326 



STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Slingerland of the New York experiment station has studied the cabbage 

 maggot extensively and he favors the carbolic acid to the kerosene 

 emulsion. He also had good success with bisulphide of carbon by put- 

 ting it around the roots with a McGowen injector. Prof. Cook had very 

 poor success with the bisulphide of carbon in light or sandy soil, but in 

 clay it worked well. 



Cabbage Bntterfly. 



'THE CABBAGE WORM" {Pieris rapoe Linn.). 



The adult of this common caterpillar is a 

 white butterfly (Fig. 44). The female lays 

 her small yellowish eggs on the cabbage 

 leaves, and they soon hatch into the green, 

 velvety caterpillar that makes such havoc 

 with the cabbages the rest of the season. 

 There are at least two broods, but they are 

 so irregular that there seems to be only one 

 continuous brood. Although there is a 

 disease that kills many, and many more 

 are killed by predacious insects and parasites, yet we can never rely wholly 

 upon them to keep the cabbage worms in subjection. It is encouraging 

 to know that in large cabbage fields this caterpillar is not common enough 

 to do much harm. The farmer who raises a few for his own use is the one 

 who must fight them if he secures cabbages worthy the name. Many per- 

 fectly absurd remedies are in use for this pest. There are also many prac- 

 tical ones, the most common of which are the arsenites, pyrethrum, kero- 

 sene emulsion, and hot water. For a farmer with only a few cabbages in 

 his garden near the house, my preference is the last one. The cabbage 

 will endure water almost boiling, to within 30 degrees at least, while the 

 caterpillars are killed by water above 130 degrees, giving a range of tem- 

 perature of 50 degrees or more, inside of which one can surely guess near 

 enough. It takes little time to heat a kettle of water, carry it to the gar- 

 den and pour it over the cabbages, after which they will be clean, and 

 left free from all powder and dirt. 



THE ZEBRA CATERPILLAR {Mamestra picta Harr.). 



Sometimes in the latter part 

 of the season this yellow and 

 black banded caterpillar be- 

 comes plentiful enough on 

 cabbages to need treatment. If 

 so, use the same remedy as for 

 the common cabbage worm. 



Fig. 45. -Zibra Caterpillar anl Iiuhi-'k. 



