to be found there, nor have we any
notes of the beetles wintering in its crannies. But probably
where the soil beneath the trees could be treated, we might do
much there towards getting rid of the infestation. Skimming
the surface and destroying it would do good if we could be
sure we went down low enough to remove the grubs ; but
these being so very small, it would be difficult to detect their
presence in the earth. But where the ground was bare, it
would be well worth while to try the effect of as heavy a
dressing as the owner thought safe of some chemical manure,
as kainite, nitrate of soda, or any other appHcation which

* See Kollar, ' Naturgesch. der Schadl. Insekten,' pp. 258-260; English
translation, pp. 251, 252, in which this weevil is noted under various synonyms.
In the En<,'lish translation, revised by Prof. Westwood, that of Nemoicits is
added, being the generic name under which Stephens separated this downy
and scaleless Pliyllobius from the scale-bearing species.

t It was considered by Nordlinger that the larvse went through their changes
not in the ground but in rolled-together leafage ; this view, however, is stated
by Kaltenbach not to have been confirmed ; whilst subsequent observations
have established the correctness of those of Canon Schmidberger, see ' Die
Pflanzenfeinde,' p. ISO.

144 PEAR.

(similarly) we know to be good for plant growth, and injurious
to at least some kinds of insect life.

Green " Leaf Weevil. PJnjUoblus maculicornis, Germ.

These little weevils are of a very similar size and shape
(see figure, p. 141) to P. ohlongus, mentioned above; but,
instead of being of some shade of brown and covered with
grey down, they are covered with bluish, or golden yellow, or
greenish scales. The length of the beetles is about one-sixth
of an inch, and the colour beneath the greenish scales is
black; the wing-cases "with very short hairs scarcely pro-
jecting beyond scales " ; horns mostly yellow red, with club
black; legs black, with tip of shanks and feet brownish.

The following notes, sent me on the 16th May, 1888, by Mr.
Arthur Eayfield, regarding the prevalence of this attack on
the orchards of the late Mr. Faunce de Laune, at Sharsted
Court, near Sittingbourne, Kent, show the persistence of the
attack, the large area over which it extended, the variety of
kinds of orchard and other trees infested, and also some
amount of benefit by remedial treatment : —

"I herewith enclose some specimens of a green insect that
I have observed on Mr. Faunce de Laune's fruit trees for
three or four years past. They come in larger numbers each
succeeding year, besides spreading over a larger area. I
notice this spring that they first made their appearance about
the 20th of this month. I have succeeded in catching a
considerable quantity by shaking the trees (standards), and
holding a tarred cloth beneath, on which they fall and stick,
until some fresh tar is put on ; but it is impossible to get rid
of them in this way, as they swarm over several hundred
acres, settling on fruit trees, — Cherries, Plums, Apples, and
Nuts, — besides nearly all other kinds of trees and bushes,
such as Thorns, Sloes, and even Firs. They appear to live
on the leaves of what trees they alight on, but prefer those
that have been newly planted. They take advantage of any
shelter, and prefer the south side, in the sun, and out of the
cold winds."

On June 1st, Mr. Eayfield wrote further that he had
succeeded in catching great numbers of the leaf weevils " but
there yet remain huge quantities. We are most successful
in catching them in the morning and evening, when it is dull
and not too much wind. They collect in larger numbers in
sheltered places, but when disturbed by a sudden jar, while
the sun is shining brightly, and in a warm temperature, some

LEAF WEEVILS. 145

take to wing, and consequently avoid the tarred cloth held
beneath." A few days later — on June 4th — Mr. Eayfield
reported that the beetles appeared to be diminishing in
number, but, though he searched carefully, he could not
make out where the eggs were laid, or the maggots lived.

This matter would be well worth investigating where attack
is prevalent, and, by turning up sods in different places under
some of the trees that were infested last year, there would be
a good chance of finding the maggots. They might be ex-
pected to be whitish and legless, with a head furnished with
jaws, and in general appearance, although much smaller, very
like Otiorhynclius maggots (for reference, see Index).

For means of prevention and remedy, see p. 143.

Obseevation. — Like Apple and Plum, the Pear is subject
to a great number of insect attacks common to other orchard
trees, besides those which are mentioned in the foregoing
pages as more especially infestations of its own.

Amongst these may be mentioned, amongst Pear attacks,
infestations of the Great Tortoiseshell Butterfly, Codlin Moth,
Goat Moth, Lackey Moth, Mottled Umber and Winter Moths,
the Wrinkled Bark Beetle {Scohjtus rugulosus), the Apple-
blossom Weevil, and a black weevil (Otiorhynchus tenehricosus,
Herbst) which attacks leafage, the very common Cherry and
Pear Sawfly and the Apple-blossom Sawfly, the Apple Aphis
and the American Blight Aphis, and also the Mussel Scale.

As mentioned at p. 48 and in the Preface, it has been
endeavoured, so far as was conveniently practicable, to give
the infestations affecting several kinds of trees under the
name of the tree, of attacks to which, observations were
especially contributed ; but in the alphabetical list of orchard
trees, and fruit bushes, which precedes the Index at the end
of this volume, the names of the infestations affecting each
will be found enumerated. — E. A. 0.

146

PLUM.

PLUM.

Plum Aphis or " Green Fly." Aphis pruni, Reaumur.*

2

Anns r

KUNi. — 1, winged viviparous female ; 2, wingless viviparous female ;
3, pupa: all magniHed. After G. 13. Buckton, F.lt.S.

The Plum Aphis or Green Fly {ApJds pruni, Eeaumur) is
to be found on Apple, Medlar, Peach, and Apricot, besides
various kinds of Plum, and, as noted in * British Aphides,' t
"is exceedingly destructive. Multiplication takes place by
millions, and the insects close up the pores of the leaves by
their tenacious excretions and the mealy exudations from
their bodies. By the constant irritation of their rostra
[suckers] the leaves roll up, and under this cover from the
weather both the winged and apterous forms live overspread
by . . . mealy powder, which probably to them is a pro-

* Also of Fab., Kalt., Mosley, Walk., Koch, Pass. So much difliculty exists
as to synonymic distinction of the above species of Plum Aphis, as also as to
possible differences or variations, as well as synonyms of other species affecting
the Plum, that I have given the above list of authorities and also moderately
full descri})tions of A. pruni in its different conditions abridged from the account
given by Mr. G. B. Buckton in his ' British Aijhides,' vol. ii. pp. G^-O?, with
hgures from i)late Ivi. in the same volume, in order that both on his high
authority and also as British description we may have a firm foundation for
comparison with other Plum-infesting aphides.

t See 'British A^jhides,' by G. B. Buckton, F.R.S., vol. ii. p. G4.

PLUM APHIS OR " GREEN FLY." 147

tcction." They are to be found collected in numerous colonies
on the under side of leaves of the young shoots, and are
sometimes found in parties on the stems of the green fruit.

TliC winged viviparous * female (figure 1, p. 140) is one-fifth
of an inch in expanse of the fore wings, of which the mem-
brane is finely punctured, stigma greenish, veins brown.
General colour apple green ; head, horns, body between the
wings, knees, and feet black. Abdomen green, with four
lateral spots at each edge ; dorsum with a squarish spot and
two dark streaks below the cornicles (honey-tubes), which are
dark olive or only tipped with black. Legs yellowish.

The tvingless viviparous female is of various tints from green
to olive brown, with three faint green stripes on the abdomen.
The horns short, olive brown ; the cornicles (honey-tubes)
very small, brown. TJie wltole body, above and below, jjowdered
with a cottony meal.

The ivingless ovip)arons\ female "is greenish yellow, trans-
parent, usually shows the mature eggs within" (see figure 2,
p. 146). Of this it is noted that " the eggs in November are
ready for lajang, and freely pass from the body by a gentle
compression" (Gr. B. B.).

The male is winged ; the body of a dingy ochreous colour,
with head, feet, honey-tubes, and various markings umber
brown; and some males wholly black. Has been "taken
rather numerously and in company with the oviparous
female on the Apple tree towards the middle of November"
<G. B. B.).

The pupa (for form see figure 3, p. 146) is shining green
with shades of ochreous, two broad marks on the top of the
head; wing-cases tipped with dark brown; honey-tubes green
with black tips.

One very important point in the life-history of this species
which distinguishes it from Pliorodon Jtumuli, the Hop Aphis
or "Plum and Hop" Aphis, which also infests the Plum, is
that this kind {Aphis j^i'nni) is not migratory. It does not
(like P. humuli) leave the Plum in early summer, and with the
autumn season return in developed form from the Hop to
hybernate. Observations in detail on this subject are given
from p. 153 onwards.

Prevention and Piemedies. — Washes with a foundation of
soft-soap are the most desirable, because they have the great
advantage of sticking in some degree to the aphides. When
these insects (as before noted) are covered witli a kind of
mealy powder, many of the washes used simply run oil" them

* Viviparous — producing living young,
t Oviparous — producing eggs.

l2

148 PLUM.

at once ; and unless the application sticks to them, so as to
kill them, or is given so violently as to knock them from their
position, the labour does little good.

For application to kill Green Fly on the Plum trees, the
following mixture was reported to me by Mr. C. D. Wise (the
Superintendent) as found serviceable in the Toddington Fruit
Grounds, namely : — Quassia and soft-soap in the proportion
of two ounces of each to each gallon of water, and Paris-
green added in the proportion of one ounce to ten gallons of
the decoction.

A decoction of quassia chips and soap, or soft-soap, has
been found serviceable both for syringing infested trees and
also, on a smaller scale, for dipping shoots in. One recipe for
the mixture is — one ounce of quassia boiled for ten minutes
in a quart of water, and a piece of soft-soap the size of a.
small hen's egg then added.

Mr. J. Masters, Secretary of the Evesham Fruit Conference
Committee, wrote me as follows : — " The committee consider
that the trees should be sprayed early, before the pest has
developed. I had a row of trees last year, and the foliage
was severely injured by the aphis. This year, before the trees
had bloomed, we gave them a good syringing with soft-soap
and a little paraffin oil, and this year we have no attack of
the aphis in these trees ; but other trees near, that did not
suffer from the aphides last year, and where we did not dress
the trees as ahove, we have found are severely affected this
season." — (J. M.)

An addition of some amount of paraffin to soft- soap wash
has been shown to be of use by the experiments of Mr. Ward
at Stoke Edith in 1883 and 1881. The proportions used by
him for large quantities were twelve pounds of soft-soap and
half a gallon of paraffin to one hundred gallons of hot water,
the mixture stirred well together and used when cool ; the
nearer boiling that the water is used the better the paraffin
mixes. This wash is found to be very effective in killing
aphides on Hop without injuring the plant or the burr, but it
requires such great care in mixing, and also in use, lest the
mineral oil should separate from the soft-soap ivash, and also
lest from state of weather or any other circumstance it should
injure the leafage or burr, that I do not venture to recommend
it as a Hop application.

The above observation of Mr. Masters as to dressing early
for prevention of aphides corresponds with mention made by
the U.S.A. Board of Agriculture ('Insect Life,' vol. iv. p. 343)
on the importance of destroying the first generation of P.
humidi "on Plum trees early in the spring with kerosine
emulsion." This is very similar in its nature to the mixture

PLUM APHIS OR ''green FLY." 149

of soft-soap and paraffin ; and at p. 87 of the same volume it
is stated that the conchision arrived at from experiments (for
•which authority is given) with kerosine emulsion for plant-
lice is that this mixture is a perfect remedy against these
insects if the application is thoroughly made.

This application is of such great value as an insecticide in
the case of many kinds of leafage, also to destroy insects
harhouring in bark, and for other preventive and remedial
purposes, that I give the following recipes for preparing the
emulsion, which would probably answer as well with paraffin
oil substituted for the kerosine, which is not so much used
with us as in the United States of America.*

Kerosine and Soap Mixture. — " To make this I use one-
fourth of a pound of hard soap, preferably whale-oil soap, and
one quart of water. This is heated till the soap is dissolved,
when one pint of kerosine oil is added, and the whole agitated
till a permanent mixture or emulsion is formed. The agita-
tion is easily secured by use of a force-pump pumping the
liquid with force back into the vessel holding it. I then
add water, so that there shall be kerosine in the proportion
of one to fifteen." — (Prof. A. J. Cook, in Bulletin 26 of the
Agricultural College, Michigan, U.S.A.)

I give the above recipe first, because, being noted as a
satisfactory application for the Apple Aphis, it may be pre-
sumed the proportion of kerosine would not be enough to
injure ordinary bark ; but all experimenters should bear in
mind that the strength and amount of mineral oil used must
be well considered, and the same strength may not be safe on
all parts of young trees, or on all conditions of leafage.

Another recipe is for " kerosine emulsion " of the ordinary
strength for general application, i-iz. kerosine or refined coal
oil, 1 pint ; common laundry soajD, ^ oz. ; rain-water, ^ pint.
The soap was boiled in the water till all was dissolved, then
the boiling soapsuds were poured into a watering-pot con-
taining the kerosine, and churned with a garden-syringe until
the emulsion was complete. This generally takes about five
minutes, but sometimes longer. When this emulsion is made,
it can be bottled up for future use. When using it, either
as a wash for sponging trees or for spraying, it must be
diluted with nine times the quantity of water. Should the
oil in the emulsion after a time separate, it is well to warm
it, and by violently shaking the bottle it will again become
fit for use. In diluting the emulsion use warm water. See
p. 14 of * Eeport of Entomologist and Botanist, Department
of Agriculture, Canada,' 1887.

* For other mixtures of soft-soap and paraffin, &c., see Index.

150 PLUM.

The following recipe is one of the Department of Agri-
culture of the United States of America. In this the plan is
to add one gallon of water in which a quarter of a pound of
soft-soap (or any other coarse soap preferred) has been dis-
solved, boiling or hot, to two gallons of petroleum or other
mineral oil. The mixture is then churned, as it were, together
by means of a spray-nozzled syringe or double-action pump
for ten minutes, by means of which the oil, soap, and water
are so thoroughly combined that the mixture settles down
into a cream-like consistency, and does not, if the operation
has been properly performed, separate again. This is used
diluted with some three or four times its bulk of water for a
watering ; if required for a wash, at least nine times its bulk
is needed — that is, three gallons of " emulsion," as it is
termed, make thirty gallons of wash. Warning is given that
care must be taken with each neiv crop to ascertain the strength
that can he home hy the leafage, and this equally applies to all
applications to live hark.

This point of testing the strength that can be borne by
different kinds of leafage and by leafage in different conditions
is exceedingly important, and so also is the matter of the
soft-soap and the mineral oil being so thoroughly incorporated
that they will not separate. If they do, the mineral oil will
be sure to cause much injury to the leafage on which it may
fall without being diluted by the soft-soap mixture.

For those who do not care to be at the great trouble of
mixing the emulsion, it would save time and expense to try
the use instead of a mixture sold by Messrs. Morris, Little &
Son, Doncaster, under the name of " antipest." This is very
similar in ingredients to the " kerosine emulsion," and being
sold ready mixed and only needing further diluting saves
much trouble ; it is sold at a very cheap rate, and I have
used it for a good many years with success as an insecticide
in my own garden.

Where there is plentiful water supply at hand, and also
means of throwing it with force, I have known much benefit
come from sending even this, with no additions, strongly at
the stems and branches; fairly "swilling" the tree down;
and where infested shoots with the leaves loaded with aphides
can be cut off without damage to the tree, enormous masses
of the pests may thus be removed and destroyed instead of
going on breeding and spreading infestation around.

Amongst natural means of protection we have some help
from the aphis-eating birds ; but our chief assistance is from
the Coccinellidce, the beetles well known as "Ladybirds,"
which feed (especially in the larval stage) voraciously on the
aphides.

HOP AND PLUM APHIS.

151

The figure below shows the appearance of the [slaty-grey
six-legged grubs (magnified, with line giving length when
full-grown). These grubs are prettily marked|with scarlet

CocciNELLiD^. — 1-4, egg, magnified; larva and chrysalis, magnified, and
with natural length; 7, Coccinella hipunctata ; 8, G. ditipar ; 9, G. septem-
punctata.

and yellow, and when full-fed, which is in about a fortnight
or three weeks, they hang themselves up by the tail, and turn
to a shiny black pupa or chrysalis, spotted down the back
with orange, from which the beetle (known as the " Lady-
bird") comes out in about another fortnight or three weeks.
The figures give the common red Ladybird, distinguishable
by its seven black spots, and also two smaller kinds.

These should be by all means protected, and especially
when they appear in the vast swarms in which they frequently
follow on a special outbreak of aphides, and in which, to our
great injury, they are liable to be swept up and destroyed, as
in the instance of their great appearance in 1869.

Hop Aphis; Hop and Plum Aphis.
Phorodun humuli, Scbrank, and var. maluheh, Fonsc.

The genus Phorodon, to which Phorodon humuli, commonly
known as the Hop Aphis, belongs, is especially distinguished
by the first joint of the antenna being bluntly toothed or
gibbous, and by also possessing frontal tubercles having a
strong tooth developed on the inner side, as conveyed to
some degree in the figure (p. 152) of the wingless viviparous
female.

The winged viviparous female of P. hwmdi is of a pale green
colour, lighter underneath ; head and band on prothorax dark
brown, some other markings on the thorax black ; abdomen
with one or more cross stripes and four spots on each side

152

PLUM.

also black; antennae green at their bases, tips brown. Legs
•with thighs and tips to the shanks brown. The frontal
tubercles less developed in this than in the wingless female.
Expanse of wings rather more than a quarter of an inch.

.<

Aphis hcmuli. — Winged and wingless viviparous females, magnified.*

The wingless viviparous female is small, oval, pale green,
with one to three green stripes along the back. Body some-
time shining, and sufficiently transparent to allow the tracheae
to appear like silver threads. Frontal tubercles dentate.
First joint of the antennae gibbous and porrected.

The ivinged male is smaller than the winged female. Colour
pale green excepting some parts of the thorax which are olive.
Antennae and wings long. Head and thorax much developed,
and frontal tubercles prominent.

The above notes are abridged from Buckton's ' British
Aphides,' vol. i., elsewhere frequently referred to.

Tlie ivingless oviparous female, which only appears in autumn,
is noted by Prof. Eiley in his English observations f as being
white at first, and becoming yellowish orange and olivaceous
with maturity, the head and the members darkening.

The larva (or louse, as it is commonly called in its earliest
stage) is very pale ; later on, in the pupa state, the head and
fore part of the body are broad and squarish and the colour
green.

For many years the migration of "Hop Aphis" from Plum
to Hop in the spring or early summer and return of the
descendants of these migrants back again from Hop to Plum
in the autumn has been considered to be established as the
case, both on the authority of many Hop growers and also by
observations of scientific observers qualified to distinguish one
kind of aphis from another.

• The above figures are acknowledged, with thanks, as reduced copies of
figures 1 and 4, plate xxx., vol. i., of ' Monograph of British Aphides,' by G. B.
Buckton, F.E.S.

t See ' Gardeners' Chronicle ' (London) for October 22nd, 1887.

HOP AND PLUM APHIS. 153

So loDg ago as the year 1854 it was recorded by Prof. C.
L. Koch* in his work on aphides that he found Hop Aphis
on Plum and Sloe, and he mentioned the great numbers in
which- this species {Phorodon humidi) was to be found on these
trees or bushes in the latter part of May. He described the
species in its various conditions (that is, as female, young,
<!tc.) from what he saw on Plum and Sloe, and after giving
details of these he added : — " In the month of June this kind
of ai^his quits the leaves of the Sloe" (or wild Plum), "and
then betakes itself to the wild and cultivated Hop, where it
settles on the under side of the leaves, sometimes in immense
numbers." — (C. L. K.)

From my own examination of specimens and collection of
observations of Hop Aphis attack during the latter part of
March to about the end of August in the year 1884 (and also
in subsequent years), and from comparison of published views
of entomologists who have paid especial attention to this kind
of aphis attack in England, Germany, and the United States
of America, there appears to me to be no reason to doubt that
a great part at least of the attack of "Green Fly" which
usually appears on Hops towards the end of May comes on
the wing from Plum, Damson, Sloe, or other plants of the
Plum kind, and may be certainly recognized as of the genus
Phorodon (Passerini) and of the species hiimidi (Schrank),
that is to say, what is commonly known as the Hop Aphis,
and is described by Buckton as Phorodon humuli, Schrank,
and Phorodon liumitli var. malahch, Fonsc.f

It was not, however, until the long and careful observations
which were made by Prof. C. V. Eiley, the Entomologist of
the Board of Agriculture of the United States of America,
were carried out by him in America and in England (in this
country in the autumn of 1887) that we became possessed of
the knowledge of the whole life-history of this Hop Aphis
{P. liumidi) from its hybernation on the Plum in egg state,
and spring migration on the wing, in sequence up to the
details of its autumn existence at the time of its migration
back from the Hop to the Plum, and the laying of the eggs
to start the next year's brood.

Details will be found in the papers by Prof. Eiley referred

* 'Die Pflanzenliiuse (Aphiden),' von C. L. Koch, jap. 114-116.

+ For some considerations published during 1897 as to standing of " malaheb "
as a variety of " hinniiU " or as a distinct species, see following notes under the
heading of Myziis malaheh. In my own observations I have considered malaheb
to be only a variety, as stated by Buckton to be his oi^inion (' British Aphides,'
vol. i. p. 168), together with his considerations and collation of opinion on this
subject of various writers; and also description, pp. 168-171, of P. humuli var.
malahch with notes of ih.e first antennal joint being gibbous in the females de-
scribed (and as figured, p. 1.52), as well as of existence of the frontal tubercle.
In si^elling of the word malaheb, I follow the different writers. — E. A.O.

154 PLUM.

to below,* from ^Yhicll I extract some of the leading points ;
and also, as during Prof. Eiley's stay in England I was
favoured by communication with him regarding autumn
migration of which details had not previously been recorded,
I give some extracts from letters from him to myself on this
subject.

Some few of the leading points of Prof. Eiley's observations
may be shortly stated as follows. Phorodou JinmuU hyber-
nates in the winter egg state ; the little glossy black ovoid
eggs are fastened to the twigs (generally the previous year's
growth) of different varieties and species of Primus, both wild
and cultivated, and are especially found in tbe more or less
protected crevices around the buds. The egg is difficult to
detect because it is covered with particles which resemble the
bark in colour and appearance. They are usually not more
than four or five in number.

From these eggs the aphides hatch which are the mothers
of the coming infestation ; the colour pale green, and "the
tubercles between the lionis hardly observable." Three gene-
rations are produced upon the Plum, the third of which
becomes winged, and instinctively abandons the Plum and
migrates to Hamulus, that is, to the Hop plant.

A number of generations are produced upon the Hop (all
without occurrence of the male sex) until in autumn winged
females are produced, known as the return migrants, which
fly instinctively to the Plum. Here they settle, and in the
course of a few days (according to weather) each produces
some three or four young. " These are destined never to
become winged, and are true sexual females." Somewhat
later, on the Hop, the true winged male, the only male of the
ivhole series, is developed, and these males also congregate
upon the Plum, on the leaves of which, toward the end of the
season, they may be found ]>airing with the wingless females,
which stock the tw-igs with the winter eggs. Such briefly is
the life-history.

In regard to dates in tJds country of the above described
autumn migration. In the year 1887 Prof. Puley wrote to
me, on September 15th, from Maidstone in Kent: — "As I
anticipated, I have found Phorodon Jtunmli just migrating
from Hop to Prune, and first wingless generation on Prune,
but no eggs yet." On September 24th, also, writing from

* Paper by Prof. C. V. Kiley read before Section D of the British Association
for the Advancement of Science, Manchester, Sept. 3rd, 1887. " Notes on tlie
Hop Plant Louse," paper by Prof. C. V. Eiley read before the Society for the
Promotion of Agricultural Science, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A., August 21st, 1888.
See also ' Insect Life,' United States Department of Agriculture, vol. i. pp. 70-74 ;
and "The Hop Plant Louse," pp. 133-137 of same volume. Likewise 'Eleventh
Annual Report on Injurious Insects,' by myself, pp. 84-86. — E. A. O.

HOP AND PLUM APHIS. 155

the neighbourhood of Maidstone, Prof. Eiley noted, " Phorodon
swarming on Plum trees here." On October 1st Prof. Piiley
wrote me that he had now brought the Phorodon investigations
to a successful close, and completed his observations of the
whole life cycle : — " Last week pairing was everywhere going
on, and on Saturday I noticed the first eggs. The Plum trees
are now being rapidly stocked. The male is winged and the
female wingless, as I had surmised." Prof. Eiley further
informed me that the aphis eggs which he had seen on the
Plum shoots became black, and this agrees with the informa-
tion sent me for several years preceding 1887 whilst investi-
gations were going on, that they had noticed black eggs, from
which they had not any doubt that the aphis which they
hatched was Hop AjDhis.

Prof. Eiley observed that although the winged emigrants
from the Hop preferred the Damson, yet they also fed and
bred on all other varieties of Plum which he had the oppor-
tunity of examining, including the Bullace, the Victoria, the
Black Diamond, the Yellow, the Greengage, and the Orleans.

These observations relatively to migration, for full details
of which the reader is referred to works cited p. 154, coming
as they do from such a high authority as the late Prof. Eiley,
and also as being the result of his long-continued personal
investigations, give thorough confirmation to the belief pre-
viously much held as to Hop infestation coming on the wing
from Plum ; but still I do not myself think that in this
country, though much of the attack comes in this way, that
it is wholly so originated, and esiDecially with regard to the
very earliest appearances.

I think this because we have found aphides (that is, wingless
females and lice) on Hop as early as the end of March and
the beginning of April, long before the attack coming on the
wing made its appearance.

Just to give a few instances :— In 1884 Mr. C. Whitehead,
writing to me from Barming, Maidstone, on the 29th of
March, mentioned, "I have found the enclosed Hop shoot,
with the larv8B in situ, in my Hop ground this morning.
There was a wingless female, which had evidently deposited
viviparously the larvae enclosed. ... I dress late, and so
I have plenty of shoots which will soon be cut off, and upon
these I found the lice I sent to you. I went out in the
afternoon and found lice upon many of the hills, . . . where
there were small lice, in most cases a wingless viviparous
active female was not far off. I found them chiefly in a part
sheltered from cold winds, and where hatching or awakening
from hybernation would be early. I should say I found a
hundred at least in ten minutes."

156

PLUM.

On the 31st of March (that is, two days later) I had infor-
mation from another locahty in Kent, of some " lice " heing
found on *' Grape " Hoiis. Early in April, Mr. Whitehead
further wrote me that he had found more "lice" on Hop
shoots, and that two farmers had just called and brought
more, and on the 12th of April Dr. T. A. Chapman, writing
from Hereford, reported that after careful search in the Hop-
yards where the bine was two feet high, he could find no
trace of'Jiij,'' but on the following day he found a bine with
seven or eight aphides on it. These were wingless and nearly
full-sized.

Also in the Stoke Edith experiments, made in 1884, it was
found that in the case of the Hop-hills which w^ere dressed
with applications to keep the aphides from coming up from
around the Hop plant, the bines on these hills (more than
twelve hundred in number) were free from attack until the fly
came at the end of May, although the rest of the Hop-ycird ivas
infested.

We do not know the reason of this at present, but it may
at least be conjectured that it is owing to some amount of
hybernation of the aphis in female or egg state in the
Hop-hill.

Peevention and Remedy. — Measures for lessening presence
of this attack on Plum are similar to those for remedy of
Aphis yruni mentioned at p. 147, in its summer form as a
broadscale attack in Hop fields, the treatment is not wholly
applicable to orchard and garden use.

Observation. — Myzus mahaleh, Fonsc. — In Bulletin No. 7,
New Series, of the United States Department of Agriculture,
Division of Entomology, pp. 52-59, is an able paper by Prof.
Theodore Pergande, with life-history and carefully detailed
descriptions of this migratory species of Plum plant-louse as
observed by the wa-iter, and considered, so far as he has been
able to ascertain from his personal investigations made near
Washington, U.S.A., in 1886 and 1887, to be identical wath
the species known under the various synonyms of Aphis
mahaleh, Koch, JMyzus mahaleh, Passerini, Phorodon humidi
var. malaheb, Buckton, and others unnecessary to specify here.

The great point (from an economic point of view) of Prof.
Pergande's observation is the circumstance that, "whereas
Phorodon Jmmuli subsists as far as is known exclusively on
different varieties of Plum and Hop," migrating from the
Plum in spring to the Hop, and return migrants in autumn
leaving the Hop and supplying the Plum with a new infesta-

WINTEK MOTH ; EVESHAM MOTH, 157

tion, in the case of the species observed by Prof. Pergande the
spring migration, although occurring from Plum to a great
variety of plants of most dissimilar nature, is never found on
the Hop ; the return migrants, however, reappearing on Plum
in the autumn, as in the case of P. liumiiU.

From such views as I am able to form niter studying
Prof. Pergande's careful descriptions, it seems to me that the
characteristics of the frontal development of P. liumuli var.
malaheh, as observed in England, distinguish it from Myzus
mahaleh, Fonsc, now under consideration, as well as its re-
markable difference in nature of plants selected as its summer
hosts. But the matter has been gone into with such minute
and skilled observation by Prof. Pergande that I offer my own
views under submission, and only as it may prove to be a
point worth investigation for practical purposes in our own
Plum and orchard grounds. — E. A. 0.

Winter Moth; Evesham Moth. Ckeimatuhia brumata, Linn.

Cheimatobia beumata. — Male and wingless females.

Note. — In the following pages the treatment for prevention
and remedy relatively to injury from caterpillars of Winter
Moth are entered on in long detail, as these are equally
applicable as remedial measures against caterpillars of the
other moths noticed on subsequent pages of which the females
are wingless; and also the treatment by spraying with kero-
sine emulsion or Paris-green is serviceable against leafage
caterpillars generally. The notes are given under the heading
of " Plum," as it was on this orchard tree that the practical
work, even to the extent of treating 80,000 trees, was carried
on at Toddington. — E. A. 0.

The Winter Moth is perhaps the most injurious of all our
orchard insects. In some years, when favoured by drought
and heat, the mischief is widespread also in woodland, and
especially on Oak leafage ; but amongst orchard trees the
caterpillars prey on the leaves and buds of Plum, Apple, Pear,
Cherry, and Nut ; also during several years information was

158 PLUM.

sent me from the Toddington Fruit Grounds of the attack
occurring on Currant bushes growing beneath infested trees ;
and in the j'ear 1895 specimens of the Winter Moth cater-
pillar were sent me from near Kidderminster as "a sample of
the pest that we have been troubled with for the last two or
three years ; they devour both Gooseberries and Plum alike.

The " Winter Moth " is not quite accurately described by
either of its English names, for though it may be found in
great numbers still going up the trees towards the end of
November, yet precautions against it (if they are to be of real
service) should be taken fully five weeks earlier ; and some
amount of appearance of the moths may occur about the end
of March. Also, although it is a notable pest in the neigh-
bourhood of Evesham, it is by no means confined to that
district.

The male moths are from an inch to an inch and a quarter
in the spread of their fore wings, which are silky in texture,
and greyish or ochrey brown in colour, marked with several
indistinct wavy darker transverse lines or bands ; the hind
wings pale, and of a greyish white.

The female moths are dusky grey, not absolutely wingless,
hnt Jurnislied merely with abortive wings too small to he of any
service in flying. The fore pairs are marked with two cross
streaks in each, the hinder pair with an indistinct streak.
The abdomen is very large in proportion to the fore body,
so as, with the long legs, to give the insect very much the
appearance of a spider.

About the middle of October (one of the earliest observations
of capture sent to me was on the 17th of the month) the
female Winter Moths come out from the chrysalis cases be-
neath the trees, where they developed from the caterpillars
that went down iu summer, and creep up the stems to lay
their eggs. The moths are most active from sunset, or rather
before it, till late in the evening, and the males are stated to
appear a few daj^s before the females. If this is so, it would
be a convenient guide as to time being come for sticky
banding, an item of information much needed; for at present
observations taken at places at no great distance from each
other give a range of somewhere about a month in difference
in date of first appearance of the moths, and this with no
details to account for the variation.

The female moth creeps up the tree and lays her eggs on
buds or twigs, or in crevices of the bark, and from an
enormous collection of trimmings from Pear trees (the result
of three men's work during three hours, sent me a little after
the lUth of March, 18U0, from Glewstone Court, near Eoss),
the moths had particularly selected the little furrow between

WINTER MOTH ; EVESHAM MOTH. 159

the wood and the bark where shoots had been cut back for
egg-deposit ; at the truncated end of these cut-back twigs, or
small boughs, the Winter Moths had laid their eggs in such
numbers that the little specks could be seen with tlie naked
eye, arranged so as to form a ring more or less scattered just
inside the bark, which had healed since pruning, and so made
an outside line of protection to the eggs. This will be found
excellently figured in a paper on " The Caterpillar Scourge "
in the ' Journal of Horticulture ' for June 5th, 1890 (Fleet
Street, E.G.).

The eggs when laid are stated to be greenish white, but to
become orange and subsequently brown before hatching ; my
own observations began in the second week in March, when
the eggs were changing from their reddish colour to the tint
that immcdiatclt/ j^recedes hatching.

At about the above date, that is, the 11th of March, 1890,
Mr. J. Garrood, of Ledbury, had kindly furnished me with a
small bundle of A[)ple twigs, which had been placed in a box
in the autumn preceding, with a number of Winter Moths,
male and female ; the eggs deposited on the spurs sent me
being the eggs of these Winter Moths.

These eggs were bluntly oval, or cylindrical, rounded at
each end, about the thirty-second of an inch in length, and
the width about two-thirds of the length. The skin was pitted
over the surface ; with the help of a moderate magnitier it
had the appearance of being shagreened; under a one-inch
power the markings showed as circular depressions so re-
gularly placed as almost to give a honeycomb-like appearance.
Some of the eggs were still of the pale reddish tint of which
the above appeared to be when sent me ; a few were of green
tint, this apparently from the colour of the caterpillar within,
now near development, showing through the filmy egg- skin ;
and the many empty egg-shells were now (when seen through
a magnifier) mere iridescent films, almost glassy in brightness.
To the naked eye they gave the api)earance of the parts of the
twig on which they were placed being beset with little patches
of greyish or bluish mould, or of the down natural on some
kinds of Apple twigs.

On the 26th of March many of the eggs had hatched, and
at this date the caterpillars (from the eggs sent me by Mr.
Garrood on the 11th) were perfectly active, moving about
characteristically in loops, or placing themselves erect on
their sucker-feet. The colour was dingy green or grey; heads
black, thus agreeing specially in this point with the observa-
tion of Dr. E. L. Taschenberg, that after the first moult the
caterpillars have black heads (as well as a black spot on the
nape of the neck). Thus, with the guidance to identification

160 PLUM.

given by Mr. Garrood's specimens, clearly known to be eggs
laid in confinement by isolated specimens of Winter Moths,
we make the great step onwards of being able to distinguish
whether there is infestation of this kind present on the boughs,
and to prepare accordingly.

With the guidance given by these specimens, I examined
portions of the very large collection of egg- infested cuttings
from Pears above alluded to, kindly placed in my hands by
Mr. C. Lee Campbell, and found the eggs to be precisely
similar in every respect. The eye was similarly attracted by
the little bright or whitish mould-like spots, and (similarly) I
fomid empty egg-shells, and greenish eggs and some still
reddish. The eggs had similar inequalities on the surface,
and the little looper caterpillars were similar in appearance,
and, though hardly the sixteenth of an inch in length, were
when disturbed already able to spin a thread to attach them-
selves by.

A few days later — on the 31st of March — I found many of
this collection of eggs were changed from the reddish colour
to a variable iridescent tint, grey or bluish, or occasionally
greenish, according as the light fell upon them.

One of these eggs I punctured, and watched the caterpillar
emerge ; and this larva, and another that I watched in natural
process of emerging, appeared to me indistinguishable from
young Winter Moth caterpillars ; and at this date I found
many little caterpillars, apparently almost all little Winter
Moth grubs, on the paper on which I threw out the twigs,
these varying in tint, as is frequently the case with this
variable kind. Some were of different shades of greyish or
greenish grey, and one little larva was almost black.

This kind of caterpillar is described by Edw. Newman, in
bis 'British Moths,' as being very variable, sometimes green,
sometimes smoky brown, sometimes approaching to blackish.

They not only are variable in colour one from another,
but they also change in appearance after each moult. The
following is just a short general note of these changes, taken
from Dr. Taschenberg's more detailed description.*

When hatched they are greyish, afterwards of a yellowish
green, faintly striped with white along the back, and with
dark head and mark on the neck. Afterwards the dark colour
is thrown off, the green is of a clearer tint, and the white
stripes plainer, and after the last moult the caterpillars are of
a yellower green, with a light brown shining head. A stripe

* For good accounts of the life-history of the Winter Moth see ' Praktische
Insektenkunde,' by Dr. Taschenberg ; Hkewise the account in 'British Moths,'
by Edw. Newman, and likewise that given in Kollar's ' Insects Injurious to
Gardeners, Foresters, &c.'

WINTER MOTH ; EVESHAM MOTH. 161

of darker colour down the back is probably (or, at least, in
part) from the food showing through the skin. When full-
grown they are about an inch long.

Like others of the caterpillars specially known as "loopers,"
this sj^ecies has, instead of four pairs of ^'sucker-feet''' below
the body, only one jxiir besides the ixdr at the end of the tail;
so that in walking it cannot progress forward continuously,
but has to bring the sucker-feet and tail-suckers forward to
where it is held firm by the claw-feet (see figure of Mottled
Umber Moth) ; thus it forms an upright "loop," whence the
name of " looper."

Whilst still small and weak the caterpillars attack the
most tender part of the young growths, but gradually (in bad
cases) sweep everything eatable — buds, flowers, leaves, or
growing fruit — before them, until the ravaged tree, with the
remains of brown spun- up knots of leaves on it, looks as if
it had been scorched by fire. They prey on many kinds of
trees, besides the orchard trees where they are especially
injurious to us ; and when full-fed, which may l)e from the
middle to the end of May and sometimes as late as June, they
leave the trees (as far as is recorded, by letting themselves
down by their threads) and go down into the ground, where
they turn to chrysalids near the surface, from which most of
the moths come up in autumn.

Some of the moths, however, remain in the chrysalis state
during winter, and do not come out until the following spring;
and the brood from these spring moths coming later than the
others accounts for the succession of appearance of young
caterpillars sometimes observed.

Prevention and Eemedies. — The points to be considered
lie under three main heads : — 1st, how to keep the wingless
moths from gaining access to the trees for egg-laying; 2ndly,
if eggs are laid, how to destroy them or lessen their numbers
before hatching-time ; 3rdly, if caterpillars appear, how best
to get rid of them without injury to the leafage of the in-
fested trees.

