" o j i- - ..,v A 7)- Cecropia cocoon. Page 21. 3. A flat, oval, tan-colored, felt-like mass attached to tree trunks, old boards and all kinds of rubbish. Gypsy moth egg mass. Page 34. 4. A band of eggs encircling a twig. I. Egg mass with rounded ends. (fig. 36). Orchard tent-caterpillar eggs. Page 41 II. With square ends. Forest tent-caterpillar eggs. Page 30. 5. Eggs adhering to a grayish cocoon ; cocoon enclosing a brownish empty pupal skin. (fig. 39). Antique tussock. Page 28. 6. A whitish frothy mass enclosing several layers of eggs adher- ing to a grayish cocoon, with empty pupal skin within. White marked tussock. Page 28. i6 a. PLANT LICE. Besides the woolly aphis which does its chief damage to the apple roots, several species of aphids attack the leaves, and tender stems. These are minute insects about ]/% of an inch long. They pierce the tissue of the shoots with their beaks and suck the sap or infest the leaves causing them to curl, or become sickly. Some species of these pass their whole life upon the apple while others spend part of the year on other plants. But as all the important species return to the apple twigs to lay eggs in the fall and as they resemble one another closely, both in appearance and manner of injury, it is not necessary to discuss more than two species here. Aphids are frequently attended by ants which are attracted by honey dew, a sweet secretion of the aphids, and the presence of ants about the apple leaves is a pretty certain sign of aphid infestation. Lady beetles (figs. 52, 53) both in the adult and larval stage feed greedily upon aphids and should not be mistaken for in- jurious insects. Syrphus maggots also are among the most beneficial insects in the State in this respect, as they destroy aphids in great numbers. 1. Green Apple Aphis. (Aphis pomi De G.) The body is pear-shaped, the colors being yellowish green, greenish, or darker, varying considerably in detailed markings and in the several generations. Winter eggs (fig. 30) are deposited by the sexual females in the fall. They hatch in the spring, and, like the species next considered, the aphids developing from them cause a curling of the leaves. The green apple aphis infests the apple through- out the year. Upon the hatching of the winter eggs in spring a succession of agamic generations is produced, the earlier ones, except the first, with numerous winged individuals which migrate to other trees and establish new colonies. 17 2. Rosy Apple Aphis. (Aphis pyri Boyer.) The rosy apple aphis, regarded by Gillette as possibly Aphis pyri Boyer, is readily distinguished from the preceding by its larger size, rounder body, and usually rosy color, which, how- ever, may vary from salmon to tan or even to slaty gray or black, the body being covered with a whitish pulverulence. Winter eggs are deposited in the autumn by sexual females, and more often on the trunk and larger limbs than with the other species mentioned. They hatch in spring as the apple leaves are pushing out, and the young aphids infest the young leaves and later the tender shoots and foliage, the latter thus becoming usually badly curled. Three generations from the egg are said to occur on the apple in the spring, many individ- uals of the second and third generations developing wings and migrating to other trees and to other host plants. After the third generation the apple is deserted by the insects until fall, when the return migrants appear and give rise to the true sexual forms, the females depositing eggs as described. METHODS OP CONTROL. Priming. — As has been stated, the aphids under considera- tion pass the winter in the egg stage on the apple, the eggs being deposited more or less promiscuously over the more nearly terminal twigs (fig. 30). With young trees especially, which are seen to be heavily stocked with the eggs, the latter may be largely removed during the work of pruning, and the primings should be collected and burned. The insects in the egg condition are frequently distributed on nursery stock; therefore, if in planting trees this stock be well pruned and the primings destroyed, the establishment of the aphids in young orchards may be often prevented or de- laved. Winter spraying for destruction of eggs. — Excellent results have followed the use of lime-sulphur wash, most all of the eggs of the apple aphis having been destroyed by one thorough application in spring shortly before the buds opened. The use of this wash for the eggs of aphids would also control the San Jose scale when present. i8 Spring and summer treatments. — Effective work in control- ling these insects may be done in the spring just after they have hatched from eggs and have collected on the expanding foliage. Trees seen to be badly infested at this time should be thoroughly sprayed, taking pains to wet as completely as possible all parts of the leaves, twigs, and branches. However thoroughly the work may be done, some of the "lice" are almost sure to escape destruction, owing to the difficulty of forcing the spray between the unfolding leaves, more or less covered with hairs, where some of the insects will have penetrated. A subsequent treat- ment in the course of a week should usually be made, especially if the first application is seen to have been unsatisfactory. After the foliage is well out and more or less distorted from the presence of the aphids, effective spraying is quite difficult, since many of the insects on the lower surface of the curled leaves will not be hit by the spray. Repeated applications must be made, therefore, as necessary to keep the insects under con- trol. Spray mixtures. — The lime-sulphur wash for the destruction of winter eggs is made according to the usual formula for the wash (Formula 10). After the trees are in foliage, a more dilute contact insecticide must be employed, as strong tobacco docoction, 1 5 or 20 per cent kerosene emulsion, or whale-oil soap (Formulas 8, 4, 6). Since aphids secure their food by sucking up sap from within the plant, none of the arsenical poisons would be effective. b. INSECTS FEEDING FREELY UPON THE LEAVES WITHOUT A NEST AND NOT CONCEALED WITHIN LEAF OR BUD. 1. Canker Worms. i. spring canker-worm. (Paleacrita vemata.) The male moths of this species have rather large, thin, silky wings, about one inch across when spread. The general color is bluish gray. A well defined row or band of light markings near the outer margin of the front wings, and three darker, irregular bands, across the same wings, together with the 19 slightly lighter color and absence of markings on the hind wings, are characteristic features. The inconspicuous female moths are wingless and, because of this fact, the spread of the species is very slow, occurring mainly by the transportation of nursery stock infested with eggs. The moths usually emerge from the ground early in the spring— about April, or farther south, in March — and the fe- males climb up the trunks of trees to deposit eggs. The eggs, which are shaped something like hens' eggs and are about the size of fly specks, are deposited in irregular masses, usually partially concealed by loose pieces of bark. They hatch about the time the leaves unfold ; the time varying with the locality and the season. The larvae are ''measuring worms" with 2 pairs of legs at the hind end of body (fig. 5). The young larvae are Fig. 5. a, larva, showing the two pairs of pos- terior legs; b, single egg, much enlarged. (After Rilev). voracious feeders and they grow rapidly, usually attaining full size in from three to four weeks from the time of hatching. Upon reaching full size they drop to the ground, burrowing beneath the surface to a depth of two to five inches. Here each one forms a cell, lined with silk which it spins, and soon trans- forms to the chrysalis stage, where it remains until the following spring, when the adult moth emerges as before. II. FALL CANKER-WORM. (AlsopJiila pometaria.) The fall canker-worm so closely resembles the other species as to be frequently mistaken for it. For all practical purposes they may be considered together, but the fall canker-work is more distinctively a northern insect. As in the other species, the female moth is wingless, but in this species she lacks the hairiness which characterizes the other. The male moth has two light bands across the front wings instead of the single one of the preceding, and the rear wings are slightly shaded. The larvae of this species also, besides having three pairs of legs under the hind end of the body, as shown in figure 6, have a broad, dark stripe along the back, as opposed to the narrow 20 markings of the other species. The eggs, which are slightly larger than in the previous species, somewhat resemble small flower pots and are attached to the bark, in exposed situations, in masses of from 60 to 200, placed side by side as seen in figure 6. c. The eggs highly magnified, are shown in figure 6 a. Fig. 6. a. single egg, much en- larged ; e, egg mass ; f , larva, showing the three pairs of pos- terior legs. (After Riley). The eggs are deposited in fall or early winter (sometimes in mild winters as late as March). They hatch about the same time as those of the other species and the larvae act in a similar manner, entering the ground about the same time. Instead of forming a cell lined with silk, however, this species spins a tough cocoon, and the moths come forth and begin laying eggs in October and November. HOW TO FIGHT CANKER-WORMS. One of the surest preventive measures is to place a band of tarred paper about the tree in March and smear it with tree tanglefoot, thus preventing the ascent of the female moths and the deposit of eggs. In case the bark is very rough, it should be scraped smooth to prevent the insects from crawling up be- hind the paper. If the fall canker-worm is present, of course the treatment must begin in October. If the trees are already attacked, jarring the limbs will cause many of the worms to spin a thread and drop to the ground. If the band of tangle- foot is in place they will be unable to return to the attack and may be destroyed. The surest way of fighting this pest, however, is by spraying with Paris green or arsenate of lead (Formula 3). For this purpose the pump should be powerful enough to develop a pressure of at least 60 pounds to the square inch, and all parts should be made of brass and carefully adjusted. 21 2. Cecropia Moth. (Samia cecropia.) The large gray or brown cocoon of the Cecropia moth is fre- quently found attached to the twigs of trees (fig. 3J). Fig. 7. (From Me. Agr. Exp. Sta. Circular). These are spun late in August or September by a green cater- pillar about four inches long. The body of the caterpillar is ornate with colored bead-like tubercles, the two pairs nearest the head being red with black spines, and the other dorsal tuber- cles smaller and yellow. Along the sides of the body the tuber- cles are bluish. (Fig. 7). After the cocoon is spun the caterpillar changes to the pupa, a dark brown object which may be found by opening one of the cocoons during the winter. In the spring the insect breaks open the brown pupal skin and emerges from the cocoon as the adult insect, the largest moth in the state and one of the most beautiful. Its expanded wings measure about five and one-half inches. In color the wings are brownish with a border of gray and submarginal lines of white and red. The form of the markings is better represented by the accompanying illustration than by a descrip- tion. The caterpillar is well attended by insect parasites and is devoured by birds. In this State it has not occurred to a 22 troublesome extent and need not be feared as a pest, although it feeds on apple and various forest trees. No remedies usu- ally seem necessary. If the caterpillars are found upon a small trees which they are likely to injure, hand picking will prove effectual. Those who find the Cecropia cocoons during the winter are often interested to save them in a warm room for the sake of observing the beautiful moth which emerges (fig. 8). Fig. 8. (From Me. Agr. Exp. Sta. Circular). 