THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 45 



We do not know of any insect belonging to the family Chrysomelida, of 

 which this beetle is a member, possessing poisonous properties, hence we 

 deemed it highly improbable, from the first, that there was any truth in 

 the stories so widely circulated, and which have created so much unneces- 

 sary alarm. 



ARTIFICIAL REMEDIES PARIS GREEN. 



The many Entomologists and Agriculturists Avho have experimented 

 on this insect, with various poisonous and other substances, in those por- 

 tions of the United States where it has been so destructive for some vears 

 past, concur in recommending the use of Paris Green, diluted with flour, 

 ashes or air-slacked lime, as the best remedy known for destroying the 

 insect, both in its larva and beetle state, without injuring the plant. The 

 results of our experiments and investigations confirm this opinion, and this 

 remedy is, no doubt, a reliable one, provided the Paris Green be of good 

 quality. Our experience has also satisfied us that Hour is a much better 

 substance to mix the green with than either ashes or lime, as the insects 

 eat it more readily, and, at the same time, it adheres more tenaciously to 

 the surface of the plant, and hence is not so easily washed off by rain. 

 We found good effects from a mixture of one part, by weight, of Paris 

 Green, with 10 or 12 parts of flour, dusted lightly on the vines early in 

 the morning, when the dew is on the foliage. 



HOW BEST APPLIED. 



Where only a small patch is cultivated, the mixture can be readily 

 applied by means of an ordinary flour-dredger ; but where larger quantities 

 are grown, we would suggest the use of a round tin box, about nine or ten 

 inches in diameter, and four or five inches in depth, with a tightly-fitting 

 lid, and with a bottom either perforated with small holes, or covered with 

 fine wire gauze. This should be attached, by means of a hollow handle, 

 to a stick of any convenient length. W T ith such an instrument, which may 

 be obtained at a very trifling cost, a large piece of ground can be gone 

 over in a short time, and the mixture applied almost as fast as the operator 

 can walk. 



QUANTITIES REQUIRED, AND PROBABLE COST PER ACRE. 



After a careful estimate, we consider that three pounds of the Paris 

 Green, mixed with its due proportion of flour (30 to 56 pounds), will, if 

 economically used, be found sufficient for one acre of potatoes. Assuming 

 fifty cents to be the ordinary retail price per lb. of Paris Green, every 