Various kinds of apparatus have been recommended, both
in Germany and America, — some of wood, some of bands of
tin applied in various ways, — in order to keep the wingless
moths from gaining access to the upper part of the trees ;
but there are various objections to the use of these (at least so
it appears to me), partly from the care that has to be taken
to prevent harbourage of eggs, &c., beneath them, and partly
from the expense. Therefore though I believe that attention
continues to be drawn to their application from time to time
in this country, I do not myself especially recommend them,

M

162 PLUM.

and this more particularly as I am not aware of having had
reports sent me of satisfactory trial with us of the metal or
wood apparatus. At pp. 12, 13, under the head of Codlin
Moth, a recipe is given for a less cumhrous method of handing
which has been found serviceable in South Australia, but
with these arrangements the care which is requisite lest they
should prove rather a centre of infestation than a barrier to
its advance is against their adoption.

In an exhaustive Eeport by the late Prof. Riley, referred to
below,* almost every point appears to be entered on which
may be of service for prevention of attack similar to that of
our Winter Moth, and various sticky mixtures are mentioned
and methods of applying them, but the principle is the same
as that of our own treatment.

But what is at hand, cheap, and has proved to be effective,
is best ; and, so far as appears at present, none of the extra-
British methods of preventing the wingless moths gaining
access to the trees are to be preferred before the methods of
application of the plan of "grease-banding," or "sticky-
banding," which have been worked forward by the attention
of some of our own leading fruit-growers, so as to be easji and
cheaj) of aiyplication, effective for purpose needed, and also
(which is a most important point), so managed in the laying
on as not to injure the hark.

Two of the most important points to he considered in "sticky-
handing" trees are: — {1st) What material is hest to iise in order
not to hurt the trees, or {if it is of a hurtful nattire) how hest to
prevent it soaking into the hark. {2ndly) What time or times
of year the "smear" should he apijlied.

With regard to the material to be used, the following notes
show that cart-grease answers the purpose of catching the
moths thoroughly well, but also that it is requisite for orchard
growers to ascertain what the application furnished to them
is composed of, lest the so-called cart-grease should be mixed
with tarry or other matter deleterious to the condition of the
bark.

So early in our special preventive operations as Dec. 1st,
1888, I was favoured by Mr. Charles D. Wise (Deputy
Manager of the Fruit-grounds at Toddington, W^inchcomb)
with the following note regarding commencement of opera-
tions. This report shows the large scale of the operations,
and their success in preventing the ascent of the moths, and
likewise warns against the use of tar. Mr. Wise wrote : —
"I think you will be interested to hear that we have caught

* See the chapter on " Canker-worms," pp. 157-197 of the Third Report of
the United States Entomological Commission published by the Department of
Agriculture, Washington, U.S.A., 1883,

WINTER MOTH ; GREASE-BANDING. 1C3

millions of the wingless moth this season. As many as five
hundred have been eomited caught in the band of grease on a
single tree. As we have something like 100,000 trees, it has
been a great business putting the bands on and keeping them
sticky. We have tried many different mixtures, but on the
whole I have found cart-grease by itself, put on thick, answers
best ; it is cheapest, and I think does no harm to the tree.
. . . Where tar has been used, I have found the tree alive up
to the place where the band was put on, but above the band
dead." And in another letter the late Capt. Corbett (then
Manager) further wrote on the same subject: — "Please note
I have discarded tar, for I have found instances where, even
Nvhen mixed with grease, it has, on drying, formed a tight
band round the bark, and destroyed the tree."

The following valuable observation on the subject of nature
of grease or material used for banding, and necessity of pro-
tecting live bark from being choked by smears, was also
kindly placed in my hands by Mr. J. Masters, of Evesham,
Hon. Secretary of the Fruit Insect Conference Experimental
Committee : — " It is most important to be guarded in buying
grease. Some dealers offer you a cheap article, and it is a
vile compound of injurious mixtures. Get a good article, free
from tar, if you pay more money for it, is my advice.

*' I should recommend in all cases where there are young
trees, and where the bark of the tree is smooth and tender,
that grease-proof paper should be first handed round the tree and
the grease piut on the paper. But on old trees where the bark
is rough, I do not think that grease {good) would be injurious.
Trees should be daubed not later than the middle of October.
A good daub should be used, and looked after that it is kept
moist and adhesive, otherwise moths will cross over it." —
{J. M.)

These points need very careful attention, for though it is
very possible that on old trees (where the thickness of the old
bark protects the vital layer of young hark and ivood forming
beneath almost as effectually as if a cradle of pieces of cork
was fastened round the tree) there may be no damage caused
by tarring, this is very different to making use of it on young
trees, where, as it has been very well described, it fairly
"ivaterjjroofs" the sodden tissues; and I believe myself that
tar should not be used on young bark, and in any case should
be used with care and caution.

With regard to cart-grease itself, so far as a regular form
€an be given, it appears to be usually compounded of tallow,
palm oil and soft-soap, or, what comes to the same thing,
tallow, palm oil, and water, and caustic soda. The following
notes of the ingredients of some of the mixtures or prepara-

M 2

164 PLUM.

tions commonly made use of or sold under the names of
"waggon-axle" or "railway grease" may probably be of
service in showing the ingredients of the ordinary com-
positions, and also that some of the additions or special makes,
for suitable special machine use, are by no means what can be
recommended for spreading at haphazard on living vegetable
tissues.*

Of two kinds of railway or waggon grease mentioned in the
work below quoted, one consists essentially of a mixture of a
more or less perfectly-formed soap, water, carbonate of soda,
and neutral fat, whilst the other is a soap of lime and rosin
oil, with or without water. Frazer's axle grease consists of
rosin oil of various numbers, saponified with a solution of
sal-soda in water and softened lime ; and these two rosin
recipes are apparently very similar to a composition used with
success at Toddington.

Some other mixtures are merely of greasy or soapy com-
positions ; one is of tallow and palm oil melted together and
mixed with soda ; two others are of palm oil and tallow for
the foundation, mixed respectively with sperm oil and caustic
soda, or with rape-seed oil and soda ; another, the "Austrian
railway grease," is of tallow, olive oil and " old grease."

So far there would be nothing deleterious to bark beyond
what injury may occur from grease gradually soaking into the
tissues, but a preparation of " axle grease," composed of black
oil or petroleum residue, animal grease, powdered rosin added
to soda-lye, and salt, would be highly undesirable to smear on
unprotected bark.

I have had notes of Davidson's composition being very
serviceable for smearing.

Guarding the bark. — Where bark is thick and dead on the
outside, as on old Apple trees, or where dressing is chosen
of some kind which will not sodden into the tree in the heat
of the sun, it may (as above mentioned) do no harm if
smeared on to the unprotected bark. But where year by year
the smear must be kept on for weeks in autumn and winter,
and very possibly have to be applied again towards the end of
March, to stop the ascent of the spring brood of the Winter
Moths, and also the wingless females of the March Moth,
some protection is needed. If this is not given the grease
will soak into the cells and stop the passage of the sap, and
the tree will die.

At present the simplest and cheapest, and also most suc-
cessful plan that I have had notes of is that which was largely
used at one time, and very probably still is, at Toddington.

* See pp. 370-379 of paper on "Lubricants" in 'Workshop Recipes,' by
C. W. Warneford Lock, published by E. & T. N. Spon, Charing Cross, Loudon.

WINTER MOTH ; GREASE-BANDING. 165

The material employed is the kind of tough paper which is
made use of by grocers for wrapping up butter, lard, and the
like, and is known as " grease-proof " paper. This is applied
by a band as many inches wide as is thought fit (the wider
the better) being passed round the stem of the tree. The
band should be cut long enough for the ends to overhip well,
and these are fastened by paste, and the whole is made secure
by a piece of bast-mat, or anything that will not cut the
paper, being tied round the paper near each edge. This work
can be rapidly and well done by women. On the paper bands
the grease or application may be spread in any way preferred,
but the best way is considered to be to lay it on with a thin
flat bit of wood, and plentifully, both as to width of band and
thickness of layer. In this way (when I saw the managers of
the Toddington Fruit-grounds in the autumn of 1889), 80,000
Plum trees and about 40,000 more of other kinds were being
treated.

A slightly different method of binding was tried, also with
good success, by Mr. E. E. Cheesman, of Bough Bridge,
Edenbridge, Kent, of which he gave me the following note : —

" Now the course I have followed is this : I have first placed
bands of impervious paper (such as is used by grocers for
butter and other greasy substances) of about seven inches in
width round the trees, a foot from the ground, first removing
loose and rough bark so that the bands should lie quite close ;
on this I have placed a similar width of glazed lining-calico,
and tied tightly with strong string at an inch from both_ top
and bottom of band, so that wind and rain cannot move it in
the least. I have then used a mixture of cart-grease and soft-
soap, mixed to the required consistency with train oil, and
laid on to the bands with ordinary paint-brushes. This was
done by October 16th, and they have been served in the same
way every week since, so as to keep them always sticky. . . .
We have caught some thousands of both the males and
females (which seem to keep together) of the Cheimatohia, a
few of a much larger sort of moth, also wingless or nearly so
[probably Mottled Umber — Ed.], but these latter are not in
any quantity here. I may add that in very few cases have any
of "the moths got as far up as the middle of the band, and I
am fairly satisfied that we have caught all that had attempted
to ascend. This mode is a little trouble and expense, hut the
latter does not exceed twopence per tree, even on full-grown
trees, which most of mine are, many being very large ones ;
and this is a very trifling outlay, if a crop can be saved by
this means."— (E. E. C.)

It is of great importance to begin the grease-handing in good
time.

166 PLUM.

Captain Corbett reported to me from Toddington Fruit -
grounds, from the experience of some of the foremen who had
given special attention to date of banding, that " all trees
greased before Oct. 17th were nearly free from caterpillar.
Those not greased until Oct. 17th were infested with cater-
pillar." As a hell) to know when the moths might be expected
to appear, Captain Corbett further noted: — "I would just
add that another foreman kept some chrysalids of the Winter
Moth in a box last autumn, and on the first moth coming out
he put the band of grease round his trees. His trees are for
the most part thickly laden with Plums."

Taking various reports sent me, it appeared that presence
of wingless moths was observed at different dates from Oct.
11th to Nov, 19th, at which time the Winter Moths were still
going up the trees in large numbers ; therefore during this
period, and as long as examination shows that moths are still
being captured, care should be taken that all the bands are
soft and sticky.

Stakes and ti'ee-guards need attention. — Where young trees
are fastened to stakes, something of course must be done to
stop traffic up these poles or stakes and thence to the trees ;
and where bundles of rough sticks are tied round the stems
to prevent these being gnawed by animals, these guards will
also probably be a most fertile source of caterpillar attack at
hatching time in sp)ring, unless well looked to. For stopping
traffic up the guards or stakes tar would do very well, but it
would be difficult to apply any treatment that would not be
very troublesome to the bundles of sticks. In such cases,
banding above the sticks or the attachment of the guards is
the safest course.

But though by means of the grease-banding vast numbers
of moths are stopped in their upward traffic wherever the
plan is properly carried out, still there are difficulties which
have to be watched for and remedied, such as passage of
stray moths over the sticky bands when they are becoming
dry, or over the dead bodies of the moths which have been
" stuck" in numbers on the bands ; also the difficulty arising
from many of the moths stopped in their upward passage
laying their eggs on the tree below the band, and the cater-
pillars from these, when they hatch out in the spring, making
their way upwards.

Soft-soap and mineral-oil washes and emulsions. — On appli-
cation to Mr. J. Fletcher, Entomologist of the Dominion of
Canada (requesting his advice as one of the very best authori-
ties as to prevention of caterpillar attack), regarding the
surest way of destroying eggs left as above noted, he wrote
as follows: — "For washing the trunk, to destroy all eggs

WINTER moth; emulsions. 167

■which may have been laid during the winter, a kerosine
emulsion may be used. This should be done in the end of
March."— (J. F.)*

The folloicinfi recipe is one of the DeiJartment of Agriculture
of the United States of America. In this the plan is to add
one gallon of water in which a quarter of a pound of soft-soap
(or any other coarse soap preferred) has been dissolved,
boiling or hot, to two gallons of petroleum or other mineral
oil. The mixture is then churned, as it were, together by
means of a spray-nozzled syringe or double-action pump for
ten minutes, by means of which the oil, soap, and water are
so thoroughly combined that the mixture settles down into a
cream-like consistency, and does not, if the operation has
been properly performed, separate again. This is used diluted
with some three or four times its bulk of water for a watering ;
if required for a wash, at least nine times its bulk is needed
— that is, three gallons of "emulsion," as it is termed, make
thirty gallons of wash. Warning is given that care must be
taken with each new crop to ascertain the strength that can
be borne by the leafage, and this equally applies to all appli-
cations to live bark.

Tlie above mentioned methods of treatment to prevent autumn
and winter ascent of the wingless moths for purposes of egg-
laying on the twigs, and also to destroy eggs from which
caterpillars might presently hatch and crawl up the trees,
have been found to answer very well for these purposes ; but
there are further difficulties which require other and also
broadscale treatment to meet them at a paying rate.

One very important point is the circumstance that there
may be late appearance of the Winter Moth, of which de-
velopment has been delayed until spring, and it is very un-
likely that watching (and testing) for its passage up the trees
and a new course of grease-banding would then be adopted.

Another point is. the transportation of the tvingless female
Winter Moths to the trees by the males ivhilst pairing. This
point was not sufficiently observed until within the last two
or three years to be taken into practical consideration, but it
bears to a very important extent on presence of attack. But
though placing a light at night under an open shed of which
the lower part of the roof has been tarred has been found to
answer to some degree, this can hardly be considered satis-
factory broadscale treatment.

As a special preventive measure, where the plan can be
carried out, late pruning, and burning all the pruned-off shoots,

* Various recipes for soap and kerosine or paraffin oil mixtures will be found
at pp. 148-150, under the heading of Plum Aphis. The above is repeated here
to save trouble in reference.

1G8 PLUM.

is a very good yracticc, because the Winter Moth is considered
to lay her eggs by preference towards the ends of the shoots :
therefore where these are cut off and burnt, when the chief
laying season is over, which might be put about the middle
of December, much infestation is got rid of.

I had a very good note on this subject, on February 6th,
1889, from Mr. C. Lee Campbell, of Glewstone Court, Ross.
In this, after some observations on attempted measures for
checking infestation, he suggested a more effectual remedy —
consisting in cutting off the ends of the branches on which
the eggs have been deposited, and burning them : — " I have
found that an enormous proportion of the eggs are deposited
at the end of every branch pruned in the autumn, as much
as fifty eggs being found on one branch. At a moderate
calculation, my men have thus destroyed some 6,000,000 eggs
on 5000 to 6000 Pyramid fruit trees within the past months,
in addition to a very large number caught through greasing
the stems."— (C. L. C.)

But now 2)(J8si7ig on to remedies ichicli can he ajrplied to the
attack ichen the caterpillars of this and other kinds are ravaging
on the trees.

What we need is a "wholesale treatment " which may be
brought to bear at one time on all the kinds of caterpillars
alike, whether loopers, or web-nest making caterpillars, " Small
Ermines," or " Tortrix," or Lackey caterpillars, or any other
of the many kinds of pests which are alike in their habits so
far as destroying the leafage of our orchard trees is concerned,
and to destroy these surely without injuring the foliage.

For many years trials were made, in many isolated cases,
of various kinds of treatment which it was hoped might be of
use in lessening this yearly amount of loss ; but as these
experiments were seldom carefully recorded as to details or
results, they were of little public benefit.

Therefore, about the end of February in the year 1890, at
a conference of fruit growers held at Evesham, a Committee
of Experiment was formed, of gentlemen personally interested
in the subject (and also qualified practically, as well as scienti-
fically, to superintend experiments in orchard treatment, and
report results), in order to try the effect of any kind of sjjrays,
Avashes, or other applications which they might judge likely
to be effective in destroying the caterpillars on orchard trees
without injuring the leafage; and to meet at various different
centres from time to time, so that the whole Committee could
judge of results of various treatments, and consultation and
detailed reports of the method of treatment respectively take
place, or be given by the members.

WINTER MOTH ; PARIS, OR EMERALD GREEN. 169

Paris-green was one of the applications especially selected
for experiment, as having been known for many years to act
trustworthily as an insecticide in the United States and
Canada, and also because, from the Government Reports of
both countries, we were able to learn all requisite details
as to precise methods of application ; and further we were
most kindly aided in our experiments by advice from Mr. J.
Fletcher, the Dominion Entomologist of Canada.

At the meetings of the Committee the several experiences
of the members were given, showing clearly that, even under
careful experiment, just the same uncertainty occurred with
regard to reliable effects of almost all the applications, as has
appeared long to be the case. Alum, hellebore, ammoniacal
liquor, and many other applications were tried, and some-
times found useful ; sometimes, as in the case of alum, found
occasionally useful, but also, and on very careful trial else-
where, of not the slightest service ; and later on, when the
caterpillar was more advanced, the alum was found to be of
no service at all.

Paris-green used as a liquid application — that is, mixed in
an excessively small quantitj^ with very much water, and
sprayed as a mist on the trees — answered for the most part
well; and I give the following directions for use, and also
cautions required (the chemical being of a poisonous nature),
from the Government publications of Canada and of the
United States, together with our own experiences.*

Directions for Use of Paris-green. — For liquid appli-
cation.— The amount recommended in Canada for spraying
for Codlin Moth or young "looper" caterpillar is "not more
than from 2 to 4 ozs. in 40 (forty) gallons of water, or g^ to
5- oz. in a pail of water (4 gallons, E. A. 0.), to be applied as
a fine spray b}^ means of a force-]:)ump. The foliage must not
be drenched, but the s^^ray should only be allowed to fall upon
the trees until it begins to drop from the leaves."

'* For fieneral use on mature foliaije. — 5- lb. of Paris-green,
50 gallons of water. First mix the Paris-green separately with
a small quantity of water, then add to it the whole supply.
All washes containing Paris-green must be constantly stirred
to keep it in suspension, or it will sink to the bottom." (See
also 18th and 19th lines from top of p. 171.— E. A. 0.)

The amount found serviceable by the Evesham Fruit Com-
mittee coincided almost exactly with the weaker mixture
mentioned above. The Committee decided that they could

* Special details will be found in various of my own Annual Eeports ; also
a condensed account in my 'Manual,' second edition ; and plain directions for
use in my leaflet on Paris-green, for gratuitous distribution. — E. A. O.

170 PLUM.

recommend " Paris-green paste in the proportion of 1 oz. to
8 or 10 gallons of water for Plums ; and 1 oz. to 20 gallons
of water for Apples." Apple leafage was found to be more
tender than that of Plums. Pear leafage should be treated
like that of Apple.

For Currants the strength found safe was the same as
for Plums — 1 oz. of " green " to 10 gallons of water ; but as
the foliage grew stronger, 1 oz. to 8 gallons of water was
found not too strong. Neither of these strengths of mixture
damaged the leafage, but they killed the caterpillar.

These jwo^^ortions should not he exceeded. In some instances
greater strength has been used without bad effects on the
leafage ; but this was certainly attributable, in one case, to
heavy rain following the over-application, and probably, if
details were procurable, non-injury from over-strength could
be traced to casual coincidence in other cases also.

Capt. Corbett, the Superintendent of the Toddington Fruit-
grounds, writing to me on the 3rd of July, and mentioning
his satisfaction with the results of spraying, also noted, "The
proportions I fixed upon after the first trials, viz. 1 oz. to
10 gallons of water for Plums, and 1 oz. to 20 gallons of
water for Apj^les, must not be exceeded."

To the above, Mr. Masters, Secretary of the Experimental
Committee, added a further note, with the following informa-
tion and useful hint regarding mixture of flour with the green : —

"When the foliage of trees is young and tender, I do not
think it safe to apply the Paris-green stronger than in the
proportion of 1 oz. to 10 gallons of water. But when the
foliage is matured, and the caterpillar is full grown, a solution
of 1 oz. of Paris-green to 6 gallons of water may be safely
used ; for every case it would be well to use about 2 lb. of
fine wheat flour to every pound of Paris-green; it thickens
the solution, and prevents the particles of Paris-green from
settling at the bottom of the vessel, and, when it is spra3''ed,
helps to secrete the preparation on the foliage."

One point of difficulty which occurred in the experiments
and needs care in regular work is the risk of hot bright
sunshine occurring after spraying and causing mischief to
the leafage, this especially where the right strength has been
exceeded, or the spray not rightly delivered at the leafage, but
so that it remained in excessive quantity.*

* In Bulletin No. 36 of the Agricultural Experiment Station of Missouri,
1896, on remedial measures to destroy two kinds of leaf caterpillars, it is
mentioned that those of the small moth Tcras minuia may be destroyed by
spraying with the following mixture : Paris-green, 1 lb. ; fresh lime, 3 lb. ;
water, 150 gallons ; and it is especially observed : — " Never omit the fresh
lime ; always use as much fresh lime by weight as Taris-green. This will
lessen the chances of burning the leaves by repeated sprayings." — J. M. Sted-
man, Entomologist ; October, 1898.

WINTER MOTH ; PARIS, OR EMERALD GREEN. 171

In application of Paris-green sprayings, it must always he
borne in mind tJtat, tvhatever kind of engine or spraying machine
is vsed, the mixture must he kept an even strength throughout,
mid no sediment allowed to form at the hottoni, or damage to
leafage is sure to happen.

On these points Mr. Fletcher, the Dominion Entomologist
of Canada, wrote to me as follows, and also enforcing care as
to over-application : —

^^Paris-green. — You are quite safe in recommending this;
but insist upon these two things, viz. 1st, to keep the mixture
(which is a mixture, not a solution) well stirred all the time,
and have the barrel well washed out after it has been filled ten
or twelve times. The Paris-green is very heavy, and will keep
sinking to the bottom unless constantly agitated ; and as the
barrel is frequently re-filled the residue will keep accumulating,
until it will be too strong as the mixture reaches the bottom.
2ndly. The other point is to insist upon the mixture not heing
made too strong ; 1 Ih. to 200 gallons I find very useful, and I
never use stronger than 1 Ih. to 120 gallons.'" — (J. F.)

With regard to method of application of the spray. — This
should be thrown so finely as to reach all parts of the tree
and both sides of the leaves, and coat the leaves as with a
fine dew, but it should not be allowed to run down and drip.
As soon as dripping begins spraying should cease.

It should on no account tvhatever he throivn so as to " swill "
or "souse" the trees, and run off the leaves in drops or
streams ; this is bad practice in every way. It uses a great
deal more of the chemical than is needed; the leaves get little
but pure water at their highest part, and much too strong
application where the fluid has settled at the tips ; and also
a drip is caused on to the ground beneath, which may render
the grass temporarily poisonous.

Also, spraying should not he done whilst the trees are in
hlossom, and warning is also given in the American works
that sprayings should not be given in rapid succession.
Several days, it is advised, should elapse between, unless
of course, as may easily happen in difficulties of first experi-
ments, the spray was manifestly so weak that the previous
application counted for nothing. The efiect of the Paris-green
on the caterpillars does not always show directly, and it is
undesirable to waste labour and material where the work is
already done, and only requires a day or two to show it.

In mixing and in the use of Paris-green as a fluid dressing,
or spray, one of the first points to be borne in mind is that
this chemical does not dissolve in water. It is simply held in
suspension; the following is a good recipe for mixing so as to
ensure the powder and water being thoroughly mixed to start

172 PLUM.

with : — " Two bucketfuls of water are first poured into the
can, then three tablespooufuls of good green, well mixed Avith
another half-bucketful of water and strained through a funnel-
shaped strainer, . . . the use of which prevents the larger
particles of the green from getting into the can and clogging
up the sprinkler."

The exact method of mixing, however, is quite immaterial —
only remembering that the powder should be thoroughly
diffused through the water, not allowed to be in lumps ; and
also the methods are best which allow of the operator mixing
without handling or inhaling the 'powder.

For the above reasons, and also for convenience in mixing,
the " paste " form before mentioned is preferable to the
powder.

Mixture of flour with Paris-greeti. — The addition of flour to
the mixture of Paris-green has been found to answer here,
and has been strongly advised in the United States, because
of the greater adhesiveness thus given, and also because the
difference of colour helps to show the amount that has been
distributed on the leaves. "Two or three pounds of flour" is
an amount named as useful to add to a mixture of Paris-
green in 40 gallons of water, but the precise quantity does
not appear to be very important.

Where the plan is adopted of mixing flour with the Paris-
green, the following method has been advised: — To take a
large galvanised iron funnel of capacity suited to the work ;
for filling a 40-gallon barrel a funnel of 18-quart capacity is
noted. This funnel has inside it a kind of strainer (described
as a " cross-septum ") formed of fine wire gauze, such as is
used for sieves, and this also has vertical sides and a rim to
keep it from rocking on the barrel. The quantity wished of
cheap flour is placed in the funnel, and washed through the
sieve-like wire gauze by water poured in ; thus the flour is
finely divided and diffused in the water, and the Paris-green
subsequently added and washed down in the same way by
addition of the rest of the water until the barrel is full.

With regard to the nature of Paris-green. — "Paris-green" is
an aceto-arsenite of copper, and of a poisonous nature, and
therefore should be used with care in mixing, and should not
be applied to fruit, or to vegetables that are used for food ; but,
as will be seen in the directions for use, the quantity advised
for orchard use in the Canadian Government Eeport, to check
looper-attack on leafage, is very small ; and our English ex-
perience of eight years has shown that it can be as safely
used here (with proper care) as it has now been used for
regular farm and orchard work for many years, over an area
of many thousands of miles, in the Conthient of America.

WINTER MOTH ; PARIS, OR EMERALD GREEN. 173

On application to Messrs. Blundell & Spence, of Hull, as
being well-known manufacturers and great exporters of Paris-
green, Mr. J. Dixon (Manager) wrote me on December 31st,
1889 : — " Emerald-green, Paris-green, Schweinfurth-green,
are different names for the same thing. The first name is
English, and is the one used in most of our Colonies, India,
and China ; the second is the American term ; the third only
used in Germany, and by German traders.

"Emerald- or Paris-green is a double salt of arsenite and
acetate of copper — in other words, an aceto-arsenite of copper.
You may take the U.S.A. analysis of Paris-green as correct.

" The pure article (which is that used as an insecticide) is
a true crystal, and varies in colour from a deep to a pale
green, according to the size of the crystals."

Mr. Dixon also favoured me with the following percentage
analysis of pure Emerald-green : —

" Percentage composition of Emerald-green : —

Per cent.

"Copper .... 32-11

Arsenic .... 28'56

Oxygen .... 32*48

Hydrogen .... 0*76

Carbon .... 6-09

Total . . 100-00."

Cautions to be observed in the use of Paris-green. — The bags
should be labelled Poison, and kept locked up, and especially
kept safely out of the way of children, who might be attracted
by the beautiful colour.

Workers with the powder should not allow it to settle in an}^
sore or crack in the skin of the hands, nor stir it about un-
necessarily with the hands ; and they should be very careful
not to breathe in the powder through mouth or nose ivhilst
measuring or mixing it.

For this reason it is most desirable that purchasers of
Paris-green should have it sent not in bulk, to be divided for
use on receipt, but wrapped in single pound (or small)
packages by the senders, or, what is better still, have it in
the form mentioned as "Paris-green paste," that is, the
powder just damped so that it cannot fly about. If swallowed
in any quantity by being drawn in with the breath it would
certainly be harmful. An instance is on record in which a
man employed to weigh out and wrap 5 cwt. in 1 lb. papers
lost his life therefrom. But with the most ordinary care the
application may be mixed and used, as well as hellebore and
other poisons often applied in orchard and other farming
work, with perfect safety.

174 PLUM.

The following notes of some of the results of the series of
experiments undertaken officially by Dr. William M'Murtrie,
as Chemist of the United States Department of Agriculture,
in order to ascertain the effects of Paris-green on soil and
the plants grown therein, are of importance relatively to
occasional unfounded objections still urged against the use of
Paris-green : —

" 1. An aggregate of 90G'4 pounds of Paris-green per acre
must be ap[)lied before any injurious effects on plant-growth
are appreciable. (The ordinary application to a Potato field
is from a pound to two pounds per acre.)

*' 2. Arsenic cannot be absorbed and assimilated by the
plant in the economy of growth. All of the plants grown in
the arsenical soil tried by Marsh's test failed to indicate the
presence of arsenic.

" 3. Potatoes subjected to applications of Paris-green failed
to give evidence of the presence of arsenic." *

The above is useful as showing the safety with which Paris-
green may be used relatively to any fear of it being absorbed
by the roots into the tissues of plants grown in soil where this
arsenite may be present. On the surface of fruit or leafage
used for food, as, for instance, if it is used as a dressing for
Gooseberrj' caterpillar or on Cabbage leaves, it would obviously
he poisonous if partaken of. Therefore no article of food
dressed with Paris-green should be partaken of until either by
lapse of time, growth of the fruit, or careful washing, the
poison has been quite certainly removed.

The cost of the Paris-green is very little. The firm with
whom I have chiefly corresponded on the subject inform me
that as wholesale manufacturers they could furnish quantities
of 1 cwt. and over at the rate of lOd. per lb. Retail dealers
would probably not furnish the pure article under Is. 3d.
per lb.

London -2nir pie. — This preparation is an arsenite of lime
and has long been used as an insecticide in America, and foi
some years has been applied also in this country in the same
manner as the above-mentioned arsenite of copper, commonly
known as Paris-green ; but it is stated that, owing to its
lightness, a far smaller quantity by weight of London-purple
will treat a given number of trees than would be required
in the case of Paris-green.

Very few observations have been sent to me from orchard-
growers regarding the use of this insecticide, but some good
notes on the subject, and as to its serviceableness for de-
struction of leafage caterpillars, have been communicated by

* " Paris-green as an Insecticide," pp. 25-34, of Dr. Lintner's ' First Annual
lleport as State Entomologist of New York State, U.S.A.'

WINTER BIOTH; LONDON PURPLE. 175

Mr. F. Nixon, of Great Eversclen, near Cambridge, who i?
well qualified to form an opinion on the subject ; these will bt
found at pp. 107, 108, preceding.

It is to be remembered that, like Paris-green, it is a Poison,
and must be used with care accordingly.

In the case of either of these arsenites, the strength of the
mixture should be tested by apj^lication on a small scale,
before use generally, so as to avoid risk of broadscale damage.
But the following observations by Prof. John B. Smith, from
his entomological work* referred to below, may be of service : —

" Both the insecticides just mentioned can be made entirely
harmless to foliage by adding weight for weight of caustic
lime when mixing ; that is to say, in preparing the poison for
use take one pound of Paris-green or London-purple and one
pound of quicklime ; add water enough to slake the lime, and
mix thoroughly while hot, so as to incorporate lime and poison
completely. This will fix with the lime every particle of the
soluble arsenic contained in the mixture, and it can then be
diluted with water and applied at almost any reasonable
strength, without much danger of injury to even the most
tender foliage." — (J. B. S.)

An arsenite of lead, known as "gypsine," has much more
recently come into use in America with much the same range
of usefulness as the two oUier ■poisons mentioned above; but
as yet I am not aware of it having been adopted for service
here.

Kcrosine emulsion. — For those who object to the use of
poisons, the application of " kerosine emulsion " ranks next
after that of Paris-green as an insecticide for broadscale use
on leafage of orchard trees to make a general clearing of
caterpillars.

In the course of the preceding pages recipes have been
given for preparation of this "emulsion," and of various
other soft-soap and mineral oil mixtures very similar in com-
position, for reference to which see Index ; but it should
always be remembered that unless the operators are thoroughly
well informed of their work, that it is only prudent to experi-
ment before beginning broadscale application as to the effects
on leafage of the strength that is being employed.

In regard to spraying machines, the call for them has been
followed by such a plentiful supply, that to particularize one
kind rather than another might be deemed undesirable ; but
at least it may be admissible to point out the serviceableness
of "the knapsack sprayer," which is a can or reservoir that

* 'Economic Entomology,' by John B. Smith, Sc.D., Entomologist to the
New Jersey Ag. Coll. Exp. Station, &c., p. 435. Philadelphia, U.S.A. : J. B.
Lippincott Co. 1896.

176

PLUM.

may be carried on a man's shoulder, and by means of a hose
and nozzle throws a fine spray to the height of fom-teen or
fifteen feet. This form is particularly adapted for fruit-bush

or orchard treatment where there is no room for the passage
of hand- or horse-machines. Of these there is all requisite
choice up to the large horse-machines adapted to spray, under
ordinary circumstances of wind, three thousand trees a day.

In the foregoing pages I have endeavoured to put as shortly
as possible the main points of treatment by which attack of
caterpillars of the wingless moths may be greatly prevented ;
and also the sweeping remedial measures by which not only
these, but the caterpillars of all our common kinds of injurious
orchard moths, even when established on the leafage, may be
cleared by the use of sprayings of soft-soap wash of various
kinds of composition, and still more certainly by Paris-green.

The use of this insecticide has now been so fully established
that it takes its place amongst our regular methods of treat-
ment without special consideration ; but those who wish to
study in detail much of scientific interest regarding the com-
position and method of application, also something of the
difdculties which had to be overcome in its first introduction,
will find the information in the following papers : — "Paris-
green as an Insecticide," ' First Annual Eeport on Injurious
and other Insects of the State of New York,' 1882, by Dr. J.
A. Lintner, State Entomologist, pp. 25-34: Albany, U.S.A. ;
" Notes on Paris-green," pp. 8-16, in ' Seventh Annual Eeport
of Noxious and other Insects of the State of Missouri,' 1875,
by Prof. C. V. Eiley, late Entomologist of Department of
Agriculture, U.S.A.; "Paris-green," 'Fourth Eeport of United

MARCH MOTH.

177

States Entomological Commission, U.S. Department of Agri-
culture,' 1885, pp. 143-148 ; and other reports quoted from in
preceding paper.

March. Moth. Anisoptenjx cBscularia, Schiff.

Anisopteeyx .esculaeia. — Winged male, wingless female, and band of eggs.

The March Moth is a common kind, and, as described by
its name, is to be found early in the year ; and, in German
observations, the caterpillars have been recorded as often
noticeably injurious to Plum, together with those of the
Winter Moth {Cheimatobia brumata). With us, however, it is
rarely reported (so far as I am aware) as an orchard pest, and
I have no notes of it being sent me on any orchard tree
excepting Plum ; other trees which it is recorded as infesting
are Elm, Oak, and Lime, also Hawthorn and the Sloe.

In 1890 the wingless female moths were observed at Glew-
stone Court, near Eoss, Herefordshire, as beginning to lay
eggs about the middle of March. The specimen sent me on
March loth I found (on the 18th) had laid eggs, using the
hairs from the tuft at the end of the tail (see figure), as is the
custom of this moth, to cover them with. In the previous
year it was observed at the end of March laying its bands of
down-embedded eggs on Plum at the Dimsdale Fruit Farm,
Westerham, Kent, and specimens were forwarded me of the
wingless females, together with the Plum twigs on which the}'
were then laying, on March 29th.

The moths were about three-eighths of an inch long, brown
or fawn-colour above, shading to grey below, with darker head
and eyes, and dark pencil of hair at the end of the tail, and
might be generally described as thickly pear-shaped (the
pencil of hairs at the end of the tail answering to a broad,
short fruit-stalk— see figure). The hairs were long, the six
legs very long, and the moths, though sometimes quite quiet,
were able at pleasure to walk very rapidly ; one that I timed
as to speed walked the length of six inches in twenty-five
seconds. The wings were to all appearance totally absent, not
merely abortive as in the case of the Winter Moth, and the
downy coating of the moths very smooth and silky.

N

X78 PLUJi.

The wings of the male moth are ample, the fore wings
rather of a dingy brown colour, and marked with various
transverse darker or lighter bands or lines, as figured at
p. 177 ; the hinder wings paler, with a transverse zigzag line.

The Plum twigs which were sent me were quite small (none
of them as much as a quarter of an inch across), and the
bands of eggs which were then laid (or being laid) varied from
about a quarter to half an inch in breadth at the widest part,
but did not always quite encircle the stem. They were de-
posited with beautiful regularity, and showed to the naked eye
as if laid in almost precisely parallel rows along the twig, and
were embedded in down supplied by the parent moth from the
pencil at the end of her tail. In the largest band I counted
twenty-nine rows, and as each of these rows (as nearly as I
could count or estimate) was composed of upwards of eighteen
of the bright shining eggs, the whole number in this ring
would be well over five hundred ; but the size is so variable
that in many cases the number in each ring or patch would
be much fewer.

In the observations of eggs and caterpillars of this species,
given by Mr. G. T. Porritt,* he mentions that of eggs which
he received on April 3rd, 1872, some hatched on the journey,
and the remainder hatched immediately. The larvfe from
these grew rapidly on hawthorn, and by the middle of May
were going down, and by the end all the caterpillars had gone
down. From these, at date of writing (March 11th, 1873),
the moths were emerging, nineteen males preceding the
appearance of the first female.

The full-grown caterpillar is described by Mr. Porritt as
"Length about an inch, slender, cylindrical, and of uniform
width throughout ; head globular, slightly broader than the
second segment ; skin soft and smooth. (5^round colour bright
green, strongly tinged with yellow ; head uniformly green ; a
dark green line very narrowly edged with grey forms the
dorsal stripe ; the subdorsal and spiracular lines are greyish
white, and between the subdorsal and spiracular lines is a very
fine pale grey line. The segmental divisions are yellow, and
the spiracles black. Ventral surface uniformly bright green,
with the segmental divisions yellow." — (G. T. ]?.)

These caterpillars, like those of the Winter Moth and
Mottled Umber Moths, are "loopers," that is, walk in an up-
right loop-form consequently on the characteristic number of
sucker-feet (beneath the body) being only one pair instead of
four pairs, as described at p. 161, and figured p. 179. But in
observations by the Eev. J. J. Hellins, in paper above referred

* ' LarvfB of British Butterflies and Moths.' Vol. vii. Geometnr, part i.
p. 157. Ray Society.

MOTTLED UMBEE MOTH.

179

to, he remarks that in the case of this larva, when it is
" almost half-grown, it plainly shows some rudiments of legs
on the ninth segment," and, further on, that there "are on
the ninth segment a pair of feet perfectly formed, but useless
for walking, being about one-sixteenth of the size of the pair
on the tenth segment." — (J. J. H.) The observation of the
existence of a pair of abortive sucker-feet on the segment pre-
ceding that which carries the pair characteristic of "loopers"
is not of practical importance, but is of interest scientifically.
The cocoon formed by the caterpillar is stated to be of long
oval shape, and of tough texture, being lined with close woven
3'ellowish silk, and covered with fine earth.

Prevention and Eemedies. — In some cases, when the
ground beneath infested trees is bare, a disturbance of the
surface during winter, or before developing time in spring,
might do good, of course taking care not to go deep enough
to hurt the roots. In this way the cocoons would be turned
out of the previously arranged shelters to alternate cold and
wet, which is an excellent method of lessening amount of
insect vermin.

Another means of prevention, in the case of trees where
the end twigs are in sight and in reach, is looking towards the
end of March or in April to see whether the ends of these
twigs are infested by the bands of eggs, and, if so, having
these cut off and destroyed.

For general measures of prevention and remedy, and espe-
cially of remedy by applications of soft-soap and other washes,
see notes given at pp 161-176, under the heading of Winter
Moth.

Mottled Umber Moth. Hyhemia defoliaria, Linu.