3. Yellow-Necked Caterpillar. (Datana ministra.) During the late summer the yellow-necked caterpillar is a common orchard pest in Maine. The moth is tannish brown in color with head and the part of the thorax nearest the head a rich chestnut brown. Several dark brown lines cross the fore wings transversely. The hind wings are pale buff. The female moth deposits about 100 eggs in a cluster on a leaf. The caterpillars which hatch from these eggs, attain their full growth in 5 or 6 weeks. They are then about two inches long. The head is black and the segment just back of the 23 head is orange colored, a character which gives rise to the popular name "yellow-neck." The body is striped longitudi- nally with alternate yellow and black lines. Soft white hairs occur over the whole body but are too thin to be especially noticeable (fig. 9). Like the red-humped caterpillar, these caterpillars are clustered together both while feeding and when at rest. The caterpillars when at rest assume a characteristic and peculiar position on the branch with both extremities of the body raised. When alarmed they jerk their heads and tails in an irritated manner. Fig. 9. (After Holland). The full grown caterpillars bury themselves in the earth a few inches below the surface, where they transform into brown pupse, unprotected by any cocoon. They remain in the earth all winter and emerge about the middle of the next summer, when they are transformed to the moth, or mature insect. REMEDIES. As in the case of the red-humped caterpillar, gathering the caterpillars by hand is the simplest remedy and perhaps the only one which it is necessary to recommend. The caterpillars are gregarious and the whole brood is easily removed from the tree and destroyed. Arsenical sprays (Formula 3) will kill them, and may sometimes be a convenient means of combating them. 4. Red-Humped Caterpillar. (CEdemasia concinna.) During August, September and October, the red-humped caterpillar is one of the most troublesome orchard caterpillars in the State. Many correspondents reported that entire or- chards of young trees were stripped of their foliage, except for the mid ribs of the leaves, before the presence of the pest had been discovered. 24 Fig. io. (From Me. Agr. Exp. Sta. Circular). The mature insect is an inconspicuous brown moth with wing expanse of slightly more than one inch. The female deposits eggs on the under side of a leaf in a cluster, usually during July. The young caterpillars, which soon hatch from these eggs, feed upon the tender tissues of the under side of the leaf, not attacking at first the upper surface. When they become larger they devour the whole leaf except the mid rib. They move in flocks, an entire brood feeding together and remaining in a cluster when resting. In the caterpillar or larval stage this insect is readily recognized. The body of the full grown caterpillar is marked with fine longitudinal stripes of black, white and yellow, and short black spines occur in rows. The head is bright red and the first segment of the abdomen, which is conspicuously humped, is of the same color (fig. io). The caterpillars reach their full growth (about i 1 /^ inches) from August to late October. When full grown, they descend to the ground and hide under leaves or other rubbish and make a glassy transparent cocoon, within which they pass their pupal period. They remain in the cocoon all winter and emerge the following season as mature moths. REMEDIES. The red-humped caterpillars are not especially difficult to combat if a watch is kept for the colonies while they are young. As they are gregarious, it is a simple matter to clip off the small twig containing the whole brood of little caterpillars. When they are larger they can often be dislodged by jarring the branch and destroyed on the ground. Arsenical sprays (Formula 3) will kill them, but the presence of fruit makes this remedy undesirable for bearing trees late in the season. 5. Mottled Fruit Caterpillar. (Crocigrapha uoniiaui.) The eggs are laid in a mass flatly attached to the leaf. They hatch in mid-June in Maine. The larva is a smooth, hairless caterpillar, 1 T _■ inches long when full grown. Its head is shinv 25 yellow with one dark blotch on each lobe. Its body is mottled grayish brown above, and pale grayish green beneath. The legs are pale. This caterpillar feeds both upon the foliage and the fruit. (See fig. 55). The pupal stage is passed in the ground. It is a glistening brown object about y± inch long. The mature insect is a brownish moth expanding about 1^2 inches. REMEDIES. Arsenical sprays (Formula 3) applied for other species will control this one also. As this caterpillar is very readily dis- lodged, jarring the tree and killing the insect on the ground is a convenient combatative measure. 6. Saddled Prominent. Heterocampa guttivitta (Walker). This species is well known in Maine because it has been ex- cessively destructive to orchard and forest trees during some seasons. The full grown caterpillar is about i l /> inches long; body green usually, with reddish brown markings on the back, smooth and hairless (fig. 11). The mature insect is a moth expanding about 2 inches, ground color olive-greenish ashen with cream white patches and black markings (figs. 12, 13). For Maine the saddled prominent has but one brood. The moths emerge in greatest numbers late in May and early in June. Oviposition begins soon after mating which occurs the first night after emergence. The eggs hatch in about 9 days and the larvae become full grown in 5 weeks (or more accord- ing to weather conditions and food supply). During this time they molt four times. The full grown larvae enter the ground for pupation. In Maine pupation takes place from mid July to late August, the majority of larvae burying late in July. They pass the winter in the pupal stage, under the leaf mold, and the moths emerge in the spring. The eggs are deposited singly by the female which in cap- tivity applies the eggs to both sides of the leaf. From the rea- son that the tops of the trees are stripped first and then the lower branches it is to be concluded that the moths by prefer- ence deposit the eggs upon the upper leaves. Perhaps the same tendency to fly high may account in part for the fact that the 26 hillside forests are in general more largely attacked than the lowlands. The full grown larva drops or climbs to the ground and con- structs a cell in the earth or under the leaves at a distance of i to 3 inches below the surface. This cell is oval and is lined by a thin spinning of silk. The insect after remaining in the pupal stage all winter emerges with the warm spring days. Fig. ii. (After Packard). Fig. 12. Male. Fig. 13. Female. (Fig. 12 and 13 from Me. Ag. Exp. Sta. Bui. 161). COMBATATIVE MEASURES. For the orchard or shade trees there are several practical measures which have proven successful the past season in pre- venting serious injury from the saddled prominent. Spraying. — This species is susceptible to arsenical poisons and the caterpillars readily died on apple trees which were thor- oughly sprayed. Arsenate of lead or Paris green (Formula 3) will kill these caterpillars and should be applied as soon as they begin appreciable work. Applications from the middle to the last of June would probably get all these caterpillars which hatched upon the trees. In case a migration to an orchard from an infested forest growth is feared, the orchard should be sprayed as soon as the caterpillars begin to travel in search of fresh food. If trees not already attacked are banded with a sticky substance, the ascent of caterpillars up the trunk will effectually be prevented. 27 Jarring and banding. — The saddled prominents are readily shaken from the branches. The cool of the morning is the most propitious time for jarring-. The caterpillars once dis- lodged, their reclimbing can be prevented by banding. A material useful for this purpose is sold under the name of Tree Tanglefoot. This substance consists principally of resin softened by the admixture of suitable oils. It is quite similar to that used in the manufacture of adhesive fly-paper, seems to possess the merit of not injuring the trunks of trees, and is very effective in checking the ascent of caterpillars thereon. Where the number of caterpillars jarred from the trees is excessive it is expedient to kill them. A hand spray charged with kerosene or gasoline is a useful means to this end. Fowls and Pigs. — Hens will devour these caterpillars greedily and if given the range of an orchard will eat great numbers of the caterpillars which drop to the ground or descend to pupate. Pigs pastured in an orchard will, by rooting up and eating the pupae, prevent great numbers of saddled prominents and other moths from emerging and depositing eggs for the follow- ing season. 7. Apple-Leaf Buccueatrix. (Bucculatrix pomifolieUa. ) The larva of this insect is about one-half inch long when mature, cylindrical, tapering at both ends. Joints of the body rounded and prominent, color dark yellowish, with a greenish tinge and reddish shades on the anterior segments. The larvae are active and when disturbed suspend themselves by a silken thread. The cocoon is dirty white, slender, about one- fourth inch long, ribbed longitudinally by about six prominent ridges, oblong, tapering at both ends, flattened on the side to which it is at- tached. Usually fastened to the twigs and branches in groups. (Fig. 14). 28 Fig. 14. (After Riley). The small moth has only about one-fourth inch expanse of wings. Fore wings whitish, tinged with pale yellow and dusky brown. (Fig. 14). This insect spends the winter in the pupa state in the cocoon, usually attached to the twigs and branches of the host plant. About the time the leaves unfold, the moths come forth and lay their eggs upon the tender foliage. The larvae are full grown in July. In September or October the cocoons in which the pupse spend the winter are formed. The larvae feed externally upon the foliage, the upper epidermis and pulp eaten away in patches, the veins and lower epidermis intact. REMEDIES. Jar the trees when the larvae are full grown and they will suspend themselves by threads and can be swept down by a broom and killed by hot water or crushed. Apply kerosene emulsion with a spraying pump in winter, to the branches that bear the cocoons. The same application might be made for the first brood when the foliage is on. Spray with arsenical poisons (Formula 3) as for other leaf- eating insects. 8. Tussock Moths. 1. WHITE-MARKED tussock (Hemerocampa Icucostigma). 