No. 7. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 415 



was expected to make a report of my year's work, makes it well 

 uigh impossible to give a report such as the Board might desire; 

 and not being a professional entomologist, but rather an amateur 

 in the business, makes it doubly difficult to do the matter justice. 

 Insect life had a comparatively unimpeded existence in Pennsylva- 

 nia, with your entomologist out of the State from early spring 

 until way in December, and with the definite knowledge that he did 

 not know of his election, and was only an amateur; and the only 

 thing the entomologist can do is to report some of their pranks to 

 this Board for its consideration. 



The insects of our fruits seemed to be about as numerous as at 

 anytime. The American tent caterpillar has made great headway 

 and has well-nigh covered the State, according to the best informa- 

 tion we can obtain. That this is one of the most destructive cater- 

 pillars, we have need not be gainsaid and then, too, at a time w^hen 

 the tree is just merging from its long winter sleep and needs all 

 its foliage to set the fruit and begin its summer work. The rea- 

 son for the enormous increase in this caterpillar seems to be the 

 absence in our orchards of the species of birds, namely, the black 

 and yellow-billed cuckoo and the Baltimore oriole, which feed on 

 it. It is, however, easily controlled by spraying, and all orchardists 

 should certainly destroy it by this means. 



The fall weevil worm which was so numerous in the southern and 

 eastern part of the State, and which, in 1901, destroyed an entire 

 crop of apples and reduced the vitality of the trees so much that 

 in many counties the crop of 1902 was inferior in quantity and 

 quality, seems to have well-nigh disappeared from that part of the 

 State, due to an enemy which we do not understand sufficiently to 

 describe. 



The Tussock moth has also largely disappeared from this part of 

 the State, evidently due to the same cause. The codling moth 

 again committed its usual depredations among the farmers; 

 whereas, among the fruit growers it has been held in check, so far 

 as we could learn. Therefore, if the ordinary apple grower could 

 be induced to spray, if it were only for this moth, it would soon 

 yield to this treatment and would no longer be the destructive 

 pest it has hitherto been. Some of the apple growers thought the 

 moth was not so plentiful this year as in previous years, and attri- 

 bute this to the extremely cold w^eather we had last winter. One of 

 the best preventive measures is to have a flock of wood-peckers in 

 the orchards. 



During our tour of farmers' institute work in the western coun- 

 ties, we especially noticed the large apple crop not yet harvested, 

 the ground being covered with apples and some still hanging on the 

 trees; and when we inquired why it was, were told that there was no 

 market for these apples and that farmers simply let them remain 

 in the orchards; whereas, at Pittsburg, apples no better in quality, 

 sold for 40 cents per peck. The quality is poor and, therefore, no 

 sale; whereas, a good quality always finds a market. This was 

 demonstrated at St. Louis this fall where the states were showing 

 the very choicest fruits, and Oregon carried off the palm for the 

 finest apples ever exhibited or, at least, said to have been the finest. 

 These apples were sold and used in the city of St. Louis for decorat- 