Hyberxia defoliaria. — Male and wingless female ; caterpillar, after
Taschenberg.

The Mottled Umber Moth is a common kind and widely

N 2

180 PLUM.

distributed, and a very general feeder. The list of trees of
which the caterpillars infest the leafage comprises Cherry,
Plum, Apple, and Nut, amongst orchard trees ; and amongst
forest trees. Oaks, Limes, Elms, Beech, Service, Birch, and
others ; besides Whitethorn and Sloe ;* also they have been
especially noted as feeding at times on unripe Cherries, gnaw-
ing away one side of the fruit.

The infestation may almost rank with that of the Winter
Moth in its destructiveness, and (similarly) it is the male
moth only which is winged. This is of the size and appear-
ance figured, that is, about twice the size of the Winter
Moth ; the fore wings are usually of a pale brown or reddish
yellow, with dark transverse bands, and " between them is a
dark spot in the middle of the wing. The hind wings are
rather paler, and have a brown spot near the middle ; all the
wings are more or less sprinkled with brown dots." Some-
times, however, the wings are merely of a reddish brown
freckled over with minute dots.

The female moth is of a wainscot-brown colour, with two
very consjncuous dark spots on the back of each segment.
The wings are so abortive as to be almost invisible.

The caterpillar of the Mottled Umber Moth is a " looper "f
(see figure at heading), like that of the Winter Moth, pre-
viously noticed, but is somewhat larger, and may be easily
distinguished by its peculiar colouring.

It is of a clear or reddish brown above; ''this area is
bounded on each side by a very distinct but narrow waved
black stripe, and is also adorned with grey markings";
" below the boundary the body is bright yellow ; the
spiracles are white, and the region surrounding each
spiracle brown ; the belly is greenish yellow ; legs and clas-
pers pale." I

The caterpillars are often sent me amongst other orchard
pests, and are very easily recognizable by the bright yellow
stripe along each side, and by their gay and peculiar colouring.
The female moths also are easily distinguished by the hrown
spots on their hacks from the females of the Winter and March
Moths.

The life-history of the infestation may be generally de-
scribed as follows : — When full-fed, which may be, according
to circumstances, /ro7/i toicards the latter part of May even until
the beginning of July, the caterpillars leave the trees, and go
down to the ground, where they turn to chrysalids at, or a

* Die rJlanzenfeinde, von J. H. Kaltenbach, pp. 1G3, 189.
t For characteristics of "looper" caterpillars, see p. 161.
I The above descriptions of tlie appearance of the moths and caterpillar aie
almost entirely taken from Edward Newman's ' British Moths,' p. 105.

MOTTLED UMBER MOTH. 181

little below, the surface. From these, in common rule
(though some may remain unchanged till spring), the moths
come up in autumn. The development begins in October,
and may last till December, and even occur later irregularly
till spring, which causes great difficulty in certainty of pre-
vention by sticky-banding.

The female moths creep up the trees and lay their eggs on
buds or twigs, or in crevices of the bark, or in the little fur-
row between the extremity of the cut-back twigs and the l)ark
healing over the edge. From these eggs the little caterpillars
come out towards the end of March, or, speaking more gener-
ally, when their food is ready for them, and as they grow (in
years of bad attack), devour indiscriminately all they can
reach, whether buds, or flowers, or leaves, or growing fruit,
until, as noticed in cases of bad attack, the ravaged tree, with
the remains of the destroyed spun-up leafage, looks as if it
had been scorched by fire ; and, if the leafage that is ]U'eferred
falls short, they make up as well as they can from what may
be at hand in the neighbourhood, and feed till the time comes
for them to go down for their chrysalis change, from May
onwards, as mentioned above.

The injury from Mottled Umber caterpillars, as well as
from others of the same nature, is to be found to a greater or
less extent yearly on foliage of orchard (and also of forest)
trees, but is especially prevalent when hot and dry weather
occurs for a prolonged period in late spring and early summer,
the weather being thus favourable to the development of the
caterpillars, but not to a sufficiently rapid growth of leafage
to counterbalance their ravages.

The year 1896 was a very noticeable example of this. The
widespread devastations caused by leafage caterpillars, amongst
which those of the Mottled Umber, as well as Winter Moths,
played their parts, will be well remembered. In my 'Annual
Eeport' for that year, at pp. 94-9G, will be found extracts
from 'British Piainfall of 1895,' by G.J. Symons, F.E.S. ;
and from ' The Meteorology of England ' (in the second
quarter of 189G), by James Glaisher, F.Ii.S., giving records
of temperature and drought, which are well worth studying
in connection with coincident great appearance of leafage
infestation in those years.

Just noticing one or two points, it will be seen that there
was much drought in May, and also in the last half of
Septe^nhcr in 1895, and relatively to this one of my observers,
writing from Maidstone, Kent, mentioned that Cheimatohia
hramata, the Winter Moth, appeared again in enormous num-
hers in the autumn, as also did Ilijhernia defoliaria, another
species of winter appearing moth. This of course greatly

182 PLUM.

increased the number of eggs wliicli were laid, and caterpillars
grown to continue ravage to 1896.

In the following year (1896) the report for the quarter
ending June SOth was that the weather was " remarkably fine
and bright.* But little rain fell in April and May, — in fact,
during May at several stations in the south-west rain fell on
one day only. May was probably the sunniest month on
record ; the general character of the weather during that
month may be briefly described as — days bright, cloudless,
and hot."

The widely prevalent coincident caterpillar ravage will be
well remembered, and is worth referring to as showing that
together with this remarkable prevalence of leafage cater-
pillars we had the weather favourable for this state of things,
and that in future recurrence of similar attacks, in similar
circumstances, we may expect that (as has now happened)
with return to ordinary weather the sx3ecial prevalence will
disappear.

Measukes of Prevention and Eemedy for this attack are
similar to those given under the heading of Winter Moth.

Plum Sawfly. (For scientific names, see note, p. 181.)

During June, 1891, I received from a few different localities
specimens of young Plums infested by sawfly grubs, which
were obviously doing much mischief by clearing out the young
kernel, and sometimes further injuring the centre of the
fruit, and consequently causing it to fall very prematurely.

In one of the first communications which were sent me
(received on June 22nd from Urchester, near Wellingborough),
the observer mentioned that his Plums were heavily attacked,
and that it appeared to him that the attack had been made
and the eggs introduced very shortly after flowering, because,
when the puncture occurred at the extreme end of the fruit,
the exuding gum had often fixed the remains of the flower.
** I should say that the creature has injured quite half the
crop."— (H. H. S.)

The injured Plums varied in size from about, or a little
over, half an inch to an inch in length. In somewhere about
nineteen examined, I found the fruit usually to have one
boring near the end opposite to the insertion of the stem. In

* See 'The Meteorological Kecord for the Quarter ending June 30th, 1896,'
by William Marriott, F.E. Met. Soc, Assistant Secretary of the Meteorological
Society. >

PLUM SAWFLY. 183

a few cases there were two injured spots ; the tunnels were
sometimes open, sometimes choked with black gummy
material. On opening the fruit I found the kernel gone, and
often some amount of marks of gnawing round the cavity
where the kernel had lain, this cavity being more or less filled
with blackish decayed matter.

The larva was rarely present in any of the above-mentioned
fruits which I opened, but where present (either amongst
these or amongst the specimens sent me from elsewhere), I
found them to be twenty-footed caterpillars ; that is to say,
they were furnished with three pairs of claw-feet, six pairs of
ventral sucker-feet, and one pair of sucker-feet at the end of
the tail ; ten pairs in all.

The general colour of the larva or caterpillar was whitish ;
head chestnut, darker in front or on the jaws ; eyes dark or
black. In such specimens as I examined the caterpillar lay
curled in the injured fruit, somewhat in the manner of a
Cockchafer grub, but when disturbed and placed on the hand,
it walked swiftly along it. On further examination a few days
later, I found the length of the specimen (exactly measured)
was five-sixteenths of an inch, the head pale chestnut, general
colour yellowish, the shape somewhat pointed towards the
tail, and also it emitted a strong smell.

About the above-mentioned date some Plums similarly
injured by sawliy larvpe were forwarded to me from the Tod-
dington Fruit-grounds (Glos.), by Mr. C. D. Wise, regarding
which he remarked that the infested Plums had been picked
and destroyed ; and on July 14th he further observed that the
grubs must have been about full-grown when they were sent
me, and that he did not find these Plum-borers attacked any
special kind of Plum more than another.

The infestation was also stated to be bad in the Evesham
district, and regarding this point Mr. W. F. Gibbon (Chairman
of the Evesham Fruit Growers' Experimental Committee)
wrote me on June 29th: — "Last year I noticed a lot of
them, and had all the dropped Plums daily gathered up and
burnt. This year I find a bored Plum "dropped only here
and there."

In the case of this Plum infestation, it seems desirable to
notice it, as it has a power of doing a deal of mischief ; but I
have not had special communication about it, excepting in
1891, and only had opportunity of studyicg it in larval state ;
therefore I have merely distinguished it at heading by the
name of Plum Sawtly. In all points, however, which I had
the opportunity of observing, the condition of the infested
Plums and the appearance of the caterpillars corresponded
with the long and full descriptions of Plum Sawfly given

184 PLUM.

respectively hy Dr. Taschenberg, Dr. Eitzema Bos, and also
by Canon Schmidberger,* under different scientific appella-
tions, adding thereby not a little to the difficulties of identi-
fication.

The life-history of the Plum Sawfly, as given by the above
writers, is in its main points as follows : — The female sawfly
begins her operations by making a slit in a calyx-leaf of a
Plum blossom or expanding bud. Apparently only one egg is
laid in each blossom (or rather calyx). The egg is very small,
greenish white, and transparent.

The caterpillar hatches in about from a week to a fort-
night's time, and eats its way into the young embryo fruit,
where it consumes within what would have been the kernel ;
and when it has consumed all that suits its purpose for food
in one Plum, it goes on to another. This caterpillar is, as we
observe of our own, twenty-footed ; the colour whitish, or
with a reddish yellow tinge ; head dark brown or yellow ;
body lesser towards the hinder extremity, and it gives out a
strong bug-like smell.

The caterpillar is full-grown in a period variously observed
as from three to four, or five to six weeks. Then the young
Plum falls, the caterpillar creeps out, buries itself in the
ground, where it spins a cocoon; here it is stated to spend
the winter, still in the larval state, and in spring to change
to the chrysalis or pupal state, from which the perfect sawfly
comes out in time to lay her eggs amongst the opening Plum
blossoms. The flies are somewhat like the Apple Sawfly.
figured at p. 35, with two pairs of transparent wings ; the
general colour black or shining black ; legs mostly yellow, or
of a reddish or brown yellow.

The above notes of life-history are taken from the observa-
tions of Dr. Taschenberg, Dr. Eitzema Bos, and Canon Schmid-
berger, published in their respective works referred to below.

Means of prevention and remedy (also given by the same

* In the ' Praktische Insektenkunde ' of Dr. Taschenberg the name given is
that oi Hoplocamjjaf ulvicornis, Klug; in the ' Tierische Schadlinge und Niitz-
liuge ' of Dr. Ritzema Bos, it is Selandria fulvicornis, King, and the internal
evidence of quotation in each of these papers shows it to be the same insect, of
which a very good account is given by Schmidberger in ' Kollar's Insects,' under
the name of Tenthredo morio. Fab. A short account of the infestation corre-
sponding with the above, so far as a few lines can correspond with full descrip-
tions, is also given in Kaltenbach's ' Pflanzenfeinde ' under the name of
Selandria fulvicornig, Klug. It is, however, very requisite, in mention of the
Tenthredo morio. Fab., to notice also the name of the authority by whom it is
so called, as the Selandria = Tenthredo morio. Fab., of Cameron's 'Men. of the
British Phytophagous Hymenoptera' (vol. i. p. 199), and the S. morio, Fab., of
Taschenberg's ' Insektenkunde,' are clearly different insects from the T. morio
of Schmidberger, inasmuch as the caterpillar is stated to have a green body
spotted with black, whereas the colour of the caterpillar of the kind described
above is whitish or yellowish.

SHOT-BOKER.

185

observers) consist, for one thing, in collecting and destroying
the infested little Plums before the caterpillar within can
leave them to bury itself. This may be done by jarring or
shaking the trees, so as to cause the damaged fruit to fall on
to cloths spread beneath the trees^ and having this fruit
immediately gathered together and burnt before the grub
within escapes. Or the infested fruit may be picked from
the trees by choosing such of the little unripe Plums as
show a black spot, where the sap and black rejected matter
from the grub have run down its tunnel and show outside.

The black sawflies are sluggish, and when egg-laying, or
sucking honey from the Plum blossoms, may be caught by
hand where they are in reach on low-growing trees.

See also measures of prevention and remedy for Apple
Sawfly, pp. 37, 38.

"Shot-borer"; "Apple-bark Beetle"; "Pear Blight."

Xylehorus dispar, Fab. ; JJostrichus dispar, Fab. ; Xylebonis 2^yri,
Peck (of American writers).

■/ I'M!', '1,1 I . .,f^^^

Xyleboeus dispak. — Male and female beetle, magnified; lines showing natural
length. Plum stems, showing horizontal and perpendicular galleries.

The following observations refer to the serious, and often
rapidly fatal, injury caused to young Plum trees by the

186 PLUM.

Xylehorus clisimr, or " Shot-borer," a very small dark brown
beetle, which until the year 1889 had been considered to be
one of our rarest species, although on the Continent it has
been recorded for many years as occasionally doing enormous
mischief to various kinds both of young orchard and forest
trees.

The injury is caused by the beetles driving their tunnels, so
as in the case of quite young trees to partially ring them, and
also to clear out an inch or so of the central pith ; in the
older, though still far from full-grown, trees, although the
borings were not so regularly placed, still, from their large
number, they interfered with the passage of the sap and did
great harm.

In German observations this species has been recorded as
seriously injurious to many kinds of trees, as Apple, Pear,
and Plum ; also to many kinds of Alder, and to Beech, Oak,
Chestnut, Maple, and Hawthorn ; and it is noticed by Herr
Eichhoff as infesting almost any kind of tree, including
Conifers.

In America the first observ£itions of it were as being
injurious to the branches of young Pear trees; and later
on it is noted that Pear and Apple trees suffered from its
attacks from Nova Scotia southward. With us, so far as
I am aware, it is the Plum which at present has been the
only tree to which its attack has been recorded as a regular
orchard pest. It may certainly be said to be a widespread
trouble, both as to the range of its geographical distribution,
and also the many kinds of trees which it infests.

The first information I had of the presence of this beetle
was sent me on September 1st, 1889, from the Toddington
Fruit-grounds (Gloucestershire), with the observation: — "I
enclose a portion of the stem of a young Plum tree, in which
you will see a small beetle which has bored its way into the
wood and killed the tree. We are losing several trees from
the same cause."

Later on, that is, early in December, specimens were sent
me of the same kind of beetle (X. dispar), with information of
it having been present for three years and doing serious
damage in a locality near Kidderminster; also that it had
done much harm at Hartlebury, a village about four miles
from Kidderminster ; and also that it was present at another
farm in a different direction about seven or eight miles from
Kidderminster.

On examination I found that the cause of the injury was
the Xylehorus dispar, sometimes known as the " Shot-borer"
Beetle, figured at p. 185. These beetles are of a pitchy-brown
or pitchy-black colour ; the wing-cases are of a redder brown

SHOT-BORER. 187

in the male than the female. The fore part of the body
behmd the head is granulated ; the wing-cases have alternate
rows of fine punctures, with flat spaces still more finely
punctured, and somewhat hairy. The horns are clubbed at
the ends, and, as well as the legs, of some shade of yellow or
reddish tint.

The great peculiarity of these insects is the difference in
shape and size between the male and female (the disjyarity),
from which the beetle takes its name of disjiar. The female
is about the eighth of an inch long, narrow and cylindrical,
with the thorax (the fore body) large in proportion, and raised
in the middle so as to make a kind of hump. The male is
only about two-thirds of the length of the female, and much
wider in proportion, and the back is flatter. The wings which
I examined in the female were well developed, and thickly
sprinkled with very short, bulbous-rooted bristles.

The reason of the singularly rapid and complete destruction
of the stem of young trees attacked by these beetles was
plainly shown on laying open their tunnels. In the specimens
of these from Toddington which I examined (figured, life size,
at p. 185), I found that the injury began by a small hole like
a shot-hole being bored in the side of the attacked stem, from
which a tunnel ran to the pith, and a branch about the eighth
of an inch across ran horizontally about half or two-thirds
round the stem. Sometimes this tunnel was about midway
between the outside and the centre, but in one instance quite
at the outside of the wood. From these horizontal borings
other borings were taken straight up and down the stem ;
these might be certainly as many as four (perhaps more in
one stem), and were from half an inch to upwards of an inch
and a half long, and of these tunnels (in the pieces of stem
I examined), one ran along the pith, which was completely
cleared away. The great injury caused by these galleries
fully accounted for the death of the stem.

At the time of examination, that is, on or about September
12th, the tunnels were filled with beetles ; w4iere the width
only was enough for one, the beetles were arranged in a row
one after another in procession, as it were ; where the tunnel
was a little wider (as where the pith had been cleared away),
they were less regularly arranged, but crowded in, so that
there scarcely seemed to be room for another. In one length
of wood of about two inches I found, as near as might be,
thirty beetles. The work of destruction was still evidently
going on, for in some instances I found that, instead of being
as usual black and discoloured, the sides of the tunnel or the
extremity were white and moist, showing the beetles were still
feeding. The instinct of tunnelling was so strong at the time,

188 PLUM.

that a quantity of beetles which I secured in a tube buried
themselves so rapidly in the cork, that between the 10th of
September and the morning of the 12th they had already
bored five tunnels into it, and it contained at least seven
female beetles.

A great peculiarity of this attack has been considered to be
the extreme rarity of males compared to the number of females,
and amongst from about fifty to sixty of these Shot-borers
which I took out of their borings in Plum stems in September,
I found only one male. Subsequent search, however, made
me think that in winter the difference in proportion of
numbers would be found to be not nearly so great, for amongst
some specimens I examined early in December I found a
larger proportion of males, and about a month later, amongst
specimens I took (on or about January 10th) from a piece of
Plum stem two inches and a quarter across, about seventeen
males to six females.

The borings at this winter time of year only contained a
sprinkling of beetles, instead of, as in September, being so
crowded up that there was scarcely room to insert another
beetle into the row that filled each boring.

The method of attack is stated, by the well-known German
observer Schmidberger, to be for the beetles to choose a spot,
usually on the main stem of the tree, making no distinction
as to the tree being sickly or healthy, young or old, so long as
it is thick enough for the purpose, — at least half an inch in
diameter. (The attacked stems sent me from Toddington were
from a little under to a little over three-quarters of an inch
across. — E. A.O.) The female then proceeds to bore passages,
and in a small chamber at the opening of each of these she is
stated to lay her snow-white, longish eggs. The first-hatched
larvae are recorded by Schmidberger as being noticeable about
the end of May, and these are considered by him to arrange
themselves (in the same manner as the beetles we noticed, as
above described), one after the other in the tunnels so as to
fill them, and to feed there on a whitish substance with which
the passage is incrusted, and there the maggots, according to
the observations quoted, turned to chrysalids and thence to
beetles.*

The nature of this incrustation, now known to be fungoid,
is of great interest, and has been the subject of much dis-
cussion from the time of Canon Schmidberger, who described
this substance (of which the nature was not then known)

* Bostrichus dlspar, Schmidberger (Apate dispar, Fab.) ; Xyloterus dispar,
Erichson. See ' Naturgeschichte der Schadlichen Insecten,' von Vincent
Kollar, pp. 261-273 ; and English translation, ' Kollar's Treatise on Insects,'
pp. 254-2(32.

SHOT-BORER. 189

under the fanciful name of Ambrosia, up to the elaborate
observations given, with illustrations accompanying, by Mr.
H. G. Hubbard in his paper on the "Ambrosia Beetles,"
published in 1897, and referred to below.*

Some amount of correct observation was before the public,
as in an article published in 1844 by Theo. Hartig, in which
be recorded the *' Ambrosia " of X. dispar as being a fungoid
growth ; and in 1881 Herr Eichhoff made some degree of
observation of the fungoid growth as follows : — " The dispar
only uses the wood which is still fresh, and full of sap for the
brood ; this sap soaks (' sweats ') so constantly out of the
walls of the breeding galleries, that presently this thickens
into white-of-egg-like coagulations (called by Schmidberger
'Ambrosia'); and from these the coatings of fungi which
have been so often mentioned develop, whereby after a time
the surface of the circular galleries become stained black.
These coagulations, and occasionally the fungoid growths,
serve exclusively for the nourishment of the young larvse." t

Those, however, who wish to go into the subject in detail
will find in Mr. Hubbard's paper, referred to below, much
useful information on Ambrosia Beetles and their habits,
together with figures of various kinds of "Ambrosia" fungus.
At p. 9 Mr. Hubbard states that "the term Ambrosia Beetles
is used as a convenient one to distinguish from the true
bark-borers and bark-eaters " [the Elm-bark Beetle, Scolytus
destructor, for example. — E. A. 0.] , "the timber-boring Scoly-
tidcs, which push their galleries deeply into the wood, and
which feed upon a substance called Ambrosia. . . . Their
food consists not of wood, but of certain minute and juicy
fungi propagated on the walls of their galleries." These
fungi, it is stated, are of different kinds, each species of
"Ambrosia Beetles" (or, if not strictly each species, only
those most closely allied) feeding on one kind, and one only,
of Ambrosia fungus. Also they vary in shape ; some, for
instance, are like a pile of beads in appearance, whilst the
fungus of Xylehorus saxeseni {= xylograpkus) , referred to
further on, is of upright stems set close together, with a
swollen cell at the end of each, and not unlike in general
appearance, when enormously magnified, to a great number
of short, very thick-stemmed pins, with round heads, set very
closely together.

The scientific generic name of this beetle appears now, after

* See "Ambrosia Beetles of the United States," by H. G. Hubbard, in
' Some Miscellaneous Eesults of Work of the Division of Entomology,' United
States Department of Agriculture, Washington, 1897, p. "24.

t ' Die Europiiischen Rorkenkafer,' von W. Eichholi', Kaiserl. Oberforster in
Mulhausen, Elsass. Berlin, 1881.

190 PLUM.

various changes, to be adopted as Xylehorus. With regard to
a convenient popular name, that of " Shot-borer," which has
become established here, appears as convenient as any for use
with ourselves. There are manifest objections to the use of
the names of " Apple-bark Beetle " and of " Pear Blight," as
referring to only a portion of the trees attacked. " Ambrosia
Beetles " is an excellently distinctive scientific appellation-
referring to them as a fungus-forming class, and also for those
who by knowledge and microscopic power can trace out this
peculiarity within the workings of the beetles.

But although other beetles form shot-hole-like borings
through the bark, still this habit is sufficient to draw atten-
tion to the mischief which is going forward in our Plum
orchards, and for the present for popular use we do not seem
to have any more convenient plan than for this species and
X. saxeseni, mentioned below, to share for orchard use the
name of " Shot-borers."

Prevention and Kemedies. — One of the most plainly ser-
viceable of these is cutting down and burning the infested
portions of all trees — Plum, Apple, or otherwise — found to be
undergoing attack, taking the shot-hole-like perforations in
the bark and the wood dust thrown out as a guide, to some
degree, for investigation of the nature of the mischief going
forward within. Where the trees attacked are still young
(that is, still only, as was the case at Toddington, about
three-quarters of an inch across the stem), the only course to
be advised is to cut them down as soon as they are found to
be infested, and to burn the part containing the beetles. It
is no waste, for in the case of young trees the beetle-borings
are rapidly fatal.

For treatment to prevent beetle attack to the growing trees,
the only generally available measures appear to be those
suggested by Mr. J. Fletcher, Dominion Entomologist of
Canada, for use in the Nova Scotia Apple orchards, namely,
of coating the trees with some wash or mixture which will
not hurt the bark, but will prevent the beetle getting in or
getting out. One application advised for trial is a thick coat
of whitewash with some Paris-green in it.

Another is the thick soft-soap wash known as "Saunders'
Wash," thus noticed: — " Soft-soap reduced to the consistence
of a thick paint by the addition of a strong solution of
washing-soda in water is perhaps as good a formula as can
be suggested ; this, if applied to the bark of the tree during
the morning of a warm day, will dry in a few hours and form
a tenacious coating not easily dissolved by rain." *

* Report of Entomologist, Department of Agriculture, Canada, 1887, p. 28.

SHOT-BORER. 191

Where infestation is known to exist in a district, just the
same class of measures are useful to prevent its continuance
which are in regular use by foresters for prevention of infesta-
tion of Pine Weevil and Piue Beetle in woods and plantations.

The " Shot-borer" frequents stumps or fallen trees of the
kinds liable to its infestation for breeding purposes, and
prefers these (where attainable) to healthy growing material.
Therefore it is desirable to remove all such material and burn
it early, that is, by the beginning of the warm season ; and
later on, at the time of summer felling, to remove and burn
all infested wood. Further, it answers to set trap wood.
These traps may be arranged by setting poles of any kind of
wood that the beetles naturally frequent, with one end in the
ground so as to keep them fresh for a while, and examining
them every three or four weeks, and destroying them if found
to be infested. New pieces should be set from time to time,
as the beetles require wood with some degree of freshness of
sap for their breeding purposes. The season for " trapping "
is March to August or September, or later still in the year if
examination shows infestation continuing. Felled trees also
may be centres of spread of infestation if not looked to, and
also stores or timber-yards near orchards may need attention
as to infested wood stacked there, which is sure to be a centre
of fresh mischief.

Another method of dealing with attacks of Xylehori, or
" Shot-borers," is plugging up their entrance-holes, in regard
to effect of which it is noted at p. 11 of Mr. Hubbard's paper,
previously quoted, that by closing the outlets of the galleries
through the bark, or by spraying into them kerosine or some
other noxious liquid, the contained beetles are so discomposed
that they run in all directions, and by trampling on and
crushing the young larvae and eggs, and breaking down the
exceedingly delicate fungoid growth, a state of things is
induced in which the living insects are destroyed.

In the same paper, at p. 13, under the head of "Piemedies,"
are the following notes, which I give at length, as the most
recent observations on the subject : —

" From what has been said of the nature of the food of
these beetles, it is evident that any method by which the
entrances to their galleries in the bark can be closed will
effectually put an end to the progress of their colonies.
Perhaps the best means of accomplishing this is by coating
the trunks with dendroline or raupenleim. A light brushing
or spraying of the bark with creosote or kerosine will some-
times accomplish the same result, especially at the beginning
of an attack. But this cannot be depended upon to per-
manently protect the trees.

192

PLUx^I.

" Valuable fruit trees •which have suffered injury from fire
or frost cannot always be protected from attacks of the borers
by coating the bark, because of the risk of injury to the buds,
which must be allowed to grow upon the trunks. In such
cases if borers enter the wood their holes must be plugged.
An excellent method is to insert an iron wire as far as it will
go, cut it off, and leave the piece in the hole. The inhabitants
of colonies thus imprisoned are unable to extend their borings,
and inevitably perish." — (H. G. H.)

Flat-celled Shot-borer Beetle.

Xylehorus saxeseni, Katz. = Xylehorus xylographus, Say.

1

2

E.C.Z.

Xyleborus saseseni. — 1, beetle ; 2, larva — magnified, with natural length
of each ; 3 and 4, cell, natural size, showing broad and flat and also narrow-
view.

Up to the date of the observation made in the early part of
the year 1897 of the attacks of Xylehorus saxeseni to the wood
of Plum trees, although the presence of this species in England
was known of by entomologists, yet (so far as I am aware)
there was no record of it having occurred here as a decided
orchard pest, and naturally when the injuries were noticed
they were at first attributed to the attacks of Xylchor-us dispar,
which had caused much mischief in various Plum-growing
localities for several years previously, and was first reported
(from Toddington, Gloucestershire) in 1889.

This infestation, however, may have been present, for the
chief observable difference in method of injury, which consists

FLAT-CELLED SHOT-BORER BEETLE. 193

in the brood cells of saxeseni being broad and fiat, whilst
those of dispar are cylindrical borings, is not noticeable until
the wood is split open ; the beetles also are so far similar
that some knowledge of their special characteristics and the
use of a magnifying-glass are necessary to make sure of which
kind is under observation.

Xi/lehorus saxeseni is somewhat elongate in shape ; the
females rather more than a line ia length, the males shorter
and rather broader. The females black (or sometimes of a
3'ellowish brown) with a small amount of grey hairs ; the
males wingless, much fewer in number than the females, the
brownish colour of a lighter shade, and the hairs longer.
This kind may be readily distinguished (see figures, pp. 185,
192) from X. dispar (the only species which at present there
may be occasion to distinguish them from here) by the female
of dispar having the thorax (or fore body) large in proportion,
and raised in the middle into a kind of hump, while the male,
which is only two-thirds of the length of the female in this
sijecies, is remarkable for being much wider in proportion,
and flat on the back. From all other species of Xt/leborus it
is considered that saxeseni ^^ xylographus may be distinguished
" by the very regular rows of small but sharp teeth upon the
declivity of the elytra." *

The matured larva is in colour " yellowish white to yellow;
head darker, with dark brown mandibles and brown longi-
tudinal line ; . . . body stouter, thoracic segments much
larger, and head much smaller in proportion to body than in
first and intermediate stages ; segments and head sparsely
clothed with short fine hairs ; length about one line." t

In the course of my own observations, on splitting one of
the pieces of Plum wood open, on July 28th, I found two
parties of maggots within about two inches of each other.
These were of different ages, whitish, and legless, and dis-
tinctly lobed, the head very shining white, or, in the older
specimens, with a faint yellowish tint (see figure 2, p. 192).
Whilst still alive or quite fresh the three first segments
appeared to me to be somewhat inflated below, and but
slightly corrugated above ; the others slightly lobed below,
and much corrugated longitudinally above.

In this instance the cell was a flat cavity just inside the

* See "Ambrosia Beetles of the United States," by H. G. Hubbard, in
' Some Miscellaneous Kesults of Work of the Division of Entomology,' United
States Department of Agriculture, Washington, 18'J7, p. 24.

t Minutely detailed description of the insect from egg to male and female
beetle will be found in the paper on " ' The Wood Engraver,' Ambrosia Beetle,
Xyleborus xylographus (Say), Xyleborus saxeseni (Eatz.)," by A. D. Hopkins,
Entomologist, West Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station, pp. '27-29 ;
published in No. 2 of 'Canadian Entomologist,' 1898.

O

194 PLUM.

outer wood, this clianiljci- l)eing about tliree-quarters of an
inch l)y onc-quavtor in dimensions of widtli, and in thickness
only about sullicient to accommodate the full-grown larvae or
beetles ; and patched over the surface with the white fungoid
formation known by writers as "Ambrosia," this being
sprinkled with workings of wood-dust, or " frass " of wood.

The smallest size of larva that I measured in the numerous
collection was just over the thirty-second of an inch in length;
and 1 found upwards of fourteen larva; packed together in the
inner part of the slit-like cavity, and perhaps a dozen or
more besides. From the extreme narrowness of the chamber
it was difficult to dissect out the specimens so as to be sure
of amount of contents.

I found amongst the above larvfe three pupte ; these were
readily observable, even with moderately magnifying glasses,
by their l)right shiny whiteness ; the hinder edge of the
thorax was well defined, and so was the longitudinal striation
of the wing-cases. The shape is that of the future beetle, only
still lying at rest with the developing limbs folded beneath it.

The flat and narrow form of the brood chambers, as figured
at 8 and 4, p. 102, is characterisiic.

In another piece of Plum stem, of two and three-(juarter
inches in diameter, which I examined about the same date, I
found a horizontal tunnel running from the outside, of about
a quarter of an inch in length, on each side of which,
beginning at the above distance (one-quarter inch) from the
outside of the tree, a flat vertical cell was hollowed out.
three-quarters of an inch long at the greatest height, and
five-eighths in width. The shape of this flat chaml)cr was
somewluit squarish (see figure JJ, p. 192), about two-thirds of
it being above, and one-third below the mother gallery, of
which some traces still remained, and which crossed the flat
cell, and then was continued merely as a tunnel (a distinct
gallery) for about three-eighths of an inch further, where it
stopped, the extremity being filled witli about half-a-dozen
very young larvjc and a few eggs.

The surface of the Hat chamber (as seen in the side re-
maining after the other side had been cut away in the course
of examination) was covered for the most part with a very
thin coating of wax-like material, greyish in colour, and with
a somewhat sweet scent, and the surface of the wood of the
clianil)cr, wherever it was visible, was certainly not of the
bla(;k colour so noticeable in connection with the workings of
X/jlehoriis dispar. It was rather of a brown colour, and
moist-looking appearance. This flat cell, or gnawed-out
chandler, had only space enough between its two upright
sides (see figure 4, p. 192) to accommodate the larva), which

FLAT-CELLED SIIOT-BORER BEETLE. 195

were for tho most part ai)p!irently full-<^rown, and in many
casoH not pure Avliite, but tinj^cd with ctolour, iiiul with the
yellow contents of a portion of the length of tho food canal
showinjj; distinctly.

The above points, of the iiatness of the cell and the circum-
stance of this brood chamber beinp; partially formed by the
gnawinjfs of the larvii), are well described in the followin*;
extrac^ts, takcui from tho notes publislied duriiifj; tho present
year by ^Iv. 11. i\. Hubbard, onci of the "investigators" of
the United States Board of Agriculture * : — " The young in

this species are assembled in a brood chamber It is

constructed at the end of a gallery which penetrates deeply into
the heart, or remains in tho sapwood, according to tho anu)unt
of moisture in tho tree trunk, . . . and stands vei'tically on
edge parallel with the grain of tho wood. Tho space between
the Willis is not unich greater than the thickness of tho bodies
of the adult beetles. The larvjc aid in extending tho brood
chamber. They swallow the wood which they removo with
their jaws, and in passing through their bodies it becomes
stained a mustard-yellow colour. Groat (piantitios of this
excrement are ejected from the oi)enings of the colony, but a
portion is retained, and plastered upon the walls, where it
serves as a bed upon which there springs up a new crop of
the food fungus."

The method of life (as observed in the United States) is for
the fertilized females to pass the winter in their brood
chambers, and emerge in the spring. They are then attracted
to sickly, dying, or felled trees, in the living or moist dead
wood of which they prefer to excavate their brood galleries.
A crevice or opening in the bark, such as may bo made by
other insects or even by a bird, but more commonly tho edge
of a wound, or a dead place on a living tree, is stated to be
the favourite point of attack.

Apple and Plum are amongst tho orchard trees which arc;
especially recorded as infested by this species of Xi/lclx)!-!!^ ;
and in regard to distribution, it is mentioued by llerr Vjichliolf |
that ^^ saxesoii is not only distributed over the greatest [)art
of Europe, but is also found in tho Canary Islands, in North
America, and probably also in Japan. Amongst the bark
beetles it is a renuirkably general feeder, for it lives and
breeds not only in tho wood of the nu)st dilferent kinds of
leafy trees, as Oak, Beech, Birch, Maple, Lime, Boplar, and
orchard trees, but also in various of the needle-leaved trees "
[as Bine and Birj.

* Lor. cit. note, p. 193.

t 'Pie ]<juropiiiHchon IJorkcnkiifcr,' von W. Eicliliol'f, Kaiscrl. OborforHlcr in
MulhauBon, i. Elaaas, licrlin, 1881, p. 280.

o2

196 PLUM.

In common \Yith other of the "Ambrosia Beetles," this
species is accompanied by a i^eculiar fungoid growth on the
"walls of its cells (see ante, p. 189) on which it feeds ; and in
relation to this point it may prove of practical interest to
mention that about the beginning of August in 1897 vast
numbers of a small black ok brown mite were found at Tod-
dington, by hundreds and thousands, crawling on the stems
of the Xt/lehonis-iniested trees. On submitting these little
mites (or A cart) to Mr. Albert D. Michael for certain identifi-
cation, he found them to be Orihata lapidaria, belonging to
the family of Orihatidce, which amongst other substances prey
on minute fungi, and therefore (it may be conjectured at least)
may help us in getting rid of the beetles by preying on their
special fungoid food.

Methods of Prevention. — These are for the most part the
same which are applicable for lessening amount of X. dispar,
which have been mentioned in the preceding paper ; but it
has been suggested in reference to the habit of X. saxeseni of
making its way into apparently healthy wood through a dead
or dying patch on the bark, or a wound, that it might have a
good preservative effect if such places were treated by re-
moval of the dead bark, or paring the edges of the wound,
and painting the spots with kerosine emulsion (undiluted),
grafting-wax, or other dressings of a like character.

Yet another method of action, which it is considered may
be effective in destroying infestation when in active life in the
tree, is to stop up the entrance-hole by running a piece of
wire into it. Thus it is said that the economy of the insects
is so disturbed that the beetles in their movements trample
down the fungus food, and thus all the contents of the cell
are destroj'ed together.

The preceding notes of the habits of the two species of
Xylchoriis named are given, as far as la}^ in my power, from
English observations; but those who wish to study the most
recent observations in full detail will find excellently valuable
observations on different genera and species of the "Ambrosia
Beetles," with descriptions of different kinds of fungoid growth
accompanying their presence, and many illustrations, in the
paper by Mr. H. G. Hubbard, of which the title is given at
p. 193 ; and full information regarding X. xfjlograpJins = X.
saxeseni, including minute descriptions of the beetle in its
various stages, histor}^ habits, and means of prevention and
remedy, with two plates embodying about twenty-four figures,
will be found in the paper by Mr. A. D. Hopkins noted at
p. 193, thus bringing the record of observation up to February,
1898.

FRUIT-TREE BARK BEETLE.

197

Fruit-tree Bark Beetle.

Scolytus rufjulosm, Ratzebiirg ; S, Immorrlions, Schmidt.

H.K.

Scolytus euguloscs.— Beetle, larva, and pupa ; all greatly magnified. The two
latter from drawings by Mr. E. Newstead.

The above-named beetle much resembles the well-known
Elm-bark Beetle {Scolytus destructor, Oliv.), in its method of
doing harm by working in larval state within the inner part
of the bark and outer part of the wood, but is distinguishable
(for one thing) by being a good deal smaller, the Elm-bark
Beetle being from one and a half to as much as three lines in
length, and the "Fruit-tree" Scolytus only from three-quarters
of a line or less, to a line and a quarter long.

The infestation has long been known on the continent of
Europe, and noted as feeding in the bark and sap-wood of
various trees, especially Apple, Plum, and Cherry. In the
United States "available data indicate that Plum is more
susceptible to attack than other trees ; while Peach, Cherry,
and Ai^ple are attacked about equally. Pear is also quite
subject to infestation; and Apricot, Nectarine, and Quince
trees are known to have harboured the species."* In this
country it has not been (so far as I am aware) noticed as more
than " rather common " until 1895 ; and until I received in
that year specimens of small boughs of Plum much injured
by its presence, I was not aware of it being one of our decided
orchard pests.

