IRLF ««5£«s«Ss$s«S«««3$ REESE LIBRARY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. Received. Accessions No..4* Shelf INJURIOUS INSECTS OF THE FARM m GARDEN BY MARY TREAT OF THE Y 'LLUSTRA,TEt,. NEW YORK: ORANGE JUDD COMPANY, 751 BROADWAY. 1882. Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1882, by tbo ORANGE JUDD COMPANY, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. PUBLISHERS' PREFACE. The assertion that cultivation of all plants, whether on the farm, in the orchard or garden, is largely a struggle with insects, has been strikingly illustrated within the past few years. The standard works upon Entomology include the harmless as well as the injurious insects, and are written with reference to the identification of the spe- cies rather than to show how they may be destroyed. In view of the need of a work giving an account of the most destructive insects and the present knowledge of the methods of preventing their ravages, the Publishers in- vited Mrs. Treat to prepare the present volume. The fact that she has largely availed herself of the works of Prof. Riley, U. S. Entomologist, gives this book a special value. PREFACE. Only those who live in the country are aware how much the success of cultivators, whether of farm or gar- den crops, depends upon insects. There is a surprising lack of knowledge among otherwise well educated people as to the life history of even the most common insects. The questions asked, not only by those in my immediate neighborhood, but by letters from all parts of the coun- try, show how slight is the popular knowledge on this most important branch of Natural History. In view of this, and to bring a knowledge of the most destructive in- sects within reach of all, this volume has been prepared. It will not be necessary to say to those who make use of this work that the author has availed herself of the permission of Prof. C. V. Eiley, to make use of his vari ous contributions to economic entomology. MARY TKEAT. Vineland, N. >>'>r ^ ring. They un- Fig. 53.— FALSE WIRE-WORM (Mus). ciergo no meta- morphosis like the proper insects, from which they are also distinguished by their numerous legs. Our species are from an inch to an inch and a half long, but in tropical countries they reach six and seven inches. Many of them feed upon decayed vegetable and animal matter, but some of them feed upon the roots of living plants, OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 83 The engraving (fig. 53), which illustrates their general appearance, is of our largest species (lulus multistriatiis, Walsh.), which has been found in some localities destruc- tive to strawberry plants, carnations, and especially to lily-bulbs. Potatoes have also been much injured by smaller species. Traps in the form of potatoes, as men- tioned under Wire-worms, would be of service, or slices of apples, carrots, potatoes, or parsnips, placed upon the beds and covered with pieces of board, will catch many of these millipedes. THE POTATO. The late B. D. Walsh, the lamented senior editor of the "American Entomologist," contributed a valuable paper to that journal, of which the following is the substance. After commenting upon the absurdity of the various articles in the papers on "The Potato Bug," he shows that there are a number of insects that are injurious to the potato, and describes the most important, beginning with THE STALK BORER. (Gortynia nitida, Guenee.) This larva (fig. 54, 2), commonly burrows in the large stalks of the potato; but is not peculiar to that plant, as it occurs also in the stalks of the tomato, and in those of the dahlia and aster and other garden flowers. We have likewise found it boring through the cob of growing Indian corn, and strangely confining itself to that portion of the ear; and we formerly received a single specimen embedded in the stem of Indian corn, from which we subsequently bred the winged insect. By way of com- 84 INJURIOUS INSECTS pensation, we suppose, it is particularly partial to the stem of the common Cocklebur (XantMum strumarium)', and if it would only confine itself to such noxious weeds as this, it might be considered as a friend instead of an enemy. Fourteen years ago it was more numerous than usual, and we noticed it to be particularly abundant along the Iron Mountain and Pacific roads in Missouri. The larva of the Stalk Borer moth leaves the stalk in which it has burrowed the latter part of July, and descends a little below the surface of the earth, where in about three days it changes into the pupa or chrysalis state. The winged insect (fig. 54, 1), which belongs to the same 2 Fig. 54. — POTATO-STALK BOREB. 1, Moth ; a, Larva. extensive group of moths (Noctua family, or owlet moths) to which all the cut- worm moths appertain, emerges from under ground from the end of August to the middle of September. Hence it is evident that some few, at all events, of the female moths must live through the winter in obscure holes and corners, and lay their eggs upon the plants which they infest in the following spring. For otherwise, as there are no young potato or tomato plants, or Indian corn, or dahlias, or asters, or even cocklebur for them to lay their eggs upon in the autumn, the whole breed of them would die out in a single year. When a vine is found to wilt suddenly, it should be examined for this insect, which should be destroyed, to prevent further increase. OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 85 THE POTATO-STALK WEEVIL. (Baridius trinotatus, Say). This insect is more peculiarly a southern species, occur- ring abundantly in the Middle States, and in the more southerly parts of Indiana and Illinois, and also in Mis- souri; but, according to Dr. Harris, being totally un- known in New England. The female beetle (fig. 55, c), deposits a single egg in an oblong slit about one-eighth inch long, which it has previously formed with its beak in the stalk of the po- tato. The larva sub- sequently hatches out, and bores into the heart of the stalk, al- ways, according to Miss Morris, of Penn- sylvania, who was the first to notice it, pro- ceeding downwards to- wards the root. When full grown, it is a little over one- fourth inch long (fig. 55, a), and is a soft whitish, legless grub, with a scaly head. Hence it can always be readily distinguished from the larva of the Stalk Borer, which has invariably sixteen legs,, no matter how small it may be. Unlike this last insect, it becomes a pupa (fig. 55, #), within the potato stalk which it inhabits ; and it comes out in the beetle state about the last of August or the beginning of September. The stalk inhabited by the larva almost always wilts and dies. So soon as the vines first wilt, they should be pulled up and burned. The perfect bee- tle, like many other snout-beetles, must of course live through the winter to reproduce its species in the follow- ing spring. Miss Morris found that " in many potato fields in the neighborhood of Germantown, Penn., every stem was in- Fig. 55.— POTATO-STALK WEEVIL, a, Larva ; &, Pupa ; c, Weevil. 86 INJURIOUS INSECTS fested by these insects, causing the premature decay of the yines and giving to them the appearance of haying been scalded. THE POTATO-WORM OR TOMATO-WORM. (Sphinx quinque-maculata, Haworth). This well-known insect, the larva of which is usually called the Potato- worm, but it is far commoner on the closely allied tomato, the foliage of which it often clears off very completely in particular spots in a single night. Many persons are afraid to handle this worm, from an absurd idea that it has the power of stinging with the horn on its tail. This worm is shown in fig. 5G, about two- thirds grown. We have handled hundreds of them with perfect impunity; in fact, this dreadful looking horn is not peculiar to the Potato-worm, but is met with in almost all the larvae of the large and beautiful group to which it belongs (Sphinx family). It seems to have no special use, but, like the bunch of hair on the breast of the turkey cock, to be a mere ornamental appendage. When full-fed, which is usually about the last of August, the Potato-worm burrows under ground and shortly afterward transforms into the pupa state (fig. 57. The pupa is very often dug up in the spring from ground where tomatoes or potatoes were grown in the preceding season; and most persons that meet with it suppose that the singular, jug-handled appendage at one end of it, is its tail. In reality, however, it is the tongue-case, and contains the long pliable tongue which the future moth will employ in lapping up the nectar of the flowers, before which, in the dusky gloom of some warm, balmy summer's evening, it hangs for a few moments suspended in the air. The moth itself (fig. 58), was formerly confounded with the Tobacco-worm moth (Sphinx Carolina., Lin- OE THE FARM A^D GARDEN. 87 88 INJURIOUS INSECTS naeus), which indeed it very closely resembles, having the same series of orange-colored spots on each side of the abdomen. The gray and black markings, however, of the wings differ perceptibly in the two species; and in the Tobacco-worm moth there is always a more or less faint white spot or dot near the centre of the front wing, which is never met with in the other species. In Con- necticut and other Northern States where Tobacco is grown, the Potato-worm often feeds upon the leaves of the Tobacco plant, the true Tobacco-worm being unknown in those latitudes. In the more southerly States, on the other hand, and in Mex- ico and the West In- dies, the true Potato- worm is unknown, and it is the Tobacco-worm that Fig. 59.— POTATO-WOKM, WITH PARA- the tobacco growers have to fight. While in the intermediate country both species may frequently be captured on the wing in the same garden and upon the same evening. In other words, the Potato-worm is a northern species, the Tobacco- worm a southern species; but on the confines of the two districts exclusively inhabited by each, they intermingle in varying propor- tions, according to the latitude. KEMEDIES. — The larva is so voracious that it soon makes its presence known by the bare stems, and by the abundant droppings found upon the ground, and should be sought for and destroyed. It has more than one in- sect enemy, notably a fly, the larva of which, after making its growth within the Potato-worm, comes to the surface and spins a smooth white cocoon. Some- times a very thin and feeble worm will be found with its back covered with these cocoons, as in fig. 59. Such, when found, should not be killed, as it is desirable to propagate the fly, and the worm will never perfect itself. OF THE FAKM AKD GABDE^. 89 Tobacco growers sometimes place some poisonous syrup in the long tubular flowers of the Jamestown Weed (Datura Stramonium), and thus kill the moths. THE STRIPED BLISTER-BEETLE. (Lytta vittata, Fabr). The three insects just described infest the potato plant in the larva state only, the first two of them burrowing internally in the stalk or stem, the third feeding upon its leaves externally. Of these three the first and third are moths or scaly-winged insects (Order Lepidoptera). The second of the three, as well as the next four foes of the potato, which we shall notice, are all of them beetles or shelly- winged insects (Order Coleoptera). As these four species all agree with one another in living under ground and feeding upon vari- ous roots, during the larva state, and in emerging to attack the foliage of the potato, Fig GO.-STRIF- only when in the course of the summer they ED BLISTBB- have passed into the perfect or beetle state, it will be quite unnecessary to repeat this statement under the head of each of the four. In fact, the four are so closely allied, that they all belong to the same family of beetles, the Blister-beetles (Lytta family) — to which the common imported Spanish-fly or Blister- beetle of the druggists appertains — and all of them will raise just as good a blister as that does, and are equally poisonous when taken internally in large doses. The Striped Blister-beetle (fig. 60,) is almost exclusively a southern species, occurring in particular years very abundantly on the potato vine in Central and Southern Illinois, and also in Missouri, but in North Illinois being usually rare. A few years ago it was reported by Mr. Graham Lee, of Mercer County, of K 111., and also 90 INJURIOUS INSECTS by Oapt. Beebe, of Galena, N. 111., as occurring in very large numbers upoa their potatoes, and, ac- cording to Dr. Harris, it is occasionally found even in New England. In. some specimens, the broad outer black stripe on the wing-cases is divided lengthways by a slender yellow line, so that instead of two there are three black stripes on each wing-case; and in the same field we have noticed, on two separate occasions, that all the intermediate grades between the two varieties may be met with; thus proving that the four-striped individuals do not form a distinct species, as was formerly supposed, but are mere varieties of the same species to which the six-striped individuals appertain. Some years since we found the insect very abundant on the potato in Cham- paign Co., 111., and Mr. Merton Dunlap, of Champaign, told us that he had succeeded in driving them with brush off his potato-patch on to some old hay which he had prepared to receive them, and then, setting fire to the hay, consumed them bodily. Many such cases may be found recorded in different agricultural journals. Mr. M. S. Hill, of East Liverpool, Ohio, states in the "Practical Entomologist" (vol. I, p. 197), that this species had once swarmed on the potato vines in his neighborhood, and that "the most successful method of destroying them was by placing between the furrows or rows, dry hay or straw, and setting it on fire." "The bugs," he adds, " were thus nearly all destroyed, and the straw burning very quickly did not injure the vines." THE ASH-GRAY BLISTER-BEETLE. (Lytta cinerea, Fabr.) This species (fig. 61, a, male) is the one commonly found in the more northerly parts of the Northern States, where it usually takes the place of the Striped Blister- beetle. It is of a uniform ash-gray color; but this color is OF THE FARM AND given it by the presence upon its body of minute ash-gray ' scales or short hairs, and whenever these are rubbed off, which happens almost as readily as on the wings of a but- terfly, the original black color appears. It attacks not only potato vines, but also Honey-locusts, and especially the English and Windsor bean. In one particular year, we have known them, in conjunction with about equal numbers of the common liose-bug (Macrodactylus sub- spinosus, Linn.), to swarm upon every apple tree in a small orchard in Northern Illinois, not only eating the foliage, but gnawing into the young apples. They were formerly quite common in parts of Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, Fig. 61.— ASH-GRAY (a), AND BLACK-BAT (6) BLISTER-BEETLES. and Iowa; and the people there got so habituated to the presence of the Colorado bug, that in many cases they thought it was a fresh invader from the region of the Rocky Mountains: whereas it has existed everywhere in the more northerly parts of the United States from time immemorial. THE BLACK-RAT AND BLACK BLISTER-BEETLES. (Lytta murina, Leconte, and L. atrata, Fabr.) The first of these, the Black-rat Blister-beetle (fig. 61, b9) is entirely black, and is sometimes found in swarms upon the potato vines in the more Northern States. There is a very similar species, the Black Blister-beetle 92 INJURIOUS INSECTS (Lytta atrata, Fabr.), from which the Black-rat Blister- beetle is distinguishable only by having four raised lines placed lengthways upon each wing-case, and by the two first joints of the antennae being greatly dilated and lengthened in the males, as above in figure 61, c. The true Black Blister-beetle we have never met with, except quite late in the year, namely about the last of August or the fore part of September; usually upon the flowers of the Golden-rod, the Thistle, etc. It sometimes does inj ury in the potato field, especially when the development of the tubers has been retarded, but generally appears too late in the season to prove very destructive. THE MARGINED BLISTER-BEETLE. (Lytta marginata, Fabr.) This species (fig. 62,) may be at once recognized by its general black color, and the narrow ash-gray edging to its wing-cases. It usually feeds on certain wild plants; but has been found quite abundant on potatoes in Missouri, Illinois, and elsewhere. It is a common species in the Mississippi Valley, and prefers most other varieties of the potato to the " Peach Blow." It feeds on many other plants, and especially the Kentucky Coffee-tree (Gymnocladus). It also attacks the Egg Plant. THE THREE-LINED LEAF-BEETLE. (Lema trilineata, Olivier.) The first three insects, described and figured above as infesting the potato-plant, attack it only in the larva state. The four next, namely the four Blister-beetles, attack it exclusively in the perfect state. The three that OF THE FARM AND GARDEN". remain to bo considered attack it both in the larva and in the perfect state, but go underground to pass into the pupa state; in which state — like all other beetles, with- out exception — they are quiescent, and eat nothing at all. The larva of the Three-lined Leaf -beetle may be distin- guished from all other insects that prey upon the potato by its habit of covering itself with its own excrement. In figure 63, a, this larva is shown in profile, both full and half grown, covered with the soft, greenish excre- mentitious matter which from time to time it discharges. Figure 63, c, gives a somewhat magnified view of the pupa; and figure G3, b, shows the last few joints of the abdomen of the larva, magnified, and viewed, not in profile, but from above. The vent of the larva, as will be seen from this last figure, is situated on the upper surface of the last joint, so that its excrement naturally falls upon its back, and by suc- cessive discharges is pushed forward towards its head, till the whole upper surface of the insect is covered with it. In other insects, which do no not indulge in this singular practice, the vent is situated either at the ex- treme tip of the abdomen or on its lower surface. There are several other larvae, feeding upon other plants, which commonly wear cloaks of this strange material, among which may be mentioned the larvae of certain Tortoise-beetles (Cassida), some of which feed on the Sweet Potato vines. (See SWEET POTATO. ) There are two broods of this species every year. The first brood of larvae may be found on the potato vine Fig. 63. — THREE-LINED LEAP-BEETLE, a, Larva ; fe, End of Body ; c, Pupa ; d, Eggs. 94 INJURIOUS INSECTS towards the latter end of June, and the second in August. The first brood stays underground about a fortnight before it emerges in the perfect beetle state; and the second brood stays there all winter, and only emerges at the beginning of the following June. The perfect Beetle (fig. 64,) is of a pale yellow color, with three black stripes on its back, and bears a general resemblance to the common Cucumber-bug (Dictbrotica vittata, Fabr., see fig. 27, p. 42). From this last species, however, it may be readily distinguished by the remarkable pinching in of the sides of its thorax, so as to make quite a lady-like waist there, or what nat- uralists call a " constriction." It is also on the average a somewhat larger insect, and differs in other less obvious respects. As in the case of the Colorado Potato-bug, the female, after coupling in the usual man- ner, lays her yellow eggs (fig. 63, d,) on the under surface of the leaves of the potato plant. The larvae hatching from these require about the same time to develop, and when full grown, descend in the same manner into the ground, where they transform to pupae (fig. 63, c,) within a small oval chamber, from which in time the perfect beetle comes forth. The remedies for the Colorado Beetle should be used for this. THE COLORADO POTATO-BEETLE. (Doryphora 10-lineata, Say.) RETROSPECTIVE. In 1819 the United States Government fitted out an exploring expedition to the Northwest Territories under the command of Major Stephen H. Long. The zoologist of this expedition was Mr. Thomas Say, of Philadelphia, OF THE FARM AND GABDEK. 95 whose name has since become so familiar to every ento- mologist. While on this expedition, extending through 1819 and 1820, numerous specimens of a species of beetle were found on the Upper Missouri, near the base of the Kocky Mountains, which some four years later (1824) Mr. Say described in a paper read before the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, under the name of Dorypliora IQ-lineata, an insect that has since received the common name of Colorado Potato-beetle. At the time of its discovery, neither Mr. Say nor any of his associates could have had the remotest idea that this insect would at some future day become one of the greatest pests that ever afflicted the farms and gardens of this country. Later explorers, visiting the same regions of country where Mr. Say originally found the " ten-liners," discovered it feeding on a wild species of Solanum (8. rostratum), a plant allied to and belonging to the same genus as the cultivated Potato (Solanum tuberosum). The pioneers on the western plains and prairies little imagined that they were in such close proximity to an insect that would soon pive an immense amount of O trouble, and make the cultivation of the Potato anything but a pleasant and profitable occupation. But in 1861, Mr. Thomas Murphy, of Atchison, Kansas, reported that they were so numerous in his garden that he was enabled in a very short time to gather two bushels of them. His potatoes were quickly destroyed, and the beetles then spread in all directions. Later they appeared in parts of Iowa, and subsequently passed eastward, cross- ing the Mississippi Eiver, and appearing in several localities almost simultaneously within the State of Illinois. In stating that this insect passes from one locality to another, it must not be understood that it migrates, it merely spreads, enough remaining behind to keep up an abundant stock, and they are probably now no less abundant at points in the Western States than 96 INJURIOUS INSECTS when first discovered there by Mr. Say, over sixty years ago. The sudden and enormous increase in numbers, as noted in Kansas and Iowa, was wholly due to the increase in the supply of food, for so long as this insect had to depend upon the few scattering plants of the wild Sola- num, as found on the plains, its numbers were limited to a few thousands, or perhaps hundreds to the square mile; but as a single acre of potatoes will probably furnish more food than all the wild plants on a hundred acres of prairie, the sudden increase of this pest when it reached the out-lying settlements or farms of Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa, can readily be accounted for. A few years ago, their ravages in Nebraska and Kansas were severe. Since then the bugs have not caused much damage west of the Missouri. At first the progress of the beetles eastward was at the rate of about sixty or seventy-five miles annually, but as they reached the more thickly settled regions their progress was more rapid, probably receiving some assist- ance from the railroads, specimens flying into the cars at some western station and escaping at another a hundred or two miles eastward, or in whatever direction the train may have been going. NATURAL HISTORY AND TRANSFORMATIONS. Prof. Riley was the first to make known the natural his- tory and transformations of the Potato-beetle. They may be briefly summed up as follows: The female beetle depos- its her eggs on the underside of the leaves, iii clusters of a dozen, up to fifty or more. The eggs are of an orange color, and hatch in about a week after being laid, the grubs immediately commencing to feed and continuing until mature, which occurs in from fourteen to eighteen days, varying somewhat as the weather may be favorable OF THE FARM AtfD GARDEN. 97 or unfavorable. When full grown, the larvae descend to the ground and hide under leaves or rubbish, or burrow into the soil, where they remain for ten days, then come forth in the perfect or winged form. Two to four broods are perfected during the season, according to the locality and length of the season, the last brood descending into the ground in the perfect or beetle state, and remaining in a dormant condition over winter, — reappearing as soon as the ground has become sufficiently warm to awaken Fig. 65.— COLORADO POTATO-BEETLE (D&rypTiora 10-Uneatd). n different st size ; e, Left a, a, Eggs ; ft, b, Larva in different stages ; c, Pupa ; d, d, Perfect Beetles of natural Wing-cover, enlarged. them from their slumbers. The beetles at this time may usually be seen crawling about very rapidly, looking for the first shoots of the potato as it appears above ground, which they attack as though their appetite had been sharpened by a long fast. This beetle is now too well known to need description, but it may be well to note that there is a closely allied species (Dorypliora juncta, Germar.), often confounded with the genuine "ten-liner/' although it never attacks the Potato, but feeds upon various species of wild Solanum, 5 $8 INJURIOUS INSECTS especially the Horse-nettle (Solatium Carolinense), a very common weed throughout the Middle and Southern States. Both the larva and mature insect of this Bogus Potato-beetle resemble the genuine; but upon a close examination, a very marked difference may be discovered. The most prominent distinctive characteristics observed in the nearly mature larvae are as follows: In the true or D. W-lineata the sides are ornamented with two rows of black dots, and the head is black; while in juncta there is but one row of dots, and the head is of a pale color; the first joint behind the head is reddish-brown and edged with blaok. The mature insects differ still more widely, d Fig. 66.— BOGUS COLORADO BEETLE (DwypJlOTa juncia). a, a, Eggs ; 6, ft, Larvae ; c. Beetle, natural size ; d, Left Wing-cover, enlarged. for while W-lineata, as the name indicates, has ten black stripes on its elytra, the third and fourth stripe counting from the outside, are joined behind; in juncta, the second and third are joined, and in a large proportion the two stripes are united the entire length, by deep brown, or black, thus forming one broad and conspicuous stripe. There are also other distinctive characters, shown in the accompanying figures, such as the arrangements of the punctures bordering the stripes on the elytra, but these are less conspicuous to the casual observer. A few years since I tried to rear a quantity of the larvae sent me from the South on the leaves of the Potato, but failed to carry a single specimen through to maturity OE THE FARM AHD GARDEN". 90 on such food. The grubs will, when deprived of other and more agreeable food, attack the Potato leaves, but after eating a few moments, crawl away, and unless supplied with more of the Horse-nettle, soon die. But the genuine W-lineata is not so particular in regard to its food, since the Horse -nettle and various other species of Solanum are just as acceptable as the Potato, and the Egg-plant (S. melongena) is preferred to either. On a pinch it will even feed on Jamestown-weed (Datura)^ Cabbage or Smart-weed, though it is questionable whether it could thrive for any length of time on plants belonging to other families than that of the Potato. METHOD OF DESTROYING. The first step or most practical method of making war upon this insect is the destruction of the few or many that come out of the ground in spring, for each female killed at this time may safely be said to represent five to ten hundred in the succeeding generation, for she will, if not prevented, lay about that number of eggs. Some persons, however, claim that it is much the best way to allow the beetles to take their own course, and then destroy the larvae a few days later, when they have fairly commenced feeding upon the leaves, by applying some one or more of the various poisons recommended for this purpose. That either the beetles or the grubs must be destroyed in order to save the crop, is now generally admitted, and the only room for a difference of opinion is as to how it should be done. Scores of different sub- stances have been tried for this purpose, but none have proved so effectual and economical as Paris Green and other arsenical compounds. That these poisons are dangerous to have about a place, is admitted, and so are sharp knives, reapers, and mowers, still it is not as easy to do without them as to be a little careful in using, and 100 INJURIOUS INSECTS thereby avoid accidents. The Paris Green is destructive to the Potato-beetle in both its perfect and larval states, and one pound of the poison, mixed with twenty of pul- verized plaster, or of any common kind of flour, and dusted over the leaves while wet with dew in the morning, or after a shower, will quickly cause the death of all the grubs or perfect insects feeding thereon. A duster should be used for applying the poison, and one made of tin, with a perforated bottom, and attached to a handle four or five feet long, will be found a very con- venient implement for this purpose. But the operator should be careful not to allow the compound to blow into his face, or inhale it while at work, it being only neces- sary for him to keep in mind that he is handling a viru- lent poison, and act accordingly. The Green may also be applied by mixing it with water, but as it will not dis- solve, being merely suspended in the liquid, it is neces- sary to frequently agitate the mixture in order to prevent the poison settling to the bottom, as well as to insure its uniform distribution over the leaves. But water is a heavy material to handle, and unless one has the con- veniences for applying it, the dusting process will require the least labor. London Purple may be applied in the same way as Paris Green, and will prove equally effective, besides being much cheaper.* With most destructive beetles the larva is alone injurious, but the perfect Colorado- bsetle eats as well as its larvaB. NATUBAL ENEMIES. There are a number of other insects that aid in keep- ing the Colorado-beetle in check. Active among these is *A more detailed history of the Colorado Beetle, as well as various forms of- apparatus for distributing; Paris Green and other arsenical poi- sons, will be found in " Potato Pests," a special treatise by C. V. Riley, of over one hundred pages. — New York : The Orange Judd Company. OF THE FARM AOT GARDEN. 101 the larvae of several .Lady-birds, or Lady-bugs, the per- fect beetles being red, pink, or other bright color, with black spots, and generally well known by the above pop- ular names. Their larvae are very active and do good service in destroying both the eggs and the larvae of the Potato-beetle. Their pupae often resemble the larva of the Colorado- beetle, and are destroyed by mistake. Figure 67 shows one of these larvae; the hair line gives the real size. Besides these, there are several carnivorous beetles, the Tiger-beetles, and Ground-beetles, which prey upon both the larvae and the perfect insect. A full account of the various insects that prey upon the Colorado- \ . 68.