11. antique tussock (Notolophiis antiqita). The conspicuous white egg masses of these moths are de- posited late in the summer or in the fall upon the cocoons from 2 9 which the female moths emerge. As the hairy cocoons are commonly attached to the rough bark, or twigs of trees the caterpillars infest, the egg-masses are readily found at any time after the leaves have fallen. The eggs which the white-marked tussock deposits are covered with a white frothy substance which becomes brittle upon exposure to the air. The antique tussock does not protect its eggs in this manner but leaves them uncovered upon the cocoon (fig. 39). Fig. 15. (After Riley). The caterpillars which emerge from these eggs in the spring are most grotesque in appearance. The caterpillar of the white- marked tussock moth when full grown has a shiny coral red head beyond which extend two stiff pencils of black hairs di- rected forward like horns. A single pencil of similar con- struction supplies the other end of the body with a tail. Upon the middle of the back, starting a little behind the head, is a row of four regular tufts of soft whitish hairs which resemble small paint brushes neatly trimmed off at the tip. In a line with these but nearer the tail occur two little bright red tuber- cles (fig. 15). The full grown antique tussock caterpillar re- sembles closely the species just described. Its head, however, is jet black and it has an additional pair of black pencils, simi- lar to though shorter than the horns, projecting from the sides of the body, which is lacking in the caterpillar of the white- marked tussock. After feeding for four or five weeks the caterpillar becomes full grown and spins a rough cocoon of silk with which it mixes the hairs that have decorated its body. These cocoons are usu- ally formed upon the bark or in the angles of twigs. Often a leaf is attached to the mass. In about two weeks the adult insects emerge from the co- coons. The males are winged, the white-marked tussock having gray wings which expand nearly one and one-half inches and the antique tussock having smaller brown wings. The female 30 moths of these two species are not readily distinguishable. They never acquire wings and their distended bodies are practically little more than animated sacs of eggs. The females being un- able to fly and their bodies being too heavy for their slender legs to drag about, cling to the cocoons from which they emerge and soon after mating deposit about 300 eggs in a mass upon the cocoon. REMEDIAL MEASURES. The white egg masses deposited on the cocoons remain on the trees all winter. These are readily seen and can be removed and burned. Cocoons of the tussock not covered with eggs should not be disturbed as they are either the empty cocoons of males or cocoons containing parasites. If the cocoons are empty they can do no harm and if they contain parasites, these insect enemies of the tussock should be allowed to develop. The fact that the females cannot fly makes this pest easily controlled locally, for the orchardist need not especially fear his neighbor's infested trees. The caterpillars are susceptible to arsenical sprays (Formula 3) and this means of combating them is sometimes necessary where the winter collecting has been neglected or when the tus- socks appear in destructive numbers upon shade trees. 9. Forest Tent Caterpillar. (Malacosoma disstria.) The eggs of this insect are deposited in a belt encircling a small twig, about 200 in each mass. These egg masses resemble those of the orchard tent caterpillar, except that they are more nearly square at the ends. A glistening varnish-like protective substance is deposited with the eggs which renders the mass more readily seen in the sun. The colonies of young larvae do not construct tents as do the orchard tent caterpillar, but they are usually massed during dark or rainy weather. The caterpillars resemble the orchard tent caterpillars, the most striking difference being that the cream colored line along the back is broken into a line of dots in the forest tent cater- pillar while with the orchard tent caterpillar this line is un- broken. Thev q-row to be about two inches lone". 3i The full grown caterpillar constructs a filmy outer cocoon with an inner firm cell which it soaks with a yellow discharge drying to a pale yellow powder. These cocoons are often at- tached to buildings. Moth. — In from 10 to 14 days after spinning the cocoon the adult insect emerges. This yellowish-brown moth resembles that of the orchard tent caterpillar closely but the transverse bands on the wings are darker than the ground work of the wings instead of paler as with the other species. It is not practicable to combat the insect in this stage. REMEDIAL MEASURES. Arsenical sprays (Formula 3) applied early in the season will satisfactorily dispose of this pest and for orchard or shade trees protected in this manner no other means are necessary. After the caterpillars are half grown it is their custom to congregate in great masses on the trunks of the trees while they molt their skins. Here they may be destroyed by a stiff broom dipped in kerosene or swept into a pail of water and kerosene. When not congregated for molting the older caterpillars when not feeding stretch out motionless along the branches or trunk and are difficult to see, especially as they are likely to choose the upper side of the branch. However, it is not necessary to wait for the molting periods in order to combat the older caterpillars on trees which have not been protected by spraying. These caterpillars drop down- ward when disturbed. "This habit leads to the suggestion that by a combination of jarring and banding much injury may be prevented." After the caterpillars are jarred from the tree the trunks of trees are painted with a band of "tanglefoot" such as is used against the gypsy caterpillar to prevent their ascending. L Fig. 16. Forest Tent Caterpillar. (From. Me. Ag. Ex. Sta. Circular). 32 io. Brown-Tail Moth. (Euproctis chrysorrhcea.) The caterpillars of the brown-tail moth are capable of ruin- ing orchard, shade and many woodland trees. They are also a dreaded nuisance, because the caterpillar hairs break off, and on coming- in contact with the human skin, cause extreme irri- tation and often illness. So serious a pest should be known by every one in the State, because although extermination of this insect may not be pos- sible, much practical and effectual work can be done in holding it in check and reducing its numbers so that damage to orchard and shade trees may be very slight. The moths, expanding from one and one-fourth to one and three-fourths inches, are white except for the abdomen, which is tinged with brown and tipped with a tuft of brown hairs. This tuft is small and dark in the male, but the large golden- brown tuft in the female is conspicuous enough to be the most striking characteristic of the moth, and has won for this insect its descriptive name of "brown-tail." These moths are on the wing in July, and unlike some closely related pests, the brown- tail females as well as the males are strong fliers. They are active at night, and as lights have an attraction for them, they sometimes fly a long way toward a lighted district. The female usually selects a leaf near the tip of the branch on which to deposit from one hundred and fifty to three hun- dred eggs. Some of the brown hairs from the abdominal tuft adhere to the egg-mass and give it the appearance of a brown felt lump. By the middle of August most of the eggs are hatched and the young caterpillars spin a slight web over the leaf near the egg cluster. When they have eaten all but the skeleton of the first leaf, they draw another into the web and repeat the process at intervals during the late summer. They feed slowly, how- ever, and spend so much time spinning their web that they do comparatively little damage to the trees in fall, and they are still very small (about one-fourth of an inch in length) when cold v eather comes on. The winter nests. — (Fig. 38). In the fall the young cater- pillars weave additional layers of silk about their retreat, fas- 33 tening it securely to the branch by the web, and pass the winter thus in colonies of one hundred and fifty to three hundred in a single nest. This is a very unusual yet most commendable habit in a caterpillar pest, for they can be killed, hundreds at a time, simply by burning the nests in which the colonies hiber- nate. The nests, composed of leaves, bound firmly together by a silken web, are varied in shape. In spite of the superficial variety the essential characteristics of the brown-tail moth nests are soon learned, and even anyone unfamiliar with the nest can make himself perfectly certain if he will cut carefully into the nest. If the structure contains one or more silken cells tilled with tiny living caterpillars it is the winter nest of the brozmi- tail moth. Early in the spring the young caterpillars emerge from their winter nests and feed upon the opening leaf buds. Until about the middle of June they feed greedily upon the leaves, com- pletely stripping the trees where they are numerous. When full grown the caterpillars are about one and one-half inches long. They are dark brown with a sprinkling of orange. Long fine reddish-brown hairs cover the body, and a row of conspicu- ous white hairs runs along each side. Like the caterpillars of the tussock and gypsy moths, they bear bright red tubercles on the top of the sixth and seventh abdominal segments. Poisonous qualities of the caterpillars. — Were the caterpillars to be feared only for their ravages upon orchard and other trees, the situation would be alarming enough, but not less serious is the physical discomfort experienced by people living in infested districts. When the minutely barbed hairs of the caterpillar come in contact with the skin they cause an eruption similar to and in many cases worse than ivy poisoning. These hairs are brittle and where the caterpillars are numerous few people are likely to escape, as the caterpillars drop from the branches and creep about, even entering houses. Direct con- tact with the insects themselves is not necessary, however, for when the caterpillars shed their skins the molts are blown about, widely scattering the barbed hairs. The caterpillars are usually full grown in "June. They then spin loose cocoons, attached commonly to leaves, though some- times other shelter is sought. Within these they transform to 34 brown pupae about three-fourths of an inch long. From the first to the twentieth of July the moths with pure white wings and brown-tipped abdomens emerge from these cocoons to deposit eggs for the next generation of caterpillars. REMEDIAL MEASURES. Destruction of breeding places. — Old and worthless orchard trees, wild cherry tangles and other susceptible trees in infested regions should be cleared away, thus lessening the labor of direct search for the destruction of winter nests, by eliminating likely breeding places. Cutting and burning the "winter nests. — This is the most im- oortant of the direct remedies because it is the easiest, cheap- est and, if thoroughly done, a sufficient protection against the ravages of this pest. The webs and leaves that compose the nest are woven tightly to the tips of the branches and hang there like dead leaves all winter. With so many months for inspection there is no excuse for harboring the hibernating caterpillars on shade or orchard trees. After they are cut from the branches the nests should be burned, as this is the simplest way of destroying the colony within. Spraying. — The young caterpillars can be killed by arsenical sprays (Formula 3). This remedy is most effective when ap- plied' as soon as the leaves develop in the spring. Of course where the winter nests have been destroyed there will be no need of this remedy and it is much easier to kill about two hun- dred caterpillars enclosed in a nest than to wait until they are scattered over the tree. 11. Gypsy Moth. ( Lymantria dispar. ) Unlike the brown-tail moth, the gypsy moth winters in the egg stage. Although winged, the female gypsy moth does not fly, but deposits the eggs in any convenient place to which it can crawl. The egg masses are most commonly attached to the bark of trees but they are also found in such places as under edges of stones, beneath fence rails, on buildings, and in old cans and rubbish. The eggs are laid in July and August in a mass of 400 to 500. They are covered with tan colored hairs from the body of the female moth, and form an irregular oval mass. 35 As the eggs do not hatch until about May i, eight months at least are available for their destruction. The young larvae or young caterpillars are dark in color and well furnished with dark hairs. The full-grown larva is be- tween 2 and 3 inches long, dark brown or sooty in color, with two rows of red spots and two rows of blue spots along the back, and with a yellowish but rather dim stripe between them. The body generally is clothed with long hairs, and sometimes reaches the length of 3 inches. The larvae usually become full grown about the 1st of July, and then transform to pupae. The pupae are found in the same situations as those we described for the egg clusters, but are found also in the foliage of trees and shrubs. The male moth is brownish yellow in color, sometimes having a greenish-brown tinge ; it has a slender body, well-feathered antennae, and a wing expanse of about an inch and a half. The forewings are marked with wavy zigzag darker lines. It flies actively all day as well as by night. The female moth is nearly white, with slender black antennae, each of the forewings marked with three or four zigzag, trans- verse, dark lines, and the outer border of both pairs of wings with a series of black dots. The body of the female is so heavy as to prevent flight. REMEDIAL MEASURES. Killing the Eggs. — "No single method of destruction against the gypsy moth is more effective than killing the eggs. The egg masses, wherever accessible, can be killed from August to May by soaking them thoroughly with creosote mixture. The creosote may be applied with a small swab or paint brush. Creosote mixture may be purchased at agricultural warehouses and seed stores at from 50 cents to $1.00 per gallon, depending on the quantity." The caterpillar can be controlled by arsenical sprays (For- mula 3). 