On the 7th of June, Mr. Eobert Newstead, F.E.S., Curator
of the Grosvenor Museum, Chester, wrote to inform me that
he was sending me some pieces of Plum branches infested
with Scolytus rugulosus, of which he observed : — " By carefully
removing the bark you will find the insect in all stages, e. g.
larva, pupa, and imago. The branches are from Plum trees
in my father's garden at Ince, Cheshire, where the attack has

• See Circular, No. 29, Second Series, United States Department of
Agriculture, Division of Entomology. By F, H. Chittenden, Assistant Ento-
mologist. Washington, March 25th, 1898.

198 PLUM.

proved most destructive, as also at other gardens in the same
village. I have also received it from Shropshire, where it had
been equally destructive. I have now had the species under
investigation for nearly two years."

Mr. Newstead kindly lent me his own drawing from life of
the maggot and pupa much magnified, which, with his per-
mission, I have had copied, and insert at p. 197.

The specimens sent were very characteristic of the method
of attack. The life-history is that the little beetles appear in
April or May, and begin to bore into the bark, and the females
tunnel their vertical galleries between the inner bark and sap-
wood. Here they lay their white eggs singly side by side along
this "mother-gallery," and from these eggs the grubs hatch
after a few days, and feed on the inner bark by preference,
but otherwise in the sap-wood. The maggot-tunnels neces-
sarily all start off, as with so many of the bark-beetles, at
right angles from the mother-gallery, by the sides of which
the eggs were laid; and when full-fed, if there is still a good
thickness of bark over them, they turn to chrysalids at the
ends of their tunnels ; otherwise, if the bark is too thin a
protection from their having eaten it away, or from other
causes, they pierce a little way down into the solid wood.

This was very observable in the small branches sent me.
At first, from the short boring down into the wood being
stopped at the entrance by the powder (frass), the results of
the_ feeding of the grub, the perforation was very likely not
noticeable ; but later on, when the beetles had developed and
emerged, the minute cylindrical holes down into the wood were
as observable as those through the bark, and were sprinkled
in such numbers in the Plum branches sent me, that I counted
sixty perforations at least in a space of one inch in width by
two in length, the short tunnel varying in depth from about
the sixteenth to over the eighth of an inch, and often entering
the wood in a slightly slanting direction.

The first round perforations through the bark are made for
entrance holes by the beetles; presently, if the brood of beetles
comes to maturity each at the end of its larval tunnel, they
will pierce their way oat, and the bark will be sprinkled with
the round shot-like holes they have made as exit passages.
Where there is only a small quantity of attack the character-
istic form of the vertical mother-gallery, with maggot-galleries
starting at (more or less) right angles from it, is clearly ob-
servable ; but where much infestation is present the various
galleries may intersect each other, and the larvae instinctively
diverge from their straightforward course to avoid the tunnel
of an adjacent larval worker, so that the workings are irregu-
larly interlaced.

FRUIT-TREE BARK BEETLE.

199

Work of S. ru-
gulosus in Apple-

The accompanying figure of an infested Apple-twig, with
part of the bark removed, shows injury just underlying the
bark in irregular workings and perforations
through the bark.* Tlie beetle is of the shape
figured, magnified, at p. 197, and shining, but,
on account of its wrinkled surface, not so much
so as the rather larger kind the Scolytus pruni.
The fore body is extremely closely covered
with deep oblong punctures, confluent into
wrinkles in front and at the sides. The colour
is black, with tips of the wing-cases, horns,
and legs, or a portion of them, red or reddish
brown ; the wing-cases have punctures on the
interstices as large and deep as those in the
striae. The length of the beetle is about the
tenth of an inch ; and the abdomen is shorter
than the wing-cases.

The larva, figured at heading, is white, with
small yellowish head, and brown mandibles,
and surface wrinkled. The pupa is also white.

According to Dr. Taschenberg, the develop-
ment of the beetles from the first-laid eggs is twig; natural 'size,
completed by the end of June. This agrees
with the state of the specimens sent me by Mr. Newstead. Of
these, on June 21st, I found the beetles had been developing
numerously. The dust which had dro|)ped from their work-
ings induced me to make a careful examination as to what had
been going on, and at first only a few of the beetles were
noticeable in the box ; but, on moving the pieces of infested
branches, I found that numbers of them were present, running
about fast and actively.

With regard to the number of successive broods that there
may be in one year, this appears, from the comparison of
observations given in Mr. Chittenden's paper previously
noticed, to depend very much on climate. Formerly it was
supposed by continental observers that there was only one
generation annually ; now it is known by U. S. A. observa-
tion that there may be four or five. I have not had convenient
opportunity for tracing out this point myself in this country ;
but from specimens and observations sent, the attack is ob-
viously one that needs watching against and careful keeping
in check.

Prevention and Eemedy. — One important measure is (as
in the case of the Elm-bark Scolytus) to remove all centres of

* From original drawing, p. 2, of Mr. Chittenden's paper previously
referred to.

200 PLUM.

infestation. If infested trees are found to be dying, they
should be cut down and burnt ; and boughs or twigs, such as
that figured at p. 199, should be cut off also and burnt.

Where there is only moderate attack, the trees should be
gone over to ascertain what is needed, and treated accordingly.
The time of the emergence of the beetles may be known by
the appearance of the little perforations like shot-holes in the
bark, and the fine dust from the workings of the insect that
has fallen from them. In the case of the pieces of branches
which were sent me there was a good deal of this " frass "
thrown out. Where the Xylehorus or Shot-borer Beetles are
also present, it may be necessary to strip some small pieces of
bark to ascertain whether the "shot-holes" are caused by
"borers" whose tunnels will be found, as with the Scolytiis
under consideration, lying (probably in great numbers) super-
ficially on the outside of the wood, and beneath the inner
coat of the bark, and only occasionally entering the wood for
a very short space (see p. 199) ; or, like the Xylehori, piercing
into the solid wood before commencing further damage.

Various washes have been recommended to prevent per-
foration of the bark by the beetles for egg-laying purposes, of
which one of the most likely to be successful is that recom-
mended by Dr. W. Saunders, Director of the Experimental
Farm of the Dominion of Canada, for prevention of various
kinds of fruit-tree bark-borers. This consists of soft-soap
reduced to the consistency of a thick paint by the addition of
a strong solution of washing-soda in water; "this, if applied
to the bark of the tree, especially about the base or collar,
and also extended upwards to the crotches, where the main
branches have their origin, will cover the whole surface liable
to attack ; and if applied during the morning of a warm day,
will dry in a few hours, and form a tenacious coating not
easily dissolved by rain." * A protective coat of this mixture
given when the beetles are emerging (which may be known,
as above mentioned, by the frass, or wood-dust, thrown out
from their borings), and another application somewhat later,
would most likely answer well.

For special application where it is desired to protect valu-
able trees from infestation. Dr. Taschenberg recommends the
use of Leinweber's mixture. A recipe for this will be found
in Prof. W. E. Fisher's useful work referred to below t : —
" Five pounds of tobacco mixed with half a pailful of hot
water, kept hot for twenty-four hours ; the water is then

* See 'Insects Injurious to Fruits,' by W. Saunders, F.R.S.C., &e., p. 19.

t ' Forest Protection,' by W. R. Fisher, Assistant Professor of Forestry,
lioyal Indian Engineering College, Cooper's Hill, &c., p. 250. London :
Bradbury, Aguew & Co., Bouverie Street. 1895.

FRUIT-TREE BARK BEETLE. 201

squeezed out of the tobacco, and mixed with half a pailful of
bullock's blood, one part of slaked lime, and sixteen parts of
cow-dung. This is kept in an open tub, and stirred once a
day, and used after fermentation has set in. The rough
bark-moss, &c., is trimmed off the tree, and the latter painted
with the mixture for three successive days, until a crust is
formed which the rain will not wash off." The very dis-
gusting application may possibly act in some degree by the
smell of the putrefying animal matter so entirely overcoming
the vegetable odour, that the beetles cease to be attracted to
their regular host-plants.

Two other kinds of dressings, — one known in Germany as
" raupenleim," the other the application known in America
as " dendroline," — have been suggested as possibly useful,
both as keeping out external attack, and preventing escape of
what may be within.

Both of these materials are stated to be crude petroleum
products, of the nature of an impure vaseline, of a greasy
consistency at ordinary temperatures, and absolutely resisting
wash by rains.

The "raupenleim" is stated to harden into a crust after a
time, and the " dendroline " to have a tendency to become
absorbed ; also it is said that no insect will rest upon these
materials long enough to lay an egg, and that no larva can
bore through a coating of them to reach the trunk of the
tree.*

Should these "preventives" be introduced into this country,
they might prove of great service against Winter Moth attack
if applied similarly to "sticky banding" and with similar
care, especially in the case of " dendroline," to avoid risk of
the application soaking into tender bark.

But with regard to remedial measures for the Scolytus
attack under consideration, probably the fairly effective plan
of clearing and burning infested trees or parts of trees will be
the method generally preferred.

* For details and cautions in use of these preparations, more especially of
the dendroline, see 'Economic Entomology,' by Dr. John B. Smith, p. -iSl.
Philadelphia : J. B. Lippincott Company.

202

QUINCE. — KASPBERRY.

QUINCE.

Attacks to the Quince have scarcely ever been reported to
me, and amongst these none that are pecuHar to this tree.
The names of various infestations to which it is subject in
common with other orchard trees will be found in the list of
fruit trees and bushes (arranged alphabetically, with the
names of the attacks to which each land is subject) placed
preceding the Index.

KASPBERRY.

Raspberry Beetle. DytHrus tomentosus, Fab.

Bytdrus tomentosus. — Raspberry Beetles, much magnified, with line showing
natural length ; maggot, magnified, with line showing natural length, after
sketch by Prof. Westwood. Raspberry fruit.

The Raspberry Beetles are to be found in spring (after they
have developed from the chrysalis state, in which they have
passed the wiuter) infesting various kinds of flowers, but
especially those of Raspberries. As a fruit infestation this
beetle affects Raspberries and Blackberries, and is to be found
widely distributed over the country ; reports of its presence
have been sent me from various localities in Kent, and as
being very noticeably present in 1891 (the year of its worst

RASPBEKEY BEETLE. 203

appearance) in the Toddington Fruit-grounds in Gloucester-
shire. It was also present at various places in our more
easterly counties, and in Scotland was very injurious as far
north as Newton, near Glasgow, and, judging by descriptions
published about June 30th in the above year, also did much
harm in the neighbourhoods of Scone, near Perth, and Alyth,
on the borders of Perthshire and Forfar.

On May 28th, 1883, I received a communication from Mr.
H. Wood, of Crockenhill, St. Mary Cray, Kent, regarding a
small brown beetle, which proved to be the Easpberry Beetle
{Bi/turus tomentosus), which was causing fearful havoc, and
entirely devouring the Piaspberries. Of this he mentioned
that he had " noticed this insect in the Easpberries for some
years, but never so numerous as they are this season ; . . .
they have aj)peared rather earlier than usual, piercing the
bloom before it has expanded (this shown by specimen sent).
They generally enter the bloom after it has expanded, and
then eat completely through it. This insect is a fearful pest;
the fruit-growers in this neighbourhood complain most fear-
fully of it."

The above was the only communication tbat I received of
the attack being of serious importance until 1891 (the date of
the following observations), nor have I had any since.

Bi/turus tomejitosiis is a small beetle about one-sixth of an
inch in length, of some shade of brown, which may vary from
pitchy to reddish or yellowish, but covered so thickly as to
conceal the ground colour with a j^ellowish or grey down,
from which it receives its specific name of tomentosiis. The
wings (see figure, p. 202) are ample. The antenna, or horns
(which are thickened towards the extremity so as to be some-
what club-shaped) and the legs, are reddish yellow, or reddish
yellow with a brown tinge.

The injuries are commenced by the beetles attacking the
bloom of the Easpberrj^, or even eating their way into the
unopened flower-buds. The earliest notes I have received of
attack were on the 26th of May, when the beetles were
attacking the buds ; somewhat later, another of my corre-
spondents mentioned : — " I first noticed them when the
flower-buds were forming ; apparently piercing a hole in each
bud. Now, as the buds are opening, they seem to be eating
the stamens and petals. I have killed quite two hundred in
a short time, generally two on every bud."

Mr. John Speir, writing from Newton Farm, near Glasgow,
on the 13th of June, observed : — " The enclosed small brown
beetles are making considerable havoc on the remaining canes
of my Easpberries. They eat away the flower- bud."

With advance of the bloom the whole of it is liable to be

204 RASPBERRY.

cleared awjiy. A correspondent, near Dartford, forwarded
me Bytiirus beetles with Easpberry blossom which they had
injured, and a few days later forwarded more beetles and
Easpberry blossom in various stages of consumption, with
the further observation: — "You will see that it is quite
finished off, and if some remedy is not found the whole crop
will be destroyed."

From an Essex locality the same attack was noted as that
"of a little beetle that attacks the bloom of the Easpberries,
and appears in some instances quite to destroy it " ; and
further, that " it was found quite at the bottom where the
fruit is forming."

Another observer mentioned of Byturus, with specimens
accompanying : — " There are sometimes five in one flower.
They lly readily. They lie in the trough round the base of
the embryo fruit."

All the above observations, it will be noticed, refer to the
attack of the Byturus beetle to i\\e Jiower or hlossom-hud of the
Easpberry, the first application being sent on the 26th of
May, and inquiries or remarks on presence of attack being
continued until the last day of June. This injury, however,
which is caused by the beetles to the blossoms is only one
portion of the mischief. Following on this is the harm done
by the maggot in the Raspberry fruit. Of this I received very
thorough examples from Toddington, sent me by Mr. Wise on
the 19th of August with the following observations : —

" I am sending you some Easpberries, which will, I fear,
arrive in a pulp, but at this time of year they are so very
soft. In them you will find a quantity of grubs, and our
Easpberries are infested with them. Can you tell me what
they are ? "

These I carefully identified as being maggots of the Byturvs
beetles of which so many had been seen earlier in the year,
and of which the chief characteristics are given below ; and on
forwarding the information I received the following note from
Mr. Wise :—

" I looked out the Easpberry Beetle, and thought they were
our old friends. I think they are more plentiful this year
than I have ever seen them, and you will remember in the
spring of the year we were very much troubled with the
beetle."

The maggots of the Byturus beetles grow to a length of
about a quarter or five-eighths of an inch, and are cylindrical,
somewhat depressed in front, and lessened at the hinder
extremity, which is terminated above by two brown curved
points, and beneath with a cylindrical tubercle employed as
a pro-leg. They have three pairs of moderately long hairy

RASPBERRY BEETLE. 205

feet. The colour is yellowish, with brownish yellow on the
back, and the head brown.

When the Easpberries are ripe, the maggots are stated by
our chief writers on the subject to leave the fruit and seek for
some cranny under the bark or in the wood of the Easpberry
stem, or some similar sheltering place, where they form a
cocoon or case in which the}^ turn to the pupal state, in
which they pass the winter, and from which the beetles
come out in the following spring to attack the Easpberry
blossoms.

Prevention and Eemedies. — The most available method
appears to be shaking off the beetles in such a manner that
they may have no chance of escaping and flying back to the
Easpberry blossoms, and no better plan appears to have been
mentioned anywhere than the treatment which Mr. Wise
wrote me was carried on at Toddington : "We have been
shaking the bushes over bags soaked in paraffin with excellent
effect."

Anything, as, for instance, cloths, tarred boards, or baskets
tarred inside, on to or into which the beetles w^ould fall, and
from which they could not escape by reason of their being
either poisoned or stuck fast, would answer well. But in any
case the operations should be carried on early in the morning,
or when the beetles will be dull and sluggish. " On liot days
these little beetles Jii/ away directly they are alarmed."

If it was possible to have the fruit which from its ruined
condition is noticeably infested by the maggots gathered and
burnt, this would save much recurrence of attack.

The only other available methods of prevention appear to
be — Istly, so to clear away all old wood and places in which
the chrysalids may be sheltered, that they may thus be (to a
great measure) got rid of on the bushes ; but, 2ndly, it seems
not unlikely that, as these little chrysalis-cases are stated to
be formed in crannies under the bark or in the wood of the
Easpberry stems, there may be many hidden about the
bearing-stems of the past season which are regularly cut
away in course of orclinary treatment. If so {iiidess these
trimmings are destroyed), the beetles which come out from
them in spring would be a most fertile source of infestation
to the neighbouring blossoms. As in any case the old bearing
wood must be cut away, it would add little to expense (where
this is not already practised) to burn it, and it might be that
this would strike at the root of much further mischief.

206

RASPBERRY.

Kaspberry Stem-bud Caterpillar. Lampronia rubiella, Bjerk.

Lampkonia eueiella. — Moth, magnified, and with lines showing natural
size ; caterpillars, natural size, and somewhat magnified, from life ; caterpillar
and chrysalis, greatly magnified, after Prof. J. 0. Westwood.

The mischief caused by this attack in its commencement
may be readily known from that caused by the Byturus beetle
and its maggot, mentioned in the foregoing paper, by reason
of it affecting the inside of the young leaf-huds, or shoots,
or inth, whilst the beetle attacks the Easpberry blossom or
blossom-buds. In both cases egg-laying takes place in the
flowers.

The infestation was described by Prof. J. 0. Westwood as
long ago as 1853 in the volume of the * Gardener's Chronicle '
for that year, with good illustrations accompanying, from
which I borrow the much magnified figures of the caterpillar
and chrysalis given above, and from time to time the same
attack has been noticed ; but I never received any special
report of it as markedly injurious until 1883, when I was
indebted to Mr. Jenner Weir, F.E.S., for observations of the
habits of the larvae on Easpberry shoots in his garden at
Chirbury, Beckenham, and also for identification of cater-
pillars as being those of L. rubiella. *

Since the above date, though the attack did harm in various
places, the only bad outbreak of which I have had information

* The many appellations that have been bestowed upon it, of which the list
is given by Prof. Westwood in his excellent paper on this insect (' Gardeners'
Chronicle,' 1853, p. 757), are of some interest, as showing the great difficulties
which variety in scientific names causes to inquirers. The moth was Tinea
corticella of Linnjeus ; the Swedish naturalist, Bjerkander, named it Tinea
rubiella; it was placed by Stephens in the genus Lampronia ; Fabricius named
it Alucita variella ; Duponchel gave the specific name of viultipunctella ;
Sodofisky that of i'7t.'c/(t'?-c?Za; and it is stated to be Glijphipteryx variella of
Stainton's ' Catalogue of Tii^ieidje.' — E. A. 0.

RASPBEKRY STEM-BUD CATERPILLAR. 207

was that in 1891, which gave opportunity of adding some
very serviceable observations, and especially those of Dr. T.
A. Chapman, F.E.S., to what was previously known of its
life-history.

In that year (1891) the observations sent showed the attack
to be present at a good many localities in the more westerly
of the midland counties, and in Kent, and as far north as
Glasgow, and at Crieff, in Scotland.

The Easpberry Stem-bud Moth caterpillars are about a
quarter of an inch long, of some shade of red, with black
head, and black mark on the following segment ; they have
three pairs of claw-feet, which are black, and also four pairs
of sucker-feet, and a pair at the end of the tail. When
examined through a magnifying-glass it will be seen that
there is a pale line down the centre of the black head, and
that the mark on the following segment is composed of a pair
of double-spots.

The attack is begun in spring by the little caterpillars
(which live in caterpillar state through the winter) piercing
into the young leaf-buds, and with the advance of the season
the mischief becomes very noticeable by the fading of the
young shoots from buds which have been injured, but not
destroyed whilst still in bud condition.

On the 30th of April Mr. Speir wrote me from Newton
Farm, near Glasgow, N.B., that on that day he had seen a
large number of small scarlet maggots on his Easpberry canes
(on almost every other cane). These were about three-
sixteenths of an inch long and one-twentieth thick, with
black head, and small black spot on the tail, otherwise all
bright red. It was observed that up to a coujDle of days
previously there had been no mild weather since February,
and it was only within that time that the buds had begun to
swell. Most of these maggots were found crawling on the
canes, but quite a number were just emerging from the buds,
and on cutting off a number of buds, either a burrow from
the base to the apex, or a maggot in the base, was found in a
great many of them.

The above note of the caterpillars not contenting themselves
with the destruction of one bud, but emerging and travelling
on the cane to renew attack at pleasure, is important practi-
cally, and was noticed by several correspondents who made
this habit a matter of special observation.

Mr. Wise, writing from Toddington, remarked: — *' I have
found in cases where there are two shoots the caterpillar has
been in one and left it, and evidently gone into the next, for
in the next I have found it."

Another correspondent, writing from Crieff, N.B., onMay 7th,

'^08 KASPBEEKY.

mentioned that there many of the buds had been entered when
they had scarcely begun growth; also that " while I beUeve
that the caterpillar does not leave the bud when once he has
penetrated to the pith of the cane, where he makes his lair, I
think that he may often nibble at one or two buds on his way
up the cane, and thus destroy them before finding one which
pleases him as a permanent settlement. Specimen 2 shows
three lower buds which have been seriously bitten, while the
only nest is in the fourth or topmost bud."

On May 18th specimens were forwarded me of L. ruhieUa
caterpillars then beginning to spin up and change to the
chrysalis state, with the remark : — '* I am sending j'ou speci-
mens of a small red caterpillar which is attacking the Rasp-
berries this year ; it has eaten all the first buds, and eats its
way into the cane itself."

One of the caterpillars sent had spun up except at head
end ; colour become yellower below. A chrysalis (spun up in
web in the bud) was tawny or reddish yellow on as much of
the back from the head onwards as was visible. The wings,
which were folded beneath it, were yellowish. The abdomen
was of a full pink.

The above observation was satisfactorily completed by a
characteristic specimen of the moth, Laniproiiia ruhiella,
developing from a chrysalis in one of the liaspberry buds
sent me. This I first observed to have emerged on June 1st.

The following are the main characteristics of the appear-
ance of the moth (see also figure at p. 206) : — The expanse of
the wings is a little under half an inch. The head ochry
grey with yellowish face ; horns dull brown. The fore wings
shiny, with a brown ground, marked with yellow dots and
various yellow spots ; of these spots two are very noticeable
on the hinder or inner margin, and there are four smaller
spots on the costa or fore edge. The fringes are brown, with
tips white at the end of the wing. The hinder wings brown,
with paler fringes.*

As the attack advanced, notes were sent of the young shoots
failing from the presence of the pest within, almost as if they
had been frost-bitten, in one case to the extent of from ten to
fifteen acres being " so badly damaged that they looked as if
it might be the middle of winter ; and at the visit of the
Evesham Fruit Experimental Committee to the Toddington
Fruit-grounds, on the 12th of May, a large basket was shown
filled with Raspberry shoots infested by the caterpillar of

* For description in precise scientific wording, with synonyms of the species,
see Stainton's ' Tineiua,' p. 39. From specimens sent me I had opportunity of
noting the colours of the chrysalis spun up in the bud (to which I give one
reference above), and wliich I am not aware of having been recorded before. —
E. A. 0,

RASPBERRY STEM-BUD CATERPILLAR. 209

Lamjjroriia ruhiella, as a sample of several other basketfuls
which had been collected in the previous part of the day.

The above observations describe the method of the cater-
pillar attack and the injury it causes ; but the part of the
life-history as to where the moth (which is known to be
common in June) lays her eggs, and where the young cater-
pillars feed until they shelter for the winter, was, I believe,
unknown (or only vaguely and in very small part noted) until
observed and recorded in 1891 by Dr. T. A. Chapman, of
Hereford.*

Dr. Chapman wrote : — " The egg of L. ruhiella is laid when
the Raspberry is in flower ; I have twice seen the process take
place, and on one occasion besides saw it fail. The moth
selects a fully opened flower " ; here Dr. Chapman gives a
minutely detailed account of the operation of egg-laying,
culminating in the egg being inserted in the "receptacle" of
the flower so as to lie about its own width beneath the sur-
face. In the case of failure mentioned above, the moth had
attempted to lay on a not fully opened flower.

Further, quoting Dr. Chapman's words : — " When the
Raspberry is ripe, and is removed by human or other agenc}^
the larva of ruhiella is in the fleshy white receptacle,t but is
ready to quit it, and does so immediatel_y. In one such re-
ceptacle were two larvas. So far as I could see, their presence
does not interfere with the due development and ripening of
the fruit."— (T. A. C.)

From further observations, Dr. Chapman found that the
larva spins itself a little round, flat, white, silk cocoon not
much more than the twelfth of an inch in diameter, and that
on its leaving the "receptacle" (which he notes may be in
the way mentioned above, or by boring a way out at the base
by the footstalk) it no doubt goes down to the stool of the
plant, and passes the winter in such a cocoon as he describes,
from which it emerges in the spring.

Thus (to recapitulate) the life-history of this infestation is
that the moths lay their eggs when the Raspberry flower is
open, placing them just beneath the surface in the "re-
ceptacle." There they grow until the Raspberry is ripe,
when they are full-fed, when they leave their feeding-ground,
as above mentioned, and pass the winter in a cocoon, from
which they come out and spread themselves in the following
spring on the Raspberry canes, and attack the buds even in
their first show of growth.

* See " The Oviposition and Autumnal Larva of Lampronia rubiella," by
Dr. T. A. Chapman, in ' The Entomologist's Magazine ' for June, 1891, p. 1G9.

t For figure of " receptacle " of Raspberry fruit with the berry removed, see
sketch at p. 202.

P

210 KASPBERRY.

Prevention and Eemedies. — One of the most effectual
methods of checking recurrence of attack must certainly be
that mentioned above, of breaking oft" the infested buds, or
little shoots, and destroying them. This method of clearing
the pest, however, requires some care in carrjdng out, for, as
has been shown, the caterpillar by no means necessarily
remains in its own bud. To prevent escape, the buds, or
embrj^o shoots, might be cut into pails with a mixture of
soft-soap or of any sticky fluid in them which would prevent
the caterpillar crawling away, or a rough lining of canvas to
the collecting baskets which would allow of a good sprinkling
of parafiin oil (or of anything that the grubs would not cross
at the edges), would probably be a good plan.

In any case the broken-off buds and shoots should be burnt
or destroyed in some way as soon as possible, or otherwise,
in case the caterpillars are so nearly full-grown as for the
time of their change to chrysalis state to be at hand, almost
as plentiful a development of the moth ma}' be expected from
the gathered shoots as if they had remained on the bushes.

No attempts appear to have been made at present to prevent
the attacks of the little red caterpillars when they come out
from their small white silky cocoons, or from the sheltering
places in which they have passed the winter. But when there
is reason to expect bad attack, it might be worth while to try
the effect of some preventive dressing thrown round the bases
of the canes ; and a much more complete removal of old
stumps and rubbish and everything that would shelter the
infestation in its winter state than is commonly carried out,
would certainly be very helpful in getting rid of a deal of
coming infestation.

Clay-coloured Weevil. Otiorhynchus picipes, Fab.
Black Vine Weevil. 0. sulcatus, Fab.

Otiorhynchus picipes and 0. sulcatus. — 1-4, 0. sulcatus, maggot and
pui^a, natural size and magnified, or witli lines showing natural length;
5, 0. piciiJes.

CLAY-COLOURED WEEVIL. 211

The two kinds of weevils figured at p. 210 have an enor-
mous capacity for doing mischief by feeding in beetle state on
leaves and shoots, or even fruit above ground, and in larval
state feeding on the roots of the same kinds of plants ; but of
these the Black Vine Weevil only needs a slight mention here,
as, though sometimes injurious to Strawberries, it is chiefly
known for its injuries to Vines, and sometimes to Peaches ;
likewise for its injurious attacks in collections grown by florists
of Primulas, Saxifrages, or other low-growing plants, and
(very especially) to Maidenhair Ferns. The beetle (figured
at p. 210, magnified) is a little over four and sometimes five
lines in length, and is of a dull black, with a short snout or
proboscis ; the body between the head and the abdomen is
granulated, and the wing-cases are rough, with several raised
lines, and spotted with pale hairy tufts, and, like the other
species of Otiorhynchus, it has no ivimis.

0. jiicipes, or the " Clay-coloured Weevil," is sometimes a
general trouble; during this year (1898) it has been especially
reported to me as doing harm to Apple, Plum, Piaspberry,
Gooseberry, and Hop ; previously (with specimens of injury
caused by its attack also sent) to Damson, Cob Nut,
Piaspberry, and Strawberry. It differs from the "Vine
AVeevil" in being rather smaller, from three to three and a
quarter lines in length, and is of a brown or testaceous colour,
mottled with patches of brown or grey scales, so that when
only slightly magnified it looks of a mottled clay colour.

The habit of life of the above-mentioned weevils is to lay
their eggs a little below the surface of the ground ; from these
eggs there hatch legless, whitish, fleshy, and somewhat hairy
maggots (see figure, p. 210), with yellow or ochrey heads and
jaws, by means of which they do great damage to the roots of
the plants on which they feed.

The maggots may be found in the ground, as in Vine
borders, or at the roots of Easpberries for instance, from
xlugust onwards, and in the spring — that is, about April —
they turn to chrysalids in the ground not far from the surface,
the depth probably varying with the kind of soil. From these
chrysalids, which much resemble the beetles in shape, but
have the limbs folded beneath them, and are whitish or
yellowish, and without power of movement until fully deve-
loped into weevils, change to this state soon takes place.

The following communications give some idea of the severe
injury caused by the attacks of 0. incipcs to Easpberry canes.
The first was sent me by Mr. Arthur Beale, from Covent
Garden Market : — "I enclose herewith some specimens of a
beetle that does considerable damage to Easpberry cane, in
some instances completely killing the plant by biting out the

p2

212 RASPBERRY.

buds and young shoots. I brought the enclosed specimens
from a plantation in Kent on Saturday. . . . We have
been killing great numbers by smoothing the ground round
the plants, and then laying a few large clods about, under
which we usually find large quantities the next day, and so
destroy them ; but this we find a costly and tedious cure, and
wish to know if any other remedy can be suggested." — (A. B.)

The very worst account, however, of destruction caused by
this species was that of Mr. John Thomas, of Eidgeovean,
Gulval, Cornwall, giving an account of severe mischief over a
large area occurring in 1878 and 1879.*

In 1878 the whole of the canes in the Easpberry gardens
(which extend over two acres of land) were stripped of their
shoots, and the crop consequently sacrificed, causing a loss of
upwards of £100.

In the following year, 1879, Mr. Thomas, on examination
of his Easpberry bushes at night, found the brown weevils
gnawing through the succulent stems of the blossom-shoots,
some consequently withering, some being cut right oft". At
the approach of daylight the weevils went down to the ground,
and hid themselves just below the surface, or underneath
stones.

Hand-picking, strewing the ground with lime, and daubing
the feet of the canes with coal-tar, were tried as remedies, but
found to be either insufiicient or useless.

The observer then had a number of wooden trays con-
structed, the insides of which were smeared all over with tar.
The Easpberries were planted in clumps, and bent into arches.
After dark one man held a tray beneath an arch, another
carrying a lantern gave the bush a smart tap, and the weevils
fell into the tray ; the tar held them prisoners for a time, and
after the tray had been placed under a bush or two, the
weevils collected were killed by pouring boiling water over
them. It was found necessary that the water should be quite
boiling to effect this thoroughly. Mr. Thomas had thirty or
forty persons at this work on his grounds, and each bush was
treated three times in this way.

Other Easpberry grounds were reported as being similarly
attacked ; and in 1878 Easpberry plots in the large fruit
gardens in Gulval and in part of Madron (also in Cornwall)
were almost totally destroyed at a loss of many hundred
pounds.

The above notes show the power of this kind of beetle in
injuring Easpberry growth, which, though twenty years have
elapsed, is shown by communication of the present year to be
still going on, and though in these observations the harm

* I copy the notes as I recorded them in my Annual Eeport for 1879.

CLAY-COLOURED AND VINE WEEVIL. 213

done by the beetle maggots at the roots is not entered on, it
is to be remembered tbat in regular course of life-history the
Legless maggots of these Otiorhjjnchus beetles feed on the roots
of the jDlants on which the beetles prey when they have com-
pleted their changes in the ground.

With regard to damage by the same kind of infestation {namely,
O. jiicipes) to Strawberries, the following communication, sent
me on the part of Mr. Thomas May, of St. Mary Cray, Kent,
shows its enormous powers of devastation to this crop also: —
"I send you herewith two boxes containing grubs and beetles;
they are from a Strawberry field which has been completely
destroyed by them. You will find a cocoon in which a grub
is ensconced, also grubs partly transformed into beetles, and
also a complete beetle. These have been taken from the field
of Mr. Thomas May, of St. Mary Cray." Requests for infor-
mation as to the nature of the pest were sent accompanying,
and also mention that Mr. May considered he had lost Ji500
by its ravages.

In the case of this attack, of which the notes were sent on
the 30th of May, the specimens were in different stages of
development, from half-grown grubs up to the perfectly deve-
loped weevil, showing the species to be 0. picijjes.

From the exceeding resemblance of the grubs of 0. jyidpes
and 0. sidcatus, it is next to impossible to identify them
specifically without rearing some to maturity ; but taking
them generally as presumably of one of our common kinds of
Otiorhynclnis larvfe, I have had sj^ecimens sent me at the date
of February 18th in mild and open weather, which were then
working mischief steadily by gnawing chambers in the thick
parts of Strawberry roots ; and earlier in the year — that is, in
the month of January — I have had specimens of 0. sidcatus,
in beetle and pupal state, sent me from Maidenhair Ferns.
Severe cold does not appear to affect them, for in the case of
some observations made by myself on larvre of 0. sidcatus in
February in another year, when they were exposed in earth
in flower-pots to cold reading as low as 11*8°, they appeared
with scarcely any exception uninjured by the low temperature.
The larvfe were frozen stiff, but gradually regained flexibility,
and as afterwards I found 0. sidcatus at work in my garden,
wbere it had not been before, I presumed that practically as
well as experimentall}^ the grubs were none the worse for
having been frozen hard.

A third species — 0. tenebricosus, or the Red-legged Weevil
— is also mentioned by John Curtis, in the ' Gardeners'
Chronicle ' for 1842, p. 316, as being very hurtful to garden
fruit trees. The beetles feed on the buds, young shoots, bark,
leaves, &c., of Apricots, Nectarines, Peaches, Plums, &c.; and

214 RASPEEKRY.

have been found also, in the maggot state, clomg much harm
to the roots of Easpberries, Currants, Gooseberries, Straw-
berries, and to vegetables.

This weevil, when recently developed, has the wing-cases
dotted over with spots of delicate yellow down ; these soon
rub off, when the beetle appears to be of a shining black ; it
is sometimes of a reddish pitchy colour, whilst still immature.
The wing-cases are united to each other, and the legs are
generally bright chestnut colour.

I have not entered specially on this hind, for I am not
aware of reports of its ravages having been sent me more
than twice.

On June 6th, 1883, Prof. Allen Harker, of the Eoyal Agri-
cultural College, Cirencester, forwarded specimens of this
species (0. tenebricosus) , which were then doing much harm
by eating leaves of the Strawberries in the garden of the
College Farm. The weevils were in such numbers that thirty
of them were secured in a few minutes from their daytime
shelter around the Strawberry roots. A female that was
dissected contained eggs fully developed. (This kind is about
the size of 0. yiciijes, figured at p. 210.)

Also in the present year (1898) I received, from Gilliugham,
Dorset, on the 5th of May, a specimen of what proved to be
0. tenebricosus, Herbst, with the observation: — "This is the
third year in succession that the enclosed insect has attacked
a young Pear tree growing against the brick gable of a house.
It feeds on the leaves."

But however destructive our different kinds of Otiorhynchi
may be, I can certainly say that the result of twenty years"
communications appears to me to place 0. jyicipcs far ahead of
the others as a pest to orchard, or to bush, or to ground fruit.

Prevention and Eemedies. — The habit of the iveevils of
sheltering away from the light during the day is one great help
towards keejnng them in check. They feed by night. By day
they hide away, either buried in earth by the walls against
which their food trees are trained, or underneath small clods
round the stems of the trees on wdiich they feed, or in rough
bark ; crevices where mortar has fallen out of old garden
walls often swarm with them, and generally they shelter in
any dark nook near at hand to their nightly resort.

Where the attack was bad enough to make it worth while
to " sticky-band " the trees as for prevention of Winter Moth,
this would be a good plan, as the weevils, being wingless,
must travel on foot (this plan would, of course, not be of
service for bush fruits such as Easpberries, nor where the trees
were fastened to walls).

CLAY-COLOURED WEEVIL. 215

In siieb cases (looking at the habits of the weevil of hiding
during the day in any crannies, or under clods of earth,
stones, or rubbish), it would be very desirable to keep fruit-
walls well pointed ; also that all clods of earth, &c., should be
cleared away that might serve as lurking-places. As they
especially go down close to the wall, it might answer to
run a line of ashes sprinkled with dilute paraffin, or with
carbolic acid diluted in the proportion of one part of acid
to a hundred of water, just along the junction of wall and
ground.

A band of any kind of rough, cheap, cart or axle grease, run
along the lowest part of the wall, would isolate it from attack,
if the trees were also properly sticky-banded.

In the case of attack on Strawberry plants, and on the
larger scale of plantation fruit-growing, it would be easy to
find what kind of shelter the weevils preferred ; and by
placing some of this, whether slates, tiles, odd bits of thin
turf, or morsels of old icaste sacking, on the ground by the
stems of the 3'oung trees, these would probably form excellent
traps, which might be cleared daily with little trouble.

The best method of remedy is based on the habit of the
weevils of dropping down off the bushes on any disturbance
when feeding at night, or if a light is flashed on them.

In the observations taken at the Royal Agricultural College,
Cirencester (see p. 214), with regard to the bad attack on
Strawberry plants, a temporary shelter, such as pieces of
boards, or tiles, was laid along by the plants, and on raising
these, the weevils were found collected in such numbers
beneath that nothing further was needed to clear them out
excepting sending a boy round regularly to gather them up
and destroy them.

Where the infested plants are of a nature of growth, or are
trained in such a way as to admit of the weevils being shaken
off (when they have gone up to feed at night) on to tarred
boards or anything else placed below to catch them, this plan
is the very best remedy of all. It is based on the habit of the
weevils of falling down at once on being disturbed, or if a liglit
is flashed on them. Details of this plan as carried out on
a large scale with great success on Easpberry grounds in
Cornwall will be found at p. 212 ; but it must be remembered
that the jarring of the bush should be precisely at the time
when the light is flashed on it, or in a,ll probability the
weevils will be found to have dropped down when the light
was thrown on them and secured themselves, and the subse-
quent jarring of the bushes over the tarred tray may produce
no results.

On a small extent of ground the use of a common entomo-

216 RASPBERRY.

logical sweei^ing-net has been found to answer for clearing
bushes after dark.

The commonly adopted method of destroying these weevils
in vineries and peach-houses is to spread cloths below the
boughs, and shake the beetles down on them at night ; then
to gather the beetles together and destroy them with boiling
water. This plan is equally applicable to standards, and,
with a little management, to wall fruit trees ; but it should
be borne in mind that, as they drop when frightened, opera-
tions must not be begun until the cloths are placed ready.

