New York Agricultural Experiment Station. 49 



Nursery Inspection of the New York Department of Agriculture 

 with plantings of foreign-grown seedings, and during the past four 

 years infested plants have been collected in thirteen localities in 

 the State. 



A report is given of life-history studies on some of the insect 

 material which was forwarded to this Station for identification. 

 Two species of moths were bred — Yponomeuta malinellus Zell., 

 which thrives largely on apple and Y. padeUus L., which is a 

 more general feeder, showing preference for hawthorn, plum and 

 cherry. Both species are common and destructive fruit insects 

 in Europe. The bulletin closes with a discussion as to the role 

 these insects are destined to play as fruit pests in the United 

 States. Careful inspections of nursery plantations and the sur- 

 roundings of nurseries indicate that these lepidopterons have not 

 gained a footing in New York. In states where there has not 

 been such inspection the danger that such has taken place is 

 obviously great. With the ability of these insects to survive the 

 conditions incidental to the importation of nursery stock from 

 abroad and to escape ordinary nursery inspection, the wonder is 

 that they have not before this succeeded in establishing themselves 

 along the avenues of trade in America. 



PLANT DISEASES. 



The annual loss to the agriculture of New York from the de- 

 vastations of fungus and other plant diseases is very large. These 

 diseases are in the nature of parasites living upon such hosts as 

 fruit trees, the potato and other important agricultural plants. 

 Their successful prevention is often very difficult and, in some 

 cases, practically impossible, for the treatment that would be severe 

 enough to destroy the fungus would also be fatal to the host. 



Economically considered one of the most important pieces of 

 work carried on by the Botanical Department has been the so- 

 called ten-year experiments in spraying potatoes. Before this 

 experiment began, it was knoAvn that the proper application of 

 the bordeaux preparation would practically control potato blight. 