12. Tiger Moths. I. hickory tiger moth (Halisidota caryoe). II. spotted tiger moth (Halisidota maculata) . These two closely related insects are so similar in habits and 36 are so commonly associated in Maine orchards that they may be discussed together. The hickory tiger caterpillars are, when full grown, covered with spreading tufts of white hairs and decorated down the back with a row of 8 black tufts. The fourth and tenth seg- ments each bear two long slender pencils of black hair. The caterpillar of the spotted tiger moth is yellow and black, these colors occurring in widely variable proportions. Some- times the whole body is covered with yellow hairs in which case there is a row of 8 tufts of black along the back as with the hickory tiger. Often, however, both ends of the caterpillar are covered with black hairs with scattering pencils of white and the yellow hairs are limited to the central portion of the body- Both the hickory tiger and spotted tiger caterpillars have jet black heads and legs. The young tiger caterpillars are only sparsely supplied with' hairs and bear very little resemblance to the fuzzy full grown ones. They are gregarious when young and at first their pres- ence may be detected by skeletonized leaves but later the colony scatters and the caterpillars feed separately, eating the whole leaf substance. If they are disturbed they curl up like a hedge- hog and drop to the ground. The hairs are easily brushed from the body of these caterpillars and cause, upon contact with sen- sitive dtin, an irritating itching sensation. Fig. 17. Caterpillar of hickory tiger moth. (From Me. Agr. Ex. Sta. Circular). 37 They feed until they are nearly one and one-half inches in length and then they leave the trees and seek suitable shelter for their cocoons, the sides of buildings often being selected. The cocoons are oval, snug little objects less than an inch long and are composed almost entirely of the hairs which have covered the caterpillars, closely felted together. Within the cocoon the insect remains all winter — as short, thick, rather blunt brown pupae. The winged moths emerge from the cocoons in June and deposit their egg clusters upon some suitable food plant. The hickory tiger moth is pale buff. The fore wings are thickly sprinkled with little brown dots and set with irregular yellow- ish white spots. The hind wings are unmarked. The spotted tiger moth resembles the related species closely, but the spots are variable in size and number. REMEDIAL MEASURES. Arsenical sprays (Formula 3) will poison these caterpillars. However, where trees are carefully watched, the colonies of the tiger caterpillars could be easily removed by hand while they are young and congregated together. Sometimes, too, it is pos- sible to get rid of them by jarring them off on to a sheet. Where they form cocoons along the edges of clapboards and in other crannies about buildings, much can be done by sweeping down the cocoons and destroying them. 13. Velleda Lappet Moth. (Tolypc velleda.) The larva of this insect is remarkable for having on each side of each segment a little lappet or flat lobe ; from these many ling hairs are given out, forming a fringe to the body. It is bluish gray, with many faint longitudinal lines ; and across the back of the last thoracic segment there is a narrow velvety black band. When at rest the body of the larva is flattened, and the fringes on the sides are closely applied to the surface of the limb. The larva is full grown during July. The cocoon is brownish gray, and is usually attached to a branch of the tree. The body of the moth is milk white with a large black- ish spot on the middle of its back, the wings are a soft bluish gray crossed by white lines. The moths have an expanse of wing ranging from i l /[ to 2 inches. 38 REMEDIAL MEASURES. It is rarely necessary to apply repressive measures. Arseni- cal sprays (Formula 3) will control these insects. 14. Rose-Chafer. (Macrodactylits subspinosus Fab.) The rose-chafer (fig. 18), a long-legged beetle of a light yel- lowish brown color, and about a third of an inch in length, appears in June, the date varying somewhat according to local- ity and season, and the beetles mate and begin feeding soon after they emerge from the ground. For from four to six weeks after their appearance they continue feeding, almost con- stantly paired. The female deposits her eggs singly, from twenty-four to thirty-six in number, a few inches beneath the surface of the earth, and in about two or three weeks' time they hatch and the young larvae or grubs begin feeding on such tender rootlets, preferably of grass, as are in reach. In au- tumn they have reached maturity. They are yellowish white in color, with a pale brown head. Late in autumn they descend lower into the earth, beyond the reach of frost, and in early spring they ascend, and each grub forms a little earthen cell in which it passes the winter. Later in the spring, in April or early May, they transform to pupae, and in from two to four weeks afterwards the beetles emerge, dig they way out of the ground, and the destructive work is renewed. A single gen- eration of the species is produced in a year, and about three weeks is the average duration of life for an individual insect. Fig. 18. (After U. S. Div. of Entomology). 39 The beetles do not confine their ravages to any particular portion of a plant, but consume blossoms, leaves, fruit, and all alike (fig. 41, 42). Whole orchards are often devastated, and the fruit crop of large sections of country destroyed. It is no uncommon sight to see every young apple on a tree completely covered and obscured from view by a sprawling, struggling mass of beetles. REMEDIES. The rose-chafer is one of our worst insect enemies to combat successfully. The difficulty is that any application that may be made is unsuccessful unless applied almost continually. The arsenites will kill the beetle, but are not of much value when the insects are abundant, because of the slow action of the poison. Every beetle on a plant might be destroyed one day, but on the day following the plant would be completely covered again. They may be jarred from trees on to sheets saturated with kerosene, but these methods are tedious and must be practiced daily in early morning or toward sundown to be effective. Small orchards may be protected, at least from the first arriv- ing hordes of the chafers, by planting about them early-flower- ing plants that particularly attract the beetles. Spiraeas, Deut- zias, Andromeda, magnolias, blackberries, and white roses are especially useful as counter-attractives. The beetles swarm on the flowers of these plants in preference to many varieties of fruits, and when thus massed in great numbers, their destruc- tion by the use of collectors or other mechanical means is great- ly facilitated. All ground which might serve as a breeding place and which it is possible so to treat, should be plowed and harrowed earlv in May for the destruction of the larvae or pupae. 40 c. CATERPILLARS LIVING IN WEB NESTS WHILE THE TREE IS IN LEAF, OR MORE OR LESS CONCEALED IN FOLDED LEAF OR BUD. i. Fall Web Worm. ( Hyphan tria cunea. ) Fig. 20. (After Howard). The mature insect is a moth with a wing expanse of about i]/ 2 inches. It varies much in coloration but the most common form is white or slightly fulvous with white wings. The wings may be pure white or dotted with black and brown. In the spring the moths emerge from the cocoons in which they have passed the winter and the female deposits eggs upon a leaf in May or June. Each moth lays from 400 to 500 eggs from which hatch minute caterpillars in 10 days or more according to weather conditions. These caterpillars remain together and cover themselves with a small silken web. As they grow, more and more leaves are drawn into the web which may in time include the leaves of several small branches or all upon a large bianch. Such webs sometimes attain dimensions of several feet and are conspicuous and unsightly masses. If they are so numerous on one tree that the food supply gives out they leave the web and seek other trees. Otherwise they remain until they are full grown (a little more than an inch in length), when they drop to the ground and seek a place where they may make cocoons. Recesses which attract them for this purpose are crevices in bark, spaces under boards or door steps, or near the surface of the ground in rubbish. These insects pupate within thin, almost transparent cocoons and re- main in them all winter, emerging as mature moths in the spring. 4i REMEDIAL MEASURES. Trees well protected with arsenical sprays (Formula 3) will not need other treatment for fall web worm, for the poisoned leaves will be drawn into the web for food. In many cases the simplest means for combating- them is to keep close watch upon the trees and clip off and burn the web when it is still small. Even the full sized web can be pruned off from trees not valu- able, but in the orchard there is, of course, no excuse for allow- ing them to remain until large branches are involved in the web. The web may be effectually drenched with a strong washing- powder solution or kerosene emulsion. 2. Orchard Tent Caterpillar. (Malacosoma amcricana.) Encircling the twig of apple, plum, and wild cherry trees is frequently found a glistening brown mass about three-fourths of an inch in length (fig. 36). From such an egg cluster hatch in the spring from two hun- dred to three hundred caterpillars, which live in a colony and construct a whitish tent-like web in the angle of two convenient branches. It is the habit of the tent caterpillars to pass their time when not feeding, particularly at night and during cold or stormy weather, within the tent which they enlarge as their own rapid increase in size calls for more room. During the warm sunny hours of the day they leave their protection and feed voraciously, defoliating the branches in the vicinity of the tents. One colony is enough to denude a young tree or several large branches of an old tree. The tent which is at first a delicate filmy silken web becomes by the time the caterpillars are full grown a structure two feet or more in length, unsightly with the accumulation of molted skins and other rubbish. The full grown caterpillar is nearly two inches long. It is slender, dark, and velvety with numerous soft golden brown hairs upon the body. A white stripe marks the middle of the back, while the sides are streaked irregularly with white or yel- low. Along each side of the dorsal white line is a row of trans- verse pale blue spots. 