REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST 



James Fletcher, F.R.S.C, F.L.S. 



Wm. Saunders, Esq., 



Director, Dominion Experimental Farms, 

 Ottawa. 



Sir, — I have the honour to hand you herewith a report on some of the more impor- 

 tant subjects which have been brought officially under my notice during the past season. 

 In addition to those mentioned in the report, a great many other subjects have been 

 studied, which will be of value on future occasions. The correspondence of this depart- 

 ment is now very large ; there were received in the year 1894 from January 1st to 

 December 31st, 2,404 letters; and despatched during the same period, 2,465. Contained in 

 the letters received are very valuable data and records of observations by correspon- 

 dents. These although not used now are carefully preserved, and will be made use of, 

 when the various subjects to which they refer, are treated of in full : among the latter are 

 insect enemies of root crops, fodder crops, vegetables, forest trees and live stock ; the 

 important subjects of grasses and weeds, which have been much inquired about, will re- 

 quire extended treatment at an early date. It will be seen that the greater part of the 

 work of the past season, has been with reference to fruit insects. The matter submitted 

 herewith is such as it has appeared to me, was of the greatest importance to bring for- 

 ward at once, although, in some instances, the information obtained is incomplete. In 

 accordance with an arrangement made last spring, the work upon parasitic fungous 

 diseases is now carried on by Mr. Craig, the Horticulturist. 



In the arboretum and botanic garden, a good deal has been done during the past 

 season. A large proportion of the part already laid out and planted, has been seeded 

 down to grass. Extensive additions have been made to the collection of shrubs and 

 trees, and two long borders have been prepared and graded for the reception of the col- 

 lection of native and foreign perennials. It is hoped to make this an attractive feature 

 of the botanic garden. A large collection of seeds of native plants has now been made, 

 and next year these will be utilized for the botanic garden. 



The experiments with native grasses have been continued, and much useful inform- 

 ation with regard to the various species tried here and tested by correspondents is being 

 placed on record. The experiments in the treatment of potato rot were this year ex- 

 tremely satisfactory and showed the very great advantage of spraying potatoes with 

 Bordeaux mixture to protect them against the disease. In accordance with your in- 

 structions, I prepared for publication, early in July last, a short bulletin (Experimental 

 Farm Notes, No. 2) on " Potato Blights." This was widely noticed through the press, 

 and I am pleased to learn that many Canadian farmers tested the remedy and found it 

 satisfactory. Mr. Clarence N". Goodspeed, of Peniac, N. B., writes in regard to spraying 

 potatoes with Bordeaux mixture : " I would say that I sprayed mine twice with very good 

 results. Our land is low and often covered with water by freshets, and seems very 

 liable to potato disease. For the last ten or fifteen years our potatoes have rotted in 

 the ground more or less, sometimes one-third. This year we did not find one potato 

 diseased in our field of four acres. We had some on ground that had been planted two 

 years, some one year, and some never planted before. In this last plot the best results 

 were obtained, and the stalks remained quite green until the crop was dug. I am 

 satisfied with the results obtained." 



Many appreciative letters have been received from farmers testifying to the value 

 of the information sent out from this department. I give as an example the following, 

 which relates to one of the most injurious enemies of field crops, but at the same time 