It is recommended by Mr. Malcolm Dunn, of Dalkeith, that
a white sheet should be laid under the boughs the day before,
and a large and bright light used, so that when the beetles
fall they may be easily noticed ; otherwise, if no sheet has
been si3read and the light is dim, many of the beetles are
almost certain to escape, from their colour being so like that
of the ground.

Another method is for two people to hold a sheet below
the boughs, and for a third to shake and then bring a light
to catch the beetles by ; but the above-mentioned plan is
better.

Getting rid of the maggots is a most difficult task, but
it was found by Mr. Malcolm Dunn that watering with a
"strong solution of ammoniacal liquor and common agricul-
tural salt is effective in preventing the increase of this pest."

Where the ground was empty, a scourging dressing of
fresh gas-lime would probably clear the pests ; but commonly
they lie by their food-plants, which would be killed by such
treatment.

Skimming off the uppermost four inches of soil for about
a foot in front of the walls on which the trees were infested
would be worth trying as an experiment, to be carried out
further if many maggots were found ; by throwing some of
the removed earth into a large tub of water it would be seen
directly whether there were either maggots or beetles i^resent.

Small plants may have their roots washed out, and thus
be saved ; but the ground on which they grow should be
thoroughly dealt with at once. A full handful of fresh gas-
lime put into each hole at once is a good cure for what evil
may remain.

These pests should be looked to on their very first ap-
pearance, for, if once established, they are most difficult to
firet rid of.

RED SPIDER.

217

RED SPIDER.

Red Spider. Tetranyclws (AcaniR) telarlm, Linn.

Teteanychus telaeius. — 1. Female, showing, at a, the special glands of the
silk-forming apparatus ; at b, the striations of the genito-anal region. 2. Body
of male ; a, respiratory apparatus ; b, reproductory apparatus. 3. One of the
anterior legs, showing the setiform hair on the 6th article, the terminal hooks,
and the four terminal cupuliferous hairs. 4. Hexapod larva in the egg, a little
before hatching, with cross-line showing position of coming fracture of the egg.
(Reduced from plate x. of ' Eecherches pourservir al'histoire desTetranyques,'
par A. L. Donnadieu.) Nat. dimensions given in letterpress.

The "Eecl Spider" is best known by the enormous amount
of damage which in dry and hot seasons it causes to the
leafage in our Hoj^ grounds. But it is also to be found
commonly and to such a serious amount on many other kinds
of leafage, that, although it is not an insect, it may well be
included amongst the injurious infestations of our orchard
trees and fruit bushes.

This minute Acarvs is not a true spider, but belongs to the
division of Arachmda known as "Spinning Mites"; and
the above figure of the foot, greatly magnified, shows the long
stiff hairs, with globular formations at their extremities, which
the Eed Spiders make use of in arranging or in travelling
amongst the w^ebs which they form on the under side of leaves
or the surface of bark, composed of threads so fine that they
are scarcely perceptible without a strong magnifying-glass.

218 RED SPIDER.

The egg is oval, or spherical, and colourless, and may be
found amongst the webs on the leaves. The larva (as it is
called, although the name is hardly appropriate, the "Eed
Spider" not being an insect) is stated to hatch in about
eight days, and is much like the parent, excepting in having
only three pairs of legs in early life, the fourth pair being
acquired as it advances towards maturity.

The figure (4, p. 217) of the Acarus whilst still in the egg
shows the two foremost pairs of legs pointing forwards ; the
single pair of hinder legs lying beneath the body of the
" spider," and pointing backwards, and the eyes are also
indicated by the roundish spots to the right and left of the
fore part of the figure. Fig. 3, p. 217, shows the characteristic
form of the terminal portion of the legs of the Tetranychi
generally, as well as of T. telarius. This, it will be seen, is
provided with two hooks, and each of these hooks is double
and more or less bent, and ended by a point which is almost
always very slender. At the base of the hooks, and at the
extremity of the foot, are four stout hairs enlarged at the
ends. This enlargement or caruncle has the shape of a small
compressible sphere resembling a cuj^ping-glass, and is of
service to the "spider" in walking. The preceding division
of the foot bears on the outside (see figure) one very long
hair, which reaches far beyond the extremity of the foot.

The rostrum, which is placed in front of the body, forms a
conical point of some size, the anterior portion of the body
being advanced so as to protect the mouth-parts, of which
fig. 1, p. 217, shows sufficient for common purposes ; but the
following extract regarding the palpi is of important interest
in connection with the position and method of action of the
spinning apparatus : —

" Underneath is the lower lip (en gouttlcre), and furnished
with two large palpi, which form the most voluminous and
the most projecting organs of the rostrum. These palpi,
which are multi-articulate, have at their extremity conical
spinules or hooks directed inwardly. They serve to direct
the viscous matter, which, furnished by special glands, is
expelled by the mouth. As it hardens in contact with the air
it constitutes the threads of the web." — Dounadieu, op. cit.,
p. 138.*

* The above point of the position of the silk-secreting glands and the duct
by which the thread is expelled is well deserving of attention from the various
views which have been advanced on the subject, and especially from its being
stated in Murray's ' Aptera ' (the chiefly accessible work on Acarina to most
English students), at p. 98, that " the threads of its web are secreted from a
conical nipple situated underneath, and very near the extremity of the abdomen."
The reader who wishes to go into the matter fully will find it entered on at
pp. 96-98 of Donnadieu's work referred to, from which much of the foregoing
information is extracted. At p. 97 it is noted that "L. Dufour and Dug^s

RED SPIDER. 219

The **Eed Spider" has difficulty in moving on perfectly
smooth surfaces, but, by means of its claws and the pin-headed
bristles with which they are furnished, it moves readily on
the under side of the leaves, and fastens its threads to the
hairs or slight prominences, thus gradually forming a coating
of web, amongst which it lays its eggs, fastening them by
some glutinous secretion to the threads ; and under this shelter
a colony, consisting of many of both sexes in maturity, and
young in all their ages, feed and multiply with rapidity.

The colour is various, depending, as far as present observa-
tions show, on the colour and nature of the food within ;
possibly also in some degree on the age of the individual.

The attacked leaves may be known by their greyish or
yellowish, somewhat marbled appearance above, whilst be-
neath they are whitish and shiny from the covering of web.
This kind of Eed Spider has been found sheltered, as if for
the winter, beneath stones.

The above observations give as much of the general life-
history and habits of the " Spinning Mites," commonly known
with us as "Eed Spiders," as is needed for practical pur-
poses, without distinction of the different kinds of species
that may possibly be present. But the following descriptions
of TetranycJius telarius, translated from the works respec-
tively of Donnadieu and of Berlese, special writers on the
Tetranychi; and also fromDonnadieu and Canestrini regarding
a very similar and common kind known by the former of
these two writers as Tetranyclius ruhesccns, and by Canestrini
as T. telarius of Dufour, are added, as probably serviceable
for reference.

The following paper is extracted from the 'Eecherchespour
servir a I'histoire des Tetranyques,' par A. L. Donnadieu,
Professeur au Lycee de Lyon, 1875 (p. 151) : —

" Tetranyclius telarius, Donnadieu.
Acarus telao'ius, Linne.
Tromhidium telarium, Hermann.
Tetranyclius telarius, Duges.
Tromhidium tiliarium, Hermann.
Flexipalpus tilics, Scheuten.
S- Leptus autumnalis, Duges.

attribute to the Tetranychi glands placed near the anus, and recognize in these
creatures an anal spinning apparatus for the formation of their webs." Clapa-
r^de noticed the glandular apparatus of some Tetranychi as being placed at
the anterior part of the body, but was inaccurate in giving the excretory canals
as opening through the palpi ; and other writers have variously described the
position of the glands and their excretory canals ; but a reference to the page
above quoted of Donnadieu's work, and reference to fig. 78 of his plate s., and of
my reduced copy, fig, 1, p. 217, ante, will put the reader iu possession of very
full information on the subject.

220 RED SPIDER.

" The most common, the best known, and the most fre-
quently described of all the Tetranychi. To the general
characters of all these Acarina it unites the following special
characteristics : — Rostrum conical, obtuse ; palpi very strong,
and very well armed, fine hairs, acicular, long, and strong ;
ligules well toothed. The feet armed with strong and
recurved claws. The body ovoid, of a greenish brown,
covered with long and numerous hairs, all of these setiform.
Around the median stigmata four long thick cylindrical hairs,
twice recurved, two of them directed forward and two back-
wards. Feet and rostrum pale yellow. The body convex
above and in front. The male small, elongated, pale yellow,
transparent, the feet long and strong, much stronger in pro-
portion than those of the female.

*' It is the male which, taken to be of a peculiar genus and
species, was described under the name of Leptiis cnitnmnalis.
Duges has figured it under this name in his AracJmida of the
large edition of the 'Regne Animal.'

" The egg is globular, pale yellow, and gives birth to a
larva of which the development is very rapid. The web pro-
duced by these creatures is very close. They work at it with
great activit^^, and have soon covered large surfaces. They
attack all kinds of plant-growths, and appear to delight in
the Lime, in the localities where it exists. I have very often
found them on plants with thin and flexible leaves, especially
Kidney Beans and Campanulas.

** Tetranychus telarius is the species of which the synonymy
appears the most easy to establish, or at least the least
doubtful ; therefore we need not be surprised that Claparede
has not in his work insisted on the specific characters.
' There is no risk of difficulty,' he observes, ' in fixation of
this species.' It is the best accentuated type of all the
spinning Tetranychi.

" It appears in the spring, develops rapidly during summer,
and disappears a little before autumn. It is the species
which is the longest lived. Length of the body of the female,
one millimetre and three-tenths of a millimetre; length of the
body of the male, seven- to eight-tenths of a millimetre."

The attention of the reader is particularly directed to the
circumstance of the length of the male of the species described
above being much less than that of the female, and the
apparent differences being such that the male has been de-
scribed and figured by Duges as a distinct species under the
name of Leptus autumnalis.

The following technical description of T. telarius, Linn.,
by Berlese, is given in the original Latin of the writer, as

EED SPIDER. 221

being most desirable for scientific reference, but with a trans-
lation appended for general English use : —

Tetranychus telarius (L.), Dug.

(Berlese, A., Acari, Myriopoda et Scorpiones, fasc. Ivi.
No. 5 (1889.))

" T. fuscus, antico pedibusque roseis ; pilis omnibus corporis
exilibus, dermate piano (sive non verruculis pilos sustineuti-
bus asperate). Mas pene runcato. Ad 600 //> foem., 400 /^
mas long.

" Habitat perfrequens estate in plantis pluribus, in pagina
foliorum inferiore, cum ovis, pullis, fills sericeis, folia occu-
pans nee non ea punctura maculans, maribus non minus
foeminis frequentibus.

" Obs. Color pedum, rostri et partis anterioris cephalo-
thoracis albidus, roseo prtecipue in pedum et rostri apice
sufiusus. Oculi sanguinei. Ceterum abdomen rufo-brunneo
(cibo ingesto) infuscatum (tum etiam fusco viride). Sunt
series in dorso longitudinales quatuor setarum, duaa medias
dueeque marginales. Set?e omues nudte, exiles, omnino pili-
formes. Pedes setis longis ditissime ornati. Pedum unci
quatuor inter sese sequales. Palpi longiusculi, pracipue in
mari, tentaculo apice appendicula hyalina, cylindrica, minori
aucti. Corpus ovatum supra convexum, transverse subim-
pressum, dermate ad setas in verrucas non elevato.

" Mas (2) foemina corpore fere dimidio minor (quamvis pedes
sint eadem magnitudine quam in foemina) longe cordatus,
postice acuminatus, pedibus anticis ceteris robustioribus.
Palpi (3) articulo secundo superne gibboso et appendicula (a)
corniculari acuti. Penis (6) runcatus, in extreme abdomine
iusitus. Color roseus, rufescens, pallidior quam in foemina.

"Larva (9) hexapoda, globosa, curte setosa, rosea."

TetranycliiLS telarius (L.), Dug.

" Dark brown, with the legs and anterior part rose-coloured ;
all the hairs of the body slender, the skin smooth (or not
roughened by little warts carrying the hairs). Male with the
penis shaped like a hook. Length up to six-tenths of a
millimetre in the female, and to four-tenths in the male.
Lives commonly during the summer on many plants on the
under surface of the leaves, covering the leaves with its eggs,
young, and silky threads, and sometimes spotting them with
its punctures, the males being not less abundant than the
females.

" Obs. Colour of the legs, rostrum, and anterior part of
the cephalo-thorax whitish, suffused with rose, especially

222 RED SPIDER.

towards the extremity of the legs and rostrum. Eyes san-
guineous. Abdomen from reddish brown (with ingested food),
varying to dark brown (sometimes also greenish brown).
There are four rows of setas — two median and two marginal
— along the back, the setjB being all flexible, slender, and
altogether hair-like. The legs very richly furnished with
long setae. The four claws of the legs all of the same size.
Palpi rather long, especially in the male ; the tentacle fur-
nished at the apex with a small hyaline cylindrical appendage™
Body ovate, convex above, somewhat impressed transversely,
the skin not raised in warts at the setae.

"Male with a body about half the size of that of the female
(although the legs are of the same size as those of the female),
of an elongated heart-shape, narrowed behind, with the
anterior legs stouter than the others. Palpi with the second
joint gibbous above, and [furnished] with a small sharp
horn-like appendage. Penis hooked, placed at the extremity
of the abdomen. Colour rose-red, paler than in the female.
Larva hexapodous, globose, with short setae, rose-coloured."*

The following descriptions refer to another species of "Pied
Spider" {Tetranychus), recorded by Donnadieu as Tetranyclius
rubescens, by G. Canestrini as T. telarius, Duf. ; but also
possessing, like the preceding species, an extraordinary num-
ber of synonyms.!

This kind is noted by Donnadieu as rather common, and
also that he has "very often found it on the Plum tree."
Canestrini mentions it as common on almost all plants, and
as sometimes very injurious ; and he also draws attention to
the many names under which it has been described by different
authors consequently on its "vast geographical distribution,"
and the various natures of the localities which it frequents.

Tetranyclius rubescens, Donnadieu.

Trombidiuni Icqjidum, Hermann.

Tetranychus cristatus, Duges.

" Body entirely red, often very full coloured ; the feet reddish
yellow, slightly transparent, generally very large. The larvae
hexapod, as well as the males, of a slightly reddish tint, the
feet pale yellow. The organic characteristics are very similar
to those of the preceding (i.e. T. telarius, ante, p. 219). The
body is enlarged and convex towards the anterior part. It

* Not being myself a thorough Latin scholar, I should perhaps mention that
I submitted my translation for skilled examination, and offer it duly revised
as above, with many thanks for the assistance kindly given. — E. A. 0.

t As these will be found in the works to which references are given accom-
panying the description of the species, I do not append them here.

PREVENTION AND REMEDY. 223

lives in societies of small numbers. The web is slight. The
eggs are large. " I have very often found it on the Plum
tree," on the Quince, on Petunias, &c. Piather common.
Length of body one millimetre and a half."*

The following note is another description of the above
species {T. ruhescens) under the synonym of Tetranyclius
telarius of Dufour, as given by Canestrini in his work on
Italian Acar'inaf : —

Tetranyclius telarius, Duf.

"Body oval. Colour excessively variable— green, yellow,
rose, red ; usually there is a longitudinal central stripe along
the back, which is of a brighter^ colour than the rest of the
body. The skin is delicately striated. The whole of the back
is marked by four rows of rather long and slightly plumose
bristles, the most frontal being the sliortest. On tlie ventral
side the skin is similar to that of the back, and bears simple
bristles of moderate length and moderately numerous. The
feet are lighter than the rest of the body, and bear rather
longer bristles. Length, •■40 mm. ; breadth, '25 mm.

"Beneath the leaves of many plants; together with the
adult forms, there are many eggs, in which the embryos are
visible in all stages of their development. Besides these are
hexapod larvae and octopod nymphs. It is common on almost
all plants, and sometimes causes much damage ; for example,
to Maize, Sorghum, and also to Vines.

" This Acarus, whether on account of its variety of colour,
or its vast geographical distribution, being found on the most
different kinds of plants, also in moss and beneath stones,
has been described by authors under different names, which
are to be considered as synonymous." — (G. C.)

The above technical descriptions are given in the hope
that they may be of service where differentiation of the
species referred to is needed ; but for all practical purposes
it will probably be sufQcient to consider them, and to deal
with them, as being what in this country we commonly know
as "Red Spider."

Prevention and Eemedy of Red Sjiider attack on Plum or
orchard trees or in gardens. — The "Pied Spider" is most

* ' Recherches pour servir a I'hist. des Tetranyques,' par A. L. Donnaclieu,
p. 152.

t See ' Prospetto dell' Acarofauna Italiana,' per Giovanni Canestrini, Prof,
nella R. Universita de Padova, vol. iv. p. 433. A^jpended to the above descrip-
tion is a synonymical list of about sixteen different appellations.

I " piu chiara," ? lighter or brighter.

224 RED SPIDER.

injurious to vegetation in hot dry weather ; and consequently
washings and syringiugs, or drenchings by means of the
garden-engine, which will render the leafage and ground, and
the walls to which the trees may be attached, moist, will be
very serviceable. The extreme dryness of air and soil are
thus counteracted, and a healthy growth encouraged, which
more or less counterbalances the injury to the leaves from
the suction of the mites.

It is important to check the attack at the very beginning,
and for this purpose syringings morning and evening are
advised, sent hard at the under side of the leaves, so as to
break the webs and wash them down wdth the contained
mites, if possible, or at least do good by lodging something in
them offensive to the mites.

Sulphur "is the active principle and most efficient agent"
in preparations for destroying Bed Spider, and sulphur and
soft-soap combined in various ways are amongst the most
reliable remedies.

Amongst the Hop-gardens in Kent " washing the plants
with soft-soap and water, or even with pure water, is a remedy
for the Bed Spider, and some planters tried a solution of sul-
phur, thrown over the plants by the ordinary washing-engines
in 1868, which killed these mites."

Looking at this point of sulphur being generally an in-
gredient in washes or applications for the destruction of Ked
Spider and other Acari, and the circumstance that in its crude
state it does not combine with most of the fluids used for this
purpose, may account for frequent failures in home-made
applications. In order to make it combine with whatever
liquid may be used, the sulphur should be boiled with an
alkali, and the following recipe has been recommended : one
pound of Hour of sulphur and two pounds of fresh lime boiled
together in four gallons of water ; or, to save the trouble of
boiling, the sulphuret of lime may be purchased and used
thus : — Of this sulphuret take four ounces ; soft-soap, two
ounces to each gallon of hot water ; the soap and sulphuret
to be well mixed before the addition of the water, which is to
be gradually poured on, the mixture being stirred during the
time, when a uniform fluid will be obtained without sediment,
which may be used when cool enough to bear the hand, and
has been found to destroy insect-pests eflectually and quickly.
This may be used as a syringing, or a dip for infested shoots,
or well rubbed with a brush into infested bark.

Gishurst compound is a good application, and sulphur in
any form appears to act well. Probably the soap and sulphur
compound sold by the Chiswick Soap Company, Chiswick,
Middlesex, would be a thoroughly serviceable application.

RED SPIDER. 225

Care should, however, be taken to raise the sokition once to
boiling point in mixing, and to test effects on leafage lest it
should be used too strong.

The following recipe for dressing fruit walls answers well as
a preventive of attack : — Having obtained some soot-water,
tolerably clarified and as strong a solution as can be procured,
this is worked up with clay till the whole is of the consistency
of thick paint, and can be applied by a common painter's
brush ; to this, flour of sulphur and soft-soap are added in
such proportion as may be j^referred : one pound of sulphur
and two ounces of soft-soap to the gallon has been found to
answer. Every part of the wall is then painted with the
mixture, care being taken to get it well behind the shoots, and
also to paint a broad thick band along the bottom of the wall.
This application, made once in the season as a regular yearly
treatment, has been found to prevent Ked Spider attack quite
satisfactorily. — (' Gardeners' Chronicle,' 1845.) This plan acts
by poisoning and burying the " Eed Spider" in the walls,
and also by putting a band in the way of such as have been
wintering under stones and rubbish, such as they will not care
to cross to get at the tree ; other mixtures, as preferred by
the cultivator, might be similarly used.

Clean and properly pointed walls are a preventive of attack,
as is also ground so cultivated and attended to that there shall
be no neglected surface the mites can lurk in, or hiding-places
under stones, clods of earth, or rubbish beneath which they
can hybernate. An autumn dressing of gas-lime would be a
desirable ap[)lication to neglected borders where there are in-
fested wall fruit trees.

In specimens of infestation of Eed Spider '?sp., sent me in
tbe autumn of 1880, from Lime trees near Walthamstow, the
extent to which these mites spun their webs over the trunks
and branches of the infested trees, so as to give a kind of
glaze or silky a[)pearance to the surface, was very noticeable.
The eggs were to be found attached to the webs ; and it has
been found that brushing the tree-stems hard and thoroughly,
so as to remove the webs, is serviceable in some degree in
clearing attack, and would be still more so if some soft-soap
was brushed in at the same time.

Amongst natural Jielpers against "Eed Spider" infestation,
it m <y be worth while to mention the "Minute Black Lady-
bird," the Scymnus minimus of Eossi, of which the maggots
feed greedily on this pest These little beetles, which I have
reared from the larval condition, are very like the common
CoccinelUe, or Ladybird Beetles, in shape, but much smaller,
being less than one-twelfth of an inch in length. The colour
shining black ; wing-cases pubescent and finely punctured ;

Q

226 RED SPIDER.

legs testaceous, with darker thighs ; antennaB also testaceous,
and lowest joint darker. The larvae, when full-grown, were
about the eighth of an inch or rather less in length, and
remarkably active in their movements. The colour to the
naked eye, smoky grey, when magnified, of a smoky yellow
with black markings ; the head with some small black marks ;
the three succeeding segments each marked with two black
patches, the rest of the body marked lengthwise with six
rows of black tubercular spots with bristles. With a higher
power, the patches and spots are found to be formed of
aggregations of little black dots, each collection bearing two
or three or more white hairs, with here and there a few
black hairs also.

On jjlacing the maggots on some Plum leaves infested with
" Eed Spider," I found them shortly after busily feeding, and,
failing other food, the maggots preyed on each other. The
pupal change was gone through in the usual method, of the
Ladybirds — the larva suspending itself by the tip of the tail
to a leaf. The pupa was of a shining black, and the change
only occupied a few days.

A plentiful supply of specimens were sent me during August,
1893, by Mr. Edw. Goodwin, of Canon Court, near Maidstone,
of which detailed notes are given in my ' Annual Eeport ' for
that year.

Note. — In the preceding pages I have only entered on the considerations of
Tctranyclnis telarius as a general leafage pest. But it may not be out of place
to mention that in the ' Praktische Insektenkunde ' of Dr. E. L. Taschenberg
this species is noted in his list of infestations of the Hop (pt. v. p. 224) ; and
at p. 153 preceding, the species is noted as Tetr-anychus [Acarus) telarius, L.

Also in vol. i. of 'Insect Life,' p. 72, Prof. Riley remarks that he had been
struck in his observations during the Hop harvest in Kent, in 1887, with the
similarity in the general aspect of things both on the Hop and Plum in England
and in America. . . . " and everywhere the omnipresent Red Spider
{Tetranyclius talarius)."

1 have not myself had the opportunity of comparing it with authorized
descriptions, but it is of interest to have the definite statements of the above
well-known entomologists that respectively in England and America and in
Germany they consider the "Red Spider " of the Hop to be 2'. telarius.

ROOT-KNOT EELWORM.

227

EOOT-KNOT EEL WO EM.

Root-knot Eelworm. Amjuillula radicicola; Heterodera radicicola,
Greef. ; Heterodera radicicola, Milller.

Heteeodkea radicicola. — 1, larva; 2 and 3, females; 4 and 5, eggs in
different stages of development : all enormously magnified. (2 from sketch by
E. A. O. ; the other figures after Prof. Geo. Atkinson.)

Heterodera radicicola is a small Eelworm which causes the
growth of knots, or galls, on the roots of many kinds of plants,
as those of the Tomato, Cucumber (under glass with us),
Potato, Parsnip, Peach, Vine, Pear, Walnut, Lettuce, and
many others where climate is suitable for development of this
root scourge in the open air. These knobs are known as the
root-knot disease, and according to the kind of plant, or the
circumstances in which it grows, may be of the most various
shapes and sizes, from a little knob perhaps not the twelfth
of an inch across on Clover root, to large irregular masses of
diseased growth, within which the " Koot-knot " Eelworms
are to be found, of both sexes, and in all stages, together
with the eggs.

This infestation is to be found on the Continent of Europe,
and in America, where it has been made the subject of careful
investigation ; but it was not until December in 1892 that
observations of its presence in this country were sent me. In
this case it was doing serious mischief by its gall formations
on the roots of Tomatoes and Cucumbers ; and though it is
to be hoiked that our climate will not suit this Eelworm as an
orchard crop root infestation, still it has manifestly a power of

q2

228 ROOT-KNOT EELWORM.

causing so much loss where it does establish itself, that a short
description of the nature of the infestation may be of use.

Ajypearance of the galled roots. — The galls on the various
kinds of plant roots on which I have seen them, that is, on
roots of Tomato, Cucumber, and Lettuce, sent me for examina-
tion, were small knobs, or irregularly shaped lumps, varying
in size from an eighth of an inch or less in diameter to (in the
case of the Tomato) fleshy lumps a quarter of an inch to half an
inch or more in width, and much more in length ; even to as
much as one, two, or over three inches of irregular swollen gall
growth along the root fibres where the galls were confluent.

Taking a mass of roots on one of a number of good-sized
Tomato plants, averaging an inch and a half or more in
circumference a little above ground level, for special examina-
tion as a specimen of amount of gall presence, I found about
twenty of the main roots were galled. These main roots as
they branched and branched again, and even on the small
side fibres, were infested with multitudes of irregularly shaped
gall growths. Size as well as shape was quite irregular.
Sometimes the " knots " were mere roundish fleshy lumps,
about a quarter of an inch in diameter, but for the most part
they ran wider, sometimes to half an inch or more in dia-
meter, and ver3' often ran to much greater length than this,
consequent on the galls having joined, and thus forming a
confluent mass along the root fibre. These formed diseased
swollen growths of from one inch to two or three and a half
inches along the root fibres, but rarely averaged more than
half an inch, or a little more, in diameter.

When I first received the galled roots (sent me on the 19th
of December), which had then been lying on a rubbish heap
for about a month, the galls appeared to be firm and healthy,
but soon many of them altered, in fact, fell to pieces, the bark
peeling oft", sometimes, according to circumstance, by drying,
sometimes by wet deca_y, leaving merely the remains of the
cells of which the gall had been composed, the harder parts
of the tissue of the cells forming a little rough mass or lumj)
on the root from which the outer coat had peeled away.

The enormous amount of Eelworm presence in the galls
was enough to spread infestation in the earth, and to all
plants near which were cajiable of receiving it.

The following notes of the life-history of this root pest are
abridged from the excellently minute observations by Prof.
Geo. F. Atkinson, referred to below.*

* ' A Preliminary Eeport upon the Life-history and Metamorphoses of a
Root-gall Nematode, Heterodera radicicola (Greef.), MiilL, and the Injuries
caused by it upon the roots of various plants,' by Geo. F. Atkinson. Science
Contributions from the Agricultural Experiment Station, Alabama, U.S.A.,
December, 18S'J.

ROOT-KNOT EELWORM. 229

The eggs of the Root-knot Eelworm (see magnified figures,
p. 227) are stated to be oblong and bean-shaped, '08 mm. to
•1 mm. long ; the larva is coiled three or four times within
the egg membrane, and when it comes out of the egg it is
from "3 mm. to "4 mm. in length, and, like the adult male, it
is thread-like in shape, and also, like it, has at the anterior
extremity, in the opening of the gullet, a fine point on a
trilobed base, known as the " exsertile spear."

The life-history is, that the young ivormlets tvander about for
a time, then presently come to rest in the plant tissues, and
undergo a change. The body of the larva, or wormlet, is
stated to enlarge, excepting at the two ends, and forms a kind
of " cyst," or chamber, in which the change of the Eelworm
to the adult state takes place. If this is to the male condition,
the wormlet in its chamber is stated to lengthen and become
more slender and thread-like, until it is curled round several
times within the chamber formed of its old larval skin ; and
when the change is complete, it breaks forth, roams in search
of its very differently shaped mate, pairs, and dies. Its
measure when full-grown is about one millimetre (the twenty-
fifth of an inch) in length, and only the seventeen-thousandth
of an inch at the middle, tapering to about half this width at
the extremity at the head end, in which the oesophagus, or
gullet, is placed, which is furnished at the foremost end with
a minute needle-like point (sometimes known as a mouth -
spear, E. A, 0.), which can be thrust out and retracted, and
rests on a trilobed base. It will thus be observed that these
male Root-knot Eelworms, from the time they quit the egg up to
the perfectly developed condition, preserve the same thread-like,
or fine eel-like, shape.

But in the case of the female the transformations accom-
panying development are very different. The male, as noticed,
moults and comes forth from the " cyst," or old skin in which
it has advanced to maturity ; but (still abridging from Prof.
Atkinson's observations) it is noted : — " The female does not
moult again, but continues to enlarge enormously until it is
gourd-shaped" (see figures at p. 227). "About the time the
' cysts ' have reached the stage when the male begins its
transformations, it is easy to distinguish the female cyst.
This continues to enlarge or ' swell ' until the tail part is cast
and thrust aside, and the body is sometimes so much swelled
at the posterior end as to cause a noticeable depression at the
opening of the vulva.

" Fertilization is stated to take place long before this gourd
or pear-shaped cyst has ceased enlarging ; this (that is, the
female) continues to distend until in age its body is tilled with
eggs and young larvae." And, "As the embryos are developing,

230 ROOT-KNOT EELWORM.

the body of the cyst breaks up into an amorphic gelatinous
mass, in which the young larvae and eggs are found floating
within the cyst cavity. Length of Hfe cycle, one month." —
(G. F. A.)

Method of spread of infestation. — The Eelworms may be
found in all conditions in the root-galls. In the case of some
specimens of galls from Cucumber roots which I forwarded to
Dr. J. Kitzema Bos, the Director of the Phytopathological
Laboratory at Amsterdam, for the benefit of his skilled
opinion, he was good enough to tell me that he found the
male and female and different stages of the larvpe of Iletero-
dera radicicola present, " like those in plate iv., figs. 9, 17,
18, 21, of Atkinson's Report, and ova.'"

The method of infestation may be in various ways. The
Eelworms may escape into the earth through cracks in the
gall, or may make their way out by use of their mouth-spear ;
or again, as I found in the case of the Tomato galls sent me
late in the year (see p. 222), may he freed: in myriads by the
peeling ofi' of the outer part of the coat of the ''root-knot."
But in whatever way the Nematode may have conveyed itself
ijito the ground, the next step, that of its entrance into the
plant to be attacked, is thus described by Prof. Atkinson (p. 16
of pamphlet cited*): — "Having escaped from its confine-
ment, ... it immediately selects another part of the root, or
a fresh young rootlet, for attack, and places itself in position
for the siege. Bringing into play its exsertile ram [mouth-
spear], it forcibly gains entrance to the healthy tissues of the
root," &c.

In regard to the important point of attack to rootlets taking
place from "Root-knot" Eelworms wandering free in the
soil, it is thus recorded from his own observations by Dr. J.
C. Neal t : — "I have found mature worms, males and non-
pregnant females, in rootlets but a few days old, and under
circumstances which involved the necessity of invasion from
without the root." These Angmlluke, Dr. Neal notes, were
small enough to enter the stomata of epidermal tissues, and
he thinks it " not unreasonable to infer that in this manner
they obtain entrance in young rootlets." Once within they
can make their way about in the tissues of the root, and the
result of their presence is the unnatural development of cells,
producing the irregular growth known as the gall or root-knot.

Prevention and Remedies. — These at present appear, so
far as I am aware, as a certainty, and at a paying (or indeed

* See footnote, p. 222.

t See ' The Root-knot Disease of the Peach, Orange, and other jilants, in
Florida,' by J. C. Neal, Ph.D., M.D., p. 12. Washington : Government Printing
Office. 1889.

KOOT-KNOT EELWOKM. 231

practicable) rate of outlay, to have eluded the most careful
research. Some good it is considered may be done in special
growing (as where one kind of crop can be kept thoroughly in
hand, in limited space, or under glass, or in pots), by use of
what are called trap-plants. That is, by sowing some small
crop which is an object of attraction to the Eelworms, such
especially as Lettuce ("Salat," Lactuca sativa), and keeping
watch on these until it is found that galls are forming on the
roots, then removing them, and destroying them with the
contained pests. But in this treatment the utmost care must
be taken in removal of the " trap-plants," for if they are
draicii from the soil, however carefully, some of the galls, and
with them the Eelworm tenants, will be likely to remain
behind.

From his various records of observation Dr. Neal (in his
work previously quoted) gives a summary of methods by which
the disease can be easily introduced into areas not previously
infested, which is a valuable practical guide as to points to
be watched against. He mentions introduction may be "by
means (1) of planting infested trees; (2), by the use of com-
posts of muck and weeds from infested soils ; (3), by the
distributive action of water and air, the water carrying
particles of soil and worms downward from an infested
elevation, or by dry soil, fragments of dry roots"; and he
also notes, "(4) soil containing these worms, I have no doubt,
has been carried on the feet of men and animals, and de-
posited in healthy fields, forming the nucleus of a destructive
agency, months afterwards made visible by its effects." —
(J. C. N.)

To the above notes, taken from Dr. Neal's useful observa-
tions, should be added, in regard to the last item as to methods
of transportation, — carriage in soil adhering to agricultural
or garden implements, as ploughs, spades, forks, or trowels,
or on wheels of carts or wheelbarrows. Also (most especially)
care should be given in infested nurseries, or, in our country,
in hothouses, or in growing of crops, such as Cucumbers,
Melons, or Tomatoes under glass, that all earth in pots, or
boxes, where infested plants have grown should be burnt, and
the pots, or boxes, well scalded. If the earth, or the f/allcd
roots, are merely thrown to the rubbish heap, there is no limit to
the mischief that mat/ be done ; even by the carriage of the
wormlets about the place on the feet or feathers of birds, cats,
dogs, or other creatures.

In the paper on this Nematode by Dr. J. Eitzema Bos,* he
mentions that "the ground in which the Boot Eelworms have

* ' Tierische Schadlinge und Niitzlinge,' von Dr. J. Ritzema Bos, p. 781.

232 ROOT-KNOT EELWORM.

once been found, commonly remains infested agriculturally,
and will only produce diseased plants " ; and in a very bad
case of infestation under glass which came under my own
notice the expense of removal of infested soil, and carting in
what it was hoped would remain clean, and also applications
which it was hoped might poison the pest, have met with
much less success than could be desired. — E. A. 0.

The kinds of i<oil favourable for gro^rth of root-knot appear to
be those which unite lightness and dampness. In such soils
the wormlets can travel with the most convenience to them-
selves when on their way through the earth to a new settle-
ment, and they have also the moisture which is favourable to
their vigorous growth. It is stated that "localities highly
fertilized with composts, stable manure, or leaf-mould, show
the root-knot quicker in plants than in compact or virgin
soils, and the worst results are found in gardens planted in
long cultivated, fully fertilized, and thoroughly pulverized
areas. ... A dry soil with solid growth is . . . unfavourable,
hence, in many locations, drainage has entirely changed the
character of the land, so that Peaches and Figs grow where
they would not before."

Amongst the details of experiment made under the direction
of the Entomologist of the United States Agricultural De-
partment, and recorded by Dr. Neal, I do not find that any
of the applications were thoroughly remedial. It is stated,
however, that alkaline mixtures, 20 to 401b. to each tree, or
caustic lime, kainite, muriate and sulphate of potash, or wood
ashes, used several years in succession, have come nearest a
cure, destroying no doubt many free worms, and inducing a
vigorous tough growth of roots more difticult of penetration.
But the very large amount of the fertilizer, " not less than
3000 lbs. to the acre," which is said to be requisite to produce
the required effect, would entail in the case of many chemicals
an expense not to be thought of.

In a series of experiments carefully carried out by one of
my correspondents in England, who suffered severely from
damage by H. radicicola, he tried the effects of the following
chemicals, namely : — " Magnesium sulphate, iron sulphate,
tartaric acid, lead acetate, citric acid, sodium sulphite, sodium
hyposulphite, sodium caustic, potassium sul]:)hite, j^otassium
permanganate, potassium chloride, potassium ferrocyanide,
potassium sulphide, potassium sulphate, potassium caustic,
potassium acetate, carbolic acid, and potassium cyanide.
Gas-lime (fresh), fresh caustic lime, and tobacco powder up
to eight grammes."

Full details of effect or non-effect of these on plant growth
and Eelworm life are given in my ' Seventeenth Annual

GROUND BEETLES.

2B3

Eeport,' pp. 99-108, and the proportion of the chemical to
amount of soil is also given. Of these careful and repeated
experiments the result was so far from encouraging that the
experimenter's view is given as follows on p. 107 :— " Therefore
the only thing I can recommend is carbolic acid ; . . . and
I am afraid carbolic acid, although the cheapest remedy I
have found, will be far too expensive for the Americans to use.
Thirty-three ounces to fifteen cubic feet is equal to 6000 lb.
to the acre, and would cost, for acid alone, about £15. Then,
to be effectual, it should be thoroughly mixed with the soil
with a fork : I am quite sure ploughing alone would not be
sufficient. ... I may add in using the carbolic acid I
always mixed it with about twenty times its bulk of water,
and then used a water-pot, with a fine rose, to sprinkle the
soil, thoroughly mixing the soil afterwards."

I much regret that my correspondent declined to allow me
to give his name except to special observers of this disease,
but I may mention that he is one of our largest Tomato
growers, and the great losses (up to tons of the fruit destroyed
by the Eelworm) made it very important to him if it had been
possible to remedy the evil. In his case the evidence pointed
to the pest having been introduced on plants of Dracana from
the Continent of Europe.

STRAWBEREY.

Ground Beetles — "Bat Beetles." Harpabis nificomis, Fab.
Fteyostichus (Oi)iaseus) vulyuris, Linu. ; and other species.

.H.K.

Haepalus ruficoknis (left hand), and Ptekostichus vulgaeis (right hand),
magnified, with hnes showing natural length. Strawberry fruit gnawed by
H. rujicornis.

234 STEAWBEKRY.

In the year 1894 accounts were sent to me of much mis-
chief caused by various species of "Ground Beetles" (duly
identified at the time) to Strawberry fruit at Woodborough in
Nottinghamshire. In this instance the farmer watched for
the cause of the mischief, and detected the beetles swarming
on the fruit by night, which they devoured to such an extent
that the crop of three roods was ruined.

In 1895 the attack reappeared to a much more serious
extent, for it showed itself at many places in the above
district, and injured the Strawberry fruit to such an extent,
just when it was beginning to ripen, as to cause severe losses.