42 After feeding for four or five weeks the caterpillars leave the tree in search of a sheltered place for their cocoons, a crevice in the bark, the eaves of buildings, or rubbish piles, proving attractive for this purpose. The cocoon is an elongated oval with the outer silk delicate and loosely woven and the inner part firmer and close. The inner cell is painted on the inside with a thick vellow liquid which soaks through the cocoon and soon dries to a yellow powder. The insect remains in the cocoon from two to three weeks, when it emerges as a brown moth expanding about one and one-half inches. The fore wings are crossed obliquely by two pale lines. The general color of the moth varies from buff to reddish brown in different individuals. Fig. 21. Female moth photographed in resting position; slightly enlarged. REMEDIES. This insect is so easy to combat that its presence to any great extent in an orchard is due largely to negligence. During the bright days of winter and spring the egg masses are readily de- tected on young twigs as their varnished surfaces glisten in the sun. These should be removed and burned. Since the caterpillars congregate in their tents at night and are not early risers, they can be destroyed, the whole colony at once, by soaking the tent with kerosene emulsion, or soap or washing powder suds (Formulas 4, 7). This may be applied by a swab attached to a pole. Any time when the whole family is "at home" is suitable for this remedy, as the early morning, evening, or a cold or cloudy day. Arsenical sprays (Formula 3) will kill the caterpillars and may be applied to the branches near the tents. Trees sprayed early in the spring for the bud moth and other early caterpillars will be sufficiently protected against the tent caterpillar also. 43 3. Bud Moth. (Tmetoccra ocellana.) This is probably one of the worst pests to apple orchards in Maine. It works in the unfolding flower and leaf buds of orchard trees, often doing great damage to the crop, besides attacking nursery stock and young trees. The half grown, brown, hibernating caterpillars usually emerge from winter quarters about the time the buds begin to expand, their first appearance depending on the advance of the season, and ranging over two or three weeks. When they are out early, they gnaw into the buds. If the buds are open they crawl inside. They attack both flower and leaf buds, fastening the parts together with silken threads forming a nest, within which they feed upon the enclosed tender flower or leaf parts. They do not confine their depredations to a single leaf or flower in the bud, but increase the injury done by sampling nearly all. They sometimes bore down the stems a few inches, killing the terminal shoots. The bud attacked turns brown, making the nest conspicuous. The caterpillars feed mostly at night for 6 or 7 weeks and moult 3 times. When full grown the caterpillar forms a tube out of leaves, which it lines with thin, closely woven silk, and within it soon changes to the pupa. In about 10 days the pupa works its way nearly out of the tube by the hooks on its back. The skin splits open and the moth appears. The moths are on the wing during the latter part of June and the first of July. They fly mostly at night, resting on the trees during the day time, when they may be easily recog- nized by the white bands on the ash colored wings. The moth has a wing expanse of 3-5 of an inch. They live 2 or 3 weeks, during which time they mate and the eggs are laid. The eggs, which resemble small fish scales, are laid singly or in clusters, mostly at night, on the under side of the leaves. The eggs hatch in 7 to 10 days. The young larvae feed upon the epidermis of the leaf, forming a silken tube for protection. After the fourth moult, which occurs the last of August or the first of September, or before the leaves fall, they leave the silken tubes and form a silken winter home (hibernacitlum) on the smaller twigs near the buds, in which they spend the winter. The appearance of the hibernating larva in the spring completes the cycle of life. 44 REMEDIES. Pull off and burn the withered clusters of leaves containing- the caterpillars and chrysalids early in spring. Spray with arsenate of lead (Formula 3) as soon as the buds begin to swell in the spring. It will not do to wait until the attack is made. 4. Leaf Sewer. (Ancylis nubeculana.) The leaf is folded along the mid rib, the two sides being brought together, the caterpillar constructing its nest within (fig. 22). The winter is passed in the larval condition in the folded leaves which lie on the ground. In April the larvae transform to pupae and about 10 days later the moths begin to appear, laying eggs in June. The caterpillar is about ^2 inch in length when full grown, yellowish green, with yellow head, and horny shield on the next segment a little darker, with a black dot on each side. On each of the remaining segments there are some pale, shiny, raised dots (tubercles) from every one of which arises usuallv a single hair. Fig. 22. (From Me. Ag. Exp. Sta. Bui. 177). In the perfect state this insect-is a small white moth with brown markings with an expanse of wings of about ^4 inch. REMEDIES. When the injury to the tree is serious the fallen leaves may be raked up and burned in the autumn to restrict the develop- ment of the moth the following season. 45 5. The Cigar Case-Bearer. {Coleophora Hetcherella.) The caterpillars infest mainly the leaves, but in the spring they may also be found on the buds and the young fruits. The full grown caterpillar is reddish orange and averages 1-5 of an inch in length. The case, as it is made in the fall, is a minute flattened curved structure composed of portions of the upper and lower skins of the leaf. In the spring a second case (fig. 23) is made, which is longer, cylindrical or cigar-shaped, in which the larva pupates. The adult insect which emerges from the pupa during June and July is a small, steel gray moth expanding less than Yz an inch. (After SHngerland). REMEDIES. This insect can be kept in check by arsenical sprays (Formula 3), the first to be applied a? soon as the cases are noticed on the opening buds. A second and perhaps a third application may be necessary at intervals of 4 to 7 days on badly infested trees. 40 AAA. INSECTS ON OR IN THE FRUIT. (Divisions a, b, and c.) Caterpillars with j pairs of thoracic and several abdominal legs. 1. Full grown caterpillar less than a / 2 inch long, with an anal fork*, mining in the fruit. i. Lesser apple worm. Page 46. 2. Full grown caterpillar nearly % inch long without an anal fork, mining in the fruit, (fig. 40). 2. Codling Moth. Page 47. Full-grown mottled caterpillar, 1V2 inches long eating into the fruit. Mottled fruit caterpillar. Page 24. Legless maggots or grubs. 3. Very small slender white maggots mining in the flesh of the apple leaving brownish tracks. 3. Apple maggot or railroad worm. Page 49. 4. A small white grub mining in the very small wind falls in early summer (fig. 25). 4. Plum curculio. Page 51. Mature insects with wings and legs. 4. A gnarled blackish snout beetle with dusky reddish markings, puncturing the fruit, (fig. 27). 4. Plum curculio. Page 51. 5. A flat yellowish mottled bug with slender beak ; ovipositing in and deforming the fruit, (fig. 28). 5. Tarnished plant bug. Page 53. 6. A long legged yellowish brown beetle feeding on fruit. (fig. 18). Rose chafer. Page 38. *The anal fork can only be seen with a high power microscope, the larva being slightly compressed between cover glass and slide. i. Lesser Apple Worm. ( Enarmonia prunivora. ) The larva feeds upon the apple in a manner similar to that of the codling moth, for which it is doubtless frequently mis- taken. Besides by its smaller size the larva may be distin- guished from that of the codling moth by the presence of the anal fork. The adult moth expands about ^s of an inch across the wing. The ground color of the front wings is black, with patches of pale rusty red, of gray, and of yellowish white and steel blue oblique lines. The hind wings are dusky gray at the base, shading to black at the apex. 47 REMEDIES. The insect may be combated by spraying used against the codling moth. 2. The Codling Moth. (Carpocapsa pomonella L.) The codling moth passes the winter in the larval stage in silken cocoons in cracks and holes in the trees and in houses where apples have been stored. In the spring these larvae change to pupae, and the moths emerge about a month after the apple is in blossom. The moth (fig. 40, a) varies somewhat in size, but the maxi- mum spread of its wings is about three-fourths of an inch. The front wings are of a brownish gray color and are crossed with lines of gray scales, giving them the appearance of watered silk. At the tips of the wings there is a large brown spot, in which are many scales of bronze or gold. The hind wings are grayish brown in color. The moth lays her eggs, a few days after emergence, on the leaves of apple or other food plant, or on the fruit. A majority of the eggs of the first generation are laid on the leaves, while the greater part of those of the second generation are laid upon the fruit. A large number of the larvae which hatch from eggs deposited on the leaves eat small portions of the leaves before finding fruit. The larva, living most of its life within the fruit, throws out through its entrance hole, which it enlarges from time to time, or through its exit hole in the side of the fruit, the char- acteristic mass of frass or excrement which is the sign of infes- tation. The larvae have some difficulty in entering the smooth sides of the fruit, and about 80 per cent of the first generation enter by way of the calyx, while the majority of the second genera- tion enter at the sides, especially where the fruits are touching. Before entering the young apple the larva feeds, as noted, on the leaves, but also for a day or two within the partial con- cealment formed by the calyx or blossom end of the apple. During several days, therefore, the little apple worms feed externally, both before they enter the calyx and within the latter, and the object of spraying is to insure their being poi- 48 soned by thoroughly coating in advance, with an arsenical mix- ture, the leaves, and especially the blossom end of every fruit, before the shutting up of the lobes of the calyx. Most of the larvae enter the calyx after it is closed, and are then beyond the reach of any poison later applied. The pinkish larva lives in the fruit about twenty days, and grows to a length of about five-eighths of an inch (fig. 40) when, being full fed, it makes a tunnel to the outside of the fruit, the entrance of which is filled with frass and silk. When ready to leave the apple this plug is pushed out. The larva then crawls out and immediately seeks a place in which to spin its cocoon. Cocoons have been observed in the following places : In holes and cracks in the trunks and branches of the trees; under rough bark; in the fruits (though rarely); in the cracks in the ground around the tree ; on or between the clods among the fallen fruit ; under bands or anything else resting on or against the tree ; in cracks and angles of the walls and roof of the building in which apples are stored ; under shingles of buildings near apple trees ; in fence posts and under pickets of nearby fences ; in paper or other rubbish on the ground ; and in various other places. The cocoons of the first generation are composed entirely of silk, while in those of the second generation are incorporated bits of wood and bark. The larvae inside the cocoons transform into pupa? in about six days from the time of spinning the cocoon. In about twenty days from the spinning of the cocoon the pupal skin splits and the moth emerges (fig. 40, a), lays its eggs, and gives rise to another generation. MEASURES USED AGAINST THE CODLING MOTH. An arsenical spray (Formula 3) immediately after the blos- soms have fallen should be used and repeated 7 to 10 days later. Use burlap bands on trunks, killing all insects under them every 10 days from July 1 to August 15, and once later before winter. 