— PARASITE OP COLORADO-BEETLE (Uropoda Americana). a, Beetle attacked by it, natural size ; ft, Mite; c, penetrating or attacking organs; d, Claw at the end of attacking organs ; e, Filament— all much enlarged. beetle, is given in Prof. Riley's work, just referred to. The perfect insect is attacked by a mite which occurs in such numbers as to completely cover its victim,, and it 102 LtfJUKIOUS INSECTS soon perishes. Figure 68, shows at a, the Colorado- beetle of the natural size, covered by this mite ( Uropoda Americana, Riley), #, the mite greatly magnified, with a long filament which helps it to attach itself to the beetle; c, the penetrating organs; d, the claw at the end of these. SWEET-POTATO. The insects which attack the Sweet-potato plant are few in species, and belong almost entirely to that group of beetles popularly known as Tortoise-beetles. With the exception of the Cucumber Flea-beetle (Haltica cu- cumeris, Harr.), and a few solitary caterpillars, other insects have not been found on this plant; still these Tortoise-beetles are of themselves sufficiently numerous in individuals and species to often entirely destroy whole fields of this esculent, and they are especially severe on the plants when newly transferred from the hot-bed. TORTOISE-BEETLES. (Cassidce.) These Tortoise-beetles have thus far been found in considerable numbers in the Southern States, but the cultivation of the Sweet-Potato is annually becoming more general in northern localities, and as there is con- siderable traffic in plants, it is probable that the insect pests will spread as food for them is provided. Every one who receives Sweet-Potato plants, or " sets," from another locality, should carefully examine them before they are planted, to see that no insect is introduced with them. These insects are almost all of a broad sub-depressed f orm, either oval or orbicular, with the thorax and wing- OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 103 covers so thoroughly dilated at the sides into a broad and flat margin, as to forcibly recall the appearance of a tur- tle, whence the popular name. Many have the singular power, in a greater or less degree, of changing their color when alive, some of them shine at will with the most brilliant metallic tints. Insects, like the higher animals, are usually cleanly in voiding their excrement, but the larvae of several species of beetle have the peculiar habit of covering themselves with their own excrement. The larvae of the Three-lined Leaf -beetle (Lema trilineata, Oliv.), which sometimes proves injurious to the potato in the East, has this habit, as do several others. But the larvae of the Tortoise-beetles are par excellence the true dung-carriers. In the instances related above, the load is carried immediately on the back, but our Tor- toise-beetles are altogether more refined in their tastes, and do not allow the dung to rest on the body, but simply shade themselves with a sort of stercoraceous parasol. The larvae of all the species that have been observed are broad and flattened like the beetles, and have the margins of the body furnished with spines which are often barbed (fig. 75). Usually there are thirty-two of these spines, or sixteen on each side of the body. Four of these are situated on the prothorax, which forms two anterior projections beyond the common margin; four of them — the two anterior ones longer than the others — are on each of the two following thoracic segments, and each of the abdominal segments is furnished with but two. There are nine elevated spiracles each side superiorly, namely, one immediately behind the prothorax and eight 011 the abdominal segments. The fore part of the body is pro- jected shield-like over the head, which is retractile and small. The eggs from which these larvae hatch, and which we do not recollect to have seen anywhere described, are de- 104 INJUKIOUS INSECTS posited singly upon the leaves, to which they are fastened by some adhesive substance. They are of irregular angu- lar form; flat, and somewhat narrower at one end than the other; ridged above and at the sides, but smooth and obovate below. They are usually furnished with spine- like appendages, which, however, are sometimes entirely lacking. Those of C. aurichalcea (fig. 69) are 0.04 inch long, and of a dull dirty- white color. When full grown the larvae fasten the last two or three joints of the body to the underside of a leaf, by means of a sticky secretion, and in about two days change to pupae. The pupa is also flat, with usually four or five broad but thin and transparent serrated leaf -like appendages on each side of the abdo- men, and the prothorax, which is great- ly dilated and covers the head, is fur- nished around the edge with smaller barbed spines. The broad leaf -like spines at the edges of the body are bent Fig. 69.— EGG or TOR- under while the transformation is being TOISE-BEETLE, effected, but are soon afterwards stretch- ed stiffly out with a forward slant. The pupa loses the pronged tail, but as the old larval skin is left adhering to the terminal segments the prong of dung still protects it in most cases. The legs and antennas are not free in this, as in the pupae of most other beetles, but are soldered together as in the chrysalis of a butterfly, and yet it has the power of raising itself up perpendicularly upon the tail end by which it is fastened. The pupa state lasts about a week. Having thus spoken in general terms of this anomalous group of beetles, we shall now refer more particularly to a few of the species. Most of those mentioned below in- fest Sweet-potato both in the larva and perfect beetle states. They gnaw irregular holes, and when sufficiently OF THE FARM AKD GARDEN. 105 numerous entirely riddle the leaves. They usually dwell on the underside of the leaves, and are found most abundant during the months of May and June. There must be several broods during the year, and the same species is often found in all stages, and of all sizes at one and the same time. In all probability they hibernate in the beetle state. We have already proved by experiment that Paris Green — one part of the Green to two of flour — when sprinkled under the vines, will kill these insects, though not so readily as it does the Colorado Potato-beetle. Moreover, as these Tortoise-bottles usually hide on the underside of the leaves, and as the vines trail on the ground, it is very difficult to apply the powder without running some risk from its poisonous qualities. We therefore strongly recommend vigilance when the plants are first planted, and by the figures and descriptions given below our readers will be enabled to recognize and kill the few beetles which at that time make their appearance, and thus nip the evil in the bud. THE TWO-STRIPED SWEET-POTATO BEETLE. (Cassida bivittata, Say.) This is the most common species found upon the Sweet-potato, and seems to be confined to that plant, as we have never found it on any other kind. The larva of this beetle, which is given in figure 71, 2, enlarged, and in figure 70, of natural size, is dirty-white or yellowish- white, with a more or less intense neutral-colored lon- gitudinal line along the back, usually relieved by an extra light band each side. It differs from the larvae of all other known species in not using its fork for merdig- erous purposes. Indeed, this fork is rendered useless as a 106 INJURIOUS INSECTS shield to the body, by being ever enveloped, after the first moult, in the cast-off prickly skins, which are kept free from excrement. Moreover, this fork is seldom held close down to the back, as in the other species, but more usually at an angle of 45° over or from the body, thus suggesting the idea of a handle. When full fed, this larva attaches itself to the under- side of the leaf, and in two days the skin bursts open on the back, and is worked down towards the tail; when the pupa, at first pale, soon acquires a dull brownish Fig. 70. — TWO-STKIPED TOBTOISE-BKETLE. Larva, natural size. Fig. 71. — TWO-STRIPED TORTOISE- BEETLE. 2, Larva ; 3, Pupa ; 4, Beetle. color, the narrow whitish tail, which still adheres pos- teriorly being significant of the species. (See fig. 71, 3.) The beetle (fig. 71, 4), is of a pale yellow, striped with black, and though broader and vastly jdrfferent scientif- ically, still bears a general resemblance to the common Striped Cucumber-beetle (Diabrotica vittata, Fabr.) THE GOLDEN TORTOISE-BEETLE. (Cassida aurichalcea, Fabr.) Next to the preceding species, the G-olden Tortoise- beetle is the most numerous on our Sweet-potatoes; but it does not confine its injuries to that plant, for it is found in equal abundance on the leaves of the Bitter-sweet and on the different kinds of Convolvulus or Morning Glory, OF THE FABM AND GARDEN. 10? The larva (fig. 72, a, natural size; Z>, enlarged with the dung taken from the fork), is of a dark brown color, with a pale shade upon the back. It carries its faecifork immediately over the back, and the excrement is arranged in a more or less regular trilobcd pattern. The loaded fork still lies close to the back in the pupa, which is brown like the larva, and cluelly characterized by three dark shades on the transparent prothorax, one being in the middle and one at each side, as represented at fig. 73, c. The perfect beetle (fig. 73, d), when seen in all its splendor, is one of the most beautiful objects that can Fig. 72.— LAKVA OF GOLDEN TORTOISE- BEETLE, a, Natural size ; b, Enlarged. Fig. 73. — GOLDEN TORTOISE- BEETLE, c, Pupa ; d, Beetle. well be imagined. It exactly resembles a piece of golden tinsel, and with its legs withdrawn and body lying fiat to a leaf, the uninitiated would scarcely suppose it to be an insect did it not suddenly take wing when being observed. At first these beetles are of a dull deep orange color, which strongly relieves the transparent edges of the wing- coverts and helmet, and gives conspicuousness to six black spots, two (indicated in the figure) above, and two on each side. But in about a week after they have left the pupa shell, or as soon as they begin to copulate, they shine in all their splendor, and these black spots are scarcely noticed. 108 INJURIOUS INSECTS THE PALE-THIGHED TORTOISE -BEETLE. (Cassida pallida, Herbst.) This species can scarcely be distinguished from the pre- ceding. It is of a somewhat broader, rounder form, and differs in lacking the black spots on the wing-coverts, and in having the thighs entirely pale yellow, while in auricli- alcea they are black at the base. It likewise feeds upon the Sweet-potato, and its larva differs only from that of the former, in its spines being brighter and lighter col- ored, and in having a dull orange head, and a halo of the same color on the anterior portion of the body. THE MOTTLED TORTOISE-BEETLE. (Cassida guttata, Oliv.) This species (fig. 74), which is the next most com- mon of those found on the Sweet-potato in the latitude Fig. 74.— MOTTLED TORTOISE-BEETLE. Fig. 75.— MOTTLED TORTOISE- BEETLE, a, Larva ; fc, Pupa. of St. Louis, is at once distinguished from all the others here described by being usually black, with the shoulders black to the extreme edge of the transparent wing-cov- erts. It is a very variable species, and is frequently more or less speckled or mottled with gold, while more rarely it has a uniform golden appearance. The larva, which is represented enlarged and with the dung removed at figure 75, a, is of a uniform green color, OF THE FARM AHD GARDEN. 109 with a bluish shade along the back, which shade disap- pears however when the insect has fasted for a few hours. It carries its excrement in irregular broad masses, often branching as in the species next to be described. The pupa (fig. 75, #), is also of a uniform green color, with a conspicuous black ring around the base of the first ab- dominal pair of spiracles. Before changing to pupa, and previous to each moult, this larva is in the habit of removing the excrement from its fork. THE BLACK-LEGGED TORTOISE-BEETLE. (Cassida nigripes, Oliv.) This species, which is likewise found on the Sweet- potato, is a little the largest of those we have mentioned. Fig. 76. — BLACK-LEGGED TORTOISE BEETLE. Fig. 77. — BLACK-LEGGED TORTOISE-BEETLE, a, Larva of natural size ; b, Magnified. The beetle (fig. 76) has the power, when alive, of putting on a golden hue, but is not so brilliant as O. aurichalcea, from which species it is at once distinguished by its larger size, and by its black legs and three large conspicuous black spots on each wing-cover. The larva (fig. 77, #), is of a pale straw-color, with the spines, which are long, tip- ped with black; and besides a dusky shade along each side of the back, it has two dusky spots immediately beneath the head, and below these last, two larger crescent marks of the same color. The excrement is spread in a charac- 110 INJURIOUS INSECTS teristic manner, extending laterally in long shreds or ramifications. (See fig. 77.) The pupa is dark brown, variegated with paler brown, while the spines around the edges are transparent and white. TURNIP AND KUTA BAGA. These root crops are much more generally cultivated in England than with us, and English works describe about a dozen species that are regarded as special enemies to the Turnip and Euta Baga, or, as the latter are most commonly called, Swedes. As the cultivation of these crops becomes more general in this country, the num- ber of destructive insects will no doubt increase. Some of those insects that occasionally appear in great numbers, like the Fall Army Worm, and take nearly every green plant, attack the Turnip crop, though the Rocky Mountain Locust, or Grasshopper, as a rule, avoids it The Turnips belong to the same family of plants as the Cabbage, and several insects attack both indiscrim- inately. Indeed, nearly all these described under Cab- bage may be looked for upon Turnips (which includes the Ruta Baga or Swedes). The Wavy-striped Flea-beetle (Haltica stnolata), which is so destructive to young Cab- bage plants, is especially fond of Turnips of all kinds in the young state, when the seedlings first break ground. This appears to be, in this country, the counterpart of the Turnip Flea-beetle of England, which is there generally called the "Turnip Fly," and is, like ours, a species of Haltica. If the young seedlings can be protected until they make a few rough leaves, they will usually resist these enemies, hence it has been found useful to dust them OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. Ill as soon as they break ground with some powder offen- sive to these insects. A common application is wood ashes and plaster, equal parts, the young plants to be thoroughly covered with the mixture. Air-slaked shell lime (calcined oyster-shells) is much used by market gar- deners in the same manner, it is also useful as a fertil- izer* Fortunately the most destructive Saw Fly and other enemies of this crop have not yet made their way to this country, but as in the exceptional season of 1881- 82, large quantities of turnips were imported, it is not at all unlikely that some of the British insects may have come with them. In the Southern States, the Harlequin Cabbage-bug (see p. 37) is very destructive to the Turnips. UNIVERSITY Insects Injurions to the Cereal Grains, and the Grass Crops, including Clover, In classifying insects according to the plants they in- jure, there is often an over-lapping. Thus the White Grub, while mentioned elsewhere, is often one of the worst enemies to the grower of grass, whether in the meadow or pasture ; it also attacks the grains, as do several of the Cut-worms. When there is, as in some western localities, an invasion of the Rocky Mountain Grasshopper, scarcely any green thing escapes its attacks. We give in this division, an account of the most com- mon enemies to the grain grower, and those which at- tack grass lands. THE CHINCH-BUG. (Blissus leucopterus, Say.) NATURAL HISTORY OF THE CHIKCH-BUG. The food of the Chinch-bug consists of the grasses and cereals, wild and cultivated, and accounts of its injur- ing other plants are misleading, allied species being con- founded with it. Belonging to the Half -wing Bugs (Heteroptera), its food is obtained by suction, so that the plants attacked are sapped of their life, and not eaten up. The mature Chinch-bug (fig. 79) is less then a fourth of an inch long; its appearance at different stages is shown in fig. 78, the hair lines indicating the natural sizes. The eggs (fig. 78, a, #,) are amber-colored, the young bugs 112 OF THE FARM AED GARDEN. 113 vary from pale-yellow with a touch of orange to bright- red, while the pupa (g,) is mostly brown, the mature bug (fig. 79,) is black, with white upper wings, having two characteristic black spots upon them. A short-winged form (fig. 80,) occurs in Canada, and in the more Northern States. The species hibernates in the perfect or mature form in a state of torpor in whatever sheltered situations can be found. The Chinch-bug is two-brooded in the Middle States, and in the more Southern States is probably three-brooded. Fig. 78. — IMMATURE STAGES OF CHINCH-BUG. a, b, Eggs ; c Newly-hatched Larvae ; /, Same, after first Moult ; g, Pupa. Such as survive the autumn, when the plants or the sap on which they feed are mostly dried up, so as to afford them little or no nourishment, pass the winter in the usual torpid state, and always in the perfect or winged form, under dead leaves, under sticks of wood, under flat stones, in moss, in bunches of old dead grass or weeds or straw, and often in corn-stalks and corn-shucks. One year I repeatedly received corn-stalks that were crowded with them, and it was difficult to find a stalk in any field that did not reveal some of them, upon stripping off the leaves. It has long been known that the Chinch-bug deposits its eggs underground and upon the roots of plants which it infests, and that the young larvae remain under ground 114 INJURIOUS IKSECTS for some considerable time after they hatch out, sucking the sap from the roots. If, in the spring of the year, you pull up a wheat plant in a field badly infested by this insect, you will find hundreds of the eggs attached to the roots; and at a somewhat later period the young larvae may be found clustering upon the roots and looking like so many moving little red atoms. The egg is so small as to be scarcely visible to the naked eye, of an oval shape, about four times as long as wide, of a pale-amber-white •*- Fig. 80.— SHORT-WINGED Fig. 79.— CHINCH-BUG. CHINCH-BUG. color when first laid, but subsequently assuming a red- dish color from the young larva showing through the transparent shell. As the mother Chinch-bug has to work her way under ground in the spring of the year, in order to get at the roots upon which she proposes to lay her eggs, it becomes evident at once, that the looser the soil is at this time of the year the greater the facilities which are offered for the operation. Hence the great ad- vantage of plowing land for spring grain in the pre- ceding autumn, or, if plowed in the spring, rolling it repeatedly with a heavy roller after seeding. And the re- mark is frequently made by farmers, that wheat harrowed in upon old corn-ground, without any plowing at all, is far less infested by Chinch-bug than wheat put in upon OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 115 land that has been plowed. There is another fact which has been repeatedly noticed by practical men. This insect cannot live and thrive and multiply in land that is sopping with water, and it generally commences its operations in early spring upon those particular parts of every field where the soil is the loosest and the driest. There is nothing which experience has more firmly es- tablished in connection with this pest, than that heavy rains and wet seasons are destructive of it. I have wit- nessed the almost magical effect of a heavy and pro- longed rain in a cornfield that was suffering badly. Warm, moist, or open winters are equally prejudicial to it. The female occupies about three weeks in depositing her eggs, and, according to Dr. Shimer's estimate, she de- posits about five hundred. The egg requires about two weeks to hatch, and the bug becomes full grown and ac- quires its wings in from forty to fifty days after hatching. DESTRUCTIVE POWERS OF THE CHINCH-BUG. Few persons in the more Northern States can form a just conception of the prodigious numbers and redoubt- able armies in which this insect is sometimes seen in the South and South-western States, marching from one field to another. The following extracts from cotemporane- ous writers I have no doubt are substantially correct, and give a clear and graphic statement of the ravages of the Chinch-bug: There never was a better show for wheat and bar- ley than we had here, the tenth of June, and no more paltry crop has been harvested since we were a town. Many farmers did not get their seed. In passing by a field of barley where the Chinch-bugs had been at work for a week, I found them moving in solid column across the road to a com field on the opposite side, in such 116 INJURIOUS INSECTS. numbers that I felt afraid to ride my horse among them. The road and fences were alive with them. Some teams were at work mending the road at this spot, and the bugs covered men, horses and scrapers till they were forced to quit work for the day. The bugs took ten acres of that corn, clean to the ground, before its hardening stalks — being too much for their tools — checked their progress. Another lot passed from a wheat field adjoining my farm into a piece of corn, stopping now and then for a bite, but not long, They then crossed a meadow, thirty rods, into a sixteen-acre lot of sorghum., and swept it like a fire, though the cane was then scarce in tassel. From wheat to sorghum was at least sixty rods. Their march was governed by no discoverable law, except that they were hungry, and went where there was most to eat. Help- ing a neighbor harvest one of the few fortunate fields, early sown — and so lucky ! — we found them moving across his premises in such numbers that they bid fair to drive out the family. House, crib, stable, well-curb, trees, garden fences — one creeping mass of stinking life. In the house as well as outside, like the lice of Egypt, they were everywhere; but in a single day they were gone. If any Western farmer supposes that Chinch-bugs can- not be out-flanked, headed off, and conquered, they are entirely behind the times. The thing has been effectu- ally done during the past season, by Mr. Davis, Super- visor of the town of Scott, Ogle County, 111. This gen- tleman had a corn-field of a hundred acres, growing along- side of an extensive field of small grain. The bugs had finished up the latter and were preparing to attack the former, when the owner, being of an ingenious turn, hit upon a happy plan for circumventing them. He sur- rounded the corn with a barrier of pine boards set up edgewise and partly buried in the ground, to keep them in position. Outside of this fence deep holes were dug, about ten feet apart. The upper edge of the board was OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 117 kept constantly moist with a coat of coal tar, which was renewed every day. The bugs according to their regular tactics, advanced to the assault in solid columns, swarming by million's, and hiding the ground. They easily ascended the boards, but were unable to cross the belt of the coal tar,, Some- times they crowded upon one another so as to bridge over the barrier, but such places were immediately cov- ered with a new coating. The invaders were in a quan- dary, and, in that state of mind crept backward and for- ward until they tumbled into the deep holes aforesaid, these were soon filled, and the swarming myriads were shovelled out of them literally by wagon loads, at the rate of thirty or forty bushels a day, — and buried up in other holes, dug for the purpose, as required. This may seem incredible to persons unacquainted with this little pest, but no one who has seen the countless myriads which cover the earth as harvest approaches, will feel inclined to dispute the statement. It is an unimpeachable fact. The process was repeated till only three or four bushels could be shovelled out of the holes, when it was aban- doned. The corn was completely protected and yielded bountifully. FALSE CHINCH-BUGS. — Some insects, with a general resemblance to the true Chinch-bug, are sometimes mis- taken for that, and as they are general feeders, have given rise to reports that garden crops and others besides the grains and grasses, are attacked by the Chinch-bug. The most frequently mistaken for the true one is the False Chinch-bug (Nysius destructor, Riley), fig. 81, of which I is the pupa, and c the mature insect, the lines showing the real size. Its general color is grayish- brown, and that of the pupa dingy yellow. The insect is common in Missouri and Kansas. It attacks many garden vegetables, especially those of the Mustard Fam- 118 INJURIOUS INSECTS ily (Cruciferce), also the Grape-Tine and Strawberry plants, to which it is especially injurious. The insect is Fig. 81.— FALSE CHINCH-BUG (Ny- siw destructor, Riley). Fig. 82.— ASH-GRAY LEAF-BUG (Plesma cinerea, Say.) described in full in Eiley's Third Missouri Keport. The Ash-gray Leaf-bug (Piesma cinerea), fig. 82, is often found feeding on the same plants as the Chinch-bug, and might be mistaken for that by a careless observer; a com- parison of the engravings will at once show the difference. Fig. 83. INSIDIOUS FLOWER-BUG ( An- thocoris insidiosus, Say.) a •» b Fig. 84.— MANY-BANDED ROBBER (Harpactor cinclus, Fabr.) NATURAL ENEMIES.— The Chinch -bug appears to have fewer insect enemies than other destructive insects, and OP THE FARM AND GARDEN. 119 this is supposed to be due to its disagreeable odor. The Insidious Flower-bug (Anthocoris insidiosus, Say), fig. 83, and the Many-banded Robber (Harpactor cinctus, Fabr.), fig. 84, are the most prominent of these, and may be recognized from the engravings. The larvae of some of the Lady-birds, and a few others, also prey upon them more or less, but the most efficient of all are the ants, which destroy large numbers of the eggs. REMEDIES — It has long been noticed that the Chinch Bug commences its ravages from the edges of a piece of grain, or occasionally from one or more small patches, scattered at random in the more central portions of it, and usually drier than the rest of the field. From these particular parts it subsequently spreads by degrees over the whole field, multiplying as ifc goes, and finally taking the entire crop unless checked up by seasonable rains. In newly broken land, where the fences are new and con- sequently no old stuff has had time to accumulate along them, the Chinch-bug is never heard of. These facts in- dicate that the mother insects must very generally pass the winter in the old dead stuff that usually gathers along fences. Hence by way of precaution, it is advisa- ble, whenever possible, to burn up such dead stuff in the winter or early in the spring, and particularly to rake to- gether and burn up the old corn-stalks, instead of plow- ing them in, or allowing them, as is often done, to lie littering about on some waste ground. It is true, agri- culturally speaking, this is bad farming; but it is better to lose the manure contained in the cornstalks than to have one's crops destroyed by insects. Whenever such small infested patches in a grain field are noticed early in the season, the rest of the field may often be saved by carting dry straw on to them and burning the straw on the spot, Chinch-bugs, green wheat and all; and this will be still easier to do when the bugs start along the edge of the field. If, as frequently happens, a piece of 120 IHJTJRIOUS INSECTS small grain'' is found about harvest-time to be so badly shrunken up by the bug as not to be worth cutting, the owner ought always to set fire to it and burn it up along with its ill-savored inhabitants. Thus, not only will the insect be prevented from migrating to the adjacent corn-fields, but its future multiplication will be consid- erably checked. A very simple, cheap, and easy method of prevention was recommended by Mr. Wilson Phelps, of Crete, Illi- nois. It may very probably be effectual when the bugs are not too numerous, and certainly can do no harm: With twelve bushels of spring wheat, mix one bushel of winter rye, and sow in the usual manner. The rye not heading out, but spreading out close to the ground, the bugs will content themselves with eating it until the wheat is too far advanced to be injured by them. There will of course be no danger of the winter rye mixing with the spring wheat. THE HESSIAN FLY. (Cecidomyia destructor, Say.) A most complete account of this insect is to be found in Bulletin No. 4, of the U. S. Entomological Commis- sion, by Prof. A. S. Packard, of which the following is a brief abstract : 1. There are two broods of the fly, the first laying their eggs on the leaves of the young wheat from early April till the end of May, the time varying with the latitude and weather; the second brood appearing during August and September, and laying about thirty eggs on the leaves of the young winter wheat. 2. The eggs hatch in about four days after they are laid; several of the maggots or larvas make their way down to the sheathing base of the leaf and remain be- tween the base of the leaves and the stem, near the roots, OF THE FARM AND GARDEK.\ causing the stalks to swell and the plant to fi^^yj&y*^ and die. By the end of November, or from thirty^ to forty days after the wheat is sown, they assume the " flax- seed " state, and may, on removing the lower leaves, be found as little brown, oval, cylindrical, smooth bodies, a little smaller than grains of rice. They remain in the wheat until during warm weather in April, when the ' larva rapidly transforms into the pupa within its flax- seed-skin, the fly emerging from the " flaxseed" case about Fig. 85. — THE HESSIA.N FLY (Cecidomyia destructor, Say.) i. Fly of natural size; h, the same, magnified; j, k, Maggots, magnified'. I, the " flaxseed " state, enlarged. the end of April. The eggs laid by this first or spring brood of flies, soon hatch; the second brood of maggots live but a few weeks; the "flaxseed" state is soon undergone and the autumn or second brood of flies appear in August. (In some cases there may be two autumn broods, the earliest autumn brood giving rise to a third set of flies in September.) The engraving (fig. 85), shows the differ- ent states of the insect. The fly of the natural size is given at *', its spread of wings being only half an inch. 6 122 IKJUKIOUS INSECTS At h is the magnified insect. The body is of a dark- brown color, the wings dull smoky-brown, and the legs of a paler brown than the body. The maggots are shown, magnified in/ and k; I shows the "flaxseed" state. 3. There are several destructive Ichneumon parasites of the Hessian Fly, whose combined attacks are supposed to destroy nine-tenths of all the flies hatched; of these the most important is the Chalcid four-winged fly (Semiotel- lus destructor}, which infests the "flaxseed"; and the egg-parasite (Platygaster). 4. By sowing a part of the wheat early, and if affected by the fly, plowing and sowing the rest after September 20th, the wheat crop may in most cases be saved. It should be remembered that the first brood should be thus circumvented or destroyed in order that a second brood may not appear. 5. If the wheat be only partially affected it may be saved by fertilizers and careful cultivation; or a badly damaged field of winter wheat may thus be recuperated in the spring. 6. Pasturing with sheep and consequent close cropping of the winter wheat in November and early December may cause many of the eggs, larvae and flaxseeds to be destroyed; also, rolling the ground may have nearly the same effect. 7. Sowing hardy varieties. The "Underbill Mediter- ranean " wheat, and especially the " Clawson " variety, which tillers vigorously, should be sown in preference to the slighter, less vigorous kinds, in a region much infested by the fly. The early August sown wheat might be "Diehl," the late sown " Clawson." 8. Of special remedies, the use of lime, soot, or salt, may be recommended; also raking off the stubble; but too close cutting of the wheat and burning of the stub- ble are of doubtful use, as this destroys the useful para- sites as well as the flies. OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 32 PROBABLE GEOGRAPHICAL LIMITS OF THE HESSIAN FLY. The question naturally arises whether this pest will ever infest the wheat regions of Western Dakota, Mon- tana, Utah, Colorado, and the Pacific States and Terri- tories. We believe not, though aware that such a state- ment may be hazardous. It was originally an inhabitant of Central and Southern Europe; it has become acclima- ted in the Eastern, Atlantic, and Middle States, in the Valley of the Upper St. Lawrence and in the Valley of the Mississippi River; that it can thrive in the elevated, dry Rocky Mountain plateau regions, withstand the cool nights and dry, hot atmosphere of the Far West, seems very doubtful. At least so slowly has it spread westward ; so slight an amount of wheat or straw is transported, all produce of this kind going eastward, that we doubt whether during this century at least it will extend west of Kansas and Minnesota, where it has already had a foothold for several years. Bulletin No. 4 of the Entomological Commission, by Dr. A. S. Packard, Jr., gives a full account of the Hes- sian Fly, which all interested should be able to procure from their representatives in Congress, as these Bulletins are published at the expense of the tax-payers. THE WHEAT MIDGE. (Diplosis tritiei, Kirby.) The Wheat Midge was formerly regarded as an insect of the same genus with the Hessian Fly, and was known as Cecidomyia tritici, but Entomologists now rank it in a separate genus, Diplosis. In general appearance the parent insect much resembles the Hessian Fly, but it de- posits its eggs in the flowers of the wheat. The heads of wheat thus attacked are soon seen to shrivel, and upon examination there will be found numerous legless mag- 124 INJURIOUS INSECTS gots, about one-twelfth of an inch long, and of an orange color, among the forming grain, which are popularly known as midges, a portion of the Iarva3 or midges go into the ground and pupate, while others are harvested with the grain. Some parasitic insects help reduce the numbers of the midge, and so far as is known, deep plowing, to turn those which have entered the ground so deep that they cannot make their way to the surface, and the burning of the refuse in the cleaning of the grain, are the only artificial helps suggested. THE JOINT-WORM. (Isosoma hordei, Harris.) In certain years and in particular States the crops of wheat, of barley, or of rye are greatly injured by a minute maggot, popularly known as the "Joint-worm." This maggot is but little more than one-eighth of an inch long, and of a pale-yellow color with the exception of the jaws, which are dark-brown. It inhabits a little cell, which is situated in the internal substance of the stem of the affected plant, usually a short distance above the first or second knot from the root, the outer surface of the stem being elevated in a corresponding elongate blister- like swelling; and when, as is generally the case, from three to ten of these cells lie close together in the same spot, the whole forms a woody enlargement, honey-combed by cells, and is in reality a many-celled gall. In figure 86, a, will be seen a sketch of one of these galls, the lit- tle pin-holes being the orifices through which the flies produced from the joint- worms have escaped. At first sight, these knotty swellings of the stem are apt to elude observation, because, being almost always situated just above the joint or knot on that stem — whence comes the popular name "Joint-worms" — they are enwrapped and hidden by the sheath of the blade; but on stripping off OF THE FAKM AND GARDEN. 