650 Agricultural Experiment Station, Ithaca, N. Y. 



chestnut, and neguiido trees. Among^ fruit-trees tlie peach has 

 suffered the most, as it is p;rown most extensively on the sandy soils 

 where cutworms flourish best ; standard varieties of fruit-trees are 

 often injured as much as the dwarfs. Blackberry, raspberry, rose, 

 and currant bushes must also be included iu the list of food-plants. 

 The buds and leaves of grape-vines, whether in California, New 

 York, or Europe, seem to be favorite delicacies for cutworms. 



Florists also have occasion to complain of these nocturnal maraud- 

 ers. Sometimes the buds, leaves, or flowers of out-door flowering 

 plants are found strewn about on the ground in the morning; 

 or a much admired blossom may have been eaten into and mined 

 during the night. The culprits, lying snugly hidden in the soil 

 near by, are entirely unconcerned over the florist's discomfiture, 

 and, unless their day-dreams are seriously interrupted, the destructive 

 work is continued at night-fall. Often the young cutworms are 

 unwittingly brought into the greenhouse with potted plants or in 

 new soil in the fall. The worms may feed for a time unnoticed on 

 the lower leaves or young shoots. A little later, or about the time 

 the choicest blossoms or the smilax are at their best, or the tomato- 

 vines that are being forced promise a good crop, then the nearly 

 full-grown cutworms often do much damage. Many choice chrys- 

 anthemum and carnation blossoms have been mysteriously ruined in 

 a single night. One chrysanthemum grower, not suspecting it was 

 the work of cutworms, vainly tried to catch the culprits with 

 mouse-traps ! 



Cutworms Known to Have Climbing Habits. 



Under the favorable conditions, discussed above, doubtless any 



species of cutworm would assume the climbing habit. A search 



through the American literature shows that at least ten different 



species have had occasion to climb for their food ; our observations 



increase the number to an even dozen. In the list which follows is 



given the common name of the cutworm, the scientific name of each 



species, and the references to the first accounts of their climbing 



habits. 



1852. Harris, Injurious Insects, p. 849. 



The yellow-headed cutworm {Xylophasia arctica Bdv.). 



1866. Riley, Prairie Farmer, June 2. 



1869. Riley, First Miseouri Report, p. 69-79. 

 The variegated cutworm {Peridroma saucia Hbn.), 