49 3. Apple Maggot or Railroad Worm. (Rhagolctis pomonella.) The adult stage of the apple maggot is a fly, a little smaller than the house-fly and readily distinguished by four dark irregular bands across the wings ; these are found in the apple orchards from about July first until frost. During this time the females are employed laying eggs, by piercing the skin of the apple with a sting-like ovipositor and leaving at each in- cision one egg buried in the pulp. Each female is capable of laying at least three or four hundred eggs. From these eggs hatch apple maggots which tunnel through the pulp where they feed until full grown. The maggots are small, plump, white objects without legs and with head so ill defined that it is difficult to find it at all. The mouth parts are reduced to a pair of rasping hooks. The apple maggot works in soft discolored mushy trails anywhere in the pulp. The trails of the apple maggot never contain little round sawdust-like pellets. Often their tunnels lie directly beneath the skin of the apple, showing through in the light colored varieties as dark trailing tracks which have won for the apple maggot the pop- ular name of Railroad Worm (fig. 44). But, though the mag- got frequently comes near the surface of the apple, it never breaks through the skin until it is through feeding and is tints always protected, a circumstance which shows clearly that it is of no use to try to destroy this pest by spraying. When the eggs are laid, the apples are young and hard and for some time the maggots grow very slowly. At this stage the tunnels are very- inconspicuous and the maggots themselves are not likely to be detected except by careful search. As the apple matures, the maggot makes more and more headway and is frequently full grown by the time the apple is ripe (fig. 43). Moreover the presence of the maggots seem to hasten the de- velopment of the apples and much of the infested fruit comes to the ground as windfalls. This is the reason so much stress is laid on the destruction of windfalls to get rid of the maggot. Since the flies are so long on the wing and lay their eggs over such an extended time, the full grown maggots are found at different periods. The first eggs are laid naturally in the early fruit and accordingly as soon as August tenth full grown 50 maggots have been recorded in Early Harvests. On the other hand, some of the later maggots, from eggs laid in harder winter varieties, do not acquire their full size until late in the fall or winter. These are the maggots that are stored with the fruit. The full grown maggots bore out of the windfalls and bury themselves an inch or less in the ground. Or, if they are in gathered fruit where they cannot find a suitable burying ground, they creep away beneath some protecting object instead. Soon after leaving the apple (sometimes the transformation takes place within the apple but not often) the maggots shrink a little in length and bulge a little in thickness, the skin at the same time growing tougher and slightly darker. The insect is known in this form as the pupa, and rests in this stage all winter. With the return of summer a second transformation takes place when the tough skin which has covered the pupa all winter is broken open by the adult insect (a fly with dark bands on its wings) which has developed inside the pupal case. This mature fly spends its life laying eggs in the flesh of young apples, thus starting a new generation of apple maggots. The maggot, pupa, and adult fly are shown in the accompany- ing illustration, enlarged about 3 times. (Fig. 24). Maggot. Fly. Pupa. Fig. 24. The apple maggot enlarged 3 times. PREVENTATIVE MEASURES. As pointed out here, it is useless to try to poison the growing maggots as they are within and protected by the apple. It is also evident that if the maggots contained in windfalls and picked fruit are destroyed one year there will be no trouble to fear from them the next. Of course it is highly improbable that even by the greatest vigilance, every maggot could be thus destroyed. But when it is considered that each maggot left to its own devices has a chance of becoming a fly capable of lay- 5i ing at least three hundred eggs, and that each maggot unde- stroyed this year may mean three or four hundred next year, the importance of killing as many as possible is evident. If the apple maggots, as do many insects, all developed about the same time, the problem would be much simpler, but as full grown maggots are found in apples from before the middle of August until into the winter, the watch for them must extend over several months. If enough hogs or sheep to eat the windfalls are kept under infested trees from the second week in August until the fruit is finally gathered, all the maggots in windfalls will be got rid of. Of course the same results, as far as destroying the mag- got is concerned, can be obtained by having windfalls faithfully gathered during this time and fed to stock, or made into cider. In one orchard where the main crop is not sweet fruit, a plan of baiting for the apple maggot has proven successful. A few Tolman sweet trees are grown in the orchard as traps. The flies deposit the majority of eggs in these sweet apples by preference, and the other fruit is saved to a great extent. All of the Tolman sweet apples, in this, case, are gathered and destroyed. 4. Plum Curcuuo. (Conotrachelus nenuphar.) . At about the time in early spring when vegetation resumes activity and buds begin to push, curculios, which have hiber- nated under rubbish on the ground, under the rough bark of trees and in other secure hiding places, emerge from conceal- ment and seek the fruit plants upon which they feed and breed. About the time the trees bloom, mating begins and as soon as the young fruit enlarges the deposition of eggs begins. Apples no larger than small peas often bear from I to 3 of the char- acteristic crescent marks made by the curculio. These punc- tures as well as those made by the adult beetle in feeding cause a serious deformation of the fruit (fig. 45). The deposition of eggs goes on most rapidly during the month of June, but con- tinues through July and August, gradually growing less and less as the beetles die. The majority of the beetles of this gen- eration do not live beyond the month of July, but a few may survive until September, or in rare instances until la^e fall. 52 During the season both males and females feed upon the same fruits in which eggs are deposited, making small, usually cyl- indrical punctures. The eggs hatch in from 4 to 6 days and the young larvae start tortuous burrows through the fruit. De- velopment of the larvae causes the fruit to fall within a few days. In about 20 days the larvae mature, cease feeding, bore out of the fruit, and at once enter the ground where they com- plete their transformations and in about 28 days emerge as perfect beetles. (Figs. 25, 26, 27). The newly emerged beetles usually remain quiet for a day or two, allowing the body wall, beak and jaws to harden; then they fly into the trees and begin feeding upon the fruit. Beetles of this new generation do not ( except possibly in rare cases) pair and no eggs are laid during this first season. The fruit is freely punctured for feeding purposes and the amount of this work increases as the season advances. It is this feeding of the new generation that causes the greatest injury to the fruit crop. (See fig. 45). Feeding continues as long as fruit remains upon the trees. Late in the fall the beetles leave the trees and hide away in secure places for the long winter period of hibernation. Such in brief is the lite history of the plum curculio. Another curculio known as the Apple curculio is smoother and has a longer snout. This species has not been recorded from Maine. REMEDIAL MEASURES. Destruction of fallen fruit is one of the chief means of com- bating this pest. Where hogs are pastured in the orchard with a view to devouring apple maggots in fallen fruit the cur- culios would be incidentally disposed of. The recommenda- tions that fallen fruit be destroyed commonly conveys no idea of the first fallen apples. The mind turns to the tangible fruits of midsummer and fall, and where the recommendation is fol- lowed the small apples that fall in early summer -are entirely ignored. The same small apples are, however, an important factor, and should be considered in any systematic attempt to c.iil I'd the ravages of the plum curculio. 53 Fig. 25. Larva (enlarged). Fig. 26. Fig. 2j. Pupa (enlarged). Adult (enlarged). It does not seem possible for an apple one-fourth inch or less in diameter to supply nourishment enough to bring a larva to full maturity, but it has been learned that larvae can and do develop in just such apples. To gather them would be imprac- ticable, but if clean culture is practiced they and the larvae they contain could be largely destroyed by use of the disk harrow or some other tool that would chop them up or bury them. If the ground is clean and the orchard sufficiently open, so that the sun can shine upon the apples as they lie upon the ground, nothing further is necessary, because direct sunlight upon the apples will kill the contained larvae. Superficial tillage of the surface soil can be commended as an effective method of at- tacking curculio. This tillage should be carried on continu- ously or at frequent intervals for a period of from 30 to 40 clays, during which the great bulk of the new crop of plum cur- culios is in the ground. The object of tillage is to turn the pupae out, kill some in the process, and expose the rest to the elements and to birds and insects that prey upon them. 5. Tarnished Plant-Bug. (Lygus prate usis.) This insect is a very destructive one, and injuriously affects a large number of cultivated plants. It passes the winter in the perfect state, taking shelter among rubbish, or in other con- venient" hiding-places, and early in May, as soon as vegetation starts, it begins its depredations. These insects are partial to the unopened buds, piercing them from the outside and sucking them nearly dry, which causes them to become withered and blackened. Sometimes a whole branch will be thus affected, being first stunted, then withering and finally dying. This insect also causes serious deformation of 54 the fruit both by feeding and egg-laying punctures. Early in the morning these plant-bugs are in a sluggish condition, and may be found hidden in the expanding leaves ; but as the day advances and the temperature rises, they become active, and when approached dodge quickly about from place to place, drop to the ground, or else take wing and fly away. In common with most true bugs, they have when handled a disagreeable odor. In the course of two or three weeks they disappear, or cease to be sufficiently injurious to attract attention. Fig. 28. (After Chittenden). Enlarged. The mature bug (fig. 28, a) is about one-fifth of an inch long, and exceedingly variable in color and markings, ranging from a dull brown to a greenish or yellowish-brown. In a typical specimen the head is yellowish, with three narrow reddish stripes ; the beak is about one-third the length of the body, and is folded upon the breast when not in use. The prothorax has a yellow margin and several longitudinal yellowish lines ; be- hind the prothorax, upon the scutellum, is a yellow V-shaped mark ; the wings are dusky brown, with a pale cuneus and black point at the apex ; the legs are dull yellow. The immature in- sects are greenish; if a little older they possess a pair of lound black dots on the back of the thorax, another pair on the scu- tellum, and a single dot on the abdomen. COMBATATIVE MEASURES. Since these insects hibernate among rubbish of all kinds, clean culture is very important. By clean culture is understood the removal of all litter from fence corners, so as to take away the shelters in which the insect winters. When they appear in spring the plants upon which they are should be shaken early in the morning, while the bugs are still in a torpid condition, making them fall upon a sheet underneath, and then destroying 55 them. As soon as it becomes warm the insects are exceedingly active, and so swift in all their motions that they cannot be cap- tured. BENEFICIAL INSECTS. (Adapted from Packard.) In a great variety of ways certain insects are helpful to man, and are especially efficacious either in insuring his crops or in destroying