125 the sheath, as is supposed to have been done in the en- graving, they become at once very conspicuous objects. We have observed that the "infcernodes," as botanists call them, or the spaces between the knots, in infested straws are always much contracted in length, none out of a lot of over fifty specimens examined by us exceeding six niches in length, and many being reduced to only one and a half inch. There were only three straws in this lot of over fifty straws, where two Joint- worm galls were Fig. 86. — THE JOINT-WORM (Isosoma hordei, Harris), a, Galls at joints ; ft, Female Fly, enlarged, the lines showing the real size. found in the same straw; and in all those three cases they were found in two adjoining internodes. In a very few instances the galls were situated in the middle of the internode, or even close to the upper knot, instead of be- ing situated as usual above the lower knot. AMOUNT OF DAMAGE DONE BY THE JOINT-WOKM. The damage occasioned by the Joint-worm is, in cer- tain seasons and in certain localities, ruinously great. In the year 1851, through a large part of Virginia, ac- cording to the Editor of the "Southern Planter," 126 INJURIOUS INSECTS "many crops of wheat were hardly worth cutting on ac- count of its attacks, and all that we have seen or heard of, except one, were badly hurt by it." It first began to be observed in that State in 1848, and in subsequent years it increased gradually in numbers. According to Prof. Cabell, of the University of Virginia, the loss occa- sioned by this insect often amounted to one-third of the .average crop, and sometimes much greater; and in 1851 "some farmers did not reap as much as they sowed." In 1860 the rye crop was considerably injured by this little pest in Lycoming Co., Pennsylvania; and according to Mr. Norton, the species is very common upon rye "in Connecticut and probably the other New England States." As long ago as 1829, it had been noticed in various parts of the New England States to attack the barley, causing it in some places "to yield only a very small crop, and on some farms not much more than the seed sown;" although since that date it does not appear to have been materially troublesome in that region. But in Central New York, formerly the great barley-growing district of America, it has been ruinously destructive to the barley from 1850 until the present. It is a curious fact that — so far as can be at present ascertained — this destructive insect does not appear to have reached the Valley of the Mississippi. At all events, no complaints from the West of any such attacks as those described above, either upon wheat, rye, or barley, have hitherto been make public. It is very possible, however, that the Joint-worm may have been confounded in the West with the Hessian Fly (Cecidomyia destructor, Say), the larva of which infests the same part of the wheat plant, namely, the space immediately above one of the lowermost knots in the straw. But this last may be dis- tinguished from the Joint-worm by living in the open space between the stem and the sheath of the blade, although it occasionally imbeds itself pretty deeply in the OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. external surface of the stem; whereas, the true Joint- worm always inhabits a smooth egg-shaped cell in the in- ternal substance of that stem. NATURAL HISTORY OF THE JOINT-WORM. The mode in which the Joint-worm produces its de- structive effects upon small grain, may be readily ex- plained. Not only is the sap extracted on its course to the ear, in order to form the abnormal woody enlargement or gall, in which the larvae are imbedded, each in his own private and peculiar cell, but a very large supply of sap must be wasted in feeding the larvae themeslves. Hence the ear that would otherwise be fully developed becomes more or less shriveled; although we are told that, in the case of barley more particularly, the plant tillers out laterally, so as partially to supply the loss of the main crop of ears. A similar phenomenon occurs with almost all galls that grow upon a slender stem or twig, that is, the stem or twig is more or less killed or blasted thereby; but when a twig is quite large, this re- sult often fails to be developed. The Joint-worm. Fly (fig. 86, #,) makes its appear- ance in the North in the forepart and middle of June, and in southern latitudes in the middle of May. After coupling in the usual manner, the female Joint-worm Fly proceeds to lay her eggs in the stems of the growing grain. The following excellent account of this operation, from the pen of Mr. Petti t, is from the " Canada Farmer": " About the eighth of June, the perfect insects begin to make their way out of the galls. ****** I watched the growing barley, and on the tenth found them actively at work ovipositing in the then healthy stalks of the plant. Before commencing operations they walk leisurely up one side of the plant as far as the last leaf, and then down the other, apparently to 128 INJURIOUS INSECTS make sure that it has not already been oviposited in. Head downward, they then begin by bending the abdo- men downward, and placing the tip of the ovipositor on the straw at right angles with the body, when the abdo- men resumes its natural position, and the ovipositor is gradually worked into the plant to its full extent. With the aid of a good lens, and by pulling up the plants on which they were at work (which did not appear to disconcert them in the least), I could view the whole op- eration, which, in some cases, was accomplished in a few minutes, and in others was the work of an hour or two. When a puncture was completed, they usually backed up a little and viewed it for a few seconds, and then appar- ently satisfied, moved to one side and another began." Very shortly after this time, the egg must hatch out. For, upon July third, we examined a large lot of the green barley-galls, which had been obligingly forwarded to us by Mr. Pettit, and found the larva of the Joint- worm Fly almost half -grown, that is from 0. 004 to 0. 006- inch long, and about five times as long as wide. By the beginning of September, the infested grain having ripened long before this period, the galls are already dry and hard, and the larvae contained in them full grown, measuring now about 0.13-inch in length. The great majority of these larvae are destined to remain in that state, enclosed in their little cells, until the suc- ceeding spring; but — as happens with many different in- sects— a small percentage of them seem to pass into the pupa, and thence into the perfect state, the same sum- mer that the eggs are deposited. For, out of a lot of one hundred and twenty-four barley-galls, received Sep- tember 10th from Mr. Pettit of Upper Canada, thirty- nine galls, on very nearly one-third part, were already bored with the same kind of small round holes as are made in the succeeding spring by the escaping Joint- worm Flies, some galls containing six such holes, but OF THE FAEM AND GARDEN. 129 inost of them about three. It is true that we are not personally cognizant of the fact, that these holes are bored by the same Joint- worm Fly, that escapes from similar holes in such profuse abundance in the following June; but Prof. Oabell, of Virginia, stated to Dr. Harris with reference to the wheat-inhabiting Joint-worm, that he had known a few flies to leave the straw the first year, but in each instance the fly which came forth thus was the true Joint- worm Fly. As already shown, the flies that emerged from these Canada galls in the succeeding summer, came out from June 9th to June 16th and sub- sequently.— (American Entomologist. ) ARMY WORMS. The name Army Worm is somewhat loosely applied to several different insects that have the habit of congregat- ing in considerable numbers, or in moving from place to place in large bodies. In some localities in Western New York, the name is given to the Tent Caterpillar of the Forest (Clisiocampa sylvatica, Harr.), described under FRUIT TREES. In some of the Southern States, the Cotton Worm (Aletia argillacea, Hubn.), is called " Army Worm," and more frequently the " Cotton Army Worm," an insect most exhaustively treated of by Prof. Riley in Bulletin No. 3, of the U. S. Entomological Commission. Still another insect, common in the Southern States, (LapJirygma frugiperda, Sm. and Abb.), which some- times attacks cotton, has been called " Army Worm." Its proper name is " Southern Grass Worm," and it pre- fers grasses and weeds to cotton and other crops. To distinguish the true Army Worm from all others to which the name has been given, it may be called: 130 INJURIOUS INSECTS THE NORTHERN ARMY WORM. (Leucania unipuncta, Haw.) This insect has from time to time made its appearance in destructive numbers. Its earliest recorded appearance in the Eastern States, was in 1743. The years 1770, 1817, and 1861, are those in which it is reported to have been especially troublesome in the East; in 1861 it was destructive from New England to Kansas; in 1875, it visited a large part of Missouri, and in 1880 was especially destructive on Long Island. Prof. C. V. Eiley was the first to give the full history of this insect, in his Eeports on the Insects of Missouri, and in the Walker Prize Essay of the Boston Natural History Society, for 1877; from these the following is condensed. DESCRIPTION OF THE INSECT. The worm when full grown is dingy black in color, striped as in figure 87, with a broad dusky stripe along the back, divided along the middle by a more or less dis- tinct and irregular pale line, and bordered beneath by a narrow black line; then a narrow white line; then a yel- lowish stripe; then a narrow, indistinct white line; then another dusky stripe; again a narrow white line; then a yellow stripe, and, finally, again a faint white line: the underside or venter is obscure green. The chrysalis (fig. 88) is mahogany-brown in color. The moth (fig. 89) is of a fawn color, with a white speck near the center of the front wings and a dusky, oblique line running inwardly from their tips. The eggs are laid in the spring of the year so far as we know, and not in the fall as was formerly supposed. They are thrust, by means of an ovipositor, which is admirably adapted for this purpose, in between the folded OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 131 sides of a grass blade and glued along the grooves with a white, glistening, and adhesive fluid, which not only fastens them together but draws the two sides of the grass blade close around them so as to pretty effectually hide them. The female performs this opera- tion at night, and is extremely active at the time, laying her eggs with great rapidity, so that the ovaries are soon emptied. Each individual egg is glistening white at first, but becomes dull yellowish toward maturity. The female prefers a dry blade to a green one, and is espe- Fig. 88.— CHRYSALIS. Fig. 87.— ARMY WORM. Fig. 89.— MOTH OF ARMY WORM. cially prone to oviposit in places where there is a thick matting of coarse, last year's grass. The young worm hatches in about ten days, and up to the last moult has all the habits of an ordinary Cut- Worm, the colors being much paler than when full grown, and the worm hiding during the day at the base of the grasses. When not excessively numerous they retain this their normal Cut- Worm habit, and only when they become excessively multiplied do they acquire the marching and migrating habits. EEMEDIES. — Experience has established the fact that burning a meadow, or prairie, or field of stubble, in winter 132 INJURIOUS INSECTS or spring, usually prevents the worms from originating in such meadow or field. Such burning destroys the previous year's stalks and blades, and, as a consequence of what we have already stated, the nidi which the female moth prefers. Burning as a preventive, however, loses much of its practical importance unless it is pursued annually, because of the irregularity in the appearance of the Worm in injurious numbers. Judicious ditching, i. e., a ditch with the side toward the field to be protected perpendicular or sloping under, will protect a field from invasion from some other infested region when the worms are marching. When they are collected in the ditch they may be destroyed either by covering them with earth that is pressed upon them, by burning straw over them or by pouring a little coal oil in the ditch. A single plow furrow, six or eight inches deep and kept friable by dragging brush in it, has also been known to head them off. From experiments which we have made we are satisfied that where fence-lumber can be easily obtained it may be used to advantage as a substitute for the ditch or trench, by being secured on edge and then smeared with kerosene or coal tar, the latter being more particularly useful along the upper edge. By means of laths and a few nails the boards may be so secured that they will slightly slope away from the field to be protected. Such a barrier will prove effectual where the worms are not too persistent or numerous. Where they are excessively abundant they will need to be watched and occasionally dosed with kerosene to prevent their piling up even with the top of the board and thus bridging the barrier. The lumber is not injured for other purposes subsequently. In the invasion of Long Island in 1880, but two methods were found successful in checking the march of the Army Worm. Trenches were made by plowing, and in these were distributed freshly cut Red-top grass, a favorite food with OE THE EARM AND GARDEN. 133 them, and the grass was sprinkled with a mixture of Paris Green or London Purple in water, the same that is used for the Colorado Potato-beetle. So long as the grass remained fresh, the worms were destroyed by millions. Trenches by themselves were of little use, but if pits are made at every rod or so in the trench, about a foot square, and two feet deep with clean straight sides, the worms, in seeking a place to escape from the trench, will fall into these pits in great numbers. When one pit is nearly full of worms, others may be dug, using the earth to bury those already in the pits. The trenches should be dressed with the spade, after the plow, to make sure of straight smooth sides. SUMMARY. The following summary of the natural history of the Worm is from the 9th Missouri Eeport: " The insect is with us every year. In ordinary sea- sons, when it is not excessively numerous, it is seldom noticed. 1st, because the moths are low, swift flyers, and nocturnal in habit; 2nd, because the worms, when young, have protective coloring, and, when mature, hide during the day at the base of grasses. In years of great abun- dance the worms are generally unnoticed during early life, and attract attention only when, from crowding too much on each other, or from having exhausted the food supply in the fields in which they hatched, they are forced from necessity to migrate to fresh pastures in great bodies. The earliest attain full growth and com- mence to travel in armies, to devastate our fields, and to attract attention, about the time that winter wheat is in the milk — this period being two months later in Maine than in Southern Missouri; and they soon afterwards descend into the ground, and thus suddenly disappear, to issue again in two or three weeks as moths. In the 134 INJURIOUS INSECTS latitude of St. Louis, the bulk of these moths lay eggs, from which are produced a second generation of worms, which become moths again late in July or early in August. Exceptionally a third generation of worms may be pro- duced from these. Further north there is but one gener- ation annually. The moths hibernate, and oviposit soon after vegetation: starts in spring. The chrysalides may also hibernate, and probably do so to a large extent in the more Northern States. The eggs are inserted between the sheath and stalk, or secreted in the folds of a blade; and mature and perennial grasses are preferred for this purpose. The worms abound in wet springs preceded by one or more very dry years. They are preyed upon by numerous enemies, which so effectually check their increase, whenever they unusually abound, that the second brood, when it occurs, is seldom noticed; and two great Army Worm years have never followed each other, and are not likely to do so." THE WHEAT-HEAD ARMY WORM. (Leucania albilinia, Guen). There has of late years appeared, first in Pennsylvania and Maryland, and later in Kansas and Missouri, an insect in many respects like the true Army Worm, but which has shown a peculiar tendency to feed upon the heads of wheat and other small grains. When newly hatched, this differs from the true Army Worm by its black head and later by having five instead of seven pale */ O lines, and six instead of eight dark ones. The habit of feeding upon the grain becomes fixed only when the Avorms are half grown, as before that they attack the leaves, grass, etc. Several parasitic insects diminish its numbers, and it has been suggested that the worms could be greatly diminished by setting traps to attract the moths by means of lights to poisoned sweet liquids. OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 135 CLOVER. In an invasion of the Rocky Mountain Locust or Grass- hopper, the Clover suffers with most other green things, but the generally voracious Army Worm, while it occa- sionally nibbles at it, usually passes to more acceptable plants. There are a few caterpillars of moths now and then found upon Clover, but are regarded mainly as acci- dental. Within a few years, it has been discovered that Fig. 90.— LARVA, MAGNIFIED. . 91.— CLOVER-SEED MIDGE, FEMALE FLY. c, Ovipositor ; d, Joints of Feeler, enlarged. this important plant has two enemies, both of such a destructive character as to demand attention, one, a midge that destroys the seed, the other a borer that injures the root, THE CLOVER-SEED MIDGE. (Cecidomyia trifolii, Riley.) This insect was described and figured in the " Ameri- can Agriculturist" for July 1879. The larva (fig. 90, much magnified), is of a bright orange-red color, lives within the Clover-heads, and by exhausting them of 136 INJURIOUS INSECTS their juices, causes the seed to shrivel and become worth- less. When they have made their growth, these Midges either enter the ground, or hide under rubbish on the surface, and form a tough silken cocoon, with particles of earth adhering. Some of the flies appear in September, and others not until the following spring. Figure 91 gives a highly magnified view of the female fly and its details. Thus far this insect's ravages have been confined to the Central and Western parts of the State of New York, and the only remedy that has been suggested is, for farmers in localities where the Midge prevails, to stop growing clover-seed for several years, or until the insect is starved out. THE CLOVER-ROOT BORER. (Hylesinus trifolii, Miller.) This is an imported insect which has made itself at home in Central New York, and in a number of localities has caused a general failure of the Clover crop. It was first described and figured in the " American Agriculturist" for November 1879. The engraving (fig. 92,) shows the appearance of the Clover, a, after the attack of this insect, and the insect itself in its various stages of larva, #, pupa c, and the perfect beetle d. It passes the winter in either of these three states, and in early spring the insects issue and pair. The female then instinctively bores into the crown of the root, eating a pretty large cavity, wherein she deposits from four to six pale, whitish, elliptical eggs. These hatch in about a week, and the young larvae at first feed in the cavity made by the parent. After a few days, however, they begin to burrow downward, extending to the different branches of the root. The galleries made in burrowing run pretty regularly along the axis of the roots, as shown in the engraving, and are filled with brown excrement. The pupa is formed in a smooth cavity, generally at the OF THE FARM AKD GARDEN. 13? end of one of these burrows, and may be found in small numbers as early as September. It is the custom in Western New York to sow the Clover in spring on ground already sown to fall wheat. This is generally done while snow is yet on the ground, or while the frost is disappear- ing. The Clover is allowed to go to seed in the fall, and usually produces but little. During the second year one crop of hay and a crop of seed are obtained. It is dur- ing the second year the injury of the Root- borer is most ob- served. One observer reports that this insect has attacked all the clover in portions of Gen- esee County, I examined clover in some half a dozen fields during a ride of ten miles, and found every plant I pulled up was more or less injured. While most of the plants are yet alive, they are of little value for hay, seed, or pasture. The only remedy thus far suggested is, to plow under all the clover found to be infested in the spring of the second year. Some parasites are known to prey on this insect, which may diminish it. THE CLOVER-WORM. (Asopia costalis, Fabr.) This insect, like the preceding introduced from Europe, has been occasionally noticed for the last twenty years, Fig. 92.— CLOVER-ROOT BORER (Hylesinus trifolii, Miller.) a, Injured stem and root ; 6, Larva ; c, Pupa ; d, Beetle, enlarged. 138 INJURIOUS INSECTS and now, in some localities, from New England to Mich- igan and Illinois, it often occurs in troublesome numbers. It attacks the clover in the- niow or stack, webbing the stems together with multitudes of silken threads, among which is such an abundance of black excrement as to un- .fit the clover for feeding to animals. The white cocoons are present in such numbers, that one, without close examination, would pronounce the hay to be mouldy. T Fig. 93.— CLOVER- WORM (Asopia costalis, Fabr.) 1 arid 2, Larva ; 3, Cocoon , 4, Pupa ; 5 and 6, the Moth , 7, the \Yeb. The insects are usually found at the bottom of the stack. Figure 93 shows the insect in its various stages, 1 and 2 represent the larva, 3 the cocoon, 4 the pupa, 5 and 6 the moth, and 7 the white web in which the worm for the most part lives. The moth is one of our prettiest species, being of a reddish-brown color with golden-yellow markings and fringe to its wings. It is suggested as a preventive, that hay containing clover should not be stacked twice in the same place, and that the stack should be placed upon log or other foundations, that will allow of thorough ventilation from below. UNIVERSITY Insects Injurious to Fruit Trees, APPLE-TREE BORERS. THE ROUND-HEADED APPLE-TREE BORER. bivittata, Say.) Ifc is an admitted fact that apple trees on the ridges are shorter lived than those grown on our lower lands. Hitherto no particular reason has been given for this oc- currence, but it appears to be mainly attributed to the workings of the borer now under consideration. It has been invariably found more plentiful in trees growing on high land than in those on low land, and worse in plowed orchards than on those which are seeded down to grass. Fifty years ago, large, thrifty, long-lived trees were exceedingly common, and were obtained with comparatively little eifort on the part of our an- cestors. They had not the vast army of insect enemies to contend with, which at the present day makes suc- cessful fruit growing difficult. This Apple-Tree Borer was entirely unknown until Thomas Say described it in the year 1834; and, according to Dr. Fitch, it was not until the year following that its destructive character be- came known in the vicinity of Albany, N. Y., for the first time. Yet it is a native American insect, and has for ages inhabited our indigenous Crab-apple trees from which trees Mr. A. Bolter took numerous specimens, in the vicinity of Chicago, ten years ago. It also attacks the Quince, Mountain-ash, Hawthorn, Pear, and the June- berry. Few persons are aware to what an alarming ex- 139 140 INJURIOUS INSECTS tent this insect is infesting the orchards in various local- ities. A tree becomes unhealthy and eventually dwindles and dies, often without the owner having the least sus- picion of the true cause — the gnawing worm within. At figure 94 this borer is represented in its three stages of larva (a), pupa (b), and perfect beetle (c). The bee- tle may be known by the popular name of the Two- striped Saperda, while its larva is best known by the name of the Kound-headed Apple-Tree Borer, in contra- distinction to the flat-headed species next treated of. Fig. 94.— BOUND-HEADED APPLE-TREE BORER (Saperda UvUtata, Say.) a, Larva; b.Pupa; c, Beetle. The average length of the larva, when full grown, is about one inch, and the width of the first segment is not quite one-fourth of an inch. Its color is light-yellow, with a tawny-yellow spot of a more horny consistency on the first segment, which, under a lens, is found to be formed of a mass of dark-brown spots. The head is chestnut-brown, polished and horny, and the jaws are deep-black. The pupa is of rather lighter color than the larva, and has transverse rows of minute teeth on the back, and a few at the extremity of the body; the perfect beetle has two longitudinal white stripes between three of a light cinnamon-brown color. The Two-striped Sa- perda makes its appearance in the beetle state during the months of May and June, and is seldom seen by any but OP THE FARM AND GARDEN. 141 the entomologist who makes a point of hunting for it, as it remains quietly hidden by day and flies and moves only by night. The female deposits her eggs during the month of June, mostly at the foot of the tree, and the young worms hatch and commence boring into the bark within a fortnight afterwards. These young worms dif- fer in no essential from the full grown specimens, except in the very minute size; and they invariably live for the first year of their lives on the sap-wood and inner bark, excavating shallow, flat cavities which are found stuffed full of their saw-dust like castings. The hole by which the newly hatched worm penetrates is so very minute that it frequently fills up, though not before a few grains of castings have fallen from it, but the presence of the woims may be generally detected, especially in young trees, from the bark, under which they lie, becoming darkened, and sufficiently dry and dead to contract and form cracks. Through these cracks, some of the castings of the worm generally protrude, and fall to the ground in a little heap, and this occurs more especially in the spring of the year, when, with the rising sap and frequent rains, such cast- ings become swollen and augment in bulk. Some have supposed that the worm makes these holes to push out its own excrement, and that it is forced to do this to make room for itself; but, though it may sometimes gnaw a hole for this purpose, such an instance has never come to our knowledge, and that it is necessary to the life of the worm is simply a delusion, for there are hundreds of boring in- sects who never have recourse to such a procedure, and this one is frequently found below the ground, where it cannot possibly thus get rid of its castings. It is cur- rently supposed that this borer penetrates into the heart wood of the tree after the first year of its existence, whereas the Flat-headed borer is supposed to remain for the most part immediately under the bark; but on these points no rule can be given, for the Flat-headed species 142 INJURIOUS INSECTS also frequently penetrates into the solid heart wood, while the one under consideration is often found in a full grown state just under the inner bark, or in the sap wood. % The usual course of its life however runs as fol- lows: As winter approaches, the young borer descends as near the ground as its burrow will allow, and doubtless remains inactive until the following spring. On approach of the second winter it is about one-half grown, and still living on the sap-wood; and it is at this time that these borers do the most damage, for where there are four or six in a single tree, they almost completely girdle it. During the next summer, when the worm has become about three-fourths grown, it generally commences to cut a cylindrical passage upward into the solid wood, and be- fore it has finished its larval growth, it invariably extends this passage right to the bark, sometimes cutting entirely through a tree to the opposite side from which it com- menced; sometimes turning back at different angles. It then stuffs the upper end of the passage with sawdust- like powder, and the lower part with curly fibres of wood, after which it rests from its labors. It thus finishes its gnawing work during the commencement of the third winter, but remains motionless in the larval state until the following spring, when it casts off its skin once more and becomes a pupa. After resting three weeks in the pupa state, it appears as a beetle, with all its members and parts at first soft and weak. These gradually harden, and in a fortnight more it cuts its way through its saw- dust-like castings, and issues from the tree through a per- fectly round hole. Thus it is in the tree a few days less than three years, and not merely two years as Dr. Fitch suggests. REMEDIES. — From this brief sketch of the Round- headed borer, it becomes apparent that plugging the holes to keep him in, is on a par with locking the stable OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 143 door to keep the horse in, after he is stolen; even suppos- ing there were any philosophy in the plugging system, which there is not; the round smooth holes are infallible indication that the borer has left, while the plugging up of any other holes or cracks where the castings are seen, will not affect the intruder. This insect probably has some natural enemies, belonging to its own great class, and some wood-peckers doubtless seek it out from its retreat and devour it; but its enemies are certainly not sufficiently under our control, and to grow healthy apple trees, we have to fight it artificially. Here again preven- tion will prove better than cure, and a stitch in time will not only save nine, but fully ninety-nine. Experiments have amply proved that alkaline washes are repulsive to this insect, and the female beetle will not lay her eggs upon trees protected by such washes. Keep the base of every tree in the orchard free from weeds and trash, and apply soap to them during the month of May, and they will not probably be troubled with borers. For this purpose soft-soap or common bar soap can be used. The last is perhaps the most convenient, and the newer and softer it is the better. Home-made soft-soap, such as is prepared on many farms from ley of wood-ashes, usually contains an access of alkali, and when thinned with water, so that it will work with a brush is excellent, This borer confines himself almost entirely to the base of the tree, though very rarely it is found in the crotch. It is therefore only necessary in soaping, to rub over the lower part of the trunk and the crotch, but is a very good plan to lay a piece of hard soap in the principal crotch, so that it may be washed down by the rains. In case these precautions have not been taken, and the borer is already at work, many of them may be killed by cutting through the bark at the upper end of their bur- rows, and gradually pouring hot water into the cuts, so that it will soak through the castings, and penetrate to 144 INJURIOUS INSECTS the insect. But even where the soap preventive is used in the month of May, it is always advisable to examine the trees in the fall, at which time the young worms that hatched through the summer may be generally detected, and easily cut out without injury to the tree. Particular at- tention should also be paid to any tree that has been injured or sun-scalded, as such trees are most liable to be attacked. THE FLAT-HEADED APPLE-TREE BORER. (Chrysobothris femorata, Fabr.) This borer which is presented in the larva state at figure 95, a, may at once be recognized by it anterior ends being enormously enlarged and flattened. It is paler than the preceding, and makes an entirely different burrow. In consequence of its immensely broad and flat- tened head, it bores a hole of an oval shape, and twice as wide as high. It never acquires much more than half the size of the other species, and is almost al- ways found with its tail curled Fig. 95.