New York Agricultural Experiment Station. 379 



APPLE MAGGOT. 

 Rhagoletis pomonella Walsh. 



In addition to being called the apple maggot, the insect is also 

 commonly known as the railroad worm because of the long, winding, 



brownish channels made by the larvae 

 or maggots in the fruit. The adult 

 insects are flies. (Fig. 53.) They 

 appear in June and deposit eggs just 

 under the skin of the fruit. These 

 eggs hatch into maggots that burrow 

 irregular channels through the fruit. 

 (Fig. 54.) Moderately infested fruit 

 becomes rough and uneven due to the 

 " stings " or egg punctures of the fly. 

 Badly infested fruit falls early and the 

 maggots enter the soil, where they 

 remain until the following spring. 

 While many varieties of apples are 

 subject to attack, the injuries are 



Fig. 53.- Adult of Apple Maggot. more pronounced to certain sorts that 



mature in the summer and fall. 

 Remedies. — It has long been noticed that commercial orchards 

 that are cultivated and thoroughly sprayed are as a rule free 

 from injury by this maggot. Neglected orchards, particularly 

 of summer and fall varieties of apples, are susceptible to losses 

 every year. This is especially true in localities where little 

 attention is given to fruit-growing. In this lies a hint that 

 thorough spraying and cultivation 

 of orchards each year as prac- 

 tised by our most successful 

 growers are, perhaps, the most sat- 

 isfactory means of avoiding injury 

 by this pest. The only remedy 

 that experience has shown to be 

 effective in reducing the injury on 

 badly-infested varieties is the de- 

 struction of windfalls, which is 

 ordinarily accomplished by pastur- 

 ing the orchard with hogs or sheep. 

 Recently the use of poisoned bait 

 has been recommended for the 

 destruction of the fly. The method 

 employed is to syringe the lower 

 branches with a mixture of molas- 

 ses one pint, arsenate of lead three ounces and water four 

 gallons. 



Fig. 54. — Work of Apple Maggot. 