those insects which would otherwise devour them. Pollcniccrs of Fruit-trees. — A very important part in the pro- duction of abundant crops of fruit is played by bees and other honey- or nectar-gatherers, and pollen-feeding insects. It is now generally acknowledged that bees, especially the honey- bee, act as "marriage-priests" in the fertilization of flowers, conveying pollen from flower to flower, and thus insuring the "setting" of the fruit. Many wasps, as well as butterflies and moths, species of pollen-eating beetles, thrips, and other in- sects, by unconsciously bearing pollen from distant flowers, prevent too close in-and-in breeding. Indeed, as Goethe said, flowers and insects were made for each other. Many plants would not bear seeds did not insects fertilize them. Insects are in the first place attracted to flowers by their sweet scent and bright colors, and it is claimed that the lines and circles on the corolla of certain flowers guide them to the nectary; though we do not see why the scent is not in the main sufficient for this purpose. According to Sir John Lubbock, "The visits of insects are of great importance to plants in transferring the pollen from the stamens to the pistil. In many plants the sta- mens and pistil are situated in separate flowers : and even in those cases where they are contained in the same flower, self- fertilization is often rendered difficult or impossible ; sometimes by the relative position of the stamens and pistil, sometimes by their not coming to maturity at the same time. Under these circumstances the transference of the pollen from the stamens to the pistil is effected in various ways. In some species the pollen is carried by the action of the wind; in some few cases, by birds; but in the majority, this important object is secured by the visits of insects, and the whole organization of such flowers is adapted to this purpose." 56 Parasitic Insects (Ichneumons and Tachincc). — While insec- tivorous birds accomplish much towards reducing the numbers of injurious insects, they often as likely as not eat the beneficial as well as the destructive kinds. Without doubt the leading factor in preventing the undue increase of noxious insects are the parasitic kinds belonging to certain dipterous and hymenop- terous families. An ichneumon-fly (figs. 46-49) lays its eggs either on the outside of the caterpillar or bores under its skin inserting an egg within the body. The larva of the ichneumon upon hatch- ing works its way into the interior of the host. Here it does not injure the muscles, nerves, or the vital parts of the cater- pillar, but apparently simply lies motionless in the body-cavity, absorbing the blood of its host. Tachina (Senometopia) militaris has been observed by Riley to lay from one to six eggs on the skin of the army-worm, "fas- tening them by an insoluble cement on the upper surface of the two or three first rings of the body." The young maggots on hatching penetrate within the body of the caterpillar, and, lying among the internal organs, absorb the blood of their host, caus- ing it finally to weaken and die. Sometimes but a single mag- got lives in its host. Many grasshoppers as well as caterpillars are destroyed by them. Insectivorous Insects. — There are very many carnivorous kinds which devour insects entire. Such are the ground-beetles (fig. 51), water-beetles, the larvae of Tenebrionids and of lady- beetles (Coccinella) (figs. 52, 53), and those of the lace-winged flies (Chrysopa) which prey on Aphids, though the maggots of the Syrphus flies are more abundant and efficacious as Aphis- destroyers. Practical Application. — When the life of an injurious insect is carefully studied, it is frequently found that the pest can be combated by breeding and distributing its natural parasitic and predaceous enemies. For a most remarkable example of such an undertaking it is only necessary to mention the work of the U. S. Government and Massachusetts against the Gypsy Moth. For current accounts of this work the reader is referred to the Annual Reports of the Mass. State Forester, and publications of the U. S. Bureau of Entomolosv. 57 GENERAL TREATMENT FOR APPLE ORCHARDS. While the enemies of the apple are numerous and varied, by far the larger part of them may readily be held in check by spraying with the more common insecticides and fungicides, and often, by a combination of materials, several enemies may be met with one application. There should, however, be a definite purpose in view for every application. The mere fact of spray- ing is not enough. It is important that the orchardist know why and how, and when to spray or otherwise combat his ene- mies. Beneficial insects should be recognized when seen, and should be protected and encouraged. Certain diseases may be controlled by spraying: in other cases diseased parts must be removed and burned. The time of spraying will depend upon the purpose in view, but in no case should spraying be done when the plants are in full bloom. Spraying at this time will often interfere with the fertilization of the flowers, and consequently reduce the crop of fruit, while there is much needless destruction of bees and other insects which work upon the flowers. Insecticides and fungicides are more effective if applied in a liquid rather than in a dry form, since they adhere to the foliage better. Sprinkling is not spraying. The best results are ob- tained from the use of a fine spray or mist forcibly applied to the foliage ; and so far as possible, it should reach the under side of the leaves. A fine mist is preferable to a coarse spray, as there is much less waste of material and much less danger of injury to the foliage. A single dash of the mist is better than continued soaking, as in the latter case the material gathers in drops and runs off or injures the foliage. The treatment of apple trees at various times during the sea- son and the purpose of the same may be briefly stated as fol- lows : A. Lime-Sulphur wash (Formula 7), before buds begin to swell. For oyster shell bark louse or San Jose scale. B. Tanglefoot, smear on bands of tarred paper about the trees early in spring. For canker worm. C. Bordeaux mixture and Paris screen or lead arsenate 58 (Formula 8 or 9), as soon as the buds open, before blossoming. For apple scab, leaf blight, rot; and for bud moth, canker worm, tent caterpillar and forest caterpillar. D. Bordeaux mixture and Paris green or lead arsenate (Formula 8 or 9), as soon as the blossoms have fallen. For scab, leaf blight, rot, canker worm, tent caterpillar and codling moth. E. Repeat D after about two weeks. Omit E if experience in your locality warrants it. F. Bordeaux mixture (Formula 1), two weeks after the last treatment and still again if the season is very wet. For scab, leaf blight and rot. The tent caterpillar, forest caterpillar and canker worm must be met early, (just as soon as they appear), in order that spray- ing shall be effective. Kerosene emulsion (Formula 4) applied in June, when the eggs first hatch, is an effective treatment for oyster shell bark lice. It is also destructive to plant lice when these appear. In place of the lime wash, treatment with caustic soda (For- mula 5) may be used for oyster shell bark louse. Culture. If the curculio and the apple maggot are present practice clean cultivation, plowing about three times during the season, beginning in June if the curculio is present or in July if only the maggot is troublesome ; the last plowing to be made after the fruit is gathered. Gathering Windfalls. As both the larva of the curculio and of the maggot are found in the small apples and later leave these to pupate in the earth, it is highly important to rake up frequently all windfalls and destroy them. This means not only the larger apples but even those which are no larger than a pea. Where sheep or hogs are pastured in an orchard the trouble of gathering windfalls by hand is avoided. Fungous Enemies. Fungi can be successfully combated only before the plants are attacked.. The more important fungous diseases of the 59 apple in Maine which may be controlled wholly or in part by spraying are : scab ; black, brown, pink, and bitter, rot ; fly- speck and sooty blotch of the fruit, leaf spot, and various forms of limb canker. Apple scab is one of the most troublesome of the fungous diseases in Maine. This is so well known as not to require description. Bordeaux mixture (Formula i) is the best gen- eral preventive of fungous attack. For apple scab, spray with Bordeaux mixture (Formula i) before the buds open; repeat as soon as the blossoms fall, and again two or three times during the season. Materials Used in Fighting Apple Enemies. CAUTION: The following formulas are for use on the apple. In many cases they are not adapted for more tender plants. Keep all poisons carefully labelled and out of the reach of children and animals. FORMULA EOR APPLE SCAB AND OTHER FUNGOUS DISEASES. Formula i. bordeaux mixture. Copper Sulphate 3 pounds Fresh Lime (unslaked) 3 pounds Water 50 gallons how To prepare bordeaux mixture. (To be used the same day as made.) The copper sulphate is dissolved and the lime slaked in sep- arate vessels. A wooden or earthen vessel must be used for the copper sulphate, as it corrodes iron. Each solution should then be diluted with half the water and then the cold, dilute sulphate and milk of lime solution quickly united and thoroughly mixed. Never pour concentrated solutions together. If im- practicable to pour the two dilute solutions into the sprayer or mixing tank simultaneously, the dilute copper sulphate solu- tion should be first placed in the tank and the dilute milk of lime solution quickly added with constant stirring. Best results are obtained if care is taken to add the water slowly to the lime while slaking, but it should not be allowed to become dry. The milk of lime must be strained and this is 6o best done while still hot. A brass wire strainer of about 30 meshes to the inch (No. 50) or a piece of cheesecloth backed by common window screen may be used. The best type of strainer can be made by nailing together four one-inch boards about 7 or 8 inches wide and 12 or 15 inches long making a box open at both ends. One end of the box is then cut off at a considerable angle leaving one side shorter than the other. No. 50 brass wire strainer is tacked on to this end. Two cleats are nailed to the other end of the box long enough to more than reach across the top of a barrel. When placed on top of a barrel with the wire bottom down all the solid particles from the solution are washed to the lower side of the screen, thus avoiding clogging the whole surface. HOW TO PREPARE BORDEAUX MIXTURE. (Stock solutions which may be kept indefinitely.) The most convenient method of preparing Bordeaux mixture is to make stock solutions. For this purpose suspend 50 pounds of copper sulphate in a bag near the top of a 50-gallon barrel and fill with water. This should dissolve over night. In an- other 50-gallon barrel slake 50 pounds of stone lime, dilute and strain and make up to 50 gallons. A gallon of each solution ivell stirred with be equivalent to 1 pound of copper sulphate or lime as the case may be. For a 50-gallon tank of mixture the stock solutions should be thoroughly stirred and then 3 gallons of each dipped out, diluted and mixed as described above. Although the solutions will keep while separate, they should not be combined until the day they are to be used. Air-slaked lime should never be used in making Bordeaux Mixture. FORMULAS POR INSECTS WHICH CHEW. Formula 2. paris green. 1 '.-iris Green }i pound Lime (unslaked ) 3 pounds Water 50 gallons* The standard remedy for the destruction of insects which eat the foliage or fruit. The lime is added to prevent the Paris green from burning the foliage. Slake the lime in a little water. 