— FLAT-HEADED completely round towards the APPLE-TREE BORER ( UhrySO- 1 n T. i:voa 1,,,+ nT,A TTOQT. in bothris femorata, Fabr.) neacL Xt mes Ut °ne Jear m a, Larva; 6, Pupate, upper joints the tree, and produces the beetle of Larva seen from beneath ; * a, Beetle. represented at figure 95, d, which is of a greenish-black color, with brassy lines and spots above, the underside appearing like burnished copper. This beetle flies by day instead of by night, and may often be found on different trees basking in the sunshine. It at- tacks not only the Apple, but the Peach, also the Soft Ma- ple, Oak, and is said to attack a variety of other forest trees; though, since the larvae of the family (Bupre&tida), to which it belongs, all bear a striking resemblance to each OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 145 other, it is possible that this particular species has been accused of more than it deserves. It is, however, but far too common in the Valley of the Mississippi, and along the Iron Mountain and Pacific railroads; it is even more common than the preceding species. Mr. G. Paul, of Eureka, states that it has killed fifty apple trees for him, and Mr. Votaw, and many others in that neighborhood have suffered from it in like manner. It is also seriously affecting the soft maples by riddling them through and through, though it confines itself for the most part to the inner bark, causing peculiar black scars and holes in the trunk. Unless its destructive work is soon checked, it bids fair to impair the value of this tree for shade and ornamental purposes, as effectually as the Locust-borers have done with the Locust trees. EEMEDIES. — Dr. Fitch found that this borer was at- tacked by the larvae of some parasitic fly belonging prob- ably to the CJialcis family, but it is greatly to be feared that this parasite is as yet unknown in the West. At all events this Flat-headed borer is far more common with our Eastern brethren. As this beetle makes its appear- ance during the months of May and June, and as the eggs are deposited on the trunk of the tree, as with the pre- ceding species, the same method of cutting them out, or scalding them can be applied in the one case as in the other; while the soap preventive is proved to be equally effectual with this species as with the other. It must, however, be applied more generally over the tree, as they attack all parts of the trunk, and even the larger limbs. THE APPLE-TWIG BORER. (Amphicerus bicaudatus, Say.) The Apple-twig borer is a modest looking dark-brown insect, the thorax rounded and rough-punctured, espec- ially in front where it is produced into two little horns, 7 146 INJURIOUS INSECTS and covered with small rasp-like prominences. The wing-covers are also rough-punctured, and while in the female (fig. 96, a), they have but a slight keel-like eleva- tion at the hind end, they are furnished in the male (fig. 96, V), with two little horns, from which characteristic the specific name (two-tailed) is derived. The holes made in the twigs, generally have their en- trance just above a bud or fork as at figure 97, c. This insect is not known to bore more than an inch and a-half into the twig (fig. 97, d), and the holes are generally made downwards, and in the wood of the previous year's growth, though they are sometimes exceptionally bored upward and in three-year old wood. The beetles seem to prefer some particular varieties, such as Benoni and a b Fig. 96.— APPLE-TWIG BORER. Fig. 97. — APPLE-TWIG BORER, a Female ; b, Male. c, Puncture ; d, Interior of Stein. Red June, to other varieties of the Apple, and though they likewise occur in Pear and Peach stems, and in the Grape, they have not been found in those of the Crab-apple. Both the male and female beetles bore these holes, and may always be found in them, head downwards, during the winter and spring months. The holes are made for food and protection, and not for breeding purposes. In- deed, common as this insect is, its preparatory stages are entirely unknown, and whoever will ascertain its larval history, will confer a favor on the community. The bored twigs almost always break off by the wind, or else the hole catches the water in spring and causes an unsound place in the tree. If the twig does not break off, it withers and the leaves turn brown. The only way OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. to counteract the injuries committed by this beetle, is to prune the infested twigs, whenever found, and take great care to burn them with their contents. It is in the nur- sery that most damage is done by this insect, as it is sel- dom numerous enough in an orchard of large trees to more than cause what the philosophic orchardist termed " a good summer pruning." UNIVERSITY BAKK-LICE. The Bark-lice belong to the Order Hemiptera, in which they form the group or family, Coccidew, so named from the genus Coccus, one species of which is the remarkable Cochineal Insect. Several of these insects are very injurious to the Orange trees and others of that Family; one infests the Osage Orange, while at least two at- tack our orchard trees, especially the Apple, though the Pear, Quince, etc.f are often infested by them. HARRIS'S BARK-LOUSE. (Aspidiotus Harrisii, Walsh.) Fig. 98.— HARRIS'S BARK-LOUSE. This appears upon the trunks of small trees, and the branches of older ones, in the form of dirty-white scales, which are usually irregularly egg-shaped; but, however variable in outline, it is always quite flat and causes the infested tree to wear the appearance of figure 98; while the minute eggs which are found under it in winter time are invariably blood-red or lake-red. This species has scarcely ever been known to increase sufficiently to do 148 INJURIOUS IKSECTS material damage, for the reason, doubtless, that there have, hitherto, always been natural enemies and parasites enough to keep it in due bounds. THE OYSTER-SHELL BAEK-LOUSE. (Mytilaspis pomicorticis, Riley.) The Oyster-shell Bark-louse, was formerly known as Aspidiotus conchiformis, but changed by Prof. Eiley for good reasons to the name given above. It is one of the most pernicious and destructive insects with which the apple-grower in the North- ern States has to contend. This species presents the appearance of figure 99, and may always be dis- Fig. 99.-OTSTEK-SHELL BABK^" tinguished from the pre- ceding, by having a very uniform mussel-shaped scale of an ash-gray color (the identical color of the bark), and by these scales, contain- ing, in the winter time, not red, but pure white eggs. There is scarcely an apple-orchard in Northern Illinois, in Iowa, or in Wisconsin, that has not suffered more or less from its attacks, and many an one has been slowly but surely bled to death by this tiny sap-sucker. It was introduced into the Eastern States about the beginning of the present century, from Europe, and had already reached as far west as Wisconsin in 1840, from whence it spread at a most alarming rate throughout the districts bordering on Lake Michigan. It occurs at the present time in Minnesota and Iowa, but whether or not it extends westward beyond the Missouri River, there are no data to show. Its extension southward is undoubtedly limited, for though so abundant in the northern half of OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 149 Illinois, observation has shown that it does not exist in the southern half of the same State. As the female Bark-louse is only capable of motion for two to three days at the most, after which time she becomes as permanently fixed for the rest of her life, as is the tree on which she is fastened, it may puzzle some to divine how this insect spreads from tree to tree, and place to place. That it is transported to distant places, mainly on young trees, there can be no doubt, and there are various ways in which it can spread from tree to tree in the same orchard, though it can only thus spread during the few days of its active larval state. Though essentially belonging to the Apple Tree, this Oyster-shell Bark-louse, is found upon the Currant, the Plum, and the Pear. I have seen the scales fully developed, and bearing healthy eggs on the fruit of the White Doyenne Pear, of the Transcendent Crab, and of Wild Plum (Prunus Americana); and, though on the hard bark of a tree, we cannot judge of the amount of sap they absorb, it is quite apparent on these soft fruits, for each scale causes a considerable depression from the general surface. EEMEDIES. — If an orchard is once attacked before the owner is aware of it, much could be done on the young trees by scraping the scales off in winter, but on large trees, where it is difficult to reach all the terminal twigs, this method becomes altogether impracticable, and it will avail but little to cleanse the trunk alone, as most of the scales containing living eggs will be found on the terminal branches. Alkaline washes, and all other washes, except those of an oily nature, such as petroleum and kerosene, are of no avail when applied to the scales, for the simple reason that they do not penetrate and reach the eggs which are so well protected by these scales; and it is very doubtful whether any solution can be used, that is sufficiently oily to penetrate the scales 150 INJURIOUS INSECTS and kill the eggs without injury to the tree, especially while the sap of the tree is inactive. Hence the Bark- louse can only be successfully fought at the time the eggs are hatching, and the young lice are crawling over the limbs. The time of year in which this occurs, are the last days of May and the first days of June, but without close scrutiny they will not be observed, as they appear like very minute, white, moving specks. "While the young larvae are thus crawling over the tree, they are so tender that they can be readily destroyed by simply scrubbing the limbs with a stiff brush. With regard to washes to be used with a syringe, the late Dr. Jno. Kennicott used one pound of Sal. Soda, to one gallon of water with good effect; Mr. E. GL Mygatt, of Eichmond, McHenry County, Illinois, has experi- mented with this insect for over twenty years, with the following result: Brine (2 quarts salt to 8 of water), kills the lice, but also the foliage and fruit. Tobacco- water (strong decoction), neither injures the foliage nor affects the lice. Weak Lye, while it kills the lice, will also some- what affect the leaves. Lime-water kills about half the lice, and affects the leaves a little. Finally, a decoction of Quassia, though well known to be effectual for the common Plant-lice, has no effect on these Coccids. In short, we have abundant proof that neither Tobacco- water, nor strong Alkaline washes, have any effect on the young lice, though a strong solution of soap will kill them, and my experience the past season, with Cresylic Acid soap in other directions, leads me to strongly recommend it for this purpose. It will sometimes be nec- essary to repeat the wash, as the lice do not all hatch out the same day, though the period of hatching seldom extends over three days. From the foregoing it is obvious that Bark -lice can only be successfully fought during three or four days of the year; how absurd and ridiculous then, are all the OE THE FAKM AND GARDEN. 151 patent nostrums and compounds, which are continuously offered to the public us perfect " Bark-lice extinguishers," and which never mention this important fact. One case was reported to the " American Agricul- turist " a few years ago, by the owner of a Pear Tree badly covered with this Bark-louse. Painters were at work painting the house, and in a fit of desperation he took a brush and painted the tree from the ground to the end of the smallest branch, expecting of course to kill it. Much to his surprise, the tree pushed its shoots as readily as ever, and was perfectly free from the insect. Another case was reported in the same journal of the efficacy of Crude Petroleum, used in the same manner on young Apple trees. These however may be regarded as desperate cases, and are only given as hints. THE APPLE-TREE TENT-CATERPILLAR. (Clisiocampa Americana, Harr.) "What orchardist in the older States of the Union is not familiar with the white web-nests of this caterpillar? As they glisten in the rays of the spring sun before the trees have put on their full summer dress, these nests, which are then small, speak volumes of the negligence and slovenliness of the owner of the orchard, and tell more truly than almost any thing else why it is that he fails and has bad luck with his apple crop. Wherever these nests abound one feels morally certain that the borers, the Codling-moth, and the many other enemies of the apple tree, have full play to do as they please, unmolested and unnoticed by him whom they are ruining. The small, bright and glistening web, if unmolested, is soon enlarged until it spreads over whole branches, and the caterpillars which were the architects, in time become 152 INJUBIOUS INSECTS moths, and they lay their eggs for an increased supply of nests another year. This insect is so well known throughout the country that it is only necessary to give here the most prominent and important points in its history, the more especially ^;^£S Fig. 100. — APPLE-TREE TENT-CATERPILLAR ( Clmocampa Americana, Harr.) a, Side View; 6, Back View of Caterpillar ; c, Eggs ; d, Cocoon. as the figures herewith given will alone enable the novice to recognize it the moment it appears in a young orchard. The eggs (fig. 100, c), from which these caterpillars hatch are deposited mostly during the month of June, in oval rings, upon the smaller twigs, and this peculiar mode of deposition renders them conspicuous objects during the winter time, when by a little practice they can OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 153 easily be distinguished from the buds, knots, or swellings of the naked twigs. Each cluster consists of from two to three hundred eggs, and is covered and protected from the weather by a coating of glutinous matter, and the same temperature which causes the apple-buds to swell and burst, quickens the vital energies of these larvae and causes them to eat their way out of their eggs. Very often they hatch during a prematurely warm spell, and before there is any green leaf for them to feed upon, but they are so tough and hardy that they can fast for many days with impunity, and the glutinous substance on the outside of their eggs furnishes good sustenance and gives them strength at first. It is even as- serted by Mr. H. 0. Raymond, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, that the eggs often hatch in the fall, and that in these Fi£- 101.— APPLE-TREE TENT- CATERPILLAR, MOTH. cases the larvae with- stand the severity of the winter with impunity. The young caterpillars commence spinning the moment they are born, and indeed they never move without ex- tending their thread wherever they go. All the individ- uals hatched from the same batch of eggs work together in harmony, and each performs its share of building the common tent, under which they shelter when not feed- ing and during inclement weather. They usually feed twice each day, namely, once in the forenoon and once in the afternoon. After feeding for five or six weeks, during which time they change their skins four times, these caterpillars acquire their full growth, when they ap- pear as at fig. 100 (a side view, b back view), the colors being black, white, blue and rufous or reddish. They then scatter in all directions in search of some cozy and sheltered nook, such as the crevice or angle of the fence, 154 INJUKIOUS INSECTS and having finally decided on the spot, each one spins an oblong-oval yellow cocoon (fig. 100, d], the silk composing which is intermixed with a yellow fluid or paste, which dries into a powder looking something like sulphur. A few individuals almost always remain and spin up in the tent, and these cocoons will be found intermixed with the black excrement long after the old tent is deserted. Within this cocoon the caterpillar soon assumes the chrysalis state, and from it, at the end of about three weeks, the perfect insect issues as a dull yellowish-brown or a reddish-brown moth (fig. 101), characterized chiefly by the front wings being divided into three nearly equal parts by two transverse whitish or pale-yellowish lines, and by the middle space between these lines being paler than in the rest of the wing in the males, though it is more often of the same color, or even darker in the fe- males. The species is, however, very variable. The moths do not feed, and the sole aim of their lives seems to be the perpetuation of their kind; for as soon as they have paired and each female has carefully con- signed her eggs to some twig, they die, and when the proper time comes around again the eggs will hatch, and the same cycle of changes take place each year. This insect in all probability extends wherever the wild Black Cherry (Prunus serotina) is found, as it pre- fers this tree to all others; and this is probably the reason why the young so often hatch out before the apple buds burst, because, as is well known, the Cherry leaves out much earlier. Besides the Cherry and Apple, both wild and cultivated, the Apple-Tree Tent-caterpillar will feed upon Plum, Thorn, Rose, and perhaps on most plants be- longing to the Rose family, though the Peach is not con- genial to it, and it never attacks the Pear, upon which it is said that it will starve. It does well on Willow and Poplar, and even on White Oak, according to Fitch, who also found it on Witch Hazel (Hamamelis) and Beech. OF THE FAEM AKD GAKDEH. 155 REMEDIES. — No insect is more readily kept in sub- jection than this. Cut off and burn the egg-clusters during winter, and examine the trees carefully in the spring for the nests from such clusters as may have eluded the winter search. The eggs are best seen in a dull day in winter when they show distinctly against the sky. Though to kill the caterpillars numerous methods have been resorted to, such as burning, and swabbing with oil, soap suds, lye, etc., they are all unnecessary, for the nests should not be allowed to get large, and if taken when small are most easily and effectually destroyed by going over the orchard with the fruit-ladder, and by the use of gloved hands. As the caterpillars feed twice a day, once in the forenoon and once in the afternoon, and as they are almost always in their nests till after nine A. M., and late in the evening, the early and late hours of the day are the" best in which to perform the operation. As a means of facilitating their destruction, it would be a good plan, as Dr. Fitch has suggested, to place a few Wild Cherry trees in the vicinity of the orchard, and as the moths will mostly be attracted to such trees to deposit their eggs, and as a hundred clusters on a single tree are destroyed more easily than if they were scattered over a hundred trees, these trees will repay the trouble wherever the Tent-caterpillar is known to be a grievous pest. THE TENT-CATERPILLAR OF THE FOREST. (Clisiocampa sylvatica, Harr.) The egg-mass from which the Tent-caterpillar of the Forest hatches (fig. 102, a, showing it after the young larvse have escaped) may at once be distinguished from that of the common Tent-caterpillar by its being of a uniform diameter, and docked off squarely at each end. It is usu- ally composed of about four hundred eggs, (the number 156 INJUBIOTJS INSECTS in five masses ranging from three hundred and eighty to four hundred and sixteen). Each of the eggs composing this mass is of a cream-white color, 0.04 inch long and 0.025 inch wide, narrow and rounded at the attached end or base, gradually enlarging towards the top, where it becomes slightly smaller (fig. 102, d), and abruptly ter- minates with a prominent circular rim on the outside, and a sunken spot in the center (c). These eggs are de- posited in circles, the female moth stationing herself, for this purpose, in a transverse position across the twig. With abdomen curved she gradually moves as the depo- Fig. 102. — TENT-CATERPILLAR OF THE FOREST (Clisiocampa sylvoticd). a, Egg-mass ; &, Moth ; c, top of Egg ; d, Eggs. sition goes on, and when one circle is completed, she commences another — and not before. With each egg is secreted a brown varnish which firmly fastens it to the twig and to its neighbor, and which, upon becoming dry, forms a net-work of brown over the pale egg-shell. These eggs are so regularly laid and so closely glued to each other, and the sides are often so appressed, that the moth economizes space almost as effectually as does the Honey-bee in the formation of its hexagonal cells. The eggs are deposited, in the latitude of St. Louis, during the latter part of June. The embryo develops during the hot summer weather and the yet unborn larva OF THE FABM AND GARDEN. 157 is fully formed by the time winter comes on. They hatch with the first warm weather, in spring — generally from the middle to the last of March — and though the buds of their food-plant may not have opened at the time, and though it may freeze severely afterwards, yet these little creatures are wonderfully hardy, and can fast for three whole weeks, if need be, and withstand any amount of inclement weather. The very moment these little larvae are born, they commence spinning a web wherever they go. At this time they are black with pale hairs, and are always found either huddled together or travelling in file along the silken paths which they form when in search of food. In about two weeks from the time they com- mence feeding fchey go through their first moult, having first grown paler or of a light yellowish-brown, with the extremities rather darker than the middle of the body, with the little warts which give rise to the hairs quite distinct, and a conspicuous dark interrupted line each side of the back. After the first moult, they are charac- terized principally by two pale-yellowish subdorsal lines, which border what was before the dark line above de- scribed. After the second moult, which takes place in about a week from the first, the characteristic pale spots on the back appear, the upper pale line becomes yellow, the lower one white, and the space between them bluish: indeed, the characters of the mature larva are from this period apparent. Very soon they undergo a third moult, after which the colors all become more distinct and fresh, the head and anal plate have a soft bluish velvety appear- ance, and the hairs seem more dense. After undergoing a fourth moult without material change in appearance, they acquire their full growth in about six weeks from the time of first feeding. At this time they appear as at figure 103. At this stage of its growth the Tent-caterpillar of the Forest may be seen wandering singly over diiferent trees, 158 INJURIOUS INSECTS along roads, on the tops of fences, etc. , in search of a suitable place to form its cocoon. It usually contents itself with folding a leaf or drawing several together for this purpose, though it frequently spins up under fence boards and in other sheltered situations. The cocoon is much like that of the common Tent-caterpillar, being formed of a loose exterior covering of white silk with the hairs of the larva interwoven, and by a more compact oval inner pod that is made stiff by the meshes being filled with a thin yellowish paste from the mouth of the larva, which paste, when dried, gives the cocoon the ap- pearance of being dusted with powdered sulphur. Three days after the cocoon is completed the caterpillar casts its skin for the last time and becomes a chrysalis of a red- Fig. 103. — TENT-CATERPILLAR OF THE FOREST. dish-brown color, slightly dusted with a pale powder, and densely clothed with short pale yellow hairs, which at the blunt and rounded extremity are somewhat larger and darker. In a couple of weeks more, or during the fore- part of June, the moths commence to issue, and fly about at night. This moth (fig. 102, #, female), bears a consid- erable resemblance to that of the Common Tent-caterpil- lar (fig. 101), being of a brownish yellow or rusty brown, and having two oblique transverse lines across the front wings. It differs, however, in the color being paler or more yellowish, especially on the thorax; in the space be- tween the oblique lines being usually darker instead of lighter than that on either side; but principally in the oblique lines themselves being dark instead of light, and in a transverse shade, often quite distinct, across the hind wings. As in C. Americana, the male is smaller OF THE FAKM AND GARDEN. 159 than the female, with the wings shorter and cut off more squarely. Considerable variation may be found in a given number of moths, but principally in the space between the oblique lines on the front wings being either of the same shade as the rest of the wing, or in its being much darker; but as we have found these variations in different individuals of the same brood, bred either from Ap- ple, Oak, Hickory, or Rose, they evidently have nothing to do with the food-plant. The scales on the wings are very loosely attached, and rub off so readily that good specimens of the moth are seldom captured at large THE LARVA SPINS A WEB. From the very moment it is born until after the fourth or last moult, this caterpillar spins a web and lives more or less in company; but from the fact that this web is always attached close to the branches and trunks of the trees infested, it is often overlooked, and several writers have falsely declared that it does not spin. At each suc- cessive moult all the individuals of a batch collect and huddle together upon a common web for two or three days, and during these periods — though more active than most caterpillars in this so-called sickness — they are quite sluggish. During the last or fourth moult they very frequently come low down on the trunk of the tree, and, unwittingly court destruction by collecting in masses within man's reach. REMEDIES. — From their birth until after the third moult these worms will drop and suspend themselves in mid-air, if the branch upon which they are feeding be suddenly jarred. Therefore when they have been allowed to multiply in an orchard this habit will suggest various modes of destroying them. Again, as already stated, they can often be slaughtered en masse when collected on the trunks during the last moulting period. They will more 160 INJURIOUS INSECTS generally be found on the leeward side of the tree if the wind has been blowing in the same direction for a few days. The cocoons may also be searched for, and many of the moths caught by attracting them towards the light. But the most effective artificial mode of preventing this insect's injuries is to search for and destroy the egg- masses in the winter time when the trees are leafless. SUMMARY. The Tent-caterpillar of the Forest differs from the common Orchard Tent-caterpillar principally in its egg- mass being docked off squarely instead of being rounded at each end; in its larva having a row of spots along the back instead of a continuous narrow line, and in its moth having the color between the oblique lines on the front wings as dark or else darker, instead of ligh fcer than the rest of the wing. It feeds on a variety of both orchard and forest trees; makes a web which, from its being usu- ally fastened close to the tree, is often overlooked; is very destructive, and is most easily fought in the egg state. THE FALL WEB-WORM. (Hyphantria textor, Harris.) The appearance of webs, or "tents," upon fruit and other trees in late summer and early autumn, has caused many to suppose that there was a second brood of the Tent-caterpillar. These late webs belong to a very dif- ferent insect, which lays her eggs in a cluster upon a leaf near the end of a twig, and the young caterpillars, like those of the true tent-makers, begin to spin as soon as hatched; and as they feed and spin in company, the web formed by their united efforts soon becomes con- OF THE FARM AND GARDEH. 161 spicuous. The worms descend the branches, devouring the pulpy portions of the leaves upon them, and form a web as they go. When they have made their growth, the caterpillars descend to the ground, where, just beneath the surface, they enter the pupa state; the next summer they issue as pure white moths, to lay eggs for another brood. The worm, or caterpillar, is of a general pale- yellow color, with a broad dusky stripe along the back, and a yellow stripe along each side, and they have nu- merous whitish hairs. While the Fall Web-worm often attacks the Apple and other fruit trees, it does not con- fine itself to the orchard, but its webs may be seen in autumn upon various kinds of trees, as well as on shrubs. The only remedy is to destroy the web wherever it may be seen; and as the worms never leave the nest, this is quite sure to be effective. THE APPLE-WORM—CODLING MOTH. (Carpocapsa pomonella, Linn.) This is one of the most important of the insects of the orchard, in view of the great loss it annually causes. While all those who eat apples have seen its work, a bur- rowing at the core of the fruit and an abundant deposit of excrement, very few, even among fruit growers, have seen the perfect insect, which is a small moth. Like most of our worm insect foes, it was originally a denizen of the Old World, having been introduced into this country only about the beginning of the present cen- tury. Twenty years ago it was unknown in Illinois; and it is only within the last eight or ten years that it has penetrated into Iowa. The Apple-worm moth makes its appearance in North Illinois from the last of May to the forepart of June, and a little earlier or later according to the season and the 162 INJURIOUS INSECTS latitude. Usually, at the time it appears, the young ap- ples are already set, and begimiing to be about as large as a hazel-nut. After coupling in the usual manner, the female moth then proceeds to deposit a single egg in the blossom end of the fruit, flying from fruit to fruit until her stock of eggs (amounting to probably two or three hundred) is exhausted. Not long after accomplishing this process she dies of old age and exhaustion. In a short time afterwards the egg, no matter where it is located, hatches out, and the young larva forthwith pro- Fig. 104.