In 1897, the specimen and reports forwarded showed this
great trouble to Strawberry growers to be not only still present
and injurious in the district where it was first observed, but
also to be much more widely prevalent. In this county
(Hertfordshire) the beetles appeared in great numbers in the
early part of June at two localities, respectively, about two
and a half miles in a north-easterly and two miles in a south-
westerly direction from St. Albans, and also elsewhere in the
district. In Norfolk they were reported in two localities. In
Nottinghamshire they reappeared as again seriously mis-
chievous. In Bedfordshire they were reported from one
locality as a great trouble on a large acreage, with the remark
that it was believed to be a general complaint. I had also
information of the total destruction of a fruit-grower's crop
near Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, and similar destruction of
three-quarters of an acre near Pdngham, Berks. A glance at
the position of the above-named localities on a map will show
how widely this destructive visitation has spread since its first
observation in 1894. Previous to that date, so far as I am
aware, the attack of Ground Beetles to Strawberry fruit had
not been noticed in this country ; but in the summer of 1892
Ilarpalus ruficornis was identified by Dr. J. Eitzema Bos,
Director of the Phyto-pathological Laboratory, Amsterdam,
as being found in great numbers in Strawberry beds in the
neighbourhood of Goes, in Zeeland, Holland, and being very
hurtful to the ripe fruit.*

Tlw attack of 1894 was watched (so that there might be no
uncertainty as to the cause of the mischief), and samples of
the beetles taken proved, on identification, to be of three
distinct species of Geodepliaga, or " Ground Beetles," namely,
Harpalus ruficornis, Pterosticlnis ( = Steroims) madidus, and
Calathus cisteloides.

* See ' Kurze Mitteilungen iiber Pflanzenkrankheiten und Beschadigungen
in der Niederlanden in den Jahren 1892 und 1893,' von Dr. J. Eitzema Bos.
Separate impression from ' ZeitschriftfiirPflanzenkranldieiten.'iv. Band, 3 und
4 Heft. Also ' Biologisches Centralblatt,' xiii. Band, Nr. 7 und 8, pp. 255, 256.

GROUND BEETLES. 235

In 1895, the Ground Beetles, of which specimens were sent
to me as samples of the kinds destrojang ripe and ripening
Strawberries, j^roved, as before, to be of Harpalus ruficornis
and Pterostichiis ( = Steropus) madidus, and, besides these, of
Pterostichus ( = Omaseus) vulgaris. Judging by description,
Calathus cistcloides was also present, but I did not receive
specimens ; and this being an important fruit matter, I not
only identified the other three above-named si^ecies myself,
but submitted specimens to an expert, who pronounced my
identifications correct.

In 1897, the specimens of " Ground Beetles " sent me were
once again Harpalus ruficornis and Pterostichus ( =-= Omaseus)
vulgaris, which had appeared in 1895. These two species are
very similar in shape, as figured magnified at p. 233.

Harpalus ruficornis is 6-7 lines long, pitch black, with the
long horns and long legs usually red ; the thorax is thickly
punctured at the base, and the hinder angles acute; the
wing-cases are faintly striated, and are thickly covered (whilst
the specimens are fresh) with golden or greyish down.
Beneath the wing-cases are ample icings, which they use freehj
for flight.

Pterostichus ( =: Omaseus) vulgaris is rather larger than the
foregoing, and is 6^-75 lines, or possibly more, in length.
Wholly black, and rather shining. Thorax
rather broader than long, hinder angles
bluntly pointed ; wing-cases strongly and
smoothly striated. No wings.

PterosticJius {= Steropus) madidus (figured
accompanying) is from 6 to about 9 lines in
length, and is black, though sometimes the
legs have red thighs. The hinder corners of
the thorax are rounded behind, so as to be
narrower than the wing-cases. No wings.

Calathus cisteloides, Panzer, is a good' deal Pterostichus mam-
11 ,1 ,1 1 J.- 1 1 • 1 BUS, maLmined, and

smaller than the above-mentioned kmds, Hne showing natural

being from about 3-6 lines in length. Colour length.

black, with horns and legs brownish red.

It is of the same general shape as the other "Ground Beetles,"

but distinguishable to some degree by the fore body being

slightly narrowed in front, sinuated behind, and the hinder

angles rounded off. Wings none, or imperfect.

The four above-mentioned kinds of beetles look very much
alike, but a very little careful examination is enough to make
out the difference clearly. H. ruficornis has ample wings,
which may be seen by lifting the wing-cases, and unfolding
the wings beneath with the help of the head of a small pin if
no better instrument is at hand. The point is apt to tear

236 STKAWBERRY.

the delicate membrane. P. madidus is contracted into what
may be called a ''waist." C. cisteloides is commonly much
smaller than the other three kinds ; and P. vidgaris, which
has a strong general resemblance to H. ruficornis, is easily
distinguishable by this (nilgaris) being wingless, whilst ruji-
cornis is winged.

The so-called " Ground Beetles," Geodephaga scientifically
(the sub-section to which the above-named Strawberry de-
stroyers belong), were formerly supposed to be almost entirely
of carnivorous habits, and we are indebted in a great degree
to the researches of Prof. Forbes, U.S.A., for information as
to the nature and proportion of vegetable food to be found on
dissection in many kinds of this predacious division.*

In 1898, the Ground Beetles again appeared, and gave
opportunities of some successful observations of prevention
and remedies recorded under this heading.

Of the Geodephaga it is noted by Mr. Eye that " superfi-
cially they may be known by their active habits, slaughtering
propensities, thin legs and antenna, and hard outer covering.
. . . The larvffi of the Gcodepliaga are little known ; they
are, however, mostly found in the same places as the perfect
insects. A geodephagous larva is usually flat, elongate,
parallel-sided, fleshy, with the head and first segment hard ;
the eyes are rudimentary, usually being compounded of six
small ocelli grouped together ; the legs are horny, six in
number, and situated on the first tbree segments ; there are
short jointed antennae and palpi, and powerful sickle-shaped
jaws, and the apex of the body has usually two horny or
fleshy appendages on its upper surface, the lower part being
lengthened into a membranous supplemental leg." — (E. C. R.)f

The first observations sent to myself of what may be called
" straightforward " crop feeding habits of any of the above
four kinds of beetles were sent in 1885, when specimens of
Pterostichus {= Steropus) madidus, taken in the act of preying
on young Mangolds very early in the morning, together with
specimens of the Mangolds eaten through by the beetles a
little below the crown, were sent me from near Bishops
Stortford.

No further observations of serious damage from Ground
Beetles were forwarded until 1894, when inquiries were for the
first time sent me regarding their attacks on Strawberries by
Mr. M. E. J. Dunstan, M.A., Director of Technical Instruction
for the County Council of Nottinghamshire. The species
identified were P. madidus, II. ruficoiniis, and C. cisteloides,

* See 'Twelfth Report of the State Entomologist of Illinois, U.S.A.,' 1882,
pp. 105-116.

-j- ' British Beetles,' by E. C. Rye, pp. 44 and 46.

GROUND BEETLES. 287

above described. Kegarding these it was noted that " the
actual berries were attacked and devoured by the beetles at
night, who swarmed on the plants, and the crop was of course
rumed. The attack was watched by the farmer, who had
three roods devoted to Strawberries, and the beetles themselves
seen to be the actual culprits feeding on the berries." This
appearance was at Woodborough, in Nottinghamshire, and,
as will be observed, was only on a small area.

In the next year, 1895, the attack reappeared to a serious
extent in the Woodborough district, and the following extracts
from observations sent give some idea of the method of attack
of the beetles and the amount of injury.*

The first information sent me was on the 23rd of June,
from Woodborough, that the beetles were "eating the fruit
fearfully. . . . We think the pest is worse than last year,
and others are suffering quite as much as we are at this
present time."

On July 2nd it was reported that though in the previous
year the attack had only been on the one crop mentioned
above, yet now in many places the district swarmed with
them, and the attack began when the fruit was full-sized, and
within three days of ripening. As an instance of the damage
being done, it was mentioned that part of a field planted with
Strawberries was valued at £10 as they were, but a few days
after were so ruined that the crop only fetched thirteen or
fourteen shillings ; and the mass of the other plantings were
left an utter wreck, the whole crop being marked by the
beetles.

Regarding the method of attack, it was noted that "the
beetles lie round the plant and under the earth, which is
covered with straw and litter, having their holes and runs
through the earth and litter ; the opening being through the
litter and just under the bunch of fruit attacked. The beetles
are without number, and seem most active an hour after dark,
being full and dormant at break of day, and much deeper in
the soil. The green fruit is really cleared of its skin, and
many of the seeds left. . . . The green Strawberries dry up
and wither after an attack, while those riper turn moist and
soon rot." It was also observed that in the case of the riper
fruit the seeds were especially attacked, " and lay under the
berries as thickly as hail."

In 1897 similar descriptions of method of ravage were sent
from widely separated localities. From a garden near St.

* For detailed observations with names of contributors appended, see my
Nineteenth Annual Report. The beetles identified as injurious were once again
Harpalus ruficornis and Pterostichus (= Sterojous) madidus, and also Fterostichus
(= Omaseus) vulgaris. Judging by description, the smaller kind, Calathus
clsteloides, was also again present, but specimens were not sent me. — E. A. O.

•2;58 STRAWBERRY.

Albans it was mentioned that about the middle of June the
beetles were noticed in great numbers on and about the
Strawberry bed ; " they remained in the soil during the day,
and came to the surface at night. They first attacked the
Strawberry beds when a few berries were ripe, and then
turned their attention to all the berries, whether green or
ripe. The whole crop, an exceptionally good one, was de-
stroyed in less than a week. After they had done all the
mischief they could, they disappeared, but a few are still to be
found in the soil'at the date of this letter " (Sept. 20th, 1897).

Another correspondent, writing from Walsingham, Norfolk,
with specimens of injured Strawberries and of Harpalus ruji-
curnis accompanying, mentioned that he had a most splendid
show of fruit, and now he found that nearly all the berries
were like those forwarded, and that there was not a Straw-
berry on the bed worth eating. On searching in a crack in
the ground in the Strawberry bed, about a dozen . of the
beetles, nine or ten of which proved to be H. ruficornis, were
found in about twelve or eighteen inches. The ground in
many places was covered with a powdery deposit, which
proved to be of seeds eaten off the berries.

Other reports from various localities gave observations of
serious damage to the Strawberries from the " Ground
Beetles" eating the surface of the fruit from the time of it
beginning to swell until it was ripe, the information in these
being so similar to the notes quoted above that it is un-
necessary to repeat them in extenso ; but the following ob-
servation, referring to the nocturnal nature of the operations
of the beetle, is of some special interest. In this case about
three-quarters of an acre of Strawberries had all been spoilt
for sale by beetles, which proved, from samples sent, to be
Harpalus ruficornis, and it was noted : " They were not to be
seen on the surface in the daytime, ajyparently huri/ing tlievi-
selves about an inch under ground, but at night they were
very busy."

The greater prevalence of this kind is worth notice in
connection with it not only having ample wings, but also the
disposition to use them for transportation of the insects in
jiights of considerahle numbers togetlwr. I am not aware of
observations of this habit having been recorded until the
summer of 1897, when, on the 14th of June, a number of
specimens were brought over to me by a neighbour from
Bone Hill, near St. Albans, which proved on examination to
be Harjxdus ruficornis, as part of such a very numerous
appearance that it was described as a swarm, of which so
many fell at 10 p.m. the jirevious evening on members of the
family sitting in front of the house, that it was supposed the

GROUND BEETLES. 239

beetles were tumbling from the roof. Also at Sandridge
Vicarage, about iive miles from the above locality, where the
Strawberries were much injured by Ground Beetles, they
were noticed early in June by scores falling from the walls of
the house, having apparently struck the wall in their flight
and then fallen to the ground.

Besides the above broad-scale observations of the habits of
the beetles, I took the opportunity of the numbers of specimens
sent me for special observations. The first series were carried
on by putting a number of II. ruficornis beetles in a glass jar
with some ripe Strawberries, and for seventeen days, that is,
from the 4tli to the 21st of July, I continued my observations
daily of the attacks of the ruficornis on the fruit. No other
material which could be used as food was given to the beetles,
and I usually renewed the Strawberries every evening, taking
care to examine each berry before placing it in the jar, so as
to be sure there was no other insect infestation.

The result of my observations (usually taken in the morning)
was that the beetle injury to the fruit was of various kinds.
Sometimes little pits about the eighth of an inch across were
hollowed out, or these pits might be more or less confluent
with the surface of the berry damaged between them so as to
form a patch half an inch long. In another berry a quarter
of the surface would be gnawed ; in another much of the out-
side of the fruit was ruined by the beetle-gnawings, which gave
a slimy mashed-up appearance to the fruit, and (speaking
generally) from removal of seeds and roughening of portions
of the surface, even where worse damage was not done, the
selling value of a crop so treated would have been spoilt.
The beetles appeared to continue in perfectly healthy con-
dition, and on the fifteenth and sixteenth days of their
captivity were pairing ; and after the seventeenth day, as
I had found they could live well on Strawberries without any
other food, I discontinued the special observation.

With a view of ascertaining that fruit-feeding was not a
peculiarity, an idiosyncracy, so to say, of special beetles, but
that the identical beetles feed equally willingly on Straw-
berries or on meat, I placed about a couple of dozen beetles
sent me as Strawberry-feeders, of which some were Pterostichus
vulgaris, but the greater part Harpalus ruficornis, in captivity,
and varied their food for some days. The result showed that
their bill of fare included not only Strawberries, but live
worms, uncooked mutton, cooked meat and lish, and bread.
They did not, however, prey on each other, though they
attacked the soft parts of a Sirex gigas which was still
fresh.

240 STRAWBERRY.

Prevention and Eemedies. — The above observations are
given in such lengthened detail in the hope that they may
afford some clue towards more complete methods of dealing
with this destructive and (at present) increasingly prevalent
attack than we possess at present.

The great point to be noticed in the habits of the beetles is
that they feed by night; after their nocturnal ravages, they
shelter, it may be, in cracks in the ground, as noted by one
observer ; or again, in the way noted at p. 237 : — " The beetles
lie round the plant, and under the earth, which is covered
with straw and litter, having their holes and runs through the
earth and litter ; the opening being through the litter and just
under the bunch of fruit attacked. The beetles . . . seem
most active an hour after dark."

In one of the reports sent me it was mentioned that " flesh
covered by pieces of thick sacking attracts a number which are
easily killed." It was also noted that the beetles had been
caught by vessels being baited and set in the ground, into
which the beetles fell, and could be killed by some destructive
mixture. Also a note sent on July 24th, 1895, mentioned that
"A well just dug has the surface of the water entirely covered
with the beetles."

But it was not until the 19th of July of the year 1898 that,
through kind courtesy of Messrs. Laxton Brothers, of Bedford,
I was favoured with information of a method of treatment
which they had found quite successful for clearing the pests
out of their own beds, and which they permit me to publish,
with their name attached.

Messrs. Laxton wrote as follows : —

" We are pleased to be able to report that we have almost
entirely destroyed the beetle pest which played such havoc
with our Strawberry crop last season.

" We purchased a large quantity of cheap pudding-basins,
early this spring ; these are let into the ground, level with the
surface, at distances of a few yards apart, and kept them
baited with pieces of lights and sugar-water. When the
weather was dry we often caught half a basinful of a night,
until the number gradually diminished to two or three, and
now none at all. It is a laborious process, but well worth the
trouble, as we have lost no fruit this season. — (Signed) Laxton
Brothers."

Another method which, if too expensive for broad-scale
growing, answered excellently on the smaller scale of a
private garden, was mentioned to me by my friend and
neighbour, the Eev. J. A. Cruickshank, as having answered
thoroughly in saving his Strawberries in the Vicarage garden
at Sandridge, near St. Albans, from the Harpakis rujicornis,

GROUND BEETLES. 241

which had done much mischief there last year, and had again
appeared.

The ground amongst the Strawberries was covered, as is
customary, with straw, and the plan adopted by the gardener
was to remove the straw from a space, and then, trowel in
hand, turn over the surface of the ground temporarily laid
bare, and secure the sheltering beetles. Thus, gradually going
in this way through the bed, the beetles were captured by
hundreds, and — whereas the first part of the crop was ruined,
— afterwards (when the plan was carried out) the fruit was
saved from further ravage.

The above observations, and especially that of Messrs.
Laxton, as being practicable in hroad- scale groiving, seem
to me a great advance towards stopping the very hroad-scale
ravage which we have been suffering from.

Experiment as to possibility of poisoning the beetles by a
mixture of red lead made up into a paste with flour wholly
failed. Of this it was reported : — " Red lead has no effect
upon the beetles. I mixed ffour, dripping, and the lead into a
paste, and gave it to some in a box ; they at once devoured it
greedily. That was on Saturday. This morning (Monday)
they are as lively as ever." — (T. E. P.)

As three of the four kinds of beetles specially observed as
Strawberry destroyers are wingless, it appears plain that the
infestation of these must either be nursed up in the Straw-
berry beds, or be brought in manure ; and as the Harpalus
riificornis, which I kept under observation, were pairing on the
19th and 20th of July, it is presumable that the other kinds
would also be pairing about the same time, and the young
grubs soon hatching and feeding on animal matter, as worms
and the like, in the earth of the Strawberry beds.

AVhether, when the beds are dressed, a strong application
of kainite, which is injurious to development of some larvae,
would help in this case might be worth trial.

Opinions appear to differ as to serviceableness of moles ;
from the wing-cases of the beetles being found in the rejecta-
menta of the moles, there appears to be no doubt that they
devour the beetles, if so disposed; but there is no mass of
evidence as to benefit from their presence.

Detailed information from which the above notes are chiefly
taken will be found in my Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and
Twenty-first xlnnual Reports on Injurious Insects.

242

STKAWBERRY.

Cockchafer. Mehluntha vulgaris, Fab.

Melolontha vulgaris. — Common Cockchafer, maggot, and pupa.

The Cockchafer is very injurious both in grub and beetle
state. In the perfect condition, that is, as Cockchafer beetle,
it preys to some degree on conifers, especially on Larch
shoots and leafage ; but none of our common deciduous
forest trees, whether Oak, Beech, Maple, Horse-chestnut, or
other kinds, appear safe from its attacks, even to the extent at
times of stripping them of their foliage. Amongst orchard trees
Apple, Plum, Cherry, and Nuts are kinds particularly liable
to infestation.

T]ie grubs feed voraciously below ground on many kinds of
roots. In pasture land their ravages at the grass-roots are a
very severe trouble ; and they also feed at the roots of young
trees in nurseries, and do much damage at times to young
Fir roots ; notes have been sent me of injury to thousands of
seedling Fir only about ten to twelve inches high by the
grubs removing the bark in large patches from the main
roots. They will also feed on field crop roots, such as those
of Mangold, Potato, and Turnip ; and (relatively to the
present considerations) their injury to Strawberry roots are
recorded on the Continent as one of the regular attacks ; and
complaint of it has been sent to myself of this even in the
present year. The infestation is to be found not only from
the South of England to the North of Scotland as far as
Aberdeen, but even in the island of Orkney.

The Cockchafer beetle is almost too well known to require
description ; but it may just be mentioned that it is of the

COCKCHAFER. 243

shape figured above, an inch or somewhat more in length,
densely covered with down on the breast and more or less
throughout. The fore body black, or sometimes reddish
brown. Wing-cases and legs red-brown ; the former with
five smooth longitudinal ridges, the depressions between
them being covered with whitish scales. Abdomen black,
with triangular patches of white hairs or scales on each
side, and tapering into an elongated extremity. The antennse
short, and with the fan or club of six leaves in the female ; but
longer, and of seven leaves, in the case of the male. Beneath
the elytra or wing-cases the beetles have large and powerful
wings ; and in May they may be found hanging half torpid or
sluggish beneath the leaves during the day, and coming out
on the wing during the evening, when they fly in search of
their mates or feed on the foliage of the trees.

The females very soon after pairing lay their eggs at a
depth variously stated as from two to four or about six to
eight inches below the surface of the ground, this point xevy
likely depending a good deal on the nature of the soil. The
eggs are roundish in shape, and whitish or yellowish in
colour, and are laid in considerable numbers up to as many
as eighty or more in a heap or heaps in the disturbed
ground.

The maggots or larvae may be generally described as large,
fleshy grubs (see fig., p. 242), and whitish or yellowish in
colour, with the tip of the abdomen of a violet or bluish tint
from the excrement showing through the skin ; with strong
jaws, three pairs of reddish legs, and usually lying on one
side somewhat curved together in the ground. I add the
description by the Eev. Canon W. W. Fowler as being
serviceable for technical reference : —

" The larva of Melolontha vulgaris, the Common Cockchafer,
has been described by many authors. It is large, thick, and
fleshy, of a dirty white colour, with the head ferruginous and
shining, and the legs pale ferruginous ; the antennas are a
little longer than the mandibles, and are 4-jointed : the
anterior pairs of legs are rather shorter than the intermediate
and posterior pairs, which are of equal length ; the segments
are transversely rugose, and the last is large and apparently
divided by a false articulation ; the upper surface of the body
is furnished with short upright bristles, and long separate
hairs which are intermingled with these. The pupa is rather
large, with the abdominal portion slightly curved, but does
not present any striking peculiarities."*

For distinction between the larva of M. vulgaris and Phyllo-
pertha horticula, see ante, p. 31.

* 'British Coleoptera,' Fowler, vol. iv. p. 51.

b2

244 STKAWBEKRY.

The life-history appears to be that the eggs hatch in about
a fortnight, and the grubs which hatch from these attack the
roots of grass, &c., as mentioned above. It has been said
that in the first season after hatching the grubs feed not on
roots, but on " humus " ; but whether this is customarily the
case I have not had personal opportunity of investigating ;
they feed during the warm part of the season for three or
more years, going down in winter to a greater or less depth
according to circumstances ; and at the end of the third or
fourth summer go down to a depth stated to be two feet or
more. Here they change to the perfect state, the Cockchafers
making their appearance early in the following summer.

The lowest depths by measurement from which Cockchafer
grubs have been sent me were five to six inches below the
surface. They had not been further down, because they were
always found at the bottom of their burrow. This was at the
beginning of the month of February, and the readings of a
minimum thermometer in the neighbourhood showed (approx-
imately) that they were not injured by cold reading down to
18° (air temperature), as long as they remained in their own
shelters ; but when turned up to the surface a fortnight or so
after, that then they had not sufficient vitality to burrow down
again into the ground to shelter themselves anew.

Prevention and Eebiedies. — Cockchafer attack is difficult
to deal with under any circumstances of common amount of
infestation ; but in connection with Strawberry growing
hardly any measures appear to be directly practicable.
Shaking doivn and destroying the beetles, where they are
observed in great numbers on trees near Strawberry beds,
would probably be of some service. This should be done,
during the day, whilst the beetles are clinging beneath the
leaves, and are dull and sluggish, before they take their
evening flights. They may be shaken down on to large
cloths spread beneath the trees or may be swept together,
taking care that in either case the Chafers are collected
together and destroyed before they have time to recover from
the fall and to take wing. If they are shaken on to the
ground many may be secured b}^ having pigs (which will eat
the beetles greedily) at hand, to take them as they fall ; and
poultry are also useful ; or, in the absence of these, probably
having some boys to trample on the shaken-down beetles and
collect them at so much a quart would ensure a large propor-
tion being killed.

Another method of collecting is as follows : — " The workers
are provided with narrow-necked glazed vessels, or sacks, in
the opening of which the broken neck of a beer-bottle has

COCKCHAFER. 245

been fastened to serve as a funnel through which the beetles
may be dropped."*

In the work above quoted mention is made of sods of grass
being serviceably used for trapping ; these, it is mentioned,
are cut eight to ten inches broad and six to eight inches
thick, and were laid on the surface of the ground, with the
grass downwards, in the forest of Allstadt, Weimar, in the
autumn of 1870 ; and from three to eleven larvte were found
under each sod in July, 1871. Thus, in a short time, 16,000
larvae were collected. (See p. 182 of work quoted.)

Likewise (same page), as traps for larvre, mention is made
of ''Eolls of bark filled with loose soil and placed in the
ground." Also, of "Heaps of turf, weeds, humus, burned
sods, and dung, &c." " Such heaps," it is observed, " afford
looseness, dryness, warmth, and nourishment for the larval
development."

It is, however, exceedingly unlikely that where, as with us,
Cockchafer attack is of rare occurrence to a severe extent,
that preventive measures will be carried out or would be
generally worth while ; and when the grubs are found working
at the Strawberry roots, disturbing the plants to get at them
might do more harm than good.

Wild birds, such as Books and Sea Gulls, should on no
account be driven off. The Black-headed Gull will follow the
plough in the same manner as the Books, and feeds on Cock-
chafers both in the grub and beetle stages ; and the Common
Gull will go for miles inland to follow the plough in search of
grubs and insects. Where some of the above large birds can
be kept tame, they do good service by getting at the grubs
without the harmful disturbance caused by stirring the soil
round the Strawberry roots.

Various deterrent applications might be worth trying, as,
for instances, dressings of soot to make the surface of the
ground obnoxious to the beetles at egg-laying time ; also (see
ante, p. 35), heavy top dressings of kainite and nitrate of
soda have been found beneficial on infested grass-land. But
in the case of Strawberry beds which have become infested a
treatment which would clear the grubs without risking still
worse damage to the plants does not appear as yet to
be known.

* See Dr. Sehlieh's ' Manual of Forestry,' vol. iv. : " Forest Protection," by
W. E. Fisher (p. 183). London : Bradbury, Agnew & Co., Bouverie St. 1895.

246

STRAWBERRY.

Golden Chafer or Green Rose Chafer. Cetonia mirata, Linn.

Cetonia aueata. — 1, beetle; 2, larva; 3, cocoon; 4, pupa, showing back.

The Golden Chafer, like the Cockchafer mentioned in the
preceding paper, is injurious both in larval and perfect state.
As a beetle it frequents many kinds of flowers, including those
of the Apple, and of the Eose, from which it takes one of its
names ; but it is more especially injurious in its attacks to
Strawberry blossom, and to the flowers of Turnips left for
seed, where it eats off the anthers from the stamens, and
thus renders the flowers abortive. As a maggot it feeds on
roots of grass and other plants, and was considered by Curtis
as in all probability sometimes to cause much mischief by
feeding at the roots of Strawberries.

The beetle (figured above, life size) is of a bright metallic
green or golden green above; coppery, with a rose tint, below ;
the wing-cases are punctate, and marked with spots or streaks
of white or ochreous colour, so placed as often to look like
cracks across the metallic green of the wing-case. The horns
are ended by a club much like that of the Cockchafer (see
figure, p. 242), excepting that it has only three leaves or
plates, whereas that of the Cockchafer has seven plates in
the male, and six in the female. The wings are large and
membranous, of a brownish colour, with horny veins ; and
when the beetles are seen in flight on a sunny day they are
very conspicuous objects, and (if quietly watched) noticeable
for the care with which they will choose a place (presumably)
for egg-laying, by floating round in the air till an available
crack in the ground is selected, and then with good aim
sweeping down into it and disappearing.

The Chafers lay their eggs in the ground, including in this
such places as heaps of rich earth, and Cucumber beds, in

GOLDEN CHAPEK. 247

gardens, and the maggots feed on roots, as of grass, &c., and
conjecturally also on decayed matter, as they are found in
the decayed wood-soil which accumulates within old hollow
trees. When full-grown the maggots are upwards of an inch
and a half in length, thick and fleshy, of a whitish colour,
with an ochreous head armed with strong jaws ; the three
pairs of short feet are of a rusty ochreous colour, and the
hinder portion of the grub or maggot is enlarged, curved
towards the head, and of a lead colour. These grubs are
much like those of the Cockchafer; but, amongst other points,
are distinguished (as mentioned by John Curtis) by being
covered with transverse rows of short hairs, and also by the
feet being jointed, whereas the feet of the Cockchafer grubs
are blunt and rather dilated at the tips (a comparison of the
figure, p. 242, with that at p. 246 will show the different
appearance).

The grubs are considered to live underground for two or
three years, and when full-fed they make earth-cases " as
large as a walnut," at a considerable depth beneath the
surface, which are smooth inside, but covered outside with
l^ellets of soil which have passed through their own bodies
(in an instance specially watched, this was noticed to take
place in the second week in June). In these earth-cocoons
they turn to ochre-coloured pupse. The figure, p. 246, shows
the appearance of the back of one of the pup?e (the legs and
wings being folded beneath so that only just the base of the
wings at the insertion of the thorax shows).

The beetles appear early in the summer, and on a sunny
day look exceedingly beautiful from their golden metallic
gleam as they fly about with the help of their large mem-
branous wings, and thus, if the weather be fine, they contrive
to do a deal of mischief during the summer by passing from
one crop to another. In wet weather they die earlier in the
season.

In the neighbourhood of Isleworth, where Strawberries are
grown in fields of many acres to supply the London market,
I have had the beetles brought me in great numbers, and to
a greater or lesser extent they are a very common infestation;
but the following note, sent me on the 25th of May (1895) by
Mr. Leonard Micklem, from Yardley House, Chingford, Essex,
records such an unusually numerous appearance of this beetle
that it is worth special notice : —

" I am sending you by post three specimens of a green
beetle which is becoming an insupportable pest in my garden,
in the hope you may be able to suggest some method of
eradicating it. The l^eetle appears annually with the Apple
blossoms, which it devours greedily, and is now paying

248 STRAWBERRY.

attention to Medlar and Iris bloom. My gardener has killed
more than 2000 already this season, but even this appears to
effect no diminution in their numbers."

A few da3's later Mr. Micklem, writing further regarding
the Golden Chafer attack, remarked that the capture that
day was 373, " and this in spite of dail}^ destruction since
their first appearance."

The fullest account that I am acquainted with of this
Golden Chafer as a Strawberry blossom jDest is that given by
John Curtis in the ' Gardeners' Chronicle ' (1841, p. 452)
relatively to the partial or total failures of Strawberry crops
in different parts of the country in that year, which he con-
sidered were undoubtedly in part owing to the ravages of the
Cetonia aurata. I extract the passage (duly acknowledged)
below : —

" From its nestling and reposing in the flowers of the Eose
it is generally called the Eose Chafer, but it is also attached
to the Whitethorn, Candytuft, Elder, Mountain Ash, Peony,
and Strawberry, the flowers of which it feeds upon, and the
latter were attacked this year" [1841, E. A. 0.] "at the
earliest period I ever remember, for on the 11th of May the
Eose Chafers were in such prodigious numbers on the flowers
and leaves that it became necessary in some gardens to have
them collected and killed.

" The beetles generally destroy the anthers, eating them
off' with great dexterity, probably to revel upon the honey
secreted in the nectar}^ so that by their agency immense
quantities of Strawberry flowers are rendered abortive ; when
one crop has flowered they take their flight to another." —
(" Euricola " = John Curtis.)

Prevention and Eemedies. — The beetles are so large and
so sluggish in dull weather that there is then no difliculty in
taking them by hand ; during sunshine they may be taken
with a bag-net, and destroyed in any way that may be most
convenient.

Where the maggots are numerous, they should be got rid of
by turning over the soil, or by spreading neglected heaps of
rich earth, old Cucumber beds, and similar places which they
frequent, and hand-picking all that are seen. Poultry will
help very much in clearing the grubs, if driven in whilst the
ground is being turned over.

Where the attack is on the roots of growing plants (in
enclosed. places), it will be found serviceable to have a few
tame rooks or sea gulls in the garden, as they can dig down
with their bills amongst the roots which could not otherwise
be meddled with, and clear large numbers of the grubs without
harming the plants.

STRAWBEERY-LEAF BEETLE. 249

From the circumstance of the maggots bemg sometimes
found in the decayed wood-soil that accumulates within old
hollow trees, it would appear desirable to remove all wood
rubbish, and also heaps of decaying sawdust, that may attract
the beetles or shelter the grubs.

For other remedies, see " Cockchafer," p. 245,

Strawberry-leaf Beetle. Galcmca tenella, Liun.

The Galeruca (or, as it has recently been called, Galeru-
ceUa) tenella, is a very little beetle, only an eighth of an inph,
or slightly more, in length, which was observed in 1892 doing
much harm in one district to Strawberry leaves. The beetle
maybe easily identified from description with the help of a
fairly strong magnifier. It is oblong-ovate, and convex in
shape, and the general colour is of some shade of dull yellow,
or brownish. Looked at more minutely, the head is yellow,
with a broad black stripe or band across the top. The thorax
or fore body also of some yellowish tint, with, in some in-
stances, a dark line along the central furrow, and on each side
of the furrow is a small round depression. The wing-cases
pitted, so as to be slightly granulated, on the surface, and
rather shiny, and in the specimens sent somewhat variable in
colour, sometimes yellowish, sometimes of a brown tint, with
the margin and the suture yellow, and occasionally a spot on
the shoulders of a dark brown. The body black beneath, with
the tip of the abdomen pale ; legs pale ; and the horns long,
palest at the base, black towards the end.

This kind is recorded as being found " in this country iii
July, frequenting Willows, Alders, &c."; and in Gerniany it
is mentioned by Kaltenbach as being repeatedly noticed by
himself on young plants of Sinrcea tdmavia (Meadow Sweet),
and "once in greater numbers" on the Potentilla anserina
("Silver Weed" with us), of which it greatly damaged the
leaves by its gnawings.

The Sjnrcea, and still more the Potentilla, are nearly allied
to the Strawberry, so that it is not surprising that it shoukl
be found on this plant ; but still, until the observation of it
was sent from Hants, I was not aware of it having been noted
as a Strawberry pest. Plentiful samples, both of the beetles
and of the injured leaves, were sent me on the 27th of July,
from Hundred Acres, Wickham, Hants, with the observation
that they were insects which were destroying the Strawberry
plants in that neighbourhood. Also that it was considered to
be a new pest in the locality. The injured Strawberry leaves

250 STRAWBERRY.

sent clearly showed the great mischief caused by the attack.
These were perforated in some cases with irregular shaped
holes right through the leaves, and still more injury was done
by little patches of the outer skin of the leaves being eaten
away, leaving the veins, but quite destroying the attacked
parts. So far as had been observed, the beetles were believed
to lay their eggs on the under side of the Strawberry leaves,
from which presently the grubs hatched out, followed in due
time by a second brood of beetles, but the progress of develop-
ment had not been worked out with precision.

The general history of this rienits of beetles is, that their
larvte are rather elongate in shape, wrinkled, and with lateral
tubercles, and a projection at the tail extremity, which serves
as an additional leg. They live in company, and the beetles,
and larvte, feed on the leaves of the same plants, and the pupre
are to be found sheltered in cocoons in the ground.

Prevention and Eemedies. — So long as the fruit is on the
plants, it does not seem possible to use any measures to get
rid of the pests on the leafage ; but so late in the season as
the 27th of July, in warm localities, this would probably not
be a difficulty. In such case picking off such of the grub-
infested leafage as was much injured would be a very desirable
course. Also insecticides, even of a poisonous nature, such
as Paris-green or Hellebore, might then be used without fear
of poisoning eaters of the fruit.

As it is the general habit of the grubs of the Galeruccs to go
down into the ground to turn to chrysalids in cocoons, it
would probably do good to treat the surface soil beneath the
Strawberry leafage in late summer in such a way as would
get rid of the infestation, and so forestall the development of
a second brood of beetles.

Judging from the observations sent, though the fact is not
clearly stated, with details given, there is presumably a second
brood, and, if so, this should be looked for, and got rid of in
hybernating state from beneath the Strawberry plants during
winter. The beetles would probably be found (as is the case
with a nearly allied species) harbouring in the dead leaves and
rubbish on the surface, and if this was scraped together and
burnt before disturbing the surface soil for the customary
winter treatment, a deal of infestation would most likely be
got rid of.

CAULIFLOWER DISEASE. 251

Eelworm Disease. Aphelenclms fragarm, Eitz. Bos.

The following observations refer to peculiar malformations
of growth caused by Eelworm presence so affecting the stems
and inflorescence of the Strawberry as quite to change the
characteristic appearance of the growing portions of the
plant when it should be running on into flower, and thus
ruining it for all useful purposes.

From the circumstance of the buds (or the various portions
which should have formed the buds and flowering stems)
being so greatly swelled at the extremities, and also so
shortened and pressed together as greatly to resemble pieces
of Cauliflower placed amongst the deformed stems, it has
seemed convenient to give the name of the " Cauliflower
disease " to this form of Strawberry attack, in the same way
that "Tulip-root," "Pine-apple disease," or other names de-
scribing the shape of diseased growth, are given to malforma-
tions caused by the presence of other kinds of nematoid
worms (popularly known as Eelworms) in Oat plants. Carna-
tions, or other field crop or garden plants.

The first observations of this very peculiar attack were
sent me from St. Paul's Cray, Kent, on May 23rd, 1890, by
Mr. Thomas May, with the remark that he was forwarding
me specimens of Strawberry plants from a field of fourteen
acres, of which nearly half the plants had gone like those
sent. These plants were greatly deformed, and I found Eel-
worms (and in a further supply of diseased Strawberry plants
sent me on May 28th, I found Eelworms in exceedingly active
condition) numerously present.

On June 3rd (together with further supi^ly of specimens
from the same fourteen-acre field), Mr. May mentioned that
half of the plants were affected equally all over the field,
excepting on a half-acre, where there were Potato clamps
before planting, and where they had a large manure-mixen.
" These two patches," my correspondent wrote, " look well,
all but an odd plant or two here and there — about one in
fifty in these two patches ; the remainder of the field is just
about equal. The plants on half the field came from my own
old plants, and the other half from a neighbour's." With
regard to the origin of the infestation, Mr. May observed : —
" I am satisfied it has nothing to do with the plants when put
in ; they all grew well last season."

In reply to my enquiries as to cropping or manuring the
field in the previous years, Mr. May favoured me with the
following report : —

252 STRAWBERRY.

Crop. Manure.

1881 to 1884. Strawberries

/■Heavily manured with London straw

1885. Potatoes ^"^?' ^""^ ^°T ^T'}^ '"^P^' ^Z'

monia, superphosphate, sown with

[ Potatoes.

1886. Wheat

1887. Clover, very heavy croji

1888. Potatoes I ^""""y']^ manured (again as before) in

( winter ot 1887-88.

1889. Planted Strawberries, and plants fl'^^9-90. Manured Strawberries in

all started well and did well. . November and December, and dug
lof^r. nj_ , • ■ 1 1 . i ?n r)eat moss and sawdust, horse

1890. Strawberries with large quantity manure from London having lain in

of deformed plants ( j^ l^^^pg from August.

On opening one of the side buds of the plants sent me on
May 28th, I found Eelworms of various sizes numerously
present, somewhat resembling Tylcnckus devastatrix, the
" Stem Eelworm," which we know well as causing Tulip-root
in Oats and stem-sickness in Clover (of which I give a figure
on p. 254 for reference). Not, however, having the requisite
knowledge of nematoid worms to be able to identify the
species myself, I forwarded specimens to Dr. J. Eitzema
Bos, Professor at the State Agricultural College, Wageningen,
Holland,* for the benefit of his well-skilled opinion.

On examination Dr. Eitzema Bos found the infesting Eel-
worms to belong to the genus Ayhclenclms of Bastian, but not
to be identical with any of the species of this genus with
which we were previously acquainted, and therefore (as being

Description of Figures.

