New York Agricultural Experiment Station. 139 



hellebore applied for the first brood is washed off by rain before 

 the appearance of the second brood. Bordeaux mixture, on th« 

 contrary, is not readily removed by rain and enough of it still 

 remains on the leaves to kill the second brood of worms. Besides 

 requiring but a single application, the Bordeaux mixture has an 

 additional advantage in that it protects the foliage, to a consid- 

 erable extent, against leaf spot. The superiority of Bordeaux 

 mixture22 is so evident that the use of hellebore has been almost 

 entirely abandoned, except in cases where the application has 

 been postponed until the fruit is so large that there is danger of 

 spotting it if Bordeaux is used. The application of the poisoned 

 Bordeaux is made upon the first appearance of worms; but last 

 spring the worms appeared somewhat later than usual and so 

 the Bordeaux was applied later. In fact, many persons accus- 

 tomed to spray for worms did not do so the past season because 

 there were so few worms that it seemed unnecessary. 



maturity in June, at which time they are about three-quarters of an inch 

 long. They go to the ground and spin cocoons around themselves in 

 which they change to chrysalides. During July they change again to 

 adult flies; as a result a second brood of worms occurs after the crop of 

 fruit is gathered. This worm can be distinguished from the span-worm 

 by its color, which is usually green covered with black dots, with the 

 extremities sometimes tinged with yellow; also by the fact that it does 

 not loop the body when it travels, but does frequently curl itself up side- 

 wise when feeding. 



In most sections of the country the last described species is usually the 

 most common currant pest. When hellebore is recommended, this is the 

 worm that is supposed to be doing the damage. 



The currant growers of the Hudson Valley have two distinct species of 

 worms to combat and these worms appear at three distinct periods. This 

 would require not only frequent applications of hellebore but also large 

 quantities of it. Such treatment is expensive. The use of hellebore has 

 also proven worthless as a remedy for the span-worm, as shown by the 

 fact that in 1897 the fields in the vicinity of Highland, even where helle- 

 bore was applied frequently, were completely stripped by this pest. 

 These conditions have done much to induce growers to use some arsenical 

 compound in Bordeaux mixture. — F, A. Sirrine. 



'^-It appears that poisoned Bordeaux mixture as a remedy for currant 

 worms came into use in the Hudson Valley about 1898. It was recom- 

 mended by Mr. F. A. Sirrine in a short article published in the Eastern 

 New York Horticulnrist for October, 1897. Mr. J. A. Hepworth of Marl- 

 borough and Messrs. W. D. Barns & Son of Middle Hope were among 

 the first to use it. 