— APPLE-WORM— CODLING MOTH (Carpocapsa pomonella, Linn.) Perfect Insect ; Larva and its work ; Pupa at the lower right-hand side. ceeds to burrow into the flesh of the apple, feeding as it goes, but making its head-quarters in the core. In three or four weeks time it is full grown, and shortly before this, the infested apple generally falls to the ground. The larva then crawls out of the fruit through a large hole in the cheek, which it has bored several days beforehand for that express purpose, and usually makes for the trunk of the tree, up which it climbs, and spins around itself a silken cocoon of a dirty-white color, in any convenient crevice it can find, the crotch of the tree being a favorite spot. Here it transforms into the OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 163 pupa state; and, towards the latter end of July or the forepart of August, bursts forth in the moth state. The different stages in the life of this insect are given in figure 104. The channel made by the young larva in reaching the core, and the cavity it makes in feeding there, are shown. At the upper right hand the full grown larva is given, and at the lower, right-hand the pupa. At the left-hand side the perfect insect is shown, with its wings open and closed. The moth is distin- guished from all other moths by a patch of coppery scales at the tip of its front wings. The infested fruit does not always drop when the borer leaves it; seeks a place in which to undergo its changes, and in from ten to fifteen days a second brood of moths issues, and the fruit is re- stocked with larvae. The second brood do not issue as moths until the next spring, many of the larvae of the late brood do not leave the apples until they are harvested, and undergo their changes in the cellar. EEMEDIES. — The utility of pasturing swine in the or- chard is generally admitted and did all the infested ap- ples fall would be more than the partial remedy that it it now is. Acting upon the fact that many of the worms after leaving the fallen fruit seek a place of concealment upon the trunk in which to pupate, Codling-moth traps have been invented, and some have been patented. One of the most effective traps is a strip of carpet or other coarse woollen fabric, about five inches wide and long enough to go around the tree; this is fastened by a few tacks, which should not be driven home, as they need to be removed. These strips are examined every ten days and the insects killed. In large orchards the killing is expedition sly done by running the cloths between the rollers of a clothes wringer. Fruit cellars, and any empty boxes or barrels they may contain, should be ex- amined before May for concealed pupae. 164 INJURIOUS INSECTS THE APPLE-MAGGOT. (Trypeta pomonella, Walsh.) Besides the well-known Apple-worm, or Codling-moth, there is in some localities, especially in the older States, the Apple-maggot. It differs from the Codling-moth in many respects ; the parent insect is not a moth, but one of the two-winged flies. It is not, like the other, an Fig. 105.— APPLE-MAGGOT (Trypeta ponwndla, Walsh.) Perfect Insect ; Larva and its burrows ; Pupa. imported insect, but a native which has long inhabited our wild apples and the haws, or fruit of our thorns, and is found in cultivated fruit, here and there, all over the country. Figure 105 shows an infested apple, and the insect in its different stages, the perfect fly, with its transparent wings, being shown above, while the maggot and pupa are given below. The excavations in the apple show that the larvae enter at no particular place, and do not, as in the case of the Codling-moth, seek the core. The destruction of the infested fruit by feeding it to pigs, or making it into cider, are among the obvious means of prevention. OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 165 THE APPLE CURCULIO. (Anthonomus quadrigibbus, Say.) Some have stated that the common Plum Curculio will also attack young Apples; however this may be, there is, in several of the Western States, and in Canada, a Curculio which has long infested the native Crab Apples, and has, in many cases, learned to prefer the cultivated to the wild fruit. A comparison of the en- graving of this insect (fig. 106), with that of the Plum Curculio, given on a subsequent page, will at once show striking differ- ence. In the first place, there is the greater length of snout, which is carried extended in front; then the marked widening of the body behind, serves also to distinguish it. It has four conspicuous lumps on the wing-cases at the rear, from which it takes its specific name. It varies from one-twentieth, to one- twelfth of an inch in length. It is of a rusty-brown color, and the thorax, and often the forward third of the wing-covers ash-gray. The insect deposits its egg in an opening made in the skin of the fruit; the larva when hatched goes to the core, and there feeds, producing much excrement, for nearly a month, and then assumes the pupa state within the fruit, which does not fall; in two or three weeks it appears as a perfect beetle. In Missouri and Southern Illinois, this insect often does much damage to the Apple crop, and probably it is abundant in other States, where its work has been attributed to other insects. In several Fig. 106.— A.PPLE CURCULIO (Antho- nomus quadrigibbus, Say.) a, Real size ; ft, Side view ; c, Back view, both enlarged. 166 IKJURIOUS INSECTS cases it has been known to attack Pears as well as Apples. EEMEDIES. — It is not probable that much can be done with jarring down this insect, as advised for the Plurn Curculio, as it is not like that easily alarmed. So far as known, it can only be attacked while within the fruit. Shaking or jarring the tree may be useful in bringing down the infested apples, which should be at once fed to swine, or otherwise destroyed. THE CANKER-WORM. (Anisopteryx vernata, Peck.) The greatest injury done by Canker-worms is to Apple- trees, but it also attacks other fruit trees, and often injures shade trees, especially the Elm, which in some localities it completely defoliates. The male moth (fig. 107) has an expanse of wings of about an inch and a quarter; the wings are very thin Fig. 107.— MALE CANKER- and silky, the fore- wings ash- WOKM — MOTH (Anisopteryx n -i •,-, ,, , , -.. .. vernata, Peck.) colored, with a small but distinct whitish spot on the front edge, near the tip ; the hind wings are pale ash-colored. The female (fig. 108) is entirely wingless and of a general ash-gray color. Being without wings, she can only reach the branches of the tree to deposit her eggs, by crawling up the trunk, which she does very early in the spring; in mild weather even in February. The eggs are deposited in clusters of one hundred or more on the bark of the branches and twigs, and may often be found on the inside of the loose scales of the bark. "When the leaves first begin to make their appearance, these eggs hatch into tiny Span-worms, scarcely visible to the naked eye, but they grow rapidly, and in three or four OF THE FARM AHD GARDEN. 167 weeivs have attained their full size — about an inch in length, when they cease eating, and let themselves down by a silken thread and enter the ground, where they soon become chrysalids, in which state they remain all through the summer and fall, and usually until the following spring, when they emerge as moths. The fact that the female moth is wingless makes it a comparatively easy matter to keep these Canker-worms in check, for the parent moth is obliged to crawl up the trunk of the tree to deposit her eggs, and if she can be prevented from doing this, of course she must lay her eggs below the obstruc- tion, where they can be easily destroyed. Dr. William Le Baron gives the following remedies in his Second Illinois Eeport: "1st. Prevent the passage of the moths up the trees. The most approved plan heretofore used is to put a canvas or other cloth band, six inches or more in width, around the trunk and besmear it with tar, or a mixture of tar and molasses, applied every other day. The method suggested in this Eeport is to put a band of rope or closely twisted hay around the trunk, and over this a tin band about four inches wide, so placed that the rope shall be at the middle of the tin, making a closed cavity below, and a free edge of tin above. The time to use these appliances is mostly in the month of March, but also at other times when the weather is sufficiently open to permit the insects to run. " 2nd. If the jnoths are prevented from ascending the tree, they will deposit their eggs below the obstruction, and for the most part near to it. These eggs can be destroyed by a single application of kerosene oil. " 3rd. If the moths are not prevented from ascending the tree, they will deposit their eggs mostly upon the underside of the scales of bark, on the upper part of 168 INJURIOUS INSECTS the trunk and larger branches. Many of these can be destroyed by scraping off and burning the scales. " 4th. If all precautions have been neglected and the eggs have been permitted to hatch, then, as soon as the worms are large enough to be easily seen, jar them from the trees and sweep them away with a pole, as they hang by their threads, and burn or otherwise destroy them. " 5th. If the worms have matured and gone into the ground for winter quarters, plow the ground late in the fall, so as to expose the pupae to frost, and to the action of natural enemies." The rope and tin bands mentioned in the first para- graph are deserving of particular attention, as they have been found to be an almost perfect barrier to the ascent of the moths. The method of putting on these bands is very simple. Take a piece of inch rope — old worn out rope is as good as new — tack one end to the trunk, two feet or less from the ground, with a shingle nail, driven in so that the head shall not project beyond the level of the rope. Bring the rope around the tree, and let it lap by the beginning an inch or two, cut it off and fasten it in the same manner. Get the tinman to cut up some sheets of tin into strips four inches wide and fasten them together endwise, so that they shall be long enough to go around the trees over the rope band, having the rope at the middle. Let the ends of the tin lap a little, punch a hole through them and fasten them with a nail driven through the tin and rope into the tree. The result of this contrivance is, that the moths congregate below the obstruction, and sometimes pile up so as to go over on the tin. But when they reach the upper edge of the tin they go round and round until they become discouraged! A great deal of ingenuity has been displayed in the con- trivance of barriers of various kinds for preventing the female Canker-worm moth from ascending the trees. A pin-maker in Connecticut made a barrier of several rows OF THE FARM AHD GARDEN. 169 of pins thrust through a rubber band; this was to be put around the trunk with the points of the pins outward. Other devices consist of troughs of sheet lead to surround the trunk, with a channel in which some kind of oil may be placed. In all such cases the simplest methods are the best. In New Haven and other New England places, which pride themselves upon their fine elms, trees which the Canker-worm particularly infests, the chief reliance is upon bands of thick paper placed around the trunks; this has placed upon it a barrier of pine tar or of old printer's-ink. Whatever barrier is used, it requires frequent attention. All liquids like oil, or viscid materi- als like tar, etc., may be covered by blowing dust, leaves, etc., to form a bridge across them; indeed the insects themselves, being arrested, often form a bridge with their dead bodies for the passage of their successors, and during the season such barriers should be daily looked to and renewed if necessary. It may be added that some orchardists, instead of using preventive measures, allow the insects to deposit their eggs on the trees, and then, when the caterpillars begin their work upon the foliage, destroy them by the use of Paris Green mixed with water, and thrown into the trees by means of a force-pump. NOTE. — While the foregoing insects attack the Apple in preference to other fruit trees, they are occasionally, as mentioned under each, injurious to other trees. When we recollect that all our fruit trees belong to the same botanical family (the Rosacece), it will not be sur- prising to find an insect attacking several different trees indiscriminately. This large family is divided by botan- ists into several sub-families, one of which, the Almond Sub-family (Amygdalece), includes, what are popularly 8 170 INJUKIOUS IKSECTS known as " Stone-fruits/' — Peach, Plum, Cherry, etc; another, the Pear Sub-family (Pomece), includes the Ap- ple, Pear, Quince, etc., and it is not often that the in- sects which prey upon one sub-family attack the other. Still there are a few general feeders, which are injurious to nearly all fruit trees, and make it difficult to classify insects according to the trees upon which they feed. The insects which follow, while they also injure the Apple, do not confine themselves to it; some attack all fruit trees alike, while the Peach-borer and Plum Curcu- lio restrict themselves to the stone-fruits. THE RED-HUMPED CATERPILLAR. (Notodonta continna, Smith.) Young Apple and Pear trees, and sometimes other fruit trees, are frequently defoliated, or have large branches completely stripped of their leaves in late sum- mer or early autumn, by the Red-humped Caterpillar. Fig. 109.— BED-HUMPED CATERPILLAR. Fig. 110.— PUPA OP RED- (Notodonta concinna, Smith.) HUMPED CATERPILLAR. The eggs are usually deposited in July, in clusters on the underside of a leaf near the end of a branch, and the young caterpillars eat downward, making clean work of the foliage as they descend. The full-grown caterpillars (fig. 109), are an inch and a quarter long; the general color yellowish-brown, paler on the sides, and striped length- wise with slender black lines; the head is coral- red, and on the top of the fourth ring is a bunch or hump OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 171 of the same brilliant color; there are several short black prickles along the top of the back. The caterpillar tapers towards the tail, and this end is always elevated when it is at rest. When full grown, all the caterpillars of the same brood descend to the ground at the same time, seek a hiding place under leaves, or just below the sur- face of the soil, where they form cocoons, and assume the chrysalis state (fig. 110), in which they remain un- til the following June, when the perfect insect issues as a small, neat-looking moth of a general light-brown color, the fore-wings are dark-brown along the inner margin, with a dark- brown spot near the middle. The wings expand from an inch, to an inch and three- eighths. If these caterpillars are noticed when first hatched, they will be found all near together, and may be readily destroyed. /^V OF THE THE TWIGGIRDLER.|ul.rIVEESITI (Oncideres cingulatus, Say.] This beetle is known to girdle a great nui ferent trees, among which may be men- tioned Apple, Pear, Peach, and Plum, Hickory, Elm, Persimmon, and Ameri- can Linden. Both sexes of the beetle feed upon the bark of the Hickory, but only the females, so far as we are aware, girdle the twigs. After partly girdling a particular twig she lays a number of eggs in the upper portion that has been killed, each egg being usually inserted just beneath a bud. Figure 111 shows the insect and her work. The twig usu- F m _TWIG_ ally, though not always, breaks off by GIRDLER ( Oncideres the force of the wind during winter, and the larvae flourish upon the dead wood as it lies upon the 172 INJURIOUS INSECTS ground, burrowing just beneath the bark, and when very numerous leaving little else than the outer bark. The beetles do this work in the fall of the year. The young larva hatches and works a short distance into the twig before winter sets in, and continues working through spring and summer, transforming to pupa only towards autumn. Some writers have stated that two years are required for its development. While this may be true farther north it is not true of the latitude of St. Louis. The Insect has been found destructive in Pennsylvania, Indiana, and other Western States. "Wherever its prun- ings are found, they should be gathered and burned. NEW YORK WEEVIL. (Ithyeerus Noveboracensis, Forster.) This large snout-beetle kills the twigs by gnawing off the tender bark, in the early part of the season before the buds have put out, and later in the year it destroys the tender shoots which start out from old wood, by entirely devouring them. It attacks, by preference, the tender growth of the Apple, though it will also make free with that of the Peach, Plum, and Pear, and probably of other fruit as well as of forest trees. This beetle belongs to the same family as does the Plum Curculio; it is distinguished from most of the other snout-beetles by the antennae or horns being straight instead of elbowed or flail-shaped as they are in the common Plum Curculio, for instance. The specific name Noveboracensis which means " of New York" was given to this beetle ninety-eight years ago, by Forster, doubtless because he received his specimens from New York. But like many other insects which have been honored with the name of some Eastern State, it is far more common in the Mississippi Valley than it is in the OP THE FARM AND GARDEN. 173 State of New York, it being scarcely known as an injuri- ous insect in the East. The general color of the beetle is ash-gray, marked with black as in the cut (fig. 112, c), and with the scutel or small semi-circular space immedi- ately behind the thorax, between the wings, of a yellow- ish color. Its larval habits were for a long time un- known, but it was recently ascertained that it breeds in the twigs and tender branches of the Bur Oak; we have good reason to believe that it also breeds in those of the Pignut Hickory. The female, in depositing, first makes a longitudi- nal excavation with her jaws (fig. 112, a), eating upwards under the bark towards the end of the branch, and afterwards turns round to thrust her egg into the excavation. The larva (fig. 112, b), hatching from the egg is of the usual pale- yellow color with a tawny head. We have watched the whole opera- tion of depositing, and, returning to the punctured twig a few days after the operation was performed, have cut out the young larva; but we do not yet know how long a time the larva needs to come to its growth, nor whether it undergoes its transformations within the branch, or leaves it for this purpose, to enter the ground; though the former hypothesis is the most likely. The same methods of catching this beetle may be em- ployed as with the Plum Curculio, Fig. 112.— NEW YORK WEE- VIL (Ithy cents Novebora- censis, Forster.) a, Puncture ; b, Larva ; c, Beetle. 174 INJURIOUS INSECTS CLIMBING CUT- WORMS. Orchardists in spring frequently find the hearts of their fruit buds — on young trees especially — entirely eaten out and destroyed, and this circumstance is attributed to va- rious causes, winged insects, beetles, slugs for instance; to birds or even to late frosts, when probably the entire mischief is caused by Cut-worms. When climbing, Cut-worms will crawl up a tree eight or ten feet high, and seem to like equally well the leaves of the Pear, Apple, and Grape. They work during the night, always descending to the earth again at early dawn, and hiding just under its sur- face, which accounts for their never having been noticed in this their work of destruction in former years. They seldom descend the tree as they ascend it, by crawling, but drop from the bud or leaf on which they have been feeding; and it is quite interesting to watch one at early morn when it has become full fed and the tender skin seems ready to burst from repletion, and see it prepare by a certain twist of the body for the fall. " On light soil they often destroy low-branched fruit trees of all kinds, except the Peach, feeding on the fruit buds first, the wood buds as a second choice, tender grape buds and shoots (to which they are also partial), not ex- cepted; the miller always prefers to lay her eggs near the hill or mound over the roots of the trees in the or- chard; and if, as is many times the case, the trees have a spring dressing of lime or ashes with the view of prevent- ing the May-beetle's operations, this will be selected with unerring instinct by the miller, thus giving her larvae a fine warm bed to cover themselves up in during the day from the observations of their enemies. They will leave potatoes, peas, and all other green things for the Apple and Pear. The long, naked young trees of the orchard OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 175 are almost exempt from their voracious attacks, but I have found them about midnight, of a damp and dark night well up in the limbs of these. The habit of the Dwarf Apple and Pear tree, however, just suits their natures, and much of the complaint of those people who cannot make these trees thrive on a sandy soil, has its founda- tion here, though apparently utterly unknown to the orchardist. There is no known remedy; salt has no properties repulsive to them, they burrow in it equally as quick as in lime or ashes. Tobacco, soap and other di- luted washes do not even provoke them; but a tin tube six inches in length, opened on the side and closed around the base of the tree, fitting close and entering at the lower end an inch into the gre-und, is what the lawyers would term an effectual estoppel to further proceedings. "If the dwarf tree branches so low from the ground as not to leave six inches clear of trunk between the limbs and ground, the limbs must be sacrificed to save the tree — as in two nights four or five of these pests will fully and effectually strip a four or five-year-old dwarf tree of every fruit and wood bud, and often when the tree is green, utterly denude it of its foliage. I look upon this Out-worm as an enemy to the orchard more fatal than the Canker-worm, when left to themselves, but for- tunately for mankind more surely headed off." J. W. Oochran, Calumet, Illinois. The Climbing Cut-worm seems to prefer the Apple, Pear, and Grape-vine, though it also attacks the Black- berry, Easpberry, Currant, and even Rose-bushes and ornamental trees. The subject is all important to the orchardist, and to those especially who have young and newly-planted trees on a light soil; for there are many who have had their trees injured by the buds being devoured in this manner, who never dreamed of preventing such an occurrence, for the reason that the mischief was attributed to birds. 176 ItfJUBIOUS INSECTS Thus our quail, purple-finch, and many other birds, have too often unjustly received the execrations of the fruit culturist, which that evil genius, the Cut-worm, alone deserved. To understand an enemy's foible is to have conquered, and when we learn the source of an evil it need exist no longer. The range of these Climbing Cut-worms seems to be wide, for we have undoubted evidence of their attacking the Grape-vine in California, and I have found two species in Missouri, which have the same habit. Climbing Cut- worms frequently have the same habit of severing plants, as those which have never been known to climb, and I very much incline to believe that this habit is only acquired in the spring time, and most Cut-worms will mount trees if they are forced to do so, by the absence of herbaceous plants. The Climbing Cut-worm (Agrotis scandens, Kiley), has a similar general appearance to those which do not climb (see fig. 50, page 80). Its general color is a very light yellowish-gray, variegated with dirty bluish-green, and when filled with food it wears a much greener appearance than otherwise. In depth of shading it is variable, how- ever, and the young worm is of a more uniform dirty whitish-yellow, with the lines along the body less distinct, but the shiny spots more so than in the full grown ones. Mr. Cochran informs us that on the Apple tree, when this worm has fed out its bud, the work is effectually done, that no adventitious or accessory bud ever starts again from the same place; the worm, as it were, boring into the very heart of the wood and effectually destroy- ing the ability of the tree to re-act, at such a point, in the formation of a new bud, and that consequently a tree that is once stripped generally dies, and that this occurs more frequently on small or dwarf trees, where the buds are few, and three or four worms in a single night can eat out every one. OF THE FARM AND GAKD?H.J JT T T7 T?Wc* T m Vv O j\ ^ O^1 THE BAG-WORM, BASKET-WORM, or BBOP-WQRM. (Thyridopteryx ephemerceformis, Haw). The Bag-worm may be regarded as a Southern rather than a Northern insect, though it is found as far North as the northern part of New Jersey. It is known to occur on Long Island, N. Y., in New Jersey, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, District of Columbia, the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, Kentucky, South Illinois, and South Missouri. Like the Canker-worm, the Tussock-moth, and all other insects in which the perfect female is wingless, the Bag- worm is extremely local in character, often abounding in a particular neighborhood, and being totally unknown a few miles away. The clothing made by different insects, for protection either against the inclemency of the weather or against their enemies, is even more varied in cut and make-up, than are the divers costumes of the different peoples, civilized and barbarous, which inhabit our globe. Some insects live in the interior of leaves, using the upper and under cuticles as protection; some make their coats out of leaves themselves; some make cases of a sort of gummy cement, while others use cases of spun silk; but by far the greater number of those which protect themselves at all, employ silken cases which they cover and disguise with some other material. Thus lichens, grass, rushes, stones, shells, sand, wool, cotton, hair, wax, and the bark, twigs and leaves of trees, are all used for this purpose, while a few worms actually use their own excrement arranged on the outside of their cases with mathematical precision; unlike us mortals, however, these insects do not change the fashion of their dress with every change of season, but follow strictly the pattern used by their ancestors, who cut, spun, and wove, ages before our primordial 178 IJSTJUKIOUS INSECTS. mother sewed fig-leaves together. The follicle of our Bag-worm is covered by the leaves and stems of those trees or shrubs on which it subsists; and when evergreen leaves are used^ they are often very regularly and prettily arranged after the fashion of thatching. Throughout the winter, the weather-beaten bags of this insect may be seen hanging from almost every kind of tree; upon plucking them at that season many of them will be found empty, but the greater proportion of them will, on being cut open, be found partly full of soft yellow eggs. Those which do not contain eggs, are the male bags, and his empty chrysalis skin is generally found pro- truding from the lower end. From the middle to the end of May. in the latitude of St. Louis, these eggs hatch into little active brown worms, which, from the first mo- ment of their lives, commence to form for themselves cov- erings. They crawl on to a tender leaf, and attached by the anterior legs, with their tails hoisted in the air, they each spin around themselves a ring of silk, to which they soon fasten bits of leaf. They continue adding to the lower edge of the ring, pushing it up as it increases in depth, until it reaches the tail, and forms a sort of cone, as represented in fig. 113, g. As the worms grow, they continue to increase their bags from the bottom, until the latter become so large and heavy that the worms allow them to hang, instead of holding them upright, as they did when they were young. By the end of July, the worms acquire their full growth, when they present the appearance of figure 113, /. At this stage, on being pulled out of its bag, or follicle, the worm appears as at fig. 113, a, that portion of the body which is always covered by the bag, being soft, and of a dull, smoky- brown, inclining to reddish at" the sides; while the three anterior, or thoracic segments, which are exposed when the insect is feeding or marching, are horny, and mottled with black and white. The prolegs on the hidden part OF THE FARM AND GAKDEK. 179 of the body are but poorly developed, and consist of but slight wart-like projections; they are furnished, however, with numerous small hooks, which answer an admirable purpose, in enabling the bearer to cling to his home-spun coat, which shelters him from the weather, and defends him from his enemies, and which is even more essential to his existence than are the clothes we wear to ours. The worms do not arrive at their full-grown condition without passing through critical periods. At four dif- ferent times during their growth they close up the mouth Fig. 113.— BAG, BASKET, OR DROP-WORM. (Thyridopteryx epTiemerceformis, Haw.) a, Larva ; 6, Chrysalis ; c, Female ; d, Male; , section ; c, Moth. 228 INJURIOUS INSECTS and 11 — running just below the spiracles, and interrupt- ed by the transverse orange band. This larva transforms to chrysalis within a very slight cocoon formed without silk, upon, or just below, the sur- face of the earth, and issues soon after, as a very beautiful moth of a deep blue-black color, with orange shanks, yellow shoulder-pieces, each of the front wings with two large light yellow spots, and each of the hind wings with two white ones. Figure 142, c, represents the female, and the male differs from her in having the wing spots larger, and in having a conspicuous white mark along the top of his narrower abdomen. We have on one or two occasions known vines to be partly defoliated by this species, but never knew it to be quite so destructive as it often is in some Eastern local- ities. In New York City the vines in the yards are often completely stripped of their foliage through the agency of this and related caterpillars. THE BEAUTIFUL WOOD NYMPH. (Eudryas grata, Fabr). Here is another moth which surpasses in real beauty, though not in high contrast, the species just de- scribed. The front wings are milk-white, broadly bor- dered and marked on their margins with rusty-brown, the band on the outer margin being shaded on the inner side with olive-green, and marked towards the edge with a slender wavy white line : under surface yellow, with two dusky spots near the middle. The hind wings are nan- kin-yellow, with a deep-brown border, which does not extend to the outer angle, and which also contains a wavy white line: under surface yellow, with a single black spot. Surely these two moths are as unlike in general appear- ance as two moths well can be; and yet their caterpillars OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 229 bear such a close resemblance to each other, and both feed upon the Grape-vine. The larva of the Beautiful Wood Nymph is, in fact, so very similar to that of the Eight-spotted Forester, that it is entirely unnecessary to figure it. It differs more especially from that species by invariably lacking the white patches along the sides; the hairs arising from the black spots are less conspicuous, while the hump on the eleventh segment is somewhat more prominent. The light parts of the body have really a slight bluish tint, and in specimens which we have found, we have only noticed six transverse black stripes to each segment. This larva, when at rest, de- presses the head and raises the third and fourth segments, Sphinx-fashion. It is found on the vines in Missouri as early as May and as late as September, and it devours all portions of the leaf, even to the midrib. It descends to the ground, and, without making any cocoon, trans- forms to a chrysalis, which is dark colored, rough, with the tip of the abdomen obtusely conical, ending in four tubercles, the pair above, long and truncate, those below broad and short. Some of them give out the moth the same summer, but most of them pass the winter and do not issue as moths until the following spring. THE PEARL WOOD NYMPH. (Eudryas unio, Hiibner). This little moth is also closely allied to, and much re- sembling the preceding species. It is smaller, and differs from the Beautiful Wood Nymph in having the outer border of the front wings paler and of a tawny color, with the inner edge wavy instead of straight; and in that of the hind wings being less distinct, more double, and extending to the outer angle. The larva is said by Dr. Fitch to so much resemble that of the preceding species that " we as yet know not whether 230 INJURIOUS INSECTS there are any marks whereby they can be distinguished from each other." The moth is more common in the West than its larger ally, and though we have never bred it from the larva, yet we have often met with a worm which, for various reasons, we take to be this species. It never grows to be quite so large as the other, and may readily be distinguished by its more decided bluish cast; by having but four light and four dark stripes to each segment, by having no orange band across the middle seg- ments, and by the spots, with the exception of two on the back placed in the middle light band, being almost obsolete. The head, shield on first segment, hump on the llth, and a band on the 12th, are orange, spotted with black. Venter orange, becoming dusky towards head; feet and legs also orange, with blackish extremities, and with spots on their outside at base. This worm works for the most part in the terminal buds of the vine, drawing the leaves together by a weak silken thread, and cankering them. It forms a simple earthen cocoon, or frequently bores into a piece of old wood, and changes to chrysalis, which averages but 0.36- inch in length : this chrysalis is reddish-brown, covered on the back with rows of very minute teeth, with the tip of the abdomen truncated, and terminating above in a thick blunt spine each side. From the above accounts, we hope our readers will have no difficulty in distinguishing between these three blue caterpillars of the Grape-vine. REMEDIES. — The larvae of the two Wood Nymphs have a fondness for boring into old pieces of wood, to transform to the chrysalis state, and Mr. T. B. Ashton, of White Creek, N. Y., found that they would even bore into corn cobs for this purpose in preference to entering the ground, wherever such cobs were accessible. The Eight- spotted Forester, on the contrary, has no such habit, and while the only mode of combating it is to pick the larvae OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 231 off and burn them, the Wood Nymphs may be more easily subdued by scattering a few corn-cobs under the vines in the summer — to be raked up and burned in the winter. It has been suggested that many of these moths might be destroyed by exposing poisoned molasses or syrup at the time of their appearance in spring. White Hellebore as described under Currant and Gooseberry would no doubt be efficacious, and good results may be expected to follow the use of Pyrethrum, or Persian In- sect Powder. THE GRAPE LEAF-FOLDEK. (Desmia maeulalis, West.) This has long been known to depredate on the leaves of the Grape-vine in many widely separated parts of North America. It is not uncommon in Canada West, and is found in the extreme southern parts of Georgia. It appears to be far more injurious, however, in the in- termediate country, or between latitude thirty-five and forty degrees, than in any other sections, and in South- ern Illinois and Central Missouri proves more or less in- jurious every year. It belongs to the same family as our notorious Clover-worm, which attacks our clover stacks and mows. This genus is characterized by the elbowed or knotted appearance of the male antennae, in contrast with the smooth, thread-like female antennae; the maxillary palpi are not visible, while the compressed and feathery labial palpi are recurved against the eyes, and reach almost to their summit; the body extends beyond the hind wings. The moth of the Grape Leaf -folder is a very pretty little thing, expanding on an average almost an inch, with a length of body of about one-third of an inch. It is con- spicuously marked, and the sexes differ sufficiently to have given rise to two names, the female having been 232 INJURIOUS INSECTS named Botys Mcolor. The color is black, with an opal- escent reflection, and the under surface differs only from the upper in being less bright; all the wings are bordered with white. The front wings of both sexes are each fur- nished with two white spots; but while in the male (fig. 143,4), there is but one large spot on the hind wings, in the female (fig. 143, 5), this spot is invariably more or less constricted in the middle, especially above, and is often entirely divided into two distinct spots. The body of the male has but one distinct transverse band, and a longitudinal white dash at its extremity superiorly, Avhile that of the female has two white bands. The antennae, 2 J Fig. 143.