1. Strawberry plant infested by Aplielenclim fragaricB.

a. Scaly buds developed in the axils of normally developed leaves — h.
h. A very swollen stem, with

c. Eudimentary flower buds always remaining closed.

d. Accumulation of rudimentary buds at the base of the branch 6.

e. Cauliflower-like accumulation of strongly branched and broadened

inflorescent parts, with imperfectly developed flowers and sheathing
leaves.

/. Section of similar Cauliflower growth.

g. Accumulated blossoms, partly rudimentary, partly abnormally de-
veloped, such as are shown seijarately in 2 and 3.

li. Portion of leaf-stalks of normally developed leaves.

i. Stunted leaves of fairly normal shape.

2. Monstrously developed blossom ; outer leaves of the calyx narrow ; inner

calyx leaves more developed, some very thick and twisted, others
branched, and a few trifid like ordinary leaves ; the blossom appears to
have split into three divisions, but the petals, stamens, and pistil of
these parts have remained rudimentary and indistinguishable from each
other.

3. Monstrously developed blossom ; outer leaves of the calyx narrow ; inner

leaves of calyx well developed, but a few of them twisted ; petals of corolla
stunted, and some of them twisted, and no sign of pistil or stamens.

4. Abnormally developed stamen.

* Now Director of the Phyto-pathological Laboratory at Amsterdam.

CAULIFLOWER DISEASE.

253

Strawberry plant, diseased by infestation of AplieUnchus fragarice. By
permission, after figure by Dr. J.Ritzema Bos.

254

STRAWBEREY.

previously undescribed) he bestowed on it the appellation of
Aphelcnchus fragaricB, as descriptive of the nematode and its
food-plant.

Stem Eelwokm {Tylenchus devastatrix). Anterior portion of female showing
moutli-spear ; and embryo in egg. All greatly magnified (anterior portion mag.
4i0 times). From figures by Dr. J. Eitzema Bos.

The accompanying much magnified figures of Tylenchus
devastatrix may be taken as giving a general idea of the
shape of the Aphelenchi, inasmuch as in both cases these are
" long eel-shaped .4»/7u//k^ic/^g with a flexible ringed skin";
in both cases also there is a "spear" or "stilet" in the
mouth cavity or gullet. The essential differences in structure,
which can only be observed with the help of very high micro-
scopic powers, I do not enter on here ; but, with the per-
mission of Dr. Eitzema Bos, who was good enough to allow
me to extract at pleasure from his elaborately minute paper*
on this infestation, I offer just a few notes from his measure-
ments, &c. ; and likewise his valuable botanical figure (at
p. 253), and some notes from his description of the effect of
the infestation on the plant growth.

Dr. Eitzema Bos observes that " this Apkelcnckus fragarite
is a small species" (the greatest length of such small amount
of males and females as occurred in the plants I sent was
found by him to be — of males, 0*85 mm. ; of females, 0"80 mm.
— E. A.O.). " The stilet is small; in one specimen I decided it

* " The Cauliflower Disease of the Strawberry, caused by Aphclcnchusfragaricc,
nov. spec," entitled " De Bloemkoolziekte der Aardberen, veroorzaakt door
Apltelenclius fragaria, nov. spec," door J. Ritzema Bos (voorloopige medede-
Img). Overgedruckt uit het Maanblad voor Natuurwefenschappeu, No. 7,
Jaargang 1889.

CAULIFLOWER DISEASE. 255

to be 0'0094 mm. long. Although this organ is at first sharp
and thin, it ends in a blunt knob-shaped swelling. The
gullet was indistinct in the specimens I examined ; it seemed
to be rather twisted. The sucking stomach is oval ; there
the intestine begins, at first very narrow, afterwards broader.
Its wall is finely granulated." Details are given of male and
female characteristics, so far as observable : but though larva;
were plentiful in the i^lants I forwarded in May and June, yet
Dr. Kitzema Bos noted with regard to the males and females :
— " I did not observe one of either sex which was perfectly
mature, containing developed spermatozoa or eggs on the
point of being laid. It seems from this as though repro-
duction only takes place during the latter part of summer."
— (J.E.B.)

The following extract describes the effect of the infestation
on various parts of the plant, as the stems, buds, flower
l^etals, calyx, &c., which, with permission, I give in the words
of Dr. Eitzema Bos rather than my own, as being clearer and
much more technically precise than any wording I could
myself have offered.

Description of the effects of the infestation on the growth of the
Strawberry lilant.

" In the axils of the normally developed lower leaves (see
fig. 1, )i, p. 253) numerous thick scaly buds appear, much like
the little scales that form on a bulb ; these buds never grow
new stolons. Sometimes the main stem grows fairly tall to
begin with (probably because the plant was not attacked by a
large number of Ai^lielenclius at once), but a certain height
being attained, it branches very vigorously, and the branches
are not only thick and broad, but remain united as they
grow, so that there is actual fasciation. There is, however,
no ribbon -like broadening, but a thickening, which can be
best compared to a piece of Cauliflower ; therefore I have
indicated the disease caused by Aphelenchus fragarice as
' Cauliflower disease of Strawberry plants.'

"In a few cases a simple ribbon-like broadening of the
stalk takes place, and the numerous flower and leaf buds that
result are more or less normally developed. Sometimes one
side of the stalk or branch grows and fasciates more strongly
than the other side ; the stem then bends, and may even
become quite twisted up. Some stems split at the toj) of the
fasciation into a number of different branches, with more or
less normal flowers and leaves. Most commonly, however,
the stalk or branch gets scarcely broader, but much thicker ;
the side branches remain in great part fixed together, and it

256 STRAWBERRY.

is an exception for the buds to be perfectly developed. The
deformed plant greatly resembles Cauliflower or Brocoli,
according as the different parts are more or less enlarged and
attacked, and according as the buds are not at all or only
partially developed, or have produced malformed flowers.
Some very broad and stunted stalks have buds on the top,
pressed together like a cock's comb ; and some have them at
the sides, spread very irregularly, in consequence of the
irregular growth, but growing thickly squeezed together over

a large surface The branches are generally all more

or less enlarged (fig. 1, ^), though a few of them may develop
normally ; some of the leaves may be normal, but many
remain very small, and the leaf smaller in proportion than
the stem ; sometimes instead of being trifid it is entire, and
some are much twisted.

" The sheathing leaves are mostly small, or thick and
irregularly twisted. The flower buds are sometimes very
thick, while the leafy parts remain thin and scaly ; sometimes
the leafy parts become much thicker, but remain short, and
continue to produce little scales. Often the outer calyx, and
calyx, are more developed than the other leafy parts. Some-
times the bud remains entirely or in part closed (c), while the
outer calyx, and calyx, go on developing normally ; but often
the flower bud opens.

" The leaves of calyx and outer calyx are frequently ab-
normal, those of the outer calyx being very thin and narrow,
almost needle-shaped ; while the calyx leaves, on the contrary,
develop more strongly ; occasionally they are twisted, and
have bubble-like swellings on the under side. Some are more
or less cut into ; others are trifid, imitating the normal leaf.

" The corona petals sometimes do not develop at all ; often
they remain rudimentary. Sometimes they are much smaller
than the divisions of the calyx, and twist to and fro, generally
towards the inside ; then they are not white, but greenish
white or very light green, though thin and delicate in texture
as usual.

" The stamens are wanting in many of the flowers, or are
represented by such rudimentary growths that their real
nature cannot be recognized ; in others, which have a normal
anther, the filament is much thicker and shorter than in the
case of normal stamens. The receptacle and pistil are often

very small, sometimes the latter is altogether absent

It is hardly necessary to add that stems, leaves, and blossoms
of fairly normal development may be found on plants that
are only slightly attacked by the disease." — (J. E. B.)

(For figure of diseased plant and table of description of
details, see pp. 252, 253.)

CAULIFLOWEE DISEASE. 257

This infestation was little noticed in the following year, and
I am not aware that it has been observed since to any im-
portant extent.

We are still without knowledge as to where the infestation
came from, and also we do not know what remedial appli-
cations may be of service in checking the diseased growths,
l)ecause these were already fully developed when the attack
was first brought under my notice towards the end of May,
1889. Then it appeared to me that as the great number of
plants successively sent me were masses Of infested malformed
growth, the best suggestion I could give was to destroy them
as rapidly and as thoroughly as could be done, so as (if
possible) to stamp out the Eelworm })resence.

The only clue that (so far as I see) we have at present
towards checking this special form of attack lies in the
circumstance of scarcely any of it (perhaps one plant in fifty)
being observed on the spots where, respectively, a manure
heap, and also Potato clamps, occupying about half an acre,
had been. These spots were dressed with the same peat
moss, &c., manure, and in the same proportion as the rest of
the field ; so this shuts the door on the probability of the
infestation being brought in the manure, which suggested
itself. But it certainly points to difference in state of surface
soil affecting amount of attack. Whether the plants throve
and did better on these spots, and so resisted attack better,
or whether the Eelworms which might be present were buried
and killed, is at present unknown ; but still we may get
some practical help towards prevention from the above ob-
servation.

The attack appears to be of rare occurrence, but it has
obviously power of doing great mischief when it does appear ;
and as the deformation is so very noticeable, it might be
worth while on the first observation of commencement of
the mischief to try the effect of some of the applications
which have been found to answer well for checking " Stem
Eelworm " sickness in Oats and Clover, for which I give a
few recipes.

Sulphate of potash at the rate of 1 cwt. per acre has had a
good effect in stopping the disease and bringing a good crop ;
also at the rate of about j cwt. per acre it has done well.

As a manurial application, a mixture of about two joarts
sulphate of potash, three parts sulphate of ammonia, and four
parts of phosphates brought remarkably healthy plants, with
few exceptions.

A recipe found to answer well in case of attack in " Tulip-
rooted Oats " or " Stem-sick Clover " is — sulphate of ammonia
four parts, sulphate of potash one part, and steamed bones

s

258

STRAWBEERY.

two parts ; this at the rate of 1^^ cwt. per acre, followed up by
a dressing of 2 cwt. per acre of sulphate of ammonia.

The following note of experiment in treatment of Clover-
sickness showed entirely satisfactory results : — " A mixture
of sulphate of potash 3 cwt., and sulphate of ammonia 1 cwt.
per acre, was applied on April 3rd." The disease ceased, and
the Clover made a very vigorous growth, which was continued
markedly in the second crop. Sulphate of iron at the rate of
2 cwt. also answered very well both for stopping the disease
and giving good growth ; at the rate of 1 cwt. the sulphate of
iron was not so serviceable.

The above, it will be noticed, are not recipes for prevention
of Aphelencld in Strawberry plants, but of Tylenchi in Oats
and Clover, but there is so much in common in the nature of
the two attacks that experiment might very likely give good
results.

Strawberry-leaf Button Moth.

Peronea ? comariana , Zell. ; P. / comparana, Hiib.

Peeonea (? comabiana).* — Moth, and caterpillar hanging from leaf by thread.
(Figure drawn by Dr. Ellis.)

The following observations refer to the attacks of a small
moth caterpillar which some years ago (and possibly still, if

* The Peroneas form a genus of exceedingly small moths somewhat un-
certain in distinguishing points. The above specimen having been variously
named by two referees, I give both appellations.

STEAWBERRY-LEAF BUTTON MOTH. 259

Strawberries are still grown there) did much mischief to
Strawberry leafage in the neighbourhood of Dee Banks,
Chester. The notes were kindly forwarded to me in 1883
by Dr. Ellis, of Liverpool, to whom they had then been
communicated by Mr. Eichard A. Wrench, of Dee Banks : —

" I enclose specimens of a grub which infests the Straw-
berries about here (Dee Banks, Chester), and does a great
deal of harm ; the bulk of the Strawberries for Liverpool
market are from here. I may say it usually makes its
appearance about the beginning of May, and lasts until about
the end of August, when it goes away.

"Young Strawberry plants of twelve months old are never
affected; two-year-old plants are affected rather badly, but
three-year-old plants are invariably ruined.

" I have two fields adjoining one another, the old field
utterly ruined by the grub, the next, only separated by a
hedge, perfectly clear; but next year, when it will be two
years old, it is sure to be full of blight."

For the following description of the moth (P. ? comariana)
in its three stages I am indebted to Dr. Ellis : —

''Larva. — Cylindrical, shining, slightly bristly; head glassy,
pale yellow, with brown spots on each side behind ; general
colour green, darker above, lighter below, with the dorsal
vessel well marked and darker. Feeds in May and early part
of June on Straivherry, draicing together the leaves and flowers
for this imrpose ; in the latter case feeding on the calyx and
receptacle.

"■ Pupa. — Pale green, with reddish wing-cases and abdo-
minal segments.

''Imago. — Fore wings very pale ochreous, slightly darker
on the hinder half ; near the middle of the costa is a dark
brown, nearly black, triangular blotch, reaching two-thirds
across the wing, and continued to the inner margin as a slight
brownish cloud. A dark patch on the inner margin indicates
the edge of the basal patch. Hind wings grey."

Prevention and Eemedies. — Before we can be sure of
these we need fuller details of the life-history. So far as I
am aware, we do not know where the caterpillar turns to the
chrysalis condition; but it will be noticed in Dr. Ellis's
sketch that the caterpillar is suspended at the end of its
thread, and as it has the means of lowering itself to the
ground, it seems very likely that it may go down to the
ground, or to rubbish on the surface of the ground, for the
pupal change. No observation at least is made of pupation
taking place amongst the spun-up leaves, &c., in which the
caterpillar feeds.

s2

260

STRAWBERRY.

In Stainton's ' Manual ' * it is mentioned of the family of
Peroneidce that "the insects appear in the perfect state at the
end of summer and beginning of autumn, and by far the
greater number hybernate, and are to be met with throughout
the winter and in early spring."

The infestation appears to harbour about the Strawberry
grounds, for it will be seen above that Mr. Wrench notices
attack is absent in the first year, moderate in the second, but
devastates in the third, which points to the attackers being on
the spot; for if the little moths flew from neighbouring
localities there does not appear any reason why the first
years' plants should escape.

In our present imperfect knowledge of the habits of the
infestation, the only plan that suggests itself is such slight
skimming off of the surface soil, and removal of this and
remains of dressings, after the crop is over, as might remove
the chrysalids if present, and also (later on) turn out all the
moths which might be hybernating in the surface rubbish.

Small " or " Garden " Swift Moth. Hepialus lupulinus, Linn.

Hepialus lupulinus. ^ — Moth, caterpillar, and chrysalis.

The Small or Garden Swift Moth is a very common insect;
but in caterpillar state it is seldom reported, although, when
it does appear, it has a power of doing mischief, truly de-
scribed by John Curtis long ago as scarcely equalled by the
Surface Grubs. This is one of the attacks which really is
much influenced by weather. The season of ravage is autumn,
winter, and spring, and though we have no record of cold
killing these grubs, it keeps them quiet ; whereas in an open
winter like that of the early part of the year 1896, they can
creep about in the unfrozen ground and feed as they please.

Amongst bush or ground fruits the infestation is injurious

* stainton's ' Manual of British Butterflies and Moths,' vol. ii. p. 229.

SMALL OR GARDEN SWIFT MOTH. 261

at the roots of Strawberries and Kaspberries; amongst kitchen
garden crops it infests Celery, Lettuce, Parsnip, and Potato ;
but it is obvious that no local preventive applications can be
trusted to for keeping off attack, as the presence of the moths
is so very general. They are especially recorded as being
found at laying time hovering over grassy places, and I have
had the caterpillars from grass land being ploughed up in
February. In October I have had them from Clover leys,
where they were found in such numbers that the farm bailiff
asked for information, as the ground he was ploughing up
" was covered with them." Similarly, I have had them in
November from the surface soil of land being ploughed after
Peas, and in spring from winter Beans put in after Wheat,
and looking at the variety of crop subject to this infestation,
it seems a hopeless matter to find any preventive measures
against egg-laying.

The caterpillar is of the shape figured at p. 260 when full-
grown ; about four-fifths of an inch in length ; cylindrical ;
white or yellowish white, with the head and the plates or
collar on the segment next to it of some shade of brown ; and
the usual dots on the body dark or of a pale yellowish tint,
each of these with a stiff black hair ; and the spiracles black.
Earlier in their lives, these four dots on the back of each
segment after that next the head are dark. The caterpillars
are sixteen-footed, — that is, with three pairs of claw-feet on
the segments next the head, four pairs of sucker-feet beneath
the body, and one pair beneath the tail. They are somewhat
variable in colouring, even to being entirely ivithout any tint
on the spots.

The chrysalis is of a somewhat long cylindrical shape, as
figured at p. 260; shiny and very sensitive; and in colour of
some shade from ochreous to pale reddish brown, darker on
the head and wings ; and showing the shape of the forming
moth, and of the legs and wings within it very clearly.

The moth is variable, both in size and colouring ; the
spread of the fore wings may be from an inch to an inch and
a half ; and the colouring may appear wholly of a dirty pale
brownish, or, if characteristic, be of a clay colour or pale
brown, " with a whitish streak from the base towards the
inner margin, and an interrupted whitish streak from near
the inner margin to the apex." As the names differ as much
as the varieties, I have taken Professor Westwood's name of
the " Small Swift," which distinguishes it well from the much
larger kind (the " Ghost Moth" or " Hop Swift"), the cater-
pillar of which specially attacks Hop roots. The name of
" Swift " is given on account of the rapidity of the flight. The
moths may be seen in the evening by hedgerows or grassy

262 STBAWBEKKY.

banks, over grass, where they drop their eggs in large
numbers.

The moth appears about the end of May to the middle of
June ; the caterpillar is to be found from the end of September
until April, and towards the end of April or in May it turns
to the chrysalis.

I have never had specimens of this infestation as a Easp-
berry root attack, but I have had them in January, apparently
full-grown, with the information that the grubs were found at
the roots of the Strawberry plants, which they killed by eating
holes in the stems.

Prevention and Eemedies. — Whether anything can be
done at a paying rate to get rid of the grubs does not yet
appear. With Strawberries and Kaspberries hand-picking
might answer, for children could be employed at a small cost,
and under superintendence. Trapping might very likely do
good, by arranging the baits of pieces of Potato, or Parsnip,
or anything the grubs were found to prefer to the crop they
were ravaging, in the same way as in garden trapping of
Wireworm, — that is, passing a stick through the bait, so as
to show where it has been buried a little below the surface,
and every two or three days raising the bait, clearing the
grubs, and reburying the piece of Potato, or whatever it
may be.

Where circumstances admit of disturbing infested ground
in winter, so as to throw the grubs open to cold, or alternating
cold and thaw, this would get rid of great numbers.

ground-buildinct and tree wasps.

263

WASPS.
Oround-building aud Tree Wasps. VespuU of various species.

\

V.

Nest of Tree Wasp, after sketch from original specimen by Eleanor A. Ormerod.
Dimensions eight inches across by seven and a half deep."

The injuries to fruit and losses to fruit-growers and gar-
deners by Wasp depredations on the ripe or ripening props
are to a greater or less extent a yearly troul)le, but in no
season for many years has this been so great as in 1893,
when the visitation was so numerous and severe that it was
known as the " Wasp plague," and may be taken as an
example of the loss and mischief which a great Wasp infes-
tation can cause.

* As the tenants of the nest were not identified at the time, I cannot s%f
with certainty whether it is that of Vesim sijlveatris or V.noricgica.

264 WASPS.

The very unusual prevalence of Wasp presence in 1893 was
reiDorted from almost every one of the many localities in
England from which replies to my enquiries were forwarded
to me, and though the infestation was not so general in
Scotland, it was exceedingly troublesome over some large
districts, notably by the Moray Firth, in the Lothians, and
in some of the islands on the west of Scotland.

Great losses were caused by the quantity of fruit ruined, up
to almost wholesale destruction in the grounds of large fruit-
growers, and the following few extracts give some idea of the
extent of local damage in various places.

One report mentioned that the Gooseberry crop was com-
pletely cleared when approaching ripeness; quite two-thirds
of the Pears had been damaged and destroyed ; Apples about
one-third; Plums about half.

From another locality the damage done to the Plums was
mentioned as so great that consequently many had to be
gathered before they were fully ripe ; that large quantities of
Apple-skins which had been completely hollowed out by the
Wasps were lying underneath some of the Apple trees, scores
of bushels having been destroyed ; and the Grapes (it was
noticed) " they have also very much damaged, and it has
been needful to cover all openings in the houses with fine net
in order to exclude the Wasps." At another locality (like the
preceding, in Sussex) the damage to fruit, and especially to
Grapes in the houses, was reported as very great ; and from
the Estate Office, Maresfield Park, near Uckfield, Sussex,
Mr. Mark Sandford wrote me: — "Heavy losses have been
sustained, as some best fruits have been utterly eaten up ; all
our Peaches were eaten before they were ripe, we could not
rijien a single one. All our out-door Grapes were eaten, and
many of our best eating Apples cleared out, leaving only the
peeling."

The above notes give an idea of the amount of mischief in
places in one county in the extreme south of England, and
those following, which are part of some valuable observations
with which I was favoured by Mr. C. Webster, Horticultural
Superintendent to the Duke of Piichmond and Gordon, from
The Gardens, Gordon Castle, Fochabers, N.B., show that the
prevalence of the "Wasp plague" was no less destructive in
that northerly part of Scotland : —

" It was about the last days of July that my attention was
first called to the plague of Wasps, by their attack on the
wall Cherries. We could find no protection from their attack
upon this fruit, a large proportion being consumed by them.
Some of the trees, when the nets were shaken, had the
appearance, for a few seconds, as if a swarm of Bees had

INJURIES FROM WASPS. 265

come off. As the different sorts of wall fruit ripened, such as
Apricots, Peaches, and especially Plums and Jargonelle Pears,
it was attacked by swarms of them. Even hard Apples and
Pears (which had been pecked by birds), and quite devoid of
saccharine matter, were fixed on as greedily as some of the
softer fruits. The plague continued from the end of July to
the second week in September, at which time we had our first
frost, cutting up Dahlias, Begonias, and other tender plants,
and also putting a check to the quantity of Wasps."

In regard to benefit or injuries received from the Wasp
presence, the evidence shows unquestionably preponderance
of the latter.

The great amount of injury inflicted by them in serious
losses to fruit-growers, and pain, risk, and inconvenience by
their extraordinary amount of infestation in houses, and their
attacks (or onslaughts, rather) on men and horses when dis-
turbed in the fields, are matters of very demonstrable evil.
Detailed accounts of these and of other inconveniences and
losses are given in my special observations of the great
''Wasp plague" of 1893.* But relatively only to the special
consideration of fruit injury, it is manifest that where good
fruit (and it will be noticed how, in some instances, the best
and choicest kinds are selected) is destroyed by bushels, the
use of bags by thousands necessitated to endeavour at least
to protect it, and possible entrance of the marauders into
vineries, fruit-houses, &c., prevented by netting, that there is
a very tangible amount of loss and trouble.

The Wasps' nests, besides being much more numerous than
in ordinary years, were noticed in some instances as being
of greater than the customary size, and more numerously
tenanted. From contributors who especially attended to the
numbers of nests destroyed, or kindly obtained information
for me, I had notes of destruction of over one liundred and
eighty nests on somewhat less than six hundred acres of land ;
two hundred nests taken in one nursery garden ; an estimate
of about three hundred nests taken on three hundred acres ;
and in one instance, where a bonus of sixpence per nest was
given, three hundred and seventy-six nests were taken within
half a mile of the kitchen garden, which was the centre of
operations, and later on payment was made for ninety-four
more, within the same area, or a little further away, — four
hundred and seventy in all. Other notes gave twenty nests
ploughed up in one field ; three dozen observed, or taken, in
the radius of a quarter of a mile ; twenty-three nests in
ninety-six yards of dry stone wall, or dyke, &c. Of Hornets,

* See my ' Seventeenth Annual Report,' p^j. 111-140.

266 WASPS.

in one locality, nine nests were known of within the limits of
"a ramble," and twenty in the more extended area of a few
miles.

It is worth noting, that from two well-qualified observers
respectivel}^ almost at the north and almost at the south of
the area reported from, namely, localities in Co. Moray, N.B.,
and Kent, and also from a station midway, namely, Hull, I
had information that no unusual amount of appearance of
queens in spring preceded the very unusual amount of Wasp
infestation afterwards.

Where the observers expressed an opinion as to the cause
of the very unusual prevalence, it was referred, as indeed
seemed clearly demonstrated, to the unusually early and
long-continued dry weather in the spring being so entirely
suitable for satisfactory settlement of the queens.

Species of British Wasps. — In Britain we have seven species
of social Wasps, that is, of Wasps living together in societies

Vespa vulgaris. — Largest specimen, queen, or female; specimen to left-hand,
with long horns, drone, or male ; right-hand s^jecimen, neuter, or worker.

formed of males, females, and neuters, or abortive females,
commonly known, respectively, as drones, queens, and workers.

The seven kinds of Wasps are divided into two sections of
Ground Wasps and Tree Wasps, according to whether their
nests are customarily formed in a hollow in the ground, or
suspended in the air from a bough, or in a hedge, or, as with
our largest species, Vespa crahro, the splendid insect known
as the " Hornet," the nests may be found in decayed trees,
in roots, under eaves, or, as I have myself found it, down in
the ground by a small post of a field paling.

The species of the Ground-building Wasps are Vespa vul-
garis, Linn, (see figure) ; V. germanica, Fabr. ; and V. rufa,
Linn., which is somewhat smaller, as regards the queens and
workers, than the two preceding kinds, but variously marked,
especially on the first two segments of the abdomen, with a

HABITS. 267

red tinge. As I have seen it (especially on one occasion
when, by mishap, I had to hold the entire colony of a dis-
turbed nest down on the ground within my ring-net to enable
my unwasp-protected colleague to escape), the difference in
tint is a very fair general distinction.

Of the four species of "Tree Wasps," the most common are
Vespa sijlvestris, Scop., and V. norvegica, Fab. (F. britannica
of Leach) ; of these the first is widely distributed, the second
is not so common in England, but said to be abundant in
Scotland. V. arhorea is so very rare that it hardly needs
mention. I was, however, fortunate enough to find two
specimens at Sedbury Park in the west part of Gloucester-
shire, which, on being submitted to the late Mr. Frederick
Smith, of the British Museum, were identified by him as being
queens of this species.

The VcsjM crabro, or Hornet, is easily distinguishable from
the other species of Wasps by its greater size and its large

Vespa crabro, female. — Queen Hornet.

proportion of rusty or reddish colouring. In the part of
Gloucestershire mentioned above, where there was much
woodland, it was not at all uncommon, but its range of
habitat is given as not extending (as far as is known) so far
north as Yorkshire.*

The Wasp colonies of the year are begun by the queens
which survived the winter in the sheltered localities which
they chose for themselves (away from the perishing nests of
the preceding season). Such, for instance, as dark nooks in
sheds, or amongst wood, or leaves, or dry rubbish, or stones,
or in a dry bank — anywhere, in fact, indoors or out, that is
snug and quiet, till the return of sunshine and warmth wakes
them from their winter sleep.

Then comes the time at which the state of the weather
affects the amount of Wasp increase to a very important

* ' British Museum Catalogue of British Aculeate Hymenoptera,' by Frederick
Smith, p. 222.

268

WASPS.

degree. Wasps are very sensitive to cold and exposure, and
when weather varies, as is so often the case in early spring,
from short bright sunshine to frost, or sleet, or snow, many
of the queen Wasps which are caught by the unfavourable
weather perish, and their embryo nests, with their few eggs
or lately hatched grubs, perish also.

This embryo nest is made of a kind of grey paper formed
of morsels of wood, or of bark, or material of a similar kind,
worked by the Wasp into a kind of paste or " papier mache,"
and spread into the required form by her jaws, and it is
obvious that where this delicate structure of perishable
material is exposed to bad weather that it will most likely
perish.

When the tiny structure has advanced so far as to have
any definite form, it may be described as much resembling a
miniature open umbrella formed of thin grey paper, about
half an inch to an inch in diameter, and hung by a little
stout peg, also made of paper-like material, to whatever
support the queen Wasp may have chosen. Continuing the
comparison, — beneath this convex umbrella-shaped cap hung
up by the peg above is, not a handle, but a short somewhat
club-shaped mass, at the lower extremity of which are a few
cells containing eggs or Wasp maggots.

At first the queen has to carry on all the work of the com-
mencing colony : to lay the eggs, feed the grubs, gather

Wasps' nests in early stages, after photos by Dr. Edw. L. Ormerod.

material for house-building, and use it herself for enlarging
the roof of the family shelter, or for deepening the cells (which
at first were little more than cups) so as to suit the needs of
the growing grubs. Thus the first hood is enlarged, additional
layers of paper are added, until the little nest begins to take
its characteristic spherical form, and the few cells with which
work began are increased in depth and numbers until they
become a regular layer of paper Wasp-comb. The accom-
panying figures show this condition before the nest has been

METHODS OF NEST-BUILDING. 269

closed below, so as only to leave the requisite aperture for
Wasp passage.

From this time, if all goes well with the colony, the work
goes on regularly. The queen continues to lay eggs, and the
egg condition is stated to last eight days, the larva state
thirteen or fourteen, and that of the pupa about ten ; thus
(speaking generally) in about a month from the time of the
first eggs being laid, the first Wasps of the season begin to
make their appearance. These are all abortive females,
known as workers, and as they keep on developing in steady
succession, from the succession of eggs laid by the queen,
they carry on the labours of the rapidly increasing com-
munity. Successive tiers of horizontal comb, with cells on
the lower sides, have to be built to receive the eggs and
accommodate the grubs, and the outside of the nest has to be
enlarged correspondingly, until, in the case of the common
Wasps, it may be of a somewhat spherical shape of any size
from two or three to eight or more inches in diameter. The
Hornets' nest is very likely not entirely spherical, but built
against the side of a cavity in an old tree ; also the paper is
of a coarser kind. The largest specimen I have seen was
fully nineteen inches in height by fifteen in breadth.

The building of the outside of the nest is carried on by the
workers stripping or rasping up small quantities of wood or
vegetable material, and working these with moisture from
their mouths into little pellets, which each worker carries
home, as it is commonly described, in her jaws, but (from my
own observation of the process) I should rather say under them,
tucked, as it were, under her chin. Thus her jaws are free
for work, and when she gets to her nest (in the case of a kind
like that figured at the heading), then placing herself firmly
in an inverted position, with three legs on each side of the
edge of paper to be enlarged, she walks backward, spreading
out her soft paper pellet with her jaws until it forms a little
stripe securely joined to the former paper, but differing in
colour according to the tint of the wood, or vegetable material,
of which it has been made.

The horizontal layers of comb within the nest are formed
of the same kind of paper as the outside casing of the nest,
each comb being suspended from the layer above it by short
strong pillars of the Wasp-paper material, thus giving conve-
nient room for traffic of the workers on the flat top of each
comb whilst attending to the needs of the young family in
the cells of the comb immediately above them. All the
labours (excepting egg-laying), whether building or repairing,
fetching materials and food, clearing out rubbish, &c., have
to be carried out by the workers, and in the case of ground-

270

WASPS.

builders, the mere enlargement of the cavity to give room for
the necessary enlargements of the family establishment is no
small labour ; and for those who can watch quietly it is a very
pretty sight to observe the workers coming up from below
laden, each one, with the little morsel of earth or pebble
which was required to be excavated.

Towards autumn the economy of the nest changes, males
and females are produced, and shortly after the Wasp colony,
as a social establishment, comes to an end. The drones, or
males, having fulfilled their allotted work by pairing with the
females, die, so also do the workers ; the nest decays, and all
that remains of the summer colonies and their quarters (ex-
cepting where nests may have been built in some dry locality
where they are as safe as in a cabinet) are the females, which
will leave the nest, and, hybernating in their selected shelters
until spring comes round again, thus complete the year's
circle of Wasp life.*

Prevention and Eemedies. — The following notes give
details of methods of operation, or recipes for applications,
found effective in destroying Wasps' nests, amongst which it
will be seen that cyanide of potassium is especially mentioned
as efficacious ; but, this being a violent poison, I do not advise
the use of it myself, and do not think that the use of it should
be even permitted, excepting in absolutely trustworthy hands.

During an experience of a good many years, in days gone
by, I have found one of the most convenient methods of
destruction of nests of Ground Wasps (both as doing the work
thoroughly and without danger to the operator) was pouring a
ladleful or part of a ladleful of tar down the entrance passage
into the nest at a time when most of the tenants are at home.
If this is properly managed, and there is only one entrance to
the nest, probably the work will be complete, and nothing
more needed than to dig up the nest and destroy it after a few
days, so that Wasps that may develop within may not make
their way out when the tar has dried. Sometimes the ground
nests have two tunnels down into them, and in this case the
opening of the second one will soon become obvious from the
increased traffic and will need attending to, as well as the main
entrance. In case the nest is a strong one, and care has not

* In the above account of the general points of Wasp life and habits I have
written mainly from my own observations, taken many years ago, when collect-
ing and observing to help my late brother Dr. Edw. L. Ormerod, of Brighton,
whilst preparing his volume entitled 'British Social Wasps,' regarding such
points as required local attention in their own habitats. And to this work I
refer the reader tor the results of my brother's minute microscopic investiga-
tions into the anatomy of Wasps ; and also the reproductive powers of the
abortive or partially-developed females commonly known as workers. — E. A. 0.

TO DESTKOY. 271

been taken to apply the tar when most of the Wasps are
withm, there may be temporary trouble from the excluded
Wasps forming an attempt at a settlement by making paper
in irregular patches amongst the grass round the entrance to
the nest. This requires attention, lest accidents should result
from it being stepped into at unawares.

The following notes were given me by Mr. W. Gardner, then
of Bekesbourne, Kent, relatively to method of taking about
a hundred and ninety nests : —

" I think about half were taken, or supposed to be completely
destroyed, by cyanide of potassium, mixed in the proportion
of two ounces of cyanide to a pint of water ; the others were
destroyed by pouring in gas-tar, or a sulphur mixture, as they
used to do formerly. My old gardener always used pieces of
Elder tree from which he had abstracted the pith, and they
were filled with a proper admixture of brimstone, &c., but I
have forgotten the proportion. They went off like a squib.

" My man who used the cyanide said it was wonderful to
see the instantaneous effect it had on the Wasps, and we
found that the best way was to give them some ; the next day
to catch the stragglers that had stayed out during the warm
nights, and then dig them out, and crush all the hatching and
unhatched larvae. Indeed, even when using the tar, digging
out is requisite to make sure of destroying them.

" I remember one case I had where the hole ran upwards,
so I stopped the entrance, and then got a pointed iron rod,
six or seven feet long, on which I put a piece of gas-pipe,
about half the length or less, and then running the rod care-
fully into the ground I soon found when I had come upon the
nest. I then drew out the rod, and poured in a quantity of
gas-tar, which effectively did its work.

" The cyanide process is very simple. We dip a piece of
cotton- wool in the mixture and put it upon a pointed stick,
and push it pretty well into the hole ; of course it needs
to be in the hands of a trustworthy person, being such a
violent jwison."

The above observations of numbers and treatment of Wasps'
nests were taken from an area of somewhat less than six
hundred acres of ground, thus giving an average of some-
where about one Wasps' nest to every three acres.

From Canon Court, Wateringbury, Kent, Mr. Edw. Goodwin,
after mentioning the great strength (in number of Wasps) and
also the unusually large average size of the nests, added : —
" We made a great onslaught on them in June, most people
using cyanide of potassium, which I have myself used success-
fully for years."

From Coosenwartha, Scorrier (Cornwall), the following ob-

272 WASPS.

servation was sent me on September 7th by a correspondent
regarding amount of presence of Wasps : — " They never were
so plentiful in this county as at present ; indeed, the}^ are a
nuisance. ... I used to destroy them by screwing paper
thus" (here a sketch was given of a piece of paper twisted
into a funnel shape), " tarring the outside and thrusting it
into their holes, and in the night j)ouring paraffin and setting
fire to it."

The following simple method of dealing with the subject
was sent me by a corresiDondent from near Hull : — " Remedij.
I always fill an empty cartridge-case with about one part
fiour of sulphur to four parts oi" gunpowder, damp slightly,
attach a lighted fuse, and place in the hole leading to
where the swarm is located ; in ten minutes everyone will
be suffocated."

Independently of special recipes for use by owners or others
connected with the matter, the simple expedient of offering a
small bonus for each nest destroyed sometimes saves a deal of
trouble. In the instance noticed at p. 265 from a locality in
Sussex where the Wasp plague was very severe, a sum of
sixpence per nest was paid for three hundred and seventy-six
nests taken within half a mile of the kitchen garden ; but
boys, for the most part, delight in taking Wasps' nests, and
probably for a much smaller sum a very thorough clearance
could be made.

Amongst the various applications of which notes were sent,
cyanide of potassium appeared the most approved remedy ;
but its deadly nature as a poison requires most careful con-
sideration. The store of it should always be kept under lock
and key ; and whether used dry or in solution, the packet or
bottle should always have a large and legible label — " Poison " ;
and the application aliould always be entrusted to known,
careful hands.

No method of taking hanfiing Wasps' nests has been given in
the preceding notes, and the rough i^ractice of burning the
nest (and a portion of the hedge with it) is entirely objection-
able. I have often taken them with perfect safety by simply
having strong leather gauntlet-topped gloves, with linen tops
sewn on to them, down which I could pass my hands, and
then had these tops safely tied round over my sleeves between
the elbow and wrist. Thus no Wasps could hurt my hands,
and my head was defended by a large piece of some kind of
muslin or net (strong enough to keep the Wasps out, yet open
enough for me to see through) thrown over the top of a quite
broad-brinwied hat, so that it hung well down all round, and
the lower edge was securely fastened by pins round the
shoulders and across the chest. Doubtless a bee-dress would

METHODS OF TRAPPING. 273

be more in form, but bee-dresses cost money, and are not
always easily procurable.

It is necessary to have the hat with the brim of sufficient
width to keep the veil well off the face, and I preferred the
kind of patterned muslin or lace, as it is called, of which
window curtains are made, as the differences in thickness
prevented the first rush of all the Wasps in the nest striking
so audibly and directly at my hat. It may be that some
people would not mind it, but the first minute of work with
hundreds of enraged Wasps all endeavouring to sting was to
me always a time of intense nervousness, and I would not
advise anyone to try the experiment who cannot be thoroughly
trustworthily fastened up, or the results may be serious.

For catcJiing JVas^ys, no plan seems to succeed better than
hanging bottles (as noted by observers) partly filled with a
mixture of beer and sugar. But where there are long ranges
of Peach walls, or walls with fruit such as the Wasps delight
in, I have seen glass-traps also answer very well indeed.
These were made by taking a common square hand-glass
with a pointed top, and a finger-hole just at the highest part.
This glass was set on four bricks, one beneath each corner,
so as to raise the glass by the depth of the brick from the
ground, not by the width, which would allow too much space.
On this lowest glass another is placed, taking care that any
opening round the edge, where the upper glass rests on the
lower one, is well closed with moss, and the finger-hole at
the top of the upper one {not of the lower one) also carefully
closed.