6i make into a thin paste and strain. Wet the Paris green with a little water and make into a thin paste. Mix the lime and Paris green and add the remainder of the water. Formula 3. lead arsenate. Lead Arsenate or Disparene 2 pounds Water 50 gallons* Arsenate of lead acts slower as a poison than Paris green. It has the advantage, however, of remaining longer in suspen- sion in water, of not burning the foliage and of adhering better than Paris green. Make a smooth thin paste with the poison and a little water and add the remainder of the water and stir thoroughly. In our own practice this is preferred to Formula 2. It is excellent for canker worm on elm trees. FORMULAS FOR INSECTS WHICH SUCK. Formula 4. kerosene emulsion. Hard Soap y 2 pound Boiling Water 1 gallon Kerosene 2 gallons To prepare, dissolve one-half pound of soap in one gallon of soft water by boiling; when well dissolved and still boiling hot, remove from the fire and add two gallons of kerosene, and agitate at once as briskly as possible. The emulsion is more readily made if the kerosene first be heated by immersing the vessel containing it in a larger vessel of boiling water. Never heat the kerosene over a direct fire. If large quantities are being made, a good way to emulsify is to use a force pump and spraying nozzle and pump the mix- ture as forcefully as possible back into the vessel containing it. If the emulsion is properly formed, the whole mass will appear much like whipped cream and will mix readily in water without a film of oil rising to the top. As soon as emulsified, add twenty-seven gallons of water and use at once. This will make thirty gallons of the mixture, and such an emulsion will be one-fifteenth oil (or a 7% emulsion). *An ordinary oil barrel holds about 50 gallons. This amount is suffi- cient for 15 to 25 trees. 62 This is the strength ordinarily used for the destruction of in- sects upon plants. For larger or smaller quantities, prepare in the same proportions. Sometimes the emulsion is not perfect and a little oil rises to the top. In such cases, if the last in the barrel or tank is pumped out upon the foliage, it is likely to burn it. So it is advisable, unless the emulsion is of good quality, to throw out the last few gallons, making no use of it. It is best to dilute and apply kerosene emulsion as soon as it is prepared. Avoid using alkali or any hard water in making the emul- sion, as it will cause the oil to separate and rise to the top. Any clean, soft water will usually give good results. Formula 5. misciblL oils. There are several miscible oils upon the market which may be added directly to water forming a milky emulsion at once. In the preparation of any of these, such as "Scalecide," or "Target Brand Scale Destroyer" or "Killoscale," add the oil directly to the water with a little stirring. One gallon of the miscible oil in 30 to 50 gallons of water will make a mixture, which in most cases will be strong enough to kill plant lice, if thoroughly applied. Formula 6. whall-oil or fish-oil soaps. The so-called whale-oil or fish-oil soaps which are quite extensively used for the destruction of plant lice, will usually be effective if thoroughly applied in the proportion of one pound of the soap to each six or eight gallons of water. There are numerous brands of these soaps upon the market. Among those that have been used quite successfully are Good's Whale- Oil Soap and Bowker's Tree Soap. Formula 7. soap solution. AYashing Powder y 2 pound Water 3 gallons The soap dissolves readily in the water. Formula 8. tobacco decoction. Tobacco stems or tobacco dust 2 pounds Water 4 gallons 63 Put the tobacco in the water, enough to cover, which may be either cold or hot. Place over the fire and when the water has reached the boiling point, remove some of the fire and allow the water to simply simmer for fully one hour, when the liquid is ready to be drained off, diluted to the above proportions and applied. Boiling violently drives off the nicotine. If whole-leaf tobacco is used, prepare as above, using one pound of tobacco to each four gallons of water. No lime or other alkaline substance should be added to the tobacco while cooking. Apply at once, or within a few days after making if possible. Black Leaf. — There is nothing to do in the preparation of Black Leaf except to thoroughly stir the contents of the can before pouring out any quantity for dilution. In most cases one gallon of the Black Leaf will be found sufficient for each seventy gallons of water. But if in the treatment of any louse this does not seem sufficient it may be used in proportion of one gallon to sixty or sixty-five gallons of water. Careful sprayers have usually succeeded in killing plant lice with this preparation in the proportion of one gallon to each one hun- dred gallons of water. Thoroughness of application is of as much importance as the strength of the material used. Formula 9. caustic soda. Caustic Soda 1 ounce Water 2 gallons The soda dissolves readily and may be used in any amount desired: It is a strong caustic, however, and must be used with care, and only when the trees are dormant. Formula 10. lime, sulphur wash. (For winter spray only.) Flowers of Sulphur 15 pounds Good Lump Lime 15 pounds AYater 45 gallons This is the 1 1-3 lime-sulphur mixture. First slake the lump lime with sufficient warm water, and while still boiling hot add the sulphur and stir it in. Place over fire and continue the boiling, adding water when necessary, until the mixture changes 6 4 to a deep reddish brown color which indicates that the lime has cut the sulphur. It will be necessary to boil steadily for about forty minutes to one hour to produce this result. The mixture should then be diluted to form forty-five gallons of the spray, and should be applied at once. When the lime-sulphur mixture is placed in the barrel or tank it should be strained to take out all lumps that would clog the spray nozzle. If allowed to stand for any great length of time after being prepared, the lime-sulphur crystalizes out to a con- siderable extent. In such a case it is necessary to heat the mix- ture again before applying so as to dissolve all the crystals. If the crystals are re-dissolved the mixture will be as strong as before. Commercial Lime-Sulphur JJ'aslics. There are a number of commercial brands of concentrated preparations of lime-sulphur on the market. Some of these are excellent and of uniform composition, others are wholly unreliable. formulas for combined insecticides and fungicides. Make a smooth paste of the poisons and a little water, add to the Bordeaux mixture and stir thoroughly. Apply at once. Formula n. Paris Green J / 2 pound Bordeaux Mixture 50 gallons* Formula 12. Lead Arsenate or Disparene 1 pound Bordeaux Mixture 50 gallons* How to Spray. Spraying is an effective method of securing perfect fruit and healthy foliage. To obtain the best results, insecticides and fungicides must be applied forcibly in the form of a fine mist, not in coarse drops lightly sprinkled over the foliage. Inas- *An ordinary oil barrel holds about 50 gallons. This amount is suffi- cient for 15 to 25 trees. 65 much as spraying' is a preventive measure (not a cure) the whole surface of the tree must be covered. In large orchards three men can usually work to advantage, — one to drive the team and work the pump, the others to handle the nozzles. THE APPARATUS. The necessary apparatus consists of a force pump, with two lines of hose, nozzles, a barrel or tank for holding the spraying mixture, and a wagon for carrying all. The Pump: The pump should be large enough to easily supply two lines of discharge hose and to develop a pressure of at least 60 pounds to the square inch. It should also have a good agitator. The small bucket pumps and knapsack sprayers do very well for a few trees in the garden, but for field work they are unsatisfactory. All parts of the pump that are sub- ject to wear should be made of brass and should be carefully adjusted. The pump and all other apparatus should be thor- oughly washed every time after using. The Hose: Two pieces of ^-inch hose or better, of ^-inch double insertion hose, fifty feet long, are needed, if the opera- tors are to stand on the ground. In case a raised platform is built above the wagon, twenty-five feet of hose in each line will be sufficient. For very tall trees a bamboo extension rod is preferred to an extra long piece of hose. The \o::j:Ic: There are many good nozzles, but the best tried at the Experiment Station, is the Yermorel, sold by most dealers in spraying apparatus. The Yermorel throws a finer spray than the others, but is easily clogged unless the spraying mix- ture is carefully strained through cheese-cloth or a fine wire screen before using. The Barrel: A kerosene barrel, holding about fifty gallons, is a convenient tank. A small opening should be made in which to place the pump, and another, larger one, through which to fill the tank and stir the mixture. The Wagon: Any low wagon, or even a dump-cart will answer the purpose. For convenience in turning, a two-wheeled cart is to be preferred. For tall trees, if not planted too close together, a high platform built over the hind end of the wagon, on which the operators may stand, will be found useful. 66 REFERENCES TO LITERATURE ON APPLE INSECTS. a. CIRCULARS AND BULLETINS FROM THE MAINE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION.* Circular. Red-Humped Caterpillar. Yellow-edge or Mourning Cloak Butterfly. Yellow-neck Caterpillar. Cecropia Moth. Tent Caterpillar. Forest Tent Caterpillar. Tussock Moth. Brown-Tail Moth. Apple Maggot or Railroad Worm. Plum Curculio. Tiger Swallow-tail Butterfly. Sphinx Chersis and other Hawk Moths. Fall Web Worm. Tiger Moths. Bud Moths. Io Moth. Two Scale Insects of Maine. Bulletin 161. Saddled Prominent. b. CIRCULARS AND BULLETINS OE THE UNITED STATES DEPART- MENT OF AGRICULTURE.** Circular 7. Bureau of Entomology. Pear-tree Psylla. 9. " " Canker Worms. 11. " " " Rose Chafer. 20. " " " Woolly Aphis of the Apple. 26. " " " Pear Slug. 29. " " " Fruit-tree Bark-beetle. 32. Larger Apple-tree Bor- ers. *These may be secured free of charge by applying to "Maine Agricul- tural Experiment Station, Orono, Maine." **These may be secured free of charge by applying to the U. S. De- partment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. 6 7 Circular 42. Bureau of Entomology. How to Control the San Jose Scale. 81. " " " Aphids Affecting the Apple. 98. " " " Apple-tree Tent Cater- pillar. Farmers' Bulletin 127. Bu. of Ent. Important Insecticides. 264. " " " Brown-tail Moth and How to Control It. 275. " " " Gypsy Moth and How to Control It. 68 Apple Aphids and Work. FiGS. 30-33 ('.rem apple-aphis; 30, Winter eggs; 31, Winged form; $2, Wingless form; 33, Leaf curl caused by Apple-aphis; 34, Woolly aphis, wingless form; 35, Knotty root caused by Woolly aphis. (Figs. 30-33 after Quaintance; 34- 35 after Marlatt). WINTER STAGES Photographed from Maine specimens. Fig. 36, Eggs from which Tent Caterpillars hatch. Fig. 37, Cocoon of Cecropia Moth. Fig. 38, Winter nest of Brown-tail Moth. Fig. 39- Eggs of the antique Tussock Moth on cocoon. APPLES INJURED BY INSECTS Fig 4 o, Coddling Moth (after Lodeman). Figs. 41, 4*, Apple, eaten by Ro. Chafer (photographed July, ,907). Fig «, ^xon of apple showing work of apple maggot (Photographed Oct 1907). Fig. 44, Hightop with characteristic trail of apple maggot (Photographed Sept, ^903) Fig- 45, apple deformed by apple curculio ( Photographed July ii, 1907)- BENEFICIAL INSECTS Figs. 46-49, Ichneumon sublatus, parasites bred from pupae of Saddled Prominent. Fig. 50, Parasitized specimens of young Red-humped Cater- pillars attached to apple leaf and parasites ( Limneria guigardi) which emerged from them. Photographed August 29, 1906. Fig. 51, Beetle ( Ca/osoma fjeeding on Saddled Prominent (Bui. 161 Maine Agr. Exp. Sta.) Fig. '52, 53, Lady Beetles, adult and larva, which feed on Aphids (After Marlatt.) Fig. 54, Podisus modestus, a bug stabbing the Sad- dled Prominent (From Bui. 161 Maine Agr. Exp. Sta.) Fig. 55. Mottled Fruit Caterpillar (Crocigrapha Normani). Photographed July 10, 1907. 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