— GRAPE LEAF-FOLDER (Desmia maculaUs, West.) 1, Worm ; 2, Head, etc., enlarged ; 3, Chrysalis ; 4, Male ; 5, Female. as already stated, are still more characteristic, those of the male being elbowed and thickened near the middle, while those of the female are simple and thread-like. There are two broods in this latitude — and probably three farther south — during the year; the first moths ap- pearing in June, the second in August, and the worms produced from these last hibernating in the chrysalis state. The eggs are scattered in small patches over the vines, and the worms are found of all sizes at the same time. These last change to chrysalids in twenty-four to thirty days from hatching, and give forth the moths in about a week afterwards. The worm (fig. 143, 1), folds rather than rolls the leaf, OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 233 by fastening two portions together by its silken threads; and for this reason, in contradistinction to the many leaf- rollers, may be popularly known as the " Grape Leaf- folder." It is of a glass-green color, and very active, wriggling, jumping and jerking either way at every touch. The head and thoracic segments are marked as at figure 143, 2. If let alone these worms will soon defoliate a vine, and the best method of destroying them is by crushing suddenly within the leaf, with both hands. To prevent their appearance, however, requires far less trouble. The chrysalis is formed within the fold of the leaf, and by going over the vineyard in October, or any time before the leaves fall, and carefully plucking and destroying all those that are folded and crumpled, the supply for the following year will be cut off. This should be done collectively to be positively effectual, for the utmost vigilance will avail but little if one is surrounded with slovenly neighbors. We believe this insect shows no preference for any par- ticular kind of grape-vine, having found it on all the cultivated, as well as the wild varieties. Its natural ene- mies are Spiders, Wasps, and a small Tachina fly, which attacks it in the larva state, and a small clay-yellow beetle is supposed to attack it. THE COMMON YELLOW BEAR. (Spilosoma Virginica, Fabr.) This is one of the most common North American in- sects. The moth, which is very generally dubbed "the Miller," frequently flies into our rooms at night. Though the moth is so common, how few persons ever think of it as the parent of that frequent and most trouble- some of caterpillars, which Harris has so aptly termed the Yellow Bear. These caterpillars are quite frequently 234 INJUKIOUS INSECTS found on the Grape-vine, and when about one-fourth grown bear a considerable resemblance to the mature larva of the Grape-vine Plume. They seldom appear, however, until that species has disappeared, and may always be distinguished from it by their semi-gregarious habit at this time of their life, and by living exposed on the leaf (generally the underside) instead of forming a retreat within which to hide themselves, as does the Plume. The Yellow Bear is found of all sizes from June to October; and though quite fond of the Vine, is by no means confined to that plant. It is, in fact, a very gen- eral feeder, being found on a great variety of herbaceous plants, both wild and cultivated, as butternut, lilac, beans, peas, convolvulus, corn, currant, gooseberry, cot- ton, sunflower, plantain, smart-weed, verbenas, gera- niums, and almost any other plant with soft, tender leaves. These caterpillars are indeed so indifferent as to their diet, that we have actually known one to subsist entirely, from the time it cast its last skin till it spun up, on dead bodies of the Camel Cricket (Mantis Carolina). When young they are invariably bluish-white, but when full grown they may be found either of a pale cream-color, yellow, light brown, or very dark-brown, the different colors often appearing in the same brood of worms, as we have proved by experiment. Yellow is the most common color, and in all the varieties the venter is dark, and there is a characteristic longitudinal black line, more or less interrupted, along each side of the body, and a transverse line of the same color (sometimes faint) between the joints; the head and feet are ochre- yellow, and the hairs spring from dark yellow warts, of which there are ten on each joint, those on joint 1 being scarcely distinguishable, and those on joint 12 coalescing. There are two broods of these worms each year, the broods intermixing, and the last passing the winter in the OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 235 chrysalis state. The chrysalis is formed in. a trivial cocoon, constructed almost entirely of the caterpillar's hairs, which, though held in position by a few very fine silken threads, are fastened together mainly by the interlocking of their minute barbs, and the manner in which the caterpillar interweaves them. The best time to destroy these worms is soon after they hatch from their little round yellow eggs, which are deposited in clusters; for, as already intimated, they then feed together. THE GRAPE-VINE PLUME. (Pterophorus periscelidactylus, Fitch.) Just about the time that the third bunch of grapes, on a given shoot, is developing, many of the leaves, and es- pecially those at the extremity of the shoot, are found fastened together more or less closely, but generally so as to form a hollow ball. These leaves are fastened by a fine white silk, and upon opening the mass and separat- ing the leaves, one or two caterpillars will generally be found in the retreat. We say one or two, because the retreat made by the smallest of the Blue-caterpillars of the Vine, namely, the larva of the Pearl Wood Nymph, so closely resembles that of the Grape-vine Plume under consideration, that until the leaves are separated it is almost impossible to tell which larva will be found. Both occur at the same time of year. In an ordinary season they do not draw together the tips of the shoots until after the third bunch of grapes is formed, and in devouring the terminal bud and leaves, they do little more than assist the vineyardist in the pruning which he would soon have to give. They act, indeed, as Nature's pruning-knives. But the severe frost which generally kills the first buds, so retards the 236 INJURIOUS INSECTS growth of the vines that the worms come out in full force before the third bunch has fully formed, and this bunch is consequently included in the fold made by these worms, and destroyed. The larva of the Grape-vine Plume invariably hatches very soon after the leaves begin to expand; and though it is very generally called the Leaf-folder, it must not be confounded with the true Leaf -folder, described on page 231, and whicb does its prin- cipal damage later in the season. At first the larva of our Plume is smooth and almost destitute of hairs, but after each moult the hairs become more perceptible, and when full grown the larva appears as at figure 144, a, the hairs arising from a trans- verse row of warts, each joint hEJf jjjjjjL having four above and six W^f Afii below the breathing pores %S ejB » (see fig. 144, e). After feed- 11(11 ^fpjp^ ing for about three weeks our little worm fastens itself se- Fig. 144.— GRAPE-VINE PLUME (Rer- curely by the hind le^s to the phorus pcriscdidactylus, Fitch.) -, • i £ , <. a, Larva; fc, pupa? c, Horn; d, Moth; underside oi some leaf or other object, and, casting its hairy skin, transforms to the pupa state. The pupa (fig. 144, #), with the lower part of the three or four terminal joints attached to a little silk previously spun „ by the worm, hangs at a slant of about forty degrees. It is of peculiar and characteristic form, being ridged and angular, with numerous projections, and having remnants of the larval warts; it is obliquely truncated at the head, but is chiefly distinguished by two com- OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 237 pressed sharp-pointed horns, one of which is enlarged at figure 144, c, projecting from the middle of the back: it measures, on an average, rather more than one- third of an inch, and varies in color from light green with darker green shadings, to pale straw-color with light- brown shadings. The moth (fig. 144, d), escapes from this pupa in about one week, and, like all the species belonging to the genus, it has a very active and impetuous flight, and rests with the wings closed and stretched at right angles from the body, so as to recall the letter T. It is of a tawny yellow color, the front wings marked with white and dark brown as in the figure, the hind wings appearing like burnished copper, and the legs being alternately banded with white and tawny yellow. All the moths of the family (AlucitidcB) to which it belongs have the wings split up into narrow feather-like lobes, and for this reason they have very appropriately been called Plumes in popular language. In the genus Pterophorus the front wings are divided into two, and the hind wings into three lobes. In this country, a some- what larger species (P. carduidactylus, Eiley) occurs on the Thistle, and though bearing a close resemblance to the Grape-vine Plume in color and markings, yet differs very remarkably in the larva and pupa states. From analogy we infer that there are two broods of these worms each year, and that the last brood passes the winter in the moth state. We have, however, never noticed any second appearance of them, and whether this is from the fact that the vines are covered with a denser foliage in the summer than in the spring, or whether there is really but one brood, are points in the history of our little Plume which yet have to be settled by further observation. On account of its spinning habit this insect is easily kept in check by hand picking. 238 INJURIOUS INSECTS THE GRAPE-BERRY MOTH. (Penthina vitivorana, Packard.) The Grape-berry Moth is an illustration of the well- known fact that an insect may suddenly appear in many different parts of the country where it had not been known before, for previous to 1878 no account of it had been published, and it was entirely unknown to science. It had however been noticed in several localities in Ohio, Illinois, and Missouri, for three or four years, but never so abundant as in 1878. In that year it was common in Missouri, in Illinois, and ruined about fifty per cent, of the grapes around Cleveland, Ohio. It has also appeared in Pennsylvania, and may appear at any time where grapes are grown. Its natural history may be given as follows: About the 1st of July, the grapes that are attacked by the worms begin to show a discolored spot at the point where the worm entered, (fig. 145, c). Upon opening such a grape, the inmate, which is at this time very small and white, with a cinnamon-colored head, will be found at the end of a winding channel. It continues to feed on the pulp of the fruit, and upon reaching the seeds, generally eats out their interior. As it matures it becomes darker, be- ing either of an olive-green or dark-brown color, with a honey-yellow head, and if one grape is not sufficient, it fastens the already ruined grape to an adjoining one, by means of silken threads, and proceeds to burrow in it as it did in the first. When full grown ifc presents the ap- pearance of figure 145, Z>, and is exceedingly active. As soon as the grape is touched the worm will wriggle out of it, and rapidly let itself to the ground, by means of its ever-ready silken thread, unless care be taken to pre- vent its so doing. The cocoon is often formed on the OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 239 leaves of the vine, in a manner essentially characteristic. After covering a given spot with silk, the worm cuts out a clean oval flap, leaving it hinged on one side, and, rolling this flap over, fastens it to the leaf, and thus forms for itself a cozy little house. One of these cocoons is represented at figure 146, b, and though the cut is some- times less regular than shown in the figure, it is undoubt- edly the normal habit of the insect to make just such a cocoon as represented. Sometimes, however, it cuts two crescent-shaped slits, and, rolling up the two pieces, fast- ens them up in the middle as shown at figure 147. And frequently it rolls over a piece of the edge of the leaf, in the manner commonly adopted by leaf -rolling larvae, Fig. 145. — GRAPE BERRY-MOTH (Pcnthiria vitivorana, Packard.) a. Moth ; ft, Larva ; c, Punctured Berry ; d, Shrunken Berry. while we have had them spin up in a silk handkerchief, where they made no cut at all. In two days after completing the cocoon, the worm changes to a chrysalis. In this state (fig. 146, a), it meas- ures about one-fifth of an inch, and is quite variable in color, being generally of a honey-yellow, with a green shade on the abdomen. In about ten days after this last change takes place, the chrysalis works itself almost entirely out of the cocoon, and the little moth repre- sented at figure 145, a, makes its escape. 240 IHJURIOTJS INSECTS. The first moths appear in Southern Illinois and Central Missouri about the 1st of August, and as the worms are found in the grapes during the months of August and September, or even later, and as Mr. Read has kept the cocoons through the greater part of the winter, there is every reason to believe that a second brood of worms is generated from these moths, and that the second brood of worms, as is the case of the Codling-moth of the apple, passes the winter in the cocoon, and pro- Fig. 146. duces the moth the following spring, GRAPE BERKY-MOTH. j time fa 1&y ^ e Qn the a. Pupa ; ft, Chrysalis. J grapes while they are forming. This worm is found in greatest numbers on such grapes as the Herbemont, or those varieties which have tender skins, and close, compact bunches; though it has also been known to occur on almost every variety grown. As already stated, there can be little doubt but that the greater part of the second brood of worms passes the winter in the cocoon on the fallen leaves; and, in such an event, many of them may be destroyed by raking up and burn- ing the leaves at any time during the winter. The ber- ries attacked by the worm may easily be detected, providing there is no " grape rot " in the vineyard, either by a discolored spot as shown at figure 145, c. or by the entire discoloration and „ . . / . , Fig. 147.— CHYSALIS. shrinking of the berry, as is shown at figure 145, d. When the vineyard is attacked by the "rot," the wormy berries are not so easily distinguished?- as they bear a close resemblance to the rotting ones. All fallen berries should be picked up and destroyed. OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 241 THE GRAPE-VINE FLEA-BEETLE. (Graptodera [formerly Haltica] chalybea, Illig.) Of the numerous insect enemies with which our grape- growers have to deal, this occupies a prominent place. The beetles which have hibernated begin their destruc- tive work in the spring as soon as the buds commence to swell, and it is at this early period that the greatest dam- Fig. 148.— GRAPE-VINE FLEA-BEETLE ( Graptodera chalybea, Illig.) a, Young Larvae on Leaf ; 6, Larva, enlarged : c, Chrysalis ; d, Beetle. age is done by the beetles boring into and feeding on said buds. Later in the season the beetles feed upon the leaves, and upon these, in the month of May, the female lays her small orange-colored eggs in clusters. These soon hatch, and the young dark-colored larvae riddle the leaf as shown in figure 148, #, or when very numerous completely devouring it, leaving only the largest ribs. 11 242 INJURIOUS INSECTS In about a month the full-grown larvae (fig. 348, I), de- scend into the ground, where each forms a small earthen cell (fig. 148, c), and changes to a dull-yellowish pupa of the shape normally assumed in this family. The perfect beetle issues about three weeks later, from the middle of June to the middle of July, and again begins to eat the leaves, but the damage done is trifling compared with that done in early spring. So far as we have observed there is but one annual generation, but it is probable that in the more Southern States there will be two. As soon as cold weather approaches the beetles retire under fallen leaves in the ground, at the base of trees, under loose bark, in houses, in short, in any place which offers shelter from the cold. In considering the best means of preventing the injuries of this insect, it must be borne in mind, that, according to our observations, the female beetle deposits her eggs by preference on the leaves of the wild grape vines, as the larvae are rarely met with in cultivated vineyards. It is against the perfect beetle, therfore, that we must direct our efforts at destruction, and while it is undoubt- edly desirable to keep the vineyard clear of rubbish in winter time, by burning wherever fire can be used safely, this means of destruction loses much of its importance by the fact that the beetles hibernate in the woods and in any number of other places where they cannot be de- stroyed by fire. Dry lime and hellebore, which may be used to advantage against the larvae, have proved useless against the beetle, while lye and soapsuds cannot be used strong enough to kill it without injurious effects upon the plant. Tin pans or pails with some liquid at the bottom have been used to advantage for collecting the early bee- tles, which could be knocked into them, and we have re- peatedly advised for this and other insects that infest the grape-vine, which fall to the ground upon disturbance, the use of sheets along the trellis to catch them. Unless re- OF THE FARM ATO GARDEN. 243 peatedly shaken from such sheets into vessels containing liquid, the beetles will of course soon escape. The wonderful efficacy of kerosene in destroying insect life has long been known. It was used with excellent ef- fect in shallow tin pans, or on stretched sheets of cloth, for the destructive locust of the West. Mr. I. 0. Howard, Assistant Entomologist to the De- partment of Agriculture, employed it successfully on sheets against the Grape-vine Flea-beetle, finding it so satisfactory that he did not hesitate to recommend it in the following terms : "Take two pieces of common cotton sheeting, each being two yards long and half as wide; fasten sticks across the ends of each piece to keep the cloth open, and then drench with kerosene. Give the sheets thus prepared to two persons, each having hold of the rods at the opposite ends of the sheets. Then let these persons pass one sheet on either side of the vine, being careful to unite the cloth around the base of the vine; then let a third person give the stake to which the vine is attached a sharp blow with a heavy stick. Such a blow will in nearly every case jar the beetles into the sheets, where the kerosene kills them almost instantly. " This process, after a little experience, can be per- formed almost as rapidly as the persons employed can walk from one vine to another. The expense necessary is very trifling, and boys can do the work quite as well as men. Warm bright afternoons are the proper times for this work to be done, and it should be performed faithfully every sunny day until the vines are out of dan- ger." Until something is discovered, which, blown or syringed on the buds, will keep off the beetles, this method of Mr. Howard's of dealing with the insect, will remain the best yet known. 244 INJURIOUS INSECTS THE SPOTTED PELIDNOTA. (Pelidnota punctata, Linnaeus.) This is the largest and most conspicuous beetle that attacks the foliage of the Grape-vine, and in the beetle state it seems to subsist entirely on the leaves of this plant, and of the closely allied Virginia Creeper. Though some years it becomes so abundant as to badly riddle the foliage of our vineyards, yet such instances are excep- tional; and it usually occurs in such small numbers, and Fig. 149. — THE SPOTTED PELIDNOTA (Pdidnota pwictata, Linn.) a, Grub ; b, Pupa ; c, Beetle ; d, Markings. is so large and clumsy, that it can not be considered a very redoubtable enemy. Its larva has, for a number of years, been known to feed on the decaying roots of different trees. It is a large clumsy grub (fig. 149, a), bearing a close resemblance to the comman White Grub of our meadows, and differs from that species principally in being less wrinkled, and in having the chitinous covering (or skin, so-called) more OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 245 polished and of a purer white color, and in the distinct heart-shaped swelling above the vent (fig. 149, d). To- wards the latter part of June we have found this larva in abundance, in company with the pupa (fig. 149, b), in rotten stumps and roots of the Pear. In preparing for the pupa state, the larva forms a rather unsubstantial cocoon of its own excrement, mixed with the surround- ing wood. The pupa state lasts but from eight to ten days, and the beetle (fig. 149, c), is found on our vines during the months of July, August, and September. It is not yet known how long a time is required for the de- velopment of the larva, but from analogy we may infer that the insect lives in that state upwards of three years. This beetle was named about a century ago by Linnseus, who met with a specimen in the magnificent collection of shells and insects belonging to Queen Louise Ulrica of Sweden. It occurs throughout the States and Upper Canada, and is even met with in the West Indies. It flies and feeds by day. The wing-covers are of a slightly metallic clay-yellow color, with three distinct black spots on each, and the wings themselves are dark-brown inclin- ing to black; the thorax is usually a little darker than the wing-covers, with one spot each side; the abdomen beneath, and legs, are of a bronzed-green. It is easily kept in check by hand-picking. THE ROSE-BUG, OR ROSE-CHAFER. (Macrodactylus subspinosus, Fabr.) This insect does its injurious work in the beetle state. The larva develops under ground. The following ac- count is condensed from the standard work of Harris. In arranging insects according to the plants to which they are injurious, it is difficult to decide where to place this; if we take into account the pecuniary loss it causes. 246 IJSTJUEIOUS INSECTS perhaps the grape-grower is the greatest sufferer, and it is accordingly placed among the insects especially injuri- ous to the Grape: "The prevalence of this insect on the "Rose, and its annual appearance coinciding with the blossoming of that flower, have gained for it the popular name by which it is here known. For some time after they were first noticed, Rose-bugs appeared to be confined to their fa- vorite, the blossoms of the Rose; but within forty years they have greatly increased in number, have attack- ed at random various kinds of plants in swarms, and have become notorious for their extensive and deplorable ravages. The Grape-vine, in particular, the Cherry, Plum, and Apple trees, have annually suffered by their depredations; many other fruit trees and shrubs, garden vegetables and corn, and even the trees of the forest, and grass of the fields, have been laid under contribu- tion by these indiscriminate feeders, by whom leaves, flowers, and fruits, are alike consumed. The unexpected arrival of these insects in swarms at the first coming, and their sudden disappearance at the close of their career, are remarkable facts in their history. They come forth from the ground during the second week in June, or about the time of the blossoming of the Damask Rose, and remain from thirty to forty days. At the end of this period the males perish, while the females enter the earth, lay their eggs, return to the surface, and, after lingering a few days, die also. "The eggs laid by each female are about thirty in number, and are deposited from one to four inches be- neath the surface of the soil; they are nearly globular, whitish, and are one-thirtieth of an inch in diameter, and are hatched twenty days after they are laid. The young larvae begin to feed on such tender roots as are within their reach. They attain their full size in au- tumn, being then nearly three-quarters of an inch long, OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 247 and about an eighth of an inch in diameter. In October they descend below the reach of frost, and pass the win- ter in a torpid state. In the spring they approach to- ward the surface, and each one forms for itself a little cell, of an oval shape. Within this cell the grub is trans- formed to a pupa during the month of May. During the month of June, the included beetle bursts open its earthen cell, and digs its way to the surface of the ground. Thus the various changes, from the egg to the full development of the perfected beetle, are completed within the space of one year." The beetle is given of its real size, about seven-twentieths of an inch in length, in figure EOSE-BUG. 150; its body is entirely covered with a very short and close ashen-yellow down; its legs are of a pale- red color, while the joints of the very long feet are tipped with black. EEMEDIES. — Such being the metamorphoses and habits of the Kose-bugs, it is evident we cannot attack them in the egg, the grub, or the pupa state. When they have issued from their subterranean retreats, and have con- gregated upon our vines, trees, and other vegetable pro- ductions, in the complete enjoyment of their propensi- ties, we must unite our efforts to seize and crush the invaders. They must indeed be crushed, scalded, or burned, to deprive them of life, for they are not affected by any of the applications usually found destructive to other insects. Experience has proved the utility of gathering them by hand, or of shaking them or brush- ing them from the plants into tin vessels containing a little water. They should be collected daily, especially in early morning, when they are torpid, and burned or scalded. If a film of kerosene is floated upon the water in the vessels in which they are caught, it will help to prevent their escape. 248 INJURIOUS INSECTS THE GEAPE PHYLLOXERA. (Phylloxera vastatrix, Planchon.) This minute insect, which has caused such devasta- tions in the vineyards of Europe, is a native of this country, where its destructive work was known long be- fore the cause of it was discovered. The life history of the Phylloxera has been worked out by Prof. Riley in his Missouri Keports, especially in the Sixth, from which the following account is condensed. The insect presents itself under several different forms, all of which belong to two types. One of these is the Leaf -gall type (gallicola, K.), and the other is found upon the roots of the vine (radicicola, K.). FIRST, AS TO THE LEAF-GALL TYPE (Gallicola.) — The gall or excrescence produced by this is a fleshy swelling of the under side of the leaf, more or less wrinkled and hairy, with a corresponding depres- sion of the upper side, the margin of the cup being fuzzy, and drawn together so as to form a "^ fiftefSftSfi"*1* fringed mouth. It is usually cup- shaped, but some times greatly elongated or purse -shaped (figure 151, «, #). Soon after the first vine-leaves that put out in the spring have fully expanded, a few scattering galls may be found, mostly on the lower leaves, nearest the ground. These vernal galls are usually large (of the size of an ordinary pea,) and the normal green is often blushed with rose where exposed to the light of the sun. On carefully opening one of them (fig. 152, d), we shall find the mother-louse diligently at work surrounding herself with pale-yellow eggs of an elongate oval form, scarcely .01-inch long, and not quite half as thick (fig. 152, OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 249 c). She is about .04-inch long, generally spherical in shape, of a dull-orange color, and looks not unlike an immature seed of the common purslane. At times,, by the elongation of the abdomen, she is more or less perfectly pear-shaped. Her members are all dusky, and so short, compared to her swollen body, that she ap- pears very clumsy, and undoubtedly would be outside of her gall, which she never has occasion to quit, and which Fig. 152. — GRAPE PHYLLOXERA— LEAF-GALL TYPE. a, &, Newly-hatched Larva, ventral and dorsal view ; c. Egg ; cl, Section of Gall , e, Swelling of Tendril ; f, g. h. Mother Gall-louse—lateral, dorsal and ventral views; i, her Antenna; j, her two-jointed Tarsus. Natural sizes indicated at sides by email circles. serves her alike as dwelling house and coffin. More care- fully examined, her skin is seen to be shagreened or mi- nutely granulated and furnished with rows of minute hairs. The eggs begin to hatch, when six or eight days old, into active little oval, six-footed beings, which differ from their mother in their brighter yellow color and more perfect legs and antennae, the tarsi being furnished with long, pliant hairs, terminating in a more or less distinct globule. In hatching, the egg splits longitudinally from the anterior end, and the young louse, whose pale-yellow 250 INJUKIOUS INSECTS is in strong contrast with the more dusky color of the egg-shell, escapes in the course of two minutes. Issuing from the mouth of the gall, these yoang lice scatter over the vine, most of them finding their way to the tender terminal leaves, where they settle in the downy bed which these leaves affords, and commence pumping up and ap- propriating the sap. The tongue-sheath . is blunt and heavy, but the tongue proper — consisting of three brown, elastic, and wiry filaments, which, united, make so fine a thread as scarcely to be visible with the strongest mi- croscope— is sharp, and easily run into the leaf. Its puncture causes a curious change in the tissues of the leaf, the growth being so stimulated that the under side bulges and thickens, while the down on the upper side increases in a circle around the louse, and finally hides and covers it as it recedes more and more within the deepening cavity. Sometimes the lice are so crowded that two occupy the same gall. If, from the premature death of the louse, or other cause, the gall becomes abor- tive before being completed, then the circle of thickened down or fuzz enlarges with the expansion of the leaf, and remains (fig. 151, c), to tell the tale of the futile effort. Otherwise, in a few days the gall is formed, and the in held louse, which, while eating its way into house and home, was also growing apace, begins 'a parthenogenetic maternity by the deposition of fertile eggs, as her imme- diate parent had done before. She increases in bulk with pregnancy, and one egg follows another in quick succession, until the gall is crowded. The mother dies and shrivels, and the young, as they hatch, issue and found new galls. This process continues during the summer until the fifth or sixth generation. Every egg brings forth a fertile female, which soon becomes wonder- fully prolific. The number of eggs found in a single gall averages about two hundred; yet it will sometimes reach as many as five hundred. Even supposing there are but OF THE FAEM AHD GARDEN. 