All that is further needed is to throw some fruit, such as
the Wasps like, beneath the trap. The Wasps will go to it
readily through the opening between the glass and the
ground, but coming away is a very different matter. Then
they usually fly upwards, and, passing through the open
finger-hole into the upper glass, they are trapped, and perish.
I have seen a deep layer of flies and Wasps thus trapped, to
the great saving of the fruit on the adjacent trees.

For jyrevention of entry of Wasps into vineries, though the
necessity of the matter is alluded to in the foregoing obser-
vations, no precise details have been given, I have known it
answer quite well to fasten muslin, such as old window-
curtains, to the edges of the lights and the framework to
which they fitted when the lights were closed. If this is
done carefully, there is little damage from the tacks (used to
fasten the muslin) to either the paint or wood-work, but care
must be taken to allow plenty of muslin, or the lights will
necessarily not open as wide as is needed. Also the muslin
must be so arranged as not to get in the way of the lights

T

274 WASPS.

being closed, or to allow apertures which the Wasps will
almost certainly discover.

No observations were sent in on one point which touches
us all very nearly, — how best to lessen pain and injury from
stings; therefore the following extract from the work of my
brother, Dr. Ormerod, on Wasps (referred to at p. 270), may
be of interest: — "Ammonia or soda will sometimes relieve
the pain, and chloroform more certainly and speedily should
it be at hand. Ipecacuanha is a favourite Indian remedy.
But the best way is gently to withdraw the sting, and suck
the wound if we can get at it, and then to leave it alone.
Some persons swell very much after a sting, and for these
rest, and a good dose of purgative medicine, are the best
remedies." Some few words are added on the importance
of leaving the wound itself alone, that is, not teasing or
squeezing the part.

( '275 )

APPENDIX.

APPLE.

Pith Moth. Ldccrna atra, Haw.

This is a small moth, only half an inch across in the spread
of the fore wings, wliich are almost entirely black, or richly
mottled with black, dark brown, and sometimes a little rusty
brown ; the inner margin white to beyond the middle, the
white continuing in an irregular streak towards the tip ; the
fringe long and grey. Hind wings grey, with paler fringes.
The head and face white, but sometimes darker.

This infestation is injurious to Apple by the small reddish
caterpillars, which live through the winter in a boring under
the bark of an old twig, tunnelling in spring along the centre
of the growing young shoot, and feeding on the pith. Thus
the leaves and the blossom-buds beyond the tunnelling are
destroyed, and the presence of the attack may be known of
by their drooping and dying condition. The attack aj^pears
to be very seldom noticed with us in connection with Apple
injury ; but it may be worth while just to allude to it, as it
was observed in two localities in the present year (1898), and
in one as causing considerable harm.

The only practicable remedial measure appears to be
cutting off the ends of the shoots where the drooping of the
leaves or of the stems of the blossom-buds shows the mischief
that is going on from the borings of the caterpillars within.
If these are carefully collected before the caterpillars change
to chrysalids within the shoots, and emerge as the perfect
moth towards the middle of July (the 8th and 12th in the
two instances of dates accompanying specimens sent me),
much might be done towards arresting the spread of the
attack.

T 2

276 APPENDIX.

PEAR.

Pear Gnat Midge. Diplusis pyHcora, Kiley.

On June 15th a note was sent me of observation of the
"Midges" laying their eggs in the open blossom of the Pear,
as well as on the blossom-buds, in the manner hitherto
recorded (see ante, p. 122). Possibly, if more than just a
chance deviation, the circumstance may have been owing to
an accidentally late development of some of the Cecids after
the buds were expanded. — E. A. 0.

( 277 )

ALPHABETICAL LIST

OF

FRUIT CROPS INFESTED BY INSECTS,

WITH

NAMES OF THE INSECT INFESTATIONS.

lu the foliowing List the subjects are arranged alphabetically ; and
a,fter the name of each fruit tree or crop mentioned iu this volume, the
names of each of the infestations, to which it is liable in this country,
are given under subordinate headings, as of Bark, Floaver or Fruit,
Leaf, &c., according to the nature of the attack. The insects, it will be
seen, are given with their scientific as well as with their popular names
and also, ''so far as possible, arranged together as to kinds, as Aphides,
Beetles, Moths, ^^c. ; with the number of the page accompanying, refer-
ring to where the detailed observations of each kind of infestation is to
be found.

Li a few instances, where some one kind of insect (as, for example,
Earwigs or Wasps) is injurious generally to fruit, the infestation is
entered under its own name, and not that of any tree or crop heading.
In the arrangement of observations in the volume, it has been a matter
of course, where the ravnges of any species of insect are confined wholly
or chiefly to any one kind of tree or crop, to give the observations
accordingly; as, for instance, the " Codlin Moth" and "Pear Gnat
Midge" are given under the headings respectively of Apple and Pear.
But where, as in the case of "Winter Moth," the ravages of some one
species of insect are injurious to manij kinds of fruit trees or crops, it
has seemed desirable to give the observations under the name of the
crop of which injury or treatment was chiefly reported; in this case to
Plum, to the extent of 80,000 trees. With this main reference, joined to
th" record in the following List, after each heading, of all kinds of insects
by which that fruit his been found infested, and also the mention in the
observations in the body of the volume of the various fruit trees or bushes
to which each insect has been observed to be injurious, it is hoped that
there will be no difficulty in identifications as they may be required.

APPLE, Pynis mains.

Bark.— American Blight, Schizoneiira lamgera, 1. Fruit-tree Bark
Beetle, Scohjtusrugulosus, 197. Mussel Scale, Mytilasyis iiomoriim,

Blossom and Fruit.— Codlin Moth, Carpocapsa pomonella, 9. Ear-
wig, ForficuU aurictdaria, 80. Golden Chafer, Cetonia aurata, 246.
Apple-blossom Weevil, Anthonomiis iwmorum, 45. Apple Sawfly,
Hoplocampa testudinea, 35. Apple-suckers or Apple Chermes, Psylla
mali, 42. Wasps, VespidcB, 263.

278 FRUIT CROPS INFESTED BY INSECTS.

Leaves. — Apple Aphis, J-2^^"'^ '"^^') 0. Plum Aphis, Aphis pruni, 146.
Cockchafer, Melolontha vulgaris, 242. Garden Chafer, Pliyllopertha
horticola, 29. Leaf Weevils : Green, Pliyllobius maculicornis, 144 ;
Oblong, P. oblongus, 141. Dot Moth, Mamestra persicarice, 86.
Figure-of-8 Moth, Diloha ccEruleocephala, 16. Lackey Isioih., Bomhyx
{Gastropaclia) neustria, 21. Large Tortoiseshell Butterfly, Vanessa
polychloros, 50. Lappet Moth, Gastropiacha quercifolia, 24. Mottled
Umber Moth, Hyhernia defoliaria, 179. Small Ermine Moth, Hypono-
meuta p)adella, 27. Common A'apourer Moth, Orgyia antiqua, 135.
Winter Moth, Clicimatohia brumata, 157.

Shoots. — Pith Moth, Laverna atra, 275.

Wood. — Shot-borer Beetles : Xylehorus dispar, 185 ; X. saxcseni, 192.
Goat Moth, Cossiis ligniperda, 18. Wood Leopard Moth, Zcu^era
cesculi, 132.

CHERRY, Prunus cerasus.

Bark. — Fruit-tree Bark Beetle, Scolytus rugulosus, 197.

Fruit. — Garden Chafer, Pliyllopertha horticola, 29. Mottled Umber
Moth, Hyhernia defoliaria, 179.

Leaves.— Cherry Aphis, Myzus cerasi, 49. Common Cockchafer, Melo-
lontha vulgaris, 242. Leaf Weevils : Oblong, Pliyllobius oblongus,
141 ; Green, P. maculicornis, 144. Large Tortoiseshell Butterfly,
Vanessa p)olychloros, 50. Mottled Umber Moth, Hyhernia defoli-
aria, 179. Winter Moth, Cheimatobia brumata, 157. Cherry and
Pear Sawfly, Selandria atra, 54.

CURRANT (Black and Red), Ribes nigrum and R. rubrum.

Bark. — Gooseberry and Currant Scale, Lecanitcm rihis, 109. Mussel

Scale, Mytilaspis pomorum, 38. White Woolly Currant Scale, Pulvi-

naria ribesice, 75.
Buds. — Currant Gall Mite, Pliytoptus ribis, 60.
Leaves. — Currant Aphis, A2}his ribis, 68. Gooseberry and Currant Moth,

Abraxas grossulariata, 89. Winter Moth, Cheimatobia brumata, 157.

Gooseberry and Currant Sawfly, Nematus ribesii, 101.
Shoots. — Currant Clearwing Moth, Sesia tipuliformis, 67.
Shoots and Fruit. — Currant Shoot and Fruit Moth, Incurvaria capi-

tella, 71.

GOOSEBERRY, Ribes grosstilaria and R. Uva-crispa.

Bark. — Gooseberry and Currant Scale, Lecanium ribis, 109.

Leaves. — Currant Aphis, Apliis ribis, 58 ; Clay-coloured Weevil, Otio-
rliynchus jncijjes, 210. Dot Moth, Mamestra persicarice, 86. Goose-
berry and Currant Moth, Abraxas grossulariata, 89. Winter Moth,
Cheimatobia brumata, 157. Gooseberry and Currant Sawfly, Nematus
ribesii, 101. Allied Sawfly, Nematus consobrinus, 108. Gooseberry
Bed Spider, Bryobia 2)ra;tiosa, 94.

Shoots. — Currant Clearwing Moth, Sesia tijndiformis, 67.

MEDLAR, Mespilus germanica.

The Medlar is liable to attack of some of our common Orchard insects,
but not apparently to any serious extent, as I have rarely (if ever)
received inquiries as to infestation, and therefore it seems unnecessary
to do more than just allude to the subject.

FRUIT CROPS INFESTED BY INSECTS. 279

NUT, Cory Ills avellana.

Bud Galls. — Hazel and Filbert Bud Mite, PhytojJtus avellance, 114.

Fruit. — Nut Weevil, Balaninus nucum, 116.

Leaves. — -Nut Leaf Weevil, Stroi^hosomus coryli, 118. Garden Chafer,

Pliyllopertha horticola, 29. Cockchafer, Melolontlia vtdgarls, 242.

Mottled Umber Moth, Hijhernia defoliaria, 179. Clay-coloured

Weevil, Otiorhyncliiis picijpes, 210.

PEAR, Pynis communis.

Bark. — American Blight, Schizoneura lanigera, 1. Fruit-tree Bark
Beetle, Scolytus rtigulosus, 197. Mussel Scale, Mytilaspis po-
niorum, 38.

Blossom and Young Fruit. — Pear Gnat Midge, Diplosis jiyrivora, 120,
276. Apple Codlin Moth, Carpocajysa 2:)omonella, 9. Apple Sawfly,
Ho-plocampa testudinea, 35. Apple-blossom Weevil, Anthonomus
pomorum, 45.

Leaves. — Apple Aphis, Ap)liis viali, 6. Pear Leaf-blister Mite, Pliy-
toptus pyri, 127. Leaf Weevils : Oblong, Pliyllohius oblongus, 141 ,
Green, P. niaculicornis, 144. Red-legged Weevil, Otiorhyiichus tene-
hricosus, 213. Large Tortoiseshell Butterfly, Vanessa piolycliloros, 50.
Lackey Moth, Bomhyx {Gastrojjacha) neustria, 21. Mottled Umber
Moth, Hybernia defoliaria, 179. Winter Moth, Clieitnatohia hrimiata,
157. Vapourer Moth, Orgyia antiqiia, 135. Cherry and Pear Sawfly,
Selandria atra, 54. Pear Lyda, Lyda jryri, 137.

Wood. — Goat Moth, Cossus ligniperda, 18. Wood Leopard Moth,
Zeuzera cesculi, 132.

PLUM, Pninus domestica.

Bark. — Fruit-tree Bark Beetle, Scolytus rugulosus, 197. Mussel Scale,
Mytilaspis poinorum, 38.

Fruit. — Plum Sawfly ('? sp.), 182. Codlin Moth, Ca7yosap)sa ponio-
nella, 9.

Leaves. — Plum Aphis, Aphis pruni, 146. Hop and Plum Aphis, Plioro-
don humuli a,ni\YSiv. malaheb, 151. Phyllobius lieetles: Oblong Leaf,
Pliyllohius oblongus, 141 ; Green Leaf, P. maculicornis, 144 ; Clay-
coloured, Otiorliyncliuspicip)es,''110. Common Vapourer Moth, Orgyia
antiqiia, 135. March Moth, Anisopteryx cesciilaria, 177. Mottled
Umber Moth, Hybernia defoliaria, 179. Winter Moth, Clieimatobia
brumata, 157. Cherry and Pear Sawfly, Selandria atra, 54. Pear
Lyda, Lyda jpyri, 137.

Wood. — Shot-borer Beetle, Xyleborus dispar, 185. Flat-celled Shot-
borer, X. saxeseni=xylographus, 192. Goat Moth, Cossus ligniperda,
18. Wood Leopard Moth, Zeuzera cesculi, 132.

QUINCE, Cydonia vulgaris.

Bark. — Fruit-tree Bark Beetle. Scolytus rugulosus, 197.

Fruit. — Codlin Moth, Carp)ocapsa. pomonella, 9.

Leaves. — Large Tortoiseshell Butterfly, Vanessa polychloros, 50. Cherry
and Pear Sawfly, Selandria, atra, 54. From the Quince being grown
in such small numbers in comparison with others of our Orchard trees,
little notice appears to have been taken of its infestations. Those
above noted are a few which I find more especially named.

280 FRUIT CROPS INFESTED BY INSECTS.

RASPBERRY, Rubus ideeus.

Blossom, Buds, and Fruit. — Raspberry Beetle, Bijturus tomentosus, 202.
Blossom, Fruit, and Young Shoots. — Raspberry Stem-bud Caterpillar,

Lampronia ruhiella, 206.
Leaves or Young Flowering Shoots. — Clay-coloured Weevil, Otlo-

rhtjnclius 2)icipes, 210.
KooTs. — Clay-coloured Weevil, Otiorhynclms jncijws, 210. Red-legfjed

Weevil, 0. tenebricosus, 213. Small or Garden Swift Moth, Hejnahts

lupidinus, 260. (All in grub state.)

STRAWBERRY, Fragaria vesca and F. elatior.

Flowers. — Golden Chafer, Cetonia aurata, 246.

Fruit. — Gonud Beetles : Calathus cisteloides ; Har2]altis ruficornis ;

Pterostichus {Omaseus) vulgaris ; P. (Steropiis) madidus ; 233-241.
Leaves. — Clay-coloured Weevil, OtiorJiynchus 2]ici2)es, 210. Red-legged

Weevil, O. tenebricosus, 213. Black Vine Weevil, 0. sulcatus, 210.

Strawberry-leaf Beetle, Oaleruca tejiella, 249.
Roots. — Small or Garden Swift Moth, Heptialus htpuliniis (in larval state),

260. Also Otiorhynclms picip)es, 0. tenebricosus, and 0. sulcatus,

referred to above.
Whole Plant. — Eelworm disease, Ajjlielenclius fra.garice, 251.

The four following infestations are j)laced under their own designations
(not that of any special crop) on account of their being so widely injurious. Of
these the Red Spider and Root-knot Eelworm are referred to, as, although not
insect infestations, the first-named causes much mischief to orchard leafage,
and from the wide distribution of the second in other countiies it may be
serviceable that its history should be known here. — E. A. 0.

EARWIG, Forficula auricularia.

Feeds on Orchard and Wall Fruit ; also on leaves and flowers.

RED SPIDER.

Tetranychns {Acarus) telarius, 217 ; T. rubescens, 222. — (These two
species infest the leafage of so many different kinds of plants, that it
seems unnecessary to repeat mention of them i;nder tlie usual sub-
ordinate headings. It may, however, be observed that the Tetranychus
rubescens has been especially recorded as found on I'lum, p. 223.)

ROOT-KNOT EELWORM.

Anguillula (Heterodera) radicicola, 227. — In galls at roots of many plants
and some orchard trees on the Continent of Europe and in America ;
but as yet only known at roots of Cucumbers and Tomatoes in this
countrv.

WASPS, Vespidx.

Ripe Fruit. — Ground-building Wasps : Vespa vulgaris ; V. germanica;
and F. r?i/a, 266. Hedge- or Tree-building Wasps : Ves2)a, sylvestris ;
V. norvegica ; and the large V. crabro, commonly known as the
Hornet, which, in my own observations, I have noticed ns particularly
partial to fallen pears, 267.

INDEX.

Abraxas grossulariata, 89

Acarus (Tetranychus) telarius, 217

Aceto-arsenite of copper (Paris- or
Emerald-green), percentage analysis
of, 173

Allied Sawfly, 108, 109

"Ambrosia Beetles," 158 — 196

American Blight, 1 — 6 ; effect of, on
growth of bark, 2 ; description of, 5 ;
remedies for, 3 — 6

Anguillula radicicola, 227

Anisoplia horticola, 29

Anisopteryx «scularia, 177

Anthonomus pomorum, 45

" Antipest " mixture serviceable in-
stead of kerosine emulsion, 93, 100

Aplielenchus fragariae, 251

Aphis, Apple, 6

cerasi, 49

Cherry, 49

Currant, 58

Hop and Plum, 151

mali, 6

Plum, 146

pruni, 146

ribis, 58

Woolly (or American Blight), 1

Apple, 1 — 48

Aphis (or Green Fly), 6 — 8 ; de-
scription of, 7 : remedies for, and
birds injurious to, 8

bark Beetle (see Shot-borer

Beetle), 185

blossom Weevil, 45 — 48; life-
history and habits of, 45 — 47 ;
jarring down to get rid of, 47

Mussel Scale, 38 — 42 ; wide

distribution of, 39 ; life-history of,
39 ; male of, 40 ; recipes for appli-
cations to destroy, 40—42

Sawfly, 35 — 38 ; description

and habits of, 35^37 ; remedial
measures, 38

Apple-suckers (or Apple Chermes), 42
— 45 ; life-history of, 43 ; remedial
measures, 44

Arsenite (Aceto-) of copper (Emerald-
green or Paris-green), 173

Arsenite of lead (gipsine), 175

• of lime (London-purple), 174 ;

mixture of lime with, 175
Aspidotus conchiformis, 38

B.

Balaninus nucum, 116

Banding trees with tarred haybands,
12 ; with paper or pieces of sacks,
&c., 13 ; see also Grease-banding
and Sticky-banding, 162 — 166

Bat Beetles (see Ground Beetles), 233

Birds, kinds destructive to Apple
Green Fly, 8, — to Rose Chafer
grubs, 34

Blue- head Caterpillar, 16

Bombyx (Gastropacha) neustria, 21

Bostrichus dispar, 185

Bryobia prfetiosa, 94

ribis, 94

Byturus tomentosus, 202

Calathus cisteloides, 235

Carpocapsa pomonella, 9

Caterpillars, to destroy in tunnels in
trees, 20, 21; hairy, fed on by
Cuckoos, 24

"Cauliflower" (Eelworm) disease of
Strawberry, 251—258; reason for
name, 251 ; account of attack, 251,
252 ; description of infestation by
Dr. Eitzema Bos, 255, 256

Cecidomyia nigra ? 120

. pyricola ? 120

Cetonia aurata, 246

Chapman, Dr. T. A., observations on
caterpillar and method of infestation
of Incurvaria capitella, 73, 74

Cheimatobia brumata, 157

Chermes, Apple (see Apple-suckers), 42

Cherry, 49—58

Aphis, 49, 50; sweet excretion

from, 49 ; drenchings of water re-
medial against, 50

and Pear Sawfly, 54 — 58 ;

habits of, 55—57; observations of
larva in egg, 55 ; caustic powder to

282

INDEX.

destroy caterpillars ("slugworms"),
57 ; methods of clearing the saw-
flies, 57, — of clearing cocoons, 57 ;
lime and soot particularly useful for
clearing caterjjillars, 58

"Chiswick Soap and Sulphur Com-
pound " to destroy Scale, 113

Clay aud sulphur to kill Apple Scale, 41

Clisiocampa neustria, 21

Coccinellidffi as Aphis destroyers, 150

Cockchafer, Common, 242 — 245 ; de-
scription of beetle, 243 ; distinctions
between larva of, and that of Phyllo-
pertha horticola, 243 ; dej)th at which
found, 244 ; beating down beetles,
244 ; trapping larva under turf, 245 ;
wild birds not to be driven away, 245

Codlin Moth, 9—10; life-history of,
10, 11 ; preventive measures, band-
ing trees, 12, 13, — scraping and
washing trees, 13, — scalding cases,
14, — spraying, 15

Cossus ligniperda, 18

Cuckoos, feed on hairy caterjjillars, 24

Currant, 58—80

Aphis (or Green Fly), 58—60 ;

slight differences between kmds com-
monly known as Aphis ribis, 58, 59 ;
life-history of, 59 ; kerosine emulsion
recommended to destroy eggs of, in
winter, 59

- Clearwing Moth, 67 — 71 ;

habits of caterpillar, 68 — 70 ; me-
thods of prevention of, 70, 71

■ Gall Mite, 00 — 67 ; descrip-

tion of diseased buds, 61 ; first
record of, 01 ; life-history and de-
scription of, 61 — 64 ; eggs of, 64 ;
records of some amounts of galled
buds picked in 1890 and 1897, and
cost per acre, 05 ; various remedial
applications tried, 06

• Scale, White Woolly, 75-

descriptions of, 76 — 78 ; lime to
destroy, 79

■ Shoot and Fruit Moth, 71-

75 ; signs of presence of caterpillar
of, 72 ; life-history of, 72—74 ;
observations by Dr. Chapman of
method of infestation, 74 ; preven-
tion and remedies, -75

D.

Dendroline, 191 ; nature of, 201

Diloba casruleocephala, 16

Diplosis pyrivora, 120, 276

Dot Moth, 86—89 ; variety of plants

attacked, 87 ; description of, 88
Douglas, Mr. J. W., identification of

Lecanium ribis by, 109
Downy Brown Leaf Weevil (see Oblong

Leaf Weevil), 141

E.

Earwig, Common, 80 — 86 ; as a fruit
destroyer, 81 ; method of egg-laying,

82 ; descriptions and habits of, 82,

83 ; methods of trapping, 84, 85
Lesser, 81

Eelworm Disease (see Cauliflower), 251

Egg of Winter Moth, to destroy with
kerosine emulsion, 166

Emerald-green, same as Paris-green,
173

Eriocampa limacina, 54

Ermine Moth, Small, 27—29 ; habits
of, 28 ; to destroy web-nests of, 28

Evesham Fruit Experimental Com-
mittee, 108

Evesham Moth (see Winter Moth), 157

Figure-of-8 Moth, 16 — 18 ; description
of eggs of, 16; life-history- of, 16,
17 ; catching moths by lamp-light,
17

Fletcher, Dr. J., observations regard-
ing infestation of Phytoptus pyri,
129, — and kerosine emulsion as a
remedy for, 130

Forficula auricularia, 80

Fruit-tree Bark Beetle, 197—201 ; me-
thod of working of, 198 ; description
of, 199 ; i^reventive dressings, 200

G.

Galeruca tenella, 249

Garden Chafer (or Rose Beetle), 29 — 35

Gastropacha quercifolia, 24

Goat Moth, 18 — 21 ; habits and de-
scription of, 18, 19 ; mixtures to
protect from egg-laying on bark,
20, — to kill caterpillars in burrows,
20, 21; Green Woodpecker feeds on
caterpillars of, 21

Golden Chafer (or Green Rose Chafer),
246 — 249 ; injurious to Strawberry
blossom, 246 ; report of much harm
done by, 247 ; description of mag-
gots of, 247

Gooseberry, 86 — 114

and Ivy Red Spider (see

Red Spider, Gooseberry and Ivy), 94
and Currant Moth (or Mag-

pie Moth), 89 — 93 ; range of infes-
tation of, 89 ; description and life-
history, 90,91 ; preventive measures
iir pruning, applications of spray-
ings, &c., 92, 93

and Currant Sawfly, 101 —

108; description of, 102; life-history
of, 102, 103; prevention by removal
of soil from under bushes, 103 — 105 ;

INDEX.

283

hand-picking, 105 ; syringings and
dressings, 105, lOG'; London-purple,
106 — 108 ; reasons for failure in
applications, 108
Gooseberry and Currant Scale, 109 —
114; identification and description
of, 108, 109; life-history of. 111;
habits of, 112 ; applications to de-
stroy, 113, 114
Grease-banding, 80,000 Plum trees
and about 40,000 other kinds banded
at Toddington, 1G5 (see also refer-
ences under heading of Winter
Moth)
Green Fly fsee Apple Ajjliis), G

■ (see Currant Aphis), 58

■ (see Plum Aphis), 146

Green Leaf Weevil, 141, 144

Green Eose Chafer (see Golden Chafer),

246
Ground Beetles, 2:i3 — 241 ; dates of
observation of attack at Strawberry,
234 ; description of species of, 235 ;
descri^jtion of method of attack of,
237, 238 ; Harpalus ruficornis in
flights, 238 ; various food of, 239 ;
to trap, 240 ; to turn out from the
surface of the ground, 241

H.

Harpalus ruficornis, 235

Hazel and Filbert Bud Mite, 1 14—116 ;
description of, 115, — of deformed
growth caused by, 115

Hepialus lupulinus, 2G0

Heterodera radieicola, 227

Hop Aphis (see Hop and Plum Aphis),
151

and I'lum Aphis, 151 — 156;

structural distinction of, 151 ; de-
scription of, in different conditions,
152 ; migration of, between Plum
and Hop, 153 — 155 ; details of,
with dates, by Dr. C. V. Eiley, 154,
155

Hoplocampa testudinea, 35

Hornet, 267

Hybernia defoliaria, 179

Hyponomeuta padella, 27

variabilis, 27

Incurvaria capitella, 71

J.

Jarring, or beating down, to clear
Apple-suckers, 44 ; to clear Apple-
blossom Weevils, also infested buds,
47 ; to clear Cherry Sawflies, 57 ;
to clear Cockchafers, 244 ; to clear

Eose Chafers, 32 ; to clear Nut
Weevils, 117 ; to clear Pears in-
fested by Midge maggots, 125 ;
to clear weevils of various kinds,
143, 144, 244

K.

Kainite as a top dressing to destroy
small larvffi in the ground, 126

Kerosine emulsion and kerosine and
soap mixture, recipes for, 99, 149,
150

soap (Burford's No. 1), re-

cipe for, 114

L.

Labia minor, 81

Lackey Moth, 21 — 24 ; life-history of,
22 ; eggs of, 22, 23; to destroy web-
nests of, 23; "jarring" to shake
down caterpillars, 23

Lady-bird Beetles as Aphis destroyers,
150, 151

Lamp-light, catching moths by means
of, 17

Lampronia rubiella, synonymy of, 206

Lappet Moth, 24 — 27 ; great size of
caterpillars of, 25, — " lappets" of, 25

Large Tortoiseshell Buttertiy, 50 — 54 ;
descrijjtion and life-history of, 51 —
53 ; web-nests, to cut off, 54

Laverna atra, 275

Leaf Weevil, Downy Brown, 141 — 144;
distinguished by grey down, 142 ;
shaking down to destroy, 143

Green, 144, 145 ; shak-
ing down to destroy, 144

Lecanium ribis, 109
Leinweber's mixture, 200
Lime water, 10()

wash to destroy Scale, 79

and soft-soap washes (see Soft-
soap)

and soot, 58

List, Alphabetical, of Fruit Crops in-
fested'by Insects, with names of the
insect infestations, 277 — 280

London-purple, directions for spraying
with, 107 ; method of mixing lime
with, 175

" Looper" caterpillars, desciiption, 90

Lyda clypeata, 137

fasciata, 137

pyri, 137

M.

Magpie Moth (see Gooseberry and Cur-
rant Moth), 89
Mamestra persicarife, 86
March Moth, 177—179 ; date of egg

284

INDEX.

laying, 177 ; bands of eggs of, 178 ;

larvffi, sucker-feet of, 17i)
Meade, Mr. K. H., observations of, on

Diplosis pyrivora, 122
Melolontha vulgaris, 242
Michael, Mr. Albert D., observation

on Bryobia prajtiosa, 95
Mites, I'JG

Currant Gall, GO

Hazel and Filbert Bud, 114

Pear Leaf-blister, 127

Mottled Umber Moth, 17U--182 ; de-
scription and life-history of, 180,
181 ; effect of weather on, 181

Mussel Scale, 38

Mytilaspis pomorum, 38

Myzus cerasi, 4'J

mahaleb, 156 ; synonyms of,

156

■ribis, 58

N.

Nalepa, Dr. A., observation by, on egg
of Phytoptus ribis, 64 ; on movement
of the Mites to winter quarters, 66 ;
reference to works of, on Phyto-
ptidaB, 132

Nematus consobrinus, 108

■ ribesii, 101

Nemoicus oblougus (see Phyllobius
oblongus), 141

Newstead, Mr. R., observations of
Currant Gall Mite by, 62 — 64

Nitrate of soda as a top dressing to de-
stroy small larvffi in the ground, 126

Nixon, Mr. P., on a23plication of
London-purple, 107

Nut, 114— 111)

Hazel and Filbert Bud Mite,

114—116

■ leaf Weevil, 118, 119; variety

of trees infested by, and description
of, 118, 119

Weevil, 116—118; description and

habits of, 116, 117 ; jarring down, 117

0.

Oblong Leaf (or Downy Brown Leaf)

Weevil, 141—144
Orgyia antiqua, 135
Oribata lapidaria, 196
Otiorhynchus picipes, 210

sulcatus, 210

tenebricosus, 213

"Oyster-shell" Scale (see Mussel

Scale), 38

P.

Pamphilius flaviventris, 137

Paraffin and soft-soap to kill cater-

pillars in tunnels in trees, 20;
washes of (see Soft-soap)

Paris-green, American name for Eme-
rald-green, also of Schweinfurth-
green, 173

Paris- (or Emerald-) green, recipes for
use of, 15, 169—174; directions for
spraying with, 109 — 171 ; desirable
to mix lime with, 170, 175 ; when
sprayings of, should not be given,
171 ; mixtures of Hour with, 172 ;
analysis of, 173 ; price of, 174

Pear, 120—145

Blight (see Shot-borer), 185

Gnat Midge, 120—126,276; first

observation of, 120 ; consultations
as to identity of, 121 ; description
of, 122; method of injury to young
Pears, 123, 124 ; prevention of attack
by "jarring," scraping away infested
soil, sprinkling soil with kainite,
&c., 124 — 126 ; an observation of
egg-laying in expanded blossom,
276

Pear Leaf-blister Mite, 127 — 132;
description of leaf-blisters, 127 ;
descriptions of Phytoptus pyri, 128,
129; Anti-pest a remedy, loO; kero-
sine emulsion an excellent remedy,
130, l:il

Lyda (or Social Pear Sawfly),

137 — 141 ; description of caterpillars
of, 138, — web-nests of, 139, — habits
of, 139, 140; web-nests, to destroy,
140

Peronea (?) comariana, 258

comparana, 258

Phorodon humuli, 151

var. malaheb, 151

Phyllobius maculicornis, 141, 144

oblongus, 141

Phyllopertha horticola, 29
Phytoptus avellana', 114

pyri, 127

■ ribis, 60

vermiformis, 114

Pith Moth, 275 ; description of, and
method of injury by, caterpillars
of, 275

Plum, 146—201

Aphis, 146—151 ; method of

injury, 146 ; description of, in
successive stages, 147 ; applications
to destroy, 148 — 150; Lady-bird
Beetles as Aphis destroyers, 150,
151

Sawfly, 182—185; life-history

of, and method of attack to fruit,
184 ; synonymy of, 184

Psylla mali, 42

Pterostichus (Omaseus) vulgaris, 235

(Steropus) madidus, 236

Pulvinaria ribesite, 75

INDEX.

285

Quince, reference to insect attacks of,
202 ; and Alphabetical List, 279

Easpberry, 202—216

Beetle, 202-

-205 ; attacks

of, to blossom. 203, 204 ; attacks of
maggots to fruit, 204 ; remedial
treatment, 205

Stem-bud Caterpillar, 206

— 210 ; description of caterpillars,
207, — of attack of, to buds on canes,
207, 208 ; observations by Dr. Chap-
man of method of egg-laying of
moth, 209

Eaupenleim, 191 ; nature of, 201

Eed Spider, 217—226 ; habits of, 218 ;
foot of, 218 ; mouth and spinning
apparatus of, 218; note on position
of spinning apparatus and erroneous
views of early observers, 218; de-
cription of T.telarius byDonnadieu,
220,— by Berlese, 221; of Tetrany-
chus rubescens, 222, — under syno-
nym of T. telarius of Dufour by
Canestrini, 223 ; methods of pre-
vention and remedy, 223 — 226

Gooseberry and Ivy,

94 — 101 ; dates of appearance of,
94 ; localities and great numbers
of, 95—97 ; alhed species, 97, 98 ;
spraying with various applications
to destroy, 98 — 100; effect of
moisture on, 100 ; position of eggs
of, 100

Ehopalosiphum ribis, 59

Eiley, Dr. C. V., observations of, on
migration of Phorodon humuli (Hop
and Plum Aphis), 154, 155

Eoot-knot Eelworm, 227—233; de-
scription of root-galls, 228 ; life-
history of, 229, 230 ; i^revention by
trap plants, avoiding transportation
in soil, &c., 231—233

Eose Beetle (see Garden Chaferj,
29

■ Chafer, 29 — 35 ; dates of great

appearances of, 29, 30 ; distinctions
between larvae of, and those of Cock-
chafer, 31 ; depth at which found,
32; methods of destroying by shak-
ing down, 32 ; birds which are of
use in clearing grubs, 34

S.

Sand and soft-soap to remove eggs
from bark, 20

Saunders, Dr. W., observation of Cur-
rant Clearwing Moth by, 68

" Saunders' wash," 190

Sawfly, Apple, 35 — 38

■ Cherry and Pear, 54 — 58

Gooseberry and Currant, 101,

—108

Allied, 108, 109

Plum, 182—185

Social Pear (see Pear Lyda),

137

Scale, Mussel, 38—40

White Woolly Currant, 75—80

Gooseberry and Currant, 109 —

114

Schizoneura lanigera, 1

Scolytus hoBmorrhous, 197

rugulosus, 197

Selandria atra, 54

Sesia tipulifoi'mis, 67

Signoret, Dr., description of Pulvi-
naria ribesiii^ by, 76

Shot-borer (or Apple-bark Beetle, or
Pear Bhght), 185—192; a wood
borer, 186; method of injury, 187;
males found in winter by writer,
188; "ambrosia" fungus in work-
ings of, 189 ; prevention and re-
medies for, 190—192

(Flat-celled), 192—

196 ; description of larva of, 193 ;
of cells of, 194 ; fungoid growth of
"ambrosia" in cells, 196; Mites
(Oribata lapidaria) on infested trees,
196

Slingerland, Prof. M. V., observations
on kerosiue emulsion for destroying
Phytoptus pyri, 130, 131

" Slugworms," 54

Soap-suds, 4, 8, 57 ; with soda, &c.,
105

Social Pear Sawdy (see Pear, Lyda),
137

Soft-soap mixtures, with lime, 5, 57 ;
with mineral oil, 167 ; with paraffin,
148 ; with sulpburet of lime, 98 ;
with tobacco-water, lime-water, and
sulphur, 41 ; with sulphur, 41 ; with
washing soda, 190

Soot, 106

Starlings useful in destroying Eose
Chafer grubs, 34

Strawberry, 233—262

leaf Beetle, 249, 250 ; de-
scription of, 249, — of injured Straw-
berry leaves, 250

-leaf Button Moth, 258—

260 ; description of larva, pupa, and

imago by Dr. Ellis, 259
Strophosomus coryli. 118
Sulphur fumes to kill wood-boring

caterpillars in their galleries, 21
Swift Moth, Small or Garden, 260—

262 ; larva injurious in winter, 261 ;

prevention of. 262

286

INDEX.

T.

Tar to destroy Wasps iu their nests,

270
Tenthredo testudinea, 35
Tetranychus rubescens ( = T. telarius,

Duf.), 222, 223

telarius, 217, 222

Thomas, Dr. Friedrich, of Ohrdruf,

observations by, on Bryobia nobilis

and B. ribis, n. sp., 97, 'J8
Tobacco-water, 5, 57

U.

Umbrella (inverted) useful for jarring
down insects into, 44

V.

Vanessa polychloros, 50 ; web-nests

should be cut off, 54
Vapourer Moth, Common, 135 — 137 ;

life-liistory and description of, 135,

136 ; wingless female, method of

egg-laying of, 135
Vespidffi, 263 ; various British species

of, 266, 267

W.

Wasps, Ground-building and Tree,
263—274 ; injuries to different kinds
of fruit by, 264, 265 ; numbers of
nests destroyed in various locali-
ties in 1893, 265; species of British,
266, 267 ; hybernation of, 268 ; me-
thod of nest building, 268—270;
autumn breaking up of the colony,
270; to destroy in their nests, 270 —
272 ; payments for collecting, 272 ;
hanging Wasps' nests, to take, 272,
273 ; methods of tra^jping Wasps in
bottles, etc., 273 ; applications to
relieve pain from stings of, 274

"British Social, "observations,

anatomical and general, of, by Edw.
L. Ormerod, M.D., of Brighton,
note, 270

Web-nests of Pear Lyda, to destroy, 140

Weevil, Apple-blossom, 45

Black Vine, 210

Clay -coloured, 210 — 216 ;

habits of life of, 211 ; treatment to
get rid of, 212 ; at Strawberry plants,
213 ; methods of prevention and
remedy by jarring down, trapping,
&c., 214—216

Downy Brown Leaf (see Ob-
long Leaf Weevil), 141

Green Leaf, 141

Nut, 116

Nut Leaf, 118

Oblong Leaf (or Downy Brown

Leaf), 141

Eed - legged, at Strawberry

leaves, &c., 213, 214

Winter Moth, 157—177; description
of, 158 — of eggs of, 159, — of cater-
pillars from date of hatching, 160,
161, — habits of, 161 ; grease-band-
ing, 162 ; kinds of grease, 164 ; to
protect bark from grease', 165 ;
80,000 Plum trees banded, 165;
grease -banding should be com-
menced early in autumn, 166 ; eggs,
to destroy with kerosine emulsion,
166 ; Evesham Fruit Experimental
Committee, 168 ; Paris-green, direc-
tions, etc., for use of, 169 — 174 ;
London-purple, 174 ; kerosine emul-
sion, 175 : knapsack sprayer, 176

Wire to destroy wood-boring cater-
pillars, 20, 134

Wood Leopard Moth, 132 — 134: many
kinds of trees attacked by, 132 ; to
destroy in their galleries, 134

Woodpecker, Green, feeds on Goat
Moth caterpillars, 21

X.

Xyleborus dispar, 185

saxeseni, 192

xylographus, 192

Z.

Zeuzera assculi, 132

WEST, NEWMAN AN'D CO., PKINTERS, HATTON GAUnEN, LONDON, E.G.

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