268 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



hide, but remains in the tree. These beetles are not solely engaged in pairing 

 and egg-laying, for they are good feeders and gouge out many a hole in our 

 fruits to satisfy their appetites. The eggs soon hatch, when the young larvse 

 bore into the fruit and continue to eat. As these are sometimes, though quite 

 rarely, found in apples, I would state that they can be easily told from the cod- 

 ling moth larvae, as they are without legs, thus resembling maggots. They 

 grow rapidly to maturity, thus causing plums, peaches, and apples to fall pre- 

 maturely, though cherries usually remain on the tree. The earliest larvae are 

 ready to go into the ground and pupate by the last of June. As egg-laying 

 goes on even till July, it will readily be seen that larvae will be found in the 

 fruit all through the summer, and I have found them in peaches even in Sep- 

 tember. All of these pupaa change into mature insects during summer and 

 autumn, so the insects all pass the winter as mature beetles, concealed either 

 under boards or in crevices, or even in the ground. In May they commence 

 coming forth, and continue to put in an appearance even to mid-summer. The 

 most important question is, how shall we rid our plums of this pest? There 

 are several ways adopted by different parties, all of which are quite effectual in 

 their application if strictly followed. To make a sure thing of it I should 

 adopt the following method : First, the ground should be plowed and cultivated 

 to keep clean ot all weeds or grass — the smoother the ground and harder it is 

 packed around and under the tree, the better; I should let all the poultry run 

 among the trees and feed them there ; then smoke the trees once in four days 

 with coal tar by burning it under each tree for a few moments at a time; then 

 the tree should be jarred every morning before eight o'clock, and again just 

 before dark, at evening, taking care to catch the curculio on a sheet or cloth 

 and destroy them. If these directions are carried out strictly you will find no 

 difficulty in growing plums so far as the curculio is concerned. Fowls will 

 pick up both the larvae and the beetles, but they are not a sufficient protection. 

 Another method of capture is to place chips, boards, or pieces of bark under 

 the trees. The beetles crawl under these and may be easily captured by day. 

 He thought no one process sufficient — all should be employed, and then a good 

 crop was certain. He thought the plum succeeded best on clay soils; thought 

 the curculio preferred sandy or gravelly soils. He knew a man who laid a floor 

 of cement under a plum tree and frequently jarred it, and, sweeping up the 

 curculio, got good crops of fruit. 



Mr. Lilly said that at Mr. Jewett's he had seen two plum trees on heavy soil; 

 one stood in grass, and every plum was stung, while about the other the grass 

 was cut away and the fowls fed there, and it was full of fruit. So they did 

 not dislike clay soil. He had seen peaches badly rotted because of curculio. 



Mr. Sailor said Mr. Dyckman of South Haven found the curculios very 

 damaging to Hale's Early peaches, but kept them down by the chip process. 



G. W. Lonsbury had known plum trees to be protected and bear large crops 

 of fruit by throwing into them wood ashes when the dew was on. 



The secretary read the proceedings of the South Haven society when consid- 

 ering this subject, by which it appeared that most members favored the jarring 

 process. This is best effected by sheets, from 4x4 to 9x9 feet in size, according 

 to size of trees, mounted on frames and carried by two men, or mounted on 

 wheels, as a barrow. A slit in the cloth admits the tree to the center. A rap 

 on the tree causes the beetles to fall (they feign death on the slightest disturb- 

 ance), when they may be gathered up. The mounted sheet may be in circular 

 form, and should sag to a point. If below this a tight box is fixed the beetles 

 may be easily shaken into it, and every one captured. 



