The Control of the Codling Moth. 253 



In the Eastern orchard the trees are in sod and about 40 feet apart. There 

 are many stubs of broken branches in which the larvae hibernate. The fruit 

 has always been abundant, but is oractically all infested by this insect. 



The woodpeckers have done much effective work in both these orchards by 

 digging out and eating the larvae. Other insects may be attacking the trunks 

 of the trees or eating the leaves. Practically no revenue is derived from either 

 of these orchards, but, on the contrary, they are a constant source of loss. 



Many farmers who have orchards similar to those just described believe 

 that the only thing to be done is to cut down the trees and start new orchards 

 instead of renovating the old. These orchards can be restored quite easily and 

 made to produce profitably for many years. Work should be begun late in the 

 fall or early in the spring, and the treatment should he about the same in both 

 cases, except that the Western orchard should be irrigated freely, and every 

 second tree should be cut out In both orchards the soil should receive a very 

 shallow cultivation for a year and a dressing of manure. The following year 

 cover crops, such as cowpea or red clover, should be sown and plowed under, 

 and this should be repeated every few years. Branches should be cut out where 

 they are matted together, thus allowing access of the sunlight and spraying solu- 

 tion. In the W>st a thick foliage is often an advantage in protecting the fruit 

 from the sun and thus avoiding sunburn. The dead branches and stuos should 

 be cut away and burned. It is highly important that tlie cut ends be smooth and 

 dressed with shellac varnish or grafting wax. All of the rough bark should be 

 scraped from the trunks and larger branches. The holes in the tree should be 

 filled with plaster or cement, thus confining all larvae that are in them and 

 preventing others from -entering later in the season. 



If proper attention is given an orchard when it is young, no such work will 

 ever be necessary. 



MEASURES FOE USE IN YOUNG OECHAItDS. 



If a young orchard is to be planted in a badly infested locality, this insect 

 must be considered from the very first if any degree of success is to be achieved. 

 The question of varieties is largely a question of climate, soil, and the demands 

 of the market. The Winesap and Lawver varieties are always resistant to this 

 insect, and the Ortley and Pewaukee are always badly infested. Late winter 

 varieties are usually less infested than the fall varieties, and in some sections of 

 the country the early apples are harvested before the second generation of the 

 insect attacks the fruit. The trees should never be planted nearer together than 

 30 by 30 feet in order that a spraying machine and wagon may have plenty of 

 space between the rows. They should lean toward the southwest, so that the 

 tops will shade the trunks, thus in a measure avoiding sun scald, the effects 

 of which furnish secure places in which the codling moth larvae can spin their 

 cocoons. The pruning of a tree when it is young is of the utmost importance. 

 If the tree grows too high it is difiicult to spray when it is full grown ; if too 

 low the branches lie on the ground and the same difficulty occurs. It is expensive 

 to pick the fruit from high trees, and when the lower branches are on the 

 ground the fruit upon them will be uncolored. A good average between the 

 high and the low trees is to be desired. If only two or three main branches grow 

 out from the trunk they will nearly always split apart under the weght of a full 

 load of fruit. When such a branch is put in place and held either by a bolt or 

 a wire, the crack made by the splitting is an attractive place for the insects, 

 in many orchards it has been observed that trees thus injured always have a 

 higher percentage of wormy fruit than those which are uninjured. This splitting 

 may be prevented by pruning, so as to cause many branches to form the body 

 of the tree, and cutting back about half of each year's growth, so as to make 

 the tree stocky and able to bear the excessive weight ; by thinning the fruit : 

 or by propping the limbs. 



By planting clover in an orchard, not only is the soil benefited, but the 

 ground is kept moist ; and because they dislike moisture the larvae will not 

 spin cocoons in the ground around or near the tree. 