251 five generations during the year, and taking the lowest of the above figures,, the immense prolificacy of the spe- cies becomes manifest. As summer advances, they fre- quently become prodigiously multiplied, completely cov- ering the leaves with their galls, when they appear as in figure 153. The lice also settle on the tendrils, leaf -stalks, and tender branches, where they also form knots and rounded excrescences (figure 152, e), much resembling those made on the roots. In such a case, the vine loses its leaves prematurely. Usually, however, the Fig. 153.— LEAF OF THE GKAPE-VINE WITH PHYLLOXERA GALL. natural enemies of the louse seriously reduce its numbers by the time the vine ceases its growth in the fall, and the few remaining lice, finding no more succulent and suitable leaves, seek the roots. Thus, by the end of September, the galls are mostly deserted, and those which are left are almost always infested with mildew, and eventually turn brown and decay. On the roots, the young lice attach themselves singly or in little groups, and thus hibernate. The male gall-louse has never been 252 INJURIOUS INSECTS seen, and there is every reason to believe that he has no existence. Nor does the female ever acquire wings. It is but a transient summer state, not at all essential to the perpetuation of the species, and does, compared with the other type, but trilling damage. As already indicated, the autumnal individuals of gal- licola descend to the roots, and there hibernate. There is every reason to believe also that, throughout the sum- Fig. 154. — GRAPE PHYLLOXERA, ROOT-INHABITING TYPE. a, Roots of Clinton vine, showing relation of Swellings to Leaf-galls, and power of resisting decomposition ; fc, Larva as it appears when hibernating; c, oc- cupied, from adolescence till death, with the laying of eggs, which are less numerous and somewhat larger than those found in the galls. We have counted in the spring as many as two hundred and sixty-five eggs in a cluster, and all evidently from one mother, who was yet very plump, and still occupied in laying. As a rule, however, they are less numerous. With pregnancy this form be- comes quite tumid and more or less pyriform, and is con- tent to remain with scarcely any motion in the more secluded parts of the roots, such as creases, sutures, and depressions, which the knots afford. The skin is dis- tinctly shagreened (fig. 154, h,) as in gallicola. The warts, though usually quite visible with a good lens, are at other times more or less obsolete, especially on the ab- domen. The second or more oval form (fig. 154, e), is destined to become winged. Its tubercles, when once acquired, are always conspicuous; it is more active than the other, and its eyes increase rather than diminish in complexity 254 INJURIOUS INSECTS with age. From the time it is one-third grown, the little dusky wing-pads may be discovered, though less conspicuous than in the pupa state, which is soon after Fig. 155. — GRAPE PHYLLOXERA, ROOT-INHABITING TYPE. a, Shows a healthy root ; 6, one on which the lice are working, representing the knots and swellings caused by their punctures ; c, a Boot that has been de- serted by them, and where the rootlets have commenced to decay ; d, d, d, show how the lice are found on the larger roots ; f, fe- male pupa, dorsal view ; /, same, ventral view ; fir, winged female, dorsal view; h, same, ventral view. assumed. The pupae (fig. 155, e, /), are still more active, and, after feeding a short time, they make their way to the light of day, crawl over the ground and over the vines, and finally shed their last skin and assume the OF THE FARM AND GARDEN, 255 winged state, which is shown in figure 155, g and h. In this last moult the tubercled skin splits on the back, and is soon worked off, the body in the winged insect having neither tubercles nor granulations. These winged insects are most abundant in August and September, but may be found as early as the first of July, and until the vines cease growing in the fall. The majority of them are females, with the abdomen large, and more or less elongate. From two to five eggs may invariably be found in the abdomen of these, and are easily seen when the insect is held between the light, or mounted in balsam or glycerine. A certain proportion have an entirely different shaped and smaller body, the abdomen being short, contracted, and terminating in a fleshy and dusky protuberance; the limbs stouter, and the wings proportionately larger and stouter. This form has been looked upon as the male by myself, Planchon, Lichtenstein and others. Yet we have never succeeded in witnessing it performing the functions of a male, nor has any one else that we are aware of. The males in all plant-lice are quite rare, and, in the great majority of species, unknown. As fall advances the winged individuals become more and more scarce, and as winter sets in, only eggs, newly- hatched larvae, and a few wing-less, egg-bearing mothers are seen. These last die and disappear during the winter, which is mostly passed in the larva state, with here and there a few eggs. The larvae thus hibernating (fig. 154, 7;), become dingy, with the body and limbs more shagreened and the claws less perfect than when first hatched; and, of thousands examined, all bear the same appearance, and all are furnished with strong suckers. As soon as the ground thaws and the sap starts in the spring, these young lice work off their winter coat, and, growing apace, commence to deposit eggs. At this season of the year, with the exuberant juices of 256 INJURIOUS INSECTS the plant, the swellings on the roots are large and succu- lent, and the lice plump to repletion. One generation of the mother form (A) follows another — fertility increasing with the increasing heat and luxuriance of summer — until at least the third or fourth has been reached before the winged form (B) makes its appearance in the latter part of June or early in July. Since (in 1870) the absolute identity of these two types was proved, by showing that the gall-lice become root- lice, the fact has been repeatedly substantiated by dif- ferent observers. (In 1873 galls were obtained on the leaves of a Clinton vine from the root-inhabiting type, thus establishing the identity of the two types). THE MORE MANIFEST AND EXTERNAL EFFECTS OF THE PHYLLOXERA DISEASE. — The result which follows the puncture of the root-louse is an abnormal swelling, differing in form according to the particular part and texture of the root. These swellings, which are generally commenced at the tip of the rootlets, eventually rot, and the lice forsake them and betake themselves to fresh ones — the living tissue being necessary to the existence of this as of all plant-lice. The decay affects the parts adjacent to the swellings, and on the more fibrous roots cuts off the supply of sap to all parts beyond. As these last de- compose, the lice congregate on the larger ones, until at last the root system literally wastes away. The appear- ance of the root fibres before and after they have been attacked by the insect, is shown in figure 155, #, b, c. During the first year of the attack there are scarcely any outward manifestations of disease, though the fibrous roots, if examined, will be found covered with nodosities, particularly in the latter part of the growing season. The disease is then in its incipient stage. The second year all these fibrous roots vanish, and the lice not only prevent the formation of new ones, but, as just stated, settle on the larger roots, which they injure, and which OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 257 become disorganized and rot. At this stage the out- ward symptoms of the disease first become manifest, in a sickly, yellowish appearance of the leaf and a reduced growth of cane. As the roots continue to decay, these symptoms become more acute, until by about the third year the vine dies. Such is the course of the malady on the European vine ( V. vinifera), when circumstances are favorable to the increase of the pest. When the vine is about dying it is generally impossible to discover the cause of the death, the lice, which had been so numerous the first and second years of invasion, having left for fresh pasturage. MODE OF SPREADING. — The gall-lice can only spread by travelling, when newly hatched, from one vine to another; and if this slow mode of progression were the only one which the species is capable of, the disease would be comparatively harmless. The root-lice, how- ever, not only travel under ground along the interlock- ing roots of adjacent vines, but crawl actively over the surface of the ground, or wing their way from vine to vine, and from vineyard to vineyard. Doubts have been repeatedly expressed by European writers as to the power of such a delicate and frail- winged fly to traverse the air to any great distance. But there is abundant evidence as to their power of flight; they have been caught in spider-webs in Europe, and have been captured on sheets of paper prepared with bird-lime, and suspended in an infested vineyard, and there is no doubt that they can sustain flight for a con- siderable time under favorable conditions, and, with the assistance of the wind, they may be wafted to great dis- tances. These winged females are much more numerous in the fall of the year than has been supposed. Where- ever they settle, the few eggs which each carries are suf- ficient to perpetuate the species, and thus spread the dis- ease, which, in the fullest sense, may be called contagious. 258 INJURIOUS INSECTS. • SUSCEPTIBILITY OF DIFFERENT VINES TO THE DIS- EASE.— As a means of coping with the Phylloxera dis- ease, a knowledge of the relative susceptibility of different varieties to the attacks and injuries of the insect is of paramount importance. As is often the case with injurious insects, the Phylloxera shows a preference for and thrives best on certain species, and even discriminates between varieties; or, what amounts to the same thing, practi- cally, some varieties resist its attacks, and enjoy a rela- tive immunity from its injuries. It may be stated that there is a relation between the susceptibility of the vine and the character of its roots — the slow-growing, more tender-wooded, and consequently more tender-rooted varieties succumbing most readily; the more vigorous growers resisting best. The European Vine ( Vitis vini- fera), in its many varieties, is little affected by the leaf- inhabiting type, but it succumbs in a few years to the root-lice. Varieties of the Northern Fox-grape ( V. La- bruscd) vary much; some, like the Concord and others, resist well, while others, like the Oatawba, suffer severe- ly. Varieties derived from V. cestivalis and F. cordifo- lia are nearly exempt from the root-form, but some of them have the leaves much attacked by the gall-type. The Southern Fox-grape ( V. vulpina) is entirely free from Phylloxera in any form. EEMEDIES AND PREVENTIVES. — Thus far, the only practicable method of combating the insect when estab- lished upon the root, is by drowning it by irrigating the soil. In Europe, the method largely adopted is to graft their vines upon varieties, the roots of which are Phyl- loxera proof ; for this purpose American varieties have been sent to Europe in immense numbers, as cuttings and as rooted plants. An enterprising grape-growing firm has even established nurseries in Europe for the pro- duction of vines that resist the Phylloxera. Jptiw^ KV ,iv TWff 'A OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. y^sVX^ OF THE THE GRAPE LEAF-HOPPED. (Tettigonia vitis, Harris.) In many parts of the country, if one passes through a vineyard during July or August, he will be annoyed by the clouds of a small insect which, as it flies, appears as if it were of a dirty white color. These insects are generally known as " Thrips," a name belonging to a different genus, and which should be superseded by Leaf-hopper. The insect belongs to the Order Hemiptera, or true Bugs. It is the Tettigonia vitis of Harris (though some authors place it in Erythroneura), who thus describes it: " In its perfect state it measures one-tenth of inch in length. It is of a pale-yellow color ; there are two little red lines on the head. The back part of the thorax, the scutel, the base of the wing-covers, and a broad band across their middle are scarlet; the tips of the wing-covers Fig. 156.— GRAPE are blackish, and there are some little LEAF-HOPPER. recL ;iines between the broad band and the tips. The head is crescent-shaped above, and the eyelets are situated just below the ridge of the front." The insects appear upon the underside of the leaves in June, but are not much noticed, as they do not have their wings until later. They pass their larvae state quietly, sucking at the juices of the leaves, which they penetrate with their beaks, though if disturbed at this time, they leap from leaf to leaf in a lively manner. They undergo all their changes on the leaves, and their empty skins may be found on the underside of the leaves, or upon the ground beneath the vine, in great numbers. The insect probably hibernates in the perfect state, hid- den in the rubbish and in tufts of grass. When present in great numbers, they rob the vine of its proper nutri- 260 INJURIOUS INSECTS ment, and induce a weakly condition which results in poorly developed fruit. They attack the thin-leaved va- rieties in preference to those with more robust foliage, such as the Concord, and vines of that class. Occasion- ally they cause much annoyance by attacking the exotic vine under glass. The Leaf-hopper seems to be more abundant at the East than at the West, and in "some sea- sons is very numerous in the vineyards of Western New York. It has been suggested to destroy the young insect by fumigating witli tobacco smoke, using a movable tent to cover the trellis and confine the smoke. When the insect can fly, it may be destroyed by carrying lighted torches through the vine-yard, though at this time most of the mischief has been done. THE CRANBERRY. Several insects are injurious to the Cranberry, but as these are treated of in full in the standard works on the culture of this fruit, and as they are of interest only to a comparatively small number of persons, a brief enumera- tion is all that need be given here. The conditions under which Cranberry culture only can be successful — the ability to flood the plantation with water, and to draw it off at will — are those which afford a remedy against nearly all of these insects. Flooding at the right time will allow the cultivator to destroy the insects that attack the vines, as well as those that injure the fruit. THE VINE-WORM is the larva of a moth (Anchylopera vacciniand) which feeds upon the foliage. In Massachu- setts, it hatches about the 20th of May, from eggs which have remained on the vine during the winter, and again, about the 4th of July, a second crop appears from eggs OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 261 laid in June. The eggs are a flat, circular scale, of a honey-yellow color, and are deposited on the underside of the leaves. THE FRUIT-WORM is also the larva of a moth, but a distinct and not identified species. It is of a yellowish- green color, and enters berry after berry, eating the in- side of each, and finally goes into the ground to spin its cocoon, and change to a chrysalis state; unlike the Vine- worm, which spins its cocoon among the leaves at the end of the vine, drawing two together for this purpose. The leaves are also attacked by the larva of a Saw-fly (PristipJiora identidem), but this insect is not numerous. The Fly makes a slit in the leaves, depositing an egg within. Broods of this species appear in June and August. THE BUD-WORM, a small reddish-brown beetle (AntJio- nomus suturalis), about the middle of July, selects blos- soms just before they are ready to expand, and deposits in them an egg through a hole made in the center of the bud. The beetle usually cuts off the bud after deposit- ing its egg. A dull- white grub hatches from the egg, and feeds within the bud, changing to a pupa, and then to a perfect beetle, and eats its way out, leaving a round hole in the side of the bud. The beetles sometimes, though seldom, feed upon the berry. The larvae are often killed by a minute chalcis fly. Some other insects are occasionally injurious; if not disastrously so, they serve to weaken the vines and inter- fere with their productiveness. Among these is a Leaf- hopper (Clastoptera protetis, Fitch.) In its larval state, it covers itself with froth; the perfect insect jumps with the agility of a flea. Also a small Gall-gnat, the maggot of which is in some places called the "Tip-worm," as it draws together the small leaves afc the tips of the grow- ing shoots, Insects of the Flower Garden arid Green-House, Flowering plants, whether in the green-house or in the dwelling, are subject to the attacks of several insects, which, unless they are kept in subjection, soon cause the plants to assume an unhealthy appearance. Most of the insects that infest the plants when indoors, as a general thing, remain upon them when they are placed outside during warm weather, and some of them attack hardy plants also. In green-houses, where water can be freely used to shower the plants, and where the house can be filled with tobacco smoke as often as may be necessary, there is little difficulty in keeping the plants in a healthy condition so far as insects are concerned. Those who cultivate win- dow plants find it more difficult to keep them free from insects by these means. Where syringing is necessary, the pots may be set in a bath-tub or sink, or, if it is de- sired to wet the underside of the leaves, laid upon the side, and water applied by means of a syringe, or by the use of a watering-pot with a fine rose; this should be held high above the plants in order that the water may fall with force against the foliage. All smooth-leaved plants, such as Camellias, Ivy, etc., should have the leaves oc- casionally washed on both sides, by the use of a sponge or soft cloth; this will not only remove the dust, but be of great service in keeping the insects in check. House plants may be fumigated by having a large box, in which they may be shut up, and the smoke made by damp tobacco stems or other cheap form of tobacco upon a few live coals placed in an iron vessel or an old flower 262 OF THE FARM AHD GARDEH. 263 pot. As the use of smoke in the small way is incon- venient, and as there is a risk of injuring the plants by over-heating, it is better to apply tobacco in the liquid form. The cheapest kind of tobacco are the " stems," really the mid-ribs of the leaves, removed by the cigar makers. Either these or cheap tobacco of any other kind, may be placed in any convenient vessel and covered with water. The infusion thus made will be too strong to ap- ply to the plants, and when used should be diluted with water until it is of the color of ordinary tea. The plants may be syringed with this, or it may be applied with the watering-pot, as suggested for the use of water. The most thorough method of using tobacco-water, and on the whole the most convenient, is to have it properly di- luted in a deep tub or barrel, and to dip the plants in it, moving them up and down a few times before removing them. If this can be done once a week the plants will be kept free from most insects. The insects which attack flowering plants in the open air only, are chiefly the Rose-bug and the Rose-slug, though grasshoppers, when abundant, are sometimes troublesome. The Rose-bug by no means confines itself to the plant from which it takes its name; it is described under the Insects Injurious to the Grape-vine on page 245. THE ROSE-SLUG. (Selandria rosce, Harris.) The main points in the history of this well-known gar- den pest are given by Harris in his "Insects Injurious to Vegetation," etc. It undoubtedly originated in New England, probably upon Rosa lucida or R. Uanda, as these are the species of wild Rose upon which it prefera- bly feeds. Dr. Harris first observed it in the gardens of Cambridge, Mass., in 1831, and observes that six or seven 264 INJURIOUS INSECTS years elapsed before it made its appearance in Milton, where he then resided. It feeds only at night, except in very cloudy weather, and exclusively upon the upper sur- face of the leaf, from which it gnaws the soft portion, leaving the veins intact. During the day it rests motion- less on the underside of the leaf. The larval life of this insect extends over a period of fourteen days, during which it moults four times. The full-grown slug is rather more than one-third of an inch in length, by one-ninth in diameter. The thoracic joints are somewhat smaller and humped, but not puffed out laterally, as in some closely allied species, nor has it, like these, a slimy surface. The color is a translucent dull- yellow, becoming more opaque at the last moult. Soon after this it enters the ground, and incloses itself in a fragile, earthen cocoon, within which it remains dormant for many months, not changing to pupa until the follow- ing spring. Harris's assertion that it is double-brooded has long been doubted by careful observers, and is un- questionably disproved by Miss Murtfeldt's experiments. Owing to the longevity of the flies and the different dates at which they emerge, there is a succession of lar- vae, covering a period of from four to six weeks; but they are all of the same brood, and when once they have entered the ground, that is the end of them for the sea- son. The Rose-slug, like most other insects, has a large number of natural enemies, but these are not yet ade- quate to the task of keeping it in check. The attention of florists has, therefore, been largely directed to the discovery of some reliable artificial remedy. Various applications have been tried with more or less success, among which the most certain in its effects is whale-oil soap suds, made in the proportions of one pound of soap to eight gallons of water. The objections to this remedy are, that it has a disagreeable odor and is liable to OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 265 discolor the opening buds. Dusting freely with White Hellebore has also been tried with yery good success, and it may be used in water, as directed for Currant worms, p. 204. The Pyrethrum powders have as yet been used only to a limited extent, but with the prospect that throughly applied they would prove effectual. PLANT-LICE—APHIDES. There are a great many species of plant-lice or aphides. Almost every plant is liable to the attacks of some species peculiar to itself. They are found upon the roots as well as upon the stems and leaves, where they insert their long tubular beaks and suck the juices of the plants, and only change their places when they have exhausted the sap in that locality. It would be impossible to even men- tion the various species in a work like this, much less to give a detailed description of them. Every farmer and gardener will know from the curled appearance of the leaves of various trees and herbaceous plants the author of the mischief. Numerous parasites keep these destructive plant-lice greatly in check, and it is always well to look closely, be- fore making an application to destroy the lice, to see if there are not some parasites at work, and if so they will often clear the plants much more effectively than any remedy we can apply. This I have observed both at the North and South, and usually when I have been studying other insects. In Florida I was studying a large black and red ant (Campanotus esuriens), and was greatly interested in their immense droves of dark-colored aphides — the " ant's cows" as they are often called, that were thickly clustered on the underside of the young leaves of an orange tree. While watching the ants moving about among the droves, I noticed several tiny Ichneumon flies mounting the 12 266 INJURIOUS INSECTS backs of the plant-lice. They were so small as to be scarcely visible to the naked eye, but a good lens soon helped me to see what they were doing. They were busy depositing eggs in the "ant's cows!" The Ichneumon would mount the back of a " cow/' when the latter would become restive and try to dismount its rider by kicking and nearly standing on its head, and this would set the others next it to kicking in the same way, until all on the leaf seemed to be panic-stricken, and were kicking, striking, and throwing themselves about in a most ludi- crous manner, all the while holding on by their beaks. And it was very amusing to see the excited ants trying to find the cause of the panic. But the little Ichneu- mons did not " seem to be in the least disconcerted and did their work most effectually as the sequel proved. Not many days after I witnessed the egg-laying, the abdomens of the plant-lice were very much distended, and they no longer gave any nourishment to the ants, who passed around among them as if discouraged. Two ants would meet and seem to consult over the matter, then they would stroke the " cows" with their antennae, but meeting with no response they would pass to another leaf, with no better result. At last they tried to remove the " cows," they would take them gently in their mandi- bles, but in many cases the beak was inserted so firmly in the leaf or twig they could not remove it. When they did succeed in removing one they invariably carried it to the nest. This was the most complete destruction of plant-lice I ever witnessed. I could not find a single living speci- men left. In due time a little shining black Ichneumon ~ fly — the counterpart of its mother — emerged from a hole in the back of each aphis. Since my observations were made on this orange aphis it has been named by Mr. Ashmead, SipJionophora citri- folii, and the little Ichneumon has been named by Mr. OF THE FARM AKD GARDEN. 267 Cresson as a species of Trioxys. Aphides, wherever they occur, are readily destroyed by the use of tobacco, applied as smoke or in infusion as already described. What is known to gardeners as the "Blue Louse" is an aphis which sometimes attacks the roots of verbenas, asters, and other flowers in such numbers as to cause their death before the source of the trouble is suspected. When these underground lice attack the roots, a persistent ap- plication of tobacco-water will save the plants if it is used before the injury has gone too far. THE MEALY-BUG. Genus Dactylopius. This insect is a common pest of the green-house both in this country and in Europe, and is often injurious to plants in the open air. There are several spe- cies, all of which are more or less covered with a quantity of floury matter secreted through pores scat- tered over the body. They are often very abundant upon almost every variety of house-plant and very destructive. They are most frequently found in the crotches of the branches, and close down in the axils of the leaves, though they do not confine themselves to these places. The engraving, fig- ure 157, shows a Mealy-bug, with its powdery covering removed and much magnified. One species — D. de- structor, Com stock — is one of the worst enemies to the orange groves in Florida. Professor Comstock, in his Report as Entomologist of 268 INJURIOUS INSECTS. the Department of Agriculture, says: "the natural ene- mies of the Mealy-bug — D. destructor — is a little chalcis fly (Encyrtus inquisitor, Howard)/' also " a small red bug was observed by myself and several of our correspond- ents to prey upon the Mealy-bug. The very curious lar- vae of a lady-bird beetle, known as Scymnus lioculatus, were found feeding upon the eggs of the Mealy-bug at Orange Lake. These larvae mimic the Mealy-bug so closely they might easily be taken for them." The great difficulty in the way of destroying this insect is the floury secretion with which it is covered, most washes having little effect upon it. The best remedies, so far as I know, are given by Professor Comstock in the Report above mentioned. EEMEDIES. " SNUFF AND SULPHUR. — Equal parts by bulk of smok- ing tobacco and flowers of sulphur were ground together in a mortar until thoroughly mixed. This compound was perfectly successful when dusted over wet plants; and it adhered to the plant for a long time notwithstand- ing rain. Still this does not seem to me to be a remedy that will admit of successful and economical application on a large scale. It may be useful in conservatories, and upon ornamental plants." A decoction of tobacco is also useful in destroying the Mealy-bug. The Mealy-bug upon window plants and upon those in green-houses, if taken in time and perse- veringly followed, may be kept in check by a modified hand-picking, removing the insects wherever they may be found by means of a small stick, such as a sliver of pine sharpened to a point. An "exterminator" is offered, but as its composition is kept secret, it can not be intel- ligently commended. OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 269 THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN LOCUST. (Caloptenus spretus, Thomas.) Though the ravages of this insect are confined to a lim- ited area, its destructiveness is so great in the localities it visits, that it seems desirable in a work like the present to give the leading facts in its history. It is usually called the Rocky Mountain Locust, but is sometimes known as the "Hateful Grasshopper." This insect has visited Kansas, Nebraska and other Western States with most destructive effect, the recital of which reminds one of the accounts of the plagues of Egypt. Few insects have had their life history more thoroughly studied, and the useful information given by entomologists concerning this single insect has more than warranted the cost of the various State and General Government Commissions. An elaborate account of this insect is given in the Seventh Missouri Report, and another, in the Report of the U. S. Entomological Commission for 1880. The following is compiled from an account in the "American Entomolo- gist," by Wm. A. Byers, and from other sources. The Rocky Mountain Locust is common in all the western or rainless region, one-third of the United States, but its breeding place is upon the hot, parched plains and table lands, from four to six thousand feet above the sea. The greater the heat, the more they flourish. Though they endure considerable cold and live, they are at the same time exceedingly sensitive to its effects; be- coming torpid in frosty nights or in snow storms, and reviving to active life in the succeeding sunshine. The swarms that devastate the country in their flights are in- variably natives of sandy plains or basins, comparatively destitute of vegetation, where the direct and reflected heat of the sun's rays in summer are more intense than 270 INJURIOUS INSECTS are experienced in the Valley of the Mississippi. The humidity, however, is very much less; the air being like that of a furnace. In such places, and on the hottest days, the Grasshopper is the most active, and then it at- tains its greatest perfection. When it has reached a cer- tain stage in its existence, it takes to flight. Those hatched in the same locality, and necessarily under the same climatic influences, rise in the air about the same time, but they do not move in concert. Their course is directed by the prevailing winds more than by any other influence. Consequently, in this country, 'it is generally from northwest to southeast. They alight or move for- ward at pleasure, each individual upon its own account. Many of them fly at an immense height. . They have been seen on the highest peaks of the snowy range, four- teen to fifteen thousand feet above the sea, filling the air as much higher as they could be distinguished with a good field glass, glistening in the sunlight like snow- flakes. In crossing the snowy ranges countless myriads of them perish. Nearly all that alight for food become so chilled that they are unable to rise again, and in a few days they die. On the great snow fields it is nothing un- common to see the dead so plentiful that they might be shovelled up by wagon loads. When the season comes for depositing their eggs, the swarms which happen to be in favorable localities, proceed to do so, after which most of them soon die and the pest disappears. Some doubt- less continue their flight. If the succeeding winter is mild, young Grasshoppers may be found upon sandy, sunny hillsides long before spring, but the great swarms appear with the earliest vegetation. Then it is they are the most destructive. It is a common belief that a young Grasshopper eats more than half a dozen full grown ones. They feed and grow, and in due time take flight, as did the generation before them. But few Grasshoppers are hatched in the mountains, properly speaking. It is true OF THE FARM AND GARDEN". 