28o Bulletin 311 



Dr. A. S. Packard in 1869. He discusses it as a cherry pest and states 

 that it has been raised in abundance from that fruit tree. In 1880 Doctor 

 Packard again refers to it as an enemy of the oak, and remarks that, as 

 Dr. C. V. Riley has reared it from hickory, oak, soft maple, and elm, 

 it must be a general feeder on shade trees. 



In 1890 Professor Gillette recorded it as a serious pest to apple and 

 cherry trees in Colorado, and found that it completely defoliated the trees 

 in some instances. He also records it as attacking the plum, ctirrant, 

 raspberry, and gooseberry bushes. During the next few years it gradu- 

 ally increased in numbers, so that by 1894, he says, it was very abundant 

 on all kinds of fruit trees, and a large proportion of the fruit trees in the 

 northern part of the State were completely defoliated by the latter part 

 of June. In 1896 Gillette Hsted it among the worst insect pests of Colo- 

 rado, although it had evidently decreased somewhat by that time. In 

 1904, however, it again became very abundant, for he records this leaf- 

 roller as very destructive to the foliage of fruit trees in Denver and in 

 the vicinity of Colorado Springs. 



In the following year (1905) the leaf -roller became very destructive in 

 Missouri and was reported as injurious from every county in the State. 

 Professor Stedman writes that it greatly injured cherry, plum, apple, 

 pear, and apricot trees. His correspondents wrote that in some orchards 

 75 per cent of the crop was destroyed, while in others the crop was 

 " entirely ruined." 



The first definite reference to the occurrence of this leaf-roller as a 

 pest in New York was that made by Doctor Lintner in 1888, although 

 he had collected the adult moths as early as 1874. In June of 1888 he 

 received the larvae of this insect from P. Barry, of Rochester, N. Y., 

 who had found them eating into young pears. Again, in 1892, Doctor 

 Lintner received some young apples that had been deeply pitted. This 

 injury he refers doubtfully to larvffi of the leaf-roller. From that year 

 to 191 1 we hear nothing more of this pest in New York. 



The leaf -roller is evidently one of those insects that fluctuate markedly 

 in nimibers and in destructiveness. It appears to be exceedingly abundant 

 and destructive some years, and then gradually to decrease for several 

 years only to rise again into another period of great abundance. During 

 the past season it has again been very abundant in the Western States 

 and has caused a great amount of loss. Moreover, the outlook for next 

 year is causing the growers considerable anxiety. Reports from Colo- 

 rado are to the effect that the trees in some orchards are covered to the 

 tips of the branches with eggs, and the prospects are grave for even more 

 severe injury next year. In certain localities in New York the leaf -roller 

 promises to be present in abundance next year. 