271 they do in some of the valleys, up to the altitude of seven or eight thousand feet — possibly sometimes to nine thou- sand— but they usually come out so late that the frosts of the following fall catch them before they take flight. As an illustration, the Middle Park of the Kocky Moun- tains is a great basin, bowl-shaped, with a single line broken out of its western rim. Otherwise, it is surround- ed by snowy mountains. Fifteen years ago, it was in- vaded by Grasshoppers from the direction of Utah, which deposited their eggs all over it. In its lower por- tion the young began hatching about the first of July. They attained maturity and took flight in August. Their hatching ground was from six to seven and a half thousand feet above the sea. Further up toward the rim they came out later, and at nine thousand feet they did not appear until the last of August. September frosts and snows caught them, and they never left their native ground. About the same time these latter hatched, im- mense swarms of full-grown insects came again from the west, but instead of lighting in the Park they drifted up against and upon the snowy range east of it, where they perished in countless millions. In August, 1864, this country had its worst visitation of "Hateful Grasshoppers." They had hatched in the valleys of the Upper Missouri, from six hundred to eight hundred miles distant, and swept over Colorado with a solid front. They ate up late crops and then deposited their eggs and died. In the following spring, their pro- geny came out of the ground with the early crops, which they devoured. When about one- third grown they were attacked by an Ichneumon Fly, which stung them in the back, depositing one or more eggs. The product of these destroyed probably one-half or two-thirds of the Grass- hoppers, and the balance in due time took flight and left us. With the exception of those two years, Colorado has not been generally nor severely scourged by that pest. 272 INJURIOUS INSECTS They have done damage in several restricted localities, and have passed over in greater or less swarms almost every year since the settlement of the country, but the prevalent idea that they are a yearly plague is a mistake. In New Mexico, which has been settled by the same people for two hundred years, generation after genera- tion of the same family, cultivating the same fields, they say they expect to lose about one crop in seven by Grass- hoppers. The experience in Utah, Montana, Idaho and Fig. 158.— THE FEMALE ROCKY MOUNTAIN LOCUST DEPOSITING HER EGGS. a, 'a, a, Female Locusts in different positions, ovipositing ; b, Egg-pod extracted from ground, with the end broken open ; c, Eggs ; d, e, Earth partially removed, to show an egg-mass already in place, and one being placed ; /, shows where such a mass has been covered up. Nevada, is about the same as Kansas and Nebraska, which States have suffered more or less until recently. They will not propagate in great numbers in the Missis- sippi Valley — not because it is too hot or too low, but be- cause it is too damp. "When the Grasshopper invades a district, it at once sets about depositing its eggs, and the great injury to be apprehended is, from the brood to be hatched from them. EGG-LAYING AND HATCHING. — Figure 158 illustrates the manner in which the female lays her eggs. With two OF THE FARM AND GARDE pair of horny valves at tlie tip of to drill a cylindrical hole in the ground, pref g^fer this purpose soil that is rather firm, though not too hard. In a moist climate, or where vegetation is rank, she chooses bare and exposed places, but in her native range, viz., the Northwestern Plains, where the vegetation is usually scant and short, she chooses rather the shade at the base of some Sage bush or Grease-wood shrub. When* the hole is once drilled the eggs are laid in four tolerably Fig. 159.— EGG-MASSES OF LOCUST, MAGNIFIED. EGG MASS.— a, from the Bide, within burrow ; &, from beneath j c, from above. regular rows (fig. 159), interspersed by a fluid which is frothy and mucous, and which dries around the eggs and fills up the neck of the burrow (fig. 159, d). Each fe- male lays from two to three batches of eggs, each batch containing about thirty eggs. The eggs are laid through- out the late summer and fall months until winter sets in, at which time every stage of embryonic development can be found. The great bulk of the eggs remain unhatched until the ensuing spring. HABITS AND DEVELOPMENT. — The young locusts con- gregate in large numbers in warm and sunny places. At night, or during cold and damp weather, they usually huddle together under any shelter or rubbish that may be at hand. They do not migrate until they have eaten off the vegetation where they hatch. This usually happens when they are about one-third or one-half grown. They 374 IXJUKIOUS INSECTS then travel during the warmer hours of the day by alter- nately walking and hopping in vast bodies in some given direction. In thus travelling they move at the average rate of about three yards a minute. There are six stages Fig. 160.— THE LABV^J AND PUPA OF LOCUST, a, a, Newly-hatched Larvae ; b, Full-grown Larva , c, Pupa of the Locust. of growth, i. e., the locust moults at five different periods. The change at each of these moults is but slight, and the wing-pads are first distinctly noticeable and turned up in a. Fig. 161.— THE PUPA OP THE LOCUST ACQUIRING WINGS. a, Papa with skin just split on the back ; &, the imago extruding ; c, the imago near- ly out ; d, the imago with wings expanded. the fourth stage, or after the third moult. After the fourth moult we have the true pupa stage (fig. 160, c), and with the fifth moult the wings are acquired, the pro- cess being illustrated at figure 161. The time required OJF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 275 from hatching to full development varies according to season and weather, cold and wet weather retarding, and warm weather accelerating development. It averages, however, two months. There is but one generation each year, the term of the insect's life being bounded by the spring and autumn frosts. Of the various methods of combating the attacks of this Grasshopper, we have THE DESTRUCTION OF THE EGGS. — Harrowing in the autumn, or during dry, mild weather in early winter, will prove one of the most effectual modes of destroying the eggs and preventing future injury, wherever it is available. A revolving harrow or a cultivator will do ex- cellent service in this way, not only in the field, but along roadways and other bare and uncultivated places. The object should be, not to stir deeply but to scarify and pulverize as much as possible the soil to about the depth of an inch. PLOWING. — Next to harrowing this is one of the most generally available means possessed by the farmer of dealing with locust-eggs. IRRIGATION. — This is feasible in much of the country subject to locust ravages, especially in the mountain fields or gardens. COAL-OIL. — The use of coal-oil and coal-tar may be considered, as both substances are employed in various ways for trapping and destroying the insects. Coal-oil is the very best and cheapest that can be used against the locusts. It may be used in any of its cruder forms, and various contrivances have been employed to facilitate its practical operation. The main idea embodied in these contrivances is that of a shallow receptacle of any con- venient size (varying from about three feet square to about eight or ten by two or three feet), provided with high back and sides, either mounted on wheels or run- 276 INJUKIOUS INSECTS ners, or carried (by means of suitable handles or support- ing rods) by hand. If the "pan" is larger than, say, three feet square, it is provided with transverse positions which serve to prevent any slopping of the contents (in case water and oil are used), when the device is subjected to any sudden irregular motion, such as tipping, or in case of a wheeled pan, when it passes over uneven ground. The wheeled pan is used like a wheelbarrow; the hand-worked pan is carried by long handles at its ends. On pushing or carrying, as the case may be, these pans, supplied with oil, over the infested fields, and man- . 162.— COAL-OIL PAN FOB CATCHING LOCUSTS. ipulating the shafts and handles so as to elevate or de- press the front edge of the pan as may be desired, the locusts are startled from their places and spring into the tar or oil, when they are either entangled by the tar and die slowly, or, coming in contact with the more active portion of the oil expire almost immediately. Fig. 162 represents a sheet-iron pan that has been used in some lo- calities with good results. It must be made sufficiently tight to hold kerosene, of which sufficient is used to cover the bottom. A simpler form of pan is shown in figure 163. The bottom of this is to be covered with a thin lay- er of coal tar. Pans of this kind are made light enough to be drawn across the fields by boys ; or if heavy, horses OF THE FARM AND GARDEN. 277 are used to drag them. The majority of the insects per- ish within the pans, which must be occasionally emptied. If some of the locusts jump out, it is of little conse- quence, as all that have been touched by the oil will soon die. In Colorado they use kerosene to good advantage Fig. 163. — COAL-TAR PAN FOB CATCHING LOCUSTS. on the water in their irrigating-ditches, and it may be used anywhere in pans or on cloths, stretched on frames and saturated with it, to be drawn over the field. DESTRUCTION OF THE YOUNG OR UNFLEDGED LOCUSTS. 1st. BURNING. — This method is perhaps the best in prairie and wheat-growing regions, which compose the larger part of the area subject to devastation by this lo- cust. In such regions there is usually more or less old straw or hay that may be scattered over or around the field in heaps and windrows, and into which the locusts, for some time after they hatch, may be driven and burned. During cold or damp weather they congregate of their own accord under such shelter, when they may be destroyed by burning, without the necessity of previous driving. Much has been said for and against the benefi- cial results of burning the prairies in the spring. This 278 INJURIOUS INSECTS is chiefly beneficial around cultivated fields or along the road sides, from which the locusts may be driven, or from which they will of themselves pass for the shelter the prairie aifords. As locusts disperse more and more from their hatch- ing-grounds into the prairie as they develop, burning the grass in spring is beneficial in proportion as it is delayed. 2nd. CRUSHING. — The wholesale destruction of locusts by this means, can only be advantageously accomplished where the ground is smooth and hard. Where the sur- face of the ground presents this character, heavy rolling can be successfully employed, especially in the mornings and evenings of the first eight or ten days after the newly hatched young have made their appearance, as they are generally sluggish during these times, and huddle to- gether until after sunrise. It is also advantageously em- ployed during cold weather at any time of day, since the young when the temperature is low seek shelter under clods, etc. Various machines have been devised for crushing the young. 3rd. TRAPPING. — This can easily be accomplished, es- pecially when the locusts are making their way from roads and hedges. The use of nets at sunrise, or long strips of muslin, calico, or similar materials, converging after the manner of quail-nets have proved very satisfactory. By digging pits or holes three or four feet deep, and then staking the two wings so that they converge toward them, large numbers may be secured in this way after the dew is on6 the ground, or they may be headed off when marching in a given direction. Much good may be ac- complished by changing the position of the trap while the locusts are yet small and congregate in isolated or particular patches. DITCHING and TRENCHING properly come under this head; and both plans are very effectual in protecting OF THE FARM AND GARDEN". 279 crops against the inroads of travelling schools of the in- sects. They were found especially advantageous in much of the ravaged country in a year when there was little or no hay or straw to burn. They are the best available means when the crops are advanced, and when most of the other destructive methods so advisable early in the season can no longer be effectually used. Simple ditches, two feet wide and two feet deep, with perpendicular sides, offer effectual barriers to the young insects. They must, however, be kept in order so that the sides next the fields to be protected are not allowed to wash out or become too hard. They may be kept friable by a brush or rake. The young locusts tumble into such a ditch and ac- cumulate and die at the bottom in large quantities. In a few days the stench becomes great, and necessitates the covering up of the mass. In order to keep the main ditch open, therefore, it is best to dig pits or deeper side ditches at short intervals, in which the locusts will accu- mulate and may be buried. If a trench is made around a field about hatching-time, but few locusts will get into that field until they acquire wings, and by that time the principal danger is over, and the insects are fast disap- pearing. If any should hatch within the inclosure, they are easily driven into the ditches dug in different parts of the field. PROTECTION BY BARRIERS. — Where ditches are not easily made, and where lumber is plentiful, a board fence two feet high and with a three-inch batten nailed to the top or side from which the locusts are coming, the edge of it smeared with coal-tar, serves as an effectual bar- rier, and proves useful to protect regions, where, save in exceptionally favorable locations, agriculture can be suc- cessfully carried on only by its aid, and where means are already extensively provided for the artificial irrigation 280 INJURIOUS INSECTS of large areas. Where the ground is light and porous, prolonged and excessive moisture will cause most of the eggs to perish, and irrigation in autumn or in spring may prove beneficial. 4th. TRAMPING. — In pastures or in fields where hogs, cattle, or horses can be confined when the ground is not frozen, many if not most of the locust-eggs will be de- stroyed by the rooting and tramping. 5th. COLLECTING THE EGGS. — The eggs are frequently placed where none of the above means for destroying them can be employed. In such cases they should be collected and destroyed by the inhabitants, and the State should offer some inducement in the way of bounty for such collection and destruction. Every bushel of eggs destroyed is equivalent to a hundred acres of corn saved, and when we consider the amount of destruction caused by the young, and that the ground is often known to be filled with eggs; that, in other words, the earth is sown with seeds of future destruction, it is surprising that more legislation has not been had, looking to their exter- mination. One of the most rapid ways of collecting the eggs, es- pecially where they are numerous and in light soils, is to slice off about an inch of the soil by trowel or spade, and then cart the egg-laden earth to some sheltered place where it may be allowed to dry, when it may be sifted so as to separate the eggs and egg-masses from the earth. The eggs thus collected may easily be destroyed by bury- ing them in deep pits, providing the ground be packed hard on the surface. THE PROTECTION OF FRUIT TREES. The best means of protecting fruit and shade trees de- serves separate consideration. Where the trunks are smooth and perpendicular they may be protected by white- OF THE FAEM AND GARDEN. 281 washing. The lime crumbles tinder the feet of the in- o sects as they attempt to climb, and prevents their getting up. By their persistent efforts, however, they gradually wear off the lime and reach a higher point each day, so that the whitewashing must be often repeated. Trees with short, rough trunks, or which lean over, are not very well protected in this way. A strip of smooth, bright tin answers better for the same purpose. A strip three or four inches wide brought around and tacked to a smooth tree will protect it, while on rougher trees a piece of old rope may first be fastened around the tree with small nails, and the tin tacked to the rope, so as to leave a portion of it both above and below. Passages between the tin and the rope or the rope and. tree can then be blocked by filling the upper area between the tin and tree with earth. The tin must be high enough from the ground to prevent the 'hoppers from jumping from the latter beyond it, and the trunk below the tree, where the insects collect, should be covered with some coal-tar or poisonous substances to prevent girdling. This is more especially necessary with small trees, and coal-tar will answer as a preventive. One of the cheapest and simplest modes is to encircle the tree with cotton batting, in which the insects will entangle their feet and thus be more or less obstructed. Strips of paper covered with tar; stiff paper tied on so as to slope roof -fashion; strips of glazed wall-paper, and thick coatings of soft-soap, have been used with varying success; but no estoppel equals the bright tin. The oth- ers require constant watching and renewal, and in all cases coming under our observation some insects would get into the trees, so as to require the daily shaking of these morning and evening. This will sometimes have to be done when the bulk of the insects have become fledged, even when tin is used, for a certain proportion of the in- sects will then fly into the trees. They do most damage 282 INJURIOUS INSECTS. during the night, and care should be had that the trees be unloaded of their voracious freight just before dark. It has been found that the whitewash was rendered still more effectual by adding one-half pint of turpentine to the pailful. DESTRUCTION OF THE WINGED INSECTS. The complete destruction of the winged insects, when they swoop down upon a country in prodigious swarms, is impossible. Man is powerless before the mighty host. Special plants, or small tracts of vegeta- tion may be saved by perseveringly driving the insects off, or keeping them off by means of smudges, as the lo- custs avoid smoke; or by rattling or tingling noises con- stantly kept up. Long ropes perseveringly dragged over a grain field have been used to good advantage. INDEX. Abbot Sphinx 221 Abdomen 7 Abraxis ribearia, 199 Achemon Sphinx 219 jSSgeria cucurbitce 63 " exitiosa 183 " tipuliformis 206 AgrUus ruftcollis 213 Agrotis scandens 176 telifera 65-80 Aletia argillacea 129 Alypia octomacnlata 226 American Bean-weevil 19 American Woodbine 219-220 Ampelopsis quinquefolia 219-220 Amphicerm bicaudatus 145 Anasa tristis 61 Anchyloperafragarice 209 11 vacdniana .* 260 Anisopferyx vemata 16*5 Anthocoris insidiosus 119 Anthonomus quadrlgibbus 165 " tuturalis .261 Anthomyia betce 67 " ceparum 53 " zeas 72 Ants 10 Aphides 264 Aphis, Orange 266 Apple -161-164-165-166-1 70-171-1 72-174 Apple Cnrculio 165 Apple Maggot 164 Apple-tree . . . .139-144-145-147-148-151 Apple-tree Bark-lice 147 Apple-tree Borers . . 139 Apple-tree Borer, Flat-headed 144 Apple-tree Borer, Round-headed... 139 Apple-twig Borer 145 Apple-tree Tent-caterpillar 151 Apple-worm 161 Army-worms 129 Army-worm. Northern. . 130 Army-worm, Wheat-head 134 Ash-gray Blister-beetle 90 Ash-gray Leaf-bug 118 Asopia costalis 137 Asparagus-beetle 1 5-33 Aspidiotus conchifoivnis 148 Harrisii 147 283 Aster 83 Bag-worm 177 Baridius trinotatus 85 Bark -lice, Apple-tree 147 Bark-louse, Harris' — .^47 Oyster-shell 148 Barley 124 Basket-worm 177 Bean 17 " English, or Windsor 91 " weevil , 19 Beautiful Wood-nymph 228 Bees 10 Beet 67 " Carrion Beetle 67 " Fly 67 Beetles 10 " Click 81 " Carrion 67 " Colorado Potato 94 " Golden Tortoise 106 11 Grape-vine Flea 241 " Spring 81 " Strawberry-leaf 208 '• Striped Turnip 35 " Three-lined Leaf 92 " Tortoise 101 Blackberry. 210-211-212 " Borers 212 " Flea-louse ..211 Gall 212 Black Blister-beetle 91 Black-legged Tortoise-beetle 109 Black-rat Blister-beetle 91 Ulissus leucopterus 112 Blister-beetle, Ash-gray 9() Black 91 " Black-rat 91 Margined 92 Striped 89 Blue Caterpillars of the Vine 226 Blue-louse 267 Bogus Colorado Potato-beetle 97 Boll-worm 66-63 Borers 8 " Apple-tree 139 " Apple-twig 145 " Blackberry 212 " Clover-root 136 284 INDEX. Borers. Currant-etalk 206 " Flat-headed Apple-tree 144 " Peach 183 " Potato-stalk 83 " Round-headed Apple-tree.. 139 " Squash 63 " Strawberry Crown 209 Botys bicolor 2:32 Bntchus faba 19 pisi 56 End-worm, Cranberry 261 Bug, Chinch 112 '• Mealy 268 " Rose 245 " Squash 61 Bugs, True 12 Bupestris, Red-necked 313 Butterflies 11 Cabbage 21 Butterfly, Pot-herb 24 Rape 22 " Southern Cabbage 27 Cabbage 21-24-27-29-31-:i3-35-37 Cabbage-bug, Harlequin 37 Butterflies 21 Plusia 29 worm, New 33 Caloptenus spretus 269 Camel Cricket. 234 Camellias 252 Campanotus esurlens 265 Canker-worm 166 Caraway 55 Carnation. . 83 Carrion-beetle 67 Carrot 21-55 Carpocapsa pomoneUa 161 Cassida anrichalcea 106 " UmUata 105 " guttata 108 " niyripes 109 " pattida 108 Caterpillars 8 Caterpillar, Apple tree Tent 151 " Blue, of the Vine 226 " Corn 66 '• Hog, of the Vine 215 '• Red-humped 170 Surface 79 " Tent, of the Forest 155 Zebra 31 Cauliflower 21-31 Cecidomyia destructor I'.O Cecidomyia trifolii .................. 135 Celery .............................. 55 Centipedes ......................... 82 Cereal Grains ...................... 112 Chcerocampa pampinatrix ......... 215 Chafer, Rose .................... . .245 Chalcid. Four-winged Fly .......... 122 Cherry, Wild ...................... 154 Cherry-slug ........................ 182 Chinch-bug ........................ 112 "• False ............... 61-117 Chrysalis ........................... 8 Chrysobothrisfemorata ............. 144 Cicada, Periodical .................. 190 " Seventeen-year ............. 190 " Thirteen-year ............. 196 Cicada septendecim ............... 190 "• tredecim ..................... 196 Classification of Insects. . . ....... 10 Clastoptera proteus ................. 261 Click-beetles ....................... 81 Climbing Cut-worms ............... 174 Ciisiocampa Americana ............ 151 Ciisiocampa syivatica ............... 155 Clover ............................ 135 " Hay-worm ................... 137 " Root-borer ............... 136 " Seed Midge ........... ....... 135 Cock-chafer ....................... 75 Cockle-bur ....................... 84 Codling-moth ...................... 161 Coleoptera ......................... 10 Color-ado Potato-beetle ............. 94 " Bogus ....... 97 " " " Parasite... .101 C¬racMus nenuphar ............ 185 Coreus trislis ..................... 61 Corn, Indian ............ • .......... 67 " Seed ......................... 72 " worm ....................... 68 Cotton-worm ....................... 129 Cranberry ......................... 260 " Bud-worm ............... '261 " Fruit-worm .............. 261 - " Leaf-hopper ............ ..261 Saw-fly .................. 261 " Vine-worm ............. 260 Cricket, Snowy-tree .............. 214 Crioseris asparagi ................. 15 Crow ............................. 77 Cucumber ........................ 42-45 Cucumber-beetle, Striped .......... 42 IKDEX. 285 Curculio, Apple 165 " Plum 185 Currant 199-202-205-206 " Stalk-borer 206 " worm, Imported 202 " worm, Native 205 Cut- worm, Greasy 65-80 Cut-worms 78 " '• Climbing . ...174 J)actylopius destructor 268 Dahlia 83 Datura. 99 Desmia maculalis 231 Diabrotlca 12-punctata 45-63 vittata 42 Diastrophus cuscutceformis 212 " nebulosus 212 Digger-wasp 197 Diplosis tritici 123 Diptera 12 Dor-bug 73 " " Trap for 78 Doryphora decemlineata 94 " 'juncta 97 Dragon-fly 14 Drop-worm 177 Egg 8 Egg-plant 99 Eight-spotted Forester 226 Elater 81 Elm... 166-171 Elytra 11 Emphytus maculatus 207 Encyrtus inquisitor 268 Erythroneura 259 Eudnjas grata 228 unio 229 Eufitchia ribearia 199 Fall Web-worm 160 False Chinch-bug 117 " Wire-worms 82 Fennel 55 Flat-headed Apple-tree Borer 144 Flea-beetle, Grape-vine 241 " Wavy-striped 35 Flower-bug, Insidious 119 Fly, Beet 67 " Hessian... 120 Forest Tent-caterpillar 155 Forester, Eight-spotted 226 Fruit Trees 280 Fruit-worm. Cranberry 261 Fungus on White Grub 78 Gall, Blackberry 212 " Raspberry 213 Garden Vegetables, Insects Injuri- ous to 15 Girdler, Twig 171 Golden Tortoise-beetle 106 Gortynia nitida 83 Gooseberry 199-202-205 Gooseberry Span-worm 199 Goose-foot 33 Grape, 174-215-219-220-224-226-228-229 231-233-235-238-241-244-245-246-248- 259. Grape-beny Moth 238 Grape Leaf-folder 231 " Leaf-hopper 259 " Phylloxera 248 Grape-vine Flea-beetle 241 " " Plume 235 " " "Thrips." 259 Grapotdera chalybea 241 Grass Crops 112 Grasshopper, Hateful 269 " " Rocky Mountain ...269 Greasy Cut-worm 65-79 Grub, White 206 Grubs 8 Haltica chalybea 241 " striolata 35-110 "Hanneton.". 75 Harris1 Bark-louse 147 Harlequin Cabbage-bug . . 3T Harpaclor cinctus .119 Hateful Grasshopper 269 Head 7 Heart-worm 23 Heliothis armigera 66-68 Hellebore, White 20 1 Hemiptera 12 Hessian Fly 120 Hickory 171 Hog-caterpillar of the Vine 215 Honey-locust 91 Horse-nettle 29-98 Hylesinus trifolii 136 Hymenoptera 10 Hyphantria textor. 160 Ichneumon Flies 10-28 Imago 9 Imported Currant- worm 202 Indian Corn 67 Insects Injurious to Garden Vege- tables... .. 15 I^DEX. Insects Injurious to Root Crops. . . 67 Insects of Flower Garden and Greenhouse 262 Introduction 7 Insidious Flower-bug 119 Isosoma hordd 124 Ithycereus N&ceboracensis 172 lulus multistriatus 83 Ivy 262 Jamestown Weed 99 Joint-worm 124 June-bug 73 " " Trap for 78 Kansas, Year of Drouth 70 Lachnosterna fusca 73 Lady-bird 101-268 Lady-bugs 1"! Lambs-quarter 33 Laphrygmafmgiperda 129 Larva 8 Leaf -beetle, Strawberry 208 Three-lined 92 Leaf-bug, Ash-gray 118 Leaf -folder, Grape 231 Leaf-gall Phylloxera . 248 Leaf-hopper, Cranberry 261 " " Grape.... 259 Leaf -roller, Strawberry 209 Lema trilineata 92 Lepidoptera 11 Leucania albUinia 134 " unipunctata 130 Lice, Plant 264 Ligyrw 75 Lilies 83 Linden, American 171 Locust, Rocky Mountain 269 " Seventeen-year 190 " Thirteen- year 196 London Purple 100 Louse, Blue 267 Lubber Grasshopper 13 Lytta atrata . 91 " cinerea 90 " marginata 92 " murina 91 " vittata 89 Macrodactylus subspinoms 245 Maggots 8 Maggot, Apple 164 Seed Corn 72 Mamestra picta 31 Mangel Wurzel ....... 67 Mantis Carolina 234 Many-banded Robber 119 Margined Blister-beetle 92 May-bug 73-78 Mealy-bug, 268 Meloiontha vulgaris 75 Melon-worm 48 Midge, Clover-seed 135 Wheat 123 Mignonette 21 Millipedes 82 Moths 11 Moth, Codling 161 " Grape-berry 238 Mottled Tortoise- beetle 108 Muck-worm 75 Mustard 39 Myriapods 82 Mytdapsis pomicortids . . 148 Nasturtium 21 Native Currant- worm 205 Nematus ventrieosus 202 Nerve-winged Insects 14 Neuroptera 14 New York Weevil 172 Northern Army Worm 130 Notodonta concinna 1 70 Nymph, Beautiful Wood 228 " Pearl-wood 229 Nysius destructor 61-117 Oberea perspiciUata 212 (Ecanthus niveus 214 Oncideres cingulatus 171 Onion 52-53 Onion-fly, Black 52 " " Imported 53 Orange 205-267 " Aphis 266 Orange-Rust 212 Ortalisflexa 52 Orthoptera 13 Oyster-shell Bark-louse 148 Painted Mamestra 31 Pale-thighed Tortoise-beetle 108 Parasite of Colorado Potato-beetle. 101 " " Potato-worm 88 Paria aterrima 208 Paris Green, Use of 99 Parsley-worm 55 Parsnip 55 Pea-weevil 56 Peach 172-183 Peach-borer.... 183 INDEX. 287 Pear 170-171-172-174-182 Pear-slug 182 Pearl Wood-nymph 229 Pelidnota piinctata 244 Pelidnota, The Spotted 244 Penthina mtivorana 238 Periodical Cicada 190 Persimmon 171 Phacellura hyalinatalis 48 nitidalis 45 Philampelus achemon 219 satellitia 220 Phylloxera, Grape 248 Phylloxera vastatrix 248 Pickle- worm 45 Pieris oleracea 24 " Protodtce 27 " rapce 22 Piesma cinerea 118 Pimpla conqnisitor 52 Pumea, rimosalis 33 PlantLice 264 Plum 171-172-185 Plum Curculio 185 Plume, Grape-vine 235 Plusia brasstcce 29 Potato 83 " Beetle, Colorado 94 " Stalk-borer 83 " Stalk-weevil 85 " Worm 86 " Worm Parasite 88 " Sweet 102 Pot-herb Butterfly 24 PnstipJiora gross alarm 205 identidem 261 Prunus serotina 154 Psylla rubi 211 Pterophorus periscelidactylus 235 Pumpkin 61 Pupa 8 Radish 39-61 Rape Butterfly 22 Raspberry 212-213-214 Galls 213 Red-humped Caterpillar 170 Red-necked Bupestris. 213 RedSpider 210 Reduvius . ..12 Robber, Many-banded 1 19 Rocky Mountain Grasshopper.. . 269 Locust 269 Rose Bug 245-263 " Chafer 245 " Slug 263 Root Crops, Insects Injurious to. . . 67 Ruta-baga 32-110 Saperda bivittata 139 Satellite Sphinx 220 Saw-fly, Cranberry 261 Scymnus bioculatiis 268 Seed-corn Maggot 72 Selandria cerasi 182 " rosce 263 Semiotelus destructor 122 Seventeen-year Cicada 190 SUpha opaca 67 Siphonophora citrifolii 266 Skunk 78 Slug, Cherry 182 " Pear 182 " Rose 263 Small Fruits 199 Snow-berry 33 Snowy Tree-cricket 214 Solanum Carolinense 29-98 " mdongena 99 Southern Cabbage Butterfly 27 " Grass-worm 129 Span-worm, Gooseberry 199 Sphinx, Abbot 224 Achemon 219 Satellite a 220 Sphinx Carolina 86 " quinquemaculata 65-86 Spttsoma Virginica 223. Spiracles 7 Spotted Pelidnota 244 Squash 61-63 " Borer 63 " Bug 61 Spring-beetles 81 Stalk-borer, Currant 206 Stizus grandis 197 Strachia histrionica, 37 Straight- winged Insects 13 Strawberry. . 74-83-206-207-208-209-210 " Crown-borer 209 Leaf-beetle 208 " Leaf -roller :..209 Worm 207 Striped Blister-beetle 89 " Bug 42 " Cucumber-beetle 42 " Turnip-beetle 35 288 IXDEX. Surface Caterpillars 79 Swedes 110 Sweet Potato 102 " Beetle, Two-striped . . 105 Symphoricarpm racemosus 33 Tent-caterpillar, Apple-tree 151 of the Forest 154 Tettigonia vitis 259 Texan Cabbage-bug 41 Thirteen-year Cicada 196 Thorax 7 Three-lined Leaf -beetle 92 Ttiridopteryx ephemcereformis 177 " Thrips " 259 Thyreus Abbotii 224 Tobacco- water, Use of 263 Worm 86 Tomato 66-67 Tomato-worm 65-86 Parasite 88 Tortoise-beetles 101 Tortoise-beetle, Black-legged 109 Mottled 108 Pale-thighed 108 Trap for June-bug 78 Trioxys 267 Trochilium cucurbitce 63 Tiypeta pomonetta 164 Turnip 21-38-110 Beetle, Striped 35 Flea-beetle 110 " Fly '. HO Twelve-spotted Squash-beetle 63 " Diabrotica 45 Twig-girdler 171 Two-Striped Sweet Potato Beetle. .105 Two- winged Insects 12 Tyloderma frayarice 209 Uredo rtiborum 212 Uropoda Americana 101 Veratrum album 204 Ver du Cceur 23 Vine- worm, Cranberry 260 Virginia Creeper 219-220-224 Vines, Susceptibility to Phylloxera.258 Wasps 10 Wasp, Digger 197 Wavy-striped Flea-beetle 35-110 Web-worm, Fall 160 Weevil, American Bean 19 •' New York 172 Pea 56 " Potato-stalk 85 Wheat 115 Wheat-head Army Worm 134 Wheat-midge 123 Wheel-bug 12 White Berry 33 White Grub 67-73-206 " " Fungus 78 White Hellebore 204 Wild Cherry. 154 Wire-worms 81 " " False 82 Wood Nymph, Beautiful 228 " Pearl 229 Worm, Apple 161 Army 129 " Bag 177 " Basket 177 " Boll 66-68 " Canker 166 Climbing Cut 177 •' Clover 137 •' Currant, Imported 202 " Cut 78 Corn.... , 68 Drop 177 il Fall Web 160 False Wire 82 Gooseberry Span 199 " Joint 124 Muck 75 " Native Currant 205 ' Northern Army 130 Potato 86 " Southern Grass 129 " Strawberry. -207 " Tobacco 86 Tomato 65-86 " Wire 81 Xon/hium strumarium 8 i_ Yellow-bear, Common 233 Zebra Caterpillar 31 THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY WILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTH DAY AND TO $1.OO ON THE SEVENTH DAY OVERDUE. MAY 1 LD 21-100m-12,'43 (8796s) YB 09946